Picking up the pieces......

Ok, it is now time to get back into the blogging routine! My goodness, things just seem to get crazier by the minute and days pass with the blink of an eye.

I feel the need to recap since I don't think I have made an "official" post since Brock day, January 9th!

Firstly, who can forget our Blizzard of 2011? It was something I don't recall ever seeing in my lifetime. One local news report stated we received 26" of snow....I have no way of confirming this or denying it because the wind was so intense it created 8 foot drifts in some places, and in other places there was bare ground. For the sake of argument, I know we got over 16" of snow.....

This picture was unreal. I took this from my east window. This road grader was ramming this drift back and forth for over 30 minutes, just to break through. The white-out conditions were real and not just from a blurry photo!

The snowy landscape behind our house....

The mega drift! This drift extended from our driveway to all around the back of our house.

Avery and Cora couldn't let a good drift go to waste! It became quite the sledding hill for them.

Not only was the drift great for sledding, it was prime real estate for a fort/tunnel.

Avery and Cora thought this made for a nice and cozy spot.

The blizzard left us snowed in for days....I think the kids missed 3 or 4 days of school. I must have repressed that memory!

My dad came over with a snow blade on an old pickup truck and was finally able to clear a path through our yard, just so we could at least get out. There was no way to plow through the gigantic drift in our actual driveway.

Brock must have known exactly when we had access out, because the following day he presented with an ear infection and I took him to the pediatrician for antibiotics and ear drops. Later that afternoon, Brock had one of his nasty seizures that required a trip to the ER!!!!!!! Ugh! We hadn't had this type of seizure since June. The Diastat I gave Brock actually stopped the seizure while en route to the ER, but I proceeded to go just to get some labs, etc. At my request, Brock was given a shot of Rocephin (antibiotic), as I was assuming the seizure was brought on by his ear infection. We were able to come home that evening and Brock improved. However, Brock's labs showed his Valproic acid level was low, so the Neurologist prescribed and increase in his dose. That was fine for awhile, but Brock continued to have little seizures more and more frequently. I always write the time and duration of his seizures on the calendar, then I highlight it with a pink highlighter. Virtually the entire month of February was PINK on my calendar!!! Not only was he having daily seizures, there were 2-3 a day. We were stuck in a cycle of adjusting meds, drawing labs, adjusting meds, drawing labs........... The conclusion is that Brock's big seizures are controlled by the use of valproic acid. However, there is a fine line when it comes to this dose because he was experiencing an increase in his blood ammonia level. The ammonia level was actually CAUSING the little seizures! His ammonia levels really aren't that high by standards, but high for Brock. The boy is like the story of the Princess and the pea.....if just the slightest little thing is wrong, he will notice! So here we stand with a slightly lower dose of the valproic acid, but an increase in his Topamax. Truly DOPAMAX for Brock. He is soooooo sleepy and sedated I can't stand it. The docs keep wanting to give it some time to adjust, but ever since we added Topamax to his arsenal of seizure meds, his personality has been altered and overall he is more subdued. I am the first to admit that seizures are just plain awful, but I think side effects of medication can be almost as bad! Brock has an appointment in April with his epileptologist. I have said I want to discuss alternate drugs that maybe won't be so sedating.........

Super Bowl Sunday was shortly after Brock's trip to the ER. He bounced back rather quickly and was having a great time all decked out in his football pjs for the big game. Brock was especially excited when Avery started playing 'catch' with him, as you can tell from the smiles in his pictures! :)

Moving on to Valentine's day..... Jason took Avery and Cora to the Daddy/Daughter dance. Leading up to the event, they were very excited and Avery kept referring to it as the "ball like Cinderella goes to." Upon returning home, I had to think that the girls enjoyed the dance just a tad bit more than dear ol' dad. ;)

February 20, we celebrated our 12th anniversary. We actually were able to go out to dinner and a movie! (One of Brock's aides from his school was able to watch him, while the girls partied at my mom's house.)

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And now, the big reveal from our home modifications/renovations for Brock. Can I say how much I dislike having contractors in my house?!?!?! This project dragged out for eternity and it felt like we had one delay after another!!!! #^&*$%#^@##^&*

Ok, deep breaths.....it is all over now. That is of course, the contractors portion is done. We still have to put up trim and try to get everything in its place, and of course I have to emotionally heal. LOL!

This is Brock's new Sleep Safe bed in his new room. The way I describe it is like an adult sized crib with hospital bed-like features. The mattress can go up and down to help me get him in and out of bed. Also, it articulates to where I can raise/lower the head and feet. It is awesome, but MASSIVE!

This is the bed with the sides down.

Here is the floor of the roll-in shower. We still need to scrub off some grout from the tiles, but Brock has been using it and LOVES it. He possibly will miss splashing in the tub, but my back thinks this shower option is MUCH better.

Here is Brock's shower chair. He sits up and I use the hand-held shower head .....The first time I gave him a shower, all he could do was laugh his head off. The giggles kept coming! :) I let Cora and Avery shower in it last night and it got rave reviews from Cora. As she was exiting and drying off, she yelled: "MAN, that was just like Fun City in there!!!!" To make this really funny, you have to know that Fun City is a water park the kids went to last summer. Ha!

Amidst all this chaos, my laptop was giving me problems, freezing up all the time. I took it to our ISP and they cleared off some spy ware, but said it was beyond what they could do and suggested it was a hardware issue. I put it off for a long time, but finally took it to a repair place last week only to find out my hard drive was bad. Seriously? So.....I had to shell out $200 to get the new hard drive replaced. :( The good news is that I now have a computer up and going! However, I am still trying to get all the displays, settings, etc. like I had them. It appears that all my pictures and files were retrieved, but I am not 100% sure.

**While blogging, I just got a phone call that Brock is under the weather. I drove to Canton and back and now he is home resting. It seems to be just a cold, but rarely does Brock "just get a cold." I'm hoping he can get over this without anything too bad.....

For now it appears I have posted all the highlights of the past month or more. I'll do my best to keep up with this website, now that I don't have a broken computer as my excuse anymore. :)

On a side note, I did want to share that I signed up yesterday to become an Avon Representative. If by chance anyone is looking to buy Avon products, I have a website to shop from: www.youravon.com/pgullidge I'm sure this isn't going to make me a millionaire, but if nothing else it may help support my habit of using Avon makeup! (Thanks Maggie for getting me hooked on the mineral line!)

Spring hopefully will bring some nice weather and fun activities. This winter has been very long and depressing. Bring on the HOT sunshine please!!!!!

Until next time...........