Appendicitis

Abby had already stayed home sick for a few days before we found the culprit!

Last Wednesday, Abby woke up with a fever and said she felt nauseous.

Wednesday evening, she was worried that she wouldn't be able to sleep because her stomach hurt so much. I took her into the doctor convinced she must just have strep throat.

The test came back negative, so the doctor said she probably just has a virus and that there was nothing he could do for her.

I didn't think about it at the time, but the doctor never even checked her stomach! Isn't it routine for doctors to check vital organs?

Anyways, she stayed home from school Thursday too . . . not much better than the day before.

She still complained about her stomach.

Friday morning, we took her back into the doctor.

He checked for strep again too . . . but also checked her stomach and suspected appendicitis.

After some blood work and an ultrasound confirming the suspicion . . . Abby was admitted to the hospital and surgery started around 5:30 p.m. Friday evening.

The surgery went well. Her appendix had not ruptured, but apparently it was close. She stayed in the hospital through Sunday afternoon.

I think she liked being able to just watch movies and order milkshakes for breakfast. But the novelty of the hospital did wear off and she was ready to come home on Sunday.

Now she is home resting and we'll see how soon she will feel up to school.

On a side note:

I think she has several "unexcused" absences because I don't call by a certain time in the morning. Give me a break. This "rule" is becoming a huge pet peeve . . . I called yesterday and said she had surgery over the weekend and that I didn't know when or if she would be able to come to school this week. I guess that phone call worked for yesterday . . . but I still got a call today from the school saying she was not there and was "unexcused". I really have to call EVERY SINGLE DAY?

Okay, back to the post:

Thank you to all those who called, visited, and sent messages/cards to Abby.

It really lifted her spirits to know that people cared about what was going on with her.

Dog

Luckily my kids were NOT in the car with me!

I was driving on a busy 4 lane road this afternoon.

I didn't see the little dog running across the road until the last minute.

It was too late to stop and I was hoping that if I kept moving the dog would stay in the middle of the car . . . and not get hit by the tires.

And then I felt my right tire roll over something.

I felt awful. I still feel awful.

I stopped the car right there in the lane. I wasn't sure about what to do. I got out and looked back and saw that poor little dog laying on the ground. His back legs twitched for a minute or two . . . and then stopped moving.

I was waiting to hear crying kids or an angry owner to come and yell at me.

But no one came.

A man who was waiting at the crosswalk came and just picked up the dog by the legs like a rabbit and walked away with it.

He didn't even look at me.

I couldn't tell if he was the owner or not . . . or if he was upset or not.

I realized I was blocking traffic . . . so I just got back in my car and drove away.

How awful!

I am so sorry!

Easter Weekend

We had our own Easter Egg Hunt this year. I think we have the perfect backyard for it! The hunt can be easy . . . but then with the mountain backing up to our yard . . . we can hide some of those eggs pretty good for the older ones!

Luckily they all still liked doing an egg hunt this year.

Here they are in their Easter dress. Gosh they are getting big.

Happy Easter!

Dentist

My kids REALLY like going to the dentist. It is seriously an event that they look forward too! Austin (now that he is 3 . . . sniff, sniff) is finally old enough to have his teeth checked out too.

I had to get a picture of this!

My New 3 Year Old

Austin turned 3 last month.

I had bittersweet feelings with this birthday.

I am always a little sad to see my children get older, but this time it was more weird because he is my youngest. I have never had just a 3 three year old without a new baby to take care of!

But here is Austin . . . in his new "Dinosaur Train" pajamas! This kid loves pajamas. He would rather wear them than get dressed.

We had pancakes for breakfast. His FAVORITE.

He opened presents . . . which was so fun!

We picked up McDonald's for lunch and ate it at a park . . . a HUGE hit!

For dinner, Austin wanted corn dogs.

This kid is so easy to please!

I made him a blue "car" cake. It didn't quite turn out the way I had intended . . . but I don't think Austin minded.

Happy Birthday Austin!

Pancakes

Austin's favorite breakfast is pancakes.

He asks every morning if we are going to have pancakes.

He invented a game where he and his sisters pretend that they are pancakes!

Here are all my children stacked on top of each other like pancakes!

Ballet

Right now, I let my girls pick two sports to play per year . . . to keep life from getting too crazy. This doesn't include their piano or summer swimming lessons ( which they just have to do because Ben and I want them too!) or school clubs.

Anyway . . . this winter, Halle and Gwen picked ballet.

Here they are at their last session.

They really liked learning the steps and the correct terminology. It was fun to watch them practice their dance routine at home.

And they chose to wear matching shirts . . . I love that!