EEG

We have been having a pretty slow week this week. Just haven't had anything planned and I've been enjoying just hanging out. With the time change, it's dark at like 5pm, so the day seems to end just after Amy gets home from school. And most days, that's ok. :)

Will had a seizure on Wednesday morning. That was a bummer. We were hoping that he was growing out of them. The last one he had was in July, and that was fever related so it doesn't "really" count. The one before that was in January... so our fingers were crossed. But alas, I guess it isn't time for those to end yet. It was short and all was ok, so that's good.

Today was Tyler's EEG. It's weird to say that and EEG is no big deal. I remember Will's first one and we were so worried. Now we're like, "Eh, it's fine." Funny how life experiences give you different perspectives.

The test is best run if the patient sleeps (sleeping exaggerates brain waves so they are able to see things that aren't caught while awake). The place is about 40 minutes away, and we had to keep him awake. We got up there early and enjoyed breakfast at Waffle House. Yum!

When we got in the Doctor's office, he was exhausted. I knew that if I nursed him, he'd fall fast asleep. The technician asked if I'd prefer to do that before or after the wires were on. I suggested that we do it afterwards, but he thought maybe beforehand since Tyler's belly would be full and maybe he'd be cooperative hooking up all the wires. So we did. He fell right asleep... but as soon as the guy started messing with his head, he woke back up, of course.

He was so curious about it all. He smiled for the tech, he giggled when certain spots of his head were rubbed. He was just about the cutest patient I've ever seen. And I couldn't stop taking pictures!

They haven't done the gauze thing when Will had his (it was at a different place) but it was smart! (So the baby couldn't pull a cord off). But instead of an EEG, it looked like he was a head trauma patient!

So they ran the test, we tried getting him to sleep.... I tried nursing him over and over again, Lee tried laying down with him...

and no luck. Oh well. Like the technician said, "You can't force Mother Nature."

Tyler was all smiles and laughter the entire time. He's such a good baby. We don't have the results yet, we'll get them next week. But we did sneak a peek at the monitor and we saw something that said "Average" so we assume that's a good thing. :)

My friend, Linda, watched Will for us (bless her!) and when we went to pick him up, she had made us dinner! How nice is that!? That's the 2nd time in a week that she's made us dinner! (she did last week when we were sick, too) This time it was an enchilada soup that was soooo good! We ate it right up!

Amy had a great day at school. She loves Friday's. She gets ice cream and it's "Book Buddy" day. Her class is matched up with a 3rd grade class and she has 2 specific girls that come and read to her each week. She LOVES it.

So, all in all, it's been a good day. I wish I could say the same for our family.... we've got all sorts of things going on... stolen stuff, people in hospitals, geesh! So yeah, compared to all that, we had a good day. :)

Our Weekend

On Friday, I took the kids outside for awhile and immediately Amy wanted to dig. She found a slug and proceeded to carry it around. Is not that not the most disgusting thing you've ever seen??? I know my mom will freak out when she reads this! Amy's love of bugs is unreal.

Will kept playing with some random piece of, I think, an old lawnmower. Or maybe a blower. Who knows. But he called it his rocket ship.

Amy had some homework over the weekend. She was given a turkey on white cardstock. The assignment was to "hide" it so it could hide from being the thanksgiving turkey... or something like that. Anyhow- when we were trying to come up with something, I turned it upside down. I thought it then looked like an elephant. Amy agreed and said it was one wearing a tutu. Lee added that it was wearing a crown. So here you have it- an upside down turkey, masquerading as an elephant wearing a tutu and a crown, while eating a banana.

On Saturday, Amy wanted to do a Thanksgiving craft. So I looked on Pinterest and we found something that I had all the stuff for. It's just an empty toilet paper tube, some colorful handprints and some of Una's buttons. I think it turned out cute and she sure had a great time making it. She's just like her Mama- she's LOVES crafts!

That night we had a first- we hired a babysitter!! Wowsers!! haha. Our Stake Conference was this weekend and our area member of the 70, Elder Tripp Meredith (who's mom and sister are good friends of mine) and one of the 12 apostles, Elder D. Todd Christofferson were coming and we really wanted to hear their talks and attend the Saturday evening session of the conference (which is always the best).  Thus the need for a sitter. We took Tyler with us. We also had our friends Beth and Mark ride with us and that created a very fun evening! The kids did well and Amy was overjoyed at having a sitter- she's been asking for one for months. I was a little nervous because Will has been sick and the last thing we need is for him to have a seizure and us be an hour away. But we Tylenoled him up before we left and everything was fine.

