Happy Birthday Cole

My friend Kate does a great tribute to her kids on her blog on their birthdays and I was happy to follow suit. This was a long process that involved me getting butterflies in my stomach remembering how tiny he was and how big he has gotten. Chris calls him Munchkin Major, Buddy, and Cole. I call him Coleole, Colie, and baby... My sleeping new born Cole on his birthday.
Exploring the basement when he was first crawling

Enjoying his 1st Birthday Cake

Watching the goats at the petting zoo at Federal Hill Festival 2007

Showing his sunny face on vacation in OC, MD September 2007.

Enjoying Birthday Pancakes 2008

Our Snow Bunny Winter 2008

Handsome Lad Summer 2008

3rd Birthday

Playing in fountain after failed family photo shoot 2009

1st Day of Preschool

4th Birthday Cake (official party at Extreme Bounce)

Tee Ball Player 2010

Soccer Player 2010

Boy with his best friend (big bear) 2011

Cookies for School

Cole turns 5 tomorrow...amazing, by the way. He will also be at school tomorrow. Parents customarily treat the class with cupcakes. This is a habit that I am not entirely on board with since school goes from 9-12 and they get a parent-packed snack at 10:30. Cupcakes too?! I am all about a cupcake but would prefer it to be packed up and shipped home to enjoy after lunch. That's just me, though.

I wanted to participate in this activity: sharing Cole's birthday celebrations with all of his classmates. Especially since this year, I limited his party invitation list to 5 school friends. I decided to bake peanut-free cookies (since there are 2 peanut allergies on board), decorate them and wrap them up for his friends to enjoy at home.

I think they turned out pretty cute.

Pickin' and Grinin'

Cole ended the family game night early with a temper tantrum (he refused to acknowledge Rhys' win) the other night so Rhys had 1 on 1 time with Chris and I. We had a good time just responding to what he wanted to do and playing along with his games. Chris got the guitar down and I grabbed the camera to get a rare uninterrupted recording of his voice at (almost) 3.

Betime...a little thing

I really have to get better at documenting what we have going on. I have done so well with Facebook postings but I really am lacking in my blogging. I just looked over it and really loved checking out all of the old pictures and moments forever documented. I want to do better and I am going to try.

Right now: I am feeling not-so-great physically but am getting sweet kisses from my 4 year old as I type.

Right now: Rhys is telling Chris that he brushed his teeth front and back. He is rinsing and spitting.

Right now: It is bedtime complete with kisses, snuggles, competitions for affection, and loads of loving.

Right now: Rhys is snuggling Cole in his bunk bed and Cole is showing Rhys is secret weapon to be brave when there is a storm. I gave him a book light the last time we had thunder and told him that it was Daddy's secret light that keeps us all safe during storms and he is now responsible for it. He keeps it under his pillow.

Right now: Rhys is begging Chris for his nosey bear (a little blue bear with a loose thread on the nose that Rhys rubs across his own nose to go to sleep) and his pillowpet (a black and white cow that folds from being a stuffed animal into a flat pillow). It is well worn and was purchased partly with Cole's Christmas money in 2009.

Right now: Cole is telling Rhys that he has snuggled in his bed long enough and it is time for him to go to his own bed.

Niceties are falling by the wayside and Rhys is losing his temper. Too much love, too much of everything. Time for bed..

Good night boys. Sleep tight.

Antibiotic Side Effects and Physical Therapy

I started antibiotics to treat the Lyme Disease and have been experiencing some normal side effects and other not-so-normal side effects.
Nausea - was warned about this and still get it although I take it with food. Terrible heartburn feeling that subsides after about an hour.

1. Chills - ugh! I have never! I take one in the morning and get chills by mid-morning. I also take one before bed (not too close to bed since I have to take it with food AND the bottle instructs me not to lie down within 30 minutes of taking it). I sleep in fleece pajamas and wear two sets of socks and freeze - to the point that it actually wakes me up.
2. Weight loss. Yea! Probably a result of #1 but I am not complaining.

