"I went to the woods because I wanted to live deliberately. I wanted to live deep and suck out all the marrow of life;
to put to rout all that was not life and not when I had come to die, discover that I had not lived." ~Henry David Thoreau

Thursday, February 26, 2009

A Creative Genius

Ethan is destined to be an engineer. It is in his blood. His grandfather and one of his great grandfathers were engineers. Another great grandfather was a mechanic but could have been an engineer too, had he been given the opportunity. Ethan is always tinkering with things and figuring out ways to build and improve anything. We've known he had a mechanical mind since he was about 6 months old.

This morning he was busy digging through the utensil drawers in the kitchen and I could tell he was up to something. A while later I noticed the above figure on the counter top. I looked at it for a while and then asked Ethan about it. He said "Mom, of course it's the silver Iron Man!" As if he was speaking to a dummy; someone below his level. Sure enough, I can see how he sees Iron Man in this. What's awesome is how he used a medicine syringe as the heart piece in the middle. This kid blows me away at times.

Wednesday, February 25, 2009

Let's Try This Again

Here we go again. We found out that we are expecting again, and with that news came a lot of anxiety and fear. Especially since I cramped terribly for 4 days straight. It was so bad that I had to keep a heating pad on my belly and camp out on the couch. I went in for several days (every other day) to have my blood tested for HCG levels, and let's just say the level has been off the charts. At one point my doctor thought it was twins because the numbers were doubling so quickly.

I've been a nervous wreck for two weeks now wondering if things were going okay. Today I had my first ultrasound and that brought back some ver scary memories. Cody met me at the clinic and I was overcome with feelings of dejavu. When we got called back into the U/S room, I kept my composure even though I wanted to run. I kept imagining seeing something very sad on the screen. The tech was so sweet and accomodating and sensetive to my needs. It took her a while to find the baby and the whole time I was shaking and couldn't breathe. Then at one one point, she finally paused it and said "Congratulations! That is a perfect heart beat. I lost it and started bawling. Cody was really sweet to me and let me squueze the life out of his hand.

I am about 6 1/2 weeks and things are perfect. My doctor is very confidant that everything is going to be fine and I only have a 3-5% chance of losing the baby between now and October. I am so happy I don't know what to do with myself. I am sicker than a dog and my bras don't fit anymore, and every time I feel any bit of pregnancy discomfort I laugh and cry because I'm happy. It means that we have a healthy baby and I'm very grateful for all the discomforts! By the way, the doctor says that it's common to cramp with a pregnancy right after a miscarriage. Good to know!

Saturday, February 21, 2009

Lauren Is A Stinker!

Lauren is not what she appears to be. Many people think she is perfect and innocent and never gets in trouble. So un-true. This afternoon Ethan was sitting on the toilet doing his business. He still needs a little help getting clean, so I went in to help him. What happened next happened in a split second. Lauren followed me down the hall and as I went into the bathroom, she peeked at me from around the corner. When my eye caught hers, she gave me a nasty glare. If looks could kill... While Ethan was still on the toilet and before it had been flushed, Lauren bolted in and threw a hotwheels car in between Ethan's legs. She made a perfect shot right in the bowl. I screamed and Ethan yelled at her and at that moment she turned around and ran out of of the bathroom laughing to herself. I think I heard her say "Ha ha!!" She can be so naughty! Then before I could blink someone flushed the toilet with EVERYTHING in it. Oh noooooo! The last thing I wanted to do today was take an entire toilet apart and empty it in the backyard. Luckily the car made it's way through the toilet neck and is now on it's way to who knows where. I'll be keeping a watchful eye on that stinker next time someone is sittin on the throne!

Wednesday, February 18, 2009

Low Expectations

If I can just get one thing done today I'll feel good. And that thing is laundry. For days I haven't been feeling well and we've been living out of laundry baskets. I hate living out of laundry baskets. I despise it. Or living out of the dishwasher. Hate it. Since I haven't been feeling well I've gotten very behind on almost all of the house work. But today, right now, I am going to go fold eight heaping baskets of laundry and wash three more piles. Wish me luck.