Today was the "official" stake conference. They took 2 stakes (Nashville and McMinnville) and created the Murfreesboro Stake. It was neat to see a new stake form, as that is somewhat rare... I've certainly never seen it before. It was also great to hear the talks from the leaders. Elder Meredith was definitely my favorite. But I think I feel a little more "kin" to him since I know and love his family so much (I've never actually met "him").

Tyler has started playing around more with Will- and Will loves every second of it. He was laughing and moving everywhere as Tyler was "attacking" him. The next few months are going to be so fun with these 2! And honestly- having a playmate for Will will be sooooo great!!

Onto a little "serious" matter..... Last week, when everyone was sick, and Tyler had a fever, he was doing a sort of spasm thing. It was enough that it was alarming and unusual. At one point I actually thought he was going to launch into a seizure. Thankfully, the "spasms" only lasted about 25 minutes and then his fever came down (thanks to Tylenol). He did it again the next day in the Pediatrician's office, which I was slightly grateful for so the Dr. could actually see what was happening. I held him for 2 nights straight, just afraid something would happen and we kept Tylenol and Ibuprofen in him around the clock for 3 days, to make sure his fever wouldn't come back. (Not sleeping for 2 days is what caused me to be sick).

The Pediatrician didn't know what it was but wanted us to see a pediatric neurologist to rule out Infant Spasms. Those are quite serious and basically can cause mental disabilities if they aren't caught and treated right away. And even if they are caught and treated, the medications to treat them are quite bad. We had an appointment with a pediatric neurologist on Thursday and now feel a little better.

The neurologist did all sorts of tests, looked in his eyes, saw how he responded to all sorts of things... looking, reaching, rolling, walking, etc. And Tyler did great on all of them. Once he did all these tests, he said his gut was that Tyler wouldn't have anything wrong and it may be a fluke thing, but of course, he didn't want to trust his gut. We didn't either and we all agreed the EEG was the best thing.

Tyler will have an EEG on this Friday and from there we'll know what, if anything, we are dealing with. Apparently Infant Spasms will definitely show up on an EEG. It will also show anything else that could be abnormal. The EEG itself is easy and non-invasive. Will has had a few. The baby just needs to sleep and then they hook all these wires to his head and watch his brain waves.

Anyway- if you can offer any kind thoughts and prayers in behalf of Tyler we would greatly appreciate it. We are praying for a "normal" EEG. If it's normal, they'll probably test him again in a month, and if everything is normal twice- we'll be clear for awhile. If any test is abnormal, or if they find something, there are all sorts of scenarios and courses of action depending on the results. I won't mention them now, because some are quite scary and hopefully will be unnecessary to even think about. So for now, we'll just pray for a normal EEG and take it from there.

It's so sad and scary to think that both our little boys have neurological problems. We pray that Tyler won't have anything like Will, as just Will's is stressful enough. But we know that the Lord's hand is in it all and we'll be ok. We are so thankful for silly things- like camcorders on cell phones. When it comes to diagnosing something like this- video is priceless. So if anything- file this away- if your kid starts doing something "weird" start recording immediately. Simple things like "they swing their arms out" versus "they swing their arms forward" can mean something completely different. Crazy, huh? So take video, and lots of it. :)

Thanks all! I'll update more about Tyler when I know more (which probably won't be until next week).

Happy Halloween

As usual, it's been busy around here.

Amy wasn't feeling well one day, I think she was just overly tired. She and Will were curled up together. For the most part- they are so sweet to each other. It's fun to watch.

Sunday after church, Amy and I decorated cupcakes. Lee and Will took and nap, and Tyler drooled over them. I know he's dying to dig into fun things like cupcakes. I love doing things with my girl!

Monday night, Lee worked late so the kids and I carved our pumpkins. Well, I should say that Amy and I did.

Will refused. What is it with boys and the insides of pumpkins?? Amy said, "Will, it isn't yucky." And he said, "Yes it is." Then she said, "Look, it's like beans." His eyebrows went up, his eyes sparkled for moment, "Beans?" Then said, "No it's not." Amy was funny, she said, "Darn, I thought that would trick him."

I used stencils this time.... but on Amy's (the one on the left) I got distracted and cut out the wrong part. It's supposed to be an owl. Amy was ok with it. She said it still looked good. Thanks Amy!

When we tried them out, I couldn't find any candles. So I rumpled up paper and lit it. Amy then gave me a lecture on fire safety and how "crumpled paper catches fire easily so we don't play with it and fire together." Darn safety week at school.

That night was an interesting one.... everyone got sick!! Tyler ended up with a fever and we are still trying to figure some things out with him. Will woke up with a runny nose and we immediately started pouring Tylenol down his throat to avoid a seizure. (Which, thankfully he never had). Even Amy woke up a few times. So needless to say, we didn't get much sleep.

