Silver Linings

It was nearly a perfect week here at the McRae household.  I won't dwell too much on the pitfalls, but I will mention them briefly:  I am still struggling to breathe and have an intense pain in my ribs when I move or cough.  Today I visited a medical walk-in centre and the doctor said to take paracetamol (Tylenol) with codeine.  So far, it has not helped with the pain, but I will give it a three-day trial as he said to do.  The other quite big pitfall was the person who was papering and painting our hallway and landing apparently has an alcohol problem.  This became apparent on Tuesday when we got home and saw dark blue paint all over our kitchen floor, carpets, wood trim, and doors.  We also saw crusty wallpaper paste splotches running up-and-down our stairway.  There were many other unforgivable mistakes made that day, but those were the most noticeable.  Lee and I immediately called the man, returned his supplies, and got our house keys back.  After getting over the shock of it all and wiping away tears of fury, we scheduled for a new decorator (a father of a friend of mine) to come and give us a quote for the work to be fixed and then completed correctly.

Looking at the bright side of things, though, we got Jackson's photographs back from his photo shoot and they are beautiful!  We are so pleased with the quality of the pictures and the photographer captured the many faces of Jackson in a very natural way.

Yesterday, I had my first lesson observation from my new bosses and it went very well.  Their feedback was really encouraging and they only had a few suggestions for improvements.  It was a relief to have it done and over, but I didn't get nervous at all.  I have a really great class this year and I knew I could count on them to behave.  I also compared the pressure of a 1-hour observation to everything we have been through recently and I really didn't see any point in getting worked up about it.  I am so glad that I did not spend any time worrying because it turned out great and that would have been such a waste of time and energy.

Today, Jackson and I danced together; we have danced together before, but this time, he stood on his own, held both of my hands, and we moved around in a circle to Elvis Presley's All Shook Up.  He really is growing up right before our eyes and he is turning into a little boy.  Yesterday, Jackson turned 13-months-old and we are noticing more than ever just how much he is becoming his own person with his opinions of what he wants to do and when he wants to do it.

Last week, over 100 of you came to read the blog and check-in on our ventures.  Thank you for reading and for caring!  It will be fun to share all of these entries with Jackson one day, too.

First Birthday photo shoot which took place on October 29th (featuring his favourite stuffed animal)

A photo collage of Jackson's best shots in his 'formal wear'

And now, in his casual wear, playing with blocks and doing some light reading

Our little artist

Happy 13 months, Jackson!

Developmental updates:  This week, Jackson started putting his triangle-, circle-, and square-shaped blocks in the correct holes in his toys.  He also really showed his love for music by conducting the congregation at church during every hymn, using two arms to wave to the beat.  Pretty impressive!  Jackson really likes hiding things inside of toys and boxes around the house, retrieving them, and then hiding them again.  For instance, he has a little toy that has a door where balls are kept and he will sit for a long time and play with that so he can keep putting the balls in and then take them out again.  He also likes playing guessing games with Lee such as the classic, "Guess which hand" where Lee will hide a toy in one hand and then Jackson will choose the one he thinks holds the toy.  He has a fairly high success rate so far.  For his birthday, he got two toys from his pal Ralph--one was a car and the other was a Mr. Potato Head.  He loves to hide things in the car and then push them around the living room and he likes taking Mr. Potato Head's accessories out of his 'bottom' compartment and putting them back again and again.  Jackson still has remnants of his virus left and is still coughing, but other than that, he had a pretty healthy week.  His teachers said that he makes them laugh all the time and that he always eats all of his meals and desserts.  He especially likes going outside at nursery and getting some fresh air.  This week, his orneriest moment was pulling his shoe off during a diaper change and throwing it--the shoe landed right in the toilet!  (This news made me laugh and didn't phase me at all compared to everything else that has happened in the past two months.)

If you see Sammie Miles Davis, Jr. and Bella, give them my love.

No Rest for the Wicked

Three trips to A&E and one trip to the GP (doctor's office):  this week was anything but the restful rejuvenation for which I was anticipating.  I keep trying to stay positive but it has been eight weeks of ongoing sickness in our house and I really need a week off!

