What a Girl Does...

...when she loves her little brother very, very much!

What a Boy Does...

...when he's transitioning from 2 naps to 1 and can't quite make it through lunch:

Updates

Virus: It's still kicking around here. I'm so tired of it that I don't think I'll even write more. Take THAT, Mr. Virus. Now, get out!!!!

Numbness: I went for a nerve conduction study yesterday and I'm waiting on the results. Needless to say, I've been imagining worst case scenarios in my head, which doesn't help my nerves any. Most likely it's a pinched/compressed nerve somewhere, but still my mind takes me down all kinds of crazy roads. Especially late at night, fear and anxiety can easily get the best of me. I haven't felt this physically vulnerable since right after Joseph's birth when so many things were out of whack. I hope some answers come soon.

Job: I've saved the biggest for last. Larry got the job and he's taking it! Like I said, this is BIG. He's worked hard for this and I'm very happy for him. It is very bittersweet, of course, because it means leaving all of our dear, dear friends here. Like many things in life, gain and loss come hand in hand and one must find a way to rejoice and grieve at the same time. Sometimes it seems like too much for a heart to hold, but thankfully God is big enough to catch the overflow. At this point, we are looking at starting our move on March 21st. There is SO much to do before then. Talk about anxiety! I think I'll stop here for now, even though there's much more floating about in my head. I just wanted to get this out here so that some of you hear it from me before from someone else. I'll send out an email with more details soon.

Hanging in There

The tummy bug has left the premises, other than the occasional icky diaper and the fact that Joseph still won't eat. That could also be because he is still coughing so much and hard that his little throat probably hurts a lot. He can't make it through a whole night because of the coughing. Today he got up at 4. I just put him back in bed at 6:30. I just wish I could sleep the morning away too! I sure hope this ends soon. I finally caved and started him on antibiotics and I'm praying they will help. I need to find some time to take care of some health issues of my own. About a week and a half ago my left hand started going numb. The numbness has settled into my thumb and pointer finger, as well as the back of my hand. My palm feels strange too, kind of hot. It's there 24/7 and is really disconcerting. I also get tingling up my arm. I'm pretty sure this is related to the neck issue I've been facing for the last 1.5 years. I've been in physical therapy for that and the pain has really improved, but now this numbness. Sometimes I get overwhelmed thinking about what if it never goes away. I know there are much heavier crosses to bear out there, and I try to keep perspective. I am definitely thankful that it's not my right hand. Still, it scares me to think of never feeling my hand again. I know the doctors will want me to treat it with drugs, but I've been unwilling because I don't want to wean Joseph yet. Right now it's all just too much for my sleep-deprived brain to process. Doesn't everything seem worse without sleep? Lord, what is your will in all of this? Please help me to see you through the fog. That's what I need most of all.

Retraction

I guess I spoke too soon. After doing great all day, Joesph started up again around 3:30, poor guy :(. I better not venture to say more until the dust settles, so to speak. Did I also mention he has pink eye? :( :( :(

Changing my Tune

Let's just say that four super-squirty diapers later, I'm convinced that this portion of Joseph's illness is decidedly not, ahem, upper respiratory! Poor guy seems to have a tummy virus on top of the sinus thing. The good news is that the vomiting part of the virus lasted a mere 2.5 hours and now we've moved on to greener pastures (pun intended, ha!). It's also good to see Joseph laughing and playing and acting like nothing is wrong. My queasy tummy is easing up too and I'm praying that the girls and Larry can avoid the whole thing or at least only get the queasy part like I did. Is spring here yet????


This might be a good time to officially thank my friend, A, for nominating me for the Lemonade out of Lemons blog award! I am pathetically slow in responding, but I want her to know that it means a lot to me that she, in particular, thinks I have a good attitude about difficult things. I struggle with that and don't feel like I win a lot of the time. I have learned that I have a choice about my attitude and I try to choose more wisely than I used to. A and I have known each other online for several years and I honestly can't think of many people with a better attitude than her, and the best part is that it is born out of genuine faith. I am supposed to nominate 10 other bloggers for this award, but I don't think there are 10 blogs I read whose owners actually know who I am! So, I'll just say thank you once again to A.

Quick Update

Sorry to have left you all hanging after my last post. I'll give you a quick update of both situations with more detials to follow soon.

Virus: Kids are still sick, Joseph still worst of all. I just made an appointment to take all 3 to the doctor today. Joseph has been coughing for 10 days straight and I think it has finally irritated his insides. I heard him coughing in his sleep last night but then it changed and he was gagging and heaving. I went in there and was sure we were going to be dealing with tummy flu, ack. It turns out he really only brought up acid, leading me to believe that he was gagging on the congestion and possibly causing himself reflux. That was 3AM. I held him on me for the next couple of hours and he gagged/heaved 4 more times. After letting him walk around a little, I nursed him and that all stayed down. I really don't think he has the flu. I think he has some kind of upper respiratory infection (ear? sinus?) and that the post-nasal drip and constant coughing is adding up. I hope the doctor can help him and I hope we can all get more sleep tonight!

Job: According to Larry's last conversation with the potential employer, they should be making an official offer early this week. After that, we have a decision to make.

That's about it for now! Oh, we are supposed to get a foot of snow overnight and tomorrow. I hope the kidlets can get well enough to enjoy it!!