COVID-19 + Math = Perspective

Y'all should be worried. This self-proclaimed "word girl" is doing "math numbers" for a minute. See what the coronapocalypse has done to me? Be very afraid.

Check out this website: http://covid19.healthdata.org/united-states-of-america. This site shows the COVID-19 death projections by August 4, 2020, assuming full social distancing through May 2020, for the United States. Another almost 8 weeks of social distancing? Yes, y'all, we can do that.

So this website estimates 81,766 deaths caused by COVID-19 in the United States. According to worldometers.info (however reliable that site is, though it is likely a very close estimation), the population of the United States is currently estimated at 330,552,344. Let's see how this looks when you make it all math-y:

81,766/330,552,344 = 0.000247

And if I'm able to go one step further, and put my mad 4th grade math skills to work by converting my answer from a decimal to a percentage, the result is 0.0247%. That's significantly less than 1/4 of 1%.

So if my math is correct, it tells me that significantly less than approximately 1/4 of 1% of Americans are projected to die from COVID-19.

While EVERY death is a HUGE and UNIMAGINABLE loss of someone's parent, child, grandparent, friend, neighbor, or co-worker, that number gives this entire pandemic a little bit of perspective to me.

Based on the media hype, it feels like we've been thrown into the midst of a pandemic close or equal to the most devastating pandemic ever recorded: The Spanish Flu of 1918.

Wikipedia estimates over 675,000 deaths in the United States from The Spanish Flu.

We're talking significantly less than 1/4 of 1% of Americans. We can probably agree that while the loss of 81,766 lives is incredibly devastating, it's not the same as losing 675,000+.

Even if we look at the highest point in the shaded area of uncertainty in the graph provided, we're still looking at a very small number:

136,401/330,552,344 = 0.000412

That's 0.00412%.

Y'all, I KNOW this pandemic is BAD. I know there are hotspots all over our country that are experiencing death and devastation the likes of which have never been seen before in our lifetimes.

But significantly less than 1/4 of 1%?

I guess what I'm saying is that I'm tired of living in a world overshadowed by fear, worry, and concern. Especially considering I will be 28 weeks pregnant tomorrow, and I have to take on the added anxiety that comes with bringing a new life into this world at such a chaotic time as this. But it was so nice for my non-math self to experience a tiny breath of fresh air from realizing we're talking about significantly less than 1/4 of 1% of our country's population succumbing to COVID-19.

Let's take a quick peek at the math for my home state of South Carolina, shall we?

See http://covid19.healthdata.org/united-states-of-america/south-carolina.

The site estimates 442 South Carolinians will die from COVID-19.

There are an estimated 5,210,095 people currently residing in South Carolina.

That math?

442/5,210,095 = 0.000084

That is a whopping 0.0084%.

And the worst-case scenario projections?

645/5,210,095 = 0.000123

That's 0.0123%.

I can barely even comprehend numbers this small.

You guys.

I'm not saying that COVID-19 isn't bad.

I'm not saying that the loss of lives is inconsequential.

I'm not saying there won't be a "second wave" or more that will result in a greater loss.

I'm not saying these projections are fact or reality or 100% to be expected.

I'm not saying the difficulties we all are experiencing right now should be shrugged off.

I'm saying we can be encouraged.

I'm saying we can get through this.

I'm saying we can try to look for the good in the midst of so.much.bad.

I'm saying we can get through this by the grace of God! He knows the numbers. He knows His plans. He knows when our lives will return to some semblance of normal.

We can hang in there.

We can follow the directives to keep our families safe... our neighbors safe... our communities safe... and our country safe.

I hope this has been somewhat encouraging to you!

I also want to take a moment to say that I simply do not have the words to adequately express my gratitude to the individuals across our country and across the globe working hard on the front lines -- putting their own lives at risk -- in fighting this undetectable, invisible enemy and saving countless lives. There truly are no words to properly express how much you mean to us all, and how grateful we all are for the work you are doing. God bless you and keep you safe!

27 Weeks

Yesterday, I had to venture out of the comfort and safety of my home quarantine to go to an appointment with my high-risk perinatologist. I really didn't want to go, but I knew I had to. It was necessary for myself and for Cinco. I was scheduled to have a growth ultrasound, a consultation with my diabetic nurse, and a visit with my favorite maternal-fetal medicine specialist, Dr. G.

I want to take a moment to note that this is my fourth pregnancy that has included visits to the MFM office. It all started with Chase's heart defect diagnosis back in 2009, and we continued to be followed with each subsequent pregnancy with E, Squish, and now Cinco, as high-risk pregnancies seem to be my jam. However, this was the FIRST TIME I wasn't able to have my husband by my side. That's a pretty big deal, y'all! For starters, we didn't want to risk having anyone in our home to keep the kids while we were at the appointment, but even if we did, the doctor's office was not permitting ANY visitors with patients. Our hands were tied. It was disappointing and very different for sure, but I understand and appreciate the logic. And to be honest, my heart was breaking at the thought of not having my spouse there with me had this been my very first appointment and I was about to find out the details of a possible defect in my unborn child. I can imagine there are mothers-to-be in this exact position right now, and it breaks my heart just thinking of them experiencing that life-altering news all alone. My prayers are with these precious mamas and the journey ahead.

I was quite anxious to leave the house, and even more so to head to a medical office. The MFM office had me call them when I arrived, and wait in my car. I appreciated this so much! They came out to my car and took my temperature with a contactless device, handed me a check-in questionnaire to fill out, and asked me to call them when I was finished. Then they came out to my car to take me directly into my exam room. I should add that on Monday, my aunt was super awesome to drop an N95 mask in my mailbox that my mom gave to her, which apparently came from my brother-in-law (thanks, y'all!). I put it on in the car when I arrived for my appointment, and left on for the duration of my 2.5 hour visit. It was terribly uncomfortable, and quite unfashionable, but it provided me with added peace of mind for which I was quite grateful! I was cautious not to touch any part of my face, not to touch anything in the office unnecessarily, to sanitize my hands at every opportunity, and just make smart, healthy overall decisions as much as possible. I felt terrible that the nurses were jealous of my N95 masks as they all were wearing the typical disposable paper masks, which really don't provide them with much protection, especially when they're around so many different patients each day.

The diabetic nurse met with me first, and overall she was very pleased with my numbers. Not unlike previous pregnancies, I find myself checking my blood sugar with finger sticks 4+ times per day, and dosing two different insulin medications anywhere from 2 to 5 times per day in my stomach. That's a lot of poking, folks! But it seems to be keeping my levels where they need to be, which keeps both Cinco and I safe, so I'm happy about that!

