I'm NOT crazy!

Background:

With all my education, training and experience I've seen a lot of different styles of parenting...and made a few decisions about my own approach. I decided long ago I'm not going to be one of those ultra-hovering-worried about everything-first time moms. Yes Q falls down and gets bumps frequently, but no I don't let him lean over cliffs, etc.

Given that, when I take him to the doctor I expect to be taken seriously. I'm not bringing him in for every sniffle, so don't patronize me. This has not been the case over the last year. I picked a pediatrician, recommended by a few sources here, who has a reputation for being competent and on the ball, seeings how the Cali one totally missed the boat on his muscle delays. Every time I've gone to her (outside of well child checks) or even asked questions about my concerns she's responded with a smile and sweet voice basically making me feel crazy. As you can guess this has made me a little leery of taking Q in with any further concerns, even though his newborn doctors said not to hesitate because of his susceptibility to problems with his kidneys. When I call for an appointment and get a different dr I never refuse.

Present:

As I've mentioned previously Q has been sick with a yucky nose cold. The Friday before Thanksgiving I took him in because he had green coming out of his nose and I didn't want to get all the cousins, aunts, uncles and grandparents sick over the holiday. It had been a week so I was outside the "too early to treat" time frame. The nice PA gave us some antibiotics for sinusitis which we had to wait an agonizing hour for in RiteAide, but the green went immediately away. (thank you so much for not blowing me off!) We went to Ferndale thinking all was on the mend. He promptly started coughing and the runny nose didn't stop. We plugged along hoping, but after a week I was getting worried again. This weekend he sounded like he was breathing underwater and I was asking him to cough for Momma several times a day.

I took him to his regular doctor yesterday kinda gritting my teeth. I told her every detail of the last two weeks, she checked him out and had her student share her opinion before her own. For the first time I was validated! They couldn't tell whether he's got walking pneumonia or his nose is draining into his chest, but to kill both options they are putting him on prednisone for a week to try to clear everything up. I really hope it works, it's agonizing to listen to him breathe.

Of course I never want to be right that there's something wrong with my boy, but when I know that there's something wrong I want something done about it! This time I wasn't crazy, there is something wrong and needs treatment. She gave me permission to go to public stuff so I'm really hoping he didn't get any family sick last week!

Shopping

I'm so excited. I found this awesome deal on Melissa & Doug toys (sturdy painted wood) online and hit the jackpot. We're set for Q's Christmas. They arrived in the mail yesterday (wow - fast & free) and it's like Christmas for me already! I want to get them out and play with them. Time for self restraint. Good thing Q hasn't seen them!

Hypochondriac

Ian had some movie playing the other night and we heard a high school kid inform his classmate that "fibromyalgia is a disease made up by hypochondriacs to justify their claims." Haahaaahaa! Oh, the healthy will always criticize the unwell. I can't tell you how many times I've heard non-depressed people say that depressed people should just get up and work, and healthy people say unhealthy people are making it up. I remember back in the day when I wasn't sick with chronic stuff and I couldn't even fathom what being sick all the time was like...so therefore it wasn't real, right? I never understood my sisters pain because I couldn't feel it myself.

I'll have you know that until 2004 I was a healthy, busy, busy lady. I don't think I appreciated it like I should have, but I think that opposition is in all things for a reason. Can't appreciate the good without the bad. And I don't even have it that bad, frankly. There are so many sisters in my ward that are in and out of the hospital frequently with horrible things I don't even want to think about! I truly hope they receive miracles! Anyway that silly boy in the movie got me thinking and I had to rant. There are many days when I think about how lazy I am when I'm not up doing all the time like my amazing in-laws, and then I have a good day and I am up doing all day and it feels great! But it only lasts for a day at a time. I remember my sister saying this same thing to me back in the day when my autoimmune stuff hadn't surfaced yet and I'd always console her that she was sick and had a reason. Now I need to heed my own medicine!

Last week I was in the rheumatologists office and I peeked at his notes on the computer screen as we chatted. I read "patient has been diagnosed with fibromyalgia." What??? I don't want to read that on my doctors screen!!!! I remember informing him when I first came to him that a previous rheumatologist had told me I showed "markers' for fibromyalgia. I didn't have the guts to ask him if that meant diagnosis. ????? I had also told him said previous Dr had mentioned lupus and now HE talks about lupus EVERY time I visit. He's pushing lupus drugs and treatment on me! Okay, I can deal with rheumatoid arthritis because that's what I know and it's being treated. I feel tremors at the thought of the other two, I want nothing to do with them. I'm pretty much blocking it all out of my mind except for those times I visit him (plus, I guess, the treatment plan I'm on is working for the most part, so why change it?). I even talked him into putting the next visit off for two months. He's really nice and extremely thorough, I like him. He's taken the time to be very explicit in answering all of my questions and he's the one that found my 2nd blood clotting disorder that's taken my pregnancy shots to a yucky but safer level (for me, not the baby). He may just have saved my life doing that.

We all thank him.

