October 16, 2007
· Filed under Parenting
The Great Plague of 2007 seems to be coming to an end. The kids and I are better, but hubby still needs a lot of TLC. It’s a good thing the rest of us have recovered!
In the meantime, Bean (age 3) has developed a fear of air. (Yes, air. The stuff we breathe.) It started as a fear of wind because of something she saw on Mickey Mouse Clubhouse (we’ve since unplugged). But it developed into a fear of light breezes, and then progressively any air that moves. When she walks, when someone walks past her, when the heat or A/C comes on. She screams. She runs. She cries. My parents seem to think it’s all a ploy for attention, and I’m sure some of it is. But I also know that there is a real anxiety there that we need to address (or not?). So, calling all parenting gurus! What do you do when your 3 year old is afraid of AIR? (My brother’s idea was to make her hold her breath and see what she likes better - air or no air? It’s a good thing he doesn’t have kids…)
Really, though. After days and days of her screaming no matter what we do, I’m at the end of my rope. Please? Someone? A little help here?
October 13, 2007
· Filed under Family, Health
Wednesday: (Mama) Trip to urgent care center for breathing difficulties. Enough drugs prescribed to start a cartel.
Thursday: (Mama) Day in ER due to complications from multiple medications. Ironically, more drugs prescribed. Problem thought to be found with pregnancy. Something from the ER doc (over and over and over again) that 14 weeks is not a viable pregnancy, thoughts of losing the baby. Test found to have false result and the baby is “just perfectly healthy!” Roller Coaster ride comes to a stop. Please exit to your right when the seat belt bar releases.
Friday morning: (Bean) Trip to pediatrician for persistent cough. Steroids and antibiotics prescribed to treat breathing problems and surprise double ear infection.
Friday afternoon: (Little Man) Emergency trip to pediatrician due to high fever. Found to have pneumonia, pink eye, and ear infection. Enough drugs prescribed to start yet another cartel.
Saturday morning: Hubs waks up with high fever. The one who never gets sick has succumbed to the great plague of 2007.
So far, no one has been diagnosed with IBS, ADHD, or restless leg syndrome. I’ll take my silver linings where I can get ‘em!
October 11, 2007
· Filed under Health
Yesterday was the big day. We met with the neurosurgeon. And after, we celebrated.
Liam’s tumor is small - too small to deal with the risks that brain surgery would entail. So for now, surgery is off the radar. We’ll monitor it with MRIs and keep seeing the neurosurgeon regularly, but unless it grows to over twice the size it is now it’ll stay right where it is.
He’ll stay on the anti-seizure meds indefinitely, but thankfully we won’t be cutting into his precious skull any time soon. Can you handle more good news? His off-the-charts head growth has slowed considerably. He’s gone from being outside of the normal range to in the 75th percentile. The neurosurgeon measured my head and hubby’s and said that’s exactly the size of head he’d expect. His speech has picked up over the last week too, so we’re not so worried about developmental delay. Wow, it’s been a good week.
Weeping may last for the night, But a shout of joy comes in the morning. (Psalm 30:5)
October 9, 2007
· Filed under Health
We got a small amount of news today, that’s neither good nor bad. The 24-hour EEG he did was completely normal. That’s good because it tells us his medicine is controlling the seizures well - there was no seizure-like or seizure-causing activity in his brain. But it’s unfortunate because it doesn’t tell us the cause of the seizures.
We were hoping (and praying) that his little brain would have some seizure activity (without becoming physical seizures of course) so we could isolate the cause - either the tumor or something else. So we don’t know anything new.
October 9, 2007
· Filed under Faith, Health
I’ve been walking a hard road lately. For those of you who are new here, my 21-month old son, Liam, has been diagnosed with a brain tumor. And epilepsy too. They may or may not be related. Thankfully the tumor is benign, and seems to be operable. So I’m walking him down the road to brain surgery. And every time they do an IV or draw blood I ache for him. He doesn’t understand why he has to be poked, prodded, and stuck. And nothing I do will make the hurt go away.
The first thing I lost was self-reliance. It’s hard to let go of. I’m used to being able to do things myself, fix things myself… But there are some things I can’t do. And it forces me to depend on the One who shapes the mountains and sets the stars in the sky. And that’s a good thing.
My next source for someone to depend on? Hubby. In all my emotionalism, he’s the one who stands firm. He helps me put things in perspective. But when Liam’s diagnosis came, he was in Moscow. I wondered why God would give me this news while I was alone. But it hit me like a rock, almost instantly. Because my husband can’t be my rock. There’s only one Rock of my foundation, and He can’t be replaced. And in the days that my hubby was gone, I learned the hard way how to depend only on Him.
As if I wasn’t lonely enough, my best friend closed on her house that week and left for Texas. With her 4 girls - two of whom are my kids’ best friends. And I wondered again, why, Lord, now? And the answer came back. Again. Kathy, my sweet child, so you’ll depend on Me. And dependence on Me will be exactly what you need.
It worked. With my ever-familiar crutches gone. I learned to depend on Him like never before. And it was indeed sweet. Have you ever tasted wild grapes? The kind that no one cares for? They flower. They’re full of color. They’re beautiful. But often dry and bitter. If you want sweet, juicy grapes, they have to be pruned. The flowers removed. Shoots trimmed off - even productive ones sometimes. The good has to make way for the great.
