Small Blessings

One thing this year has taught me is too really take time to enjoy the small blessings.  Here are a couple of blessings that I'm so glad to have experienced today...

Lainey and I spent some girl time together today.

She picked out my nail color and I had them paint a flower on my toe, so I'd match her.

She has bright pink toes and fingers!

The local nail salon will paint her fingers and toes, with lots of fancy flowers, for $7.  

Plus I get to spend time with my sweet girl and she feels like a little princess.

Well spent $7 I think.

We limit screen time in our house compared to most families.

I'm probably more neurotic about this than I would be because Erik (and Victor)

both become zombies when the TV is on.  They just can't focus on anything else.

I truly think Erik would watch TV for 7-8 hours in a row if I let him. Ha!

(Lainey, Carson, and I most definitely are not like that.)

We've had some extra down time this week though so I rented 

Star Wars and Victor and Erik watched that together tonight.

I find watching Star Wars quite painful but as you

can see from the photo above the boys enjoyed it! 

And tonight I'll leave you with a more hopeful song (thank you Jill B.)

I've heard about this baby boy
Who's come to earth to bring us joy
And I just want to sing this song to you
It goes like this, the fourth, the fifth
The minor fall, the major lift
With every breath I'm singing Hallelujah
Hallelujah

A couple came to Bethlehem
Expecting child, they searched the inn
To find a place for You were coming soon
There was no room for them to stay
So in a manger filled with hay
God's only Son was born, oh Hallelujah
Hallelujah

The shepherds left their flocks by night
To see this baby wrapped in light
A host of angels led them all to You
It was just as the angels said
You'll find Him in a manger bed
Immanuel and Savior, Hallelujah
Hallelujah

A star shown bright up in the east
To Bethlehem, the wisemen three
Came many miles and journeyed long for You
And to the place at which You were
Their frankincense and gold and myrrh
They gave to You and cried out Hallelujah
Hallelujah

I know You came to rescue me
This baby boy would grow to be
A man and one day die for me and you
My sins would drive the nails in You
That rugged cross was my cross, too
Still every breath You drew was Hallelujah
Hallelujah 

Hold My Heart By Tenth Avenue North

I heard this song on the radio today.  The lyrics describe my thoughts and feelings recently, quite perfectly.  They're not pleasant, but neither is our current situation.  Don't worry I'm okay just wish with every fiber of my being that Daron was healthy.  Still hoping to see my brother healthy, vibrant, and full of life again someday.  How long must we pray?!

P.S. Happier posts to come in the near future! :)

Lyrics:

How long must I pray, must I pray to You? 
How long must I wait, must I wait for You? 
How long 'til I see Your face, see You shining through? 
I'm on my knees, begging You to notice me.
I'm on my knees, Father will you turn to me? 

One tear in the driving rain, 
One voice in a sea of pain
Could the maker of the stars
Hear the sound of my breakin' heart? 
One light, that's all I am
Right now I can barely stand
If You're everything You say You are
Won't You come close and hold my heart

I've been so afraid, afraid to close my eyes
So much can slip away before I say goodbye.
But if there's no other way, I'm done asking why.
Cuz I'm on my knees, begging You to turn to me
I'm on my knees, Father will you run to me? 

One tear in the driving rain, 
One voice in a sea of pain
Could the maker of the stars
Hear the sound of my breakin' heart? 
One light, that's all I am
Right now I can barely stand
If You're everything You say You are
Won't You come close and hold my heart.

So many questions without answers, Your promises remain
I can't sleep but I'll take my chances to hear You call my name
To hear You call my name

One tear in the driving rain, 
One voice in a sea of pain
Could the maker of the stars
Hear the sound of my breakin' heart? 
One light, that's all I am
Right now I can barely stand
If You're everything You say You are
Won't You come close and hold my heart.

Hold my heart, could you hold my heart? 
Hold my heart.

Trip To California: Part 3 (Family and Friends!)

After finding out that Daron had relapsed our family quickly decided that we needed to spend some quality time together so we made last minute arrangements to all be together (sans kids) for Christmas.

I headed to California on Wednesday so they could do the collection. Victor joined me Friday which was great because he was there for the stem cell collection and port placement.  Mom, Dad, Kevin, and Colin all came Saturday.

Marshmallow blasters!

So, we had about 48 hours with all 8 adults together.  It was great to be together.  We mainly hung out at Daron and Feifei's apartment (thanks for hosting!), ate lots of excellent food,  walked, played cards and Wii.  My favorite meal was the one I ate my first night out there - thank you for cooking Feifei!

Oh Colin, how I love your sense of humor!

Feifei, Victor, Kevin, Colin, and I went bowling one night too which was fun even if I came in 5th (only by a couple of points)!

Siblings by age

While Victor and I were gone my amazing neighbors and friends stepped in and watched the kids.  My aunt Barbara and cousin Aliza were going to come from Kansas to watch them the first 3 nights but a massive blizzard and the stomach flu prevented them from coming at the very last minute.

So my neighbors' au pair along with a host of friends provided wonderful child care for my 3 kids while we were gone (Thursday evening - Tuesday morning).  I really can not ever thank them enough. '

Aom watched the kids while we were gone.

