We Are All Together Again

This week has been interesting to say the least. I did a number on my ankle on Monday when I tried to avoid a little dog that cut in front of me mid-stride. While it's still swollen and the color runs from a ghastly green to eggplant purple, I am starting to hobble along fairly well and ditched the crutches and air cast yesterday.

Wednesday came and Kyle went to Urgent Care as his nose swelled up considerably with no explanation. He was given a swift shot (of antibiotics) in the ass, a prescription for more antibiotics and told to return the next day if it didn't improve. After fevering through the night and the red swelling invaded more of his face, I took him back to Urgent Care Thursday morning which was quickly followed by a direct admittance to the hospital. We were told he would be in the hospital for at least a couple of days. He was treated with IV antibiotics and his blood sugar levels were brought back into a normal range.

Word got out quickly (hmm, I wonder who would've sent out the alert?) and Kyle received a few visitors and many electronic well-wishes. Kyle's parents were the very first visitors on the day. Kyle had hardly been settled into his room by the time they showed up, which was a pleasant surprise for Kyle. I brought Cate for a short visit with Kyle Thursday afternoon and, as we were rounding the corner in the main entry, I heard a familiar voice inquire about a room number for "Jensen." My mom and dad brought Max to the hospital for a brief visit with Kyle as well. A friend, Patrick Coleman, stopped by for a couple of minutes in between seeing his Pa (Grandpa) and going out of town. Kyle's Aunt Jane and Uncle Don sent mums and a fun balloon to brighten up his space. Both kids drew him pictures.

With the kids going separate places during the day, it worked out that my parents could keep Max at their house overnight, Thursday into Friday. He was very distressed that he couldn't come home withe me and Cate, but Mom informed me he got over it fairly quickly. Cate was sad thinking about her dad being in the hospital, but she managed to get through the school day just fine once she was distracted with school.

I spent the day with Kyle in the hospital today and around 1:30 this afternoon, the Infectious Diseases MD came through and confirmed Kyle was being treated for erysipelas, a strep infection that settles in the top dermal layer generally on the face. The good thing was the MD was pleased enough with Kyle's recovery that she signed off on discharge papers so we were out of the hospital before 4pm.

When we finally picked up the kids, Max was quite a talker and commented on the way home, "I was distracted today at Papa's house. Distracted means I was sad because our family was apart. But now I am happy because all of our family is together again this night."

Amen to that!

Icky-sicky

It's great that winter is moving into spring, but with the weather fluctuations we've had in recent weeks, we've got three sick family members under one roof.

Max and Kyle are dealing with colds. I can not believe how much can come out of Max's nose at one time. Ew!

Cate just can't seem to get rid of her pneumonia. We were in Urgent Care a couple of Thursdays ago; got a scrip for a five-day dose of antibiotics which didn't do the trick. We were back at Urgent Care this past Thursday where we spent three hours. Her condition had worsened and she added a double ear infection to her woes. I can not believe the amount of drugs they put in her little body in the time we were there.

Our at-home treatment is pretty crazy. She has one daily dose of steroids, one tablet, two daily doses of antibiotics, one double dose of a morning nebulizer treatment, followed by single dose nebulizer treatments three times throughout the day.

She also gets a chocolate kiss for taking her liquid steroid medicine because it tastes so gross.

Being so sick so many times is beginning to take a toll on her school attendance. I think her absence count is up to 20 days. I think I will jump for joy when the year comes that she is awarded with a perfect attendance certificate. Thankfully, she is a smart girl and thankfully her teacher is thoughtful to deliver Cate's homework to us. I just wish she was focused enough to bust through her work instead of breaking down and whining.

Per my friend's suggestion, I think it's time I start looking for a pulminologist to see if there are other treatment options or a more accurate diagnosis for Cate.

Knock on wood, I will remain healthy because I've been out of the office so much for the kids' illnesses, I really can't afford to be out of the office because of my own illness.

Here's hoping you are enjoying good health!

What a week for Cate

This week has had its ups and downs for Cate.

She's been out of school all week on top of the almost two days she was out last week with pneumonia and a fever that just wouldn't break.

playing on the computer while on nebulizer

Cate and Max can still fit in a clothes basket together!

She lost her first tooth. The tooth fairy was good to her.

