Challenge

To get the kids to work on their areas of control (ie., THEIR rooms), while I simultaneously work on the rest of the house. Plus laundry, plus whatever else happens to be on my to-do list today. (The goal is to surprise Daddy when he gets home with a clean house. The question is whether or not this is an attainable goal). And to get ALL of it done in enough time to get a birthday present for the party we have at 2 PM.

AND to make time for naps prior to that. For the kids. Not necessarily for me (who are we kidding!?!?).


We'll see how that goes...


What challenges are you up against today?

Odd week

This has been an odd week...

I've had mental moments all week long - you know the kind...the ones where you have way too much to do and tasks that should roll off your brain make you think WAY too hard and question your abilities.

Then yesterday, my assistant flipped backwards out of her chair and hurt her leg on the trash can, and a short while later I smashed my pinky finger in one of my long desk drawers. Instantaneously the nail was filling with blood...You know those kind of smashes...the ones that make you want to scream, but you can't scream because you're in an office, and that's not socially acceptable. You know, you can't just scream your head off in an office, right?

Ug...

So all day yesterday while trying to work, I fought to keep, "my throbbing finger" from seeping into every thought. I punctured it twice last night to relieve the pressure, but it still woke me up several times last night. So I punctured it again this morning.

Just in case you're wondering...I'm gonna lose that entire fingernail. I just know it.

As I got into the office this morning, I came to the realization that you actually USE that little pinky finger A LOT when you type.

Ouch.

I'm still not sure why this week has felt so "off" though...Oh well..only one more day until the weekend!

New feature

Follow me, if you want...I've added the "Followers" section to the blog on the sidebar toward the bottom on the page (you'll probably need to scroll down to see it, below the list of blogs). If you would like to follow the blog, feel free to click and follow. If not, no biggie, just thought I would add the feature.

Have you....?

I copied this from a friend's blog. The thing said to bold ones that applied.

