Traveling with a Toddler

So we woke up feeling much better this morning.  Thank you for all your prayers.  Our flight left XNA at 1:30, so we headed to the airport around noon.  Traveling with a toddler is not as easy as traveling with an infant.  Although we're out of the nursing & bottles stage, it seems like we still have just as much paraphernalia to bring along with us.  I had high hopes of getting all our stuff in one checked bag.  We don't have the luxury of flying Southwest in NWA, and American charges $$$ for checked bags.  So I got the bare minimums in our one huge suitcase last night, but I still needed to put all our bathroom stuff, my dresses, & Adeline's sleep essentials in there.  Jon said it would all fit.  I was skeptical.  About 7:00 this morning I started thinking, what if that giant bag weighs more than 50lbs?  How much do they charge you for over-the-limit bags?  How much do they charge you for an additional checked bag?  Which would be cheaper?  So I (or my sweet aunt, Jana) did some research bright & early this morning.

• A bag more than 50lbs will cost you $50 - in addition to the $25 you pay to check it
• The first bag costs $25, the second bag $35 - it gets more & more expensive as you increase the # of checked bags.  

I decided I better pay the total of $60 rather than risk $75.  Plus, Jon was going to be walking us in to check them & my mom would be with us at the end of our journey when we claimed our bags.  So, at about 8:30 this morning I rearranged everything.  I put all my stuff in our big bag, and all Adeline's things in our next biggest bag (Hey if it's going to cost me $35 I'm going to take everything I want).  This allowed me to bring more things, like toys, cuddly sleep lovies, a laptop, and extra pairs of shoes (we brought a total of 12 pairs).

Then I started to worry about whether or not they would let me on the plane with the two bottles of 8oz medications I brought to drug Adeline with before boarding (benadryl & ibuprofen - both suggested by the dr).  So, more research ensued and YES, medications of any size are allowed!

We ate lunch a little early, then Jon took us to great big XNA.

That's us with our 2 checking bags, a stroller, a diaper bag, & a purse.  I couldn't have maneuvered all this alone.  I would have had no choice but to take just one bag.  

So we get up to the check-in counter & learn that we cut it very close on 2 different things.

1. According to the lady, a child can only fly as an infant (& not have to buy a ticket) until they're 18 months old.  I thought it was 2 years!  Wow, really close seeing as how she's just shy of being 18 months.
2. My big bag weighed 49.5 pounds!  Man would I have been P-Oed if I had ended up having to pay $110!

Then we say our goodbyes to Jon and go through security.  They think my two 8oz bottles of CHILDREN'S benadryl & ibuprofen are suspicious so they have to run some tests on them.  But surprise, surprise, they're not really liquid bombs or anything so we get to keep them.  Thanks, TSA!  But thanks also for keeping us safe.  :)

The first leg of our journey goes very smoothly.  Adeline falls asleep within the first 20 minutes of the flight (thank you, benadryl).  However, as we start to make our descent, my ears won't pop so I feel all this pressure in my head & it feels like it's about to explode.  Then I start to get really hot & tingly & I'm convinced I'm about to either puke or pass out.  I frantically start fanning myself with the little safety guide in the seat-back in front of me.  But we quickly land, thank goodness it's only a 45 minute flight, and I narrowly escape the embarrassment of puking or passing out.  

We make it off the plane & get on the SkyLink to change terminals.  Adeline has a screaming fit on SkyLink because she only got to sleep for about 30 minutes, she wants out of that stroller, & she's hungry.  We get off SkyLink and I see this beautiful, marvelous sight!

God put me at that terminal so I could get some relief.  I know it was Him.  Thank you, Jesus.  

It wasn't long before my mom showed up which was even more relief!  I was starving (which probably contributed to my near puking/passing out experience) so we went to Chili's for some yummy snacks.  It wasn't long before we had to board our next flight.  That's when Adeline lost it for the 2nd time.  She wanted out of that stroller, out of our arms right then!  We were waiting in line to board & she was having a giant tantrum - hitting, screaming, crying.  A grouchy old man had the nerve to approach my mom who was pushing the stroller so very obviously with us (I was holding/wrestling Adeline) and say, "What group are they boarding?  I can't hear anything."  My mom just smiled & said, "Neither can I."  She's a lot nicer than I am.

The second short flight wasn't quite as easy because at this point, Adeline was DONE.  She didn't have any major meltdowns, but she let us know she was tired of being on that plane.  We quickly get off & get all our bags (Praise Jesus) and head to the rental car.