Saturday, February 14, 2009

Ethan's Class Birthday Party

I had the pleasure of being the class mom on Ethan's actual birthday. When it's a kid's birthday the teacher gives them the assignment to make a poster about themselves to share with the class. Of course this is something the parents likely do most of. Last year I pretty much made Ethan's whole poster and it was very artsy fartsy- not anything like a four year old would have done.

This year Ethan insisted on doing most of it himself. He picked which pictures to put on it and he wrote all of the words. Hailey even helped scribble a little! Then he presented it all by himself. He got a huge kick out of talking about each picture, telling who his favorite action heroes were, all of his favorite things, etc. When he was done he answered all the kids' questions. As I sat and watched him do his presentation, I got a strange feeling. It was the first time in five years that I saw him as an individual, completely independent from me. Here he was a functioning person with out any help from Mommy. You should have seen him so proud of himself! He is so grown up and I feel like I blinked and the last five years flew by. SLOW DOWN!!!

I made cupcakes and Ethan got to wear the special "birthday hat" and Hailey got to tag along too. We had a wonderful afternoon!

Ethan's Big 5

On February 7th we had Ethan's friend party. What a fun time! We had it at Kangaroo Zoo which is a huge bounce house with tons of inflatable slides and moon walks. It was a good place to have a party because they took care of almost everything. He invited all the kids in his primary class, a few from school, and some other close friends and family. Grandma and Papa happened to be in town for the birth of our nephew so they were able to come too! Ethan had a cake with his favorite comic book characters on it and lots of pizza. Thanks to all of his friends who were able to make it! His day was a really special one.



Wednesday, February 11, 2009

A Big Responsibility

I'm amazed at the person that Ethan is becoming. I'd like to say that it's because of good parenting, but the more I get to know him, the more I realize it's his spirit. He has always been an oddly good kid. Even as a baby he rarely cried and he's always had a sweet nature and compassionate side. His sisters adore him and most of the time, he adores them right back. I don't think you'll ever meet a more protective big brother.

But this evening as I was making dinner he hit his breaking point like happens to kids his age. I wouldn't let him do something he wanted to and he took it out on Hailey. He started getting into her business, "wrestling" with her, harassing her and finding joy in making her cry. I finally had to call Dad on his cell and have him talk some sense into his boy. Ethan got sent to time out and then all was well. Not a big deal, and honestly I forgot about it.

Tonight Cody had child duty while I got to sit and relax on the couch. Hailey had crashed on me and was sleeping with her head in my lap. Just before books and prayers, Ethan came out and had a serious look on his face and said "Mom, I'm so sorry I was mean to Hailey tonight....I don't know why I did it...I love her so much...." He had tears in his eyes and he leaned down and kissed her on the cheek. I was very touched, but figured Cody had prompted him to say it.

I went on to explain to Ethan that his sisters love him like crazy and it makes them very sad when he's mean to them. I told him about his responsibility of being a big brother and what that entails. It's a lot to ask of a little boy, but it's important that he understands it. He is so tender hearted and kept saying "Mom, I just love her so much and I'm so sorry I was mean."

After they were in bed, Cody and I were talking and I asked him if he had prompted Ethan to come apologize. He assured me that he hadn't even mentioned it to him. And honestly I'm not surprised. It is in Ethan's nature to be like that. So kind, loving, and accepting of everyone he meets. He has a genuine love for people. Our kids are blessed to have him as a big brother. I hope that he will always be like this and that the bond between him and his siblings will only continue to grow. He is such a special person and I think he's meant for great things in life.

