This past week has been one like never before. Luke had an appointment on the 21st at Scottish Rites Hospital so we headed to Dallas early to spend some time with the family. The kids and I left last Wednesday hoping to have a few fun days with their cousins then Jason flew in on Friday to play and go to the appointment on Monday. WOW how things can change quickly. On our way to Dallas, Hannah started complaining that her tummy hurt. I attempted to console her, knowing full well that we had at least 1 1/2 hours left to go. Her brothers quickly chimed in, apparently it was instantly contagious. Pretty soon it turned ugly. What did I do? Why.. I kept driving. Of course we were driving through the only part of the trip that was under construction. Several law abiding citizens felt as though they should slow down when the sign says to do so thus taking us longer than normal. Meanwhile Hannah is crying more intensely. I put in another movie and keep moving! Did I mention that we hear the "my tummy hurts" phrase from at least one of our children when we have about an hour left on a long trip? Yea, they think even though it has never worked for them, that we are going to just let them out of their car seats to drive the rest of the way. I guess I have to give it to them for perseverance. 
Hannah sad and mad that she did not feel like playing!
We finally make it to my sisters house and everyone is so excited to be out of the car. My nieces and nephews are absolutely wonderful at entertaining my kids! I think everything is well and everyone is miraculously healed, but it is not so. Hannah continues to say her tummy hurts and although she wants to play, she does not. It is now obvious that she does not feel well. We go to bed and battle a fever ALL night. The next day proves even worse. She has fever, diarrhea, and throws up a little. I felt a little overwhelmed because I don't like the throw up stuff. Somehow our kids usually throw up when Jason is home and he takes care of that stuff. Luckily she makes it to the bathroom so that helped mommy! We quarantine her to our room and one specific spot on the couch. Have I mentioned my sister has 5, yes five, kids that are at risk of becoming infected. Friday does not prove any better. She also started complaining of her throat hurting. She is not able to eat or drink so we are headed to my sisters doctor. She determines the culprit is strep throat and we are headed back to my sisters house with the miracle cure, an antibiotic Jason flies in late that night which was a welcomed relief. He could not necessarily help with Hannah (she only lets me do things for her when she is sick) but he was able to help with the things that the boys needed. Hannah would constantly call my name if I walked five steps away from her. The boys are completely opposite. They want only their daddy when they are hurt or sick. It works out well for me! It takes until late Saturday night until Hannah is up and around. Sunday was a wonderful day. She played outside all day and loved it. We allowed her to interact with her cousins too on Sunday. We were amazed at how bad she was. We have not seen her that sick in a long time. Usually we can give her motrin and she is up and around after it kicks in. This time was totally different. Motrin did not touch it. It was bad! It seems as though we had the worse case possible. You see, we had gone to a BBQ at a friends house the weekend before we left. During our time there, one of the toddlers had a loose loose poop. Hannah had been this little girls best little friend that night. Out of all four families that were there, all four were sick by Wednesday too. I am telling you it was BAD.
That smile was a huge blessing. We had not seen it in several days!
My kids absolutely love going to their aunt Teresa's house. The boys spent their whole time asking if they can go on the riding lawn mower or on the go-cart. Their cousins love to play outside so my kids fit right in. They play and play until it is dark. Then they come in a make big messes in the house. It is a lot of fun. Aunt Teresa gives them anything they want. I cannot even count the number of juice boxes the boys drank. It did not matter, aunt Teresa kept passing them out. Aunt Teresa lays down with them for naps (we don't practice this at our house!!!) and lets them watch one cartoon before nap, lets them eat lots of snacks, and takes them to do whatever they ask. We love that they love going there. Most of all, we love that they are completely loved and shown love when they go. Here are some pictures from our trip.
The boys and their aunt Teresa
The kids and Papa driving the go-cart. I don't think his back surgeon would approve but the kids had a lot of fun!
Logan had a blast chasing Papa in in the go-cart
Logan thought it was just as fun to be chased by Papa
Probably not the best idea, but again they had fun.
