Afternoon in a Basement

We didn't spend the whole afternoon there....mainly because Mommy got scared and Quackers didn't like the cobwebs.

Of course, I wasn't scared even a little bit. I'm tough!!

Why were we there? Tornado warning. One had been spotted to the south of us and the alarm woke me from my nap. Mommy came flying up the stairs, scooped me up out of my crib and tore off down the stairs to the basement.

Our flooded, dark, dank, creepy basement. There's lots of dead bugs and old junk there. The ceiling is low. It's perfect for Halloween.

I think from now on Mommy is going to have us wait out these things in the stairwell. It's not nearly as scary.

We sure aren't going to wait them out in the garage! The ceiling collapsed right over where Daddy usually parks his car sometime this morning. Mommy said that there was a lot of blown-in insulation on the garage floor that looked like a pile of wet sand.

I don't understand why she wouldn't let me play in it. Sounds like fun to me!

I bet she wants to hog it all for herself. Or our landlord.

Anyways, there was something pretty cool that Mommy discovered in our backyard. Violets! We've got medium purple and white ones along the back fence. Mommy tickled my nose with a purple one and made me laugh. She said something about making candied violets to decorate a cake for Daddy.

I don't know if Daddy actually wants candied flowers, but when Mommy gets an idea in her head, she doesn't give it up that easily.

Mommy did learn a fun fact about violets, though. Did you know that they are used in India to cure tonsillitis?

Relax....she promised to take me to the doctor if I have another flare up and not make me eat candied violets......

Peeking Out The Window

Mommy didn't think I saw what she was doing this morning. Heh!

She put on her funny pants and cleaned up the front yard a little bit. Not sure exactly what she did, but the two boxes of lilies of the valley are gone, the wildflower seed box is half empty, and the rake is dirty.

Mommy thinks that there might be some lilies of the valley on the side of the house, but she's not sure. She said that my grandmother told her that they were incredibly sweet smelling flowers, and she always wanted to grow some. They don't do too well in Arizona or Florida, though, so she thought she'd see if she can get them to sprout here in Iowa. She put the ones she got into two planters on the side of the house.

(Why was I up? Well...when she kept turning on the faucet to fill up the watering can, the noise got me up. It hurts my tender ears right now.)

She still thinks I'm asleep, so don't tell her otherwise, ok?

Slowly Getting Better.....

I still don't want to eat much, and I'm sure Mommy and Daddy wish I would drink more liquids, but I'm getting a little more active now. Hopefully the worst of it has passed.

I spend a lot of time cuddling, but I've gotten up and wandered around the house a bit. For now, Mommy's kitchen pots and pans are safe.

At Least I Don't Repeat Myself, Right?

Already been there, done that with an ear infection and strep throat, so I thought I'd give tonsillitis a spin. Mommy is quite familiar with this, since she had a tonsillectomy when she was five. She still apparently has a little bit of hearing loss from her bouts with it way back when.

Tonsillitis is the worst one yet. Since I have the kind caused by a virus, antibiotics would be pointless (and probably really yucky!)

I just wouldn't eat today, except for the Weight Watchers ice cream bar that Daddy got me to gobble down, and maybe seven cheerios. I even refused animal crackers and vanilla yogurt, which never happens.

I also have been refusing to drink any liquids, so Mommy and Daddy have been taking turns using an old Tylenol dropper to squirt water and LiquiLyte into my mouth a milliliter at a time. You could tell when I got another eyedropper full of liquid, since I howled and screamed every time. Mommy held me down while Daddy gave me the liquid at first, since I refused to submit to this voluntarily.

I puked up the LiquiLyte once, and my fever went close to 103, so Mommy and Daddy came this close to taking me to the hospital for an IV. I was pretty dehydrated, but fortunately I managed to soak a diaper before 8 pm. If I hadn't, Mommy and Daddy were going to have to figure out fast where the closest hospital to North Liberty was so they could start me on an IV.

