Pink Eye Again.....and other updates!

Seriously. Cameron has pink eye again. He woke up this morning with a crusted eye. So the doctor's office was blessed with our presence again this morning at their walk in hours. I'm sure they see us and think "oh no, here they come again." Nevertheless, Cameron does have an infection in his eye again. This time the doctor (not our regular doctor) gave us eye drops instead of the oral antibiotics that give Cameron terriblel digestive problems. I'm sure these will not be easy to apply, but it's better than the alternative!! He also gave me unlimited refils so that I don't have to frequent their office every week, like I have the past 3 weeks. UGH. He did say that he believes that Cameron's tear ducts are blocked, therefore the bacteria that gets in his eyes is not washing out like it should, causing pink eye repeatedly. He suggested that we visit the eye doctor and explore with her the idea that perhaps he needs to have his tear ducts probed. That sounds so pleasant, but I think that we'll try these drops and pray that the infection clears up and doesn't return.

T&A Surgery. I called the scheduler yesterday (because they had yet to contact me) and we are scheduled for T&A removal. As with everything else, they are prompt as usual. His appointment is on January 7th....! I was hoping that I would be able to have Cameron taken care of and recovered by the time I have surgery on my back on December 17th. I can see that won't happen, so pray for me that I will recover well enough to be able to stay in the hospital for 23 hours with Cameron for his surgery.

Last, but certainly not least. Sunday in our area, a young boy was killed in a tragic accident. I did not know this boy or his family (even though we have the same last name) but I want to offer my sincere sympathy to his family. This was a tragic loss and in my opinion the most awful thing that can happen. The loss of a child is my worst nightmare. And during the holiday season, I can only imagine it is much harder. I hope this reminds everyone to cherish the time they have with their children and families. Life can be cut short and you really never know how much time you have. Enjoy every day, savor every moment. Don't let yourself get too busy for the silly stuff.  

Being Thankful

Since it is Thanksgiving week, I have decided to dedicate my whole week to things I am thankful for. Today is especially important. As I hear of a young boy's tragic death nearby, I am so very thankful for my kids. And for their health. I am thankful that we have had this time together so far and hope that we can have many, many more years together.

Still no school!

Well, it's been a whole week since Cameron has gone to school. Last week, the remnants of IDA and a nor easter came through our area bringing big problems. Enough problems that schools in all the surrounding areas were closed on Thursday and Friday. I'm tellin you that having kids home during a storm only makes things more difficult. On Thursday night, I had both boys in bed with me and the B-Curtis. It seems the only one who got a good nights sleep was Rylee.

School did reopen yesterday however Cameron has been blessed with pink eye yet again. He had pink eye just last week and was treated with oral antibiotics. This week when the infection returned, I tried antibiotics but he has apparently developed a resistance to them. Terrific. So we were at the door waiting for the doctor's office to open this morning so we could get a stronger RX. Hopefully this works. I will say however that this pink eye has made my day a little less stressful since we were able to get out of therapy for both today and tomorrow. Boy, it's sad when you enjoy sickness just because it calms your life down a bit.

In other exciting news....! I finally heard back about the sleep study. I got a call this morning from the ENT's nurse saying the doc had reviewed the results and there was mild obstruction and that they would re-evaluate later for surgery. NOT! I wanted to tell them they could evaluate tonight because I was bringing Cameron to them so that they could see for theirselves what his sleeping is like. I find it funny that after everything I've told them and finding that there is obstruction whether it be mild or severe, they are wanting to do nothing. Hello, isn't obstruction not great even if it's mild? I told the nurse I was not in agreeance with this and that I would like to have the doctor reevaluate his decision now, that I was not wanting to wait to do something that was inevetible anyway. So I just got a call back saying that the doc agreed and they are going to schedule a T& A surgery. Now don't get me wrong. I don't ever want my children going through surgery, however I also don't want them suffering through treatable things and I also would rather them just go ahead and do this instead of waiting til he's older. UGH. But either way, it has worked out I guess. Tomorrow I go to the doc to schedule my 2nd back surgery which I'm hoping to get done before the end of the year. Seems I'm gonna be real busy for the rest of 2009~!

