I have 2 sisters and a brother who all mean very much to me. All of us have some young children still, and a few are still nursing their little ones. Those little guys are gorgeous babies and I want to be able to help them anytime they need me. That could be any day, near or far. So just to be prepared, I wanted to post some information that could come in handy. And if anybody else out there is a nursing mommy and can benefit from this info too, then I'm happy about that too.
If you have a little one and make that amazing choice to nurse your baby, pat yourself on the back for such a selfless act that will provide miraculous things for your child! Then immediately start working to ensure you always have plenty of milk to provide for that child as long as you choose to nurse. How? That would be the purpose of this post!
First:
STAY AWAY FROM SAGE! It might taste good in sausage or Thanksgiving dinner, but it will DRY YOUR MILK SUPPLY UP! There are tons of other spices in this vast world that you can season your foods with, so give this one up while you are lactating. If you get to the point you want to dry your milk up, you know what you can do to speed that up!
Second:
Keep your diet simple as much as you can. Yes you can eat chocolate and lasagna, but let them be treats. Fruits and vegetables are chock full of nutrients that you need. Those nutrients are easier to assimilate into your body when they come from foods. So this is the best route. The more colorful your variety of fruits and veggies, the better off you'll be. Remember that if you aren't getting enough of those nutrients, its YOU who suffers first while your body goes into your reserves and gives it to the baby. And when that is exhausted, the baby will stop getting enough. That defeats the purpose of nursing, doesn't it? It is important, so fruits and veggies, fruits and veggies, fruits and veggies!
Third:
Plenty of water is necessary too! Your body is comprised of a lot of fluids and if you are regularly sharing some of your body fluids, you will definitely need a source of replenishment. Drink lots of water! Distilled water is a good choice and so is reverse osmosis. Tap water is about as bad as drinking pond water these days, but if its your only choice,....
Fourth:
Go to the herb shop near you (or order online) and invest in a bottle of Blessed Thistle and a bottle of Fenugreek. Capsules or liquid is your choice. Fenugreek is what they use to make artificial maple syrup. You'll detect a slight scent on the capsules, and when your body has absorbed it and gotten it started working, you'll start noticing that sweet scent following you. Keep that baby suckling at this point! Baby is going to think "mmm this tastes good!" and will want a little more. The more suckling action that goes on, the more your mammary glands receive stimulation that encourages milk production. The baby likely will want a little more and thus try to nurse a little longer. It's ok...it's actually helping your milk supply increase, so let 'em nurse!
Blessed Thistle is another one that has some amazing historical uses. Seriously, google it and see what you find out! If you find any notes that include Dr. Christopher....READ THOSE! That man was the most amazing natural doctor I've ever even HEARD of! He impresses me more and more with each sentence I read that he's written. He has recorded evidences where women who have never had children were able to begin lactating and nurse babies! That's nothing short of a miracle in today's standards and what he had these women do was so simple that it's like the leppers who were cured just by washing in a river. Dr. Christopher told them to eat a good diet of mucusless foods (that means cutting out pasta, breads, meats, ....that sort of stuff), suggested they drink quarts of distilled water per day, and had them drink a cup full of blessed thistle tea at least three times a day. Imagine that,....you adopt a baby.....formula is one of your first purchases, right? Doesn't have to be though! Like I told you, nothing short of a miracle, but Dr. Christopher documented more than one occasion where an adoptive parent was able to begin nursing due to following these suggestions.
Now I make no promises, but I will say that I had plenty of milk for my firstborn, plenty (I guess) for my second born (who I swear was a cannibal baby and I had to wean her before she ate me alive!), adequate for the third born but only for the first 4 months. After that, it was a struggle,....and the fourth child got a week milk supply too. So again, I took fenugreek and blessed thistle trying to ensure he had enough to eat.
Breast milk is precious stuff, and is THE perfect food. If you can nurse your child, do. It does make a difference. In fact, my studies say that it's good to nurse till they are about 18 months old because that's when they cut their stomach teeth and eye teeth which coincides with the time when they have developed enough gastric juices to tolerate "big people foods".
I won't judge a person who doesn't nurse their baby. It's a personal choice,....I just think that if you DO choose that route that you are doing something wonderful that will have lifelong effects of a physical kind and an emotional kind.
Either way you go, I wish you luck, I wish you joy, and I wish you plenty of milk! I hope this post benefits you in some way.
Sunday, April 26, 2009
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Bragging on the Cook
If you never been to my sister's house and eaten meals prepared by her and her husband, you have missed out on a major joy in life. They can cook, lemme tell ya! The only thing saving me from TOTAL obesity is that I live 5 hours away from them! I'm sure if I lived closer they would be sick of me by now, so I guess it works out.
What makes Dave's recipes so great is that he comes up with them. Sure, he might start with a recipe from a book or magazine, but he's not satisfied with letting someone else's tastebuds determine what he and his family will eat. So he modifies it and plays with it and experiments until he reaches a level of perfection that equates to a level of bliss unknown in any restaurant in the land. And get this: He likes to cook! He's content being the primary cook in the house even, so Kitty doesn't have to be the one to figure out what to fix for dinner every night like the rest of us.
