Getting back to normal

We're just about back to normal this week! We went in for KJ's visit last Friday at MUSC and she was deemed in good condition. Since then we've just been trying to get back into a routine again and I've been trying to get the house back in working order. I think the aftermath of a hospital stay is worse than the actual stay. Time stands still when you're there and then when you get home you realize life kept going and you have to jump back in. I haven't taken a lot of pics but here are a few.

Here's little sweetie digging around in the cabinet for a snack. Here are our two girls partaking in a Capri Sun.

Saturday we went to the corner pumpkin patch and let the girls pick out a pumpkin. They each got one just their size.

As for Katie Jo's healing she is done with her medicine (insert a "Praise the Lord!" here) and has just a few physical spots that are still healing. The doctor said she'd peel for awhile and so we've just moved about as if we're 100%. It doesn't seem to bother her and as long as she's not in pain I feel grateful!

Katie Jo update

Just a quick update on Katie Jo. She is doing so well and we couldn't have asked for a more speedy recovery. You would never know what she's been through by the way she acts. She has run and played and sang and danced to her heart's content. Her lesions are all pretty scabbed over and by this time next week you probably won't see any physical remnants of her infection. We go to the doctor tomorrow at MUSC for a follow up and I'll type up another quick report then. Thanks again for all the emails, comments, and phone calls!

HOME

Well for some of you this will be the first news you've received on Katie Jo's hospitalization so here's a little background.
Friday I took Katie Jo into the doctor for a suspected UTI. While there the doctor and I looked a few spots she had behind her ear, a scratch on her forehead and maybe a spot on her neck. The doctor determined the spots to be eczema with maybe a little infection since the marks were red. Her urine was tested with a negative UTI result. She prescribed an antibacterial cream for the marks and we were on our way. Late Friday KJ didn't seem herself but we'd had a hard time with the doctor's office so that wasn't out of the ordinary. I also noticed she had an additional spot come up on the bridge of her nose. Saturday morning we went out to her soccer game and she didn't participate but played around on the sidelines. I chalked it up to the discomfort she had with the urinary situation and didn't think much more of it. So, as the day played on she started to have more and more spots come up out of no where. The only way to explain it is it looked like when you sunburn, then peel. She had very thin layers of skin peeling off in spots around her neck and face. Unlike the sunburn peel these were very painful with raw skin exposed. We took her to an urgent care doctor's office Saturday afternoon and the nurse immediately got the doctor who immediately came in and said she looked to have a rare staph infection known as scalded skin syndrome. She said we would be sent to MUSC where they would probably admit her. I'm on the other side of all this now so it's not such a big deal but at the time I had a little panic attack. Hospital? Admit? Stay? She's only three! So with that we started making phone calls. Our good friends in the neighborhood came to get Georgia immediately and we were off to the hospital after gathering up a few necessities. Thankfully we arrived at the Peds ER with only two others ahead of us and we taken back within 30 minutes. After checking in with the nurses and getting her vitals we were sent back to a room. There they did the necessary work up and we were seen by nurses, students, residents, and a real live doctor. After all this they confirmed what the urgent care doctor had diagnosed earlier, Scalded Skin Syndrome. It is a type of staph infection where toxins come back through the skin in the form of peeling skin. It only effects children five and under. So we were told we'd need to prepare to stay in the hospital for a few days. And then we were sent to our room. During this time my parents drove down and have been here ever since to care for Georgia.
So that was Saturday night and here we are on Tuesday and we're home after a three day stay at MUSC. It was quite the ordeal and Katie Jo is no worse for the wear. She was a major trooper. She probably ended up with 30 something lesions on her back, stomach, torso, neck and face. Yes it is as bad as it sounds but she handled the pain very well. She was treated with IV antibiotics and we could see the healing within 24 hours as her lesions began to scab. She was quite the site in her room climbing very gingerly from the bed to a chair to the floor to go to the bathroom, all the while insisting that no one help or touch her! :)
To answer some questions:No she is not a danger to Georgia nor is there a chance Georgia could catch this No we do not know how she got it. We all carry staph on our skin and there is no way to know if she picked it up through preschool, the environment, an animal, or sitting in the sand on the playground.No she is not able to pass this to anyone. You'd first have to touch an open lesion on her body and then touch an open sore on your own and even then the chances are slim. Good luck touching anything that hurts on her body since she'd probably have you in a full nelson press.
I want to say that if you've gotta have a sick kid then MUSC is your place. The care was phenomenal. We had amazing doctors, nurses, and staff that met our needs. I will have to say as for the Children's Hospital they are more concerned with accommodating the child than their own schedule or needs and this was apparent through many situations where patience was needed with my child's particular situation. Most of the caregivers we encountered had never seen a case of scalded skin syndrome or only one so we were very comforted by the amount of information they provided considering it's a rare infection.
God is good and he placed several key people in our path that were connected to us, a neighbor, or a friend and that certainly put things on a more personal level.
We prayed for full healing and it seems we're almost there. We would continue to ask for specific prayer in the case of administering KJ's antibiotics now that we're home. She is very adamant that she will not take them and we are adamant that she has to in order to completely recover. I'll spare the details of how it is accomplished but no one really wins in the end. I pray tomorrow will be a clean slate and she will have courage to take the medicine on her own.
Thank you for all the prayers, call, and well wishes. For those of you that are local please know we appreciate the concern so much but would ask for no visitors at this time. Katie Jo needs time to heal privately and as soon as she's there we'll be back to soccer, preschool, church, and all other activities we'll be missing. We can't stress how much the outpouring of support has meant. It gave me great pleasure to read all the encouraging emails or listen to the messages on the machine when I got home. We knew Katie Jo was being lifted up in prayer and that alone gave us great comfort.
Throughout these past three days the verse that kept coming to mind was Romans 5:3-5 "We also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance, perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us." What a great way to be reminded that nothing that happens is meaningless and we have God's love no matter what trial we face.

