Ava's Ears

I'm going to try to keep this brief because I would really, really like to get some sleep tonight! This past week has been ridiculous with the ear infections: on Jan. 24th we made our second "emergency" trip to the doctor on a Saturday. (I say emergency because there aren't regular office hours on weekends but they run the office somewhat like an urgent care and if you call ahead and have a pressing need--like a raging ear infection--you can get in.) The doctor prescribed an antibiotic called Suprax, supposedly the strongest oral antibiotic you can take (well, at least for babies, not sure about adults) and then he referred us to the ENT even though it was only infection #5 and they wanted us to wait for #6. I think it was a combination of pity (his kid had lots of ear infections) and realizing that at the rate at which Ava was getting infections there was no sense in waiting. Long story short the Suprax did nothing so on Friday--after another rough night that included a screaming baby and a sick mommy (I ate an Arby's salad for dinner because I was home alone and didn't feel like cooking and it did not agree with me apparently) we took her back to the doctor, who told us to continue the Suprax (not sure why) and prescribed an ear drop as well. Saturday night was another horrible night, any time we layed Ava down she would thrash and scream and arch her back and kick her legs...so we got her in again Sunday morning and they went to the last resort: antibiotic injections. It's a series of three so we had our second set today (it was actually two shots, one in each leg, because the dose is so big) and they're going to see if they can get the ENT to fast-track our appointment, originally set for Tuesday, Feb. 10th. These shots are MISERABLE. They're very painful so they mix Lidocaine in with the antibiotic to make it hurt less, but Ava apparently remembered yesterday's shot because when I took her in today she screamed as soon as we layed her down. Poor baby! It does seem to be helping a lot though, so that's good. Last night she only fussed twice, when she managed to somehow contort herself into a rather uncomfortable sleeping position and couldn't figure out how to untangle while half asleep. :o)

Since I feel like I mostly post negative things, I have to say that in spite of the ear infections and subsequent fussiness, she can be so much fun! I love doing ridiculous things to make her laugh. For instance, yesterday I jsut went up to her and said, "meemeemeemeemeemeemee!" She thought this was hilarious wouldn't stop laughing. She also cracks up every time I say, "Porkchop sandwiches!" (It's from a parody of G.I. Joe that's on YouTube--yes, I love nonsensical internet humor--so if you don't get it, just don't ask.... ;o) She also says "Uh-oh!" all the time, and usually in the correct context, like when she drops Duckie or throws a sippy cup at mommy's head. (In her defense, I was on the floor picking up food she'd dropped so my head may not have been the intended target.) She's walking like a pro (okay, more like a drunk) and can toddle all over the place, carrying things. On Saturday, she was carrying around a big, empty plastic bucket that, when full, holds 38 lbs. of kitty litter. It's almost as big as her!

That is about it. Craig's parents are coming this weekend for a visit so it will be great to see them, they were sick a few weeks ago and unable to come to Ava's birthday party and we really missed them! I don't have a whole bunch of pictures to post but I'll put up two: the first one was taken by Christina (Ava's baby-sitter) and I swiped it from her blog because it's too cute! The second one was when she was playing in the kitchen (you can see the litter bucket in the picture) and the happy expression on her face is her sweet personality poking through in spite of all the pain she's been in lately. :o)

I'm not posting for any particular reason...

...I just came to my blog so I could see some Ava pictures, since I miss her cute little face when I'm here at work. :-) Just because staying home makes me crazy it doesn't mean I don't miss her! That's all. I got cute video footage of her saying "Uh-oh!" yesterday and I'd love to say I'll post it in the future but we all know that's not going to happen. Oh well. ;o)

I no longer work for a living.

At least, that's how it's starting to feel...last week we only had two days of work due to a holiday and snow days. I'm starting off this week by staying home today with Ava, who in addition to her latest ear infection, now has a fever and is throwing up. It's most likely a chain reaction: the ear infection caused the fever, and the fever made her sensitive to milk and formula, which she's thrown up twice. On a good note, the fever is down to 99.0 (I let the Motrin wear off so I could get a new temperature before giving her more drugs) and she can eat anything aside from dairy and keep it down. She might even be okay with the formula and milk now but I really don't want to test the theory! I am going completely out of my mind at home and am looking forward to business as usual tomorrow. Ava is upstairs boycotting her afternoon nap--it sounds like she's dismantling her crib. Good grief.

