Fridge Adventures and Snowmobiling

Remember when the refrigerator repair man said it would take three months to get the parts to repair our fridge?! Well, it turns out they got them much quicker and they were available to come on Monday, January 24th, to work on the fridge.

[Snow!]

After working for HOURS on the fridge, the two repairmen decided that they needed another part. Luckily, they had this part at their shop, so we made plans for them to return the next day to finish the job.

[That's a lot of tools]

I can't tell you how much I love this snowman! It's made with shaving cream and it's squishy! I have no idea how they made it, but it's going up on our wall for all to see!

That night I went to the local School Board Meeting. It was... interesting...

I had no intention of speaking, but there were some angry moms that wanted the School Board to hear their thoughts. Some topics covered were: the "authoritarian tyrant in Springfield," how vaccines and mask don't work and how everyone is sick and our hospitals are full, how vaccines and mask don't work and NOBODY is sick and the hospitals are empty ("don't listen to the FAKE NEWS!"), the lawsuit against the school district to unmask the children or else they will get cancer, the mental health of the children, etc. I thought most of the people speaking were a little dramatic, which made me roll my eyes and shake my head a lot. Good thing they weren't looking at me because I do not have a poker face. 

One of the moms that spoke decided that her time would be best spent thanking the School Board for working so hard. No matter what they decide they have angry moms yelling at them. It's a hard job and they want what's best for our kids too.

After the moms spoke, some school administrators spoke. When the social workers and school psychologist got up to speak a bunch of the moms that claimed that mask were hurting their children mentally got up and left! Why would you not stay and listen to the report from the people who are tasked with helping your children with their mental health?! It blew my mind and I was very disappointed.

On Tuesday, January 25th, Theo went to OT and school and Josh and I went shopping!

We recently found some pictures and artwork that were hiding in our basement. We found some fun frames for them and got them hung up in the house.

[Hand painted Aboriginal art from Australia]

[Josh and I at the Great Barrier Reef (picture on the dresser)]

[Our wedding invitation!]

Since we got our fridge back we needed to put the replacement one in the basement. It was a little difficult, but Josh figured it out!

[Gotta take the doors off of the hinges]

[It was a tight squeeze]

[It's final resting spot!]

Look at these adorable beanies! If you would like to buy one you can get them here. All proceeds go to VOGM.org

On Wednesday, January 26th, Theo had feeding/speech therapy and we Zoomed with his Dietitian. Back in July 2021 Theo got up to 47 lbs. His GI Specialist thought that was a little high, so she talked to our Dietitian and they agreed we should cut Theo's calories slightly. We reduced his intake from 24 ounces of Kate Farms to 21 ounces of Kate Farms a day. As of today Theo is down to 43.8 lbs and his Dietitian said we need to get him to plateau or gain a little weight. We decided to increase his food intake and to start giving him 24 ounces of Kate Farms a day.

[I love getting these notes from Theo's aid]

The extermination of the Jewish people was the Nazi's "Final Solution." It should be hard to talk about the Holocaust, but that doesn't mean we shouldn't talk about it. 

Never forget.

On Friday, January 28th, Josh drove up to Milwaukee, so he could retake his CWI Part B test. Theo and I stayed at home and played!

[My handsome little boy!]

My parents were in Orlando for a few days to fix some issues at our condo and house. My dad installed this awesome doorbell camera, while my mom did an inventory of our things and made sure that nothing was broken or missing. Thanks for getting everything taken care of!

[Hi, dad!]

A new running challenge came up! Think I should do it!

Theo has been spending a lot more time on his right side. He still won't put that right ear to the ground, but he's getting closer!

[Snow is coming!]

On Sunday, January 30th, Theo and I watched football while Josh went snowmobiling in Michigan with some friends.

We are so excited that the LA Rams and the Cincinnati Bengals are going to the Super Bowl. Do we root for my hometown team (even though I'm a Chargers fan) OR do we root for the Bengals where most of my family lives?! I'm just hoping for a good game and some nachos!

At 10:30 PM, Sunday night, Theo started screaming and I ran into his room to find him COVERED in puke. He has thrown up everyday since we increased is food intake. The has always had a "volume" problem, but I didn't think that increasing his intake by 3 ounces would make that much of a difference (especially since that's how much he was getting before). Oh boy, was I wrong! Poor kid. We are going to decrease his intake again and then try to increase it again, but very slowly. I guess we'll see if that helps!

Showing me his battle wounds from the snowmobile! I told him not to get hurt, but he REALLY wanted to go off some jumps!

St Judes, Orthopedic Surgeon, and Blood Drive

On Monday, January 17th, Josh, Theo, and I headed to Peoria for Theo's three month ultrasound and check up with St Judes. 

[Theo hates it when they put the gel on his tummy]

[But Poppy makes it all better!]

After the ultrasound we went and met with Dr. Libes (Oncology and Hematology) at St Judes. She said that Theo looked great and she would call us later with his ultrasound results (they were clear).

My old college roommate, Elizabeth, makes these adorable headbands. They are very soft and stay on my head while I am running. It's been hard to find a headband that is not too tight and not too loose to wear while working out. When she restocks I will definitely be buying more! Check out her store here!

Do you remember back in February when I mentioned a dangerous intersection by our house? I finally decided to try and do something about it so I went to a City Council safety meeting in November. They talked about two dangerous intersections: (1) Mondamin and Wabena and (2) Bell and McEvilly. 

