H1N1, a sick baby, and the CDC

My greatest fear these past few months has been the swine flu. I watch the news religiously, and I've seen all the reports that pregnant women are the most vulnerable to the disease. I've talked to my OB, and he says that the risks are more secondary infections than the flu itself, but I've still not felt at ease.

Let me say here that if my trying to get the vaccine is any indication of what is going to happen when the government takes over healthcare, I want NOTHING to do with it!

I've called the health department, my OB's office, my endocrinologist's office, and everywhere in between. You would think that SOMEONE would have the dumb vaccine. Unfortunately, it's been nowhere to be had.

Last Friday Abby got sick. She had a low-grade fever, a cough and was really puny (as my mother would say). Jason and I took her to the doctor. Her flu test was negative, but she had an ear infection. All clear, right? Wrong. On Tuesday she was still sick and the cough was wicked. I took her back to the doctor only to be told that a lot of the flu tests that come back negative are in fact positive. For whatever reason, doctors are seeing a lot of false negatives. Dr. Poole was pretty certain Abby did in fact have swine flu. Oh my!

That diagnosis sent me into a panic. What was I supposed to do? Now I'd been exposed to the virus. I called around and finally got a prescription for Tamiflu (not after much begging and calling and calling and begging).

On Wednesday, the day after we found out about Abby, my sister-in-law called to say that her office may be able to give me the H1N1 vaccine. All my endocrinologist asked was that I get a release from my OB's office. Not difficult, right? Wong again.

I called my OB's office and the lady said, "We're getting that vaccine in a few weeks if you want to wait."

No thanks. I'd like to have it NOW so that I know I've gotten it.

Then she said, "Is it the single dose or the multiple dose because you can't take the multiple dose one. Oh, and you're on Tamiflue, I don't know if you can get the vaccine while you're taking Tamiflu. Call the CDC and see."

Now, don't these people get paid good money to know these things, but anyway.

I called the CDC - fun for sure.

I could take the vaccine while on Tamiflu. The dosage my doctor had was the single one, so that was a go as well.

I prayed on my way to Greenville that the stars would align and I would be able to get the shot. All went well and I'm now vaccinated.

Shew! What a relief and a hassle.

Let this be a lesson, NO GOVERNMENT HEALTHCARE!

Oh, and Abby's doing very well. The virus wasn't very bad for her. The cough still lingers, but in a few days that will be gone as well. Pray Jason doesn't get sick because I hear there's a shortage of Tamiflu now!

And Then I Couldn't Take The Suspense

Jason and I went on Tuesday for an ultrasound of Baby Looper. This time it was just to look at the baby's thyroid and make sure that everything was okay there since I have thyroid issues. I was wondering how in the world they would find such a small organ, but the ultrasound tech explained to us that they don't exactly look at the thyroid it's more that they look at the baby's neck and make sure there are no irregularities there. There were none, so we got the all clear from that doctor. Whew! What a relief that was.

Now all I have to worry about it H1N1, but that's another post altogether.

Anyway, I really posted to let you know that I'm weak. When I was pregnant with Abby, I had no problem not finding out her sex. I knew from the beginning that I didn't want to know. We had a gazillion (is that how you spell that) ultrasounds, and it never crossed my mind to ask what she was.

This time however....

I couldn't take it. I HAD TO KNOW!

I told Jason it was for purely practical purposes - know what we're having so that we can make sure to have the right clothes, bedding, etc. You get the picture. The reality is, I just really NEEDED TO KNOW!

I called my mom, my rock, and asked her if we should find out. She's always the one who says, "No! Of course not! Don't find out." This time she said, "Whatever you want to do." No help at all!

So, we found out.

Not to keep you in suspense any longer, Baby Looper is a BOY!!! It's exciting really. We now have one of each.

Now our problem is convincing Abby that having a baby brother is a good thing since apparently she has her heart set on a baby sister. Named Super Why. Or A-B-C.

What I learned from Abby

Monday morning we were rushing around, trying to get everything together to leave the house. As usual, I needed to be out by 6:40, but it was getting close to 6:50 and we weren't even close to leaving.

I had gotten Abby up and dressed, no small feat since she is very much like her parents and doesn't like to be disturbed in the morning. The worst part of the whole ordeal is brushing Abby's hair. It's a tangled mess to be sure.

Well, Monday, Abby woke up calling for her juice.

