Showing posts with label preschoolers. Show all posts
Showing posts with label preschoolers. Show all posts
Saturday, September 17, 2011
The "BOOGY MONSTER"!!
YIKES! I haven't blogged in awhile and things have changed on blogger. It's going to take me a bit to get used to it. I have a bunch more pictures and topics to blog about, but my time is really limited having 3 little ones at home (one of them being an infant who is still nursing).
One of the topics I'd love to blog more about is the "schooling" we're doing at home. It's not officially homeschooling at this point, but it's been fun to do some structured things with the boys. This week the book we were reading was "Madeline" by Ludwig Bemelmans. It just so happened that on Thursday we were scheduled to talk about health (in the story Madeline gets her appendix taken out) and Micah also came down with a bad cold. It was a great opportunity to talk about hygiene as cold and flu season is just around the corner.
Here is the visual lesson we did on spreading germs. The original lesson plan used cooking spray and glitter, but I didn't have glitter and I wasn't able to get out to buy it seeing as I had a crabby and sick child at home. So, I borrowed some green washable finger paint from my neighbor and I think it worked just the same. I put some clean objects on a tray.
Then I put GERMS (green finger paint) all over Jackson's hands. I figured Micah already had germs on his that he could keep for himself.
I had Micah leave the room and had Jackson touch
several of the items. Micah then came back in and had to tell me which items had germs on them. I then asked Micah to pick up one of the objects with "germs" on it. He refused. (Perhaps that means he grasped the lesson a little). I picked up one of the objects to show how the germs then got on my hands.
We read a couple of books: "Germs Are Not For Sharing" by Elizabeth Verdick. There were a couple of other books on health that I found at our local library as well. We've also checked out this great book in the past: "Felicity Floo Visits the Zoo" by E.S. Redmond
We colored signs to hang in the bathroom. The first one tells when to wash your hands and the other one tells you how to wash them.
Then later this week I found a project on Pinterst that we like to call "Boogy Monster Boxes" basically it's a discard box for used tissues with "boogies" in them. The boys had a blast, but ended up just wanting to play with the box instead of using it for it's intended purpose. Oh well.
Micah demonstrated how to use it once and then just played with it. :)
If only you could hear him saying "I LOVE BOOGIES!!!" in his monster voice.
Well ... gotta go feed the kiddos lunch and attend to my sick little baby. I'm hoping when they're all healthy again I'll have a few minutes to post some of the other fun things we've been up to lately.
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
Big Brother Present
As I've been getting ready for our baby girl I've been preparing the house and the boys for being taken care of by church family while Colin and I are at the hospital.
One of the ideas I had was to wrap a present for the boys and put it out ahead of time and tell them they can open it when Mommy and Daddy go to the hospital.
I didn't want to spend a ton of money, but I wanted it to be a cool enough present that they would be distracted by it while we were away from them for a very short while.
As you know from my previous post, my boys love GeoTrax. I was able to to find THREE tunnels/bridges for the price of one on ebay the other day. I plan on giving one of them as a future present to their cousin in Iowa who shares the same passion for trains, but these two are wrapped and waiting for the day I go to the hospital to give birth to our little girl.
I really want to celebrate the life of our new little girl, but I also want to celebrate this new phase in the boys' life. Micah becoming a big brother for the very first time and Jackson taking another sibling under his wing.
Colin and I have been stressing the importance of their roles as big brothers to take care of their little sister. They are the princes and she is the princess. I believe they are up for the challenge and I can't wait to see what that looks like in reality.
One of the ideas I had was to wrap a present for the boys and put it out ahead of time and tell them they can open it when Mommy and Daddy go to the hospital.
I didn't want to spend a ton of money, but I wanted it to be a cool enough present that they would be distracted by it while we were away from them for a very short while.
As you know from my previous post, my boys love GeoTrax. I was able to to find THREE tunnels/bridges for the price of one on ebay the other day. I plan on giving one of them as a future present to their cousin in Iowa who shares the same passion for trains, but these two are wrapped and waiting for the day I go to the hospital to give birth to our little girl.
I really want to celebrate the life of our new little girl, but I also want to celebrate this new phase in the boys' life. Micah becoming a big brother for the very first time and Jackson taking another sibling under his wing.
Colin and I have been stressing the importance of their roles as big brothers to take care of their little sister. They are the princes and she is the princess. I believe they are up for the challenge and I can't wait to see what that looks like in reality.
Saturday, March 5, 2011
Keeping Ourselves Busy
Here are a few things the boys and I have been keeping busy with lately:
Making Cards:
Ever since Valentine's Day and my birthday, Jackson has especially enjoyed making cards. Here's one he made with his babysitter for my birthday. I LOVE the picture of the two boys in it!!!
Here's the inside of a get well card Jackson made for his friend Patrick.
Inventions:
Jackson wants to be an inventor when he grows up. Here's one he made out of the "project bag" present I gave him for Christmas. It's Rodney Copper Bottom and Wonderbot from the movie "Robots." He assembled it all by himself.
Of course there are LOTS of Lego creations around here too and Jackson is getting REALLY good at coming up with some very creative designs ... he takes after his daddy!
Anything Musical:
Micah especially loves music. He walks around with his guitar and loves to sing songs. It isn't unusual to have pandora.com playing on my laptop throughout the day around the house.
"Animal Shelter"
It's a game both boys came up with that consists of getting out all of their stuffed animals and putting them in bed or on the couch with them. They pretend to take care of the animals ... Grandma Deb's got her genes in them for sure!
GeoTrax and Cars:
We got a few extra pieces of track for Christmas that allows for a bit more creativity and now the boys play trains almost every day. Jackson loves to build the track and Micah can watch the trains going around for hours ... well for a while anyay.
Getting Ready for a Sister:
Oh yeah ... and the boys have been getting ready for the arrival of their little sister. They are pretty excited to get to see her face to face and teach her all of the things they know and do everyday.
Making Cards:
Ever since Valentine's Day and my birthday, Jackson has especially enjoyed making cards. Here's one he made with his babysitter for my birthday. I LOVE the picture of the two boys in it!!!
Here's the inside of a get well card Jackson made for his friend Patrick.
Inventions:
Jackson wants to be an inventor when he grows up. Here's one he made out of the "project bag" present I gave him for Christmas. It's Rodney Copper Bottom and Wonderbot from the movie "Robots." He assembled it all by himself.
Of course there are LOTS of Lego creations around here too and Jackson is getting REALLY good at coming up with some very creative designs ... he takes after his daddy!
Anything Musical:
Micah especially loves music. He walks around with his guitar and loves to sing songs. It isn't unusual to have pandora.com playing on my laptop throughout the day around the house.
"Animal Shelter"
It's a game both boys came up with that consists of getting out all of their stuffed animals and putting them in bed or on the couch with them. They pretend to take care of the animals ... Grandma Deb's got her genes in them for sure!
GeoTrax and Cars:
We got a few extra pieces of track for Christmas that allows for a bit more creativity and now the boys play trains almost every day. Jackson loves to build the track and Micah can watch the trains going around for hours ... well for a while anyay.
Getting Ready for a Sister:
Oh yeah ... and the boys have been getting ready for the arrival of their little sister. They are pretty excited to get to see her face to face and teach her all of the things they know and do everyday.
Thursday, February 10, 2011
Lifeguarding Skills Applied to Parenting
No we did not have an incident at the pool that needed lifeguarding skills.
When I was in high school I worked as a lifeguard at the YMCA. One of their policies was to enforce rules with positive redirection. Instead of saying, "No running!" they encourage you to say, "Walk please!" Instead of "No diving!" say, "Feet first only!"
It took a little bit of getting used to, but it made complete sense, after all, "No running!" left open a variety of other options (skipping, sliding, dancing, jumping) and "Walk please!" was clear and to the point.
Positive redirection stayed with me and frankly kept me quite sane when I worked 40+ hours at my daycare job and now as a parent. I think it may have saved me from having 15 2 -3 year olds screaming "NO!" at me all day long because they were mimicking me. Here are a few phrases I've learned to switch in my daily interaction with my kids:
"No whining!" - "Happy heart please!"