At that meeting they decided to put in another stop sign and new lights at the Mondamin and Wabena intersection, which was needed. And they decided to do a traffic study at the Bell and McEvilly intersection before moving forward with a stop sign or traffic light. 

I decided I would go to the next safety meeting to see what the traffic study showed and what solution the City Council came up with. I didn't see a Safety Meeting on the city calendar, so I reached out to the City Clerk to see if she could help me. She said that they would be talking about the intersection at the Public Works meeting on January 18th. Perfect! I'll be there! 

I went to the meeting and besides the City Council members, I was the only citizen there. Before the meeting started the Superintendent of Public Works asked me if I wanted to speak. I said no and that I was just there to listen. They proceeded with the meeting, but didn't talk about the intersection of Bell and McEvilly! UGH! After the meeting was adjourned I raised my hand and asked if I could ask a question. They all seemed shocked, but very welcoming. I asked them about the intersection at Bell Rd and McEvilly and if the traffic report had come back yet. They said they would get more information from the Sheriff and get back to me if I gave them my email. I did and then thanked them for allowing me to speak out of turn. I think they were just happy that someone cared enough to come to the meeting.

The next day I received another email from the Clerk asking me what "media" I was with. I told her I was just a concerned mom that is worried about a few intersections around town.

I then got an email from the Superintendent of Public Works and he asked me what exactly my concerns about that particular intersection were. I told him there are line-of-sight issues and that I had personally witnessed two major accidents there and I haven't even lived here that long. He agreed that this intersection has been an issue for sometime, but it's hard to do anything because the road is on a county line and they would need to get approval from two counties to move forward. He said that they will conduct a traffic and safety study in the spring and will hopefully be able to do something productive after the reports come back.

Hopefully we will be seeing a few new stop signs around town in the spring time!

🤞🏻🤞🏻

My favorite trainer, Tommy Rivs, is making a remarkable comeback from his lung cancer battle. I am so happy to see he is doing a new series on iFit! 

On Wednesday, January 19th, Theo and I made the long drive back to Peoria to see the Orthopedic Surgeon. When we arrived at the clinic, we headed to the front desk to check in. The lady that checked us in asked if she could see Theo (he was in his wheelchair under the shade). I pulled back his shade and she squealed, "OH MY GOODNESS! HE LOOKS JUST LIKE BEN AFFLECK!" I started laughing and told her I had never been told that before. She then called over three other nurses. Two of the three agreed that he looks like Ben Affleck, but the third said he looks like Harry Potter! 🤣🤣 It's gotta be the glasses and the fluffy hair! 

After leaving the front desk area we went to get Theo's hips x-rayed. He was pretty upset and didn't want to hold still. 

We then met with the Orthopedic Surgeon, Dr. Akeson. He pulled up Theo's x-rays from last year and compared them to his current x-rays. He then did a physical exam of Theo's hips, legs, and ankles. 

His conclusion was that Theo's hip dysplasia has gotten worse and needs to have surgery and he needs to have it soon. Dr. Akeson will perform a Femoral Varus Derotational Osteotomy AND he will also perform "lengthening" on some of Theo's tight muscles. Essentially the doctor will cut the neck of the femur and then position the head in the femur in the hip socket. He will then secure this with metal brackets that will be drilled into the bones. He will also cut/"release" some of Theo's tight muscles in his legs. 

This is gonna be brutal.

Example of what Theo's legs will look like after the surgery:

After the surgery Theo will be admitted to the hospital for 4-5 days for pain management. Dr. Akeson said to be prepared for a hard recovery. They give these kids epidurals before the surgery too. Theo will be in a hip spica cast (see picture) for FIVE weeks while he recovers. The cast will extend from his waist to his knees and will have a bar in-between his legs to keep his hips stable. 

Here is a picture of Theo's current car seat. See the issue? Theo won't be able to fit in his current car seat or wheelchair, since they are tight on his hips.

We are going to need something like this in order to bring him home. I'm not ready to drop $1000 on a new "Special Needs" car seat just for this surgery. Don't worry. I am going to call the hospital and see if they have something we can borrow for five weeks. Let's hope they do 🤞🏻🤞🏻 I know Theo will eventually need a car seat like this when he out grows his current car seat, BUT I don't want to buy one prematurely. 

Josh couldn't come with us to Peoria because he had to go to a warehouse to check on some pipeline parts. Hopefully he will be back to work full time by the end of the month.

On Friday, January 21st, I went to Morris to donate blood with Red Cross. I use to donate a lot in high school and college. They would do "A Pint for A Pint" promotions where you would give a pint of blood and get a pint of ice cream. It was awesome! I haven't given recently and I really need to get back on track. If you can give please give!

It only took me 15 minutes to fill up my bag, so I was in and out in about 30 minutes total. On my way out I picked up a bag of cookies. I wasn't lightheaded or anything, but I really like Oreo's!

Josh took Theo out of his stander and Theo seemed interested in standing without his stander. Josh had to help him a lot, but he did push up well through his legs.

Good job, Theo!

Sometimes Theo doesn't want to wrestle. He just wants Josh to come lay next to him, listen to music, and hold hands ❤️

Theo's birthday is 6 months away! I have to start thinking about what our theme will be this year! Any suggestions?

[Star Wars (1st birthday), Harry Potter (2nd birthday), a cupcake (quarantine 3rd birthday), Marvel (4th birthday)]

Theo is really into Encanto right now! 

This is the most accurate map I have ever seen! 🤣