I am officially, medically confirmed weird.

So, I just spent (counts) 9 hours in the hospital. I was so dizzy today that I couldn't stand up. This happens sometimes when I'm pregnant, but usually goes away within a few hours. After it had persisted 7, I called my doc who told me to go get checked out. After 2 more hours of procrastinating, I called my mom. She met us at the ER and watched the kids (we picked up Emma-- and dinner-- on the way) while I went up to L&D for monitoring (the ER won't do much of anything when you're pregnant without making them look at you first) and then back down to the ER. Then Jeff (who had come home from work when I fell) switched the car seats to her car, and left. Then I got to, basically, wait around while they watched my bp yo-yo (oh so fun-- readings ranged from 128/68 to 91/44, and everything in between), did an EKG, did a lie down-sit-stand monitoring test, took my temp, took a urine specimen, took blood, took blood again when the lab lost the blood... At one point my mom took the kids to her house, where unfortunately for her they did NOT sleep, and Jeff came back from work, and then left again, picked up the kids, and came back, and they finally released me, after telling me that I'm dizzy, giving me medication for it, which didn't help, and telling me not to stand up if when I stand up I get dizzy. Which is what I KNEW WOULD HAPPEN AND WHY I DIDN'T WANT TO GO IN IN THE FIRST PLACE... Ay.

The doctor could find no cause, and could not understand WHY this happens every time I'm pregnant. (Idiopathic labyrynthitis or something like that is the official diagnosis.) He said it seems I'm just weird. (He is very nice, and said that in a joking tone with a smile on his face. I like him a lot. He remembered me from two years ago when I came in for something else while pregnant with Bridey, when I had different glasses, different hair, and did I mention it was two years ago? :o Truth be told I remembered him too-- he's very nice and cool!)

I suppose it wasn't a complete waste of time-- I got to watch all the cute paramedics go by... *sigh* And at least I can now tell people that I am officially, medically confirmed weird. ;)

Next time I get dizzy I am not going in even if my doctor tells me to.

"Happy bubble!"

So, the kids were playing in the living room. I was trying to watch Medium (hooray! New episodes are back!)

All of a sudden I heard a sound like the "whoosh"ing of a foam coming out of an aerosol container (think whipped cream, yes?) followed by Emma laughing and Bridey clapping and yelling "Happy bubble! Happy bubble!" I go out and what do I see?

THEY HAVE FOUND A CAN OF SHAVING CREAM, SPRAYED IT ALL OVER THE WALL OVER THE COUCH, AND PLASTERED A DECK OF "GO FISH" CARDS TO THE WALL WITH THE SHAVING CREAM. AAAAAAAACK!

To make it worse shaving cream had incidentally been splattered all over the back of the couch cover-- the brand new, just-washed couch cover. Grrrr.

I tried to have Emma take down and wipe down cards with me but she was just making more of a mess. So I wiped the cards and the hugest chunks of the shaving cream left on the wall, cleaned the couch, and then set her to washing the rest of the shaving cream off the wall. And the "Go Fish" cards have been taken away for the duration of a week because they were not used properly.

"Happy bubble." Yeah, right. AND I missed the climax of Medium.

It is SO nice to have children who love to eat...

I am aware that there is a species of toddler/preschooler/older child out there known as the "picky eater." This is an unknown animal at our house. Well, that's not quite true; they have preferences, and many of those preferences might be considered "picky" by some. But for the most part, they are what is known to grandmas all over the world as "good eaters."

For instance, tonight for dinner we had artichokes, fish nuggets, home-made tartar sauce, and boiled baby rose and purple potatoes. I am aware that some children, if served this meal, might have had a fit and refused to eat. My kids gobbled it, and asked for more... Jeff had fun supervising Bridey to make sure that she didn't eat the WHOLE artichoke leaf, but that was our worst problem tonight. Emma said she likes artichokes, and she likes the hearts the most. She also enjoyed trying the purple potatoes (such fun! Food in a silly color!) When asked what they were like, she answered, "They taste like cranberries and juicy." Okay. I can kind of see that. They were very moist because their skin holds in more moisture than many varieties, being a bit tougher, and they have a decided earthiness, more than most varieties of potato, which does remind me a bit of unsweetened cranberries. I'm kind of amazed that a three-year-old could come up with a comparison like that, though!

