Ear infections for both the girls! :(

I'm a little behind on this (as usual).  On Feb 12th I took the girls into the walk-in b/c Haven was uncharacteristically whiny (which ALWAYS= an ear infection!).  I had Venily checked while we were there as well.  Both girls ended up with ear infections.  Venily was only a little in one side.  Haven's was in both sides.  Haven was given Cedfinir (2x a day for 10 days) and Venily was given Azithromycin (1x a day for 5 days) since I told him that she had a reaction to Amoxicillian back in October.  THERE WAS NO NOTE OF THIS WHATSOEVER ON HER RECORDS!!!!  SERIOUSLY?!  Her whole body was covered in hives, some sticking out an inch from her body, all of her joints swelled up to 2-3 times the normal size so that she couldn't walk or bend her wrists, etc for several days, she was so miserable that I had a hard time keeping it together, I took her to 3 different doctors in a 24 hour period and they don't think they might want to make a note of this in her records?!?!  I was a little upset about this, lol!

Anyway, the doctor gave me a "uh oh" look when I told him that she hasn't tried any other antibiotics since her reaction!  Venily finished her antibiotics yesterday and yesterday evening her wrist was swollen and itchy.  I have NO idea if it was related or not, but that's all that happened and she was better by this morning.  I really wonder if I had given her one more day of it if the reaction would have gotten worse?  I really hope not!! (hopefully it's not a preview of what's to come the next time she's on antibiotics either!)

As for Haven, this is ear infection #7 for her- her last one was just in December :(.  Here is her updated ear infection list:

*Single ear infection 4 months old. (given Amoxicillin)

*Double ear infection at 5 months old. (given Cefdinir)

*Double ear infection at 13 months old. (given Amoxicillin)

*Double ear infection at 16 months old. (given Cefdinir)

*Double ear infection at 17 months old.  (given Cefdinir)

*Double ear infection at 26 months old (given Amoxicillin) 

*Double ear infection at 27 months old (given Cefdinir)

Double Ear Infection for Haven!

Jason brought Haven into the walk-in today b/c her eyes have been pink and goopy for the last 2 days.  She also has a cough and the cutest little hoarse voice you have ever heard in your life! :)  It turns out she has a double ear infection which is leading to pink-eye like symptoms as well. :(  Poor girl, she also has her last 2-year molar coming in and it is causing her problems as well!

This is ear infection #6 for Haven in her 2 years and 2 months of life (that's if I'm not forgetting any).  It has definitely been a while though since her last one.  She was prescribed Amoxicillian and after THIS wonderful experience, I am so afraid to give it to her (even though Haven was just on Amoxicillian in October w/ no problems...)

Here is her updated ear infection chart (b/c I like to stay organized, lol)-

*Single ear infection 4 months old. (given Amoxicillin)

*Double ear infection at 5 months old. (given Cefdinir)

*Double ear infection at 13 months old. (given Amoxicillin)

*Double ear infection at 16 months old. (given Cefdinir)

*Double ear infection at 17 months old.  (given Cefdinir)

*Double ear infection at 26 months old (given Amoxicillin) 

I'm hoping she gets better soon and we don't have any problems with the Amoxicillin- she is getting probiotics 2x a day as well, so hopefully no diarrhea either!)

P.S.  Haven weighed in at a chunky 31 pounds! :) (She was 29.5lbs at her 2 year check-up, even though I never can trust the walk-in...)

Venily Update! Allergic to Amoxicillian!! :(

We got a call at 2:30pm yesterday saying that Venily wanted to come home and she was complaining of knee pain.  The school nurse was very concerned with what I told her the walk-in doctor had said.  She said that it shouldn't be getting worse and the swelling and rash should be getting better if she's on Benadryl.  I called Venily's doctor again (who was out until Tues) and spoke with the other pediatrician's nurse again.  She wanted Venily seen with the other dr. asap.  In the past, I have always avoided this other dr.  I'm not sure why, I did hear another mom complain about him though.

Venily was again at the point where she couldn't walk again and was in severe pain and itching like crazy!  :(  We brought her to the doctor and it was one of the best appointments I've ever been to!  He did an actual thorough exam, explained everything as he went, did research regarding her symptoms online, and came up with a diagnosis for us.  She was diagnosed with "serum-sickness like reaction" to Amoxicillian!   And he was PISSED that the stupid walk-in doctor told us to continue on with the rest of her Amoxicillian when there was even a possibility that it could be the cause.  (pretty sure I'll never go back to the Burlington walk-in again even though I DO like a few of the doctors there.  I'm also not too happy with her regular pediatrician since the problem could have been caught so early and was staring her right in the face!  uhhh!).

