Lucas' allergy test was this morning. Growing up, I've heard about allergy tests, but when the doctor was trying to describe to me what he was going to be doing to Lucas, I envisioned something completely different. So when we were in the exam room and the doctor started the procedure, I was completely unprepared for Lucas actually being in PAIN. The moment I realized that Lucas was being poked with needles, I felt horrible. I don't know exactly what I could have done differently though... there is no way to prepare a 4 year old without scaring him. The silver lining was that the whole procedure only took about 20 seconds. The doctor covered Lucas' back with 54 (I repeat... 54!) needle pricks! Luckily, the doctor didn't have to poke Lucas 54 times, only 9 times (thanks to the needle sets that each had 6 prongs). Anyway... after the first poke, Lucas knew he didn't like it and was writhing and crying. This is the same boy that doesn't cry at shots and just watched the nurse prick his thumb and squeeze blood out of it at one of the last appointments, so I knew it must really be hurting him. After all the poking was complete, the doctor said that he would be back with the results in 20 minutes, set a hand timer and left us. Poor Lucas continued to cry for at least 7 minutes and not even a lollipop would calm him. Once he calmed down, he was fine. In fact, tonight at dinner, I wanted him to tell Jason about his doctor's appointment and the only information he willingly gave was the fact that the doctor gave him a lollipop that he sucked on until he could see the stick. After a few prompts, he finally told Jason about how the doctor poked him on his back. It must not have been quite as tramatic as it seemed sitting in that exam room.
As far as the results go... he definitely has allergies, all of which are the inhalant type (ie, dust, mold, pollen). I was having nightmares about finding out that he was allergic to milk or nuts... considering that his main source of nutrition are milk and peanut butter & jelly! On the doctor's scale of 0 to 4 rating the severity of the allergy (4 being the absolute worst), Lucas' worst were 2s, which hopefully means that they are fairly mild. Of course, mild or severe is irrelevent when they are causing all these other issues (low weight, hearing loss, etc). So the course of action at this point is getting Lucas' bedroom as allergen-free as possible. This means getting him an allergy control barrier for his mattress, box springs, and pillow, making sure that his room is free of dust and pollen, and giving him a dose of Claritin every morning. The doctor wants a follow-up in mid June to check on how he is doing and seeing if this plan of attack has helped his eustachian tubes function properly. If there hasn't been any change, then at that time he may have Lucas start using a nasal spray. The doctor is optimistic that Lucas' allergies are mild enough to be controlled without allergy shots, so that is definitely a good thing. I guess I need to start looking into getting that allergy control barrier for his bed! The doctor did say that the chances are pretty high that Eli has some similar allergies, so now that the boys are sharing a bedroom, whatever I'm doing to help Lucas will also be helping Eli.
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
Monday, May 25, 2009
Just Eli
Tomorrow is Lucas' appointment for his allergy test. I felt like since that will probably encompass much of my next post and it seems like Eli has been getting left out a bit, that this post should just be about the littlest member of our family and how he's getting along.
Eli is constantly wanting to be with the big kids. He probably thinks he is a big kid. Whatever it is that the older two are doing, Eli will find a way to do it too. Sometimes he will struggle to get right in the midst of whatever is going on (like when they are playing a board game and Eli will climb into the chair with Clara and scatter game pieces all over the table and floor). Sometimes he will watch them carefully and then when they move on to a different activity, he will go and mimic what they were doing previously (a good example is how he mimics Lucas playing on the computer by just standing in front of the computer and moving the mouse around). Another good example is when the kids are brushing their teeth, Eli will use his whole body to push the older sibling off the stool. It is amazing to me that this little guy can outmaneuver his two older bigger siblings! Of course, I've already mentioned in a previous post how much he is loving being in the same bedroom as Lucas... how he will just smile as he watches Lucas gets into bed. One thing that I find rather amusing is that he will show interest in something just because Clara or Lucas are interested in it, like certain cartoons (he wouldn't watch them on his own, but if they are sitting there watching, you can bet he will be too).
He has recently really taken an interest in activities that require focused attention, like reading books and doing puzzles. Before now, he wouldn't sit still for any stories, except for his bedtime stories (which were always super short, like Goodnight Moon). Now, he has taken a real interest in listening to real stories. His current favorites are Clifford books and Thomas books. He absolutely loves it when the trains in the Thomas books sound their horns: "peep peep" and then he'll repeat the sound, "peep peep". Although he does like puzzles and stories, nothing can quite compare to his cars. Those would easily be his all-time favorite toy. His pattern of play is pretty consistent. He will go and get two cars, bring them to where he wants to play, line them up and then zoom them back and forth, occasionally looking up to smile.