"No hitting!" - "Be loving please!"
"No yelling!" - "Inside voice please!"
Even saying "No thank you" instead of "No!" I think has helped my kids minimize their "NO!" stage in life (notice I said "minimize").
I've been surprised by this lifeguarding skill's most recent application. As my boys get to the age where they are playing together instead of just next to each other I often hear:
"STOP! STOP! STOP!"
"NO!"
(SCREAM)
"DON'T, DON'T, DON'T"
"I HAD THAT FIRST!"
There have been many opportunities to teach both my four year old and two year old the old lesson "you can catch more flies with honey than you can with vinegar." They're still learning, but everyday it seems to get better as they realize that yelling at each other is extremely unproductive.
Jackson is learning to tell Micah what he wants instead of yelling about what he doesn't want him to do. Instead of, "Micah, don't do that!" I'm hearing "Micah how about you play with this toy instead of taking mine away?"
When I was in high school I worked as a lifeguard at the YMCA. One of their policies was to enforce rules with positive redirection. Instead of saying, "No running!" they encourage you to say, "Walk please!" Instead of "No diving!" say, "Feet first only!"
It took a little bit of getting used to, but it made complete sense, after all, "No running!" left open a variety of other options (skipping, sliding, dancing, jumping) and "Walk please!" was clear and to the point.
Positive redirection stayed with me and frankly kept me quite sane when I worked 40+ hours at my daycare job and now as a parent. I think it may have saved me from having 15 2 -3 year olds screaming "NO!" at me all day long because they were mimicking me. Here are a few phrases I've learned to switch in my daily interaction with my kids:
"No whining!" - "Happy heart please!"
"No hitting!" - "Be loving please!"
"No yelling!" - "Inside voice please!"
Even saying "No thank you" instead of "No!" I think has helped my kids minimize their "NO!" stage in life (notice I said "minimize").
I've been surprised by this lifeguarding skill's most recent application. As my boys get to the age where they are playing together instead of just next to each other I often hear:
"STOP! STOP! STOP!"
"NO!"
(SCREAM)
"DON'T, DON'T, DON'T"
"I HAD THAT FIRST!"
There have been many opportunities to teach both my four year old and two year old the old lesson "you can catch more flies with honey than you can with vinegar." They're still learning, but everyday it seems to get better as they realize that yelling at each other is extremely unproductive.
Jackson is learning to tell Micah what he wants instead of yelling about what he doesn't want him to do. Instead of, "Micah, don't do that!" I'm hearing "Micah how about you play with this toy instead of taking mine away?"
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
My Love/Hate Relationship With Travel: Part 2
Day 12 - Sunday
Micah has a great night sleep with only one suppository before bed. Colin and I take turns at church with Jackson, but leave Micah at home. He's more himself eating a really good breakfast, but still just snacking throughout the day. He's also much more lethargic as the day progresses.
However, he takes a great uninterrupted nap in the afternoon allowing me to rest as well. He's somewhat interested in snack, but just lays on the floor most of the late afternoon. By supper time I go to pick him up off the floor and he empties his stomach all over me. It came on so quickly and without warning that I am actually a little flustered by it, which seems odd since I should be use to it by now. Perhaps because I feel like he was getting better it is the shock and disappointment that crushes my spirit.
I call Marie again this time on the verge of tears and she is very sweet in reassuring me that I'm not over reacting and that at this point Micah needs to go back to the doctor's to be looked over again and be sure there isn't anything else going on other than a virus.
I'm so flustered and exhausted and worried ... I cry a lot. I think of those parents who know that their children have terminal or chronic illnesses and I cry for them too. My imagination goes wild and I have to pray that God doesn't let Satan use that as a foothold to feed me lies. I pray, "Lord, I know you are the Great Physician. I believe you can heal Micah if it is your will. Help my unbelief."
Day 13 - Monday
I call the doctor's office and explain that I would like Micah to have an appointment that day due to the fact that he has been throwing up for a total of 9 days now and that he has an ear infection that I am not sure is clearing up with the antibiotics he was prescribed.
Here's a rough recollection of the phone conversation with the nurse:
Nurse: "Does he have a fever?"
Me: "No."
Nurse: "How often is he throwing up?"
Me: "About once or twice a day."
Nurse: "There's not much we can do for him."
Me: "Really?! Even though he's been throwing up for 9 days now?"
Nurse: "It's most likely a virus and he'll be fine in a few days."
Me: "Ya, but for NINE days? Doesn't that seem like a long time for a virus?"
Nurse: "Viruses can last from 10 -14 days."
Me: "Well I'm also concerned that the antibiotic he's been on for 4 days is not working on his ear infection."
Nurse: "Well you need to finish the doses before you can say that."
Me: "It's a 5 day dose. Shouldn't it be working by now?"
Nurse: "You can make an appointment if you want to, but I don't think they're going to be able to do anything."
...
Blah, blah, blah, blah
I tell her I'll talk with my husband and call her back.
I call Marie first ... bawling my eyes out.
I didn't much care for the way the pediatrician dealt with me when Micah was diagnosed with the ear infection on Friday and now I feel even more like an incompetent mother talking to this nurse who was not sensitive of my concerns AT ALL. Again, Marie was so sweet. She reassured me that I was being quite conservative about bringing him in even this late in the game and that I should feel no shame in insisting a doctor see Micah that day.
I call Colin ... bawling my eyes out.
I tell him the whole story and ask him if he'll call the doctor's office to make the appointment because I can't hold it together at this point. I also tell him to ask for the nurse I normally talk to on the phone. She is much more understanding and we get an appointment for that afternoon. Colin takes Jackson to a friend's house and comes with me to the appointment to be a second set of ears and mouth.
So far Micah has kept all of his food down, but I haven't been letting him eat much. His normal weight is around 29 lbs. and on Friday at the doctor's he was 28 lbs. This afternoon he is 26 lbs. Poor guy.
However, he was in a playful mood despite all of the circumstances. Meeting with the Nurse Practitioner (I was really glad to not have the Ped. I saw last Friday) who listens closely to the whole 10 day ordeal of sickness and witnesses first hand Micah's behavior and physical appearance she agrees that it is a long time to have a virus, but that there is a small strand of viruses that can last up to 14 days and wants to wait a few days. If in a few days his symptoms haven't changed then she would like to look into other options.
She looks in his ears and sure enough they are worse than they were on Friday and both are infected, but she doesn't want to prescribe any new antibiotic if his stomach is still upset. She suggests we make another appointment for 2 days later and then a follow up for 3 weeks (we can always cancel the one in 2 days if he's completely back to normal).
You know, looking back at the conversation with the nurse on the phone, she was right ... in just about everything. BUT what if she wasn't? Could she really comfortably tell me that my child was just fine over the phone??? Without looking at him?? Although they couldn't really "do anything for him" I wanted them to make that decision in person after they looked at him with their own two eyes. And PLEASE ... a little more sympathy and the conversation would have gone over MUCH better.
Day 14 - Tuesday
Micah keeps everything in his stomach and had MUCH more energy, but is clearly still in pain from his ears and is a CRAB! We alternate between Ibuprofen and Acetaminophen to help with the pain (his first time on oral medicine in several days).
He snacks ALL DAY!
I debate about whether or not I want to cancel the appointment and end up calling the NP to ask her thoughts about Micah's ears.
She is delighted to hear that his tummy is feeling much better, but agrees with me and wants to take another look at his ears to make sure they are getting better.
Day 15 - Wednesday
Micah sleeps well with one middle of the night dose of pain meds. He wakes up hungry and has his first full meal since he came down with the flu about 12 days ago. I am a little nervous and keep the bucket close by just in case, but he's insistent on eating and stops himself when he's full in a much happier mood.
He's 27 lbs this time and the NP said his ears were much better.
He's back to himself aside from the fact that he's catching up on his calorie intake now and his sleep. I can't complain about that though.
