Bittersweet

This was Littlest’s second official haircut (third if you count a bang trim).   Her hair was pretty uneven from before and so we need some major restructuring.   She did very well considering she had just had ear tubes put in the day before and didn’t know what to expect.  They had me hold her in my lap and they gowned us up.  After a bit, Littlest did great!

Putting on the fun kid’s cape.

Kinda grumpy that this was happening. 

Hey, I see Daddy in the mirror!

Being super good.

I can brush my teeth at the same time (yes the comb was sterilized) - This isn’t so bad.

 
Supermodel!

Tuesday night we decided enough was enough, the girls needed haircuts.  We couldn’t find a place that specialized in children’s cuts, so we went to the Great Clips next to our favorite Thai place.   It was a great experience, both ladies were great and we didn’t wait long because it was 7 o’clock at night (just happened that way).  We were out in half an hour, nobody cried, it wasn’t horribly expensive,  and the cuts were decent.

Bug explaining how she wants her hair cut

Helping out getting her hair wet.

Take off about “this” much.

A great blow dry (although she didn’t like it very much and it was only partially dried)

 
Tah dah!  (okay, this was after we had been home for a bit and she had put dad’s stocking cap on and off several times).

Twin bed with rail, sheets with pink flannel, blanket with two different soft textures and the new baby doll. 

 
Add a book, bottle and binkie - life is good. 

I’ve had quite a few people mention that Littlest looks like Suri Cruise (Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes’ daughter).  I always thought yeah, whatever.   Check out these two pictures.  Spooky!

I’m still trying to learn a different way of editing my pictures and getting them posted.   I have tons to share, but I have to at least resize them otherwise Blog.com won’t let me post them.  Stay tunned, hopefully this week I can get a couple up. 

I got off on a tangent yesterday and didn’t get to a post about Littlest at the Baby Factory.  As the special ed teacher said last night, it was good to have a “normal” medical experience.  Lots of kids get tubes in their ears, no big deal.  We just chose to have it done at the children’s hospital because of Littlest’s preemie lung situation.  

I had a feeling it was going to go well when I managed to drive all the way over (18 miles) and only had to stop at one traffic light!   It had to be a sign.  I even arrived 10 minutes early.   I had planned on leaving 45 minutes before the 7 a.m. check in time, but didn’t leave until 6:30.   Since everyone deals with kids there, the focus was on Littlest being comfortable and not making things too scary.  Littlest did amazingly well considering she hadn’t eaten for about 7 hours and I got her up out of a sound sleep.   She whimpered a couple times before surgery, but was smiling and playing with the nurses so they didn’t feel the need to premedicate her before surgery (which apparently they do when the kids are crying and clinging to their parents).  At 8:35, I carried her down the hall to the OR suite and handed her off without a tear (she didn’t cry either).   I walked out to the lobby to call Daddy and update him, sat back down and played with my camera and suddenly the doctor was back.  She said everything went very well and that Littlest had a raging ear infection still and we made a good choice to have tubes put in.  She no sooner left than they brought me my little baby girl back.   She apparently cried some when she woke up and mommy wasn’t holding her.  I held her for a while then fed her some.  Then she was back to her happy, chipper self.   The nurses were amazed.  They said usually kids are cranky and crying.   We were able to leave by 9:30.   Littlest was fairly tired and napped on the way home and for about an hour or so once we got home, but was back to playing after that.  They said she probably would have some drainage from her ears, pus or a bloody discharge  and she did.  It seemed like a lot, but she has little ears so even a drop seems like a lot. 

The next day Littlest was smiling, laughing and went to daycare without a hitch.  In two weeks we go for  recheck and a hearing test to see how things are going.  I think she can hear better already because she whimpered when Daddy had the TV too loud.  I think the super strength eardrops they gave us helped too because she just seems to feel better.   Enough so that she had two pretty good tantrums yesterday - one because I took something away from her and another because  I wouldn’t let her get in the bath right away.  I probably shouldn’t have laughed out loud, but I did.  It’s good to see her be a tiny bit bratty. 

