New Blog -> Mama 13.1 -> go there

I've been having many troubles uploading photos on this site, so I have a NEW blog, where I will continue what I've started here....

http://mama13point1.blogspot.com/

Marijke

Welcome to USA, Marijke!!!

For this school year, we are hosting Marijke, a German exchange student who will be a senior at MHS.

It was a long wait for her, but she finally made it to Cedar Rapids from Chicago.

Random Thoughts

So, apparently I've been "too busy" to blog. Well, here are some random thoughts:

1. Brooke does NOT have Lyme Disease. The "Western Bloc" test, a more thorough test, revealed that she does NOT have the disease. However, she was instructed by our pediatrician to finish the antibiotics, which she did. This would cover any bacterial infections that may have triggered the Bell's Palsy.

2. Today was school registration day. The girls are going full-time this year. Brooke in 6th and Haley & Moriah in 8th. Luckily, all three are at the same school.

3. Marijke comes THIS SATURDAY! I feel like an expectant mother or something, as I have been "nesting." Last week, I cleaned out the garage--I can park in it again! I've been cleaning a little more than usual. And today, I actually put the new cupboard drawer pulls & knobs on the doors and drawers. They'd been sitting in a bag for about a month and today I managed to get inspired. HGTV was on in the background...maybe that helped?

4. We have now just 1 cat. Blossom, a nine-month old kitten herself, gave birth July 24th to four premature kittens. The girls managed to keep 2 alive for 5 days by feeding them around the clock, but in the end, there were four little graves in the side of our yard. Blossom, who wasn't doing so well herself, ran away the 29th. We suspect she found a bush to die under, poor thing.

5. We are going to Colorado soon! Dan needs a vacation after a tremendously and unusually busy July at work. I'm looking forward to catching up with Diane & Pat, and my good friend, Deb & husband Mike. The girls are looking forward to seeing Rachel, Deb's daughter. And, of course, we all are excited about seeing those fabulous mountains again!

6. Just made brownies...mmmm...chocolate.

Update #2

Brooke's Lyme test came back positive, so she has Lyme Disease. The amoxicillan antibiotic is supposed to take care of it.

Update

Brooke had a follow-up appointment today in Iowa City with an ENT pediatrician.

It went very well.

He was impressed with how the Mercy ER treated Brooke, and believes they/we caught the palsy at the very beginning. So, treating it at the beginning will cause it to go away sooner.

Whew.

Her "funky eardrum" is just fine.

I think she's already getting better. Her eye is blinking farther than it was yesterday.

Brooke has Bell's Palsy

Friday was quite a day!

After missing Brooke at camp all week, we went to pick her up at 9 am. She looked tired, but that's to be expected after a week at camp, staying up late, getting up early, and non-stop fun.

Unfortunately, I sent her on Sunday with a massive headache. Monday morning, she had thrown up and was still feeling ill. But, by Tuesday, she said she was much better. She stayed at the camp all week, and insisted she was fine.

Apparently, sometime during the week, Tuesday or Wednesday, one of her eyes became swollen and almost shut. But, later in that day, the swelling went back down, and she was ok.

So...it's Friday, and I have an appointment in Iowa City to get the VW looked at, which I had rescheduled due to our visitors earlier in the week. And, of course the 90 minutes I was quoted turned into about 140 minutes of waiting.

I made it back to Muscatine around 3:30. Brooke seemed ok, but I was wondering why her smile was crooked. She said one side of her face felt stiff and bruised. The other side was soft and squishy. By this time, it was about 4 pm. I called our pediatrician, knowing full well the answer I'd get: "it's Friday afternoon. Go to the ER."

Well, we've done the Muscatine ER enough times to know we should try a different ER. Dan said Mercy in Iowa City. Off we go.





Brooke had an MRI of her brain. She had to stay completely still. She did great. She had her blood drawn for blood tests, specifically the Lyme's Disease. And, she had a throat swab. Tests. Tests. Tests.



Conclusion: Bell's Palsy

Course of treatment: A lot of pills