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| Making cupcakes for Jacob's birthday - he loves to help and is so excited when it is something he can actually lick |
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| The kids really play so well together. Sometimes Emma Kate even "babysits" Jacob in her room. |
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| Enjoying the beautiful South Carolina winter with a stroll along the Charleston Harbor |
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| This kid loves to play |
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| I love the weather here from October to April. If I could live in this weather all year long I would be one happy person. I love that all I need is a fleece and that it is sunny and crisp just about everyday. When it drops below 50 for a high everyone around here is complaining about how cold it is. |
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| Enjoying the pier |
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| Sick...no idea which illness this was from |
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| Happy, happy, happy all the time |
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| Emma Kate doesn't nap anymore, but one day I came into her room and found her in full ballet attire and sound asleep in her bed. First clue she wasn't feeling well... |
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| She has a baby with her all of the time. She even takes a baby into preschool until she goes into her class and then I take the baby home with a list of instructions of how to care for her |
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| Our blower in the attic caught on fire. I came home from picking mom up at the airport at 11pm to the alarm system sounding and smoke pouring out of the attic. I grabbed Jacob out of his bed and ran downstairs to tell Mike I was calling 911. He yelled "NOT YET" and ran upstairs with a ladder and fire extinguisher and took care of it. Dramatic. This resulted in us having to purchase an entire new heating/air system. Ouch. The blessing in that is when they took the blower out they had to dismantle it. There was mold growing inside the unit, which undetected would have spread throughout our house and caused major, major problems. So thankful for God's protection through this event. |
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| Emma Kate has "alone time" every day while her brother's rest. She plays by herself in her room until 2:00. Her creativity is amazing and I love to listen to her when she doesnt know I am there. |
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| While Grammy was here Jonah got to have a tea party alone with her while I had the other two at a doctor's appointment. I honestly have never seen him so excited or proud as when he told me about that tea party alone with Grammy. |
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| RSV and bronchitis and allergy season mean the resurfacing of the nebulizer. Jacob has had to borrow it this month as well. |
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| We all had a horrible stomach virus while Grammy was here. It lasted 3-5 days for each of us. Amazingly Grammy did not get it. I do not know what I would have done without her help for that awful week of sickness. |
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| This is what our week of fun with Grammy looked like. |
We made cookies for Valentines Day
Disclaimer: The remainder of this post is meant to capture the craziness of the past two months. I am not complaining or venting, but I want to remember the details of this absurd run of sickness.
Since the first of the year we have had 18 doctor's visits and two sets of tubes inserted (EK's turn is tomorrow). Here is a quick list of the illnesses we have faced: stomach virus (3-5 days, all 5 of us), sinus infections (2), Ear Infections (too many to remember for all three and leading to tubes for Jacob and Emma), bronchitis (2), tonsillitis (2, this is still in process so the total may rise), RSV (5, the kids each had double ear infections with this and it has likely been the source of the bronchitis), and two rounds of your average 24-48 hour virus. I think that is it, but honestly, I have lost track.
I have gotten to a point where I am honestly embarrassed to call and make an appointment for the kids and when I show up the front desk staff sighs. The nurses joke about a punch card system for us, which I think would be outstanding. There should be some sort of loyalty program. I feel like the crazy mom that calls about everything, but in reality all of the visits have been for something significant. I think the germs have mostly originated at BSF and then the kids pass them around. We are currently on a break from BSF for a few weeks. I feel like I want to explain to everyone that my kids are well cared for and eat healthy and I try to do everything I know I should. I feel like it is my fault, but my precious voices of reason in my life continue to remind me that I have three little ones and that is product of little kids.
Through all of this I have struggled to understand why we are going through a season that has continued to keep us from connecting at church and developing relationships and community here in Charleston. I feel like that has been the theme of the past year...roadblocks to laying down roots and developing a support system and community here. I feel blessed, however, to be able to see the amazing blessings in all of this. I am at home so I can take care of them and go to the amazing number of doctor visits, I don't have to worry about missing work to care for kids, we have insurance, we have amazing doctors, we have access to medicine to help us heal, and through it all, we are healthy. I keep reflecting on how thankful I am for my kids' health. Everything we have faced is so incredibly minor. They are back on their feet and don't face any life altering effects of any of these things. Although it has been really, really hard to deal with this stretch of 8 weeks without a support system and being housebound, I can't help and think about how very hard it must be for the moms of children with major medical issues. I am abundantly thankful for my babies and the Lord's blessing and protection over them. I will gladly take these trials and inconvenient illnesses in place of the alternative. We all have a difficult road to travel. Our struggles just look different than those of others.
I am thankful for the things the Lord is teaching me and thankful that the Spirit is helping me to be teachable. Hopefully I can learn what the Lord is teaching me soon so we can move past this stage of sickness! :)