Fed Up Friday

Yes, I do know that it is Saturday but I was too fed up yesterday to post. So we'll call this "Fed Up Friday". First, I'll start by saying that many things irritated me yesterday. #1 being the post on "Tard Supper". You may have seen this on Facebook or someone else's blog. If not, here is the link http://slog.thestranger.com/slog/archives/2009/11/09/the-tard-supper

Amazingly enough, the guy who posted this is gay. I assume he is used to being ridiculed and called names, so I am left to wonder what made him feel this was an appropriate description of the artwork. Perhaps for me, it just set off a short fuse I already have for the word "Retard". I have posted before on this subject, but it never ceases to amaze me that people still use that word not only in my presence but around Cameron.  Anyway- I'll let it go, cause I'm sure this subject will be back around before we know it. (Sometimes a girl just has to vent)

Second~ It has been nearly 6 weeks since Cameron had his sleep study. I called the doc about 2 1/2 weeks ago and was told to call them when it had been 5 weeks, as that was when they expected to have the results back. I did call back on Monday, which was 5 weeks and was told that the results had just come in and they were sitting on the doctor's desk. The nurse assured me someone would call me as soon as he had reviewed them.  On Wednesday, I called back because I still hadn't heard and nope, the doctor hadn't reviewed them yet. I was again assured that when the doc arrived in on Friday, they would be reviewed immediately and I would receive a call before the end of the day. Hello- it's Saturday......! I am going to make a 3rd call on Monday, but I assure you that I won't be as pleasant on this phone call. It kills me that these doctors charge you an arm and a leg to see our children and then take over a week to just read results and make a phone call- C'mon!

 I think Cameron got tired of waiting too.

This is a special position that kids with DS apparently like to sleep in. I have other friends who say their children do this too. If you ask me, it's rather disturbing considering the fact that I can't even bend over and touch my toes, much less lay down like this. And this kid sleeps soundly like this. It's amazing.

Anyhow, now that I've gotten all that off of my chest, I may be able to enjoy my Soggy Saturday.

Cameron's conference

Today I met with Cameron's teacher for our first conference. I guess since report cards are getting ready to be issued- they are meeting with all the parents. I was very impressed with all his teacher had to tell me. First she tells me that Cameron seems to be the star of his class. Apparently the little boys fight over who will sit next to Cameron and who will help him walk to music, P.E., library etc. The teacher also told me that they call Cameron a little Cassanova. He likes to love on the girls alot. :) This should make his daddy very proud don't ya think?  All in all it was a great conference. I love to hear that my little guy is doing so well and that he is adored by everyone around him. This is a big change from the beginning of our journey with Cameron when everything seemed to be of a negative nature. I think the best thing I heard today was that Cameron seems to have a great effect on his peers. I was explaining that I think Cameron is really benefiting from being around typically developing children his age, as he seems to be working much harder to do the things they do. Her comment was this...."Cameron is really good for the other children too, they don't see him as a child with Down syndrome they only see him as a friend." She said they even take up for Cameron and say things like he's only 3, that's why he's having a hard time.

While I was super reluctant at first to send my little fella off to school, I am soooo glad I did it now. This has turned out to be such a great thing for Cameron- not to mention that he absolutely loves going.

I'm going to soak this up for now, cause I am sure things won't always be this easy!

Monday Madness

I've found that around here, everyone is nuts. I've always known that I was crazy. Now it seems that not only my kids have inherited that trait, but so has the dog. I will tell you that we were woken up early this morning to the sounds of a certain zebra flashlight. It's a very cute flashlight, however at 5:30am, little is cute to me. I was later called at work to be told that Cameron had used the potty on his own, without asking for help and when my mom found him, he was actually trying to empty the potty into the big potty like he sees me do. Luckily he didn't spill the contents! Also while I was at work, Rylee learned to roll from her tummy to her back. This amazes me. With Cameron everything took such a long time, now with Rylee I feel that I am missing things as they fly by me. Finally to end the day, I have discovered that Cameron loves Rylee's borrowed swing even more than she does......GREAT. (I guess I'll be buying Wendy a new swing...lol)

It's funny how he thinks everything around our house belongs to him. He loves the pink bobby bouncy seat the most. He sits in it to watch TV. Good thing there will be no more babies in this house cause this stuff won't make it very long.

Mondays are madness. Complete madness. I'm going to bed now, have to get ready for Tuesday.