If you haven't seen Dave's blog site with recipes he's posted, put on your stretchy sweatpants so you can eat more and go there now! He'll tell you what's for dinner!
Now if I can just talk him into a trade,....I'll take photos of what I make from his recipes if he'll experiment and make me up a recipe by request :D Think he'll go for it?
What makes Dave's recipes so great is that he comes up with them. Sure, he might start with a recipe from a book or magazine, but he's not satisfied with letting someone else's tastebuds determine what he and his family will eat. So he modifies it and plays with it and experiments until he reaches a level of perfection that equates to a level of bliss unknown in any restaurant in the land. And get this: He likes to cook! He's content being the primary cook in the house even, so Kitty doesn't have to be the one to figure out what to fix for dinner every night like the rest of us.
If you haven't seen Dave's blog site with recipes he's posted, put on your stretchy sweatpants so you can eat more and go there now! He'll tell you what's for dinner!
Now if I can just talk him into a trade,....I'll take photos of what I make from his recipes if he'll experiment and make me up a recipe by request :D Think he'll go for it?
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
Ambien Strikes Again!
You (depending on how well you know me) might remember that Tommy has a back injury that brings him much pain. And you might deduce that pain disturbs your ability to sleep. From that you should be able to expect a person going through that would have resorted to sleep aids out of desperation. Since sleep aids don't address the CAUSE of insomnia, they are not the best approach and don't work as well as we would like. And when this happens, we look for more potent aids. This is what Tommy has done more than once.
A few years ago, he obtained a prescription for Ambien from whichever doctor he was seeing at the time. He would take one of those pills and in 5 minutes, he was no longer among thesane conscious. Frequently, he would just fall asleep where he sat.
Well one night, he fell asleep next to me on the sofa. I was dreading having to guide him to the bedroom, so I just let him sleep a little bit. The kids were all up and watching tv with us, so they quiet as their daddy slept. I got to thinking about it though, and I realized this was becoming a pattern for him,...so I started decorating him. I put little toys all over the man,....I mean ALL OVER HIM! He had a parade going down each arm and a little rally happening on his legs. I even put a few things on his shoulders and something on his head. He didn't notice until the kids got to laughing loud enough to wake him up. I think he learned a little from that experience, because then he started taking his Ambien and giving it a few minutes to work, then he'd go on to bed. If he waited too long,.....it was going to be a rough night!
A rough night consists of Tommy becoming a 300 pound zombie. Nope! He doesn't weigh 300 pounds, but somehow he would become dead weight and I swear he found a way to double every pound he DOES weigh so that he would be nearly impossible for me to get to bed! I managed to have him lean against me, which made me lean over and walk "elephant style" with a man sleeping on my back till I could guide him to the bed. He wouldn't know where he was really, so when I told him to sit on the bed, he would sit right where he was standing. I learned to have him turn around so his butt landed on the bed and not the floor (he was HARD to pick up out of the floor!) and then I learned to have Manti stay up with me and help me-just in case! Maneuvering him around the end of the bed seemed like extra work too, so I finally started having him sit on my side of the bed and roll towards his pillow. Depending on my own condition, I would either hop on the bed to help this happen, or I would run like lightning to the other side to catch him. (He always would roll too far if I didn't.)
And then there were the nights he wanted to talk. Oh my goodness, the things he would say! Some I can't even post online...they were a bit colorful! There were times he insisted on feeding pencils to first graders. He got so funny one night that I grabbed my journal and a pen and I would write while he chattered nonsensically!
So why am I telling you all this?
Because he got another doctor to give him ambien. I forewarned the doctor that Tommy+Ambien=Halucinations & no sleep for me. Tommy doesn't remember these things, so it wasn't a big deal to him,....and he got his prescription. The doctor did pity me a little though and gave him a prescription for something else that should counteract the goofiness from the Ambien. So far, it's been working ok,.....until last night......
This time I've got video evidence! It's of Tommy in bed last night, so I'll have to review it and give it some thought before putting it online for the world to look at and laugh,...but chances are that I'll find 60 seconds in that long 45 minutes that I can share! :D
Just like a few years ago, he started dozing on the sofa. Problem here is that Manti had already gone to bed and it was just me and Mesa! She tried to help though, thank goodness! We managed to get him on the bed, and then the antics began. He had his eyes closed the whole time and he would snore a little between "spells",...and he washed a pig and he talked about the chickens that wore shoes. He wasn't sound asleep,...which is unnerving,...and I know this because he could hear us talking to him and would respond a bit, but in some very nonsensical ways. When Mesa was laughing about chickens with shoes, he heard and he said "uh uh! The sheep wear shoes! Chickens have pants!" He went on and on about who knows what. He said liked women and when asked WHAT women, he got a 2 year old smile on and said "my wife"......lucky man! He directed a symphony too it looked like, and he would snap himself straight up in the bed. He nearly dove out of the bed headfirst a couple times but we managed to catch him and make him lay back down. He wrestled with the bedding and he sang without his lips opening up until I thought I was going to have to knock him out so I could get some sleep.
