Another Ambulance!

On Friday afternoon, Benjamin scared us as he struggled to breathe and kept crying in panic. He was feverish, wheezing and drawing quick, shallow breaths. Mark listened to his lungs and they didn't sound normal. His heart was also racing. I called his pediatrician's office at Tulane Pediatrics, told them his symptoms as well as how worried I was and they agreed to see him just before closing at 3:00 pm. Luckily, Mark was home early and able to take Benjamin to the doctor. (Mark is more persistent in making sure all of the correct tests are done etc., so I wanted him to be there.) I paced around our house, calling every few minutes to see if the doctor knew what was wrong yet.
Once the doctor had examined him, she was very concerned because he was flaring and grunting as he struggled for air. She was worried that he had some sort of obstruction in his lung and felt he needed more than just a chest x-ray. She ordered an ambulance and had him sent, with sirens blaring and lights flashing, downtown to Tulane Hospital through rush hour traffic to be admitted to the hospital and observed overnight. I was so panicked when Mark told me! He offered to switch me places and have me ride in the ambulance with Benjamin, but I was a nervous wreck and wasn't sure I could pull things together in enough time to make it before the ambulance arrived. We planned for me to meet him downtown, after packing up to spend the night, and calling someone to ask them to watch our other kids. After some tears and a prayer, I found someone who was kind enough to agree to take them for a few hours, but the kids weren't doing well enough to go. We still had four sick kids at home who refused to get in the car to go anywhere. So, I stayed at home to take care of them for a few hours while Mark cared for sweet little Benjamin at the hospital as they tested him.
Just before bedtime, I packed the kids into the car and headed to the hospital to switch places with Mark and spend the night with Benjamin at Tulane Hospital. When I got to the hospital, Benjamin was very feverish, but wasn't struggling for breath as much as he had been earlier in the day. He was still wheezing a little bit, but his breathing had calmed down a lot after a breathing treatment they had given him a little bit earlier in the ER. Benjamin and I spent another hour or two in the emergency room together after Mark left to take the other kids back home to bed. Just in the time I was there, he continued to improve. Finally, we were taken up to the sixth floor and, after meeting the nurse and having her check Benjamin, I put him down to sleep.
Needless to say, it was a long night but I was grateful that we were in the right place for Benjamin to receive the care he needed. By morning, he was still a bit fussy but his heart had slowed back down to normal and his blood pressure was much better. He had only had one breathing treatment during the night (around four o'clock a.m.) which calmed him down a lot from a panicked cry. He was crying so much it seemed ridiculous that he would need a treatment to help him breathe, but it did help.
He was released from the hospital around 11 a.m. on Saturday morning. The attending doctor was very kind to us and explained some possible reasons for Benjamin's symptoms the day before. He just told us to watch him carefully and try to pay attention to anything that could trigger such an attack again. Benjamin will be checked next week by the pediatrician again, but he is doing much better! Thank goodness nothing major was wrong, although I worry about this happening again. We don't know exactly why or what happened, so we will have to keep a close eye on Benjamin. We are so grateful for friends and family calling to check on little Benjamin and showing genuine love and concern! We are sure your prayers made a huge difference in Benjamin's relatively quick recovery!

Spring Fever

It all started with Peyton. She had a fever, tummy ache, sore throat and a runny nose for almost the entire past week.

Grant had a slight fever, never slowed down much (predictable) and got the runny nose. He seems over it although he hasn't eaten much over the past few days.

Carston has had a pretty high fever since Tuesday. He will hardly eat. He has the tummy ache and sore throat as well. He doesn't want to do much.

Poor Jackson doesn't seem to be able to completely shake the fever. He was feverish before Carston. Yesterday I thought he was totally over it but the fever is back again today. So, either we are going through another round or his body is just having trouble fighting this bug.

Benjamin (not pictured here) is also sick. He has been pretty good natured about it though. He has gone through mouth sores and a rash and now has the same fever as the other kids. Sorry little one, it has to be hard being #5!

What a funny spring break! We are still enjoying each other, though, and in some ways it is a good time for everyone to get over being sick. We aren't missing school or anything:) Luckily, next week is Daddy's spring break and we are headed to Disney World. It will be all of the kids' first time (Carston can't remember the first time he went at 4 months old). We are all so excited!!

Indoor Picnic

It is spring break at our house. We've been looking forward to it. We kicked it off today with a picnic. It was a little chilly outside, so we did it inside. There is nothing more fun for our kids than twisting everyday things into something special. They love candlelight dinners, picnics on the floor, meals with themes etc. As you can see, we go ALL out when we have picnics around here. Not only did I make peanut butter and cinnamon honey sandwiches, but I cut them into dinosaur shapes. We even had cookies for dessert.

The boys loved sitting on the picnic blanket in the middle of the floor. They only started to get annoyed when I kept trying to take the perfect picture of them. Jackson just plain ran out of smiles after a couple of minutes of being deprived of his meal and forced to look at the camera!
Enjoying the food! Jackson is still getting over the photo shoot, but Grant is all about getting the most out of his meal. It may not be a gourmet meal, but we love pb&honey around here. It is finger licking good.
Benjamin couldn't be kept from the fun. After eating in his chair, he insisted on being with the bigger kids. He sat right down, grabbed a sandwich and made himself at home. One might acknowledge that poor Peyton is missing from this scene. She woke up with a fever this morning and won't eat a thing. The bad news is that we tend to get sick one after the other. We're expecting a spring break full of sick kids.

Easter Eggs and Springtime!