1. Touched an iceberg
2. Slept under the stars
3. Been a part of a hockey fight
4. Changed a baby's diaper (can't imagine why I'm bolding this one...LOL)
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity (depends on your definition of "afford" - God provides...
7. Swam with wild dolphins
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a tarantula
10. Said "I love you" and meant it
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Stayed up all night long and watched the sun rise
15. Seen the Northern lights
16. Gone to a huge sports game
17. Walked the stairs to the top of the Statue of Liberty (can you even do this any more after 9/11? - I'm bolding this one since I've at least been to the Statue of Liberty...)
18. Grown and eaten your own vegetables
19. Looked up at the night sky through a telescope
20. Had an uncontrollable giggling fit at the worst possible moment
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Bet on a winning horse
23. Taken a sick day when you're not ill (Yup...taken 'em when the kids are sick)
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Taken an ice cold shower
28. Had a meaningful conversation with a beggar
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Ridden a roller coaster
31. Hit a home run
32. Danced like a fool and not cared who was looking (just about every time I dance! LOL)
33. Adopted an accent for fun
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Felt very happy about your life, even for just a moment (Just about every time I look at one of my kiddos!)
36. Loved your job 90% of the time
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied (Money doesn't buy my satisfaction...)
38. Watched wild whales
39. Gone rock climbing (Does the Rec count?)
40. Gone on a midnight walk on the beach
41. Gone sky diving
42. Visited Ireland
43. Survived a Hurricane (Ike, anyone?)
44. Visited India
45. Bench-pressed your own weight
46. Milked a cow
47. Alphabetized your personal files
48. Ever worn a superhero costume
49. Sung karaoke
50. Lounged around in bed all day
51. Gone scuba diving
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Done something you should regret, but don't
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Been in a movie
60. Gone without food for 3 days
61. Made cookies from scratch
62. Won first prize in a costume contest
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Been in a combat zone
65. Spoken more than one language fluently
66. Gotten into a fight while attempting to defend someone
67. Bounced a check
68. Read - and understood - your credit report
69. Recently bought and played with a favorite childhood toy (I have kids, of course I do this!)
70. Found out something significant about your ancestors
71. Called or written your Congress person
72. Picked up and moved to another city to just start over
73. Walked the Golden Gate Bridge
74. Helped an animal give birth
75. Been fired or laid off from a job
76. Won money
77. Broken a bone
78. Ridden a motorcycle
79. Driven any land vehicle at a speed of greater than 100 mph
80. Hiked to the bottom of the Grand Canyon
81. Slept through an entire flight: takeoff, flight, and landing
82. Taken a canoe trip that lasted more than 2 days
83. Eaten sushi
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Read The Bible cover to cover
86. Changed someone's mind about something you care deeply about
87. Gotten someone fired for their actions
88. Gone back to school
89. Changed your name
90. Caught a fly in the air with your bare hands
91. Eaten fried green tomatoes
92. Read The Iliad
93. Taught yourself an art from scratch
94. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
95. Apologized to someone years after inflicting the hurt
96. Communicated with someone without sharing a common spoken language
97. Been elected to public office
98. Thought to yourself that you're living your dream
99. Had to put someone you love into hospice care
100. Sold your own artwork to someone who didn't know you
101. Had a booth at a street fair
102. Dyed your hair
103. Been a DJ
104. Rocked a baby to sleep
105. Dropped a cat from a high place to see if it really lands on all fo
106. Raked your carpet
107. Brought out the best in people (I like to think I have the opportunity to do this fairly often!)
108. Brought out the worst in people
109. Worn a mood ring
110. Ridden a horse
111. Carved an animal from a piece of wood or bar of soap
112. Cooked a dish where four people asked for the recipe
113. Buried a child
114. Gone to a Broadway play
115. Been inside the pyramids
116. Shot a basketball into a basket
117. Danced at a disco
118. Played in a band (Does high school count?)
119. Shot a bird
120. Gone to an arboretum
121. Tutored someone
122. Ridden a train
123. Brought an old fad back into style (I'm not that trendy or influential! LOL)
124. Eaten caviar
125. Let a salesman talk you into something you didn’t need
126. Ridden a giraffe or elephant
127. Published a book
128. Pieced a quilt
129. Lived in a historic place
130. Acted in a play or performed on a stage
131. Asked for a raise
132. Made a hole-in-one
133. Gone deep sea fishing
134. Gone roller skating
135. Ran a marathon (Can I italicize this for a half marathon?)
136. Learned to surf
137. Invented something
138. Flown first class
139. Spent the night in a 5-star luxury suite
140. Flown in a helicopter
141. Visited Africa
142. Sang a solo
143. Gone spelunking
144. Learned how to take a compliment (Can we say learning instead of learned?)
145. Written a love-story
146. Seen Michelangelo’s David (And it is MAGNIFICANT!!!)
147. Had your portrait painted
148. Written a fan letter
149. Spent the night in something haunted
150. Owned a St. Bernard or Great Dane
151. Ran away
152. Learned to juggle
153. Been a boss
154. Sat on a jury
155. Lied about your weight
156. Gone on a diet
157. Found an arrowhead or a gold nugget
158. Written a poem
159. Carried your lunch in a lunch box
160. Gotten food poisoning
161. Gone on a service, humanitarian or religious mission
162. Hiked the Grand Canyon
163. Sat on a park bench and fed the ducks
64. Gone to the opera
165. Gotten a letter from someone famous
6. Worn knickers
167. Ridden in a limousine
168. Attended the Olympics (Does attending a former location of the Olympics count - Munich, Germany?)
169. Can hula or waltz
170. Read a half dozen Nancy Drew or Hardy Boys books - Yeah, buddy!!
171. Been stuck in an elevator
172. Had a revelatory dream
173. Thought you might crash in an airplane
174. Had a song dedicated to you on the radio or at a concert
175. Saved someone’s life
176. Eaten raw whale
177. Know how to tat, smock or do needlepoint
178. Laughed till your side hurt
179. Straddled the equator
80. Taken a photograph of something other than people that is worth framing
181. Gone to a Shakespeare Festival
182. Sent a message in a bottle
183. Spent the night in a hotel
184. Been a cashier
185. Seen Old Faithful geyser
186. Joined a union
187. Donated blood or plasma
188. Built a camp fire
189. Kept a blog (Hmmm...)
190. Had hives
191. Worn custom made shoes
192. Made a PowerPoint presentation
193. Taken a Hunter’s Safety Course
194. Served at a soup kitchen
195. Conquered the Rubik’s cube
196. Know CPR
197. Had a body part of yours below the neck pierced
198. Built your own PC from parts
199. Written your own role playing game
200. Been arrested

