Dr.'s Appointments for All!!

What a fun filled day we had!!


Today was little mans checkup for his hernia surgery. His super sticky waterproof band aid finally came off in the bath this morning. Yay! When we went in, he was in his super play mode that he usually goes into right before nap time. Our appointment wasn't until 1:20, and that's usually when he is getting ready to go down. Being out during this time is particularly difficult, because he just wants to get into everything, and tends to "rage" as the hubbs and I call it.  Thankfully John used some vacation time today, and was able to go with us. Without his help, I would have been one tired momma!! 


When we got back to the exam room, he tried to push every chair, stool, and even the exam table at one point. He wanted to get to the faucet so bad to play in the water. The boy loves him some water! The physicians assistant, and nurse finally came in to check him over, took one look at the incision, and told us he was A-OK!! John even asked her if they put something in him to make him more hyper!! Seriously, since 6:30pm the day of his surgery, he has been go go go non stop. The boy hardly rests. He has bounced back quicker and stronger than I ever would have thought. I am so relieved that everything went fantastically.


Now on to my trip. I have had a swollen lymph node behind my right ear for about 3 or 4 weeks now. I went to the urgent care clinic on November 4th. After checking me over, and taking some blood, they started me on some antibiotics, gave me something for the pain, and sent me on my way. They even called a couple of days later to tell me that my blood tests had come back normal, so the antibiotics should cure what ever local infection, somewhere inside me that is causing the lymph node to swell. 


I took all 21 of the pills, regularly and on schedule. John even set the 3:45am alarm on his phone, to wake me so I could keep with the cycle. Well, I never saw a change in the size or tenderness of the lump. Nothing. If anything, it's a bit bigger and it hurts worse. The only way I can describe it is, it feels like someone kicked me in the back of my head. It just freaking hurts. I decided after waiting it out for a couple of days, to finally call the clinic where I had been seen. After talking to the doctor again, he refereed me to an E.N.T. specialist. He was concerned that the swelling didn't go down with the medicine, which means whatever is causing it to swell didn't go away. I called and was quickly told to "come in as soon as possible, so we can see if a biopsy needs to be done."  Biopsy. One word I defiantly didn't want to hear. My grandma (Fathers Mother) passed away because of Lymphoma. So when they said biopsy, her situation came to mind. 


I headed in at 4pm, and was quickly registered, and taken back to an exam room. I have to give the Doctors office credit, they were super efficient, and really nice. That's always comforting. After waiting a few minutes in the exam room, Dr. Tamez  came in. He checked my ears, nose and throat, and didn't find any problems. Nothing wrong with my tonsils, or sinuses. No scalp abrasions(commonly found with swollen lymph nodes), or rashes. Nothing. So what's causing the swelling? He doesn't know just yet, but after a thorough examination he is confident that a round of super strong antibiotics, a steroid called prednisone, and Loritab for the pain, will get results. I sure hope so. This is just not the time for me to be sick. With the up coming holidays, and the travel plans we have, I don't want to feel like poo for all of it!! 


So I am going to give it a shot. Hopefully this will work, and I can get back to normal, and plan an awesome Thanksgiving and Christmas for my family!!

Pj Friday!

It's Friday, which means one thing in our house. Pajama Day!!! This is Jp, rockin' his new cars pj set that he got last night. I bought a few others too, so he will have a new one to wear every Friday for a while! Hooray for sales at Target!!

I love pajama Friday, not just because it's comfortable...but it also gives me a chance to get all the laundry done!!

Hope everyone is having a great day!
XoXo
-Courtney

A chance to update

Things have been kinda crazy around here this week. Jp had his hernia surgery on Tuesday morning. Everything went smoothly, and he came out feeling fine. He was given a caudal, which is a shot to numb him from the waist down. So he stayed numb and slept most of the day Tuesday. He tried to walk when we got home around noon, and his little legs buckled under him. So we spent most of the afternoon napping on the couch. He woke up at 6:30 when John got home, rolled off the couch, took a few wobbly steps and then he was back to normal.


