Homeward Bound
[jd] 31 January 2008
So I had an interview for a grown-up job (biology professor) last week in Allentown, PA, about 90 minutes from where I grew up. I loved the department. During the 1 1/2 days I spent there, it was really easy to envision myself working there, being productive, and being happy. Apparently they felt the same way, because they offered me a job on Monday! We have had to make decisions on a really short time scale, because they also really liked their second choice and wanted to be able to make an offer to that person if I turned it down. Happily Tyson has reconciled himself to, and is even excited about, the idea of living in Pennsylvania. So, I have informally accepted and provided nothing bizarre happens we are moving to Allentown this summer! The amount we have to do before then is STAGGERING. So, if you were planning on visiting us in Tucson and feel like painting a house, or putting up some crown moulding this is your chance! Likewise, if you have a hankering to learn how to do multi-unit extracellular recordings, I have plently of experiments that need doing : )
In other news, drool-meister G has popped his second tooth. I discovered this when he bit my finger yesterday and left 2 painful indentations instead of one. To all you new parents, your fingers may seem like a convenient portable teething toy, but this is a BAD HABIT to get into.
It's more than just a name...it's a lifestyle.
Thursday, January 31, 2008
Wednesday, January 23, 2008
Thursday, January 17, 2008
Nubby's First Oxygen Tent
[ty] 17 Jan '08
Over the course of the last 7 months we've become relatively accustomed to the variety of nasty excretions produced by our son because he's in daycare. He's young and building a healthy immune system doesn't come without a cost. In many respects we consider this a boon. Better chickenpox as a child than shingles as an adult for instance. So we thought nothing of it as his most recent cough turned wheezy and he became more lethargic and needy. That is, until Jordanna checked on him as she was coming to bed the other night and his breathing was strange enough that she brought him into bed with us.
Despite the fact that it was 1:30 in the morning his breathing was so strange that we lay awake listening to him discussing whether or not we were being paranoid. Eventually I decided we were not paranoid, his respiratory functions were not ok (64 breaths a minute), and we needed to take him to Urgent Care. So we loaded him into the car and tore off for UMC. Ironically I drove to the hospital very very quickly not because he was in dire straits but because we thought Urgent Care closed at 3am (it actually closes at 1am) and the difference in co-pay is significant.
Upon our arrival they rushed us into care (if you ever need to fast-track through admission write "respiratory difficulty" on your intake sheet), checked him out, and agreed that his respiration was labored and the O2 levels in his blood were too low. They put him on some oxygen and admitted him. Even sitting in a hospital and knowing that he was basically fine seeing my 9 month old son with oxygen tubes in his nose was difficult. I can't even imagine what our friend, whose child has had multiple surgeries, must go through.
We stayed in the hospital for a day and a half as they waited to see if his oxygen levels dropped again. Turns out he has RSV (a respiratory virus) and an ear infection. They were all very nice and provided us with a great deal of disposable crap. We were discharged this afternoon and Nubby has been happily eating and hydrating all day.
On the bright side he learned to hold his own bottle while in the hospital.
This is the very cool device they use to measure his blood oxygen saturation. As far as I can tell it's a light/doppler thing going on. But it just tapes onto his foot and thats it. Very nice and easy for a baby.
Mommy with her "I slept in this chair" sassy hair.
One of the nurses walked in, saw him like this, and said "Well, you're not a very sick baby now are you?"
[ty] 17 Jan '08
Over the course of the last 7 months we've become relatively accustomed to the variety of nasty excretions produced by our son because he's in daycare. He's young and building a healthy immune system doesn't come without a cost. In many respects we consider this a boon. Better chickenpox as a child than shingles as an adult for instance. So we thought nothing of it as his most recent cough turned wheezy and he became more lethargic and needy. That is, until Jordanna checked on him as she was coming to bed the other night and his breathing was strange enough that she brought him into bed with us.
Despite the fact that it was 1:30 in the morning his breathing was so strange that we lay awake listening to him discussing whether or not we were being paranoid. Eventually I decided we were not paranoid, his respiratory functions were not ok (64 breaths a minute), and we needed to take him to Urgent Care. So we loaded him into the car and tore off for UMC. Ironically I drove to the hospital very very quickly not because he was in dire straits but because we thought Urgent Care closed at 3am (it actually closes at 1am) and the difference in co-pay is significant.
Upon our arrival they rushed us into care (if you ever need to fast-track through admission write "respiratory difficulty" on your intake sheet), checked him out, and agreed that his respiration was labored and the O2 levels in his blood were too low. They put him on some oxygen and admitted him. Even sitting in a hospital and knowing that he was basically fine seeing my 9 month old son with oxygen tubes in his nose was difficult. I can't even imagine what our friend, whose child has had multiple surgeries, must go through.
