Home Bodies

As you can imagine, after the whirl wind week/weekend we had last week, this past weekend we welcomed two full days of being home bodies with very few places to go.

A quick update on Oliver.  He seems to be doing very well.  He is still maintaining his content demeanor with a happy-go-lucky attitude.  He is responding very well to the medications to clear up his sinus infection and help with the Respiratory Airway Disease.  Twice a day he has breathing treatments and he is a real trooper.  We have a follow-up appointment next week and we are hopeful that we will get good reports.  We think that our cure for the cat allergy is working, but we really won't know until we start tapering off of the medical treatments.  We're hopeful, and we remind Madalyn regularly that she owes us, big time.  HA HA!!

Saturday we started with a  breathing treatment and Finding Nemo.

Sunday we started with a breathing treatment and a few good books.

See a trend?

Sunday, we rolled over to be awakened to a fresh blanket of snow.  This is the view out of our bedroom window.  We thought about going to church and then changed our mind.  I guess we are the true definition of "fair weather" attendees.

Oliver and Keith enjoying the view of the winter wonderland.

We did venture out of the house once or twice.  Saturday, Keith went pheasant hunting with his Uncle Jim.  Oliver and I tackled Wal-mart and Costco on the same day.  Caution: People have already started Christmas shopping (including us).  The stores were NUTS.  Oliver highly enjoyed Costco.  Something about free samples and a hot dog stand at the end.  Does it really get much better than that?

Sunday I buried myself in the home office and cleaned it top to bottom.  It is now the cleanest and most organized that it has been in the six years that we have lived here.  I'm hoping it lasts longer than usual.  So far, so good.  Spic and Span!

Oh, What a Week

When I talked to my Mom this weekend, she said that she was wondering what I was up to. She hadn't heard from me or seen any blog updates. My response... "OH, What a Week!"

Of course there is work, but I'll spare you those details.

I'm not sure that I've blogged much about Oliver's health, but for six months now he has suffered with RAD (Reactive Airway Disease). This is now what they call asthma in young kids because RAD they can grow out of but once they are labeled with asthma it is for life. His pediatrician referred him to an Asthma and Allergy specialist, who we went to see last Thursday. They were great! However, some of their findings weren’t so great. We found out that Oliver is highly allergic to cats and dogs and having Madalyn in the house may cause respiratory issues. They also said that he may have a sinus infection, which may be causing respiratory problems. That night and the next day were stressful and tearful thinking that we had to find a new home for Madalyn. Not only is Madalyn our family pet, she has been with me for fourteen years through several moves across three states, relationships, roommates and apartment living to house living. She also has asthma herself.  Is she allergic to us?  Even though she was given a clean bill of health at her recent wellness exam, she is still high maintenance with medication and regular vet check-ups. Friday afternoon we got the results from Oliver's x-rays that he has a major sinus infection with his whole right side blocked and most of the left. This put Keith into fast planning action. He knew that moving the cat out could be a disaster on the home front. That night he installed an air purifier in Oliver's room and installed a baby gate at his bedroom door to keep Madalyn out. He also contacted our vet friend who hooked us up with some lotion for Madalyn to keep the allergens down. We also started Oliver on antibiotics and twice daily breathing treatments to help build up his lung strength and knock out the sinus infection. Our current theory is that even if he has an allergy to Madalyn, we can manage it and the sinus infection is causing more respiratory problems than anything. We'll be keeping a close eye on the little guy to make sure our theory is accurate. If not, you may be getting a call to adopt a cat. You'll just have to expect frequent visits from us.

Here are a couple of photos I took of Oliver being tested for his allergies. He was a Super Trooper!!!

Even with all of the poking and prodding, Oliver was in great spirits, as he always is.  We are in great wonder as to what kind of a great mood he'll be in once he isn't walking around without a sinus headache every day. 

Oliver has always been very cooperative about taking his medicine.  Thankfully, they make the medications for kiddos taste yummy.  It helps Mom's and Dad's do their job of getting it in.  If only they could make Madalyn's asthma pills taste like tuna or something.  Hmmm....

Friday afternoon we received a call that Keith's GrandDad passed away at 93 years old in Sheridan, WY. 

He will be missed very much by all who know him.

For many years to come, we will reminisce about Pop's stories.  He always had a way of making everyone laugh and feel special.  He has more pride of his family that anyone I have every known.  It makes me feel honored to be a Hamilton.  My favorite statement I ever heard him say was that he "hasn't had a good day since the day his wife died".  It makes me a little sad, but I think that in that one statment it sums up the big heart he has and how much love that he shared.  I never had the pleasure to meet Keith's Grandma, Nanny, but I'm confident that Pop is with her and good days are here again for them.

Here is a photo of Pop with Oliver in July 2008.

Pop with Oliver in September 2009.

Saturday, we all needed a little fresh air and sunshine.  There is nothing like a walk to the park on a sunny Saturday afternoon in November.  Remember, last weekend we were surrounded by 2' of snow.

I can't say enough how wonderful Keith is. He's a keeper!

Saturday, at 3:15, on our way back from the park, I told Keith I would really just like a night out. He recommended I call the neighbor girl to baby sit. REALLY? Wow, this was unplanned and impromptu. WAHOOO!!! As luck would have it, she was available. In an effort to do something that we can't do with Oliver, we went to Macaroni Grill and had appetizers and drinks at the bar. Followed by a movie, Couples Retreat, complete with popcorn and soda. The evening was just what the doctor ordered. THANKS KEITH!!!

