October 3 - 4, 2012

Wednesday, October 3rd

This morning Olivia's symptoms seemed pretty miserable, so we decided to take her to the doctor. We saw Dr. Spada in the afternoon and she said that Olivia has a nasty virus. We're to be vigilant because it has been leading to pneumonia in some cases. Most of the things they recommended, we are already doing - humidifiers, lots of fluids, hand washing & general cleaning - but they also gave us some saline for her nose & a good nasal bulb syringe. Olivia does not like the 'booger sucker' (as Sarah calls it). We also got some new acetaminophen (complete with new dosage), amoxicillin (to prevent her ears from getting infected) and some cream in case the antibiotic gives her a rash. Poor baby has painful ears, terrible congestion & a cough. Yucko!
She is definitely not her usual happy self. We've has lots of tears & needed lots of snuggles...and that was just Adam! (Just kidding.) In tonight's steamy bath she fell right asleep, poor dear. Adam sat in there with her for a while, but eventually he had to get out. She slept in bed with us so that I could keep her head elevated & give her medications on time.
Adam seems to have come down with the same symptoms, so I'm the last person standing! And I'm not going down without a fight!

Thursday, October 4th

Olivia seemed neither better nor worse today. Some symptoms have lessened - the coughing - while others have increased - more mucus. At least we're kind of holding steady. Some parts of the day she played, seeming like herself, and others she seemed pretty miserable. I really love watching her choose toys. She doesn't just fling toys around. She looks in the toy chest, searches around, finds a toy and then sits down to play with it. The same goes for looking on the shelves. She's getting to be more and more her own person.

While Olivia & Daddy took a bath, I started disinfecting! I washed & scrubbed & Lysol-ed. I hope it helps! I certainly don't think it can hurt!

Tonight she started off sleeping with me, Daddy was not feeling well & recused himself to the couch, but she ended up in her crib. She seemed much happier there. I'm all for maintaining routine, especially if it is comforting to her.
 

September 28 - October 2, 2012

Friday, September 28th

Last night turned out to be a rough one. Around midnight Olivia's fever was a little over 103 (degrees F), and since that's when my chart told me to take her to the doctor, that's what we did. We loaded her, practically naked, into the car in the cold Alaskan night and went to the emergency room. We checked in and when they got around to seeing us & taking her temperature it read at about 100. So either our thermometer was wrong, or she had cooled off by the time we got there. They sent us back out to the waiting room...for another hour and fifteen minutes. I got up to see if we could have an update - were they planning to see her? should we go home since she didn't 'technically' have a fever? couldn't they just give her some acetaminophen? what was going on? In about another fifteen minutes they rechecked her temperature and since she still read at about 100, they agreed with our decision to take her home. We talked to Nana on our way home, since she's the expert!, and she gave us much clearer instructions than they had at the hospital. Thank goodness for Nana! We gave her some Tylenol & all went to bed. Poor baby.

In the morning she had no more fever. Thank goodness! She was, however, still a little fussy. But who can blame her for that. Since she had no fever, we stuck to our plan to go south today. I had been hoping to get things ready during the day so that we could leave as soon as Adam got home from work...and that was a challenge! Olivia did not want me to leave her. Jessica came over to play with her, but she didn't want me to leave the room. Oh well, it was nice to have Jessica's company! When Olivia finally decided to nap - it was on me! But I laid on the floor and was able to pull a switcheroo. I fooled her with some pillows & blankets. She slept nicely & I was able to finish packing & loading the car. We got on the road by 4:30 and began our long drive. It was beautiful and uneventful. We even had some snow along the way! We arrived at David's & Lindsey's around midnight. We chatted for a few minutes, fed & watered the dogs, and then went to bed....or so we thought. Olivia had one of the worst nights we've ever had! She was inconsolable and what little sleep she did get was in bed with us...which was interesting.

Saturday, September 29th

Olivia was in a perfectly happy mood this morning - thank goodness! David made us a beautiful breakfast & Stetson gave Olivia his high chair. What a gentleman! Saibree invited Olivia & Adam to watch part of The Lorax with her, and they all enjoyed it...what little they watched.

We had snow, so Saibree was eager to get outside & play! I don't blame her! While Olivia & Stetson had their morning nap, I got fixed up for our family photos and Adam, David & Saibree played outdoors with the pups. Soon Nickie, Alysen, Kailey, JD & Sophie came over. It was great to finally meet (almost) everyone! It's good to spend time with family.