Two gold dollar coins!

Her fever finally went away, but there's no school today. We'll do something special together for sure. It's been a long week stuck at home for the little girl.

My Physical Therapy Fun

For about six months I have been experiencing some interesting tingling from shoulder right on down to the tips of my fingers. It has increasingly become more dramatic as the months have passed. I had x-rays and an MRI in January, a follow-up MRI in March and since there was no conclusive evidence to diagnose my issue, I was given a referral to Orthopedic Surgery for a consult. That sounded just too serious for me. So I opted to go my own route and investigate into physical therapy. Since May, I have been going to Wellspring Health Center for physical therapy. It's a very cool experience and I believe I am starting to see some improvement with my issue.

I've had laser treatment, percussor treatment, pilates mat work, intersegmental spinal traction (ooh! sounds scary) and next week I will have manual therapy, i.e. massage.

I've been given some tips and tricks to aid in improving my posture, which is really the main physical issue at hand. I find that I am constantly adjusting my posture, sitting or standing as I work to unlearn poor posture habits. I always laugh when the therapists who are helping me through an exercise push down on my shoulders to get them into the correct position. I tell them, "really! they can't go down any further!" Well no wonder I have shoulder pain! My shoulders are always tensed up.

To no one's surprise, it's all about basics. But it's hard work to unlearn what I've piled on in the past couple of decades. And in this new physical therapy journey, I very recently had an epiphany--I believe my physical issues are a direct connection of the stress and depression I have found myself buried into in the past couple of years. I've opted to medicate myself for the mental / emotional challenges and to be functional for my children, but I didn't address the physical aspect of my depression. By making that connection, I am sure if I work hard with the help I got, I will get much better much sooner. Who knows, maybe I'll even be brave enough to discontinue the medication!

So even though the following list has tips you have all heard before, I think it's worth the merit in sharing this stuff again. Our lives are stressful enough. Why not make one little change that could improve your life manifold?

Tips on Stress Management (from Wellspring Health Center):
*Schedule Time for yourself and enjoy a relaxing activity.
*Don't say yes when you mean no.
*Breathe deeply.
*Leave the past behind.
*Exercise regularly.
*Take care of your health.
*Visualize positive outcomes.
*Laugh.
*Don't eat in a hurry.
*Organize your life.
*Take stretch breaks.
*Do what you say and say what you do.
*Practice random acts of kindness.
*Be polite, you'll like yourself better.
*Be flexible, adapt to change.
*Slow down.
*Don't put off till tomorrow what can be done today.
*Step back and observe.
*See a comedy.
*Use affirmations.
*Be still and meditate (or pray).
*Listen more, talk less.
*Simplify, simplify, simplify.

How do you manage your stress? Got any tips of your own to share?

Sick Cate

You would think since Spring is here, no one would get sick. But then along came the H1N1 flu. Not that H1N1 has anything to do with Cate being home ill today, but it's all still very much a drag to be sick when it's so dang nice outside.

My guess is that the seasonal blooming is aggravating Cate's allergies which is escalating her bronchial issues. The nebulizer has made its return to our night-time routine. She woke up with a nasty cough and an even nastier temperament. She didn't want to go to school today. Rather, she wanted to go to Grandma and Grandpa's because she wasn't feeling well. In the midst of trying to explain her options to her, she ended up in the naughty corner four times because she was having a fit, which caused her to puke. Gr-e-at.

I knew if I sent her to the Jensens, in short order she would be bouncing around and playing. So I kept her home with me, while I telecommuted for work today. In order to ensure this doesn't become a regular habit, I enforced a no TV, no Gameboy, no movie, no playing downstairs day. She was free to color, read books or whatever other quiet thing she could think of doing that kept her preoccupied while I worked.

Mission accomplished. I am pretty darn sure this is the most time she has ever spent with her nose in books. Shoot, she even set up her own camp. It looks quite cozy, don't you think?

The Princess Team Saga Begins

I'm home with Cate today...it seems we can't quite get rid of the guck that is not-quite pneumonia. When I informed her she was staying home from school today, she thought out loud if her Princess Team would wonder where she was today. I informed her that I called the school so her teacher and classmates know she won't be there today. Then I proceeded to ask her about her Princess Team.

