No Turning Back

I have TPd a few of your blogs. Blue Yonder is having a giveaway and I wanted to get the word out - there's a sleepover party over there and it seems like a lot of fun.

We've been continuing our potty training, but I think we've pretty much gotten the hang of it. We had a few accidents yesterday morning, but he has done fantastic today - not even one accident yet. I imagine we'll have some set-backs and difficult days, but I'm counting my blessings that he's been so productive so far (in so many ways!).

I have learned a great deal from this experience. I think the most important one is to wait until both mommy and child are ready. Sam has probably been ready for a long time, but I've been scared out of my mind! I don't know why I was so intimidated - I think there were a few factors involved. The greatest of these factors was that I was fearful that if I messed up it would take him years to get back on track. I think that's a valid consideration, especially since my father and my husband were well over three before they learned.

But, here we are on day four and we've already been out in public several times - he's done great. I feel like Brad Pitt in the movie "The Mexican" when he was cheering for himself for finally getting something right. I even did those moves this morning in the kitchen when Sam looked down at his pants and then looked up at me with these deer-caught-in-headlights eyes. I immediately asked and he immediately responded - POTTY!!!

This video has been circulating - it's Sam's little potty dance. We BOTH get a reward when he's poopied in the potty - we blare Julieta Venegas(Google her Si album) as loud as we can and dance like crazy!

So, for those of you thinking about potty training your child, I'll write down our method in the next post. I am far from being an expert, and this is far from over, but I've learned a few things in the last week that I'd love to share.

Day Two

It is far from over. We've had two accidents today, consecutively. But, he's done great for the most part. He hasn't had as much to drink today and that's why I think it has been a bit frustrating for him (and me).

But, in the middle of our day, the sun was shining so brightly it called to us. We had to go outside and play. We just had to. Despite it being 35 out, I bundled Sam up and we played in the yard.

The most intriguing thing he found was a stick. But, a boy and a stick - that's a barrel of fun for this two year-old. I also walked the length of our fence today and saw several places where the chicken wire has folded down on itself. I am sure that is how the neighborhood dogs get into our yard - so I'm going to see what I can do about fixing them. It looks like one of our neighbors added some more chicken wire on his side, but his is folding down too. Why does that happen?

We're finally going to go outside tomorrow, so it'll be the real test of Sam's potty training. Thanks to Nan and everyone else who has given me advice and encouragement during this time. Oh, and Joanna - a cold potty sounds like torture, and it also sounds like a legitimate training method - I'm in! I just hope he doesn't freeze to it!

What We've Been Up To

Here is Sam with his letter of the day "B." We learned that bear, bee, bunny and bacon all start with the letter B today.

Sam woke up on Monday morning with a cough, itchy eyes and a sneeze. He's had a low-grade fever ever since. So, I have diligently kept him at home and not allowed him to play with anyone else. I was so sad about this because our local library had a big Chinese New Year's bash, but we couldn't go.

But, I decided to make the most of our day at home today. I needed something to show for all of this "quarantined" action. Potty training was next on my list, so we decided to go for it.

Last Saturday morning, he woke up and said he needed to sit on the potty. We decided to cancel our plans for the morning and focus on what he wanted to do: sit on the potty.

He peed in his new big boy underwear a couple times, but then he got the hang of it. Unfortunately, we had to go to several parties after lunch (actually, it was fortunate, as we were getting out of the house), so I couldn't continue the potty training later in the day.

This morning I was completely prepared. Bill bought Sam some miniature monster trucks, we have a chart with stickers, some DVDs about potty training, a coloring page, M&Ms and the big boy underwear all ready to go.

Now it is the end of the day and he has peed exactly 21 times in the potty and only had one accident. We need to work on pooping in the potty tomorrow, as he apparently took a break from that activity today. He has initiated the last 16 times of going to the potty.

M&Ms are the big motivator here. I am so proud of him! But, here I am at 6:30pm and I am completely exhausted. We're about to sit down to Buffalo shrimp and salads and I will enjoy my respite once my little one goes to bed.

Sponsored by the Letter C

It's been a long time since I've been writing posts that include a temperature guide each time. Oh, how I long for the boring days of just posting recipes and food pictures!

