Day 20

First of all, we are all okay. We did have some pretty severe weather here last night. But fortunately for us, the most severe weather went around us. We had some wind damage in our city and a few damaged power lines, but overall things here were pretty much unscathed. The weather sirens sounded for the last time around 12:30 am. We all piled into our little "shelter" under the stairs and waited it out. We were all in bed finally around 1:30 am. So even though we lost a little sleep, we were definitely fortunate.

So the answer everyone's been waiting for.... Alden is our lottery winner for the day! Yes, poor Alden again. He now has strep throat. We found out today at his well baby appointment. I'll post more about that in a few minutes.

We started out our day a little later. Everyone slept until 7:30 since we didn't really get to "bed" until 1:30. I didn't set the alarm and just decided whenever we could get up and get dressed, we'd take Adam to school. After I dropped off Adam at school, I went to my Mom's group meeting at church. It's always so nice to be able to spend time with other Christian ladies. We had a nice chat and bible study. I then headed home to pick up Adalee and Alden.

I have to say that God truly had a hand is all the things that unfolded with this appointment. Had I actually been at that appointment yesterday (or Monday as they said), I would have never seen the doctor I saw today. He was the first military doctor since I've been here (except for our dermatologist friend) who has listened and actually tried to help our situation. He was very upset with the things that have gone on especially with Adalee. He couldn't believe they kept drugging her instead of trying to actually figure out the problem. So the run down on the kiddos:

Adalee: She weighs 19 pounds 9 ounces and is 28 inches long. She looks very healthy and is developmentally ahead of where she should be. She even "patty caked" for him. She does have a way of winning over people she comes in contact with. He said that she was on the right amount of medicine for reflux and seemed to agree with everything the specialist in Nashville said. He was also upset about this whole diaper rash issue. He couldn't believe the doctor would give us what he gave us and said not to call him before a month. He got us three creams to put on it and said if it wsan't better in 7 days to call him back and he'd do something else. He did give us a referral to a pediatric orthopedic surgeon. When I carried her in my tummy she was so squished since she was so big, her feet and legs were in an awkward position. That has made her feet turn almost inward since she was born. We've been watching it and it isn't getting better on it's own. He feels she may have some issues with the bone that runs from the knee to the ankle. It looks a little twisted. He's not confident there's anything wrong, but wants to be on the safe side. Imagine that, a doctor at our clinic that's trying to be proactive. Other than that he said all looked good.

Alden: He weighs 33 1/2 pounds and is 3 feet 2 inches long. He is also very healthy. He was impressed he knew all his letters, numbers, and colors already. He feels at this time his asthma is under control. He wants to work on his ezcema. He feels it could be managed better and we need to find a new system. He gave me a couple of things to try and then said to call him back if they aren't working. I am concerned about his speech. He didn't really start talking until Adalee was born (He was almost 2 1/2 at the time). He wants him to be evaluated by a speech pathologist, so he gave a referral for one. The other concern I have about Alden are his tonsils. They are HUGE! He looked at them and said they were really large for a child his age and that we needed to watch them and listen for any snoring or sleep apnea issues. I don't think he snores or at least doesn't when I go check on him. But as he was looking in his throat he started asking me a lot of questions like, "Has be running a fever", "Has he been saying his throat hurt" and "Do you think he's in any pain". I told him he had just gotten over the tummy bug and he was a little more tired and whiny, but no more fever or complaints about anything. He swabbed his throat and sure enough it was strep! So Alden is our lucky lottery winner for the day! He is now on antibiotics, so hopefully he'll be on the mend now.

I do want to put in a disclaimer here. I know I have been giving the military doctors and health care system a hard time lately. That does not mean I think all military doctors or civilian doctors that work in military hospitals are terrible. I have been blessed by some incredible doctors that have helped us tremendously. For us though, that has definitely been the minority. And the ones that have been exceptional have left the military to go to private practice when they were able. I don't believe it's always the doctor's fault for the lack of care. I think the whole system is flawed and doesn't set them up for success. I do believe however, that the other pediatricians, two in particular, that we've seen have made big medical mistakes, by not listening to my concerns and not treating her appropriately. They made rash judgements that made my daughter suffer for far too long. And I refuse to apologize for being angry for that.

So with that being said we ended our hospital visit by the quickest trip to the pharmacy ever. There was absolutely no waiting (another God moment). We then stopped by the patient representative's office, so I could praise someone and let her know how satisfied we were today. I "complain" when I feel it's warranted, but I also give praise when it's deserved, so I wanted to make sure they knew what a great job I felt our doctor did today.