He gave us a ton of options of things we could do.  If we wanted to be super aggressive about it we could have said we wanted allergy testing, blood work, etc, etc, but he recommended that we not go that route if there wasn't a need (and we're pretty sure there isn't).  He said if the itching and swelling gets a lot worse then he can do a steroid shot, but wanted to wait it out a few days first and hope it gets better now that she is no longer on the Amoxicillian.  He actually gave us his personal pager # to use this weekend since he and another dr are on call and said we could page him if she gets worse or we have any q's etc.  I was pretty shocked!!!  He also wrote out the diagnosis and gave it to us and encouraged us to look it up online.  (P.S. We did and it fits her symptoms EXACTLY!!!).  Overall, I think I really like this doctor!  He is super tall (taller than Jason even) and young and really thorough and seems to know exactly what he's doing!  He even went over his regular hours time to talk to us, explain everything, and make us feel comfortable with his diagnosis.  However, I highly doubt he has children of his own.  He just doesn't seem like he does.  He is really sarcastic and was joking but kind of getting annoyed with Haven while we were there.  She was INSANELY hyper and talking to him like crazy, asking him questions, saying the goofiest stuff and just basically wanting to leave, lol!  (she is NOTHING like her sister was at this age!!!  Even Venily hardly said anything to him and mostly just whispered to us answers to his questions, lol!).  However, I love that their actual pediatrician has 4 children of her own and is really good with my children.  I think it will be in my best interest to use both the pediatricians now that I know the other one a little better.

Here is a before and after pic of her last dose of Amoxicillian:

BEFORE:

AFTER:

You can just see the absolute misery she was in!  :(  I sat on the computer crying while trying to research ways to make her feel better while Jason gave her yet another oatmeal bath!

She had a rough night once we got home.  Basically in excruciating pain and itching.  We tried EVERYTHING to make her feel better.  She finally got to sleep and actually slept pretty good.  We woke her up at 2am for her dose of Benadryl.

Today has been more of the same.  Itchy, pain, swelling.  It has spread to her ankles as well as her face (her forehead, eyelids, lips, and chin are swollen and itchy).  She is also now covered in bruises, mostly in her joints, but also everywhere she has big welts, large bruises are forming in the middle, though overall she does seem to be getting better.  :(  She just got out of her 5th oatmeal bath.  We have 3 different kinds of creams and are still giving her Benadryl every 6 hours.  She is starting to walk a bit again but it hurts her to do so and she limps around.  This has been such an awful experience and I am terrified of the next time she gets sick and needs to take antibiotics! :(

P.S.  Both my brother AND my mom are allergic to antibiotics...

I'm glad that Venily has off school on Monday.  I'm hoping she is all better by Tuesday, and Thursday is her birthday!!!

Girls' Yearly Well-Checks and another trip to the walk-in (also probably my scariest mom moment ever!)!!!

Haven had her 2 year well-check yesterday and Venily had her 4 year well-check!!

STATS:

VENILY:

HEIGHT- 42 inches (92nd %)

WEIGHT- 35 lbs (62nd %)

**She is on track to be 5'10" when she is 18 years old! :)

HAVEN:

HEIGHT- 38.5 inches (100+ %, WAY off the charts)

WEIGHT- 29.5 lbs (81st %)

HEAD CIRCUMFERENCE- 49.75 cm (95%)

**She is on track to be 6'2" when she is 18 years old!!!  Oh goodness, I hope that isn't true Haven, lol!!

Both girls did really well at the doctor's.  Right before we had their check-ups I took both of the girls to the bathroom.  I noticed a few dots on Venily's legs and she was itching her neck like crazy.  I brought it up to the doctor and she thought the 2 things were unrelated.  We figured her neck was just from her seat belt rubbing mixed with the fact that she kept putting hand sanitizer on her hands and must have touched the area.  Though I must say, my intuition said that something just wasn't right about that explanation...

The doctor was super impressed with both of the girls!!!  She kept saying that they were both so smart.  She loved that Venily is writing letters and drawing pictures and that Haven knows her alphabet and how to count and that she's potty trained already.  I had some concerns about Haven.  1st, that her right foot still turns inward substantially when she walks.  We had the doctor watch her walk and she then tested out her range of mobility, etc in that leg.  She says that she has a great range so she told us that we need to do 15-20 minutes of ballet with her a day to strengthen up the muscles and get her to turn that foot outward! :)  So that is what we are going to do to!  If the problem does not resolve itself, we are going to be sent to a podiatrist to get it looked at.  I also had the doctor look at a birth mark on Haven's leg that just showed up a few months ago (definitely long after birth).  It's really light and almost not even noticeable, but she said that was normal.  We can also officially all go on 2% milk (we all drank whole milk for years now, haha, Jason and I have been on 2% for a few months now).

