Ode to my Tonsils

Well, I am now footloose and tonsil-free! I went back and forth on what to do about my tonsils for about two years. Well, a few abscesses and multiple strep throats and what felt like a persistent sore throat, I decided to move forward and do something permanent.  A couple days before Valentine's Day, my mom took me in to the surgical center. I got there at 6:45 and left within three hours. In all, my tonsils weighed 9 grams and were no longer going to be causing me so much illness.
Jared took the week off and completely took over my day-to-day duties for the first four to five days. After that, I slowly started doing more each day and having him home allowed me to take a nap as needed and made it possible for me to take my intense pain meds without worries of having to drive or walk around too much (they made me so dizzy). I am so grateful for all that Jared has been doing. He really rose to the occasion. He's such a great dad! And husband!
The recovery was actually no worse than the abscess recoveries I'd had. I was actually really freaked out, but it was honestly way better than I thought it was going to be. It wasn't pain as much as discomfort. The pain meds helped a lot. So did the ice cream. My only complaints were feeling weak from limited food intake and how long it is taking to heal. I really hope that the scabbing is gone by my two week mark on Wednesday. It is really uncomfortable feeling scabs at the back of your throat all the time. It makes it uncomfortable to yawn, eat, sneeze, cough, and talk.
On the plus side, I had a semi-vacation. I caught up on Downton Abbey and read four books! That's as close to a vacation as I've had in a long time. Also, I'm pretty sure I dropped a pound or two. Jeans aren't feeling as tight as they were two weeks ago.  So long, Tonsils, I will not miss you.

Valentine's Day 2014

Happy Valentine's Day! This is the third Valentine's Day in four years that I have spent recovering. In 2011, Landon was about 12 days old when Valentine's rolled around. Ethan and Grayson were 3 and 1 at the time and it was a relaxed day. I think Jared made pink rice crispy treats with them. In 2013, Miriam was only 3 days old and I was again recovering from childbirth. Ethan was 5 and in VPK, so I had planned ahead and made valentine's early. Jared went to the classroom party and I stayed home with my new baby girl. This year, I had a tonsillectomy two days before Valentine's Day. This was scheduled, so I again planned ahead to make valentine's for Ethan's Kindergarten class and Grayson's pre-school class. (I keep looking at the word Valentine's and it is starting to look weird to me.) Jared attended the Valentine's party with Grayson and I stayed home and slept.

This year's Valentine: "I think you're Awesome-Sauce!" These are Grayson's. He is still working on writing his name and other letters. I wrote his name and his friend's names out on the Valentine in highlighter. He diligently traced them with a marker. I thought he did a fabulous job.

I did want to do something special for my family. With Jared's help, I heart-attacked their bedroom doors.

 The bigger hearts have special messages for the children. I did that thing where you put an adjective for each letter of a person's name. Gotta love a thesaurus. Things we love about Miriam: Marvelous, Important, Ray of Sunshine, Incredible, Alluring, Magnificent.  Things we love about Grayson: Generous, Remarkable, Awesome, Youthful, Snuggly, Optimistic, Notable.

Things we love about Ethan: Earnest, True, Happy, Affectionate, Noble. Things we love about Landon: Loving, Amazing, Nice, Determined, Original, Nurturing.

 

I also had a card and some of Jared's favorite marzipan ready for my own Valentine. He and I watched Ender's Game (which Ender's sister's name is Valentine, so it worked) here at home and I ate a lot of ice cream.

Jared brought me beautiful flowers and some makeup I'd really been wanting. More importantly, he has been taking precious care of our children full-time while I recover. I am so grateful for my Valentine.

One year ago

One year ago, Jared and I brought our baby girl home from the hospital. We are so happy that Miriam is a part of our family. She is such a beautiful, happy girl. Her brothers (and parents) adore her. She has learned so much about life in this first year. She is cruising around the furniture and crawling super fast to keep up with her brothers. She talks all the time, but only one word is actually recognizable. Can you guess what it is? It's Dada! Of course, those two are peas in a pod. It is so cute to see Jared with her. One of my favorite things for sure. She can clap and sing and laugh. She weighed in at 24.5 lbs and is 29 3/8 long.  Seriously, she is in the 95% and at this rate will be bigger than her brothers. We love our baby girl.

 

First family shot at the hospital last year.

Miriam (6 days old) and Dada.

 

 

 

On her blessing day (2 months old).

 

 Birthday girl's first piece of cake.  She loved it.

 

 Birthday girl's first doughnut. She only liked that.

 

Trying to get a birthday shot, but Miriam just wanted to get the camera.

Kid Conversations

Sometimes the things the children say are hilarious to me. Wanted to write a couple down so I didn't forget them.

Me: Grayson, what's your middle name?
Grayson: After really thinking about it, "Poo?"
Me: Hahahaha. No, it's Thomas.

In his defense, one of Jared's nicknames for him is Graysipoo. I think it's left over from calling his brothers similar nicknames, Jasipoo, Kevipoo, etc.

This morning while helping Landon get dressed, we bonked heads.

Me: Ow!
Landon: Sorry, Mommy. (Smooch.)
Me: It's all right, you just rattled my brain a little.
Landon: Owwww. I have a brain too.

Yesterday, Grayson was sitting on the back door stoop and says, "Come over here, Mom. Look at this beautiful day."

Birthday Boy

Landon turned three over the weekend. He is such a sweet little boy. We celebrated with Gigi and Miriam who also have birthdays in early February. Here's a little bit about our sweet Landon. Landon has the best manners. I hardly have to prompt him to say please and thank you. He is also a sensitive little man. He often gets his feelings hurt and we work through that. As he grows, he looks more and more like Jared to me. Landon hates going to sleep, especially on nights Ethan has basketball practice and doesn't go to bed as early as him. He doesn't like to be alone at all. He is my little buddy these days, especially when the two older boys are in school and Miriam is napping. We get a lot of alone time and it is great. We are so glad that Landon is in our family.