Sam had 100.9F just before going down for a nap - and that's with Motrin. Sometimes Motrin doesn't touch fevers, but I wanted to try it since he's been having so much Tylenol. I stripped him down and am hoping it will go down while he is calm and asleep.

We had a great day today. Sam has been falling to pieces at the smallest thing, but at least he's having fun when he's not hurting himself. I took him outside since it's in the 50's today and cut his hair, then we played on the back deck for about an hour. It was nice to see the sunshine again.

We also worked on the letter C for our alphabet book. Sam found this great picture of a chicken that our neighbor would be proud of. It looks like one of her chickens, actually. Carrots, cows, chocolate cake and even a Starbucks coffee logo (okay, that was my addition, but it still counts). He surprised me that he knew cow and carrot started with the letter C. I had to help with the chocolate part, but he knew about the cake.

This project has really taken an interesting turn. He can tell me at the end of the day what letter we worked on and what words start with that letter (which we included in the page). I only started the project to keep him busy and maybe review some letters, but he's learning so much. It really shows me that I need to put some more energy into teaching him new concepts.

He's studying Chinese today too! He can already say hello and quite a few other words in Chinese. I'm so proud of him.

If we can just keep his fever down so we can stay out of the hospital, we'll be good to go.

Have a great weekend!

Virus

I'm so glad I took Sam to the pedi today. I just had a feeling about him being sick because he was falling to pieces at the smallest injury and the low-grade temp last night. His wonderful doctor did a CBC (not so wonderful) and learned that Sam has elevated lymphocytes - indicating a viral infection.

He's still on antibiotics for strep throat, and his throat looked great today, but the antibiotics won't heal his virus. We just have to treat the symptoms (high fever, achiness, etc) and wait it out.

I did something today that I very rarely do formally. I might complain in this forum some or even complain when talking to someone, but it's gotta be a very serious offense for me to formally complain. I did just that to his pediatrician today.

One of the last times we went in to see a doctor, we saw one we had never seen before. This was a couple months ago. I haven't had a venue to log my formal complaint until today (I didn't want to do it over the phone, I wanted to talk directly to his usual pedi).

I've told this story once before, but for the sake of it being fresh in my mind, I'll tell it again.

The doctor who saw us that day offered to give Sam some cough medicine she had in the cabinet. I asked her if it would be okay even with his arrhythmia (I am still learning the ins and outs of the meds he can take). She looked at me with a quizzical face and said she didn't know and that maybe I should just ask a pharmacist.

A pharmacist? Shouldn't I consult a doctor?

Then, after a few more flustering moments, she decided to check his tummy. She felt his defibrillator and immediately looked at me and asked (I kid you not), "Is that his liver?"

Um, if his liver was as hard as a piece of metal, don't you think I'd be in the ER right now?

I actually laughed at her. I thought she was kidding. She wasn't. She was very embarrassed and left the room quickly.

Sam's usual doctor, who we saw today, was shocked at my relaying this story. He said they take feedback very seriously and that he would make sure it was discussed with her. He's a really great pedi - we couldn't have asked for a better one in this town.

I know I was blushing all through my re-telling of the story, but I just hate "tattling" on people (no matter what my brothers might tell you). I'm really glad it wasn't more serious.

I'll keep you posted on Sam. If this virus is anything like last year's viruses, he should be back to normal in about a week. I'll check his temps a lot during the days and make sure he's got plenty of fluids. Thanks to everyone who asked about him! Keep praying.

Art Station

We have done some serious artwork over the last few days. I have had to get a little creative with our projects because we've been inside for so long. Although we did go sledding for about half an hour again yesterday, we spent the rest of the day in the house.

Yesterday morning I had just finished my Tae Bo workout when I told Sam it was time to go exercise outside by sledding. He asked me, "Watch TV outside, Mama?" He obviously thinks exercise = watching a Tae Bo DVD. I really need to fix that perception!

Our newest project is an alphabet book. Our letters yesterday were A and D. We went through a bunch of magazines and cut out the letters whenever we saw them (and he liked what he saw) and then cut out images that start with that letter. When we finish with all the letters, I'll tie them together and we'll make a nice cover for his new alphabet book. I figure this project could last us a month and it takes about 45 minutes to complete a page. He was so proud of his page that he just had to show Daddy when he came home. That's exactly the kind of project I love - one that he is proud of by the end.

