Story time

Everett and I were the only ones awake yesterday afternoon. I knew he needed some good one-on-one time with me so I suggested that we write a story together. Everett took off with that idea and dictated a story that I wrote on several sheets of paper for him.

Then, illustrations! He had a lot of fun with the illustrations and did all of it without help.

I thought I would scan the pictures and upload them so we can keep this story for later.

I don't want to leave Ashley out, so here is a picture she did a couple of days ago. She is starting to get more precise with her drawing and it is a lot of fun to watch!

Potty Training (We're Not Done With This Battle)

I've been really lucky that both my kids basically potty trained themselves--Ashley just after she turned 2 and Everett when he was 2 1/2.

Until these past few days, we've kept both kids in diapers during the night. Ashley almost always wakes up with a dry diaper, but Everett's is always very full. Sometimes he even soaks through his diaper. We've considered putting Ashley to bed without a diaper but in the interest of even-ness, we have just kept everybody the same.

Well, my diapers are running out and so I decided that we will try being 100% diaper free before I go out and buy new ones.

Ashley has done great. She is not a heavy sleeper and has good bladder control. Then again, I wasn't worried about her.

Everett has woken up several times a night having wetting the bed. I think we will end up continuing with the diapers for a while but I am going to finish out the week to be sure. This whole thing got started because I know Everett likes going in his diaper. In fact, he often goes in his diaper before he even gets to bed. I got a little frustrated with him a few nights ago and told him we are cutting him off from diapers.

Mostly, I just wanted to see if he would be able to stay dry if knew he wasn't wearing a diaper. I know some kids will go during the night just because they know the diaper will catch it. I will be the first to admit that this is poor timing on our part, due to the operation Everett had last week (orders from the doctor to drink lots of fluid = lots of fluid coming out as well) but it was something we decided to try anyway.

I think Everett still needs some time, although we are going to finish out the week to see if this gets any better. My sweet little guy has been a bit of a late bloomer in general and I bet in a year or so he will be over this hurdle. We'll see! I'm not too worried about it yet since he never has accidents during the day anymore, but if anyone has advice I'd love to store it away.

Free Cards?

Does anyone want a promo code for 10 free shutterfly cards? It was sent to me after Christmas and I have no use for it. I will forward the code to anyone who wants it (FYI it can only be used once by one person). This offer expires on Jan. 30th.

Random Journaling

In no particular order:

Ashley decided last Wednesday that I am now her best friend. No, I didn't bribe, coerce, or threaten to get her to change her mind. She is insistent, and even though it makes me smile, it makes me a little sad. It was fun to watch her have that special thing with her Papa.

Everett is doing great with his recovery. I kept hearing horror stories about kids waking up in a great deal of pain every 30 minutes at night, and fortunately we have had none of these problems. I got him a sippy cup with a straw so he could always carry around liquids to soothe his throat, and this is working great for him.

Everett's soft food diet is forcing me to be creative. You would think that a diet of yogurt, smoothies, popsicles, jello, and pudding would be interesting for longer than two days, but no such luck--Everett is officially bored with his options. I've been trying to combat this by making as much regular food as possible, but it is tricky. He ate mashed potatoes and gravy yesterday for dinner. We usually make cookies as a family on Sunday nights, so last night we made coffee cake instead because it was something Everett can eat. It was the best recipe I've seen so far. Lucky for Everett, I don't have any squash or he would be eating lots of vegetables as well.

William is just starting to learn how to go down the stairs backwards. I have been working on it with him every day in a sad attempt to get him to figure it out faster.

Yesterday William was watching as I was putting some things away in my pots and pans cupboard. Just as I looked over at him, I saw a light bulb turn on in his little mind. With a look of intense curiosity, he crawled right over and spent the next little while opening the cupboard door. Maybe today he has forgotten all about it.

Everett has discovered his profound distaste for grape-flavored medicine.

Ashley has been grumpy, grumpy, grumpy. I think it is all the extra attention Everett has been getting (although I've tried to tone it down so he is mostly just a regular kid). Well, I thought her grumpiness was purely a cry for attention until she developed a nasty cold this morning. Now I know it's both. Add William, who has developed a cough, to the illness mixture and it means we have three sick kids in this house right now. Yes, we're pretty germy. I am trying to ensure that Everett doesn't get the cold germs but it might very well be a hopeless cause. Depending on how today goes, we might have to schedule a trip to the doctor.

