Quick Update Again

I feel like crap. I'm sorry I have left you hanging, but you will understand in a minute. The ENT took the balloon out yesterday. No blood for now. That sucker was the size of a large whole dill pickle when inflated! Funny watching the nurse turn green though. There's some funny stories to go with it, but I just can't type it all right now. Maybe I can get Heather to do it for me, or it will have to keep. Anyway, I'm still on major restrictions (and antibiotics). No picking up Kieren or ANYTHING. No bending. No lifting. No yard work. No housework. No looking down. No blowing my nose. I have the worst sinus infection anyone has ever seen. I also have a horrible ear infection. Breathing is easier, but still not good. Sneezing scares the shit out of all of us! The doctor wants my nose to heal for the next 2 weeks and then I have to return for a rigid scope on June 11th. Until then, I have to pray I don't start bleeding again or I get another fast ride to the ER and a balloon up my nose. The doctor can't answer any of our questions until after that scope. The sinus infection and the ear infection were caused by the balloon in my nose and by blood backing up into my ear. (I'm shocked I don't have an eye infection too as the balloon pushed the blood up and out of my tear duct.) It really sucks not being able to blow my nose to get the nasty stuff out! So I feel like a person who hasn't slept in a week and has a severe sinus/ear infection. Oh! and to add insult to injury, my period started yesterday morning! WTF... (I didn't think there was enough blood left in my body for THAT!)

Thank you for being so caring and being my friends. You have made me feel loved this week when life decided to honk me off! I have a post I still need to do about Kieren's IEP. (She starts school on September 2nd.) I hope to feel well enough to do it soon. Now, I need to go back to my couch.

*smooch*
Sam

Leaving For My Appointment

Leaving for my appointment with the ENT. I'll let you know what happens tonight. Fingers crossed and lots of prayers, please?

Sam Update

Heather here again.

Sam is doing a little better. It seems that most of the active bleeding has stopped. Her nose is still seeping, but the blood down her throat seems to have stopped. Her biggest problem is trying to rest. She has to sleep sitting up and only naps for a few minutes at a time. On top of that she can't take the meds they gave her because she reacts horribly to them. (Codiene makes her crazy not sleepy! When she had her TMJ surgery years ago, she made me crazy pacing the floors all night.) She tried taking Tylenol PM last night and paced for a good part of the night. They gave her Vicodin, but she is afraid to take it.

Other than the rest issue, she can't quit sneezing! The packing stuff tickles, so she sneezes. We trimmed as many of the fibers as we can to stop this, but it's still and issue. (Test to see who your true friends are: See if they will help you pick your nose!!!) The packing/balloon is also pushing on her eye and sinus cavity, so she sneezes. It's a vicious cycle.

To answer some questions:
Kris: Yes they did an entire blood panel. Sam and I had a good laugh over this. She had what seemed to be gallons of blood gushing out of her nose, but they had to stick her for the blood sample. I told her she would be lucky to have any for the sample at the rate she was losing it out her nose. Unfortunately, they did not listen to her tell them what vein to stick. So, they ended up sticking her 3 times. She is black and blue on her left arm.

Special K: They gave her meds that she can't take for the pain as explained above.

Rony: Sorry I haven't emailed you. I have been so busy helping Sam, trying to keep my house from falling apart, trying to sleep and working. Sorry!

Please say prayers that the doctor appointment tomorrow goes well. If it bleeds after they remove the balloon, they will have to do surgery. I will be asking the dr. the tough questions: What are her chances of this happening again? What caused it and how do we prevent it? Can this happen somewhere else and what is the likelihood of that? Would surgery solve the issue completely so that we don't have to worry about it happening again?

BTW: Lemon juice and cold water take dried blood out of clothing. Try a test spot to make sure it won't damage the color or fabric.

Quick Note From Sam

Hi everyone. Thanks for all the comments. This is going to be really quick because I need to go back to my cave and whimper. The bleeding is being controlled right now by a balloon shoved up my nose. It freaking hurts. Even my teeth hurt. I have some hard-core drugs, but I refuse to take them. My vision was kind of messed up when they inflated the damn thing (it pushed blood up into my eye), but it has improved. At this point, all we can do is wait and pray. If they remove the balloon on Friday and it starts to bleed again, I will have to have surgery. My amazing, and totally freaked out, husband has taken emergency-leave to take care of me and the kids. Heather has been a God-send, but don't tell her I said that or she will get a big head! Let's just say that if you need a ride to a hospital 30 minutes away in the country in the middle of the night, Heather's your man! Okay, my head is splitting. I need to go back to my couch. Yeah, I can't lay down to sleep. Thank you for all the prayers!

