Brothers!

Aidan holding Daniel. This is the first time that when asked he said, "Yes!"

A realization...

Random thoughts here....

When I was passing my kidney stones in September '09 and went to the ER. (We did not know at the time I had stones.) They asked my pain on a scale of 1-10 and I pointed to Aidan and Logan and said, "I would rather be having one of them right now." This is also after I puked my guts out, proceeded to at the ER and the entire next week. So, Am I a Baby who can't tolerate pain?! Did I forget what it was like to have a Baby?! I mean I got an epidural with the first two, but could two minuscule stones feel worse than having an 8 lb or 5 lb Baby?!

Well, now I have to say, "YES!!!!"

Two tiny minuscule stones hurt WAY WAY worse than a 7 lb Baby with no drugs. Mind you there was no "relaxation" breathing done, no ways of "coping." I did not have a choice and resisted it the entire way. Finally it came to a point I could not resist and my body did what it had to do but I was tense the entire time trying to hold the kid in! Not one ounce of vomit produced....strange huh?!

So if you ever THINK you have kidney stones and aren't sure...If it hurts more than having a kid(if you have had one) then there is a chance that is what they are.

Yes...not sure what an 8 lb baby feels like...but I do know the 7lb. AND a sweet little baby (even one that has screamed for hours on end for the past 6 weeks) is a MUCH better result for the pain than two tiny rocks that your kidneys produced.

The Chaos ensues

Yes, three kids three and under for us is just plain chaos. Well, two kids were chaos..actually Aidan was chaos. I am not complaining by ANY MEANS. Just stating the cold hard facts of our crazy wonderful family. The past 6 weeks have been more chaos than I could ever have imagined. I knew having three young kids would definitely be a challenge but we both were more than happy to take on.

So, I guess from the get go with Daniel it has been "chaotic." I deemed him "Tricky #3" after my second appointment with the OB Gyn and they mentioned the anti-c issue. Thankfully that stayed in check so we became more confident. Then there was near the end protein in my urine and a 3rd trimester ultrasound that they wanted to do since Logan was such an tiny one. They wanted to make sure Daniel was growing well and since Logan was deemed a "possible intrauterine growth restricted" baby apparently there was an increased possibility of that again. Well, Daniel checked out just fine and dandy. Then there was the ever so eventful birth. So, the crazy should have been long gone. I mean the labor was more than enough for a Grande Finale, you think right??!

So we came home with this precious little man who nursed like a champ and was so peaceful. Well, until our first night home. Just a fluke right?! Things were a little better but the kid ate for hours on end and started puking everything he ate. Hmmm...but he is gaining weight, so no worries. At his 2 week check up the Doctor suggested some things to try. We experimented with every formula on the market. Nothing helped, he began puking and screaming for HOURS AND HOURS of the day. Hmmm...finally this past Monday the "treatment" of small more frequent meals and yucky Soy formula was not making Daniel any more comfortable. I called back on Monday and they decided they want to try him on Zantac. So I am NOT A FAN of medicating him however, I clarified my concerns about seeing a specialist and was happy with the answers our Doc had and knowing what steps we were going to proceed with. I mean Monday was pretty horrendous the screaming (not crying) bouts began at 2am that one lasted until 6:20am when I had a sleeping baby that I could put down. Yeah, he slept until 8am and the screaming continued. By 2p on Monday he had screamed for 7 of the past 12 hours.

So, came the time to get the script from the pharmacy. It was called in before 3 p you think at after 5 it would be a simple give them the insurance card, pay for it and leave. YEAH RIGHT!

Apparently the pharmacy I chose was backed up. Oh well, that is the way things go no reason to get my panties in a wad. The staff I spoke to informed me it must not be called in yet. Well, then why would the nurse give me a specific time she called in? So, I nicely played along. Eventually she realized that not only were the horribly behind they did not check the call in line for apparently over 3 hours.

Smooth right?! Guess what they had the call for Daniel. Soooo, she asked if I wanted to wait for it. UM YES!!!! 20-30 more minutes, OK, I walk around the store. 40 minutes later I am FINALLY leaving with it.

I am SO glad Kate offered to come sit with the Boys instead of me dragging the crew along.

I got home to and wanted to get his first dose in. Funny, thing he was now coughing. Hmmm. Could it be a reflux cough?! So I waited it out.