*sigh*....don't you wish you had moments like mine?
A few years ago, he obtained a prescription for Ambien from whichever doctor he was seeing at the time. He would take one of those pills and in 5 minutes, he was no longer among the
Well one night, he fell asleep next to me on the sofa. I was dreading having to guide him to the bedroom, so I just let him sleep a little bit. The kids were all up and watching tv with us, so they quiet as their daddy slept. I got to thinking about it though, and I realized this was becoming a pattern for him,...so I started decorating him. I put little toys all over the man,....I mean ALL OVER HIM! He had a parade going down each arm and a little rally happening on his legs. I even put a few things on his shoulders and something on his head. He didn't notice until the kids got to laughing loud enough to wake him up. I think he learned a little from that experience, because then he started taking his Ambien and giving it a few minutes to work, then he'd go on to bed. If he waited too long,.....it was going to be a rough night!
A rough night consists of Tommy becoming a 300 pound zombie. Nope! He doesn't weigh 300 pounds, but somehow he would become dead weight and I swear he found a way to double every pound he DOES weigh so that he would be nearly impossible for me to get to bed! I managed to have him lean against me, which made me lean over and walk "elephant style" with a man sleeping on my back till I could guide him to the bed. He wouldn't know where he was really, so when I told him to sit on the bed, he would sit right where he was standing. I learned to have him turn around so his butt landed on the bed and not the floor (he was HARD to pick up out of the floor!) and then I learned to have Manti stay up with me and help me-just in case! Maneuvering him around the end of the bed seemed like extra work too, so I finally started having him sit on my side of the bed and roll towards his pillow. Depending on my own condition, I would either hop on the bed to help this happen, or I would run like lightning to the other side to catch him. (He always would roll too far if I didn't.)
And then there were the nights he wanted to talk. Oh my goodness, the things he would say! Some I can't even post online...they were a bit colorful! There were times he insisted on feeding pencils to first graders. He got so funny one night that I grabbed my journal and a pen and I would write while he chattered nonsensically!
So why am I telling you all this?
Because he got another doctor to give him ambien. I forewarned the doctor that Tommy+Ambien=Halucinations & no sleep for me. Tommy doesn't remember these things, so it wasn't a big deal to him,....and he got his prescription. The doctor did pity me a little though and gave him a prescription for something else that should counteract the goofiness from the Ambien. So far, it's been working ok,.....until last night......
This time I've got video evidence! It's of Tommy in bed last night, so I'll have to review it and give it some thought before putting it online for the world to look at and laugh,...but chances are that I'll find 60 seconds in that long 45 minutes that I can share! :D
Just like a few years ago, he started dozing on the sofa. Problem here is that Manti had already gone to bed and it was just me and Mesa! She tried to help though, thank goodness! We managed to get him on the bed, and then the antics began. He had his eyes closed the whole time and he would snore a little between "spells",...and he washed a pig and he talked about the chickens that wore shoes. He wasn't sound asleep,...which is unnerving,...and I know this because he could hear us talking to him and would respond a bit, but in some very nonsensical ways. When Mesa was laughing about chickens with shoes, he heard and he said "uh uh! The sheep wear shoes! Chickens have pants!" He went on and on about who knows what. He said liked women and when asked WHAT women, he got a 2 year old smile on and said "my wife"......lucky man! He directed a symphony too it looked like, and he would snap himself straight up in the bed. He nearly dove out of the bed headfirst a couple times but we managed to catch him and make him lay back down. He wrestled with the bedding and he sang without his lips opening up until I thought I was going to have to knock him out so I could get some sleep.
*sigh*....don't you wish you had moments like mine?
Saturday, April 18, 2009
Upcoming Workshop
I'm a little nervous, and for good reason! A couple of weeks ago, the Ag. Center here in town called the Herb Shop and asked my boss if she (or a representative from the shop) would come to an Herbal Workshop they are offering to the community in May. She said SURE! .... and then she called me to see if I'd do it!
Ever hear of the "Master Gardeners"? Well this is the group who is sponsoring this shebang. There are people who will show about growing herbs and people who show about cooking with herbs and I don't know what all else. The herb shops in town were invited to share medicinal information on herbs....and from they way they talked, I'm the ONLY one in that category!
Oh yeah, my boss loves me. She's always been a great salesperson and has done a wonderful job over the years of selling capsullated herbs. She's never really experienced "poorness" either, because she has very little experience with liquid tinctures and I don't think she's ever made her own stuff.
Ladies and Gentlemen, I have experienced poorness! In fact, one year I was voted queen of Brokeville because I was demonstrated such extreme poorness. So this means that I definitely have experience making up my own stuff. I've done it for so many years now, that my friends and family call it my "brew". My own mother has called me a witch doctor (and I'm starting to call myself that even!). So it is definitely something associated with me. I've even expanded my efforts to include lotions and potions and even made up bathing products, cleaning products and even my own laundry detergent (which, btw....is way better than anything you ever bought! I can provide references to back up my claims) and air fresheners! I guess this sort of demonstrates how long I've been a citizen of Brokeville, doesn't it.