EDIT: IT SEEMS MY CAMERA HAS THE WRONG DATE ON IT.

Hola

It's about time Cameron learned some spanish don't ya think. I've done a great job at teaching him a second language too. My method....? Handy Manny of course and did I mention the mexican restaurant we frequent just across the street. Cameron is a local celebrity at the restaurant and since it is close (and there isn't much else to choose from nearby) we spend quite a bit of time there. (I promise it has nothing to do with the fact that they have great margaritas..) Cameron has now picked up hola and says it repeatedly to everyone who walks by us! They love it. In fact, the waiters bring Cameron special things that they never charge us for, they even take him to the kitchen to pick out his food. Apparently though, all this attention and learning of a new language have worn him out. He actually fell asleep on the table. Good thing I carry a camera in my purse at all times! This was clearly too good to miss.

Guy Sandwhich

Yesterday we had a super busy day. Wednesdays are always busy, but this day started very early and we started our day with Aquatic therapy at 8am. That was followed by Speech at 9, Cardiologist at 10 and finally PT at 11. Lucky for me, Cameron's therapies are all done at the same building where many of his doctors rotate. We don't typically do this many appointments on one day however it just kind of happened because of some scheduling issues and the fact that I can not take Rylee into the hospital with me for Cam's appointments.

By the time Cameron had done therapy in the water and had an hour of speech he was a little less than eager to visit with the cardiologist. That is surprising, right! He allowed the nurse to weigh him (he is 31 pounds) and they checked his blood pressure. That is where his cooperation ended. He acted so crazy when they were trying to do the EKG that they had to stop. The doc says he's not too concerned because Cameron doesn't exhibit any signs of distress.  He listened to Cameron's heart and lungs etc. all while I had his arms pinned behind his back and my leg holding down his legs and of course him bellowing. When the doc stood up and the tears stopped Cameron held up his fist and said "Guy Sandwhich". The mothering side of me had to scold him for this. I didn't allow the nurses to reward him with stickers because he had not cooperated and had even been rude to his doctor. Cameron knew he was in trouble but I have to admit that I was having a terrible time keeping a straight face througout this. I can't help but laugh when he's not around at the things he is picking up and they come out at the most unexpected times.

And just for the record........his nanny taught him about the knuckle sandwhich. Not me.

Crick or Creat

This was really the first Halloween that Cameron has been able  to enjoy. He has gone every year since he was born, but this year is he is talking and finally he is walking. The costume he is wearing is actually too small but he tried it on in Target and then just had to have it. The hat has been worn all over the house ever since and we've all been laughing at him. Little Rylee got her costume compliments of a good friend who has everything anyone could ever need. Whatever I'm in need of, I just need to tell Wendy, cause she either has it or knows how I can find it.....! You'll notice that my oldest child is not present in these pictures. It is not because he has had the swine flu (cause he was better), it is because he refused to wear a costume and then proceeded to trick or treat without one. My neighbors are obviously better than I am- I wouldn't have given him any candy. I did tell one lady who asked what he was, that he was dressed as a pain in the tail. He is enterering those pesky pre-teen years that are not so fun, and which also lead to the real not so fun times, teenage years!

Despite that hot weather (I think I'm entering menopause since I cannot deal with heat lately) and the rain, we had a terrific time. We pushed the two little ones around in the double stroller in our neighborhood which was great. The houses are very close and the driveways are short. Cameron walked up to every door and said "Crick or Creat". He even started to do it without my prompting and of course used his manners and said thank you too! Everyone he met thought he was just adorable.

We did quite a few houses in our area (filled up both boy's buckets), then trecked the few blocks to the in-laws house for a visit. Cameron wanted more trick or treat so we went a few houses down and Cameron was able to visit with an OT therapist that treated him when he was an infant. I don't believe he remembers her but she loved to see him and was so proud at all he has accomplished.

Now on to our pre-Halloween foolishness. Earlier this week, Cameron came into the living room like this.

It's a piece from the mister potato head set we have. He was actually just holding it there but I thought, why not tape it there for some real fun. The fun didn't end there either. Cause ya know I had to try it out.......

I look terrible and that has nothing to do with the mustache. But it was all good fun either way. Wait to Robert sees this.

Enjoy!