Funny conversation with Kaeli this morning

I had to write about this ASAP so as not to forgot too many of the details. This is one of those conversations Kaeli will deny ever having one day, so I want to have it in black and white. Besides, the end gets really funny.

This morning Kaeli and I ended up in a conversation about school and how she will go to college after 12th grade. Kaeli LOVES school so it caught me a little off guard when she said "but I don't *have* to be go to college if I don't want to". So, naturally I was a little concerned about why she wouldn't want to go to college. My concern quickly faded when she responded by saying "I don't want to go to college because then I'd have to leave you......I NEVER want to leave you!!" HAHA!! As long as that's the only reason, I guess I can feel confident that she will be going to college one day.

Here's where it just gets funny. I told her that she'd be glad to leave and go to college when the time comes. I explained to her that she'd be living on her own and be old enough to make her own decisions without me having to tell her what to do all the time. So, she then responds with "well, why can't I live on my own and make my own decisions now". Very gently, I tried explaining that when we're young we have a lot to learn and we need our parents to help us learn all those things and that following our parents' rules is part of the learning process. I must say her next response shouldn't have come as a surprise, but I still had a hard time not laughing. She was very serious when she said "but I already know everything so I shouldn't have to follow your rules anymore"!!

She seriously thinks she knows everything! That alone proves she has ALOT to learn.

An actual conversation!!

I had my first real conversation with Ryan tonight! Now, granted, there weren't many words exchanged, but it was a meaningful, two-way conversation. I also think I learned a valuable lesson in the process. Ryan needs lots of wait time after a question.

For the past couple of weeks I've been trying to prepare Ryan for Christmas and give him some idea of what to expect. Since he's not really talking, it's always hard to know how much of Christmas he really understands. We haven't actually gone to see Santa at the mall yet. But, one day I did stop in the mall and point Santa out and explained all about who Santa is. Santa waved at Ryan, but Ryan didn't respond. Every night, I read a book to Ryan about Christmas. Every night, I tell him that he has to tell Santa what he wants for Christmas. Of course, I've coached him a little on what he should ask Santa for.....he's asking for a train set and a trampoline (it's a little tiny, personal size trampoline). Every night I ask "what are you going to tell Santa you want for Christmas?" Every night, except for tonight, he just says "no" (translated to mean I don't know) and I remind him. Tonight was different. Tonight I made up my mind that I was NOT going to remind him and just wait for some response other than no. I waited and waited. Ryan thought and thought. Finally he jumped up off my lap and started jumping up and down. I said "oh, you want a trampoline?" and he said yes! So, I told him all about how we would go see Santa soon and he would need to tell Santa that he wants a trampoline (I did tell him he could just say jump because trampoline is just absolutely impossible for him at this point-not that he can say jump, either, but he can at least make an attempt at that word). He didn't really respond, but I could tell he was doing LOTS of thinking. I gave him the time he needed to really think things through. Finally, he did the sign for scared. He was telling me that he was scared to talk to Santa! This was incredible in so many ways. It was so far beyond the usual "here and now" or "getting needs met" conversations. He actually put a word to an emotion he was feeling--even if he's not able to articulate the word, he was able to communicate it through sign langauge. We "talked" a little longer and decided that I will talk to Santa for him. I wish I could get a video of his expressions in these types of situations. His expressions just say it all and they convey so much meaning. It'll be very interesting to see what kind of reaction Santa gets when we go see him. I'm thinking maybe I should write Ryan's list and let him just hand it to Santa.

What a sweet, wonderful little boy! I can't wait until he's able to express himself more. It's so obvious that he has a lot to say.