Luke loved this little toad
Logan liked him too
The boys had a great time playing outside
I mentioned that the purpose of our trip was to take Luke to Scottish Rites Hospital. Around 12 months old we noticed that his legs were somewhat bowed. We were referred to Scottish Rites last October (2007). They did x-rays and confirmed that his left leg was more extremely bowed than his right. We were told to come back in 6 months to see what had changed. We have learned that a lot of kids have bowed legs, but most straighten up on their own by age two. At our appointment this past Monday we saw that his left leg has in fact strengthened up, but we also saw his right leg has not only straighten up but it has turned inward a little. They told us it is typical during toddler years for some kids to have "knocked knees" but that they want to continue to monitor him to make sure they will straighten up. If in fact they don't they will have to use soft braces or something like that. It is still heart breaking for me. You never want something to be wrong with your child. If something is wrong, you want it to be hidden from other kids as they get older so that they won't make fun of them. Other people say that they don't even notice, but I do. I think that mommies can notice all kinds of things that others would not even give a second look at. Jason is always wonderful to listen to me and my concerns about our kids. Although, there are times he has to gently remind me that I have not attended medical school and that we have to trust the ones who did go. Okay, I know, I have a tendency to be a bit of a hypochondriac when it comes to my kids. Childhood is hard enough as it is without something physically being wrong with you. We try to instill in our kids to be kind to the kids who are different and to not make fun of others, but we realize that not all parents in the school system will teach those values. I remember when we saw the first pediatric orthopedic surgeon here in town early 2007. Well, I have to go back. Originally we were told by the X-ray tech that Luke's legs were different lengths. I did a lot of research on it and it had me in tears for days. Part of it was Luke and Logan are so close in age I did not want there to be an issue with Logan being able to physically do anything he wanted and Luke begin left behind. Jason and I were standing in our kitchen and he said what if the Lord wants to use Luke with this obstacle. Not exactly what a mom wants to hear about her child. I did not want that, I did not want the Lord to use Luke that way. I wanted him to be used in a way that would not emotionally hurt him. I wanted it easy. I still do, but I have changed my tone just a little. All those emotions were premature though. We saw the Dr the week after that and he reassured us that the x-ray tech did not know how to measure correctly and Luke did not have any leg length discrepancies. What a relief that was. However, there are still fears that I have about Luke and all these issues. He does not think twice about any of these adult issues. He runs, jumps, climbs, and gets into everything and anything he wants to. He is determined and will not let much get in his way. Whatever the outcome of all of this, I have no doubt that he will continue to physically do the things that he wants to do. He does not let much stop him. Ultimately I know that the Lord is telling me over and over to trust Him, even with my children. Very, very hard for me to do! I think of Abraham and Isaac a lot when I think of giving my kids over to the Lord. What in the world was Abraham thinking when he was about to sacrifice his little boy? What was his little boy thinking when his father was about to sacrifice him? I know that God is NOT asking any of us to sacrifice our children, but can I give Him the control over every aspect of their lives? I have a hard time with this one. I struggle with allowing the Lord to completely control my life so of course I have a hard time allowing Him to control the things that happen to my 3 kids. All I can do is try again each and everyday. Good thing He gives lots of grace and forgiveness!
Hannah sad and mad that she did not feel like playing!We finally make it to my sisters house and everyone is so excited to be out of the car. My nieces and nephews are absolutely wonderful at entertaining my kids! I think everything is well and everyone is miraculously healed, but it is not so. Hannah continues to say her tummy hurts and although she wants to play, she does not. It is now obvious that she does not feel well. We go to bed and battle a fever ALL night. The next day proves even worse. She has fever, diarrhea, and throws up a little. I felt a little overwhelmed because I don't like the throw up stuff. Somehow our kids usually throw up when Jason is home and he takes care of that stuff. Luckily she makes it to the bathroom so that helped mommy! We quarantine her to our room and one specific spot on the couch. Have I mentioned my sister has 5, yes five, kids that are at risk of becoming infected. Friday does not prove any better. She also started complaining of her throat hurting. She is not able to eat or drink so we are headed to my sisters doctor. She determines the culprit is strep throat and we are headed back to my sisters house with the miracle cure, an antibiotic Jason flies in late that night which was a welcomed relief. He could not necessarily help with Hannah (she only lets me do things for her when she is sick) but he was able to help with the things that the boys needed. Hannah would constantly call my name if I walked five steps away from her. The boys are completely opposite. They want only their daddy when they are hurt or sick. It works out well for me! It takes until late Saturday night until Hannah is up and around. Sunday was a wonderful day. She played outside all day and loved it. We allowed her to interact with her cousins too on Sunday. We were amazed at how bad she was. We have not seen her that sick in a long time. Usually we can give her motrin and she is up and around after it kicks in. This time was totally different. Motrin did not touch it. It was bad! It seems as though we had the worse case possible. You see, we had gone to a BBQ at a friends house the weekend before we left. During our time there, one of the toddlers had a loose loose poop. Hannah had been this little girls best little friend that night. Out of all four families that were there, all four were sick by Wednesday too. I am telling you it was BAD.
