Math

2 sick kids + Dr. Appt = LOTS OF MEDICINE TO GIVE!



This is just stuff that I washed after using TONIGHT. T-O-N-I-G-H-T PEOPLE!!

Good gracious.

Oink, Oink

Last Friday I picked the kids up from daycare and I could tell that something was wrong with Lacey. I automatically assumed it was the evil little trolls, but after we got into the privacy of my car, she told me that she was just very tired and did not feel good. When we got home, I took her temperature and she was running a fever of 102.6.


I gave her some medicine for the fever and she ate some of her dinner. Then…my child…the one I swear has ADHD sometimes…the one that CANNOT sit still…went upstairs to her room, got in her PJs and went to sleep.

It was only 7pm. And she slept a solid 13 hours.

The rest of the weekend she seemed okay. She was still a little tired and didn’t eat like she normally would. She had developed a cough and was sneezing her little head off. But she played…..oh she played and played. Every now and then we would check her and it would feel like she may have a low grade fever but she was never warm enough to warrant a thermometer.

By Monday, she seemed to feel a little worse. I offered multiple times to let her stay home from school, but she didn’t want to and since she didn’t have a fever I didn’t see a reason to keep her home

Tuesday I called the pediatrician because Zach has been having problems with his asthma. Of course, they would not call in more medicine or change it without seeing him. I decided if I was going to take him, I might as well take Lacey to get her checked out.

She has the swine flu plus a touch of pneumonia in one of her lungs. His O2 levels were at 95% (not good). It cost me $80.00 in co-pays just to have them seen. Then I have 5 prescriptions to pick up this afternoon. Insurance needs to be fixed.  Some woman with 5 kids was in there with me...obviously not working and didn't pay a G-D DIME.  I can't catch a break because I WORK.

It is SO frustrating, but I shall save my rant for another day.

Either way, my little girl had the infamous swine flu and never missed a beat. She even was cleared to go back to school after we left the pediatrician. She is at the tail end of the flu, so why not let her if she wants to, right?   She was contagious last week. 

Let us just keep our fingers crossed that Zach does not get it. Not only is he high risk because of his age, but he also has a chronic lung problem. If he gets a bad case, at best, it would be a hospital visit and I do not even want to think about anything worse than that.

Mockery

I’ve mentioned that Zach is pretty rough and tough before. If you know my kids at all you have probably been witness to some of his antics.

Case in point; a member of the same family that has been bulling Lacey is in Zach’s room at daycare. One day last week she tried to push him around. He promptly threw a rock at her head. Problem solved.

Before I go into what my zany child did, I think it would be relevant to explain what Zach has been dealing with for the past few weeks. Every year around this time his asthma really kicks it up a notch and even with medications to help control his breathing he is often kept up at night coughing. The poor kid hasn’t had a good night’s sleep in weeks. It’s something about the night air because he sleeps really well in the morning hours and he takes fabulous naps.

Whilst taking his treasured nap at daycare Friday he was awakened by his on again off again girlfriend H. She had had enough of his silly sleeping and needed him awake so that she would have a 'Daddy' for her babies while she played house. 

So she walked up and yanked his pillow out from under his head. (This cracks me UP!) Of course, this infuriated Zach. He scratched H’s arm, yanked his pillow back and tried to lie back down. H, (rightfully) cried and told the teacher what Zach had done to her. Ms. B walked over to him, fussed at him and attempted to make both of the children sit in time out. In order to do this she would have to take Zach’s pillow away.  This didn't go over well and he ended up pitching a royal fit and scratching Ms. B also.

And then I was called.

So Friday when I picked up the kids I had to sign two things: 

1.  Zach's write up 
2.  A document for Lacey...because she continues to be bullied.

Oh at the irony. I have one that is antagonistic and one that is excruciatingly passive.