Haven had to get 2 shots.  Hep B and the flu shot.  Venily had the option of the flu shot but we decided to go elsewhere and get her the mist instead (her pediatrician doesn't carry the mist, but gave us a list of places that do).  I am SOOOO glad she didn't get the flu shot today b/c it would have always been in the back of our mind that maybe it caused what happened later in the day....

Haven was a champ taking her shots!!  She whined for just a few seconds and was done completely.  When she was done she said "I'm a tough girl!  I'm so strong!" and she got to pick out a prize from the treasure box.  She was super happy! :)

A few hours later, after we dropped Venily off at school we got a call saying that Venily was itching her neck like crazy and that it was bothering her.  We were like "Oh yeah, we already had her pediatrician look at it.  She thought it was "x" and that it wasn't a big deal."

After school I picked her up, looked at her neck and saw that it looked exactly as it did in the morning and drove her straight to ballet.  We were in the car in the parking lot when she started itching all over, especially under her arms.  I looked at her hand and it was covered in red dots and her knuckles were all swollen.  I looked in her arm pit and there were giant welts, dots all over and the whole thing was unbelievably swollen.

I called her doctor and  had to settle for the other doctor's nurse.  She said to go to immediately to Urgent Care b/c it sounded like an allergic reaction.  So off we went (we were just 3 minutes away) and Venily was sad to miss ballet!  As we were driving she kept saying things that were freaking me out.  "Mommy, I'm soooooo tired!"  "Mommy, I can't bend my legs anymore."  "Mommy, I can't feel my arms!".  I was so scared.  Then, when I went to get her out of the car, she couldn't stand up b/c she was in so much pain.  I had to carry her all the way.  We had to wait in the waiting room for quite a while.  She tried playing for a few seconds and was limping like crazy and then curled up on me instead.  I lifted up her pant leg and couldn't believe how swollen her knee was!!

We finally got into the exam room and I finally got a better look at what was going on!  I was SHOCKED!!!  It looked so awful!  It took everything I had not to cry every time I spoke with a receptionist, nurse, doctor, pharmacist, etc.!  The doctor said it was just an allergic reaction to something and that she should take Benadryl and oatmeal baths.  I wanted to scream!!!  I'm like "Ummm.... she can't walk or bend her legs b/c she is so swollen!"  She said the Benadryl should help that and that it would probably get better, then get worse and then get better again and should be gone within a week!  Ahhh!  It's hard not even knowing what set it off too!  She ended up falling asleep at 6:30pm on the way home and staying asleep all night.  We set an alarm and fed her her medicine whenever she needed it.  She was moaning in pain any time I touched her, it was so sad!

In the morning she looked a lot better and was excited that she could bend her legs and do "criss cross applesauce" again! :)  She is still itching like crazy though.  I gave her an oatmeal bath and covered her in Cortizone cream.  She said she wanted to go to school so she is there right now.  Pretty sure I'm going to get a call saying I need to pick her up, lol!  This is how she looked right before she left...

Which is still way better than yesterday, but her whole body is still covered in hives! :(

Haven's 2nd Birthday and Strep!!

Okay, decided I'd do this in 2 parts.  On this one, I'll talk about Haven's actual birthday (one week earlier from today) and I am still working on all of her 2 year updates so that will be in another post!  (I highlighted the most important parts since I tend to go on and on, lol!)  I still can't believe that she's actually 2 years old!!!! :(

Haven slept in late on her birthday (should have known that that was too good to be true, lol!).  It was a cold and rainy day.  We made chocolate chip 2 shaped pancakes with whipped cream and extra chocolate chips on top! ;)  This is going to be a new tradition! :)  Venily can't wait for 4's soon!

We played and did things Haven wanted to do all morning.  Then we ate lunch (in which Haven complained that her tongue hurt as she had been the few days previously) and brought Ven to school and took naps.  

Jason had school in the morning and in the evening so we weren't really going to plan anything so I decided to invite a few people over for cake.  Once I did that, of course, Jason decided he HAD to be there and took off class, lol.  We invited a few more people and ordered some pizza too.  Aunt Jacki  noticed that there was something in Haven's mouth.  It was super white with defined edges and in the exact shape of a heart.  She looked in Venily's mouth and sure enough, she had white spots on her tonsils.  I decided that I'd bring them into the walk-in the next morning just to check things out.

We ate and Grandma did all the kids' hair, lol, and then we sang Happy Birthday and ate cake.  Haven had a great time.  Venily was acting up even more than usual (as she had the last several days, but I figured it was just from being tired).