I forgot daddy...

I realized that in my ramblings yesterday updating everyone, I left out daddy! Oops! Daddy's working very hard in pursuit of a new direction in his life...very potentially a completely new career. It's exciting and a little scary (perhaps just for me?) all at the same time, but we're trusting that we're following what God wants for him in this, so please pray for him in this new path and that we continue to follow God!

Updates

I know I'm still woefully behind on the Christmas update, so please still bear with me on that one...

School has started back up, so I may be a little scarce for a bit...Here's a quick update on the kids.

Kellen

We started his treatment back up on Tuesday afternoon. He seems to be better from whatever upper respiratory crud he had, so it's time to try this again. Day 2 of the treatment was tonight, and Day 1's was successful in its production WHILE HE WAS AT HOME this morning before school. A BIG HUGE YAY on that one. I don't even care (too much, anyway) that I was late for work this morning. Thank you, Lord, for not having him repeat the incident from the last go-round again, and for sparing us ALL from having to go through something like that again today. Please allow Day 3+ to go smoothly as well.

He's doing well both in school and in Kids Klub, other than regular bumps, etc. He had an ice pack on his head when I picked him up today, but he's ok.

Tatum

Tatum is enjoying school, so much so that she runs AWAY from me in the afternoon when I pick her up. She doesn't ever seem ready to leave when I get there. That helps to alleviate some of the mommy guilt that I get when she cries in the morning when I leave her. :-) I know that it's developmental and completely normal for her to do that, but it sure is wearing for me to see and hear her cry for me almost every morning. However, her love of her activities and the fact that she isn't begging to leave as soon as I gets there tells me that she DOES like her school. That and the fact that she asks to GO to school are both clues.

She did; however, have a slight issue today. I picked her up and it looked like she had been scratched by a cat. Seriously. She has ENORMOUS scratches on her face, apparently from another kiddo who decided that verbal "Mine" arguments weren't sufficient, so she resorted to scratching Tatum and got a good swipe in before she was grabbed. And I guess her nails were jagged and did a NUMBER on Tatum. I seriously hope they don't leave scars, and I'm NOT overreacting. I doctored it again tonight with some antibiotic ointment, so I'm hopeful that it 1) won't get infected and 2) Tatum will leave it alone. Please let Tatum leave it alone as it heals...

Mommy

My knees felt like they were back to normal today, but they apparently are not. As I was getting ready to leave the office today, the fire alarm went off in the building. I had to close down the computer quickly, not sure if it was a false alarm or not, and of course, couldn't take the elevator. For those of you that aren't aware, my office isn't on the first floor...but on the fourth. My knees haven't completely recovered from the race.

And speaking of the race, I thought I would throw in a few pictures from this weekend, for those of you interested...

Prior to the race, in front of the George R. Brown...


During the race...and I have no idea what mile marker this was taken at, but I believe it was fairly early in the race...

After the race at the George R. Brown...

And then with some of my biggest fans...

So my question is this...what next? I set a rather lofty goal, really...didn't adequately prepare for it (I'm being altogether truthful here - running up to 6 miles doesn't prepare you for 13.1) and chanted Phil 4:13 through a good portion of this race. As a sidenote, 'I can do all things, through Christ who strenghens me,' is a GREAT pace setter, by the way...I did it, but certainly NOT on my own strength and ability.