(Don't worry, they figured it out for future reference. Fortunately, it's apparently a pretty good one, and there is a children's hospital there, too. At least, that's what they say. Here's hoping we never have to find out for real.)

I've never been this sick before, and never saw Mommy and Daddy get so worried about me.

Looks like this coming week is going to be a quiet one at home with Mommy, watching some Animal Planet and slowly getting my strength back. Story Time and play time at the recreation center will have to wait for a while. Dr Reinerston says that I should be over the worst of it within a week. All my parents can do for me right now is give me Tylenol, get whatever fluids they can down my throat and see if they can eventually tempt me with fruit juice bars, vanilla yogurt and maybe chocolate pudding.

I think I'll let Mommy know I'm feeling better in a most creative way. Yes.....rearranging her spice drawer all over the first floor would be a perfect way to do just that. But for now I have to rest and cuddle up with Quackers.

Spring is FINALLY Here!!

Yesterday, it reached 60 degrees! There was even blue sky, too! Lots of wind, like always, it seems, only now it's not arctic. (Daddy should love that....he's got some neat kites, and maybe he'll get to fly them in the park, whenever we figure out where that is....)

We've got some daffodils poking up in the front yard and they will be blooming soon. Mommy has her sweet peas ready to go, along with some lily of the valley and gladiola bulbs. She says this year I can help her with her herb garden in the back, and maybe gather up some wildflowers if she figures out where to plant them. This ought to be fun.

Soon I'll get to wear shorts and put my winter coat away for good!

My Credit is Good at the Library, Baby!!

Yep, got my own library lending account. We went right down the hall after story time and set it all up.

Ok, Mommy did fill out the application....and she did co-sign for me....but I got to check out two books on ducks and a Baby Einstein CD. I'm gonna listen to that in the car.

I had to set some guidelines for Mommy, though. No borrowing cake pans under my name, no way, no how!

Well, maybe for my birthday, but that's the only exception. They don't have any duck pans, unfortunately, so it's a good thing I've got lots of time before I have to pick one out for my second birthday in September.

I'm SO Over Baby Food!

The stuff that Mommy and Daddy eats is much tastier, and I'm going to be eating more of it. I got a taste of their Dirty Rice, and made Mommy give me big spoonfuls of it until I was stuffed. In the interest of fairness, Daddy had to pay some tribute too.

Who knows how much I could have eaten if Mommy hadn't given me some baby food first? (Curry chicken with peas and carrots. I am quite the gourmet!)

I'd go cold turkey on the baby food, but there is still some stuff I gotta finish first.

18 Month Stats!!

Height ~ 33 inches.....about 75%

Weight ~ 26.6 pounds.......a little over 50%

Head circumference ~ about 19 3/4.......close to the 95%

Mommy said that last one lacks the all important brains-to-boogers ratio. Very funny.....

But I did walk almost the entire way to the doctor's office from the parking structure by myself! There's a covered walkway from the parking garage to the office building, and I only had about three mini-meltdowns on the way there. The monkey on my back kept me from running ahead too far. It was strange not taking the stroller, but I felt so proud to walk on my own like everyone else.

Good thing I had Mommy along to carry Quackers and my diaper bag.

Dr. Reinerston checked out my heart, my lungs, my eyes, my ears and my tummy. Everything's just fine, and I'm developing the way I should. I can now eat everything Mommy and Daddy do, except for peanuts. I'm still too little for that, and it might cause me some allergies later if I have some peanut butter now. He told me that he hoped he wouldn't see me for another six months.

I still had to get a shot, though. But it was just one for Hepatitis A, and I shook it off pretty quickly. Mommy had Hepatitis A a long time ago, and said it wasn't fun at all. Someone didn't wash their hands and then made food at her university, making her sick and a few other people as well. She still can't donate blood because of it.

Oh, I forgot to mention the best part about the examination room! There were barnyard animals painted on it.....including a DUCK!! I was so impressed with that! I pointed it out to Mommy, the nurses, and Dr Reinerston.

I'm telling you, ducks are where it's at, baby!