Even though I am making light of the situation please know that I do not find it funny when it happens. In our home it is not, nor has it ever been okay for him to be so disrespectful to his teacher, nor is it acceptable to have scratched H, no matter what she did. We are trying to teach Zach not to EVER physically attack a girl. EVER. Being disrespectful or hitting an adult is not EVER acceptable either. Making light of some of the things that go on is just my way to keep from going batty.

Losing my religion...

Every year around this time I get an overwhelming sense of guilt. I'm reminded of the chain of events that began my journey away from a belief I grew up with.  To turn your back on something that you were taught to believe all of your life is difficult.  

Everything about it was and is still so very sad.

Zach was born on Sept. 18, 2006. He was the boy I had always wanted. Big, fat and healthy as can be. A quiet little guy who loved to snuggle with me and sleep. The bond I had with him was instant. While I love Lacey dearly, there was an immediate special bond different from the one I had with Lacey.


Zachary and I left the hospital on Sept. 21, both very happy (heavy!) and healthy. In less than a week we both had contracted viral meningitis & a very common cold virus.
 
Of course we didn’t know that was what we had. I just felt a little crappy, like I was catching a little cold, I had mastitis and was less than two weeks out of a c-section that had a few complications. I was also adjusting to having TWO kids and Andy had just gone back to work. I was still nursing despite the mastitis and like any other newborn & new mom; we were still trying to work out the kinks.


I remember the morning very clearly.  I actually still beat myself up about how I handled it.  I was exhausted. It was 2 am and Zach was crying and wouldn’t stop. Andy couldn’t help because…. well I had the goods. Zach acted like he was hungry and I knew he should be, but for some reason he would not eat. He would try, but give up so quickly which was unlike him. His crying wasn’t a LOUD, MAD cry; it was almost between a constant whimper and a whine. I should have known then.  Finally, after hours of doing everything I knew to do I just laid him down in his bassinet and gave up. I dozed on and off between his cries and would pat his little bottom almost constantly trying to soothe him.  I should have held him close and kept trying....


The rest of the day becomes a blur. I remember waking up around 8 with Lacey and he was sound asleep. I tried to wake him up for another attempt at nursing since it had been a very long time for him to have gone without eating, but I couldn’t get him to wake up and stay awake long enough. I called our pediatrician and they confirmed my thoughts – he’s just as tired as me, plus he is a sleeper anyways. They told me he would be fine but to call them if he didn’t get better by early afternoon.  I should have known.


Fast forward to noon and he still was sleeping and not waking up for more than just a minute or so and now he has a low grade fever. I called the pediatrician back and was on my way to their office in minutes.


By the time I made it into the office (maybe 40 minutes) we couldn’t wake him up and his fever had shot up to 102 – which is bad news for a newborn. We were offered an ambulance ride to CHOA, but I would have to leave Lacey with someone as she would not be allowed in the ambulance. EVERYONE I knew was either busy or out of town. My parents were in Mexico of all places. My sister getting ready for her best friend’s wedding, grandparents were out of town…it was a mess. I opted (with the permission of our Dr.) to go directly to the hospital in my car. He was very clear that I was not to go home, get gas, stop for food, nothing. That is when I thought I knew how serious this was.


Andy met me at the hospital and his mom wasn’t far behind him. I was told Zach’s condition was life-threatening and he would be admitted for a minimum of 3 days. We had X-rays, spinal taps, urine culture, blood cultures, blood work and an IV within 45 minutes of our arrival.


I was beginning to feel really bad and run a fever. When we finally got settled in a room it was past 11:00 pm and I told Andy he could just go home with Lacey and I would be okay. Reluctantly he and his mom left.


I stood by his hospital crib for hours. He was still un-responsive and other than the IV had received no nourishment for 24 hours. I distinctly remembered asking one of his nurses if it would be alright if I lay down in the chair next to his crib. My fever was hitting 102 and I was having a hard time standing next to him. (I still had the staples in my stomach from the C-section) Zach obviously wasn’t going to wake up right now and he seemed, to me, to be stable and I wasn’t expecting a change, good or bad, anytime soon. What she told me still haunts me today.