We stayed in the hospital for a day and a half as they waited to see if his oxygen levels dropped again. Turns out he has RSV (a respiratory virus) and an ear infection. They were all very nice and provided us with a great deal of disposable crap. We were discharged this afternoon and Nubby has been happily eating and hydrating all day.
On the bright side he learned to hold his own bottle while in the hospital.
Here he is showing how he proudly holds his own beverage. Now he refuses to let us hold any bottles for him. Damn kids.
This is the very cool device they use to measure his blood oxygen saturation. As far as I can tell it's a light/doppler thing going on. But it just tapes onto his foot and thats it. Very nice and easy for a baby.
Mommy with her "I slept in this chair" sassy hair.
One of the nurses walked in, saw him like this, and said "Well, you're not a very sick baby now are you?"Monday, January 14, 2008
Green Mountain Trail
[ty] 14 Jan '08
The only redeeming feature of living in the desert is...the desert. Specifically the high desert. So finally, after months of procrastination, we got the family together and headed up into the foothills for some hiking.
Our good friends (J&K) came along for the fun and it was pretty sweet to see the girls hiking with the kids strapped to their back. In the finest tradition of indigenous peoples everywhere we sent one male ahead with the dog as scout, put the women and children in the middle, and left one male to bring up the rear. We encountered nothing more dangerous than some icy rocks and random pokey plants but you never know.
Ever the gentleman. I, on the other hand, was ready with the camera to record any mishaps.
Due to perspective issues Roland appears to be the size of a hairy juvenile Rhinoceros.
You can see the drastic color change in the sky a little here. We were probably at around 6500 ft elevation and directly overhead it was a deep deep azure that you can see in a few of the other shots.
As you can see, Nubby wasn't really too happy about the situation.
The Pacific NW version of a Burro.
A good photo of JD and K. Note the completely unconscious babies.
[ty] 14 Jan '08
The only redeeming feature of living in the desert is...the desert. Specifically the high desert. So finally, after months of procrastination, we got the family together and headed up into the foothills for some hiking.
Our good friends (J&K) came along for the fun and it was pretty sweet to see the girls hiking with the kids strapped to their back. In the finest tradition of indigenous peoples everywhere we sent one male ahead with the dog as scout, put the women and children in the middle, and left one male to bring up the rear. We encountered nothing more dangerous than some icy rocks and random pokey plants but you never know.
Ever the gentleman. I, on the other hand, was ready with the camera to record any mishaps.
Due to perspective issues Roland appears to be the size of a hairy juvenile Rhinoceros.
You can see the drastic color change in the sky a little here. We were probably at around 6500 ft elevation and directly overhead it was a deep deep azure that you can see in a few of the other shots.
As you can see, Nubby wasn't really too happy about the situation.
The Pacific NW version of a Burro.
A good photo of JD and K. Note the completely unconscious babies.
Wednesday, January 09, 2008
The Parents Who Cried Tooth
[jd] 8 January 2007
Well, it finally happened. We had our suspicions that Cayden was teething when he was sent home from daycare last week with a mild fever and no symptoms of being actually ill. Then he cried from 3pm until bedtime on Sunday, only stopping if I let him chew on a dried apple ring. This is the only chewy teething device he shows an interest in, which is unfortunate. Dried apple rings have a lovely spongy yet firm texture and a pleasant taste. All the qualities of an excellent teether, until it gets soft enough to break or the baby gets so excited he sucks the whole thing into his mouth and down his throat. Which means it is a great teether, if a parent is staring at you with an anti-choking device (i.e. my finger) at the ready THE ENTIRE TIME. Despite the relatively unpleasant experience of having me stick my finger down his throat to extricate apple chunks, Cayden happily chewed away for over an hour. Despite all these symptoms, Sunday night there was still no tooth. Apparently he got all his angst about the process out that day though, because he was thoroughly cheerful Monday and Tuesday. I thought we had yet again mistakenly assumed his crankiness meant teething, and it was only by accident that I discovered his brandy-new tooth last night (he was complaining about the car seat and I was shoving my knuckle into his mouth so it made funny noises when he cries, because that usually stops him crying). Another milestone of childhood achieved, which is exciting and sad all at once. I love watching him change so rapidly, but it is a little bittersweet to think that in no time he will be bumming 20$ and the car keys off me.