So what's next? I personally do best with goals that I work to accomplish, and right now I'm not working towards any. Well, that's not completely true...I always have goals that I'm working towards, but this one really stretched me further than I could do on my own. At least that's how it felt. And since I've done this, I want to be working towards another physical goal...especially since I can see the spiritual significance in pushing our physical bodies to the limit of what WE think we can do.

Any ideas? Another half? Working on a better time? A biathalon? A 10K? I'm open to suggestions....

02:45:28

2 hours, 45 minutes and 28 seconds seems to be my chip time...My pace was a 12:38 min/mile...

I made it, I'm alive, I had no acute injuries during the race, my hip flexors and toe nails hurt, and I'm tired. *grin*

I had a wonderful experience, and my next one (yes, I feel that there will be a next one) will probably go even better with more adequate training.

YAY!!

ETA:

Some stats, for those of you interested:
Of my age group of females, (F30-34), I came in 484/696.

Of all females, I came in 2591/4085.

Of all half-marathon participants, I came in 4414/6327.

Of course, these are still the unofficial results as of about a half hour ago...

A kiss...

Or at least an attempt, was had by Kellen today. *sigh* Are we there already?

I walked in to Kids Klub today and was greeted by Kellen with ice on his head (fun fact #1 - slight head injury from running into the wall in the gym). Then I was asked to stay for a second while another one of the counselors came over so she could speak with me. (Fun fact #2 - Just in case you didn't know, that's almost NEVER good.)

She then proceeds to tell me that she saw a girl pushing Kellen today, separated the two of them and then reminded the girl about the 'we don't push' rule. The girl then defended herself and replied that she was pushing Kellen away because he was trying to kiss her.

Uh.

The counselor then confirmed this fact with Kellen.

Yup. He did indeed try to kiss her.

She then reminded Kellen that we don't kiss our friends at school. (I have reiterated this and went a little further...we don't kiss our friends. That's something for grown-ups.)

However, at this point in time when I was hearing the story, my first question to him was, "Where did you try and kiss her?"

His response, "Down there," while pointing to an area in the cafeteria.

Still so innocent. And I desperately want to keep it that way!

What a day...

So I went for a short run this morning in my new shoes. I didn't realize how poorly cushioned my OLD shoes were until I ran in my NEW shoes.

NICE!!

It was brutally cold this morning. Brutal might be overstating it some, but it was cold. If it's going to be as cold on Sunday, I might have to add another layer for the race. And/or gloves that I don't mind parting with at some point in time during the run.

Hmmm...

Today was also the awards ceremony for the Vice Chancellor's Awards in Excellence (part of the Texas A&M AgriLife Conference). I was part of a team that was nominated and received one of these awards for our recruiting efforts as it related to diversity (it was actually the Diversity award).

I'm glad that God chose to allow our team to be blessed in this manner, and that He's allowed me to be blessed with such wonderful co-workers who will work so hard alongside me, and to take time out of their days to nominate us for such an award. I'm blessed that He's allowed me to work in an environment where I truly feel that my contributions and ideas make a difference, not only to those with whom I work, but those with whom I interact - mainly the students. I am blessed to be in this particular work environment and truly feel that this is where I'm supposed to be. God seems to continually remind me that I'm exactly where He wants me to be and that this is what He wants me to be doing. He knows that there are certainly times when I need that reminder.

Lord, thank you for reminding me today that what I'm doing IS making a difference, and that everything that I'm doing is ultimately for You.

Interesting thought..

Four Benefits of Putting Margin in Your Life
by Rick Warren
"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” Matthew 11:28-30 (NIV)
*** *** *** ***
Here are four immediate benefits you’ll receive by building margin into your life:

1. Peace of mind. When you’re not always hurrying and worrying, you have time to think, time to relax, time to enjoy life. We had a bird come into the building one evening before service. He started singing, and it was just like we’d been given an invitation: “Just relax. Everybody except those sitting directly under the bird, relax.”

