Happy Turkey Day!

We packed the car and headed to Laurens for our annual Thanksgiving feast at mom's. CJ, the kids and I arrived Wednesday evening after work. My brother, Derek, was also coming home for Thanksgiving, but would be getting into town late Wednesday night, since he had to wait until he got off work.

We did go uptown to have a "cocktail or two" and see who was out and who came home for Thanksgiving! Derek kept saying that the kids we were seeing in there could not possibly be old enough to drink -- that would mean he was getting old!! I know how he felt! Some of those kids were babies last time I saw them!!! We did stay up really late visiting, but were much better behaved than last Thanksgiving! I did get up and help Mom in the kitchen early on Thanksgiving morning and was able to enjoy my dinner!!! It was a nice visit, but too short, as always... we stayed for the football games, then headed back to Sioux City. Looking forward to the Christmas holidays... hope to see more relatives!!

School Conferences...

The end of the first quarter of school is here... and we are really proud of the kids! Zach is getting A's and B's and Brianna has all A's!! Let's hope they keep up the great work!!

Happy Halloween

The weather was gorgeous for a night of trick or treating... Brianna went as a black cat! We hit the neighborhood and filled her bag, then went out to eat for supper... she wouldn't even wash her face!!! So she was a black cat up until bedtime!!!

EHS Football Parent's Night

Parent's Night was held at the last home football game of the season! All the parents of the players were brought out onto the field, where they waited until their names and the player's name were announced. Players and parents then met on the field, where moms were given an orange carnation (and a hug!), then walked off the field together just before the start of the game! Brianna took some pictures, see below!: ( I apologize for the blurriness -- Brianna is only 9 years old! And she had to zoom in quite a bit from the stands!)

CJ and I waiting to be announced:

Getting my hug!!!!!

Walking off the field together before the start of the game...

Continental Math League... Again! Such An Honor!

Congratulations to Brianna! She was nominated by the teachers and selected to be on the Continental Math League again this year! For those of you that don't know, Continental Math League consists of kids who are skilled at problem-solving, analytical reasoning, and reading comprehension. Each of these student participate in a national problem-solving program called Continental Mathematics League (CML). Students participate with other students of the same age and grade level across the United States! Once a month, from now through March, these students will participate in a "meet", which will consist of a six-question test. Their scores are tabulated and sent to the CML offices in New York, where they will be ranked with other student's scores across the nation!! Brianna is very proud and excited to have accomplished this two years in a row! Congratulations, Brianna!! We are rooting for you! -- again!!!

Seizure #3...

Brianna had her third seizure the other night. Same exact scenario as the other two... it happened within 30 minutes of her falling asleep. This time she woke up coughing and thought she was going to be sick. While I was trying to get her in the bathroom, the convulsions started but probably only lasted 15-30 seconds total. She was very coherent right after and told me that it didn't even feel like a seizure to her this time. I called the pediatric neurologist the next morning and he increased her dosage of medication and wanted to see her earlier than her already scheduled appointment in January. Right now, they can't seem to find an opening any earlier, so we are sticking with the January appointment. They said they will call if a cancellation opens up an appointment spot... I have lots of questions to ask the specialist when we do see him, such as why it didn't feel like a seizure this time? Is it the meds she is on, or was this seizure somehow different?? And why did she have a seizure while taking anti-seizure medication?? So much for my peace of mind... I will let everyone know if I get any answers come January...

The Illnesses Have Begun...

I posted earlier about Brianna having bronchitis... amazingly, we must have caught it right away because she was up and running and fever free by the next day! Zach, on the other hand, is a different story...

Poor guy started getting sick the night after his birthday. He had the chills, body aches, and coughing. When he woke up the next morning, he was running a fever, so we kept him home. He pretty much slept all day and then tried to get up today to go to school... luckily I was home to stop him! He had a temperature of 102.3!! We got in to see the doctor this morning. He doesn't have bronchitis, but possibly a cold or influenza... they aren't testing for H1N1 anymore because it costs too much and Iowa City isn't even processing the tests anymore because they have been too overwhelmed with them! Anyone with influenza symptoms is advised to stay home and ride the virus out. They don't even want to give Tamiflu, unless someone in the house is pregnant, diabetic, or going through chemotherapy treatment... so Zach gets to stay home til the fever goes away. Oddly, his temp was almost normal at the doctor's office! He was also sweating, so perhaps he has broken the fever and is on the downside of this illness!! Keep your fingers crossed!