The buckets are still lingering in the car and around the house. I wonder how long it will take before they are put away? (smile)
I really do think he's finally better and the virus is gone.
GOOD RIDDANCE!!
Micah has a great night sleep with only one suppository before bed. Colin and I take turns at church with Jackson, but leave Micah at home. He's more himself eating a really good breakfast, but still just snacking throughout the day. He's also much more lethargic as the day progresses.
However, he takes a great uninterrupted nap in the afternoon allowing me to rest as well. He's somewhat interested in snack, but just lays on the floor most of the late afternoon. By supper time I go to pick him up off the floor and he empties his stomach all over me. It came on so quickly and without warning that I am actually a little flustered by it, which seems odd since I should be use to it by now. Perhaps because I feel like he was getting better it is the shock and disappointment that crushes my spirit.
I call Marie again this time on the verge of tears and she is very sweet in reassuring me that I'm not over reacting and that at this point Micah needs to go back to the doctor's to be looked over again and be sure there isn't anything else going on other than a virus.
I'm so flustered and exhausted and worried ... I cry a lot. I think of those parents who know that their children have terminal or chronic illnesses and I cry for them too. My imagination goes wild and I have to pray that God doesn't let Satan use that as a foothold to feed me lies. I pray, "Lord, I know you are the Great Physician. I believe you can heal Micah if it is your will. Help my unbelief."
Day 13 - Monday
I call the doctor's office and explain that I would like Micah to have an appointment that day due to the fact that he has been throwing up for a total of 9 days now and that he has an ear infection that I am not sure is clearing up with the antibiotics he was prescribed.
Here's a rough recollection of the phone conversation with the nurse:
Nurse: "Does he have a fever?"
Me: "No."
Nurse: "How often is he throwing up?"
Me: "About once or twice a day."
Nurse: "There's not much we can do for him."
Me: "Really?! Even though he's been throwing up for 9 days now?"
Nurse: "It's most likely a virus and he'll be fine in a few days."
Me: "Ya, but for NINE days? Doesn't that seem like a long time for a virus?"
Nurse: "Viruses can last from 10 -14 days."
Me: "Well I'm also concerned that the antibiotic he's been on for 4 days is not working on his ear infection."
Nurse: "Well you need to finish the doses before you can say that."
Me: "It's a 5 day dose. Shouldn't it be working by now?"
Nurse: "You can make an appointment if you want to, but I don't think they're going to be able to do anything."
...
Blah, blah, blah, blah
I tell her I'll talk with my husband and call her back.
I call Marie first ... bawling my eyes out.
I didn't much care for the way the pediatrician dealt with me when Micah was diagnosed with the ear infection on Friday and now I feel even more like an incompetent mother talking to this nurse who was not sensitive of my concerns AT ALL. Again, Marie was so sweet. She reassured me that I was being quite conservative about bringing him in even this late in the game and that I should feel no shame in insisting a doctor see Micah that day.
I call Colin ... bawling my eyes out.
I tell him the whole story and ask him if he'll call the doctor's office to make the appointment because I can't hold it together at this point. I also tell him to ask for the nurse I normally talk to on the phone. She is much more understanding and we get an appointment for that afternoon. Colin takes Jackson to a friend's house and comes with me to the appointment to be a second set of ears and mouth.
So far Micah has kept all of his food down, but I haven't been letting him eat much. His normal weight is around 29 lbs. and on Friday at the doctor's he was 28 lbs. This afternoon he is 26 lbs. Poor guy.
However, he was in a playful mood despite all of the circumstances. Meeting with the Nurse Practitioner (I was really glad to not have the Ped. I saw last Friday) who listens closely to the whole 10 day ordeal of sickness and witnesses first hand Micah's behavior and physical appearance she agrees that it is a long time to have a virus, but that there is a small strand of viruses that can last up to 14 days and wants to wait a few days. If in a few days his symptoms haven't changed then she would like to look into other options.
She looks in his ears and sure enough they are worse than they were on Friday and both are infected, but she doesn't want to prescribe any new antibiotic if his stomach is still upset. She suggests we make another appointment for 2 days later and then a follow up for 3 weeks (we can always cancel the one in 2 days if he's completely back to normal).
You know, looking back at the conversation with the nurse on the phone, she was right ... in just about everything. BUT what if she wasn't? Could she really comfortably tell me that my child was just fine over the phone??? Without looking at him?? Although they couldn't really "do anything for him" I wanted them to make that decision in person after they looked at him with their own two eyes. And PLEASE ... a little more sympathy and the conversation would have gone over MUCH better.
Day 14 - Tuesday
Micah keeps everything in his stomach and had MUCH more energy, but is clearly still in pain from his ears and is a CRAB! We alternate between Ibuprofen and Acetaminophen to help with the pain (his first time on oral medicine in several days).
He snacks ALL DAY!
I debate about whether or not I want to cancel the appointment and end up calling the NP to ask her thoughts about Micah's ears.
She is delighted to hear that his tummy is feeling much better, but agrees with me and wants to take another look at his ears to make sure they are getting better.
Day 15 - Wednesday
Micah sleeps well with one middle of the night dose of pain meds. He wakes up hungry and has his first full meal since he came down with the flu about 12 days ago. I am a little nervous and keep the bucket close by just in case, but he's insistent on eating and stops himself when he's full in a much happier mood.
He's 27 lbs this time and the NP said his ears were much better.
He's back to himself aside from the fact that he's catching up on his calorie intake now and his sleep. I can't complain about that though.
The buckets are still lingering in the car and around the house. I wonder how long it will take before they are put away? (smile)
I really do think he's finally better and the virus is gone.
GOOD RIDDANCE!!
Saturday, January 22, 2011
My Love/Hate Relationship with Travel
I love spending time with family. It's probably one of the most important and valuable things in my life aside from spending time with God. If it's possible, Colin loves it even more and of course our kids love it too. We have so many fond memories with family playing, laughing, celebrating, talking, reminiscing even mourning and weeping. Those moments are priceless and lately have been few and far between because we live so far away.
However, the distance we have to travel makes it a challenge for our family especially during the cold and flu season. In the three years that we've lived in California we've traveled home about 5 times. Of those 5 times we got pretty sick 3 of those trips. Christmas 2008 - we all got the stomach flu (except 9 week old Micah). I will forever have memories of nursing in a hotel room at 3am while puking into a garbage can (yes, I said "while"). That flu spread like wild fire throughout the ENTIRE extended family... it was terrible. At the end of that trip Micah came down with croup. I remember the panic I felt as he coughed and tried to breath worried that I had no idea where the closest urgent care was as we were driving the 4 hours from L.A. to our house. Easter 2009 - Micah (6 months old) came down with croup and a pretty bad case of hand, foot and mouth disease that took several weeks after our trip to recover from.
The third trip was only a couple of days ago and we are still trying to recuperate from it all. I'm distanced enough now from the most traumatic parts that I feel objective enough to write about it, but it hasn't been too long that I can't remember the details. So, I've decided to give you a glimpse into why travel and I have such a love/hate relationship by recalling each day of our travel adventures.
The Planning Phase
I love my husband's anticipation for the future. For example, it's not unusual that we get done with a really good lunch and he says, "what's for supper." I take it as a compliment that he looks forward to my cooking. It's the same with travel for him. We get done with one trip and he's already planning the next. I, however, need time to recuperate from the most recent trip (regardless if we all got sick or not) before I can even think about doing it again. I've equated traveling (especially over the holiday season and with young children) as "tax season" for Moms.
The conversation usually starts with a very ambitious Colin who wants to see every possible family member we can at or around Christmas whatever that means as far as expense, flying and driving and I think we should just stay home and play it "safe." Weeks and months pass with discussions and research into airline prices, work vacation available, etc.
This year I really was dead set on not traveling during the cold and flu season, but then the "that means we won't see family for almost a year" card was played due to the fact that our little girl is due to be born around the Easter holiday knocking that off of the possibility of traveling to family then. So, we made the compromise to travel shortly AFTER the crazy holiday season which would hopefully reduce our risk for illness and most certainly cut our costs in airfare.