Soccer practice video

Soccer

Last Friday Katie Jo had her first soccer practice! She is participating in the Micro-Soccer league with the local YMCA. Her coach is Mark (a close friend of ours) and her teammates are mostly friends from church. It was a lot of fun and she did a great job, when she participated! She dribbled by her self up and down the field and then went head to head with a friend as they dribbled side by side towards the goal. She got a little tired after awhile and took a break. At the end of practice they played a "game" against each other and it was fun to watch a group of three year olds chasing the ball around trying to get it in one of the goals!

When we bought our house four years ago one of the main selling points was that it backed up to the Y soccer fields. We had dreams of one day walking over on Saturdays to watch our kids play soccer. It's so weird to finally be at that point.

KJ and Coach Mark

Friend Reilly Kaye
Lined up waiting to dribble down the field
Having fun
Battling friend Tyler to get it in the goal
Action shot

After practice they got their jersey's and I got a quick shot of KJ in hers

Wordless Wednesday

There's Something About McDonald's

So, I hope you're finding this on Monday morning since it'll be your laugh for the day. And go ahead and laugh because I would.

What your seeing is the effects of my child squeezing a ranch packet a little too hard. We went to McDonald's for dinner and Katie Jo wanted me to open the ranch packet. The plastic kind with the flimsy cover. I wasn't moving fast enough because just as I turned to her and started to say "Don't squee..." it came flying out and went all over me. Jay, as the dutiful husband, said "don't move." He swiftly whipped out his trusty blackberry and proceeded to take a picture. He commented that if this wasn't blog worthy he didn't know what was. So here it is folks and I think it really just wraps up what it's like to be a parent. I'm too old to be embarrassed and too tired to care. I am well aware this conjures up an image from a certain movie as slightly referenced in the title and that alone was just too rich not to snicker about.

Mud Run

My hubby would be the muddy one. Oh excuse me, the one on the end, right-hand side. Crazy fool participated in a Mud Run yesterday in Columbia. It's a four mile run, or so, with 30 obstacles along the way. It's a team effort to complete it together and they did so in 50 minutes! The other participants were L-R Ben, Jeff, and Mark. Don't worry, he didn't look this way when he got home! They had a great time and will probably do it again next year.

