Little Miss Rhoslyn

This little cutie is four and she knows it.  She likes to do things at her own pace.  Which sometimes means that it takes 20 minutes for getting dressed and brushing teeth.  Yeah.... were working on that. Mom's technique is to race and see how fast she can be.  It works... sometimes.

The coolest thing about this little lady right now is that she is learning to read!  Her daycare teacher and myself are working on sight words with her.  She is learning to look at the pictures to help her with reading the word as well as using the letter sounds.  It's pretty awesome.

Now if we could just work on her eating dinner without complaining and grumbling...

Cub Scouts

This handsome young man is in love with Cub Scouts!  It is so awesome to see him be so excited.  He is really opening up and becoming more outgoing.  He is raising his hand to ask questions, he is making new friends, and gets to do something fun with dad.

I love that he is having fun and also doing things within our community.  He has been a part of leaving food pantry bags on door steps and picking the filled bags up.  Then they took the bags to our local food pantry.  Next weekend he gets to spend time volunteering to help rake leaves.

It's just such a cool thing to see.  His first badge (which you see in the picture) is his family badge.  Tonight at the Pack Meeting he will get his Bobcat badge and his Kircheif to wear around his neck.

First Day of School

Alex started first grade and Rhoslyn started four year old kindergarten!  I can't believe we have two children in school!  They are both enjoying school so far.  Alex has homework daily and Rhoslyn is getting adjusted to having mom in class. =)

Alex lost his first tooth the second Friday of school!  His teacher helped him pull it out at recess.  She is the "master tooth puller-outer."  He was very excited to find $5 under his pillow from the tooth fairy.

Where has the time gone?!

Wow, life has sure caught up to us the last couple of months.  I don't even know where to begin, but I sure do miss journaling about our lives on here.  So, bare with me as I update on the last couple of months.

1.  Alex turned six years old!  

2.  Rhoslyn had her first dance recital.  She starts again in a couple of weeks.

3.  Alex has been working really hard on tying his shoes.

4.  Alex joined soccer this summer and really enjoyed it.  He just had his tournament last Saturday and his team won both games.  He is very excited to play again next year.

5.  Rhoslyn is a superstar at riding her bike (with training wheels).

6.  Rhoslyn turned four years old!  She of course had a FROZEN birthday.

7.  We went "camping" (we stayed in a small cabin) for the first time at Jelly Stone in Warrens.  We had a ton of fun and the kids are talking about going back there next summer.

8.  Alex was cleared of Kawasaki Disease after his 3rd Echo.  His heart is looking great and all valves are in working order.  Many children still suffer side affects years after, but there isn't enough research about this disease.  We take it one day at a time.  He won't have another Echo done until next March.

9.  We became official members to St. Pauls Lutheran Church and Billy and the kids were both baptized.  We are really enjoying being part of a church and going every Sunday.

10.  Speaking of church, I will be Co-teaching Sunday school this year.  I am looking forward to this experience.  Our children will also be attending for the first time.

11.  Bill has gone to Indiana twice in the last month.  His payment for going is bring us presents when he returns.  We aren't complaining...

12.  Bill and I have become totally addicted to Grays Anatomy (not sure he would want this out as public information).  We are also addicted to Orange is the New Black... but we blew through those series in about two weeks.  We are pretty cool like that...

13.  I am joining the PTO this year!  

14.  We officially have two school aged children.

15.  Alex has his FIRST loose tooth.  The tooth fairy should be visiting in less then two weeks.

And... that about sums it up.  Summer has gone by way too fast.  I still have a mountain of work to get done before I am back in the classroom and I'm not quite ready for the crazy schedule school brings.  Plus in a couple of weeks I will be turning the big 30.  Yikes.

Kawasaki Disease

Alex had a fever for four days.  He had a rash all over his body that was very itchy.  His lymph nodes were swollen and he had a "strawberry tongue."  His hands and feet were red and swollen.  His eyes were pink like pink eye.  He had a cough and stuffy nose.  He wasn't sleeping much, so he was tired, crabby, and miserable. After dealing with him being miserable for four days, we decided it would be best to take him into the ER.