The rental is nice, but the carseat isn't strapped in so that takes about 15 minutes to figure out in the West Texas heat.  However, it wasn't long before we were in the hotel room, safe & cozy.  The hotel provided a yummy FREE dinner so it was nice not to have to get Adeline back out.  They also provided a comfy little pack & play that she can just barely stretch out in, but it'll do the job.  We unpacked & tried to make it more like home now everyone is resting comfortably.  I just hope it lasts all night.  

 The living area & the fort we built around Adeline's crib so she can't really see she's in a strange place.  Or at least that's what I'm trying to do.

 The cute little toy the hotel gave her.

I hope we all sleep well all three nights that we're here!  Thank you all for the prayers for health & safe travel.  They were answered.  Praise Jesus!

Only Wednesday?

This has been a long, rough week, and it's only Wednesday!  As you know from the previous post, Adeline was sick all weekend.
This is what her eyes looked like Sunday night:

Monday

I re-schedule my doctor appointment & make one for Adeline instead.  The doctor quickly discovers an ear infection in her left ear, which, by the way, Adeline gave me no indication that she had.  She prescribes Augmentin & says it should clear up the snot & eye gunk as well.  She said the eye stuff is a symptom of the ear infection.  I get the prescription filled at the pharmacy next door & head home to feed her lunch.  On the way I call ol' Dr. Jarrod & ask him to please call me in a Z-Pack because I have the nasty snot & cough as well.  He immediately calls it in.  Jon, Adeline, & I have lunch.  After lunch, Adeline & I run to Wal-Mart for a few things & my meds.  It takes FOREVER to fill my Rx.  We finally leave an hour later & I rush to Rogers to pick up the bridesmaid dress I'm wearing in a wedding in Midland, TX THIS weekend.  Wouldn't you know my daughter gets her FIRST ear infection the week we're supposed to fly out of town for a wedding?  We rush back home to get Adeline down for her nap. I get an e-mail from our nanny telling me they are sick as well with gunky eyes & congestion so won't be coming over on Tuesday.  I spend the rest of the afternoon trying to arrange child care for Tuesday.  Tuesday night I get another e-mail from our nanny telling me her son was diagnosed with pink eye.  So then we start to worry that maybe that's what Adeline has too.  We call our family friend/optometrist & send him pictures of her eyes.  He diagnoses pink eye via text message.  He says Augmentin will not cure it.  He calls in a Rx for eye drops.  Jon rushes to pick it up in time for us to give her a dose before bed.  He accidentally gave our friend the wrong Wal-Mart # & ends up having to go clear across town to the right Wal-Mart for the drops.  He makes it home 30 minutes past bedtime, but we get the drops in her & put her to bed.  We shortly fall in to bed exhausted ourselves, but glad that she's all medicated & hoping for a better day on Tuesday.

Tuesday

The new nanny that will be taking over in July comes to our rescue to watch Adeline for the first half of the day.  Jon will take off the 2nd half.  I leave for work after giving Adeline her morning dose of Augmentin.  At 9:10 I check my phone to see: 

*New Nanny - missed call

*New Nanny - voicemail

*New Nanny - text message

*Jon Richey - text message

I didn't panic until I saw Jon Richey.  I thought she was maybe calling to ask where something was, but Jon never texts me at work unless it's really important.  I open my texts since I can't listen to my voicemail at the time.  

*New Nanny: Adeline vomited everything she ate.  Very listless now.  Do not have to come home just FYI.

My hear sinks.

*Jon Richey: A's throwing up.  I'm about to head home.

I quickly call Jon to get details.  He's on his way to the grocery store for pedialyte then heading home to relieve the poor new nanny of our puking baby.  I give him instructions on the BRAT (bananas, rice, apple sauce, toast) diet for lunch & tell him to keep me informed.  I get back to my 10 hour, very full schedule.  Finally at lunch I get to listen to my voicemail that the new nanny had left that morning.  "Adeline has just thrown up 4 more times & is now dry heaving.  The poor thing got some on your chair & I don't know where your cleaning stuff is.  I don't want you to worry, I just wanted you to know.  I've got everything under control."  I immediately started crying.  Adeline has never thrown up like that before and I just hated the first time she was that sick she was with a stranger.  I felt just awful, but I was glad she had called Jon after not being able to get me & that he had gone ahead & gone home.  

She did not throw up any the rest of the day & ate a lot of her BRAT lunch.  I should also mention that my current nanny had also informed me that morning that she wouldn't be able to come over on Wednesday either because she and her son were both still pretty sick.  I okayed it with my boss to go ahead & take Wednesday and Thursday off (I'm so thankful).  I got a hold of the nurse at Adeline's pediatrician's office & she suggested giving Adeline 1/2 a dose of Augmentin at dinner, wait 30 minutes then give the other 1/2.  So, that's what we did.  She had diarrhea running down her legs nearly all day.  She didn't puke, but she broke out in a rash all over.  We gave her Benadryl & put her to bed.  

