hmmmmmmm - Life

Well it's been an interesting last week with a lot of little things here and there that have just made me sigh... some are happy sighs.. and others are the deep kind of sigh that hopefully will get enough oxygen to my brain and keep me up and going for the next set.

Weston has allergies, he has since he was born. We gave him his first bath with the Johnson and Johnsons - so pure and gentle - allergy free - blah blah blah and then watched as his skin almost flaked off. It looked like we had rubbed him raw with an acidic soap. So that was done, but since then (not even counting his allergy to milk for the first year or so) he has always dealt with season allergies. Even with Claritin or Zertec he still is always congested and has just dealt with it.

(Weston, snap shot with him wondering why I'm taking his picture)

This last week I got a call from his teacher and asked if he had pink eye, or any known allergies that would cause his eyes to swell up. Since the first call about 1 1/2 weeks ago he has had his eyes swell 4-5 times, each time corresponding to when he plays outside near tall grass. Last night he was at a birthday party and was outside playing for only about 10 minutes, and not in the tall grass. The mom called and said Weston's eyes were swelling. I asked how serious and if I should come get him or wait till the party was over. I understood he was fine until the party was over. We went a little early and this is what we found.... understand this is about 30-40 minutes after he was given benedryl. - compare to the above pict... not good.


This is weston trying to open his eyes as wide as he can. I wanted to get pictures so that the dr. would believe me when I say the swelling is out of control!


This is after a shower, dousing the eyes with cold water and holding cold compressess over them. And about 2 1/2 hours after the benedryl. And rootbeer floats that you can still see around his mouth!


This is a pict. this morning - about 12 + hours since they started to swell.... but at least he looks a little better.
Have you ever seen a reaction that severe and last that long???? We go to see the dr. tomorrow hopefully they'll have something usefull and practical that we can do. Weston has just cried and cried "I hate allergies". I want to cry right along with him.

A happy sigh...
Even though he looks like he was beat up and left for dead, Weston has learned how to tie his shoes..... "all by myself", as he says! The whole situation is so true to Weston form that it just makes us laugh. We can work with him until we are blue in the face.. but until he wants to do it, and can do it by himself. He wont even let us think we are making headway!

We had just bought Weston new shoes because his morning teacher said he needed new shoes since the laces weren't staying tied, and were causing her stress and him tripping. Since the shoes were also getting a little small we went ahead and got him a pair of velcro shoes...so cool until the velcro didn't work. So about 3- 4 weeks later he started asking for new shoes. Since his were still new I said no, until he said it was because they kept falling off. So I make him a deal. If he would learn to tie his own shoes then we would get him tie shoes again. He didn't really show interest so I let it go. But about a week later his afternoon teacher said they were very worried he was going to break an ankle or leg because as he played (always very hard) they kept flying off. So we went and got him new shoes that night that tied and over the next few days I worked with him about 3 times, John worked with him a few times as well. But he just didn't want to do it. So I gave up and figured we'd work on it over the summer.

Well, the other day he started calling for me and was as happy as could be and wanted to show me that he had learned how to tie his shoes all by himself... And he did! SOOOOO Cool!

That same day, Elayna learned how to climb out of her crib all by herself - not so cool. This wouldn't be such a big thing except that the crib is lower than any I've ever seen and it slopes over like a sleigh bed and has been a great little fortress. Even the older boys have to work on climbing out, and their big. I'm not ready to be done with naps and I'm not sure she is either... but unless she's in the mood, she just crawls on out and that is that. hmmmmmmm. She is such a little independent being. She takes no care to let us know when she is going anyway, and aside from feeling badly that we've now locked her in under house arrest.. she still manages to get out and will go for walks, by herself - no shoes - down a major road.. and get about 1/4 mile down before we catch her. And then she's mad that we don't keep walking with her.

School is out this next Tuesday. John is gone out of town until late Wed. night or Thursday. And as soon as he is back, we have a weekend full of to-do's that will keep us from spending any time together.

Elayna is sick.. Dead give a way when she slept all day yesterday and threw up three times on our 5 min. drive to drop Weston off at his party. And sadly all she wants to do today is watch movies. We've tried naps, but she keeps crawling out.

Tyler got a nerf ballzooka gun from Grandpa Ed and Grandma Sandy (exchanged b-day present) and has been trying to kill everyone and everything since yesterday! I found a discounted box of science experiment stuff and instructions and the boys can hardly stand not doing them all right now! Ahhhh - the days of summer - - - - here we come!