I forgot!

How could I forget??? The congestion was allergies too. So when we are back at the dr's for his well-child check-up, well talk about allergy meds. YUCK! I was hoping Ethan would get lucky like me and have no allergies. But with my family's history, and John's seasonal sneezing fits, I should have expected it. Such is life.

AH HA!

I've identified the cause of Ethan's rash. Ethan is allergic to his sunblock! So now we are on a quest to figure out which ingredient it is. I have a guess, but it's one that's in every single sunblock I can find. We are already figuring out which parks have shade at which times of day. It may be a while before we can find a sunblock that doesn't make Ethan all itchy, and we can't stay inside until then, so we are going to try to play in the shade and be outside for shorter spans of time. Allergies are sooo frustrating!

In a Good Mood

It's hard not to be in a good mood when running errands means you get to listen to Ethan singing along with the radio in the car. I doesn't happen often because he's still shy about singing, but when it does, it just makes my day.

Week 3 cont.

So we went back to the doctor this morning. He spiked a fever yesterday afternoon and screamed for an hour and a half until John came home from work. Apparently daddy is more of a comfort at the moment. (It's OK. Usually it's the other way around.) So while he was screaming, and I was attempting to calm him down and not burst into to tears myself, I scheduled the appointment. I was kind of obnoxious and got them to open up an appointment with Ethan's actual pediatrician, and not with whichever NP had an opening.

It was good. She checked him for pneoumonia, a sore throat, and rechecked his ears. No pneumo, no sore throat, and ears getting better slowly. We talked it out and decided that the congestion (which has caused all of the problem over the last few weeks) probably has an allergy component. So we are going to cut out the decongestant, give Ethan a HUGE dose of Benadryl before bed, and see if he still has a bad night. When I say HUGE, I mean he is getting the normal dose for a 6 year old. I'm just glad it knocks him out instead of making him wired.

So, hopefully this will be the end of our miserableness. Maybe we will get a solid night's sleep sometime soon! OH NO! I forgot. She also said she could see his molars coming in. So maybe we won't sleep. But I can dream, can't I?

Week 3 of the Virus

The first week we had all those crazy symptoms. Then, in week two, it seemed to be clearing up, except for a cough at night. The cough got progressively worse, waking Ethan up several times a night b/c his throat was so clogged with mucus he choked on it. But our days were fine, so we just gave him decongestant and hoped that it would pass. Sunday (the beginning of week 3), the mucus problem began to creep into daylight hours as well. After no nap that day, I decided to take him in Monday morning. Lo and behold, the mucus was creating yet another problem. A double ear-infection. So now Ethan is on an antibiotic, a decongestant, and a pain-killer. And he still sounds like he might cough up a lung. I can only pray that there is no week 4.

Random Photos

I just uploaded a batch of photos from the camera, so I thought I'd share a few. (I think that the first two are sideways.)

"Look Mom! I found the outside!"

I don't know what's so funny about that piece of bread, but apparently it was hilarious.

Tasting Daddy

Ready for a prayer

Taking the stairs

This is the sign he makes when he asks "Where is it?"

Having a lunch at the big table because the high-chair was not our friend that day.

What a cute boy we have!

Randomness

1 - I was just working on a little scrapbook about John. (I'm doing a set of four small ones to cover 2006. One about Me, one about John, one about our family, and one to recap the year.) It's fun to try to come up with a list of random facts about your husband (did you know John has an obsession with jackets and bags??) or try to characterize him with the 26 letters of the alphabet. It's surprising the little things that I don't really think about, but make up the person that I love. Try making a list of fun facts about someone you love. I guarantee it will make you smile!

2 - Ethan has a serious oral fixation. I kind of assumed it would go away by now! He not only puts literally everything in his mouth, he walks around chewing on his fingers all day. People always ask if he's teething. No. He just likes to see how things taste and what happens if he bites them. So gross.

3 - Ethan is getting so grown up! I cut his hair and in just a few minutes he went from looking like a little toddler to a big one! And he has new words every day. Everything from "Let's go!" and "Where is it?" to "I don't know" and "I can do it". Oddly, he has fewer single words.

4 - We bought a little slide at a garage sale today. After I cleaned it, we put it in the living room and let Ethan go wild. I think it was the best purchase we ever made.

Photos!

I finally figured out why I couldn't add photos to my blog. Now that I can, I will try to put in pictures of Ethan every so often. (Definiatly more often than John.) These are from a month or so ago, but are just the cutest! Ethan was eating macaroni and cheese when he decided that it would make great hair gel.