She is our neighbor's au pair.  She's wonderful!

She took the kids up to DC to the museums, over to Christi's (her house) 

and made gingerbread houses and cookies,  over to Casey's (another neighbor) for a special lunch too.

They had Christmas eve dinner at Christi's as well.

My friends and neighbors Catie, Mirelle, and Lauren helped out as well.

We are so blessed!

Thank you thank you everyone!

I hope you have all had a wonderful Christmas!

Trip to California: Part 2 (Stem Cell Collection)

As I mentioned in the previous post I donated more stem cells while I was out in California.  This was a bit of an adventure this time! Ha!

Last time I donated cells I took Neupogen for 5 days prior to the donation.  Neupogen stimulates your bone marrow to produce extra cells.  It's primarily used in cancer patients but is needed for the people donating stem cells prior to bone marrow transplants as they need to be able to collect more immature stem cells from the donors than they would normally have floating around in their bloodstream.

Anyway, this time the infusion Daron will likely receive  is a little different.  Instead of infusing immature stem cells that have to take over Daron's bone marrow, they need to infuse mature lymphocytes (fighter cells) that can target Daron's leukemia and kill it!

The neupogen does not increase the number of mature lymphocytes (just immature cells) therefore it wasn't needed for this collection.  I was happy about that as artificially stimulating my bone marrow makes me a little nervous.

Given the fact that I didn't have to take neupogen prior to this donation (it causes bone pain), everyone anticipated this collection would be easier.

That wasn't quite the case!  In order to collect stem cells peripherally (via blood rather than directly from the bone marrow) they insert a large bore steel needle (rod) into one arm and an IV in the other arm.  The site with the large steel needle in it collects my blood using "vacuum- like" suction.  The rod hurts a little, but the suction does not.

Unfortanately, my blood vessel was very unhappy with this "suction" action and decided to spasm, a lot!  I could actually see and feel my blood vessels spasming (didn't hurt but was quite fascinating to watch).  They gave me Ativan which is supposed to help your blood vessels relax but it didn't help.  (It did help me relax and I took an excellent nap!)  They also tried positioning the needle differently, different vessels, etc.  Nothing worked.   They did attempt to collect cells for 3 hours and were only able to get 1.9 units of lymphocytes and they wanted 15.

So, that meant I needed to get a catheter placed in my neck as it much easier to collect the cells that way. (To collect the stem cells/lymphocytes they cycled all of my blood through this large machine 4 times, pulling off lymphocytes each time.  The machine can separate out specific cells based on weight.  Pretty amazing!)

How does one place a "neck catheter"?  I've seen this done but now have first hand experience.

At 6 PM on Friday night (11 hours after getting to the hospital that day) I was sent to interventional radiology.  By now the Ativan had completely worn off and I was quite nervous about the catheter placement.

It's hard to believe but they place these neck catheters while the patient is completely awake with no drugs at all except local anesthesia (lidocaine).  The lidocaine really helps with the pain but not the anxiety of having a large catheter stuck in your neck. Ha!

They had me lay down on a skinny metal table and then covered my from head to toe with a surgical drape.  They leave you a small hole to look out of on your left side but they that's it.

After sterilizing my neck the radiologist numbed my neck with lidocaine.  Then using a scalpel made a small incision (1/2 inch) in my lower neck exposing my jugular vein.  Using floroscopy to guide him he then inserted a fairly large catheter into my vein, put in a couple a stitches and sent me home.

The next day I went back to the hospital for the stem cell collection which went well.   Shortly after the collection they removed the catheter and after about 60-90 minutes of laying flat with pressure on the site they let me go home.  It is still mildly sore and I have a lump where they put in the catheter but that's it.

The thought of the catheter being in your neck is really worse than the actual procedure.  That being said, it is something I hope not to experience again in my life! Of course, it is super tiny sacrifice to make and I hope this story doesn't stop you from being a bone marrow donor!  Please sign up!  Your donation truly could save a life.

 Catheter in place

 Pre-collection blood draws

Stem cell collection in action

The catheter!

The long skinny tube was in my vein, the two short ones were 

what they used to access and return my blood during the collection.

Post collection I feel completely fine, aside from being a little more tired than normal.

Trip to California:part 1 (Daron Update)

If you have checked Daron's caring bridge page lately you will have read the unfortunate news that his leukemia has relapsed.   When his August bone marrow biopsy showed residual disease (instead of being completely clear of cancer) we knew that placed him at an elevated risk for a relapse.   Despite knowing that we all still hoped he'd be in the category that didn't end up relapsing or at least have a number of healthy years before having to fight fight fight yet another battle.  But, that didn't happen so now Daron is having to continue to fight this battle that started almost 14 months ago.  It's so scary and very exhausting but he is so brave and never even complains.  His quiet resilience never ceases to amaze me.