The next day I took all 3 girls to the walk-in (their doctor was full for the day).  Uhhhhh!  We waited for 1 hour and I was ready to pull my hair out especially since the girl I babysit was super whiny.  I was just going to have Haven's tongue looked at, but decided I might as well have Venily looked at too since we were there (and she had been complaining of a sore throat, which I also had really badly).  The girls did so amazing when we saw the doctor, I couldn't believe it!  Both the nurse and doctor said they were some of the best children patients ever, lol!  And she even said she wanted to keep them around to show the other children how they are supposed to behave. ;)  Haven weighed in at 29lbs with clothes on.  Venily was 36lbs.  The girls did everything they were asked to do and were talking to the nurse and doctor and everything!  They even did the strep test like champions!!!!!!  They kept their mouths open and didn't gag or cry or anything, I couldn't believe it!  Shockingly, both were positive for strep, which showed up right away on the quick test!!  I really hope this doesn't become a trend.  I used to get strep twice a year all while growing up and my girls already have huge tonsils (mine are super small).  We then went to Walgreens and had to wait FOREVER somemore to get antibiotics.  (Keeping 3 sick children under 4 years old entertained for 3 hours while we are out and about waiting around in the waiting room, doctor's office, and then Walgreens was EXCRUCIATINGLY painful!  Oh, and did I mention I was sick too?!  Yuck!).  When we finally got home, Venily had to miss her 1st day of school, but was told she could go the following day since she'd be on antibiotics for 24 hours.

Oh, and the doctor didn't think the thing on Haven's tongue was from the strep, she just thought it was from biting it (which she does often).  It was just a lucky coincidence that I brought them in when I did!

Way home from out super long outing

Jason got home and I was feeling so horrible I had to beg him to let ME go back to the walk-in (he can be a jerk sometimes, he has a hard time stepping out of himself and seeing things from other people's points of views...).  Anyway, back to the walk-in I went and had the exact same nurse and doctor that the girls had, lol.  And embarrassingly enough, I gagged so bad when they tried to test me for strep that they couldn't get a good enough reading.... lol... but they put me on an antibiotic anyway since there was such a good chance I had the same thing or would get the same thing!  I also had to wait another 40 minutes at Walgreens to get my prescription and then it was the wrong one!!  OMG!  I left and came back after Jason and I went and saw a movie (we decided to go anyway since we've been planning it for over a week and my mom was nice enough to still want to watch sick girls, lol!).

So that's been a fun week!  The girls and I are still not 100%.  Haven keeps having a low grade fever on and off (getting top 2 year molars too).  Both girls are coughing like crazy now.  They also both have diarrhea from the antibiotics (and Walgreens was out of probiotics).  Kylee ended up getting a high temperature, but was negative for strep and my nephew (who was also over on her birthday) is sick now w/ a temp as well! :( 

Both girls have their yearly well checks on Thursday (and I have to take all 3 girls when I go)!!  So that should be interesting, lol!!  Hopefully they are truly well by then.  I don't know if they'll get their flu shots on that day (if they have them in by then) if they are still on antibiotics?  Who knows!  I also have a series of questions I need to ask about Haven, so we'll see how it all goes!  Always keeping it interesting around here... ;)

Birth Control/ Arthritis

So, I haven't been on any real birth control since I got married, just over 5 years ago.  Jason has been bothering me and bothering me about it (and threatening to get a vasectomy) so after 3 different appointment attempts, I finally got in today.  The only thing I've used in the past is the pill and then the mini pill for a total of 5 years.  Both of which I hated.  So I am trying the Nuvaring now.  AND, my doctor ordered it so that I don't have to have my period at all, which I'm pretty psyched about (I didn't know that was an option)!!!  Hopefully I like it.  I can't see myself ever going back to something I have to remember daily and I don't want anything even semi-permanent, so I'm hoping this works out for me (with no crazy hormonal side-effects!)!


I also got medication for my arthritis.  I am PRAYING that this works b/c I can hardly function some days.  I was just realizing the other day how many daily tasks I have altered in some way so that it won't hurt as bad and it was pretty sad to think about.  I've had this since I was in high school, but never thought that I had any kind of real condition, I just thought I had "weak wrists".  I used to tie stuff around my wrists really tight to "hold them together" and lessen the pain.  Duh, I should have known something was wrong, but I have always hated doctors and avoid them at all costs unless I'm basically dieing!  I guess ignoring the problem definitely hasn't made it go away so hopefully medicine will!

Haven's 18 Month Well Check!

