Love is...

your father's willingness, without question, to volunteer to be on call at the hospital & up most of 40 straight hours so he could be present for your MRI and susequent neurosurgery appointment. It is also knowing to wait to ask your mother if she was OK after finding out you need spinal surgery because he knew she wasn't, but didn't want to be asked that in public where she'd start crying.

While not entirely happy for Love Thursday, I'm holding onto the positives.

And the comical-

Love is also letting your 4 year owner do this to you:

:)

A tethered cord

Corryn was born with a small sacral dimple. It was just suspicious enough to warrant further investigation, which is what we spent the morning doing. She had an MRI, then we had an appointment with the neurosurgeon to find out the results. In spite of our hopes that it was completely benign, it isn't. It isn't a major problem by any means, but it always feels major when it's your child. A part of the bottom of her spinal cord is attached to her tailbone in such a way that as she gets older it will put tension on the spinal cord and very potentially cause neurological problems. It could affect things like walking, and bowel and bladder control. The solution is to go in and surgically clip the tether.

Of course, there's the chance that it would cause no problems at all. But, if we wait and see and problems do occur, very often that function that was affected does not return, even with surgical un-tethering of the cord.

It's a fairly minor procedure in neurosurgical terms, but it's still neurosurgery. It isn't scheduled yet- we're working out some details, but the recommendation is that it's done before she starts crawling to make recovery easier. She has to stay more or less horizontal- not in a bed, horizontal is some way and it's easier before they gain the ability to pull up on things.

Dave & I are feeling as anyone would feel when their infant is facing surgery- worried, scared, stressed. Dillon's trying to figure it out, too as best a 4 year old can.

Love is...

the things that get you through difficult times.

The last few months have been challenging, not for any one single thing, but several. Certainly the transition to two kids alone can be hard, but I feel like we're getting there. It's been unexpectedly having to replace the furnace & having to borrow the money to do so. It's been what seems like one illness after another at our house- and a surgery on top of it. Dave had his nose fixed after living with it being virtually useless for years. It's a good thing, but it's still a recovery time. Corryn has some food sensitivies that I have yet to completely identify, so we have these days that she just screams inconsolably. It's been the never ending winter- and accompanying grayness- this year.

The list can go on, but who really wants to. The image represents what has gotten me through this. The flowers are from my mom who sent them under the guise of Easter, but I think it was most just because she loves me and wanted to cheer me up. It worked. They were beautiful!

Tea has been a mainstay for me since Corryn's birth. The warmth on these endless cold days, the fact I have to slow down to sip it- the forced "mommy break." Few days have passed without at least a couple of cups of tea.

Dave gave me the blue teapot years ago. Although I've long been a tea drinker, I used it mostly for decoration until just the last few years, I never really knew what to do with it, until I discovered just how wonderful it can be to have a pot of tea sitting there ready. Since then, I've used in regularly. In that time, I've had the joy of discovering that tea is so much more than you can buy at the grocery store. My friend Karen is so generous in sharing her incredible stash of teas, that I've gotten to taste and enjoy many kinds- along with the benefit of sharing it with a friend.

On Monday evening, a package arrived from Adagio teas, sent by Karen. It is was a brewing pot, 5 different kinds of teas and a small book with great photos explaining all about tea- greens, blacks, oolongs, white. I immediately tried it out and enjoyed a cup of herbal rooibos from Africa. Such a wonderful gift!

Last, it's the photos. I've also long enjoyed photography, but since getting the digital Nikon SLR back in the fall, it's really taken off for me. I've gotten the chance to take some maternity pictures of another friend, Cynthia- so much fun! So, I thought it perfect to pull it all together with this photo of some of the remaining flowers & the tea.

It's easy to lose yourself in the drudgery of life, especially when it all comes at you at once. I'm thankful to have found things to pull me through these times.

Happy Love Thursday!

Good insight

We were watching a video where someone was trying to explain something.

D: "Momma- I don't think I'd like school. They do too much talking. I like gymnastics because we get to jump and do things."

I don't know if we've explained school this way or if she has just picked up this from friends that go to preschool. In either case, she's right, she'd have trouble with the sitting still and listening. She clearly doesn't have trouble learning, just sitting still to do so.

12 weeks old

Since I've been busy perseverating about the weather lately, I thought a picture of Corryn would be more pleasant :)

Please contribute to my therapy fund...

...A POTENTIAL MAJOR COASTAL STORM MAY AFFECT THE ENTIRE AREA SUNDAY THROUGH EARLY NEXT WEEK...

LATEST INDICATIONS ARE SHOWING A GROWING POTENTIAL FOR A MAJOR NOREASTER TO DEVELOP AND INTENSIFY ALONG OR OFF THE MID ATLANTIC COAST ON SUNDAY AND THEN STALL OFF THE SOUTHERN NEW ENGLAND COAST EARLY NEXT WEEK.

IF THIS OCCURS THE POTENTIAL FOR COPIOUS AMOUNTS OF SNOW OR RAIN EXIST. VERY STRONG WINDS WOULD ALSO ACCOMPANY THIS STORM.

I've got to stop looking at weather forecasts.

Seriously- enough already

PRECIPITATION WILL BEGIN TO FALL ACROSS THE AREA THURSDAY MORNING AND CONTINUE THROUGH THE AFTERNOON... BEFORE TAPERING OFF IN THE EVENING. AT THIS TIME...THERE APPEARS TO BE ENOUGH MOISTURE AND COLD ENOUGH TEMPERATURES TO PRODUCE 6 TO 10 INCHES OF SNOW THURSDAY

I've already been crying about this one.

She's being still!

Love is...

Living in a place where madness such as this occurs in April so that your husband can pursue his dream of becoming a doctor.

Seriously, I love living here, but snowfall in April? Well, not so much. 80 and sunny is more to my liking. But he is a very talented physician unlike most any other you meet. Maybe because he lived a little outside of the academic life before med school, maybe just because that's who he is. In any case, it's been quite ride pursuing this dream of his and I've been happy- overall- to join him on it.

Happy Love Thursday!

Noooooooooooo!!!!

LOOK FOR OCCASIONAL SNOW AND RAIN DURING THE DAY TODAY...WITH ACCUMULATIONS GENERALLY LESS THAN 2 INCHES. THE MIX WILL CHANGE TO SNOW THIS EVENING...AND MAY FALL HEAVILY AT TIMES. BY THE TIME THE SNOW TAPERS TO RAIN AND SNOW SHOWERS THURSDAY MORNING...EXPECT A STORM TOTAL SNOWFALL OF 4 TO 8 INCHES...WITH THE HIGHEST AMOUNTS IN THE HIGHER TERRAIN.

I think I'm going to cry.

Dillon's theory

The other day, I had put lanolin on a dry spot on Corryn's forehead right before we left to go somewhere. Dillon asked me what it was & I told her it was lanolin. Corryn started fussing while we were in the car, so I said "Oh, what's wrong Corryn?"
Dillon said "Maybe she doesn't like having a greasy forehead!"

Now I know why Corryn fusses in the car seat. It isn't the straps or the not being held. It's the lanolin.