The conventional therapy for relapsed ALL is to do monthly chemotherapy plus additional infusions of my stem cells.  The chemotherapy is supposed to knock the cancer cells down enough that my cells will have a chance to attack and kill off the remaining cancer cells.  He will NOT receive my cells yet because he has to be off of immunosuppressants first to make sure he doesn't have a flare of graft vs host (which is currently less likely since he is still on immunosuppressants).  A graft vs host flare most likely occurs in the first 4 weeks after stopping immunosuppressants.  If he doesn't flare and still has evidence of leukemia on his bone marrow biopsy (and is still stable) that is when he would receive my stem cells.  They can give him more than one infusion of my stem cells and collected enough of my cells this time for 3-4 infusions.  A graft vs host flare can be very dangerous (although they need some graft vs host to occur in order to get rid of the leukemia) so that's why it's important to wait and see if he flares once he is off of the immunosuppressants instead of giving him the cells right away.

Honestly, the success rate of conventional therapy for curing relapsed ALL is not great.  Thankfully, there are new trials available for patients in Daron's situations that seem to offer quite a bit of hope.  So while he is currently receiving conventional therapy they are also looking into studies in case the conventional route fails.

Daron is currently doing okay.  He is in a lot of pain most of the time - mainly his feet and legs. He's also been extremely tired (sleeping many many hours every day) and experiencing some neurologic symptoms like short term memory issues.  We aren't sure why he's been having the neurologic symptoms but are hoping it's related to a drug he's been taking for the leg pain.  He's been tapering off of this for a week, so hopefully he will be more awake and able to function better soon.  Please please be praying for complete healing for Daron.  Please Lord grant us a miracle!

Merry Christmas!

We are home!  Never have I been happier to have my sweet babies climb into bed with me.  They knew it was Christmas morning but didn't even ask to go downstairs to open presents.  They were all just happy to lay in bed and cuddle.  (This was great since we didn't get home until close to 3 AM and they were up by 7 AM.)    Today is pretty low key - we opened presents, ate breakfast, took a nap (me), made a birthday cake for Jesus, and played with all the new toys.

I'll leave you with a photo from my trip to California as I haven't gotten out my camera today.  I hope you have all had a wonderful Christmas.

Quote of the Day: " Mom, When is Jesus coming for his birthday party?!"

Notable Quotes - Andrew Pray (for my kids)

" My hope is that you would fully grasp that
you are a loved child of God, you have what it takes, and
God has empowered you today through Christ to the specific
work he has given you. Rest in that and live in the freedom of knowing
that if God is for you, who could ever be against you.  I love you and I am proud of you!"
         
-Andrew Pray, youth pastor, father of 3 who recently was hit by a bus and killed while out riding his bike

I am so tired and weary tonight, with a long list of things still to do.  I sat down for a 15 minute break and stumbled upon this quote.  I find it to be so incredibly encouraging and am tempted to get it printed and placed over each of my kids beds.  How I hope they go to bed each night knowing how deeply they are loved.

But it's not only my kids that need to know how loved they are, but my spouse, friends and family too.  Do my words and actions portray that regularly?  If I was hit by a bus tomorrow what words  would people be able to remember me by?  It is my prayer that I be a joy to those around me.

Below is a video made by the friends of Andrew Pray.  It consists of his last words on facebook and twitter.  He is gone too soon but hopefully his words will encourage others to live their life well.

Last Words

Carson - 21 Months

My dear sweet Carson! 

If you are ever in need of a smile, just spend an hour with Carson!

He is such a sweet, sassy, spunky source of joy.

He definitely has a LARGE twinkle in both eyes that might get him in a bit of trouble 

someday but for now it mainly makes us smile.

What's he up to at 21 months?!

Speech:

The little guy has always been a little behind in speech.  I have to say that I think he has made another big leap in speech during the past 7-10 days.  He is attempting a lot of words now and often I can understand them.   I've heard him put two words together 3 times which is pretty fun!  He has said the following two world phrases....

" Uh oh, Way Way (Lainey)!"  when he heard her crying

"Mama Up!" Haha!

"Help peaze!" when he wanted me to help him with his blocks.

So, even though he lags behind where Lainey and Erik were at this point (and many of his peers) I really think he is doing just fine and is somewhere along the normal spectrum.  I'm so glad he is starting to be able to tell us a little more as I know he has a lot to say!

Health:

Carson's health was a little rocky over Thanksgiving when he had a crummy respiratory virus that resulted in a trip to the ER and admission orders (which were thankfully canceled before we went up to his room).  He had lower than normal O2 levels (88-93% depending on sleep/awake).  After a HUGE dose of albuterol (5 mg  vs the normal neb of 0.75 mg) and oral steroids his O2 stats improved.  He was sent home with Prednisone (15mg) which cleared up his lungs but was AWFUL!!  My poor poor baby was a screaming hysterical sleepless mess for 5-6 days.  I stopped the steroids a day early because doing better and not tolerating them well.  If we are ever in that situation again I will likely try to stop them after 48 hours.  Hopefully he won't need them again.

Development:

Carson has decided he is a big boy!  One day this week he refused to sit in his booster seat that hangs off of the counter.  "No!" "All done!!"  So I put him down and he immediately ran over to a "big chair" pushed it into his spot, climbed up, and proudly declared "Mine!"  Haha!   We put the baby chair away. 