The Christmas frenzy has begun

We got our tree this weekend and it's all decorated. We had to put it in the foyer because it's huge! Steve took Kaeli, Paige, and Ryan to a tree farm and cut it down. When we got the tree put up, Paige said, "MOM! I think the tree got bigger after we brought it home." It was funny because I know exactly what she was thinking. In the tree forest, outside, next to all the other trees it looks like a normal-sized tree. You get in a house and suddenly it looks a WHOLE lot bigger! Decorating the tree is definitely becoming more of a challenge now that we have 4 very young children. I realized that none of my kids know the meaning of "wait a minute". After putting on the first 2 or 3 decorations we suddenly realized how impossible of an undertaking it was. We decided tree decorating would have to wait until AJ was safely tucked away in bed for the night. Just in case you're wondering, having a 14 mo old roam free in a room full of shiny round objects that are not only fragile, but also have thin metal hooks on them, is not exactly a good idea. Ok, maybe if it's your ONLY child you can manage. But, don't try it with 4 kids. Fortunately, there were no accidents, but if we had continued on much longer I can pretty much guarantee there would have been MULTIPLE mishaps. Oh, but as evidenced in the pictures, he sure was adorable before he went into meltdown-mode. The other 3 enjoyed decorating the tree later and it was slightly more manageable.





Other than that, I'm feeling pretty good with where we are in terms of preparation. The kids have already started on their gifts for teachers and classmates. We'll do a little baking next week. Although, I have to let everyone know--I'm pretty sure Christmas cards will be late this year. I just ordered them last night and they won't get here until next Monday. So, it all depends on how quickly I get them addressed and sent out. I'm still trying to figure out how it is that I start "thinking" about Christmas right after Halloween and yet I'm still always struggling at the last minute to get everything done.

AJ's First Haircut

AJ actually got his hair cut back in October....I believe it was October 10. I didn't want to, but I had to get his curls all cut off. We were beginning to hear "she's so cute" way too often. It didn't really matter if he was dressed head to toe in blue with footballs all over his shirt. People would see the curls and automatically assume he was a girl. The curls are gone, but I think he still has a good bit of "waviness" to his hair. I think if I ever let it get long enough, the curls would come back.

He did great for his first haircut. He didn't move an inch. The hairdresser said she doesn't have too many kids sit as still as he did. All 4 of our kids have been that way. They almost seem too scared to move! :)

Kaeli thinks she wants to be a vegetarian!

Actually, I think I persuaded her to rethink her position. But, tonight I was making breakfast for dinner. This is usually one of her favorite meals. The first thing she asked was "wait, are you cooking bacon?". She then told me she couldn't eat the bacon because she's going to be a vegetarian now. Why does she want to be a vegetarian? Well, the biggest reason is because Chris (Chris is her best friend, and yes, he's a boy) said he's a vegetarian. Chris lives on a farm and tells Kaeli all about what happens to the animals when they are eaten. She thinks it's mean to kill the animals and eat them. I went along with it and told her she could be a vegetarian if she researches why people become vegetarians and what they eat in place of the meat. Many questions and complaints later, she decided that she wouldn't become a vegetarian after all.

Now, of course, to know that a boy has this much power over my daughter's mind did concern me a little. I asked her if she has a crush on Chris. Of course not!!! In the past I've told her that she really shouldn't have boyfriends yet. I told her she can have a boyfriend when she's in college-I thought it couldn't her to remind her of that during this little opportunity. Her response was actually cute! Keep in mind she had just very indignantly informed me that Chris is just her best friend and NOT a "boyfriend". She said "But, I do hope Chris goes to the same college as me because I want to live on a farm with him one day". I had no response for that one! :)

There is a nuclear power plant several miles from here, but close enough that we can see the smoke on cold days. Kaeli noticed it today and asked if there was a fire. I explained what it was. She then told me all about how bad pollution is for the environment. When I told her that without that power plant we wouldn't have electricity she told me "well, I'd rather not have electricity if it's going to pollute the environment"! I wonder how she'd feel about that if I put her in a tent outside for the next 24 hrs?

Finally.....a month later.......

WOW! Time really does fly when you're having fun, huh? Somehow I will get back into the groove of updating my blog regularly.