The Anticipation
As the travel time draws closer and the last trip gets farther away we all, including myself, are excited about our trip. Jackson and I did school lessons about snow in anticipation for playing in the snow. Every time we skyped with Grandma and Papa the excitement in them and us grew stronger. The cousins can't wait to play with each other and both Jackson and Micah ask on a regular basis when they get to go to Iowa.
Day 1 - Wednesday
I do my usual house cleaning before we leave for a trip. It creates a little chaos, but I'm always so glad when I get home to a clean house after a busy trip. I also have a prenatal checkup just before we leave. We've made lists and packed reasonably since although we are allowed 8 pieces of check luggage and 4 carry-ons we only have 4 hands to hold it all (we've resigned to the cart rentals at the airport). I must say that we've perfected the packing.
We've planned when is the perfect time to leave for my grandparent's so that we don't hit too much traffic. The planned 3 hour drive is usually 4 hours due to traffic, but the boys are in good spirits with lots of anticipation, snacks and a portable DVD player in the back seat with all three of us (both Jackson and I get car sickness, so it's only out of necessity that I have to sit in the back of a Sudan wedged between two car seats ... 7 months pregnant mind you... a mini-van will be a must with #3) arriving at my grandparent's house just in time for bed.
Day 2 - Thursday
Colin and I wake up around 5:30am (an hour later than we had planned) and scramble to shower and get everything packed up and the boys ready to fly out of L.A. Luckily we've found that the car rental place will drive us straight to the terminal dropping our luggage off at curb-side check in making checking in a whole lot easier for a family with little ones.
The first leg of the trip is so short that we don't even take toys out of the toy bag. After a very short lay over we start our longer flight to Omaha. Colin and I divide and conquer now that both boys are required to have a ticket. Our ritual is to wipe down everything the boys will touch with a anti-bacterial wipe and make sure the vents our closed to help cut down on exposure to germs. For the most part the boys handle the trip very well. After we land we get our luggage and Colin gets the rental car.
Jackson is chomping at the bit to play in the snow and I let him for a little bit until we have to get into the car and drive another 4 hours to Grandma and Papa's in winter weather (luckily for us the weather was perfect).
We arrive at their house by bedtime, but to the kids it still feels two hours earlier so we let them stay up about an hour later so that they can enjoy a little bit of family time before we rush them off to their beds giving us time to get beds made and suitcases in their places for the week.
Day 3 - Friday
The day is spent rediscovering toys in Grandma and Papa's basement, playing with cousins and catching up with the whole family. We just hang around the house and visit and eat good food, decorate cookies, laugh and just enjoy being with each other.
We also got the cousin Christmas picture taken ... I'll have to get a digital copy from my sister-in-law to post because it turned out SO ADORABLE.
Jackson finally gets to experience what it's like to get bundled up to go out and play in the snow. He so desperately wanted to make a snowman and couldn't understand why it being too cold made it an impossible feat. (I wish I had pictures to post, but those are all on my sister-in-law's camera, so I'll have to get them from her and post them on a later date.)
That night at around 11pm Micah wakes up sick and I move to the basement couch and leave Colin in the bedroom the three of us were sharing to take care of him so I can get some sleep. Colin was up with him about every 2 hours.
Day 4 - Saturday
We have our family "Christmas Morning" but let Micah and Colin sleep in as long as they can warning everyone in the house (which was a total of 8 adults and 6 kids) that the stomach flu has hit the household and beware.
Despite the sickness we still enjoy opening presents and celebrating the gift of Jesus.
Micah only eats cheerios, but is still able to play and seems as though it may have been only a short bout of the flu. However, I am overly conscious of the toys that are shared and hands and toys put in mouths and become a bit of a germ Nazi to most of the kids while playing.
That night Micah wakes up in full force sickness and Colin is up again about every 2 to 3 hours and I'm on the couch.
Day 5 - Sunday
Colin and Micah stay home from church, but the rest of us enjoy worship and fellowship together. There is nothing like worshiping with family. It feels like a little taste of heaven to me. We had a relaxing Sunday and Colin was able to take a good nap to help catch up from his lack of sleep.
Micah seems to be doing better during the day, but doesn't eat much and is not his usual self.
Jackson wakes up at 11pm in full force sickness.
I move back in the room with Micah and Colin sets up camp out in the basement family room next to Jackson to be with him. He's again up every 2 - 3 hours.
Micah starts a fever and a cough and I'm up with him about every 3 hours.
Day 6 - Monday
The other brothers hope to get a head start so they can avoid the winter storm on it's way. The cousins have to say their tearful goodbyes and the troupes load up in their vehicles filled to the brim.
Orin gets sick on the way home.
Thatcher gets sick that night at home (he's scheduled for a major surgery the next day so I'm sure my sister-in-law was a tad bit anxious to say the least).
Jackson and Micah are so sick that we have to follow them around the house with buckets ... no joke. We gave up on doing laundry right away knowing that we'd have a pile to do at the end of the day.
We watch quite a few movies!! Almost all day in fact ... with a short break to explore Grandma's attic though.
The fever comes and goes for the both of them during the day and at night, but Jackson makes it through most of the night resting soundly. Micah was up about every 4 hours. Colin still slept with Jackson and I with Micah.
Day 7 - Tuesday
We call friends in Omaha to cancel our get together due to the boys being sick. We also call the airline to see if we can get a flight for 48 hours later, but they informed us that that would cost us at total of $1600!! YIKES!! If we rescheduled for a week later it'd cost us $800 ... so we opted to fly with two very sick boys.
We pack up our stuff at a leisurely pace. Jackson takes voluntary naps on the couch throughout the morning, but is able to keep down some bananas and toast. Micah finally goes down with a fight for about an hour allowing us to pack the car.
We drive 4 hours to Omaha in a little more questionable weather this time only stopping once for McDonald's for Colin and I. However, we attempt to give the boys a little bit of chicken nuggets. Jackson does okay, but Micah ... not so much. I'll spare you the gruesomeness and just say I'm glad it hadn't been in his stomach for too long because it didn't have an awful smell yet.
We were going to stay with friends in Omaha, but we decide to spare them and their family this illness by getting a hotel room close by.
Colin was gracious enough to still let me go visit with my girlfriends and put the boys to bed by himself. It was such a gift to be able to catch up with women that I love so dearly.
However, by the time I get back to the hotel at 11pm Colin is sick too... and I was so looking forward to being able to finally sleep in the same bed with him. Luckily all three of my boys sleep through the night although I'm pretty sure they ALL have fevers.
I spend most of the night praying that I won't get sick and keenly aware of the boys ability to wake at any moment sick as dogs.
Day 8 - Wednesday
Thatcher and Lilly have their scheduled surgery ... I pray for them lots! And their little brother Tucker comes down with the flu. Both of their grandma's were able to come to the rescue and help with the three kids all in need of special attention in one way or another. Papa was left behind at his house having finally caught the flu himself.
We booked a later flight out, so we were able to sleep in a little. Jackson and Micah are actually playful, but by the time we check out all 3 boys were pretty exhausted.
We make it through check-in and security discovering that our flight is delayed by about a half hour. The attendant at the check-in counter warns us that we most likely won't make our connecting flight to L.A. out of Denver, but that they've reserved us seats on the next flight out 3 HOURS LATER!!!
Man was I praying!!!! PLEASE LORD LET US MAKE THAT FLIGHT!! I did not want to be stuck in an airport for 3 HOURS with 3 sick boys.
Colin found a bench to sleep under and I occupied the boys. So far no throwing up, but we'd been alternating Ibuprofen and Tylenol with Micah every 3 hours because he was visibly uncomfortable and still had a fever.
I talk to the lady at the ticket counter to see if we can arrange to have the first or second row of seats (it's first come first serve on Southwest) due to the fact that we have so many sick people traveling in our group and that we'd need to rush in order to make our connecting flight ... uh ... no ... they were NOT helpful AT ALL! GRRRRR!
