Mommies aren't suppose to get sick!

Well....not here! I have felt like stink this past week! I finally went to the doctor on Friday and the verdict is....BRONCHITIS! I think if my doc had performed a chest x-ray, it would have shown more. I am on my third day of antibiotics and I feel a little better. My throat is still killing me, but as Logan says, "Mommies aren't suppose to get sick!"

Last weekend the boys went to Papa Dan's house for the weekend, while Lainey and I went to South Georgia. Thank you Papa Dan and Rachel! You gave me a much needed rest! Since my Grandpa Bob reads my blog, I was unable to blog about going to South Georgia for his surprise 80th birthday party! Lainey and I went with my parents (Gigi and Papa) and it was a whirl wind weekend! It is not easy keeping secrets from my grandpa! We spent most of the weekend sneaking around so that he would not find out that everyone was coming into town for his party. My mom and her four brothers threw an awesome party for him at the Officer's Club on Robins Air Force Base.

We had several people that traveled many miles to make it to grandpa's party. My Uncle David, Aunt Nina, and my cousins Jake and Rachel traveled from Jacksonville, Florida. Uncle Dean and Bill traveled from Tampa, Florida. Uncle Dennis, Aunt Kathy and my cousins Blake & Karen, Bradd & Brooke, and Brooke, traveled from Roswell, Georgia. My sister Dayna, and her husband Brad, as well as my niece Lilly Anne, traveled from Hoschton, Georgia. My great uncle and aunt, Dan and Judy, traveled all the way from St. Louis, Missouri! A few of my grandpa's friends traveled from South Carolina. There were also several local friends that attended the party.

The Club served a wonderful meal of fillet mignon, baked potato, green beans, and garden salad. My Aunt Jenny had a friend make a yummy cake to top off our meal. It was great seeing everyone. It is rare when we are all able to get together.....coordinating schedules for all of us to gather at one time is nearly impossible. I really wish Sid could have come with me, but he had to work! We had a blast, but it was over too soon! Look below for a few pictures from Grandpa Bob's 80th Birthday party!

Yummy!

The Party Bug!

Surprise!

Grandpa is checking out all of his guests.

Papa and Lainey......hey, I know she needs to gain weight, but beer?! At least wait until college!

Wrong bottle, Lainey!

My niece, Lilly Anne

Donn, Dean, Diane (my mom, aka Gigi), David, Dennis, and Grandpa Bob.

These are my mom's brothers. My mom is the oldest, then David, Dennis, Dean, and Donn. Mom and Donn are 15 years apart in age, but she, David, and Dennis are all within 28 months of each other. Dean was born 10 years later, then Donn another 5 years after Dean.

Yes, all 5 of them have names that begin with "D". We all have a "thing" with using the same letter to begin our children's name. My sister and I also have "D" names; DeAnn and Dayna. My cousins are Blake, Bradd, and Brooke......Ryan and Rachel.........Emily, Erin, Evan, and Elizabeth...........my dad's parent's are Dorothy and Dave................and our kid's are Logan, Liam, and Lainey...............CRAZY, I know!

Lainey posing for a few close-ups!

Hopefully I will get back to blogging more this week. I have been checking on all of my blog friends, but I have not had time to leave comments or make a post. Gigi and Papa are out of town this week, so Lainey has a new sitter! A HUGE thanks to Mrs. Martha and her husband for watching Lainey this week. Martha works part time at my school and this week happens to be her week off! YEA! On Friday it will be time for another monthly visit to the CF Center! Hopefully Lainey will weigh over 19 lbs!

Please keep us in your thoughts this week, as we have a ton going on! Sid has nursing finals this week, my parents are out of town, therefore I will have to cook for my family, I will be working on getting rid of this bronchitis, Logan has picture day (this is a BIG deal for my 5 year old....he must look good in his pre-k class picture!), Liam is getting over a double ear infection (STILL), and Lainey is going for her 10 month check-up at the CF Center. Thank you!

DeAnn

What's Up Doc?

This has been a week of doctor visits for Logan, Lainey, Papa, and Gigi. Some reports were better than others. Some things we heard from the doctors we questioned and are still questioning. Hopefully now we will have a break from going to the doctor....at least for a couple of weeks!

Logan had his 5 year old checkup at the pediatrician's office on Thursday. He was above the 90th percentile for his height and weight! Although he is a big boy, weighing in at 64 pounds, the doctor was not concerned. He is also 45 1/2 inches tall, thus balancing his weight. Keeping him active and teaching him healthy eating habits is our main goal. Logan loves to eat, but he is also all boy ~ meaning he is always on the go! In addition to a full exam, Logan was the lucky recipient of 4 shots in the thigh! Needless to say this meant cornering him, carrying him to the table, and holding him down. He is still complaining about the pain in his legs from the shots! I am sure we will still hear about it for at least two more weeks! Other than yearly flu shots, he is finished with vaccinations until he is ten! Yeah....except I am not sure I will be able to wrestle him when he is ten if it is this difficult when he is five!

