Doctor visits, Easter, church dedication and a birthday celebration. That pretty much sums up the past four months of our lives.
Doctor Visits:
It started with Pneumonia. Brooks ran a 103 degree fever for a couple of days and then it spiked to 105. That would mark our first emergency room visit. His x-ray appeared clear, he received a breathing treatment and some Motrin. Within minutes, the happy Brooks came back.
We went to the doctor's office four out of the five days that week for Brooks. We also brought Carly for two of those visits because she started coughing and sounding terrible. Almost exactly a week later we went back to the ER, this time with Carly. And, this time we wouldn't go back home. We took Carly to the hospital near our house, but after an hour and no improvement in Carly's oxygen levels the doctors sent us to the Children's hospital downtown via ambulance. Carly's first ride in an ambulance. My first ride in an ambulance.
The medic had to ask me how he should strap the car seat to stretcher. We arrived at MUSC and our room quickly filled with nurses. They put Carly on breathing tubes, a couple of monitors and inserted an IV which they wrapped up with a diaper (otherwise known as the boxing glove).
We visited with the doctor, but he said her stats did not meet their criteria for being released. Thankfully, the nurses assigned us a double room meaning we didn't have to stay in a shoebox. Carly and I spent the next four nights at MUSC. Her bed looked very much like a monkey's cage with a nest of sheets.
By the end of the week Carly's oxygen levels finally stopped triggering the alarm and the doctor's released us Saturday afternoon. We would spend the next three months at the doctor's office every week and sometimes twice a week. Carly would improve, but never fully recover. Our pediatrician sent us to an asthma/allergist specialist during that time who thought she had acid reflux which was causing her to stay congested. We did an airway/swallow study and the results came back negative for any abnormalities. Next would be the acid reflux test, but Carly couldn't take it because she was throwing up all the time. Finally, after weeks and weeks of frustration, the doctor agreed to put her on Previcid. Within 24 hours she stopped throwing up and within the week she almost seems normal. She still coughed a bit, but it's the best she's sounded since she first contracted RSV. I can't say reflux is the problem, only because she caught a cold recently, but this time we didn't have to pull her out of daycare for a week and she's not coughing herself into vomiting fits. (Sounds lovely huh?)
Easter:
I really enjoyed Easter this year because 1) Lena came to visit and 2) Brooks took part in a couple of egg hunts. Lena is my sister, Joanna's, 2 year old daughter. They live in Charlotte and thankfully we get to see each other quite a few times a year. I love when Lena and Brooks can play together because they get along well and it takes fewer bribes to get either one of them to follow instructions. If one wants to do it, then the other wants to do the same. Plus, the 48 hour visit is usually just the right amount of time before the two turn on each other. That's when everything becomes "mine" and hitting or biting might occur. Ha, ha.
Saturday morning, Rachel (my sister who lives here in CHS), invited us to her church for an Easter egg hunt. We tried to capture a picture of Lena and Brooks, but as you can imagine neither can look at the camera simultaneously.
It took awhile for everyone to arrive and prepare for the actual event. Finally, they gathered all the toddlers and let them lose in the backyard of the church which they had sprinkled with hundreds of eggs. Many kids took off like pros and then there was Brooks who needed a few instructions. "Do you see any eggs Brooks? Let's go pick one up. Good job. Now put it in your basket. Ok, do you see any more eggs? Pick it up and put it in your basket." I think we collected 15 or so in our basket. Each one filled with candy I dreaded he would want to eat. Here's his "Really ma? Another picture?" look.
Sunday we held our homemade egg hunt after Lena and Brooks napped. I think Joanna and I (or maybe just me) were more excited about it than the kids. I thought for sure they would run out the door and start collecting eggs. Especially, not that they had one hunt under their belt.
But, as you can see they masked their joy for carrying around a basket. Once again, we provided step by step instructions on how to gather eggs and put them in our baskets. This hunt took a little longer since we had just two toddlers and fifty million eggs all over the lawn.
One of my favorite times over the weekend was a short period of time we spent on the front porch. We have two small camping chairs for Lena and Brooks. Joanna and I tried to use the chairs as props for pictures, but again, epic fail with two 2 year old children. Here are a few snapshots.
