The baby is about 7 weeks, and about the size of a grain of rice, yet has a heartbeat. Amazing!
Good Week
July 26, 2007 at 9:40 am (Chance, Chandler, Charlie, General)
In contrast to the rough week last week, this week has been especially good.
I saw the OB yesterday and we got to see the baby, who is the size of a grain of rice, and it’s little heart was beating. Hearing that is so amazing, considering it’s SO small. We saw Charlie at that point and were amazed as well. The creation of life is incredible to me, and never gets old.
Oh, and the dr had good news, too. While the cyst had been growing, which is not good, it’s now draining, which is good. Thank You, Lord! If the cyst had kept growing, it could’ve become life threatening to me…
And Tuesday we actually had a few hours break from the rain, so I ventured out to the zoo. Normally we’re there every week, but this summer, it’s been months since we’ve gone, due to the rain. But I’m not complaining….we’ve yet to hit 95 degrees this summer, which is extreme, because usually we’re in the 100s for most of the month of July! Anyhow, it was overcast, cool, and perfect for the zoo. The boys had a blast, and we even all took a long nap when we got home. 
[The boys love the little kids' area of the zoo, which has a small stream for the kids to swim.]
[Chance made a friend, and Charlie demonstrates how a sloth climbs a tree.]
One other story before I go. Charlie told Chance yesterday, “Go away, I don’t like you.” He didn’t say it in anger, just calmly, which was even more alarming. So I asked him why he would say that, and he said because Chance will want him to share his toys. So I talked to him about how mean that was, and then he says, “But Mommy, I don’t like you either. I only like Daddy.” That’s probably not the best thing to say to an emotional pregnant woman. Then he starts in on how he doesn’t love us as well. I felt a little overwhelmed, not sure how to handle this one. I did put him in time out to think about it for awhile. Then I asked him how he’d feel if Daddy said that to him, and he said he’d be happy. And that Daddy would still play legos with him (he’s convinced nothing would stop Chuck from playing legos…smart kid!). Sigh. Anyhow, he happily went back to playing, and got himself stuck in a basket and asked me to help him out. So I told him I couldn’t help him because he didn’t like/love me or his brother. So he went back on his previous thoughts. Not sure if this is something I should be worried about (or if that was the right way to handle it). I just think he’s too young to say things like this! But maybe he’s not…
Finally Better
July 23, 2007 at 10:23 pm (Chance, Chandler, Charlie, General)
I hate leaving a blog post on such a negative note without following up when things are better. And they are…
Chance’s diarrhea cleared up on Sunday and he is back to normal. Here are ways I know he’s back:
1. After each meal, he methodically climbs into each chair around the table to inspect each person’s plate, in case there are left overs he might like.
2. He’s jabbering up a storm. Today his new words were “Peacock” while watching an Elmo show, “cold” as he touched something in the fridge, and “light” as he pointed to the doctor’s instrument.
3. The chase is on…Charlie and Chance are back to playing and running around the house again.
Now if only I can get him to sleep past 7 AM… 
By the way, we saw the ENT who said his ears look great, tubes are still intact, and we don’t need to do a tonsillectomy until the strep becomes an issue. Good news, indeed!
And about Charlie, today was a benchmark. We actually put on the “big boy underwear” today! He wanted to wear them to Chuck E Cheese, where we went to celebrate Charlie’s recent accomplishments in potty training. Unfortunately he wet himself a little as we were leaving…maybe we’re not quite ready for going out in public yet.
And as for me, there are more subtle signs of pregnancy. My stomach has been a bit uneasy. I’ve been a bit more sleepy than normal. And chocolate has become a good friend!
*sigh*
July 21, 2007 at 10:13 pm (Chance, Charlie, General)
Ok, so I’ve lagged in blogging this week not only because I was out of town, but because it’s been a rough week that I’m not sure I’ll want to remember. Chance, as I said in the last post, was sick. But he’s had ear infections before, so I knew that once the antibiotics started, he’d be fine. But actually, this time he was worse. From the morning after the first dose he’s had diarrhea (and still does, 7 days later!). I still went to see my family, but as his symptoms worsened, I decided to cut it short and come home early. On the way there I stopped halfway at a McDonald’s to let the boys play and eat lunch, but that ended when Chance came from the playscape covered in poop! It was definitely one of the most embarrassing moments of my life.