My John

A woman on 'A Baby Story' today said, "You never realize how much you can love someone until you hold your baby in your arms." Don't think that I'm a horrible mother, but I immediatly balked at that. As much as I love my son, I love my husband so much more. Maybe it's because Ethan is dependent on me, which gets exhausting, and I'm dependent on John for my sanity. But I don't think so. When I look at John, I not only see who he is, but who he has the potential to become. And because we are sealed, what we have the potential to become together. And when I look at Ethan in that eternal perspective, I'm glad that we have the opportunity to be his parents, but his potential will not be greatest simply as our son. So we will teach him and let him find his own partner for that. How could I love my son more than I love my husband? I can't. And that's the way it should be.

Filthy

I just got home from work. It's late, I'm tired, and looking at my house makes me want to cry. It is normally hard to get housework done with Ethan around b/c he gets in the way (on purpose, to get attention.) With him sick, ZERO housework has been done all week. That means that you can't go in the kitchen without shoes, we are all running out of clothes, the dishes are spread out along the counter, the carpets are developing a crust of goldfish and raisins, and all is in general disarray. I think it may take a while to get everything back to normal.

Luckily, our friend upstairs LOVES to clean. I'm not kidding. It makes her feel good. So good, in fact, that she has asked to come help! I know. You are all thinking that she is just being a good friend. But no, she really enjoys cleaning that much. You should see her apartment. So now that Ethan is on the upswing and we have some help, maybe walking into my house won't make me want to walk back out again.

Still sick and stuck at home

It's now Thursday and Ethan is still sick, but I think I see the end in sight. The rash cleared up everywhere except his face (and I think the face was maybe a different rash than the body.) The body rash appeared to be viral, as a cold hit in the middle of the night Sunday and kept us all from sleeping. Now it's the cold that's the problem. When Ethan is congested, he won't eat or sleep. He was so tired the last two days that he fell asleep on my shoulder twice! He doesn't do that EVER. And only having mucus, milk, and medicine in his stomach made him throw up the other night. Yuck. But it does seem to be improving.

My biggest complaint has been keeping us occupied while stuck at home. We would go for walks for fresh air, but it's been raining all week. I, like always, have plenty of housework I could do, but Ethan has just wanted to be held all day. It was cute for a while, but my arms are tired. We've watched nearly every disney movie we own, and I've banned Blue's Clues for a few days for my own sanity. This had better be over soon, or I'm going to make John take a vacation day so that I can get out of the house!

Our First Mystery Rash

Ethan doesn't get sick. He's like his dad that way. And on the rare occasion that he is, we usually find out about it by accident. (Like the two times he's had ear infections in both ears when we went in for well-baby check-ups!) He never seems to be really bothered.

But today, he has a rash. It apparently appeared friday and SOMEONE forgot to tell me about it. I discovered it on the back of Ethan's neck and on his arms when I gave him a bath last night. It didn't look too bad, maybe just a combination of dry skin and too much sun, so Ethan got all lotioned up before bed. This morning, the majority of the small dots are gone, but the ones that stayed are bigger, redder, itchy, and spreading! It's now on his face. And of course, it's Sunday. Today is going to be fun! Benadryl and oatmeal baths should hold us until the morning. If it's worse tomorrow, I'll take him to the doctors. If it's the same, I'll just call and make sure that I'm doing what I should be. If it's better, I'll be proud of myself!

Just as long as it's not a reaction to something. The only thing different about the last week was being outside more. Oh! And the beach. Maybe he's allergic to seaweed? Or mussels? (Both were washed up on the beach we went to.) Anyway, he's too young for allergy testing, so it would mean trial and error to find places he could play. Yuck.

I hope it's just a weird nothing. Poor little guy.

Playing in the sand

Yesterday Ethan and I headed up to the North Shore to pick up the last set of Ethan's professional photos. (I know, mom. We had these taken back in december. But there was a shipping problem and they needed to be reprinted. And then I had to find time to drive up there to avoid shipping them again. So now I have them. Leave me alone.) They are FANTASTIC! It's the set of 4, one from each session his first year.

Anyway, we were on the North Shore, not three blocks from the beach, so Ethan and I went to play for a while before heading back home. Can I tell you that he is so cute? We had so much fun running back and forth along the beach, finding shells, and burying our feet. And of course, I forgot the camera. We only stayed for about 30 min, but it was so much fun. I need to find a nice beach that is closer to home. Maybe Walden Pond?

EDIT - My mom wanted me to mention that it was the Mom in my head bugging me about the photos, not her. I nag myself way more than anyone else does!

Community

About two weeks ago, John and I were asked if we would help our ward's 'Lost Sheep' committee try out a few things. When it's our bishop asking, we always know that there is a specific reason that he has been directed to ask us. So we agreed, and got our assignments. 4 people. No luck.

