Friday, May 29, 2009

Update

Reese is definitely turning the corner on HF&M, but not without throwing a little stomach bug into the mix. Let me tell you, the past few days have been fuuuun. Is this week over yet?
Anyway, sores are healing and going down, tongue and mouth are normal, and the vomiting seems to have stopped. She's able to hold down food and has somewhat of an appetite again, which is great. We're just laying low right now, but hopefully, we'll be back to our normal chipper selves by next week. Thanks everyone for checking in and making sure we're on the road to recovery; pretty sure we're puttering along that way. Happiness and health to everyone, and let's hope my next post is not illness-related!

Wednesday, May 27, 2009

New diagnosis

I took R to her pediatrician yesterday--her mouth was still bothering her and she also had red spots all over her backside (developed on Saturday, still there), plus as yesterday progressed, sores/blisters starting popping up all over her feet and the soles of her feet. You can see where this is going. The girl's got Hand, Foot & Mouth Disease. Sounds awful and like it is related to Hoof & Mouth, but they are not the same. Instead, it's related to Chicken Pox, but it's not nearly as severe. Just really, really contagious. Ugh. I've called the moms of the kiddos we've been around (so sorry sweet cousins and RJ)--I feel awful about exposing them. I'm a big proponent of not bringing the sick kid around the healthy kids and hate it when I unknowingly do just that! Again--ugh. Anyway, sores continue to break out on R's feet and I'm watching her hands closely. Right now we are on hold because we have to wait until the sores stop forming before we can count days that we aren't contagious (although it sounds like come Sunday, she'll be much less so). Anyway, swim lessons are on hold and all play dates have to be rescheduled at this point. If you live in ATX, know that the pediatrician had not seen any cases before yesterday but R was the 2nd case of the day, so he thinks we'll start seeing a lot more of it--it hits during summertime. Lots of hand washing and watching for symptoms....

Tuesday, May 26, 2009

Holiday getaway

I hope everyone had a wonderful and relaxing Memorial Day weekend! We sure did! We spent Saturday over at my parent's house, swimming with the Ohls. It was a lot of fun just top hang out and let the kids play. I took zero pictures, which I am noticing is a recurring trend. More on that later.
Then, on Sunday, we went David's family's farm outside Burton. Christine and Blake and their kiddos were there, as were Gigi and Poppy. However, R wasn't feeling well before we left town--she kept saying her mouth hurt. We looked for cold sores, sweet sores, etc, in her mouth (which is a hard area to examine), but saw nothing. By the evening, she wasn't eating or drinking and was talking funny. D looked at her mouth and noticed her tongue was covered by a white coating. We couldn't find any urgent care in the area, so we ended up spending an hour or so at the Brenham hospital. See below.

Trinity Hospital, as far as hospitals go, was wonderful. The care they gave us was extremely helpful and prompt, and they were very sweet with R. She scored a HUGE teddy bear just for cooperating and sticking out her tongue. The consensus seemed to be that she has thrush. All but one of the nurses immediately agreed to that; one NP said to treat it as thrush but maybe it's a viral infection that needs to run its course. So we're treating it and keeping an eye on it. She seemed a little better yesterday--starting out strong in the a.m. and then having trouble talking again last night. BTW, if anyone has been around R--neither of these options are contagious, so do not worry.

Reese did feel well enough to play with her cousins! Duh! I have lifted all of these photos from Christine. She got some great ones. I've been noticing my camera isn't turning out any quality photos at all lately. Time for a new one, I guess. Anyway, here's one of my all-time favorite pics of R with cousins Georgia and Mary Blake. How cute are they???


They spent a good deal of time in the pool. Georgia is a fantastic swim coach! :)


Then a little downtime with Mommy.


Mommy and Daddy. (i.e., me and David)


David went fishing with Bain and Blake. He caught a big catfish and fried it up. We ate it about an hour after it came out of the water and I have to admit, it was delicious! I am not a catfish fan (putting it mildly) but this was so tasty! Everyone enjoyed it--including Reese--she asked for 2nds and 3rds.


Greta also had quite the time at the farm. She loved it when Bain would spray her with water--she tries to catch the water in her mouth. She also had a ball running everywhere, fishing with the guys and generally pretending she was just an old farm dog.


Good times! I can't wait to go back soon....

Saturday, May 23, 2009

Summertime means swimming time

Some of you may remember R's swim lessons last summer. It's sort of a deja-vu situation in that we are in the midst of very similarly intensive lessons all over again, albeit with a different "swim Nazi." Not my nickname for either lady, BTW, but I have heard it used for both Ms. Gwen (last summer's trauma) and Ms. Cathi (this summer's trauma...oh, I kid, I kid....sort of).
The difference--and it's a big one and in R's case a preferable one this time around--is that Ms. Cathi conducts class in a group format. So, each kiddo goes out one at a time with her and she does all the intense stuff for a few minutes per turn, then drops them back with their parent so they can catch their breath and regroup. It also takes twice as long--we're in between weeks of lessons. But, I think Gwen really laid the ground work for R last summer and Cathi's course has been great as a confidence boosting refresher. But don't be fooled--it hasn't been all fun and games.
The first day, she was blissfully unaware of where she was headed. As soon as she got it, lots of tears and "I don't want to do it again!" in between turns.
The second day, she couldn't quite bring herself to look at me while I snapped away. I feel fairly certain that if she had, the look would have been filled with contempt. But her surfer girl suit sure looks fab!