Well anyway, these skills impress my boss and she really likes telling people about it. Sometimes I like her bragging and other times I feel like one of the short people with a bone through my nose and a shrunken head in my pocket. She tells this person who called and asked the shop to participate all about me and my "skills"....and now I'm scheduled to be there.
What on earth will I be doing? BEATS ME! I hope I'm just setting up a table display and smiling sweetly while wishing I knew how to cast spells on snobby people....but I have a feeling that's not what I'll be doing. I was so worried about it that I even sent a phone number and email address of someone I know who TEACHES this stuff....trying to get myself off the hook. And from what I hear, they got him and he agreed to come. Does this get ME off the hook? I don't know yet. I have to wait till Monday to be able to call and find out!
Let's say I have to actually open my mouth and show people stuff. And let's say YOU were going to be there. What kinds of things do you think YOU would want to know about? Would you want pamphlets to take home with you, or a sample of something, or would you want a demonstration of some sort? Would you want to taste and smell or just see stuff brewing and see some lotions? Would you be looking for first aid type applications or aromatherapy kinds of stuff or what?
One thing I KNOW I want to impress upon anybody who will listen is this thought (and I came up with it, so if it sounds stupid, I want to know before I say it in public please!):
If you think of your herbs as food now, you won't have to think of them as medicine later.
I need feedback. If you love me, you'll tell me your thoughts!
Take that!
I fixed it!! I am back in CommentLand now!
For future reference, the classic view of blogs is not a creative option ;)
For future reference, the classic view of blogs is not a creative option ;)
Friday, April 17, 2009
Thumb Infection!
So the evil cosmic thumb has not released me YET! Catherine, you must be enjoying an awesome break right about now!
What this means to YOU loyal readers is that your comments are trapped in your keyboards and can't be displayed here. Why? Well....that's due to the infection of that evil thumb!
Everything was fine.
Then I tried a new layout and was so pleased with myself for figuring out how to attach one.
I added a blog post here.
I mistakenly assumed I had escaped that CT.
I get an email from Lee telling my comment section is locked up.
I check it.
It looks like it always does: comments enabled completely.
So I change background layouts.
Still can't comment.
Still infected.
I'll try to figure it out, and if it means I end up with stupid simplistic pre-fab layouts on here, I'll give in and do that.
*sigh*
Evil thumb.
What this means to YOU loyal readers is that your comments are trapped in your keyboards and can't be displayed here. Why? Well....that's due to the infection of that evil thumb!
Everything was fine.
Then I tried a new layout and was so pleased with myself for figuring out how to attach one.
I added a blog post here.
I mistakenly assumed I had escaped that CT.
I get an email from Lee telling my comment section is locked up.
I check it.
It looks like it always does: comments enabled completely.
So I change background layouts.
Still can't comment.
Still infected.
I'll try to figure it out, and if it means I end up with stupid simplistic pre-fab layouts on here, I'll give in and do that.
*sigh*
Evil thumb.
Catherine's Cosmic Thumb
IT CAME FOR ME! I honestly thought it was a choosey creature and had pretty much only had Catherine in its sights,...but I was sadly mistaken. Let's go back in time and I'll explain...
Certain deaths in Tommy's family prompted us to carry out some ceremonies that are very personal and very spiritual in nature. We procastinated for various reasons and that just gave that CT time to catch up to me, so I blame myself here. Nevertheless, that's where it all began.
So the time came when our ducks lined up and we made plans to travel to Tennessee where members of MY family could be part of this special event as well. The plans went well and I had a few days off of work so we could travel upwards and do this thing. There are problems though. First, you need to have a document that allows you into the place these ceremonies are done, and mine had expired. NO problem! Just means I have to go have an interview and do it. So I did...that was back in February. It requires 2 signatures though, ... and the guy who is supposed to do that part seemed to have vanished. Oh I got the signature, but guess what day that was! The day before we left for Tennessee!!! Talk about some stress there!
That wasn't even a problem though, it was just a matter of making it happen. The problems got started with me getting sick. All of my life, pollen has just been fingerpaints for Mother Nature to me. So many complained of allergies and hating the yellow stuff, but for me, it was just talk. I never experienced any of it, so it must not be THAT bad. Well apparently you can develop allergies,...because this was my year! I woke up one morning with a sore throat. It wouldn't ease up. The next day, it was worse. The day after, it was so bad I started treating it like it was Strep! It wasn't. Then came the sneezing. Oh man, a single sneeze felt like skin being stripped off my throat! It gets better. The following day, my eyes felt like they do when I'm extremely sleepy...you know, all itchy and dry and stinging....yeah that. What on earth IS THAT? So I'm thinking this is some vile flu I've caught. And then starts the coughing. Holy cow, somebody hates me! To make matters worse, I HAD TO WORK! This was the Saturday before we left for TN.