Our first trial - coping with seizures and the news of a tumor - is done. And we’ve come through it weaker - that is, knowing our weakness more fully and depending on a source of strength greater than we’ve ever known. But that is exactly how we become strong. It is also where God is glorified. Tomorrow we meet the neurosurgeon. I don’t know what to expect, but I’m very happy that I’ve tested how to rely on God alone. I’ve figured out that I can trust Him when circumstances are hard. And that will carry me through what’s to come.
October 9, 2007
· Filed under Trivialities
I spent my first few years after grad school studying and working in linguistics. Linguistic theory, learning theories, teaching methodologies, etymology in three languages, the list goes on… and I thought I wanted to be a linguist. I’ve since learned that while linguistics are interesting, there are other things for me in this life. Regardless, when I came across this survey, I had to try it. So here’s the brand of American English I speak. I only wish there was a more comprehensive test I could take to get more accurate results!
Your Linguistic Profile:
|
55% General American English25% Dixie
10% Yankee
5% Upper Midwestern
0% Midwestern
|
What Kind of American English Do You Speak?
October 8, 2007
· Filed under Family, Trivialities
This weekend brought the Pumpkin Festival at Stone Mountain in Georgia. I think a great time was had by all, but we did discover that Bean’s dislike for wind has evolved into an all-consuming terror of the wind. Yes, that’s right. Every single breeze brought blood-curdling screams. From an otherwise quiet 3-year old.
We also discovered that Little Man likes to fling paint. And the chugga-chugga-choo-choo of a train is lots of fun from far away, but rather frightening from up close.
October 3, 2007
· Filed under Pregnancy, Works for Me!
Ok. There’s nothing remotely scientific about it. In fact, most doctors would probably tell me I’m crazy. But for me, for now, it works. In fact, it’s the only thing that works - consistently, quickly, and easily. Every single time.
Honestly, I don’t know if the nausea is caused by the pregnancy, the nasty little cold I have (maybe turning into a flu bug?), or the stress from all the other stuff going on in my life right now. But what I can tell you is that for me, chocolate works. I’m not talking about a giant slice of french silk pie (which I love, and I will admit to using to soothe the grief from other things). But more along the lines of a small piece of chocolate - one of those individually-wrapped ones from Lindt or Hershey. A truffle maybe. Or a chocolate peanut cluster. Something about it settles my tummy (and has the added benefit of making me smile as I slowly, lovingly chew it). Hubs: if you’re reading this, I could use a refill when you come back home…
That’s what works for me. Head over to Shannon’s place for more ideas. Hopefully some of them will be a little more helpful than mine!
October 3, 2007
· Filed under Health
I found this awesome book at Books A Million (though I probably could have gotten it cheaper at Amazon…). It talks about seizures in kids, but it goes into so much more than just the seizures. In fact, it talks about the process of coping that parents go through. Much like the grieving process, it goes through 4 rather emotional stages (personally, I think those stages are even more pronounced when your child has seizures and a brain tumor).
Anyhow, it starts with fear - understandably. Then comes grief, which I remember well. After that is anger. And at first I staunchly denied that I was angry. Until. I. read. on. Anger comes in the form of being angry at your spouse (for not being more ever-present / super-hero-powered / involved / whatever), angry at your nurses (Why can’t they get it on the first stick? Why are they running so late? Why didn’t she smile just now? What’s she smiling about?!) And upon reading that, I realized, I certainly have been angry. Sometimes with rational reasons, sometimes not so rational. And anger really eats away at a person. In fact, it’s one of those weird things that doesn’t need a reason to exist or even an object. You can just walk through your day angry and not know why. (Hence the ridiculous amount of sarcasm I’ve thrust upon those close to me lately.)
Honestly, I think I’m over the anger bit. There wasn’t a stitch of anger (or even sarcasm) when the pharmacist gave us the wrong prescription (I’m thankful that I checked it though). Or when the nurses wouldn’t let me into the EEG room when they were attaching my son to it (the fumes are dangerous in pregnancy). I had to stand outside and listen to him cry.
Anyhow, the last stage is acceptance, and it’s a healthy place to be. It’s a nice place to be, though I do kind of wish I didn’t have to be here at all - I’d rather be the parent who never had to think about seizures, or growths in the brain. But here I am, and for now, it’s home.
October 1, 2007
· Filed under Trivialities
The other night I was brushing Bean’s teeth when she turned to me and said “So Tata was like, ‘are you upstairs?’ and I was like, ‘yeah, come on up!’” After the initial shock of her valley-girl-ness wore off I started mentally going through all the people she spends time with, trying to figure out where she could have heard that. Someone at preschool? The teen volunteers at Sunday School? Because surely she didn’t hear it at home. We speak ‘proper,’ intelligible, American English in our home.
Until… I was talking to hubby that night and I caught myself relating a conversation I’d had earlier. And. I. said. “she was like…” So that’s when it hit me. I do, in fact, talk like that. At least sometimes. The mirror of self-illumination was not my friend this weekend. So I need to fix my elocution before my kids start sounding like the characters from Beverly Hills 90210. ‘Cause, like, I’d be like so embarrassed if they, like, start talking like that… like, ya know?