[jd] 8 January 2007
Well, it finally happened. We had our suspicions that Cayden was teething when he was sent home from daycare last week with a mild fever and no symptoms of being actually ill. Then he cried from 3pm until bedtime on Sunday, only stopping if I let him chew on a dried apple ring. This is the only chewy teething device he shows an interest in, which is unfortunate. Dried apple rings have a lovely spongy yet firm texture and a pleasant taste. All the qualities of an excellent teether, until it gets soft enough to break or the baby gets so excited he sucks the whole thing into his mouth and down his throat. Which means it is a great teether, if a parent is staring at you with an anti-choking device (i.e. my finger) at the ready THE ENTIRE TIME. Despite the relatively unpleasant experience of having me stick my finger down his throat to extricate apple chunks, Cayden happily chewed away for over an hour. Despite all these symptoms, Sunday night there was still no tooth. Apparently he got all his angst about the process out that day though, because he was thoroughly cheerful Monday and Tuesday. I thought we had yet again mistakenly assumed his crankiness meant teething, and it was only by accident that I discovered his brandy-new tooth last night (he was complaining about the car seat and I was shoving my knuckle into his mouth so it made funny noises when he cries, because that usually stops him crying). Another milestone of childhood achieved, which is exciting and sad all at once. I love watching him change so rapidly, but it is a little bittersweet to think that in no time he will be bumming 20$ and the car keys off me.
Sunday, January 06, 2008
Never let it be said Orono didn't treat us well...
[ty] 6 Jan '08
Ok, I apologize for the conspicuous lack of update regarding our trip and various associated excitement in Maine. Truth be told, I made up all of the highlights involved in the last post. All of Jordanna's toes are intact, nobody fell through the ice and I stayed safely inside all of the vehicles. I apologize if anyone was unduly alarmed. In my defense I had earlier that day been involved in mortal combat with a Black Bear, eaten a bad piece of Puffer fish and lost around $7000 on Jai-Alai.
We had a wonderful time in Maine. It was the first large scale Henry/Fremouw/Sprayberry/Benson X-mas and there was no shortage of wonderful grandparents, sledding, good beer, hockey, good wine, oblong pizzas, good cheese, crying children, laughing children, hurt children and love. Clarissa and Thane opened up their home to an veritable invasion of people and in return I stole Clarissa's favorite winter hat and invited our friends up to crash the party. They took it like champs and we will forever be grateful and hope to return the favor as soon as we get to a domicile larger than a conjugal visit cabin.
Also in the "You Rule" catagory: The Walshies hauled their asses all the way up to Maine to hang out with us for 48 hrs. Considering that it would have been FAR easier for them to stay in the comfort of their own home and not drive 6 hours into Canadian territory and back we were very very touched by their presence and the wonderful bounty of beer, cheese, chocolate, whiskey, bourbon, vodka, wine and schnapps that they gifted us. For the record, Abby Rose was amazing with all the younger kids and a ball to hang out with. Plus she's about 6ft tall and is the proud recipient of both Kevin and Erin's gift for sarcasm.
Below please find a couple of photos that will tell an abbreviated version of our trip to the great frozen North. Actually its just some good photos of our kid and our nephews. What can I say.
Nephews all hyped up on x-mas will do anything Uncle Tyson asks them to.
I rarely intend to take these kinds of photos but I like it when it happens.
[ty] 6 Jan '08
Ok, I apologize for the conspicuous lack of update regarding our trip and various associated excitement in Maine. Truth be told, I made up all of the highlights involved in the last post. All of Jordanna's toes are intact, nobody fell through the ice and I stayed safely inside all of the vehicles. I apologize if anyone was unduly alarmed. In my defense I had earlier that day been involved in mortal combat with a Black Bear, eaten a bad piece of Puffer fish and lost around $7000 on Jai-Alai.
We had a wonderful time in Maine. It was the first large scale Henry/Fremouw/Sprayberry/Benson X-mas and there was no shortage of wonderful grandparents, sledding, good beer, hockey, good wine, oblong pizzas, good cheese, crying children, laughing children, hurt children and love. Clarissa and Thane opened up their home to an veritable invasion of people and in return I stole Clarissa's favorite winter hat and invited our friends up to crash the party. They took it like champs and we will forever be grateful and hope to return the favor as soon as we get to a domicile larger than a conjugal visit cabin.
Also in the "You Rule" catagory: The Walshies hauled their asses all the way up to Maine to hang out with us for 48 hrs. Considering that it would have been FAR easier for them to stay in the comfort of their own home and not drive 6 hours into Canadian territory and back we were very very touched by their presence and the wonderful bounty of beer, cheese, chocolate, whiskey, bourbon, vodka, wine and schnapps that they gifted us. For the record, Abby Rose was amazing with all the younger kids and a ball to hang out with. Plus she's about 6ft tall and is the proud recipient of both Kevin and Erin's gift for sarcasm.
Below please find a couple of photos that will tell an abbreviated version of our trip to the great frozen North. Actually its just some good photos of our kid and our nephews. What can I say.
For some reason he looks like a frog to me in this picture.
I think it's the hands.
I think it's the hands.
Nephews all hyped up on x-mas will do anything Uncle Tyson asks them to.
I rarely intend to take these kinds of photos but I like it when it happens.
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