Lainey also had her checkup at the pediatrician's office on Thursday, as well as her monthly clinic visit at the Cystic Fibrosis Center on Friday. Dr. Onal, the pediatrician, is extremely thorough and is in complete awe of Lainey and her accomplishments ~ developmentally and with her health. Lainey hated his assessment of her ears, mouth, and stomach. She cried like I have never heard her cry before and continue to whimper even after his exam. Everything with exception of her eyes and a possible ear infection, checked out to be great. Dr. Onal has prescribed eye drops for Lainey's eyes and has referred her to a pediatric opthamologist. He suspects clogged tear ducts, but isn't convinced that what her eyes are producing isn't mucus related to the Cystic Fibrosis. Lainey didn't have to have any shots for her 9 month visit! YEAH!

Our visit to the Cystic Fibrosis Center was the best visit we have ever had. Lainey gained 2 lbs. 5.3 oz since her last visit in January, bringing her up to 18 lbs. 6.8 oz! Woo Hoo! 30 calorie Alimentum with Polycose Powder is our new BEST friend. She also grew another inch and is now measuring 28 1/4 inches long! Although she is still in the YELLOW ~ at risk, monitor carefully range, we are so close to seeing the GREEN! Dr. Caplan and Liz (the dietitian) were completely thrilled with her progress. From his examination, Dr. Caplan didn't think Lainey had an ear infection as suspected by Dr. Onal. He also acted as if it was completely normal that Lainey's eyes were draining and was somewhat confused about her going to the pediatric opthamologist. I am not sure if she should go or not.....Is it a CF thing ~ clumpy, yellowish-green junk in the corners of her eyes, and tears falling from the outside corners of her eyes? Is it necessary for her to go the pediatric opthamologist? Should she try the drops, then decide if the pediatric opthamologist is the next step? Ahhhhh.....Questions, but no answers.......yet! Not one thing about Lainey's medications or diet changed as a result of her visit today! The dietitian said she was fine with Lainey eating more high calorie table foods and drinking less formula. This was great news since Lainey is only consuming about 20 oz of formula from her bottle. We usually sneak formula into other meals through rice cereal, just to pack on the calories! The doctors have a goal of Lainey gaining 1 lb. 5 oz. by her next clinic visit on March 20th, bringing her to 20lbs!!! We are up for the challenge....now we have to get Lainey on board!

To kill several birds with one stone, Gigi and Papa scheduled their appointments for the same time as Lainey's. On Friday morning we left Gainesville at 8:30 am to head to Egleston and Emory. Papa dropped Lainey and I off at the CF Center at 9:50 and they headed over to Emory for their echocardiograms. *** My dad, Papa, had his aorta replaced in February of 2000 due to a tear in the mitral valve causing the blood to go around the aorta rather than through it to the heart. After his surgery, one of his lungs collapsed. Although the surgery and several days afterwards were emotionally and physically draining for all of us, he recovered remarkably well after being release from the hospital. *** The doctors continue to check on my dad's valve and high blood pressure. He went back to work shortly after his heart surgery and worked ridiculous hours. He was stressed out and it the stress showed it's ugly face by causing problems with his new valve. During that time he was diagnosed with stage 1 rectal cancer. He underwent surgery in October 2005 and now has a permanent colostomy. He caught the cancer early enough that he did not need chemotherapy. With the cancer added more stress to his new valve. The doctors now perform yearly echocardiograms to keep a check on the valve.

Lainey's CF clinic was over around 12:00, but Papa and Gigi had finished their echos, and were waiting to see their doctor in the Adult Cardiac Clinic at Emory. Finally my dad decided he had made me wait long enough and he came to pick Lainey and I up at the CF Center at 1:00. I would have walked to Emory, but it was pouring and we were under a flood watch! In the meantime, mom and dad's doctor was busy and she sent mom to the lab for several tests. After parking and traveling to the lab, she was still waiting. After the lab my mom was scheduled for a chest x-ray in the radiology building! Needless to say, this was nowhere close to her clinic. We waited for 30 minutes only to get a call from her doctor saying she was ready to see both her and dad! Without the x-ray we went back to the cardiac clinic! I am not sure exactly how long their appointment took because Lainey and I took a nap in the waiting room! We went back to radiology after mom and dad's clinic, only to wait an hour before my dad went to find out what was taking so long. They didn't have mom's paperwork because they had filed it after she left the first time! Amazingly enough it only took 10 minutes until they called mom back for her x-ray after speaking with my dad! We were finally finished with all of our appointments by 4:30! By the time we sat in rush hour traffic, picked Liam up at Aunt Dayna's house, and picked Logan up at Chick-fil-A where he was hanging out with his friend, it was 6:30 when we got to my parent's house!