Tuesday the cough was not dry sounding but very congested. Strange. Daniel would also cry and whimper after a coughing spell. Strange. You know the Boys had "the funk" and shared it with Andrew and I. Could the Baby have it?!

So, Wednesday I decided to drop a call into one of the nurses and just use her as a sounding board. I wanted to know could the Baby have RSV or just a reflux cough.

This phone call was a GIANT waste of my time. She fluffed me off and treated me as a hypochondriac mother. Then proceed to ask, if he sleeps flat on his back, do we keep him upright after feedings, how are his poops, breast or bottle feeding, what kind of formula?

OK, hmm...most of this should be in his chart since the formula and feeding schedule was suggested by the doctor. OK, real relevant since I am asking about a cough. She also brought up that "we saw him last week." I said yes and he had an ultrasound. She asked, "Really?! Why?!" THIS SHOULD BE IN THE CHART!!!! She did not answer my question or be of any help and only frustrated me further. She told him her opinion was the cough was reflux and to give the Zantac time to work. I WASN'T CALLING ABOUT PAIN. I was calling about the cough. So, I clarified what I already knew. Zantac only takes way the pain by reducing stomach acid. It WILL NOT stop the reflux from happening. She agreed. So, again I am extremely frustrated that she tells me again to "give it time to work." I must be speaking in tongues. At the end of the waste of time conversation I am told , "You're his Mother. We're HAPPY to see him IF you want to bring him in, but in my opinion he is fine and the cough is "normal",  IF Dr. Foor is not happy with what I have told you , we will call you back, but he DOES have to sign off on our phone call."

I was LIVID!! Lesson learned I will specify which nurse I would like to speak with when I call from now on and Kathy will NOT be one of them.

So, the cough persisted and worsened. Poor Daniel could not get comfortable to sleep. He ate just before 8p and we went to bed around 11. Strangely he had not eaten. We assumed we would be awake within 30 minutes to feed. I thought and mentioned I guess from the past 6 weeks of screaming he must finally be catching up on sleep. He sure did sleep a lot.

Well, then I wake up at 1am to Baby D rustling around. I go get a bottle ready come back upstairs and Andrew and Daniel are asleep. Strange. So I play on the iPod and wait. I wake Andrew up and mention how strange it us. hmm 5 hours and the schedule he is on he goes maximum 3 hours in between since he has to eat small amounts. (fun huh?!) I take the bottle put it in the fridge and turn out the lights. He REALLY will wake up the moment I relax. I jump awake look at the clock. It's almost 3am.

This IS NOT RIGHT! I wake Andrew and Daniel. I get the bottle he HAS TO EAT! 7 hours in between?! I look at the feeding log (we have to keep it because we cannot remember when he eats or how much since it is constant feeding). He only ate 13 oz in 24 hours. This can't be good, because he was eating about 4 ounces 6 times a day before we changed the schedule. The Doctor is always telling you on average how much they should eat at each well check. I pulled out the AAP book (American Academy of Pediatrics) that the Doctor's Office gave us.

On average a baby his age should eat 2.5 oz for every pound of body weight. Hmm...we're way off that.

I also had noticed earlier but thought it was me. He eye lids were red and puffy, his eyes were watering too. Same thing the Big Boys had with a fever. So we take a temp. Not really a fever. I decided he WILL see HIS doctor. I will stand my ground. Turns out when I called they where, "OK, he has a 10:15." Gee, that wasn't hard.

Super Long story short, Little Daniel does not have a cough from reflux. It is a virus called RSV and a double ear infection. Our miserable Baby just can't catch a break. RSV can last 2-3 weeks and the only upsides are he doesn't have a high fever or wheezing. If he starts wheezing and/or turning blue he will need medical attention ASAP. Here's hoping it's just this obnoxious cough and congestion.

So, we thought things couldn't get any crazier...haha yeah right. :-)

Sunday Morning at home

This past week was more adventurous than the last 5 crazy weeks.

Starting Sunday afternoon Aidan developed a fever to go with his cold(that started over the weekend). It was gone by Tuesday yet he was on the brink of tears over everything. He stayed home from school to rest up. There is still a residual cough that sounds like he has the plague but he is perking up after some much needed rest and TLC.