“Honey, if I were you I would stand right there. You stay by your boy’s side and you tell him how much you love him. You tell him to fight. You tell him how much you need him. You tell him not to leave you yet. He needs to know you are beside him because he is going to have to fight hard.”

I will never forget those words. I will never forget her tone when she said those words. It was a cross between sympathy and strength. Like she really felt sorry for me but didn't want for me to know it.


No one had made it sound that serious. What had I missed? So I asked her if he would make it through the night. Apparently the attending Dr. in the ER didn’t tell us everything. They weren’t sure if he would make it another 24 hours. They still had no idea what was making him so sick and even with his IV, broad spectrum antibiotics, Tylenol and packing him in ice – his fever was still hovering around 105. A fever of any kind for a newborn is bad – 105 is often fatal.


I was so shocked I just nodded my head. At that very moment my life changed forever. I hadn’t realized the magnitude of the situation. 


There I stood all night. Telling him how much I loved him,  how I had fallen in love with him the moment I found out I was pregnant. Asking him, begging him to fight.  Telling him that I needed more than 11 days with him.  That night as I stood there by his crib alone my life changed forever.  Everything I had ever thought I believed was gone.   


The next day Andy didn’t make it to the hospital until after lunch. He didn’t know the magnitude of the situation – and when he found out he was afraid. He avoided the subject like the plague. When the pediatrician on call made her rounds that afternoon she confirmed the information I had received the night before and told me his condition had only deteriorated. His heart rate was irregular, his oxygen low, and his fever still dangerously high. They were moving him to the NICU.


My symptoms were getting worse and Zach wasn’t getting better. Andy was trying to juggle Lacey, work and our house. He has many good qualities and I love him dearly, but he just. checked.out. He couldn't handle it, so he checked out.

Those were the darkest days of my whole life.


Long story short, this continued for 6 very long days. His was poked over 30 times for IVs because his veins kept collapsing. They had shaved spots on his head and his arms, hands, wrists, feet and ankles were full of bruises.


After the 6th day, the virus was finally found growing in his spinal fluid cultures, and by talking with the doctors and keeping an eye on my symptoms we were all but 100% positive Zach and I had menengitis..something we probably caught at the hospital when he was born. (You can't test for a virus like that...just bacterial infections)  So basically both of the viruses had attacked his (very immature) nervous system. 

He has had some nervous system problems and we have been through 2 years of thearapy for his speech and vestibular problems.



Even now, 3 years later, I cannot fully enjoy his birthday. I cry everytime I think of what he had to go through and of how closely I came to losing a child. Its not something you will ever forget - nor is it something you can explain or understand unless it is something you have experienced yourself.

I like to think I am a very strong person, but this...this broke me. 

I hope one day I will find peace with the month of September.

Beach Baby

My parents both retired in the past 2 years - so they live at the beach.  Lacey went down with my sister and stayed with them over the past weekend.

Just a few cute little pictures my sista took.  ;P

The reason I don't like kids....

Imagine this with me.

You have a little girl....a sweet little girl. She is very tender-hearted and kind. She makes friends easily and is always giggling or talking. She has the biggest blue eyes you have ever seen and the most beautiful long blonde hair. She has legs that go on forever and is tall and skinny. By all accounts a gifted child who is the #1 in her grade level. The only problem is that she fails to see how beautiful she is or how smart she is. She has a hard time being mean to others and standing up for herself.


You are aware that recently she has run into some problems at her daycare (she stays here before and after school) with a family of 4 children. 3 monstrous girls, 1 beastly boy. The girls are spiteful and mean one day and nice the next. The boy is 4 years older (and bigger) and makes a habit of taunting and kicking her.

She is having a really hard time understanding how a friend could be so mean one day and nice the next and while you try to explain to her that she needs to stay away from this family she won't. No amount of talking to her will make her understand as she says "They said they were sorry...I don't want to be mean to them...I want to be friends with them."

