Backdated... check it out

I finally had the chance to edit some of my vacation footage, but I dated it properly, for journal purposes. Check it out!!

Enjoy.

Oh, and by the way, our house is back to 100% health. Went to the gym today, and Riley got to play with Jodi and Nemo (and about 100 other kids... talk about sanitizing...) in daycare, and I had a killer workout. I gained one pound at Jenny Craig, but I can certainly attribute that to my last three weeks at home, taking rectal temperatures, and laying with Riley on the couch, being mellow and keeping the fever down, in front of the TV. My worst nightmare, but we're back on schedule. Thank God.



My dad, on the other hand, didn't have such great news. The doctor in Pittsburgh believe the spot is cancer, and scheduled him back for a biopsy of the site. From there, they may go into a (hopefully) non-invasive surgery to remove part of the lung. However, they also discovered that he has emphysema in both lungs, which may prevent him from being a candidate for the non-invasive type of surgery. We are hoping for the best, as always, and only time will tell. It's kind of ironic that my dad's father died of lung cancer/emphysema, and this is what my dad is now battling. But my dad is much younger and stronger than my grandfather was, so that makes me feel more confident about this. Keep sending those positive thoughts our way!!



Oh!! Let's end with something happy!! Our friends, Jason and Stephanie, are preggers!! Due Sept. 7, the little pile of energy will probably come on my birthday, the 3rd! Check out their blog... it's a good one. And yes, she's aware that she stole my background. It's one of the only good ones available... guess I'm gonna have to get creative. Oh, and I'm sure Jason will have this look plastered on his face for years to come, and Steph will continue to laugh at him in the way that only Steph can:

Where to start...

Wow. So much has happened over the last week, and I still haven't caught up with blogging our wonderful vacation. I've decided I'm going to start with this week.

Monday, March 24, I took Riley for a follow-up appointment with Dr. Pepitone (Mimi), just to check her out and make sure all is OK after the antibiotics ended, and because last night, she was coughing again in her sleep. Mimi perscribed a Bactoban cream to make sure all the MRSA is gone. She said everything else looks great, and that I should just keep an eye on the cough, it's probably allergy or a new, unrelated virus. Great. Just what we need.

After that appointment, I went to Jenny Craig for my weekly weigh-in and food pick-up. I've lost an additional 3 pounds, bringing my total to 13, and I've lost a total of 16 inches. Yay!!! Gotta keep going.... lovin' it. I've already moved down 2 pant sizes. Almost halfway to my goal....

Tuesday and Wednesday, Riley broke out in a fever. Pretty high at night, upwards of 102. I spoke with Mimi both days, and ended up taking Riley in for blood/urine tests and a lung X-ray on Thursday. Everything came back clean, no bacteria, so that means that she has some kind of virus that has no treatment, aside from simply making Riley as comfortable as she can be. Again: great. It's been a really rough week for us. Staying home, staying low-key, watching a shit-load of TV (which I hate doing with her), and getting better. Friday morning her fever broke. This weekend, she's been gaining her momentum back, and I think this week we'll be right back on schedule!! Good thing, because we start music classes and zoo classes. And, we have the gym on the other three mornings!

Friday, her sand box arrived, and yesterday she and Russell set it up while I went to buy sand. We haven't put water in it yet, because it's been pretty chilly and windy, and I don't know if she's 100% healthy yet. Soon enough, though, we'll get some water in there for her to slop around in. She's gonna love it (she played in the sand today for about an hour). And so will her friends... we'll be sure to host a playdate soon.




(in this photo, my mom thinks Riley looks EXACTLY like me when I was that age, and she NEVER thinks she looks like me):



Today, we went for sushi at the sister restaurant to our favorite spot, and I'd say it was sub-par. It was good, but it didn't taste nearly as fresh as our standby, but the service was really good. Riley really enjoyed herself, too, and ate a bite of everything we ordered. What a gal.

Oh, and be sure to check out Russell's latest accomplishment at work, his new ad for Turbo Tax. He is the narrator of the ad (which he found out about the morning of the shoot....), as well as the big-idea guy. He's a natural on camera. That's my man!

Look at cousin Charlie with her hair all blown out and straightened. What a super-model!!



On less happy note, my dad has to go to Pittsburgh tomorrow for another check-up. It turns out his PET scan found a spot on his lung that is 90% chance cancer, and they say it would be a new strain, not a recurrence of his former bout of throat cancer (for which he suffered treatment for nearly 2 years). We won't stand for that, so we're banking on that 10% chance that it was a shadow or something else... who knows what those tests can pick up. Please say your prayers or keep your fingers crossed, or whatever it is that you do to send good vibes.

And because I want to end on a happy note, and because I talked so much in this blog and didn't have a lot of photos to back it up, here is a collection of photos from Jen, of the great Irish coffee playdate she hosted on St. Pat's Monday morning. Hey, we busy, stressed-out moms need Irish coffees, at LEAST on St. Pat's Day. We had so much fun... and Jen's yard RULES!!!