Wednesday

She wakes up rash-free, so I decide to try the meds again.  I give her 1/2 dose then she has the WORST tantrum/melt-down ever.  She won't let me hold her.  She doesn't want anything I offer her.  She's crying, screaming, kicking, hitting, rolling on the floor.  I take her outside to put her in the swing, "ALL DONE! ALL DONE! ALL DONE!"  I hold her real tight & sing to her.  She eventually calms down & we go back inside.  I immediately call the doctor & get her an appointment for 11:00.  She recommends stopping the Augmentin immediately & trying to not give her anything but the eye drops.  She wrote me a Rx for a non-penicillin antibiotic that I will take with us this weekend if she starts to feel worse.  We pick up the Rx after waiting at the doctor's office for over an hour, then head to do some last minute shopping before we go out of town for the wedding.  

I'm exhausted.  I'm sick.  I'm pregnant.  My 17 month old baby is sick.  My husband is sick.  I feel terrible for my girl.  I'm worried about flying & going out of town with her this weekend.  I just want her well.  However, weeks like this is what makes a mom a mom.  I love being the one to cuddle her.  I love trying to find just the right food she'll feel like eating & can keep down.  I love comforting her when she feels bad.  I just love being Momma.  Although I love it when she's happy & well even more, this is when the true momma skills step up to bat.  Next week when everyone is feeling better & we're celebrating Jesus' sacrifice for us, I'll be one happy, blessed, thankful girl.  But this week, when we all feel terrible & we're stressed about traveling, I feel extremely happy, blessed, & thankful too.  

Please pray for our healing & safe travels.  I'm looking forward to seeing one of my besties marry her love!

Sick Weekend

Adeline has had a snotty nose all week and I just attributed it to allergies.  I woke up in the middle of the night Thursday feeling terrible.  I thought it was just allergies too.  It wasn't until I went through a whole box of tissues on Friday & Adeline woke up with green crusty eyes on Saturday that I finally admitted maybe we had a cold.

However, we've still been able to have a little fun this weekend.

After Adeline got up from her nap on Friday & had her snack, we took her to FNO at our church.  It's a great ministry they have about twice a month.  They offer free childcare so parents can go out on a date!  Jon and I enjoyed some delicious Red Lobster & did a little shopping.

Saturday I woke up feeling horrible, but I had to go to work.  :(  Jon made my entire week by planning the meals & grocery shopping for me.  I'm still in awe & oh so very thankful.  He and Adeline also had some fun outdoor time.

I was home by the time she got up from her nap.  When we went to Ft. Worth back in October & stayed with our friends Ashley & Peter, Adeline found this frog in their bookcase.   She had a fit for it then & Ashley was more than willing to give it away.  Now I keep it on Adeline's bookcase & every time she sees it she yells "bit bit bit" until I realize she's trying to say "ribbit" & give it to her.

We went for a little drive that evening & came across some outdoor play equipment at a consignment store.  We'd been looking for something & this seemed perfect for what we wanted.  Adeline seems to really enjoy it.

She also really enjoys her swing, just like last Summer.

Today Adeline & I stayed home from church to try & get well.  We've just lazed around the house & in the backyard all day.  Adeline took a 4 hour nap & now we just plan to enjoy the rest of our evening.

15 Weeks

Pregnancy Highlights:

(This picture is from Week 13.  I haven't been so good about taking weekly pictures this time.  That doesn't mean I love you any less, sweet baby!)

How Far Along: 15 Weeks

Size of baby: Baby #2 is the size of an apple (4 in long; 2.5 oz)

Total Weight Gain/Loss: Gained 6lbs

Maternity Clothes:  I can no longer zip up my jeans.  I pretty much wear leggings every day on the days I don't work, and I wear scrubs at work.  I can wear non-maternity shirts.

Gender: Still don't know!  We thought we might find out today, but the umbilical cord was between the baby's legs!  She poked & prodded & looked all around for at least 5 minutes, but we still could never get a good shot.  We'll try again at 20 weeks on May 6.

Movement: I usually feel the baby move at least once a day.  I love it!

Sleep: It's hit or miss.  Some nights I only wake up to use the bathroom then am able to go back to sleep, other nights I'm awake for an hour every time I get up.  I have to pee at least twice every night.

What I miss: Not having mood swings.  :)

Cravings: I went to the mall on Saturday ONLY to get a pretzel, so I finally satisfied that craving.  Now it's mostly fruit & just food in general.  I ate everything in sight yesterday.