2. Better health. Unrelenting stress harms our bodies. We all know that, yet we let it continue day after day after day. Many times we only build margin in our lives after the heart attack almost happens or does happen, or the blood pressure skyrockets. Why do we wait until our health plummets before we make this decision? Why not realize thatwe need to build some margin intoour lives now? The truth is your body needs downtime in order to heal. Race cars make pit stops occasionally in order to get repaired. You can’t fix anything going 200 miles an hour. Yet, we try to repair ourselves while we’re still racing through life. Margin builds in time for better health.

3. Stronger relationships. Lack of margin is one big reason for the collapse of the American family today. When we don’t make relationships a priority and make time for each other, our relationships suffer. Relationships take time; and margin provides the time to sit and talk, to listen and enjoy one another, and to provide the comfort we each need.

4. Usefulness in ministry. When you’re overloaded by activity, you can only think of yourself. You’re in survival mode, just trying to make it through another day. But being available to God for his use makes all the difference in this world.

When you have no margin in your life and God taps you on the shoulder, saying, “I’d like you to do this for me,” your first response isn’t joy. Your first response is, “Oh, no! Another thing to do! Sorry, God – I’d like to do that, but I’m just too busy.”

We end up resenting the great opportunities God brings into our lives. But when you have margin, you’re available for God to use.

You don’t have to live on overload. You don’t have to live in survival mode. Begin today to build a buffer around your schedule. Then enjoy the benefits of margin and see what God does next!

********************************

I was sent this email and it got me thinking...what do I need to say "No" to for me so that I can say "Yes" to God?

Sick kiddos...it stinks!

I guess that's the way it works with more than one kid. One gets sick, gets over it, then the other gets it or some version of illness number 1 and the cycle perpetuates itself.

Ug.

We're in the cycle, so to speak, right now. And I'm hoping that we can stop it at one cycle.

Tatum went in for a nasty, persistant cough, and pulling on her ears about two weeks ago. Sure enough, double ear infection. The cough was dismissed with the suggestion to give her mucinex. Since she isn't age-appropriate for that medicine, at least per the dosage chart on the actual medicine itself, I get it and her prescription with her appropriate, doctor prescribed dosage in hand.

Fast forward to Thursday morning and we hit stage two of this cycle. Tatum is through with all of her medicine, seems to be fine other than the fact that she REALLY LIKES her medicine and taking her medicine. Hmmm...And Kellen wakes up with a slew of problems...he's having trouble walking, his back hurts, his throat hurts, his stomach hurts (ya' think?? See previous posts for additional details on that one..) and his side hurts. I checked his leg and it was actually warm to the touch, so it was obviously apparent that he had done something to himself. Initially, I was concerned that he just didn't want to go back to school after the potty incident the day before, but that wasn't the case (or at least not all of the case). So I packed Tatum up, got her to daycare, and proceeded to try and clear my calendar at work - rescheduling where I could and getting people to fill in where I couldn't reschedule.

Have I mentioned that I had been out of the office the entire week already for some intensive training? Ouch. But everyone knows that my kiddos are my priority, so there ya' go...

Fast forward through the day and Kellen and I just hung out and rested. We watched movies, took a nap, colored, and just generally took it easy. His most persistant symptom continued to be his cough. He never did run a fever. And he refused to take any medicine...wouldn't gargle with salt water, wouldn't drink apple juice, wouldn't even take the mucinex for his cough.

The next morning (Friday) he seemed to be fine, so off to school he went. Well, in the midst of the craziness that was my attempt to catch up in the office, including non-stop student appointments and, my assistant walked into my office, interrupted me with a student to let me know that the school had just called, Kellen had a fever, and they needed someone to pick him up. Thankfully Matt was able to tag team on that one, pick him up and take care of him for the remainder of the day. Again, the primary complaint was the cough, but it was joined by Kellen saying he felt sore all over.

Uh oh.

So today, Kellen has run a fever pretty much all day long. He started with 100.4, spiked to 102, then went back down to 100.4. He's lounged in our bedroom watching movies and resting, as we've tried to keep him sequestered in an attempt to avoid any additional spreading of germs to Tatum, at the very least.