Fortunately the flight arrivs a little earlier than they thought and they hold the L.A. plane for us in Denver. Good thing too because I am surprised that the flight even took off looking out the window. I bet our 3 hours would have been much longer. Once our plane is de-iced and in the air I am much calmer.
Micah sleeps on me most of the way. Jackson plays so nicely by himself close by Colin who was able to sleep some more. The flight was pretty empty and I am glad for that because on the descent Micah finally loses it and we are changing his clothes and wiping down his seat as we land.
Unfortunately the car rental place doesn't pick up at the terminal so we have to haul all of our luggage to a bus stop and wait for the rental bus to pick us up. It takes a little longer than usual. We get our car and get situated. Only to get on the interstate and "crawl" the 4 hours towards home.
Jackson gets sick, but I'm pretty sure it is just motion sickness.
Eventually we drive through a fast food place trying to find the most mild food on the menu for the boys (Jack In the Box has a rice bowl and were able to put the rice and toppings in two separate containers).
By this time Colin feels more rested and can stomach more subtantial food, but decides not to have his normal coffee or Dr. Pepper and that says a lot for him.
We arrive home at around 10pm, but it feels like midnight to us. Jackson is delighted to be in his own bed and Micah goes down for the night with a pretty empty tummy, but we were still giving him medicine which he threw up later that night.
Day 9 - Thursday
Colin goes in late to work.
The boys wake up in good spirits and play while I unpack until about 10:30am when Micah is feverish and only wants to be held. Colin comes home around 11:30 and picks up Jackson so they can go see the rocket launch and really to give Micah and I some down time. Then Colin works the rest of the day from home.
From about 11:30 until 4pm Micah sleeps on and off on my chest and does not want to be put down. He has a mild fever, but I don't want to upset his tummy by giving him more medicine. He threw up his lunch by this point and is not even really interested in water.
I call my girlfriend, Marie, who is a pediatrician in Omaha to ask her advice. Seeing as Micah's fever was going on day 5 she advices me to make an appointment with our pediatrician suspecting that he may have a bacterial ear infection. When they call back to set up the appointment I expressed my concern about giving him pain medicine and they suggested a suppository of acetametaphin. NOT my first choice of a solution, but Colin got some and luckily we have a good friend who has to do suppositories for one of her children on a regular basis, so she was able to give us good advice.
Poor Jackson is feeling the fact that I can't spend time with just him and although he got special time with Colin he has an emotional meltdown at bedtime wanting me to put him to bed. Fortunately Micah is exhausted and goes down quickly so I can spend time reading with Jackson.
Micah sleeps SO much better and we end up giving him one more suppository in the night.
Day 10 - Friday
Micah wakes up fever free and in much better spirits and even keeps breakfast down. We are off to the doctor's and Colin works from home with Jackson. The doctor confirms that Micah has an ear infection and perscribes an antibiotic.
We get it filled as soon as we're back in town and I give it to Micah at lunch only to have him throw it up 5 minutes later. I call Marie once again and she says it's fine to give him another dose. He keeps that one down.
The boys take great naps, but they are not all that interested in supper and Micah tosses most of it anyway. Poor Colin cleans that one up because it didn't make it into the bucket we've been following Micah around with and I put the boys in a bath for almost an hour.
We... I decide to spare Micah another suppository and see how he makes it through the night, but he doesn't make it past 11pm without tossing his cookies in bed and we have to change him and his sheets. We give him a suppository and he sleeps much better. Finally we're connecting that dots that his ears hurt and cause him to have coughing fits which trigger is gauge reflex and ... well you know the rest.
Day 11 - Saturday (Today)
I give Micah his antibiotics on an empty stomach and rock with him in his room for 20 minutes to be sure that they actually absorb before we attempt breakfast.
Jackson and Colin are back to normal.
We decide to feed Micah smaller amounts of food every hour rather than smaller meals every 4 hours and we continue to give him suppositories during the day and into the evening.
So far Micah's kept everything in his stomach. He has moments of being weepy especially when I wouldn't allow him to be over indulgent on certain foods, but I can tell he's feeling better.
We've got 3 more days of the antibiotic, so now I'm just praying that it works. If we don't see any imporvement tomorrow or if he regresses I think we'll be back at the doctor's on Monday.
So our one week trip turned into just about a two week ordeal. It's no fun to be sick in your own home, it's even worse in someone elses' home, but it is by far the PITS to be sick in a hotel room and/or airplane and/or traveling long distance in a car. I wouldn't recommend it to ANYONE!
BUT, we survived! Colin and I are slowly catching up on sleep and our boys are starting to act like the boys we knew before they got sick. Laundry is folded but not put away, I was able to buy a few groceries, but not with much planning for meals (Colin has been amazing and dealing with most of that) and the clean house we came home to is in disarray. BUT my boys are feeling better ... FINALLY!
Can you see the dicotomy? The joy in the pictures and stories I've posted, but the exhaustion and anxiety present too? Can you understand why it's so hard for me to want to travel, but miss my family so much that I do it anyway? Perhaps not, but at least I was able to get this all off of my chest.
So, don't ask me about when I'll be traveling next ... at least not for a few months.
However, the distance we have to travel makes it a challenge for our family especially during the cold and flu season. In the three years that we've lived in California we've traveled home about 5 times. Of those 5 times we got pretty sick 3 of those trips. Christmas 2008 - we all got the stomach flu (except 9 week old Micah). I will forever have memories of nursing in a hotel room at 3am while puking into a garbage can (yes, I said "while"). That flu spread like wild fire throughout the ENTIRE extended family... it was terrible. At the end of that trip Micah came down with croup. I remember the panic I felt as he coughed and tried to breath worried that I had no idea where the closest urgent care was as we were driving the 4 hours from L.A. to our house. Easter 2009 - Micah (6 months old) came down with croup and a pretty bad case of hand, foot and mouth disease that took several weeks after our trip to recover from.
The third trip was only a couple of days ago and we are still trying to recuperate from it all. I'm distanced enough now from the most traumatic parts that I feel objective enough to write about it, but it hasn't been too long that I can't remember the details. So, I've decided to give you a glimpse into why travel and I have such a love/hate relationship by recalling each day of our travel adventures.
The Planning Phase
I love my husband's anticipation for the future. For example, it's not unusual that we get done with a really good lunch and he says, "what's for supper." I take it as a compliment that he looks forward to my cooking. It's the same with travel for him. We get done with one trip and he's already planning the next. I, however, need time to recuperate from the most recent trip (regardless if we all got sick or not) before I can even think about doing it again. I've equated traveling (especially over the holiday season and with young children) as "tax season" for Moms.
The conversation usually starts with a very ambitious Colin who wants to see every possible family member we can at or around Christmas whatever that means as far as expense, flying and driving and I think we should just stay home and play it "safe." Weeks and months pass with discussions and research into airline prices, work vacation available, etc.
This year I really was dead set on not traveling during the cold and flu season, but then the "that means we won't see family for almost a year" card was played due to the fact that our little girl is due to be born around the Easter holiday knocking that off of the possibility of traveling to family then. So, we made the compromise to travel shortly AFTER the crazy holiday season which would hopefully reduce our risk for illness and most certainly cut our costs in airfare.
The Anticipation
As the travel time draws closer and the last trip gets farther away we all, including myself, are excited about our trip. Jackson and I did school lessons about snow in anticipation for playing in the snow. Every time we skyped with Grandma and Papa the excitement in them and us grew stronger. The cousins can't wait to play with each other and both Jackson and Micah ask on a regular basis when they get to go to Iowa.
Day 1 - Wednesday
I do my usual house cleaning before we leave for a trip. It creates a little chaos, but I'm always so glad when I get home to a clean house after a busy trip. I also have a prenatal checkup just before we leave. We've made lists and packed reasonably since although we are allowed 8 pieces of check luggage and 4 carry-ons we only have 4 hands to hold it all (we've resigned to the cart rentals at the airport). I must say that we've perfected the packing.
