Southbound and hitting speedbumps

Sometimes it's not Plan A but Plan B, Plan C or even in our case more like Plan D. We were supposed to leave for FL and our Thanksgiving holiday last Friday. But after Kenley's pink eye on Monday/Tuesday, I got sick and stayed home Wed afternoon/Thursday and then Clay got sick Thursday/Friday.  I stayed home Friday too since it was already off and the rest was nice. I went to Urgent care on Wed night but was sent home with the "it's just viral" diagnosis and told to let it run it's course. So Clay was on the same track.

So evenutally we loaded up and headed south on Saturday morn and it was a great day of travelling. We made it out of the house by 8:30 which was only 30 min later than anticipated. Kenley did great in the car and happily played, talked, sang, slept, and watched things zoom by. We stayed in a very nice Holiday Inn Express somewhere in Alabama and had a very restful night. Clay and I were feeling a little down still but doing better for the most part. However Sunday was a different story. Kenley ran a fever starting Sunday around lunch and it was a LONG drive the rest of the way to A. Val's. When we got there we took her temp officially and it was 104F. She was a burning bug! We called the dr on call (as it was a Sunday) and were advised to go to the ER to find the root cause of the temp. After a few hours at the local pediatric ER we were sent home with an ear infection and a round of amoxicillin. Pumping Tylenol and Ibprofren in every 3 hours we were able to break the fever in a little over 24 hours. LONG LONG 24 hours!!! She was so clingy and so fussy but aren't we all when we don't feel good?

Monday was a blur since Kenley was sick. Tuesday we went to a nice lunch at the Fisherman's Wharf (the fun post to come later with pictures) but I started feeling even worse. My throat was raw and swollen. It felt like cotton balls were blocking the way and my right ear was starting to hurt. I didn't want an ear infection so Tue afternoon after some searching online, I found an urgent care clinic considered to be "in-network" for our insurance and spent about 2 hours waiting and seeing the dr. They were nice and diagnosed me with an upper respiratory infection and pharyngitis (which is just a nice way to say a really PISSED OFF throat) They gave me a steroid shot to help the swelling and an antibiotic shot and instructions not to nurse for 24 hours (which worried me as the only thing we could get Kenley to drink when sick was to nurse but I was sick of being sick so I went for it).  I was feeling better within a few hours.  I felt good all day today but I'm starting to get that feeling again so I'm busting into my new antibiotic and thus not nursing for the next 5 days. (Sounds like a good time to quit in my book! Wish me luck.. I don't want any clogged pipes.)

Then to add to all of this nonsense, Clay started feeling worse yesterday and last night it got even worse too.  So today, he headed to the urgent care place and came home with antibiotics and cough syrup.  Boy aren't we a healthy bunch.

SO all in all, after a day delay, a trip to the ER, and two trips to an urgent care, the Brockmans have 4 prescriptions, had 2 shots, and I met my health care deductible for 2011 already. FUN FUN FUN!

Stay tuned for the "fun" post with the pictures and stories of the visit in FL thus far.

Another official first...

We've had our first official prescription filled. (I can't get the picture turned correctly and it's driving me nuts!)

That's right folks, we took another trip to the doctor (and all this time I was worried about not using all the Salary Stretcher Plus money and now that it's gone, I need more..ha!) and got a prescription for Erythromycin Ophth Ointment for (drumroll please....dum dum dum dummm) PINK EYE. We have bacterial pink eye in both of our eyes. (Did you know there were 3 kinds of pink eye and the most common that people think of is viral pink eye with red irritated eyes...) Well bacterial pink eye is a bit different. It just oozes a yellow gunk out of the corners of the eyes and can crust your eyes shut. Kenley's big long eyelashes are a foe at this point and impossible to keep clean. We actually sent her to the sitter yesterday since we didn't know what it was. I'm hoping no one else got it as it's highly contagious. We kept her home today and it's slowly improving. I can't decide if next time (cause I'm assuming there will always be a next time) we should go for the drops or the ointment. Either is terribly hard to get on the small eyes and specifically inside the bottom eyelid of a crying and kicking 10 (almost 11) month old.  At least we only have to use the medicine until symptoms clear and remain gone for 24 hours. The dr thought that would be about 3 days so we only have to pin her down 9 times. 2 down and 7 to go ;o)

Morningtime Storytime

Kenley loves to read her books. It's one of the first things she plays with when get home from work/the sitter and lately its one of the first things we play with in the mornings. With the time change this past week, she had been up much earlier than normal so we had some extra play time in the morning. Clay caught some cute pictures the other morning of Kenley reading in the morning while we got ready for work. Too cute!

 I hope that her love for books stays with her as she grows. I enjoy reading so much and I hope she will too.

Baby steps

Kenley has been walking along things for quite some time. She has also been pushing her little walker around, but over the past week or so she has started to actually take some solo baby steps. Last night we finally got a few on video to share. While it is super exciting it is also a little sad as our baby girl is just growing up so fast.

Catching up

WOW! I haven't posted in a week. Many times I have wanted to sit and post some random thoughts but everytime I tried, my mind went blank. Must have been a case of mild writer's block.