Each day gets a little better.
The third day, she was oh-so-aware of what we were about to do and would have none of it. Hiding in your bed is a good plan, unless your pillow doesn't entirely cover you. In an unrelated note, yes, she does have swimsuits that match her bed linens. Poor pumpkin--trying so hard to alter the course of action!

I couldn't take her Thursday, so David filled in. Lo and behold, he told me there was no crying, she voluntarily stood up and jumped in when it was her turn and happily dove down to the bottom to pick up rocks and bring them back to the top.
I didn't believe it until I saw it with my own eyes yesterday--she really has turned the corner. And today at my parents' pool, she was very willing to show off her swim skills to her adoring fans. I predict a lot of practice and continued improvement over the summer...and in the next couple of summers, Rollingwood Waves swim team, watch out! Here she comes, coordinated swim gear and all!

Monday, May 18, 2009

Fun weekend! And kinky bubbles....

We had a lovely weekend! D & I went to see Angels & Demons on Friday and also had a couples-only dinner on Saturday--two "date nights" in a row to celebrate D's b-day--fun times! Yesterday we went over to the Shiflet house for the official opening of "Camp Cord" season. R and I spent lots of time over there last summer and have great memories. The kick-off weekend was a little chilly but we still had a great time.
Several of us in the hot tub, the preferred body of water considering the temps.

Daddy and Reese in the hot tub. You can tell she's about to launch--lots of "swimming" under water in the hot tub yesterday--good stuff!

Reese, probably "convincing" Tatum, that she was done with the boat float. As she was going to bed last night, R told me her favorite parts of the day were "swimming in the hot tub" and "floating in the yellow boat."

After water activities, there was rather exuberant chasing of bubbles. When we were driving away, much to R's chagrin, she told us she did not want to leave, wanted to go back and would in fact, "just walk back to Tatum's house." Drama queen at the age of 3...I can't wait to see what the teen years hold for us!


We got Reese a new toy this weekend.

Get your minds out of the gutter. It's the bubble solution for her bubble wand. But it does look awfully strange. David definitely questioned me about it when he came home and saw it on the counter....
See, here's R with the actual wand.

Greta "helps"--and wow, she's getting to be a big doggie now!

Here are a few more pics of the 'doodle. She's got such a funny personality. Several of these are Greta chasing Nunu, the polaris in our pool.




Summer's almost here!

Friday, May 15, 2009

Procrastination? Lack of commitment? Laziness?

Or why I haven't been updating, or blah blah blog. I can't really pinpoint the exact reason, just hasn't been happening!
But I have been doing stuff, just not taking many pics. Here's a random smattering of things I have been up to lately:

D and I went to see kiwis Bret and Jemaine from Flight of the Conchords at UT PAC last week. Hilarious. My cheeks hurt from laughing so hard, especially during "Sugalumps" and "Business Time." Also, "Most Beautiful Girl in the Whole Wide Room." If you haven't heard of them and are so inclined, check out some of these on YouTube. Funny!


A big group of fam went to see the great Bonnie Raitt at UTPAC as well. She's amazing. If you've never seen her, I highly recommend it. I think I want to be like her when I grow up.


"One of these things is not like the other..."
So, I had jury duty in Rollingwood. Which has to be held at 7pm for some reason. And is not quite as, um, official looking as this picture I randomly selected. We sat in rows of regular chairs in the RW city hall building. And sat and sat and sat....then after an hour of waiting, we got to watch the judge, the prosecutor and the defendant strike a plea deal in front of us. Um, justice at work? And couldn't they have done that beforehand? Anyway. My first jury duty experience.


Last night, we went to the grand opening of the Austin Aston Martin/Bentley/Viper dealership, and wowza! What an experience. My cousin Stephanie's hubby is the Aston martin sales specialist and has already sold 3, possibly 4, cars! Before the showroom officially opened! Go, Bo! As one might expect, it is a beautiful showroom, and there are so many amazing cars. I was walking around very carefully, trying not to fall into any of them. It was a great event, lots of interesting folks there, good food, a lot of fun.


So, there's a really quick little update. I am going to a Nature Conservancy luncheon in San Marcos today--great speakers and we're going to be at Aquarena Springs, which makes me excited! Glass bottom boats and rock candy memories! And then tonight, D and I are celebrating his b-day (which is tomorrow) by going to see a movie. Simple pleasures, folks. Maybe tomorrow I'll dust off the camera and get back at it....or maybe not. I know you are all just riveted to see what happens! I'll get back at it, I will...at some point...