Night at the E.R.

**************************************************************************
DISCLAIMER! MEDICAL-TYPE PICTURES AHEAD! NO BLOOD BUT PROCEED AT YOUR OWN RISK!
**************************************************************************



I had to put that first bit up there in case any of you get queasy when it comes to medical procedures. Anyway, last Monday night, Blaine was out in our shed, working on our rototiller and he accidentally splashed gasoline in his eye. He came into the house and flushed it out but we thought it might be a good idea to have it checked out in the E.R. The gas splashed in his right eye luckily. I say luckily because he has had a cornea transplant in his left eye.

Anyway.....

They tested the pH of his eye. It should be a 7. His was about a 6 1/2. That meant he had to have his eye flushed out some more.

He layed down on the stretcher and they put a bunch of towels under his head. The plan was to put a Morgan's lens in his eye and run saline in it until it was sufficiently flushed out. They were very nice and numbed his eye first.

Blaine thought he could put the lens in himself but its really big so the nice nurse had to help. I was taking picures on my phone the whole time and she probably thought it was really annoying. I couldn't help myself. I wanted to document the process!

The saline is running into his eye and flushing it out. Blaine said it felt really cold and wished the fluid was warmed. Oh well. After this bag of fluid, they would retest the pH of his eye and he might have to have another bag of fluid. We would get them to warm it then. Luckily, the pH was right on and he could go home. After some antibiotic ointment in his eye, we were on our way home.

This is the Morgan's lens. It looks like a great big contact lens but it is very rigid and sits right on your eye. After being checked out with his eye doctor the next day, all is well and his eye will be fine. I'm very thankful for that!

Ryan @ 15 months

Ryan is almost 18 months old. We had his pictures taken in March. Our photographer was Lindsey Briggs. I found out about her from my sister. She did an amazing job with Ryan and was so patient. He didn't really want to hold still, so she followed him around and just snapped pictures the whole time. She got some really great shots of his "real" facial expressions. I plan to have her take our family photos in May (if it ever warms up!). You can take a look at some of her other work here.

I love this picture. It makes me laugh and gets one his "mean" faces. He's a pretty happy boy most of the time but when he is cranky, look out! That usually means it is time for a nap (like in the picture above!)

He is getting so big and has the longest eyelashes! At his last checkup he weighed in at 21 pounds, 6 ounces. (15th percentile). His height is 30 1/4 inches (also 15th percentile). He is my smallest of my kiddos. But, don't forget the huge noggin on this kid! Haha! 49 1/2 cm = 97th percentile!!

This is a view of him I see everyday. I love it! His communication skills are growing daily. His first real word was "Hannah" and his vocabulary includes but is not limited to, Garrett (hard to say), mom, dad, cat, up, more, woof, banana, no-no, car, yes, that, grandma and grandpa. He also says, "here kitty, kitty" and curls up his fingers to call the cat. He is pretty consistent at signing "please" and "thank-you" (the only two signs I have taught him). He will say phrases that will make you say, Did he just say that? I think he did but I'm not sure! Haha!

Ryan is up and running everywhere. He thinks he is as big as Garrett and Hannah. He has discovered the outdoors and begs to be out there every minute. He is a runner though, runaway that is. Our back yard is not enclosed by the fence and he has figured out ALL the escape routes (even the small opening on the edge of our shed). This little boy is going to make me finish the fence! He loves books, balls, or anything with wheels. If he can push it around, he's a happy camper! He's a fun, busy little guy and we just love him!