more bad news from the ENT

Today we had our supposidly last appointment with the ear-nose-throat doctor, a year after Elias' ear tubes were put in.  At the last appointment he had a nasty ear infection and the left tube had come out, but he seemed recovered and I fully expected him to get a clean bill of health this time.  Not.  He said Elias still had fluid behind his eardrum that was stopping him from hearing well, and it wasn't going to go away by itself.  That, plus his heavy snoring and constantly runny nose, made him say that Elias needed followup surgery, to replace both ear tubes plus remove adenoid glands.  In general I am very much against any "ectomy"--God put stuff there for a reason, even if we don't know the reason.  Medical history is replete with examples of surgeons removing "useless" parts, only to discover later their important health role.  I talked to the ENT quite a while, then his nurse, and now am going through the literature.  I am convinced it will help him; I'm just not entirely sure it won't also hurt him in terms of immunological function.  We can use your prayers for a correct decision.

a burst of firsts

I am sooo tired...but wanted to brag a bit about Elias' afternoon before tomorrow's antics cause me to forget.

Elias attended his first concert:  Maennechor's German Christmas concert and diner.  A friend of ours is a member.  They were really good--the singers and Elias.  Elias was a bundle of energy, but was mostly contained at our table, and mostly not very loud.  J* especially helped entertain/watch him.  They may've thought he was crazy hyper, but I was very pleased at his good behavior--after all, I was asking a 2 year old to listen to a bunch of men sing for 2 hrs in German.  Into the 2nd set, though, I did take him out to play in the gym, because he started shouting out his own song request:  Jingle Bells.  He had a great time running and jumping around in there.  We rejoined our friends just before Father Christmas (decked out German style) made his grand appearance.  He stopped and blessed Elias, who then followed him up to the front.  He sat on his lap--his first Santa-sitting.  Elias wasn't talkitive, but did give a big smile when I said our private joke, "applesauce!"

We got home around his bedtime.  While changing into PJs he got that strange look on his face so I asked if he wanted to sit on the potty, and he said yes.  So he did.  THIS time, though, unlike the seemingly hundreds of other times, he actually pee'd in it!  First time!  Hooray!  He seemed pretty pleased at his achievement as well.  We called Nanna to tell her.  She asked if he was going to go in his potty tomorrow too, and he confidently said "Maybe."  It was so cute and funny, and the first time I heard him use that word.  I asked, "You're going to go in your potty tomorrow, maybe?"   "Maybe," he answered.  "And maybe not?"  "Maybe...maybe not."  I guess it's good we both have honest and reasonable expectations.

In getting ready for bed at last, he said something and for the first time I think used "am"-- like "I am all finished now."  Usually he says "I finished now."  I wish I could remember the sentence!  He sounded so grown up.  I am facinated by how well he grasps grammar, which is confusing to everyone at some level.  He always says "I" when referring to himself (it used to be "Elias," in the 3rd person), even though I mirror back "you."  Tonight he said he was "good" (as they teach him at daycare) but then immediately corrected himself and said "well" (as I always model for him when he asks how I am, although I've never corrected his "good").  The one thing I noticed him missing lately, is that sometimes he'll switch the word order for adjectives, so that "sock puppets" become "puppets sock."

[Addition:  I guess I *was* tired!  I fell asleep last night writing this so am just mailing it out now.]

little squirt

Last night I almost forgot to give Elias his Saturday night bath.  So it was late and I was pretty tired after a long week.  He, however, was full of energy and loved splashing around, pouring water over his head, and trying out his technique from swim class.  At one point he stopped, looked me dead in the eye, then spit a huge stream of water right in my face.  No, I didn't see it coming, and his aim was good; I was soaked.  At least I had changed into a tank top beforehand.

Winter Weekend

More often than not, I feel like I'm barely keeping my head above water as a mother.  The spirit is willing, but the body is weak, and the days are far too short.  Yesterday I felt like I was gaining ground just a bit, rather than treading water & sinking.  A good portion of the morning Elias was happy entertaining himself--a transition from his former extreme clinginess, for which I am very thankful.  In this case I got to sleep in then do 3 loads of laundry.  We drove into town to get my TB test read (negative), picked up some frozen dinners for the babysitter, then stopped for lunch at MacDonald's.  He was constantly moving like a, well, like an energetic 2 year old, but was generally well-behaved.  Going out with him no longer takes every last drop of energy I have.  We got home and he said he was sleepy and it was time for a nap(!).  While he napped I cleaned the kitchen and did a little winterizing outside, but when I came back in for some quiet time myself, he woke up. 

They've been reading about gingerbread men at daycare, so I decided to make some with Elias.  He loved rolling out the dough and especially pressing down the cookie cutter--preferably many times over the same cookies, so it was tricky rescuing intact cutouts.  He insisted on circle and dinosaur shapes as well, like one of his books has, so I improvised.  Elias liked dropping little cut-up pieces of dough all over the floor.  His offer of I clean up! while knocking the mop into walls and counters was well-intentioned but not very helpful.  When it came to cleaning up the huge collection of toys and books scattered in the livingroom, he was definitely not well-intentioned.  He ignored me or blatantly refused to help clean up, resulting in about 5 rounds of "time out" in his room and a few times of me moving books not back to the bookshelf or wndowseat, but instead to the mantle where he can see them but can't reach them, eliciting mini-tantrums each time.  Eventually the livingroom got picked up and no one was hurt:  point scored for Mommy.  Then I vacuumed, and Elias was brave in the face of that scariest of all noises.  Because of his waning interest, we didn't end up decorating the gingerbread cookies, but that was OK.  We read books and colored and had a nice dinner and generally enjoyed each other.  When he went down to sleep at what is becoming his new bedtime, 8pm, I frosted the cookies and checked email, where I discovered a few preview pictures from our photo session last weekend.  Didn't quite get to ordering Christmas cards, though.

Today didn't seem nearly as successful:  reversion towards the mean.  I felt tired out and lazy and uncreative from the start.  Looking back now, though, it wasn't too bad.  Elias enjoyed going to Sunday School, and afterwards he played outside while I finally got his carseat to give up some slack so the poor kid can get circulation to his legs now that he's wearing winter clothes.  I'm surprised how willing he is to wear mittens (unlike his mom.)  Anyway, I also packed up a big box of 18month-sized clothes to donate to church and got him to help clean up the livingroom a couple times without all the drama of yesterday.  He rocked to his CDs (he turns the volume all the way up).  He was getting whiney when I started making dinner so I let him help, which he really enjoyed, saying I help Mommy!  I help dinner.  I taste!  It made him more eager to eat it afterwards, too, I think (spicy Thai chicken with grean beans and noodles, cooked in coconut milk).  I gave him a bubble bath, then we talked on the phone with Nanna and Pappa.  Then after several books he said it was time for bed.

Tomorrow it's back to work.  With only 2 weeks left before we leave for Christmas vacation it's sure to be very busy...yet compared to tending a 2 year old, I expect it will feel relatively relaxing.

EIEIO

Elias sings a lot now.  My favorite (mostly because I can recognize it) is Old MacDonald.  Farms in Elias World are populated with cows and chickens...and lions, tigers, puffins, coyotes, sea lions, and the occasional mommy and semi circle.  (Mommies kiss, but the semi-circle had me stumped.)  Lately it's been more challenging for me, since he started added descriptors to the animals--one bird or a big bear--and wants me to repeat it exactly during the song.

Along with EIEIO he also spells out ELIAS with a little help, and then shouts out his full name.  He also spells ACTION along with his "Kids in Action" CD.