Words are coming... slowly. He still uses "eh" and "mmm" to express much of what he says, but every so often he will mimic a sound or a series of words. Tonight at dinner, I asked the family who was hungry, to which Clara responded loudly "I am", followed almost immediately by Eli's mimicking voice. He doesn't yet articulate, of course, so his "I am" sounds more like "mm mum", but the inflection and tone are exact replicas. His list of words that are understandable has grown slightly to include ball, dog, outside, bite, nose (which he will point to as he says it), and goodnight. There may be more, but that's all that I can think of right now. He also knows everybody in the family by name, including Grammy and Papa (who were just here for a visit), Nana (who he talks to on the phone sometimes) and himself (he'll finish the sentence "and now it's time to say goodnight to..." by saying "eeeei", which obviously is Eli).
I think his teeth are actually coming slower than the words. He still only has 10 teeth, no new ones in over a month, but luckily he doesn't need all of his teeth to eat... he eats just fine normally. In fact, he far out-eats Lucas and at times will give Clara some serious competition. As much as he eats, it seems like he should weigh a whole lot more than he does.
Some other miscellaneous notes about Eli: he loves to walk outside, he hates water coming down on him (i.e. rain and showers), he loves to sing, he hates to have his hands dirty, and he is a fitful sleeper (tossing and turning all night).
I know that things with him will change constantly, but I feel like this gives a nice snapshot of what he's like right now.
Eli is constantly wanting to be with the big kids. He probably thinks he is a big kid. Whatever it is that the older two are doing, Eli will find a way to do it too. Sometimes he will struggle to get right in the midst of whatever is going on (like when they are playing a board game and Eli will climb into the chair with Clara and scatter game pieces all over the table and floor). Sometimes he will watch them carefully and then when they move on to a different activity, he will go and mimic what they were doing previously (a good example is how he mimics Lucas playing on the computer by just standing in front of the computer and moving the mouse around). Another good example is when the kids are brushing their teeth, Eli will use his whole body to push the older sibling off the stool. It is amazing to me that this little guy can outmaneuver his two older bigger siblings! Of course, I've already mentioned in a previous post how much he is loving being in the same bedroom as Lucas... how he will just smile as he watches Lucas gets into bed. One thing that I find rather amusing is that he will show interest in something just because Clara or Lucas are interested in it, like certain cartoons (he wouldn't watch them on his own, but if they are sitting there watching, you can bet he will be too).
He has recently really taken an interest in activities that require focused attention, like reading books and doing puzzles. Before now, he wouldn't sit still for any stories, except for his bedtime stories (which were always super short, like Goodnight Moon). Now, he has taken a real interest in listening to real stories. His current favorites are Clifford books and Thomas books. He absolutely loves it when the trains in the Thomas books sound their horns: "peep peep" and then he'll repeat the sound, "peep peep". Although he does like puzzles and stories, nothing can quite compare to his cars. Those would easily be his all-time favorite toy. His pattern of play is pretty consistent. He will go and get two cars, bring them to where he wants to play, line them up and then zoom them back and forth, occasionally looking up to smile.
Words are coming... slowly. He still uses "eh" and "mmm" to express much of what he says, but every so often he will mimic a sound or a series of words. Tonight at dinner, I asked the family who was hungry, to which Clara responded loudly "I am", followed almost immediately by Eli's mimicking voice. He doesn't yet articulate, of course, so his "I am" sounds more like "mm mum", but the inflection and tone are exact replicas. His list of words that are understandable has grown slightly to include ball, dog, outside, bite, nose (which he will point to as he says it), and goodnight. There may be more, but that's all that I can think of right now. He also knows everybody in the family by name, including Grammy and Papa (who were just here for a visit), Nana (who he talks to on the phone sometimes) and himself (he'll finish the sentence "and now it's time to say goodnight to..." by saying "eeeei", which obviously is Eli).
I think his teeth are actually coming slower than the words. He still only has 10 teeth, no new ones in over a month, but luckily he doesn't need all of his teeth to eat... he eats just fine normally. In fact, he far out-eats Lucas and at times will give Clara some serious competition. As much as he eats, it seems like he should weigh a whole lot more than he does.
Some other miscellaneous notes about Eli: he loves to walk outside, he hates water coming down on him (i.e. rain and showers), he loves to sing, he hates to have his hands dirty, and he is a fitful sleeper (tossing and turning all night).