Haven had her 18m well-check today!!  I prepped her a bunch beforehand.  I told her all things Dr. Welka was going to do (listen to her with a stethoscope, look at her ears, look at her eyes) and I even told her that she was going to get shots, but that she'd get a surprise when she was done.  She was very excited!  All morning long she was saying "Go Dr. Welka's?  Go Dr. Welka's? Listen heart beep? Give Dr. Welka hugs and kisses?  Get shot?  Get surprise?"  Lol, she always calls heart beats "heart beeps" and she didn't give Dr. Welka hugs or kisses, haha.  :)

The nurse that we usually have was out sick, and I really liked the nurse that she got this time!  Haven did really well!  She measured in at the following:

WEIGHT: 25lbs, 12 oz (75%- the nurse looked at her chart and was annoyed that they weighed her at the walk in at 27lbs with all her clothes and shoes on last time and it made a weird spike in her chart, lol)

HEIGHT: 36 inches (100+%- well off the charts, lol!)

HEAD CIRCUMFERENCE: 48.5 cm (90%)

So here is her updated charts:

Looks like she will be tall and thin like the rest of her family, lol, no real shocks there!  I am betting that she is going to be even taller than me! :)

Haven was talking like crazy to the nurse and the doctor. Dr. Welka kept saying how different my 2 girls are since it took Venily FOREVER to finally start talking to her, lol!  Haven checked out great!!!  Her blood tests from last time all look good.  Her lead level was less than a 2, which I guess is good.  And her ears are all clear!  YAY!!!  (I can totally tell that she is starting to feel a lot better b/c she actually slept all through the night last night in her own bed and is taking a nap as I type this in her OWN bed!  Hopefully we are done with ear problems for good now!  Also, 3 out of her 4 teeth that she is working on are cut through, so hopefully that will be done soon too!).  Everything else with Haven is just perfect!  She is well ahead of everything she is supposed to be doing at this point and the Dr. just went over a ton of different safety things to watch out for in the summer.  She also commented on how her belly button hernia has gotten much smaller!  When she said it, it was the first time I really noticed that it had gotten a lot smaller as well!

And a wonderful surprise... NO SHOTS this time!!! Yay!  As we were walking out to the car Haven was confused looking at her surprise (which was destroyed before we even got home) and kept asking me... "Get shot, Mommy?"  Lol, I was happy to say "Nope, not this time!".  She won't need shots again until her 2 year well check in 6 months!

Walk-in 4/6

I took Haven to the walk-in today since her 18m well-check yesterday was rescheduled for the 20th and she is acting crabby and refusing to sleep on her own (something she ONLY does when she is sick or in pain).


She did great and didn't cry one single bit! :)  She even went on the scale nicely and weighed in at 27 lbs. (Venily was 23 lbs at 18m, LOL!)  She had a bunch of fluid in her ears still, but the doctor said it looked a lot better than it did a few weeks ago when she was in (we got the same walk-in doctor).  Her chest was a bit congested as well.  The doctor thinks it's her teeth that are bothering her and that is causing some discomfort in her ears as well.  Uhhhh.... can't wait for the rest of these teeth to cut through!!!!


Even though she is crabby whenever it's time to sleep, she woke me up this morning singing "All the single ladies" by Beyonce, LOL!!!  Even though there was no music playing and she was the 1st person to wake up!  :)  She says "All the single ladies, all the single ladies" and then does the "oh, oh, oh, oh, oh" part.  ♥

Another double ear infection! :(

I took Haven into the walk-in today because she has been a wreck the last couple of days.  Normally she is very easy going and never throws tantrums, but when she has ear infections, every little thing is a break down, lol!  She won't let me leave her side whatsoever and heaven forbid, you give her something she doesn't want... YIKES!!  Yesterday I turned on Dinosaur Train to see if she'd let me do the dishes and she said "NO Dinosaur Train... Wonder Pets!!" (followed by a melt down).  LOL!  I miss my happy little girl!!!!!

She did great at the doctor's though, I was really proud of her!  Had no problem with the nurse or doctor listening to her heart or looking at her ears, taking her temp, etc.  However, she flat out REFUSED to stand on the scale and get weighed.  She kept arching her back and throwing a fit!!  Both her ears were definitely infected and she got put on an antibiotic (Cefdinir) which was the same one she got put on last month as well.

Her last double ear infection was just one month ago, so I'm really hoping this trend stops!!!!  This is her 5th time having an ear infection!  Venily only had 1 at Haven's age! :(  I haven't seen her pediatrician since her 15m checkup, but she goes for her 18m checkup on April 4th, so we'll see what she has to say!

My poor little baby!!