After the nurse left, the ultrasound tech came to take me back for the u/s. Cinco cooperated quite nicely! We got a few precious pics of his adorable profile -- check out that sweet little button nose!

His growth measurements literally came in at 26w6d, which was exactly how far along I was yesterday! One of the biggest concerns with gestational diabetes is that the baby will grow too big, but for now, he's sitting at a perfect 2ish pounds (I forgot to write down the exact number -- hubs usually handles all.things.numbers. 😔). In addition to the growth measurements, Dr. G wanted to check the position of the placenta. At my previous ultrasound, they noticed the placenta was located right next to the cervix. Obviously placenta over the cervix would result in a C-section delivery, which I would very much like to avoid. Based on the ultrasound yesterday, the placenta was moving away from the cervix as the baby has grown, which was exactly what I had been praying for! Praise the Lord! I'm so grateful He hears our prayers in the midst of all that is going on in the world today. He is so good!

After the ultrasound, they took me back to my exam room to meet with the doctor. He was pleased with everything, and said he wished all of his high-risk patients were like me! LOL! While I have several reasons that cause me to fall into the high-risk category (old lady age, gestational diabetes, overweight, autoimmune disease), I am managing to maintain all of the risks well... at least so far! Dr. G was especially awesome because he wanted to eliminate the extra visits between his office and my OB's office, and we basically made the decision for me to continue to be seen exclusively at his office, eliminating the additional appointments with my OB. I will see him again in 3 weeks around 30 weeks, and then again around 33 weeks. Once I'm at 34 weeks, I'll likely start weekly appointments for growth ultrasounds and NSTs.

As for baby preparations at home, I haven't even started, y'all. 😳 Hubs and I had originally thought about closing in our upstairs loft and turning it into a 5th bedroom. This would allow us to put Chase in that room, move Squish into E's room, and leave the nursery for Cinco. However, we recently switched up our plans and are now planning to keep Chase and E in their room, keep the upstairs loft open, and put baby Cinco in the same room as Squish. I'm a little nervous about this because we've NEVER put a baby in a shared room. If you've successfully done this at some point with your kids, PLEASE send me some encouragement that it's going to work and it's going to be okay! All tips and suggestions are welcome! That said, I have no clue what I'm going to do with this combined room. Squish is in a toddler bed now (as of earlier this week!), and Cinco will obviously be in a crib. They will share a dresser and the closet. I have no idea how to decorate the room, what bedding to make/buy/use for Cinco, etc. I don't think I've ever felt this behind with preparing for a baby's arrival! There are only about 12 weeks left, so I'd better start figuring things out soon! Send virtual help and hugs my way, y'all!

Thanks for reading along with me on our journey! I'm grateful to the family and friends who have remembered us in prayer as I am dealing with pregnancy and a pending delivery during the COVID-19 pandemic. This is scary territory that I've never found myself in before now. I'm praying for the health and safety of my sweet baby during this scary time, and would covet your prayers as well.

Hugs, all!

20 Weeks!

This afternoon, we had our 20-week full anatomy ultrasound for baby #5 to make sure everything looked good. Our ultrasound tech was awesome and talked us through everything. Praise the Lord!!! Everything. looked. perfect. And it was SUCH a relief to see that healthy, four-chamber heart with my own eyes!

We're having a HEALTHY baby boy, y'all!!!

For fun comparisons, check out my 20-week post when I was pregnant with Squish and my 20-week post with E!

It was so good to see baby Cinco and get a healthy report. It gives me such peace of mind! I know God is creating the perfect little finale for our family, and I can't wait to meet him!

TBH, there was one little thing the tech noticed during the ultrasound. She was worried the placenta was covering the cervix. This would be problematic and, if it were the case, would force me to have a c-section. She took a closer look and, thankfully, it appears the placenta is right at the very edge of the cervix. This was a HUGE relief! The expectation is that it will continue to move further away as the pregnancy progresses. We'll definitely have to keep an eye on it, but I will be praying fervently that it continues to move away and doesn't impact the delivery.

My gestational diabetes is nicely under control with a basal dose of insulin each morning. While it is likely we will need to add a second dose at night, I'm totally fine with this treatment. Insulin helps me balance things nicely so I'm not limited to only meat and cheese and eggs for 3 meals per day! LOL!

Thanks again to everyone for praying for our sweet Cinco today. We are so grateful and thankful for the love and support of our family and friends!

19 Weeks

Here we are, approaching the half-way point of my pregnancy with Cinco, and I haven't really discussed much about it here on the blog since my 12 Week post. So, I figured it was about time for me to post a little pregnancy update.

I'm 19w4d today and am feeling pretty good overall! Check out that mango-sized baby bump!

This pregnancy has been rather uneventful, with the exception of what I'm about to share below.

For starters, I was diagnosed with gestational diabetes... again. This is my 3rd time with GD. My doctor prescribed insulin already... when I was 18 weeks. So a minimum of 4 finger pokes per day to check my blood sugar, and one shot of insulin each morning (likely increasing to a second shot in the evenings as well starting next week). For another 21 weeks. Good times, friends!

Let's go back to October 2019, a few weeks before I found out we were expecting... I started experiencing arrhythmias. Like, a lot of them. I had never had them before, so it was slightly unnerving to suddenly experience an onset of funky heart rhythms. I had actually even googled to see if arrhythmias were a sign of early pregnancy, since we were hoping for #5 at the time.

Fast-forward a bit, and we're happily expecting our last baby in July 2020. However, the arrhythmias continued to get stronger and more frequent. I'd speculate maybe 40-60 per day. Definitely more than enough to get your attention. I was concerned, but not terribly worried, until I started feeling lightheaded at times. In fact, I vividly recall the first Sunday in January when I was playing the piano for my church, and I literally felt like I was going to fall backwards off the bench at any time during both of our morning services! It was SO scary and unnerving! I was having a hard time catching my breath as well, and it was after that morning that I decided to talk to my doctor.

At my 16 week OB appointment in January, I discussed my concerns with my doctor. He suggested I completely eliminate caffeine and try to reduce stress. One of those things I could easily do. The stress part though? There was a lot going on. Homeschooling. Starting a part-time job. The unexpected death of a dear friend from high school. A house to run. Kids to feed. So.Many.Obligations. Reducing stress just wasn't something I could easily do.

While I did notice an improvement in the frequency of the arrhythmias after eliminating caffeine, they were still a significant issue. My OB decided to refer me to a Cardiologist, who I saw at the end of January.