Symptoms: Just tired all the time.  I try to nap every day I'm home while Adeline naps & I sure miss those naps on the three days a week I'm at work.  I'm still getting headaches & a bloody nose & I have some pretty nasty mood swings.  Sorry, Jon!

Best Moment this week: Getting to see him/her for a long time on the ultrasound screen today.  I didn't care that he/she was being uncooperative.  I was just enjoying watching him/her.  

Busy Saturday

It had been in the 40s & cloudy for over a week here, so when the weather finally improved yesterday, we decided to take full advantage of it.  We hit the Farmer's Market in Fayetteville not long after we got up.  It was opening day & very crowded.  There was a performing group every 20 feet or so.  Adeline really enjoyed watching the belly dancers.

 But, her favorite thing was doing a bit of dancing herself.  A group was singing & playing music & they started singing a song about putting on your dancing shoes.  I took Adeline out of her stroller & she stood in the middle of a group of about 50 people showing everyone exactly how to dance.  It was hilarious.  She shook her booty for a good 10 minutes while I laughed so hard I cried.

 This is a little move she developed where you sit on the ground & stomp/shake your feet as fast as you can.

Afterwards, we headed to Gulley Park for a picnic lunch & some playing.

 I think she really thought it was something special to eat outside.

We didn't stay too long because she was starting to get a bit of a sunburn.  She passed out not long after we got in the car.  All that dancing & playing sure wears a girl out!

 When she got up from her nap, we had a bit of a wardrobe change & played outside some more.  I think we were outside nearly all the daylight hours yesterday.  It was great.  We had Uncle Shane, Aunt Juliet, & Uncle Jarrod over for dinner.

When Adeline went to bed, we stayed up working on a little Easter project until almost midnight.  I think I overdid it, so I'm about to partake in a nap myself.  I hope you enjoyed some beautiful weather yesterday, too.

It's starting already...

When I got home from work last night, Adeline spotted the big camera bag.  She put it on her shoulder, looked at me, & said, "bye bye."  I guess she knew that when we get all our bags together, it's time to go somewhere.  She drug that thing around for a few minutes, then I decided to find her a purse that was more her size.

She's growing up so fast, but at least she's still a Daddy's girl!  :)

Lazy Days

It has been cold & nasty here all weekend.  The hi-light of our weekend was going to eat at The Wooden Spoon on Friday night with the Davises.  It's a little restaurant in Gentry that is just scrumptious!  I had brisket nachos & I'm pretty sure it was the best brisket I've ever eaten.  I think they're known for their desserts too because they didn't even ask if we wanted dessert, they asked what we wanted.  I got a strawberry cream cheese pie & Jon got a turtle cheesecake.  The Davises shared some yummy chocolate cake.  I ate all of mine & tasted some of everyone's.  You can tell it's all homemade from scratch.  I'm already looking forward to going back!

Saturday we did some grocery shopping and that's the only time we left the house all day.  We all took about a 3 hour nap that afternoon.  It never got out of the 40s & it was drizzly and cloudy all day.  Sunday was about the same, except we did get out & go to church.  When we're done with our class, everyone goes & picks up their kids from the nursery & brings them back to class.  They always have a fun time playing with each other, but this week was especially fun.  Zach enticed Ava & Adeline to chase him all over the church.   It was hilarious.  Zach is two years older than Adeline and Ava is about 5 months older, but Adeline didn't have a problem keeping up.  They ran as fast as they could with Zach yelling the whole time, "Come on, girls" and the girls squealing as loud as they could.  It does my heart good to see our kids having fun & growing up together.

Today I had big intentions of getting some much needed shopping done for Easter & an upcoming wedding I'm in.  However, Adeline slept until 9:00 so that got the morning off to a slow start.

When I got her out of her crib she wanted to bring all her lovies to breakfast with her.  I couldn't pass up the photo opp.  Then as I was getting ready, she insisted that I sit down & rock her for about 20 minutes.  Of course I didn't mind.  My girl is not a snuggler, so I take every chance I can get.  I just hope it doesn't mean she's getting sick.  We did make it to Target, but I started sneezing my head off (everything's finally starting to bloom here) and I just didn't feel like doing anything else.  I bought a few of the necessities then headed home.  We spent the rest of the day napping, playing, cleaning, & doing laundry in my new washer & dryer!

The no bottle is going pretty well.  She won't drink milk, but her pediatrician has assured me that she doesn't need it as long as she's getting dairy from other sources.  She's sleeping just fine & will drink maybe an ounce a day of milk.  I'm glad it's going much more smoothly than the last time we tried.