Right now the big news is that AJ is completely weaned from the bottle. He hasn't had a bottle in one week. Surprisingly, he now sleeps through the night, too! I have to say I'm not one bit sad to realize my last baby has officially left babyhood behind and entered toddlerhood. When AJ was born, Ryan was only 19 mos and just barely-so I never really got much of a break between them. It feels like I've had an infant for almost 3 years straight. I had to go to the grocery store today. I actually felt like I was forgetting something because I didn't buy any baby/toddler food and no formula. Our last hurdle to jump will be getting everyone out of diapers. I don't see that happening anytime soon, though. But, the good news is that I have a monthly subscription for diapers. Paige's pull-ups and Ryan and AJ's diapers just show up at my doorstep once a month.

We had a nice Thanksgiving! Steve's family came to our house to celebrate. It was a beautiful day-I'm guessing the temp was in the mid-60's! Beautiful weather for smoking and frying turkeys. We don't bother with roasting turkeys anymore. The guys cook 2 turkeys and both are done outside--one fried and one cooked in a smoker. It works out really well. The ladies chase the kids around and do the cooking inside. And, to be honest, when it comes to frying a turkey being in the house is the best place for me. Don't get me wrong, they are very safe.....I'm just really nervous around open flames, oil, and propane tanks. But, the turkeys were delicious (as usual) and I think everyone had a great time. The girls worked very hard to make the placemats this year. I wish we had gotten pictures of the table. Maybe I can at least get a picture of their placemats to post on here.

In other news, Ryan has an appointment with a geneticist tomorrow. I don't expect to learn anything new. To be completely honest, I have no idea why the developmental pediatrician referred him to this Dr. But, we will go and see what they say.

I do have some wonderful news to share about Ryan! His speech therapy session last week was one of the best ever! He was labeling animals on a puzzle and even making their sound. Then, when it was time to put the pieces away he was able to say bye to each piece....as in "bye pig", "bye sheep", etc. It's still a big struggle for him to retrieve the word he needs in a situation like that. But, he was working so hard at it and really taking his time to find the words all by himself without prompting. I was so overcome with pride and happiness that I started tearing up. When his speech therapist saw me crying, she started crying. Ryan must have thought we were nuts! I'm going to try to get it on video at his next session because it really is a huge milestone for him!! When you are so close to something it's hard to actually see the progress (similar to how we don't really see how much our children grow from year to year because we see them everyday), but that animal puzzle is a great marker for measuring his progress. At his first session Heather used that same puzzle. 7 months ago he couldn't say any of the animals names or sounds even with a prompt. Now he's naming them all AND combining two words to say bye to them all. He's a long way from sounding fluent, but he's at least able to do it now!! Sometimes I think I lose sight of the fact that all his little baby steps toward learning to speak are monumental for him. I get frustrated because his progress has seemed slow and daunting. Each month I would look forward to the 11th (because he'd be a month older) and I would secretly hope that THAT would be the day he suddenly started talking. I'm more accepting now that this could be a long road of lots of baby steps, so I'm learning to celebrate his small accomplishments instead of always waiting for the HUGE overnight improvement. I won't lie, though, right now I'm holding my breath waiting for Feb 11th. He'll be 3 on that day--maybe he'll suddenly catch up and all my worries will be a distant memory. I've heard about that happening to many kids and all my hope is hanging on that happening to Ryan. But, I'm also trying to remind myself that it means nothing if it doesn't happen. He will get there when he's ready. He has so much to say, I know it's only a matter of time before he's able to tell us everything on his mind.

Time to do some catching up!

I can't believe it's been almost 2 weeks since my last entry! Actually, it's not hard to believe considering what the past 2 weeks have been like for us. It's been CRAZY around here!

I left off with Kaeli getting the stomach bug. She missed Tue and Wed from school. Went back to school on Thursday, but came home complaining that her tummy was cramping again. No school on Friday because of an in-service day so she got to stay home and try to recuperate.

Thursday night Ryan woke up vomiting. He got hit HARD!! The poor kid had no idea what was going on. He continued to throw up all night long. I did lots of laundry through the night and slept on the floor next to his bed (when I got a few minutes to actually sleep).

Of course then Friday morning AJ wakes up vomiting!

Saturday was pretty tough to get through since everyone was VERY sick and Steve had to work. But, we survived! By Saturday night things were looking up. I actually thought we had made it through the worst part.