Tuesday, February 10, 2009

One Baby, Two Births


I know that no mother could ever forget the day her first precious baby was brought into the world. To others my story isn’t exceptional, but to me it is. The circumstances surrounding Ethan’s birth are somewhat humorous and disappointing, depending on how you look at it. I have had five years to get over it and in hind sight I suppose it is pretty funny. Irony is quite often the ingredient that makes a story amusing, and Ethan’s birth was laughably ironic.

I was absolutely gigantic in my last two trimesters of pregnancy. I was still in college that fall semester before he was born, and all of my professors were worried that I was going to have the baby before finals in December. I was so big and they assumed I was further along than I was. “I wish I was having this baby that soon!” I would tell them. From conception to birth I gained a whopping seventy pounds. Even though I’m 5’8”, that amount of weight is huge. The day he was born I tipped the scale at 205 and burst into tears. I was wrapping things up at the University of Utah, a campus that is full of hills and it would have been impossible to walk around it all day and not get a great deal of exercise. So I know that I was plenty active and burning lots of calories each day. I ate right (okay, I craved chili dogs the entire time) and I got plenty of rest yet the weight kept piling on.

Because I got pregnant while on Depo Provera (the birth control shot) my due date was never very accurate. It ranged all the way from January 6 at one point to February 12. Toward the end, the doctor was saying February 2 was to be the big day. So that day came and went, and then the next day, and then the next. By the end of that week I was a blubbering mess and I was convinced that God did not want me to have this baby! It made me sick when I would hear of women giving birth two weeks before their due date. It just wasn’t fair.

My obstetrician, Dr. Farnsworth, told me at a routine appointment near my due date that he would try inducing me in a few days if there was still no baby. My blood pressure had gone up a little and since I had gained so much weight, it seemed to be the ideal solution.

“No,” I told him when he suggested it. “Don’t you know that an induced birth raises the chance of having a c-section?” Of course he knew that. The guy had been in practice for over thirty years. Through out the entire pregnancy I had it set in my mind that I would have a drug free, intervention free birth. I had spent the last nine months reading every book on natural childbirth. I had been to birthing classes and I had watched the videos and gone over every bit of material I could get my swollen hands on. So no matter how many people tried to convince me that childbirth was going to hurt like the unthinkable, I simply care. A c-section was the most UN-natural way to have a baby, so for me that was completely out of the question. It went against everything I had been planning for.

And so I waited. Day after day after day, each night relishing in the comfort of a hot bubble bath. I was so heavy and water was the only thing to relieve me off the extra flubber I was carrying. I would lie in the tub, sobbing and pleading with that stubborn child to please be expelled from my body. I thought for sure that he had decided to take up permanent residence in my hospitable uterus. For several nights prior to Ethan’s debut I was jolted awake in false labor. Contractions would start and then stop again, each time getting my hopes up so high that this was the real thing. And each day Cody would come home from work asking me “Any thing new down there?” Between the raging pregnancy hormones, sleep deprivation, and pure anxiety, Cody is lucky that I never reached out and strangled him.

Dr. Farnsworth finally made the decision that he would not let me go past February 11. That was a Wednesday and I was to check in to the hospital that morning. However, at 3:00 a.m. on Monday, February 9 I woke up with massive cramping in my abdomen, pains that I had not felt before. I wasn’t going to get my hopes up so I tried to ignore it and go back to sleep. Then the baby kicked my bladder so hard and I almost wet the bed, so I decided to give in and go to the bathroom. And there it was. I had lost my plug! That disgusting, pink, gooey mess on the toilet paper was such a sight for sore eyes. At that moment it was the most beautiful thing my eyes had ever beheld.

I was far too excited to go back to sleep. I began timing contractions and I was sure that they would be irregular, but to my surprise they were each exactly eight minutes apart and gradually getting stronger. This had to be the real thing! I decided to let Cody sleep for a few more hours before I told him what was going on. So I hurried around and made sure my hospital bag was in order. I took a shower, made myself breakfast and then turned on the T.V.