It's interesting how different the kids are in some respects as well. As I got the medicine out to give it to Kellen (mucinex), Tatum begs for it and Kellen covers his mouth. I can BARELY get Kellen to choke it down without throwing it back up and Tatum would drink the entire bottle if I let her or if she managed to get into the medicine cabinet. Same flavor. Same texture. Kids out of the same genetic pool. Just interesting.

Bless the kids hearts...Kellen's just wanting to be snuggly, Tatum doesn't understand why she can't play with her Kellen and is oh so concerned with him when he goes into a coughing fit. We've been trying our hardest to keep them apart but MAN, I can totally understand how this cycle can repeat itself continually in a multiple kid household! We weren't concerned with keeping Tatum away from Kellen while she was ill because he wouldn't have been able to catch her ear infection but now.....we just aren't sure what Kellen has!

Hopefully he'll get the rest he needs over the weekend to be ready to go on Monday!

Treatment, Day 1

Well, what I/we DIDN'T want to happen today happened.

The doctor anticipated that the medicine would take 4-6 hours to "kick in" and cause a bowel movement. After 2 hours Kellen had an every-so-slight movement last night, very watery and not much came out, but it was something. However, the real movement came 17-18 hours later.

Yup. Today during school.

Unfortunately, he didn't quite make it to the bathroom for it. He asked to go to the bathroom, had an accident prior to getting there, finished on the potty, but couldn't get anyone's attention for assistance afterwards to help with clean up and a change of clothes for some unknown/undetermined period of time. He told me he felt like he was going to be stuck on the potty in the bathroom forever because he was yelling and screaming for help and no one came. As he and I continued to discuss what happened and I asked him how it made him feel, his response just made me want to bawl...sad and scared were the two primary feelings that he indicated he felt during this incident today.

Incidentally, my back hurts from the mommy guilt that is now piled onto it, because I MEANT to email his teacher last night, thought about it again this morning, and didn't get a chance or make the time to do it (sidenote: I was in an intensive all day training, so it wasn't like I just didn't get around to it during the day) to be sure that she was aware that his treatment plan had been changed. I have now rectified that situation. Please understand that I'm not angry or upset with anyone at the school because of what happened today. No one is to blame - no one did anything wrong. I am upset with myself because I could have most likely prevented this with an email giving everyone at the school a heads-up. Kellen did everything correctly by asking to go to the bathroom and then yelling for all he was worth when he needed help.

This is just what I didn't want to happen. This is the reason that I gave him the medicine as soon as I possibly could once I had it in my possession.

But I have to wonder...what is so horribly wrong with my child's intestines that a medicine that should work in 4-6 hours takes 17-18 instead? Perhaps we won't ever find out the answer to that question.....

So...he got the medicine today at 5 PM. We also added some "sit" time to our regime today, both in the morning and tonight after dinner (approx. 5 minutes this morning and about 30 minutes tonight after dinner). Neither time was productive, but I didn't expect them to be so soon in the process. I did; however, write this all down in my spiral journal, much to Kellen's enjoyment. He thinks it is incredibly 'awesome' that I'm journaling all about his poo poo.

My heart broke for him as he told me how scared and sad he felt today. I wanted to turn back the time and make all of that go away for him...to protect him from that situation happening to him in the first place. I kept apologizing to him, hugging him, stroking his hair, snuggling with him. He let me, but kept saying things like, 'Mommy, you didn't do anything to be sorry for.' and 'But Mommy, you didn't do it.'

Lord, PLEASE don't let the same thing happen to him tomorrow at school. If he has to go, at least allow him to make it all the way to the potty. And guide us as to the correct time to administer his new medicine so that he can go while he's at the house, NOT while he's at school so this becomes a non-issue altogether!

Diagnosis and treatment

**WARNING**

This is a post about poo. If you don't want to read details about poo, or Kellen and his poo, then click the "X" at the top of the screen and come back tomorrow. I'll still love you, promise.