He was very excited to find a bag of chocolate chips within his grasp

We did move backwards with the crib this month.  We had put Carson in a toddler bed and he did really well with it.  He did get out of bed about 1x a night but it was usually early and we just stuck him back in his bed and wouldn't see him until morning.  Well, then came the bronchiolitis and steroid induced sleeplessness!  So after about 5 days of no one sleeping Victor and I put the crib back together at midnight and he's been happily in there since then! 

What have we been up to this month?

Victor and I left town for a couple of nights and left the kids with a sitter (Aom - our neighbors au pair).  They did great and had a lot of fun with her.

We cut down a Christmas tree which Carson has showed little to no interest in. (I thought he would be pulling ornaments off of the tree constantly!)

We went to a Christmas "walk" and boat parade.  

Carson had some "friends" over for a get together which usually doesn't happen unless kids his age come over with Erik and Lainey's friends.

I've been working for 2 months now - just on Wednesdays.  Carson has done really well with this and doesn't cry when the sitter here which is great. 

We love our sweet little boy from head to toe!!

Joy

That was the topic of today's sermon at church.  Kind of ironic given that so many people in our nation are heartbroken for the families in Newtown, CT, myself included.  Our pastor had that sermon planned some time in advance and said while he considered changing the topic last minute he felt like it was appropriate.

He talked about the trials of Elizabeth and Zachariah.  The spent most of their married life longing for a child, giving up hope completely, when God sent an angel to them proclaiming that Elizabeth would indeed have a son named John (the Baptist).

Elizabeth and Zacharias story is here

The point of his message was, "Don't give up hope even when things seem impossible."

I really was in need of hearing a message like this as our world is so broken.  It's filled with sickness, sadness, and conflict.  But there is always hope, God can bring blessings even out of the most awful situations.  Even in bleak situations I do think it is possible to find joy.

Pastor John closed the service by giving everyone a candle (even the kids!) and praying together as a church for the community of Newtown, CT.

As side points...

I found this blog post on mental illness to be really fascinating and sad.  It's a worthwhile read.  Go HERE.

Also, go HERE to read Daron's latest caring bridge update.  I'm headed out there on Wednesday, Victor will follow on Friday.  Daron and Feifei are hosting all of my siblings and our parents at the same time which will be fun, hopefully not too stressful for them (1/2 of us are staying in a hotel but there will still be a lot of people in their apartment next week). Please be praying for him and our family this season.

Wheat Belly!

Dr. Davis was on Dr. Oz recently.  I think his book is an excellent read but the videos will give you a quick glance into his theory.  I urge you to try eliminating wheat for a month and see how you feel, especially those of you reading this that might be diabetic or struggling with your weight.  I'm not super concerned with the weight loss portion but I think I feel better off of wheat (less bloating/pain). Ultimately wheat is the foundation of most processed foods and eating less processed food and more real food is obviously better for you!

 Let me know what you think?
Have you given it a try yet?
What were your results?
If not, what's holding you back?


http://www.doctoroz.com/videos/are-you-addicted-wheat-pt-1

http://www.doctoroz.com/videos/are-you-addicted-wheat-pt-2

http://www.doctoroz.com/videos/are-you-addicted-wheat-pt-3


P.S.  I do apologize to my dear friend and cousin who happens to be a wheat farmer!

Little Ms. Determined

Look at what my not-quite-3.5 year old figured out today?!

My sweet girl sure makes me smile!

We are so proud of you Lainey!

Oh Carson!

Barking along with the puppies!

Too funny!

Shenandoah National Park

Victor and I snuck away for a quick trip this weekend.  We left the kids at home with our neighbors au pair.  They had a fun time with her!

Our 7th anniversary was a couple of weeks ago.  Instead of gifts I planned a surprise trip using our credit card points to cover it as I felt guilty spending money on it otherwise.

We stayed in a small "guest house" in a small town called Flint Hill Virginia.  It was basically like a bed and breakfast without the breakfast and with a king size bed.  Yay!

Saturday we slept in, got up and ate breakfast at an excellent restaurant, and then spent most of the day hiking up Old Rag.  It was so much fun!  We hiked about 10 miles and for 2-3 miles you had to scramble up rock faces, jump over ravines, pull yourself up through narrow crevices, etc.  It was a really fun adventure (I only cursed my friend who recommended it once or twice).

Shenandoah National Park is only an hour out of DC.  I'm so disappointed we didn't take advantage of it when we lived closer!  It's a beautiful place.  We will be back!  I may only hike in the late fall/winter though because copperheads are quite abundant in this area and I am quite terrified of stumbling upon one.  Ha!

After our hike we did a little window shopping, visited an antique store owned by my friends father, took a personal tour of a Whiskey distillery, and finished the night was a wonderful dinner!  I ate Korean BBQ with kimchi rice and sautéed greens.  It was wonderful!!  The restaurant we ate at had a really wonderful band playing that night.  We stayed for two hours and even danced a couple of times.  It was a fun night!

The next morning we did a little more shopping/strolling through the little mountain towns, ate breakfast at a neat restaurant that serves only local foods, and then headed home.

It was a nice break from our busy lives.

We have a Winner!!

