My Baby is becoming so INDEPENDENT!

I took Joey to daycare yesterday and usually there is a few tears when I drop him off, although the time frame for these emotional outbursts has been getting shorter and shorter over the past couple of months. Well yesterday I went in for a couple of minutes to talk to JoAnna and pay her for the next couple of weeks and as I went to leave I kissed Joey and said "See ya later baby" just like I always do but this time he just turned and smiled at me and said "Bye bye" and then ran off to play with the other boys. He didn't even stick around long enough to see me go through the door. It made me so proud and at the same time broke my heart as I realized that he isn't going to be my 'baby' for much longer.


When I picked him up at 1:00 he was worn out but happy to see me. We had a play date at a park that has a water feature and I wasn't sure how well he'd hold up being ready for a nap and all, but he did great. We played with his friend Sandr for a little over an hour then put on our dry clothes and headed over for a frozen yogurt.

Daddy had met us at the park about 15 minutes before we were to leave and of course Joey had to be just like his "Dah Dah" and ride the big "bikeeey". Like father, like son. Doesn't he just look adorable.

Fleas be gone

Well I'm doing phase two of the fogging today while Joey is at daycare. We pretty much zapped them with my massive bombing two weeks ago, but now I need to reapply to ensure no nasty hidden eggs have a chance to hatch. I am so thrilled to have them all gone. Especially since our menagerie seems to keep growing.

We had Bubba, Princess, and Sasha. Princess we had to put in rescue care to be placed in a childless home because she was to snappy with Joey. Crystal's dog Nick chased Sasha once to many when they were visiting one day and I haven't seen her since. Larry says the coyotes probably got her. I prefer to believe that she's living with some little old lady down the street from us who was smart enough to make her an indoor cat 100% of the time hence the reason we never see her hanging around.

So then we adopt "Sunset", which is a stupid name for a cat in my opinion but as she's not a kitten I don't feel right changing her name so I just call her kitty or cat. This is the culprit that brought the fleas into our home. Bad cat, BAD! Then the weekend we were fogging my sister asks me if I know of anyone looking for a cat because her boss has been unable to place her 9-year old cat and is left with no option but to take her to the pound. Sucker that I am I pipe up with, "I'll take her" and so now we have Callie. She looks like Sunset only she's a short hair and the line down her face separating the black/grey from the orange is very distinct. I love them both so much and they couldn't be more different. It took sunset 3-months to adjust and come out of our room. Callie acted like she owned the joint from the first day. Plus she things she is a dog - growling at Sunset when she gets to close to me and knocks on doors with her paws when she wants into a room.

So let's see, we're now back up to three - Bubba, Sunset and Callie. Then Larry, Mom and Joe come home from running errands and he tells me he's found the perfect dog for us - a 14 month old Chihuahua and dachshund mix. He's a rescue from an abused home, as sweet as can be, etc., etc., etc. I talk to the lady get the particulars - housebroken, very basic commands, neutered, fully up on shots, a little underweight, very friendly with dogs, cats, and kids. Joey already fell in love with him. I told the lady to give me a couple days to consider it and then I'd let her know one way or the other if were interested and make an appointment to see the dog. So who knows, we might be adding one more to our family home.

Aint he just the cutest boy ever... and he doesn't even have to be smiling.

72 Hours and going strong

We had quite the scare with Joe this week. He got into mom's medicine and took one each of her cholesterol and diabetes medication. Thank God they taste so nasty because he came right out and told me "Yuck" and stuck out his tongue at me. When I looked at him I could see the remnants of a bill still on his tongue but when I went to reach for it he shut his mouth and swallowed. I knew he had been hanging out with mom in her room so I went in and asked where her pills were. She told me up on the dresser where she always keeps them, except this time they were sitting right in the middle of her bed. Mom and I quickly went through each day's compartments and determined exactly what was missing and I got on the line with Poison Control.

They weren't too overly concerned with the cholesterol med but freaked me out about the diabetes med. I told them it would take me 30 minutes to get to the nearest ER and they're like, "Go, go, GO... but drive safely". They notified the hospital I was en route and I threw on some clothes, scooped Joe up and off we went.

I called Larry on the way and of course he beat us to the hospital. I also called Crystal so she could check in with mom as we're not supposed to leave her by herself either until we're sure we've got her blood sugars regulated properly.

They whisked us right in when we got there, started giving him apple juice w/sugar added in, turkey sandwiches, milk, pudding... so much food that I'm surprised he didn't throw up. After an hour his blood sugar was still only 39 so they put him on a D5 (Dextrose) drip which helped him go up a few points, but not enough. They gave him another medicine through his IV which was supposed to help him suppress his own production of insulin. After three hours they decided he was going to have to stay a minimum of 24 hours and put in the call to have us transferred to Roseville Ped's which is a critical care facility. Larry and I managed to stay pretty calm through all of this as we didn't want to alarm Joey and tried to make a game out of "making red paint" every time they punctured him to test his sugar levels, and how much fun it was going to be to get to ride in a real ambulance.

