the vet and we're on the mend...

Reagan needed to go to the vet today and have some blood drawn (just testing some medicine she's on). Unfortunately they couldn't get her in while Maggie was in school this morning, so I had to take both girls with me. Now, don't judge....but my plan was to leave the girls in the car watching a movie, run the dog in, come back to the car while the blood was drawn and run back in after a couple of minutes to get Reagan. (remember I live in Norfolk, small town, really safe, the car would be locked, the parking spot is less then 25 feet from the door.....DON'T send the police). Anyway, Maggie was worried about Reagan so she wasn't about to be left in the car.....so I carried Grace, held on to the 110 lb. dog and tried to watch Maggie while we moved the 25 feet from the car to the door....seriously made me wonder if I could ever handle 3 kids. I suppose one of the 3 kids wouldn't be capable of pulling me over with one yank....anyway, the whole trip took less then 4 minutes but was exhausting for everyone!

Grace isn't "better" yet, but she's definitely improving. Today her fever FINALLY went away. Her nose is running, she's coughing and she still has no interest in food, but I'm so glad her temperature is back to normal. Unfortunately, Arnie isn't feeling great but hopefully he'll make a quicker recovery then the kids did.


Grace spent the last few days without her helmet, because of her fever...she's gotten used to tapping things against her helmet to make noise, WELL, when you're not wearing your helmet and you tap a remote on your head, apparently you end up with a bruise! ouch!!


She even took a drive in her little car and "chatted" on her phone :)


She's going to get up and walk away before long....


Everyone snuggled up with Grandma for story time!

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the corner??

It might be wishful thinking, but i'm hopeful that Grace is finally turning the corner. It's been a long weekend for our poor little girl. I'm not sure she's been without a fever for even a moment in the last 3 days. Yesterday it was pretty high for a few hours and the rest of the weekend it's been about 100. I'm starting to worry that the antibiotics she's taking aren't strong enough to combat the germs that have a hold of her. BUT today she smiled and even laughed a few times, it was good to see.

Tonight we decided to venture to Ries' for dinner, it was probably a selfish decision on my part. I hope we don't pay for taking her out, I just wanted to get out of the house, see some friends and do something that we would normally enjoy as a family. We had a good time and Grace enjoyed watching the big kids play. She didn't try to be in the mix, like she usually is, but she smiled while they danced and stayed awake for longer then she has in several days.

Dick and Betti were home for the weekend, it was nice to have them here, Maggie especially appreciated it. Grace has been getting a lot of attention and we've been pretty homebound, so it was fun for Maggie to get to hang with Grandma and Pops, by herself, for awhile yesterday.

Hopefully with the start of the new week things will be more normal around here. If not, we'll head back to the doctor tomorrow. Thanks for checking in on us and for all the thoughts and prayers.



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Still sick...

Lots of people have been inquiring about how Miss Gracie is feeling....so i thought I better do a quick update. I wish I had a better report, but unfortunately she just isn's bouncing back yet. Whatever gunk or gunks she has are holding on tight. We saw the pediatrician yesterday and she doesn't think it's rotavirus (because she seems to be giving it to the adults around her....sorry Aunt Amy, Grandma, Grandpa and Pops!) she just thinks it's a stomach bug of some kind. Grace didn't throw up at all yesterday, which is a great sign, but last night her fever got higher then it's been and she looks especially miserable. We'll stay in Omaha for a little while today, until I decide if she needs a trip back to the doctor.

Maggie seems to have mostly recovered, her voice is still a little horse and she coughs quiet a bit, but she's her usual bouncy inquisitive self. Last night she made Grandpa search the internet to determine if Bee's had a "sense of hearing".....they don't.


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Ouch!!

Maggie has turned the corner, she is still tired and coughing but she woke up with her spunk back. She got to go to school and gymnastics, but by bed time she was definitely warn out.

Grace on the other hand, just isn't getting better. She's not unhappy or even really fussy, but she has "it" coming out both ends all day long. This afternoon, after a conversation with the pediatrician in Omaha, we went to a clinic here for a blood test. The doctor there thinks she likely has rotavirus and he warned me that it can hang on for a couple of weeks :(.



The blood draw was awful. It took 3 of us to hold her down while they took a couple tubes of blood from her arm. Poor thing, she just screamed! We were checking to be sure she wasn't dehydrated. She is just off the low end of the normal hydration levels, so we defiantly need to watch her and likely recheck the number at her pediatrician appointment Thursday, but for today she's ok. Thank God! I hope things start looking up tomorrow, she's a real trooper.


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Sick...

I hate when the kitchen counter looks like this!

