Still Sick

Now Sam has the cold that Mike and Will have been trying to kick. He took 2 naps today, which means he'll be awake in his bed all night. But as long as he stays...

A couple of days ago I got the itemized statement from Primary Children's, and I'm blown away. They actually charge reasonable prices for their service. It's downright cheap, as far as hospital stays go. 2 cents for tylenol. Can you believe that? I still don't know how much we owe, they're billing the insurance, but it almost makes me happy to pay them because I don't feel like I'm getting ripped off. I can't say the same for my hospital stays. $5 for one ibuprofen? $6 for one percocet? Outrageous. Next time I'm taking my own pain killers. Hmm. Maybe I can have my next baby at Primary Children's.

Funny

My friend emailed this to me, and I think it's hilarious. It's the ceiling mural in a hotel's smoking lounge.

Black Mail

Just so I don't forget, Sam was sick too. The Monday before Will went to the hospital he threw up all over the couch. And his blanket. And himself. And he had just eaten chicken nuggets and a cheese stick...and red Gatorade. The Friday after Will got home from the hospital he threw up at 6:00 in the morning all over his bed. And his blanket. And himself. And apparently he had been eating pretzels. Oh, and I've been sick too. And Will has a cough now. And a runny nose. We've been having lots of fun at our house.

And Mike is sick too. He got Will's cold, and it's been pretty nasty. I've been feeling gross too. We just can't kick it.

Sam's Letter

The other night Mike and I went to his 10 high school reunion. Who puts the buffet away at 8:00? I was going to go get another plate (because it was darn expensive), but when I turned around it was gone. Very sad. Grandma Grace came and babysat, and Sam dictated a letter to her for Jane (Mike's little sister serving a mission in Toronto, Canada). She had us laughing pretty hard when she read it to us. My notes of explanation are in {}.

• 21 June 2008
  
  Dear Jane,
  
  Following letter dictated to Grandma Grace by Samuel Greer Clayton, age 3:
  
  I am very excited. I watched “Bob the Builder” today. Playing baseball is exciting too. I did something exciting at the baseball game inside. All those red and blue bats. You hit balls with bats. I didn’t really get a treat. There wasn’t any candy there. Hit the ball too. Red light, green light too. {Baseball was inside a gym, there was no candy there, and for the last activity they played Red Light, Green Light.}
  
  Daddy doesn’t have any tires yet. He has feet. He’s not a machine yet. He’s a human.
  
  Will is not a machine, and he’s a baby.
  
  Mom is not a big machine like (machine names Grandma doesn’t recognize {he named machines from Bob the Builder}). She’s a big human like my Dad.
  
  You should go to your parent’s house with Jesus, because Jesus is a good guy.
  
  Papa is a human and not a machine and not a book. Papa loves me.
  
  Osie plays with me, but not today. Osie misses me, and I like Osie a lot. I think about Osie a lot.
  
  Love, Sam
  
  Description of pictures for Jane:
  
  Black and green: Good job wall
  Green: Picture of my friends. They don’t talk because they aren’t human, and they don’t have faces either.

Walker Will

Baseball!

The computer may have crashed again, but I'm going to try to keep up, or else I'll never get caught up. Sam started baseball today, and he loved it! His favorite part was hitting the ball, obviously, and he's actually really coordinated. One parent is required to attend, so Mike played with him while Will and I watched. It's noncompetitive, so I'm not sure if they'll actually play a game, but I don't think the kids will care. They all had a lot of fun.




When they were warming up they were supposed to sit down to stretch. Sam wouldn't do it. Mike asked him why he wouldn't sit, and Sam replied, "You don't sit down to play baseball!" He does have a valid point.

Funny Sam

Sam likes to pretend to be other things, and each one has its own voice. His favorites are:

• a kitty named Meow
• a pirate
• a worker with no name
• Buzz Lightyear

And apparently, according to Christine, the other night he was "just a toy."

In Sam's prayers a few nights ago he was thankful for books to read and toys to play with.

Yesterday after we got home from the hospital Mike wanted to take Sam to the gym, but the kids club is closed for a couple of hours in the afternoon. A little later I told Sam it was time to go and he said, "but the gym is closed." I told him it was open now, and he started yelling, "I must tell Dad the gym is open, I must tell Dad!" and ran to find him.

Today we started a green salt monster, but it takes a couple of days for it to grow. I'll post pics when there's something to see. Sam is pretty excited.

Acute Gastroenteritis

I already petitioned to cancel all major holidays. Either I jinxed myself, or no one was listening. See Mother's Day.