The Cardiologist ordered a full workup, including an EKG and an Echocardiogram. He also had me wear a holter monitor for a week so we could track when the issues occurred and how often they were happening. I saw him yesterday for the Echo and to remove to holter monitor. I don't see the Cardiologist again for the results of my tests until the first week of March. I'm trying to be patient and not allow the stress and anxiety to worsen my symptoms. I trust God that everything will be fine, and that perhaps the arrhythmias are just a side-effect of being 100 years old and pregnant. 😂 Well, that combined with already having 4 crazy kids at home, plus homeschooling, plus working, plus... well, you get it. We all have to deal with all.the.things. in our lives, so this isn't anything new!

In the meantime, we have our 20 week full anatomy scan this Tuesday, February 11th. Please be praying along with us that everything with baby Cinco will be healthy! It was at this same anatomy scan appointment with Chase that we first discovered his congenital heart defect, so I won't even pretend that I'm not nervous and sightly apprehensive about this appointment. In the end, I fully trust in God's plan for my sweet family and know He will take care of us. I have been meditating over Matthew 6:25-34 concerning this anatomy scan next week and will continue to do so as God reveals His will in our lives.

The One with the Unidentified Allergic Reaction

Last Thursday, June 7th, we were celebrating our niece's graduation at my sister's house. It was a lovely day! LO had a riding lesson at noon, we came home and waited for hubs to finish with a work call, then the 6 of us headed to the graduation party.

Not more than 15 minutes after arriving, I happened to notice my mom and sister staring at Chase, inspecting his hands and feet. I came over to see what was going on and was SHOCKED to see that my son's hands and feet were swollen beyond anything I've ever seen in my life! He was also covered in hives over his face, neck, chest, back, and abdomen. I asked my sister for some Benadryl and took him upstairs. Chase was complaining that his hands and feet hurt (of course!) and he was cold (though he had a low-grade fever). After a hefty dose of children's Benadryl and some ibuprofen, I took him to a room to lie down and covered him with a blanket. I snuggled up next to him and called his pediatrician's office. Of course, it was just after 5pm, so I had to keep calling back until they turned the phones over to the answering service. I left a message for the nurse to call me back.

Chase was acting fine overall -- just sluggish/tired, cold, and achy. He was sipping on water and his breathing was normal. Then I looked at his fingers. His nail beds were BLUE. As in, pre-Fontan heart surgery blue. That was it for me. I told hubs we were taking him to MD360 to get a pulse ox on him and see what on earth is going on!

We left our 3 kids under the watchful eyes of my mom and two sisters and headed to MD360, which was only about 10 minutes away. The poor kid couldn't fit his swollen feet into his crocs, so I carried him inside to get him registered. While filling out paperwork, I informed the check-in lady that I needed to get him on a pulse ox ASAP, so she called back to the nurse. A few minutes later, hubs came in (after parking the car) and reiterated the urgency in getting a pulse oximeter on Chase because he's a heart kid. Within a few seconds, a nurse came out to look Chase over. She immediately said for us to come back. I carried Chase to a hospital-esque room (not the typical exam room) while hubs finished with the paperwork.

The nurse asked the same series of questions hubs and I had been pondering ourselves: has he eaten anything new/different? have we switched laundry or bath soaps? had he been exposed to any environmental allergens, etc. We had (and still have) no idea what caused this reaction! She checked his bp and o2 -- both of which were in range (for him). Thank you, Jesus!

The doctor came in a few moments later and assessed him. He essentially told us he has urticaria -- a.k.a. hives. He said it was viral and wanted to give Chase a steroid shot, after clearing it with his cardiologist.

We spent the next little while watching Chase enjoy Teen Titans and struggling to identify what caused all of this. Our poor boy. He looked absolutely pitiful, y'all.

He was covered all over in hives.

His hands were SO swollen.

And his feet were unrecognizable! Have you ever seen anything like this??

Even his knees were swollen! I've never seen anything like this before in my entire life!!

Bless his sweet heart! The doctor got approval for the steroid shot from cardiology, so my sweet boy had to get an unwelcome shot in his thigh. He was NOT a fan -- and I can't blame him!

We had to wait around 30 minutes to ensure the steroids were going to work. We also were given a prescription and were told to continue to give him Benadryl and Claritin for the next few days to ensure it doesn't reoccur. Once we had the all-clear, we stopped by the pharmacy and hubs and Chase were dropped off at home to get him settled on the couch and comfortable while I went to pick up the kiddos from my sister's house.

What an eventful evening! I'm just so grateful to the Lord for watching over our sweet Rock Star so this didn't turn into something much worse. He is faithful! And Chase was back to himself the next day. YAY!!!

20 Weeks!

On Monday, January 30th, we had our 20 week full anatomy ultrasound for baby #4 to make sure everything looked good. Our ultrasound tech was awesome and talked us through everything. We, of course, started with baby boy's heart and the first thing we clearly saw was FOUR CHAMBERS! Praise the Lord!!! The tech continued to check all of the standard "stuff" and everything. looked. perfect.

{{{ We're having a healthy baby boy!!!!!!!!!! }}}

It was so good to see baby "Rufus" -- did I mention that's what we're calling him until we decide on his actual name? hahahahaha! -- and to get a positive report from our beloved Perinatologist! We go back to see him at 26 weeks. He plans for me to have my glucose test at 24 weeks (usually it's scheduled at 28 weeks) so we can see if I'm going to go ahead and jump on the Gestational Diabetes bandwagon again this time around as I did with E's pregnancy. The odds are ever in my (unfortunate) favor that I will, and of course we'll want to start monitoring it sooner rather than later. #nomorecake #nomorecaramellobars

I can just hardly believe I'm half-way through this pregnancy already! I'm getting more and more anxious to meet this little guy. There's so much to do before his arrival, though, so I'm thankful to still have another 19 or so weeks ahead of me!

The One with the Plan... sort of!

Okay, so about a week ago I posted my frustrations with the conventional medicine approach to treating Hashimoto's Thyroiditis. Seriously. Paying top dollar to see a Specialist who refuses to listen to your legitimate and well-researched concerns? No thank you.

I've decided that -- SHOCKER! -- I won't be returning to my Endocrinologist for any further treatment. Their treatment plans may work for some, but certainly not for me. Whew! {sigh of relief}

So what's my plan? What is my plan? No really, y'all -- what is my plan?? I've made a few decisions lately but somehow I still find myself devoid of an actual plan. What decisions am I speaking of? How about these, for starters:

• Not returning to my Endocrinologist (duh)
• Making an appointment (end of May) with a new Internal Medicine practice -- just so I have someone who is deemed "suitable" for managing my Hashi's
• Making an appointment (this Wednesday!) with a Board-certified Chiropractic Neurologist and practitioner of functional medicine
• Eliminating gluten from my diet (as of March 16, 2016)
• Eliminating sugar from my diet (as of April 4, 2016)
• Eliminating dairy from my diet (as of April 4, 2016)
• Eliminating soy from my diet (as of April 4, 2016)
• Discontinuing my prescription thyroid medication Synthroid^® (as of April 5, 2016) - Note: This decision is sort of against medical advise. A bit risky, sure, but the right decision for me... at least for right now.