The boys sleeping on their mats downstairs last night during the storms.

Adam and Alden in their new Thomas jammies I bought them at Toys R Us for $4.00!

Day 19

And the winner is Adalee (maybe!)... We actually had a pretty good day around here. Maybe it was pretty good because I was out running errands most of it :) Thanks Mom for watching the kids. Actually it wasn't too bad. Alden seems to be feeling better today. Not perfect, but better. We stopped and got the boys an ice cream cone after dinner and he only ate a couple of bites. So his stomach isn't back to normal just yet (or maybe he was just protesting because it wasn't Bruster's). He and Adam had fun playing together today and because it was so hot, we even got to play outside for a little while.

Adalee started having a little diarrhea this afternoon. I am not sure if it's from something else or if she's got the tummy bug. She seems happy and hungry enough and no fever. So as of right now, we're hoping it's just either something she ate or teething. We'll let you know tomorrow.

I spent the day trying to catch up on some of the things I haven't been able to do for the past few days. I think I made 6 stops! It was much easier without all the kiddos in tow. In the middle of my errands, Abrahm called, so that was a nice surprise. The weather is very snowy and foggy right there now, so not much is happening.

Today we were supposed to have well baby appointments for Adalee and Alden , but they made an error when scheduling so we weren't able to go. That's number 525 in the list of things the Army health care system has screwed up this week. Needless to say I wasn't vey pleased and let them know. We now have appointments tomorrow afternoon. I'll let you know how they go. I did finally hear from the nurse today about my lab results. I am on the right medication, so I should be getting all better soon!

Tonight we are supposed to have severe weather all night. There have already been several tornado warnings in surrounding counties. We have our little "shelter" all ready. Adam is pretty anxious about the whole storm thing. He won't sleep upstairs because he is scared a tornado is coming. Since the weather is getting questionable, I am going to go ahead and sign off. I'll update with the details of tonight tomorrow. Until then...


I don't know if you can see the car reading very clearly or not, but it was 72 degrees tonight on our way home from dinner at 6:30 pm!

Alden leaning backwards as he's swinging. Not the greatest picture, but I thought the effect was kind of cool.

Alden swinging today. This is the happiest he's been in 3 days. Notice the outfit he picked out to wear today. He was so proud of himself.

Adam walking across his "lake" on the wood planks

Adam outside this afternoon. Notice this outfit he picked out as well.

Grandma Jean and Adam coloring at the restaurant

Adalee drinking out of a straw for the very first time tonight. Yea Adalee!

Day 18

Today was an okay day around here. Alden woke up feeling great and had a little food for breakfast. Adam got up and got dressed and headed out to school. While Adam was at school, Alden and Adalee kept Grandma Jean quite busy. Alden had lots of extra energy after laying around yesterday. I think they played every game we own. We thought we were making progress until lunch time. Alden ate a little at lunch and then threw everything right back up.

Alden and Adalee laid down for naps and Dad and I went to get Adam from school. We picked him up and ran to Walmart to get some things for Alden. When we got back Alden got up feeling pretty good. Adam was so excited to play with his brother again. He really missed being with him yesterday. They are such good little buddies. For dinner Alden ate just a little and has kept it down so far. He hasn't eaten or drank very much, but at least it hasn't come back up yet. So hopefully Alden is out of the woods. Now we're just still waiting to see who is going to win the lottery next!

As far as how I am feeling, I am feeling some better. Still tired. I did try to call the doctor's office and find out the results of my labs like they asked me to do, only to find out that the nurse has 72 hours to call me back. So after them screwing up my labs last time, they won't even give me the results for up to 72 hours. So I could be on the wrong medication again for up to 6 days before I know if it's the right medicine or not. Even after explaining the situation to the person who took the message, she still says she has 72 hours. If this wasn't my life this would be comical. I am trying to figure out how to deal with this but am just not sure. Something has to be done. If this is the wrong medicine (which I don't think it is), I could have terrible kidney damage by the time I actually hear from them. Ridiculous!

I didn't get to talk to Abrahm today, but he did send a few emails and pictures. At the end of the pictures is a chinook after the snow fell today. He was supposed to fly, but his mission was cancelled due to weather.


