Week 145

This was a very difficult week for us.  On Tuesday, when Dawn posted last week's blog she wrote about how Jack was not feeling well.  Well as the week went on, Jack did not improve.  Even after several nebulizer treatments, Jack's breathing did not get any better, in fact it seem to get worse.  It got so bad that on Thursday evening Jack woke up several times in distress and he did not respond to three different nebulizer treatments.  After calling the pediatrician to let her hear how Jack was breathing and coughing, we took her advice and ended up taking him to the Emergency Room.  He was such a little trooper.  They tested for the flu, RSV, and Pertussis.  They took X rays, drew blood, and finally admitted him to the hospital around 4 AM on Friday morning.

Our sweet little Jack resting after a stressful evening in the ER.
Waiting to be transported to the pediatrics unit.

The final diagnosis was a double ear infection and Croup.  It took the pediatrician in the ER to dig out all the ear wax in Jack's ears to finally get a good look.  Once she did that she saw the problem right away.  We cannot tell you how many doctors and nurses during the week and that day looked in his ears and never bothered to get the ear wax out of the way to get a good look.  Once they gave him the medicine for the ear infection, a different medicine through a nebulizer treatment, and a steroid to help clear up the cough, his breathing improved.  He spent Friday night as well in the hospital to make sure everything was normal and was discharged on Saturday morning.  He is still not 100%.  His breathing is on the fast side, but his spirits are good.  He had a good night's sleep on Saturday, and Sunday was a good day.  Hopefully, this is the end of a long two weeks of Jack being ill and crazy week that we have had with everyone being sick!

At the hospital; starting to feel better!

What a difference 48 hours on the proper medications can make!

On the Ryan front, he had an okay week.  With all of the transitions since Thursday, he was a little off.  He was able to play video games with his cousin on Friday evening and really wanted to go over and play again on Saturday.  But we said no and he had a melt down to the point that he put his shoes on, coat on, and was going to "drive himself" to Uncle T's to play.  We were able to get him out of it by telling him that we were going to a birthday party across the street.  He was all set at the party until they decided to break out Wii bowling and then Ryan lost interest in playing with the other kids, and just focused on trying to get into the game.  We were only going to stay an hour and we had a tough time leaving.

On a positive note, Ryan received a 100% on his last religion test.  Given the fact that he gave Dawn and I such a difficult time studying for this test, it was great to see.  His teachers were really happy with his test and with how he handles himself in the class.  They told me that on test days Ryan sits by himself and keeps his eyes on his own paper.

Ryan really tries hard to please all of his teachers.  For example, they encouraged the kids to read more non-fiction books.  When we showed Ryan the book magazine and told him he can pick something out, he passed by the cool looking Ninjago books and picked a set of non-fiction books about Presidents Washington and Lincoln.  And on the announcements at school they talk to the kids about events such as no name calling week and the upcoming Penny Wars.  Ryan comes home and makes sure he does what he needs to in order to be involved.  If they ask the kids to wear blue to school, he reminds us that evening when we are taking out his clothes for the next day.  His new kick is this "Penny Wars" fundraiser they are doing.  He talks about it constantly and we give him coins for good behavior and he adds it to his baggy to bring to school to donate.  He even tried to take money out of his own wallet but I wouldn't allow it.  He really does get obsessed with these things, especially if it is a contest at school and his class has a chance to win something.  He will bring in coins to donate, like most of the other kids, but I would find it hard to believe that many of the other kids did chores to earn those coins.    While I'm glad he likes to get involved, I know that most of the time his efforts go unnoticed.  What comes easy to most kids takes a whole lot of effort from Ryan.

Hopefully with everyone feeling better, we can get back to our routine.  It will be an emotionally trying few days for all of us as Dawn's time at home on maternity leave comes to a close and she heads back to work at the end of the week.

PC and DC 

Week 144

I am a couple of days late writing about this week's happenings because when it rains, it POURS!  Where do I start???

Ryan...
Ryan had a dentist appointment to get 2 of his 4 cavities filled.  They gave him gas to calm him down and then a shot of Novocain.  The left side of his mouth was numb for several hours and he did not like the way it felt.  He kept chewing on his bottom lip.  Here's what he woke up to the next morning:

I don't have the heart to tell him that he has to go back in February to get two done on the other side of his mouth!

Julia...
Julia performed at her first big Irish Dancing feis over the weekend.  About 15 minutes before her group was to perform she complained of stomach and head pains, and she was burning up.  She put on a smile for her performance but immediately afterwards asked if we could go home.  She didn't even want to wait to hear the results.  We got home and I took her temperature- 101.8.  I found out the next day that she placed 3rd out of 15 contestants for her Reel step and 4th out of 10 contestants for her Jig.  Not bad for not feeling well!

Trying to be happy but feeling really miserable.  Thank you to Amanda, Karl, Elaine, and Aunt Nancy for coming to see her perform.

Jack...
Jack suffered from the Croup most of the week.  The doctor prescribed a steroid which didn't help much and I brought him back for another checkup last night.  He is wheezing so they gave us a nebulizer machine to bring home to administer Albuterol every four hours.  He goes back for a breathing checkup in a couple of days to see if the nebulizer and medicine is helping to open up his airways.