I texted my Dad the last picture and his response: "I didn't know unconscious was a face a two year old could make." I have no idea what they were doing or why they were pretending to sleep b/c it was only for a minute, long enough to take the picture.
Church Dedication:
Two weeks after Easter we had Carly's dedication at church. It turned into a really neat weekend because we celebrated Brooks' birthday as well. We originally scheduled the dedication back in January, but canceled due to our hospital visit for RSV. I'll admit I was a bit anxious about the dedication for many reasons. The process requires us to get up in front of the congregation and make a commitment to Carly. Then, the pastor takes the child for a (long) walk up and down the aisles for everyone to see/meet the baby. I felt the same nerves with Brooks. Typically the babies are younger, but we had both dedications when Brooks and Carly were 6 months old, old enough for them to be randomly afraid of strangers. I handed Carly over to Marshall and thought, if she's going to bust out crying it will happen now during the transfer. And, off he went and as he walked down the stairs to make his rounds, she gazed into his face so enthralled with his voice you could hear the congregation breath in and say how cute she looked. Carly starred at Marshall intently for the next 10 minutes. Ah-maze-ing.
Birthday Celebration:
Brooks turned 2! I'd love to say I can't believe Brooks is two, but honestly, it feels like he should be 5 years old. Plus, the celebration lasted all weekend starting Friday (actual birthday) when I decided to spend the day with him instead of sending him to school. Unfortunately, I used that day for wellness visits. :) My dad accompanied us on our trip to the doctor's office. Brooks was 34 inches tall and 29 lbs, both measurements in the 50th percentile. His head on the other hand still ranks in the 75th percentile. He didn't have to get any shots, but they did prick his finger for a glucose level. My dad said he watched the nurse take his finger, stick it, and then squeeze it for a sample all without shedding one tear. That's my boy.
The real birthday festivities started early Saturday morning. Rachel, Joanna and I took Brooks & Lena to the Lowcountry Children's Museum. It's the perfect place to waste and hour or two. The only problem we run into is we can barely get past the first room. It's filled with golf balls. And, out of all the sports that involve balls, golf is his favorite.
We spent a good couple of hours at the museum, headed home and took naps. Afterwards, the clan went to Blackbeard's Cove for a second round of running and entertainment. Kids under 3 are free! Lena and Brooks played a round of putt-putt, tumbled their way down a giant inflatable slide and played a few games. From what I hear, Lena needs a few golf lessons on the green.
The party train then headed over to Chick-fil-A for dinner, mostly because it has an indoor play gym. Also, because I figured he might actually eat something (other than oatmeal) with Lena around.
We ended the day at home with a little birthday cake. I decided to go with a golf theme which he expressed no major emotions when he saw it. Although, the golf cart does work. Plus, he nearly climbed out of his chair when we sang Happy Birthday and refused to blow out the candle. Good times.
I've heard many people tell me "he's all boy." Brooks likes to climb, jump, run, kick, throw and his favorite word is "nope."
A few weeks ago he started finishing his words so instead of buh, it's now bus and joo is now juice. It's a fun development to witness. Especially since I drop him off and pick him up at school. Our car rides are much less frustrating when you can semi understand what he needs or wants. One of his best skills at two is naming all the colors. Everything used to be blue or red. Then we introduced purple, yellow, green and orange. And now, he knows white, brown and gray. The gr sound is a bit challenging so we get "neen" and "ay" for those colors.
Brooks also started stringing together three and four word sentences.
"I got it."
"I did it."
"Bye bye Daddy's car."
We say bye to everything. Bye house. Bye school. And, if we don't see something like the ducks or deer, they are "nigh, nigh."
Within the last week or so he's started asking "Where Carly go?" or when Justin goes to take a shower, "Where daddy go?" While the improved communication is fun we are experiencing what many like to call "the terrible two's." His mood swings are a bit ridiculous, but most of the time we can talk him down from the cliff. It takes quite a bit of patience and a little more interaction to keep his mind busy.
In a couple of weeks he will transition from the walker's class at school to the 2 year old classroom. Big changes to come!