Soon we began our day of sightseeing, caravaning, and snapping photos! We went up to Hatcher's Pass and saw the glistening snow. We posed in front of some picturesque buildings and enjoyed the fabulous views. We worked our way down the mountain and got the best of both seasons. There was still some glorious, glowing foliage at the bottom of the mountain. We sat near some racing water & everyone had their pictures taken. Wasilla & the MatSu Valley are teeming with vistas - scenery every direction you look and more mountains than you can shake a stick at!

In the evening we all had pizza & apple pie at David & Lindsey's. We had a great time talking & once all the children were in bed we started (but didn't finish) watching The Avengers. Olivia did much better tonight. After talking with Lindsey & Nickie, I realized that she hadn't worn her amber necklace all day Friday. Their littlest ones also wear amber, and they have noticed a big difference (for the worse) on the days that they don't have it on. Perhaps she was so fussy because she had no necklace? Or perhaps because of her ER trip? At any rate, tonight was a big improvement.

Sunday, September 30th

We had another fantastic breakfast with the Nolls before we began our trip home. We took our time on the way north because it was an absolutely breathtaking drive. The sun was beaming & the sky was crystal clear. We lunched in Talkeetna & got the best views of Denali we've ever seen. It was amazing. We made it home around 8pm and did some quick shopping at Fred Meyer's. Our major purchase was a new gate for the living room. It has a door that swings open & closes itself behind you. It works like a charm!

Monday, October 1st

Today was a good day. Morgan came over and we played the day away. When Daddy got home, he and Olivia played with her new Legos. They had lots of fun! It seems that Olivia has caught a cold. She had a runny nose in the evening, so we made sure to put her humidifier on and get her nice & cozy for bedtime.



Tuesday, October 2nd

Olivia definitely has a cold. She has a runny nose, a cough and her appetite is diminished. Poor baby clearly does not feel well. I tried to be as comforting as possible. We played with blocks. We had snacks & juice. We read lots of books & we snuggled while watching some Beatrix Potter - and in honor of that she nibbled on Jeremy Fisher at dinner time. Olivia really enjoyed her banana car this evening and tossed it all about. She had a nice steamy bath and went to bed with no fussing. Her coughing has woken her up several times...but so far she's put herself back to sleep. Depending on her symptoms, I may make an appointment to see the doctor tomorrow. I want to make sure that I'm doing everything to keep her comfortable and help her get a good night's sleep.

September 27, 2012

Thursday, September 27th

Today was fairly uneventful, but in a pleasant way. Olivia & I played with her puzzle - although I think she was more concerned with how the pieces fit in her mouth than on the board. She did lots of squats - she must have quads of iron! - and some splits. She invented a new game where she 'bites' my belly to tickle me, I laugh and it makes her scream with laughter. We played that game for at least twenty minutes. It was the best! She tried to figure out how her Jacob's Ladder works, unsuccessfully.

After she woke up from her afternoon nap she had a fever, and was not a happy camper. Poor baby. After Tylenol, a lukewarm bath and no pajamas...she still feels warm to me. We'll see how the night goes, and will check her temperature again in about an hour or so.

September 26, 2012

Wednesday, September 26th

Today was Olivia's nine month well visit. She saw her new provider, Dr. Spada, and everything is great! Olivia is at about the 60th percentile for everything and is developmentally on track. After our appointment we did a little shopping and then came home to play with our goodies. I was inspired by Swiss Family Robinson & got Olivia her very own tiger - to protect her from pirates of course! Olivia was so comfortable in her pajamas that she stayed in them almost all day. We dressed them up with a tutu that was made for her by cousin Beth.
We had a nice day at home, with a visit from a vacuum salesman in the afternoon, but for the most part we played & read & sang & danced...as usual! Daddy had a very long day at work with no breaks for meals so we were happy to pick him up around 7. He still had enough energy to give Olivia a fun bath & help with bedtime.

September 25, 2012

Tuesday, September 25th

The past two days were very busy, so today Olivia & I stayed home. While yesterday she did not nap at all, today she was back onto her regular schedule. Thank goodness. It's also a lucky thing that Olivia enjoys watching me vacuum, because I was able to get some cleaning done. All in all, it was a productive & restful day.