I had an appointment with Dr. Farnsworth that morning and then a scheduled non-stress test immediately following at the hospital. I was just sure that when the doctor did the internal exam he would say something like “Whoa! You’re already dilated five centimeters! Get yourself to the hospital!” After all the contractions I’d been having I knew I couldn’t be smaller than a five. But to my chagrin, Dr. Farnsworth looked up from the exam and said “Nope, you’re still at a one and 50% effaced.” What?! He had to be wrong! “You’re probably in labor, but it’s going to be a long time. I still want you to have the test done this morning, but then go back home and try to rest. You’re going to need your strength.” I went over to the hospital for the non-stress test.

All of the books about natural childbirth emphasized the importance of staying away from the hospital for as long as possible. They said that once I was there, my labor was likely to impede and that complications could arise. So I spent the next several hours cleaning our apartment, washing clothes, and scrubbing the kitchen floor on my hands and knees. Surely being in that position would speed things along.

I was fully aware that once I got to the hospital I would lose all self respect and dignity. With nurses and doctors examining me and my personal areas exposed for all to see, I knew that I was in for a nightmare. I wanted to hold onto any shred of beauty I still had so I decided to shave my legs and give myself a pedicure. My legs and my feet were going to be pushed up against some poor soul’s face so I wanted them to look as nice as possible. Now it’s a very funny thing when a walrus tries to shave her legs. I balanced my huge backside on the edge of the bath tub and in between each contraction I raced to shave another section of leg. When a contraction hit I would hunch over and attempt my breathing exercises. Then it would subside and I would again hurry to shave another section. I repeated this same ritual with my toenails, only that was far more amusing. What stood between me and my feet was an enormous beach ball and it was near impossible to get around it.

By the time Cody got home from work that evening I was in serious pain. He came through the door and I met him with “I don’t think I can hold on much longer. We need to get to the hospital.” Having labored all day I was so excited to get to the hospital so I could have an internal exam done. I just knew that my cervix was wide open and that the baby was on his way. The ride to the hospital was so long for me, even though it was only about ten miles from home. The whole way there I was busy doing my focusing exercises and it was to the point where I could no longer talk during contractions. Even breathing was a challenge. They were coming every three minutes and boy did they hurt!

Stepping off the elevator and into the labor and delivery department was a very surreal experience. I was aware that right down the hall was where my baby boy would enter the world…probably only an hour or two away. It was 7:00 at night and after I was changed into a gown and my room was situated, the labor and delivery nurse came in to do an exam. By this time the contractions were extremely intense and each time one of them hit I would entertain the idea of an epidural.

After I was examined, I was horrified when the nurse told me I was only dilated three centimeters. Dr. Farnsworth had checked me at 9:30 that morning and in nine hours I had only dilated two more centimeters! I was beginning to think that all the pain I had endured all day had been for nothing.

“You’re likely looking at another six or seven hours before this baby is born,” the nurse assured me. I couldn’t believe it. How could it get any worse? How could I possibly go through that much more pain?

I was getting so annoyed with people asking me if I wanted an epidural. “No!” I would bark at them. “No drugs at all!” I should have asked for a piece of leather to bite down on. The rational side of me argued with the emotional side that I needed an epidural. I was told that it could speed things along and make me dilate faster. But I felt stuck because I had spent the last nine months shooting my mouth off to everyone about what a tough girl I was and how I could do it with no drugs. If I could pass kidney stones I could do this. So instead, I kept on being a martyr. And if my femininity hadn’t been blatantly obvious in the fact that I was about to expel a baby from my womb, I could have sworn that I had two testicles, a penis, and lots of burly hair on my chest proving that I was a man.

