Toxic Synovitis

Sounds scary, doesn't it?!?!

Well let me tell you how I learned this medical (and scary sounding word).

Thursday morning after the kids got up we ate breakfast as usual. Then Pierce was done so I took him out of the highchair and set his feet on the floor and let go (like I ALWAYS do) expecting him to run off like a wild man. Well he collapses on the floor and starting crying a bit. I look at him baffled and try to encourage him to get up. He doesn't so I help him up again and again he falls to the floor. I realize this time it is his right leg that doesn't seem to be doing it's job. I pick him up and take him to his room and set him on the floor with toys and call Dan in a panic (big surprise I am sure).

Dan says, "Maybe his leg fell asleep. Give him some time and tell me what happens." Oh. well why didn't I think of that? So after a while he started limping around and getting back to somewhat normal. I thought...oh maybe it did fall asleep. Fast forward to lunch time. I again put him in the highchair and after lunch take him out. He then does not use his leg at all. WHAT?!?! Am I completely loosing my mind? What is going on? He was tired so I put him down thinking sleep might help (hey it couldn't hurt). After nap he again cannot use his leg. So I call the Dr. and make an appt for that afternoon.

The P.A checks his leg really thoroughly and cannot find any tender spots. Pierce is not crying or acting upset. He seems fine. He just wont walk on his leg. I am trying desperately to rack my brain and think of a time he could have gotten hurt in the last 24hrs. I just feel awful. What kind of mom doesn't know how or when her child got hurt. I also feel kind of crazy. I mean this just all the sudden happened. Am I crazy?!?!

Well the P.A says she thinks he has Toxic Synovitis. A virus that settles in the hip joint. It inflames and irritates the hip making it painful and uncomfortable to walk on. We can give him some ibuprofen to help with the swelling and make him more comfortable and some tylenol to help with the pain. Also, I need to try and keep him off of it and don't let him walk (meaning carry him everywhere). Like any other virus it should run its course in a few days and we should see improvement. If we don't by Monday then we will get x-rays done of the whole hip and leg and be sure it is not injured or something more serious.

I have NEVER heard anything like this. I am HUGELY pregnant and carrying this big boy everywhere is not going to be easy. I am also pretty emotional (lets blame pregnancy on this one too). We go to the store get some medicine and go home. That night he wakes up crying/screaming from pain. The next day he is not using his leg at all again. But he WANTS to. He is frustrated and I am wore out. By the afternoon he is forcing himself to limp on it so he can play and keep up with his big sis. That night he wakes up screaming from pain again :( It takes me over an hour and a half to put him to sleep. Saturday he again is not using his leg at all. His crawling has even been affected. I am starting to get nervous. Maybe we misdiagnosed? Is my baby hurt? He is not taking good naps because he wakes up in pain. I am starting to wonder if we need to take him back to the Dr right away.

Sunday morning he is still not using his leg. I am pretty discouraged. If he has to get x-rays I won't get to be in there with him because of my pregnancy. My heart feels so sad. What exactly is this Toxic Synovitis anyway??

So I google it and came across a few articles. Here is one of the articles I read. Oh wow this sounds EXACTLY like what Pierce is going through. I feel tons better. I am no longer completely crazy! I am feeling more and more confident that we made the right diagnosis!!!!

Well by Sunday afternoon he turned a corner and started limping around again. He slept through the night without waking up in pain! Monday morning he was almost back to his normal energetic self! Another good nap and nighttime and we come to today. He is doing great! He still limps every once and a while but it is not slowing him down at all. He is climbing, walking/running and happy. Overall he is seeming like himself. Oh praise the Lord.

I have been reminded of how healthy my children are. What a blessing that truly is. It is not fun to see your children suffer in any way, shape or form.

I have also been reminded that while I would NEVER let my children suffer (for any reason) God has shown us the ultimate kindness by sending us his Son and letting (and watching) him suffer and die so we might be saved. Oh how he loves us.

And now you (like me) have extended your vocabulary with a new medical term :)

Slow Down 4

While I was cleaning up after snacks the kids went off and played with each other. They came back after a few minutes like this:






Priceless! Crash was wearing a pink headband too, but I was not fast enough with my camera to get him. LOL!


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Head To Toe

Dear Pierce,

I love you from the top of your white blonde hair



Down to your sweet light blue eyes



To your ornery smile full of mischief





To your tummy that just can't seem to get enough food



Down to your hands that hug so tight



All the way down to your feet which never seem to be still



You Sir, are pure delight!!!