But as I've been thinking about those that have chosen to leave the church, I've been practically smacked in the head by all the reasons to stay. And not the obvious that are most important in the eternal perspective, but the day-to-day things that the church and our ward provides. I think that I can sum them all up in one word. Community. There hasn't been a day in over a week that I haven't had things to do with members of the church. Some have been regular playgroups, a ward activity, a visit from visiting teachers. And some have been things that I've done with friends, a baby shower, a swim lesson we signed our kids up for together, an informal craft night, etc. I can't imagine having such a full life without this huge group of friends that are almost put in your lap. And I can't imagine chosing to leave it! I just feel so blessed.

Wa Wa

That's "Woof Woof" for those of you who haven't heard Ethan barking like a dog. He even sneaks an F on the end occasionally. We are also working on quacking like a duck!

A Good Hour

Ethan is quite a terror. He is so active, and has learned how to use chairs to climb to new hieghts. We have gone from rarely saying no, to saying it every few minutes. But on Thursday, we had a good hour.

It started after Ethan refused to eat lunch in his high-chair. He wanted to sit at the table. So I got out his booster seat and fed him lunch at the table. He was sooo happy. I even got to eat all of my own lunch! (I have pretty much given up on eating unless Ethan is asleep or distracted to avoid the whining and fits. Also, so that I get to eat more than 3 bites of a meal.) We sat across the table and ate. Ethan was swinging his legs and humming while he ate. So nice.

When lunch was over, the peacefulness continued. Ethan did so many cute things that I can't even remember them all. He danced around with Baby and his musical microphone. He helped me with the dishwasher and laundry. He even pushed around the Swiffer Flick-it, cleaning the living room floor! We played hide and seek. He told me a story. And the list goes on.

It was nice to have a good hour to make up for the week of craziness.

NO!

We don't really say "no" to Ethan. Our house is really baby-proofed, and he's a good kid. But we've had a hard time at church and at playgroup when he tries to do something he shouldn't. So Ethan has been hearing "no" a little more than normal lately. And he learned it fast! We now hear no as the answer to almost any question. He also says "yes" or "umm" in response, but he prefers "no". Even if he means yes, he says no. And it's the cutest little "no" you've ever heard!

Time to say a prayer

We haven't really been stressing that Ethan should participate in prayers yet, but he figured it out yesterday. We were playing, doing nothing related to praying, and Ethan stopped, folded his arms, and stared at me. So I folded my arms and said a short prayer. Ethan clapped and was so excited. This repeated three more times before Ethan's attention moved on to other things. Then, after John came home, Ethan tried it again with Dad. So, because it was monday, we had a little on-the-spot FHE lesson on prayer. Ethan even tried to close his eyes! Really he was squinting at us, but it was so cute. Eventually, the excitement of it all was too much and Ethan would yell and laugh during the prayers. Our little guy is growing and learning so fast!

He didn't cry???

That's right. Our little punk, whose been obnoxious for us, didn't cry when we left him for a day. Not once. We put him to bed friday night, and drove up to Maine for John's birthday. Ethan woke up saturday and spent the day with Grandpa G. and his family. No tears. It apparently took him a few minutes to decide that it would be ok, but that was it. What a weird kid. On the other hand, it means we can do this kind of thing more often! Woo-hoo!!

Now about our trip. We went up to Maine where I'd booked the suite at this quaint little hotel. We had dinner at restaurant out on the docks while a local band played upstairs and the dining room cleared, leaving us to enjoy a wonderful dinner alone. Then back to the hotel for the whirlpool tub (the reason for the suite). Skipping till morning, we slept in as late as we wanted and had breakfast at the hotel. Then out for some shopping! (This was actually John's idea!) We were hoping to make it further up the coast to walk along a beach, but John's jean hunt took quite a while, so we just hit a few other shops, had lunch, and headed back to our boy. It was so great to get away and relax!

OH! A few people have asked about our friend's little boy, so I thought I'd pass on the news. After the second dose of chemo, they couldn't handle putting his body through it, so they contacted yet another specialist for yet another opinion. (All the others said the same thing.) This one was in SLC and wanted to redo the scans, so they headed out about two weeks ago. The scans were CLEAN! No more spots on his little bones. They will redo the scans again in a few months to make sure, but our friends feel like they can start breathing again. And Ethan is excited that his friend is back in the game.

The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

I could come up with excuses for why I haven't posted in a while, but the real reason is that Ethan is a toddler. And I'm exhausted. So let me catch you up on our little crazy man.

The Good. Ethan's vocabulary is growing. He loves that he can communicate, and gets soooo happy when we understand him.

The Bad. Quite often, we have no idea what Ethan is saying. His understandable vocabulary is much smaller than he thinks it is.

The Ugly. Tantrums ensue when we can't figure out what it is Ethan is asking for. And he has taken to biting me if he thinks I'm not paying close enough attention.

In general, Ethan is still a happy boy. But my patience wears thin on those days he decides nothing is going his way. I just have to keep reminding myself that it will pass. Eventually...