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Wednesday, September 25, 2013

Her first rodeo

I can't believe it, but Kathryn participated in her first rodeo this weekend. Even more so, I can't believe that I have a daughter who is participating in rodeos.

E. J.'s mom found a youth rodeo about an hour away from us and she thought it would be fun for K to take Doctor Pony out and "compete."

Although K already had her cowgirl boots and belt, she needed a western shirt (which was required to participate) and a cowgirl hat. Luckily, we had Amanda to help us shop and she ended up looking the part from head to toe.

Despite it being a non-competitive rodeo, it was very clear that people are serious about getting their kids prepared to eventually compete. All of the kids were in their western wear as their moms and dads pulled up in massive trucks hauling their horse trailers.

Warming up





Kathryn's lucky that her grandparents already have the equipment to haul the horse and even a saddle that's just her size (now I understand why people say that it takes a lot of money to have a child who does any sort of competing with their horse).
"Grand Entry"

She participated in the lead rope portion. While all of the other kids were slowly led around the barrels, Kathryn and E. J. had to show them up and picked up the speed quite a bit.

I should have taken the video in landscape, but you can still get the idea. Also, turn your volume down. They were having some technical difficulties with the speaker system, so there's static and other weird noises in the background. The music will also probably make you laugh, too.

 I can't even tell you how much fun she had. There are two more that she'll attend and then she wins her  first belt buckle (yes, you heard me).  We may have a future barrel racer on our hands.

Monday, September 23, 2013

recovery

It's been two weeks since Kathryn's surgery and we're really happy to report that she's doing great.

She had a high fever for the entire day the day after her surgery which wasn't out of of the ordinary, but two days after her surgery she was almost at 100%.
                  
She stayed home for the rest of the week to fully recover. E. J. and her called their days at home "lazy days" where they enjoyed hours of movie watching and naps (I was highly jealous).

The doctor gave her an antibiotic a few days after surgery once the results of the culture they took during the surgery were available.
Less than a week later her nose stopped constantly running and then within a week and a half her cough stopped. It really did the trick.

Tonight I asked her to recall her surgery day...and two weeks later, she could remember it pretty clearly.

Tuesday, September 10, 2013

Surgery Day

It's 8:52 p.m. and the three of us are sitting in bed together watching a classic, The Lion King. This isn't normally the scene in our house - especially on a school night, but today was much different than our 'typical' day.

My alarm went off at 4:45 a.m. so I could shower before we headed out the door at 5:45 a.m. We arrived at the hospital right on time at at 6:30 a.m., paid in full (GAH...if anyone isn't recovered from today, it's me and E. J. after shelling out that kind of money) and we were immediately brought back to a hospital room so we could wait 2.5 hours until it was time.

Today was the day for Kathryn's surgery - an adenoidectomy and she also got tubes in her ears. After 13 months of coughing and 8 ear infections in the last year (I can't even count the amount of doctor's appointments), the doctor thought this should help her immensely.
Thank goodness for kind nurses who hand out stickers, the teddy bear and 
crayons that were on the hospital bed to greet her.

Once we knew it wouldn't be long before she'd go into the OR, she got into her hospital gown and we waited for the nurse to come and get her. The doctor told her that she was going to put a mask on (in the OR to make her go to sleep) and it would taste the bubble gum. She was actually excited about it.
When the nurse came in the room, she picked up Kathryn and as requested, we gave her "kitty" and "Larry" (her stuffed dog). We walked behind Kathryn and the nurse until we couldn't go any further. We gave her kisses and watched them walk to the OR. I was impressed, Kathryn didn't shed a tear and was telling the nurse that she wanted a red popsicle when she was done.

In the waiting room, we could read about K's progress on the flat screen. Thirty minutes later, the doctor came out and told us she did great. Everything went well and he thinks this will work wonders for her. We sure hope so!

Soon after, we were able to go see her in recovery. She was groggy, but still never cried. She really wanted the IV out of her but didn't put up much of a fight because she was out cold a few minutes later.
After 45 minutes of sleeping, she woke up, told E. J. that she needed a new soccer ball because mommy ran over hers (which is completely true - I accidentally ran it over with E. J.'s truck this weekend) and she was pretty alert. She drank some water and apple juice and even had a couple bites of her popsicle. The nurse said she was doing great, took out her IV and Kathryn was ready to take off her gown.

E. J.'s mom came to the surgery and while K was still sleeping she went to the gift shop to get her a little something. Since Kathryn woke up sooner than we expected so we met E. J.'s mom in the lobby and decided to get something to eat in the cafeteria. They didn't have a huge selection, but the personal pizza's looked and tasted like gourmet food because we were starving at this point. To our surprise, Kathryn joined right in and ate two pieces as if she had just walked in right off the street. She was even able to "force" in some ice cream.

E. J. and I were pooped when we got home. He only had an hour and half of sleep the night before because he had to work. Kathryn wanted to watch a movie, so we all got into bed and within minutes E. J. and I were out. Kathryn, not so much. She woke me up at the end of the movie and asked for another movie. Easy request. A few minutes later I was out again! After a three hour nap, I was feeling like myself again. I was pleased to see that K was out when I woke up and left her and E. J. to sleep.

Since Kathryn didn't have an dietary restrictions, she got to pick dinner. She ate her bowl of spaghetti and then immediately asked for ice cream and a cupcake that Amanda made just for her. She loved every bite! But how could you not - Amanda is amazing baker!
Amanda also got Kathryn a new pair of jammies so she would be comfortable after her surgery. She kept reminding us that she needed to put on her "new snazzy pj's." Thank you so much, Amanda! They're a hit!
Although fairly minor, as far as surgeries go we are so happy that Kathryn's doing well and seems to be almost 100% comfortable. Just to be safe, E. J. will be home with her for the next two days (his days off) and they've declared tomorrow a "lazy day." I want to be around for that! Work is such a bummer.

Hopefully we'll see (and hear!) a difference in our sweet little girl's health in no time.

Friday, September 6, 2013

Big Girl Class

Kathryn started in the three year old class this week. I like to say she went back to school, but the life of two working parents means she's in school all year long, although we tried to make the day feel a little more special than the typical school day.
I love those knobby knees. (Outfit and accessories all chosen by Kathryn)
Lately Kathryn has been clingy in the morning when I dropped her off and just feeling so-so about going to school. But there was an instant change in her attitude when she entered her new big girl class. She actually has two classes right next to each other, one is more for school and the other is their play room, complete with a huge basket of dress up clothes. I think being in a class with older kids is just what Kathryn needed. In fact, one teacher told me that she would handle herself just fine with the four year olds, which doesn't surprise me because sometimes I think she's 30.

Everyday this week at drop off she puts on her dress up clothes (with heels!) and is ready for her day. It makes me happy to see her so happy about going to school each day and I hope this keeps up.
Cake pop treat
 And she got to pick dinner - pizza!
On the same great first day of school (and week for that matter) Kim and Andy welcomed Benjamin! We're so excited and happy for them. Welcome to the world, Benjamin! He's a lucky little guy to have the a great mommy and daddy (and it doesn't hurt that he's so darn cute!).