My friend and fellow blogger Karly Aust from Thailand sent  me a photo when the ticker was exactly 70,000!   She's a new mom of super cute Asian-Caucasion twins and was up nursing in the middle of the night (Thailand time) and may or may not have hit the refresh button a few times on the blog to get it to 70,000.  Ha!  You have to be clever to get ahead sometimes!

Congrats Karly!  I hope you love the yogurt maker as much as I do!!

My Big Kid!

Erik really seems to have made the transition from preschooler to school kid this fall.  He is only in pre-kindergarten but acts very much like a kid in kindergarten.

Some of the things he's learned this fall include....

1) Reading!!

This is a new development in the past couple of weeks.  He learned sight words a month or two ago and that seemed to have flipped the switch for him.  He can now, very proudly, read quite a few level one books.  This has been so fun for me to watch!

2) Responsibility

Erik generally speaking is a rule follower, however, if he sees someone doing something "fun" he has often just gone along with it even if he knows he shouldn't.  So this fall I've been trying to teach him to abstain from "fun" activities and if it happens to be a sibling participating is poor behaviors (like overindulging in peanut butter) that he needs to report that to me.

I don't want to encourage tattling about dumb things but I do want him to communicate things that he sees that might not be safe or are obviously a no-no in our house.  I'm happy to say that he has been pretty good about this recently and it's been helpful.

3) Climbing trees

This is kind of goofy but Erik has gotten really good at climbing some big trees at our local playground. Hopefully, it won't end up in a broken arm.

 Can you see his feet in this photo? 

Pretty high up

A weekend of "Rest"

Poor little Carson is still not feeling great although much better than last week.  His fever has been gone since Friday and he is breathing comfortably.  The steroids are making him completely nutty though.  The poor, poor baby has been crying off and on all day (acting mad) and can't sleep.  Thankfully we only have one more day of steroids.

This weekend we had planned to take the kids to Busch Gardens to see their Christmas display and host Mike and Sonja's family this weekend.  All those events were canceled due to sick and infectious children.

All the kids activities were cancelled too since it was a holiday.  So we spent the weekend just hanging out.  It was nice.  We rarely have multiple days in a row without scheduled activities.  We went to a movie and a Christmas Tree lighting event on Friday evening (V stayed home with C), grocery shopping and the farmers market Saturday (V stayed home with C again), and church ( I stayed home with C).  Even with those activities there was plenty of downtime.

I seem to be catching the kids cold now so I better head to bed.

Colin (if you are reading this) this kooky amazon product link is for you!  You need to read the reviews! They are hilarious!!

Banana Slicer

Our Thanksgiving Adventure - Super sick Carson

Well, our day started out just great.  Around 9 AM I realized that the turkey was accidentally put in the freezer on Saturday instead of the fridge.  Via facebook suggestions I decided to just cook it frozen.  I overcooked it a bit, somewhat intentionally because I was afraid of food poisoning from the frozen turkey, so it was a little dry.  Oh well.  The rest of the food turned out well.

Then, this morning Lainey was sitting on the couch with me and she told me, "Mom! Guess what I love Daddy.  Carson can love you."  I explained to her that you can love more than one person.  She fairly emphatically replied, " No Mommy.  I just love Daddy.  Carson can love you."

Ahh!  The joys of parenting!  She didn't mean a thing of course but it did make me a little sad.

Topping out the day was Mr. Carson.  He woke up with a 103.5 degree fever again and clearly was not feeling well.  His feet didn't hit the floor all day (he refused to be put down) and his demeanor get kept getting worse.  When I listened to his chest after we ate dinner (4 PM or so) it was obvious that he lungs sounded like crap.  He also had a respiratory rate of 45 and seemed to be mildly distressed.  So, off to the ER we went.

In triage I noticed that his pulse ox was 93.  I was shocked!  That meant he really was sick.  The ER doctor and nurse both agreed that his lungs sounded like crap (crackles and wheezing) so they quickly ordered a chest x-ray, an hour long albuterol double strength nebulizer, and oral steroids.

He was hooked up to continuous monitoring and his O2 sats ranged from 89-93 (depending on when he was sleeping or awake).  The huge dose of albuterol caused awful tachycardia (fast heart rate - up to 190!) and tremors.  It didn't seem to improve his O2 sats either.  He was given a dose of oral steroids (tastes awful).  The ER doctor wanted him admitted and placed those orders for him.

The pediatric hospitalist who we met 3-4 hours into our stay (after the admission process was already starts) was on the fence though.  She said if his O2 sats were at 88 while sleeping she'd keep him but his were ranging from 89-91.  So she suggested he just wait in the ER a while and monitor him before making a decision.

The chest x-ray was read as normal by the off-site radiologist but the pediatrician and ER doctor both felt that it looked like he had an early pneumonia.

After the albuterol took effect his wheezing improved but his O2 sats still sucked.  Suddenly about 2-3 hours after the dose of oral steroids Carson perked up.  It was amazing!  He was awake and smiling and playing peek-a-boo with the nurses and doctors.  And not suprisingly this burst of energy correlated with much better O2 sats (94-96%).  Yay!!

