Project Life: Weeks 29 - 30

July 18 - 31

I'm not sure what happened the week of the 18th, but I didn't take any photos, although I did get one from school.  That Monday they had a little carnival with free snow cones and barrel car rides.



Little did I know, but it was the "calm before the storm." On Saturday, Will was a little fussier than usual and seemed to be coming down with pink eye (again!). Robert and I had plans to go out to dinner with some other couples and had scheduled a babysitter. I called her to let her know what was going on, and she said she was still okay with coming over to watch the kids, so we got Claire and Will ready for bed that evening and headed out. When we got home around 10, she was in Will's room trying to help him go to sleep - very abnormal. I gave him some medicine and got him to sleep, but it was not a good night for any of us - he woke up several times. Plus, I felt like I was coming down with something. That night began our week of doctor visits:

Sunday - I went to the doctor, and although I tested negative for strep, I was prescribed a decongestant and antibiotic.
Monday - Will still didn't seem well, so I took him to the doctor. Diagnosed with respiratory infection that was "RSV like". Given a nebulizer, and I stayed home with him that day.
Tuesday - Will back to the doctor to check his breathing. Given an antibiotic and told he would probably need to stay home for the rest of the week. Robert thinks he is coming down with the same thing, goes to the doctor, and comes home with a Z-pack, steroid, and decongestant. I call Mom for backup! She comes that afternoon.
Wednesday - I go back to the doctor because I'm not feeling any better, and this time I got a steroid. Start feeling better that night.
Thursday - Will doesn't seem any better and his breathing is as raspy as ever, so I take him back to the doctor. This time he gets a steroid, and we're given instructions to count his respiratory rate. It never gets any worse, and we all start to feel better. I took a photo of the family pharmacy-3 antibiotics, 3 steroids, 3 decongestants, pink eye drops, and medicine for the nebulizer.

Friday - Mom is still here, so Robert and I go to an early showing of Harry Potter 7 Part 2 - LOVED IT!

Saturday - Mom leaves to go home. We survived the week! We got to Lupe's, and Claire celebrates with a rainbow pop. We were so thankful that someone she managed to avoid getting sick. Score 1 for the daycare-enabled immune system!

Fun by the river

Last week a few of the families from our Life Group spent the morning at Guad.alupe River State Park. One of the families had camped there the night before and went down to the river early to stake out a spot for our group. We hadn't been before and weren't sure what to expect, but it was a big hit with the kids. Both of them spent most of the time sitting on the edge and splashing away in the water with their friends. The park is only about 40 minutes from our house, so I am looking forward to making more trips there in the future.

Project Life: Weeks 27 - 28

July 4 - 17


Monday, July 4th



Claire celebrated the 4th by having me paint her toenails pink. I guess that's close to red!

Tuesday, July 5



Poor Will was sick with a sinus infection today, but Claire did a good job cheering him up.

Saturday, July 9



Such a happy boy!

Tuesday, July 11



Will is 8 months old!



Claire always likes to jump in on the chair pictures.

Monday, July 12



I just thought the sickies were over...I have pink eye. Thanks, dear Claire!

Sunday, July 17



"Walking practice is the best!!!"

A weekend with Nana and Granddaddy

My parents were able to come for a visit last weekend. We timed it so that Robert and I wouldn't have to get a babysitter Thursday night (we had a meeting at church), and it turned out to be perfect timing since we needed some help that afternoon juggling sick kids and work schedules.

We made it through Thursday and Friday, so we were ready for some fun by Saturday morning. We'd heard about an exotic drive through zoo in Johnson City, so we loaded up that morning and made the drive to check it out. We had pretty low expectations since we had no idea what to expect, but we ended up having a fun time. Claire really loved it - I wasn't sure how she would react being so close to the animals, but I think she felt protected in the trailer with us. They had so many types of animals, and we enjoyed feeding them. My favorites were the llamas and the ostriches (we just stuck the bucket out and let them feed themselves - no way were those guys eating out of our hands!).

Excited and ready to go!


Checking out the scenery


Watching Granddaddy feed the bison


Will was getting into it. Check out the tongue on that thing!