Dear Saffryn,

I love you from the top of your blonde hair, "that is getting darker like daddy's. Maybe it will turn red or green."



Down to your blue eyes that never seem to need sleep and constantly takes in the world around



Down to your mouth that is full of sugar and spice



To your hands that are most often used for loving and creating



To your legs that can kick out of frustration



All the way down to your toes that love to be painted



You My Dear, are pure delight


And don't either of you ever forget it!



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Slow Down 3

Before I became a parent I had all sorts of ideas about the things I would never do. I was not going to be one of "those" parents whose children throw tantrums in the store. Or who gives their children skittles as rewards...or...the list could go on. But let's not embarrass myself more than absolutes necessary! But what I was not for sure EVER going to was let my kids play in the street...without shoes...

This morning we really needed to weed the front flower bed. And this was an actual need...not a pregnancy related "need". Trust me. Anyway that bed is right by the street and I knew the kids would want to eventually come over to me. After a few minutes of playing with their toys near the garage they did just that.

They started by playing on the sidewalk near our house. Innocent enough. Dan and I were both right there so we weren't worried about them (plus it was early and normal people were still sleeping so there were no cars out and about).

Then Pierce's shoe fell off. He had no interest in coming over to me to get it on...and let's just be real I had no interest in getting up and walking over there to put it back on. Hey in my defense getting up off the ground is not a small task these days. Plus he was wearing socks. Lol!

Then he took his other shoe off. Ugh. Oh well. Right?!? Then they got really sneaky and started to take interest in the small stream of water in front of the driveway from the neighbor's sprinklers. Well again I thought no big deal. I expected them to be down here because Dan and I were.

The next thing I know my children turn into wild animals....lol! Playing in the stream...in the street! Saffryn realized Pierce had his shoes off and proceeded to take hers off. The stream got bigger with more sprinklers and the kids got wetter.

Dan and I looked at each other and realized...OH NO! We were now one of "THOSE" parents. And you know what. It was really fun! We could not stop laughing at our crazy kids. I made Dan run in and get the camera...naturally. So while we were weeding our kids were:





And




They both fell and got "soakin wet" according to Saffryn










Socks and all...



Oops too far...



Come on back you wild animals ;)



Holding hands...then they get really crazy...



Haha



For the record this whole thing was Pierce's idea. Especially this gem of putting their hair in it.

This was a fun morning. It turned a really unpleasant chore of weeding into a crazy memory. It also made Dan and I check another one of those never moments from our list. I'm so glad we did! And don't worry we bathed the children thoroughly after these pictures were taken!




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Slow Down 2

The other day Dan came home from work early because he had a bad headache. Saffryn did not want to leave his side. So I turned on a movie and she watched quietly (the whole movie!!!) next to him while he slept and relaxed.

I knew Pierce was not going to watch a movie...not his style... so I took him out to the living room and played with him. It was SO much fun. I do not get the chance to spend time with just him very often. We sang songs and to my great surprise he knew some of the gestures!!! We read books and worked on some new signs and truthfully just enjoyed each other's company! He had the chance to play with any toy he wanted...which doesn't happen very often. He really got the chance to shine and show off to his momma (a very willing audience).

I might have missed this moment if I had not been on the look out. Instead I snapped a quick picture so I could remember it even better!




I love these sweet and simple moments. Thank you God for showing me another!

Same Dress, Different Date

One of my friends got married this weekend (congrats Nate and Lyndsay) and I have one nice maternity dress that still fits. It is the same dress I wore to Broadway in NYC. I thought it would be fun to compare....

So here is week 22:




Here is week 33:


Welp, there you have it...11 weeks of pregnancy difference!


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Slow Down

The other evening while sitting outside in the hot (feeling cranky and sorry for myself) watching the kids play I had a thought... I wish I could just fast forward these next 7 weeks (give or take a few weeks. Basically until baby boy 3 is born). Why? Because I am very excited to meet this baby! I am such an impatient person. It is also tough being this pregnant over the summer months so I am just ready for these few weeks to be over!

However while I was thinking that particular thought another thought came to me. Have you ever seen the movie Click? Basically this guy gets a remote to his life. He has the freedom to fast forward, pause, etc... So he does exactly what I just suggested and fast forwards through the hard and boring parts of his life to get to the "good" ones. *spoiler alert* after he gets through his life he realizes that maybe the "boring" or hard parts of life are actually quite special. He realizes that he missed out on so much.

