Monday, January 31, 2011

I've got a monkey on my back.

Cabin Fever hit us hard this weekend. We dropped N off at the airport Saturday morning and then it pretty much rained the rest of the weekend. Since Molly is not supposed to be around other kids that basically kept us holed up at home.... just like the rest of this month has been. It's starting to get to us. Molly has been pretty wound up and bouncing off the walls. Since the sun came out today I decided we both needed a nice long walk. Molly kept asking to go to the park, but alas the Rose Garden would have to do. Little one pooped out on the way home and wanted a horsie ride. I asked her to smile for the camera and this is what I got.

Saturday, January 29, 2011

The Last Unicorn

Molly is watching The Last Unicorn for the first time. I suspect her horsie obsession will be replaced with a unicorn obsession.

Friday, January 28, 2011

The quarantine continues...

Molly had a follow up doc appointment on Tuesday. They did another nasal swab (up BOTH nostrils which she absolutely HATED) and tested for Whooping Cough/Pertussis. Now I was under the impression they tested for this back on the 11th when I first took her in (low grade temp started on the 5th, but cough showed up on the 11th). Apparently the doc's office had checked the box for Pertussis on the lab slip, but either the lab never did the test or they never posted the results. They were testing for multiple things at that time and when I heard they all came back negative I assumed that had meant Pertussis too. Nope, she was positive for Whooping Cough/Pertussis and is now currently on antibiotics (Azithromycin) for the next 5 days. N and I are also on the same meds, but ours are in pill form. We need to take them since we all live under the same roof, but we've both been symptom free for over a week now.

Whooping Cough is highly contagious so we're basically under house arrest until her meds are up and we see her doc again. Oh joy! Molly's cough was nasty, but it has pretty much subsided since the weekend. I think the last time I heard her cough was Sunday. She still has a low grade temp though so I am hoping the meds take care of that. It's normal for the most part, but still spikes up into the upper 99.somethings and into the low 100.somethings. The doc said to not give her any Tylenol or Ibuprofen if it's under 100.2 since she's been on those meds for so long. Of course I took her temp about an hour ago and it was 100.4 so I gave her a dose of Tylenol. The antibiotics are once a day and the first dose was last night. Hopefully by tomorrow they will start working their mojo and this low grade temp finally goes away!

Monday, January 24, 2011

Organization

Molly's toys were starting to take over her room (and what felt like the rest of the house). N was working from home today so I was able to head up to IKEA during Molly's nap and pick up the shelving/storage I had my eye on. I purchased the EXPEDIT shelving unit along with some BRANĂ„S wicker baskets. I also picked up some cloth STRIKT boxes, but when I got home I realized I grabbed the smaller 7" high ones and not the larger 12" high ones that I had intended to purchase. It's just as well as I prefer the KUSINER mesh one I had picked up as a one off. I was initially going to do a box in each cubby hole, but I think I am going to leave two empty for the larger toys.

BEFORE:




AFTER:





Ahhhh... MUCH better!

I also picked up a turquoise mesh hanging storage for her stuffed animals. It's currently sitting in the cubby next to her castle. However, I'm not exactly sure where to put that. For now her stuffed animals will stay gathered in the striped collapsable bag you see next to her bed. Hey, at least they are gathered!

Sunday, January 23, 2011

Conspiracy theories

Molly: "Where's Christmas?"

Daddy: "Mommy's the Grinch and packed Christmas away in the attic."

Way to throw me under the bus, sweetheart!

Yes, Molly *still* asks about Christmas (mainly her tree and the lights) three weeks later. She asked every single day (multiple times a day) that first week. Now we're down to an every other day inquiry.

Thursday, January 20, 2011

Walking to the Rose Garden

Molly still has a nasty cough and had a low temp (99.7) before bed last night, but she asked if we could go to the park. I'm going to take that as a good sign.