So lots of decisions, right?

Right. Basically I'm following a sort of gluten-free, sugar detox lifestyle of sorts. I see part of it as temporary, and part of it as permanent. Kind of an elimination diet where I eliminate several possible (and known) food sensitivities common in autoimmune disorders like Hashimoto's with the intent to eventually add them back (with the exception of gluten) over time  to see how my body responds. With all of the reading and researching I've done on Hashi's, it looks like a gluten-free diet is here to stay. Gluten just doesn't mesh well with thyroid disease. And the sugar detox? It hasn't been as bad as I expected. Side note: Thanks to this handy blog, I discovered I actually completed the 21 Day Sugar Detox (21DSD) back in 2014! Haha! Did I mention brain fog is a symptom of Hashi's? 'Cause it is. At least, if I remember correctly... ;)

I'm happy to say that I'm seeing a S-L-O-W decreasing trend in my weight since I eliminated the sugar. No surprise there, amiright? Slow and steady is nice. But weight loss isn't really my focus right now. I already know the thyroid gland controls our metabolism and that even a slight deficiency in thyroid hormones can slow down our metabolism (source). The weight is definitely on my radar, but right now I'm more interested in the underlying issues with the thyroid and -- more importantly -- my autoimmune system.

I picked up a great book last week that contains such an incredible wealth of information about Hashi's, including what can cause it, common symptoms, how to treat it, how to possibly reverse it, and basically how to address the underlying physiological issues that are the source of the disease.

I have been pouring through this book like a crazy person! And WOW has it been such an incredible resource! I feel prepared to speak on the conversion of Free T4 to active Free T3 when I see the functional medicine practitioner this week!

I think I'm ready for my medical degree, thankyouverymuch! haha! Let's just say I've been doing a LOT LOT LOT of research and am basically using myself as a bit of a guinea pig to figure out what will and will not work to adequately manage this autoimmune disease. What works for one person may not be the right fit for the next, so it's definitely going to take time and patience to get to the bottom of all of this. The good news is I'm more committed than ever to make the necessary lifestyle changes required to successfully live with Hashimoto's Thyroiditis.

Game on!

The One with the ARRGGGHHHHHH!!!

Okay, guys. So I mentioned in a previous post that I have Hashimoto's Thyroiditis disease. Awesome. And rather than be treated by the Internal Medicine Physician's Assistant I had placed my trust in the previous 15-ish years, I felt like I needed to go to a professional. Someone who KNOWS the thyroid. Specifically, an Endocrinologist.

So last December, I drove one hour round-trip out of my way to see a thyroid professional. I even had the added joy of spending double my usual co-pay in order to see said "Specialist." And never mind the fact that, following the appointment, they sent me "down the hall" to "the lab" to have my thyroid panel blood work completed, only to get a bill for almost $300 for a set of tests I've had done several times a year for almost 20 years that always averaged $20. Ya,  $20. So you could say I was pretty impressed with this "Specialist" on my first visit. WIN.

When I saw the doctor in December, I was taking 50 mcg of the generic form of Synthroid. The results were decent enough that he wanted to keep me at 50 mcg, but he preferred that I take the brand name (guessing there's a lot of love shared between big pharmaceuticals and physicians, huh?). But okay. Sure.

I went back in March to check my levels. They increased slightly. And he decided to increase my dose (which I'm still unclear as to why). Unfortunately, our Synthroid buddies only make a 50 mcg, then 75 mcg pill, and he wanted my increased dose somewhere between those. So he decided to prescribe 125 mcg pills, cut in half each day.

Ugh. I mentioned to him how my previous PCP told me that I cannot cut Synthroid pills in half because it would not provide a consistent, accurate dosage each day. He blew me off and assured me there would be no issues. Okay. I will trust him. After all, he's a Specialist, right?

So I cut the pills in half, but they are only scored on one side, and they were all definitely NOT cut into equal halves. Each morning I try to ensure I take a "good" half pill, rather than one of the tinier shards of pill that resulted from my less-than-accurate pill splitting. But this morning, well, the kids were a bit distracting and I clearly remember taking a tiny shard. I figure, if the Specialist says it'll be okay, it'll be okay. Right?

Notsomuch.

Today is Saturday. In fact, it's our first Saturday in quite some time without any events or activities scheduled. A day at home. A day, in my opinion, perfect for Spring Cleaning!

And all of the family said yay.

I have a list, y'all. It's a big list. Rooms that need cleared out. Closets that need combed through. Attics that need addressing. Garages that need some love. LOTS of stuff.

So why am I writing this post? Oh, right. Because I haven't completed a single dadgum thing on my entire To Do List yet. Bless hubs. He's tried to make a dent in it. He's kept the kids on-task with their lists. But me? I've. Been. In. My. Stinkin' (not literally). Bed. All. Dadgum. Day. Long. I just barely made it downstairs to the couch to chill with my laptop and write this post. My energy for today was NONEXISTENT. Where did it go? Is it possible one teeny tiny sliver of a pill could wreak such havoc? Say it ain't so!

Let me, in all my laziness, surf on over to Synthroid's official website. What do we have here?

Managing hypothyroidism requires getting a precise dose of medicine day after day. This is because levothyroxine products, including Synthroid, are narrow therapeutic index (NTI) drugs. If your dose is off even a little bit, you could experience symptoms of over‑treatment (too much medicine) or under‑treatment (too little medicine)."

What? So it is kind of important to take a precise dose every day. And you can experience symptoms of under-treatment? Mind. Blown. (not) And what is this NTI stuff? I've never heard of Narrow Therapeutic Index drugs. With all of the energy my lazy fingers could muster, I wandered through the interwebs to research this new term to learn how it may impact me:

"Because splitting of tablets produces high variability of tablet fragment sizes, the practice would be inappropriate with narrow therapeutic index medications."

"Narrow Therapeutic Index medications should not be included in a tablet-splitting program."

Oh. So you're saying I shouldn't be splitting my Synthroid pills? Right. Okay. That makes sense.

WHY ISN'T THE SPECIALIST I'M PAYING TO TREAT ME AWARE OF THESE THINGS?!