That smile was a huge blessing. We had not seen it in several days!My kids absolutely love going to their aunt Teresa's house. The boys spent their whole time asking if they can go on the riding lawn mower or on the go-cart. Their cousins love to play outside so my kids fit right in. They play and play until it is dark. Then they come in a make big messes in the house. It is a lot of fun. Aunt Teresa gives them anything they want. I cannot even count the number of juice boxes the boys drank. It did not matter, aunt Teresa kept passing them out. Aunt Teresa lays down with them for naps (we don't practice this at our house!!!) and lets them watch one cartoon before nap, lets them eat lots of snacks, and takes them to do whatever they ask. We love that they love going there. Most of all, we love that they are completely loved and shown love when they go. Here are some pictures from our trip.
The boys and their aunt TeresaThe kids and Papa driving the go-cart. I don't think his back surgeon would approve but the kids had a lot of fun!Logan had a blast chasing Papa in in the go-cartLogan thought it was just as fun to be chased by PapaProbably not the best idea, but again they had fun.Luke loved this little toadLogan liked him tooThe boys had a great time playing outsideI mentioned that the purpose of our trip was to take Luke to Scottish Rites Hospital. Around 12 months old we noticed that his legs were somewhat bowed. We were referred to Scottish Rites last October (2007). They did x-rays and confirmed that his left leg was more extremely bowed than his right. We were told to come back in 6 months to see what had changed. We have learned that a lot of kids have bowed legs, but most straighten up on their own by age two. At our appointment this past Monday we saw that his left leg has in fact strengthened up, but we also saw his right leg has not only straighten up but it has turned inward a little. They told us it is typical during toddler years for some kids to have "knocked knees" but that they want to continue to monitor him to make sure they will straighten up. If in fact they don't they will have to use soft braces or something like that. It is still heart breaking for me. You never want something to be wrong with your child. If something is wrong, you want it to be hidden from other kids as they get older so that they won't make fun of them. Other people say that they don't even notice, but I do. I think that mommies can notice all kinds of things that others would not even give a second look at. Jason is always wonderful to listen to me and my concerns about our kids. Although, there are times he has to gently remind me that I have not attended medical school and that we have to trust the ones who did go. Okay, I know, I have a tendency to be a bit of a hypochondriac when it comes to my kids. Childhood is hard enough as it is without something physically being wrong with you. We try to instill in our kids to be kind to the kids who are different and to not make fun of others, but we realize that not all parents in the school system will teach those values. I remember when we saw the first pediatric orthopedic surgeon here in town early 2007. Well, I have to go back. Originally we were told by the X-ray tech that Luke's legs were different lengths. I did a lot of research on it and it had me in tears for days. Part of it was Luke and Logan are so close in age I did not want there to be an issue with Logan being able to physically do anything he wanted and Luke begin left behind. Jason and I were standing in our kitchen and he said what if the Lord wants to use Luke with this obstacle. Not exactly what a mom wants to hear about her child. I did not want that, I did not want the Lord to use Luke that way. I wanted him to be used in a way that would not emotionally hurt him. I wanted it easy. I still do, but I have changed my tone just a little. All those emotions were premature though. We saw the Dr the week after that and he reassured us that the x-ray tech did not know how to measure correctly and Luke did not have any leg length discrepancies. What a relief that was. However, there are still fears that I have about Luke and all these issues. He does not think twice about any of these adult issues. He runs, jumps, climbs, and gets into everything and anything he wants to. He is determined and will not let much get in his way. Whatever the outcome of all of this, I have no doubt that he will continue to physically do the things that he wants to do. He does not let much stop him. Ultimately I know that the Lord is telling me over and over to trust Him, even with my children. Very, very hard for me to do! I think of Abraham and Isaac a lot when I think of giving my kids over to the Lord. What in the world was Abraham thinking when he was about to sacrifice his little boy? What was his little boy thinking when his father was about to sacrifice him? I know that God is NOT asking any of us to sacrifice our children, but can I give Him the control over every aspect of their lives? I have a hard time with this one. I struggle with allowing the Lord to completely control my life so of course I have a hard time allowing Him to control the things that happen to my 3 kids. All I can do is try again each and everyday. Good thing He gives lots of grace and forgiveness!
Luke and daddy at Scottish Rites. Luke would not let go of his popcorn that he got on the way out.
1 comment:
what great pics!! looks like everyone had fun - after they were well. glad things are going well for luke. don't you love those time will tell answers?
Post a Comment