Both our girls are sick...but with 2 different set of symptoms. Last night we took them both to see our favorite Urgent Care doctor, he was kind enough to skip us ahead of a few grown-up patients (shhhhh...don't tell) and make sure we had a prescription before the pharmacy closed at 6. Thank God!!

Maggie has willingly spent the day either in bed or on the couch....that NEVER happens. Hopefully with an evening of rest and more antibiotics she'll be in better shape for school tomorrow. She's really anxious to get back. This morning she could hardly sit up she was so warn out but she asked if I'd pack her lunch and let her go lay on the couch at school.

Hopefully we kept whatever germs we have to ourselves and Evan and Amy won't spend the next week sick.

 

Atlanta...

We had such a great visit to Atlanta! Amy and Evan were spectacular hosts and we all had a wonderful time. The girls enjoyed the change of pace and loved having Aunt Amy and Uncle Evan's undivided attention. And we all loved meeting Bella, she's a sweet puppy, who did a great job putting up with the kids.

On both of our flights there was an empty seat next to us, so Grace was belted in and rode like a big girl. I'm usually too cheap to buy her a ticket, but that may have to change, I have NO idea how I'd have held on to her the whole flight. She doesn't really like to be held or to sit still....God was looking out for us.

 We went to the Atlanta Childrens Museum on Thursday....they even had a John Deere Tractor....

Bella's beds and toys became favorites of the girls, poor Bella had to share...

"Hey Uncle Evan, let's play Wii!!"

 Maggie picked out an umbrella on Friday when we went shopping, on the way home Amy asked if Uncle Evan could share Maggie's umbrella, Maggie replied very matter-of-factly, "no, his head won't fit." We tease Evan about the size of his head all the time, but we didn't know she would too :) Evan proved his head did fit.

Grace is trying SO hard to stand up. It won't be long. Aunt Amy was convinced that she would do it as soon as we got home yesterday (she rolled over the day after Amy left us last time.)

Friday night on our way to dinner Maggie got to coughing really hard and threw-up in the car (Uncle Evan doesn't handle puke so well, but he did good.) Then we got to dinner, and right after we ordered, Grace started throwing up.  Poor Evan handled it well again. I told the girls if they never get cousins, it might be there fault :) The girls were a touch sick the whole time we were gone, but Evan and Amy were gracious and kind enough to handle it with ease.

After our flight home was canceled, we went back and spent the evening at Evan and Amy's.  They wouldn't give us back our suitcase, which irritated me, but it made Maggie MAD. It was pouring outside and I'd packed her new umbrella in our checked bag. Several times on the way back to Evan and Amy's she asked why that mean guy wouldn't give back her umbrella, I should have let her talk to him, we might have had a better chance getting it back. We made a trip to Target for all the necessities and we were just fine.  Thank goodness they were there to rescue us. At the crack of dawn Sunday morning we headed back to the airport, said our good-byes again and this time we made it home without incident, but with 2 very tired little girls.

I'm so glad the girls and I got to go. I'm sorry that Arnie was tied up at work and had to stay behind but it made for lots of fun girl time while Evan was at work. We get to see Evan and Amy fairly regularly (considering they live across the country), but it was fun to be in their space and get to have a glimpse of their lives. We got to see their beautiful new house and enjoy Bella. Our girls are very lucky to have such great Aunts and Uncles. Even though Evan and Amy are so far away, they're committed to my girls and to being an active part of their lives, and that means more to us then they will ever know.

Are you still here???

We've had the best time in Atlanta! This morning we loaded up, said good-bye to Bella (who's exhausted, from playing crazy with Maggie) and headed for the airport. Then a few hours later.....we were back:) poor Bella!!!

We got to the airport, checked-in (our flight was a little delayed), had some lunch, watched a cartoon on the ipad, and then they canceled our flight. There was a huge thunderstorm here this morning, so we weren't the only ones stranded. Thankfully Aunt Amy and Uncle Evan thought we might have some trouble and were already headed back to the airport...They're the best!!

The girls are both a little under the weather, so I was afraid todays airport time and flight could be a disaster. Both girls did awesome and handled all the craziness with smiles.

So, our Atlanta adventure will continue for one more night. Tomorrow morning we'll
head for home again, hopefully we'll get all the way there this time. More about our great trip later!

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Flying....

Did you know that there is Internet in the sky these days?? I'd heard of such things but never used it myself!! But here I am at 10000 feet posting a picture of my kids, taken by phone, from my phone. technology is amazing! And I'm learning to appreciate all that my iPhone can do. Thanks to the iPad and a handful of Delta cookies the girls are totally occupied an doing great.