Tuesday, January 18, 2011

Drama Mama

Earlier this evening I was standing at the kitchen sink doing dishes when Molly comes in. She's singing to herself and playing with two toys in her hand. She decides she's done with one of them and throws it on the ground before turning around to walk out. I tell her to pick up her toy.

Standoff ensues.

Molly tells me that she does not want to pick up her toy. I ask her if the ground is where her toy belongs and she reluctantly replies that it is not.

Then come the tears.

Molly has MASTERED the art of summoning tears on a second's notice and can even get her face all nice and blotchy to really sell them. She's an excellent fake crier.

I tell her to pick up her toy or her toy is going bye-bye.

Molly counters with putting herself in a time out. Yes, my daughter would rather be in a time out than pick up a toy. My parents are probably laughing their asses off right about now. The standoff is ON.

I would also like to take this moment to pat myself on the back for not cracking up when Molly announces her timeout and stands over by the fridge with her arms crossed. It was HILARIOUS, but I kept my poker face on.

I wait quietly to see just how long this self prescribed timeout will last.

A few minutes later Molly is done and steps away from the fridge. I deserve a freakin' OSCAR for not cracking up during this next part. Molly then kicks the toy across the kitchen as she attempts to pick it up with her toes. Apparently during her timeout she decided there was a legal loophole and it was OK to touch the toy with her toes/feet. I still remain laugh-free as she scoots on her butt across the kitchen while holding the toy between her two feet. Molly puts the toy away without touching it with her hands and then looks at me to see if she can go.

She can.

Once she's back in her room I finally let out the laughter.



I'm pretty sure Molly is considering this a win.

Comfy cozy

We were running errands at Target today when Molly announces she wants to get "comfy cozy." She then proceeds to take one of the throw pillows out of the back of the cart and positions herself sideways. To top it off she grabs two of the books we picked up in the $1 section and literally kicks up her heels.

Molly has such a hard life.

Poor sick bug

Molly (along with N and I) has been fighting a bug for the last couple of weeks. Yes, weeks. I noticed she was warm back on the 5th when we were out and about. We got home and her temp was 100.4. For the next few days it bounced around between 99.something and 100.something. Unfortunately, that weekend I came down with whatever it was she was fighting. On top of that N was gone most of the weekend volunteering at a Robotics tournament. Luckily he had a friend drive him to/from the event as he was popping Sudafed and cough drops just to make it through the day.

On Tuesday the 11th Molly woke up with a cough and still had her low grade temp. I decided it was time to call her doc and get things checked out. They tested her for Strep (negative) and did another nasal swab (that she HATED) that tested for Pertussis (I believe) and a few other things. They all came back negative. The doc checked out her lungs (fine) and ears (fine, phew!) and a few other things. It was determined it was something viral and we just had to ride it out.

Well the next day I took her temp before her nap and it was 102.7. I made an appointment to follow up with the doc the next day. That night I was woken up around 1:30 am by a hot little body next to my bed. Molly seemed in pretty good spirits and asked for some apple juice and requested Toy Story 3. I got her the apple juice, but wanted to take her temp before putting on any movies. It was 104.1. Time to call the oncall service and speak to someone. The nurse I talked to went down a list of concerns and other than the high temp none of them applied. She also said I could increase the dosage of Tylenol from the 5 ML I had been giving to 7.5 ML and to check her temp in an hour. Apparently 105 is the danger zone/time to head to the ER. Good to know. An hour later her temp was back down to 102.1.

Thursday morning we went in to the doc's office for her follow up and her temp was normal. She still had her cough, but her lungs still sounded fine to the doc. They did a few more tests, but everything was still coming back negative. Yup, it's viral. Ride it out.

Molly's temp went back down to the 99.something and 100.something range and the nasty smoker's cough persisted. Sunday morning she woke up and her temp was normal. She was still congested and coughing though. Then around 10:30 she started to cough and cry/whine after each cough. I thought her throat must be sore. I went to get her a popsicle and when I came back she greeted me by throwing up all over herself. I picked her up and got her in the tub to clean her off and she was on fire. Took her temp and it was 104.9. Yup, time to head down to the ER.