Another project we worked on yesterday was to set up his art station. Some friends from church recently gave Sam this art table. She is a landscape artist and is really impressed by Sam's artwork. I had put it in Bill's office, but yesterday realized we had another spot that is just perfect for it. Now he's got a whole art station set up downstairs. It's absolutely perfect - I love that he can look out the window while coloring!

Finally, I kept forgetting to take a picture of Sam with his new cloth diaper on. My mother gave it to us from Thailand, and while it's very unusual and unlike any other cloth diapers we own, it is very handsome on my man. This picture was taken just after a nice warm bath preceded by sledding. He was dancing at the time. He must have just eaten too, because his belly button is an outie - it's an innie when he is hungry and his belly is empty. It only changed to this pattern after his ICD was implanted - before that he had an innie.

Last night he felt a little warm and when I took his temp it was 100.8F. So, back to the doctor we go today. Hopefully all will be well - he has no fever this morning, but it is a little high for normal (99.9F). I'll keep you posted as I can.

Snowdays

We have had quite a bit of snow here over the last few days. I finally took Sam out yesterday to go sledding on our hill. He had a great time.

Unfortunately, this is the only picture that came out. Apparently the external flash wasn't seated properly and it didn't communicate with the camera, so this one was taken while the sun was still high enough. Some friends of ours were kind enough to give Sam this snow suit. I sure wish I had one! My legs were pink by the time we finished sledding from how cold I was.

Afterwards, Sam got a bath to warm up and then asked Daddy to play chess with him. Bill loves to play chess and is always thrilled when Sam shows an interest in something he loves (like watching football or hiking). Sam had played chess with his friend Wyatt at the library earlier in the day (with the pieces, that is) and was excited to learn we had a chess board at home too.

I love this picture. Bill was teaching him the names of all the pieces. There's something so warm in this photo - Sam in his flannel shirt and sweats, Bill in his sweater and the warmth of the cedar wainscoting - I don't know. It just screams playtime after sledding.

Thanks for all your comments and emails. We appreciate all your prayers!

Inauguration Day

We've been very busy trying to get well over the last few days. Sam had a couple of very good days and then started feeling bad again yesterday. I think it must have been the antibiotics at work, because he was crying at the drop of a hat and just wanted to lay around. A friend of mine told me these particular antibiotics cause kiddos to sleep a lot on day 2 or 3, so that is what I attribute to his odd behavior.


In order to help him feel a little happier, and especially since we could not go outside in the 5 inches of snow, we built a sheet fort in our living room. As you can see, he was thrilled with it.


On another note, I have been meaning to post this picture for a long time. A friend of mine asked me to do a cake for another friend's baby shower. I got some extra help from yet another friend of mine in designing the cake and...voila! I put a Winnie the Pooh figurine on the final product, but wanted to share the cake with everyone. It was my first real attempt, so it's obviously not very well done, but I am still proud of it. It took me over four hours! I don't think I could ever decorate cakes for a living - it's too much work and takes too long.

On a final note, my laptop died yesterday. It's been whining for a while - the fan has been broken off and on and there are a few other issues. But, we thought if we replaced the fan I could hang on to it a bit longer. Instead, the fan not working seems to have destroyed the screen and it is no longer working. I think I might be able to hook it up to a different monitor to get the information I need from it, but we're not exactly sure how long that will last. Maybe Bill will still try to fix the fan and get an external monitor - I don't know his plan yet.

In this economy, I don't need to tell you how much it hurts to lose something so expensive. But, another difficulty is this upcoming adoption. We had been saving money for it for many years and had not planned on coming back to America, buying a house, two cars, furniture (some, anyway) and, lease of all, thousands of dollars in hospital bills.

We have recently heard that the orphanage "donation" for China has increased from $3000 to $5000, not to mention gas prices have driven airfare up an enormous amount.

Bill and I have prayed about it for a long time and decided to apply for an adoption grant from Shaohannah's Hope, which is Steven Curtis Chapman's organization. We finished some extra paperwork for them today and are hoping to hear from them soon. I have also approached our church to see if they can help us start a fundraiser.

All this to say, we are still trusting that God will take care of our needs regarding this adoption that we know He has asked us to follow through on. We are still greatly desiring to hold our little girl in our arms. We are just trying to do all of this without breaking the bank. Any suggestions would be welcomed!

