We are definitely an outside family, we enjoy the sun and doing anything outdoors.  We had been planning since January to get Micah a trampoline.  His birthday is in January but we didn't want to buy a trampoline then so we just got around to it last week.  Both kids are definitely enjoying the jumping.  Sanai doesn't jump, she just sits and Micah bounces her all over the place with his jumping!

Some call it a trampoline, I call it a giant playpen


 

Both of my kids also LOVE the pool.  One day we'll probably invest in something nicer but for now they are content with the plastic kiddie pool.  For the price it has lasted us 2 summers so I can't complain.  Tommy didn't put a swimmer diaper on her this day...this was the 2nd filling of the pool.  "Someone" pooped in the water as soon as it was originally filled. Opps.

 

 

 



 

 

Both of our kids lately have had the silliest faces that just crack us up. Sanai has mastered the "mean face" and displays it quite often (something Tommy taught her).  They both definitely keep us laughing.

 

 

 

She did not learn this at home! ha ha

 

 

 

 

 

 



This past Sunday we were in Murfreesboro for church and decided to go to Cheddars to eat with the family.  It was warm out but nothing too crazy.  We had noticed while we were waiting for a table that Sanai had started to feel warm and sure enough about 5 minutes later she went into a seizure.

It wasn't a bad one as far as it's intensity but it seemed to last longer than ones in the past.  We decided to just continue to do what we normally do and strip her of her clothes and give her motrin.  She started cooling off after I put a cool rag on her head and she took about a 20 minute nap afterwards.  She eventually woke up with more energy so after we finished eating we headed back to the house.

Here's where I learned my lesson: When we got home I didn't give her the seizure medicine.  The pediatric neurology department at Vanderbilt in Nashville had given me a small dosage of medicine to give to her after she has a seizure and it will prevent her from having anymore. It really just calms the brain and she's only supposed to take it for 3 days after her initial seizure.

We had been home about an hour when I noticed her getting warmer.  It had been about 4 hours since her Motrin dosage so she was ready for some tylenol.  I gave her the tylenol and as soon as I sat back down with her on the couch she went into THE MOST AWFUL seizure I have ever seen her have.  It didn't last a really long time but it was very intense.  She had a pretty hard time coming out of it and I couldn't get her fingers unclenched for quite awhile even though I know she had come out of it.  She slept for almost three hours after.

I took her to the doctor the next day to see if she had some sort of infection that might be causing her fever but they took blood and swabbed her throat and everything came back normal - besides elevated white blood cell count which is normal of an infection. 

 

Helping out the nurse

So I guess we'll just keep on keepin' on and try to maintain the fever.  Luckily, Tommy had a fairly easy week and could watch her the days she's been home.  Whenever she doesn't feel good or has had a seizure we usually bring her in the bed to keep an eye on her. We are always afraid she'll have a seizure at night and we won't hear her.  This is how I found them on Monday morning.  So sweet :)

Orlando!

Two weeks ago the family gathered for a much anticipated vacation in Orlando.  It was smoking hot - and I don't mean myself in a bikini. And unfortunately, my little Ethiopian decided to have a seizure after being seizure free for 3 whole months. 

We actually went to three urgent care clinics the next day to see what was causing her fever.  My guess was ear infection or sinus infection but the first place we drove to had a two hour wait. WHAT?!  The second place didn't see children under 5 years old and the other place heard the word "seizure" and told me we needed to go to the hospital. SIGH.

I called my primary care doctor as my last resort and begged them to call in an antibiotic for me.  We had to run back to the house we were staying at, grab our clothes and head downtown to check into the hotel and return the rental car in the next two hours.  I was stressed!  Needless to say the doctors office pulled through and we got her started on some medicine right away.

I didn't get a whole lot of photos from the trip because we got a new camera and Tommy of course toted it around with the strap around his neck like a big nerdy tourist.  I love that guy!

Here is a few photos I got with my phone of the hotel (we stayed at the Hard Rock).

 

Here's most of the kids, minus Micah and McKenzie

 

With all the stuff to do, they enjoyed walking around this tree!

 

She tried to hang but the heat and the excitement wore her out.

July, huh?!

This summer is flying by, how is it already July?!

Our nephews have been staying with us the past several weeks off and on so we've taken full advantage of the football field just down the street from our house.  We head down there with their bikes and let them ride and run around. (secretly hoping they will wear themselves out!)  Tommy is of course in heaven surrounded by all these kids.

 

 

I love Saturday's because Sanai is usually up before anyone else and it gives us some quiet time to snuggle.  This morning I had just taken her hair out the night before so I couldn't stop laughing at her hair and the funny faces she was making while I was taking her picture. ha ha

 

 

We always seem to migrate onto our front porch in the afternoons to watch the cars go by and enjoy the breeze.  I caught a rare moment of snuggles between these two.  Micah would cuddle with her all day, but she wants no part of that most of the time.  She was probably just too tired to fight him off, but they were watching Curious George :)

 

 

And for all those who are cringing at her hair...I know, I know.  She wasn't feeling well so I didn't mess with her hair that day.  But never fear, I got it back in tip top shape the next day.  Her hair is getting really long.  And she's doing a lot better at letting me actually do her hair.  Although it's still like World War 3 when I wash it on Sundays.