Guys. I'm frustrated. Seriously. And let's discuss for a moment how I've made the decision to be gluten-free in an attempt to aid in this drama with the hypothyroid symptoms. Almost 3 weeks now I've been GF. It hasn't been nearly the diet overhaul I expected it to be. It's totally doable. Yay for that! But in my googling frenzy, I researched the connection between Hashimoto's and gluten. Let me get all science-y here for a minute:

"The molecular structure of gliadin, the protein portion of gluten, closely resembles that of the thyroid gland. When gliadin breaches the protective barrier of the gut, and enters the bloodstream, the immune system tags it for destruction. These antibodies to gliadin also cause the body to attack thyroid tissue. This means if you have [thyroid disease] and you eat foods containing gluten, your immune system will attack your thyroid."

Well isn't that just lovely? But how about this dandy gem of info: SYNTHROID IS NOT GLUTEN-FREE. So basically we're taking a medication to treat a symptom and that medication is in turn contributing to the cause of the symptom! In other words, you could be taking hormones every day with dietary proteins that stimulate your autoimmunity. Gee, that's swell. More research:

And as far as the connection to gluten, there’s just no question that many people that have Hashimoto’s and hypothyroidism have gluten-sensitivity. For some patients, it’s life-changing when they go gluten-free... Obviously, there’s more things that need to be done besides being gluten-free if you have Hashimoto’s, but that is really one of the earliest, most impactful steps a person can take if they have a thyroid disorder.

I just can't make this stuff up, y'all. My research was nicely summarized with this finding: "...continuing to eat gluten when you have a confirmed autoimmune condition simply isn’t worth risking the immune destruction it could cause."

Again, WHY ISN'T THE SPECIALIST I'M PAYING TO TREAT ME AWARE OF THESE THINGS?!

Ugh. I promise I'm not one of those people who believe everything they read on the Internet is true. But I've done some real research. Hubs has done some real research. We are not making this stuff up. And it's so incredibly frustrating that in this day and age, we cannot simply place our trust and faith in the medical personnel who swore an oath to help us maintain our health. We have to question everything. Just like I learned through Chase's diagnosis and heart surgeries as a baby that we had to be his advocate, we need to continue to be our own advocates when it comes to ensuring our proper health and well-being.

I'm not sure what my next steps are. I emailed my "Specialist" to ask for his opinion re: gluten-free diets and Synthroid pill-splitting. We shall see what he comes back with. But in the meantime, I'm going to increase my fervency on my GF diet (i.e. paying special attention to potential areas of cross-contamination) and research other medications (prescription or otherwise) that can be used to treat this disease instead of Synthroid.

Wish me luck? But most of all, be patient with me... I swear I'm just not myself right now.

The One Where I Say, "Thank You!"

Okay, so I was getting ready to write up a quick post about my new toddler-bed-sleeping baby almost 3-year-old, but first I felt compelled to take a minute to write a quick post to say Thank You to the MANY people who read this post and offered kind words to me through encouraging facebook comments and private messages. I did not realize how many people have experienced issues with their thyroid, whether it by hypothyroidism or hyperthyroidism ('cause they're quite different!), nor did I realize the MANY various ways others have found relief from the symptoms of thyroid disease.

T H A N K  Y O U !

It is so encouraging to know I'm not alone in this! And it's inspiring to see that -- when we take just a moment to be vulnerable enough to share what's really happening in our lives, and not the "perfection" we seem to portray on social media -- people will respond in wonderful, unexpected, and encouraging ways!

I'm so very grateful for those of you who continue to support my family and I as we "do life" together. Thank you for being a blessing!

The One Where I Talk About Myself

Can I be real?

You know, just for a second or two. I'll make it quick. Promise.

Those of you who've been reading here for a while know I rarely write about myself. I mean, with a husband, three kids--one of whom sent our world spiraling out of orbit with his prenatal CHD diagnosis--and the guise of overseeing homeschool perfection on a daily basis, it's not often that "mommy" makes an appearance in my stream of consciousness. Nothing personal, self; you're just not that interesting.

But I struggle.

There. I said it.

I struggle. With life, with parenting, with marriage, with health, with friendships, with serving God, with serving others, with balancing life, with defining priorities... the list goes on and on.

And, as they say, the struggle is real.

Now I won't pretend for one second that I'm alone in any of these struggles. We are all fighting for our families and livelihoods while simultaneously fighting against the enemy and his efforts to steal, kill, and destroy. And while I know my God is bigger than any obstacle I find in the road ahead of me, I still call out this whole "being human" thing every now and then, and how unfortunate it can be at times.

Here's the good news: I'm not going to rant on and on about all of the struggles because, let's face it, your interest level and attention span (not to mention my will to vent) isn't conducive to such extemporaneous dialogue. So I'll be moving right along now and focusing in on one key area: my health.

I'm going to share a tiny gem here that very few people are aware of: I was diagnosed with a fairly common disorder called Hypothyroidism waaaaaaaaaay back in high school (waaaaaaaaaay back = the 90s. Like, the 1990s. To confirm, Me = Dirt). The diagnosis didn't mean much to me at the time. I didn't have any symptoms, but was told my thyroid levels were whack and that I'd need to take a daily pill for the rest of my life. Yay?

Fast-forward about a decade (geez I'm old!), and you'd find the newly-married hubs and I looking to populate the world with our sure-to-be genius offspring. A positive pregnancy test and a vat of joy and excitement unfortunately ended in an early miscarriage. Two months later, another positive pregnancy test and optimistic excitement also ended with the same unfortunate result.

We were stunned. Disappointed. Confused. Just to name a few.

With a little bit of research, we discovered the importance of hormone levels in successful pregnancies. Any guesses on which gland is responsible for secreting hormones?

Spoiler alert: it's the thyroid.

With a quick online search, you'd find research concluding that "hypothyroidism has a statistically significant relationship with recurrent pregnancy loss in the first trimester."

Darn you, thyroid!

Of course you all must know by now that I successfully birthed three of those supposed genius offspring. This was only possible with monitoring thyroid levels during each trimester of pregnancy, adjusting my daily maintenance medication as needed. It wasn't a terrible inconvenience, but it certainly added a new level of stress during pregnancy since we were very aware of what would happen should those levels get too out of whack.

So we've established that (A) the thyroid is important and (B) it sort of plays an important role in pregnancy. Got it.

Wanna know another side effect of hypothyroidism? I knew you would. I could wait here while you google it, but I'll save us both the time: Weight gain.

{And all the women everywhere sing the Hallelujah Chorus a la Handel's Messiah. Only not.}

Can we all just agree to have a thyroid issue to explain away the weight gain? Seems legit to me!

Ugh. But really, this is where my latest health struggle lies. In December of last year, my endocrinologist tested me for Hashimoto's Thyroiditis disease, and the results were positive. This wasn't terribly unexpected, and in the end doesn't really impact how I will be treated; however, it did explain the underlying issue of my hypothyroidism.