Beach Day

My neighbor Emily and I took the kids out to the beach today since this may be one of our last chances to enjoy it with the fab weather we've had lately. I actually coerced her into doing it with a list of reasons why we should so that I wouldn't have to go by myself! It's always more fun to share the chaos of children with a friend. We had a great time and the kids all enjoyed a sandy lunch, splashing in the surf, and getting sand on every inch of their being!

School Work

I read a tip one time suggesting that you should photograph your child's school drawings, artwork, and such since you can't keep everything. That way you don't have to feel guilty when you throw them in the trash. I do try to keep a few things for their baby books so it doesn't all go for naught. I decided to try and do this at the end of each week (or more) to document what the girls have accomplished. I added on the label "school work" and presto I have a way to go back and see their progress. I know most people will find it boring but I knew the grandparents might enjoy seeing the girl's work.

Obviously KJ is working on shapes.You'll probably have to click on Georgia's if you want to actually read them. I love how they noted that she didn't need paci or oscar! I send these two things only on the days Kayci takes them home so she'll have them for her nap. I told the teachers she couldn't have them otherwise. Kayci works at their preschool and Georgia's teachers asked her if she thought I'd mind Georgia getting them for about the last 30 minutes since that was when she got a little cranky. I wrote a note saying it was OK. Then they were proud she didn't need them. I found that funny.
I won't talk nearly this much for the future school work post!

Wordless Wednesday

Train ride video

Weekend Wrap up

This weekend we went to Lyman for a visit with family.

On Friday night we took KJ to our high school football game. She was a little overwhelmed at first with the noise, crowd, and lights but after awhile she warmed up. She especially loved the band at half time.

Here she is with Gran before the game. She wasn't asleep, just being silly.Checking the game out.
My friend Mason sat behind us with his two boys, JL and Mac. KJ had a great time playing with them and it was good to see Mason since we both live away and don't catch up often.

This is JL and Katie Jo.
Mommy and KJ
The whole gang: JL sitting in Granddad Larry's lap, KJ and me, and Mac and Mason.

On Saturday we took Georgia and Katie Jo to Cleveland park to ride the train, which was a big hit, and play on the playground.

The girls had fun making a mess at Gran and Pop's. We went to Mia's on Sunday and had a terrific lunch with BBQ chicken, veggie kabobs, and crock pot mac and cheese. No pics from there but if there were it would have been of me sitting on the couch watching Erin Brockovich and Jay napping in the back bedroom while Mia was playing with the girls! :)

14 months update

I have an addition to the post I put up earlier today about Georgia. Put the teeth count up to 12. We were at the park today and she smiled so big I saw two more teeth had already cut through on the bottom.

UnbEATable

My friend Kayci told me yesterday about a great deal she got at the local Piggly Wiggly. She has a family of five and the bought a meal that they all could eat and even had leftovers. I didn't really believe her so tonight when I knew I wouldn't have time to cook I took a little trip to the Pig and here is what we got. That crazy amount of food was $9.99! I got a Rotisserie chicken and three sides (mac and cheese, green beans, and cherry cobbler) plus six rolls! It was an amazing amount of food and we definitely will have leftovers. So if you're from this area go to the Pig at the end of Bacon's Bridge Rd. It's at the deli and it's called the Mrs. Mac family special.

Here's little sweetie enjoying her feast!

14 Months

Little Sweetie, AKA Georgia, is fourteen months today! I wanted to devote a little update just to her. She is currently sporting ten teeth (four on top front, two front bottom, and all four molars). She is quite the eater still and is eating more whole food instead of having it torn into small bite size pieces. She loves noodles, bread, and goldfish. We'll probably introduce the spoon soon since she seems to have quite good coordination.

Georgia is still nursing a couple times a day but thankfully not during the night! I think we have finally passed the hurdle of night waking. She goes to bed at 7 and is usually up at 7:30. Every once in awhile she'll wake one time during the night but it's getting to be less and less.