I love you all!

Sam

Please say a prayer

Hello everyone, Heather here doing a guest post on Sam's blog.

Sam needs your thoughts and prayers this week. We spent last night in the ER because Sam was having a major nosebleed. We saw the doctor today and were informed that they could do nothing more for her until Friday! Needless to say, she is completely miserable.

What happened? Well, yesterday afternoon she had a major bleed which she was able to stop after a little more than an hour. (She was ingenious and used tampons to soak up the blood. She's one smart cookie!) Anyway, Andy called me at about 11:30 last night because the bleeding had started again. By the time I got there (about 5 minutes), the blood was flowing so fast we couldn't get it stopped long enough to get her to the car. So, we called the paramedics for help. They were able to slow the bleeding down to a mild drip. About 5 minutes after they left, the bleeding started again with a new fury. We loaded her into my car with tissues, paper towels, a bucket and a box of tampons. By the time we got to the hospital, we had gone through another 12-15 tampons in an attempt to stem the bleeding.

At the hospital, they put packing in her nose. (Read: Medical tampon that you pay way too much money for!) They also gave her a couple of doses of meds to bring her blood pressure down. It was pretty high and I can't blame her. She was feeling like she was drowning in her own blood and was a little panicked to say the least. Anyway, they finally sent us home at 5AM with orders to see the Ear Nose Throat doctor today. In true Sam form, she wise-cracked her way through the entire ordeal. And yes, it was an ordeal. Blood doesn't bother me which is probably why I got the job of taking her to the ER, but I saw more than my share of blood yesterday. (FYI: Andy does not 'do' blood. And, I think Sam would have killed him before they got to the hospital because he would never have driven as fast as I did!)

The really bad news: The ENT can do nothing until Friday afternoon. He told us that if he pulled out the packing it would just bleed again and she would be back in the ER. Meanwhile, her TMJ is flaring up due to the excess pressure on her right side. So overall she is a mess. She can't breath. She can't swallow. She can't eat, take meds or drink anything. She can't sleep because she can't breath. And, her nose is constantly dripping.

On the way home from the doctor, we decided that this week was being called due to techinical difficulties. I had a really bad day last Friday and decided that day was over at about 3PM, but Sam had to one up me and call this whole week off. She's such a show off!!

Memorial Day...

Lest we forget...

Silly Sunday

By Request - Cullen's Stitches

No, he's not drugged or drunk - just 11 and weird!

Cullen is now the proud owner of two stitches on the bridge of his nose. His very swollen, sore, and discolored nose. He must've heard Dad say we just paid off the hospital bill from his last visit! OY!

A Funny Story About My Mom...

As you know, my mom had eye surgery on Tuesday. They sent her home with this lovely metal eye patch on. Kind of looks like she was assimilated by the Borg! Anyway, with the patch on, she couldn't wear her glasses. They just wouldn't fit over the darn thing!

She put a contact in for a while, but she doesn't wear the type you sleep in so she had to remove it at bedtime. She has that pirate-thing working for her in this photo!!! Back to my story, well my mom and I both have problems with insomnia. She also has problems with too many cats living at her house. My dad keeps feeling sorry for the cats that are dumped near their house in the country and feeds them. Eventually they worm their way into the house.

At 2:30am, my mom was awake and wandering the house. She couldn't see out of one eye, due to the eye patch, and is half-blind without contacts. As she was walking throught the family room, she notice a kitty at the door wanting to come in for the night. As she was cursing the darn cats for going in and out all the time, she started to open the door. Then it hit her, this cat didn't look like any of the ones who normally come in. So she got down on her hands and knees and peered through the French door. She had her nose pressed against the glass and the strange kitty had his nosed pressed against the glass on the other side. They were literally nose-to-nose. The cat had very strange markings...OMG! It wasn't a cat!!! It was a very LARGE...

