It's Hard out Here for a Mom!

It all started about six weeks ago. Caleb woke up with a runny nose, a clear (as opposed to the dreaded green), runny nose. Nothing to be concerned about. Then a week and a half to two weeks later, he developed a junky-sounding cough. I figured he had a cold and I decided to let it run its course. Both the runny nose and cough persisted. A week or so later, Caleb started waking up coughing at night.

While at the doctor's for Caleb's 15-month well visit, I ran the symptoms by the doc and he checked the little guy out. He assured me it was allergies and suggested Claritin. So, I followed doctor's orders and gave him Claritin. Caleb slept soundly that night. Phew! Just allergies. Until the Claritin seemed to become ineffective. Caleb started waking frequently at night and/or he would awaken for several hours at a time. He'd be clearly tired but completely unable to get comfortable. He'd cry and we couldn't do anything to console him. I kept thinking I should call the doctor, but my desire to avoid unnecessary antibiotics urged me to let Caleb's body work it out.

Last week, Caleb ran a low-grade fever for several days and ate in a day what he usually eats in one meal. He stopped being his smiley self and continued with the obviously uncomfortable night-wakings and coughing/choking spells. Matt and I became exhausted from being up at all hours of the night trying to comfort our sickling. I kept asking "what is the lesson God is trying to teach me?".

I decided Friday that I'd call the doctor for sure. Well, the doctor closes early on Fridays and he's not in on Saturdays so that brought us to today (after a weekend of night wakings and more inconsolability. Luckily though, Caleb started being more himself during the day over the weekend). I found myself headed to the pediatrician's office hoping that there was something diagnosable present because I refused to accept that this constant sleeplessness could be our new "normal."

Well, fish my wish. It turns out my little man has bronchitis, an ear infection, and wheezing (the doctor says Caleb's too young for an official asthma diagnosis). So, in my attempt to avoid over-medicating my toddler, I've now submitted to the doctor's orders and he's on an antibiotic, a steroid, and nebulizer treatments. Poor thing! So, perhaps that lesson from God I was wondering about was, "Hey Heather, take your kid to the doctor already!!!"

Talk about Mommy guilt...it's hard out here for a mom!

Haiku of a Crazy Woman

Toddler will not sleep

Mommy is going insane

Tell me I'll survive

But I remember when...

Brain Shrinks as Heart Swells

So, I know they say the brain shrinks some when a woman is pregnant. But it's supposed to return to normal size after having the child. I'd like to contest that point. I'm pretty sure that as my heart has swollen to accommodate all the love I have for Caleb, my brain has shrunk. I often forget words that I'm sure I knew at one point and I find myself confused as to what word to use in what context. Spelling, something I was once pretty confident about is now a problem here and there. The list goes on, but I won't bore you. Of course it's only gotten worse with this pregnancy. For instance, a friend of mine announced today that she'd be taking a nap later this afternoon to which I responded, "So is me." I immediately recognized my mistake and corrected myself. But the fact that those words in that order registered in my brain and got the go-ahead from my internal proofreader before coming out of my mouth frightens me. I suppose that by this time next year I'll be nothing but a blithering fool. But, I'll have a REALLY big heart to make up for it! :)

Here's the brain snatcher himself:

My Supermen!

It's hard for me to believe that Halloween already came and went. It's harder for me to believe that Caleb is now 15 months old! Anyway, onto the cute stuff. We dressed Caleb as Superman. Since he can't stand to keep a hat or hood on, all of those extra-adorable costumes they have out there were a no-go. So, we settled for a good ol' traditional superhero. We didn't take him trick-or-treating but we did attend a party where he got to show off his look.

Sidenote: I do feel taken advantage of though. Paying $20 for a costume that's made out of what feels like cheap felt is definitely a rip-off! But I paid nonetheless. Big Business-1; Consumer: -0!

Obligatory "flying" pose:

Super-happy, Superbaby pose:

Now, for a little word on my taller Superman. A couple of weekends ago I snapped a picture of a typical weekend activity-Matt and Caleb working in the yard. Caleb loves the fresh air and sunshine, Matt gets work done outside, and I get some time to do things in the house without a tiny person scampering under my feet. I am so blessed to have such an amazing husband! He's so good to me and such a good daddy to our little guy!

My Superdudes playing together at a nearby park:

I'm so fortunate to have these two wonderful guys to love on everyday and I look forward to having a third guy to love on in a couple of months.