Well, it sounds bad enough, right? But this is only the beginning. To be able to perform these ceremonies, the personal family history information needs to have some details for accuracy. For 5 years, I've had all that information at my fingertips. FIVE YEARS, MAN! Where is it now? *shrugs* So I had a friend come over who is a genealogy guru. She helped us find some awesome information for some of Tommy's family that we never knew and it was sooooo fascinating, so we thought she could help us find these basics. Can we laugh here? We got some of the info, but not the details I particularly needed for one aspect of the ceremony. I was sooo disappointed.
This isn't the end of it, nope, not by far.
See, part of it involves stepping into water about waist deep. Guess who started her freaking period on Saturday night! Evil thumb!
Well, I give in to some degree and we just get ourselves out to the car and head towards Mama's house. We get there and have some realizations:
Certain deaths in Tommy's family prompted us to carry out some ceremonies that are very personal and very spiritual in nature. We procastinated for various reasons and that just gave that CT time to catch up to me, so I blame myself here. Nevertheless, that's where it all began.
So the time came when our ducks lined up and we made plans to travel to Tennessee where members of MY family could be part of this special event as well. The plans went well and I had a few days off of work so we could travel upwards and do this thing. There are problems though. First, you need to have a document that allows you into the place these ceremonies are done, and mine had expired. NO problem! Just means I have to go have an interview and do it. So I did...that was back in February. It requires 2 signatures though, ... and the guy who is supposed to do that part seemed to have vanished. Oh I got the signature, but guess what day that was! The day before we left for Tennessee!!! Talk about some stress there!
That wasn't even a problem though, it was just a matter of making it happen. The problems got started with me getting sick. All of my life, pollen has just been fingerpaints for Mother Nature to me. So many complained of allergies and hating the yellow stuff, but for me, it was just talk. I never experienced any of it, so it must not be THAT bad. Well apparently you can develop allergies,...because this was my year! I woke up one morning with a sore throat. It wouldn't ease up. The next day, it was worse. The day after, it was so bad I started treating it like it was Strep! It wasn't. Then came the sneezing. Oh man, a single sneeze felt like skin being stripped off my throat! It gets better. The following day, my eyes felt like they do when I'm extremely sleepy...you know, all itchy and dry and stinging....yeah that. What on earth IS THAT? So I'm thinking this is some vile flu I've caught. And then starts the coughing. Holy cow, somebody hates me! To make matters worse, I HAD TO WORK! This was the Saturday before we left for TN.
Well, it sounds bad enough, right? But this is only the beginning. To be able to perform these ceremonies, the personal family history information needs to have some details for accuracy. For 5 years, I've had all that information at my fingertips. FIVE YEARS, MAN! Where is it now? *shrugs* So I had a friend come over who is a genealogy guru. She helped us find some awesome information for some of Tommy's family that we never knew and it was sooooo fascinating, so we thought she could help us find these basics. Can we laugh here? We got some of the info, but not the details I particularly needed for one aspect of the ceremony. I was sooo disappointed.
This isn't the end of it, nope, not by far.
See, part of it involves stepping into water about waist deep. Guess who started her freaking period on Saturday night! Evil thumb!
Well, I give in to some degree and we just get ourselves out to the car and head towards Mama's house. We get there and have some realizations:
- Tommy's pants are about 4 feet too long and need to be hemmed.
- My skirt AND my shirt BOTH have weirdo stains on them from who knows what. These are brand-freakin-new Never Been Worn!!
Tuesday is the day of our event, and we had to print out the information and take it with us. My parents are going too, and Mama helps us print it out. Everything went ok there, but wouldn't you know, the Thumb spread out a little and hid Mama's skirt from her. It also hid her stockings and frustrated her to the point of wearing mismatched stockings!
Catherine babysat my 2 little ones for me, and oddly enough, that was the one calming influence of the whole event. I guess it was because the Thumb was travelling towards Nashville to be sure it could greet us at the door. Evil Thumb.
Well long story coming to an end, the only real issues after that were the emotional trauma I got to experience, and one of the names not being quite right on the print out of family history stuff. Otherwise, evil thumbs don't get to go into ceremonies of a sacred nature.....but boy do they sure try hard!!
Evil Thumb!
Monday, April 6, 2009
Dental Nightmares
You know, I've just never been a finatic about my teeth. Sure, I brush my teeth and always have. I even remind my kids to brush their teeth, like my mother did me when I was young. But at the same time, I remember how I despised that dentist my mother took me too and I just couldn't dredge up those memories too constantly. So needless to say, I have no relationship with a dental professional.
There comes a time in your life where you MUST go see one of these mouth torturists though, or find yourself suffering with difficulties beyond your tolerance. And it doesn't help MY feelings to keep it in the back of my mind that my great grandfather died from an abscessed tooth! So once in a while I bite the bullet and become a good parent by taking my kids to have their teeth cleaned.