RACCOON!!! She almost let a huge raccoon into the house at 2:30 in the morning!!! Can you imagine what would've happened?! My mom is never going to live this one down!!!

Is This REALLY My Life Or Just A Bad Soap?

I hate bullet posts, but SHEESH! I'm so exhausted I can barely type. So take cover! I'm shooting bullets tonight!!!

• My Mom is doing well. She had eye surgery on Tuesday morning. She's fine, just annoying!
• Our 19th Wedding Anniversary was postponed due to poor scheduling and forces out of our control.
• My Mom is the worst patient EVER! Did I mention she's annoying?
• I now have the nickname of "The Nazi" (sorry to offend). This is why I'm not a nurse.
• Kieren has decided that food isn't part of her day-to-day plan. Frustrated...
• Spent 4 hours at the ER with Cullen today. 4 freaking hours to get 2 stitches!!! AAAARRRRRGGGGGHHHHHHH!!!!!!
• Cullen's nose is NOT broken, just badly bruised and stitched back together.
• Kieren & I spent the night with my Mom last night. I'm up for sainthood...
• I need sleep...really...I'm not joking...seriously...NOW DAMN IT!!!!
• Andy picked up Harry-the-cat's ashes today.
• My friend Chantele needs your prayers. She is in critical condition in a hospital in California. I'm so sad for her and worried...
• Why do Doctors think their time is more valuable than yours????
• In the last two days, I have spent 11 hours at a medical facility of one kind or another.
• I'm feeling pissy because I'm going to be trapped at home all holiday weekend while Andy and Cullen are at the lake playing with "the boyz". They are taking the only car that runs...
• I hate night terrors...
• I'm too tired to continue tonight.

That's all I've got in me for now. Got questions? Yeah, me too. Good night...

Happy Anniversary, Andy!

Today is our 19th Wedding Anniversary!!!! Happy Anniversary, Andy!!! I love you more today than yesterday, but not as much as tomorrow - unless you really piss me off, then you better do some serious sucking up!!!!

(Off to take my Mom for surgery. More later from her house!)

Little Green Thumbs

We are redoing the pond garden in our backyard. Actually, we are redoing ALL of the gardens. Not much to see in the other gardens right now except for mud! (I promise to post photo when we are done.)

This is my little gardener.

Kieren loves nothing more than digging in the dirt!!!

We took these photos on Mother's Day so the garden has changed again, but the gardener remains as cute as ever!!!

Silly Sunday - Tribute to The Orange Tabby

Good-Bye, Sweet Harry...

*sniff*

I know the header is rather dramatic, but it's how I'm feeling. If you don't like it, bite me. Anyway, you know me. I'll change it again in a couple of days...

I feel like an f-ing ghoul. I can't help but look at the clock and count how many hours of life my poor Harry has left. I've been feeding him tuna fish all day and I let him lay outside in the sun for a while. Every time I look at him I cry.

Kieren thinks that Mommy has issues. She's right of course. I told her "Mommy is sad" and she hugged me and asked if "Mommy happy". That was so bittersweet. How do you explain this to a 3 year-old with speech delays? I told her Harry would be going bye-bye tomorrow and wouldn't be coming home. She looked confused then sad. I took a picture of her with Harry today so she can remember him. She also took some of him herself and pet him for a while.

Cullen kind of knows, but doesn't. I've warned him all week that Harry was so sick that we were going to have him put down this week. He knows that Harry is suffering and that isn't fair. Andy took a picture of Cullen with Harry tonight. We intentionally decided on tomorrow because of Cullen. I don't want him to fall apart at school. He needs the weekend to grieve. I get the job of telling him when he gets home tomorrow. Lucky me. I feel so bad for Cull.

Please send strength and prayers to my husband Andy. He gets the awful task of taking Harry for his last car ride. I feel so bad for him. He loves that cat so much! I took my Scotty, Fitch, when it was his time. I still see the look in his eyes as he left me... God this sucks!

Let's Play A Game...

Want to play a game? Come on! You know you want to!! It's kind of a Disney game, kind of... It's called "What's Grosser Than Gross?"!!!