We have our problems in this family. But luckily for us, food issues are not one of them! And now we are all very happy and content, with good food in our tummies. What a nice way to end a Sunday. :)

Radian 65 on sale at hipmonkey.com!

Yeah, I should have waited another week...

Radian 65 car seats are now only $169.99 (no tax, free shipping) at hipmonkey.com (as mentioned in a previous post, where I got my 3 Radians before-- for a little more!)

Yes, I bought another one.

It's for Grandpa's car (Grandpa picks Emma up from preschool when Abba can't-- like all the time during tax season-- and she is outgrowing the seat he has for her.)

With this extra Radian, I'll be able to get 3 car seats in the back of Grandpa's car using the Radian for Emma, the Scenara for Bridey (currently her main seat, soon will become her spare), and the SnugRide infant seat (minus base) for Maggie (or move her to the Scenara and Bridey to the seat Ems is currently in when she outgrows that) if we ever need him to take us anywhere before I have got our minivan (which we're not getting until I'm pregnant with number 4.) So that's another good reason to get it. :)

And we can afford it right now, we just got our tax refund AND Jeff got a $300 tip at work yesterday.

Am I a total geek that this makes me so happy?

There are some other great seats on sale, too! If you are interested in a higher-weight harness seat for your child, now is the time to buy!

MY trip to the dentist went MUCH better than Emma's.

I haven't had dental insurance for a long time, like since before I was married, so I haven't been in years. My wisdom teeth have come in and are causing me great pain (one is in sideways and of course none of them have been sealed, like my other teeth, so prone to cavities because of the crowding they're causing.)

My dad gave us a ride, and he walked the kids to the library and the park while I was there (they were both just a few blocks down.) They only had to wait about 20 minutes at the end; they came in when it started raining.

After waiting almost an hour (only bad part), I finally was taken back for x-rays. That was the longest part of the visit-- it took a LONG time because I have crowded teeth, TMJD, and a VERY STRONG gag reflex. The dental technician ended up numbing my mouth with benzocaine and then sticking it in at the last second and saying "now" to the tech standing outside to get shots of my bottom, impacted tooth. Ay.

Then we got to the consult. The dentist says that yes, the wisdom teeth need out, and yes, I have cavities, but if my doctor and I are more comfortable waiting until the baby is here that's okay, as long as nothing changes. I have to floss every day, brush 2 or 3 times a day, and use mouthwash (all things I already do) and call if there is ANY change or increase in pain level. But she thinks that the cleaning I got today and daily maintainance will be enough to keep it at bay so I can get the work done after the baby comes. Yay! So I have an appointment for that for the middle of May-- I think the 15th. That will be a good time, I think.

BTW, we used 1-800-Dentist to find a dentist in our area that was open Saturdays, would take a pregnant woman (though of course I had a note from my doctor giving permission), and does oral surgery. She's the nicest dentist, and has about the nicest staff, I've ever encountered. So score one for 1-800-Dentist!

When I got back, my mom was here. (She came over right after we left.) She stayed for several more hours, and cleaned some more dishes and more of my apartment. Again. I love my mommy.

Now my dad is bringing me the first artichokes of the year! (He went to Bristol Farms, and they have the BEST artichokes and only the best!) Mmmm, I sense an artichoke in my future tonight or maybe tomorrow...

My little mimic

Tonight I was sitting on the bed when Emma came in with one of her "babies." (She told me that it was a boy-- even though I'm pretty sure it's not-- and that its name was Daniel. Like Ms. Rayann's son Daniel.) Anyway, she came in and said very seriously, "Mommy, I need you to help me with something, okay? Please help me out by holding my baby very carefully." I said, "Okay," and took the baby. "Be very careful! Don't drop my baby, okay?" "I promise I will not drop your baby. I'm very good at taking care of babies. Really." "Okay, that will be a big help. I will be back. Bridget and I are going to do our job by shopping for groceries now." And she left. And I cracked up!

I got my new car seats!

