5 year checkup and insurance woes

Matthew and I took James to his 5-year checkup today. He was perfectly compliant. And while he wasn't exactly chatty with anyone, he did make eye contact and nod his head in response to their questions. Yay! We had to ask about shots first thing, though, and Dr. Youakim was quite accommodating. No shots. A smile flashed across James' face even as he tried to tuck it away.

He's heavy (51 pounds)

He's tall (3.5 inches this year alone, about 3'10")

Nice blood pressure (80/44)

He's proportional.

His ears do a great job of clearing out wax.

He has allergies (no surprise there).

No other medical concerns.

The doctor asked James what he wanted to be when he grew up. James didn't answer at first, but when the doctor started making suggestions, James said "banker" with a sly little grin. I thought, "Huh?! Where did he get THAT idea?!" Then it hit me. Ah! Right. This kid loves money.

My little pirate.

And he has stinky armpits. I did ask the doctor about that. It turns out body odor is one of the early signs of puberty, but as long as James doesn't start growing armpit hair, then I shouldn't be too concerned. The doc said that kids who go into puberty too freakishly early actually don't end up very tall in the end. If James started getting hairy, we'd want to put him on some sort of hormone suppression regimen right-quick. I had NO idea that was something to worry about! So, yeah, I'm adding armpit screenings to my 5-year-old's bath routine :)

With Verizon acquiring Yahoo, Bobby now officially works for "Oath." Our health insurance is changing :( We will most likely need to find new doctors at the OTHER clinics in town because our preferred clinics and physicians aren't in-network. This stinks. Not just because I've got to meet with several pediatricians and find a good fit, but because all of our medical history might not transfer between clinics. Those beautiful growth curves and immunization schedules and medical histories...stuck. I haven't talked to anyone at the doctor's office about it yet. I'm still in denial. It probably won't be as bad as I think. Ugh.

James showing off his most recent tower of cushions.

Turkey Trot 2017!

While visiting the Garner fam in Ohio for Thanksgiving, our two families drove out to the Cleveland Turkey Trot and ran a 5k together. Some significant happenings from the race:

Alice and Bobby ran together the whole time, no walking breaks. A first time for Alice. Yay, guys!

Robert walked with me and the stroller (James and Matthew got to ride). It was a long, fast walk, and Robert had to push himself hard to make it to the end on his own two feet, and he DID it! Great job, Robert! Fantastic effort!

The race photographers caught us as we crossed the finish line and I couldn't help but pay the $1 to keep these moments in ones and zeroes:

Gosh, I love these people, and I'm so stinkin' proud of them. Even for something as silly as a 3 mile jog on Thanksgiving Day.

The rest of our trip was relaxing and crazy and fun and loud and everything in between. I love those Garners, too. It's a real treat to spend time with them.

Nightmares

Three nights in a row of dreams that make me want to cry: losing people I love, kids ignoring my passionate safety warnings, disappointment, grief, embarrassment.

My subconscious is feeling vulnerable, I guess.

In the meantime, I had a lovely Thanksgiving break. I don't know why my subconscious is freaking out. Details to come.

Car quake

We were driving to the Y this morning, listening to our new favorite CD from They Might Be Giants, when we stopped for a light. Suddenly, I feel the car shaking, kinda swinging back and forth.

What on earth?!

I look back at the boys to see if they're okay and there's Matthew totally rocking out in his seat. He was dancing so hard, the car was quaking! While buckled. Every limb moving, head nodding, eyes squinched shut, but not making a single sound.

This, ladies and gentlemen, is the "cute" bit that makes me so happy and sad.

Thanks, Natalie, for reintroducing me to TMBG. I loved them in high school, but lost track. So happy to see they've put out a few CDs for kids that are just as fun for adults.

Another really cute thing to do: fall asleep in the middle of the day.

I also realized that Matthew gets a lot of attention for his fantastic red furry coat. My mom made it. Alice loved it as a preschooler. I never could put it on Robert or James, but Matthew took to it immediately. People literally gasp when he walks into a room. Not that he enjoys all that attention. He's pretty good at shying away if a stranger tries to engage him too casually.

Riding the horsie at Meijer in his "Elmo coat"

He loves it beyond reason. It doesn't keep him very warm and it's getting harder to put on as his shoulders grow broader, but it's got a totally furry soft outside and a slippery slick inside that he won't give up. He will wear no other jacket or coat.

He will also beg to wear PJs or a swim suit instead of regular play clothes. I let him wear anything to the Y (just to keep the resistance to a minimum) but I make him change from PJs if we're going out in public. His swim suit is fine anywhere but church.

Pbbbsh. Would I have let Alice get away with so much? No way. This fourth kid thing has its perks.

*squeeeeeeeee*

The local farm got back to me today!

They don't need any field help right now (surprised?) but they had a look at my resume and wanted to meet about possibly developing nutritional and cooking info for their members and customers next year.

*squeeeeeeeeee*

This is just the kind of stuff I can do from home! It gives me purpose to research and relearn and stretch those dietetic muscles. I can't wait until dirt time comes around again, but this will do nicely in the interim :)

She also mentioned they were putting in grant applications over the next couple weeks. That's something I could help with, too, but I didn't want to mention that this early...seems a little grabby, y'know? Maybe next year.

Or maybe I'll just get gutsy and ask if I can help with them this year.

Am I feeling gutsy?

Totally. Email sent.