I spent the next two hours walking the halls, lying in the whirlpool tub, and trying desperately to focus on Lamaze. When Dr. Farnsworth finally got there and checked me, he said “This baby hasn’t even dropped yet. He’s still very high up. I think he’s a big one.” Dr. Farnsworth decided to break my water to help things along (Looking back on it now, I think that was a mistake). When he did so, I swear Niagara Falls couldn’t hold a candle to what had been cooped up inside of me. All of the sudden there was a loud gush and the doctor jump out of the way in order to miss what seemed to be the opening of the Hoover Dam. Within minutes the pain intensified to a level that almost sent me over the edge.

It was close to 10:00 and they decided to put me on pitocin and that terrified me. I could barely endure contractions at the level they were now. How could I do it if they intensified? After a while the nurse checked me again. “You’re a six.” I thought I was about to die because the pain was unreal. Then I heard a strange beeping sound and I looked at the monitor to see the baby’s heart rate falling fast. Sheer panic over took me and at that moment two nurses came in to the room. “He’s not doing well,” one of them said to the other. “Get someone in here.”

The next several minutes were being played in slow motion. I didn’t know exactly what was going on, but the room was filled with people in scrubs and white coats and I was being poked and probed and I could swear there were a dozen different tubes coming out of me. A monitor was put just below the surface of the baby’s scalp and I could hear myself saying “My baby is going to die!” I have no clue what they did to me. All I know is that a few moments later the baby’s heart rate was back to normal but I felt like I’d been hit by a truck. Adrenaline began pumping vigorously through my veins and I began to shake uncontrollably and vomit. “That’s totally normal,” the nurse reassured Cody and me. It only felt like hell.

For almost two hours Dr. Farnsworth was in and out of the room, closely studying the monitor each time he was there. By this time I felt like I was going to split wide open and I screamed bloody murder each time a contraction hit which were now right on top of each other. I think that at one point I must have pleaded with Cody to take a pillow and smother me with it. “Veronica,” Dr. Farnsworth said “I think you need to get the epidural. This is too much for you. You have a big baby who’s having a very hard time making his way down and you need a little help to relax.”

All I remember is yelling something pretty vulgar at him and Cody. How on earth could I give in now? After all I had been through, how I could I succumb to the pain when I was so close to the end? The next thing I knew the anesthesiologist was by my side.

It was nearing midnight and I was dilated seven centimeters. I had just started adjusting to the numbness in my body and I began to relax a little. Then again the baby’s heart rate fell. The circus of medical personnel came flooding back into the room and then I heard those ironic words: “Prep her for a c-section.”

“It’s either this or your baby might die,” Dr. Farnsworth said boldly when I tried to fight him on it. I was utterly devastated and I thought for a moment that I was dreaming. This couldn’t really be happening, could it? Before I knew it I was in the operating room, lying under such bright lights that I could barely see anything. Or was it the tears in my eyes that were blinding me? The shaking was so severe and I felt like my limbs were going to go flying off. An oxygen mask was strapped to my face and the whole room was spinning. Suddenly every part of my body that I could feel began to itch so badly as if I had gotten into poison ivy. My tongue began to swell and I thought I was going to stop breathing. It turned out I was having a severe allergic reaction to the morphine they were injecting into my veins. What I would have given right then to have general anesthesia and not know at all what was going on! Even a good conk on the head would have done the trick.

There were two medical students assisting Dr. Farnsworth with the surgery, so the entire time he was describing exactly what he was doing, what he was cutting, what was being pulled, and what was being taken out. Taken out? What?! Put it back in!! Then I remember the doctor saying “Okay Dad, you might want to see this.” At that point the stubborn child was pulled from my belly and held up for all to see. I of course could see nothing because of that blasted blue drape that was hanging right in front of my face.