But don't scare me please.

I do not consider myself a hypochondriac that hoards diagnoses. A previous chiropractor said that fibromyalgia is what they say when they don't have a clue what's wrong. Maybe that's true, I still don't want it.

Sister says they come in three's. I've got my three, don't need five.

I do have to say that I truly do mourn the loss of things like; playing volleyball, frisbee; exercise like push-ups, jogging, yoga, crawling (even riding a bike can be difficult); and hard work like using a hammer, crowbar or ax. Those things are pretty therapeutic.

Ranting done. Apologizes to anyone for tmi.

My true purpose in writing today was that my men are sick. The kind we all relate to, sympathize with and DO NOT want to catch. Q's face turned into a virtual fountain of yuck on Sunday and it only gets worse by the day. It's so bad today that his nose is bleeding from all the kleenex wipes I've been inflicting on him. ('m still going to have to wipe down the furniture 'cause I haven't been 100% successful at catching it all). Then yesterday Ian came home sick after lunch and slept all afternoon. He tried going back to work today, hopefully he makes it and gets better quickly. I'm praying I don't get this infernal plague because it hasn't even been a month since the last one and I'm pregnant. This means I can't hardly take anything to help. Plus next week is a family holiday and I don't want to be miserable and/or share the misery. I know it's probably hopeless because Q and I share everything (that is until the facial fountain started). Plus he's sneezing/coughing on me, my plates, my bed... But I can hope. Rather ironic that all of a sudden he's wanting kisses again. Eww.

Comparing

In all my education I've always known that parents aren't supposed to compare their kids to others. I did really well at this until Q was about 6 months old and we found out he had a muscle delay. The next 7 months were spent in therapy and trying to catch him up with his developmental milestones. I think that started the comparison bit that is hard to stop. I KNOW that all kids develop at different rates and it's a marvelous time watching with delight when something new comes around.

On that note, one of Q's 'closest-in-age' cousins that we see fairly often is George - the wild man. I think I heard that his brother calls him destructo-boy and he scares his mom to death several times a day. Granted, we KNOW that George has an older brother to learn from and follow which helps a lot of 'not-first-born' kids hit their milestones quicker. However, over the past year or so we've been flabbergasted to see all the things that George does that Q does not. And when Q does finally do something George did, we often say he's catching up with George. This week was one of those weeks. Side note: Ian keeps showing/teaching Q to do boy things that are not necessarily great, like writing on himself with the bathtub markers, and...

On Saturday Ian pulled all the soft pillows and cushions down and put them on the floor for Q to jump onto - off the couch. (he's finally at the gross-motor developmental level to be able to do this) Of course Q absolutely LOVED this and had a blast. What boy or even child wouldn't? And he is definitely ALL rough and tough boy. They had a great time. I think it started with us holding his hands to steady him on his way down, but he quickly worked to independence. The most painful part was actually getting on the couch. He'd climb the stool over the arm and kept whacking his head into the board on the back of the couch!

Well, Monday came around and Q decided it was time to do it again and set it up himself. I looked over and saw him pulling the cushions off all by himself (these cushions are about twice his size!) and proceed to jump off. He did this off and on throughout the evening. A few hours after he got home Daddy wanted to sit down comfortably so he put the cushions and pillows back. Did that phase Q? Heck no. Here's our George moment: Q continued to jump off the couchonto the floor for at least 20 minutes! He didn't care that his leg kept catching on the side (forcing a side split) and it'd bounce him onto his side, or that he continuously landed on his shins. He just smiled from ear to ear and ran to climb and do it again. When he finally took a break he was damp with sweat! Ian and I just stared and laughed at our crazy boy. Largest benefit of this newfound fun, you ask? He used up all his energy and we don't! What a blessing that little kids are made out of rubber!

I apologize for lack of pictures/video. When I finally pulled the camera out the battery was dead and Q was done. I'll try to catch it next time.

It's been a while

Late Halloween pictures. Quintin didn't appreciate his tiger outfit in the hot gym at church. Although I didn't get a good picture, I made my costume. There's a little baby skeleton on my tummy.

Quintin has had a Language explosion this past month and it is so fun! He specializes in nouns, but a few verbs and nouns have crept in.

• All letters and numbers are called "E," but I've started hearing a few more like T.
• He now says "sad" when he's sad. It melts your heart, so sweet. And he's learning to say happy.
• He can say almost all the common animals in his books and toys, many body parts, and clothing items. I can't say I appreciate those dirty little fingers poking into my mouth every day to say "teeth!"
• Drink, milk, juice, sandwich. His cue for us when he's hungry is "Bite!" We don't know what happened to 'more,' ...miss that one.
• He loves to gallop/hop around the room saying "hoppi" like he's a bunny. We often see bunnies outside our window and he just lights up when he spots them. He laughs/giggles when he sees them hop.
• Thank you sounds more like "tang goo" and he says it spontaneously without prompting, or repeats after whoever says it to him. It is often followed with his rendition of Your Welcome which is more recognizable by the tone and cadence than the words. We're just starting to work on please.
• He's just started to repeat back "Hi Buddy" to Daddy when he hears it. Absolutely adorable. He loves to say hi to us. "Hi Mamma," "Hi Dadda." (Ian's actually getting frustrated because even though Q beams when he gets home, he runs straight for Mamma and will only interact with him from my arms. I'm not sure what to do.)
• 'I want it' sounds more like "I wan-it" but it's cute.

