Yesterday was a complete nightmare!!!
I have had all three kids at home sick. It started last Friday with Tom spiking 39degree temps. The girls followed suit in the coming days but they both got over it after about 48 hours. Tom on the other hand, just kept getting worse. I took him to the Dr on Monday thinking he might have had an ear infection. He didn't and she just thought it was a virus. Yesterday he woke up covered in a rash and was inconsolable so back to the Dr's we went. I thought it was probably still an ear infection and he had had lots of diarrhea so I thought I would get told it was a virus, go home and ride it out. Well, actually that is what I would have preferred to have been told. Instead I got told to take him to Joondalup Hospital so they could have a look over him.
Arrived at Joondalup and they weren't concerned about the rash but they thought that he had a hernia on his groin. Still not overly worried at this point because I know these are fairly common problems and fixable. They sent him for an xray to make sure there was no bowel in the hernia. I was told that if the xray was OK, I would be able to take him home and they would refer him to see a surgeon as an outpatient at PMH in the coming weeks. I was sure that this would be the outcome!!!!
I realised things weren't quite going to my plan when the Dr came and asked if she could shut our door because Tom was screaming so much and she couldn't hear the Dr's from PMH on the phone. I asked her if she was talking to them about Tom and she said she was!!!! This was not the news I was after.
She came back to the room and told me to pack him up and take him to PMH where the Dr there was waiting for us. They said that where there should have been gas in his stomach there wasn't and he needed further testing to find out what was going on and possible surgery tonight.
We arrived at PMH with him still screaming and were taken straight through - thank God as there was a long waiting line. The Dr saw us straight away. They gave him some drugs to knock him out and he finally stopped screaming for a bit.
While he was calm, they examined him and decided he needed an ultrasound because they didn't think he had a hernia but that he had an inverted bowel - if this was the case, he would need surgery tonight to fix it as it's a serious problem.
We went upstairs to find we had the head sonographer doing his ultrasound and it was the same man who did Caitlin's brain ultrasound to give us the diagnosis of CP - arghhhhhh. Nervous now!!!
Anyway, to cut a long story short, he didn't have an inverted bowel, he doesn't have a hernia, he has a severe case of lower abdominal gastro and the lymph nodes in his groin and stomach are really swollen and that is why he is in so much pain.
A good dose of Painstop every 6 hours for the next few days and we should have a happy little camper back on our hands!!!
Talk about a stressful day!!
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
Thursday, March 17, 2011
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
I Can't Believe It's March Already!!!
I'm not sure what is happening to this year but it is just flying along.
My little man is already nine months, my girls are in years 4 and 5 and I am back at work!!
Life has been really exciting but really busy lately. Grace (as usual ) is keeping us chasing our tails with all of her sport. Tball has now finished for the year. She finished up playing her 50th game and then had the State Championship Weekend last weekend. She won her teams fairest and best player which she was so excited about and they came third in the states weekend.
She has also been swimming and playing soccer. She has her Club Champions Night for her swimming on the 26th of March which should be a lovely night. Paul and I are taking her while Mum and Dad look after Caitlin and Grace.
Caitlin is doing really well. I don't want to jinx myself but she has been completely medication free for 3 months now and so far so good. Let's hope it stays that way. I still get jumpy and watch her like a hawk at times but she just keeps on trucking. I am wondering how long, if ever, it will take for that jumpiness to go away!!! She is doing really well with her communication PODD book and head switch at school. She told her speech therapist that she went to the circus the other week and she asked her teacher where one of the Teacher Assistants was when she was away. This is such an exciting time for us. She is just so clever and giving her a voice will allow us to see just how clever she is. I couldn't be a prouder Mum when I get these stories from school. How nice it will be to finally be able to talk with my girl and find out all of her thoughts and dreams!!!!
Tom is my miracle man! I know I dribble on about him all the time but I still just find myself staring at him in amazement that I actually have him. He is the easiest baby in the world. He sleeps perfectly, eats like a horse and is just one very content little person. He adores his sisters and follows Grace all around the house. He is still just cruising the furniture and crawling. When he doesn't realise I have let him go, he will stand for a few seconds but the moment he cottens on to the fact I have let him go, he plonks down onto his backside.
Legs is back at work. Don't know that he is all that excited to be there. I think he is much happier in the primary school environment but for now, he will stick it out where he is. He is working hard with helping me with the kids and doing most of Caitlins ABR. I am so blessed to have him!!!
Well, I am going to try and post a video and some photo's for you all so wish me luck,
Sam
My little man is already nine months, my girls are in years 4 and 5 and I am back at work!!
Life has been really exciting but really busy lately. Grace (as usual ) is keeping us chasing our tails with all of her sport. Tball has now finished for the year. She finished up playing her 50th game and then had the State Championship Weekend last weekend. She won her teams fairest and best player which she was so excited about and they came third in the states weekend.