Logan picked up the runny nose Monday or Tuesday and by Wednesday afternoon he developed a fever that is still going strong. Poor Logan is so super congested he has a hard time sleeping unless the humidifier is on. He spends his sleep time hacking. The coughing often brings him to tears. Like Aidan was with the fever his eyes are red, puffy and tearing. It is pretty pitiful looking. He'll play then lay on the floor or want cuddled if something does not work just right, he is hysterical. The hysterics lead to the nose running more and then the hacking comes full forces with gagging. Here is hoping he turns around soon. My gut is telling me it is progressing from a super yucky cold to an infection of sorts. I guess for his first fever it needs to make its mark.

Onto our newest bundle of screams..oh I mean joy. It was quite the week for Daniel the screaming was peaking and followed by not spit but a nice amount of forceful vomiting. Vomiting so much it resulted in changing ourselves, him and cleaning whatever he was on(ie: furniture, play mat, Boppy etc.) The screaming grimacing and red face were in full force. The screaming was anytime of day and night. The only comfort to him was to be held and he still would scream out. His little eyes were pleading for help of any kind.

A friend recommended a fantastic homeopathic medicine called "Colic Calm." On Monday we spoke to our Doctor again. We talked of our concerns and what else can we try to help him. He said to give the Colic Calm a try and if in a few days it is not working to call back and his next step was Zantac. Kind of a leap for not seeing him in 2 weeks. The Colic Calm is amazing it will seriously take away their hiccups by the time they are done swallowing a dose. It did Calm him however, eventually it would work but for maybe 10 minutes a time and the instructions say to repeat the dose in 30 minutes if not working and there is maximum of 6 doses a day hopefully you see where we are heading here and there are 24 doses in a $20 bottle. As we have seen with any change we have made for him the first 24 hours seem fantastic then we are back to square one with a vengeance.

So we made it to Wednesday and gave the pediatricians office a call I spoke to our pediatricians wife and she said just get this kid in. Of course we couldn't get in until 4p and that was a long day of projectiling, screaming, Logan developed a fever and Aidan still whining from his cold. By the time to go, I was worn thin. Daniel was on outfit #4 and I was on #2. The Doctors visit did not go as we had planned. Our happy g0 lucky joking pediatrician became super serious asking us a multitude of questions. He then mentioned pyloric stenosis. The thickening of the pyloric sphincter which inhibits the stomach to empty its contents into the small intestine resulting in forceful vomiting, screaming and a constant want to eat. Which is what we have seen.

He pushed on Daniel's belly and then immediately called a radiology place for an abdominal ultrasound to confirm. We went equipped with two bottles of pedialite because they would want to watch him eat and see if any of the fluid would pass through the sphincter. The end result would be emergency surgery to split the hypertrophied muscle to open up the passage way to the small intestine. Pyloric stenosis usually shows up around 2 weeks of age which was exactly the time things got even worse.

The scan showed no significant thickening and of course after that Doctor left the room Daniel spewed the pedialite across the bed. It was a relief to know surgery was not needed but frustrating to know we were no closer to helping our Baby become happier.

Our Doctor then followed up with us. We were instructed to decrease his feeding amounts from 4 oz to 2 oz at time. The timing of feedings would not be 4 hours apart but every 1-2. Even though he is still hungry after 2 oz we are to wait 45 minutes before feeding one more ounce and if 45 minutes later he is still hungry then finish with an ounce.

We were also told to take him off dairy formula and use Soy. I do not believe in the power of Soy, it really is not good for you and also is a high allergy food. I feel like I am feeding Daniel the equivalent of peanut milk. Long term effects of soy formula inhibits a baby's bone growth. I understand if there is a sound medical reason for using it. We however have no set in stone diagnosis. Soy also creates firm stools and Daniel has had trouble passing the softest of stools.

I have created a spread sheet much like the ones they give you to track feedings when they are first born. We are keeping a detailed feeding list (because in our fog we can't remember when we last fed him or how much and we have 11-12 feedings a day). This way we have a fact sheet to back us up for the dcotor and so we can remember which feeding it is.

We were told if things were not better Friday to call back and they would prescribe Zantac. I am a bit hesitant on no diagnosis to medicate him also, acid reducers obviously neutralize the acid in the stomach, which slows down digestion and in turn increases chances of constipation. This will alleviate pain and decrease any damage done to the esophagus however, will not fix the upchuck. So we are still at the large number of small feedings a day which brings us to the sleepless night factor. If there was a firm diagnosis showing reflux and damage to his esophagus then in my mind this is a possibility. Do I want to put him through a bunch of tests? Not really, however I do not want to medicate for something he may not have or benefit from. Things seem better as I said earlier in this novel we usually see improvement for the first day then it goes back downhill.