Tuesday I took Tyler to the Doctor and by the time I was done with that, it was time to get Amy from school. Lee worked late again and I gave the kids baths.... I still put Amy and Will together and they typically flood the floor. I'm used to it and honestly, its nice that it gets mopped at least once a week. That's more than I'd mop it on my own. Well, this particular night, I was dealing with a sick Tyler and when I went to get them out... they were bragging about their newest "find." Wet toilet paper.

So, high on all the walls, door and shower were clumps of wet toilet paper they had thrown up there. I was so tired that all I could do was take a picture and laugh on the inside. Got them out of tub, somewhat cleaned up the bathroom and got everyone in bed. It was another sleepless night as not a single child slept. It was musical beds again and a lot of early morning child interactions. Tyler was so stuffy that he couldn't nurse, I felt so badly for him. So I pumped some milk, got out the medicine dropper and fed him like that. It actually worked. The poor thing gulped it down and then finally fell asleep. (Linda's husband tried this technique a few weekends ago (when she came with us to Time Out) and their baby wouldn't take a bottle. It worked for them. Even though I teased her about it, I filed it away in my memory and I'm glad I did!)

So we are onto Wednesday- Lee and I have not slept in 2 full nights, and I have only had a few 20 minutes crashes on a couch, holding Tyler and maybe another child.

Late last night I remembered that Amy was supposed to dress up as a letter. They had each grade level dress up as something different.... periodic table elements and some other things- I can't remember now. Anyhow- Kindergarten was a letter. I dug out her costume from last year, took off the tail and eyes (she was a chameleon) and this morning I used tape to put a "Y" on her front and an "A" on her back. Of course, letter obsessed Will was all for this and insisted his own "Y" and an "E" on his back.

She didn't want an "M" anywhere.

This afternoon, I was scheduled to help out with Amy's class party. I was exhausted, but I went and felt fine once I got there. Thankfully Lee was able to come home and stay with the boys. I had planned on taking them.... until they got sick. And I certainly didn't want to bring them to someone else's house sick.

We had several stations and the kids were divided into groups of 3 and then rotated in them. There was bowling, bingo, mummy wrapping, frankenstein hands (I'll explain in a minute), a craft and cookie decorating.

Amy wrapped like a mummy and sitting in my station (frankenstein hands).

Such a pretty girl!

Frankenstein hands- My friend, Kelli Musick gave me this idea.... you put a little vinegar in a cup. You then let the kids decorate a rubber glove and then put a spoonful of baking soda in it. You place the end of the glove over the cup and let the baking soda dump into the vinegar. The gas that it produces makes the glove inflate. They all LOVED it!! It was the best idea!

Treat bag full of stuff

The eye patches were well received.

It was a lot of fun being there. I just love it. Afterwards, the room mom and Amy's teacher and I chatted for a little while and that was fun too. I really like Mrs. Bradley. She's just that kind of person you know could be your friend.

When Amy and I got home from that, Lee gave me this bucket from our friends Josh and Gladys. Seriously, this girl gives us a gift before I even realize a holiday is going on. She's so awesome. I used to do things like that- one day I'll be organized enough to reciprocate. And the bucket was adorable. Only the kids thought so too and it was taken apart before I could get a picture. She is just SO thoughtful.

In it were these wooden picture things that the kids immediately wanted to color. Will kept calling his a "robot" and carried it everywhere.

Amy's was a cat

Then it was time for trick or treating. By this time, I'm starting to feel miserable... no sleep is catching up to me and my head is spinning, my nose is stuffy and my throat is sore. Tyler is still sick and fussy. We can't find all of Amy's costume. So I finally convince her to wear half of one and the other half of another. Will is refusing to put any of his costume on and Lee (who is also exhausted) really doesn't want to take them trick or treating, but would rather do that then stay with sick Tyler and hand out candy. So everyone parts. Candy is handed out. A short while later the kids and Lee return. He said they've had enough and got scared. Apparently several neighbors had creepy things in their yards. Anyhow, the kids got on their pajamas and wanted to help hand out candy.

They were actually great helpers and we never ran out of candy. That's never happened before! Thank you Amazon for having such low prices and shipping it right to my door. I managed to get out my fog machine and Amy loved pressing the button everytime someone came to the door. Will would hold about 10 pieces of candy just waiting for someone to ring the doorbell. It was cute. I think they liked that better than actual trick or treating!

Anyhow- we got them to bed... they were scared so we moved one of the blacklights (yes, I have those too) into their room and told them it killed monsters. It seemed to work as they both fell fast asleep. Thankfully, Tyler went down as well and now so did Lee. I'm next.

