ER Initiations

I think that every parent needs to be initiated into parenthood by some sort of emergency room visit. That, or some episode that scares the living shit out of you enough to remind you that these toddlers are still just babies and anything can happen in the blink of an eye. Until then, you really haven't lived as a "parent".

A few weeks ago, we received our initiation. After moving, things were everywhere. After moving, I also had some insane bouts of insomnia and a cold. Fun times. Before heading back to work on Sunday, I wanted to make sure I actually slept, so I put a bottle of Nyquil by my bed in the event I woke up in another coughing fit. Thankfully, I slept the entire night through just fine.

The next day I was at school teaching when Adam called. He's at home with Adly still and I thought it was weird that he was calling knowing I was at work. There was another teacher in my room at the time so I ran out into the hallway to answer. Adam didn't have good news.

Adly had gotten into the Nyquil on my nightstand in the matter of a minute Adam had walked around the corner. She had it in her mouth and down her shirt. To start, Adam called poison control. They recommended to immediately head to the ER, because any amount she drank could have serious consequences.

After I hung up, I went right back to teaching, convincing myself she'd be fine. She was in good hands. She wasn't at a daycare or with a sitter, she was with her dad. I went through the next 30 minutes until lunch as normal. When I got to lunch I kept texting Adam, who was at the ER already, for updates. He had no answers other than that it was definitely starting to effect Adly and that they were running a lot of tests.

All normal, considering the situation, I thought. Then came the news they'd need to keep her for another 3-4 hours to continue monitoring her. He didn't have her blankie or any bottle or food for her. I knew I had to get there. There was some sort of unnerving feeling as a mom that I just had to be there for her. My baby was in a hospital. How could I not? My boss was amazing and worked it out for me to leave within minutes. I ran home, got Adly's favorite things and headed to see them.

As I went to the hospital, my mind was racing with questions. I just couldn't figure out how she had gotten into the the bottle in the first place. Had I not screwed the cap on tight? Is she a superwoman? Maybe she's an extraordinarily talented toddler and has a super skill for opening bottles. It just didn't make sense to me how a toddler could get into a childproofed medicine bottle. Because, after zillions of lawsuits, aren't all medicine bottles childproofed these days?

When I got there, Adly was out of it, tired, with super red cheeks. They asked me how much was in the bottle before she got to it...but who ever pays attention to that? She doesn't know how to drink out of a cup, so that was a good thing. We just couldn't fathom she had actually swallowed that much. Shortly after I arrived to the hospital, Adly started coming around to her normal self again as the effects of the medicine began to wear off.

We thought we were home free and would be fine to take her home finally. This was when the doctor came in to deliver the news that the next step was to test for Tylenol poisoning. Tylenol, which can cause severe liver damage in small doses for little ones, is apparently in NyQuil. To test her levels, they had to run an IV. By now, we've seen plenty of shots be stabbed into our sweet little girl for her regular vaccinations. But nothing can prepare you for watching them be stuck with an IV needle. (Ok, I still have to turn my head when I get stuck for things...so maybe needles are a little rough for me in general). They wrapped her up in a swaddle-burrito with just her arm hanging out. We kept telling her they were going to do tests on her. She kept looking at us with wide eyes saying, "Adly tests. Adly tests." I held my phone in front of her with her beloved Peppa Pig playing to distract her while they poked her. She didn't scream or cry. There were only big tears falling from her eyes as she looked at me like "why are they hurting me mama?" Of course, I was sobbing. Then within seconds she was totally fine, while I had to take some time to recollect myself. My toddler is way stronger than I.

As we waited, we also got the delivered the super embarrassing, yet mandatory, lecture on medicine and children. We do keep all medicine in a cabinet above the sink. This was obviously a fluke incident and a moment of absentmindedness from myself. Still, it's hard to hear someone remind you of these simple steps and not feel like you failed as a parent in some way. The ER doctor had asked me to bring in the bottle of medicine with me so she could examine it. As soon as she got it into her hands she twisted it off. Turns out, to my shock and utter disbelief, not all medicines are childproof. How on earth this is plausible still boggles my mind. I guess I had become accustomed to the notion that all were treated the same, and therefore had never even considered it a possibility that a cap might simply twist off. 

Thankfully, the tests came back low and so we were cleared for release soon after. It was a scary day and hopefully our last visit to the ER for a while. As parents, there is nothing worse than sitting helplessly next to your sick child. Clearly, I married Adam for a reason. He is the sanity to my insanity in these kinds of moments. Always looking at the positive outcomes, while I, ever the realist always think the worst. I'm so grateful it was him at home with Adly during all of this. He who had the clear mind to take responsible action calmly and quickly, whereas I would've been sobbing, panicking, and running around like a madwoman.

It is also not lost on me that we were the lucky ones. Our ER visit was short and ended fine. I've come to follow a few journeys of toddlers from my home state who are battling horrific cancers or terminal illnesses. How do those children deal with the pain every day? And their parents. The strength they have is inspirational. This job called parenting sometimes finds a way to show you just how weak you can be, or how strong you actually are, when you least expect it.