Let's start with this. Have you seen this stuff in your store yet? These are Disney Magic Selections foods. The packaging has a Disney character (or several) on it. They're designed for kids and so is the package. They are pretty good for the most part. The ingredients are better. They're also cheaper!!! The products are made by first-rate companies too. I admit the photo of the purple mouse-ears at the bottom of the photo (below) is quite a turn off! It's supposed to be a hamburger patty. Boy, I hope it's not really that color in person!!! But as I said, everything is pretty good. And no, I'm not getting an endorsement fee! ;o)

Yes, this side-trip was necessary! You'll see in a minute. Anyway, Kieren is one of those kids who never eats. It is so hard to find something she will eat. Recently she discovered fried shrimp was pretty darn tasty. I'm so excited!! It's protein!!!! Since the little vegetarian won't touch meat, this was great new!

Heather and I hit the store the other night and I found that Disney had fried shrimp. COOL!!! (Frozen, actually, but that's not the point.) So I grabbed a box of Cap'n Mickey Hot Buttered Shrimp Poppers. We had them for lunch yesterday.

So here it is: What's Grosser Than Gross? They are HOT BUTTERED POPCORN FLAVORED!!!! UCK!!! GROSS!!! NASTY!!!! GAG!!! Heather and I both thought that the breading was butter flavored. I about tossed the lunch-monkey when I bit into a mouthful of hot buttered popcorn flavored shrimp! (I bet that photo would've been worth a thousand words!!) Disney must have done their research though because both Cullen and Kieren love them!!! (The thought of it just gives me the willies!) And if hot buttered popcorn isn't your thing, they also have Cap'n Mickey Mac-N-Cheese Shrimp Poppers. That's right...shrimp that tastes like mac-n-cheese. I don't want to even go there...

My Heart Is Breaking

It is time. The cancer is just too far advanced. The decision had to be made. We are having Harry put down on Friday. My sweet lovable big orange tabby... My first baby... He is 13, almost 14. I wish we had more time with him. I feel like such a horrible person and hypocrite trying to go about life like everything is fine, but knowing Harry only has a few more days with us. We aren't saying anything to the kids until after school on Friday. Cullen has a concert and many tests this week so we are waiting until those are over. I don't want him to totally fall apart at school. He knows it's coming. We have talked about it again today when I told him we were going to have put Harry to rest this week. He knows Harry is suffering and that just isn't fair to Harry. It still doesn't make it any easier. I'm not sure what Kieren is going to do. Harry sleeps on her bed with her every night. She loves that darn kitty! How do I keep from crying every time I look at him?! It sucks being a grown-up... My heart is breaking...

The Aftermath Of Camp

On the last day of camp, Cullen's group participated in a Swamp Study. The other groups did their studies the day before and everyone was allowed to "plop" down into the mud before heading back to camp for showers. BUT NOT CULLEN'S GROUP!!! Mrs. Killian, one of Cullen's teachers, fired the shot heard around the camp! She started the largest mud fight in the history of Skyview Ranch (according to camp staff). Cullen told me he nailed the teacher with a HUGE mudball in the back of her head. She told me she deserved it because she started it! I'm told these kids were covered from the tops of their heads to their toes inside socks inside tennis shoes! Even after showering (with and without clothing on), the kids were covered in swamp mud! Cullen's backpack was a lost cause (that's why we sent an old nasty one!) and was tossed in the garbage as soon as I saw it. His tennis shoes have been hosed off repeatedly and will only be good for playing in the creek at Nanny's house. All of his clothes had to be washed twice ON THE SANITIZE SETTING!!! We made Cullen get immediately in the shower. He still has mud under his toenails! Andy pulled chunks of MUD out of Cullen's ears!!! And finally, his socks...words are not needed, just look at the photo! The ones in the lower left corner are from the swamp mud fight! Note the color difference with the white washcloth above it. Ewwwwww!!!

Cullen did have an amazing time at camp (I will post photos and stories when we get the disposable camera developed)!!! He didn't want to come home and begged us to send him back for the whole summer! If only we were rich...

A Moment of Silence & Prayer Please...

This is a tragedy. I wonder how many children have died or will die. I pray for those who are China. Click here for the story.

Happy Mother's Day!