Happy Birthday, Craig!

Yesterday (Jan. 23rd) was Craig's 35th birthday. We had an extremely low-key celebration: Craig doesn't like to go out (too much time spent away from home, eating in restaurants, due to work) and he told me not to get him anything--so I made him dinner and bought him a pair of jeans (he was in desperate need, only has one pair and pretty much wears them six days a week) because I figure a practical gift doesn't really count. ;o) From Ava he got a book about haunted places. Anyhow, for dinner we had lemon chicken, potatoes mashed with cream cheese and then baked, sauteed spinach with garlic, and then angel food cake with almond whipped cream and raspberry sauce. We attempted to watch the season premiere of "Lost" but were thwarted by a hyper 1-year-old who didn't want to go to bed...she finally went down and then around 11pm woke up SCREAMING and would not stop. I nearly panicked but luckily we finally got her to calm down with some Motrin, ear drops, and a bottle. I didn't even give it any time, just called the doctor's urgent care line and got us yet another appointment on a Saturday. It's so pathetic....we're on a first name basis with one of the nurses now, we're in so often. :P Long story short, Ava's right ear is infected AGAIN--we weren't even off of the last antibiotic for two weeks!--so we're on a stronger one and most importantly, we finally have a referral to an ENT. I called and left a message so hopefully we can get Ava in shortly and resolve this stupid ear mess. I feel so bad for her, constantly in pain. Luckily she went down easy tonight (fell asleep while I rocked her....after only SEVEN MINUTES. She rarely falls asleep when I rock her at night, and never that quickly) and we're hoping for some good sleep, we're all exhausted from a rough night and then not being able to nap today due to the doctor appointment and then having to vacate the house for a showing (the stupid people never showed up....this trying to move thing is getting so old).

Speaking of the house....they've finally started construction! Only about four months late! We were originally supposed to close on Feb. 27 but obviously that will not happen now...we're looking at May I think. It sucks. I don't want to complain too much because we're fortunate to be able to build a nice house in a beautiful neighborhood, but yeah.

That's it for now...I'm so going to bed.

Snow Day(s)!

For the second day in a row, I'm home due to the weather. Yesterday it was nice but now it's just getting annoying, because we're pretty much trapped inside and my lesson plans are getting completely messed up! ;o) Luckily it seems as though enough of the snow and ice has melted to make driving doable, so when Ava gets up from her nap I'm packing her up and we're going to Super Target. Among other things, I completely forgot to get my dear husband a card (gifts have been purchased already) for his upcoming birthday, and I would love to get something from Starbucks. (On second thought, I think we'll just go up the road to the grocery store and to the new coffee shop that opened...why not?) ANYHOW here are some pictures taken yesterday with all of the snow--enjoy!

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Ava's first birthday party

I would have LOVED to have a huge bash for Ava's first birthday: for years before I even had kids, I had envisioned a first birthday barbecue in the backyard with tons of friends, neighbors, and family. However, Ava decided not to cooperate and was born in the dead of winter so that idea went right out the window. ;o) Due to space and money constraints, we ended up with a very small party which was just fine. A few family members and friends, some cake, and we were good to go! Ava was a little cranky at the party, probably because she's not used to so many people invading her space but for the most part seemed to enjoy herself, especially with the cake. At one point I was trying to come up with a good, somewhat healthy alternative for her and then I thought, the heck with it, you only live once. ;o)

Anyhow, here are a few pictures from the big day (and a few other random shots). I'm finally getting a chance to post them because we have a snow day today, woohoo! Naturally, the pictures from today won't be posted for awhile. :o)

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HAPPY BIRTHDAY, AVA CATHERINE! :o)

Dear Ava,

Exactly five minutes ago on this day last year, you finally made your appearance and nothing has ever been the same! You are without a doubt the greatest joy in our lives and we love you more than we could ever describe. It's been such a pleasure watching you grow and learn new things during your first year and even though we don't want you to grow up TOO fast, we look forward to seeing what's next. Happy birthday sweet girl!

love always,
Mommy and Dada