She has also been swimming and playing soccer. She has her Club Champions Night for her swimming on the 26th of March which should be a lovely night. Paul and I are taking her while Mum and Dad look after Caitlin and Grace.
Caitlin is doing really well. I don't want to jinx myself but she has been completely medication free for 3 months now and so far so good. Let's hope it stays that way. I still get jumpy and watch her like a hawk at times but she just keeps on trucking. I am wondering how long, if ever, it will take for that jumpiness to go away!!! She is doing really well with her communication PODD book and head switch at school. She told her speech therapist that she went to the circus the other week and she asked her teacher where one of the Teacher Assistants was when she was away. This is such an exciting time for us. She is just so clever and giving her a voice will allow us to see just how clever she is. I couldn't be a prouder Mum when I get these stories from school. How nice it will be to finally be able to talk with my girl and find out all of her thoughts and dreams!!!!
Tom is my miracle man! I know I dribble on about him all the time but I still just find myself staring at him in amazement that I actually have him. He is the easiest baby in the world. He sleeps perfectly, eats like a horse and is just one very content little person. He adores his sisters and follows Grace all around the house. He is still just cruising the furniture and crawling. When he doesn't realise I have let him go, he will stand for a few seconds but the moment he cottens on to the fact I have let him go, he plonks down onto his backside.
Legs is back at work. Don't know that he is all that excited to be there. I think he is much happier in the primary school environment but for now, he will stick it out where he is. He is working hard with helping me with the kids and doing most of Caitlins ABR. I am so blessed to have him!!!
Well, I am going to try and post a video and some photo's for you all so wish me luck,
Sam
Friday, February 11, 2011
Wednesday, February 9, 2011
Stupid Computer!!!
I can't believe how either stupid I am or how frustrating compueters can be. I have done a couple of posts and somehow they have not made it onto my blog page!!!!!
Not sure if I am doing something wrong or there is something wrong with this computer so hopefully this one will work.
Girls have settled back in to school beautifully. Caitlins teacher seems really lovely and so interested in making her as happy and as included as all the other kids. At the moment they are doing school swimming lessons and this is definately a highlight of Caitlins day. She loves going on the bus and over the bumps. The squeals of delight as they fly over the bump can be heard from miles away. She is so lucky that her teacher assistants get into the water with her and they make her work hard. It is so nice to see Caitlin trusting other people in the water with her. I have thought about this a lot and it must be very terrifying for a little person to go in the water with someone they don't trust when they don't have the ability to save themself if something goes wrong. She can't tell them what she's thinking or feeling so she really does just have to trust that they will keep her safe, I don't know that I could be that brave. Knowing that if they fail her, there is nothing she can do to help herself!!!
She had botox in her left arm and both of her legs on Monday. Again, she showed how much braver than mum she is. You think I would be used to seeing her go under anaesthetic by now but I still cry every time they put her to sleep and ask me to give her a kiss goodbye. I hate the whole lack of control I have. I would much rather stay there and watch. Once I leave through those doors, there is nothing I can do to help her and I have to place my faith in the doctors looking after her.
I do find it hard heading into PMH now. I am constantly reminded of our little friend who went in and never came out again. I know I shouldn't but I can't help wondering if that could be me one day and I just know that it can't ever be. I'm not strong enough to get through anything like that. This whole issue has been wrecking my head for the last 12 months so I finally got the courage up to ask Caitlin's Dr. With the biggest crocodile tears rolling down my cheeks and a definate quiver in my voice, I asked about her life expectancy. It was THE hardest question I have ever asked but I am really pleased that I did because the answer was a positive one. She told me it was long and good. It won't stop me completely worrying about it but it sure has eased my mind a lot.
Grace has settled really nicely into year 4. She is still swimming lots and playing tball but she is happy and settled. She is such a great help to me. Always looking for ways to make my life easier. This morning she got up and fed Tom for me as Leg's is away and she knew I would be pushed for time. How could I ask for anything more from her.
Tom is hilarious. He has learnt some funny faces to pull to get a reaction from us. He is into everything now. Crawling all around the house and pulling himslef to standing and cruising furniture. He hasn't got any teeth yet but they can't be too far away!!!
Legs and I are great!!! He is on school camp and I am busy with school committments. I have put my hand up to be a HOPE co ordinator this year so I am busy going to meetings with the parents to explain what it is about and try and recruite volunteers.
I have to go, I can hear that Tom has just woken up and is needing a cuddle.
Till next time,
Sam
Not sure if I am doing something wrong or there is something wrong with this computer so hopefully this one will work.