The screaming fits are most definitely decreased. They still come but 1 or 2 times a day. This morning the bout of screaming involved a bowel movement and it definitely is not the amount it should be for him not going since Thursday evening.

First thing tomorrow I am calling to find out what we do, if it is reflux the small feedings are a treatment but for how long?! Some kids suffer from reflux for months on end. Wednesday night we were very hopeless but today it is better we have more questions but things seem a bit more hopeful. Oh yes and we found that in 2.5 weeks he gained almost a pound in weight. At 5 weeks he was 9 lbs .5 oz.

Update on Andrew and Carrie...we both have a bit of a cold we got from the kids with a side of sleep deprivation and worry. The biggest mountain I feel right now is to keep Daniel from getting the funk that we are so graciously sharing with one another. The last thing we need is him to get RSV.

Last but not least, how are the dogs throughout this all?! They RUN and hide anytime they hear Daniel start to grunt. They molt all over the place too. Who would think two large dogs running at the noises of a 9 lb baby?!

Yesterday, my Mom came over to watch the 3 Boys so Andrew and I could catch up on sleep and get some things back in order. We got the mounds of dog hair vacuumed, living room dusted, kitchen mopped and a beautiful 4 hour nap. Yes and we both were still ready for bed by 8p. Thanks Mom for all your help! We are laying low this morning to keep from spreading our plague on everyone else.

Needless to say, but I will anyways, this has been a loooong 5 weeks. There are moments of happy mixed in but they are more far and fewer than they should be. We knew this would not be easy to have three kids 3 and under however, HOLY MOLY!! It has been quite the roller coaster. Never a dull moment!!

Moby Baby

I hope to get more things around the house done easier with this!! Daniel is not a fan of our ERGO Baby Carrier and since we used it with Logan they have modified the directions making it seem to me horribly uncomfortable for the baby. This was Daniel's first go in the Moby

Boys Boys Boys

Here are Our Boys hanging out this morning. (Cooper included.) We're a little biased but find it pretty beautiful!

And the SCREAMING continues

OK, so frustrations are mounting in our house but today I feel a little bit of hope. After screaming fits yesterday and a BEA-utiful one starting at 4am and lasting until 7am this morning. There may be hope. A friend told me about a product she used with her son called "Colic Calm" it is a homeopathic treatment for reflux, "colic" and gas. I ordered a bottle last night and found one in store this morning. Right now it is working it's magic because he is calm and I just have it in the cabinet. :-) I called the pediatrician to get his "approval" to try it and ask if this does not help where do we go? OK, so I worded it more, "Have they seen gripe waters as effective? If so, is there a brand in particular?" and "If none, have they heard of this one in particular?" My final question, "Is there anything else to try or do we just wait for the months to end and he "grow out" of it?" I also gave background, our dogs run from Daniel they start to get skittish at the first grunt, Aidan asks to go to nap and yesterday cried with Daniel, Logan will stand and look at the reddish purple face and roar or growl at him. This morning after last night's symphony he now has claw marks on his face from wiggling/grimacing or perhaps writhing is the better word. His little fist clench, he stiffens and screams, flinches when you touch his low back, curls up into a ball to scream some more, he at one point grabbed a hold of my shirt. He will either take a pacifier and suck/chomp vigorously on it (however, if offered milk will accept and let it dribble out his mouth what he does drink comes right back up) or refuse the pacifier and shake his head side to side. Meanwhile, nothing comforts him or may calm him for a brief minute or two and it starts right back up. You may get a burp out and he will pass a lot of gas and these actions offer him no relief. SO FRUSTRATING!

Luckily today the nurse I spoke to listened to our concerns, what we are going through and to our actual questions. She spoke to our Doctor and called back. Verdict is try the Colic Calm if it does not work in a couple days to call back and they will get him a prescription of reflux meds to try. We are not a fan of medicines but most definitely need something to try. It really CAN"T go on for months like this. We will all need to be committed if it keeps up! ;-)

Luckily, Daniel has been seeing our Chiropractor and he has helped him tremendously in the bowels department. He now is "more regular" going longest two days between movements. He can go now with out screaming. He was in a spell yesterday and had a dirty diaper but then fell asleep and made another with no screaming or effort. Which makes us realize the bout of screaming was not related to the dirty diaper. (Thank goodness..)

So, today we feel a glimmer of hope and we shall see how this week ends!