My husband, the big loser

Shockingly, I haven't haven't blogged about this yet, but it's probably just because I've been such a negligent blogger.

Over the summer John had a routine physical and was diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes. Yikes. Pretty scary. He has to take his blood sugar twice a day, take medicine daily, & change his diet. (Side note: I always thought diabetes couldn't eat sugar, not realizing that carbohydrates are really what they have to look out for. John's diagnosis meant a crash course in nutrition for the whole family.) Also, he was told the most important thing to do was lose a ton of weight, FAST.

We've adjusted to the diabetes. John's blood sugar is well controlled, we drastically cut the carbs we eat as a family, & John lost all the weight he was told to - over 70 lbs - in less than 6 months. He calls it the "fear of God" diet. As crappy as the whole diabetes thing is, he's SO much healthier now & I think having it might have saved his life.

Drum roll please:

BEFORE
(taken in April 2010)

AFTER
(taken in December 2010)

Congratulations John! You did a fabulous job & you look great!

Me & my big mouth...

So I'm 38+ weeks pregnant now which means weekly doctor's appointments. It wouldn't be so bad except that the wait at the doctor's is RIDICULOUS. Thankfully, John's mom agreed to watch Cooper today so I didn't have the entertain him for the hour & 20 minutes in the waiting room & then the extra 20 minutes in the examining room. So I finally see the doctor & all she has to do is measure me & listen to the baby's heartbeat. It should be quick & simple. She asks, "So, is the baby moving?" And my answer should have been, "Yes, absolutely," but instead I say, "Yeah, not as much as before, but he's moving." BIG MISTAKE. What I mean to convey is that the baby is no longer doing somersaults & flip flops, mostly likely because it's starting to get a little cramped in there, but what the doctor hears is "decreased fetal movement". So she asks me to do a fetal non-stress test. Today. Just to be sure everything's okay. Luckily, John's mom agrees to blow off whatever plans she had for the day to stay with Cooper longer, & I spend another couple hours at the doctors office.
At 2:30 pm I'm finally finished (I arrived minutes before my scheduled doctor's appointment time of 10:30 am). The ultrasound shows the baby is measuring correctly, head down, weighs approximately 6 lbs & 15 oz, & has a good heartbeat & is testing out his breathing skills. Non-stress test shows everything to be fine.
BUT, once they order a NST, they recommend you continue having them twice a week until delivery, so now I'm expected to take a NST every Monday & Thursday from now until the baby arrives. UGH! And for what purpose? Basically because I made a comment that was a little too close to a red flag & now everyone wants to cover their butt.
My doctor says that she just ordered the one & now it's up to the NST specialist to decide follow up. NST specialist says they follow up with bi-weekly test for everyone where another doctor is concerned enough to send them for one. Are you kidding me?? Not that I don't want to do whatever is necessary to make sure my baby is safe & healthy, but come on! What a huge waste of time & money! And they say the test only takes half an hour, but factor in travel time, waiting time, and the fact that Cooper naps right in the middle of the day & the whole day is shot. So instead of spending my last week or so before the baby just relaxing, preparing for the baby, & spending quality time with Cooper I will be wasting 2 entire days a week on unnecessary testing.
So the next time you're complaining about the high cost of insurance, think of me. It's people like me that make dumb, random, poorly thought out comments to doctors causing hundreds (or is it thousands?) of dollars to go towards unnecessary tests. Yah me.

Sick statistics

We've been a little under the weather this week. We've got: Flu, with an upper respiratory infection and asthma attack (John), strep throat and pink eye (me), and sinus infection (Cooper, who also has pink eye). Here's some numbers to catch you up on how the week has been:

Number of people in the household: 3

Number of people sick: 3

Weeks pregnant I am: 16

Number of doctor visits: 3

Number of diagnoses: 6

Number of pharmacy visits: 2

Total number of prescriptions: 6

Money spent on doctors' co-pays and prescriptions: $151.20

Amount billed to our insurance for doctors visits and prescriptions: I can't even imagine

Doses of antibiotics each day: 5

Total number of eye drops to be administered each day: 10

Hours of bedrest ordered by doctors: 24-48

Number of hours of bedrest ordered for the pregnant lady: 0

Number of work days missed: 2

Number of sick days John has left for 2009: 0

Number of sick days Sarah had for 2009: 0

Average number of hours slept each night per person: 5

Bowls of soup consumed: 5

Number of coughing fits: at least 30

Number of times Sarah completely caved on stuff Cooper wanted (cookies, watching tv all day, watching tv in the middle of the night, etc) because it was easy & she was too sick & tired to care: at least 50

Number of times Sarah pretended to not notice what Cooper was doing (standing or running on the couch, throwing food on the floor, etc) because it was easy & she was too sick & tired to care: pretty much constantly

Days of gorgeous weather completely wasted: 5

No cast!