"I want juice, Mommy. I - WANT - JUICE!" She screamed, over and over.

I was in the kitchen working as fast as I could to get the juice ready when Jason called from the bathroom for Abby. He was going to brush her hair and put her hairbow in.

Abby stopped mid-scream, looked at me, turned on her heel and called over her shoulder, "Daddy calling me."

She turned and ran out of the kitchen, juice forgotten.

As I watched her go, I thought, "I wonder if that is the way I respond to my heavenly father? Do I stop in the midst of screaming for what I want and turn and run when I hear him call?"

I'm afraid that as a heavenly child, I'm not so quick to respond. It's kind of amazing what our children teach us.

May we all be quick to respond when the Father calls.

Sometimes we learn so much

Our church started a new "thing" a couple of weeks ago on Sunday night called E-Groups. I wasn't really opposed to it when it was presented. Seriously, Sunday nights are just Sunday nights around here, and Jason and I had been hosting the Truth Project by Focus on the Family in our home for about 3 months on Sunday nights, so there wasn't much to be opposed to really.

Let me back up and explain E-Groups just a bit first. These are groups that our pastor and staff put together. They're "random" groupings of people of all ages and walks of life. Each group has about 10 or so people in it, and it is NOT a Bible study. Instead, we gather on Sunday night, discuss the sermon from that morning, talk about life and what we are learning in our quiet times, etc. It really should be called a life group because that's what we're doing, experiencing life together.

Well, our group is facilitated by an older gentleman whose wife is a nurse, there's an engineer in our group, a lady who works at a local hospital, a former math teacher turned PhD student, me, Jason, another nurse, you get the picture.

I wasn't sure how our group would gel, but God is faithful. It has been one of the best experiences I've ever had at church to be honest. I'm not sure if it's that Jason and I don't have a Sunday School class since we teach the college kids or if it is just that God has placed his hand on this group, but I have really, really enjoyed it.

Let me put a plug out there for any of you who go to EPBC and read this. Please, please, PLEASE get involved. You won't regret it.

Now, onto what I've learned:

1. I really need a more consistent quiet time. It's hard to share when you're not keeping up with the daily reading (kind of like withe my students, but I digress).

2. God can use unexpected people to teach us wonderful lessons.

3. Godly habits are so hard to form and easy to break, but bad habits are easy to form and hard to break. Ironic, huh?

So, I say, open your eyes and see where God is teaching you. Feel free to share.

If the baby's name were left up to Abby...

Jason and I have been asking Abby whether she wants a baby brother or a baby sister. It really just depends on the day, her mood, and whether or not she's been around Naomi or Nathanael what her answer is.

Usually when she says she wants a sister (or a brother for that matter) she'll tell us she wants to name her (or him) Naomi. Let me explain. Naomi is her BEST, BEST, BEST friend. All of Abby's baby dolls are named Naomi, so it stands to reason that she would want to name her baby sister (or brother) the same.

Well, the other day, I asked Abby whether she wanted a baby brother or a baby sister, and she said emphatically, "BABY BRUDDER."

"Well, what do you want to name your baby brother," I asked.

She waited a few minutes and said, "SUPER WHY!"

Now, for those of you who aren't familiar with recent PBS trends in programming, Super Why is a show about reading and exploring. I know, my heart swells at the thought too. She's a future English major.

Unfortunately, Super Why is now her name of choice for Baby Looper. I don't know that it would be appropriate to name a child after a PBS show, even if it is about reading.

Has it really been since July?!?

Oh my! I have been treating my blog kind of like I treat our checkbook. When I know I'm way behind, I just don't look at it because the guilt is way too overwhelming. This morning I decided I better check just in case there were some lone comment waiting to be viewed, and I realized it's been TWO MONTHS since I posted anything. And to think I expect my students to post blogs twice a week. It's shameful really!

Anyway, I had to share an experience I had last week on Thursday. It was the moment I realized that I am truly, indeed, no-questions-asked pregnant.

Now, I know many of you are saying to yourselves, "Alicia, you've been wearing maternity clothes for 2 months and have been feeling the baby kick for several weeks, what do you mean you just realized you were pregnant?"

Well, it's not really that I didn't KNOW that I was pregnant, I just had one of those emotional, rollercoaster kind of nights last Thursday that confirmed the fact.

