Coughs and Sniffles...and More Medical Stuff

These are the sounds of the Swaney household the past few days.  Cody was the first unfortunate one of us to come down with it.  It started last week with a little bit of a raspy voice, and I believe it is coming to an end for him now.  However, the end did not come before a horrible cough, terribly runny and stuffy nose, fevers of 102*-103*, wheezing, a trip to the ER on Sunday with a diagnosis of a "common cold", and a trip to the Dr. with a final diagnosis of pneumonia yesterday. Fortunately for Cody Bear, he is recovering from this on his own, with  no worries. 

Miss Hannah has not fared so well with this sickness.   Hannah Bean came down with it on Saturday and every day through Monday she had ran a fever of 104*.  We had to do chest X-rays yesterday at the Dr.'s office.  That was sooo not a fun experience for any of us.  They put her in this little contraption where her legs were dangling in two holes in a wooden platform.  Her little arms were pinned above her head with two plastic walls that enclosed her entire body.  To make matters worse, that little board thing that is used in all X-rays (the film, maybe?) was pushed up against her little face.  She screamed and screamed.  It just broke my heart.  I know all of this was needed to ensure an accurate picture, but you be the Mother that is forced to just sit and watch your baby trapped in a contraption like this.  It was so sad.  Fortunately, it did not last too awful long, and she calmed down as soon as she was back in my arms.  Her X-rays did in fact indicate pneumonia as well.  The Dr. put her on Azythromycin and Amoxicillin.  She woke up this morning with a fever again, however it was no where near the high temps that they had been running. I gave her some Motrin and the fever has been gone all day!  Her nose and cough are still present, as are Cody's but I do believe my babies are on the road to recovery!  I on the other hand, have been blessed enough for them to share their symptoms with me!

It is obviously a great thing for the kiddos to be feeling better, but especially for Cody right now.  We had an appointment with a Pediatric Opthamologist in Omaha last week.  He was diagnosed with Acommodative Esotropia in both of his eyes.  Acommodative Esotropia is a condition of the eyes in which while one eye focuses on the object viewed the other eye turns inward.  So if Cody is focusing on something with his right eye, his left eye crosses in, and turns upward.  The same goes for his right eye while he is focusing with his left.  He needs strabismus surgery to correct this, and it is scheduled for June 2nd at Boys Town National Research Hospital in Omaha.  Cody has to be fever free for 7 days before the surgery. Today is day 1, so we're on the right track.  Our physician gave us the OK for his general physical pending fever already.  The surgery will be outpatient with general anesthesia, but we will be staying in a hotel because Cody will have a follow up appointment with the Pediatric Opthamologist the following morning.  My best friend will be keeping the girls for us, and our vet will have Bella.  I asked the opthamologist to compare this surgery with a tonsillectomy since we have been through that with Gracie. He told me that this should be easier.  They will be making an incision in the thin layer that covers the whites of his eyes, and realigning the muscles in both his eyes with stitches.  As far as pain levels go, the only medications needed should be regular Children's Tylenol.  His eyes may be bothersome after the surgery, and may have a feeling of a foreign object in his eyes for a few days because of the stitches. I believe this will be one of the hardest parts of this. We are not allowed to let him rub his eyes, so it's going to be trying to help keep him calm and leave them alone. His vision may be blurred for a bit after the surgery as well.  It will not effect his vision permanantly, and being far sighted with an astigmatism, Cody will still need his glasses afterwards.

While at their appointments yesterday we got the kiddos stats of Cody Bear weighing in at 29 lb and 36" tall.  Miss Hannah is 23 lb.  We didn't get height on her yesterday. 

So, with all that said, please keep my kiddos in your prayers.  Pray for Miss Gracie too. I'd hate for this darned illness to be passed to her too.

Track & Field....and Growing up

Today was Track & Field day at Gracie's school.  The littles (that is what I frequently call Cody and Hannah) and I joined Gracie and her class this morning for a day full of fun!  The first activity was tug of war.  I have never experienced tug of war, myself.  I wish I was a kid again so I could! It looked like so much fun!

Their 2nd event was the 100 M dash.  The kids didn't really understand that they had to stay in their lane of the track.  I believe Gracie and the little girl running next to her traded lanes 3 times in their trip down.  After that, the kids did the long jump.  This was a little funny, as Gracie forgot to jump the first time.  Maybe not forgot, but didn't know that was how she was supposed to do it.  She did good the 2nd time around!

Cody was able to partake in some of the action as well!  He ran the 50 M dash with Gracie.  And he ran it well, right along side Sissy!  I just love how he uses his tongue to show his determination.   He gets that from his Papa Lamb!  He also participated in the softball throw.