Saw the orthopedic guy today. Cooper has a hairline fraction in his left ankle, but doesn't need a cast, thank God! The doctor offered to put one on if I wanted (no thank you!), but didn't think it was necessary, especially since Cooper's walking is improving. Poor guy - it must be so painful! But I know a cast would be a disaster so I'm so glad it's not necessary.

Highlights from our week...

Cooper had his 15-month doctor's appointment this week. After much reading and research, I decided to go ahead and do the MMR as one shot. Cooper got the chicken pox vaccine too. I'm completely (and I know, probably irrationally) freaked out about the shots, but from what I read it seemed like the best thing to do.

After his height, weight, & head were measured, the doctor said he's thin! I guess he is, especially now that he's walking, running, & flailing constantly, but I just couldn't believe it! I'm so used to him being a roly-poly little guy. He used to be in the 90th percentile for height & weight, but he's now in the 50th for height & 35th for weight. Someone even referred to him as a "tiny little thing" recently. Crazy.

Flashback - Cooper at 3 months

My skinny boy

If you're wondering why Cooper's naked in the kitchen playing with wipes it's because he had a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad (& leaky) diaper. It was so bad I didn't even try to use the changing table - just laid down one of the soft dog beds, covered it with a towel, & changed him right there in the kitchen. Then I let him run around naked & play with wipes just to keep him busy while I cleaned up the mess. Yuk. (Perfect posing for hiding the naughty bits, huh? Remember, he is a professional.)

It may be time for another haircut soon too; four strangers have referred to Cooper as "her" or "she" in the past week. He's been wearing red shirts when it happened - nothing girly. What's up with that?!

Today we had my friend Joslyn's daughter Althea's first birthday party. I made this outfit for Althea:




Cooper & the birthday girl really seemed to have a great time...

Joslyn & Althea

Althea very delicately enjoying her birthday cake

I swear, he usually doesn't wear a bow in his hair.

Happy birthday Althea!

My poor sick baby

The man who doesn't relax and hoot a few hoots voluntarily, now and then, is in great danger of hooting hoots and standing on his head for the edification of the pathologist and trained nurse, a little later on. ~Elbert Hubbard

I try to take one day at a time, but sometimes several days attack me at once. ~Jennifer Yane

Cooper has croup. Poor baby.
John was off Tuesday & because I've been just a tad stressed lately, he suggested I take some time off. I used a massage gift certificate I've been saving and got a haircut, and John & Cooper got to spend some quality father-son time together.
Tuesday night Cooper woke up coughing and wheezing; he sounded like a barking seal. We ran a hot shower and sat in there with Cooper while it steamed up, and it seemed to help a bit. Last night it was even worse and this morning he had a fever. So off to the doctor we went. I'm still driving an hour to get to the doctor (I know, I'm an idiot, but I'm getting a closer doctor soon), but we got to have lunch with John. The doctor seems to think the worst of it was last night so I hope he's right. He told me to give him Benadryl; he said most kids get really drowsy when they take it (I sighed with relief), but some kids start climbing the walls (I laughed; there's no chance Cooper won't have this reaction). I gave him some tonight & he definitely didn't get drowsy. As far as climbing the walls, well, that's sort of Cooper's status quo so I didn't really notice a difference.
Of course this morning I was stressed because I was up for a long time last night with Cooper, and he's still sick & sounds miserable, we have to drive an hour (at least) each way to go to the doctor, & my back hurts (I know, I just had a massage! I think it has something to do with nursing Cooper in the steamy bathroom; there's nowhere to sit but the toilet seat and he's 24 pounds & likes to nurse for 30 minutes or so). In the kitchen we find our two dogs sleeping surrounded by eggs shells, raw meat wrappers, old fruit, and all the other garbage they tore from the bag I forgot to take out last night after Cooper went to sleep.
So I'm thinking, this is my punishment for taking some time off for myself (I know, I'm a cynical crab). But really I decided I should be thinking, it's a good thing I took some time for myself because otherwise there's no way I wouldn't be having a total meltdown now.
So that's my story. Cooper's asleep, for now. Hopefully he's on his way back to good health. You absolutely wouldn't be able to tell he's sick if you saw him; he plays & climbs just like when he's healthy. (His latest trick is climbing on the couch & if I'm watching he'll stand up & run across the couch, all because I couldn't resist the urge to smile at him once when he stood up & smiled devilishly.)
Okay, now go here. Do it now. Come on; you obviously have a few minutes to spare if you're reading this. I won't explain - just go there. You won't regret it. I promise. Aren't you curious?