I learned that Cate is the Queen Mother and Vera, Isabel, Abbey, Najah, Evie, Alexia and Sophia are princesses. She then said that Gracie is not on the Princess Team.

Great, she's the leader of her first clique.

Me: Why isn't Gracie part of the Princess Team?
Cate: Because she hasn't asked to be on the team yet.
Me: Gracie shouldn't have to ask to join and that,as Queen Mother, you should remember to invite all of the girls to be on the Princess Team. If Gracie says she isn't interested in joining the Princess Team, then that's fine, but at least you invited her to join.

Cate thought about it and then asked, "Well, is that what happened in Sleeping Beauty?" I had to think about it for a second, and she continued, "You know, when Maleficient wasn't invited to the party for Princess Aurora, she got really mean?" I replied, "That's exactly what it's like. You never know, if the King and Queen had invited Maleficient, then maybe she would've been nice instead of having her feelings hurt."

She's processing...perhaps we'll see part two tomorrow.

Another Monday at Home

This is the fourth Monday in a row I am working from home. This past weekend, the colds hit my family. Cate got socked on Friday and was a real trooper making it through the school day. You know she's sick when she asks for Mommy and not Daddy. I got hit Saturday night while on Girls' Weekend, but at least it came on the final evening and didn't disrupt my fabulous time. Then Max fell victim to it yesterday. He sounded so unhappy this morning, I figured that I would stay home with him in case it went to his stomach which has always been the case with Cate. Tomorrow I should be back to 90% and then I'll be ready for Kyle to be sick.

I've got my two laptops set up--one with the VPN access to work and the other for internet access. I am actually productive away from work--go figure. My mom stopped by with homemade chicken noodle soup...yum! She was impressed by the make-shift office atop TV trays in front of the comfy couch.

On another note...
My thoughts have been with my brother Carl and his family living in Houston. While they did not experience any significant damage from hurricane Ike, there will be disruption to the regular day-to-day for a while. They are without power and it is not known at this point when power will be restored. He also doesn't know when he'll be returning to work in Freeport, TX, which is located along the coast of the Gulf. Fortunately, Carl and Claire already had plans to get out of the state for a while and they will be road-tripping it to Santa Fe, perhaps sooner than later.

Kyle's pep talk to me

Okay, so I'm feeling a tad guilty that in the past eight work days, I have been in the office only three and a half days. Add to that I will be on vacation next week. No one is expressing concern over it, just myself. When I hesitatingly told my boss on Monday that I felt I needed to go home ill, he was totally cool with it. I expressed frustration that I didn't feel like I was gaining any traction in my new position. He said, "hey, don't worry about it. Just get yourself better."

As is true for many people looking within, I am my own worst critic.

So I decided I should give myself a reality check. I looked back at the calendar to see when I started my new position. It was only six weeks ago. Take out the days I've been out along with Memorial Day, I've only been in my new position for twenty-five days. I'm progressing as well as can be in my position. Damn. I need to simmer down now. I'm over-reacting.

I tell Kyle my revelation and he reassures me as well with his usual man-of-few-words style.
In his finest Al Franken channeling, he replies, "remember, you are good enough, smart enough and doggonit, people like you!" Thanks, Kyle Stuart Smalley Jensen! I feel much better...

When your child is sick

We are blessed to have our kids taken care of by grandparents while at work. It presents so many perks versus the mainstream childcare experience:

• The kids can be dropped off early, picked up late.
• We don't have to pay for days we don't need childcare.
• They will take our children even when the children are sick.
• And they even take our children if they themselves are sick.

We're downright spoiled.

So, as a working mom who has family members watching the children, there comes an interesting dilemma: What is the right thing to do when one or both of our children are sick? Does one stay home or do we go to work?

I struggle with this every time my children are ill, especially if they have a fever. The grandparents insist they are fine to have the sick one over. But then I think about all the things that need to be done at work, the meetings I must attend, or in this present situation, I just came back from vacation and I can't be out of the office again so soon. The guilt starts to brew: I should be the one cuddling and whispering reassurances to my child.

Max has a fever right now. He's barfed at least once a day since Monday night. All he wants to do is cuddle. And here I am. In between meetings. Wondering. Worrying about my little guy.