He was still really tachycardic (150-160's - felt to be secondary to the albuterol) but acting so much better that they all agreed to let him go home.  Thank the Lord!  I would not have fought his admission but I would been worried about all the secondary germs we might pick up while we were there (the pediatric hospitalist said she had multiple patients admitted for terrible nausea and vomiting!).  Hopefully, the 7 hours we spent in the ER won't introduce a new line of viruses into our house.

I'd have to say that I was very impressed with our care there tonight.  It's a small town hospital but they really took good care of him.

Side note:  Carson tested negative for both influenza and RSV.  I was actually quite disappointed by this as that means Victor and I are both still potential victims of this crappy virus!!  (Erik's had a very mild version of it the past 4-5 days, Lainey had it first.)

Prayer Requests:

- That Carson will continue to feel better and no more trips to the ER will be necessary!
-That neither Victor nor I will catch this crummy virus!

Overall, I am so thankful for good health! I am also thankful for my brother Colin and his quirky sense of humor (see video below)!!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Prayer Requests

I have a few prayer requests, if you want to the add your own to the list feel free!

1) My Grandma's health -

 My 86 year old grandma is a tough cookie and my good friend!  Recently she had a recurrence of atrial fibrillation.  She was started on Digoxin which controlled her heart rate well.  Despite that she has still been really short of breathe which is unusual for her (she swims almost every day).  She saw the cardiologist this week and he switched her meds around and thinks the symptoms she is experiencing are secondary to a "tired heart muscle"  (aka likely early stages of heart failure).  So she now stopped the digoxin and increased her beta blocker.  She also is going to be starting a supplement called ubiquinone that is supposed to help with cardiac function.

In addition to that she's been having problems with her vision this week - lots of floaters.  Thankfully, at this point it is felt to be secondary to a vitreous detachment (not a retinal detachment) but this will be monitored pretty closely.

Anyway, please pray that my sweet grandma will feel better soon!

2) My dear friend Nicki!

She is expecting a baby just before Christmas and has been dealing with a number of frustrating health complications.  The baby is fine but poor Nicki hasn't been feeling well.  She actually suggested that she felt best during the first trimester.  I can't imagine that!!  Nicki is a glass 75% full kind of girl and rarely complains so when she says she is miserable, she really is quite miserable!

Please pray that she feels better and the baby stays put for another 2-3 weeks.

3) My poor baby!

Resting on my chest!

Carson is sick.  Last week Lainey had high fever and a chest cold for 5 days.  She's still coughing but overall feeling better.

Now poor Carson is sick.  High fevers (104) and a really bad cough.  He feels awful.  I am fairly convinced it is influenza as Victor, Erik, and I have all been immunized.  Erik has a very mild version of this bug (scratchy throat x 4 days) but no fever and feels fine.  Victor and I have been totally healthy so far.   There is no way to prove that that is what it is unless I take him to get tested but that would not influence his treatment or outcome so I'm not sure I'm going to do that.

Anyway, we are hoping to get out of town a bit and host Mike and Sonja over the weekend so we need the germs to vacate our house promptly!

Lainey last week - missed an entire week of school

4) Side note:  This is just random but I happened to have 2-3 servings of wheat on Sunday post-race.  First time I've have any wheat products in a month.  Wouldn't you know that since Sunday evening I've had an awful gut ache.  It feels better tonight but has been pretty crummy the last 48 hours (same gut ache I've gotten sporadically the past 3.5 years).  Very annoying.  I am fairly convinced it it wheat related but who knows maybe the correlation is in my head!

Win Me!

Remember THIS giveaway?!

Since the ticker is almost to 70,000 I thought I would remind you of it!  3 months later I am still making yogurt at least once a week.  We all love it!  I'm so thankful my friend Lauren introduced me to this idea.

How to win??

1- Take a photo of the ticker at or very close to 70,000.
2- Email it to me or attach the photo to the comments here (comments get emailed to me immediately after getting posted).

3- The first person to send me a photo of the ticker at EXACTLY 70,000 wins.  If no one snaps a photo of it exactly at 70,000 - the first photo get closest to it wins (in case of a tie).

Good luck!!

My email is ann and victor AT gmail.com   (spaced out as you normally would)

Half Marathon - PR

I ran a half marathon with my friend Laura this morning.  It was a perfect day for running (45 degrees, crisp and cool).  We just decided to do this race on Wednesday so my training for it was a bit limited but the course was a really nice trail.  Pretty rocky but flat.  It was an out and back trail (the marathon runners had to go out and back twice - yuck!!)

The race had two start times - we were in the first "heat." I finished in 1:50.  My initial goal was to be under 1:53 (my last PR - 8 years ago) and my secondary goal was to be under 1:50.  I was the first female finisher (don't know the results of the second heat so this could be trumped). Overall I was very pleased with my time!

Laura and I ran the first 4 miles together and then I pulled ahead.  She finished just 2 minutes behind me.  (Sound familiar Nicki?!) :)  We had made an agreement at an earlier race that we wouldn't feel bad if we split up (we are both quite competitive.)

This was Laura's first half marathon.  I've done quite a few but the last one I ran was in 2004.  I stopped running completely in 2006 and even then didn't go over 3-4 miles at a time.  I've been so amazed at how fast I've been able to pick up running again.  I'm faster than I used to be which is fun.

