Not Allergies....

And I'm not happy about it, either. 

After my son had a nasty cough for two weeks, our family doctor diagnosed him with allergies (about a week ago) and told us to give him Claritin to help him feel better.  Well, Sunday he ran a low fever and last night (Tuesday night), he ran a low fever again, and coughed until he threw up.  Of course, at that point, I decided AJ needed to go back to the doctor.  So, I called this morning, only to find out that both doctors are out of the office for the entire week.

Frustrated, and not wanting to have to try to schedule an appointment with another doctor who is covering for their practice, I decided to take AJ to the Minute Clinic at the CVS across the street from my office.  Of course, this entailed going home after work, shoving food down everyone's throat, getting both dogs out, and then back in, getting the kids re-dressed and getting back in the car for the 30 minute drive back into the city. AAAAAHHHHHH!!!  Somehow, no one ever cooperates on these kind of nights, either, but I managed without wanting to duck tape anyone and throw them in the closet.

Thankfully, there was no wait at the Minute Clinic, so we got right in.  After a quick exam, the nurse practitioner there says AJ has fluid in his middle ear, and a red eardrum on the right side, indicative of an ear infection.  He also probably has a sinus infection, and from the sound of his cough, possibly the croup, too.  We're given an antibiotic and sent on our way with instruction to see the doctor next week to have them check out the croup part of his illness.

I'm happy now that we have an antibiotic, and I feel sure that AJ will be feeling much better in a few days.  Three weeks is an awful long time to have such a nasty cough. I am not, however, happy with the family doctor.  I never thought that AJ's cough sounded like an allergy cough.  Plus, he never had any of the other allergy symptoms (sneezing, runny nose, watery eyes), but I'm not the one with the MD or DO behind my name, so what do I know?  So I had to pay for yet another doctor visit, not to mention the time and the gas it cost me to run all the way to Harrisburg and back for a visit.

So, that's my mid-week saga rolled into a few short paragraphs.  Thankfully, I only have a 1/2 day of work tomorrow since it's the kids' last day of school, and then I should be working from home on Friday, but either way, the kids are going to spend Thursday night and Friday night with their dad, so I'll have a bit of a break from all the craziness. 

Big sighs of relief here.  I love my children dearly, but I'll be glad of the break this week.

Allergies and other stuff

So, I had my little guy (my son) to the doctor about a week ago for a nasty sounding cough that he'd had for about 2 weeks at that point.  She took a look, said he had allergies and just give him some children's Claritin.  Well, it's been a week now, the Claritin is not doing anything, and now he's running a fever, too.  I'm not a hundred percent positive, but I'm pretty sure allergies don't cause fevers. 

Today, he started complaining about his back hurting, too, and then coughed until he threw up.  My poor baby!  I feel so bad for him.  I'm also feeling like a bad mom for sending him to school coughing like that, but I have to work and at this point, I don't have a choice.  If I send him to school and then they call me to come get him, at least I can have a scheduled 1/2 day instead of a full missed day/call off.

To top it all off, I've been fighting almost daily migraines again.  Last week I had a headache of some sort almost every day of the week.  All that pain tends to make me moody and irritable, so of course, I'm snippy with everyone, including the kids even though I don't mean to be. 

Guess I won't get Mom of the Year this year, either.  Oh well, I don't think I was ever in the running, anyway.  Gonna take myself to bed now.  Hopefully, tomorrow will look better for all.  G'night.

Below my son, being his normal, exuberant self, a few weeks ago.  I just adore his sense of humor!

Undie Boy... or not!!

Apparently, no one has told my son that one size fits all!  lol

It started with the suggestion of a walk. OH, if I'd only known the shenanigans that would ensue shortly thereafter!  Perhaps I would have announced it a little more quietly, or maybe, just maybe, I would have just waited until the next day, since the kids had already been bathed and dressed for bed.  Of course, one can seldom foresee events such as these, and honestly, I'd not change it even if I could...

I'd had a rough couple days, fighting off yet another migraine, and tonight I was finally starting to feel better, so I decided maybe it would be a good idea to get out and get a little exercise. Of course, the kids have already had a bath and my son is now running around the house in one of my old t-shirts when I look up and randomly announce we're going for a walk. Well, you'd think I said we were going to Disney or something the way that boy starts carrying on.  He's suddenly running around the house, looking for his clothes ( you know, the ones I folded and put in his dresser, but apparently, he doesn't know that), jumping up and down and just generally bouncing off the walls. Of course, after seven years of being the mother of this active, excitable child, I'm used to this by now.  So, I'm working on getting my daughter moving and the harness and leash on the dog, and only half way paying attention to what AJ is doing. 

 Suddenly, and seemingly without warning, the boy runs into the living room, yanks up his shirt and shouts "UNDIE BOY!!" Only, he wasn't wearing any underwear. He realized it about a second after his sister and I did, and face bright red, he dropped his shirt and ran for the bedroom, leaving Jaide and I laughing hysterically. Poor kid, he’ll never be able to live that one down.  Even if he tries, I feel it my duty as a good mom to never let it go.  :)

Grandma hair

I was in my bedroom folding socks and my 7 year old son comes bounding into the room, complaining about a spot on his head that never feels brushed, no matter how short his hair is. I take a quick look to make sure there really isn’t anything wrong with his head. Nothing there but a cowlick. So I explain to him that it’s a cowlick and that his grammie and great-grammie have the exact same one in the exact same spot. He seems interested, so I take a minute to explain basic genetics and how some physical traits can be passed from generation to generation. He listens for a bit with that slightly glazed expression that says I am boring him again, then turns and runs out of the room. In the living room, I hear him exclaim to his older sister “Sissy, I have grandma hair!” 

Hmmm... perhaps he DID get that lesson after all!  Now I'm wondering what ELSE he is picking up on when I think he's not paying attention...

And so it begins...

After spending many Sunday mornings discussing the latest things my kids have said and done that made me laugh, sometimes to the point of tears, a friend of mine suggested I should start a blog.  So, I've finally gotten around to it.

As a brief introduction, my children are currently 10 and 7.  We live in a somewhat rural community with two dogs, a cat, a few gerbils, and some fish.  We also board a pony in the next town over.  With all those pets, and the kids at an age where they are becoming somewhat independent, there is almost always something interesting (well, hopefully it's interesting to more than just me) going on in our household.