Sunday, we took Oliver to the zoo to explore all of the animals he has been learning about all summer.

On a side note, Oliver has not adjusted to the time change and we have all been getting up at 5 AM.  UGH!

I guess that is why he had a cat nap on the way to the zoo.  I just love how cute he is when he's sleeping in the car.

It was the craziest thing.  When we pulled into the zoo, there was a car that had just caught fire.  We parked and watched the events unfold.  The police came flying in and blocked off the road we had just driven on.  The fire trucks came screaming in, firemen jumped out, assessed the situation, put on masks, pulled out water hoses and took out the fire.  WHOA NELLY!!!

Meanwhile, in the backseat...

Oliver was in a sweet slumber

It amazes us daily what Oliver learns.  Once of his many favorite things right now is "choo choo" trains.  SO.... we took a ride on the Ponderosa Express at the zoo.

Don't ever let Keith fool you into thinking he doesn't like his picture taken.  The bum took a picture of himself taking a nap while Oliver and I were on the train.  What a nut!

Oliver LOVED the zoo.  We were amazed that he identified nearly all of the animals without prompting.  His new favorite is the monkeys.  He couldn't get enough of those crazy guys.

Who needs the zoo when you have a Grizzly Bear for a Dad?

Oliver spent much of the visit pointing out all of the animals and saying "see Mommy, see Daddy".

We topped the week off spending time together as a family and giving thanks that we are all together.  Even after the heaviest of weeks, it brings peace to our heart, smiles to our faces and big belly chuckles just being together.

Hamilton's Hammer's

One of Oliver's new loves, Hammer's!!!!! He has collected seven, and uses each and every one of them.

Happy Halloween

Remember the 2'+ of snow...
Saturday it was in the 60's and most of it melted. YAY!!! We still have traces of it here and there, but for the most part it is disappearing.

Oliver and I had spent 2+ days in the house and we were itching to get out. His school was closed on Thursday and he came down with a cold that kept him home bound on Friday. By Friday night, we were very anxious for Keith to come home from Indianapolis. By Saturday, we were all anxious to get out in the warm sunshine. We decided to move the pumpkin carving operation outside.

Oliver is a little young to be handling sharp objects so he was content riding his new birthday bike around the driveway. Thanks again, Grandma and Grandpa Garner! PS. Oliver chose to wear the hat, we don't usually make him wear a hat when it is so warm. No sense in arguing with the kid. Eventually he realized that his head was hot and it came flying off.

Keith's work bench for cleaning out pumpkins.

Ahhh.... pumpkin carving in the sunshine. Love It! Oliver carefully supervising Dad's handy work. He has his shovel ready if Keith needs help with any additional scooping. Family Photo
Happy Halloween!! Saturday evening we joined the neighbors for pizza and trick-or-treating. Keith and Oliver were practicing "Trick-or-Treat" while we were getting ready to head out the door. Hey... who gave this kid a fist full of sugar?! Ah, ha!!! Evidence! This is Oliver and the neighbor, Theresa, getting ready to dive into a 2nd marsh mellow stick. As if two aren't enough, Theresa encouraged Oliver to try one of every design. That would be a total of FOUR mash mellow sticks. Talk about sugar overload. Luckily, he didn't eat them all, just enjoyed little nibbles on the last three. I had this great plan for Oliver to be Winnie the Pooh for Halloween. He loves Winnie the Pooh!! Well... not enough to dress up like him. I put the costume on him, snapped a quick picture and then.... ... he cried and cried to get it off. After seeing it in him I don't blame him too much. It looked kind of bunchy and the hat didn't fit. Uh, oh... now what? All of the neighbor kids, ready to hit the street to Trick-or Treat! After filling Oliver with sugar, Theresa came to the rescue with a new costume for Oliver. Whew! She has two boys and a few costumes to spare. Oliver had his choice of three and picked the Fireman. He was very cute in it. He wasn't thrilled about wearing it until we convinced him that it was his jacket and he needed it to go outside. He is all about going outside so it was a win/win! Once Oliver stopped at a couple of houses he LOVED trick-or-treating. He was great about using his manners (until the end) with saying "trick-0r-treat" and "thank-you". He wanted to stop at EVERY house! By the end, Mom was exhausted!!!! Oliver went non-stop for 80 minutes!!!

As you may also know, Oliver LOVES suckers. Every time he would get a new one he would give me his old one and insist on having the new one. Ugh! By the end of the night we had 4 partially licked suckers and several in my pocket. I figured out quickly (but not quick enough) that I had to clean out the suckers before he saw them in the bucket. Sometimes his eagle eye caught it going in and there was no way I could fish it out without him knowing. Hey... isn't this our house?
Our street goes in a circle so we did 2 laps, one on each side of the street. I thought it would be OK to take pictures of Oliver trick-or-treating at our own house. The bucket started getting heavy so after we would leave a house Oliver would hand it to me to carry. When we would get to a new door he would reach out to me and say "bucket" since he knew he needed it to get new candy. I did manage to get this photo of him carrying his bucket before it was really heavy. One of our neighbors had their driveway decked out in fun decorations. This is Oliver scoping out a crawling hand. EWWW!!!! He was fascinated!!! Have sucker... (candy and Mom) will travel! Keith stayed home to hand out candy. While there, he took some great photos of our pumpkin carving work. Check it out! The two pumpkins in the snow bank by our front step. Crazy!