Her personality is definitely shining through and she's not a shrinking violet! When she wants something she'll let you know and when she doesn't get her way she'll fall to the floor very dramatically and give a frown face! She is also becoming more vocal but still the only word with association is Momma.

She has started hugging and it's so sweet to have her wrap her little arms around my neck and squeeze. She points a lot now so that helps her communicate a little more clearly. She loves to watch Katie Jo and I can tell she's learning more and more through her. That's good and bad!

When she sees us come to her with shoes she sits down and lifts up a tiny foot! She also loves to be chased and she's something to watch trying to run with her little legs. She still looks so much like a baby and people are always shocked at what she's capable of physically. She has lots of tickle spots on her belly and neck and I love to get her laughing. She also likes to bring me things and say thank you then hand them back to start all over again.

I guess that's about it even though I'm sure there are a billion other little things I could mention.

Wordless Wednesday

DONE!

Well there's everyday, there are business days, and then there are school days. I just completed my 11th school day and I am glad to be done. Isn't that pathetic? I want to say upfront I overall enjoyed my situation, the teacher I worked with, and the children from my class but subbing for around three weeks straight wasn't exactly what I signed up for. This situation has taken a toll on my children and our home. I don't know how working moms do it. And I can say I really have no desire to go back into teaching full time if I can help it. I was subbing for a Kindergarten assistant so the work load wasn't exactly what I enjoy from day to day. I love teaching and I am excited to sub for regular classroom settings where I teach a lesson, read a book, play math games, or do science experiments. That's my cup of tea.
My schedule has been overwhelming these past weeks. Up at six, out the door at six thirty, home by three with the girls until Jay got home at six or after and then trying to get lunches packed, dishes cleaned, clothes picked out, and to bed by 10:30, at the latest. It's been a grind folks.
The girls have done so well with all the change but it was a bit like going from 0 to 100 in a second. Overnight they went from having me all day to barely at all. Poor Georgia was almost weaned from nursing and then this all happened. She would practically wrestle me to the ground to get my shirt off so she could nurse everyday since the sub job started. Let's just say this is a battle I'm not picking right now and we'll worry about it again in a month or so. Katie Jo's behavior has been wicked bad and I am finding it's a tug-a-war between her needing attention and me losing my patience more easily. They started at a new sitter and child's day out during the time I've been subbing.
I don't want to be a complaining Cathy about all of it so here were the positives:
seeing friends
hanging out with adults
classroom full of children
getting ready each morning in the peace and quiet
appreciating sleeping in on Saturday and Sunday morning
having a sense of accomplishment each day
I'd say having a paycheck is nice but since I haven't received one yet we can't use that one. I know when I get that first check I'll probably forget all my grievances.
I read a book once about the battle between stay-at-home moms and working mothers. It was interesting to read from both angles and the war that we wage against one another. Thinking we're better than the other and so forth when we're really all in it together. There's good and bad to each situation but I think the battle is when we think our good is gooder and our bad is badder than the other side. I've been given a small window into the other side now and I can see there is no clear answer for which situation is better. I love staying home with my girls. I enjoy it but sometimes I'm bored and feel like I'm not accomplishing much. Being at work I loved doing what is my God given vocation, what I'm passionate about and what energizes me but I also longed to be home playing in the backyard, coloring, building castles, or going to playgroups. I'm excited to continue subbing a few days a week. I look forward to keeping my foot in the door to education and making sure I don't loose my touch. I think I kind of got baptized by fire with this short term job and the next few months won't be so hectic.
And to leave things on a high note I have a word to share about Kindergartners. I haven't shared much, if at all, because I wanted to keep it pretty confidential since I owe them that. I have several funny stories I'll share with some of you I see in person but nothing for here on the world wide web. I will say I think Kindergartners as a whole can be summed up in one word: spontaneity. From the hugs, kisses, stories, behavior, movements, thoughts, sounds, and learning they all are spontaneous and there was never a dull moment.

Random pics

Playing in the rain Climbing monkey
Popcorn and a movie
Little Queenie
Watching TV
Doesn't it look like these two just got caught?
Katie Jo and her Daddy mowing the lawn