Haven had a low grade fever this morning and a super runny nose the last 2 days.  She was also stumbling all around this morning and falling over (which I had thought I remembered was a sign of an ear infection).  When she woke up from her nap she was happy, but when she was sitting on my lap she made a face like something hurt her and said "ear hurt".  Soooo..... needless to say, I told Jason to take her to the walk-in since I had to stay home to get Allison off the bus.  And, sure enough, double ear infection!! :(  

I looked back through my online posts and this is the FOURTH time she's had an ear infection!  One when she was 4 months old, a double ear infection at 5 months old, a double ear infection at 13 months old, and now another double ear infection at 16 months old! :(

Haven Follow-Up

Haven had her follow-up appointment for her ear infections today.  Kind of late, but Jason kept bothering me that maybe she still had an ear infection, so I took her in!  Her ears look good though, she is a little congested, but that's it!

And she either weighed 24.1 pounds OR 24 pounds, 10 ounces.  It was 24.10 on the digital scale, but I didn't look close enough to see if it had pounds and ounces on the bottom (I seem to think it does).  Plus I think the nurse said she was 24 and a half pounds.  Oh well, we will find out for sure at her 15 month appointment (the first week in January)!  Jason was like "What does it even matter?"  Lol.  I guess it doesn't, it just matters to me! :)

Also, the doctor said it looks like she is getting her bottom 2 incisor teeth now as well!

Venily's 3 Year Well-Check!

Venily had her 3 year well-check today!!  She's doing so great!

Pic: Venily and her cousin Bryant, waiting for the doctor to come in!

Her measurements at 3 years:
HEIGHT: 39 inches (85%)
WEIGHT: 32 pounds (62%)


She actually got to use the real scale and wall measurer this time.  I was so surprised at her 2 year check when they still made her sit on the baby scale and lay on the bed to measure her, lol.  I guess they see her as a real little girl now!  Starting at 3 years, she also gets to get her blood pressure taken!  She has a blood pressure thing in her doctor kit, so she was excited about that!  :)


AND VENILY BLEW ME AWAY AT HOW GREAT SHE WAS!!!!!  She talked to the nurse and doctor and wasn't shy at all!  I think sending her to preschool was one of the best decisions ever, I really think it's helping her out a lot with her shyness!  The doctor said that Venily is doing amazing and is way ahead with all of her developmental stuff!  She said that Venily doesn't have to nap anymore, as long as she gets a rest time (she's been going back and forth with taking a nap and not lately).  The doctor looked at her eczema again and said that it's a bad time of year for it.  At it's worst, it's on both of the backs of her thighs and up on her butt checks too.  Right now it's kind of moderate.... a few patches, mostly on the back of one of her legs.  I am supposed to put her prescription on her again 2x a day for a week and moisturize it really good.  And I'm supposed to be giving her a bath every THIRD day (we've been doing every other day)!


Venily knew she was going to need to have a shot and was actually excited about it, lol!  We had been practicing on her and her babies for a few days now!  She took her shot like a champ without a whine or single tear and as soon as it was done she was asking about getting her prize from the treasure chest, lol!!  She even told me that she LOVES shots!!  She amazes me at how tough she is! :)

Haven Araya is ONE year old!!!

I can't believe that my baby girl is one year old already!!!!
Yes, her birthday was on Sunday.  Yes, I am posting this on Tuesday.  No, I don't have her update ready, even now! :(  I just can't do it.  I will, but it might take me a week or two.


She had a great first birthday though!!  It started out a little rough, we had to call Poison Control for the first time ever!  She woke up from her morning nap with stuff all over her and it ended up being the entire container of fish food that she had grabbed off her dresser and opened.  Not knowing what the heck is in that stuff, we had to call and it turned out it was fine... though it DID shake Jason up pretty badly.  
After that we went out to eat with her aunt and uncle and cousins and then we went to the Bear Den Petting Zoo, which is always a good time!  The weather was nice and Haven loved seeing all of the animals and she went on a hay ride too.  
 
 
Then we went back to our house where we had a fire and dinner with more family and she got to eat a cupcake for the first time!  She even blew out her own candle even though I had never practiced that with her before, I just taught her to blow on hot things! :)


Today Haven had her one year well check and shots!  She is doing awesome!!!!  I think her doctor used the term "amazing" at least 3 times, lol!  And I purposefully didn't even tell her all the things she can do! :)  Haven weighed in at 23 pounds (88th%ile) and was 32.5 inches long (100th%ile).  The doctor was laughing that she's so tall, lol!  Her head circumference was 47.5 cm.  She was not a fan of being at the doctor's at all.  She wasn't screaming or anything, but she had tears streaming down her face almost the whole time and her face got all red b/c she was so upset! :(  She did fine with her 2 shots though.  One was a combo MMR and Chicken Pox shot and the other was a half dose of the flu shot.  She's supposed to come back in a month for the 2nd half of the flu shot.  But, I may "forget" to come back, lol.  The nurse said that just having half would offer her protection against it.  I also "forgot" to ask about her lead test.  I just didn't want any more sadness from her!!!  Plus, I really don't think she has any lead problems.