Back in March my hips were bothering me so much that I couldn't have run even a mile.  Thankfully, that has resolved.  I just started running again, very casually, back in July.  It's been a fun 4 months!!

 Laura and I after the half marathon!

Below is a photo of me in the sun glasses I won for coming in first (female).

Hahaha!  They even have red stars on the side.

The 1st thru 3rd place marathon finishers win cash.

No such luck for the half marathon runners. :)

Update:   Between the two start times I was the 4th female.  The official first place female finisher came in at 1:30!  Amazing!!!  (#2- 1:41 #3- 1:48)  I think if I were to keep training and run this race again with Lauren leading me I could probably have shaved 3-4 minutes off my time.  I am still happy with the overall results! I am so thankful for my health!!

Story Time

An ordinary moment with the trio

They are never dull

Turkey Trot

Erik's school held it's annual Turkey Trot this morning.  It's a one mile (non-competetive) race/fundraiser.   Erik's best buddy James has been talking up the race to Erik for a month or so.  This morning, Erik declared that he didn't want to run it.  He was acting quite glum.  So I told him didn't have to but if he chose not to participate it meant he needed to stay home and rest.

He picked the race.  I really think the gloomy attitude is how Erik acts when he is nervous about something.  Once the race started he was full of smiles.  He's a pretty good little runner although lacks a bit of the competitive gene one of his parents may or may not possess.  Haha!

He ran the entire race and came across the finish line at 10:24 (another parent with a competitive gene that crossed the finish line was timing the race - not me!).

His buddy James probably crossed the finish line about a minute ahead of us.  James is extremely competitive and told me when I saw him at the finish line, " I saved my speed for the end."  He also said, " At the end when I was passing up everyone I would look behind and memorize their faces so I would know if they tried to pass me again."  Hahaha!   James likes to hold lessons for Erik during their playdates (math, money, history) and "coaches" a basketball team at recess (he just turned 7).  People are going to be working for James someday!

I have to say that James while quite competitive and clearly a leader, he is also extremely kind! The two are great buddies!

 James and Erik

Madison, James, Erik, and Lainey

Madison is James' sweet older sister.

  She is 8.5 years old and quiet, creative, and kind.

She is very independent and the opposite of competitive. :) 

Wheat Belly Review: Part 2

Why Pick On Wheat??

1) The "history" of wheat farming.
2) What's an Exorphin?
3) Wheat and Celiac Disease
4) Wheat and your cholesterol!
5) The Glycemic Index trouble (Diabetes)

3) Wheat and Celiac Disease/GI tract

Since our diets have become extremely wheat based Celiac disease has become a big problem. The symptoms attributed to Celiac disease were first attributed to wheat in 1953.  It is estimated that today 1% of our nation has Celiac Disease.  (Although retrospective studies are not readily available there are two studies that suggest the rate of Celiac disease has indeed doubled or even quadrupled since the 1940's, rather than the increase diagnoses strictly being related to better diagnostic tools.) 

What is it?

Celiac disease is an inflammatory reaction to gluten (a protein in wheat, barley, rye, etc.)  that affects the GI tract (causing malabsorption).  It also can cause a number of other inflammatory problems including a skin rash called dermatitis herpetiformis, lymphoma (if celiac disease is untreated), infertility, etc.  

Patients with Celiac disease are also more likely to develop other autoimmune diseases including thyroid disease, rheumatoid arthritis, anemia, and IBD.  

Dr. Davis also mentioned that 50% of people with unexplained loss of balance and coordination have elevated celiac serology.  Other neurologic findings have been attributed to untreated/undiagnosed Celiac disease as well.  (Lancet: From Gut to Brain 2010)

How do I get Celiac Disease?

It does have a genetic base (90%+ of celiac patients have either HLA DQ2 or HLA DQ8 genetic markers).  That being said, 40% of the general population has one of these markers and most don't develop Celiac Disease so there has to be an environmental/infectious trigger as well.

How do you diagnose it?

Celiac disease is initially screened for via labwork looking for antibodies specific to celiac disease (TTG and Anti-endomysial antibodies).   If lab work is positive then the gold standard is to undergo an EGD.  This is a very simple 15 minute procedure (I've had it done).  I think the need for an EGD is under some debate currently but that's the gold standard for now.  I asked my supervising physician his take on this and he feels it is necessary, not so much for the confirmation of Celiac disease (as he would recommend a gluten free diet to patients with positive Celiac serology and normal intestinal biopsies) but in order to rule out gastric/intestinal lymphoma.  I really can't imagine that is seen very often but for now an EGD is the recommendation I will be giving patients with positive celiac serology. 

How do you treat it?

Luckily, the treatment is pretty simple.  You have to abstain from gluten 100% of the time.  When gluten is removed from the diet (and lifestyle - gluten can be found in medicines, make-up etc.) the gut repairs itself and risk factor for other problems (lymphoma, rashes, infertility) return back to a more normal baseline.

I have "IBS" and celiac type symptoms but my Celiac serology is negative.  What do I do?