Apparently, our dear friend Hashimoto's disease is a condition in which your immune system attacks your thyroid... you remember, that lovely little gland responsible for producing hormones that coordinate many of your body's activities? All the activities. Like the weight. And the gaining. Oh the gaining.

Y'all know how frustrating managing one's weight can be, especially as one's age grows closer to yet another round number... and how difficult it can be when you make everything else a priority rather than properly caring for yourself. There are just so many things/people vying for your attention, amiright? All. The. Things.

But I digress. Well maybe not just yet. Let's take a look at a little graph here for a bit of a visual aid, shall we? In the effort of full disclosure (thus empty embarrassment?), my actual weight in numbers shall not be publicized here on the interwebs because, really, right? But I will disclose that the horizontal gray lines on this here graph each represent ten pound increments.

I'll await your gasping and/or calculating of the gray lines. I wish I had the ability to share further back than just a year, because you'd see that graph all. over. the. place. It's insane. And frustrating.

It doesn't seem to matter what I do--diet, exercise, exorcism of my sweet tooth, et cetera. My attempts are futile as it seems my body has its own interests in mind, which, apparently, is holding on to every ounce of weight to the utmost conceivable degree whilst searching out it's next dozen pounds.

Bless it.

I was hoping to get things figured out but oh, the tweaking. The tweaking of my medication is driving me certifiably insane. The consolation I find is that I'm no longer depending on a primary care physician to make their best educated guesses on where my levels should be; I've started seeing an endocrinologist whose job it is to know how to bring these numbers into submission. But even still, we continue to tweak my medication levels in an attempt to find the right balance that accounts for my immune system's evil desire to attack my perfectly innocent thyroid.

Will we ever get there???

I can hope so. I believe so.

But we aren't there yet. And that means I continue to do my best at managing the symptoms of this disease, which hands-down, my favs have to include the weight gain, fatigue, and stiffness/swelling in my wrists < - - - - note: not the best situ for a computer-wielding, piano-playing, cake-decorating, overall significant wrist-using individual.

I'm guessing it's quite likely that one or more of my faithful blog readers can identify with the life of hypothyroidism, and if so, I'm hopeful you're getting the treatment you need to be a productive (albeit tired) member of society. And I really hope y'all don't mind me being real here about this. I'm so grateful this "battle" of mine is as insignificant and unimportant as it is... I'm fully aware that many are suffering with much more serious and life-threatening diseases. But since this is my blog after all, I decided to take a cathartic moment to unload a bit of stress and be honest about life. Because I'm learning that it's okay to share a struggle -- whether big or small -- as we all go about doing life together, supporting one another, and encouraging whenever possible. And I pray in exchange that you will give me the same opportunity to love and support and encourage you with whatever life has thrown at you. I'm here and I know how to listen and pray!

Just as long as I can fit it in between donuts and nap time. ;)

First Surgery... Six Years Later

Six years ago today, at 6:33 AM, I watched helplessly as my 7-day-old son was wheeled down a long hallway inside the Medical University of South Carolina, towards the Operating Room, to undergo his first life-saving open-heart surgery, the Norwood Operation. This was the last picture I took of him before he was wheeled away to the OR:

It would be a grueling, arduous 8 hours and 23 minutes before we received word that the surgery was complete. I can recall those moments in the PCICU waiting room in vivid detail, as if it were just yesterday that I helplessly awaited each and every update from the OR, informing me of whether or not my newborn baby was handling this open-heart operation as we had hoped and prayed. I remember who was there with us as we waited. I remember the sights and sounds of the waiting room. I remember the smell of the antibacterial hand soap in the bathrooms. I remember walking into the PCICU throughout the day to grab the key to the pumping room to develop a supply of milk to nourish my baby via ng-tube, since it was uncertain when or if he would be able to take a bottle. I remember walking across the street for lunch. I remember the relationships with other families in similar situations with their children that we established. It all seems so surreal -- like it was yesterday, but also a lifetime ago.

This is what I shared on my blog on November 2, 2009 after I saw Chase for the very first time following surgery:

Hubs and I got to see Chase for about 5 minutes once he was stable in the PCICU following his surgery. They had a blanket over him so I didn't see his open chest or any of the chest tubes, lines, etc. that were added during the surgery. He looked very peaceful and not as swollen as I was expecting, although we were told he would get more swollen over the next day or two. Luckily we were very pleased to hear he was already peeing out some of the excess fluid, which was a big blessing to know his renal system was functioning well so soon after surgery. We were also told they had been able to reduce some of the medications he was on as well! This is all very encouraging!!! 

I will admit I'm fearful of the next 24 to 48 hours as Chase's body responds to the major changes to his heart and circulatory system. I'm scared we're going to get a call at 2AM telling us something is terribly bad with him. But I know that's just my human side trying to prepare for the worst-case scenario, when truly I should be focusing on the miracle of what God did in Chase's life today and the peace He's given me for our future and our little boy! This is hard but I know it's doable with God in control of our lives. 

This is the first photo I took of Chase after he returned from the OR. There were so many lines, wires, medications... it was unbelievable to see my newborn baby like this. The nurse had placed a blanket over his chest so I wouldn't be able to see his beating heart, as his chest was left open following the surgery to account for swelling (it would be 3 days before the surgeon would close his chest).

Today, as I think of the past 6 years and the path God has brought us through, I cannot help but thank Him and praise Him for his love, mercy, and healing touch on my sweet son! Just last week, we had the honor and privilege of celebrating six years with this incredible boy! He is such an amazing, compassionate, and loving little guy and the biggest blessing in my life! ♥

18 Months!

I can hardly believe my littlest E is now a full-fledged 18-month-old! He's walking (and occasionally running) all over the place these days and his vocabulary is increasing by the minute! He LOVES all things "ball!" (basically anything remotely round or spherical, whether flat or 3-dimensional, is considered a "ball" in his world) and has a pretty hefty appetite, as his sister and brother did when they were his age. His smile is the BEST and his giggle is killer! He is SO MUCH FUN and I just adore him to pieces! I can barely recall when LO and Chase were still little like him, but I'm pretty sure this age is just all-around the best and so totally fun!

He had the privilege of visiting the doctor's office today for his 18-month well visit, which included TWO shots (the poor babe!). He did super great and overall the doctor was pleased with his growth and progress. He's sitting at a whopping 9th percentile for weight, 14th percentile for length and 41st percentile for head circumference. So basically he's a tiny, short toddler with a big ol' noggin! LOL!