Snuggles with mama and her beloved nye-nye. 

Do you likey my dress?

When it smacked me in the face that my "big girl" is still such a small baby. Tear. 

20 months

Life has gotten in the way of a lot of things lately. We moved again to a bigger place which we didn't think would be that bad of a move, but oh it was.

You never realize how quickly you can collect ridiculous amounts of, to put it nicely, "stuff" until you have a kid. I can't even imagine if there were more than one what it would be like. The move took way longer than expected with way more trips up and down many flights of stairs carrying armful after armful of baby gear that is too big and awkward to box up. 

Then when it came to unpacking we suddenly realized it would be much harder with a little munchkin who's into everything and needs constant surveillance, especially in a new place. Thankfully we've become settled and have pretty much gotten unpacked over the last two weeks. 

Now for Adly. I skipped 19 months so that means there's been quite a bit of growth....sometimes these days a month just doesn't seem to have a lot of changes. 

Here's Adly at 20 months:

-She has begun saying phrases and small sentences. This has been really exciting to see happen, especially the first time she figures out a sentences. She kind of says it slowly as you're waiting on edge to hear what words going to come next. She loves the book I Went Walking where a kid takes a walk and a lot of animals join him. The longest sentence I've heard from her came repeated from that book "I see a lot of animals looking at me!" So cool. 

-Speaking of repeating, she does this A  LOT. Sometimes it's beyond adorable, like when she started saying "mmmm DELICIOUS" and "immmmmpossible!" Both from her favorite TV show. Pretty much anything you ask her to say these days she will say and usually quite clearly. However then there's the downside. Her other favorite word she's learned to repeat is "damnit". And the worse part is, she uses it appropriately. I tried scolding her and telling her that's a mama word not an Adly word. Now she says "Damnit!......(sits then nods her head knowingly)....mama word!" Oh well. At least I tried.

-Her favorite TV show is still Peppa Pig. I was always kind of against TV for toddlers (what soon-to-be-idealistic-head-in-the-clouds parent isn't?!). This was until I realized we could get an actual break for 20 minute periods. I won't admit how many episodes she watched while we packed and unpacked but I am so grateful for that show!!!

-She's an up and down eater these days. Some days she mows down what we offer, other days it's an awful battle. I hate those days. There really is nothing worse than whipping up a healthy balanced meal for your child only to have them refuse to take one damn bite. For the most part I like to think she's beginning to realize she either eats what's offered or she goes hungry, but I'm not going to say that's easy by any means. We usually end up trying to get something in her stomach, even if it's not the best choice.

-She still has no interest in the potty. I know this task is looming ahead and I also know none of us are looking forward to it. That's all we have to say about that.

-Our new place has two bathrooms which is amazing, however they are both with standup showers. There is a jacuzzi tub too, but that would take a quarter of Lake Michigan to fill a few inches so we've transitioned Adly to just using the stand up shower. This was not an easy task considering a month ago, my child was one of those screaming and crying if a drop of water touched her face. Every shampoo rinse was a teary-eyed battle. Before we moved, we randomly threw her in the shower with me, knowing we'd need to transition her. Over a few showers she became used to the water falling over her and actually started to enjoy it! What's even nicer is this has combined our shower times, saving me some time in the evening. However these toddlers are fickle beings, so of course I can't say she LOVES shower time every day and is just the easiest toddler ever. Some days she decides she hates the shower and we have a 10 minute coaxing and bribing session to get her in. Other days she walks right in no problem. One other thing I didn't realize would happen is she sees mama shaving her legs in the shower. Of course, even though she doesn't look like me, she is definitely my mini-me. So she has to do everything I do. Now every time we shower I hear "Mama shaves you!" She points her little leg out just like I do, rests on her big toe and I flip the razor around and "shave" her legs.

-Adly and I picked up a new "baby" while shopping a week ago and she has since become obsessed with her. She's exactly the same as her first baby but in a different outfit. Either way, she has completely taken to her, feeding her, changing her, carrying her everywhere she goes. It is so cute!! 

-My child is also a diva. She gets this from her dad. In the last few months she has grown to dislike having her picture taken. At least when mama does it. Now I get a straightfaced stare and a "Nooo! No picture!" almost every time I whip out the camera. I either do it deceptively or have to dance around like a raging idiot to get a small, distracted smile from her. However if SHE is messing with my camera (and turning it every wrong way of course) she'll smile and say "CHEESE!!" while happily clicking away and taking pictures of the ceiling. 

Smile for you?!? Hah! Yeah right.

I think that's about it for now. She's turning into such a big girl. I notice the way she now lays on me and wraps her legs around my waist has changed. Her body is so much bigger now, like a little girl, and definitely not a baby anymore. It's those moments when you stop and realize how fast they are growing and changing, that you just want time to slow down. 

Family selfies right before the move!

Playing and sharing with our friend Ava.

Taking care of baby. 

Mmmm...hummus!

Helping mama build the bed.

Peppa Time!