Counting down shots

I recently took inventory of my remaining shots. (My oldest cousin has also offered me a few weeks of hers since she gave up on Copaxone and didn't want them to go to waste.)

I'm really HOPING that I will NOT need to order more before my upcoming neurology appointment.

Of course, Mike encourages me to order my next month's supply because I just never know IF and/or how soon I would be able to go on the new FDA-approved drug.

Sigh.

I really DON'T WANT TO order more. I kind of just want to give my body a break from the everyday poking, the welts, the itching.

I am SO intrigued by the new medicine... anxious to hear more.

(Granted, I know that I really CAN re-order more shots with very little notice.... and deep down, I admit that Mike is probably right – it probably would take a little time to get everything to fall into place.)

BOYS, remember these two phrases...

We've got some pretty AMAZING children!

Reflecting upon childless years, it is hard to imagine HOW MUCH JOY they can bring and how EMPTY that child-less life really was. (I am BEYOND happy in this new-and-improved life where socks and shoes are optional; pajamas are good until at least two in the afternoon and yoga pants qualify as "getting dressed".)

It's hard to believe that our BABY is 23 months old already. (Where did THAT time go?) And our PRESCHOOLER is nearing the four-year-mark with LOTS of BIG IDEAS and hypotheses on things.

"You'll ALWAYS be my baby." and "I'll love you FOREVER!" are two of my phrases that I want my kids to remember.

I love you.

Buy one, get two free

This morning, we had been awake for just a few minutes. I sat on the toilet and stretched when suddenly, SOMETHING HAPPENED.

Immediately, I was in pain.

I couldn't figure out if I should stand tall or slouch over. It hurt to breathe. I couldn't raise my arms or turn my head to the left at all.

I tried to lay on the floor.
THAT was REALLY UNCOMFORTABLE!

I couldn't tip my head up, struggled to drink my cup of chai tea.

I found my phone and left a message for the chiropractor to call me.

I was SO RELIEVED to hear my cell chime that I had a text.
He could see me at 10:30am.

Luckily, the old Boppy pillow was behind the couch in an area that I could reach. Thankfully, I had just seen Mike's neck pillow laying on our bedroom floor. I used BOTH of those in an attempt to sit on the couch with a little bit of much-needed support.

I called Frank, across the street; asked him if he would be around this morning to help me lift Silas into his carseat. Thankfully, he was available.

Found it near-impossible to turn my head to the left.

Went to the chiropractor. Hoped for immediate relief. Unfortunately, he informed me "I'll likely be seeing you again this week. See how it goes..."

I asked "How soon?"

"Tomorrow would NOT be too soon if you are still in a ridiculous amount of pain or discomfort. Wait and see..." (He also informed me NOT to attempt doing any rotation of my neck anytime soon, but to apply ICE at home.)

Sat with a giant ice pack in the hood of my sweatshirt for the middle of the day, before attempting to relieve pain with ibuprofen.

Chiro said I had three ribs out.

While we were there, the boys got adjusted, too. (Sydney was excited and willing. Silas - not so much.) Our chiro doesn't charge for kids... not until they are old enough to drive themselves to their appointments.

Buy one, get two free; good deal. IF ONLY I had gained 100% relief from today's visit.

At bedtime, I can turn my head to the left - almost 90° and 60° to the right. I can look UP at the ceiling, but still struggle to look down at my lap. Hoping for a decent night of sleep...

OUTSIDE, baby boy

Oh, baby boy...
how you LOVE to be outside.

To watch birds and squirrels and cars

To see the green city bus ZOOM by

To hear the distant sounds of a barge
or a railroad crossing

To hear sirens and imitate their sounds

To play in the sand

To splash in the birdbath

To draw with sidewalk chalk

To find the smallest piece of treebranch,
admiring the new buds- calling them BUGS

To always be on the lookout for insects
(calling almost everything a ladybug...
or your newest fascination: box elder bugs)

To jump and climb

To examine the rocks in our yard
(and fill daddy's grill with them when he isn't looking)

To splash in a puddle

To kick and chase a ball

To blow bubbles

To have the gentle wind blow your fraggle rock hair

To watch for airplanes

To search for the moon

To smile at the sun

Outside is YOUR happy place


• • • • •
Silas is 23 months, 1 week old.

Neuro appointment moved to APRIL 2013

Got a call from my neurologist's office today. Had played phone tag with the nurse all week long and she said that she would get back to me early this week.... and SHE DID!

Doctor has suggested that we BUMP my November 2013 appointment up so that we can discuss the new FDA-approved drug as a viable option for me. (I'd LOVE to give up the daily injections so that "Careful, mommy had a shot!" aren't words that are used on such a regular basis with my boys.)

So, they offered me 3 different dates to pick from... two in April, one in May. Thankfully, Mike will be able to schedule himself to allow for a visit to UW-Madison; I picked one of the April dates.

Anxious to hear what Dr. Fleming has got to say...

I am TEMPTED to count all of my remaining shots to see how many I have left; PERHAPS, I will decide NOT to re-order them?!?!?

Time will tell...

{Incredibly cute} COUSINS

04.06.13: Gathered with family.

THE COUSINS:
Brothers
Sydney, almost 4.
Silas, 23 months.

Sisters
AvaLynn, 23 months.
Abigail, 10 months.

The astronaut chairs at the beauty shop

Silas was first up to get his haircut from "the pretty princess" while we were visiting Nana & Papa. Papa and Sydney were waiting in the seating area. After Silas, Sydney took his turn to transform from shaggy to chic. Silas and Mommy sat in the dryer chairs and visited with the beauticians while Papa looked at a magazine.

