Wow, it's been a month......

Seems this blogging thing has gotten away from me somewhat. I just logged on  by chance and realized I haven't posted in over a month. Things have been crazy busy so no pictures yet, because I have not even uploaded them to my computer yet. (As you can see, I am really on top of things these days).  We had a great Christmas. Cameron was so excited this year. He talked about Santa and told us that he said "Ho Ho Ho". He even sat on his lap, which I figured he would freak out about once we got to the front of the line. He asked for an orange bear. And Santa looked everywhere to find that orange bear since the little guy asked for nothing else and never changed his response when asked "what is santa gonna bring you?" This was Cameron's first really fun Christmas. He had a ball opening his gifts and has had even more fun playing with him. He got a play kitchen and some food and pans, plates etc. which I'd have to say is his favorite. He spends hours making us all different meals and feeding us. It's so cute.

I have been out of commission for a bit which accounts partially for my absence. On December 17th, I had back surgery. I originally had surgery for a disc issue five years ago. A disc was removed and a bone graft was placed with six screws. I have been in pain ever since that operation and finally found another doctor who said the original bone graft had never taken and two of the screws were just moving around in my back. I really had no choice but to do surgery, we couldn't leave the hardware in as it was and the pain was getting in the way of my life and carrying two kids around all the time. After a few complications and a couple extra days in the hospital, I am home. I am pretty much useless at this point. I spend most of my time in the bed or in the recliner. The pain pills keep me comfortable but drunk and the many braces and devices I have to wear every day keep me busy. My oldest, Alek has been a great help, doing a lot to help. Since I'm not allowed to pick up anything, or bend at the waist, my mom has come to stay with us to take care of the kids. Thank god for her. Without her, I don't know what I'd do. Cameron still hasn't fully understood why I can't pick him up and when he sees the 12 inches of stiches on my back he says he's scared. Thankfully this is behind me and hopefully this time it will be successfull. I am looking forward to less painful life. And as soon as I am better recovered, I'll post some pictures!

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.