UNTIL.....Kaeli came to my room at around 4AM limping and said her leg was hurting really bad. She pointed to her upper thigh and I assumed it was probably just a muscle cramp. I gave her some Tylenol and put her back in bed. I was slightly worried as I drifted back to sleep because she did start pointing to her groin area when I asked her again where exactly it hurt. But, I thought "what's the worst it could be?". Maybe some soreness in her lymph nodes or just cramping from dehydration. Around 7AM Paige came to our room to tell us Kaeli couldn't even get out of bed. She was in some serious pain. She said she couldn't even move her leg because it hurt so bad. I reluctantly put a call in to the on-call ped. I felt a little silly for calling about a hurt leg, but I didn't know what else to do. I couldn't just let her lay in bed and suffer without me trying to do something. The on-call Dr told me to take her to the ER at the Children's Hospital. Based on my description of her symptoms he was concerned she could have a joint infection. This is when I realized her hurt leg could be a serious condition.

We finally made it to the ER around 10:30 or 11:00 and our day just went downhill from there. The wait was sooooo long and Kaeli was getting pretty irritable. Her aunt Kristen was in town and everyone else was at Mom-mom's house having a party for Kristen. Kaeli had been looking forward to this day all week and she was EXTREMELY disappointed! Also, by now Kaeli has missed lunch. A bored, crabby, disappointed, hungry, and thirsty 7 yr old is NOT very good company! She was not allowed to eat, though, because they weren't sure what was wrong with her.

After answering a gazillion questions a gazillion different times the tests started. First thing they did was an x-ray. The attending Dr said that unfortunately they didn't see anything on xray. So, from there they had to do a blood culture and various other blood tests. The concern was that she could either have a joint infection or a blood infection. Her tests came back showing a high WBC count and two different tests for inflammation came back high. Kaeli was passed off from the attending ER Dr to an Orthopedic surgeon (yeah, that made me a little nervous). Two different ortho Dr's looked at her and her lab results. After consulting with each other, they determined she needed to be admitted for overnight observation. Because the WBC count was high they couldn't completely rule out an infection. Overnight they gave her anti-inflammatory IV meds. By morning she was a different kid!! She had some pain left in the leg, but she could at least move it and could put a little bit of weight on the leg. I was so incredibly relieved by her improvement. If she hadn't improved so much they were going to put her under anesthesia and use a needle to aspirate some of the fluid. WHEW!!

We were finally released from the hospital Monday afternoon. Kaeli and I were thrilled! Kaeli said she always thought it would be cool to stay at a hospital. But, after this experience she has changed her mind. She said they kept waking her up all night long. LOL Also, she said she was mad at the Dr's. They were supposed to be making her feel better, but instead they kept moving her leg all around and it made her leg hurt even more! Although I have to say she was real trooper when it came to the Dr's moving her leg. She was trying not to complain and would keep smiling as they tried to move her leg. They could feel the resistance in her movement and would finally say "is this hurting?". Through a clenched smile she'd say "yes" in a really cheerful voice!! I was laughing because when I even touched her she'd scream out in agony!

Another sick kid!

Paige ended up missing 3 days last week as a result of her stomach virus. Wouldn't you know Kaeli just developed symptoms this morning? She went to school all day because she only complained that her stomach hurt this AM. She ate her breakfast and she didn't complain very long. So, I didn't think much of it. She came home from school this afternoon and was just an emotional wreck. She was crying over everything. She finally asked me to take her temp because she wasn't feeling well. Sure enough, she had a fever of 101.2. She has only puked once so far. I'm expecting tomorrow to be the worst day since day 2 was the worst for Paige.

I just hope this bug stops with Kaeli. I can't imagine going through this with Ryan or AJ.

Paige is so amazingly empathetic. She was very upset about Kaeli throwing up. She didn't even want to sleep in the same room because she was afraid Kaeli would throw up in the middle of the night. She really cannot stand to watch anyone else suffer in any way, shape, or form. This intense ability to empathize with another person seems in such contrast to her ability to hold her own emotions inside. She hardly ever shows her own emotions or weaknesses. But, it's like her cryptonite is watching another person suffer. She actually seems to FEEL whatever the other person is experiencing. It's just amazing!