Flag Day was what started it all. Will woke up, and within 30 seconds was dry heaving. Then he started throwing up. After a couple more episodes I called the doctor. She recommended 1 tsp of Pedialyte every 5 minutes. After an hour, increase a little, etc. She went over the signs of dehydration, and said if he had any to go to Primary Children's ER. After he threw up 4 more times (7 so far), we decided to take him in. He wasn't able to keep anything down, and he was getting pretty desperate for something to drink. Mike got home at 8:30, and we were off at 9:00. We got there at 9:25 and had to wait an hour and a half before they could put his IV in. (It was a busy day, at 7:00 people had been waiting for four hours). We still had to wait forever to see a doctor though. Will was obviously dehydrated, but his glucose levels were too low for them to send us home, so we got a room. At 2:00 in the morning (Father's Day) we finally got to our room. He threw up a couple more times that night, and then again later in the day. By then he wouldn't drink anymore because he really hated their sippies and we didn't have any of ours with us. They kept us one more night since he wouldn't drink, and they started up another IV. By this morning he was feeling much better, he was smiling and playing, and done throwing up! I had Mike bring one of our sippy cups from home, and that did the trick. He started drinking, and even ate a couple of crackers and half a banana. Mommy was very happy!

Will in between episodes. Clean and happy...for a few minutes.
Even feeling well enough to try standing up. Getting so close to walking on his own!

Sad little IV arm.
You know a kid is thirsty when he'll drink unflavored pedialyte from an unfamiliar (pink) sippy.

He's always been a funny sleeper, but that just doesn't look comfortable. It looks like he's in prison in that crib.
Will clutched the empty pedialyte bottle for hours. He wouldn't let it go even to play with the toys. It was very comforting to him for some reason. We couldn't leave the room since Will was considered contagious, and I obviously couldn't put him on the floor, so it was either his bed or mine. Talk about boring for a curious one-year-old.

So happy to see Daddy...and his sunglasses! And just about ripped off his ear trying to get them.

The IV was finally taken out, and they let us go home!!

I think my favorite part was when the doctor that discharged us was leaving. She said, "Sorry we put you in this cave room, we should have given you one with windows!" They had rooms with windows? That would have been nice, since we were there for two days!

The Latest

Sam really loves to help me in the kitchen. He really loves the mixer (hence the hug), but mostly because it's so fun to turn it on and off. Gotta love banana bread.

Miracle: Will drinking out of a sippy cup. Who knew it would be so hard to get a kid to drink chocolate milk (pediatrician's recommendation)?

The very most favorite thing to do. Ever.

I just really like seeing a kid shove 4 crackers in all at once. Thank goodness for the mega pack from Costco.

Tag

This tag comes from Brooke.
The Rules: Take ten pictures of the following things. And you have to do it right away. No straightening, cleaning or wiping the snot from your child's nose. Then you tag five others.

1. Laundry Room (the only unfinished room in the house. The walls are UGLY. Someday I'll fix them. That little stack of shirts waiting to be ironed looks innocent enough, but I think there are about 36 right there. Or at least 6. Hopefully it will finally be warm enough that I won't have to wash Mike's pants again until October. The previous owners of our house apologized profusely for leaving the folding table in the laundry room. They proudly told us how they begged someone to finally take their ping pong table. Doh!)

2. Favorite Room (mostly because it's partially decorated and usually fairly clean)
3. What the kids are doing right now (Hot Wheels are the best!)
4. Favorite shoes (who doesn't love flip flops? I live in them all summer, but I no longer wear them to church...unless pregnant)
5. Toilet
6. Sink
7. Fridge (You can tell how far up Will can reach)

8. Closet (Yikes)
9. Self portrait (what color is my hair anyway? I always considered myself blonde, but that looks pretty dark. I haven't colored it since Sam was a baby, so that's about as natural as it gets.)
10. Dream Vacation (There is no picture. My dream vacation with kids...I'll get back to you. My dream vacation sans babies...won't happen for many years to come. Someday I'll go on a cruise. And I would love to visit every European country (and try all cuisine). And Hawaii. And go back to China. And I would love to see Japan. Okay, pretty much everywhere. But I don't really love traveling. How weird is that? I think I just haven't done it the right way yet. Like in a hotel. And without a 2 year old. And not 7 weeks pregnant puking everywhere. And not constantly thinking That costs how much? Yeah, I think that's it.)

Now I'm tagging...Brooke (yeah, you have to do it too!), Kimbur, Andrea, Beth, & Christine. And everyone who wants to do it. I'm not leaving any comments on blogs because I'm too lazy, so if you see this, do it!

Almost Famous

So I hung out at Pace Mannion's house on Tuesday for an awesome Italian cooking class that his wife does. She is Italian, and everything she made was incredible. Then on Wednesday at REI I saw Matt Barker, who used to be in my ward forever ago. That was contemporary with his first movie role (Wish upon a Star, in 1996). I used to babysit his baby brother and sister, who are now 13. I almost feel like I'm almost famous. Or something. Or not. It was still kind of fun though.

FHE Stick Puppets

I found these in this month's Friend Magazine. I didn't want to cut the pages out, so I printed it from their website onto photo paper. Talk about two birds with one stone...an activity during the day, and a family home evening lesson! This one is about Lehi and Nephi. I cut tabs for the fire and the tent so they could be free standing, but everything else got a stick. You could do it diorama style and give everything tabs and put it in a shoe box.

Crafty Elephant

I was at Robert's one day when they had a clearance table full of odds and ends. I made this while Sam watched, and it was actually a lot harder than it looks. The glue took forever to dry, and then he couldn't really even play with it when it was done. We still have a tiger to make, so hopefully that won't be as bad now that I know what to do. The instructions said, "Using the picture as a guide, glue the pieces together." Sounds simple enough.