We hope you had a Happy Halloween!

Murfreesboro Square Tours

A friend of mine has always wanted to go on this storytelling tour of Murfreesboro Square. So this year, she got a group of us and together we braved the freezing cold (seriously, it was cold) and walked around the square. I'm always game for something fun.

Michell, Roxann, me, Meghan, Beth and Talana

(When I put my jacket on tonight, I realized I've had it since I was a senior in high school! FIFTEEN years! I think it's time for a new coat! Although it's held up remarkably well.)

I don't really remember any of the stories but our storyteller was good. Just like any old town, Murfreesboro has its old stories. We walked all over and I scoped out some cute shops to visit and good restaurants to try later on. You miss things when you drive by.

As the first tour ended, there just "happened" to be another group giving tours. According to them they are actual "ghost hunters." So, of course we all did that one too. I'm not normally a "ghost" type person but hey- in a group- I'm game for most anything.

These are windows where people have seen "activity." See anything tonight? Nah, I didn't either. The ghosts weren't cooperating.

There was another spot where apparently people have had a lot of communication with ghosts or whatever. It's at the bottom of these creepy stairs- which of course lead to a basement. There was no way I was going down there, but Beth braved it. The flash makes it look daylight, but that was around 10:30pm, so it was dark. She brought down the guide's ghost sensor thing but she didn't get any readings. But she did say it was creepy.

Meghan listening to some recorded ghost noises.

Michell and Meghan

The end of tour #2.

Our guides were good though, the 2nd guy was funny. He was a ghost chaser yet also said he was the biggest sissy in their hunters group. He showed us pictures on his iPad, which I thought was comical.

It was a fun way to all hang out together though and get a guided tour of downtown. I'm not a really a "believer" but I'm sure that I'll still have nightmares tonight. :)

Trunk or Treat

It's been such a busy week! It's been one thing after another! Today was a day where I looked at the clock, and it was 11am. Then I looked at it again and it was time to pick-up Amy. I'm not really sure where the day went, or what I did- but it was over with pretty quickly.

Tonight we had a "Trunk or Treat" at church. It's supposed to be a chili cook-off- but last year I brought chili and NO one ate any of it, so this year I protested. Plus, our kids won't eat chili, Lee doesn't really care for it and I only like my mom's......  so we got Chick-fil-A instead. Actually- eating beforehand was genius. We didn't have to wait in any lines or gather our dirty pot afterwards.

So, you know I like family "themed" costumes.... I love a theme. I also hate buying costumes. Sure homemade ones "look" homemade- but that's the point. My mom NEVER bought a costume (ok, once Anna "got" to get a store bought costume- it's still a sore subject. haha j/k, Mom). We always dug through the dress up box and came up with something. I feel like it's only right for my kids to do the same- except I make their's, usually out of a sweatsuit. Its for one night- who cares. (although I'm slightly tempted to start buying some discounted costumes this year and pack them away for next. You can't make a costumes for $2)

Anyway- this year our kids are Halloween themed, black in color things.... Amy a cat, Will a bat and Tyler a spider.

Her's was crazy simple- just a black sweatsuit and I added ears and a tail. She also really wanted her face painted.

This is the only picture I got of Will standing still. He kept calling himself "Batman" and ran around like crazy. He was so excited about Halloween. I used the tutorial from Dana Made It to create his wings.

Tyler's was the easiest yet- it was actually a dog costume that I bought years ago and just held onto it. I thought it'd be perfect for a baby one day. Turns out, I was right. Anyone have a medium sized dog that needs a costume?

He's just so cute.

Will caught onto the "trick or treat" part pretty quickly- as most kids do. But he was a little shy. One family had a table set up where you could stick your hands in boxes and feel "brains," "bones,"  "eyeballs," or whatever else. Well, Amy stuck her hand in and pulled out a carrot (she didn't get the "just feel it" directions). She looked at it, shrugged and put it in her treat bag. It was so funny.

After they were done, they enjoyed lounging in the car and eating some treats.

We gave out juice boxes- which I have to say- was quite a hit. A "sugary" thing, but yet different. I calculated it out and it was actually a bit cheaper than candy as well. Next year, I'm going to stock up all year (using coupons and sales) and give it out again. It also got really cold tonight. Yesterday we were in shorts- tonight we were freezing in sweat outfits. I guess "fall" is finally here.

Oh and here is me, Linda and Talana. I "dressed up" as a tired mommy.... I teased my hair to make it look messy, and wore my sweats that I used make-up to put stains all over. The mom's all loved my costume. I really just didn't want to do my hair. haha

Happy Halloween- we'll do it all again on the 31st.