It's crazy to me that he could go through this surgery, and then be up and playing like normal. Wednesday he was back 100%. Climbing on things, playing with his toys, and not acting like he is in ANY pain. He is supposed to be getting Motrin every 6 hours and Tylenol every 4, but he hasn't needed any medicine since 6:15 last night. I haven't seen him even wince once in pain, and he is climbing on a chair as I type, so I think he is going to be A-ok!!


He does have some restrictions though. No straddling for 2 weeks, so I had to hide our bouncy zebra and rocking horse in my closet, and not baths, only showers until we go for our followup. We go back for our followup with the surgeon on November 16 and then they will take the super band aid off, and he will be left with just the steri-strips for another week or so, until they fall off on their own.


I was a lot calmer than I thought I would be. My mom was super awesome, and I am so glad she went with me. Having her there helped to keep me calm and collected.


As for how I imagined things would be, it's completely different!! He is healing so much quicker than I thought, and I had no clue that he would be back to normal so soon! Now it's time for him to have his daily sponge bath, and then we are gonna clean the house!!


Thank you to all of our friends and family for the words of encouragement, and well wishes. It is a great feeling knowing that we have such awesome people in our lives who care so much about our little man.


Have a great day everyone!!
XoXo
-Courtney

Getting ready for the week.

So this weekend was a whirlwind. Friday night started off with a trip to Urgent Care for me. I have a swollen lymph node behind my right ear, and it was really killing me. I headed in, and got my flu shot, some super strong antibiotics to kill whatever infection is making is swell, and some pain meds for the awful headache I have. 

After waiting at Walgreens for half an hour I went home and spent the rest of Friday night on the couch. It was restful, except for the fact that Jp woke up after we put him in bed, and he stayed up until 1:30 in the morning.  That coupled with my raging headache made for a very long night. John was on total daddy duty Saturday morning though. As soon as Jp woke up, he came in to our room and scooped him up, and tucked me in and I went right back to sleep. I have to say that he has been absolutely AMAZING while I have been sick. I have to take my antibiotics every 8 hours, which means that I need a 3:45am dose. John sets the alarm on his phone, and then at 3:45 he brings me water and the med, and wakes me up so I can take it. I love that man so much!! 

Saturday night was pretty much the same story with Jpers. He went to bed at a decent time, and then woke up around 11, and stayed up till 1:30 again. Sunday morning John woke super early, so when Jp got up they had father son time, and I got to sleep in. I love my husband so much. He is an even better dad than I could have imagined he would be. I also love that he looks forward to those couple of hours on Saturday and Sunday that he gets alone with his son. That's the most precious thing to me. 

This week is going to be a busy one. John started a new position within his company last week, so since this is his first full week in the new spot, he will not be able to go to Jp's surgery appointment with me. Monday we find out what time the surgery will take place on Tuesday. My mom is going to drive up from San Antonio to come with me since John can't be there. I am sure I will be a mess, so it will be nice to have her there with me. Even though I'm 27 years old, it's still comforting to have my momma there with me. We have grown closer in the past few years, and she is absolutely amazing, and I love her dearly. 

I don't know how long it will take for little man to recover from his surgery. The aftercare instructions they gave me say that he can't have a sit down bath for at least 7 days. This is because of the steri-strips they use to close the incision. So showers it will be for little man!! 

Right now I am just focusing on getting through Tuesday. I am starting to freak out about the anesthesia. I just don't like the idea of him being sedated at this age. That's because I still see him as that tiny 8lb 7oz baby that I held for the first time at the hospital. Plus I'm his mom, it's my job to worry about things like this!! 

I just can't wait for this week to be over. I don't do well with stress. Stress equals sleepless nights, and stomach aches for me, and I hate it. Once this procedure is over, and he is healed, I will be much better. 

XoXo

-Courtney