I had my first physical therapy session today. It was just a lot of being prodded and interviewed but I did manage to get a massage from it along with some time wrapped like a pig in a blanket. They wrapped my body completely around my hips with a thick stack of hot towels that were slightly moist...bliss. They are treating my Bursitis in my hips along with my lumbar which is contributing to the Bursitis. They will also treat my Fibromyalgia.

He knows that I need a lot of work and is looking forward to helping me. I am to start going 3 times/week. They have pretty flexible hours but the pool time is all in the middle of the day. To start, I have 2 days in the office and 1 day in the pool. I am trying to make this the priority but know it will be challenging to fit everything in. Truly, making myself well is the priority. Unfortunately, meeting the basic needs of my children (i.e. not leaving them unattended) is really the priority. Chris has work and I have some pretty crazy scheduling happening but I know I can make it happen but realize that I will have to reschedule some of these appointments.

It will all be fine. I have wonderful friends who have offered to help and I hope that I have enough folks to lean on that I don't have to keep going back to the same well. My insurance only covers 30 visits/year so I will surely be taking advantage of all of them.

A Diagnosis and a shred of HOPE

As a general update on my testing, condition, prognosis, etc. I had my follow-up appointment with my Rhumetologist this morning and it turns out that I have Lyme Disease. There is no telling how long I have had it but we are going to treat it with the 30 days of antibiotics and hope that is all it ever was. I am skeptical so I am ordering my medical records from Hopkins. I had this same battery of elimination tests for Fibromyalgia back in the early 2000's. If they tested for Lyme - it would have been negative or they would have treated it then - then I can assume that in addition to Fybromyalgia, I also now have Lyme. If they didn't test it, there is actually hope that I had Lyme all along and never should have been diagnosed with Fibromyalgia before the Lyme was treated.

Aside from that, I am also newly deficient in Vitamin D - in August, I wasn't. Vitamin D deficiency also causes aches so I am going to start a supplement of 50,000IU/week for 12 weeks. I have a follow-up with her in 3 months. In the meantime, I am to do the water therapy, muscle relaxers, antibiotics, and Vitamin D supplements.

She did mention that there is a potential that after the Lyme is treated, I could suffer from Post Lyme Disease Pain...I am hoping that is not the case. Time will tell at this point.

Once I hear back from Hopkins, I will know more about the situation at hand. I spent today getting my schedule solidified. Rhys will be starting a soccer camp in March and Cole is starting Gymnastics next week. Cole turns 5 in a couple of weeks so I also scheduled his yearly check-up and scheduled dentist appointments for both of them. Additionally, I finally got my own aquatic therapy on the calendar and go for my first appointment - on dry land - to assess my needs on Thursday of this week.

I like having things to look forward, I don't particularly like being so busy but this time will offer so many good activities for the boys and I will be starting back to school in 2 weeks!

Who has time to be sick?! By the way, I have been so busy all day, I have yet to "Google" Lyme Disease.

Thoughts

I am going to journal more because that always helps me to keep focused. As usual, I need to refocus everything in my life. I am working way more than I am used to and am glad for it. I need to set this computer down and stop being content when my children are wiling the day away downstairs with the dreaded television or computer on. I need to be more strict with myself and my children on how we spend our spare time. Books and puzzles, board games, and crafts will make a resurgence in this house which means that I will be having less screen time - which is fine by me. I also need to drink more water, eat more veggies, and consume less carbs.

I am going to start working on the boys' scrapbooks for their first year. I am going to pull out all of my supplies and make a box of stuff for Cole's and have it ready to pull out on any given evening.

I have enrolled Rhys in a soccer class and will be enrolling Cole in a gymnastics class. I also am enrolled in class starting in February in the evenings on Wednesday. That probably means that I won't be scrapbooking in evenings because I will be studying - blek.

I need to end this post now so I can get up, get dressed, and get the kids focused on something other than what they are doing right now. Here's to making something together today and stitching a memory together to go with it.