You, as the parent, have gone to the daycare multiple times about this. You are told time and time again that it has been handled. You have talked with the children and teachers involved. You talk with Lacey. Everything seems to be handled and put behind us.

So she tells you this morning on your way to drop her off at daycare that she doesn't want to go to daycare. She says this family is mean to her. She is afraid. She has been silent about this bullying for a while now because she fears retaliation.

Last week they took her book bag and hid it. She got in trouble with the teacher because she couldn't find it. While she was being disciplined for being irresponsible, two of these children where watching and laughing because they knew exactly where the book bag was. Sometimes they push her off the swings. Sometimes they scribble over her homework and she has to do it over......

Enough.

So I called the Paulding County School District. I called the GA Dept of Education. I called Lacey's school's counselor. (The family also goes to the same school as Lacey) While it is not happening on the school property, since all the children involved go to the same school, I have it documented in all of their records.

I call the daycare* and speak to the director. I tell her that if it happens again I will call the police and file a report. Apparently bullying is now a very big deal. It's like yelling fire in a crowded room. Good to know.

Daycare jumps ALL over it. Calls mom of the family of the children and mom wants to meet with me.

Whatever bitch. C'mon. I would love to meet with your sorry ass about your wretched kids. I would love to hear you apologize and try to blow smoke up my ass about how they are just 'kids'. Tell me when and I will be there and you will lose.

So we schedule a Wed. afternoon meeting. I have everything together, names of my contacts at the GA DOE, Paulding Co. School Districts and many others, my little speech is ready and all I have to do is type up my course of action so that all parties involved have my complaint and warning in writing. The very next time one of them so much as touches Lacey or her anything that belongs to her I will call the police and file a report**.

And then I show up at the daycare today at my usual time to pick up the kids. And mom is waiting for me.

She is dressed nicely and appears to have an education past high school. She also speaks very clearly and intelligently...through her tears. She is standing in the middle of the hallway waiting for me.

Crying.

She says she is so sorry. She is appalled by the news. She was once picked on as a child and it was terrible and has stuck with her throughout her life. She cannot believe her children could be so cruel.

She is either a really great actress or she is sincere. I'm very cynical of people, so I'm not sure I trust her yet. During my bitch session about her children she never makes an excuse for them. She never argues with me. She just apologizes. Profusely. She gets down on Lacey's level and apologizes. Profusely. She has all 4 of her children apologize to Lacey.

So I shall keep a well documented record of what goes on with Lacey. I hope that this mother really keeps her word and works on this. Is Lacey suicidal? No, of course not. But she deserves to feel safe at her school and her daycare. She is 5 and she is learning about friendship and trust. Her self-confidence is developing and I will not allow a little family of rejects to interfere with any of that.

*In Daycare's defense, they have been really great over the years. Anytime you deal with a daycare you are going to run into problems or things you don't like. I have found with this daycare any issues have been handled quickly and very well. Bullying is often hard to catch as the kids will do it when the teachers aren't looking or sometimes without words.

**The police report – a little harsh you say? Yes. BUT it’s for documentation and it will be a pain in the butt for the mom and the daycare. No jail time or fines would come out of it…its just a message I am sending….I am not playing anymore.

I should be working on my Islam paper....

♥ What are your middle names?
Andy and Rachel (Sullivan)

♥How long have you been together?
We've been married for a little over 5 years, but together (on and off sometimes) for almost 7.

♥ How long did you know each other before you started dating?
We had known of each other for a couple of years as he was a regular at the bars I worked at, but we had just started talking and hanging out a few weeks before our first date.

♥ Who asked who out?
He asked me out.

♥ Who made the first move?
Andy - he was not a BIT shy. Defiantly a plus to marrying an older man.

♥ How old are each of you?
Andy - 36 Me - 27

♥ Did you go to the same school?
Nope, not even close. He grew up in Bowdon and I grew up in Powder Springs.