We opened our 9 month book from Aunty Lisa & Uncle Chris today - it was Panda Bear, Panda Bear by Bill Martin Jr/Eric Carle. Olivia loved it right away. Not only did she read it, but she tasted it & used it to play peek-a-boo. A very useful book!
We put the finishing touches on Olivia's coat rack & I think it turned out nicely. Her room is becoming more & more her own every day.

September 24, 2012

Monday, September 24th

It was an eventful day. The best part about it was that today Olivia is nine months old. This meant that we had some celebratory items on our agenda. First, however, we had a couple of chores to attend to, not the least of which was finding a cute outfit. I'm getting ahead of myself, though, so let's start from the beginning.

Olivia & I slept until Daddy came home for breakfast. Daddy is so nice, he runs home and quickly makes Olivia something tasty instead of making himself breakfast. What a great father. Daddy went back to work and Olivia & I played in the living room. She had fun dumping puffs all over. She loves the picture of the apple on the lid of her snack container. I half think that she dumps the puffs just so that she can play with the lid! She's been trying to say 'apple' for days; it comes out as 'bap'. What does a big girl need when she's got snacks...a book to read, of course! She chose some good ones, including A Chair For My Mother by Vera B. Williams which is one of my favorites. I was first introduced to this book on Reading Rainbow, of course. When I saw which book she had chosen, it inspired me to see if Reading Rainbow is available for purchase. There are some collections available, but what was more interesting to find was that Reading Rainbow now exists as an iPad app! So cool!

Olivia wore a new outfit - in 12 mos sizes! - today. It was a little long in the sleeves & the pant legs, but other than that it fit nicely. I can't believe how big she's growing! She did not want to take a nap, and instead played with me in my bed while we waited for Daddy to come home for lunch.

After lunch, we dropped Daddy off at Troop and brought all three dogs to Raven Vet. Paula & Eagle needed rabies vaccines and check ups and Dr. Olsen took a look at Sophie's incision (which is healing nicely). What was especially cute was that Olivia kept grabbing the dog leashes as the dogs walked past her. She would shake them, like reins to a toy pony. Once Sophie even pulled her and she slid across the slippery floor provoking peals of laughter! Oh those silly puppies!

Once we were finished at the vet's, we went to Value Village for some more books! We are book gluttons! We found some great ones - including an old favorite (that I couldn't believe was there!!) A Garden for Miss Mouse by Michaela Muntean. What luck! I think that Daddy should read this cautionary tale...

After we picked up Daddy we went to Once Upon A Child to get Olivia a special present, to the liquor store to get some cheese-making supplies for Daddy, and to the grocery store for dinner. I couldn't resist giving Olivia this little  heart-shaped balloon, which she wielded like a wand.

Olivia's special prize was a Sesame Street activity table! She wants to stand up all the time, so I thought this would be good fun for her. We found a used one, only missing a removable phone - no big deal, for $12! It needed a good cleaning, but we're good at that! It was a big hit! Happy 9 months Olivia!

September 23, 2012

Sunday, September 23rd

What an adventurous day! It started off in a pleasant way, with breakfast & family facetiming. We got to see our cousin Kelly today and show her some of 'Alaska' through the computer. Nice! Olivia made friends with two new stuffed toys - Flora Dora & Pinky Poo. They were both so wonderful, she could hardly decide which one to pick up first! Pinky Poo won out. What do you expect from a girl raised with wolves?!

Then we packed our things, loaded the dogs in the car & headed north... to the Arctic Circle! It was a gorgeous ride up there. We stopped and took lots of pictures and had snacks along the way. It was beautiful. Eventually we realized it was taking a lot longer to get to the Arctic Circle than we had thought. But by the time the sky got cloudy and the shadows grew longer we were a-l-m-o-s-t there...so we pressed onward! We made it to the Arctic Circle & the skies cleared just long enough for us to stretch our legs and get some photos. Then we hopped back in the car and began the long drive home. It was quite a trek, complete with sheeting rain, muddy slopes (named Beaver Slide), and blowing fog all along the Dalton Highway, which is not paved for much of the way. It was pretty impressive to drive for more than a hundred miles and not see one single house or electric line or light anywhere. It makes you feel fantastically small and reorients you to the awesomeness of nature.

Olivia was amazing on the car ride. She hardly fussed at all, and when she did I couldn't blame her because she'd been in the car for more than eight hours. She played with her dolls & books. She played peek-a-boo in the mirrors with us. She watched the puppies do a strange dog ballet in the back of the car. She seemed to really enjoy the trip and that made it so much more fun! What an adventure!