Early Monday morning around 2 A.M., I woke up from a coughing fit that had been going on for three days at that point.  I realised that I had a pain in my chest and after staying up for two hours without the pain going away, I called 111 to see what to do.  They said to go to A&E and after an ECG, blood tests, and a chest x-ray, the doctor said it was a chest infection and sent me home with a box of antibiotics.

We were worried that Jackson's cough that developed the same time as mine might be the same thing because he was coughing all through his sleep, so Lee took him to see the doctor Monday morning.  Jackson's diagnosis was that he had another virus.  So he went to nursery, but then Monday and Tuesday, he ran a fever up to 39°C (102°F).  I was worried that this meant something more than a virus, therefore there was another trip to A&E to get things figured out.  After a few tests, the doctor said that Jackson had a very red ear and throat and to reduce any pain and soreness that may be causing, we needed to continue administering ibuprofen and paracetamol continuously every four hours in rotation.

After that trip and hours waiting in A&E, I was really worn out so Tuesday night I went to bed as usual; but then, when I woke up to get Jackson ready for nursery on Wednesday, I realised that I couldn't lift myself out of bed!  It felt like a weight was laying on the left side of my chest and any time I tried to turn, it felt like my lung was shredding apart.  My chest infection had slowly been getting worse for two days and it hurt more and more to breathe and it hurt horribly whenever I coughed, but I thought it was an illness that would get worse before it got better even with the medicine that I had been given.  I called 111 again to see what to do and after only three questions, they said they were going to send an ambulance!  I really wasn't looking to make a scene, but I also felt better that the paramedics would be able to tell me why I couldn't sit up and what was going on with me.

Lee called his boss and they said that Lee could work from home for the rest of the week.  He headed off with Jackson to nursery while I headed to the Southport hospital again.  After more blood tests and another chest x-ray, they gave me stronger medicine for the pain in my chest, but other than that, they just sent me on my way again.  It hurt to lift my left arm for the next couple of days so Lee had to do all of the driving because to shift a gear, it ripped at my lung (or at least that's what it felt like).

I didn't get as much work done as I would have liked to this week, but on the bright side, it does feel like I've been away from work for two weeks with all of the incidents that have happened.  My goal was to get ahead with my work load, but there were two days when I felt way too ill to function.  I did the most that I could, but still it wasn't enough.  One thing I was thankful for this week was the NHS system.  I was mad before about paying so much from each paycheck to the NHS; but, if we were to get bills from all of the A&E trips and doctor's visits we've made in the last eight weeks, there would be no way that we would make it through Christmas without having to sell our car and maybe our house.

On a positive note, Lee got to redeem his birthday present which was drum lessons!  I was more excited about it than he was initially, but when he got home after his first lesson, he seemed genuinely happy with the experience.  I'll keep you updated on his progress.  Also, we got work started on our hallway and landing and it should be done this week.  We're getting all of the layers of old wallpaper taken down and having the ceiling and walls repainted.  (All of the walls in our house have remnants of the rewiring we had done in the Summer of 2015 on them, so we're finally starting to get them redecorated.)  And finally, Jackson had his one-year-old photo shoot today!  We had to reschedule it two times before because of sicknesses, but we all made it today and the pictures turned out great.  We will be getting them later this week and we'll share them on the next blog.

Here's to hoping that this next week is happy and healthy for us all!  Happy Halloween!

Wrapped up and ready to go out for a trip to Southport

Happy Halloween!  Loving his astronaut costume from his Aunt Paige

Look, Daddy!

He thought about taking a nap in his costume

Looking at his reflection as an astronaut--he crawled behind the mirror to try and find the other baby looking back at him

Developmental updates:  Jackson is clapping a lot more now and likes to dance to music.  He has started drumming on things to hear the different tones they produce and he can keep a pretty consistent beat, as well.  Every time I drop-off Jackson at nursery, he goes straight to his teachers; but we realised this week that if Lee drops him off, he will cry and reach out for him like he used to at the beginning of his nursery days.  Jackson had his first school picture day on Thursday and luckily, Lee and I both went to pick him up right before the pictures were taken so that we could help make him laugh and smile at the camera--and to get him in his picture outfit.  On the same day, we also had his two-month settling-in meeting at nursery with the manager, Ruth.  She said that he is right on track with his development milestones and that he takes advantage of all of the activities that are planned for his group called the Minnows.  We were very happy with his general report and in a couple of weeks, we will have the chance to meet with his teacher to get a more in-depth report.