Girls have settled back in to school beautifully. Caitlins teacher seems really lovely and so interested in making her as happy and as included as all the other kids. At the moment they are doing school swimming lessons and this is definately a highlight of Caitlins day. She loves going on the bus and over the bumps. The squeals of delight as they fly over the bump can be heard from miles away. She is so lucky that her teacher assistants get into the water with her and they make her work hard. It is so nice to see Caitlin trusting other people in the water with her. I have thought about this a lot and it must be very terrifying for a little person to go in the water with someone they don't trust when they don't have the ability to save themself if something goes wrong. She can't tell them what she's thinking or feeling so she really does just have to trust that they will keep her safe, I don't know that I could be that brave. Knowing that if they fail her, there is nothing she can do to help herself!!!
She had botox in her left arm and both of her legs on Monday. Again, she showed how much braver than mum she is. You think I would be used to seeing her go under anaesthetic by now but I still cry every time they put her to sleep and ask me to give her a kiss goodbye. I hate the whole lack of control I have. I would much rather stay there and watch. Once I leave through those doors, there is nothing I can do to help her and I have to place my faith in the doctors looking after her.
I do find it hard heading into PMH now. I am constantly reminded of our little friend who went in and never came out again. I know I shouldn't but I can't help wondering if that could be me one day and I just know that it can't ever be. I'm not strong enough to get through anything like that. This whole issue has been wrecking my head for the last 12 months so I finally got the courage up to ask Caitlin's Dr. With the biggest crocodile tears rolling down my cheeks and a definate quiver in my voice, I asked about her life expectancy. It was THE hardest question I have ever asked but I am really pleased that I did because the answer was a positive one. She told me it was long and good. It won't stop me completely worrying about it but it sure has eased my mind a lot.
Grace has settled really nicely into year 4. She is still swimming lots and playing tball but she is happy and settled. She is such a great help to me. Always looking for ways to make my life easier. This morning she got up and fed Tom for me as Leg's is away and she knew I would be pushed for time. How could I ask for anything more from her.
Tom is hilarious. He has learnt some funny faces to pull to get a reaction from us. He is into everything now. Crawling all around the house and pulling himslef to standing and cruising furniture. He hasn't got any teeth yet but they can't be too far away!!!
Legs and I are great!!! He is on school camp and I am busy with school committments. I have put my hand up to be a HOPE co ordinator this year so I am busy going to meetings with the parents to explain what it is about and try and recruite volunteers.
I have to go, I can hear that Tom has just woken up and is needing a cuddle.
Till next time,
Sam
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
Girly Day!!!!
What a day the girls and I had today.
I decided that the girls and I needed a girly day and Tom and his Dad needed some boy time so I set out for a really special day.
The girls were spoilt rotten and it's really lucky I don't do it very often cos it cost me a small fortune but it was worth every penny!!!
We started off by going to pick up the girls order for school which was quick and not very exciting but the day did get better from there.
We then went and ordered Caitlin some really groovy glasses. Her prescription has changed and thankfully she no longer needs the milk bottle thick glasses. She now has lenses that aren't very strong and so she can go for a regular frame rather than one that can cope with the thick lenses. This improvement is because she is growing up and so the shape of her eye is growing and changing too. We tried on a few pairs with her and with Grace's advise two pairs were chosen. One of them is the same pink colour as her wheelchair and the other is a purple lens. She looked so grown up in the and very smart!!!!
After that the fun really began. I took the girls up to my favourite shop in Joondalup "Shens". They do really good, deep and cheap massages so the girls layed on the table and had a massage from top to bottom. Caitlin giggled and sang out the whole way through it, she absolutely loved it. Grace looked like she was going to nod off to sleep at any stage but she was also a bit worried that they were going to massage her butt. I had to ask them not to do her butt and she also wouldn't lye down, she would only sit up because she had a dress on. Despite all of that, she had the massage and really enjoyed it.
We then did a bit of window shopping. The girls looked at the clothes and showed me all the things they loved. After lunch, ( where Caitlin ate a whole plate of pasta ), I took the girls to have their finger nails painted. Actually we got Grace's finger nails and Caitlin's toe nails done. Caitlin chose a blue glitter which looks absolutely fab and Grace got green and gold fingers!!!!
We then decided that Caitlin needed a pair of thongs because she doesn't have a pair and she needed some to show off her toe nails so we went into Kmart and found a pair that fit and were on special - excellent.
After that we went home and picked up all of Grace's pocket money that she has been saving forever and I took her back to Joondalup where she brought a pair of "Heelies". These are the shoes that have the wheels in them so they can either walk or roll along. She was the most excited girl in the whole of Perth I think!!!!
After that we went to swimming. While Grace trained, Tom had a splash around in the water. He loved it when the water bubbled up from the jets and being a typical boy, he positioned himself so he was sitting on it!!!!!!
So that was our day today, what a ripper it was for us all.