We know the Lord is faithful and will provide for all our needs. We are blessed in this nation and know that our situation is a great one to be in. What a blessing to be able to stay home and be with my child/ren. Not every woman has this opportunity and I am fully aware of that.

I'm not sure why I felt led to share all of this with you, but there it is. Maybe you can pray with us regarding all of this as well.

Quick Update

Just wanted to give a quick update on Sam. He is eating a little more and was singing lots of songs tonight, so I am going to assume his throat is feeling a little better.

We're still keeping him quarantined for now, just to make sure we don't spread it to anyone else over the next few days.

He hasn't had a fever all day today! Praise God.

As a quick reminder, it's the high fevers combined with sickness that cause his heart to go into an arrhythmia. We have been blessed during this illness that his heart never beat faster than 230bpm for longer than 60 out of 80 beats. That is what would cause his defibrillator to shock him. I will be curious to see if his heart did go into an arrhythmia though, because I couldn't count the beats on Thursday night, but maybe it came out of it on its own. We'll know in a couple months at his next cardio appointment.

Melia, Sam's heart buddy, is still at Levine's. She is improving every day with every hour. They think her lung collapsed yesterday, but she is recovering from that as well. Please continue to pray for her and her family.

Strep Throat

Sam's fever came back this afternoon so I took him to the doctor.

He has strep throat, and they are 100% sure because of his rapid throat culture results.

The doctor will call this weekend to check on him, but it's highly unlikely for Sam to get dehydrated with strep. However, we still have a fever to contend with until the fever comes down.

This day goes down in history as the very first time Sam has been diagnosed with something that is treatable.

So...keep praying!

Relief

It seems so obvious when I ask for prayers for Sam that you are obviously on your knees. I can almost see a visible change in him when you're praying. So, my heartfelt thanks is extended to you.

He did okay overnight, with a brief wake up at 5am. It was cool enough that I put some blankets on his little naked body around 11pm, when I gave him more Tylenol. I think the wind chill last night was about 15 below zero. I kept the heater on in his room and he seemed to do well with it.

This morning, he woke up with 99.9F temperature. Still not considered a fever, I have been monitoring him closely to make sure it doesn't rise. It hasn't, but has, in fact, lowered a little. It's about 99.3F right now.

He kept down a scrambled egg and has been taking sips of liquid all morning. He has been demanding more food, but I'm cautious to give him only a little at a time. So far so good!

I've been getting lots of calls and texts this morning - thanks so much for being so concerned. It warms my heart to know Sam has such a large support group out there. You are each such a blessing and I love being able to share with you over the phone his current state.

I hope that he will continue to heal today with no more vomiting or diarrhea. If he does have any more vomiting, I will call his pedi immediately. These things always seem to happen right at the start of the weekend, so I hope if he's going to do anything else, he'll do it before the end of the work day.

Thanks again - I'll keep you posted.

Oh, and I just heard about Sam's friend Melia. She's recovering well, but is in a great deal of pain when the meds wear off. Please continue to keep her in your prayers. A neighbor of theirs in another room, a little boy, passed away last night after a long struggle and too long a wait for a heart transplant. Please remember his family. Melia's family has been particularly struck with the sadness of this passing and struggle, as is common when a family is in the PICU. Thanks for your prayers.

102.3F

Pray for Sam tonight please. He has 101.8, down from 102.3F half an hour ago. He vomited at dinner (out), had diarrhea and when we got home his heartbeat was really fast - I couldn't count it.

We are packing a hospital bag. We will wait for him to vomit one or two more times before we page his cardiologist and see if we need to take him to the ER.

Because of his having Brugada Syndrome, his electrolytes being unbalanced can cause his heart to go into an arrhythmia. Dehydration could easily cause this imbalance, so he will need to be monitored and given IV fluids if he becomes dehydrated.

Right now, his heart is strong and steady and easily countable.

We're a little on edge. We're about to sit down and eat some food and I've put him in bed with no clothes on. I will update when I can, but I'm not making any promises.

Update

I just read an update about Melia. They said she's doing okay this morning. She hasn't slept since the surgery and everyone is exhausted. Please keep praying for the whole family.