Since Halloween we have been very busy at the Hotel Brockman. After a lovely weekend with Grandma Coleman last weekend, Kenley has gotten even more Grandma and Grandpa time. Grandma and Grandpa Brockman came to town on Monday to stay for a few weeks before they fly south for their first winter as retirees. Kenley skipped the sitter to stay home and play with them on Tuesday and had a wonderful time.

Wednesday, Grandma B headed out west to AZ but Grandpa B stayed behind. We have enjoyed having Grandpa B around in the evenings after work for dinner and playtime. Here are some pictures of Kenley and Grandpa B hanging out before bedtime.

Grandpa B left yesterday for a quick trip to Indiana to get their home fixed (the 5th wheel they live in needed some minor repairs). He will be back tomorrow night for some more Kenley time and Grandma B comes back Wed so they can have a few more days with Kenley before they leave. She will probably play hookie from the babysitter's again to enjoy the time.

Yesterday we got another boo boo and this one was BIG. She was playing in the hall with a big box of wipes from Sam's. (Side bar: some of her favorite toys to play with aren't even toys. I wonder why that is so with every kid..hmmm...) I was sitting there with her but decided to get up and get scissors to open the box. Clay was watching from down the hall (playing peek-a-boo from Kenley's room). Just as I rounded the corner to get the scissors I heard a big CLUNK and immediate screaming. She cried so hard and what felt like so long. I know it is just the first of many many many bumps and bruises but it's hard on this momma to have her baby crying.

You can sorta see it in this picture. She got a nice bruise and it was definitely a big bump from the side. This morning it looks much better though so I feel better.
Yesterday was also a bit of a challenge with the time change. Kenley has been waking up at 5am (since she thinks its later). We were able to keep her awake longer last night to readjust to bedtime but she was still up a few times early this morning and up for good at 5. Guess this momma will have to go to bed early tonight until we all readjust.
Finally, in my random thought post for today I thought I would share a picture I like to call "Why we need a new (and bigger) house" Although I guess with a bigger house comes the potential for more toys but our living room looks like a tornado hit it by the end of the day. Here's my proof...

And this was on a mild day ;o) Oh well, at least she is having fun!!!

I guess that's about all I have swimming in my head right now. My mind has been a little cluttered of late so I apologize if I just babble endless in no direction. Stay tuned as we will have more posts soon about our big road trip to FL over Thanksgiving to see Aunt Val, Uncle Scott, and cousin Sophia. We can't wait!!

Trick or Treat?

Well I guess the trick is on us as it was incredibly hard to catch Kenley with a smile this weekend for the camera but all the moments off camera were a definite treat!

We had a very busy (yet highly productive and enjoyable) weekend. My mom came on Friday night for a weekend of babysitting so Clay and I could tackle some things on our "to do" list. Friday we finished giving our bathroom a facelift. We had painted, put up a new light, a new medicine cabinet, new towel bars, and recaulked everything. It looks so much more open and nice. I just need to pick up a new garbage can and toothbrush holder to go with the shower curtain and we will be all set. It's hard to take pictures of the bathroom since it's so small but believe me it's a wonderful improvement.

Then Saturday, I used muscles I wasn't sure I had. I did more physical labor than I had done since BK (Before Kenley).  We started around 830 and ended a little before 5pm. We cleaned out the dog run, painted the trim in the dog run, trimmed bushes, cut down a baby tree, cleaned out the lilac corner, raked leaves, landscaped around a big tree, cleaned out gutters, cleaned off the deck, and much much more. We were so pooped at the end of the day but here are some pictures of our handy work.

Clay's landscaping job around the big tree to protect the root ball that was showing.

Some of the trimming we did removing a tree, bushes, and branches.

First rake of leaves. We will have to rake one more time but this is at least the first half.

The cleaned out dog run. I even painted the trim on the windows and the doors preparing for selling in the spring.

Those inside (Kenley and her wonderful Grandma C) were also tired by the end of the day but it was because they were having too much fun. Kenley and Grandma did come outside for a bit to supervise and give me the motivation to keep raking when everything started to hurt. Kenley even examined a leaf or two to see what it was all about.

Then today (Halloween) Clay and I went back to work. We cleaned out the garage and took a few loads to the storage shed. I haven't seen my garage this clean since we moved in I don't think. We have a few more things on our "to do" list but we were just out of steam so we took the last part of the afternoon to take our kitty trick or treating... and by kitty I don't mean Sheba. That's right, Little Miss K debuted as a Pretty Pink Kitty for her very first Halloween.

Our pretty pink Kitty ;o)

We went to see our friend Kimberly and then over to Tori's to celebrate.

Ready to ring the doorbell for our first "treat"

Kenley with Kimberly's boys Rory and Michael

Kenley with Tori's girls Avery and Lyla

Kenley and me with Tori

After a brief outing in the catsuit, we headed home and of course I took more pictures. However she was a little less than cooperative and while outside was more interested in the leaves than in smiling for pictures, but we got a few good ones inside and out.

Sitting on the porch

Checking out the leaves

Cute kitty

Finally looking at the camera

Kenley and mom

Kenley and Grandma C

Now Kenley is tucked into bed and snoozing away. Unfortunately the weekend is over and it's back to work tomorrow. It was a wonderful weekend from start to finish and definitely a treat to have my mom share it all with us. Happy Halloween everyone!!!