But I did hear his cry. That angelic, screeching, nasally, beautiful cry was the most awesome thing I had ever heard. He cried and he cried! And if I hadn’t been crying already from the nightmarish ordeal I know I would have shed fresh tears myself. In a matter of seconds they wrapped him up and brought him over for me to see. My entire face was terribly swollen from the allergic reaction and my eyes were small slits, just barely wide enough to make out the soft white hat on his teeny little head. I stroked his face with my finger and in an instant, my entire life changed and I knew I would never be the same. Right there in that operating room there was not just the birth of a baby, but also the birth of a mother. I had entered the hospital that night as a naive and sheltered girl, yet I would leave as a mother bear protecting her fragile cub. I was a woman suddenly aware of every danger and evil that lurked in the world. I was in charge of this little person for the rest of my time on earth and my heart began to swell so large that it felt like it would burst from my chest.

Right then I fully understood why a person would throw herself in front of a speeding car to save the life of her child. Without a second thought, I would have gone through the entire pregnancy again. I would have suffered the four month long campout on the bathroom floor as my stomach turned itself inside out. I would have gladly experienced the unrelenting heartburn brought on even by drinking water, or the swelling in my feet that magically increased my shoe size from a seven to a nine. I would have suffered with the hemorrhoids so painful that I could barely sit at times, or the leg cramps and night sweats that kept me up night after night. I wouldn’t have thought twice about going through twenty one hours of labor so painful that no book on the planet could have prepared me for. And in the end, I would have undergone major surgery that would forever leave a battle scar on my once flawless belly. I would have endured it all again just to have that one precious moment with my son. I had done all of the research on ways of getting a baby into the world, but nothing could have conveyed to me the unspeakable love that would freely poor from my heart to my baby. Ethan had made it, all eight pounds eight ounces and twenty two inches of him. It was 12:37 a.m. on February 10, 2004 and after a day like that, exhaustion only touched the surface of what I was feeling.

“Irony is the gaiety of reflection and the joy of wisdom.” –Anatole France

Saturday, February 7, 2009

The Sleepover

We are severely recovering from the last 24 hours. Ethan's birthday party was today and in order for two of his best buddies to come, it worked out best for them to spend the night on Friday so they could ride over to the party with us. Having two other four year olds stay the night shouldn't be so hard, right? It was challenging but fun. We watched a new movie that should receive an award for dumbest movie ever made- "Space Buddies". We have now watched that four times in the 48 hours we've owned it.

Aidan had a bit of a cold and was a little croupy last night, but it wasn't a very big deal. However, by the time I was finally able to wind down enough and fall asleep, I woke up to three little boys standing at the foot of the bed saying "We want to sleep with you!" I tried it for about ten minutes and then realized that wouldn't work. So after they were all asleep in the nice king sized bed, I mosied on into Ethan's room and tried to sleep on what can only be compared to plywood. How does he sleep on that bed? I tossed and turned forever, then Aidan came back into the room coughing and asking if it was time for the party yet. Four times last night I was awakened by one child or another asking that same question.

At the first of the night this is how the all looked. They were very content to sleep like puppies. Oh how I wish they had stayed like this!


Wednesday, February 4, 2009

Time To Be Thankful

I'm in a rut today. It's actually lasted about three days now. My mood has been bad and I don't feel like a good mom. This morning I said an extra prayer that I would be able to see the blessings in my life and be grateful for all the things that are going right. I've spent most of the day being cynical and down right grumpy. But as I was driving back from preschool and listening to my kids giggling in the car, it occurred to me that even if I'm not feeling good about life, I can fake it. So right now, here are some things that I'm grateful for.

-My children. Although they drive me crazy at times, they are the light of my life.

-My husband. Again, he drives me crazy and is sometimes the root of my bad mood, but I love him. He is a good man and he's doing his best to provide for us in a way that he thinks is right.

-My home. I'm feeling cramped and isolated and like the walls are caving in. But these walls provide warmth and shelter and it's far more than many people in this world have.

-The gospel. Where would I be without it in my life? I hate to think about that.

-My freedom. Enough said.

-Great parents. I'm lucky to have a great relationship with a wonderful mother and father.

I know this sounds simple, but it's times like now that I have to remember the everyday things. I am so fortunate, despite how my outlook on life may be at the moment.

