Today we had Scarlet's 6 month well baby check-up and Cas' 4 year old check up. Scarlet weighted in at a sweet average of 15lbs 10 oz while Cas weighted in at a whoppin 39 1/2 lbs. She is like my bear cub: big, brown and furry. It left me pondering why do kids grow so fast?
It seems to me that it is God's joke on us. Our infants grow at an astounding rate where as it seems like they are 2 and 3 years old for 5 years. So was this Gods clever plan so that we will continue to procreate? Every woman looks at a newborn and oohhs and aahhs over it and 99% of the time says " oh I miss that age". 95% of the time they are saying this with a whiny 3 year old pulling on their pant leg. I am thinking: Oh ya lady I feel your pain.
It seems to be that they are newborns for such a short amount of time but could we really survive having a newborn if they stayed newborn for much longer than 30 days? Ya they are cute but we often forget that they go through 8-1000 diapers /day. They nurse every 2 hours even through the night and its is a flat out lie that "sleeping like a baby" is anything close to resembling real sleep. So the first year of a baby's life most mothers would walk around like a complete zombie due to sleep deprivation. Our poor husbands would be sad sad people "honey? (sad face) can we please spend some time together (more sad face with a little bottom lip)?" Us moms would be like " uh, sure I can pencil you in around 2pm on Thursday the 21st in between my nap and a feeding". As of now we spend approximately 4 months in this mode.
So yes babies are cute and sweet and lots of work, Gods design was perfect when deciding how fast our kids grow. I am still trying to figure out why they stay 3 for so long though. In my family 4 is on the horizon and life seems to get a bit easier when your child turns 4. I try to forget that after the joy of 4, there is 9, 10, 11, 12......so on so forth. In the meantime, I am praising the lord for giving the Doctors the know-how to invent tubal ligations!
Friday, July 8, 2011
Wednesday, July 6, 2011
To medicate or not
My oldest daughter Brayden whom we call B for short was diagnosed 2 months ago with ADHD. We were advised to begin with medication management right off the bat. Well these last 2 months have been an emotional roller coaster.
Growing up B has always been very outgoing and full of energy. Not the kind of bouncing off the wall energy but energy of the mouth. She talks, talks talks, and talks some more. Always has something to say or add to any conversation. Even the conversations she has with herself, there always seems to be one more thing she just NEEDS to say.
When she started Kindergarten, the dreaded report card started. Every single one since Kindergarten has said the same things : Very bright but talks to much to her friends, easily distracted, doesn't stay focused and (this years said) doesn't stay sitting in chair. So this last year in 3rd grade the teacher mentioned I should get her tested for ADHD. In the back of my mind I am thinking "Ya right lady, she doesn't have that." but the nursing part of my brain jingled (just a little). We (the teacher and I) decided she would try some different things in the classroom and keep in close contact with me on B's progress. Well the year went by and B's grades were slowly but surely declining. So with a month left of school I got her tested. Well she passed that test with flying colors unlike the math test she had brought home previously that week. So we leave the Dr's. office with a prescription of Concerta.
First off let me add that there is so much stigma over medications with ADHD, so I was very nervous about going that route. After some research, I found that there is so many things out there to supposedly treat this. I also found that some of these ideas are a crock of you know what. Potatoes people, I was going to say potatoes. Concerta is also called methylphenidate. It is a stimulant which in kids with ADHD is supposed to work the opposite from what a stimulant would do to me or you. So when we got the prescription and was going to give her the first dose, I really had to give my self a pep talk and it went something like this: We don't have to do this forever, this really is the best treatment option, it will help her pass 4th grade, just think of it as organic meth..... etc.
What did we find with the Concerta use is that she had better focus but had side effects such as stomach aches, headaches, crazy emotions, weight loss and started picking at her skin. So a few weeks ago I looked at her and thought, probably out loud, Oh my goodness, I have a "legal" meth addict for a kid. She looked horrible. She had lost 10% of her body weight. She is a competitive gymnast and only 60lbs to begin with so she didn't have any weight to lose. She has also picked so many scabs into her skin it looked like a polka-dot puppy and not the cute kind, more the kind with leprosy.
So what to do now. We took her off the Concerta and she ate like a teenage boy for a week and the scabs are healing. I know that there are tons of other meds out there. I feel like we are working with a diabetic trying to find the right doses of insulin. So we will work it out and in the mean time I am trying to nurse her back to cute puppy kid.
Growing up B has always been very outgoing and full of energy. Not the kind of bouncing off the wall energy but energy of the mouth. She talks, talks talks, and talks some more. Always has something to say or add to any conversation. Even the conversations she has with herself, there always seems to be one more thing she just NEEDS to say.
When she started Kindergarten, the dreaded report card started. Every single one since Kindergarten has said the same things : Very bright but talks to much to her friends, easily distracted, doesn't stay focused and (this years said) doesn't stay sitting in chair. So this last year in 3rd grade the teacher mentioned I should get her tested for ADHD. In the back of my mind I am thinking "Ya right lady, she doesn't have that." but the nursing part of my brain jingled (just a little). We (the teacher and I) decided she would try some different things in the classroom and keep in close contact with me on B's progress. Well the year went by and B's grades were slowly but surely declining. So with a month left of school I got her tested. Well she passed that test with flying colors unlike the math test she had brought home previously that week. So we leave the Dr's. office with a prescription of Concerta.