Part of the menagerie following us


The camel


Claire trying to get up the nerve to feed the deer in the petting area. Didn't happen. :)

We had lunch at a cute place in Johnson City, the Silver K Cafe, and then headed back home. Most of us took naps, and then we took Claire outside for some water fun. She found her swimsuit from last year in a bag of old clothes and insisted on wearing it - and I think it fits her better than the ones I got for her this year. If only you could buy separate pieces for toddlers!

I just love those little leg rolls!

The week of sickies

On the Tuesday after the 4th, Will woke up kind of grumpy and not acting like himself. I took his temperature, and it was about 103 - time to go to the doctor. We got in that morning and found out he had a sinus infection - poor guy!

Wednesday morning he seemed to be feeling better, and the fever was gone, so we took them to school and I went to work to make up for being out on Tuesday. Mid-morning my cell phone rang, and my heart sank when I saw it was the school. Claire's eyes were really red, and they were going to have to send her home. I called the pediatrician and got her an appointment for as soon as we could be there. Diagnosis: conjunctivitis. No school until it cleared up. In anticipation of this, I'd run by the house to get some toys and other things to entertain her before picking her up, so I took her to work with me. I was actually able to get a few hours of work in while she ate her lunch and played. Shortly before we were going to leave, the school called again - Will's fever was back and he would have to stay home the next day. Ugh.

On Thursday Claire's eyes weren't totally clear, so we kept them both at home. Will was feeling better (the fever broke for good early that morning), so we had fun playing together that morning. Robert came home around lunch so that I could get to work for a meeting that afternoon, and Mom and Dad (who were already planning to come for the weekend) changed their plans so that they were able to arrive earlier than usual so that Robert could go back to work for a few more hours.

By Friday, everyone was well, but we kept Will at home with Mom and Dad and sent Claire to school while I went to the office to catch up. It was a crazy week!

And as a postscript to the story...I got pink eye this past Monday that has lasted most of the week.



Thanks, Sweetie! As Robert's aunt Marilyn said, "Well, all mothers spend enormous time teaching their children to share!" :)

Snake teeth!

Like his sister, Will's mouth is quickly filling with teeth. Her two bottom teeth came in, and shortly afterwards, all 4 top front teeth started working their way out. We were a little surprised, though, when the teeth on either side of his front two came out first. It gave us a running joke about Will having fangs, being part vampire, etc. We were able to get a photo before the two front ones popped out. They've come in, now, but at least we have documentation of "SNAKE TEETH"!!!

A visit from Ma and Bob

Ma and Bob spent most of July 4th weekend with us, and we packed in a lot of fun activities. The circus was in town, so we thought it was a good chance to take Claire. We expect to only be there for about an hour, but she really enjoyed it, and we stayed for the entire performance. She loved the animals, and we were all pretty impressed with the motorcycle "Cage of Death". It was really crazy.

Enjoying her overpriced cotton candy :)


With Ma after the performance


We wrapped up the evening by making a batch of sugar cookies. Claire loves to bake with Ma. They brought her some M&Ms in her favorite color, and she enjoyed using them to decorate her cookies.







On Sunday we had a low-key day - church, popsicles, and play set.



So tasty!








Ma and Bob left Monday morning, and we had a quiet 4th. The county is on a burn ban, so there were no fireworks shows to see. We enjoyed having some time together to just relax and get ready for the week ahead. Turned out to be a wise decision - the week got a little nuts after Monday!

Project Life: Week 26

June 27 - July 3:

Wednesday



Just a sweet shot of my boy having fun during playtime.

Thursday



They just love each other so much! Feeling thankful today.

Saturday



Bob and Ma are here, and they got to join us for Claire's first trip to the circus. We all enjoyed it and were surprised that Claire lasted for the entire performance!



Claire and Ma made cookies after the circus. Ma brought Claire some special blue M&Ms. Yum!

Sunday



Claire had been asking to make popsicles, and we promised we would while Ma & Bob were here. So excited!



It was hard for her to wait, but she enjoyed the finished product.



Claire loves showing off her playset.