I know that things with him will change constantly, but I feel like this gives a nice snapshot of what he's like right now.
Thursday, May 21, 2009
Health Check... continued
Continuing where my last post left off, my trip to Missouri was good (Rachael is now officially a high school graduate). It was very short, but any longer and I may not have thought it was as good. I think I really surprised myself at how much I missed the kids after such a short time. After all, I'd been wanting an escape for so very long.
This week started with a virus. Clara was violently ill starting late Sunday morning. Luckily for her, it only lasted the one day, she was feeling much better the next day. Unfortunately, it made its way to the boys and myself soon after. Today was the first day that I felt much better, but poor Lucas is still throwing up - 3 days and counting. He had an appointment with the doctor this morning (originally scheduled as a follow-up to check his ears). The doctor diagnosed an ear infection as the reason why he can't keep anything down combined with allergies (more on that in a minute). His weight is back to what it was at his 3-year checkup... 30 lbs. He is currently taking antibiotic for the ear infection, but I'm still questioning how this is going to help him if he can't keep anything down.
Ok... so Lucas' doctor's appointment. Let me start by saying that the experience as a whole was a complete turn from the last visit. We didn't have to wait long to see the doctor this time, and for the short time that we did have to wait - a nurse provided the boys with a container of blocks to keep them occupied! When the doctor came in, I opted to inundate him with information about Lucas' history for fear of getting cut off or forgetting to include something. The doctor listened to EVERYTHING! I was extremely impressed that he was able to get everything since I was talking so fast and a bit all over the place with my thoughts. He immediately responded to my concerns with the diagnosis of allergies. He says that allergies could easily be the cause for all of Lucas' health problems (his low weight, his frequently being tired, his struggle to get well with any illness, his ear infections, and even the fluid buildup in his ears/hearing loss). He has an appointment to have an allergy test performed next Tuesday... I'm anxious to find out what he's allergic to that could be causing him such grief all these years. Could this really be the answer to getting Lucas healthy?? It almost sounds too easy.
We had our meeting with the Fairfax County Public School psychologist to discuss the results from Clara's evaluation. A series of 9 different assessment methods showed that Clara is exhibiting behaviors and characteristics typical of Asperger's Disorder. For special education services, the school doesn't differentiate between any of the Autism classifications, therefore Clara is now officially in the school system as having "Autism Spectrum Disorder". When I was approached about the possibility of Clara having Asperger's early on in the school year, I read about it and was in some sense relieved to know that there was a reason or explanation behind her frustrating behaviors. Somehow, though, hearing it as an official assessment hit me very differently that I expected. All of a sudden, I felt the weight of what this meant. This wasn't just some erratic behavior that with some therapy or guidance would go away. This was HER and there is no cure. Jason and I, together with her educators, can help provide her with strategies to help ease her way through, but her struggles will be persistent and most likely harder than those of her peers. However, like the psychologist told us, she has a lot going for her which will help her immensely. She is a highly intelligent kid, with a sweet disposition and a supportive, loving family. She will be fine.
Meanwhile, later in the week, I met again with the panel to decide whether or not Clara is eligibile for special education services. This meeting went as I expected. It seemed to me that the decision had been made prior to my arrival and all they needed me for was a signature. They, of course, approved her for special education services. At this point, for me, it just feels like whatever they decide is fine as long as what is best for Clara is at the center of that decision.
We were planning to get away for the long weekend. The fact that Lucas is still throwing up and I just finished changing Eli's sheets for the second time tonight, I'm guessing we are pretty well housebound.
This week started with a virus. Clara was violently ill starting late Sunday morning. Luckily for her, it only lasted the one day, she was feeling much better the next day. Unfortunately, it made its way to the boys and myself soon after. Today was the first day that I felt much better, but poor Lucas is still throwing up - 3 days and counting. He had an appointment with the doctor this morning (originally scheduled as a follow-up to check his ears). The doctor diagnosed an ear infection as the reason why he can't keep anything down combined with allergies (more on that in a minute). His weight is back to what it was at his 3-year checkup... 30 lbs. He is currently taking antibiotic for the ear infection, but I'm still questioning how this is going to help him if he can't keep anything down.