Well, I didn't get them, yet. But I'll get them in about a month. And I ordered and paid for them today. I ordered them from hipmonkey.com's Presidents' Day Sale. Emma says, "I will have a gray car seat, Bridget will have a pink car seat, and Maggie will have a tan car seat." She is very adamant. So we bought two Radian 65s (one "Granite"-- grey, one "Champagne"-- tan), and one Radian 80 in the Princess pattern, for Bridey. Since our kids are tall and skinny enough that they will probably outgrow even the 65s by height before they outgrow them by weight (most kids do, even though the Radian has very high top slots), this will work great for us. They sell the infant insert separately, so the 65 (which doesn't come with one) will work fine for the baby once we get one. (We'll also probably get a few of these because the seat covers are hand-wash only and I'd MUCH rather throw one of these in the washer if we have a diaper blowout or a potty-training incident in the car seats. Since these products are made by Sunshine Kids, the company who makes the Radian seats, they have been tested with the Radians and are not considered an after-market product. Remember to read the instructions for your car seat to find out what is and is not allowed to be used with your seat before you use ANY extra products, as use of such products may void the warranty and cause you to be held partially liable by your insurance company in case of a crash that your child is injured in-- which means they may not pay for needed therapy or other benefits.) AND the seat covers are interchangeable for the 65 and the 80, so if at some point Emma DOES outgrow it by weight before height, we can just switch her cover with Bridey's, if it comes to that. And with the sale, my grand total for all three was $619.97! That's a great deal for 3 Radians. And shipping is free, and no tax. AND shopping at that site benefits the Kyle David Miller Foundation (it's actually run by his mom.)

Can you tell I'm excited?

The sale runs through tonight if anyone else is interested. Besides Radians they also sell Britax, Recaro, and SafeGuard higher-weight harnessed seats, Britax strollers, and Peanut Shell slings and nursing covers, among other things. :)

Getting ready for Valentine's Day

Emma is old enough to be excited about Valentine's Day (and every other holiday!) now. (They did Chinese New Year at her preschool, too, and she loved it!) She's been bringing home crafts, having me cut out hearts for her to decorate with markers, etc. But I thought that making 17 valentines (one for everyone in her preschool) would probably be a bit much for her attention span. So when I went to the store last night (I needed desperately to get out!) I picked up a box of strawberry cake mix (on sale, of course), some Valentine's Day cupcake papers, and some candy hearts. Emma is going to help me make cupcakes tomorrow and decorate them for her class, and take them in to preschool with her. She is very excited.

On top of that, Grandpa (my dad) must have somehow known that I've been lamenting not being able to get to See's lately, not even for Valentine's Day. He got us gift certificates, and he asked whether he should give them to us or stop by and get some for us, or whether I would like him to try and get off in time to pick us up and take us tomorrow. Of course I chose "take us tomorrow!" That will be a lot of fun for the girls AND for me. I love going to See's (and not just 'cause they give out samples! ;) It's just a fun place!)

And on Friday night Jeff has promised we will all go out to dinner (probably the Glendale location of Conrad's because it's the only place around open 24 hours-- actually the only place open past 11 or so. Well, the only decent place, I don't count Denny's, and even our IHOP closes at 11-- you have to drive a lot further to get to the nearest 24 hour IHOP. And it's fun, and the kids like it-- they give them coloring pages and crayons, and the two of them can share one kids' meal because the portions are so big! Plus the food tastes like someone actually cared how it would taste when they made it, they have yummy specials... Mmmm, I think Friday they even have the famous "steak soup!" Man, that soup is delicious-- ground sirloin, all kinds of veggies, and they put something special in it, that I can never quite duplicate at home...) We're not going on Thursday because we figure Emma will be wound up enough after preschool, and I'll want to get out more desperately on Friday, and it might be less crowded, plus of course Jeff gets paid on Friday. ;)

So actually, all in all, we're doing quite a bit for Valentine's Day this year. And here I was lamenting that we wouldn't get to do anything at all, other than make cards. :) It's nice when everything works out.

Congratulations to Rayann-- it's a BOY!!!