Leaf Rubs

Sam and I went around the yard and collected a leaf or two from every kind of tree. Then we went inside, chose a crayon, and made rubbings. He thought it was so cool to see a leaf appear on his paper.

Activities

In an effort to keep Sam occupied, thereby keeping us both sane, I've started doing activities with him. As you can see below, today we did fingerpaints. We've done several more that I need to post. I'm keeping track of this for my reference, so on a day when I'm out of ideas, I can come to my trusty blog and get a nontoxic, washable recipe for fingerpaint. Or whatever. Some day when I have time, I'll post the rest.

Fingerpaint

Today I made some fingerpaint for Sam. He really liked it for about 5 minutes. Then he wanted to color. It made a lot, so I would halve it for just one kid. Thanks Martha.

• Stir 4 tablespoons of sugar and 1/2 cup cornstarch together; add 2 cups of cold water, and heat over medium heat until the mixture is thick (the mixture will further thicken as it cools). Divide into four or more containers, and add food coloring as desired.

Mrs. Wonderful...breadsticks

Okay everyone, I'm famous. And now my breadsticks are too. Thanks Misty, I hadn't checked his blog since the post previous to this one. Everyone click here to see my name on something that I didn't write. A whole paragraph, mostly about me. And Mike. And breadsticks. Wow!

Gee, Thanks

Sam: Don't sing Mom. That was bad singing.

Party!

So, even though I had my camera with me, I didn't take any pictures because I was too busy talking and chasing Will. We had a great neighborhood BBQ a few doors down on Saturday night. It was freezing, but the kids didn't seem to notice. We have some awesome neighbors, and it was really fun to hang out and chat.

Yesterday we went to my cousin's baptism (my cousin's son, actually). He's 10, and decided on his own that he wanted to be baptized. Another cousin was supposed to confirm him, but he got tied up and didn't make it, so my cousin asked Mike to step in and do the confirmation. Unfortunately Sam has a hard time when Mike gets up to do stuff like that, so I was outside with the kids to spare everyone the yelling. Even though I missed it, I was so grateful to have a husband who honors his priesthood, and is ready at a moment's notice to serve in that capacity.

My friend Katie, who makes it on the blog regularly, just called got to YW as a Beehive advisor. That means she'll be there with me at Youth Conference and Girls' Camp! ("Camp" happens to be at the Clayton cabin this year, so Mike will be there too! and the kids! Yikes!) I'm not sure if I'll make it to all of Youth Conference since Will doesn't seem to be interested in weaning. I'm trying, but he's resisting pretty hard. We're mostly down to twice a day, but he hates drinking out of cups and bottles, so it's a huge chore to get him to drink. It's also hard to get a lot of calories in him, which is bad because he's so skinny. He loves to eat, but now he just wants what he wants, and he won't even drink chocolate milk. Argh! The dr suggested giving him avocados, crackers with cream cheese, etc., just to pump some extra calories into him. Good thing he's cute...

Will is officially 1!

We had a nice, quiet birthday for Will. A couple of neighbors and Eric & Renee came over for some monkey cake and ice cream. In high school I used to make awesome birthday cakes for my friends (you know who you are!). I think my cake skill has declined (which doesn't say much), but at least you can tell it's some kind of animal. Monkey cake is fitting for Mr. Mischief, who never gives his mommy any peace or rest. He does give me a lot of exercise though. Very interested in touching the monkey, but not so much in eating it. We didn't make him since he hated the last cake experience so much.
Katie, the nicest ever, gave Will some fun animal toys that all the kids LOVED.
Ava probably doesn't see much Thomas the Train at her house.

Eh? You made me a what kind of cake?

Sam climbed into Will's high chair to eat some pringles. Such a goofy kid!

Great Day!

Sunday was such a great day! My wonderful friend Tassie and her husband blessed their beautiful baby. They even provided us a fantastic meal afterward at a park. Does it get any better? Tassie and I go way back to 9th grade gym class. Thank goodness I needed a band-aid, she practically saved my life!
Thanks for letting us be a part of such a special day! We love you guys!

On Sunday we also celebrated the Spring Clayton birthdays, including Will! He's officially 1 on Wednesday. Charles and Emily did a really fun fondue dinner. The cheese, potato, onion, tomato thing was awesome. Sam knew it wasn't his birthday, but he wouldn't stop asking if he could blow the candles out. Sam is also sporting his new haircut. It makes him look so much older!



Sam's dinner consisted of a bowl of cheerios and cake & ice cream.
Happy Will, enjoying the party until...Papa made him eat cake!
Attempt 1

Attempt 2

Attempt 3

Attempt 4: finally successful after a nursing break to calm him down.

Eating ice cream with a fork

Gaining Independence

I was nursing Will when Sam suddenly became desperate for a snack. He brought me a box of Fruity Pebbles and told me he wanted some. I said I'd help him as soon as I was done, so he went back to the kitchen. A few minutes later, this is what I found.