Her mommy mentioned something really unusual. Melia's eyes have always been blue, but when she opened them up last night after the surgery, they're now brown. Her daddy thinks it's God's way of saying if He can change her eye color He can certainly fix her heart.

I'll keep you posted.

Melia

Please pray for Sam's friend Melia tonight. She has just had heart surgery today and is having some difficulties recovering from the surgery. She is almost three years old.

Indian Food

I had been hesitating on making Indian food at home, because it seems really intimidating to me. For those of you who have told me in the past you are afraid to bake bread, I completely understand how you feel.


But, I have a friend who has been encouraging me to make food. She even sent me some packets for these awesome kabobs - called Seekh Kabobs. I sauteed some onions and mixed them with ground beef and the spice packet, plus a little raw ginger. I then grilled them on my George Foreman grill, because it was WAY too cold outside the day we made these.

Then I made Daal, which is basically lentils with some spices and tomatoes. If I understand it correctly, every family makes them differently. This particular recipe was from a friend of my Aunt Nancy's. I didn't make any veggies to go with the meal though, because I was so afraid I was going to mess everything up. But, it turned out really well.

I'd be happy to share my recipe, but I bet you've got an Indian friend somewhere who has a favorite she would love to share. Next time I try the Daal, I'm trying Indrani's.

Friday

I'm sure everyone is on pins and needles waiting to hear how Sam is today. He's fever-free, thank you very much. I know all of us praying for him has helped, so thank you.

I really think this fever was related to him teething. A doctor once told me that they can get higher fevers, but only up to about 101F when new teeth come in. Maybe Sam is the exception to that rule. His lower back molars are working their way in and his gums are super-swollen. His hand is constantly in his mouth and he is drooling a lot.

It hasn't slowed down his eating though, and he is acting perfectly normal in every other way.

I will let you know if anything changes over the next few days.

I'm going to post soon about the Indian food I made a couple nights ago. I took some pictures and had a fantastic time making it. We've done a ton of Asian food this week - mostly Chinese though. It's so easy just to throw everything in the pan and stir fry it together.

The easiest authentic Chinese dish that I make is eggs and tomatoes. I may have shared this before, but I'll share it again, just in case one of you wants to try it at home.

Eggs and Tomatoes 蕃茄炒鸡蛋

Scramble a couple eggs with some salt and maybe even slices of green onion in about two tablespoons of oil. When they are still runny and almost cooked through, add one tomato that has been cut into medium sized chunks. Use your spatula to cut the eggs into large chunks - big enough to pick up with chopsticks, but not too large that you can't fit it into your mouth. Cook them all together until the tomato's skin is just about to fall off and the egg is starting to brown around the edges.

Serve with rice and you have the favorite meal of every American tourist who goes to Southwest China. It's a standard and it is delicious.

This Morning

Thanks for all your prayers - I really appreciate it. And, regarding the adoption, we will get matched eventually - it's just taking longer than we initially thought, which leads to disappointment month after month. It's almost like trying to conceive again, but with the knowledge that in the end we WILL have our baby.

Sam is fever free this morning, but he usually is this way. His fever usually gets higher throughout the day. We're are snowed in though - about two inches and it's still coming. So, if something does happen today, I will likely need to call 911 just to get us to the hospital safely. Hopefully nothing will, so let's keep praying for Sam.

Thanks again.

Ugh!

I have two pieces of bad news. I wonder which you would prefer to hear first. I think I'll just guess - Sam's.

Sam has been struggling with a low-grade fever since Monday. Tuesday he was fine, and this morning he was fine. But, tonight when Bill got home, Bill said he felt a little warm. I took his temp three times and here's what I got: 101.3F, 102.3F, and 101.6F.

I assumed it was really around 101.6 (taking an average), but I checked his heart rate just to make sure. It was strong and steady - and a normal beat.

I immediately gave him some Tylenol and took his clothes off. Within 20 minutes it was down to 100.6F.

As you know, history has shown Sam's particular variety of Brugada Syndrome means his heart can't tolerate a high fever (over 101.8F).

So, we're on red alert for that tonight. I just checked on him in bed and he's sweating like crazy - maybe he's breaking it. But, it still means we're hunkering down and watching TV all day tomorrow. There will be no extra energy spent. He has no symptoms so I cannot say why he's got a fever - same ol' same ol'.