♥ Are you from the same home town?
No

♥ Who is the smartest?
It depends on what the subject is. We both have our strengths. He is REALLY good at math and I'm more of a critical thinking person.

♥ Who majored in what?
He majored in girls and beer (and eventually dropped out), I'm still going to school

♥ Who is the most sensitive?
Neither of us are really that sensitive, but if I had to choose, would have to say it's me.

♥ Where do you eat out most as a couple?
Usually a Mexican restaurant (the kids LOVE chips and dip) or a steakhouse (Andy and I love a good steak!)

♥ Where is the furthest you two have traveled together as a couple?
Florida - sad I know. He isn't much of a traveler.

♥ Who has the worst temper?
Mine flares up more often(I have been known to throw a remote as his head from time to time)He rarely loses his but when he does - you better watch out. Usually he will go downstairs or outside.

♥ How many children do you want?
When we first talked about having kids he wanted ZERO and I wanted 4. Now that we have our 2 (a boy and a girl no less) we think we might be done. Sometimes I wish for another, but if I had another now there would be such an age gap between it and Zach and Lacey that I would want to have another TWO..so they would be close in age....yeah....this is still up for debate. :)

♥ Who does the cooking?
We really don't cook a lot. We eat a lot of sandwiches and cereal. If and when someone cooks, its usually something Italian and its me. He can't even cook eggs.

♥ Who is more social?
He is very social and doesn't know a stranger. I'm not a big people person.

♥ Who is the neat-freak?
Neither of us, but I'm usually the one that cleans up.

♥ Who is the most stubborn?
ME! He is so easy going...it drives me nuts sometimes! For example, we'll have a disagreement and he will throw in the towel almost immediately sometimes...and I will follow him around the house trying to get him to argue back.

♥ Who wakes up earlier?
Andy. He always wakes up earlier than me. He also will fall asleep sitting up if he isn't in bed by 10:30-11:00. I will stay up until 1 or 2 am.

♥ Where was your first date?
Provinos in Douglasville.

♥ Who has the bigger family?
Me. He has a mom, sister and aunt. He does have a father, but we haven't seen him in well over a year (he only lives 35 min. away...sad I know). I am very close with all of my family. I have more cousins that I can count spread over a few states!!

♥ Do you get flowers often?
No. I don't like getting them too often because 1. they are predictable and 2. they die.

♥ How do you spend the holidays?
Usually with both of our families. His family has always had a Thanksgiving lunch and opened presents on Christmas Eve. My family has always done Thanksgiving dinner and opened presents on Christmas day. Since his family is in Carrollton and mine is in Powder Springs it works out really well!!

♥ Who is more jealous?
Neither of us. Actually, its sometimes a little annoying for me. I wish he would get just a little jealous sometimes.

♥ How long did it take to get serious?
A LONG TIME. We broke up, then I found out I was pregnant. We didn't really get back together but we weren't seeing anyone else. I moved in with him (in one of the spare bedrooms) and we lived that way from May 2003 to June 2004. July 4th he asked me to marry him and we were married on August 22nd.

♥ Who eats more?
OMG. HIM!! He eats everything in the HOUSE. He will come home from work and eat two sandwiches, two bowls of cereal and a bag of chips. And of course, doesn't gain a pound.

♥ What do you do for a living?
He's a foreman in the construction industry. He and his crew basically drill holes in the ground for gas lines to go in. I am sure if you ask him its MUCH more complicated, but I usually get lost after he tells me about the hole he drilled. In his defense, he works up to 75-80 hours a week sometimes, so it must be a little complicated.

I am an account executive for a packaging company in Atlanta and a part time student at UWG. And a mommy.

♥ Who does the laundry?
I sort it, wash it and dry it during the week. He puts it all up on the weekends.

♥ Who’s better with the computer?
Me, me me. I just taught him how to send an email about 6 months ago. LOL.

♥ Who drives when you are together?
We trade off. It depends on who might have had something to drink or which car we are in.

♥ What is "your" song?
We don't really have one. We've never really been into stuff like that.