I love springtime! I love the freshness and the rebirth, the crisp coolness of dawn that warms into day. There is something so invigorating and awakening about spring! Besides, you can't beat the chocolate eggs and the jelly beans.
We had our annual Easter egg hunt in the front yard this year. The Easter bunny thought the eggs might be easier to find that way. It was a slightly impromptu egg hunt because we had promised the kids that we would go to their playschool for their egg hunt and arrived too late to get any eggs. So, we had our own egg hunt at home with the eggs the Easter bunny had already prepared. The kids were so excited! By the way, this is a good example of the family portraits we have attempted to take. No one realizes that it is necessary to stop what they are doing and look at the camera. I can't blame them here, I wasn't paying attention and took this picture with them looking right into the sun. Hey, I'm still learning how to take better pictures!
Carston's favorite egg was the one that held a springtime Lightning McQueen and Mater. He isn't as much of a candy connoisseur as the other kids, although he does enjoy the occasional lollipop or chocolate treat.
Jackson smiled like this for the entire egg hunt. He is a little ray of sunshine and a few moments with him will make up for any gray or overcast day. He is well-balanced, loving his vegetables and his candy!
Peyton was anxious to get all of her eggs opened and eaten immediately. She couldn't stop sifting through her basket imagining all of the treats those plastic eggs contained. As soon as she got inside, she sat down at the table and sorted through her eggs, choosing to eat her favorite treats first. Okay, she takes after her mom.
Grant didn't wait to open his eggs. After gathering as many as he could see, he immediately went to work eating them as quickly as possible. You can see the fear of having them taken away from him flashing in those big blue eyes!
Benjamin opened his own egg and started eating jelly beans. If he sees any of us eating chocolate, he has to have a bite. He'll start making noise until we figure out he expects us all to share. It isn't hard to share with him, look at him--he could melt any heart!

Happy Easter and Hooray for Spring!

St. Patrick's Day: Going a little Green

We tried Jessica Seinfeld's green eggs for breakfast on Saturday, as an early celebration of St. Patrick's Day. That didn't go well. Our kids hold onto this strange idea that eggs are meant to be yellow instead of green. Reading Green Eggs and Ham over and over again this past week didn't convince them. They were adamant that green things are not to be eaten (this would explain some of the problems we are having with vegetables remaining uneaten on some of their plates). Where is that Sam I Am when you need him?
So, for St. Patrick's Day, we went only a little green: mint green plates and green pancakes, but white cream and milk. Maybe we will be a little more adventurous next year. Luckily, the kids loved the pancakes.
Grant was in the full spirit of the holiday in his green Thomas pajamas! These are his favorite pajamas and he cries when I change him out of them into his clothes in the morning. So, I let him wear them for awhile longer this morning.
Here are our other two "a little bit of green" lovers! It took some convincing to get Carston to even try the pancakes, luckily he was pleasantly surprised. Jackson is our only true green lover. He would have eaten the green eggs again. Luckily, he saves me from full failure as my only child who loves green vegetables!
Next year, we are going to go ALL green. Watch out!

Celebrating Benjamin! A picture for each month of his life:

This was taken shortly before we brought Benjamin home from Tulane-Lakeside Hospital where he was born at 8:31 am on Friday, March 16th 2007.
Our babies all take baths in our kitchen sink until they are too big to fit comfortably. This was one of the first baths that Benjamin took without crying. He was a month old. He wasn't a big fan of tubby time early on, but loves it now.
Here is Benjamin falling asleep in his swing at two months old. He would start relaxing just in time for one of his well-meaning siblings to come over and give him loves that would inevitably end his reverie.
At three months old, Benjamin was starting to realize he would be safest and given the most attention if he could see me at all times. Thus, his bouncy seat became a permanent fixture in the kitchen from which he could watch me in safety.
If you haven't noticed yet, Benjamin has the most beautiful brilliant blue eyes you've ever seen! This picture was taken when he was four months old, wrapped up in his towel fresh from the tub.
Benjamin insists on being in the thick of it, but likes to simply observe not necessarily participate. This picture was taken when he was five months old sitting on his daddy's lap while Mark was attempting to eat dinner. He prefers to be held so that he can watch us all interact and see what crazy thing we'll do next.
Benjamin at six months sitting in our beloved Bumbo seat. He started sucking his thumb when he was about two months old and still does when he first goes down for naps or to comfort himself when he is upset.
Our seven month old baby blue eyes allowing his sister to push him around the kitchen in her doll stroller. He was well strapped in and enjoyed himself. He was the center of attention for almost an hour as the kids all took turns pushing the stroller.
Our eight month old explorer! Jackson professionally outfitted Benjamin to accompany him on his safari.
Benjamin has a hundred different smiles that win any heart. This smile was one of triumph as he learned to stand up by himself leaning on our couch.
10 month old Benjamin really starting to look like a toddler instead of our little baby.
This picture was taken a month ago as Benjamin sat happily on his grandma's lap at a basketball game. He is really learning to pose.
One year old, hooray! Happy 1st Birthday sweet Benjamin!

Here is a short list of Benjamin's favorite things: bath time, his toothbrush, sucking his thumb, his blue silky blanket, being thrown up in the air, playing catch with any kind of ball, pulling all of the books off of the shelves, sitting at the kid's table looking through books, being held, being tickled, feeding himself and making all kinds of friends by smiling and waving at them.

We're off to discover!

This is how you dress if you are going exploring in the jungle! The problem is that you sometimes get too hot and have to discard all of these specialty items, but this can also be useful. Yesterday, Carston and Jackson announced that they were explorers going on an expedition deep into the heart of the jungle (their term for our backyard). Once they got outside, they left a trail of boots, glasses, hats and stuffed animals so that I could stay on their trail through the thick jungle foliage. I breathed a sigh of relief when I was able to retrieve not only these items but the tired and very dirty explorers for a "rain forest shower" (a favorite at our house). Thank goodness they are experts!