One more thing. I like this image that Russell found. Reminds me of a Woody Pirtle idea. And I love Woody.

Easter was divine

We had a wonderful day! Forgetting all the issues that we've recently experienced, and considering the day, all is perfect. The Easter Bunny came and brought all kinds of goodies, including fruit and a little candy, a couple of presents, and he even hid the eggs! Riley had SO much fun trying to find the eggs. I showed her one, and then she was off to find all the others. Once they were all in the basket, she was able to enjoy her candy and gifts.

Then I took her to the zoo, while daddy got to sleep in. We only went to the children's zoo, and explored some areas we had never seen. There was hardly anyone there! When we were leaving, the line to get in was out the parking lot! Good timing... So, on addition to our regular membership, I've enrolled Riley in these classes... they sound great! I'm excited for it.

When we came home, there was a big nap and then some playtime in the yard. We have some summer toys on order for her, including a big sand/water play area. We're also hoping to get her a slide. That would be a great birthday present... These two things will hopefully keep her occupied outside for a good, long time!!



Then, we were invited to a beautiful Easter dinner at Kathy and Anthony's (and daddy Mike's). Obviously the daddies are always second string in these stories, cause they're usually working! But we were lucky today, cause they were all there. Riley wore her seasonal best... a new dress, white patent leather shoes, and an Easter Bonnet. She had so much fun dressing up, chatting eveyone up, and sharing her wares with everybody...









For dinner, I made my grandma's famous Easter Bread. It was as much of a hit as I'd remembered it always being. Guess I did it right (the yeast was reportedly a scary critter to work with, but I wasn't scared...):



The neighbor had a dog who Riley loved. She tried to make the dog stay, but apparently she had to go with her owner. Bummer!




And for a little while there, Anthony wasn't the happiest camper, but Riley helped him to cheer up by helping with his new puzzle we brought him.




Also in April, we're starting Bouncy Bears music classes with Coral and Zelda. They've been doing it for a couple of sessions, and now I think Riley could (and will) appreciate it.

Now, for something weird, Kathy Crispin sent me photos from this link. I thought for sure it was a Photoshop job, but then I looked at the website... are people actually this nuts, to go and do something like this? What is the draw? Could they actually keep their food down? Sorry, not for me. Thanks anyhow!!



(ah, and by the way, thought I'd mention a little bit about me... I've lost so far 13 pounds and about 16 inches overall on my Jenny Craig diet... so I guess I'll keep going!)

Color those eggs! And everything else!

Riley and Coral are best buds. Here is an upside-down monkey kiss to show that!



We had Jen and Coral over to help us to color Easter eggs. You know, Riley loves hanging out with them, and I figured that if we're making a big mess, we might as well make it a HUGE mess and have fun with it! And we did.... I set up the video camera on a tripod, but thanks to Uncle Marcus borrowing it and not charging it, the battery died after about 10 seconds.

Thanks to Jen, we have these photos:








I love this Jim Morrison pose:

The scariest week of my life

Hey, sorry. We had an amazing vacation, and then a week of hell, and here we are. Trying to catch up. Let's start with this week, and work backwards.



Today, I finally had time to officially join the gym. Riley had fun hanging out at child care there, especially since Coral surprised and joined her! After the gym today, I took Riley to the mall to visit the Easter Bunny. She was SO excited. She was so comfy on his lap, she almost fell asleep. They hugged and snuggled, and I thought she'd never want to go home. What a nice afternoon. Before we went, I told her the story about how the Easter Bunny will be coming to her house this weekend and leaving her presents. She made the 'O' face, and laughed really hard.

Oh, and what's really funny, is her photo from last year with the Easter Bunny. See how much she's changed?!



Sunday, we went to a really fun St. Patrick's Day party at Shannon and Oliver's house. Shannon is quite the chef... she always overdoes it, just like I do. Love it! Some of Riley's friends were there, and they had a great time:









We were very lucky to have been able to attend this party. Riley had a terribly rough week before. Long story short, she somehow contracted MRSA and tonsils full of puss. Tuesday night, she spiked a fever that led to a febrile seizure, ended up in the ER, and now she is on antibiotics, and feeling/acting 100%. But my god, that was the absolute scariest thing I've ever experienced.






The seizure started right after a warm bath, and we dialed 911 immediately. Her legs twitched, her eyes rolled back, she was unresponsive... her breathing became slow to stopping, and lips and nose started to turn blue. She started to moan and 911 said to lay her on her side. Then they got here. I can't tell you how wonderful the people were who responded. First the Fire Department (we won't talk about the hot fireman...), and then the ambulance. They were very calm and comforting in telling us that this is a very common thing to happen to babies, and that we should not worry about future complications because of it. The ER and Riley's pediatrician confirmed that good news. But still, we would never wish this on our worst enemies.

Just so you know, if you see a spot that looks like a red, painful pimple with a yellow dot in the middle, PLEASE get it checked out immediately. This MRSA is becoming very common and widespread, and can be fatal if not treated.

That is all I have for today. Tomorrow's blog will be a happier one, for sure!! Love to all.