October 28, 2009
October 16, 2009
One Smart Cookie
Okay, please don't criticize our parenting because of this blog post. Things happen to toddlers are part of growing up. That being said, I introduce you to Abby's newest "mark" of achievement: The Black Eye:
On Wednesday evening the three of us were playing a fun game of Hide-and-Seek between getting home and dinner time, and in typical fashion, it was an accidental game of H&S. I came into the kitchen to stop some whining by Abby, then ran up the hall to get away from the situation. You know, fix things, make people laugh, run away.
Abby and Anny, though, took that to mean that it was time to chase Daddy, who was really just trying to find a little moment to use the potty. I did the hallway loop, then through the dining room into the bathroom. Anny and Abby followed, but stopped at the crossroads of our house - the top of the stairs. Anny went up the hall, I didn't move. Abby must have spun in place, because the next thing I hear is Anny gasping at the idea that our Abby was falling down the stairs!!
Here cheek got black immediately, so we tried to put ice on it, and forced it on for a couple of minutes. Then we resorted to our normal calm-down activity - Sesame Street. She sat quietly and would let us look at it, but not touch it. Not surprising. We were concerned about two things - that she damaged her eye or that she broke her orbital bone. Anny felt around the bone and could not find any concern, but the eye seemed harder. She was answering the "how many fingers" and "what is this sign" but we could not be sure if she was using her hurt side or the other one. Finally I just asked "hey Abby, does your eye hurt?" She's smart enough that she looked at me and said "no, Daddy. My cheek hurts." There, our concern was lessened - she could identify it for us. Phew.
On Thursday morning when getting her dressed, Abby looked at me very seriously and said "Daddy, next time I go down the stairs, I want to go on my feet!" I looked at Anny and whispered "I guess she is implying 'and not on my face!' when she says that!"
On Friday Abby had a previously scheduled pediatrician appointment and he gladly looked around both the outside and inside of her eye. He assured us that she is fine, but reminded us that we are very lucky that no more damage was done. Lucky indeed.
We got lots of questions, and honestly I fear Child Protective Services. Our kid has a black eye and our excuse is she fell down the stairs? That's likely, right? Lucky for us, she's very vocal and can tell everyone herself if they ask!
*You can find the concept for the photo HERE. Abby would not look sad for me, but instead looked like she would mock someone into actually fighting her!
Abby and Anny, though, took that to mean that it was time to chase Daddy, who was really just trying to find a little moment to use the potty. I did the hallway loop, then through the dining room into the bathroom. Anny and Abby followed, but stopped at the crossroads of our house - the top of the stairs. Anny went up the hall, I didn't move. Abby must have spun in place, because the next thing I hear is Anny gasping at the idea that our Abby was falling down the stairs!!
Here cheek got black immediately, so we tried to put ice on it, and forced it on for a couple of minutes. Then we resorted to our normal calm-down activity - Sesame Street. She sat quietly and would let us look at it, but not touch it. Not surprising. We were concerned about two things - that she damaged her eye or that she broke her orbital bone. Anny felt around the bone and could not find any concern, but the eye seemed harder. She was answering the "how many fingers" and "what is this sign" but we could not be sure if she was using her hurt side or the other one. Finally I just asked "hey Abby, does your eye hurt?" She's smart enough that she looked at me and said "no, Daddy. My cheek hurts." There, our concern was lessened - she could identify it for us. Phew.
On Thursday morning when getting her dressed, Abby looked at me very seriously and said "Daddy, next time I go down the stairs, I want to go on my feet!" I looked at Anny and whispered "I guess she is implying 'and not on my face!' when she says that!"
On Friday Abby had a previously scheduled pediatrician appointment and he gladly looked around both the outside and inside of her eye. He assured us that she is fine, but reminded us that we are very lucky that no more damage was done. Lucky indeed.
We got lots of questions, and honestly I fear Child Protective Services. Our kid has a black eye and our excuse is she fell down the stairs? That's likely, right? Lucky for us, she's very vocal and can tell everyone herself if they ask!