Rayann had her baby! It's a boy! (We were both thinking girl-- it was a complete surprise!) Michael Dennis was born at 1:50 AM CST 2/11/2008, 9 lbs. 2 oz., 21.5 inches, completely healthy, an at-home VBAC. Mama is doing great and so is baby! Lots of love to her and the new baby, and thanks to her for calling me, even if it was five minutes after I'd gone to sleep and I didn't get back to sleep for hours. ;) I wanted to know! Now I have to decide which baby boy goodies to send from my baby gift cupboard... What a nice decision to have to make, huh? :D

Dentists, drugs,and HALLUCINATIONS

So we had quite the day. We went to the dentist and all I can say is thank the Lord for my mother. She went in, gave Emma the second dose of sedative (I forced her to choke down the first), talked her through the procedures, and basically made it possible for them to do the work today. Emma has a ton of cavities; they only got x-rays and did the bottom half. The top ones have to be done another day because it wasn't safe to sedate a 33-lb. child long enough to do them all. I'm going to talk to her pediatrician about prescribing flouride.

Then we got home, I put Bridey down in the crib, she played a while then went to sleep (thank you Lord) and then the REAL fun started. Emma had a paradoxical reaction to the benzodiazepan she was given. I know what fun this is because it happened to me when I was 12. (I can't have anything in that class and now neither can she-- Valium, Versed, or the one she was given which I have written down somewhere and which starts with an "m", my mom e-mailed it to me so I can update her records but I can't remember it, or anything related.) She got real sleepy, like she was going to conk out; that was fine since she was cranky and still dizzy from the nitrous. Then all of a sudden she was wide awake, asking what the turtles were doing. Um, what turtles? The ones building something by her. That was fine-- until they climbed onto her and she was screaming "get them off, get them off, oh, no, they went in my pants!" What followed was 2 hours of frantic phone calls to my mom (who, btw, is a pediatric nurse) and me doing everything in my power to distract her, reassure her that they were just pretend, not real, and they could not hurt her (although then she said they were attacking her and they WERE hurting her, poor baby had-- and has-- a rash, my mom thinks from where they restrained her, and was interpreting it as the turtles attacking her), and we even had to take off her pants because she was absolutely hysterical that they were building something in her pants and she WANTED THEM OFF. I was brushing off imaginary turtles, for a long time, and it was not fun. Then they turned into ants. At least the ants weren't on her, just on parts of the bed. So she colored, being careful to stay away from the ants, and I used "magic ant spray" to "clean off the ants" if they "got too close to her." (Hard to do since she was the only one who could see them. She had to direct me and tell me if I missed any.) Along with this reaction comes extreme low blood pressure, which causes dizziness, so when she would stand up and climb to get away from them, she fell. She fell off the bed twice. This only made things worse. I was trying to get her to drink water, to clear it from her system a bit faster, but she wouldn't drink much because her mouth hurt and of course wouldn't take any Tylenol for the pain.

Finally it wore off. Thank goodness. And she ate some yogurt and fell asleep for four hours or so (actually I slept for almost three, until the baby got up.) I am so grateful that her reaction didn't last as long as mine did. And that her sister slept through it so I could give her my full attention and be there for her.

She woke up and wouldn't eat or drink still because her mouth hurts so much. I did get her to eat an ice pop. And her grandma is bringing her a milkshake for dinner (and a hamburger for her sister and a chicken salad for me.) So that's at least something. She's asking for bread so I think I'll let her try a bit of soft white bread with the crusts removed, and some hummus.

It's really hard dealing with this! And Jeff won't be home until almost 11 again. AND this means the rest of her work can't be done in the office-- that's the only pediatric sedative they're licensed to use. She will have to go to the hospital and have the work done under general anesthesia. I'm just hoping my mom can take the whole day off that day because I cannot care for a child recovering from general anesthesia AND my second child AND myself all alone. I just can't.

New Car Seat Safety Info on Sidebar

I'm one of those car seat freaks. You know, the one who obcesses over not only my kids' safety in the car, but everyone else's. I see tv shows with improperly restrained kids and wince. Anyway, I've been thinking a lot lately about the subject (as I researched how to fit three across in the back of our Corolla-- we'll be doing it using three Radians, the narrowest seat on the market, two rear-facing and one forward-facing for Emma in the middle) and I thought I'd share a few tips, because a staggering number of parents don't know enough to be able to make the safest choices for their kids in the car, and an even more staggering number of parents buy car seats but don't use them correctly.

Take a look and see if you learn something! If you spot any errors please tell me-- I did check it over several times but it is a bit late and I am a bit tired today. :)