Mar 18

Cavity Chronicles

Well, two out of three kiddos strutted out of their biannual dentist checkup with shiny new cavity appointments—so what better way to spend spring break than scheduling three separate dental procedures? I can think of plenty of things… but hey, at least we were productive!

Harper was up first, needing two separate appointments for cavities on either side of her bottom molars. To my surprise, she was both excited and a little nervous—though mostly thrilled to have a medical appointment all to herself, without her sisters tagging along. The wonderful dental hygienist explained the entire procedure beforehand and even let her use the light for a tiny practice filling on her hand. That little blip became a prized possession- one I had to keep track of throughout the visit- and is now safely tucked away in the treasure box by her bed.

She followed all directions, held still as the “sugar bugs” were removed, and didn’t peek when told to shut her eyes (for the Novocaine!); she held my hand and didn’t flinch at all, entirely chill. Puppy also joined the event for moral support and snuggled under the blanket the entire time. The laughing gas definitely helped take the edge off, but took a bit to take effect and she was goofy waiting for it to kick in. Harper was mostly concerned about bad tasting stuff like the previous visit’s sealants, and reported the air running through her nose smelled good, like cherries. Overall, fantastic attitude from the youngun the entire time, and lots of thumbs up when asked by the dentist. One down!

While running a few errands after school pickup, Harper suddenly decided it was time for that first wiggly front tooth to vacate the premises. With a dramatic twist (pun intended!!), just as the dentist had mostly jokingly suggested a couple of hours earlier- out it came in the car. Seriously, my kids have a thing with pulling teeth at inopportune times in the car! And no hesitation, just hollering for a tissue and yelling about blood, while this poor driver reminded her not to drop it. Just one quick twist, and boom– tooth gone. The first thing out of her mouth (besides the tooth? Ha.)? Reagan! Now we look like twins! Mon, now I look like Reagan! As if they didn’t already have identical faces. The main, obvious visual difference between the two since middle toddler years was Reagan cracking and losing her top tooth, so it’s fitting the same one came out first to match. And honestly, it’s not like some of the kids they know don’t tell them apart by dental records at this point…but not so much now. Emerie is extremely displeased to not be in the “twin club” (even funnier since she and Harper are technically twins) and really hoping to push out her same top tooth any day now and catch up.

And how did she catch up??? Instead, as if I didn’t have enough dentist visits this month, we scheduled one more unplanned one to assess her sagging front tooth from a toy to the face, a tooth that turned black within a few days, but was still dangling strong from her gum-line. At least, holding strong enough for resistance from an adult trying to yank it out. Emerie was convinced the dentist wanted to take it at the appointment, meaning her face plant and butt in the air on the seat and hiding from him. Superrrr fun. His very short lived assessment after a quick x-ray gave us the green light for the ENT to remove the tooth while under anesthesia the following day.

I should also mention the newest household villain: the Tooth Fairy. Once a magical figure ensuing joy and excitement, she is now viewed as a thief lurking in the night, ready to snatch possessions that don’t belong to her, such as the freshly evicted front tooth. No amount of money was deemed acceptable after much discussion. After taking said tooth and container on a bike ride to show the neighbors down the street (one of our last days before snow returned), this valuable treasure needed a bodyguard and she entrusted me -her ever-reliable mother- with its protection. That was two weeks ago; and the tooth still sits on my nightstand, untouched by distrusted fairy hands, and receiving daily visits from its rightful owner. Harper checks on it like a rare museum artifact, making sure it hasn’t mysteriously disappeared. And at this point, I think I’m more scared of losing it than she is. Yep, #realtalk.

Emerie’s tooth eviction followed uneventfully with her tonsillectomy and has secured another safe location to avoid that damn tooth fairy, and now I have a new job to add to my resume- a watcher and protector of random front teeth…

The day after Emerie’s surgery Harper was up again for her second filling and met with continual thumbs up, like it was no big deal for such a grown up six-year-old who hates brushing her teeth. She certainly loves the attention, happily picked out some chap stick afterwards and enjoyed a fruit drink to celebrate good behavior, because nothing says good dental behavior like a sugary treat right?!

