Category: health

children, gratitude, happiness, health, kids, life in pictures, mommyhood, motherhood, parenting

Shot Through the Heart

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T.Puzzle waits with a smile for the doctor.

I am already seeing the signs of the ‘four year change’ in T.Puzzle.  It happens gradually with lots of days of backsliding.  The only reason I am aware it is happening at all is because I witnessed the same change in Full Speed two years ago.

It starts with the simple things, like saying ‘yes’ when Mom or Dad ask you to do something all the way to the more complicated, like sampling a variety of Thai food without batting an eyelash or throwing remarkably less volatile tantrums.

I had to take T.Puzzle in for his four year wellness check-up.  He was ultra-compliant and happy to boot.

I was relieved that he was following direction so well.  My soul relaxed a notch as it clicked that this is exactly how it happened with Full Speed.  The ‘four year change’ is upon us.

We were having such a good time.  I didn’t want it to end.

Then, it was time for the vaccination portion of the visit.  T.Puzzle’s glee quickly turned to horrified shock and despair.

It was like leading a dimpled, giggly lamb to slaughter.

He had to get four shots.

FOUR.

As each shot stabbed into his puny thighs, his wails got louder and louder.

He was so loud, the receptionist went to the back storage room and got him six ‘Lightning McQueen’ stickers for his ‘bravery’.

Once I had him calm, collected and on our way home he said, “Mom, my legs are all better now,” and didn’t give them or his shots a second thought.

Four years old.

T.Puzzle’s best year yet.

children, eyesight, gratitude, happiness, health, humor, life in pictures, mommyhood, motherhood, parenting

Eye(mazing)

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boys play matchbox cars to pass the time at the ophthalmologist's

We are seated in the tiny eye exam room.  I am so beyond stressed that I actually feel kind of calm.

These visits to the pediatric ophthalmologist are not without uncertainty.

Will Full Speed test well?

Is T.Puzzle in a cooperative mood?

I try to convince myself it’s no big deal.  I mean only the future of my children’s vision is at stake here.

We wait for the eye doctor.

She breezes into the room with grace and confidence.

She clearly adores my boys.

This helps.

Full Speed is an unexpected rock star of vision testing.

He tests 20/40 in his right eye and 20/30 in his left.

I almost faint.

He then proceeds to read a line of print so teeny-tiny, I’m positive that only someone with superhuman eyesight could read it (no, it’s not that I’m old in the least and had to squint to read the line myself).

I almost faint again.

I get goosebumps on top of my goosebumps.  My heart fills with immeasurable gratitude.

It hardly phases me that T.Puzzle is mostly uncooperative.  He holds steady at 20/50 and 20/70.

I’ll take it.

During this arduous process of eye surgeries, doctor’s appointments and visits to the ophthalmologist, I have learned that I cannot control the level of vision that each of my boys will attain.

All I can control is how I feel about it.

And today for the first time in my life, I feel absolutely amazing about their vision.

This is one of the best days ever.

children, health, humor, kids, mommyhood, motherhood, parenting

Full (Speed) of Hot Air

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Children and gastrointestinal issues go hand in hand.  Mad Dog and I have witnessed this firsthand.

When Full Speed shared that his ‘tummy hurt’ and then proceeded to turn a sickly pale color, we changed our dinner plans.  Nevermind that we had only seconds before pulled into the restaurant parking lot and were ready to exit the car and head inside.

We weren’t in a gambling mood.

Instead we decided to grab some food at a drive-thru and eat at home.  That way if Full Speed had any issues, we would be out of the public’s always watching eyes and have access to cleaning products if the need should arise.

We couldn’t figure out if Full Speed was really ill.  He was pale and restrained one moment, then hyper and happy the next.

After we picked up our food and had it spread out on our kitchen table, a low rumbling noise began deep in the bowels of Full Speed.  It went on and on a rose with a vengence and a long-winded burp escaped from his lips (you could have spelled Mississippi fourteen times before it was over).  An embarrassed smile spread across his face as he smirked out the words, “Excuuuuse meeeee!”  Mad Dog and I could tell he instantly felt better as the color returned to his cheeks.

Aha!  Full Speed’s stomach ailment was solved.

If only all mysterious child illnesses and behaviors could be dissected so easily.

children, health, kids, mommyhood, motherhood, parenting, self-discovery, Taekwondo

Everywhere

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I was sitting off to the side of T.Puzzle’s tae kwon do practice.  With the help of a babysitter, and let’s be real here for a moment, a good babysitter is to a frazzled Mom what wine is to a frazzled Mom, I can take each boy to skill appropriate classes.  T.Puzzle remains in Tiny Tigers and Full Speed attends high-ranking juniors classes.

I was trying my best to blend into the background.  I’m usually exhausted at this point having wrangled all the gear, uniforms, behavior reports, etc. and all I want is quiet oblivion.

The instructor is always trying to get us parents out on the mat.  It’s not my cup of tea, it’s more Mad Dog’s style, so I try to avoid it as much as possible.  To gain more parent involvement, the instructor brilliantly uses the kids now to request help from their Mom or Dad.  No Mom in their right mind would deny their three year old’s request of, “Ma’am?  Would you please hold a target for me?”  Between his saucer-like eyes and killer dimples, T.Puzzle got me out on the mat in about two seconds flat.

I start helping him with his drills.  He’s ducking my moving target, he’s throwing punches and generally doing a fantastic job.

Then he stops.  His arms fall to his sides and he becomes motionless.   He stares up at me.

I have no idea what he thinks he’s doing.

“Mom, I want to give you a kiss,” he states.

So, he leans forward, tilts his head upward and plants a smooch.

He doesn’t skip a beat.  He immediately reverts back to his punches and his fighting stance.

I continue with the drills even though I am changed somehow.

I am reminded of the constant, indestructible nature of love.  It is whole and beautiful and if you take a moment to breathe, you will find it right beneath the surface of everything. Even under the surface of tae kwon do drills.

Love is everywhere.

children, health, mommyhood, motherhood, parenting

The Spontaneous Nap

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There is a positive side to raising overly active children.  Honest.  I knew with out a shadow of a doubt that T.Puzzle was feeling under the weather.  He had a pretty good morning and was keeping up with Full Speed.  After lunch we were seated at our dining room table about to work on some fine motor activities.  T.Puzzle politely excused himself from the table.  He went to the nearest couch, laid down, and was asleep within two minutes.

sleep tight!

Turns out he had a temperature of 102 and went on to have miserable, sad evening.  I motrined him up and put him to bed at six.

If only we all could sleep 13 hours straight.  I bet the world would be a better place if we did.