If you see Sammie Miles Davis, Jr. and Bella, give them my love.

Breaking Point

After possibly the longest seven weeks I've ever experienced, I finally get a week's break from work!  I found that keeping on top of everything was easy to begin with, but then all of the various illnesses hit one after the other.  After that, I found out that I wasn't keeping up with all of the demands that the new management team put into place last year while I was on maternity leave.  So after many late nights and very early mornings trying to get all of my work done, I am going to enjoy a week of rest and relaxation mixed-in with work (in preparation for the next seven weeks of school).

My original plan was to do a bit of work at night when Jackson goes to bed and take him on daily trips.  But when I made my to-do list for work, that plan is just not possible.  There were many days during this half-term that Jackson was at home with us because he was sick, and since we pre-pay for every month of nursery, I feel like that's another reason to take him in as many days as I need to in order to get my work done.  Although, I'm not going to take him in for as many hours as he usually goes (about ten) per day, but he will still get a chance to do crafts and play with his friends while I get work done around the house and all of the paperwork typed, printed, and highlighted for school.

My goal is to work ahead on the planning that took me the longest during the weekends so that I can spend more time with Jackson every week and more time going to church.  It's easy to push those things aside because if family time or church time is diminished, there's no immediate punishment--except for the guilt.  If work doesn't get done for school, then there will be a definite punishment and 26 children will be sitting behind blank desks with wide-eyed stares and I would lose my livelihood.

In university, training for teaching, some advice I was given was to handle everything in my power without complaining to the principal (head teacher) and to do as much work as I could at school, but then when I walk through the door at home, leave school-work behind me.  The latter is obviously not possible and I think it's because the former has been carried on for so long by the majority of teachers.  There are so many teachers chomping at the bit to take any job openings, so the pressure to hang-on to your job at any cost is definitely present.  In addition to this, head teachers must have the impression, year-after-year of piling on new requirements, that their staff are handling everything in stride.  This combination has really reached its breaking point for many in the teaching field as many of us barely see the light of day or have the patience or coherence left at the end of the day to be with our families.

Hopefully I can get ahead this week so that I can increase family time for the next seven weeks and maybe even enjoy Thanksgiving and Christmas without thinking about my work to-do list in the back of my mind the whole time.

Opening more presents on Sunday--and relaxing after the big party day!

Playing with the conker necklace and bracelet after digging in the straw and pumpkin

At the play dough station, Jackson skipped the squishy, Autumn-scented dough and carried around two acorns the entire time.  No matter what room we went to, all of the teachers knew him by name and he was quite the popular little guy with his friends.

In honour of the new Troll movie, Jackson was our little Baby Troll through the aisles at Tesco.  He actually only wore this for about a minute, but we were happy with the amount of cooperation we got from a one-year-old.

Developmental updates:  Jackson was laughing a lot at nursery this week.  At lunch yesterday, his best pal and mentor, Arthur, told him to stop laughing, but that only made Jackson laugh even harder.  Then, he made his way to a mirror and sat and laughed at his reflection.  He also developed a new smile that shows all of his teeth and his chin points up to the air in pure delight.  Jackson has a new tooth that has cut through--his second right incisor.  He hates brushing his teeth, but we're hoping that one of these days he snaps out of his slump and likes the process again because he did for the first two weeks of brushing a couple of months ago.  In his Little Tikes Garden Centre, Jackson now crawls through the window to get out instead of through the door or slide as he always did before.  He loved all of his birthday presents, however, his favourite things to play with have been two balloons and a bow from a gift box.

If you see Sammie Miles Davis, Jr. and Bella, give them my love.