Papa got a good report...well, according to what he is telling us! Gigi.....well, hers was not what we would have liked to hear. Her disease is progressing (read more about it here). The doctors are unsure if it is her heart that is causing her problems or if it is the secondary pulmonary hypertension. She is now on Lasix to assist in lowering the amount of fluid in her body. The amount of fluid in her body causes more pressure on her heart, thus making it work harder. If the Lasix works, then mom should feel better (less fatigued and less out of breath) by Monday. This means that her heart is the causing the majority of her problems. In saying this, there isn't much the doctors can do. The harder her heart works, the harder her heart gets, thus not working properly. IF the Lasix don't make her feel better, then it is the secondary pulmonary hypertension that is causing her to feel as she does. The doctors can do a few things for this, such as changing some of her medications and introducing some intense medications like Flolan. There are very few options left for my mom. We know she is a strong woman and will fight until the end. As anyone would, I hate hearing that there are few options left for my mom. She and I are best friends. We call each other at least 5 times a day and unless my parents are out of town, I usually see her everyday. Several years ago I vowed to myself to do for her what ever she needed. I also decided that I would spend as much time with her as possible. She and I have grown so close. We are always finishing each other's sentences, we have the same mannerisms, and we often say the same exact thing at the same exact time.

At times I am glad my husband is in the medical field, but at other times I absolutely hate what he knows. He tries very hard to cover up his feelings and answer my questions honestly. After shedding many tears last night, I have decided to look at some of my vows from several years ago. My vows will continue to stay the same, but I will be adding a few new ones. One vow is to come home on time from work 3 days a week (I often work until 5:00 when I am finished at 3:30). In doing this, mom and I will be able to go shopping. It will also provide her with a break from watching Logan and Lainey for an additional hour and a half. Another vow is to do even more to help her...whether it be to pick up groceries, pick up her medications, take her out to places she needs or wants to go, wash her dogs, vacuum, etc. I want her to be less stressed, less worn out, less out of breath....so she can be here for more years to come. I also vow to not dwell on "what mights" and "what ifs". I will enjoy the time we have together....and try not to focus on what I will do with myself when the time comes.

With all of the news we received at the numerous doctor appointments over the past few days, I can say that we are overall thankful for what God has given us. We still have each other and we are still hanging in there! Thank you for all of your prayers for our family. Please continue to pray for Lainey and my mom, Gigi! We feel all of your prayers daily!

With Love,

DeAnn

Counting Calories and Having Fun!

So......Just how many calories are there in a plastic spoon?

Lainey's new favorite thing ~ eating her spoon when she is tired of drinking formula or eating baby food!

This weekend the boys, Lainey, and I went to the local Home Show with my parents. Our home is fairly new, so I don't really know why I went other than it was an escape from the house! In addition to the escape, it meant that I had two other people helping me with my children for at least a couple of hours. Although one would think the home show would be boring to a 5 year old, almost 3 year old, and a 9 month old, the kids had a blast! They were some of the only, if not the only, kids at the home show. They racked up gathering free "goodies" from each booth! We now have mini flashlights, foam baseballs, potted flowers, notepads, pens, crayons, bandaids, coloring books, candy, and much more! I went to the Home Show several years ago and won a patio table and chairs, so that is always incentive for me. No such luck this year! I didn't win anything, but having a day of entertainment made me feel like a winner! Thanks mom and dad for getting all 4 of us out of the house! We had fun at the Home Show and enjoyed some yummy food at Brad's Grill (compliments of Gigi and Papa)!

The Bug!

Logan and the frog at the Home Show!

Liam did not want his picture taken....but here he is with the frog!

This week brings several appointments. We were suppose to go to the pediatrician's office and the CF Center last week, but our plans changed. The pediatrician was sick on Thursday, therefore Logan's 5 year checkup and Lainey's 9 month check up were cancelled. We are now scheduled to go this Thursday morning. I rescheduled Lainey's CF appointment because the boys were still under the weather from having Strep Throat. We will be going this Friday for her appointment at the CF Center, while Gigi and Papa go for their checkup at the cardiac clinic at Emory. This works out perfect because we can take one vehicle to Atlanta since the CF Center and Emory are next door to each other. I am also happy we are going the same day as my parents because now I do not have to find a babysitter for Lainey! Since my parents take care of Lainey, when they are traveling, at the doctor, or are sick, I must find another place for Lainey...or take a day off of work. I like being home with Lainey, but I am trying to save my days for our Disney Cruise in October and incase Lainey were to get sick. Thanks to Josie's mom, Kay, Lainey usually has a place to stay when Gigi and Papa are not available!

Please pray for good visits at both the pediatrician's office and at Lainey's CF clinic. We are hoping that Lainey has met our goal of 18 lbs! Check back later this week for updates on our visits! :)

BYE!

The Smithsons