It took almost the entire 24 hours before he finally started to get some numbers that were in the normal range of 70 - 90. After 30 hours we were holding steady at 109 so we finally were able to get discharged and head home.

Joey was none the worse for wear, but I was totally exhausted. In fact I was so tired I couldn't even eat the beautiful dinner Larry had cooked up for us and instead opted for pain med's with a sleeping pill to boot and went to sleep for a good solid six hours. Pure bliss.

So now both mom and Joe are doing good with their blood sugar levels and they've told us we shouldn't have any long term affects from this run in, but it probably would be a good idea if we didn't let Joey play in Grandma's room unless we have a locked cabinet for the med's. And we thought we were doing so well baby-proofing. I guess we still have a lot of room for improvement.

The magic of peeing

Joey was so cute the other night. He, Larry and I went swimming and when he was finished, I stripped him out of his swim suite and swim diaper and let him run around naked for a bit while Larry and I hung out in the pool talking.

Well Joey had to pee and so he let loose on the sidewalk and was just amazed at what his body could do. I swear for the next 3-4 minutes he kept turning on and off his internal plumbing, getting more and more pleased with himself and what he could make happen. He even applauded himself. It was just to cute. Who knew peeing could be so entertaining.

I guess we're gonna have to start considering potty training since he's beginning to show such an interest.

Mom's Health

Well we've had a couple of pretty scary days in the Monson mansion this past week. On Monday morning Joey came and got me saying "Grandma, Grandma" and running back to her room. Not such an unusual thing since he always hangs out with her first thing in the morning, but today the tone of his voice sounded different. I went in to mom's room and found her on the floor unable to get up on her own. I tried to help her up but couldn't do it on my own since she was pretty much unable to assist me at all with the movement. I called Crystal told her what was going on and that I needed her to come out immediately. She said yes, and to call 911. That had been my thought as well, but mom said no way, she wouldn't let them help her, etc. and I figured at that point it was best to keep her calm.

By the time Crystal arrived I had at least gotten her in a sitting position. Between the two of us we got her up, gave her a cup of coffee and a donut, and of course the ever present cigarette. We insisted she go to the ER and she of course refused. No doubt where Crystal and I get our stubborn streak from as mom is more stubborn than a mule. We compromised and got her in to her doctors office, although with a different doctor than her usual one as he was not in that day.

Crystal took her, they ran an EKG, checked her neurological function, range of motion, etc. and wouldn't you know it by the time they got to the doctor's she seemed right as rain. So back home they came and I got on the phone with mom's Neurologist. He was out but his nurse would relay what was going on and get back to me.

In the meantime we were told just to keep an eye on things and if she exhibited similar symptoms to take her right in to the ER.

Friday morning I found mom in a worse state, barely able to move and slurring her words. I didn't give her any options - this time we were going to the ER and she could go with me or I'd call an ambulance. I helped her get dressed and got her in to the car. This was a little after 4:30 in the morning and apparently she'd been immobilized since 11:30 the night before.

I dropped Joey off at Grandpa's and gave Crystal a call. She and Jeff would meet us at the ER. Well we ended up being at the ER for 6 hours. They did a cat scan and couldn't note any discernible changes since the last one, did another EKG - still good, ran blood and urine analysis. Her blood sugar levels were only at 38. Tested her blood again - 40. They gave her an infusion of dextrose and it slowly crept up to 68. By the time we left they still didn't have any concrete answers though did indicate that low blood sugar could cause these types of symptoms.

Our discharge orders indicated that mom needs to begin eating three well balanced meals a day and a snack right before bed. We need to check her blood levels a couple of times a day at a minimum and she's going to have an MRI ASAP to rule out any issues with regard to her brain tumor.

Needless to say it's been more than a little stressful around here. Mom does not make the best patient in the world, and I have to give credit to the nurses who had to deal with her "I want to go home now" mantra.

Crystal and I took her to the Hof Brau for a turkey sandwich which brightened her mood considerably. Since we got home she's been doing a lot of resting. I think this turn of events has scared her as much as us.

My sister ROCKS!!!!

Man we have been infested with fleas ever since we brought SunSet (aka PHATTY KITTY) home. I've fogged the house twice now trying to kill them. Crystal had the girls at the shop wash, then re-wash, then soak in special solution, and then wash again. She swears that when they left the shop there wasn't a live one to be found. Whoo Hoo, let's celebrate - NOT. Apparently I did the foggers wrong, waited to long to respray and within just 10 days they who going crazy on themselves. You don't notice the cat scratching so much, but you know she's under attach because she leaves what my sister calls "flea dirt" behind, basically flakes of my kitty's blood. With Bubba it is much more obvious as he never stops scratching and chewing at himself until he bleeds and then he continues on with it unless we keep yelling at him to stop. Even with brand new Front Line Plus there wasn't a real noticeable change.

