Max goes to the ER

Max had his first trip to the ER yesterday morning for an asthma attack.  He woke up around 3 a.m. whining and wheezing, but when I was holding him his heart was racing and pounding very hard.  He has wheezed before, but never had I felt his heart like that.  I called the exchange and a nurse talked me through a rescue treatment with the nebulizer.  He had to take three treatments in an hour and then he fell back asleep and was fine.  By 6 a.m. he was whining, wheezing and had a rapid heart rate again, but in addition he was acting very weird and his stomach was refluxing almost like he was gagging so we decided it was best to bring him to the ER.  When we got there he received another treatment along with steroids and was immediately better.  He was discharged home with instruction to do nebulizer treatments every 4 hours and to take an oral steroid for four more days to reduce the swelling of the airways.  We got home and it was exactly two hours later when it happened again.  I gave him another treatment and by that time the pediatrician called to check on him.  She reassured me what to do and that he would be fine by Sunday.  We have to keep him indoors and Dale has to shower before playing with the boys.  The rest of the day yesterday went fine.  We did treatments every 4 hours.  I even woke up in the middle of the night, but he was doing so well we were able to skip the 4 a.m. treatment and just give it to him when he woke up.  Since Dale and I are going to Jamaica tomorrow, I feel much more relaxed about leaving since he is doing much better already. 

Max had not been diagnosed with asthma, but he gets the symptoms of it when he gets a cold.  Like I said he has had wheezing before where he needed nebulizer treatments, but it was never like this.  I now know what to expect during an asthma attack and will know what to do.    

How Rude!

So there are no pictures with this post, just me venting so you can stop reading if you want. A teller at our bank retired and her last day was Saturday. She had not seen the boys and had been begging us to bring them by for her last day. We were more than happy to oblige. So there we are in the middle of the bank on a Saturday morning talking to the ladies that worked there and some random patron decided to ask me if I used IVF. First off, I was in the middle of a conversation and I can’t believe how rude she was to interrupt. Second off, if she were any louder I think the business next door would have heard. Lastly, and this is the big one, why the heck does she think this is an appropriate question and that it is any of her business. I just bluntly told her no, because I did not have to do IVF, but then she continued to talk to me about fertility and he life story for 20 minutes while we were trying to keep our 3 one-year olds from destroying the bank. This is not the first time this has happened and I am certain it won’t be the last, but my fertility is absolutely no one’s business but my own. I don’t care that our family and friends know we used fertility and I don’t mind talking about it, but not to some strange woman at the bank. Fertility issues are a very private matter. They are very stressful and emotional and under no circumstances do they need to be discussed in an entity such as a bank. Just because a person has multiples does not mean they used fertility, and just because a person has a singleton does not mean they didn’t use fertility. You don’t go asking every person with a child if they used fertility so why do people deem it appropriate to ask someone with multiples. They are all children and they are all blessings, whether fertility methods were used or not!

The Magic House!

Last night the multiples group I am in, MOMMES, had a play date at The Magic House.  They rented out the original half and it was only open to us and our friends/family so we didn't have a huge crowd and all the kids could do more than if they went during regular hours.  We decided to join in the fun as well as my brother, sister-in-law and nephews and a friend and his girlfriend and their two girls.  I believe everyone had a great time.  We will definitely go back to The Magic House!

Will, Max & Levi splashing in the water!

My nephew Baylen squirting the water guns at his dad!

Will chillaxin' in the balls!

Max trying to grab the floating ball! 

(Not sure what the actual name of this exhibit was so floating ball is what I named it!)

Levi driving the boat!

Levi and me at the static machine!

Will and Dale at the static machine!

Max and Dale at the static machine!

(Max looks bald, but you can see some hair sticking up!)

My sister-in-law Tara and nephew Colton at the static machine!

My nephew Hunter at the static machine!

(Ok, he doesn't have much hair to stick up either, but look how darn cute and happy he is!)

July 4th

We had a very fun 4th of July!  On Saturday we watched the parade from Main Street.  The boys loved it!  They waved their flags and just watched everything in aww!  Then Saturday afternoon we went to Grandpa and Grandma Hackmann's for a swimming party.  Finally, Sunday evening we went to the Riverfront to ride some rides and watch the fireworks.  They only rode the Carousel because the rest of the rides weren't really 1 year old friendly, but they enjoyed it.  They got to ride with all three of their cousins; Hunter, Baylen and Colton!  They actually enjoyed the fireworks too!  Will got scared with the first boom, but once Dale held him he enjoyed them! 

Levi at the parade!

Will with Dale at the parade.  (He had to be held there too because a motorcycle revved up his engine really loud and it scared him.  He gets scared by loud noises easily can you tell?)

Max at the parade waving his beads!

Will, Max & Levi waving their American flags!

Will

Max

Levi

Levi, Max & Will getting ready to watch the fireworks!

New Stroller!

After taking the boys on a long walk and my arms killing me from trying to keep the stroller straight, I was able to convince Dale that we needed a jogging stroller.  Unfortunately, triple joggers are wide and we already have trouble fitting our double stroller through doors.  So I asked my fellow MOMMES members for advice.  It just so happened that someone had their triple jogger for sale, and it was tandem.  So we got in the car and drove to Columbia, IL to test it out.  WE LOVE IT!  We have probably put 30 miles on it since we got it two weeks ago.  It is so much easier to push long distances than the other stroller.  And now Dale and I can get some exercise with the kids.  Here is a picture of our stroller! 

I know!  It's crazy right?  It has it's own hitch for the car, but luckily it will fit in the back of the Yukon!  And you really get used to the look of it! 

Father's Day!

I know it's a little late, but here's the Father's Day post.  The boys got Dale new fenders and tie's for the boat that he can't use because of the flood!  He liked them anyway!  Then we went to Grandpa and Grandma Hackmann's to swim and for dinner.  The boys had so much fun swimming with Grandpa, Grandma, Aunt Lauren, Aunt Megan and Uncle Bill.  They then played with all of Grandma's bowls and measuring spoons! Dale said he had a very good Father's Day!

Dale

Will

Max

Levi

Huck

So I am finally able to update the blog.  Our DSL box went bad so we had to wait for a new one.  We are finally up and running again!  This first post is about Huck.  Two weeks ago he was acting strange and when I went to pet him he yelped.  His ear was swollen like a balloon.  I rushed him to the vet where they drained it, but as what happens with this in 90% of dogs, it returned the next day.  So Huck had to have surgery on his ear to fix the Ear Hematoma.  In addition, he has a heart murmur that has worsened and he now has to be on a daily dose of heart medication.  His ear is better, and in two more weeks he can get his splint and stitches out.  Here is a picture of his ear before and after surgery!

It's the ear on the left side (his right ear).

Doesn't he look pitiful?