in like a lion, out like a lamb...or not

So spring is here.  We've had a mild winter and I loved that.  I know that meant allergens were high, and we definitely suffered over here....but less cold was fun. I know we need cold and freezes and whatever, I get it...but I enjoyed the mild winter!  I love the weather we are currently having...those temperatures where you can wear pretty much whatever attire you want and be comfortable (although today it was really in the 80s and long sleeves and pants would've been hot.)

I have nothing stupendous to say today. or ever. ;)

Since a month ago (when I last posted....good job, me)....here's what's been going on:


nothing.

No, probably that isn't true.

Sometime in the last couple of months, my biggest little lost his first tooth!  The second one is super loose and will come out this week, if I were a betting woman.

A couple of weeks ago, I sojourned to Arkansas for a wedding shower for the last of my college gal pal's to get married.  Her wedding is in a few weeks, so I will be trekkin it back to the AR for that shindig again.  I always love getting to see those girls (hi, girls!).  I hope God puts us all right by each other in Heaven. I know we won't care once we get there, but I think it'd be fun if we were all neighbors.  In this life, or in the heavenly realms :).

Ridge has been sick.  Fever, snot, cough...doctor thought strep, nope...flu, nope...so who knows what it was but it went away. he didn't bleed any from it.  He had a lab a week or so ago....well, almost 2 weeks I guess. I don't remember. Anyway, we are getting labs drawn every 3 months now, and my goal is in September, when we go back for our 6 month consult/appointment, to get those labs scaled back to every 6 months...and then hopefully NEXT summer (2013) get to once a year labs/checkups.  At his last lab, Ridge's hemoglobin was 11.9.  It has been 11.9ish for the past 9 months.  This is good, people.  His platelets, this last lab, were 251,000.  This. Is. Fantastic.  Normal platelets begin around 150,000.  Ridge, on a good day, back in the "scary times" would have platelet counts of 20,000.  This is super low.  It was normal for him to be in the 10-15K range...we wouldn't transfuse any platelets (they exacerbate his bleeding, even though that makes no logical sense) until he fell below 10K. This is like chemo-therapy platelet levels, I've been told (but I am no expert, so forgive me if that is incorrect. I do not mean to sound intelligent in that realm, because I most certainly am not).  ANYWAY...251K is WELL in the normal range, and if I could do a cartwheel, I would've, on that day we received THAT news.  That is FANTASTIC, y'all.  He is still on no meds.  Some other hurdles we've overcome this month:

He had to be on oral antibiotics for the first time.  We've always done shots (thankfully, we haven't really needed abx for much of anything).  Anyway, the by mouth antibiotics did not make him bleed  (back in the day, even one dose of abx by mouth would make him bleed).  So that's a HUGE hurdle, jumped.

He ate some grapes. I know that seems stupid, most likely, but he doesn't get a lot of fruit with skin on it...and he hasn't had many grapes, but he's had 5 or so at a time, with no ill effects/no bleeding.

He threw up (if you have a light stomach, skip this paragraph. NOW.)  This was once during the fever/cough/snot illness aforementioned.  Vomit sicks me out, but a kid with sores and clots and blood in his stomach...well, THAT vomit grosses me out, scares me, and makes me want to cry all at once.  Vomit...this time...was normal.  It was just barf.  Plain old nasty barf. no blood. No clots. Just gross, normal puke.  Praise the Lord for pretty throw up.

He got the chicken pox vaccine.  We skipped most all of his vax from 12 mos to now.  We will make a few of them up, but not most of them.  Chicken pox is one of the two or three I wanted to make sure he gets (although I don't know why...I am not that worried about the chicken pox, although it is a convenience to know we most likely won't get them, now....perhaps I'm naive, but I can think of much worse things he could get than the chicken pox.) ANYWAY, this was his first LIVE vaccine. Ever.  I think.  He may have had the rotovirus vax once when he was a baby.  Before all the big stuff began happening in his little life.  Anyway, he handled the chicken pox vax perfectly.  BDawg took him, and Ridge cried, but he didn't get a fever, he didn't bleed, nothing.  He just got vaccinated, like most normal kids.

He went to Sunday School- with all the other kids!  Now people, this is a big deal.  Our kids go into the church service with us.  But after church, for a LONG time, we didn't go to Sunday School at all, because we did not want Ridge to get sick, so we'd all just go home together.  A few months ago, we started splitting shifts-- Sawyer got to begin going to Sunday School (which he loves!) and Brandon or I would stay in one of the adult classes.  the other of us would take Ridge home.  Last week, Brandon and I both stayed for Sunday school, but took Ridge with us.  He was super good and played in a corner with some plastic cups....and wrote on the dry erase board.  But this week, we let him try Sunday School. I was told by two of my friends who were in the nursery working today that he did great!  I am so happy for him, and so appreciative of those girls for watching out for him!  My heart is happy for him!!!  The Lord is good!

Sawyer is kind of at the end of our Kindergarten curriculum...I think.  We still have quite a few days of school left-- so I am looking forward to finding some more relaxing things to do.  We still need to learn money (he sort of knows it, but we haven't concentrated big time on it...), but he's got his reading down, and his writing is pretty good, and he can add and subtract and tell time.... now that the weather is nice, we can do some more activities outside....and I really need to teach him to tie his shoes. I know he should know how to do that, but...he just doesn't get it yet.  He is getting so big now, and  so handsome, and so smart. He is a challenge at times, because he is growing into an individual.  He is developing his own character traits, and he is pushing some limits when it comes to obedience, back talk, lying, etc.  So discipline is having to be consistent, and it is very frustrating when I know he is not telling the truth. I know he knows in his heart what is right, and he will usually come around to apologizing for things on his own-- he is not inherently obstinate.  I want him to always make the right choices, though! That is so much easier for us all!  Discipline is never fun.  Isn't that the truth?? !!?!?  Oh how I love him, though.  He is such a sweet sweet spirited boy.  T ball begins soon for him.  We will see if he takes to it better this year.  (The little one can play next year, and I know HE will be ALL over that opportunity. That littlest little of ours is rough and tumble all the way.)

I blabbed longer than long enough.  So I will leave you  with that....until next time!