[My brother shows us his crab traps. He and my mom live on the Bay near Galveston.]
[Granny gets a sweet greeting from Charlie.]
[Charlie holds a crab for the first time...]
[Then Charlie threw the crab back into the water! LOL]
We enjoyed some fun moments with family, and even went to the circus and Chance surprisingly did great then. But he also began vomiting one night, and I knew we should’ve stayed home. *sigh* Anyhow, I stopped the antibiotics after only 4 doses (2/10 days), yet he’s still recovering. It seems to hit hardest at night/early morning. My sweet husband even took part of Friday off so I could recuperate. Thursday I started Chance on probiotics and pedialyte, and he seems to be getting better. And thankfully, his ear doesn’t bother him much, although I don’t know if he still has the ear infection. We go to the ENT on Monday to get it checked out.
On a side note, while I understand that antibiotics are necessary sometimes, and I’m thankful we have them, I’m so tired of them! I took them way to much over the 2 years that I was carrying strep (and none of the 4 ENTs I saw seemed to understand that carriers can’t be cured by antibiotics), and now there are certain kinds that Chance is resistant to…which I think is because I took so much while I was pregnant with him. And now he’s been on them at least a dozen times in his 18 months for ear infections and strep. And just this week, my obstetrician said I’m positive for Group B Strep, and I should take an antibiotic now. I did research and found out it’d be pointless, and I’d still have to have it injected during labor. So I decided not to subject this baby to it as well. Not to mention, I was basically overdosed on antibiotics with my tonsillectomy which led to a week of incredible fatigue, and now Chance is reacting with this diarrhea, vomiting, and dehydration. Seriously, I’d rather deal with an ear infection than the side effects of antibiotics! Ok, I’ll stop ranting. Maybe I only know enough to be dangerous, but my point is, don’t take an antibiotic every time the wind blows…even if the doctor hands it out. Do the research.
Anyhow, here are the good things about the week.
~Charlie has been pottying more. Chuck has really gotten into giving him legos as leverage, and it’s working!
~Today, Charlie pretended to “go to work” and then came home with a “prize” for me. He told me it was a candy bar, but I couldn’t eat it until I went poopie on the potty!
~Charlie has been the redeeming factor this week. He’s been very well behaved and helpful! He also greatly enjoyed visiting my family and going to the circus. Today he asked if he could go back to Granny and Bubba’s house tomorrow.
~Chance has a new phrase: “What was that?” although it sounds more like “Wuhwuzzat?” He says it at the funniest times. He also says “Thank you” which sounds like “dank coo” often, which melts my heart!
Little Signs of Life
July 16, 2007 at 9:57 am (Chance, Chandler, Charlie, General)
Well, I’m starting to feel pregnant, a little… I was a bit queasy this weekend, and maybe a little more tired than normal. Thanks to Chuck’s willing support, I got a couple of long naps in. I also enjoyed a Chocolate Smoothie from Taco Cabana a little more than normal. Those are REALLY good, by the way.
Chance hasn’t been feeling so well either. Friday he began running a fever, and would wake up a time or two during the night. So Sunday I took him to a Pediatric Urgent Care (I love those things!!), and found out he has an ear infection. It was hard for the doctor to see if his tube is still in because of all the wax in the way. But once we get the infection cured, he’ll get to see the ENT to check it again. But at least we had 6 months without ear infections!
Charlie had a good weekend, with lots of time with Daddy and some success in potty training. Because Chance was sick, Chuck stayed home with him and let Charlie and I go to church together. Afterwards I had to go to the restroom (this is also becoming more frequent!), and Charlie watched 3 young girls go in ahead of me. So to my surprise, he refused to come in with me! He’s growing up!! Just a week ago I had to talk him into wearing clothes outside (I run a nudist colony with potty training). He could not understand why the neighbors would want him to have clothes on! But now, he won’t go in a girls’ bathroom…
Today I have lots to do (like I really had time to blog, haha!) to get ready for tomorrow. I’m taking the boys to the coast to see family thru Friday. So I’ll be out of pocket for awhile…