We had our consultation with our pedi about Kellen and his digestive issues today, and all-in-all, I think it went well. I went into the appointment armed with my notes, internet print-outs of what I thought the diagnosis was, pictures - albeit not great ones since our ink is going out in our printer - of his 'achievements' as he likes to sometimes call them, and our 2008 calendar adorned with stickers marking the poo occasions. Unfortunately, the stickers are few and far between in many of the months, hence one of the reasons for the visit. To give an example, November had three stickers. And I don't think I just missed or overlooked any poo poos that month. I can't say that with 100% certainty for all months, but we captured the vast majority with stickers, since the occasions are so rare that they're pretty hard to miss around here. October had six stickers, September had four, August three.

Poor guy.

Anyway...stats:
40 lbs
40.5 inches tall
bp 90/54

Yet another reminder that I MUST get out the car seat booklet and convert his car seat into a booster seat. Ug.

So the doctor, Kellen and I discussed the current status of poo in Kellen's life. We detailed the L-O-N-G history of this, prior dosage of Miralax, dosage since my being off work in December, that outcome, my concerns, a short term (next two weeks) treatment plan, then scenarios for if the treatment plan goes as we hope and then what our options are if it doesn't. We discussed dietary concerns - while acknowledging that virtually every diet has room for improvement, our diet seems fine by all accounts. The doctor discounted/discarded the notion that this was a predominantly diet-related issue, which had been a concern for Matt.

Conclusions:

• The doctor agreed to my diagnosis of encopresis.
• Daily medicinal regime will change for the next two weeks from Miralax to 1 oz Milk of Magnesia (I went after the appointment and got the Wild Cherry flavor and he LOVED it!) The doctor indicated that it generally took 4-6 hours for the medicine to work, so we'll try giving it to him as soon as we get home from school to see how that works. I think that would be better than him trying to go at school. If we realize it takes longer for the medicine to impact his body, then we might switch to the morning so he can have an after-school sit. We'll see.
• By the end of the two weeks, he should be going at least every other day with taking the Milk of Magnesia.
• If not, we'll need to go the barium enema route at the hospital (not what we really want to do, but might be a necessary route at this point in time if we've exhausted other possibilities)
• If milk of magnesia is working, then we'll go to phase two and use mineral oil (2-4 Tablespoons) daily for 4-6 weeks, gradually weaning him off of even that toward the end of that time frame to see if his body will self regulate.

More about the barium enema, in case you're wondering why we're considering that at all. The barium enema is a diagnostic tool for Hirschsprungs disease , but this would be our next treatment/diagnostic step in the process. The doctor also indicated frequently once a child having severe constipation problems underwent this procedure, the process of cleaning them out so well, which is what the procedure will do, served as a treatment itself due to its nature (paraphrasing how he said it, but that's the gist) by ensuring all hardened stools within the colon were expelled.

General dietary comments discussed included:

• Milk limited to under 20 oz daily (includes cheese/yogurt as well)
• Fruits/veggies - 3 servings daily [could stand to work on this area, particularly with the variety that we have in the house; more (servings/day) isn't necessarily better]
• Probiotics (already included in yogurt, adding additional packets is fine!)
• Drink lots of water (check!)
• Some juice for Kellen is ok (apple, prune) [nice try...but I've done my milk & water only job too well...the doctor just laughed at me on that one]
• Try actual prunes/dried prunes as a snack

Again, I feel pleased about our direction, and no longer feel like we're aimlessly wandering with no end point in sight. Let me clearly state that I don't want Kellen to have to undergo the barium enema. I WANT the new treatment to work, but at least now if it doesn't, I feel like we have some other option that is more than simply, 'give MORE of the XXX medicine that you were giving.'

Despite the continued reassurances that all is well and that Kellen taking this medicine for so long is ok, after over 4 years on medicine for what should be a normal bodily function, I am just wary...at some point in time bulimics get hooked on laxatives and their bodies can't function without them...what is this prolonged exposure doing to my 5 year old?

I just want him to be able to go to the bathroom without pharmaceutical assistance and not scream in pain and agony. Is that too much to ask?