Obviously, the Wheat Belly book advises everyone to entertain the idea of a wheat free diet.  Clinically, 5 years ago in the GI clinic this school of thought wouldn't have been supported (at least were I worked) but things may have changed.  The doctor I am currently working with said that almost ALL of his patients with nonspecific abdominal pain and even those with IBD do better on a wheat free diet.  He frequently makes this recommendation to people.  As I have been seeing patients in the clinic I have also noticed that his partner (who is currently in FL doing an advanced endoscopy fellowship) recommended a similar diet to many of his patients.  This is a pretty big difference in practice philosophies from my old practice.  I don't know if things have changed there but 5 years ago I was fairly frustrated at the lack of interest from the GI doctors regarding celiac disease and the role food plays in our health.  

More to come when I get another free moment!

Carson -20 Months

Carson is so full of life!  He has a big personality and does everything exuberantly - laughs, smiles, teases, protests, etc.  He is overall quite fearless and busy!  He has had a bit of separation anxiety recently which might just be a stage but I also think it might be related to me going back to work (it's worse with me than Victor).  I'm not sure!

Here are some highlights from the month....

-Carson LOVES the water! He takes "mom and me" swimming lessons each week (while the big kids are in their lesson).  He thinks it is the best thing ever and protests loudly when it is over. He is willing to put his face in the water and kicks his little legs like he is really trying to swim.  Cute!

-Carson LOVES trains!  We set up the train table in his room.  He is so so happy about this and frequently comes and pulls my hand trying to get me to go to his room and play trains with him (I oblige him fairly often of course.)

-Carson likes music.  He sings/hums along to the music in the car, and often seems to match the pitch and rhythm quite well.  When a song ends he sometimes pipes up from his backward seat, " All done!" He also dances/stomps to the music when we are home.

-Carson loves to eat!  Man that kid can eat!  For at least two months he has been eating more than Erik and Lainey, often more than them combined.  Some of his favorite foods are raisins, beans (any variety) and peanut butter. Ha! He also seems to like spicy foods (devours chili).

-Carson is continuing to make slow progress in the speech department.  He really had a rapid speech explosion the first 7-10 days post-tubes but now it's slowed a bit.  He does actually have 10 words or so that other people (outside the family) would understand which is helpful.

-We switched Carson out of his crib.  This just happened two nights ago.  Last night he was up exploring for 1 hour post bedtime, up again crying at 2:45, and then I found him out in the hallway at 5:55 AM carrying around a bunch of toothbrushes.  Haha!  Needless to say he was quite tired and slept well at naptime today.  He also went to bed without any problems.  We'll see how he does during the next few days.  (The other two were forced out of the crib around 18 months due to their impending siblings.  We switched Carson out early because we've always had such good luck with our kids going to bed easily.  I wonder if maybe it's because they switched to a big bed before they knew they could protest.  Carson tends to more eagerly challenge rules though so we will see!)

- Growing!  Carson still hasn't made it into his 18 month check up but according to my home measurements he is almost 35 inches which, if true, is taller than Erik or Lainey were at 24 months.  He's our biggest kid which explains all the eating! :)

(The video below displays one of his favorite activities - climbing!)

I just love my sweet bundle of joy, sass, and passion!! 

Tom The Turkey/ 1st Quarter Progress Report

This seems to be a popular project amongst my friends pre-k and kindergarten kiddos.  Here is Erik's turkey in disguise.

If you can't read Erik's writing is says... " The turkey is a policeman.  He was going to trick the farmer."

Victor worked on this project with Erik.  I am thankful for that as I am "uncrafty" as one can possibly be.

Erik's first quarter "report card" arrived last week.  He was marked as proficient in every category which is as good as it gets.  He loves school and so far we have no concerns.

Just an Update

Well, the blog has been quiet because our week has been busy!  Victor was in Norfolk last weekend, we were all in the same state Monday and Tuesday, Wednesday I worked and then flew to Cleveland for a conference.  I got back around midnight Friday night/Saturday morning.

Saturdays, as you may recall from previous posts, tend to be busy (although soccer is done for the moment).  We did the normal activities, as a tag team thankfully.  During the afternoon I did quite a bit of cooking while Victor cleaned the bathrooms.  Saturday evening we went to our babysitters "surprise" birthday party!

Today, I woke up early to run 11 miles.  I am running a half marathon in 3 weeks.  Not super excited about it, as it is going to be extremely hilly (yuck!) but I will be running with a couple of friends (if I can keep up) so it should be fun (hopefully).  Only two more training runs and then I won't have to get up quite as early on Sundays anymore (yay!).

Anyway, after that we went to the local Veterans Day parade, then church, lunch out at the Olive Garden (they have wheat free choices and veterans ate free today!), spent an hour at a fun playground then home for naps, while L and C were napping Erik and Victor worked on a Tom the Turkey project, dinner, and now E and L are at Awana.  Phew!

 Carson slept through most of the church service and then took a nap again after

 we got back from the playground.  My big tired baby!

It's been so beautiful out this weekend and should be again tomorrow (70 and sunny) so we've tried to get outside as much as possible!

So - that's why the blog has been quiet! Ha!  I keep trying to find time to do an Wheat Belly Part 2 update but haven't found time yet!