Cooper's birthday, Part I: Activities with Mom & Dad

Cooper's birthday on Monday was full of festivities; John took the day off work (both jobs!) & we spent the morning at a pumpkin patch. We went on the "hay" ride, which had no hay, but was still fun; played in the kids' farm; & picked out our pumpkin.

Daddy, Cooper, & Mommy on the hayless hayride

Woah! Look at that!
(A large group of 2nd graders was on the hayride with us - Cooper was
fascinated by all the older kids.)

Honk! Honk! Outta my way!

So big!

Don't worry - I got it!

After the pumpkin farm, it was off to lunch, the mall, & the pediatrician for Cooper's 1 year appointment. He had to get one booster shot, but only cried until Mom & Dad hugged him, & one finger prick that he didn't cry for at all. What a brave boy!

Back to the doctor..

..but this time was just a well visit. We had Cooper's 9 month appointment (I can't believe he's 9 months already!) on Monday. The appointment went well; at 6 months Cooper was in the 95th percentile for height & weight & his big head was off the charts, but now he's about 75th for weight & head & his height is about 50th. He's doing everything he's supposed to do, & the doctor thinks he'll be walking soon - YIKES! She also confirmed that he's getting his 9th tooth! I mentioned to the doctor that I'm reading about immunizations & trying to decide what to do, but that I think I'd like to delay some. She was completely fine with that & said I could even separate some of the combined shots (like MMR) if I want.
This new pediatrician is so much better than the old one. The old office claimed to be breastfeeding friendly, but when Cooper had the stomach flu & was throwing up they told me to stop breastfeeding & just give him Pedialyte; they said "dairy" was to hard to digest & he needed only clear liquids until his stomach was better. Of course, I ignored them & Cooper was better the next day. They also kept telling me to let Cooper cry at night, turn off the monitor & sleep in the furthest bedroom from him until he learned how to sleep through the night. I'm so glad we switched. But (I should have expected this!), I think the new pediatrician is pregnant! She wasn't showing enough that I could say something, but I kept sneaking looks at her belly & I'm pretty sure she is so hopefully the other pediatricians at the new office are as good as she is.
We also had a La Leche League meeting Monday. I love La Leche League; all the moms are so supportive & I feel much more comfortable with their parenting ideas than most other parents I meet. We had lunch with John at work too, since the doctor is near the courthouse. I love surprising Cooper with a visit with dad in the middle of the day. He gets so excited.
Yesterday we went to a playgroup with a bunch of moms & babies from our nursing group. The group (not La Leche League, a different nursing group) is run by a hospital & it's only meant for moms & babies under a year. When your kid turns one you "graduate" (get kicked out!). I think it's because the group is very large and the conference room they have it in is crowded, and they don't want siblings there so I think it's just to keep it from being totally chaotic (although they are usually 20-30 moms with babies from newborn to a year so that's pretty chaotic already), but I think it's pretty crappy. It think it sends a message that breastfeeding should stop at one & it's just stupid that you're in this group with all these people you've gotten to know so well & then you're banished! Anyway, we kind of started a tradition of the mom/baby "graduating" having a birthday playdate when they turn one so we went to one for the two kids turning one this week. Cooper was actually the second youngest baby there (I think one was 7 months); the oldest was about 15 months. We had lots of fun & we were both exhausted by the time it was over.




I had to include this picture too.. it's at home playing with dad. The picture isn't great (I think I was twisting my arm around & randomly pressing the button to get it), but the expression is awesome.

Cooper's hideout

Cooper woke up at 1am on Tuesday with a fever of 102. We called the on-call nurse & gave him some Tylenol & it came down. The Tylenol worked wonders - he was in a great mood all day.
Grandma (my mom) came to visit & Cooper had lots of fun with her eating lunch and playing. He showed off new tricks (like sitting under the dining room chair & moving his wrist in interesting ways) & got lots of kisses.
After that we were off to the doctor. We recently switched to John's insurance & had to change doctors. Because we're planning to move near his job, I wanted our new doctors out there so we wouldn't have to switch again when we moved. I just feel better with Cooper having the same doctor for as long as possible. Anyway, that meant we had to trek all the way out to St. Charles to see the doctor. It was only a 20 minute appointment, but it probably took at least 3 hours. Cooper got a good nap on the way there & the way back, which was probably just what he needed, so that worked out well. I like the new doctor too. She lets me hold him & gets down to his level to check him out instead of making him sit or lay on the examining table. She said he's fine, just a cold & thankfully no ear infection!
Cooper was feeling good after the doctor & his naps & he found a new hideout for himself.

This morning Cooper's doing great. His energy is back (yikes!), he has no fever, & his nose is only running a little bit.