Sure is Monday

Posted on December 7, 2010 by wagfarms

Yep, Monday reared her ugly head. Went to have Eli’s pre-appointment blood work drawn, and decided to kill two birds with one stone and take Evan in to have him checked over. (We’ve spent a lot of time on antibiotics lately, 5 days of amoxicillin, 5 days of zithromax.)

The tests came back and Evan has strep. Woohoo! We won the jackpot! Ten days of augmentin! Yippee! If that doesn’t give him a flaming case of antibiotic butt, nothing will. Yogurt, here we come. (Normally meds don’t make you jump for joy, but when you can’t do anything else, you might as well celebrate…right???)

Eli has a double ear infection. No big deal, since he’s not symptomatic, but we’ll have to watch it. (Much like our animals, I don’t give my kids antibiotics for no reason.) But the fluids could be part of the reason that he doesn’t talk. Sooooo…just because it’s Monday, we got to discuss surgery. Not just one, but two! YAY!

If Evan’s meds don’t work this time (or he isn’t successful in the self-tonsil removal), we’re probably looking at having his tonsils removed sooner rather than later. Since the doctors and insurance companies seem to have a thing going, I’m guessing it will be right after the first of the year. But since we never have any problem with meeting our deductible anyway, I figure, the sooner, the better. (And, by the way, I LOVE telling the office that we have no copay for visits…”Sure, go ahead, schedule 14 follow-up appointments, schedule away my dear!”) Just kidding…kinda.

And in 3 months if he happens to check and Eli is having an infection, or fluid build up, in his ears, we will schedule tubes, health permitting. *sigh* poor kid, can’t catch a break. But out of the last 10 times his ears have been checked, 8 times he has had infections, or fluid. He has only passed one out of three tympanograms, so I guess that’s enough proof for me. Plus the doctor hopes that it may be the key to getting his words to come out. And I’d love to hear “Mama” again! (I’ve heard it once, at a Farm Bureau YF&R meeting, of all things!)

Oh, on a positive note, I got to talk to two lovely ladies about the Humane Society of the United States while picking up my wreath from the local crisis center for their fundraiser. I know of one organization that’ll be short some funds this next month! Woohoo! And, donations are now being DIRECTLY given to a local shelter.

See, Mondays aren’t ALL bad…just mostly! 😉

Different kind of thanks…

Posted on November 23, 2010 by wagfarms

My second “thankful” post will give you a list of ten things that I am glad that my boys have taught me. Some more so than others, LOL!

1) Good things come in small packages. So, so true. I cherish every moment that I was able to spend rocking my sons, holding them close, knowing that they relied on me for everything. It was overwhelming at times to think about, but I never regretted a single second of it.

I so miss these days! *snuggles*

2) When something’s out of reach, keep climbing. Now, for the most part, this wasn’t a lesson that I enjoyed them learning. Mostly because it involved things like trying to hide candy on top of the refrigerator unsuccessfully…and finding out I was unsuccessful by catching a 2-year-old on top of the fridge, eating candy.

3) What doesn’t kill you, makes you stronger. Well, if not, it at least teaches you some pretty valuable lessons. For instance, eating a wart off your foot doesn’t need a trip to the ER, even if you had wart remover on it. Although, the Ask-A-Nurse line and Poison Control Center will try their best not to gag and/or laugh at you for explaining, and re-explaining, and then explaining once more to whomever they can get near-by to listen in and give a “second opinion” on the situation. Scooter truly does have a stomach of steel, I swear.

4) Doctors don’t know everything. Yeah, I knew this before, but there’s something about the top medical clinic in the world telling you, “Hey, there’s something wrong with your son, but we haven’t a clue as to what it really is,” that makes you sit up and take notice. But I’ve quickly learned that the one True Physician knows all and can perform miracles when least expected. I truly thank God each and every day.

5) Life with boys is never-ending excitement. Well, let’s just say that the scenery is never the same, and the stuff they pull is ALWAYS amazing me. Really? Why would I ever think that a 2-year-old would hide in a dryer? Why would a 3-year-old fill the washing machine with milk replacer? In fact, life is so hectic at times, I’m adding 6) Life is never a dull moment.

Things like buckets of toads, being dropped on my floor.

7) Love for a child is immeasurable. There is nothing…I repeat, n o t h i n g, that I would not do to save my sons from pain or being hurt. I never understood what people were talking about until the day that I found out that we were expecting Big Bro.

8) Laugh. Every day if you can. Where would we be without enjoying the little things? I shudder to think.

Plus, you can take embarrassing pics of your kids before they're old enough to tell you no!

9) Sometimes the words “Thank You,” mean more than words can describe. When Big Bro told me “thank you” this week, for being a great mom, I will relive those moments for years to come. And so to you, my readers, I say “Thank you.” Thank you for following my crazy life, coming onto our farm, learning about our family and our industry, and being willing to share it with others. I do all of this to ensure that my sons have the same types of opportunities that my husband and I were blessed to have, but without you, I am nothing but a voice in a void. Thank you.

10) Tomorrow will not be today. I do not know what it will bring, but I know that it won’t be the same as today. And that’s OK. It has to be, because if I’m not OK with that, it doesn’t matter, it’ll happen anyway!

Ah, this life with boys is a crazy one, but I wouldn’t change a minute of it…well…

All it takes…

Posted on November 14, 2010 by wagfarms

Today was a great day in church. Besides the normal feeling of well-being and all-is-right-with-the-world, today was extra special.

During the greeting part of our church service, a lady in our church came up to Big Bro and said to him, “You know, you are just a really great big brother.” I could hear his heart swelling as she said it. And it brought tears to my eyes.

In an era where people hardly take time to say hello to each other, let alone stop and visit, it was wonderful to have someone actually come and make such a warm and wonderful comment to our oldest son.

And to let you in on a little secret about Big Bro, he’s very, very sensitive. He doesn’t like to rock the boat, he wants to blend into the background and not draw attention to himself. He worries about things that 8-year-olds should never worry about. For instance, just this week he was having one of his “hard days.” He was concerned about making a plan for his future. He’s not sure what he wants to be when he grows up, and if he doesn’t get that figured out, how will he ever support a wife and kids! Yeah, deep thoughts for 8.

I’ve always said that Big Bro is an old soul in a young man’s body. He thinks about feelings, and is very, very respectful to anyone older than him. He struggles with wanting to play with his friends and be a young, wild boy or being responsible and making sure that no one gets out of hand.

I can only imagine how exhausting that would be.

On top of that, add a seizure disorder that limits his ability to be involved in certain activities. Medicine that is taken daily. And the constant wonder if “something is wrong with him?” I do what I can to appease his worries, but I’m just a mom, so what do I know?

But here’s the best part…days like today. That comment not only made his day, but it made mine as well. And we will relive it for days to come. And I agree, he is an AWESOME big brother!