Alden playing more games today

The boys playing the pirate game with Grandma Jean before Adam went to school

A picture Abrahm sent me today of a chinook after a snowfall

Day 17

Okay, so I am not going to assume things are going to get better. Someone definitely has a sense of humor is all I am going to say. Adalee was up twice last night. She typically sleeps all night unless something is hurting her. I am not sure what her problem was but she did settle finally and slept. After getting up with her for the second time I heard Alden crying and making noise in his room. When I went in I found him laying in throw-up. So I don't think I have to tell the rest of the story. Needless to say Alden spent the day throwing up and crying because he was so thirsty. As of right now, he is finally sleeping. He has been able to hold down a small of amount of liquids later this afternoon and evening. He was finally able to hold down some motrin so hopefully his fever will break this evening. So the question I am leaving you with tonight....Who's going to win the lottery tomorrow???????

Day 16

Well we've had a couple of not so great days. Last night after I posted, I took my first dose of medicine. About an hour and a half later I awoke to the most incredible trembling and shaking all over my body. My heart started doing some strange things as well. I just kind of waited it out for a little bit and the tremors eventually went away. I was close to calling someone to stay with the kids while I went to the hospital, but I figured it was an allergic reaction to the medicine and it would hopefully subside soon. By about 3:30 or so, most of the symptoms were gone and I was able to fall asleep. I did decide I needed to head to the doctor again this morning. I hated taking all 3 kids again, so I called a friend to come watch the kids. She was actually out of town for the day and couldn't come, but my dad called and said he and my mother were on their way here.

So after my parents arrived I went to the hospital again. And like usual the military hospital didn't disappoint me today. Even though I was there for 4 hours last night, had a severe allergic reaction to the medicine, and already had the testing done, I had to wait in line just like everyone else. So two hours later I was finally seen. I did find out that the infection I had 3 weeks ago was resistant to the medication they gave me. Basically that meant that the medicine they gave me then wouldn't cure my infection. What I find so interesting is that the doctor that I originally saw a couple of weeks ago said that he would call if he had given me the wrong medication. He didn't. I even called the hospital and asked after 7 days of medicine if they could check and see if I was on the right medication because I wasn't really feeling any better, and they said they couldn't do it. But that if it would have been a problem my doctor would have called. So I have suffered for almost 4 weeks for absolutely no reason. I am totally fed up with our health care. I want to start yelling, I am just not sure who to.

This evening I feel much better. I am turning in shortly. Being sick is no fun. My parents are great, but it's not like having my husband here. Abrahm I miss you terribly. I just need you to hug me and tell me it is all going to be better soon. I haven't gotten to speakto him in the past couple of days because he's been so busy. So hopefully I'll get to talk to him soon. On a better note, the kids are doing great. They are enjoying being spoiled by grandparents again. Hopefully tonight and tomorrow will be better. Is has to be doesn't it?

Abrahm at the Transfer of Authority Ceremony today

A picture of Abrahm in Afghanistan that someone sent me

Day 15

This will be short tonight. I just got back from spending the last 4 hours at the ER on post. No, the kids are all just fine (that is until they sat in that germ infested place for 4 hours), it's mommy that has the problem. Long story short...I had a urinary tract infection. They thought it was all better. They were wrong..... Lots of pain late this afternoon so I headed to the ER. I called a couple of folks to see if they could watch the kiddos, but couldn't find anyone so we all went. Such fun. Actually the kids were great until 9:00 pm (2 hours past their bedtime) and we're waiting around over 30 minutes for them to bring my medicine to me. Can you tell I am a little bitter about tonight. Let's just say this... Universal Healthcare....Not such a great idea. The military can't get it right for the soldiers and their families, there is no way we'll get it right for the whole United States.

Day 14

We had a great day here in our Winter Wonderland. Well it was a winter wonderland for a whole 3 or 4 hours! Everyone slept well last night so we were all well rested. We awoke to our lawn covered with snow and ice. Adam and Alden were just itching to get outside. We had breakfast got dressed and headed out to play. It was actually fairly warm so we were able to stay out for a while. We had our shovels and buckets and scooped snow for a long time. We even had a couple of snowball fights. Adalee wasn't sure what she thought about the snow. She was only out a few minutes before I laid her down for her nap.

When we came in we had hot cocoa and marshmallows to warm us up. Then the boys worked on their journals and colored and drew pictures. Then Abrahm called. We were able to talk for a little while. All is going well in Bagram. He is trying to send more pictures so I can't wait to see them. He is busy getting ready for the handover to their battalion.

