It is that time of the year again. Maizie's CVS took a turn for the worse and at four a.m. a few weeks ago she had to be admitted to the hospital for fluids and observation. This year we had a plan set up with her neurologist. At the first sign of CVS taking over we were to go immediately to the hospital. There was a note on file that she was to be put immediately on fluids and admitted. Did it run as smoothly as our plan? No. We had the typical emergency room frustrations where a doctor can't seem to find the plan in her file and tries to argue Maizie's diagnosis. Argh. Once we made it to pediatrics everything was in place and Maizie was able to begin resting...and unfortunately vomiting. Me and Maizie were up all night and most of the next day. It was rough. And yet for the first time I had two amazing therapists/respite workers who took turns bringing me food and sitting with Maizie when I went home to get clothes. They did this out of the goodness of their hearts. Medicaid won't let me use their services when Maizie is in the hospital. It is considered double dipping. I don't know what I would do without Kate and Hollea. I think life would have been very different had we had the support of respite and therapy when Maizie was younger.
I normally don't like to post photos where Maizie looks so pale from her CVS. But the picture above is too adorable not to post. Maizie read to Kate's room mates dog for a very long time while she was recovering.
Here is Emma, Mimi, Kate (Maizie's therapist) and Maizie reading together. Oh! And on the far left is Quimby. No! He is not our dog...he is Kate's puppy. Quimby is sooooo adorable. I like Kate bringing him here because he is relaxed and the girls love cuddling with him. Darwin enjoys having a play date too. Especially since he can't brave the cold this year.
Look at that face! Quimby is part lab and Great Pyrenees. Kate is training him to be a therapy dog. He gets lots of practice here. Last week Maizie was having a very difficult night. Quimby kept her occupied during a painful time.
One day Kate took Maizie to the pediatrician and Emma was assigned to care for Quimby. He is at that age where he needs the supervision similar to that of a toddler. However, I must say he is the best behaved puppy I have ever been around. Emma took him outside to go potty and he pulled her through the snow. Quimby is going to be a large, strong dog. Albeit a very gentle giant.
Here is Maizie giving Hollea a makeover. Hollea looked ready for a night on the town after her makeover. Maybe just a tad too much blue for Hollea though!
I am sooooo not used to four children yet. The amount of food we go through in a week is mind boggling to me. On a typical day I can't even begin to count how many times I come across the above scene. Children staring endlessly into the fridge. What do they expect to find? It especially drives me nuts when they are staring and whine, "Mom! Where is the.....thingys....you know..." Argh! No, I don't know and I am always having to tell them to use their eyes and look behind things. I know! This is so typical and I remember my mom saying the exact same words to me! In fact after I lecture the girls I think,"Oh my God. I am just like my mom." Lol. And no that is not really too bad of a thing. Just freaky.
Maizie is just now on the mend but we are trying something new. Maizie's step sisters' mom signed up the girls for Tae Kwan Do. We were talking and I asked her if she thought Maizie could join their private class. So tonight Maizie tried it for the first time and loved it. Her teacher has twenty five years of experience as a job developer for individuals with special needs and has taught children with Autism before. Maizie felt comftorable and was beyond thrilled when we purchased her uniform. I can't wait to watch her learning.
I was very concerned about advancement. I pictured Maizie not ever advancing due to her memory struggles and gross motor skill challenges. The teacher explained that Tae Kwan Do looks at each person as an individual, accesses his or her strengths and weaknesses then tests them accordingly. She assured me Maizie would advance. 
Poor Darwin's paws have been having a rough time this winter. The snow and ice caused parts to be rubbed raw and they became infected. He is now on an antibiotic and pain pills. He was so not happy when the vet put this awesome Elizabethan Collar on him. Darwin follows me everywhere. With the collar he can't judge how close he is and is always pushing the collar against my thighs. He can't get through the door and hits the side of walls. I think his self esteem has taken a blow. When he goes outside he sniffs to go and when he lifts his head the collar fills with snow. Here in Iowa there is no shortage of snow right now. We have lots and lots of snow. So for a while Darwin won't be getting walks or visits to the dog park. Sigh.
On a new topic for me I am working hard to adjust to life as a step mother. It is by far the most challenging thing I have ever done. I don't think I can even put it into words. I have read a few books on the subject. Wow. Talk about a bunch of crappy books on the blending of families and making everything sound like it should be all rosy and totally child centered. There are two books I have found that make more sense to me. One is Stepcoupling and the other is Stepmonster. I can relate to some of the difficulties brought up in these books.
Here is a shocking statistic mentioned in Stepmonster, "My marriage was meant to be. It was also doomed to fail. You see, I chose a man with children. Experts estimate that more than half of all adult women in the U.S. will do the same in their lifetimes, and that up to 70% of those partnerships will fail. Factor in all the odds and on the day I said "I do," I might as well have picked out a divorce lawyer as well: the greatest predictor of divorce is the presence of children from a previous marriage. In fact, divorce rates are fifty percent higher in remarriages with children than in those without."
Wow. And like women through the ages I repeat, "That will not be me. That will not be me." And then I think of all the things I thought would never happen that have and I think, "Please God. Help me make this marriage, this family be forever." As if I can control everything. Sigh. I know better but the thoughts are there swimming around and around.
Where did your blog go? I can't find you!
Maizie has had a lot of questions about death. First we had Zebra pass away and then her Great Grandmother. When we were at the showing Maizie asked many interesting questions. All kids do! Explaining to her what a "showing" was made the entire ritual of viewing your loved ones body sound sooooo strange. Maizie looked at me like I was from another planet when I told her that we would see her Great Grandma in her coffin. At the showing Maizie asked,"When will Great Grandma float up and go away out of her coffin?" Wow. So many questions.
Chris bundled up and buried Zebra out back in a playdoh box. Poor thing. Poor Chris. It was beyond freezing out and the ground he was able to shovel through was where our sump pump drains. A muddy, cold mess. Sally helped which was nice. Once inside he set his nasty muddy shoes aside for a later clean up. Maizie and Mimi suddenly thought it would be good fun to tromp through the house in Chris's big shoes. Mud. Lots of mud all through the kitchen and hallway. Yuck! Apparently, children are drawn to muddy over sized shoes.