Happy Mother's Day!!!! I wish all of you new moms, experienced moms, waiting moms, and honorary moms the best of days!!! I will be going shopping with my mom and then sitting on my duff giving directives to my husband and kidlets. Ahhhhh... I think breakfast in bed is in order...

Have a wonderful Mother's Day!

Silly Sunday

Rite of Passage

Cullen is at camp with all the 5th Graders from ECA. They went to a really cool place called Skyview Ranch. I haven't seen the kid (or his mountain of junk!) since Wednesday morning at 6:45am (that's when his first bus picked him up from the house). So in under 14 hours, we will pick up my big guy at school.

I miss Cullen, but I know he is having a great time (despite the constant rain)! I miss him, but I don't. It's one of those "darn, Cullen would've liked that" kind of missing-him things. Kieren has missed him a little, but she is so used to Cullen staying at Nanny's for the weekend that it hasn't made a real big impact. Andy, on the other hand, has been driving me crazy! He misses his baby!!! On Wednesday, he obsessed about where Cull was at certain times of the day. On Thursday, he worried about the weather and how Cullen was doing. Tomorrow (really today, I guess) he is taking a vacation day so he can be there when I get Cull from school! (Big eye roll - done lovingly of course!)

I remember going to camp when I was in the 5th Grade too. It's just something they do here at the schools. Kind of a rite of passage. Just like going to Washington DC with your 7th or 8th Grade class. We didn't get to go as far away for our camp or to such a cool place. We went to Glenn Helen Nature Center. It's only about 15 minutes away, but it was continents away for some of the kids!!!

(Jackie, if you are reading this I'm going to tell about you!!!! Sorry!!!)

My best friend growing-up was Jackie. She wasn't as adventurous as me, but a heck of a lot more popular. Jackie was very close to her family and was a surprise baby! So she was petted and protected. If her mom wasn't home after school, Jackie made me look under all the beds, in the closets, behind the shower curtains and behind every door. I think she still makes her husband do this! (I still love you and all your quirks, Jack!) Jackie NEVER spent the night at my house. She would come over with all of her stuff and be so excited about sleeping over, but before the night was through one of my parents or one of hers would have to take her home. So, going to camp for Jackie was just not going to happen! The camp nurse and the teachers finally allowed Jackie's mom to come and get her when it became apparent that life was just not going to be happy for the rest of us if Jackie didn't go home!

Well, Cullen is over 3 hours away. There is no way anyone is leaving that camp early!!! I'm glad. I think these kids need to do this. They need to stretch that independence! They need to learn to depend on each other, themselves and God. ECA is a small school. There are 36 kids in 5th Grade (AT MOST!). ECA graduates between 10 and 18 Seniors each year. I'm excited for these kids to build these bonds with each other! They are going to be together for a long time!!!

Another Biker In The Family

My Dad had yesterday off, so he took us to lunch. Since it was so nice, he rode his Harley over to our house and then I drove us to lunch. Kieren LOVES riding motorcycles!!! She is just like her brother on that one! So after we came back from lunch, Kieren put on her bike helmet (we are still looking for a motorcycle helmet that is small enough) and sunglasses and INSISTED on going for a ride! The big, bad, Harley-man can't say no to this little munchkin!!!

Here they come.

Pop has to keep a firm grip on the throttle or Kieren will open it all the way!!! She LOVES going fast (Cullen learned this the hard way when Kieren took control of the throttle on the dirt bike once!). Check out the Pop-lounger! She props her feet on his legs as they ride. (For those freaking out and considering leaving me a nasty-gram or reporting me to Children's Services, my dad is the safest, smartest rider I have EVER met. He has taught more people than I can remember to ride. He even takes a bike safety course every year! So buzz off! My kid, not yours! Enough said.)

Who knew that a five-minute ride around the block could make a 3-year-old so happy?!?!?! The old guy don't look too sad about it either!

Cullen's Bike

This is Cullen's bike. Actually it belongs to my dad for now, but it will become Cullen's in about 4 years. (Damn! When did he get so old?!) My dad bought it with Cullen in mind. Cullen has had a motocycle since he was 2.5 years-old (Thank-you, Uncle Sean.). He was only a few months old when he sat on one for the first time. Bikes have always been a part of his life. (He looks so grown-up for 11!!!)

Only in his dreams, for now!