Little Family Update

I thought it was time for a little update. I haven't been blogging as much lately, and I have to admit it's been kind of nice :-). I was trying to blog every day for awhile, but I realized it was just taking too much time. This is my blog and it's just a hobby, so I might as well be blogging as little or as much as I want to. :-)

It's been horribly nasty outside today. We are currently on a tornado watch and severe thunderstorm warning. In fact, just a couple minutes ago, it got extremely windy and started pouring. I am keeping my eye on the sky to see if it's time to head to the basement soon.

Today I took Ellie to get a vaccination against meningitis. If you recall, we have been debating about whether or not to vaccinate her, especially with her neutropenia. All the medical professionals on our team have now decided that she can/should get vaccinated. There was debate about this for awhile. What my husband and I decided is that we will give her one vaccination for now instead of all the recommended ones and see how she handles that. If she does okay, then we might give her another one in a few months. I feel pretty good about this decision even though we aren't exactly following the advice of the doctors to a T. However, for our own peace of mind, this is what we've decided. I am especially nervous about the live vaccines (MMR, Varicella), which we have so far declined due to the fact they are live vaccines. Despite what our team of professionals have said, we are a little unsure still about giving her the live vaccines with her neutropenia as some of our own research is conflicting.

Ellie has a check up with her pediatrician next week, and he will likely order a blood count. I am very curious as to what her numbers will be this time. She hasn't had a count down now since the beginning of March. She's actually been very healthy since Christmas, with just 2 minor illnesses with fevers since then, neither of which warranted a trip to the ER or antibiotics. This is a good sign, especially since we've been out and about a lot more this spring. Sometimes we almost forget that she isn't entirely "healthy."

I am really hoping to give potty training with Ellie a go again soon. And maybe, if I'm ambitious, trying out the toddler bed. However, no rush on that. I am enjoying the no-fight bedtimes at home right now. Of course, when we go visiting, bedtime is another story. She fought for 2 hours the other night at a birthday party and discovered how to climb out of the play pen. That has added a whole new dimension to things.

She's being very affectionate these days, which is really nice. I get many kisses, hugs, and "I love you's" throughout the day, and I really don't mind! The tantrums, although not eliminated, are not nearly as intense as they were a few months ago. We are still working on the sitting still and picky eating issues.

Our garden has started to sprout, so I'm hoping it turns out this year. We have been getting a ton of rain lately, which has really slowed down seeding around here. My in-laws are not finished seeding yet, and once you get into June, that is very late.

My husband has begun the renovations again by taking down more doors and closet doors, sanding them down, and then eventually painting them. It is a ton of work, but the difference is pretty amazing for the amount of $$ we have to put in. I will be so happy when it's all done. I think my husband will be even happier. LOL.

I really need to get organizing more. I did organize our games closet and finally find a permanent spot for the kids video/dvds we own. Actually that isn't entirely truthful - my husband organized the games part of the closet and I organized the rest (videos and my huge collection of piano and music theory books.). It is just so hard to get motivated and started sometimes, but it sure feels good when you get something accomplished.

Since I started this post, it has really begun to thunder and lightning, and the rain is really pouring down.

Well that's about all for now,