Eviction notice

We’ve endured many firsts in our parenting journey--stitches (traditional and glue), a minor fracture, pneumonia, Bells Palsy, nebulizers, food allergies and intolerances, asthma and many other maladies and injuries—but tomorrow will be a first. First real surgery. I am a nervous wreck.

Tomorrow morning Parker will have those monstrous tonsils and adenoids removed. They have been served with their official eviction notice! I know it’s for the best. I know that in the end he will sleep and breathe better, but goodness, the thought of anesthesia and the fact that he has no way of fully understanding what is coming his way just breaks my heart! We’ve told him there will be some pain…but he doesn’t know it’s going to last for so long.

I just have to keep reminding myself it is for the best. His pediatrician, ENT and allergist ALL agree it is necessary, but it’s hard not to keep returning to the fact that he is three and it is SURGERY. Oh, and to make things better this week, Thomas has been sick with a high fever since Tuesday afternoon and it’s taken all that I have just to keep the two of them away from each other since then! Hopefully Thomas will be better soon too! I felt terrible for shipping my sick son off to be with his grandparents, but it was for the best.

Here's Parker talking a little about what is to come...

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Please pray for a successful surgery and a quick and easy-as-it-can-be recovery. Many thanks!

Where have you gone, sweet smile?

Even though my parents are celebrating their 40th anniversary this weekend, they graciously offered to keep the boys last night so that Trey and I could have a much needed date night. Since Thomas was supposed to go to a basketball game (Citadel vs. College of Charleston) today at 2 with his Daddy, we had planned to meet my mom and get the boys at lunchtime. As soon as Thomas joyously got out the car smiling at his Daddy and me, we knew something was wrong.

It's not quite as noticeable when he's not laughing or smiling big, but this is the best "smile for the camera face" I can get:


His face looked contorted and while one side was overexaggerating, the other side (right side) was doing nothing. I called the nurse line for our pediatrician's office and told her it looked like Bell's Palsy, even though I didn't think that's something children could get. Well, after a trip to our local pediatric emergency room, I have learned that while not as common, children certainly can get Bell's Palsy...and they do. And that, of course, is what Thomas does have.

If you aren't familiar with Bell's Palsy, it basically is caused by a virus (many different ones can cause it) and what they think happens is that it causes inflammation of the nerve that controls the muscles of your face. He has limited movement of the muscles on the right side of his face. Thankfully, to this point, he can open and close his eye normally (though it is slightly less reactive) and hopefully it will stay that way. Otherwise, his eye will get dry and irritated and we'll have to constantly put drops in his eye and at night he would need an eye ointment and a patch. Please pray that we do not have to do this. The symptoms of Bell's Palsy usually last (according to the doctors we saw today) around 3-6 weeks. Yes, WEEKS. And there is a small chance that it could be much, much longer...but I'm not even considering that as a possibility!

He is on an antiviral medication and steroids (I am praying that these don't make him crazy like they did when he was a little, little one). And thankfully, he's not overly aware of the problem. He doesn't really know anything is wrong, aside from people asking him to move his eyebrows (he can only move one) and smile, etc! And hopefully, the 4-year olds in his class are too young to really notice either. That's the only thing that worries me, is knowing how it easy for feelings to get hurt when a child looks "different."

A few more pictures... Every time I would try to snap a picture, the flash was causing him to blink right as the picture was taken. Looking at those pictures makes me realize that his "bad" eye is not as reactive. See how his left eye is already shut?




So then I tried taking a few without a flash.


When you ask him to smile, I guess it's hard for him to smile a toothy grin. When I ask him to say "cheese" and give me a smile with teeth, I get something like this:


Looks a bit more like he should be a pirate saying "Arrrrrrgh!" :-) Trey suggested Popeye. Either way, we miss our boy's adorable smile...


And until it returns, we'll have to settle for this:


Get well soon Boog! We hope and pray that you'll be back to normal super fast!

Here we go again?

I took a picture today that I thought was worth sharing, and I figure it might be wise to make sure I document the diagnosis. Hopefully there won't be more, but I am not overly optimistic.

Parker (and Thomas) has had a cold most of the week. He has been coughing some (mostly at night for 20-30 minute intervals once or twice a night). He seemed generally okay though. This morning he woke up normally and seemed to be relatively fine until he refused most of breakfast and then got progressively clingier (is that a word?) and more and more pathetic as the morning went on. He only wanted me to hold him and he just kept whining "Mommy. Mommy." in this terribly sad and pathetic whimper. Trey had planned a morning out with the boys (I had a productive morning planned!) to include a trip to the fire museum and Parker didn't want to give that up.

Soon he had a fever and I knew he couldn't go. He was in terrible shape. He didn't even want me to put him down for a second if I wasn't holding him. Trey left with Thomas and I stayed so I could take Parker to the weekend peds care when they opened at 11. We left a little after 10:30 and he was asleep before we even got out of our neighborhood.

We got to the hospital (where the after-hours place is) and got checked in. It wasn't long after we started waiting that I looked down to this:


He was snoring and completely out. I can't tell you the last time he fell asleep in my lap (or sat completely still with me when we were waiting anywhere). There was no doubt that something was wrong. And in the end, the diagnosis was a left ear infection and fluid in both ears.

Last year he ended up with five ear infections (starting in late October/early November). By the time the fourth and fifth came around it was already spring and starting to get warmer and the doctors said that even though they usually refer to the ENT after four in that time period (for ear tubes), since it was starting to get warmer and out of "ear infection season," they said we could wait. So we did and he hasn't had one since (despite about 4-5 trips to the ped for a false alarm).

This time will be different. If he gets one more in the next two months...we are heading to the ENT. There is just no need in little man being so sick and pathetic!

Purely pathetic

This picture just about sums out life around our house since last Thursday afternoon.


Parker has had a time. Poor child has maintained a fever for the better part of the time since last Thursday anywhere from just over 100 to 103. And he has mastered his pathetic look.


Not sure what exactly is wrong with him, aside from some unknown virus. I took him to the doctor on Friday and he had a negative strep test. I'm hoping today is the last day of the bug, but we'll just have to see. It's been so much fun around here. I even got to sleep in the floor of his bedroom last night for 1.5 hours. Yawn.

And Thomas might be coming down with it too. I'm just hoping and praying that if he is going to get it, he can go ahead and be done with it since we leave for California on Thursday morning!