Our Day

We had a busy day yesterday. I got all the kids up and out the door in a hurry since Gavin had an Easter Egg Hunt at school and Emma Kate had her 9 month check up. (She is actually nine months and three weeks old.) We made it to the Dr.'s office on time(I am usually late). I had an appointment in the Annex, a building where only well children are seen. Our main office is separated into sick and well waiting rooms, but at the annex, even the examining rooms are for all well children. I really like going on that side. Plus, they see you quicker over there since there is only one doctor at a time. We were in and out in one hour, whereas at the main building it usually takes two. We had to eat breakfast(granola bars for Owen and I and a cereal bar for EK) in the examining room though. Pretty gross, but we managed.

Emma Kate weighed in at 18 lbs 7 oz(45%) and is 28 3/4 (75%) inches long and her head was 17 3/4 inches around.

Since she had a CBC last time, I asked Dr. A if I could see her results since it contains markers of Beta Thalassemia Trait(a genetic blood disorder the boys have that causes anemia). She definately has it. She will have a larger CBC panel run in July to make sure. This bothers me a bit since she is a female and because of menstrual cycles and pregnancies, she could become really anemic very quickly. My theory that she doesn't have it since her jaundice levels never became really high was wrong. :( My children will also need to evalute their partner's blood since two parents with the trait can have a child with Cooley's anemia which is fatal. I want grandchildren. :(

Other, than that, everything is normal. I did request a lead test at her one year checkup since she is constantly putting everything in her mouth. I have even noticed paint scraped off of some of the toys. She also eats paper, grass, etc. (I do take this stuff away from her, but as the quick baby of three children, sometimes I am not fast enough for her.) Dr. A also mentioned that since I am still breastfeeding, that EK should get direct sunlight several times per week without sunscreen so that her body will produce enough Vitamin D.

Owen isn't feeling well. He has a cold that results in a constant runny nose that has really chapped his upper lip. He wants to constantly lick, wipe, or water on his upper lip to alleviate some of the discomfort but really is just making it worse.

After our appointment, we went to the park to meet Gavin's class for his egg hunt. I really like watching Gavin from a distance interacting with other children. It just makes me well up with emotion inside. It is neat(and scary) that he has a life outside of us. (I want to elaborate on the scary part. I just want to protect him and keep him safe, and yes, I realize I can't baby him forever.) The egg hunt was neat, but I wasn't able to get as many pictures as I wanted. I think Gavin was, and know Owen was irritated at me for interrupting their fun for pictures. The party moms arranged for a Shave Ice guy to be there which was really neat. It has been sooo long since I have had one of those.

After that, we joined my parents for lunch and then headed home to play outside. We took a nature walk(well, I walked and the boys drove their Power Wheels and EK rode in her push car) and found some caterpillars. We brought them home on a stick(we scared the poor things, poking and proding them so much), took pictures and talked all about their life cycles. Last night, we read, "The Very Hungry Caterpillar" by Eric Carle and created the life cycle of a butterfly. I let each of them choose their media. Gavin chose markers and paper and Owen chose playdough. I also had Gavin label his stages as well, then they both verbally told me the different stages. How is that for an impromtu lesson?