First off let me add that there is so much stigma over medications with ADHD, so I was very nervous about going that route. After some research, I found that there is so many things out there to supposedly treat this. I also found that some of these ideas are a crock of you know what. Potatoes people, I was going to say potatoes. Concerta is also called methylphenidate. It is a stimulant which in kids with ADHD is supposed to work the opposite from what a stimulant would do to me or you. So when we got the prescription and was going to give her the first dose, I really had to give my self a pep talk and it went something like this: We don't have to do this forever, this really is the best treatment option, it will help her pass 4th grade, just think of it as organic meth..... etc.
What did we find with the Concerta use is that she had better focus but had side effects such as stomach aches, headaches, crazy emotions, weight loss and started picking at her skin. So a few weeks ago I looked at her and thought, probably out loud, Oh my goodness, I have a "legal" meth addict for a kid. She looked horrible. She had lost 10% of her body weight. She is a competitive gymnast and only 60lbs to begin with so she didn't have any weight to lose. She has also picked so many scabs into her skin it looked like a polka-dot puppy and not the cute kind, more the kind with leprosy.
So what to do now. We took her off the Concerta and she ate like a teenage boy for a week and the scabs are healing. I know that there are tons of other meds out there. I feel like we are working with a diabetic trying to find the right doses of insulin. So we will work it out and in the mean time I am trying to nurse her back to cute puppy kid.
Tuesday, July 5, 2011
The beginning
A little about myself. I am 30 years old, married for 5 1/2 years to a wonderful man, have 3 kids (all girls) and am a terribly bad speller. Did I mention I also work as a Registered Nurse. So I guess I am just crazy busy or just crazy.
Today I was thinking how neat it would be to share a little bit about how I manage and also some of the funny, sad, interesting things that happen in my life.
My girls: Brayden is 9, Castilleja is 3.9 (her birthday is in 16 days), and Scarlet is 6 months. These girls are my pride and joy but wow, no one ever told me it would be this hard to be mom. My husband is in law enforcement and works all, I mean all, the time. So you mix that with me working and it is Gods miracle that we have a happy healthy marriage.
Speaking of God, I am a new Christian, since March of this year. So I am learning to incorporate that into my parenting, marriage and lifestyle. I have a wonderful church I go to and a great support system that helps me to grow into a better Christian everyday.
I work night shift at the hospital so I lack sleep on a regular basis, so drivers in Wyoming WATCH OUT! Just kidding but it is not a lifestyle I would like to continue forever. I have done this for 5 years and I feel like I have hit a brick wall physically. Maybe my age?
Other labels that may fit me are:
Breastfeeding mom
Medium complexion
Mother of one blonde child, one dark haired, dark eyed and dark skinned child and then one in-betweener.
Ob nurse
Delivered 7 babies by myself (not on purpose)
Have a huge extended family
Had a one legged stalker in my lifetime
Had a teenage pregnancy that I placed that child for adoption
Lived in Oregon for 3.5 years
Never went on a date till my husband
Love clothes but never get to buy any
Have tons of shoes and always say I will wear them but still only wear the same 3 pairs
Hate those big purses (its like carrying around a diaper bag)
Hate those big sunglasses
Liked the 80's in the 80's but when I saw a dude walking around totally dressed in 80s gear, realized that I no longer ever want the 80's dress fads to come back into style.
Love music
Play the guitar
Sing in a band sometimes
Learning to enjoy running and exercising
Am totally addicted to Coke O' Cola, not the diet kind either
Has a child with ADHD
Has a child with tons of mosquito bites
Sleep in a full size bed but every night when the baby is in there, wish it was a queen or king size
So that's me in a nutshell!
Today I was thinking how neat it would be to share a little bit about how I manage and also some of the funny, sad, interesting things that happen in my life.
My girls: Brayden is 9, Castilleja is 3.9 (her birthday is in 16 days), and Scarlet is 6 months. These girls are my pride and joy but wow, no one ever told me it would be this hard to be mom. My husband is in law enforcement and works all, I mean all, the time. So you mix that with me working and it is Gods miracle that we have a happy healthy marriage.
Speaking of God, I am a new Christian, since March of this year. So I am learning to incorporate that into my parenting, marriage and lifestyle. I have a wonderful church I go to and a great support system that helps me to grow into a better Christian everyday.
I work night shift at the hospital so I lack sleep on a regular basis, so drivers in Wyoming WATCH OUT! Just kidding but it is not a lifestyle I would like to continue forever. I have done this for 5 years and I feel like I have hit a brick wall physically. Maybe my age?
Other labels that may fit me are:
Breastfeeding mom
Medium complexion
Mother of one blonde child, one dark haired, dark eyed and dark skinned child and then one in-betweener.
Ob nurse
Delivered 7 babies by myself (not on purpose)
Have a huge extended family
Had a one legged stalker in my lifetime
Had a teenage pregnancy that I placed that child for adoption
Lived in Oregon for 3.5 years
Never went on a date till my husband
Love clothes but never get to buy any
Have tons of shoes and always say I will wear them but still only wear the same 3 pairs
Hate those big purses (its like carrying around a diaper bag)
Hate those big sunglasses
Liked the 80's in the 80's but when I saw a dude walking around totally dressed in 80s gear, realized that I no longer ever want the 80's dress fads to come back into style.
Love music
Play the guitar
Sing in a band sometimes
Learning to enjoy running and exercising
Am totally addicted to Coke O' Cola, not the diet kind either
Has a child with ADHD
Has a child with tons of mosquito bites
Sleep in a full size bed but every night when the baby is in there, wish it was a queen or king size
So that's me in a nutshell!
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