Not long ago, I decided it was time for Jared to go. A cleaning,...he's THREE! Shouldn't be too much trauma, right? And I was right,...no trauma and Jared got "prizes" for good behavior. NOoooooo problem....except that the hygienist points out all these little weak places in Jared's teeth that need immediate attention. Because he's so young and because there was so much work, they send me to a pedidontist. That sounds smart, doesn't it? (If you know Jared even a little bit, you would agree...that's smart!)
The time comes and we go to the pedidontist. They are going to give Jared some "sleepy juice" so he sleeps through his procedure. They will go in and take care of ALL his troubled spots in his teeth and he'll be done all at once with no bad memories to haunt him. I LIKE THE SOUND OF THIS! We get there, he has had nothing to eat or drink since midnight before (and I might add here that if kiddo can't eat, mom can't eat either. That's really good for the blood sugar, ain't it?) and Tommy and I are mentally prepared to sit with him through this whole ordeal and be a part of it.
They give Jared his "sleepy juice" and we sit and wait. The nurse there with us tells me it won't take too long,...and she loads up her email. I was a little surprised to see her do that, but I took it as a sign that this was normal practice around this place and I didn't worry. Jared got a little wiry though, if that's even a word. He seemed to have the squirmy wiggles like he's never had before! He seemed to be unbalanced and tossed and turned on that chair totally disinterested in the cartoons they had turned on for him. He nearly fell in that hard tile floor 5-6 times! So I moved my chair over beside him so I could hold onto him and keep him from falling. I asked the nurse if him acting drunk was normal and she said "yeah" and goes back to her email. Ok, I'm a little irritated, but at least I'M there holding on to him and watching him, so we'll survive this.
All the sudden, they tell me and Tommy its time to start and they ask us to step out of the room. We were told ahead of time that they would do a more detailed xray of his mouth to make sure they attended to everything, so we assumed that this is why we were stepping out. When they got us to the door of the waiting room, they told us they would come get us when it was done. Without thinking, we went and sat down. Then it occurred to us that we were just escorted out when we had been told before that we could stay in the room with him throughout the whole procedure. Umm,....mom's getting a little warm now!
Two hours later, my blood sugar is dropping like bricks from the sky and I've seen the last Mickey Mouse show I EVER want to see again. So I go ask the receptionist to go find out what the heck is going on with my child and make sure he's ok. She said "I just saw him and he's sleeping just fine, but I'll go check on him for you in a minute when I finish booking this appointment." Ok that didn't sit with me too gently but I figured it was because I'm such a mean nasty hoochie these days. So she got to keep her hair a little longer. I stood right there staring her down though! She finished what she had on her computer screen and got up. When she came back, she tells me he's still sleeping and all is fine, that he's only got another 15 minutes left. *sigh* Ok, so I sit back down and figure I can hold out another 15 minutes. By about 15 minutes, out comes this dentist I didn't know and she's calling me in. I get up and go to the outside door to call Tommy in. This dentist hollers for me to get in the back that SHE'LL get Tommy for me. That's weird, ... how do you take that? Then as I turned around to follow her, she tells me to hurry up because he's crying and calling for me. ALARM! So I take off at high speed to my baby!
I walk into this little room (LITTLE room) with a bed and a chair in it. Jared is laying on the bed, well sorta, no shoes on and has a monitor on his toe and a blood pressure cuff on his leg. He is screaming,....seriously,....SCREAMING "Mommy!" I rush to him and snatch him up to hold him. He kicks his legs over and over so hard the toe monitor comes off and I took off the blood pressure cuff. He settled just a tiny bit,....so I looked at his face and HOLY CRAP! His lip was enormous! Look at this!
There comes a time in your life where you MUST go see one of these mouth torturists though, or find yourself suffering with difficulties beyond your tolerance. And it doesn't help MY feelings to keep it in the back of my mind that my great grandfather died from an abscessed tooth! So once in a while I bite the bullet and become a good parent by taking my kids to have their teeth cleaned.
Not long ago, I decided it was time for Jared to go. A cleaning,...he's THREE! Shouldn't be too much trauma, right? And I was right,...no trauma and Jared got "prizes" for good behavior. NOoooooo problem....except that the hygienist points out all these little weak places in Jared's teeth that need immediate attention. Because he's so young and because there was so much work, they send me to a pedidontist. That sounds smart, doesn't it? (If you know Jared even a little bit, you would agree...that's smart!)
The time comes and we go to the pedidontist. They are going to give Jared some "sleepy juice" so he sleeps through his procedure. They will go in and take care of ALL his troubled spots in his teeth and he'll be done all at once with no bad memories to haunt him. I LIKE THE SOUND OF THIS! We get there, he has had nothing to eat or drink since midnight before (and I might add here that if kiddo can't eat, mom can't eat either. That's really good for the blood sugar, ain't it?) and Tommy and I are mentally prepared to sit with him through this whole ordeal and be a part of it.
