Contaminated Kiddo

My poor little Addy has been drug through the ringer the last few weeks.  It started off with a cold and some pink eye.  We started drops, but her eyes weren't getting better and a cough started, so we went back to the doc.  On Friday, he put her on meds for a sinus infection, which would also clear up her eye.  A few days later, on Sunday afternoon, I noticed a rash all over her belly!  So, I dropped Ethan off at Grandma A's house and took her into instacare, thinking she was having a reaction to the antibiotics.  In this short amount of time, little blisters started forming around her mouth, and the doctor informed me that she had Hand, Foot, and Mouth Disease (actually a virus, so I'm not sure why they call it this).  Anyway, there is nothing you can do for kiddos with HFM, except let it run its course. 

Her blisters were horrible just on her face and inside her mouth at first, but pretty soon her hands and feet were covered with lesions too, and then they spread to her legs.  They are pretty painful I guess, because my kiddo wouldn't eat, or hardly drink for days, and spend several days crawling because she didn't want to walk. 

Sore hands & feet . . . they start out pink, and then blister, pop, and then look yucky and red like the ones on her face.

I mean doesn't this little face just want to make you cry?  I'm happy to say that I think we're through the worst of it, and she is on the mend.  I'm hoping it's all cleared up by next week, and praying that my other little munchkin doesn't pick it up.  

Killer Shoes . . . Literally

I went to Kohl's the other day and fell in love with these shoes!  They were on sale, so of course I had to purchase them.  

Well, let me just tell you they are hazardous to your health!  Those little jewel things on the top are extremely sharp!  I sat down on the floor to play with Addy while I was wearing them, and whilst crossing my legs to sit down, they scratched the crap out of my leg.  

I thought maybe I needed to abandon the shoes . . .but then I thought, no, I just need to wear them carefully, and put them in a safe place when not in use!  After all, I LOVE them, and I can't take them back after I ripped off the tag, wore then around for a while, and spilled my blood all over them when they cut me. :)

The Zoo

My friend Rachel and I decided that it would be a good idea to take the kids to the zoo back in early June, when we had a significant cool down in the weather!  We pulled into the parking lot and decided everyone else in Utah had the same thought.  The parking lot was packed, the zoo was packed, and we had to park at least a mile away.  So, we packed up the kiddos and walked down to the zoo.  We decided once we got there that we need a 2 to 1, adult to kid ratio when going to any public place! :)  Charlie and Ethan weren't too bad, but miss Addy was a handful.  

Ethan cracks me up, and was a little scared to get his picture taken while getting a drink from the Lion's mouth.  This is a classic photo op though, so I made him do it.  Can you tell he looks uncomfy?  I'm a great parent too.  It ended up being only like 72 at the zoo, and with the wind it was a little cold for my kids to be dressed the way they were.  I should have had them in jackets.  

 We stopped and got a bite to eat in the new restaurant that overlooks the elephant habitat.  It was pretty awesome!

 Here is Adds!  It's one of the few times that she actually stayed in the wagon or the stroller.  She wanted to be SUPER helpful and push, instead of ride.

 Ethan was SUPER excited to see the Giraffe's and really didn't care to see much else while at the zoo.  He asked at least 1000 times when we'd get to see the giraffe.  So, here he is, viewing the much anticipated giraffe!  When we went to the cool zoo in AZ when visiting uncle Colby, he got to feed a giraffe.  I'm assuming this is why he's so fascinated by them now.

Shortly after this picture, we loaded up in the stroller, and somehow, we managed to lose Addy's shoe.  I'm super upset about this.  They were the softest little sandals and Addy LOVED wearing them.  She is SUPER picky about shoes, but would put this pair on all the time.  Oh well!

Thanks Rach for coming with us, and helping to entertain my two twits! :)

The Pool

 You should be impressed . . . I took the 2 kids to the pool by myself and we all survived!  Addy was petrified of the pool when we first arrived and sat in that little yellow swing with only her toes in the water for a good half an hour before she warmed up to actually getting in the water.  Ethan on the other hand did awesome, and was extremely brave.  He is a pretty social little guy and made several "friends" while at the pool.  This was great, because he enjoyed spending time with them, and I could keep a close watch on little miss.  She got brave as time passed, and even jumped off the side to mom!

Even though we had a great time, I'm convinced that this might be the place where Addy picked up Hand Foot and Mouth disease!  She broke out about 5 days later . . . suspicious. . .

Sweet Summer Time

Well, it's summertime . . . the greatest few months of the year if you ask a teacher.  Okay, so I must admit, I enjoy summer, and my few short weeks off work, but I HATE the heat!  We've made the most of it thought, and the kids have had a ball playing outside.

We've taken several visits to Grandpa and Grandma A's house this summer . . . to play in their nice completely shaded back yard, swing in their swing, and pick strawberries.  We've also had a few BBQ's with Grandma and Grandpa.  

Here is Addy after cooling off with a chocolate ice cream cone!

 Ethan went out to the garden to pick strawberries, and obviously had some fun in the dirt too.

 We've tried to stay cool by playing in the water OFTEN!

 And making evening visits to the park when it's in the shade to do some swinging!

And just for kicks, here is my little one eating some coco puffs.  She thinks it is EXTREMELY funny to throw her coco puffs on the floor and make a gigantic mess.  Little Stinker! :)

Spiderman?

I REALLY need to get Addy some princess dress up clothes.  I find her in Ethan's room all the time these days in his costume drawer putting on superhero costumes, and even though she doesn't say too  many words, she can clearly say spiderman!

Pre-school Fun

Ethan is beginning to LOVE preschool, and actually has started asking if he gets to go to school.  They do so many fun things with them there.  This is how I picked him up the other day!  He wore that dog collar and ears all night long, and was thrilled beyond all possible imagination to have coco puffs "dog chow" to snack on.  

I missed a great photo op the other day when they talked about Fire Stations.  Ethan had a fire fighter hat with Dalmation dog ears attached to it, and they had painted their faces with black dots as well!  He's learning a lot at school, and is having a great time making new friends.  His buddies at school are Lincoln, Brecken, and Kelson!