He's still working on getting some new teeth in, most of which are now molars. That's fun. But for the most part, he's been a real champ! Last week he had a bout of high fever and needed some extra cuddles. Lucky for him, not only was Mommy nearby, but his Mona was there to snuggle him, too!

E is such a clown and LOVES to make everyone laugh! He finds that if he does something once and someone laughs at him, then it's totally worth doing again. And again. And again! He especially loves to act crazy and imitate his big sis and big bro, almost always garnering a chuckle from one or more of his audience.

Here are a few more videos of this silly boy of ours!

 

Phew. I feel such a sense of relief to have finally written a post about little E! I think it's been since his birthday 6 months ago that I wrote a post devoted to him! Seems I did a great job of blogging LO's early years, and of course I obviously posted a LOT about all that was going on with Chase when he was a baby, but I guess this whole "third child" thing combined with homeschooling combined with all of the other things that vie for my time have left me with little time to blog! I'm really trying to do better about that because this blog basically serves as my memory because, as the three kids may indicate, I can't remember much about anything anymore! LOL!

Five Years Later

FIVE YEARS AGO TODAY.

It seems like a lifetime ago, yet I can recall each and every detail so vividly and clearly.

We weren't expecting it. We certainly didn't ask for it. We never dreamed it would become our reality.

And yet, there we were. We found ourselves in a Perinatologist's office and were awaiting the official results of the high-risk ultrasound we just completed on our unborn baby boy -- our first son -- our sweet Chase.

There are no words to express how it feels to hear the child you are carrying inside you has a heart defect that is fatal without a series of invasive treatments beginning immediately following his birth.

There are no words to express how it feels to have the joy and expectation of your child's healthy future so suddenly ripped from your heart.

There are no words to express how it feels to fear leaving the hospital with empty arms and a broken heart rather than with your new bundle of joy.

There are no words to express how it feels to become a "Heart Mom." But that's exactly what I became that day. And now, exactly five years later, I wouldn't trade a moment of it for the world! Of course I wish my son had been born healthy, but God---in His infinite wisdom---knew that we were the perfect parents for Chase, and we have been blessed beyond measure to see Him working right in front of our eyes! Chase is every bit a living, breathing miracle of the love and blessings of God and I could not be more thankful to be on this journey as his mommy.

But I often think of how our world was turned upside-down that fateful Tuesday morning. I can easily recall those unimaginable emotions I had never before felt in my lifetime. I remember what it felt like to be told my unborn son was not healthy and learn how his future was very much in jeopardy.

On Tuesday, June 16th, hubs and I left LO with Mona and met at the specialist's office for our ultrasound appointment. We were taken back and the technician started the ultrasound. She did some of the same measurements they had done the day before, and I patiently waited for her to give us an "all clear."

To my utter shock and horror, I vividly remember her muttering the phrase "I won't pretend that every is okay..." as she was trying to coerce the baby to move into the right positions so she could get a look at exactly what was going on. She left the room and brought the specialist, Dr. G, back in with her, and had him continue with the ultrasound. He was focusing on our son's heart, although all we could see was the black and white image surrounded with red and blue blotches that apparently indicated blood flow.

The doctor then dropped a completely unexpected bomb on us which we were not prepared to handle. He told us that it appeared our son had Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome (HLHS) and a Ventricular Septal Defect (VSD). We were in utter disbelief. We had never heard of either of these conditions and immediately wanted to know what the impact would be for our unborn son.

We left the ultrasound room and waited for the perinatologist in a tiny little room where he would come in and explain a bit more about these conditions. It felt like an eternity in that little room, our minds racing and buzzing with all of the "what ifs" and "how did this happen" etc.

The doctor finally came in and explained to us that HLHS is one of the most complex and rare congenital heart conditions in which the left side of the heart is critically underdeveloped. With HLHS, the left side of the heart can't effectively pump blood to the body, so the right side of the heart must pump blood both to the lungs and to the rest of the body. Without treatment, hypoplastic left heart syndrome is FATAL, usually within the first few days of life.

The doctor attempted to provide 4 options to us, the first of which was termination of the pregnancy. I wouldn't even let him get the words out of his mouth before interrupting to tell him that wasn't an option. The next option was called "comfort care" where the baby is born and you do basically nothing but hold and love him until he passes, within the first few days of his life. Again, NOT an option. The third option was a heart transplant, in which case it would be very unlikely to find a new heart for our son within the first few days of his life. The final option was the ONLY option for us. It involves a three-step surgical procedure designed to create normal blood flow in and out of the heart, allowing the body to receive the oxygen-rich blood it needs. It is by no means a permanent "fix" to the problem, but rather a way to surgically reconstruct the heart to make it more likely to perform the functions of a regular heart.

As you might imagine, we were completely devastated at the diagnosis, and for the next 24-48 hours, we were totally numb as we both attempted to digest the information and wrap our minds around what was in store for us. We felt totally deflated, and the joy and anticipation of the pregnancy and of expecting a new baby were completely lost.

We struggled through the first week, telling only immediate family and a few close friends about our situation. It was a very difficult and trying time, most of which I spent researching HLHS on the Internet, finding both uplifting, positive information as well as deflating, disappointing, heart wrenching information.

So finally today arrives, Monday, June 22nd. We had our appointment with a Pediatric Cardiologist, Dr. H. While we weren't expecting the diagnosis to change, we were hopeful that he wouldn't find any additional problems with the baby or his heart. Dr. H did confirm the diagnosis of HLHS and confirmed the baby would need the 3 surgeries in order to live.

While we are still reeling with the information and are devastated to learn that our baby has a serious and rare heart defect, we are trusting in God for His hand of healing and protection on our son. We know He is able to do more than we could ever ask or imagine, and will continue to trust in Him throughout this journey.

I have never allowed myself to imagine the future and have always taken things one day at a time -- living in the moment as best as I could. I was afraid to believe we would have our boy with us for even 5 days, much less 5 months or 5 years! Or that he would be living and thriving and truly enjoying his life, with just half a heart? It was beyond fathomable.

But as I look back and reflect on the past 5 years, I see that I've learned something incredibly valuable:

 God gives us exactly what we need, right when we need it. 

I never could have made it through the last half of my pregnancy with Chase without God giving me the peace I needed to make it through.

I never could have delivered my son and watch him be whisked away, waiting over two hours to hold him for the first time.

I never could have sat by his bedside for 6 days, patiently waiting for my second opportunity to hold my newborn baby---the night before his first open-heart surgery at 7 days old.

I never could have watched as my tiny baby rolled down the hallway to the OR -- not once, or twice, but a total of SEVEN times so far---three of which were to repair his tiny heart.

I never could have made it through the past five years without God providing me with exactly what I needed, right when I needed it.