The following day Reagan was up for her first filing and my last health related appointment for the week, thankfully. Unlike her “full-speed-ahead” sister, Reagan approached the situation cautiously. She gripped my hand tightly, showing her nerves, and while she didn’t dish out any enthusiastic thumbs-ups, she faced it all with quiet determination. The Novocain part was especially stressing- no dramatic reactions or peeking, but plenty of squeaking and turmoil I could feel through her tiny fingers. Her panda joined for the entire visit and the first request was a sugar free lollipop and chap stick for her trouble. While this visit had no happy thumbs-ups or post-filling happiness, she did exactly what was asked of her, following every direction to the letter- because rules are rule and Reagan is certainly great at following them.

Now I’d like to avoid the dentist for a bit, and keep on those pesky kids to brush, brush, brush! My brain still hasn’t fully caught up to the fact that everyone now sports a holy front smile—not just Reagan. For years, she was the lone gap toothed wonder and now suddenly, it’s all three. Also interesting that Reagan and Harper are rocking identical holes and I can’t help but wonder which tooth Reagan would have lost first naturally, had she not cracked it and needed it pulled. Same goes for Emerie, who probably would’ve followed suit with her sisters… had a toy (and sibling) not intervened and made the decision for her gums. And just when I thought our tooth saga would slow FOR THE WEEK, Harper sprinted up to me at school pickup today, flashing a huge smile; and now missing both front teeth. The second one made its grand exit this afternoon at school (at least it wasn’t the car??). And where, you ask, is that second tooth currently? Oh, you know, safely tucked away in another plastic bag, because the big, bad Tooth Fairy will NOT be sneaking off with it overnight. No amount of bedtime discussion could change her mind. That tooth is HERS and the Tooth Fairy can keep her money.

And with that, the Tooth Fairy remains the enemy in our household—and our house is rapidly becoming a tooth museum -or possibly burial ground- a place where lost teeth aren’t treasures to trade… they’re trophies to keep.

I’ll end on what was a current “holey” triplet photo, until about six hours ago that is…

❤

Mar 12

Surgery Update

No excitement for spring break this year, unless you count a plethora of doctor visits. The main event up today? Emerie getting her tonsils and adenoids removed, ear tubes for the third time, and if that wasn’t enough, pulling her top front tooth that met its demise last week against a toy, but isn’t quite committed to removal with her awake.

We were unsure if today was to happen, with a minor bug hitting all three kiddos in the past few days after a fun weekend to Seward. Emerie proceeded to puke all over my boots and the bathroom yesterday, but seemed well enough this morning to brave her procedure as planned. With Grandma Sue here to watch the other two and help the next few days, and school out for the week, this really is the perfect time for Emerie to rest up and recover, hopefully in time for all of next week’s birthday festivities.

At her pre-op appointment she told her life story to the receptionist and continued babbling to the nurse. The only tidbit of information she gleaned from the doctor was the fact bad breath will be present for a few days post procedure. She immediately went to her sisters later that morning to tell them she had to stay away after surgery, because her breath will be so bad. Funny what kids pay attention to!

We got up bright and early to head to the doctor’s office, convincing her that only two stuffed animals could join in on the fun. Only one adult is allowed in pre-op at a time and Emerie chose Craig, since she is predominantly on Team Dad when given the option. We will see how that goes, as she usually flips and wants me to snuggle once she wakes up.

The procedure lasted about 45 minutes and everything went smoothly. Craig returned for her wake up and I followed shortly after with a change of clothes. Everything went smoothly on all three accounts, and she came out of anesthesia pretty well after a short, post procedure nap. We are both interested to see if they return like Craig’s did, or if we are one and done with their removal (hopefully!). The doc noted she had fluid in both ears so the tubes would again help with that. With minimal tears and a purple popsicle later, we headed home to chill for the day.

Harper and Reagan were happy to see sissy and her freshly removed tooth, and after a little Moana 2 on the iPad, Craig was able to convince her a nap would help. The rest of the day proceeded uneventfully, which is a good thing, and overall she is more chipper than we anticipated. She even played a little while with her sisters, and then continued to relax and watch television and suck down pedialite pops and apple sauce.