We've planned when is the perfect time to leave for my grandparent's so that we don't hit too much traffic. The planned 3 hour drive is usually 4 hours due to traffic, but the boys are in good spirits with lots of anticipation, snacks and a portable DVD player in the back seat with all three of us (both Jackson and I get car sickness, so it's only out of necessity that I have to sit in the back of a Sudan wedged between two car seats ... 7 months pregnant mind you... a mini-van will be a must with #3) arriving at my grandparent's house just in time for bed.
Day 2 - Thursday
Colin and I wake up around 5:30am (an hour later than we had planned) and scramble to shower and get everything packed up and the boys ready to fly out of L.A. Luckily we've found that the car rental place will drive us straight to the terminal dropping our luggage off at curb-side check in making checking in a whole lot easier for a family with little ones.
The first leg of the trip is so short that we don't even take toys out of the toy bag. After a very short lay over we start our longer flight to Omaha. Colin and I divide and conquer now that both boys are required to have a ticket. Our ritual is to wipe down everything the boys will touch with a anti-bacterial wipe and make sure the vents our closed to help cut down on exposure to germs. For the most part the boys handle the trip very well. After we land we get our luggage and Colin gets the rental car.
Jackson is chomping at the bit to play in the snow and I let him for a little bit until we have to get into the car and drive another 4 hours to Grandma and Papa's in winter weather (luckily for us the weather was perfect).
We arrive at their house by bedtime, but to the kids it still feels two hours earlier so we let them stay up about an hour later so that they can enjoy a little bit of family time before we rush them off to their beds giving us time to get beds made and suitcases in their places for the week.
Day 3 - Friday
The day is spent rediscovering toys in Grandma and Papa's basement, playing with cousins and catching up with the whole family. We just hang around the house and visit and eat good food, decorate cookies, laugh and just enjoy being with each other.
We also got the cousin Christmas picture taken ... I'll have to get a digital copy from my sister-in-law to post because it turned out SO ADORABLE.
Jackson finally gets to experience what it's like to get bundled up to go out and play in the snow. He so desperately wanted to make a snowman and couldn't understand why it being too cold made it an impossible feat. (I wish I had pictures to post, but those are all on my sister-in-law's camera, so I'll have to get them from her and post them on a later date.)
That night at around 11pm Micah wakes up sick and I move to the basement couch and leave Colin in the bedroom the three of us were sharing to take care of him so I can get some sleep. Colin was up with him about every 2 hours.
Day 4 - Saturday
We have our family "Christmas Morning" but let Micah and Colin sleep in as long as they can warning everyone in the house (which was a total of 8 adults and 6 kids) that the stomach flu has hit the household and beware.
Despite the sickness we still enjoy opening presents and celebrating the gift of Jesus.
Micah only eats cheerios, but is still able to play and seems as though it may have been only a short bout of the flu. However, I am overly conscious of the toys that are shared and hands and toys put in mouths and become a bit of a germ Nazi to most of the kids while playing.
That night Micah wakes up in full force sickness and Colin is up again about every 2 to 3 hours and I'm on the couch.
Day 5 - Sunday
Colin and Micah stay home from church, but the rest of us enjoy worship and fellowship together. There is nothing like worshiping with family. It feels like a little taste of heaven to me. We had a relaxing Sunday and Colin was able to take a good nap to help catch up from his lack of sleep.
Micah seems to be doing better during the day, but doesn't eat much and is not his usual self.
Jackson wakes up at 11pm in full force sickness.
I move back in the room with Micah and Colin sets up camp out in the basement family room next to Jackson to be with him. He's again up every 2 - 3 hours.
Micah starts a fever and a cough and I'm up with him about every 3 hours.
Day 6 - Monday
The other brothers hope to get a head start so they can avoid the winter storm on it's way. The cousins have to say their tearful goodbyes and the troupes load up in their vehicles filled to the brim.
Orin gets sick on the way home.
Thatcher gets sick that night at home (he's scheduled for a major surgery the next day so I'm sure my sister-in-law was a tad bit anxious to say the least).
Jackson and Micah are so sick that we have to follow them around the house with buckets ... no joke. We gave up on doing laundry right away knowing that we'd have a pile to do at the end of the day.
We watch quite a few movies!! Almost all day in fact ... with a short break to explore Grandma's attic though.
The fever comes and goes for the both of them during the day and at night, but Jackson makes it through most of the night resting soundly. Micah was up about every 4 hours. Colin still slept with Jackson and I with Micah.
Day 7 - Tuesday
We call friends in Omaha to cancel our get together due to the boys being sick. We also call the airline to see if we can get a flight for 48 hours later, but they informed us that that would cost us at total of $1600!! YIKES!! If we rescheduled for a week later it'd cost us $800 ... so we opted to fly with two very sick boys.
We pack up our stuff at a leisurely pace. Jackson takes voluntary naps on the couch throughout the morning, but is able to keep down some bananas and toast. Micah finally goes down with a fight for about an hour allowing us to pack the car.
We drive 4 hours to Omaha in a little more questionable weather this time only stopping once for McDonald's for Colin and I. However, we attempt to give the boys a little bit of chicken nuggets. Jackson does okay, but Micah ... not so much. I'll spare you the gruesomeness and just say I'm glad it hadn't been in his stomach for too long because it didn't have an awful smell yet.
We were going to stay with friends in Omaha, but we decide to spare them and their family this illness by getting a hotel room close by.
Colin was gracious enough to still let me go visit with my girlfriends and put the boys to bed by himself. It was such a gift to be able to catch up with women that I love so dearly.
However, by the time I get back to the hotel at 11pm Colin is sick too... and I was so looking forward to being able to finally sleep in the same bed with him. Luckily all three of my boys sleep through the night although I'm pretty sure they ALL have fevers.
I spend most of the night praying that I won't get sick and keenly aware of the boys ability to wake at any moment sick as dogs.
Day 8 - Wednesday
Thatcher and Lilly have their scheduled surgery ... I pray for them lots! And their little brother Tucker comes down with the flu. Both of their grandma's were able to come to the rescue and help with the three kids all in need of special attention in one way or another. Papa was left behind at his house having finally caught the flu himself.
We booked a later flight out, so we were able to sleep in a little. Jackson and Micah are actually playful, but by the time we check out all 3 boys were pretty exhausted.
We make it through check-in and security discovering that our flight is delayed by about a half hour. The attendant at the check-in counter warns us that we most likely won't make our connecting flight to L.A. out of Denver, but that they've reserved us seats on the next flight out 3 HOURS LATER!!!
Man was I praying!!!! PLEASE LORD LET US MAKE THAT FLIGHT!! I did not want to be stuck in an airport for 3 HOURS with 3 sick boys.
Colin found a bench to sleep under and I occupied the boys. So far no throwing up, but we'd been alternating Ibuprofen and Tylenol with Micah every 3 hours because he was visibly uncomfortable and still had a fever.
I talk to the lady at the ticket counter to see if we can arrange to have the first or second row of seats (it's first come first serve on Southwest) due to the fact that we have so many sick people traveling in our group and that we'd need to rush in order to make our connecting flight ... uh ... no ... they were NOT helpful AT ALL! GRRRRR!
Fortunately the flight arrivs a little earlier than they thought and they hold the L.A. plane for us in Denver. Good thing too because I am surprised that the flight even took off looking out the window. I bet our 3 hours would have been much longer. Once our plane is de-iced and in the air I am much calmer.
Micah sleeps on me most of the way. Jackson plays so nicely by himself close by Colin who was able to sleep some more. The flight was pretty empty and I am glad for that because on the descent Micah finally loses it and we are changing his clothes and wiping down his seat as we land.
Unfortunately the car rental place doesn't pick up at the terminal so we have to haul all of our luggage to a bus stop and wait for the rental bus to pick us up. It takes a little longer than usual. We get our car and get situated. Only to get on the interstate and "crawl" the 4 hours towards home.
Jackson gets sick, but I'm pretty sure it is just motion sickness.
Eventually we drive through a fast food place trying to find the most mild food on the menu for the boys (Jack In the Box has a rice bowl and were able to put the rice and toppings in two separate containers).
