(Not So) Wordless Wednesday: A New Toy!

Why is our little guy so happy?


Because he has a brand new toy, that's why! Unfortunately, procuring the toy proved a bit more difficult than stopping by the nearest Target.

You see, a couple of weeks ago, we took Mister Miles to an ear nose and throat doctor to have a frenotomy — a procedure in which the frenulum (that bit of tissue that attaches the tongue to the floor of the mouth) is cut. Before the procedure, Miles' frenulum extended all the way to the tip of his tongue. As a result, he couldn't stick his tongue out. At all.

In the past, midwives and doctors routinely fixed "tongue tie" at birth. The current trend, however, is to wait and see if a child eventually experiences problems eating or speaking. Although Miles had no trouble getting nourishment (he weighed in at 16.5 pounds at 4 months), it bothered me that we were waiting to see if he might have speech problems as a toddler. Fixing a tight frenulum in a baby involves a simple snip snip. Fixing it in a toddler involves general anesthesia.

And even if he never developed a speech or dental issue, shouldn't a little boy be able to lick an ice cream cone? Or stick his tongue out at his older brother?

So we got it fixed. Was it hard to watch? Yes. Did he cry? Yes. Did I start sweating, turn completely pale and nearly pass out? Yes.

But I'm so glad we had it done. In no time, he had forgotten about the pain and was playing happily with his new toy.

See for yourself:

Can Your Kitchen Make You Fat?

I just read an interesting little article about the connection between your kitchen and your weight. The conclusion: modern-day kitchens are making us fat.

I say "modern-day" kitchens, because most of the problematic features listed are relative newbies in American homes. They include:

• Platter-sized plates and wide glasses
• Super-bright lighting (recessed lighting, under-cabinet lighting, etc.)
• Expansive, clutter-collecting surfaces
• Spacious pantries
• Food as decor (clear jars, etc., to store and display food)
• Centralized, open designs (i.e., your kitchen is the hub of your home)

As a city-dweller, I live in a older home whose kitchen has none of these features (much to our dismay, at times). We have no room for a kitchen table. Our pantry is tiny. Our counter space is minimal. Basically, our 1936 kitchen is designed to do one thing: serve as a space for storing and preparing food. For it serve this purpose well, our kitchen must contain only the most essential foods, tools and equipment.

Hmmm. Could our tiny, featureless kitchen help us stay thin?

Probably not.

Still, it's an interesting connection to consider. As families have shrunk significantly in recent generations (numbers-wise, if not weight-wise), our kitchens have grown magnificently. Why?

What is it that we're stuffing into our huge, French-door refrigerators and walk-in pantries?

After all, fruits, vegetables and meats spoil within just a few days...

Sunday Night Blues

Bathrooms scrubbed, laundry folded, surfaces disinfected, dishes washed...

Now I need a week-long vacation! A real vacation.

But alas, I'll be back at the office tomorrow...assuming I can keep the coughs and sniffling to a minimum.

Oh joy.

Playing Hard and Laying Low

Kyle and Rowan enjoyed a water park this afternoon while I rested on the couch. As they were leaving the facility, Rowan made a special request:

"Daddy, can I look in the window again? Just to remember how fun it was?"

Sounds like they had a great time. I'm sad I missed it. BUT, I'm starting to feel a little better! Gosh, I bet I'll be feeling well just in time to go back to work! :(

Not Today

I'm not feeling well enough for silly stories or deep thoughts today. Maybe tomorrow. Hopefully tomorrow. Please, please, pretty please tomorrow?

I'm sick of being sick! (Is it just me, or is daytime television even worse than it used to be?)

Mystery Solved: Strep Throat

We wasted our entire day in urgent care!

Well, that’s not exactly true.

We wasted our entire day at Minute Clinic and in urgent care.

I suppose it was our own fault for leaving Minute Clinic. We waited there for over an hour to earn the coveted “next in line” spot. So when the practitioner informed us that he’d be taking a 30-minute break before our visit, we were mad. Irrationally mad.

We left.

Kyle found a pediatric urgent care clinic near our house that — at the time we called — had only two patients in the waiting room. ("At the time we called" is the key phrase here.)

But before we discuss urgent care, I'd like to share a few special moments from Minute Clinic/CVS:

• A woman bought a Snuggie — you know, one of those blanket/dress thingies they pitch on T.V. — for her DOG! (Yes, they make them for dogs.)
  
• Another woman cleared the store out of canned vienna sausages! CANNED sausages!
  
• And yet another woman slowly worked her way down the “As Seen on T.V.” aisle, praising the virtues of each product to her friend. Bumpits, Wonder Hangers, Space Bags… Rowan was positively star struck!

Anyhoo, urgent care.

What a mistake.

We sat for what felt like an eternity among whining, coughing, sniffling kiddos. Blech. And let me tell you, it's not easy restraining a 4-year-old who wants to look at books "like the boy with the mask."

At least we left with a diagnosis — strep throat — and a prescription for antibiotics. I almost asked for something for myself after sitting that germ-factory. (Kyle is now reminding me that I did ask him for something: wine.)

So our little guy earned himself a “get out of preschool free” card for tomorrow. Here's hoping that this was our last trip to urgent care for the season.

Cross your fingers for us, will ya?

The Case of the Disappearing Fever

Rowan seems to have one of those “vanishes during the day, reappears in the evening” illnesses.

This morning, he bounced into our room looking cheerful and symptom-free. “G’morning, Mama!” he said. “Look out the windows. It’s the morning time!”

I couldn’t believe it. Yesterday, he could hardly keep his eyes open!

Not sure if his recovery would stick, we lazed about the house for most of the morning. By noon, however, there seemed to be no reason to stay cooped up on such a beautiful day.

While Kyle raked leaves, Rowan and I soaked up the sun. We kicked a ball around and practiced with his bike.


He had so much energy that he wouldn't stand still long enough for me to take his picture!


After finishing in the yard, Kyle took Rowan to the park. It was a glorious day!

By the time they came home, however, things had started to change. "Can you snuggle me, mama?" Rowan said, climbing up on the couch. He felt warm.

The fever, aches and sore throat had returned. Bummer.

By 5:30, he was sleeping on the couch. Poor baby.

What will tomorrow bring? I guess we'll have to wait and see.

To Treat or Not to Treat?

When do you give a child a fever-reducer?

I always struggle with this dilemma. Often, we go without medicine. If Rowan can sleep well, I figure it's unnecessary. Fevers help the body fight infections, after all, so why mess with nature?

But fevers often accompany bothersome aches and pains. Unfortunately, that’s what Rowan is experiencing today. He’s afflicted with…something. I’d say it’s the flu, but this is the second time we’ve suspected the flu this season. He has a fever, aches, a cough, a runny nose and a sore throat. His eyes are watery and the skin around his eyes is red and splotchy.

Basically, he’s sick. And it breaks my heart.

So when he told me he couldn’t sleep because he "hurt everywhere," I decided to give him ibuprofen.

It worked!

Or did it?

Sure, his aches and pains are better, but now I have a new problem: he no longer acts like he’s sick!

Instead of watching cartoons and drifting in and out of sleep, he’s bopping around and begging me for Halloween candy. And instead of keeping his germs confined to one area of the couch, he’s wiping his nose and eyes all over the house.

I mean, I’m glad he feels a little better. But the truth is that he’s not better. He’s just perky.

Is that a good thing?