I've been painting the beige trim white in my house. I am paranoid about getting paint on the carpet and I can only do it when the kids are sleeping. This makes for sloooooooow progress. Fortunately I have the living room pretty much done. I would rather just take one or two days and spend the whole day painting so I can get it done faster, but such is life. It will get done eventually, and then, the walls! In the meantime, This American Life has been my entertainment.

I love This American Life.

Yesterday I took only Ashley to church. Let me tell you, it was the most peaceful Sacrament Meeting I've been to in a long time. I brought a pen and paper and a couple of toy horses, and she was set. I crammed for my Sunday School lesson, er, I mean I listened really closely to the speakers, and it was a wonderful break for me!

Well, I think that's it. If I think of anything else, I'll add it later.

Do Your Ears Hang Low?

Everett loves the song "Do your ears hang low?" I have a feeling we will be singing that song for the next week or two as he recovers from having his tonsils and adenoids out and ear tubes put in.

Everything went smoothly this morning. The only hiccup was when Everett blew a fuse over having to put the hospital gown on. The nurse pointed out that most kids throw a tantrum over this because it is the last possible thing they have to control. I couldn't agree more. It probably would have helped if I had explained ahead of time that he would wear it.

As it was, Everett was mad for quite a while until we made the deal with him that he could put his clothes back on if he agreed to take them off again when we asked (this way we could give him a two-minute warning and he would know exactly what to expect). He did just fine after that, especially when I told him we could put his shirt on the teddy bear he brought with him.

I tried to prepare him these past few days for the procedure and the fact that we would be separated, and he did great. No fussing, the nurse said.

Everett was still pretty much asleep when they brought him back to us on a little rollaway bed. As soon as he heard our voices, he perked up, then looked at his left hand which had been wrapped in tape to keep an IV in. Everett's eyes widened and his face crumpled into a look of horror, shock, and disgust (it was a surprise for him because the surgical center waits for the kids to be sedated before putting an IV in). It was pretty funny. After about two hours of sleeping on my lap, he finally drank his 10 ounces of required fluids, and we were discharged.

It was quick and uncomplicated and we are glad to be back home. Everett is nestled on the couch with a new movie (Despicable Me) and has a kitchen full of soft snacks to eat. He can't have anything he has to chew for a few days, and only soft foods after that for another week or so. I imagine it will get old pretty fast, but today he is excited that I will indulge him with smoothies, chocolate milk, jello, mashed potatoes, and ice cream.

I don't anticipate a tough recovery--Everett has a pretty high pain tolerance and doesn't normally get grumpy when he is sick. I am glad to be able to take care of him.

Another Bath-Related Post

William loves baths. I have never seen a child love the water as much as he does. If William hears the bathwater running, he will come crawling in from wherever he was and immediately try to climb in the tub (fortunately for me it is quite a bit too high for him to manage by himself). He dances and bounces with anticipation as I undress him, and the second his body touches the water, he starts splashing.

Splash, splash, splash, splash! William grins and laughs as the water flies everywhere--on Ashley and Everett, on the bath mat--and he never slows, even when it sprays his own face. William never gets tired of it, and even though it would ultimately prove pointless, I don't have the heart to try to get him to stop.

Ashley and Everett have learned to tolerate the splashing pretty well, even with the understanding that William is the only one allowed to make such a watery mess. Of course, they usually call it quits and want to get out long before William has even considered it.

These are some snapshots I took in December. This was the first time William was in a bath with the other kids, and it was later this night that he learned to love the wonders of splashing. These pictures are pretty calm and nice, but they are not as fun as what happens now.

The kids are very good about accommodating a baby in their tub, even if it means a lower water level. (I believe the original plan this particular night was not to have William in the bath as well, or the water would be even lower than you see here.)

Everett does a great job looking out for William. Occasionally William will try to go after the soap and Everett rescues it without fail before it reaches his slobbery little mouth.

William had a lot of fun getting a feel for the water. Yes he got his face in it once or twice, but he just laughed.

Since this was the first time with them all together, I was a little too paranoid to let everyone play the way they normally do. I got over that pretty quickly. The kids were satisfied with the novelty of a baby, though.

William switched from sitting on his heiney like a little teddy bear to crawling through the water to standing along the edge, grinning and jabbering at me.

Were I to take pictures now (I will once I get a new camera, believe me), you would see William splashing in the water, arms blurry and water droplets coming down like a rainstorm, but the best part of the picture would be his deliciously wet, dark eyelashes and the smile that enraptures his entire face.