Despite the craziness and sicknesses going around, there were some fun moments for the kids.  Ryan attended a birthday party and the little girl's mom generously bought Ryan a package of GFCF cupcakes from Nature's Pantry.  They were made by a company called Food For All and were DELICIOUS!  They are based out of The Hudson Valley and sell their products in stores in the area.  If you live in the Poughkeepsie area, check out their website:  foodforall.biz

The kids also had some fun time with mommy and playing dress up with their cousins.

Little Jack Jack turned 6 months old.  Through his coughing we were able to get some photos of him by himself and with Ryan and Julia.  I just love the photo of the three of them!

DC

Week 143

Two years ago today we lost Baby Campbell #3.  A lot has happened since then and as difficult of an experience as it was, without it Jack wouldn't be in our lives.  We were too busy today to dwell and be sad, and it is embarrassing to say that I only paused for a moment to look at the ultrasound and remember.

This week Ryan began to take cod liver oil again, as encouraged by our visit to Dr. Cowan.  We are pleased with the ease Phil was able to administer this to Ryan.  Ryan remembered taking it a year ago, and as unpleasant as it is to drink, he is taking it well and the process is over within a minute.  I think back to when we first needed to give this to Ryan and how long it took, and how many shirts he ruined because the oil dribbling out of his mouth stained them.

We attended a birthday party over the weekend and I want to share a sweet story regarding Ryan, a two year old girl, and the pinata.  Numerous times Ryan has been the one at the party that struggles gathering candy and prizes from the pinata.  There are usually bigger and faster kids who push their way to the center and hog the candy.  Ryan often ends up feeling defeated, walking away with a couple of things, crying.  This party was different.  A majority of the kids were very young so Ryan had no trouble gathering loot.  But there were a lot of kids and just behind Ryan was a two year old girl crying because she felt defeated.  Ryan turned to her and took all of the candy that he had gathered in his fist and handed it to her.  She looked at him and continued to cry, not taking the candy from his hands.  So he placed it down in front of her feet so that she could pick it up herself.  I couldn't have been more proud of him!

Ryan with his balloon sword.

Julia after her visit to the face painting station!

 There are times when Ryan refuses to do homework.  It takes a lot to get him to sit down and do more writing, after a long day at school.  This week he surprised us by doing an hour worth of homework.  He read the book, "Are You My Mother?".  After reading a few pages I looked at how many pages there were and asked him if he wanted me to finish it for him.  But he said no.  He wanted to read the whole thing.  It took him 30 minutes but he did it.  I was worried about it taking that long because he then had to write a book report but he did that as well.  He seems to enjoy reading when he knows the words, or when there are only a couple of words he needs help with.  We were so proud of him.

Happy Jack enjoying a day at home with mommy.

I tried out a new pancake mix and was pleased with how fluffy they turned out. However, like the others, after being refrigerated they tend to get crumbly.  But Ryan doesn't seem to mind, as long as they have his mini chocolate chips in them!

I mixed Ryan's chocolate flavored almond milk in to some of the batter to make chocolate chocolate chip pancakes and they were yummy.  I enjoyed them, as well as Julia, who can immediately taste the difference when I try to sneak something GF into her diet.

I read a book this week called Love Anthony by Lisa Genova.  I've had it since September and finally took the time to read it, and am so glad I did.  A big thank you to my friend Bridget who works in the book selling business.  She knows me well enough to know I would like it, and generously surprised me with it when she came for a visit to meet Jack.  I think part of me had put off reading it because I knew it would be sad, and it was.  Not sad because the boy dies, but sad because of the reality of how many children are on the Autism Spectrum, and are misunderstood.  But it was more inspiring than sad.  It reminded me of how far Ryan has come over the past couple of years, blessed that he is verbal, and thankful that he is who he is.  Also, it makes me want to visit Nantucket one day!

Here is the summary written on the back cover:

Olivia Donatelli's dream of a "normal" life shattered where her son, Anthony, was diagnosed with autism at age three.  Understanding the world from his perspective felt bewildering, nearly impossible.  He didn't speak.  He hated to be touched.  He almost never made eye contact.  And just as Olivia was starting to realize that happiness and autism could coexist, Anthony died.  Now she's alone in a cottage on Nantucket, separated from her husband, desperate to understand the meaning of her sons' short life, when a chance encounter with another woman facing irreparable loss brings Anthony alive again for Olivia in a most unexpected way.  In a piercing story about motherhood, autism, and love, Lisa Genova offers us two unforgettable women on the verge of change who discover the small but exuberant voice that helps them both find the answers they need.

This story is so much more than simply autism, and even marriage, and I recommend it to everyone.  You don't need to have a child with autism or be married to connect with this book.  It is about communication, and we all communicate in some way.  I don't want to say much more since I feel the back cover already gives so many "spoilers".  Who wants to borrow it first???

DC

Week 142- Our 200th Post!

A couple of weeks ago we had quite the interesting conversation at dinner.  Halfway through I picked up my camera and caught some of the silliness on video.  Here it is...

Young Love


Then this week Ryan came home with a picture given to him by a girl in his class.

Ryan told me, "She drew me wearing clothes like I have to marry her!"  That led to another video filled with silliness...

 Young Love Part 2


After looking back at the Part 2 video I noticed how jittery and silly Ryan gets when he is nervous. He is running around in circles and spinning.  I haven't seen him do this in a while.

 This weekend Julia participated in her first feis for her Irish Step Dancing.  She placed 2nd for both the beginner reel and beginner jig.  For most competitions we are not allowed to take video or pictures at but we were for this one so here they are...

Julia Reel

Julia Jig

Two 2nd place trophies

 DC