Thanks for all the prayers; and hopefully keeping up on her pain meds overnight will allow her to have a restful night of sleep as we ease into day two! I have also been advised the tooth fairy is not welcome to visit tonight and her tooth is safely tucked away on the counter 🙂

❤

Jan 29

Totally Tubular!

Today was a Harper day! After battling croup, ear infections and colds over the past few months, we finally scheduled her ear tube procedure, to stop the constant ear infections causing hearing issues. Harper was very excited for it all, unusually so since it’s a medical procedure, and likely because she finally gets her “day in the sun” and one in one time with the parents. After Emerie experiencing this a handful of times throughout the past five years; it is not lost on the other two kiddos that she received special treatment on those days. They seem to be unaware of all the other aspects that go with surgery, such as pain, coming out of anesthesia, naps to sleep a procedure off, and all the dreaded eye and ear drops. But you know, other than that it’s all fun and donuts right?

Harper and I arrived at the ENT’s office at 7 AM, bright and early on a single digit temperature day, leaving Emerie and Reagan cozy in their beds until Craig took them to school for the day. Leaving the house in pajamas is a rarity for the girls and not something we do often -especially on one of the coldest days we’ve had- and Harper was quite the hit with the nurses in her matching pink, cozy pjs, pink boots, and furry pink coat, and baby seal and Princess Aurora in tow.

During all the pre-op questions she was pumped and noticeably excited, singing, hollering and making goofy faces, which cracks me up. She hollered the numbers on the pulse monitor at the nurses in the hallway, thinking she was so darn funny. The anesthesiologist checked in and noted they had the same birthday, which did NOT impress my six year old who already shares hers twice over. So funny. She was giggly and jolly even, having way too much fun with the pulse ox machine and the name bracelet tied around her ankle.

Either we didn’t wait long enough to find out, or she doesn’t react to versed quite as strongly as Emerie, who can barely hold her body straight or her head up after a dose. After reclining in the chair and sporting her hairnet and heated blanket, eventually she was a little more “jello-y” and chill, just in time to ride the wheel chair with her very own nurse! She asked ten questions about all the parts and pieces on that wheel chair, and then was whisked down the hall to the operating room, waiving goodbye to me with a slightly confused look, but no concern.

Sitting and writing a blog always distracts me from that concerned and stressed feeling you get when a kiddo is in surgery, and there’s nothing you can do to determine outcome. It’s not a fun place, but definitely one we’ve been to many times before with Emerie, and fewer times than many of our friends with littles.

After about thirty minutes the doctor emerged, saying everything went great. The main reason for tubes was fluid buildup by her ear drums, and he noted after getting in there, it was less like fluid and more like a glue buildup; not infected but definitely contributing to hearing issues and restricting vibration. He cleaned it out and put in the tubes, and she should have noticeable better hearing right away.

They put her under a bit deeper than planned because of the lingering croup cough; she slowly emerged from anesthesia without any negative reaction or indication of pain. She pepped up after a few minutes and finally peeked at us after a promise of juice. The highlight of her visit was getting a sticker, a mini pink slinky, and getting wheeled all the way to the car in a wheel chair (because she was still a little wobbly!). Sisters were also informed the nurses had PINK gives and let her take them home. In fact, in true Harper style, she was wearing a glove on each hand before surgery and one of them made it through the ride home!

After picking up Craig and the promised donut stop, she chilled for the day and all is well in the world, other than achy ears. When asked if today was scary or fun, she instantly responded fun, and that the highlight was watching seal videos with Craig at the crack of dawn before we left for the day, and getting a little iPad time. Glad to know her first surgical experience was met with no stress and a good experience! The next kid on deck will not be quite this easy…

❤

Aug 30

Head, Shoulders…Eyes & Ears!

Here we are again at Emerie’s next surgery. This one is unique, a combination of new ear tubes and another left eye resection surgery. After three Botox procedures, one successful and two not as much as hoped, we are back to the drawing board on straightening out her eye and convincing her brain to keep using it.