They give Jared his "sleepy juice" and we sit and wait. The nurse there with us tells me it won't take too long,...and she loads up her email. I was a little surprised to see her do that, but I took it as a sign that this was normal practice around this place and I didn't worry. Jared got a little wiry though, if that's even a word. He seemed to have the squirmy wiggles like he's never had before! He seemed to be unbalanced and tossed and turned on that chair totally disinterested in the cartoons they had turned on for him. He nearly fell in that hard tile floor 5-6 times! So I moved my chair over beside him so I could hold onto him and keep him from falling. I asked the nurse if him acting drunk was normal and she said "yeah" and goes back to her email. Ok, I'm a little irritated, but at least I'M there holding on to him and watching him, so we'll survive this.
All the sudden, they tell me and Tommy its time to start and they ask us to step out of the room. We were told ahead of time that they would do a more detailed xray of his mouth to make sure they attended to everything, so we assumed that this is why we were stepping out. When they got us to the door of the waiting room, they told us they would come get us when it was done. Without thinking, we went and sat down. Then it occurred to us that we were just escorted out when we had been told before that we could stay in the room with him throughout the whole procedure. Umm,....mom's getting a little warm now!
Two hours later, my blood sugar is dropping like bricks from the sky and I've seen the last Mickey Mouse show I EVER want to see again. So I go ask the receptionist to go find out what the heck is going on with my child and make sure he's ok. She said "I just saw him and he's sleeping just fine, but I'll go check on him for you in a minute when I finish booking this appointment." Ok that didn't sit with me too gently but I figured it was because I'm such a mean nasty hoochie these days. So she got to keep her hair a little longer. I stood right there staring her down though! She finished what she had on her computer screen and got up. When she came back, she tells me he's still sleeping and all is fine, that he's only got another 15 minutes left. *sigh* Ok, so I sit back down and figure I can hold out another 15 minutes. By about 15 minutes, out comes this dentist I didn't know and she's calling me in. I get up and go to the outside door to call Tommy in. This dentist hollers for me to get in the back that SHE'LL get Tommy for me. That's weird, ... how do you take that? Then as I turned around to follow her, she tells me to hurry up because he's crying and calling for me. ALARM! So I take off at high speed to my baby!
I walk into this little room (LITTLE room) with a bed and a chair in it. Jared is laying on the bed, well sorta, no shoes on and has a monitor on his toe and a blood pressure cuff on his leg. He is screaming,....seriously,....SCREAMING "Mommy!" I rush to him and snatch him up to hold him. He kicks his legs over and over so hard the toe monitor comes off and I took off the blood pressure cuff. He settled just a tiny bit,....so I looked at his face and HOLY CRAP! His lip was enormous! Look at this!
Does that look a little FAT TO YOU? And do you see the redness in his cheeks? What about the purplish "mustache" he seems to have? That's not koolaid! This is what I see when I pick up my baby! Yes, in this picture he's showing me his lip, but he's numb as can be, so he's not pushing it out much!
He tells me his lip hurts. The nurse tells me he needs to drink this little juice box she gave him before he leaves and this extra cup of water too. Tommy sits at Jareds feet and I'm at his face. Together we try to help him get a sip of water. Blood fills the cup and Jared sees it. He throws the cup of water and starts screaming again...I'm talking some serious screams here people! This isn't your typical tantrum! There MUST be death involved! Well he can't drink if he can't settle down, so nurses all leave and I sit and rock my little guy while Tommy paces the floor. Nothing is working....for 30 minutes nothing works! That kid has lung power!
After 30 minutes passes, Tommy has heard his child say his mouth hurts for the last time. We didn't see one person come check on us the whole half hour, so he says "let's go! This place is not helping him or us." So I stand up and gather Jareds shoes and socks while wrapping him up in a blanket to carry him out. We get out in the hallway and we are accosted by nurses telling us we can't take him out of the building.
Have you met Tommy? heheheh....nobody tells him that....and now the nurses there know it too :D He informed them not to tell HIM he can't take his child out! So they suddenly want to attend to me and Jared. So I'm shuffled back into the room and get surrounded by people. I don't know what happened to Tommy, but he wasn't in the room with me. It was almost like they wanted us separated to weaken our forces. They come in and tell me that he's not hurting, he just thinks he is. (what kind of crap is that?) I was ill, and I said "well tell me why his lip is so swollen?" The dentist person starts swearing up and down that she didn't use latex gloves and that it wasn't her fault. This should serve as a warning, right? She kept on and wouldn't shut up, so I said "LADY! I'm not accusing you of anything! I saw you get the latex free box of gloves out! I just want to know why his lip is swollen! HELP THIS CHILD!" So she starts trying to look at his mouth. Well Jared doesn't cuss ... much... but he expresses himself quite plainly and that dentist took home a bruise or two ;) She has no answers but is offering me all kinds of drugs for his possible allergic reaction to latex. Dumb woman. I know what a latex allergy in action looks like. This is not one.
