rain on tulips

I decided to get a shot of CC’s nose now that the healing is done from his first laser treatment. He looks so good! I’ve talked with Fuul, and we are considering not having him have any more done; the mark is very pale now, and I don’t think people will ask him all the time what he’s done to his nose, which was the main issue, but he still has a pale mark, that is ‘his’ birthmark.

And those dimples don’t hurt, either!

Happy, happy 7^th birthday, GC!! How grown up already!!!

(A new future ambition???)

Merry Christmas, from ‘the band’ — four new guitars, and a bass! Wow, Santa was good!

CC got more cars than any little boy should have — I think he only opened up three things that wasn’t car-themed! He even got car slippers and a car rug-road-town! We had a great time watching him ‘drive’ his slippers, on his feet, around the town!

EK got lots of fun toys, but was absolutely thrilled to have gotten her own set of headphones, that play real music! She was dancing and head-banging all over the place!

Fuul was totally surprise by his new toke! Woohoo! And, he says all the guys at work are going to be totally jealous! Mission accomplished!

About the time we got finished opening gifts, the kids had gone into their rooms and came almost immediately out to tell us that it was snowing! Here’s the view out my front door!

Now, with presents opened, kids fed, and most of the initial destruction cleared away, we are settling in to watch a couple of new movies, and play guitars, and nap — I hope!

Merry Christmas to all!!!

(well, maybe after the kids go to sleep!)

Nothing says “Happy Holidays” like marathon gift-wrapping while watching The Mummy Returns! LOL

I love the ‘Christmas’ movies that get played now!

I’ve been up for nearly 3 hours now. I decided at 5:30 that I could lay in bed and stress about all the things that need doing today, or I could just get up and get started on them. I’ll likely crash this afternoon, but for now there is lots going on.

Fuul’s sister should be in this afternoon, and the kids are all jumping out of their skins with excitement. I’ve got to finish the Christmas shopping and buy groceries this morning, so I’m not doing it Christmas Eve. So, yeah.

Off to continue the day.

For trips to the doctor! Falalalala… blahblahblahblah!

Wednesday night, after CC’s laser treatment, DA and JS went ice skating with the church youth. DA ran his finger into the metal bar between two glass sheets, and twisted it or bent it backward or something. Wednesday night it was swollen, with a black bruise across the inside of the knuckle. Thursday morning, it was swollen nearly double, and the bruise had spread to more than half his finger. Off to the doctor. Preliminary xrays show no break, though two doctors thought that it appeared to be cocked oddly to the side, so they splinted it, and said they’d call* after the radiologists got a look at the films.

In the meantime, EK had her 6-month ENT appointment — ears look good, tubes look good, come back in six months — and DA is learning how vital a pinky is to everyday activity!

*We’ve still not heard back about the radiologists’ thoughts on the xrays.
**Update 20 minutes later: they called. Not broken. Probably just sprained and badly bruised. He can wear or not wear the splint, as it helps or not. He still feels as though it helps for now.

The wait to get into the surgical area was longer than the treatment time — 7 bursts of the laser, the dr said — and CC is most happy that he gets to eat again!

His nose/hemangioma looks really bruised/purple-y. The information we got says that it could take between one and three weeks for the purple-y to go away, and that the red underneath should be much better; the doctor estimates by at least half.

Glad to be home. Fighting off another migraine. (Bad timing, that).

CC is going in for his first laser treatment today for his hemangioma on his nose. In light of that fact, I wanted to make sure we had some good photos of it before it goes away… not that we’ll miss it, but we’ll miss it, ya know?

(Sorry, I couldn’t pick just one, once I started going through them and seeing how cute they all turned out — well, the ones that were in focus that is!)

And, CC wouldn’t let me get away without a couple shots of Buzz — he kept holding him right in front of the camera and saying “Cheese”!

Seems all the big happenings this last month or two have been about eyes. I took JS in to the eye photography specialist at the University Hospital yesterday, so they can get some good comparison shots for his ophthalmologist.

I’m hoping we hear from the doctor early this next week, so we have a better feel for what the next step is going to be.

(We hadn’t heard from the doctor’s assistant in a month and a half, and when I was finally able to reach someone who would leave a message, I got a frantic call back from the doctor herself that afternoon, very concerned that we’d not gotten in. She keeps saying things like “Its fine” and “nothing to worry about”, but her tone and her actions keep saying something different, and it worries me a little.)

Fuul’s sister just called, and she’s managed to get a flight out here so she can spend a week with us over Christmas and through New Year! Woohoo! The kids are thrilled, Fuul is concerned where we will put her, and I’m just excited to get to share the joy of Christmas with someone else!

The kids napped. I napped. The migraine let up a lot. (Good idea about getting something to stave them off. They’ve let up a lot over the past six months or so, so its harder to predict them now.) I woke up totally disoriented, with only two minutes to spare before I needed to head out to the ophthalmologist appointment!

Ophthalmology update: EK still looks good. Her vision is still good. Nystagmus (eye bouncing) is still present, but she is compensating appropriately (bobbing her head, tilting to the side to focus on small or far away objects). Her eyelids don’t seem to be ‘falling’. Her eyes aren’t wandering any more than they were, and mostly when she is tired. So, all good reports. Come back in six months.

Overall: nothing is improving, but nothing is worsening, either, so I guess it all evens out.

EK’s gone and back from school. CC and I drove Fuul to work, then CC had speech (last session of the year!), then we came home to wait for EK.

I ought to be packing up boxes for shipping, and getting kids ready for EK’s surprise* ophthalmology visit this afternoon.

But I’m been blindsided by a sneak-attack migraine, and I’m trying desperately to get it to pass before I have to head out for the appointment. If Kids would nap, so much the better for me!

*I got a call from the Ophthalmology office yesterday reminding me of an appointment I’d completely forgotten from summer! Oops! Glad the afternoon was already open.

The tree is up. Luckily its a prelit. So if I get nothing else up there, at least it looks festive!

(Been another long day, and the next few are just as over-scheduled. Yeah, holidays…)