Ok... so Lucas' doctor's appointment. Let me start by saying that the experience as a whole was a complete turn from the last visit. We didn't have to wait long to see the doctor this time, and for the short time that we did have to wait - a nurse provided the boys with a container of blocks to keep them occupied! When the doctor came in, I opted to inundate him with information about Lucas' history for fear of getting cut off or forgetting to include something. The doctor listened to EVERYTHING! I was extremely impressed that he was able to get everything since I was talking so fast and a bit all over the place with my thoughts. He immediately responded to my concerns with the diagnosis of allergies. He says that allergies could easily be the cause for all of Lucas' health problems (his low weight, his frequently being tired, his struggle to get well with any illness, his ear infections, and even the fluid buildup in his ears/hearing loss). He has an appointment to have an allergy test performed next Tuesday... I'm anxious to find out what he's allergic to that could be causing him such grief all these years. Could this really be the answer to getting Lucas healthy?? It almost sounds too easy.
We had our meeting with the Fairfax County Public School psychologist to discuss the results from Clara's evaluation. A series of 9 different assessment methods showed that Clara is exhibiting behaviors and characteristics typical of Asperger's Disorder. For special education services, the school doesn't differentiate between any of the Autism classifications, therefore Clara is now officially in the school system as having "Autism Spectrum Disorder". When I was approached about the possibility of Clara having Asperger's early on in the school year, I read about it and was in some sense relieved to know that there was a reason or explanation behind her frustrating behaviors. Somehow, though, hearing it as an official assessment hit me very differently that I expected. All of a sudden, I felt the weight of what this meant. This wasn't just some erratic behavior that with some therapy or guidance would go away. This was HER and there is no cure. Jason and I, together with her educators, can help provide her with strategies to help ease her way through, but her struggles will be persistent and most likely harder than those of her peers. However, like the psychologist told us, she has a lot going for her which will help her immensely. She is a highly intelligent kid, with a sweet disposition and a supportive, loving family. She will be fine.
Meanwhile, later in the week, I met again with the panel to decide whether or not Clara is eligibile for special education services. This meeting went as I expected. It seemed to me that the decision had been made prior to my arrival and all they needed me for was a signature. They, of course, approved her for special education services. At this point, for me, it just feels like whatever they decide is fine as long as what is best for Clara is at the center of that decision.
We were planning to get away for the long weekend. The fact that Lucas is still throwing up and I just finished changing Eli's sheets for the second time tonight, I'm guessing we are pretty well housebound.
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
Better than Expected
This week Jason's parents are here visiting. Last week in preparation for their visit, we decided that it was finally time to move Eli's crib into Lucas' bedroom. It was always the intent for the boys to share a room. In fact, all of Eli's things were in Lucas' room except for the crib. It's just been so easy to let the boys sleep in separate room up to this point. Eli still cries in the night occasionally, especially when he has a cold or is teething. Lucas has never been a great sleeper (for years he would wake up between 4:30-5:00am and come into our room). Despite all this, I knew the time was approaching that we needed to move the crib and with Jason's parents coming, it seemed like the perfect time. I was incredibly nervous how it was going to go. I envisioned many sleepless nights dealing with Eli crying and keeping Lucas awake. Eli was completely in the middle of moving the crib. As I was taking it apart and putting it back together, Eli was climbing in, out, and around the crib. He was interested and smiling the whole time. Then after everything was situated, he just cried and cried. So you see why I was anticipating it being hard. Well, at bedtime I put Eli to bed first and then as Lucas was walking into the room to get into bed, Eli just smiled great big. You could tell that he was so happy to have Lucas in the room with him. And bedtime was no trouble at all! Eli just listened to Lucas' bedtime story and then at lights out, both boys just snuggled down and not a peep was heard from the other side of the bedroom door! It's been 6 days now and all is well. 
Lucas had his appointment with the audiologist this morning. Needless to say I was pretty nervous... what will come of this? I was trying to be rational... this appointment would give us some insight into what is causing Lucas' hearing loss... then we can try to figure out how to fix the problem. But I was still nervous. The appointment went extremely well. The audiologist was great with Lucas... she knew exactly how to talk to him. His favorite expression of hers was "let's see if there are any potatoes growing in your ears". That just made him laugh (he said she was "pretty silly"). So moving on to the results. Turns out that the cause of his hearing loss is a buildup of fluid. The audiologist said that the clear fluid is easily missed during an exam (especially if the inner ear is not inflamed). There are apparently a handful of reasons for this fluid buildup, ranging from allergies to defective Eustachian tubes. Therefore, Lucas has been referred back to the pediatrician for an evaluation and I don't know if it'll be a range of trial and error attempts to figure out the cause (starting with a prescription decongestant) or if the doctor can just look in Lucas' ears and be able to determine on sight the cause. I guess I'll find out at this next appointment, which will be scheduled once the results are received at the pediatrician's office.