I don't want to be that person. I don't want to miss out on God's blessings because I was too impatient to live in the moment. What would I miss out on if I fast forwarded these next 7 weeks??? Well that is my new mission...finding out! I want to use these next hard weeks to improve my patience and see how God has blessed me! I am going to try and be diligent in finding the moments that make me stop and think, "I would have missed this." I am calling any posts of these my "slow down" posts.

Here is my first post on slowing down:

After a hot walk after dinner we all came back to the driveway to play. Dan turned on the sprinklers and got out the hose because our yard needs a bit more water. Saffryn wanted to help. Well it turned into a water fight!!! The pictures are not the best because it was from my camera. But try and enjoy!
































They all got soaking wet! I am so very glad I didn't miss this. I loved seeing Dan play with the kids. We were all laughing SO much! This is a memory I will cherish for a long time. So glad I didn't get the chance to fast forward and miss this special moment.

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Sidewalk Paint

Picture an afternoon of boredom. Both children are antsy and I am tired. It just seemed like no toys were going to cut it...they were BORED. Which in my house leads to crying, tantrums and acting out.

So I rack my brain for an EASY and fun new activity. I think outside so clean up will be easy. I then google sidewalk paint. The easiest recipe came up. One half cup of cornstarch and 1/2 cup of water. Add food coloring. I had all those ingredients so we quickly whipped up a few jars of sidewalk paint!



We grabbed some paint brushes and went outside!



Let the painting begin!!!



Both were very excited to do this!







When it dried it looked like chalk!




Cute little artist!




She was very busy!







Pierce decided he was done with art and wanted to push his lawn mower around!







A look at their creation.




Then I took the hose and washed it off. It could not have been any easier...and it saved an otherwise boring afternoon!!! We will for sure be doing this again!


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32 Weeks

I have been one lean, mean cleaning machine!!! Ok well the lean part is laughable but it just doesn't sound the same to say, one bigly pregnant cleaning machine! Lol!!! I am 32 weeks (hints the title) and I am nesting like crazy. The nursery is ready, the carseat is clean and installed, pack n play is washed and ready, the swing is clean and ready! Not to mention I just had to have the garage organized and cleaned...thanks Dan! All that is really left is packing our hospital bags! I also really want to vacuum out the car and get it washed. I'm thinking this weekend..what do you say hubby??? The nesting urge has been MUCH stronger this go around. Interesting isn't it!

Also my hormones are back and in full swing. I am on the verge of crying...over nothing mind you...constantly! My sleep is super crazy and I feel tired all the time. Bending over is basically impossible at this point! And I am so very hot!!! I am still craving sweets and soda...hehe! It is really fun to see my tummy moving around and daydream about what this little boy is going to be like. Less than 2 months!!!

Had a Dr. Appt today and all looks well. I have gained another 5 lbs...not too bad. I am measuring right on track which really surprised me because I feel HUGE! My Dr said it is because I am just carrying it all out. In 4 weeks we will start checking to see if I am dilating and confirm that he is head down. That is crazy!!!

Here is a picture of my 32 week tummy!



Here is a picture of Saffryn touching my tummy. She loves to "watch" the baby move. She never quite manages to catch him moving but she loves to rub the tummy anyway! She talks about him a lot. It will be fun (I hope) to see her with him when he comes! Pierce is still completely clueless. Ignorance is bliss right?!?




Let's hope we (I) can survive the rest of the summer! I cannot wait to meet and snuggle him! Ahhhh!!! Did I mention LESS THAN 2 MONTHS!!!

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Yellow Car

While driving....

Saffryn: "Mom. MOM!!!"
Me: "Ya?"
Saffryn: "I see a yellow car!!! That's silly."
Me: "Yellow cars are silly?"
Saffryn: "Ya" while chuckling to herself.


Hahah!!! Where does she come up with this stuff?!?!


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Girly

One of my favorite things about having a girl is getting to dress the same and match!!! Feel free to gag if you want to...lol. But I am enjoying it. And let's be realistic this phase will not last long. What teenager wants to dress like their parents! Here is one of our recent matching items.



Another thing I enjoy about having a girl is playing with animals/dolls. The other day she had the realization that her animals weren't dressed and lucky for her I was prepared and have doll clothes that fit them! Such a fun memory!



She picked out all their clothes and some of them are even wearing her hats...hehe!



Standing by her animals. Can you tell how fun this was for us? She looks so proud! Love that!!!



I love this girl. Thank you God for this special girl.


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