She's beyond all of the things she should be doing, which I knew, but it's nice to hear anyway.  The only thing she needs to work on now is going DOWN the stairs.  Which fills me with absolute anxiety b/c I have an irrational fear of stairs.  I've let her go down a few times and she CAN do it (on her butt), but she likes to stand up and I am soooo scared she's going to fall, so I hold onto her hand while she does it most times.


We've been down to only nursing twice a day recently, and will continue to wean from here.  I've been giving her whole milk w/ all of her meals, so there is really no reason for me to continue nursing anyway.  It's bittersweet.  I love nursing, but am finding it kind of embarrassing like when we were in the waiting room and Haven comes over to me and says perfectly clearly "Mama, Mama.... milk!!!" while pulling at my shirt, haha.  The doctor was happy to hear that we made it this long.  Also, she supports my decision to Extended Rear Face Haven's carseat.  She suggests going until 15 months since Haven is so tall.  I mentally rolled my eyes at her, but I'm thinking that's probably how long we'll go for anyways. She goes back in 3 more months for her 15 month check up and shots.


Other random stuff:  She still has her umbilical hernia (which I knew).  Her top molars are definitely coming in (which I knew).  And her eyes/ ears/ hips, etc. all look good! :)

Girls' Doctor Appointments!

We took both girls in this morning to get checked out.  They both have little colds and Haven needed her ears checked again and I wanted the doctor to look at Venily's eczema rash on the back of her leg since regular lotion is not making it any better and it's starting to spread!

Haven's ears look great, yay!  Hoping we are done with ear infections now for a while!  Haven weighed in at 20lbs, 14oz! :)

Venily got a prescription for her eczema- Triamcinolone.  She's got to have it put on 2x a day for a week.  I hope that helps!  Venily weighed in at 29lbs, 6oz!  LOL, Venily better watch it, Haven is catching up quick!


Other news- Haven slept through the night again last night!  I am very happy!!  Hopefully now that she is better, she can go back to sleeping through the night all the time!  Also, she stood by herself in the middle of the floor several times yesterday without touching or holding on to anything or wearing shoes, for about 5 seconds each time!  Just wanting me to see a little of what's to come (whether I'm ready or not!)!! :)

Doctor Appointment- Haven

I decided to take Haven into the doctor today!  She's had a low grade fever on and off since last Wednesday and got up to 102.1 this morning, and has been uncharacteristically fussy so I wanted to see what was going on!  She had shots last Tuesday and has been teething like crazy and her one tooth finally popped through today so I kept deciding to wait on bringing her in.  I knew she had an ear infection though!!  And she did.  On the left side and the right was a little red as well!  Hmmm.... her last ear infection was just a little over a month ago!  I am NOT liking this trend, Venily NEVER got ear infections!!!  I hope Haven isn't one of those kids, lol!  My nephew Chase had to have tubes in his ears, I'm really hoping it never comes to that!


The nurse practitioner (Haven's dr. was on vacation) put her on a different antibiotic than last time, CEFDINIR (never heard of it...),  since she was on the high dosage of Amoxicillin last time and that was only a month ago!  I hope that does the trick!


And Haven weighed in at 20 POUNDS, 2 OUNCES!!! LOL!  I knew she was going through a growth spurt!  Her last doctor appointment was exactly one week ago and she was 19lbs, 1 oz at that appointment, haha!  Yikes!  No wonder my shoulders and back hurt from her making me carry her all day (including the entire time grocery shopping)!!


The good thing is that she's not contagious, so if she's feeling better hopefully we can make it to our Building Blocks class tomorrow!!

Haven's 6 month well-check!

Haven is a big, tall, healthy 6 month old! :)


Her stats:


Height: 28.5 inches (97+ percentile)
Weight: 19 pounds, 1 ounce (95th percentile)
Head Circumference: 44.5cm

(Venily was 16lbs, 13oz and 27.25in long)


The doctor had a student doctor with her today so Haven had to get checked up twice!  She was super smiley and happy until she had to lay down.  She is not a fan of laying down to get checked out, lol, I think she remembers what usually happens in the past while laying down at the doctor's!  She was way more upset about laying down and getting looked at than getting her shots, lol!  Other than that, everything is GREAT and she is on target or ahead for all her developmental stuff!  Her doctor said that those bottom two teeth should be coming in soon.  And both doctors and the nurse loved how she sucks on her fingers, lol!  Her doctor even said that like the thumb guard for kids who suck their thumb, they actually have a guard for those 2 middle fingers as well, but we won't have to worry about that for awhile! ;)  I am anticipating that she is going to need it though, haha, she sure does love those fingers!!!

