Plugged

Clogged rectum. I had never heard that phrase before..or condition rather, but it is very illustrative. There was a LONG article by doctors about the kiddy constipation epidemic on Huffington Post.
The big causes:

  1. Kid’s fiber free diet. (it’s not just about being overweight anymore!)
  2. Early toilet training

Are there problems with kids who are trained later, yes, but I decided to stop really paying attention to the article after this point was made as it backs up my decision not to push Rex to the toilet. He is 3 years, 2 months.

I have encouraged. I have sad there will be a puppy in his future if he moves to the land of no diapers. I have gone, “oh, lord, can’t wait for you to go to the toilet” once in a while when he has had a particularly gruesome poop. But, mostly I just go with the flow ( so to speak). I know it will happen.

The article also discussed kids holding in their poops for years at school because their bathrooms were gross.
THAT WOULD BE ME. My middle and high school, a public magnet which was treated like an crazy homeless guy who has come into your yard by the LAUSD ( LA school system) had dark bathrooms with countless large divots in the toilet seats. How did they get there? Still a wonder. I never went number two from 8:22am to 3:10 for years.

I feel very lucky to have avoided chronic clogged rectum.

But, I still don’t know my multiplication tables.

Anatomy of a slide

While the holidays and new year break provided a nice break from scrambling to get in the car by 8am with everyone fed, washed and dressed it also looked like a scene out of Contagion.  Mark, Viv, Rex and I passed around colds and coughs for weeks.  Highlights being when I got a double pulled muscle on my side from coughing.

“what part of your body?” asked my neighbor Laurie

I gave her a response which showed living with Chef Peel has rubbed off on me.

“If you were to cut me up it would be my flank”

“I don’t understand as I have forgotten my high school butcher classes” she deadpanned.

Mark bought me a black compression band.  For two days when I coughed it made me wince.  A couple times the pain was akin to labor pains.  I looked like a UPS delivery man.

Then the “night of hundred barfs”.  A few days period where I was the only one unscathed.

The consequence of these winter maladies is that despite living in a perfect climate little time is spent outdoors scampering and basking in our blue skies.  But, RIGHT before the Four horseman of the Apocalypse rode in Rex and I went to a nearby park.

Usually I think ” I wish I had my camera”.  This day I did.  I wanted to record the beats of the joy and discovery of a two year old boy.

Finding a hole.
slide
Feeling the sun.
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“momma watch”
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Every curve, the wind in his curls, which I know from his sister will soon flattened.
slide
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Mission accomplished
slide

Rex is wearing his new favorite shirt. We bought from a nice guy at the Renegade craft fair. It’s from Orangeheat

Today is the first day our rag tag group will try this park again since Vivien threw up there.

Wonder if they will let us in?

Whooping Cough is NO Joke

Reading this warning about the rise in whooping cough is causing me once again to tell you about how it hit our home.  Mark and Oliver got whooping cough when Vivien was born. vivien 4mos
I thank my lucky stars all the time that she didn’t get it as it might have killed her.  I am also thankful I didn’t get it because I would have coughed so hard my stitches from my c – section would have come out. We had to be in separate rooms from Mark and Oliver for many weeks, which meant I was SOL as a new mom needing help at home.

Whooping cough is AWFUL. Mark and Oliver survived it and had good doctors and meds, and still they had a HORRIBLE COUGH FOR THREE MONTHS.  The kind of cough that is so intense you vomit.

Kids are suppose to have booster shots at 12.  For all the anti- vaccine people who want to take their chances you piss me off because you are also taking chances with other people.  Little kids are especially at risk.

That’s my rant for the day.