Here's how it went down:

I met my husband and mother-in-law at a local restaurant for some dinner. Abby of course was being obstinate, like any good two-year-old would be. I ordered my sandwich, only ate half of it, anticipating that I would eat the other half for lunch on Friday. The plan was perfect - until I left the sandwich in its little styrofoam box on the table.

Jason had to leave for church and I was left with the two-year-old. The restaurant we were at sits very close to a busy highway, so I couldn't let Abby down to walk to her car. She's gotten really fast these days, and I was worried she would dart, so I held her while she thrashed around in my arms and walked to the car.

Once we were at said car, I couldn't find my keys. As if that weren't bad enough, a stray dog walked up to us and started sniffing around. Let me interject here that I AM NOT a dog person. All I could think about was the dog biting me and then Abby running into the road while I lay on the ground helpless - a bit of an exaggeration, I know.

Once I finally made it into the car, I realized the sandwich was on the table. Well, I wasn't going back. No way, no how. Ham and cheese just isn't worth that.

By the time I got home, I had calmed myself down about the sandwich, the dog and my daughter, and as fate would have it some folks were walking their dog down our street. Abby is fascinated with dogs of any kind. She loves them all equally, and will point and yell, "puppy dog" at any that she sees.

When I got her out of the car and placed her on the ground, she started pointing and yelling and missed a step and fell flat on her face. Normally this isn't a big deal because she falls all the time - a trait she most definitely did not get from me ahem.

I picked her up and realized she had something slimy in her hair. No big deal, we were going to take a bath anyway. Yeah, until I got her inside.

When I looked closer, I realized it was a WORM a worm! stuck in her hair. I couldn't get it out. Sometimes, I wonder what God is thinking when he's watching us here on earth because just when I realized that my attempts with the paper towel weren't working at getting the worm out of Abby's hair, my phone rang. It was Jason wanting to know if I was okay.

The answer, through many tears, was a big, emphatic, NO!

He came home and began to extract the worm. It came out in two pieces, which prompted Jason to ask me where she had gotten the WORMS from.

"Worms!" I screamed. "It's only one!"

After we looked closer, we realized it was only one worm that had been ripped in two. Let me say that the worm totally deserved to be ripped in two.

Jason then left me crying beside the bathtub while Abby splashed away in the water.

All that to say, I don't know that I would have been so emotional about a stray dog, a sandwich and a worm had I not been pregnant.

A Birthday and Good Grammar

**Be sure to scroll down to the Elvis post. It's a classic.**


Abby turned 2 on July 3. It is hard for me to believe that she is indeed two. I decided the week after her birthday was potty training week. That proved to be an abysmal failure. On Friday, her birthday, we gave her a potty seat, big girl panties, the works. On Monday, we went to the potty every few minutes, cried and then wet our pants. Well, I didn't wet MY pants, but I did almost pull my hair out.

I decided that on Tuesday, I would only take her if she asked. She asked a few times, but never did anything in the potty. After Tuesday, things got chaotic, and we put it on hold. Maybe I'll try again in a few weeks. Who knows?!?

Let me give you a quick physical update before I continue on to the birthday party. At her two year checkup, Abby weighed 22lbs 14oz. I'm not sure that it was completely accurate because they didn't make her take her clothes off nor did they ask me to change her diaper, but regardless, she's above 20lbs! Ahhhmaaazing! For her weight, she in the 7th percentile, a place I never thought we would be. The more amazing part is that she is 33in tall, and in the 30th percentile for her height. Crazy, huh?

The thought is that she has probably fit into the growth charts where she's going to fit in, and that's okay.



Now, on to the birthday party. It was CRAZY! I've never been particularly fond of birthday parties, and I'm not exactly great at planning them either. I really tried to exercise restraint in the guest list, but when you've got family and church and friends, it adds up pretty quickly. On our best count, there were over 50 people and about 20 kids running around the house (or hanging onto me while we were opening presents).



We truly enjoyed having all our friends together, but man am I glad we only have to do it once a year!



Here's the good grammar part. At Abby's party, she got a goldfish named Dorothy or Dorfothy as Abby calls her. If you're a parent and you watch Sesame Street, you immediately recognize that this the name of Elmo's fish. A coincidence, of course not.

On Sunday morning, when she got up, Abby walked up to Dorothy's bowl and said, "Good morning, Dorfothy. I slept well." I can't tell you how my heart swelled at the fact that my two year old knows to use the adverb well after the action verb slept. She may not be potty-trained, but she can speak properly.

Hallelujah!