You know...

...your kid has driven from Norfolk to Omaha a zillion times when you have this conversation....

Maggie: "Mom, are we in Wisner?"
Mom: "yes"
Maggie: "it stinks!"
Mom: "Wisner usually does."
Maggie: "When the cow poop is frozen it usually stops stinking, so why does it smell today?"

Seriously, how are you supposed to answer that???

Here is another question I didn't have an answer to today....
"Mom, are Martin King Luther and the guy who shooted him friends in Heaven?"


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Lot's of celebrating....

Saturday night we had a Surprise 40th Anniversary/60th bday party for Aunt Debbie and Uncle Mike. The party was great fun, but spending the afternoon preparing for the party was my favorite part. It was total chaos, but Maggie got to run around with her cousins, I got to chit chat with my cousins and it was just a fun time. Dennis and I even made a trip to the grocery store together. When we were kids I couldn't imagine a time when I would do much of anything without him....but now I can't remember the last time we were in a car together. It was fun! Aunt Debbie and Uncle Mike were definitely surprised, so that was fun too. Good work Leslie!!!

Yesterday the girls and I headed home and Arnie headed for a meeting in Chicago. He'll be home late tonight. Tomorrow evening, after gymnastics, the girls and I will head back to Omaha and then Wednesday morning we'll fly to Atlanta to meet Bella Hello Kitty (oh ya and see Aunt Amy and Uncle Evan :)) Maggie is so excited, she keeps asking if tomorrow is the day we go.

It's always a new adventure around here, and I wouldn't have it any other way.




Last week it was pretty cold outside, so we let peanut come in for a little warm up. After being "handled" by the kids I think she might have been happy to head back outside.

Friday night, it became obvious that Gracie's ear was bothering her...so we went to the Children's clinic and sure enough, she has her first ear infection...by this point Maggie had probably had a dozen, so I'll consider us lucky! The nurse was asking questions at the begin of the visit and she asked if Grace had any underlying medical conditions...I said no, and the women look at me and said, "Mam, she's wearing a helmet?" oh ya, I guess I don't really notice it anymore and I definitely don't think of it as a medical condition. We had a good laugh about Grace's square head and then got on with the questions.
Grace, where are you going???
ANYWHERE I want!!!

We put Maggie's bounce house in the basement. It kept the kids busy for hours.
Aunt Joyce is always a sucker for a cute kid with a book.

I love this picture!! I adored Leslie as a child (I still do), she was always my older, cool cousin. It's fun to watch our girls love each other too. They don't get to live a couple of blocks apart like we did, but they sure do enjoy each other.

We should have taken this picture before 11pm, the kids were all pretty tired, but Grandma is still going strong :)

Gracie was ready to help clean up!

Such a fun weekend, makes for a couple of tired girls.....

Don't look....

I warned you!!!

In the last 4 years we've had lots of poop incidents in our lives, but I think this was the first one to make it all the way into someones hair!!!

It required Arnie, my mom, my dad and I to get it contained and cleaned up....whoa!!! I hope the antibiotics are making her ears feel better.

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Uncle Deem is 16!!

On Saturday Uncle Deem turned 16! He had a party with his buddies on Saturday night so we celebrated as a family on Sunday (Uncle Mark's bday was last week too, so we had lots to celebrate!)

Vadim mentioned once that he wanted a pinata because he'd never gotten to have one as a kid....so mom and dad got one and filled it for he and Maggie to whack at! They loved it.

Maggie REFUSED to be blindfolded.

What you can't see is Arnie up above moving the pinata all over. By the way, Deem
requested the unicorn pinata....who knows???

Grandma and Maggie were telling the story of Zacchaeus, Maggie kept calling him
Ikeaus...maybe she has the same obsession with that store that her mama does :)

Today is another beautiful day!!! We played outside and opened the windows to get a little fresh air in the house...

Gracie didn't actually ride in the back of the Gator, she was just hanging there while Maggie talked to the horses.

Maggie and Topper are enjoying the weather too!

Topper has always been really gentle with Maggie and we've never had any trouble with him. Right before this picture he was sniffing at Grace and then he ate Maggie's carrots and let her pet him for awhile....then Reagan walked between the fence and Maggie's legs, and topper BIT her!!! It startled us all. Reagan seems ok, it didn't break her skin, she limped around for a minute but I think that's mostly because she got her feelings hurt. I guess we'll have to be a little more careful from now on. I hope it was just a one time thing, I can't imagine how sad Maggie would be if we couldn't play with our horse friends anymore. Maybe we'll leave Reagan home from now on.