*You can find the concept for the photo HERE. Abby would not look sad for me, but instead looked like she would mock someone into actually fighting her!
October 15, 2009
Kidney Update
Yesterday was my six-month appointment with my nephrologist. (If you're local and looking for a good nephrologist, let me know. I really like mine, and have a good recommendation for one in Northern VA, too. Leave a comment with your email address.)
So - the bad news is that I have gained a few more pounds, instead of losing them. That made me more upset than it did him, but that's because I've been doing a lot better at not snacking over the last month or so. Oh well.
My kidney-specific numbers are doing really well. My Protein is less than 1 gram, which is a far cry from when I first started this journey. My createnine was a little high, at 1.47, but seemed manageable. The nephrologist was very pleased with the way things look with all of my labs.
Because no doctors appointment is without some drama, my blood pressure was called into question almost as soon as I got into the office. When the nurse took it initially it came out as 92/70! That's great, if I weighed half of my current weight, and did not have kidney disease. But alas, I'm heavy and diseased, so my bp will never actually be that low. The doctor came in and took it again, this time taking a really hard listen and being super specific about how he was doing it. And he did it again after that. I told him that I had run out of one of my meds about two weeks ago (read: three), but that was even stranger - it's the blood pressure medicine that I take!
They decided that the cuff they were using is faulty, and I'm glad that they figured that out. The nurse came back in a few minutes later (giving my arm time to get back into "ready" - with a smaller cuff. The reading after that came out much more realistically - 112/80. That's pretty incredible considering both weight and diseasedness! We talked about it and decided to go the next six months (at least) without the medicine and see how things come out the next time, while at the same time monitoring at home to be sure that there is no big jump.
So, stats are good - took a medicine out of rotation - left! Woo Hoo!
On the Flu front - my brother got the Swine Flu, but we managed to duck it, at least so far. My doc does not seem too concerned, even though I take immuno-suppressants, so I'm going to calm down about it, too. Because of stupid insurance stuff I could not even get my regular flu vaccination during a scheduled visit. Well, I could, but they would only pay for one or the other. Who says we don't need reform?
So - the bad news is that I have gained a few more pounds, instead of losing them. That made me more upset than it did him, but that's because I've been doing a lot better at not snacking over the last month or so. Oh well.
My kidney-specific numbers are doing really well. My Protein is less than 1 gram, which is a far cry from when I first started this journey. My createnine was a little high, at 1.47, but seemed manageable. The nephrologist was very pleased with the way things look with all of my labs.
Because no doctors appointment is without some drama, my blood pressure was called into question almost as soon as I got into the office. When the nurse took it initially it came out as 92/70! That's great, if I weighed half of my current weight, and did not have kidney disease. But alas, I'm heavy and diseased, so my bp will never actually be that low. The doctor came in and took it again, this time taking a really hard listen and being super specific about how he was doing it. And he did it again after that. I told him that I had run out of one of my meds about two weeks ago (read: three), but that was even stranger - it's the blood pressure medicine that I take!
They decided that the cuff they were using is faulty, and I'm glad that they figured that out. The nurse came back in a few minutes later (giving my arm time to get back into "ready" - with a smaller cuff. The reading after that came out much more realistically - 112/80. That's pretty incredible considering both weight and diseasedness! We talked about it and decided to go the next six months (at least) without the medicine and see how things come out the next time, while at the same time monitoring at home to be sure that there is no big jump.
So, stats are good - took a medicine out of rotation - left! Woo Hoo!
On the Flu front - my brother got the Swine Flu, but we managed to duck it, at least so far. My doc does not seem too concerned, even though I take immuno-suppressants, so I'm going to calm down about it, too. Because of stupid insurance stuff I could not even get my regular flu vaccination during a scheduled visit. Well, I could, but they would only pay for one or the other. Who says we don't need reform?
October 07, 2009
Wordless Wednesday: The Hungry Caterpillar
More entries at www.wordlesswednesday.com.
(I know it's supposed to be wordless, but this was taken at the National Book Festival on the National Mall!)
(and I swear, I'm working on a real post for this week!)
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