Major Cheese

(disclaimer: if you don't want to read anything cheesy this morning, skip this one.)

Joel and I celebrated our 5th wedding anniversary on December 30th, and I found myself thinking about it while I was doing the dishes last night (side note: the traditional gift for a fifth anniversary is made of wood, and we just bought a house, so I thought that was fitting). When I opened the refrigerator door and discovered that I was about to place a freshly-dried pot lid in there, I figured maybe I ought to write down what I was thinking.

Or maybe I should learn to multi-task. Either way, here goes.

When people ask about our engagement story, I often tell them that Joel and I married each other mostly on faith. Sure, we shared a whole lot of love, but we had only known each other for three whole months when we formalized our commitment. Three months is not a long enough time for us to really know each other well enough to commit to eternity, but it was long enough for Heavenly Father to tell us it was right. That, and the love and respect we had for each other, was enough.

I was one of those teenagers who (narcissistically, I'm sure) had about two million things on her very long list of things I want in the man I marry. I tried to give myself and my faults due attention, but I haven't gotten very far. Joel, on the other hand, had to do this one time as a young man and wrote down five things. I can only remember two: first, that his wife cooks because he hates that chore, and second, that she doesn't have overly hairy arms.

Well, let's just say I was thrilled with who I ended up with. Joel has so many more qualities than I ever dreamed of. He is, quite literally, my perfect match. I used to care too much about what people thought of me and I felt the need to hear others approve my decisions. Now, having been married to Joel for a few years, I don't experience either of those things anymore. He has my back and I know it, because he never lets me forget it, and this has given me more confidence than I have ever had.

I don't think either of us has looked back since the day we got married. Well, after these three kids, I don't really think we have had time to look back.

I'm just grateful that Joel is happy to be here with the kids and me. This is a man who has cleaned up my morning sickness-induced vomit, watched me give birth three times, has heard me burp and pass gas, kisses me even when my morning breath stinks, and knows all my faults better than I do but doesn't complain about them.

And he still tells me he likes sticking around. Thinking of spending Eternity with him makes me feel twitterpated.

(Left: Taken November 2005 Right: Taken November 2010)

Joel has a bunch of really tall friends, and they laughed when they looked at our wedding announcement because they said I'm so short that I make Joel look taller than he is.

It's always fun to see "before and after" photos. Think we've changed? Well, four states and three kids later, I sure feel like a different person!

Ear Update

My kids are eating lunch and are quiet (who hoo!) so I will type up a quick update. Everett had his appointment this morning with the ENT, who comes in from Iowa City once a week.

The verdict? Adenoidectomy, Tonsillectomy, and tubes. Yep, the whole package! It has been a long time coming, I think. From what I've been able to piece together, Everett has almost constantly had fluid behind his eardrums, giving him a significant loss of hearing. The doctor didn't seem to be concerned about permanent hearing loss, and he didn't see any scarring, so it could be much worse than it is.

The doctor did point out that one reason Everett might always be so tired is that he doesn't get good quality sleep. Everett's adenoids are pretty large and the doctor thinks they may be blocking some airflow to his nose. Everett always has dark circles under his eyes (just look at the picture of him in the sidebar for an example--and that picture was taken with a bright flash), but I didn't consider that it might be due to fatigue because he seems to be such a sound sleeper. However, he still takes naps a couple of times a week and he is four years old, so maybe I should have realized it earlier :).

I felt a little bad this morning that we haven't gotten this done earlier, but I don't know how we could have. You have to bring the child in a certain number of times over a period of six months to qualify for a specialist and since Everett never gave me any indication (pulling at his ears, ear pain, fever, reduced appetite, etc.) I had no idea when to bring him in. I think he has gotten so used to discomfort in his ears that if I were to ask him if his ears hurt on a normal day, he would say no unless they were really inflamed with a bad infection.

Also, I feel like my last post ended up sounding a little harsh about antibiotics. I realize there is a huge need for these drugs and I am happy that we have them at our disposal. It just makes me uncomfortable to use such strong drugs for viral or minor ear infections. I have no problem with using them for the treatment of ear infections in other circumstances (or other illnesses, for that matter).

And anyway, what does it matter what I think? I'm not a doctor and I think everyone has the ability to determine what is best for their own children.

OK. The kids are starting to bicker so I think that is my cue!

Ears are for Hearing

When Everett started speech therapy last year, he had to go and have his hearing tested. We went three different times, and each time the technician informed me that he had an ear infection and that they would do the test but it might not be very accurate. He tested a little low but they said it was due to the infection and that his hearing was probably fine.