When we got to the ER N asked to hold her. He said, "Daddy fix" and put his arms out and Molly went to him. Not two minutes later and she threw up all over herself and N. Daddy fix indeed. When we get checked in by the triage nurse they give her some more Tylenol as she had thrown up the dose I had given her at home. When we get back into the room the nurse has to give her a nasal swab (to test for the flu) and poor bug has a catheter put in to get a urine sample. NOT a fan of either of these tests and she let us know it. By now a few hours have passed since our arrival and her temp is still pretty high (I think 103.something). The nurse gives her a dose of Ibuprofen and an hour later her temp is 100.5. Molly spends most of the time sleeping on N and I (we took turns as our asses kept falling asleep).

The ER doc comes in and checks Molly out. While he's in the room Molly wakes up and perks up and starts asking for food and apple juice (good sign). The tests once again came back negative. The urine sample had the very lowest levels possible detected, but not enough to straight up call it a UTI. The doc sent out for cultures which take a few days. There were another few tests that would take a few days. The suggestion was to get her on amoxicillin since A) she's had it before with no reaction and B) it would be the treatment if any of the tests came back positive.

Sunday night her temp got back up to 102.1, but it's been down in the 99.something range since then. Molly woke up with a normal temp yesterday and her appetite. She also had her energy back. Her temp was 100.5 right before nap time, but normal when she woke up. It did creep up to 99.9 before bed time, but was normal when she woke up this morning. Around noon she felt warm and her temp was 99.4. However, it was normal post nap and then again before bed time tonight.

The cough is also persisting. It sounds like Molly has been smoking 20 packs a day for much longer than she's been alive. However, her appetite is coming back more each day and her energy level is returning to normal levels. Hopefully this means we're towards the end of whatever we've been dealing with.

Saturday, January 8, 2011

Crazy monkey child

Molly is a monkey and loves to climb everything and I often find myself calling her my, "crazy monkey child." Well, her new snow hat just seals the deal on this nickname.

snowshoeing 12/30

Since it was such a gorgeous day... and since N had gone boarding the day before... I headed out snowshoeing once Molly went down for her nap. It was a little on the chilly side (mid teens when I left, single digits by the time I got back), but the sun was out and there was NO wind which made for ideal conditions. I went up to the pond and back which is about 3 miles round trip with a bit of an elevation climb. However, some morning snowshoers had made a lovely path for me to follow for the most part so it wasn't as hard as it could have been. I cut across our new lot by the trail head and I was sinking up to my thigh WITH snowshoes ON. I definitely would not have made it up to the pond if I had to do that the entire way. It was a little tougher going from the last culvert/Y up to the pond as the path was not as well traveled at that point and I was sinking down a bit, but still totally worth it.

Half buried street sign for our new property:


The back property markers:


Heading out on the trail:


Looking back at Pyramid Circle:


The path was packed down about 12 inches for the most part. Thank you morning people!


Creek:


Making left at the Y/culvert to head up to the pond:


The pond (little island is straight ahead):


For more pictures click here.

Tahoe Tot Spot, take two

Last Thursday the snow storm had passed and the blue skies came out. Translation - GORGEOUS day!

We decided to take Molly to Tahoe Tot Spot so she could burn off some energy. However, this time we called first to make sure they were open. The drive into town was just slightly more breathtaking this day.





Molly loves the Tot Spot and immediately made a beeline for the trampoline path into the ball pit.



However, she also immediately likes to bury herself in the balls and with the amount of kids there that day I had to keep pulling her out so she would not get jumped on.



Oh, she loves it!



For more pictures click here.

Buckaroo

One of the games we have up at the cabin is Bucakroo (the Toy Story 3 version, of course). Molly has been interested before, but this was the first trip up where we actually played the game. We even got through a few times without setting Bullseye off.





Action shot:


For more pictures click here.