His grace. His peace. His love. His mercy. His healing. His faithfulness.

We are so blessed! This boy is absolutely amazing and I praise the Lord for allowing me the privilege of being his mommy!

I LOVE YOU, MY SWEET CHASE!!!!!

Post-Fontan Night 2

Night #2 was both good and bad. Mostly good I guess. Chase seemed to be resting somewhat well throughout the early evening. He mentioned his tummy was hurting several times but it wasn't clear if it was nausea, the chest tubes or a need to poop.

Around 12:30 AM, we had our answer when he puked. A lot. Everywhere. The poor thing! I have no idea where the volume came from as he hadn't had more than a few sips of juice and bites of crackers all day. But there it all went, and then some! Along with the Tylenol and Oxycodone I had fought with him to take an hour earlier. A bed change and lots of wet wipes later, he was resting again.

Then per the norm, our middle of the night chest X-Ray showed up around 3:30 AM. Chase's favorite. It was over quickly and he tolerated it well. But had a tough time going back to sleep.

I asked his nurse for meds to help and we agreed we didn't want to give him or Tylenol or Oxycodone as his tummy would probably not handle it well. She & I agreed on some IV morphine. She came back and dosed him up and I waited patiently for him to settle down. Only he started acting... silly. Like, loopy silly. I got very concerned as this is not his typical response to morphine. He also got the hiccups which was weird and seemed very uncomfortable what with the chest incision and tubes.

I checked with the nurse and she had added Versed to his cocktail.

Huh!?

She said the day nurse told her it made him sleepy?? This was news to me! I hadn't heard he had been dosed with any Versed other then prior to his surgery Friday morning.

She also said the hiccups were from the Versed too. Ugh! Poor guy! He needed to rest but instead had the hiccups and was telling me I had 5 eyeballs. He was so chatty and loopy... not at all what we needed or expected.

Luckily he seemed to finally calm down and settle after about 20 minutes of crazy. And he slept well for the most part.

The nurse told me his chest X-Ray looked hazy, "very hazy," actually, and the echo tech would be heading in to take some pics of his heart to look for perfusions. I believe the haziness is somewhat expected since he's confined to bed and unable to move around to get that extra fluid off his lungs.

So the echo tech arrives at 6:30 AM to my sleeping baby boy, but was very quiet and gentle and able to get the images he needed without much disruption. He did see a good bit of fluid but it was a pretty typical amount for this stage of Fontan recovery. We'll just need to get him up and moving soon to help flush that fluid out through his chest tubes.

Sunday should (hopefully) be a rather quiet day. We should have more direction, information and a game plan after morning rounds on Monday.

Thanks for checking in and praying for Chase!!!

Quarantine: Day 12 (The One Where Chase's Surgery Date Changes)

What a day! I'll start with the most obvious point of interest: we got a call today that Chase's Fontan needed to be moved to accommodate a more critical surgery. It's only going to shift by two days, and our preferred surgeon is still performing the operation, but he will be away (not on call) for several days following Chase's Fontan. That doesn't give us a warm & fuzzy, but we've got to go with it because the only other option was JUNE, which obviously isn't very conducive to the plans and details we already have in place. My thoughts and prayers are with the family whose child is in urgent need of Chase's original surgery time slot.

So whew! That's gonna take some adjusting to, but I'd guess we just adjust our entire game plan by two days and just hope and pray that it doesn't get moved again!

Today was a pretty busy day for me. E had his 1-year checkup, which of course meant I fed him his first PB&J while we waited. You know, so if he does happen to be allergic to peanuts, we'd be in the right place to care for him.



But he passed with flying colors while scarfing down half a sandwich not long after he had eaten breakfast! All was well with his checkup.




Two vaccinations and one finger stick for a CBC later, and we were on our way!

After dropping him at home, I then went straight to LO's school to see her prized Subway lunch reward in action. She chose her (boy)friend (?!!!) celebrate with her. She was surprised that I came to join them for lunch, and she told me about the many other surprises she had that morning, including getting to celebrate her summer birthday today with her friends. She wore a pretty pink dress for her last day at school.



After lunch with LO, I came home for a bit before it was time to head back to the school as a Computer Lab volunteer with her class. She insisted I take of picture of her with her (boy)friend.







After Computer Lab I made sure all of her library books were returned, filled out her withdrawal papers, grabbed my girl and made a run for it! Haha! She was pretty happy about her last day. I'm glad she was so positive about it.

While I had planned to spend the afternoon packing, I now find myself chilling with my iPhone while the boys are napping, writing this post instead. I don't imagine there are any big plans tonight, but if anything spectacular happens, I'll be sure to mention it in tomorrow's quarantine update.

Thanks for your continued thoughts and prayers!

Quarantine: Day 10 (The One with E's 1st Birthday)

Quarantine day 10, also known as E's actual 1st birthday, was a huge success! I started out my morning by taking LO to school. My last time dropping her off for 1st grade! Hubs usually takes her, so it was a fun change in our routine for today.

Not long after that, I enjoyed lots of love and cuddles with this little birthday boy of mine. He loves sticking his tongue out these days... silly boy!

Then it was time for birthday pancakes! I can't believe he's ONE!

Love my cutie!

My boy went to town on his first pancake! No need to cut it up, mom. I've got this.

Seriously, we have yet to find a food this boy won't scarf down!

I had big lunch plans with my girl today. Seems she won a special Subway lunch (this one deserves its own blog post) but I was worried it would happen after we leave for Charleston, so I promised her I would bring her lunch from Subway today. We sat with some of her best friends and she seemed to really enjoy it! Funny thing was I got a call this evening from the school that they are going to have her special lunch this Friday since they knew she'd be leaving. What a special surprise! Two Subway lunches in one week? That never happens!

Here's my perfectly posed sweetheart with a few of her besties.

Dinner was so much fun tonight!

This boy loves his big sis!

Mmmmmmm... mashed potatoes!

Love my silly Chase!

After dinner we had a little family celebration for E's big day. Of course we started with the wonderful cake LO and Chase created for him.

Yay! Cake time!

I love love love E's face in this pic! Not sure if the fire was a little too close for his liking? Or maybe he too was overwhelmed by the number of sprinkles on one single cake?

Eating the cake, of course, was no problem! He comes from a family armed with more sweet-tooths (teeth?) than one could imagine!

Once the cake was all gone cleaned up, we brought out one last birthday present. You can see he was thrilled.

He really loved his new ride-on toy! And I just love this happy baby of mine!

My sweet boy!

Other highlights of the day? I was able to get the letter from LO's principal that we were waiting on, so YAY! Also, I finished up Chase's Toy Story hospital gown. But other than that, we're still in a bit of a holding pattern...