Sunday night Emerie woke up with a major ear ache on one side, which the pediatrician confirmed yesterday as a definite ear infection. After two hours of tossing and turning and prohibiting Craig and I from getting sleep, she demanded to go sleep with grandma in the guest room. Worked for us and gave me a few minutes of shut eye before the next one was up. Fortunately this didn’t hinder having the surgery, with the doctor noting that he would clean out the infected side when the tubes were placed, essentially making it feel better, with the ear drops kicking the rest.

On the drive across town Emerie excitedly pointed out , at 5:45 in the morning mind you, that darkness means fall and that mean trick or treating, then Christmas, then my birthday and then hers! It was an impressive observation so early and from a four year old!

Grandma Sue came with me this morning and Emerie loved every second of it. Balloon gloves blow up to look like little blue sharks and the longer the versed was in her system, the more hilarious that seemed to her. Lots of giggles occurred as we waited to see both doctors, and Emerie cooperated for her pulse check much better than usual. She didn’t appreciate the little girl crying across the hall, who I overheard was also getting eyes and ears worked on, but eventually blocked that out and relaxed.

We opted to do both procedures under the same anesthesia, which meant one less time going through the whole surgery process. Arriving at six AM, we were the first in line for the day for Doctor Winkle (eyes) and Doctor Kowolski (ears).

She went back with the nurses to the OR about 7:45, and by 8:10 Doctor Kowolski was out to tell us the ear tubes went in without any issues. Doctor Winkle didn’t come out with his update for more than an hour after that, as expected, and another forty minutes after that before we could go back and see her.

Everything went well. Doctor Winkle noted that her inner eye muscle was a bit tighter than he expected and that he put a little liquid (can’t remember the word he said) to help with the scar tissue, which is an issue when repeat procedures occur over the years.

Today’s recovery was different than previous surgeries. This time she really didn’t want to wake up; in fact we spent almost two hours in recovery where she lightly snored, snuggled under the heating blanket, completely out to the world. The nurse removed the IV from her hand and her chest monitors without even a flinch. Eventually we were able to con her into consciousness by rubbing the cherry popsicle on her lips, just enough for her to subconsciously want it. We tried talking to her about it first, and threatening to eat it or give it to a sister, neither of which helped. She then proceeded to eat the whole thing with both eyes closed, mumbling short word responses to questions.

Prior procedures resulted in a completely asleep child diving straight into a demanding, I need a popsicle now, kid. We typically head home within 30 minutes or so. This time around, we didn’t head to the car until about eleven, she instantly went back to sleep in her car seat while hiding under her blanket from the sun, and slept in her bed until after two! The rest of the afternoon was watching movies with snuggles- a rotation between wanting me, Craig and grandma- and warm washcloths on her eye with several pedialite popsicles. Her ears don’t seem to be any bother (albeit they look red with dried blood), but her eye is swollen and red and puffy. Not droopy like the Botox procedures, but definitely swollen and sensitive and greatly bothering her.

While we normally delay a bath for two days after a procedure, she begged so badly for one that Craig let her sit in the tub, with promises to not splash anything sensitive. Early bedtime was a definite must, with Harper and Reagan both quite supportive of letting their sister get to sleep to feel better. Early bedtime for the adults too I hope, as these days are mentally exhausting and I could have fallen asleep hours ago. I imagine it’s going to be a long night once the pain meds wane, and hope tomorrow will be a bit better for her and that we all get some rest. First thing is her post-op eye check, probably followed by a quiet day at home and a lot of coffee (for me!)

❤

Aug 10

Total Sassafrass

It’s been a bit since I posted a blog and thought I’d give a quick update and share some of the latest quirks the girls continue to share with us. Work continues to be incredibly busy for both Craig and I, him on the annual end of year closeout and me helping cover the rest of the grant season for airport development projects, in addition to my standard project management and job duties. We are both very thankful that the allergies and ear infections that hit mid-July last year have not yet reemerged and that the girls have been healthy and able to go to preschool continuously while we stay caught up on work.

As we start drifting toward end of summer activities, such as rain adventures, blueberry picking, and less outdoor water activities, the girls continue their current flower (bouquet) obsessions. Rose, daisy, and my poor front pansy plants now litter the living room and back deck; at least there are enthusiastic children happy to creatively play. Harper and Reagan enjoy picking raspberries from the backyard and eating them before returning inside; Emerie likes to taunt – ahem play – with the ever growing chickens, who now forcibly demand to explore the backyard, outside of their cage.