By this time Colin feels more rested and can stomach more subtantial food, but decides not to have his normal coffee or Dr. Pepper and that says a lot for him.
We arrive home at around 10pm, but it feels like midnight to us. Jackson is delighted to be in his own bed and Micah goes down for the night with a pretty empty tummy, but we were still giving him medicine which he threw up later that night.
Day 9 - Thursday
Colin goes in late to work.
The boys wake up in good spirits and play while I unpack until about 10:30am when Micah is feverish and only wants to be held. Colin comes home around 11:30 and picks up Jackson so they can go see the rocket launch and really to give Micah and I some down time. Then Colin works the rest of the day from home.
From about 11:30 until 4pm Micah sleeps on and off on my chest and does not want to be put down. He has a mild fever, but I don't want to upset his tummy by giving him more medicine. He threw up his lunch by this point and is not even really interested in water.
I call my girlfriend, Marie, who is a pediatrician in Omaha to ask her advice. Seeing as Micah's fever was going on day 5 she advices me to make an appointment with our pediatrician suspecting that he may have a bacterial ear infection. When they call back to set up the appointment I expressed my concern about giving him pain medicine and they suggested a suppository of acetametaphin. NOT my first choice of a solution, but Colin got some and luckily we have a good friend who has to do suppositories for one of her children on a regular basis, so she was able to give us good advice.
Poor Jackson is feeling the fact that I can't spend time with just him and although he got special time with Colin he has an emotional meltdown at bedtime wanting me to put him to bed. Fortunately Micah is exhausted and goes down quickly so I can spend time reading with Jackson.
Micah sleeps SO much better and we end up giving him one more suppository in the night.
Day 10 - Friday
Micah wakes up fever free and in much better spirits and even keeps breakfast down. We are off to the doctor's and Colin works from home with Jackson. The doctor confirms that Micah has an ear infection and perscribes an antibiotic.
We get it filled as soon as we're back in town and I give it to Micah at lunch only to have him throw it up 5 minutes later. I call Marie once again and she says it's fine to give him another dose. He keeps that one down.
The boys take great naps, but they are not all that interested in supper and Micah tosses most of it anyway. Poor Colin cleans that one up because it didn't make it into the bucket we've been following Micah around with and I put the boys in a bath for almost an hour.
We... I decide to spare Micah another suppository and see how he makes it through the night, but he doesn't make it past 11pm without tossing his cookies in bed and we have to change him and his sheets. We give him a suppository and he sleeps much better. Finally we're connecting that dots that his ears hurt and cause him to have coughing fits which trigger is gauge reflex and ... well you know the rest.
Day 11 - Saturday (Today)
I give Micah his antibiotics on an empty stomach and rock with him in his room for 20 minutes to be sure that they actually absorb before we attempt breakfast.
Jackson and Colin are back to normal.
We decide to feed Micah smaller amounts of food every hour rather than smaller meals every 4 hours and we continue to give him suppositories during the day and into the evening.
So far Micah's kept everything in his stomach. He has moments of being weepy especially when I wouldn't allow him to be over indulgent on certain foods, but I can tell he's feeling better.
We've got 3 more days of the antibiotic, so now I'm just praying that it works. If we don't see any imporvement tomorrow or if he regresses I think we'll be back at the doctor's on Monday.
So our one week trip turned into just about a two week ordeal. It's no fun to be sick in your own home, it's even worse in someone elses' home, but it is by far the PITS to be sick in a hotel room and/or airplane and/or traveling long distance in a car. I wouldn't recommend it to ANYONE!
BUT, we survived! Colin and I are slowly catching up on sleep and our boys are starting to act like the boys we knew before they got sick. Laundry is folded but not put away, I was able to buy a few groceries, but not with much planning for meals (Colin has been amazing and dealing with most of that) and the clean house we came home to is in disarray. BUT my boys are feeling better ... FINALLY!
Can you see the dicotomy? The joy in the pictures and stories I've posted, but the exhaustion and anxiety present too? Can you understand why it's so hard for me to want to travel, but miss my family so much that I do it anyway? Perhaps not, but at least I was able to get this all off of my chest.
So, don't ask me about when I'll be traveling next ... at least not for a few months.
Saturday, January 8, 2011
Review: "Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons"
When I mentioned several months ago that I was looking into homeschooling and at least going to start some educational curriculum with Jackson at home this year a friend of mine suggested doing "Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons" by Seigfried Englemann, Phyllis Haddox and Elaine Bruner.
I was able to get a copy to try out at my local library, but eventually bought my own copy when we decided we found it beneficial to us as a family.
Here's how the book generally works. Each lesson is broken down into several short "tasks." You can do all the tasks in one sitting or you can do a few at a time. Each lesson contains an average of 11 tasks. The tasks range from "sounds instructions" where new sounds are introduced, "say the sounds", etc. and the entire lesson takes only about 15 minutes. By the end of the 100 lessons the child is reading entire paragraphs without pictures.
Here are a few things I really like about the book:
1. The book even goes as far as writing the instructional narrative in red to aid me in my teaching and eliminating almost any need for lesson planning.
2. The authors have clearly thought through all of the skills a child needs in order to learn to read like; how to use their finger as a guide for reading from left to right, rhyming, memorization, etc.
3. As we are getting into more reading of words and away from just letter sounds (we're on lesson 27 by the way) the book incorporates reading comprehension through the use of pictures. It encourages the child to think of what the picture will look like before they actually see it. Then when they get to see the picture the lessons ask comprehensive questions about it as well as open ended questions to encourage them to be creative on their own.
4. It's SUPER redundant ... almost to a fault in the first dozen or so lessons, but there is definitely a rhyme and a reason for it. I found it built confidence right away and what Jackson has learned has REALLY stuck with him. The more confident he gets the more he's willing to try new sounds and write new letters and read new words not only during the lessons, but also in his everyday play time too.
Overall, I feel that this book was really well thought out (perhaps the benefit of having 3 authors). It's been simple enough that it's not too overwhelming, but at the same time it's been challenging enough that it doesn't feel as though we are not learning anything or wasting our time.
Of all of the tasks that the book does I think that Jackson struggled with the printing the most. It took him quite awhile to actually want to write. He's kind of a perfectionist and would get really down on himself when he couldn't write a letter correctly the first time.
Here are a few things that I think have helped him work through his hesitation in printing:
1. Prayer. We pray before every lesson that he would do his best and be proud of the work that he does whether or not it's perfect.
2. Talk. We've had A LOT ... and I mean A LOT of conversations about how mistakes are not "bad." That mistakes are a part of the learning process and everyone makes them. "Mommy and Daddy won't be disappointed if you make a mistake as long as you are doing your best. We will be disappointed if you don't try though." Boy have we said that A LOT!
3. Grace. If Jackson is particularly discouraged one day we just skip the printing. We don't make a big deal out of it, we just don't do it.
4. Praise. We encourage and praise him whenever he attempts to write ANYTHING! Once he began to show more confidence in his writing we allow him to pick which letters he feels he printed the best and put a smiley face next to them. Then I pick the ones I think he did the best on and put a star next to those. Jackson really thrives on words of affirmation.
5. We used the EXTRA wide ruled lined printing paper. Jackson does especially well with the "Smart Start Writing Paper" from Frog Street Press, which has the picture of a sun on the top line and the flower on the bottom line because it gives him really good points of reference for his printing.
6. Interestingly, he does better writing each letter in a column rather than a row. I know it's not ideal since it's not teaching him to print from left to right, but at this point I figure just getting him to print anything repeatedly is a good step.
Friday, August 20, 2010
Transitions
We've had a few transitions in our household over the last couple of months that I wanted to take note of.
Micah Night Lights
After we returned from our vacation to the Midwest, Micah had a rough time going down for naps and bed time. He would cry and cling to me almost as if he was scared. If Colin put him down he seemed to do a little better, but he'd still wake up early or in the night and cry until we settled him down.