The funny thing is, Everett had not been acting sick any of those times. He was happy and energetic and I was completely blind-sided by the news. It made me wonder how many ear infections he has had.

After we got back home a few days ago, I took Everett into our pediatrician to get his ears checked. The poor guy has been battling an ear infection off and on for a couple of weeks. Every time I thought he was over it, he would complain of it hurting again. "I can't sleep because my ear is making noise, Mommy!" Everett told me one night.

But then the next morning he said his ears felt fine and he seemed to be back to normal.

The pediatrician confirmed the infection. When I explained his history to her, she told me that he qualifies to see a specialist. I told her I would love for him to see a specialist. If he constantly has fluid in his ears, he can't hear very well and that could become permanent. Most of you are probably familiar with this. Needless to say, I was hoping from the beginning that I could get her to refer us to a specialist.

She also wrote up a prescription for an antibiotic--something she said she doesn't normally do. I won't really get into how I feel about using antibiotics for something like an ear infection (studies show it doesn't reduce the pain, which is what the kids really need), but I will say that I was reluctant to give them to him. I'm definitely not against antibiotics, which are life-saving, I am just a little wary of using them for a minor infection. As it has been explained to me by our doctor, almost all kids clear ear infections on their own within a few days which might be why antibiotics are so popular; after a few days on the schedule, the child gets better and the parent thinks it is was the medicine that did it. Because Everett told me when he felt better, I always thought he was one of those kids. He has actually never taken antibiotics before this week. We've only ever used those ear-numbing drops, which work very well. He is a few days into the medication schedule and seems to be doing great.

The appointment with the ENT specialist is on Wednesday and while I hope Everett doesn't need tubes, I suspect he does. I am happy to have them done if it means he can be done with all these nasty infections.

So, even though you haven't asked for it, you'll probably hear more about Everett's ears next week. Don't get too excited!

Bad Day, Bad Day

On Thursday I had a bad day. I don't know why, but I was a grouch all day long. Twice I caught myself losing control and yelling, "STOP YELLING!!!!" to my kids. The second time I sighed and realized where they were learning it.

Yesterday Everett had a bad day. The kids had been up late and all morning long he and I were at odds with each other, except for the blessed hour we were all reading stories together. Just before lunch I lost patience with him one more time and when I stopped to really notice him, he looked at me with tears in his eyes and said, "Mommy, I'm just so tired."

I wish I could say that I smiled and gave him a big hug, but I didn't. I told him that after no breakfast, his body needed lunch (which he was refusing to eat) and that he could go lay down after he finished his cheese biscuit. He wasn't happy with my answer and so the dramatics continued for a little while longer.

A hug would have been much better than a cheese biscuit.

Looking back on that morning, I wish I had exercised more patience. The poor guy--I knew just how he was feeling. Tired, hungry, not feeling well; that was me the day before, and you would think I could recognize that in him before he had to tell me.

I'm not being hard on myself. I'm just hoping that next time, I will remember these two days and react as oh, say, the adult in the situation should. Fortunately after a good nap for the kids and a quiet house for me, all was forgotten and we went on to have a pretty good day.

Best Christmas Present Ever

I forgot to mention one thing that just made my Christmas.

William started calling me Mama. If he is hungry or tired or sees me from across the room, he will call out to me with desperation in his voice. Sometimes he will crawl around the house looking for me as he says it.

Mamamamamamama! He will call. It is precious, and I melt each time I hear it.

On the other side of things, William has now learned to climb up stairs. Has he learned how to climb down any way but face first? Nope. He is determined enough that if he falls on his face he just picks himself right back up and keeps going without a fuss.

In fact, he wormed his way out of a high chair at my parent's house. I heard a thump from the other room and when I poked my head in, I saw William sprawled out on the floor beneath the seat with a grin on his face and satisfaction in his eyes. I know he did it on purpose because he had been periodically trying to escape that chair for days.

If someone is holding William back from something he really, really wants, he will grunt and twist and reach and squirm and try as hard as he can to get it--over, and over and over again. Will he cry? No. But he will persist until he gets what he wants or is removed from the room.

What a fun, happy boy, but wow do I think I will have a little dennis the menace on my hands. "Mama" I love. This whole stairs thing--well, I would not have been disappointed if he had been a late bloomer in this regard. But, I think I'll take it. I can't get mad at that face anyway.