My not-so-bright moment with my girly girl

I should have posted this days ago, but hey...if you're following my blog you're probably still wanting to know how Christmas and New Years went, right?

Newsflash: I'm still behind! LOL And I'm not feeling guilty about it! (Well, that's not entirely true...I'm desperately trying to not feel guilty about it...I'm working on accepting that I can only do so much, and that my ideal isn't always practical...I'm a work-in-progress on that one)

Anyway...I made the decision to paint my daughters toenails a few days ago.

Yup. My 22 month old daughter.

Considering that I attempted this after bath and shortly before her actual bedtime, it wasn't one of my more shining mom-moments, if you know what I mean. Add to that the fact that I was wearing BRAND new jeans, a BRAND new shirt, and that I hadn't put down a towel to protect the carpet and you HAVE to wonder what I was thinking.

Apparently I wasn't. I didn't think or plan ahead for this momentous occasion.

Did I mention that my little girl is lightning fast? And that she likes to grab at virtually all things pink, which is, of course, the color that I chose to paint her toenails because when given the choice, she'll choose pink or purple and pink generally looks better on toes, now doesn't it?

Luckily for me, when she grabbed the open jar of nail polish from my hands and knocked it onto the carpet, I was quick enough to grab it before any spilled onto the actual carpet. Or my jeans. Or my new shirt. Or any other fabric that shouldn't have come into contact with fingernail polish. The only casualty of the lightning quick 22 month old and the subsequent stray fingernail polish was my hands, and they came clean.

WHEW!

After quickly correcting my horrid errors, I made quick work of her tiny toes (and in case you're wondering, she didn't get a base or top coat, and only got one coat of color), then tried desperately to keep her still while they dried.

As a sidenote, I don't think I've EVER said, 'don't touch those!' in such quick succession before in my LIFE!

Luckily for us all, her cute little piggies dried quickly, and she made the rounds of the room, showing everyone here her freshly painted toes. "Pretty piggies" was the phrase of the night until our princess went to bed.

This got me to thinking. Tatum seems to be the daughter that my mom always wanted. Now that statement might sound weird, coming from my mom's daughter. But let me explain. My mom always wanted a 'girly' daughter...one that liked dolls, thought her Barbies - the ORIGINAL Barbies that she kept from when she was little - were cool, and that was, you know, a girly girl.

I was not that child.

I didn't like to play with dolls. I thought her Barbies were cool because I could pop their heads off - a fact which did NOT amuse my mom. I played with BB guns. I climbed trees to prove they were safe for my older brother. I rode go-carts in the pasture. My hair was cut short because I got upset if it was tangled (well, let's get real here...I threw fits when my mom tried to fix it when I was REALLY young - so she kept it short). Bottom line - I was not a girly girl.

But it appears my daughter is.

She remarked, "Pretty!" when her daddy hung up the pink fan in her room. She LOVES to play with her dolls, and constantly pushes them around the house in their stroller or shopping cart. She wraps them in blankets and puts them to bed in their cradle (incidentally, she's playing with the cradle that my great grandfather made for me when I was little...I love that it's actually getting some use in its intended way). She loves her pretty pink painted piggies. She grabbed my hand the other day just to look at my wedding ring. Yes, my wedding ring...remarking, 'pretty!' as she looked at it. Then told me that she wanted it on her. Uhhh...she's 22 months old and already wanting diamonds.

Folks...I'm in serious trouble here with this little girly girl! But I'll get the hang of it...I've already become familiar with Sam Moon and hey, they have these super deals on GREAT bows.....

God doesn't get tired

After Awana's tonight, when I realized that Kellen was/is woefully behind in his workbook, (sidenote: how I got that we should go through one lesson a week is beyond me...we are a quarter behind - YIKES!!), we came home and went through two lessons, both in Genesis. We read from my Bible and then went through his lessons.

After reading about the six days of Creation and learning that God rested on the 7th day, Kellen remarked, "But God doesn't need to rest, He doesn't get tired."

He went on to ask, "Why did God need to rest? All he did was talk."

(You know, He SPOKE the world into creation...)