After talking to Abrahm we ran out for a little bit. The temperature was rising and most of the ice was melted so we decided to venture out to the grocery store. We made a quick stop to the video store first though. We don't rent movies very often, so this was a special treat! The boys were very excited. We then headed to the grocery store where all behave beautifully. I was very proud of all 3 of them. Then we came home and took naps.

This evening we just played and watched one of the movies. Overall not a bad day. I had such a blast playing in the snow with the kids. They are getting so big so quicky. We had so much running around and throwing snowballs at each other. Tonight we're supposed to have bad weather again. So tomorrow tune back in and maybe you'll see more snow pictures!


All 3 of my snowbunnies

Adam showing Adalee a snowball

Alden talking to Adalee

Adalee crawling through the snow

Laughing at Adam

Loading up the slide with snow

The boys filling up their truck with snow

Adam throwing a snowball at me

Warming up with some hot chocolate after playing in the snow

Working in their journals after playing outside and drinking hot cocoa

Day 13

We've had an eventful couple of days here in Tennessee. Mom and Dad came down on Monday night. They were planning on watching the kids on Tuesday for Adalee's appointment and then again on Thursday for the FRG meeting. Well Monday night we had some issues. Adam had a rough time sleeping. He was crying a lot and really wouldn't settle down. He kept complaining his knees hurt. I brought him to bed with me and he finally settled down around midnight or so. Then about 1:30 my mother woke me up because she was burning up with fever. I had to get her a thermometer and some Tylenol. Then Adam woke up at 2:30 just as I was getting back to bed. He started crying again. He was very restless and couldn't settle down. I finally gave him some Motrin and within the hour he was back to sleep and then slept the rest of the night. Then at 5:30 I woke up Adalee to give her a little bottle since she couldn't eat anything 4 hours before her test. So needless to say we didn't get much sleep around here that night!

On Tuesday we got up very early and headed to Nashville. The Embassy Suites was so great to us. They allowed us to check in at 8:30 in the morning. So I dropped off Mom, Dad and the boys and Adalee and I headed to the hospital. We were seen very quickly. I have to say I was so impressed with everyone at Vanderbilt, from the receptionists to the nurses to the doctors and other support staff. Everyone really cared for Adalee and treated her like a little princess. We were in and out in about an hour. The test didn't go so well. Adalee just didn't appreciate that yummy drink or them holding her down. But we finally finished up and headed home. We then picked up the boys and went to and early lunch. After lunch we got back to the hotel and all the little ones took a nap. By this time my mom's fever had returned. She really wasn't feeling well.

After naps we went back and met with the doctor. For details about the visit you can see yesterday's entry. After the appointment we really wanted to take the boys to Opry Mills, but the weather was terrible and Mom was feeling pretty bad still. So instead we ordered dinner in and got everyone ready for bed. Everyone was in bed pretty early (including myself) but no one except Adam slept well. Adalee was very restless. She kept bonking her head on the portable crib rails. Alden was awake on and off all night. Mom was up as well since her fever spiked again. So by 5:30 we were all awake and getting up.

Today we got up, got things ready and had breakfast. Mom decided to go ahead and go home since her fever was still high and she really had no symptoms. She didn't want the kids to catch whatever she might have. So we drove to Clarksville, Mom and Dad picked up there car, and they headed back home. So after they left, we ate lunch, had naps and then went to church. We're all pretty exhausted now. Lack of sleep is definately catching up with us. I have to say I am so happy about our trip to Nashville. I am pleased that we finally have a diagnosis after 5 long months.

By the way, my Mom called and said she went to the doctor and she has a urinary tract infection. She got on some medicine so hopefully she'll feel better in a couple of days. So the silver lining is that the kids won't catch it! Mom and Dad, thanks for coming up and helping. We're sorry you have to leave, but am glad that you got some medicine so you can get better soon!

A couple of tidbits: Tonight driving home from church Adam started singing the Zacheus song. It's a song he is singing in choir and has to perform it on Sunday. So we were singing and I kept stopping so Adam could fill in the words, and Alden started singing it. He knew the words and what came next. He isn't in Adam's class, so I am not sure where he learned it. What a talented little guy.

Also tonight on the way home they kept telling me they were very hungry. Thinking they just wanted something sweet, I said that they could have some carrots if they were that hungry. So instead of changing their minds, they both sat down and ate several carrots! Just when I think I have them all figured out......


A happy Adalee in her hospital gown before the procedure. I should have taken an after picture as well. We had white stuff (the Barium she had to drink) all over both of us. She had it in her hair and all down the front of her. Needless to say, she didn't like that stuff very well!