I decided that the girls and I needed a girly day and Tom and his Dad needed some boy time so I set out for a really special day.
The girls were spoilt rotten and it's really lucky I don't do it very often cos it cost me a small fortune but it was worth every penny!!!
We started off by going to pick up the girls order for school which was quick and not very exciting but the day did get better from there.
We then went and ordered Caitlin some really groovy glasses. Her prescription has changed and thankfully she no longer needs the milk bottle thick glasses. She now has lenses that aren't very strong and so she can go for a regular frame rather than one that can cope with the thick lenses. This improvement is because she is growing up and so the shape of her eye is growing and changing too. We tried on a few pairs with her and with Grace's advise two pairs were chosen. One of them is the same pink colour as her wheelchair and the other is a purple lens. She looked so grown up in the and very smart!!!!
After that the fun really began. I took the girls up to my favourite shop in Joondalup "Shens". They do really good, deep and cheap massages so the girls layed on the table and had a massage from top to bottom. Caitlin giggled and sang out the whole way through it, she absolutely loved it. Grace looked like she was going to nod off to sleep at any stage but she was also a bit worried that they were going to massage her butt. I had to ask them not to do her butt and she also wouldn't lye down, she would only sit up because she had a dress on. Despite all of that, she had the massage and really enjoyed it.
We then did a bit of window shopping. The girls looked at the clothes and showed me all the things they loved. After lunch, ( where Caitlin ate a whole plate of pasta ), I took the girls to have their finger nails painted. Actually we got Grace's finger nails and Caitlin's toe nails done. Caitlin chose a blue glitter which looks absolutely fab and Grace got green and gold fingers!!!!
We then decided that Caitlin needed a pair of thongs because she doesn't have a pair and she needed some to show off her toe nails so we went into Kmart and found a pair that fit and were on special - excellent.
After that we went home and picked up all of Grace's pocket money that she has been saving forever and I took her back to Joondalup where she brought a pair of "Heelies". These are the shoes that have the wheels in them so they can either walk or roll along. She was the most excited girl in the whole of Perth I think!!!!
After that we went to swimming. While Grace trained, Tom had a splash around in the water. He loved it when the water bubbled up from the jets and being a typical boy, he positioned himself so he was sitting on it!!!!!!
So that was our day today, what a ripper it was for us all.
Saturday, January 8, 2011
We're Home Again
This is going to be a short but sweet post tonight as I am completely wrecked!!
However, I am wrecked in a great way. We have just got home from a holiday of camping, fishing and ski biscuiting down south in Augusta.
It was an awesome time away, spent with some fantastic friends. It was our first camping trip away with Tom and I have to say, he did very well. He travelled beautifully in the car and was such a good boy while we were away, despite the fact that he only got put down for a sleep once while we were away because the rest of us were having too much fun!!
Grace went flat out on the ski biscuit and took a couple of spectacular spills off it. She came up each time with a massive grin on her face and asking for more. Caitlin didn't get in the biscuit behind the boat this time because it was a big too rough and then it was too cold for Mum to get in. She did flung around by her Dad in the water and Chris gave her a super fast and bumpy ride all by herself in the boat which was just perfect according to her.
We did a bit of fishing as well. Caitlin was able to rotate the reel handle all by herself a number of times which was pretty exciting for us and she felt very proud of herself!!! WE had mixed success with the fishing. Some expeditions were successful ( until we tried to fillet them ) and some were absolute failures. No matter, we had a ball doing it and Caitlin really enjoyed herself.
So, after my big drive today, I am ready and raring to hop into my own bed. I will put some photos up soon.
Speak soon
Sam
However, I am wrecked in a great way. We have just got home from a holiday of camping, fishing and ski biscuiting down south in Augusta.
It was an awesome time away, spent with some fantastic friends. It was our first camping trip away with Tom and I have to say, he did very well. He travelled beautifully in the car and was such a good boy while we were away, despite the fact that he only got put down for a sleep once while we were away because the rest of us were having too much fun!!
Grace went flat out on the ski biscuit and took a couple of spectacular spills off it. She came up each time with a massive grin on her face and asking for more. Caitlin didn't get in the biscuit behind the boat this time because it was a big too rough and then it was too cold for Mum to get in. She did flung around by her Dad in the water and Chris gave her a super fast and bumpy ride all by herself in the boat which was just perfect according to her.
We did a bit of fishing as well. Caitlin was able to rotate the reel handle all by herself a number of times which was pretty exciting for us and she felt very proud of herself!!! WE had mixed success with the fishing. Some expeditions were successful ( until we tried to fillet them ) and some were absolute failures. No matter, we had a ball doing it and Caitlin really enjoyed herself.
So, after my big drive today, I am ready and raring to hop into my own bed. I will put some photos up soon.
Speak soon
Sam
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