On another note, a long time ago I thought I wanted to be a Child Life Specialist, but at the time there were very few colleges that offered the program nationwide and none even remotely close to where I lived.  In fact, there was only one or two people in my local area who were working in that field.  Monday at the Baby Factory, I was able to watch a Child Life Specialist in action.  I won’t exactly say I missed my calling, but I felt that pull again.   The amount of work to become one is over the top hard and time consuming plus the number of jobs available is minimal, so it wouldn’t exactly be a wise career choice.   It was just good to see. 

After Littlest’s procedure yesterday and her needing to sleep, Daddy let me blow off a bit of steam by going off to Goodwill Outlet for a break from the morning’s stress.  I totally scored!   I found some Little People stuff along with a few really cool clothing items for the girls.  I get up to the check out counter and they took away my Little People stuff.  I forgot that this was happening and had even wondered why they didnt’ have any good toys lately.  It’s because of te new law that restricts resale of kid’s items.  I begged and pleaded, but to no avail.   It was frustrating.  Maybe I don’t worry enough, but I figure that the contact my kids have with these toys isn’t going to kill them.  It didn’t kill me.  Shoot I played with some of my dad’s toys and I can tell you that there was lead in the paint on those things.   I think it comes down to being the parent’s responsibility on resale items.

That just makes me think about all the things that are different for kids “these days.”  Where is the discipline? And the manners? How about respect for elders or anybody?   I’m amazed at how many people comment on Bug saying “thank you” and “please” to people.  Duh, common courtesy.  I expect it.  When I went back to school at the local community college a few years back, I was appalled at how the younger students treated the instructor.  In one world history class, the teacher actually stopped class and thoroughly and completely scolded the class on manners and how to treat the teacher and fellow students.  I felt like applauding afterward.  The in-class phone calls, texting, walking in front of the teacher while she was lecturing.  Or get this, one kid interrupted the instructor mid lecture to ask a, yes I’m going to say it, a very, very stupid question unrelated to the lecture and then proceeded to text during the instructor’s answer.  Even the instructor was dumbfounded.  

I’ve even noticed at work that fewer people seem have respect for others or patients.  I think with my recent inability to walk properly I’ve noticed it even more.  If someone is having a hard time getting around or is pushing an IV pole, whatever, you don’t make them walk around you - get out of the way.  If a line is formed, break the line so that someone can pass through - regardless of age or capabilities.  I’m not saying let them cut in line, but if the line is blocking the way, be nice.    I’ve had my bad foot bumped hard so many times this last time without even a “sorry,”  instead I’ve gotten dirty looks.  I think next time I’m going to fall to the ground, writhing, and screaming out in pain - maybe that will make an impression.  

Don’t even get me started on the whole make your child feel okay and included in everything stuff.  It’s a big bad world out there and everything isn’t fair and pretty. 

I hope I can instill into my girls common courtesy, common sense, self confidence, manners, and the ability to be okay with themselves even if they don’t get picked first or get a bad grade marked with red ink.  Tough job I know, but Daddy and I are on the same page and daycare reinforces a lot of what we are teaching.    You fall down - get up, brush yourself off and move on. 

Enough said.

Maddie is back home and did great. 

More later.

We are getting ready right now to take Littlest up to the Baby Factory to have ear tubes put in.  Not a big deal really, but the fact that they are put her under mask anesthesia and her preemie history (being on the vent for so long and her immature lungs) makes me a wee bit nervous.   Add that to not quite enough sleep and I’m anxious.  I’d rather have foot surgery again than have my little one go through this short procedure.   But I remind myself that the benefits outweigh my anxiety and onward we go.

I’m in a bit of a funk.  I don’t have much humor, but a lot of stress.  I don’t feel like posting, but several good things happened this weekend I wanted to share.  I would add pictures, but I’m having trouble with getting them resized and such - learning a new program and I don’t have time to sit down and just learn it. 

sniff….