Halloween 2008

NOTE: I have not been updating my blog because I have become so very annoyed with my Blogger limitation of 4 photos per post. I have looked up the problem in "known problems" but there does not seem to be a solution. Yet, I have heard from many other bloggers on Blogger that they do not have this problem. There must be something else (besides reporting in the "known problems" log) I can do to try to get the problem rectified. At any rate, I have finally decided to put up as many 4-photo posts as it takes to catch you up on all our doings around here during the month of October. So keep scrolling... there are 5 new posts - that means 20 new pictures! The first/bottom of this collection of posts is entitled "October 12th."

If you're on Twitter or have been watching my tweets go by on my blog, you know that I worked all week long to make the girls their Halloween costumes. Here, finally, are the results of all that sewing!

I just noticed that I forgot to have the girls hold up their tails, but if you look to the left of The Bug's legs in the last picture you'll see her tail hanging down, with a little ball of fluff on the end. My sister's first thought upon seeing Sweet Pea in her dress the other day was that she looked like Cindy Lou Who. ha ha! I thought the ears and tail might change that a little, but I can totally see what she's saying.

Sweet Pea only just made it out to trick-or-treat tonight. As I mentioned in the previous post, she started having cold symptoms a week ago. It has a been a very runny-nose type of cold, and for the past few days she has had a cough as well. Because of all the lung problems she had last winter after colds I've been listening but thought her cough still sounded like it was in her head and had not descended to her lungs. She's been going to school as normal this week and last night the two of us got to go back after dinner and enjoy Moms Night together in her classroom. She showed me around and taught me how to do some of the "works" she enjoys during school time. We had a really fun evening together.

Last night around 3:44am, however, she crawled into bed next to me and said, "My ear really hurts, Mom. It has hurt since Daddy left the room at bedtime." She seemed to be in a lot of pain but I didn't know what to do at that hour. I could hear Slipshod coming up the stairs (yes, he was up that late - AUGH!) and as soon as he got into the room I asked him to get Sweet Pea some Tylenol. She was able to get back to sleep but 4 hours later, on the dot, she woke up and was in even more pain. I got up and called the pediatrician's office just after 8am and they said one of the doctors could see her at 9:15 so I got myself and the girls ready and dragged Sweet Pea's leaden hiney in there. The Bug was all chipper and went wearing her entire costume down to the black cat trick-or-treat bucket, but Sweet Pea was in no mood - which was WEIRD for her. When I checked her in at the pediatrician's office the receptionist admired The Bug in her costume and said to Sweet Pea, "where's your costume" I said, "that's how bad she feels - she didn't care about it at all this morning."

By the time we got to the doctor's office Sweet Pea was starting to feel really hot and before they called us in she said she was starting to feel as if she might throw up. She didn't, but when I got her to the exam room she just wanted to lie down on the table. The doctor had a look and said, "yep, she's got a raging, bulging ear infection in that ear It might break; don't be surprised if you see fluid and blood coming out." I said, "Uh, you mean her eardrum might break? And I shouldn't be concerned about that?!" He said, "that's right. If it breaks it'll grow back together in an hour or so." He prescribed a heavy dose of antibiotics as well as some numbing drops to put into her ears and we've also had her on Motrin and Tylenol all day since we got back home from our jaunt to see the pediatrician.

She perked up enough to eat and drink after we'd been home for a bit and then returned almost to her normal self for most of the afternoon, though she turned back into a puddle on the floor when the pain medications wore off. But an hour before trick-or-treating time I gave her more Motrin and then we ate dinner and she was able to walk around the neighborhood feeling pretty good. After all the anticipation and preparation it would have been a real shame for her to have missed this fun night out, so I'm glad we were able to pull it off. And I hope she feels a whole lot better when she wakes up in the morning.