Noah's Speech Update

Hmmm. where to start?  The list of words he can say is increasing slowly but steadily.  But that's about it. 

Back in May he was still seeing the speech therapist from the county.  She was ok, but it ended up she helped us see the physical problems - the mouth breathing, the eating on one side of the mouth - and led us to seeing the ENT and getting his adenoids removed.  Because of the problems with the first try at removing his adenoids, it seems like it's been a lot longer process that we first anticipated.  Hopefully we're all done.  He has another follow up with the ENT next week. 

In the meantime, back when we started the program with the county, which ended up costing us $120 a session, we were told that he would be eligible for a program through our school district that would be free.  (When we started with the county we didn't know if insurance would cover any of it, and were at least six weeks into it when we found out they wouldn't and what we'd have to pay - thankfully we didn't pile on sessions to start with.) 

It worked out that about the time we were ready to resume therapy after his surgery, the school year was starting and he got a new therapist.

I really like the new therapist - he seems to as well.  Nerdstar hasn't met her yet.  She's done two sessions with him, getting to know him and how he does and doesn't do things.  It's funny to me to see him be as stubborn with her as he is with me!  She's setting up a routine of four activities each time and helping us with some ideas.  We took pictures of almost all the things he likes to eat to sort of make him a menu.  And we took pics of some of his toys and things around the house.  The idea is using pictures to bridge to words. 

So, it's slow going.  As he gets older and it feels like he's not keeping pace with his physical growth, I get a little sad.  I know him so well, but because he can't really talk to us yet, there's so much we don't know about what he's thinking and feeling. 

We know he's still young.  And he's a boy.  And one day he'll talk our ears off.  We just wish the progress was a little faster. 

Not The Best 24 Hours

This time yesterday we had no idea what was coming. (Nothing horrible, just not fun.)

Last night, after his nightly bath, Noah started breathing a little weird, labored. We thought at first he was congested or had nasal drainage or something like that. Gave him his allergy meds and waited. Those didn't help. Then he would cry a lot, which he only does when something is really wrong. Our next guess was that maybe he'd eaten too much cheese and dairy and was having tummy troubles. We gave him some gas meds and he had a couple of decent burps, and we waited for things to get better.

And waited. Around 11 p.m. he finally went to sleep and we thought we were in the clear. He woke up crying again maybe an hour later. Ugh. We were up until about 2:30. Again, we hoped he'd sleep until 8 or 9 and wake up his normal self.

Nope. He woke up about 5, crying.

We had debated taking him to the ER in the middle of the night, but things weren't that bad. We decided we'd take him to our family doc in the morning. We just didn't know if it was a tummy problem or a breathing problem. We kinda figured with the breathing issue she'd have us go to the ER anyway. The ENT office didn't open until 9, and we just didn't want to wait that much long.

I thought it'd be a quick trip to the ER. Nope.

We were at the ER from 8:30 this morning until 2:30 in the afternoon. They did belly, chest and neck x-rays - thankfully all were clear. They gave him an IV steroid for the swelling and a breathing treatment. Shortly after those things he was back to his old self and ready to walk around the ER and see what was what.

The ER had been in touch with his ENT, and that was good. So we went from the ER to the ENT office for a follow up.

Hard to say what exactly started the problem. He's fine for now. Just a really long day.

Next time we know to pack snacks - for us - before heading to the ER!

Amusement Park

Yesterday, Nerdstar's company rented out King's Dominion and so we got to go for free and even got a free lunch! Fun!

Noah woke up a little early again yesterday, 7ish, so we went ahead and got out the door and got to the park around 11. It's an hour drive. We're so glad the weather changed overnight and we had clear skies, no humidity, and a cool breeze.

When you first come into the park there's a big water fountain - he loved watching it. Then after walking a little ways, there was one of the big roller coasters - he sat and watched it for at least 15 minutes and would have stayed all day if we'd let him.

There were two car rides for kids his size and he actually rode both of them! He's an independent kid, but not a brave one, so we weren't sure if he'd get on a ride.

It's kind of alarming that by the time he can ride roller coasters with me, I'll be 50 or older! Ugh!

It's Done!

Noah's surgery went really well this morning.

We got up at 4:30, out the door a little after 5. No traffic and a stop for snacks got us to the hospital right around 6. There was a nice, big waiting area and Noah ran laps for about thirty minutes before we were taken back to the children's surgery area. Then there was a nice play room to hang out in. He absolutely did not want to change into the hospital pajamas and so he went through the whole time without the shirt.

They had a nice young woman who helps the kid get ready and is sort of a go-to person for the family. She brought out a mask they use for the gas to get him acclimated to it, but he was fine with it.

We then went back to a little pre-surgery room and talked with the anesthesiologist and doctor before the procedure. He was getting a little restless and loves to run around any area he's in, so the helper lady brought him a big wheel to ride on and he got to ride it to the surgery room! Nerdstar said she wants all of her future procedures done at a children's hospital!

We thought it would take about 30 minutes, but it took probably 45 and an hour after it started the doc came out and said everything went just fine. I was starting to get a little worried they'd found something doing the scope down his throat. His trachea (or something in that area) is smaller than normal and a little calcified, but the doc said he should outgrow it. And his adenoids are now gone.

They thought it'd take a couple of hours in recovery, but it only took him about 45 minutes. He layed on Nerdstar until he woke up well and then had some orange sherbert and apple juice and was good to go.

Thankfully, he took a four hour nap this afternoon and we got a chance to nap as well! The only affect would be a sore throat or maybe a little fever. We have him some children's tylenol and he's been fine. They're out in the backyard blowing bubbles and we'll see how late he keeps us up tonight!