Just this week we were using puzzle pieces with handles to clap and I started doing it 'front' and 'back' and 'side' 'side' as well as 'up' and 'down.' He thought this was fun and now does it every time he plays with that puzzle. It's a crack up to watch him direct us on which way to go and confuse front with side, etc. He absolutely loves the attention and I can hardly believe how much fun he is! He's a literal sponge right now!

Being a boy he's getting rougher by the day as I get bigger and more tender by the day. This past week he's been hitting me with something or slamming his head into me which results in a loud "OW!" Then he immediately reaches out and says "Hug!" Totally sweet but can we skip the first part and only do the hugs? I don't know where's he's learned to follow Ow with a hug, or maybe he's causing the ow to get a hug?

This weekend Ian taught Q 'ring around the rosies' and he's fallen in love. He already loved 'this little piggy' and 'patty cake' which you don't get to stop once you start. "Again!" we hear. Well, once again Daddy got more than he bargained for. Q requests it every night now (either saying "rosies" or "posies") and Mommy can't do it more than one or two times before getting too dizzy (as well as unable to get off the floor) so it's all on Daddy. :) It is such a delight to see Q learn and love life.

His mouth has finally decided to kick into gear and the molars have come rushing in, poor guy. He cut 3+ teeth within a few weeks. On the upside his ability to eat meat is increasing!

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I'm approaching 6 months pregnant and this baby girl is getting violent, all 1 lb of her. I joked with the OB last week that I'm going to have bruises on the inside from her and outside from Q. I don't remember Q being like this and since I know several '2nd children' that gave their parents a run for their money, I think this girl is going to be a livewire. I guess we'll know in a year.

Trying to get my clothes to fit nicely AND comfortably has been a challenge. I'm right in the middle of little maternity and big maternity clothes. Result = frumpy! Yuck. I'll live. I also noticed the crows feet growing on my eyes. My glasses hide them but they're there! I really didn't want that to ever happen. Grey hair is fine, but I don't want the wrinkles.

I've started going to Mops again and it's been great. I really appreciate the mommy time and the ability to talk about things I'm really struggling with with others that are going through the same stuff. Plus the devotionals are great to help me evaluate where I'm at and where I want to be in my faith, relationships and personal development. Q loves the nursery this year and that's a huge load off. He's so incredible. Unless he's sick he loves going to play.

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This summer 'we' used an idea that Ian heard on the radio during his commute. He cleaned out two trash cans and planted potatoes in the bottom. Then filled it in with dirt as the plants grew. We didn't start digging them out until about Sept/October. I have to say I'm pretty impressed with the result, even though a friend said it was pretty 'ghetto'. I'd say we've gotten about a 10 lb bag of potatoes out of each plant/can. It wasn't until yesterday that I finally got the shovel out and harvested the rest of one of the cans. I still need to do the other one. We'll certainly do that again.

Last week our external hard drive got accidentally bumped causing it to fall and break something in the internal hardware. UUUUUUGH! That little black box held ALL, ALL of our home videos and family pictures. I wasn't worried because Ian said it would keep them safe from viruses, etc. Guess we never thought of physical damage. Since he's a spiffy 'outside salesman' down in Seattle Ian has all kinds of contacts so he's gone to several companies to get assessments and quotes on rescuing the data. Uuuuuugh! It looks like we are going to have to pay over $1200 to fix it in a clean room in the mid-west with the promise of a 90-95% chance of success. Oh my. Precious memories are invaluable. You better believe it's all going on CD's and DVD's when/if we get it back!

The power went out last Friday evening. This was a good lesson for me (even though we have a generator).

1. Don't procrastinate taking a shower.
2. Don't procrastinate cooking dinner. (Turns out our cook-stove isn't connected to the generator circuit. Leftovers it is!)
3. Don't procrastinate starting the pellet stove for heat!

Luckily the power came back on in the middle of the night and life was normal in the morning. BUT it's only November and there are several more months of this coming. Hopefully lesson learned.

I apologize for no pictures. :(

September October Videos

Grandma and Grandpa Skinner came for a short trip back in September. Q enjoyed having them around to play with! Here's a few videos with Grandpa.


I don't know where he picked up the "Yeah!" with hands but it's adorable and he does it every time he gets the rings on right.



And of course Peek a Boo is still his FAVORITE game!


He just gets more and more fun the older he gets. This video is SUPER long so if you don't have the patience to wait 2 minutes to get to the good part don't bother. He was cracking me up making faces.

He's also recently discovered that our bed is outrageously fun. He does this almost every day now.