Mid January Already!!!

Oh my, so we are off to a fast start already this year. I just downloaded all the pictures for Dec so I hope to get some uploaded soon! We have had a rough start to the new year. Pierce came down with croup on 1/1/06. We took him to the doctor on 1/2 to be told that it is going around and it is viral and there is nothing to give to make it better. So we got through the week and thought it was getting better. But at 2am Sunday 1/7 it got really bad and really scared us. Pierce could barely catch his breath. So we got an appointment with urgent care that morning. We got there and they told us he probably went from having minor croup to severe croup. At that appointment we got a steroid injection (2 inch needle into the muscle - let me say ouch) and also a breathing treatment. With in 30 minutes Pierce was doing so much better. So we held off on the next step was another breathing treatment that they would then watch him for 4 hours (would want to do it at a hospital because some children have a terrible reaction afterwards). So we went home and Monday he seemed better until later that night. So the next day we got another appointment with the first doctor and so on 1/9 we went in and the doctor was so surprised that he still had it. Especially since he was still running a fever. So she wanted to take a blood sample to see if he had an infection going on. So we we had blood drawn - and let me say that has been so far the hardest thing yet to do - hold Pierce down while they stick him in his arm. One arm she was not comfortable with because his vein was so close to the artery and the other arm was iffy because the vein was so small (probably due to not drinking enough fluids). But the nurse was great and was able to get the vein. The tests results came back that he did not have an infection. So she gave us 3 days of oral steroids to give him and told us to come back on Friday if all is ok. If he was still the same the next day she wanted us back in. So with those 3 days of steroids he has done a lot better and on Friday the doctor said everything looks like he is doing better. He still has a cough at night that causes him to not be able to catch his breath so we are up with him to calm him down. I can't wait for this to be over and for him to be himself again.

On top of that, D experienced this year - Cedar fever. Oh my did it hit her hard. She ended up getting a sinus infection (about the same time as all the stuff was going on for Pierce). She went to the doctor and got some medicines and is feeling much better! We have been locked up for 2 weeks - and we can't wait to get out of the house!

With all of this, we have had great friends to help us through it all. 2 friends brought us dinners so that we didn't have to cook and to help us get some good nutrition. Another friend made us cookies (which many of you know that we have cookie monsters in this house) and called every day to check on us and offer any help. There are no words to express how much we appreciated all this!

So on to some fun stuff! Pierce has been learning the word no lately and says it when he doesn't want things. We are at the point where it is good to have that word, not where that is all he says. He loves to play on the computer, listen to the ipod, grab your hand and pull you where he wants you to go, plays like he is making a smoothie, likes to help make his cinnamon toast, loves trying to build things with his building blocks, and when Dad's pager goes off, Pierce is off to try to find it to bring it to him.