They tested for strep which was negative.  They also took blood work which would help diagnose Kawasaki Disease along with all of his other symptoms.  The ER doctor and the Pediatrician that was on call that night both thought it was Kawasaki's Disease.  Around 10:00 at night we were admitted and sent to our room in Childrens.  The staff was so nice with making him feel at home.  They had a fleece tie blanket, a book, and a toy for him to keep.  Around 12:30 a.m. they began his IV treatment which is called IVIG.  It takes 1,000 blood donors for one IVIG treatment.  He had to be observed the first hour (he had a nurse bed side) to check for any bad reactions.  He responded well to the treatment.  He didn't go to sleep until 1:00 in the morning.  He had been up for nearly 22 hours and was extremely tired and overstimulated by all of the poking and prodding.  The nurse came in around 2:00 a.m. to check his vitals and he lost it.  He was kicking, screaming, crying, flailing his body, and trying to rip out his IV as well has rip off the EKG they had going on him.  We have seen him act like this before, and it's really hard to watch.  You feel helpless as a parent.  It took about half an hour for me to get him calmed down and I slept with him that night.

The night Alex was admitted.  Daddy brought us things to stay in the hospital and red books to Alex before bed.

His rash and fever were already subsiding by morning.  He had a little bit more energy to him.  We had visitors on Saturday which was a great way to break up our day.  He also had his first Echo-cardiogram done.  The IV treatment took 12 hours and then they had to observe him for 24 hours after it was finished. Monday morning he woke up with a bad headache and ending up throwing up.  We weren't sure if he was going to make it home that day, but luckily he did.  We were so happy to get back home.

Rhoslyn and daddy came to visit on Sunday.  Rhoslyn sat with Alex in bed during his Echo.  Such a good sister she is.

His journey doesn't end though.  Today he had his second Echo done and it showed that his left coronary artery is larger then the others.  He also has some fluid around his heart.  The Pediatrician didn't seem too concerned, but he will have another one done in 4-5 weeks.  If there aren't any changes or it worsens, we may be referred to a cardiologist for further testing.  He will also get his cholesterol checked once the sickness is gone.  He may also have follow up echo's and check ups in the years to come, just to be on the safe side.  Some children can suffer symptoms for months.  In rare cases children can get Kawasaki's twice.

They don't really know why children get Kawasaki's Disease.  They feel that Alex could have had a virus and his body just reacted to it differently.  Unfortunately, there hasn't been enough research done to find a cause.  It can affect inflammation in the arteries and blood vessels surrounding the heart.  Most children recover just fine, but it is definitely a scary situation to be in.  Alex has to be on aspirin to keep the blood thin and flowing.

Even though he does not have the fever, rash, red eyes, etc.  He is still dealing with symptoms.  He becomes very agitated very easily.  He is often tired.  A full day of school is exhausting for him.  His skin on his fingers is peeling off in sheets.  Children also tend to have joint pain.

Only 19 in 100,000 kids will have Kawasaki Disease!  It is the leading cause of heart disease in children. Sometimes it can even be fatal.  Alex has been such a trooper through all of this so far.  We are so proud of him.  It has been an extremely trying couple of weeks at our house and we aren't out of the clear yet.  We are so grateful for those that have given their prayers and help during this time.  Mom and dad have been on an emotional roller coaster with all of this.

Dentist

Both of the kids went to the dentist last week and they both did great!

We were super proud of Alex.  He was very brave.  This was his first dentist appointment where they did EVERYTHING.  Super huge deal for him, and he enjoyed it which was even better.  

We are also super proud of Rhoslyn.  It was her first time at the dentist.  She was a little skiddish, but dad said she did a great job.  They did x-rays, scraped and cleaned her teeth and they did fluoride.  She wasn't too sure about the water and the sucking hose.  The dental hygienist let her take a drink and she thought that was super cool.  It was game on after that.

Both kids are clear of cavities!  Alex's teeth are still in nice and firm.  Dentist doesn't think he will be losing any too soon.  We have already been told that Rhoslyn will for sure need braces.  Nothing like hearing that when your daughter is only 3!  I am sure both kids are doomed... they have moms mouth.  I guess dad and I better start a braces savings account.

January Photos

Our New Years Eve was celebrated with the kids having Sparkling grape juice and ice cream sundae's.  It was perfect!  We watched a movie and the kids were in bed around 8:00.  Mom went to bed around 8:30.  (I am cool like that)

I made homemade chocolate cake and frosting for Billy and Uncle Rob's birthday.  The kids enjoyed licking the frosting off of the beaters!  

We LOVE chocolate!!

Happy Birthday Boys!!  They each got their own candle to blow out.

Alex drew this picture and wrote this sentence.  Don't you love how he spelled house?!

And that has pretty much been our January so far in photos!