Gracie really had a blast!  This was pretty much the last school event for the first grade for her!  And it makes me sad.  We still have awards day to look forward to on Thursday, but as of 1:00 pm that day, first grade will be over.  It's so bittersweet to be a parent. I am beyond proud of all of my kids' accomplishments. I'm proud of them just for being good kids!  They don't have to do anything special to make me happy.  They just have to be themselves. 

I am a pretty sentimental person, especially when it comes to my kiddos.  Saying goodbye to first grade, and saying goodbye to Gracie's most awesome teacher is harder than it should be for me.  I wish she could stay this age forever.  Though, I do know this fall, as she starts school as a 2nd grader, (A 2nd grader?!?! That sounds so OLD!)  I will have just as much to be proud of and look forward to as I did this year.  I just wish we could do it all without them growing up on us!

Lions, and tigers, and RAIN! Oh My!

My Gracie is currently at Henry Doorly Zoo on her first grade field trip!  The forecast has been calling for rain all day, and I'm  hoping they can enjoy this trip without a drop!  She was very excited about this trip, and woke up a whole half an hour early this morning, just bouncing off the walls waiting to leave.  Anthony had to work, so I wasn't able to go along.  I really wish I could have.  I do know she's having a blast though.  My friend went with her daughter and has Gracie in her group, so I'm getting regular updates to how it's going!  The picture below is from this morning on the bus, on their way there! 

A little bit about Gracie for my readers delight.  I love to talk about my kids, so as a reader of this blog, you are required to love to read about them!  Gracie is my oldest child.  She just turned 7 years old last week, but I believe her attitude has aged an additional 5 years.  Though she does have her moments, that make you want to literally pull out your hair, the kind of moments you're left standing there staring at her, wondering what in the world made her such a crab, or who does she think she is, I love her. Unconditionally. 

I'm very proud of her too.  She is a very smart little thing, and I only hope she holds onto the realization of that, and allows it to take her somewhere in her life.  She loves to color and draw. She loves baby dolls, Barbie dolls, and she loves worms, fishing, dirt, riding bikes, mud, swimming and reading, hanging upside down from the swingset bars, playing school, real homework, and dress up.  She is a pretty easy girl to please.  There are many times we hear, "I'm bored!", but it doesn't normally last too long with her.  She's a happy little girl too. 

She is a great big sister to Hannah and Cody.  Of course, as with all siblings we have our daily arguments, but for the most part, she is always trying to include them.  You can see how much she loves them through their interactions.  And they admire her too.  Around this house, Gracie's name is "Sissy" from everyone!

She loves to help others and nurture those that need it. (And sometime those that don't!)  She received an award for her character and helpfulness to others back at her school in Danville, and has received two "Tigerrifics" from her school here in Iowa for the very same thing.  There are many things she says and does, that help me to feel like I'm doing my job as a Mom right.  I pray that our relationship remains as close as it is in years to come.

She's a great kid, and I am proud and honored, and very lucky to be her Momma!

Hmm, Well this is new...

Well hello!  If you're reading this, then most likely you already know me, but I'm sure there are some things you don't. And since I start almost all things like this with "Hi! My name is Cindy!", here we go!

Hi! My name is Cindy! (Betch'ya didn't see that coming!).  I am *almost* 30 years old. I have an amazing husband, and 3 perfect, lovable, adorable kiddos, two girls, and one boy.  Normally, in things like this, I would replace "about me" with about my family.  But, I'm changing it up a bit!  I'll dedicate a whole post to them later on.  For now, I'll just share this picture from Omaha's Henry Doorly Zoo on May 8th. 

I am a very optimistic person. I am such a glass half full kind of person, that I am sure it gets on my husbands nerves!  But, being happy, and chipper is just who I am. I talk too much, and act like a kid quite often.  I love spending time with my husband and kiddos. I love it a whole lot.  I love to go fishing, camping, hiking, and generally anything outside.  I love reading. I love to lose myself in a book.  To find yourself in an imaginary world is one of the best things.  I can easily read for 5-8 hours at night, but not so easily wake up the next morning!  I love photography.  I have had the honor of taking portraits for friends and family. I would love to make it more than that.  It gets a bit frustrating not knowing if it will ever happen, but it is in God's hands, and that is where I'm leaving it.  I am a Christian. I consider my relationship with Christ close, but there's always room for closer! I try to set an example for my kids.  I firmly believe that children learn from what they see.  I'm not saying I'm perfect or that I set a perfect example, by any means, but I do try.  My favorite color is green, favorite movies are the Harry Potter, Chronicles of Narnia, and Twilight series.  I love chocolate and make brownies at least once/week.

So, this is all I'll include for my first ever blog post. The more interesting stuff, I'm sure will come later.  Good night all!