Next check up is at 9 months and no immunizations for that one!

Doctor Visit

We took the girls into the walk-in yesterday because they were still so miserable.  Both girls ended up having left ear infections and upper respiratory infections and are now on antibiotics.  It was Haven's first ever sick visit!  [It's going to be really hard to get Jason to let me take the girls out to their classes and play group now, but I WILL do it!]  Both girls did really well while at the doctor's.  Venily was only a little shy and Haven even got a Nebulizer breathing treatment and stayed her little adorable, happy self! :)  Haven weighed in at 17lbs, 8oz (@4m, 3w, 1d old) and Venily weighed 29.5lbs (@2years, 4months).


Here's a pic of my happy little Haven at the doctor's...

My gosh, I LOVE her!!  I am NOT a religious person at all but I do believe in destiny and in something bigger than ourselves.  And I truly believe that Haven is meant to do huge things with her happy little personality!  She is going to have an impact on thousands of people as she does with everyone near her.  She is my little sunshine and she is going to make so many people so very happy!  I can't wait to see all that she accomplishes, because it's going to be AMAZING! :)


I hope my girls start feeling better soon!  Last night was rough!!  And I'm still really sick as well.

Venily's 2 Year Well-Check!

Venily had her 2 Year Well-Check today finally (at 2 years, 2 months)!

Venily's 2 Year Stats:

Weight: 27lbs, 6oz
Height: 37 inches (96th %ile)
Head Circumference: 48.5

And because what else am I going to do while waiting for the doctor, lol... Haven weighed 15lbs, 9oz! (Up from 15lbs, 3oz thirteen days ago! Oh boy!)


Everything else went great!! The doctor was very impressed with everything that she can do and she looks very healthy! She is a smart little cookie, that's for sure! She also said that Venily is going to be a TALL girl (but I still think that Haven is going to have her beat!!)!!

Venily needed 2 shots and Haven needed 1. I am so amazed at how awesome my 2 girls are it's not even funny! I TOLD Venily that she was going to get 2 shots today and she didn't even care! Then she got them and just flinched a little for each and when they were done, she asked "Can I get my treasures now?" (she got to pick out 2 treasures from the treasure chest)! Then it was Haven's turn. She cried for a few seconds and then I fed her and she fell asleep! The whole way home I kept thinking 'these can't be my girls!', I don't think I could be more proud of them!

I think even Jason should agree with me that it's time for Venily to get her ears pierced!! (I've been pushing for it since before she was born!). And his thing was "once she's old enough to realize what's going to happen and wants to get it done." Well, she definitely can handle it and says she wants it done, so I hope he doesn't get mad when I come home one day with them pierced! :)

p.s. Venily can now recognize "V" and "T" on the keyboard and keeps wanting to press them, lol!

Haven's 2 Month Well-Check!

Haven had her 2 month well-check today and she is a very healthy little (or I should say BIG) girl! :)

The nurse and doctor were very impressed with how strong she is and how well she holds herself up, how focused she is, and of course how sweet and happy she is! :) She was also impressed that she is going 8-9.5 hours straight of sleep every night!

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Her 2 month stats:

WEIGHT: 15 lbs, 3 oz!

HEIGHT: 25 inches!

Head circumference: 41 cm

(At Venily's 2 month visit she was 12lbs, 7 oz and 23 inches long!)

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Haven is off the growth chart for height and weight!!! The doctor said that she is very healthy and since she is off the chart for both she is proportional and perfect! :)

She had 2 shots today and took them like a little champ! Just cried for a second and then was happy again. I gave her some Tylenol anyway and so far she hasn't had any indication that they are bothering her. She was supposed to have 1 more shot, but they were out of it unfortunately and she'll have to have it on Dec. 16th when I go back in with Venily for her well-check!

We talked about her spitting up again. (Which is still often but SOOOO much better than it was in the beginning). And the doctor said that since she's gaining weight so well and since she's able to get it out without gagging on it anymore, there's really nothing to do but wait it out... which is fine with me. I just need to make sure that she gets a really good burp out after every feeding (which she is doing a lot better with now!).

Her next well-check is at 4 months, on January 26th!

6 Week Postpartum Dr. Appt

Everything looks great, no problems whatsoever! I didn't think there would be, I feel fantastic, but it's still nice to know! I also got a prescription for a pill that I can take while breastfeeding (though I'm still leery about it). I haven't been on any real birth control since we were married about 3 1/2 years ago, so I'm not looking forward to it at all! :( But it has at least got Jason to stop bringing up the "v" word! :) I'm thinking about getting an IUD in about a year when I'm all done with breastfeeding, but I know I will cry my eyes out while I get it, even though it can easily be taken out!