Well Tommy comes in and reports to me about a phone call with our attorney and recites our rights to take our child out of this harmful atmosphere at will. So suddenly we've got the attention of the most kind and polite nurses you ever saw. They take me and Jared into a different room and have ME lay down and let him lay on my chest. He finally wore himself out and fell asleep. In that position, I could see that he'd bitten his lip pretty badly and chunks of meat were missing. No wonder he said it hurts,...IT DID! That's where the blood came from! Shortly after, I got up and Tommy and I left...with them not having the nerve to ask me to schedule the second round of this (yeah that's right, they didn't get it all 100% finished! His front teeth are still thin and degenerative, needing work done). As we were leaving, they tell me he won't remember any of this. That's the good thing about "sleepy juice", it has an amnesia side effect.
On our way home, Jared starts telling me what the dental professionals were saying while he was supposedly asleep. I hate those people.
Friday, April 3, 2009
The Prom...part 1
I am a public schooled girl. I got to go dances and hang out with friends (in a limited way) and I got to go on school trips and do fun stuff, including the major one: PROM! My first year, I got to go to the prom twice- once at my school with one date and the next weekend to another school with a different date. My senior year, I got to go with my new husband, so that was pretty significant to me too.
When my children came along and became school age, Tommy and I decided to homeschool our little babies and that meant no real opportunities for those exciting events...and no prom. That alone nearly swayed me to send them to school, but then I remembered those horrifying reasons that made that decision in the first place and I decided I would survive this. Manti is 18 now, and he isn't even required to do anything school related anymore. He is focused on his future goals and dating just isn't the priority for him at the moment. Sure he likes girls,...just not in a serious way yet. I felt sure there would never be a prom for Manti because some girl would have to ask HIM and he just didn't know very many girls.
Well, my audience,....my boy was invited to the prom! I was more excited than he was I think (at least on the outside) because I couldn't wait to go pick out the tuxedo and order the flowers and charge the batteries on my camera and,.... The girl who asked him is just great, too. She's smart, she's mature, she wasn't looking for any serious relationship attachments from him and she's pretty. She's a lot like him in a lot of ways and that just improved the situation in my thinking.
The came on March 14th. We drove out to a pretty park and met her family at a gazebo. It was pouring down rain, but the pictures don't give that secret away. His lovely date showed up, and WOW! Her dress was sooo pretty and her hair was even prettier. She kept smiling and her eyes were so lit up. I couldn't stop staring at her!
These kids were good sports too and let us take lots of pictures of them. When we finished, the kids got into her truck with a couple of her friends and headed to a restaurant to eat.
Then it was off to the 755 Club in Atlanta. Manti said it was a fancy place and it was LOUD. Remember, he has been homeschooled since birth and has never been around the "worldly" side of life. This was a new experience for him! He danced a time or two with his date and did a lot of people watching. When it ended, they drove home nice and safe and met us as a park-n-ride. We picked him up from there and came home. He told us about his experiences and I had to bite my lip not to let my eyes tear up and give me away. My little boy was a gentleman and an upstanding one at that. He had a great time with a great girl and remembered who he was. He made his Mama and Daddy proud and had fun at the same time.
Click this link to see a slideshow of the rest of the pictures. Wasn't he handsome?
When my children came along and became school age, Tommy and I decided to homeschool our little babies and that meant no real opportunities for those exciting events...and no prom. That alone nearly swayed me to send them to school, but then I remembered those horrifying reasons that made that decision in the first place and I decided I would survive this. Manti is 18 now, and he isn't even required to do anything school related anymore. He is focused on his future goals and dating just isn't the priority for him at the moment. Sure he likes girls,...just not in a serious way yet. I felt sure there would never be a prom for Manti because some girl would have to ask HIM and he just didn't know very many girls.
Well, my audience,....my boy was invited to the prom! I was more excited than he was I think (at least on the outside) because I couldn't wait to go pick out the tuxedo and order the flowers and charge the batteries on my camera and,.... The girl who asked him is just great, too. She's smart, she's mature, she wasn't looking for any serious relationship attachments from him and she's pretty. She's a lot like him in a lot of ways and that just improved the situation in my thinking.
The came on March 14th. We drove out to a pretty park and met her family at a gazebo. It was pouring down rain, but the pictures don't give that secret away. His lovely date showed up, and WOW! Her dress was sooo pretty and her hair was even prettier. She kept smiling and her eyes were so lit up. I couldn't stop staring at her!
These kids were good sports too and let us take lots of pictures of them. When we finished, the kids got into her truck with a couple of her friends and headed to a restaurant to eat.
Then it was off to the 755 Club in Atlanta. Manti said it was a fancy place and it was LOUD. Remember, he has been homeschooled since birth and has never been around the "worldly" side of life. This was a new experience for him! He danced a time or two with his date and did a lot of people watching. When it ended, they drove home nice and safe and met us as a park-n-ride. We picked him up from there and came home. He told us about his experiences and I had to bite my lip not to let my eyes tear up and give me away. My little boy was a gentleman and an upstanding one at that. He had a great time with a great girl and remembered who he was. He made his Mama and Daddy proud and had fun at the same time.
Click this link to see a slideshow of the rest of the pictures.
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