Out of pure desperation one night (I think Colin was out of town for work) I put a night light in Micah's room thinking perhaps he was just getting to the age where he was scared of the dark. It didn't solve the problem immediately, but after a couple of days the crying and clinging stopped.
We don't have a timer on it like Jackson's. We'll probably start doing that once he's in a big boy bed which we'll be after we move to wherever we're going next ... that's another blog for another time. However, I do turn off the night light before I get him out of bed and turn it on when it's time to get into bed just so he gets used to the idea.
Jackson Shorter Naps
Lately Jackson has been taking FOREVER to go to sleep at night and it's not without being called into his room a MILLION times for water or a shadow or just one more hug.
Jackson has been a good napper for most of his life. He's 4 and he still takes a 2 hour nap every day. About a month or so ago I tried to cut his nap by an hour and that just made him weepy, so I stuck with the 2 hour nap. UNTIL this past week when he was taking longer to fall asleep.
This week I've cut his nap by 30 minutes by setting his night light to go off that much earlier. The first day he had a playdate and slept right through the night light going off (which is really rare) and woke up at his normal time. I guess he played hard. Today he woke up with the night light. We'll see how bedtime goes tonight.
Me Exercising During Pregnancy
I'm 9 weeks pregnant as of tomorrow. Before I became pregnant I was doing circuit training 4 days a week and doing cardio 1 day a week for about 45 minutes each workout.
Since I've become pregnant I've continued to circuit train for 3 days a week and cardio for 1 day a week for about 30 minutes each workout. I've noticed that my heart rate goes up pretty quickly and I lose my breath just as easily. It's kind of annoying actually, but only in the beginning of the workout.
There have been a few days that I opted to sleep in instead of work out and although it was probably the right choice I did notice a change in my mood and energy level.
I'm still "Shredding" but have taken the intensity down a notch especially during the cardio sections. Around 12 weeks I plan on modifying any abdominal workouts that are done on my back. I'm thinking I may need to find a prenatal workout DVD, so if anyone has any good suggestions let me know.
Micah Night Lights
After we returned from our vacation to the Midwest, Micah had a rough time going down for naps and bed time. He would cry and cling to me almost as if he was scared. If Colin put him down he seemed to do a little better, but he'd still wake up early or in the night and cry until we settled him down.
Out of pure desperation one night (I think Colin was out of town for work) I put a night light in Micah's room thinking perhaps he was just getting to the age where he was scared of the dark. It didn't solve the problem immediately, but after a couple of days the crying and clinging stopped.
We don't have a timer on it like Jackson's. We'll probably start doing that once he's in a big boy bed which we'll be after we move to wherever we're going next ... that's another blog for another time. However, I do turn off the night light before I get him out of bed and turn it on when it's time to get into bed just so he gets used to the idea.
Jackson Shorter Naps
Lately Jackson has been taking FOREVER to go to sleep at night and it's not without being called into his room a MILLION times for water or a shadow or just one more hug.
Jackson has been a good napper for most of his life. He's 4 and he still takes a 2 hour nap every day. About a month or so ago I tried to cut his nap by an hour and that just made him weepy, so I stuck with the 2 hour nap. UNTIL this past week when he was taking longer to fall asleep.
This week I've cut his nap by 30 minutes by setting his night light to go off that much earlier. The first day he had a playdate and slept right through the night light going off (which is really rare) and woke up at his normal time. I guess he played hard. Today he woke up with the night light. We'll see how bedtime goes tonight.
Me Exercising During Pregnancy
I'm 9 weeks pregnant as of tomorrow. Before I became pregnant I was doing circuit training 4 days a week and doing cardio 1 day a week for about 45 minutes each workout.
Since I've become pregnant I've continued to circuit train for 3 days a week and cardio for 1 day a week for about 30 minutes each workout. I've noticed that my heart rate goes up pretty quickly and I lose my breath just as easily. It's kind of annoying actually, but only in the beginning of the workout.
There have been a few days that I opted to sleep in instead of work out and although it was probably the right choice I did notice a change in my mood and energy level.
I'm still "Shredding" but have taken the intensity down a notch especially during the cardio sections. Around 12 weeks I plan on modifying any abdominal workouts that are done on my back. I'm thinking I may need to find a prenatal workout DVD, so if anyone has any good suggestions let me know.
Saturday, July 31, 2010
Fun Vacation Memories
I realize my blog can be overly practical at times and my last blog about vacation didn't mention any of the fun stuff we did. So here is a list of the fun memories from our family vacation in no particular order.
1. Playing on the beach every day with the kids.
2. Micah's excitement as lake waves reached his chin and he'd smile and say, "More!"
3. Sun bathing with the other moms as our children took long naps in the warm cabin.
4. Going running with those same moms after our kids went to bed.
5. Learning how to play "Hand and Foot."
6. Sneaking into the bedroom at 11:30 at night as 3 boys slept in nooks and crannies.
7. Finding those 3 boys playing when they were supposed to be napping in the bedroom.
8. Papa telling stories at midnight to help Jackson be brave during a big storm.
9. Taking Lilly and Jackson to their first evening movie "Despicable Me" in 3D.
10. Jackson shouting, "I wish Papa were here, he likes M&Ms" at the movies (my in-laws stayed home to watch the 4 younger kids).
11. Going out to eat for my mother-in-law's birthday and announcing that we are expecting our 3rd child in March.
12. Caravaning with my sister and her husband to WI.
13. Jackson shouting, "My mommy has a baby in her tummy" right when we arrived at the Door County cabin ... so much for timing.
14. My brother teaching me how to play "Texas Hold 'Em."
15. Playing dominoes with Becky, Lora and Jackson.
16. The AMAZING burgers and steaks Brian and Lora made.
17. Getting alone time with my sister.
18. Learning how to make "Cloud Nines" (chocolate chip cookies, Reece's Peanut Butter Cup and roasted marshmallow) over a fire pit.
19. Playing "BS" with Taryn, Caitlin, Diana and my dad (turns out he's not very good at it).
20. Witnessing Caitlin and Taryn becoming teenagers.
21. Seeing Ericka with the rest of the family even though my brother wasn't there.
22. Bible Story times as a large family.
23. Watching my two boys bond with other family members!!
There really were so many good memories to mention them all in this blog. I will truly treasure this trip for a life time.
1. Playing on the beach every day with the kids.
2. Micah's excitement as lake waves reached his chin and he'd smile and say, "More!"
3. Sun bathing with the other moms as our children took long naps in the warm cabin.
4. Going running with those same moms after our kids went to bed.
5. Learning how to play "Hand and Foot."
6. Sneaking into the bedroom at 11:30 at night as 3 boys slept in nooks and crannies.
7. Finding those 3 boys playing when they were supposed to be napping in the bedroom.
8. Papa telling stories at midnight to help Jackson be brave during a big storm.
9. Taking Lilly and Jackson to their first evening movie "Despicable Me" in 3D.
10. Jackson shouting, "I wish Papa were here, he likes M&Ms" at the movies (my in-laws stayed home to watch the 4 younger kids).
11. Going out to eat for my mother-in-law's birthday and announcing that we are expecting our 3rd child in March.
12. Caravaning with my sister and her husband to WI.
13. Jackson shouting, "My mommy has a baby in her tummy" right when we arrived at the Door County cabin ... so much for timing.
14. My brother teaching me how to play "Texas Hold 'Em."
15. Playing dominoes with Becky, Lora and Jackson.
16. The AMAZING burgers and steaks Brian and Lora made.
17. Getting alone time with my sister.
18. Learning how to make "Cloud Nines" (chocolate chip cookies, Reece's Peanut Butter Cup and roasted marshmallow) over a fire pit.
19. Playing "BS" with Taryn, Caitlin, Diana and my dad (turns out he's not very good at it).
20. Witnessing Caitlin and Taryn becoming teenagers.
21. Seeing Ericka with the rest of the family even though my brother wasn't there.
22. Bible Story times as a large family.
23. Watching my two boys bond with other family members!!
There really were so many good memories to mention them all in this blog. I will truly treasure this trip for a life time.
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