So I called, we planned, then I called and pleaded and my sister pulls through like a champ. Yeah she's got a full schedule (I mean it is Saturday) but tells me to go ahead and bring em' on down and she'll fit them in somewhere. I'm thrilled. They were both scrubbed within an inch of their life, Bubba got shaved at my request though Crystal advised against it since the last time we did it all the hair didn't come back fully. I didn't care, I wanted to see how bad his boo boo's were and also be able to see if a flea were to jump on him.

So since we weren't going to be able to bomb until this morning I called again and pleaded my case.... Please take Bubba and Sunset home with you. Just lock the cat in your room so Nick can't get at her and Bubba can roam anywhere since he loves your dogs. She agrees as she doesn't want them picking anything up overnight either. So it's agreed will be them up around 10:30 the next morning.

Well a few hours after that conversation I get a call from Crystal telling me she doesn't know what to do, Bubba's gone all neurotic. Crying, doing his boo hoo howls, walking him doesn't settle him down, cuddling with him on the floor doesn't calm him down. He's so stressed he scratching at himself and making himself bleed yet again. I say no problem we'll come get our boy, he'll calm down as soon as he walks through our door. She feels bad, but shouldn't, I mean she was going above and beyond in my mind in getting them in on her busy day, so accommodating them over night was just icing on the cake.

Bubba did calm down as soon as he got home. Did his rounds for loving and then crashed for the night. Didn't even want to get up to come to bed with me which is where he usually sleeps.

Next morning we head back on over to get the cat or should I say cats as I've agreed to take on one of her bosses cats, her name is Callie. She is the sweetest girl. All purr and nuzzle and all you have to do is sit down by her and she shares her love with you - awesome. She's a little skittish so she's hanging in our closet and bathroom mostly which are the same places that Sunset hangs out so they're slowly getting to know one another. I'm so excited to have another baby to love and so is Joey.

Thank you Crystal and the ladies at Michelle's Pet Boutique for doing such an awesome job on our babies - they look fabulous.

I feel like doo-doo

Man do I ever have this flu bug or virus. Larry came down with it Last Sunday, came home early from work Monday, stayed home Tuesday and felt well enough to go back on Wednesday. Me... I started coming down with it Monday evening and it just has continued to get worse and worse. As you know I only sleep on average 3-4 hours a night because of my pain but because of the symptoms associated with this virus I'm not even managing that. Let's just say potty break has taken on a whole new meaning and frequency.

Thank God for Bonnie and Mom. Bonnie was kind enough to step in and take Joey to his swimming lessons in the evening and to daycare in the mornings. Mom's been helping to keep Joey occupied when he's home so I can rest up as much as possible. Both have been of tremendous help.

Now Mom has caught the bug too, as well as my father-in-law. For those of you with little ones I say keep em' home until this think disappears from the atmosphere because it is NASTY!

Joey, lucky little guy (knock on wood) has managed to elude it thus far. Even my in-laws dog awoke in the middle of the night with similar symptoms last night. Not a fun evening for Bonnie with her two "men" down.

I hope I start to shake it off soon, otherwise it will be yet another doctor visit for me.

Smile and Say CHEESE

Well as I may or may not have mentioned in an earlier post, I ruined our camera by jumping in the toddler pool with it in my pocket at one of Joey's play dates. So for the last few weeks I've been unable to capture those special family moments and wasn't sure when we'd have the funds to buy a replacement.

Lucky for us Dad came to the rescue. The day after our 4th of July celebration he came by with a surprise... a new camera. He didn't want to miss out on any more photo's of his grand babies. I was, and am, so excited. I love taking pictures and don't want to miss out on a minute of capturing Joey's escapades, or Larry's for that matter. It has a fancy touch screen with tons of options so I'm gonna have to take a few practice shots to get the hang of it. And he included an 8 gigabyte card so I can take a gazillion photo's before I have to stop and download them onto the computer. YIPPEE!!!!

So Dad thanks again so much. We appreciate your generosity and will be sure to get some new photos to you real soon.

Whoosh, Bang, Boom!!!

We had an awesome 4th of July. Larry's parents, siblings and his Uncle Brian came over for a BBQ and some swim time. Larry grilled up ribs, teriyaki chicken and bratz. His Mom made some fabulous macaroni salad and I made potato salad and several appetizers. We just all hung out, swam a little, enjoyed a few libations and it was a really relaxing afternoon.

In the evening our sister-in-law Kelli joined in the fun and we sat out on the front lawn while Larry and Chuck put on a fabulous firework display. They both ended up buying the same firework pack (great minds thing alike), and each brought a finale display lasting anywhere from 3-5 minutes.

After we wrapped up our display we were able to watch about 3/4 of the firework show put on by the Rancho Murieta Association without having to move a muscle. The tree line obscured some of them, but it was still beautiful to watch. Joey stayed up late and after the first couple went off and he got used to the noise he really seemed to enjoy them. Even Bubba joined us on the front lawn, curled up next to Kelli, and seemed to enjoy the festivities.

Crystal and Jeff weren't able to join us as they celebrated the 4th with Jeff's mom Sharon. They too seemed to have a great 4th of July weekend, so it was all good all the way around.

I'm already looking forward to next year's celebration.