The second piece of bad news is more sad than bad. We were not matched again this month for our adoption. But, we're second in line on the wait list now (that boils it down in a very simplified way that isn't exactly accurate but allows you to see the big picture). Ho hum.

Maybe March? Those of you who have been praying and fasting - keep it up. Add Sam to your list and that his fever would go away and he would be miraculously healed from whatever it is that's got his body fighting.

I'll keep you posted. It seems I'll be around all day tomorrow. I hear we're gonna get about 4 inches of snow - maybe that will be fun to look at from inside our warm cozy house.

Naked Finger Painting

I always forget how busy the holidays are here in the States. I can't even tell you what I've been busy with, I only know I haven't had time to sit down and properly post anything.

To see what we were up to today, check out my neighbor, Joanna's, post.

I wanted to start with some photos of a naked finger painting experience Sam had with a friend, Nathan. Nathan's mommy knows a lot about child development and she wanted to give this a try with Sam, since her son loves it so much, and see how he did. It was absolutely hysterical.



As you can see from this picture, he was not thrilled about getting paint on himself. He almost refused to use his fingers and only wanted to use a brush at first. Nathan's mommy laid a tarp down on the floor and we poured the paints directly onto it then gave the kiddos a blank canvas.


Nathan knew just what to do though. He seemed quite at ease with getting himself very messy. Hopefully Sam will learn more as he tries it again and again.


Sam finally found his nitch when Nathan's mommy encouraged him to drizzle the paint onto the canvas. As long as he didn't have to touch it.


Nathan obviously needed a bath by the time we were done. Sam had a little paint on his leg, but Nathan had it everywhere - even in his hair and all over his mommy. He is so creative and such an artist.


Bath time was a hoot. Nathan knows that if you splash a lot, you get more bubbles. Since Sam only just got his first bubble bath soap, he wasn't as well-versed, so-to-speak, in the splashing routine.


Nathan even got into cleaning Sam's back. Sam definitely had more fun in the bath (getting clean) than he did getting messy.

We're going to try again some time soon - and we'll see if the artist in Sam prevails in the inner struggle of messiness versus creating art.



One of the coolest toys Sam got for Christmas was from Elijah's family. They gave him a model train set. Sam has been obsessive about playing with it. We've built a bridge/tunnel out of our mega blocks and used his old boppy to create a tunnel too. He's thrilled just to stand there and watch it go around and around.

And, it wouldn't be Christmas without my homemade sticky buns. I was thrilled to make them, even though I was really sick around Christmas. It was the first food I ate for more than 36 hours and it was yummy yummy.

I thought, in the spirit of Christmas, I would share the recipe with those of you who enjoy baking.

Caramel-Pecan Sticky Buns

1 package (1/4 ounce) active dry yeast
3/4 cup warm water (110 - 115 degrees)
3/4 cup warm milk (same degrees as above)
1/4 cup sugar
3 T vegetable oil
2 t salt
3 3/4 to 4 1/4 cup all-purpose flour

Filling:
1/4 cup butter or margarine, softened
1/4 cup sugar
3 t ground cinnamon
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup whipping cream
1 cup coarsely chopped pecans

In a mixing bowl, dissolve the yeast in warm water. Add the milk, sugar, oil, salt and 1 1/4 cups flour. Beat on medium speed for 2-3 minutes or until smooth. Stir in enough remaining flour to form a soft dough.

Turn onto a floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, about 6-8 minutes. Place in a greased bowl, turning once to grease top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about one hour.

Punch dough down. Turn onto a lightly floured surface. Roll into an 18 inch by 12 inch rectangle. Spread butter to within 1/2 inch of edges.

Combine sugar and cinnamon; sprinkle over butter. Roll up, jelly-roll style, starting with a long side; pinch the seam to seal (use wet hands to help seal better).

Use a four inch piece of thread to cut it into 12 slices - this keeps it from getting smooshed with a knife.

Combine brown sugar and cream; pour into a greased 13 inch by 9 inch by 2 inch baking pan. Sprinkle with pecans.

Place rolls, cut side down, over pecans. Cover and let rise until doubled, about one hour. Bake at 350 for 30 to 35 minutes or until well browned. Cool for one minute before inverting onto a serving platter. Yield: 1 dozen.