Then, I put the helmet part down over my head. Silas thought it was funny, but was (at first) afraid to let me do it to him. 

I explained "They look like astronaut helmets! You look like Buzz Lightyear!"

The expression on his face immediately screamed SOLD!

Sydney couldn't wait for his haircut to be over so that HE could sit in the astronaut chairs, too. 

One of the beauticians was nice enough to take a picture of them with her cell phone and email it to me, so that I could include it into my Project Life album.

Our boys left the beauty shop as handsome little men!

AWESOME NEWS (another MS drug gains FDA approval)

I was THRILLED to recently discover that a new (oral) drug has been approved by the FDA for MS therapy. (March 27, 2013.) The new drug is an oral, taken twice daily.

I did a little reading online and became intrigued; afterall, the words "CAREFUL! Mommy had a shot there!" are NOT the memories I want my kids to have of me.

I put a call in to my neurologist's office. (April 1) I've been playing phone tag with them ever since to ask them my slew of questions. (I'm HOPING to connect with them tomorrow.... April 5.)

I learned, via the website for the new drug, that most people can qualify for a $10/month copay. (I am currently on an assistance plan for my current SHOT, paying $35/month instead of my $85/month copay.) From what I read online, the cost of the new medicine is about $55,000/year (about $150/day). My current med (shot) bills insurance for $138/day.

I am anxious to learn more and hear my doctor's take on it all.

And THEN, comes the hard part of: making a decision!

Sink hole vs. Money pit

How horrific it was to see the news of the man in Florida who had fallen into a GIANT sink hole while sleeping in his bed one night.  I can't imagine that...

About a block away from our house, there is a duplex that is condemned. When we had gotten that horrendous rainstorm in July 2011, a large retaining wall along side of that property started to wash away with the GIANT cement blocks tumbling into the backyards below. I'm sure glad we don't live THERE!

In our house, originally built in 1896, we notice that our floors are not level and we joke that our house must be S-L-O-W-L-Y S-L-I-D-I-N-G down the back hill. Today, while playing in the yard, I noticed a hole in the ground and a nearby fault-line. I looked at it, perplexed, assuming that a chipmunk or gopher is likely to blame. Then, my mind went immediately to that Florida home with the sinkhole.

The odds of our property being on a sinkhole are slim; however, owning a home does seem to be like throwing cash into a giant money pit. It seems, there is ALWAYS SOMETHING to do...

Last Thursday, Mike and Silas replaced one of the windows in our master bedroom. On Friday, they replaced the second one. 

Eventually, Mike ripped off the old storm and exterior trim from ONE of the old front windows. Yesterday afternoon, he started adding NEW TRIM outside. It's looking very nice. 

Now that my bedroom windows look so nice, I wonder... how long will we live at THIS HOUSE? Is it worth it to replace some other windows as well? (I had written a check out of my divorce money... our rainy day fund... to pay for the master bedroom windows; well worth it, if you ask me... they are LOVELY!) Our office windows are in terrible shape; the interior plastic from the winter BLEW with the wind outside, showing how necessary it was to wrap these windows for winter in the first place. Our stairway window, a single pane of glass, was also quite drafty and had plastic both IN and OUTSIDE until the outside layer blew off; it sure would be nice to have that drafty, cold window replaced... preferably with one that OPENS for some much-needed ventilation on that side of the house. 

Oh, how I wish we had a crystal ball... to SEE how long we would live in this house. We're finding ourselves in an ever-anxious state of not-knowing. We COULD be here two weeks, two months or two years; there's no way of telling.

We always joked that we would get EVERYTHING just the way we wanted it and THEN, would find out we are moving. Maybe THAT is why we aren't good at completely projects 100% - leaving a little bit of each undone.

We've remodeled the kitchen and bathroom. We replaced every light fixture inside our house (except the pantry and basement.) We installed new carpet runner on the stairs and re-carpeted the entire upstairs. We've gotten it CLOSE to how we'd like it.

I'm guessing that we'd look for something completely different in our next house – wherever THAT may be. One thing IS for sure... whenever we kill time by looking at houses in random Midwestern cities, we struggle to find a kitchen as lovely as OURS. (We LOVE our faux tin ceiling, our lovely light fixtures and our knotty alder cabinetry selections.)

 

WHO KNOWS?!?!?! We just have to wait and see what happens... Hopefully, our next house will have (or be) a smaller money pit. 

What's that all over your face?

Our dining room chairs are CONSTANTLY being dragged all over our house. Sometimes, they are at the bottom of the stairs so that the boys can scale the babygate. Sometimes, they are at the table where they belong. Oftentimes, they are assembled in the corner of the dining room - as a spaceship, an airplane or some sort of imaginary vehicle while the boys argue over who is the DRIVER or the CAPTAIN. Quite often, they are dragged into the kitchen to 1) be a helper or 2) get into trouble.

Scene: One chair in the kitchen, one at the table and three in the corner - a 'wocket-ship, I think.

Sydney walks past with dark brown all over his face.

MOM: What did you get into? What's that all over your face?

SYDNEY: Well, I tWied to Wick the Two-wewwa with my tongue so, it's pWobabwy Two-wewwa.
(Well, I tried to lick the Nutella with my tongue so, it's probably Nutella.)

MOM: Gross.

SYDNEY: Not gWoss. It was good! (Not gross. It was good.)

Ah, yes... MORE PROOF to NEVER TRUST A PRESCHOOLER!