Quite an Afternoon!

I often get comments like "you certainly have your hands full" or "how do you do it with 4 young kids?". I'm sure many of you reading my blog have wondered that also. Well, the truth is some days are incredibly challenging and I wonder how I survive them. But, the good news is that I can look back at the challenging moments and laugh. So, this entry is all about one of those challenging moments.

Paige stayed home from school today because she wasn't feeling well. She slept most of the afternoon and didn't really eat anything because her tummy was hurting. I had to wake her up so we could go pick Kaeli up from school. Now, let me first say the arrival home from school is never a smooth transition. There's a lot of excitement and everybody wants something. And, as much as I've tried to teach my kids this fact, they still don't seem to understand that I'm only one person. So, we walk back in the door after school. Ryan and AJ are let loose on the floor. Kaeli and Paige are both vying for my attention. Paige asks for a drink of water because her tummy is starting to hurt REALLY bad. I get the water and, before handing it to her, ask her if she's ok. She just answers with "My tummy is just hurting so bad I think I need medicine". My heart truly goes out to her-but there's nothing I can do except offer a hug and kiss. I then hand her the water. She goes to take a drink and pukes right into the cup. I grab her and try to get her to the bathroom, attempting to leave as little of a trail as possible. Just as we get to the toilet Paige slips in the vomit and falls right into it. She's now covered in stinkiness. I have to leave Paige at the toilet to fend for herself because by now I realize AJ is trying to crawl into the bathroom. In case you're wondering, I don't think it's because of his concern for Paige. I think it's that he realizes the bathroom door is open and he now has access to his two favorite past-times--eating toilet paper and splashing in the toilet bowl. So, I quickly wash his hands (because I don't need him to catch this bug) and stick him in the high chair. He doesn't like being confined so he screams and cries during the remainder of this incident. I hear Kaeli screaming because Ryan is walking right through the vomit. I don't quite remember how I did this, but somehow I managed to simultaneously throw Paige in the bathtub and strip Ryan's pants and socks. I put Ryan on the other side of the gate so he can't get into the mess again. He also doesn't appreciate this confinement, so he proceeds to scream. Fortunately, Paige seems much better once she's in the tub. With much screaming in the background, Kaeli assists me by getting paper towels, cleaning supplies and garbage bags. Of course, she's keeping her distance because she informs me that she feels like she might throw up because of the smell. I get the floors cleaned and put all the dirty clothes in the laundry. Then I bathe Paige and wash her hair in record time! Now I can finally release Ryan and AJ and things begin to settle down. WHEW!!

AJ's first steps happened after the mayhem. So, that explains why Kaeli and Ryan don't have on pants, why AJ's overalls are unbuttoned, and why Paige is not involved in the fanfare.

Paige seemed much better after that one incident. Hopefully that was the end of it.

Look Who's Walking!!!

Ok, so he's not officially walking, but AJ did take his first independent steps today. It was completely unexpected! I've heard stories of babies who just get up and walk one day. That may not be exactly how it happened, but I have a feeling that's how I'll relay the story one day--many years from now when my memory has started to blur. Oh, who am I fooling? I suppose it would be just as accurate to say one or two years from now.

Here's the story of the first steps!! AJ was trying to get into a drawer at the bottom of the entertainment center. I closed the drawer and just left him standing there. He stood there, just staring at the closed drawer, for maybe 30 seconds. Then, to my amazement, I watched him take 2 very steady little steps toward the drawer before lowering himself to the ground. Of course, I immediately called Steve to tell him the story. I guess it doesn't sound nearly as exciting in writing. But, I just never experienced that with any of the other kids. With each of the other 3, the first steps only came after a great deal of cajoling.

Of course, I immediately pulled out the video camera. Obviously, you will not witness his first steps, but it's pretty close. Don't ask me why my kids seem to all be missing their pants--I don't have an answer. Oh wait!! Yes, I do!! I just remembered that we had a rather eventful afternoon. You'll have to read about that in my next entry.

So, without further ado.........