The doc said in a couple of weeks he should start to mouth breath less and his muscles and such will correct themselves.

I was a little surprised at the amount of pure relief I felt as we were leaving the hospital.

And we're so grateful for the staff at the children's hospital - it's a tough job and they do it really well!!

Surgery Take Two

Tomorrow morning we go back to the same hospital where we had the CT scan done for the second attempt at removing his adenoids. Because of the troubles with the intubation last time, the doc is also going to put a scope down his throat and look all the way down to his lungs. We didn't know until yesterday when talking with the lady asking the pre-surgery questions that he'd be going all the way to the lungs. We're glad the doc is being thorough, but it was a little un-nerving. Once the doc starts the procedures, it should take fifteen to twenty minutes.

We were happy it was scheduled for 8 a.m. until they told us they want us there two hours early. Ugh. So, we're getting up about 4:30 in the morning to be out the door about 5:15. Then it's a lot of waiting. No fun.

I wouldn't say this gets easier, but I'm a little less worried.

Noah's First Pee in the Potty

Let me first say we are not yet potty training Noah.

After his bath, we let him drain the water, say "bye-bye" to it and then get him out of the tub. A couple of weeks, he started peeing in the tub sometimes. Fun. So, this weekend we went and got a potty chair for him.

Saturday night, after his bath, we finally got him to sit on the chair. Cool. Last night we had him sit on the chair before his bath - hoping to avoid pee in the bath altogether, nothing. Then after his bath, nothing. But he seemed to have fun sitting there for a minute.

Tonight, we once again put him on the chair before his bath - and he peed!! Now, we're not sure just how aware he is about this. But he does love when we clap and cheer for him.

I know kids have to be much more aware of the sensation of wetness in diapers and the urge to pee than Noah currently is. This just seemed a logical thing to do to even begin to give him the vocabulary and motions.

We'll see where it leads!

Home Sweet Home

Oh the many joys of home ownership. I much prefer it to renting, but...

We've been in our house for just over three years now. I think we bought at the right time and the right price for us, and in general. The thing I like most about the house is the layout. Lots of big rooms that are easy to navigate, the tree in the front yard and the trees lining the backyard, my desk in front of the window. I like that Noah and I can spend all day upstairs and we don't have to Noah-proof downstairs.

Things I don't like about the house, the small downstairs - therefore master - bathroom, the cheap flooring beneath the carpeting, the very bad drywall/paint job throughout the house, and the unfinished room that is our laundry/storage room.

The house cost us $50,000 less than we had budgeted. And then, because of the appraisal, we paid $20,000 less than we offered. So using government math, we've got a $20,000 to $50,000 surplus! If only.

I'd say we've put about $10,000 into the house so far. We made some improvements to the kitchen, the backyard, insulation, curtains, things like that.

This week I've got people coming to give me an estimate on cleaning the carpets, fixing our refrigerator, and trimming some trees. If we can get all three done for under $1500 I'll be happy - well, not happy, but... (When people talk about the cost of living, I'm not sure they understand that because people like plumbers and electricians and such also pay that high cost of living, they charge more for services - it's a vicious cycle.)

About a year ago, the motor that pushes the ice out of the ice maker into your glass stopped. Fine, at least it was still making ice. Then the flap that lets the ice come down into your glass warped and so frost kept building up inside the freezer (solution - a rag pushed up in there to keep that flap closed). Yesterday, we were changing out the water filter on the refrigerator and it all went wrong. So, we've lost our ice maker and our filtered drinking water. We actually priced new refrigerators today. We decided that as long as the repairs are 1/3 the cost of a new fridge or less, we'll just get this one fixed. Or, if we're feeling cheap, we'll stick with our temporary solution of a britta water thingy and ice trays.

We also know that in the spring we have to replace our deck - there are one or two rotted boards already and if we get the cold/wet winter I think we will, it'll be a replace not repair job.

So, we've talked a lot this weekend about the house, about all the things we'd love to fix, about how we're probably never going to know just how much longer we're going to live here, and how do we decide where to live next, and if it's better to sort of "duct tape" things until we're ready to move, or invest in improvements. (We'd invest more for our own comfort than for any theoretical ROI.

I keep day dreaming about a custom built house near a lake, maybe in Tennessee, maybe back in Texas. One story, huge kitchen, huge master bath, huge master bedroom, huge living room with fireplace, and two good sized other bedrooms - Noah's and guest, and bathrooms, a two-car garage and a shed. What I really hate about most houses is all the wasted space of small rooms you don't have a real use for.

Sigh. Until then...

I asked Nerdstar what one thing we could do that would make her really like the house more. She said a true master bath - with the tub and the separate enclosed stand up shower, the two sink vanity, heck, maybe even heated floors! Now, the current unfinished laundry/storage room is adjacent to our current bedroom and small bathroom. I think it would be fairly easy to take out the current tub/sink and put the washer and dryer in the bathroom, then convert the laundry to a really nice master bath/walk-in closet.

One expense built into just about any improvement to this house is having to replace the electric box - about $2,000. (I got an estimate a year or so ago.)

I'll probably get a couple of estimates in a few weeks for that project - just so we'll know.

As for money, we've been really good about building up a savings account, partly because her job is never that secure, and partly because we know we'll need money to move one day. We could do some of this stuff and then just rebuild our savings. This house wouldn't be worth taking out a HELOC for, and I'd hate to make payments and interest and stuff for these projects.

Anyway, today we didn't buy a sleep number bed or a new refrigerator. Too bad we can't use government math and be happy about spending that money elsewhere.

We know we're lucky to have a house we like, and that we're not underwater on, we just want it a little bit better.