Race for the Cure

September 21, 2008. That morning I will be running in the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure. And what is the point of running? How will that find a cure for breast cancer? It won't, but lots of money might. Normally when I run a race, I do it for me. I pay the fee and get a free t-shirt. Good enough. But this race is different. Yes, I pay a fee and get a t-shirt, but this isn't just a race. I want it to matter. Please consider helping me run with purpose by donating to Race for the Cure.

Please visit my Race page to make an online donation.

If you know me personally and would rather just give me the money, that will work too.

I have less than 4 weeks to make this work. Please help me out. If you make a donation of $25 I will write your name on the back of my running shirt, like NASCAR. I will consider business ad space as well. For $50 I will write your name on my skin like a tattoo.

You might feel bad if you don't donate. That's all I'm saying.

Run?

Does anybody want to run with me (Laura) this weekend? Seriously. The long runs are a lot better with company. Please?

I have a new respect for Monopoly.

Here is an interesting story about the game Monopoly.

Willow's Ears (Part 2)

This morning we took Willow to the hospital to have tubes put into her eardrums. We arrived at Deaconess Gateway around 6am. That is a really nice hospital. And everyone we met was great. Willow got lots of attention everywhere we went.


We went back into the pre-op area and got a little hospital gown. There was a bright little crib bed. It was cute but also really sad as I thought about all the little babies that had been there before.










We had a lot of time to kill in between people coming in to ask us if she was allergic to anything and when the last time was that she ate. Might I suggest the first person write this info down for the next 5 people so they don't have to ask?

The anesthesiologist was a bit late because her schedule was wrong, but she was really nice and she carried Willow back to the surgery area around 7:50am. Willow didn't cry, surprisingly. They said for her age it was best to knock her out and then put in the IV.

We went to get some caffeine and magazines. I took a few sips and saw a couple of minutes of the USA basketball team before Dr. Logan came in and said she was all done. This was 8:10am. I asked if she was awake and he said she was and that she was "pissed". That's our Willow.

A few minutes later a nurse came and asked me to come back there and help her calm down. She was screaming terribly when I got into the recovery area. She calmed down for a second when I get to her but then she kept crying because she had a blood pressure cuff on her that was squeezing her arm and a heart rate monitor taped to her toe. She hates that stuff. They tried to giver her some water with a bottle but she didn't know what that was. She's never had a bottle before and she didn't care for it.

They got her vitals and we were wheeled together back to the room. She was crying a lot but I could tell it was mostly because she was so tired and hungry. She finally got to drink some apple juice from her sippy cup.






I tried desperately for almost an hour to get her to sleep but she fought it the whole time. She was still a bit out of it. She had just fallen asleep when a nurse came in. She woke up but didn't cry. I could tell she was different. I guess the drugs had worn off and she was more aware. She just laid there for a few minutes and then we got up and got ready to leave. Everyone wanted to say bye and ask about her. One conversation went like this:
"Does she have any brothers or sisters?"
"One of each."
"She has the most beautiful eyes. What are their names?"
I wanted so badly to say that we hadn't named her eyes, but since everyone was so nice, I just answered with the kids' names.

They wheeled us out, Willow on my lap in a wheelchair. Everyone in the lobby stared and smiled. They probably thought she was sick. It made me so thankful for her health. I'm not strong enough to be one of those moms who deals with that kind of stuff.

On the way home Willow snacked on animal crackers and apple juice. I was going to put her in bed, but she wanted waffles. She scarfed them down and wanted more animal crackers.


Right now she is taking a very long nap. Thank you to everyone who prayed for her. Now pray that I'm not so careless that I let water get in her ears. And pray that this is the last time we have to do this.

Today is Abby's first day of second grade. The main difference for her this year is that she will be riding the bus to and from school everyday. The last two years we drove her in the morning and she rode the bus home. She and Jason walked down to the corner and waited together for the bus. She has a new backpack, new lunchbox, new clothes from Memaw and new shoes. She was definitely ready to go. (Luke starts pre-school in two weeks.)

New Blog

I, Laura, have started a new blog about going back to college.

http://wifemomstudent.blogspot.com/

Willow's Ears

Despite her obsession with food, Willow is the smallest of the children (at her age). She had her 12 month check up Monday. She is 28 3/4 inches which is around the 40th percentile. (For comparison, Luke was 32 and Abby was 29). Willow's weight is 18 pounds, 4 ounces. This is around the 10th percentile. (Luke was 23 lbs, Abby 19 and 5). We didn't discuss this at the doctor's visit, however, because we were focused on her ears, which were still infected.

Willow has had at least 8 ear infections since December. The last several were since the beginning of July. We go in, get a prescription for antibiotics, take it for a week and then the fever comes back (while still on the antibiotics) and we start over again. The fluid in her ears hasn't drained for months and the medicine no longer works to keep it from getting infected.

We met with an ear, nose and throat specialist Wednesday. Now that Willow is one, she can safely have tubes put in her ears to help them drain until her ears mature. We have the surgery scheduled for Tuesday, August 12th. It's only supposed to take 5 minutes and then we'll go home a bit later. I really think this will make things a lot better for her. She will have a lot less pain and she will be able to hear better. I'll post later about how it went.

Super Luke

Abby: Luke, what do you want to be when you grow up?

Luke: A superhero.

Mom: Superheroes don't get paid any money. What job do you want to do to make money?

Luke: A guard at a castle.

Now that I think about it, that may be a really good alter-ego.

Happy 1st Birthday, Willow!