Postponed

After starving Charlotte all day (which she was not happy about), we got to the hospital for her tonsil/adenoids surgery and the anesthesiologist determined she was too congested to go through with it. While we know it is the right decision, we were a bit annoyed that when I asked on Monday to reschedule because she was getting a cold (and all the other illness in our house with the other kids), the nurse acted like I was crazy, and said as long as she didn't have a fever they would still do it. All it took was for the anesthesiologist to look at her health history and her runny nose, and said even without a fever, he wouldn't advise it.

Soooo....we will reschedule. I don't know the date yet, most likely a few weeks from now. I am hoping the weather will be a bit warmer and the chance of her (or any of her sibs!) being sick will be lessened. 

Our day in pictures:

"What?! You want me to eat this for breakfast? I want 'uffins!"

Trying to distract her from hunger pains with new bath toys. 

"So...why are we here?"

"Finally! I get to eat!"

Thanks for thinking of us today, I will keep you updated! 

Wordless Wednesday...well, not really.

I went to my phone to pick a picture to post of Charlotte today, and couldn't decide on just one. I don't have a whole ton of time to blog though, so instead you get a variety of pictures from the past few days.

I took the older three kids to a gymnastics birthday party while Mike stayed home with Jack. All three had a blast. 

Trying a new flatbread from a local gluten-free bakery. (It was super good.)

School drop off. She gets so excited as soon as we drive in the parking lot. Still, even months later, she loves it.

More nap time fun. Yikes. When I came to get her, she look at me and said, "Oh no! What happened? Coins!"

She scored an extra sticker at the pediatrician's office yesterday. I took her in because she has a cold, which usually wouldn't warrant a trip the doc, however, I wanted to make sure all was well with her lungs before surgery tomorrow. Luckily, so far, she sounds okay, despite being super stuffed up!

She charmed the nurses with her typical response to the "What's your name?" question (which, if you recall, is Swim, because even though she knows her name, at one point this summer Katherine & Will laughed hysterically when she answered the above question with "Swim" and months later she continues to give the same answer...to every person who asks.). Long story short, one of the nurses tried to offer her a sticker in exchange for Charlotte answering the question with the correct response; it didn't happen, and Charlotte still got the extra sticker ;-).

Off to make dinner, and do laundry, and pack a bag for tomorrow, and straighten up the house, and I have to work tonight....never-ending fun! I'll let you know how tomorrow goes. Surgery isn't scheduled until 2:45PM, so we have the fun task of trying to explain to Charlotte why she can't eat all day :-(.

Tonsils, Adenoids, and Tubes. Oh My!

We knew it was coming, but still are dreading it. This Thursday Charlotte goes in for her first surgery since infancy, to have her tonsils and adenoids removed, as well possibly come home with a set of ear tubes. The surgery is short (45 minutes), but the recovery is what everyone I have talked to says I need to prepare myself for. Most moms who have kiddos go through both heart surgery and tonsil removal, say that recovery from a tonsillectomy is much harder. Crazy, huh?

But, Charlotte is one tough cookie. She has been through a lot, and her high pain tolerance and ability to roll with whatever comes at her always amazes me. I am hoping that even though we are preparing for a brutal 7-10 day recovery, it ends up being better than we expect. Her health history earns her an overnight stay after surgery, which is some ways is nice as they can better manage her pain and fluid intake.

It is our hope that without her tonsils and adenoids, her sleep will improve (her snoring sounds like a freight train!), and the fluid that sits in her ears at times will disappear. Luckily she has been healthy other than a few colds (no ear infections, sinus infections, etc), and we were given the option of waiting to do this surgery for when she was older, however, we would like to do it before she is in school full time. Plus, I am thinking recovery at 3 will be easier than 6...maybe?!

We will be stocking up on popsicles and ice cream this week, and thankfully they just released another season of Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood (C's new fave) to Amazon Prime.

Advice from those who have been there done that?

Positive thoughts for a seamless surgery and speedy recovery are appreciated. Updates to come. 

Really? How is that comfortable??

Walked into Charlotte's room today during nap time and I couldn't find her. After a little investigation (and following the sound of her snoring!), I found her in the corner of the closet, with the door shut. 

Who knows where she will fall asleep next?! Guesses? 

My girls.

From our 20 week ultrasound on, when I found out our third child was to be a girl, I spent time daydreaming of the spectacular sisterhood that was about to ensue.

As I have mentioned before, I have three brothers. Zero sisters. Mike has three sisters. Zero brothers. Neither of us have experienced a same gender bond between siblings, it was such a foreign concept to both of us.

When Charlotte was born, one of my many things I grieved was the magical sister relationship I had planned for my girls. I remember Mike saying to me one night, not long after Charlotte was born, how sad he was for Katherine. How she was so excited for Charlotte's arrival and to have a little sister, and now that little sister was not who we expected. At that time, I agreed.

*****
Three and a half years later, things have changed. I have blogged about Katherine & Charlotte's relationship a few times through the years, and will continue to do so. I like looking back and seeing how it evolves, and how a lot of the initial grief that gripped us was unnecessary.

Last weekend I spent the day with just my girls. They got haircuts, and we went to Charlotte's favorite place (probably because it is the only restaurant she can actually eat at?!!) for lunch.

Katherine finally worked up the nerve to get her ears pierced, and the three of us experienced this rite of passage for her together. Katherine gripped my hand tightly, and Charlotte sat at my feet hugging the teddy bear usually reserved for the girl getting her ears pierced...Katherine told Charlotte it was okay that she held it. Katherine asked me if Charlotte would want her ears pierced some day. I told her I wasn't sure, but I wouldn't be surprised if she did, as Charlotte looks up to Katherine and likes to do what she does.

We stopped at Target and picked out Valentines for the girl's classmates. Charlotte sat and sighed loudly while we waited for Katherine to finish trying on some new clothes she wanted. When we finally finished in the dressing room and were able to check out, we headed to our last stop; to see "Frozen" the singalong version. The girls had already seen the movie with Mike, but it was the first time for me.

Charlotte laid in my lap for most of the movie, pretty tired from our big day. Katherine next to me sang every word to every song. I spent a lot of time during the movie (which ironically is about two sisters) being thankful for my daughters and our day we had spent together. I also spent a lot of time thinking about how normal it was, and how it was very similar to those daydreams I had during my pregnancy with Charlotte.

My daughters. My girls. Sisters. How lucky I am, and how lucky are they to have each other.

Wordless Wednesday: Continuing the trend...

Today, this is where Charlotte napped. Considering she is only averaging one nap per week, this means zero are actually in her bed.