The toddler cars also reemerged and our neighbors get the honor of enjoying the spectacle of our kids driving down the street and the parents trying to keep them from getting run over by real cars or running into parked ones. Emerie greatly improved on her steering skills this summer, but also forgets the pedal is to the metal and will drive forward while looking backwards or concentrating on something that isn’t driving the car. Harper and Reagan seem to have the steering skills down and both enjoy driving. This picture fully explains everyone’s enthusiasm, Emerie’s face and all!

After last month’s unfortunate pet events, we welcomed a new member into the household, a three month old kitten. Her name started out as Molly until Reagan convinced everyone a more fitting name was Sassafras, which stuck. She’s a wild little thing and demands our attention at two or three in the morning every night, unless we manage to wear her out in the evenings. Good thing our children prepared us for that habit to continue! She really enjoys sleeping on Craig’s pillow, C-PAP and all, but turns into a raging, playful maniac the moment the first kid wakes up mid night, which is usually Reagan. A few nights I’ve caught her cuddling and sleeping in bed with Harper or Emerie; a few other nights I’ve dragged said monster out of their bedroom before the toe biting and playful scratching occurs. Overall, Sassafras fully embraces the busy, kid oriented household that surrounds my life and loves to play with the girls and run around. The girls love using the toy wands and running away from her. The chickens don’t seem incredibly upset with her presence either and simply crowd around when she gets in “their” space; not sure if that means they want to eat her or hide from her. And what does our other kitty think of her? Well he’s not ready to forgive us yet for a new foreigner, hisses when his personal space is in question and will only cuddle with her if asleep and she creeps up and settles.

Age four of the triplet life we lead produces quite the crazy opinions some days, especially when it comes to Miss Harper Anne. Of the three, she often displays the most dramatics over completely irrelevant things and it can be quite hilarious, much to her dismay. For example, the other day she was furious with me at bedtime because the following day wasn’t Christmas, and that winter wasn’t here yet (since she knows Christmas is during the snow season). She huffed and puffed and laid in her bed, with a you’re not my mom anymore response…as if I can control time! One night at bedtime she claimed with a huff that she couldn’t go to bed because I – her loving mother – didn’t make HER bed up that day. And at dinner one night we had pasta and I noted the leftovers would be in their lunch the following day. Harper scolded me for not putting said pasta in her lunch from earlier that day, and insisted that issue should be fixed by yours truly. Time be damned, Mom, go back five hours and make my lunch with pasta like I want. Kids I tell you…

It’s not all chaos and dramatics…well I mean it mostly is, but other moments the girls dole out sound advice. After a preschool fire drill one afternoon, they all reminded me on the way home, don’t be scared, be prepared, and excitedly shared their experience for the day about fire. They also strongly noted their teacher keeps them safe and wouldn’t let fire hurt them, even if she needed a firefighter to help her. True words!

Reagan is on a cooking kick this month and I often find her playing by herself and cooking a pretend masterpiece meal or tea party for her sisters. One afternoon she asked, Mom, what is your favorite cake I can make you? My response, of course, was a homemade German chocolate cake, what Craig makes for me every year! She went into her kitchen and then was quietly repeating her recipe out loud to herself. Add a little German, add a little chocolate, and a little more German. Hahaha…it’s the thought that counts.

Emerie continues to live her best life and chase chickens, taunt the kitten, pick flowers whenever possible and avoid major rain puddles that her sisters splash her direction. We learned a couple weeks back that she needs another more significant eye surgery that will couple with adding new ear tubes back in, something planned for the end of this month. She continues to amaze me when you consider she tackles everything her sisters do, but with one eye significantly weaker and often when the strong eye is patched. She’s a rock star.

Next up? A two day preschool closure starting tomorrow and next week, aging up to the four year old classroom at school! I’m not sure who is having the hardest time with that thought, Miss Tawni, the girls, or me!

❤

The Douglets

Triplets in Alaska

surgery