Tuesday, February 3, 2009

Check Ups

Ethan and Hailey had their well child check ups today. It's nice that their birthdays are only three weeks apart because I can schedule their appointments together. They are best friends and very close and it makes the experience less scary for them. Everything went great and they were each fascinated by peeing in a cup! That was a first for Hailey. Ethan went first and he was fine with the exam until the doctor had to check his boy parts. That made him very uncomfortable! Then her had a little talk with him about how he shouldn't let anyone touch that except certain people. Fun times.

Hailey did great too and she is such an exhibitionist so she loved getting naked. We are worried about that girl! She has been complaining about an ear ache and sure enough, she has a nasty infection in the left ear.

Then it came time for Ethan to get his kindergarten shots. That was an absolutely terrible ordeal for all of us. My wrist is sore from holding him down. That kid is a fighter! He screamed bloody murder and kicked and thrashed. He was heard all over the second floor. Hailey and Lauren also screamed out of fear for him. When the nurse left the room, Hailey put her hands on her hips and yelled (in between cries) "Mommy, let's find Dr. Allred!! I need to tell him that lady was mean to my brother!!!" It was the cutest thing. Complete sibling loyalty. The kids got milkshakes and cheeseburgers afterwards so that helped sooth the trauma.

Here are their stats-
Ethan 5 years
46 pounds=83%
45.5 inches=93%

Hailey 3 years
29.4 pounds=35%
36 inches=24%

Ethan decided he didn't want to go to school afterwards and I don't blame him. So we came home, put Lauren down for a nap, and the two vegged on the couch and watched "Toy Story". Ethan was pretty sleepy and sore from his shots so he'll likely stay this way all day.



Valentine FHE

Last night for FHE we learned about Valentine's Day. I found a great book at the library about the holiday and we read it and talked about it. Afterwards we decorated Valentine cupcakes. Next Monday we will be making Valentines for the people we love. I love this month! All the reds, pinks, hearts and lace make me happy.









Lauren's Infirmities

The last few days have been very busy with Lauren. On Friday she made her first trip to the ER. Right before we about to put kids in bed, Lauren climbed up on the kitchen table and fell off. She landed flat on her forehead and only let out a whimper when she hit the ground. I grabbed her and held her in my lap and her eyes started rolling back in her head and she became almost unresponsive. That freaked Cody and me out, so I took her straight to the ER.

ER trips are always long, boring, and tiresome. But it wasn't so bad this time because they got her right back into a room. She and I cuddled on the bed together and watched TV while we waited FOREVER for the doctor to come in. The whole time she seemed very lethargic and didn't want to drink anything. I was pretty worried and they said they would probably do a CT scan.

About 10 minutes before the doctor finally came in, Lauren perked right up, drank a whole cup of water, and wanted down from the bed to explore. She started pulling things out of cabinets left and right and being so noisy. When the doc examined her, he decided she would be fine and that her brain had likely "reset itself". But that night I had to wake her up every hour to make sure she was wakable. So between that and two other kids coughing all night, I barely slept!

On Sunday we were sitting in Sacrament Meeting but Lauren only wanted to lay down on the bench. Very unlike her because she's such a busy body. About 45 minutes into it she crawled up in my lap and laid her head on my chest and she was boiling hot and was breathing funny! So Cody took her home and she slept forever.

That evening as I was finishing up dinner she was lying on the couch and when I checked on her, her fever was likely 103-104 degrees. She was having trouble breathing so I packed her up and off we went to Instacare. I gave her Tylenol right before we left, so by the time she got back into Triage and they took her vitals, her temp was down to 101. And that was WITH a Tylenol! The doctor examined her and decided she had some sort of respiratory infection and he said left untreated it would have easily turned in pneumonia. Poor baby! So she got on an antibiotic and albuterol and within 24 hours she made a HUGE improvement. Thank goodness for modern medicine!