You'd never know it from this photo, but Lexi has been one sick little girl.
It's been a rough calendar year, health-wise. In the last six weeks, Lexi has weathered two ear infections, cut three teeth (with three more close to eruption), and endured the congestion and searing throat that come with bronchiolitis. Just today we got stronger antibiotics and pain-management ear drops for the second ear infection. The urgent care doctor who helped us over the phone last night also diagnosed tonsilitis in our sweet baby this morning.
No wonder Lexi hasn't been sleeping or eating or smiling.
We're very glad for insurance and antibiotics and Motrin. And especially for Lexi's terrific personality, which happily returned this afternoon.
Get well, little girl!
Lately I've been trying to improve myself, to enrich my brain, to learn new things.
So I've been reading more, writing more, and trying to participate in activities
that use brain cells rather than kill them.
I have also been trying to notice the little things that make my life good.
For me, this is sometimes a laborious exercise, because I tend to get bogged down by the big picture and to see that big picture dimly.
But I am trying -- on both fronts.
This morning's routine reminded me
how much I appreciate
medicine.
So I had the thought to write an ode, and then I wondered,
"What is an ode, exactly?"
So I looked it up.
According to this little eHow.com article,
"The ode is generally defined as a rhymed poem of irregular meter
that praises its subject.
The English ode consists of an undefined number of 10-line stanzas."
Interesting. I also learned that each stanza follows an "ababcdecde" format.
I decided to try.
What follows is my five-minute attempt:
a single stanza in ababcdecde iambic pentameter.
I threw in pictures just for kicks.
An ode to modern medicine
I'm glad that in two thousand nine
A pharmacy's just down the street
For ailments young and old (and mine)
A cure or treatment there I'll meet
For coughs and third trimester puke
For earaches all the winter long
For eczema skin rashes red
A cream or salve or band rebukes
When illness flares and seems too strong,
A modern freezer soothes 'fore bed.
...
So, did you learn something today?
[This silly exercise was brought you
by the rambling, wacky thoughts of a mom who often feels dumb.]
Our little family of five had six medical appointments in two days this week. I know you are dying for a report.
On Wednesday (after waking up late and frantically remembering the schedule), I took Zach to school and went to the dentist while Garry took Tyler and Gavin to Gavin's well-child check-up. (This is what happens when a lack of brain function leads to double-booking appointments.) That afternoon Zach and Ty visited the dentist as well.
This morning we braved the snowy, icy roads so Garry could see the dentist (with Zach in tow -- school started late today) and I could attend my 16-week OB appointment. Tyler and Gavin tagged along with me. What a party.
Garry handled Gavin's check-up -- Daddy's first, I might add -- like a pro. He had to deal with co-pay issues and lack-o'-medical-record issues (oh, yeah, I need to follow up on that), the list of questions I sent with him, and immunizations. Happily, Gavin is doing great. While he ran all over the room, climbed in and out of the toy basket, and jabbered on, Garry talked to the doctor about ditching the milk bottle and, after that, the binky. We're on it...after the holidays. Gavin is in the 80-85th percentile for height and weight (I thought it would be higher). We love his chub around here. This is what 25.5 pounds of mischievous baby looks like:
Our neighbor referred us to an awesome dental office. The boys had a terrific time at their appointments. The hygienist was so much fun; she let Tyler do saliva suction for himself and Zachary! Although I was pretty concerned about the boys' oral hygiene (I have not been an attentive parent the last few months), they walked away with zero cavities, new toothbrushes, and the surprising fact that they don't have to use toothpaste to achieve clean teeth. Ironically, it was I, the obsessive/compulsive brusher in the family, who had a cavity this week. I blame it on three months of puke.
Baby #4 has a heartbeat, which I was privileged to hear this morning. Ah, such a wonderful sound. I have been feeling pretty well for the last two weeks, and it was starting to freak me out. While I have been oh-so-grateful not to spend my days with my head in toilet, I have never felt so well so early and I took it to be an omen of bad news. However, it turns out I'm just a drama queen with a big blessing in my life.
And I've gained five pounds in two weeks. Guess whose appetite is back? It's probably time to dust off the treadmill.