I'm sure that I mentioned in a previous post about our leaky drain valve on our hot water heater. Well, we were determined to fix it ourselves... build up our home maintenance confidence a little bit. I bought the replacement valve and printed off the directions on how to replace it. Jason started the water draining out of the tank, we felt that we were on our way. Cut to nearly four hours later and the water was STILL draining from the tank, it was down to a trickle that never ended. An hour later, it was still trickling, but we decided to go ahead and just try it (we prepared for the mess and everything). That stubborn old valve would not budge no matter how hard we tried... and believe me, we tried! So after all that, I ended up going to the hardware store and buying a hose cap. We wasted 66 gallons of water and nearly 5 hours (into Jason's sleep time) to end up capping it off. It isn't dripping anymore, so that's good. Lesson learned - sometimes the shortcut is the best and only way??
I'm leaving tomorrow on a short solo trip back to Missouri. My littlest sister is graduating high school - congratulations, Rachael! I am really excited about having some time without the kids, but at the same time, I'm finding that relinquishing control is an emotional hurricane. Can you tell this is my first time going anywhere for more than a couple of hours without the kids?? I know they'll be fine... but will I???
Lucas had his appointment with the audiologist this morning. Needless to say I was pretty nervous... what will come of this? I was trying to be rational... this appointment would give us some insight into what is causing Lucas' hearing loss... then we can try to figure out how to fix the problem. But I was still nervous. The appointment went extremely well. The audiologist was great with Lucas... she knew exactly how to talk to him. His favorite expression of hers was "let's see if there are any potatoes growing in your ears". That just made him laugh (he said she was "pretty silly"). So moving on to the results. Turns out that the cause of his hearing loss is a buildup of fluid. The audiologist said that the clear fluid is easily missed during an exam (especially if the inner ear is not inflamed). There are apparently a handful of reasons for this fluid buildup, ranging from allergies to defective Eustachian tubes. Therefore, Lucas has been referred back to the pediatrician for an evaluation and I don't know if it'll be a range of trial and error attempts to figure out the cause (starting with a prescription decongestant) or if the doctor can just look in Lucas' ears and be able to determine on sight the cause. I guess I'll find out at this next appointment, which will be scheduled once the results are received at the pediatrician's office.
I'm sure that I mentioned in a previous post about our leaky drain valve on our hot water heater. Well, we were determined to fix it ourselves... build up our home maintenance confidence a little bit. I bought the replacement valve and printed off the directions on how to replace it. Jason started the water draining out of the tank, we felt that we were on our way. Cut to nearly four hours later and the water was STILL draining from the tank, it was down to a trickle that never ended. An hour later, it was still trickling, but we decided to go ahead and just try it (we prepared for the mess and everything). That stubborn old valve would not budge no matter how hard we tried... and believe me, we tried! So after all that, I ended up going to the hardware store and buying a hose cap. We wasted 66 gallons of water and nearly 5 hours (into Jason's sleep time) to end up capping it off. It isn't dripping anymore, so that's good. Lesson learned - sometimes the shortcut is the best and only way??
I'm leaving tomorrow on a short solo trip back to Missouri. My littlest sister is graduating high school - congratulations, Rachael! I am really excited about having some time without the kids, but at the same time, I'm finding that relinquishing control is an emotional hurricane. Can you tell this is my first time going anywhere for more than a couple of hours without the kids?? I know they'll be fine... but will I???
Mother's Day
My Mother's Day actually came a few days early. Friday morning, both Clara and Lucas had something special going on for me to attend. Clara's 1st grade class had "Muffins for Moms" complete with a performance. The performance was really cute, Clara was so ecstatic for me to be there, and yes... I got weepy. I have attached the video of the performance (courtesy of West Springfield Elementary) below along with a slide show that was shown in her classroom to all of the moms. Lucas' preschool class was hosting a special Mother's Day Tea. We moms were served lemonade and goodies by our little ones. The goodies were even made in the classroom by the class! And of course, no Mother's Day would be complete without a handmade gift and card!
My Sunday Mother's Day was nice as well. A nice lunch out with the family followed by a stroll through Green Springs Gardens where we all enjoyed the beautiful weather and I got to take pictures. Maybe that was the best gift, after all I truly think I'm the happiest when I'm behind the camera.
Wednesday, May 6, 2009
Reward
This morning, I was answering a Facebook survey (20 questions for Moms) and one of the questions was "What's your favorite part of being a mom?" Well, this is a pretty good answer!
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