Wednesday, January 5, 2011

Tahoe snow storm

We drove up last Tuesday and it was snowing when we arrived. The snow continued to fall pretty much all day Wednesday. We got up and headed into town with the intention of taking Molly to Tahoe Tot Spot, but when we arrived we discovered they were closed for a "Snow Day". Luckily we were able to entertain Molly at the pet store with all the fishies and lizards and frogs. She was so excited she kept wanting to reach into the tanks to pet them, but would pull her hand back just before I said something because she knew she wasn't supposed to.

The drive into town:




I love that her fingers are crossed!


Lots and lots of new snow:


Sadie, keeping watch:


For the rest of the pictures click here.

It's so rough...

... being a furry kid in the Hickson household.

Tuesday, January 4, 2011

Best. Day. Ever.

This morning Molly and I dropped the Subaru off at the dealership for some maintenance. It's not that far away so I decided to walk back home as N had an early trainer appointment at the gym. We cut through the mall to help break up the walk. Molly had some energy to burn and ended up running the entire mall. Both floors. Both wings. She would stop every now and then to shake her booty in front of a store pumping loud music, but for the most part she just ran. And ran. And ran some more.

As she started to wind down she began to act out parts of the movie Tangled. She has seen it several times in the movie theatre the most recent being this last Sunday when N took her. Twice. Yes, twice. At first she was bellowing, "Rapunzel, Rapunzel... let down your haaaiiiirrr." Then she started to run around in circles yelling, "Best. Day. Ever." (another scene from the movie) By the time I thought to get out my phone and record some of this the circles had turned into twirling. Then she just pooped out.


Ah, those wizards at Disney know what they are doing.

Here's the trailer for the movie in case you have no idea what I'm talking about:

Sunday, January 2, 2011

Tough life

Post dinner and mellow... plops herself down in the middle of her toys... too lazy to even sit up.

Oh yeah, her favorite toy these last few days have been socks. Yes, socks.

Christmas morning

As soon as I heard Molly open her door on Christmas morning I nudged N awake. We met up with her just as she was going into the living room where the Christmas Tree was. As soon as she saw us she asked us to turn on HER lights. Once we did we waited for her to notice the presents under the tree.



N pointing out the cookie crumbs that Santa left behind along with the leftover carrot from Rudolph:


Stunned that her stocking had more than one thing inside:


Unwrapping the stable from Santa:


Molly had no interest in posing for pictures when there are new toys to play with:


N made Molly bug some Christmas Tree and Frosty the Snowman pancakes for breakfast:


That's it?!?


For the rest of the pictures click here.

Christmas Eve

On Christmas Eve we went over to Granny and Grandpa Marsh's house for dinner. Molly had a TOWER of gifts waiting for her. She definitely got the hang of the whole present thing this year... to the point that she was handing the empty boxes back to us so she could open them again.

Opening the Russian Nesting dolls Grandpa picked up for her:


Showing Granny:


Oooh, another present:


And Tinkerbell:


Molly got a little wound up with all the attention so Aunt Tracey calmed her down with the Tinkerbell movie. Dinner was ready before they had a chance to finish. Aunt Tracey liked it so much she made a point to watch the end before her trip was up.

Presents for mommy

Apparently my boots make for an excellent hiding place.

Saturday, January 1, 2011

Her own #1 fan

Molly heard a video of herself and came scootin' over to see what it was about. She loves looking at all pictures on her blog, but really loves the videos. She laughs and laughs. Crazy girl.

Gingerbread Man

My mom got Molly a HUGE Gingerbread Man making kit from Trader Joe's.

Apparently a a gingerbread man decoration crew requires three adults for every kid:


Note the bite mark on the top of the head. Yep, she thought she could get away with it:


Molly is more of an Art Director... likes to direct rather than get her own hands dirty:


Sprinkles? I'll get my hands dirty for sprinkles!


"Yes Granny... very nice work... you may continue."




For the rest of the pictures click here.