So Scary!!!

Last week started out a bit rough around our house. After visits from the in-laws, Dave's brother Mike and my sister Margaret during the previous week and through the weekend, all the company returned home Sunday evening and we were ready to get back to normal life. Instead, Monday morning we woke up early to send Trenton off to school, followed by the awakening of Dallas and later Brooklyn. Brooklyn and Dallas are the kind of kids that like to eat the moment they get out of bed so I set Brooklyn up in her high chair with her usual food, only to have her barely touch it. I got her out of her high chair and she was unusually fussy. Although figthing a cold and still working on bringing in some new teeth, she was totally unconsolable so I decided it was time to try some tylenol. Well, it wasn't in the cabinet or on the counter and the last time I remembered seeing it was the day before when she was walking around shaking it like a rattle while all of our company was in town. Eventually, I went to her crib and found the bottle of tylenol burried under her comforter, lid off and completely empty. I instanty called Dave into her room and showed him my discovery. We were both unsure of when it had ended up her crib or when and if she had eaten it. Dave got on the phone with poison control, and we jumped through the ingredients of the drug, how much was possibly consumed, etc. They quickly determined that she needed to be brought to the ER immediately as this could potentially be a lethal dose for her little body. We threw on clothes and headed out the door. After grilling Dallas, we were confident that he hadn't eaten it and knew that Trenton was also not the culprit . .which left Brookly in her crib eating a bottle of children's tylenol. I was fine until we got to the hospital, checked her in and then I sat down and just started crying-unable to bear the thought of losing our precious baby girl. Untreated and taken at toxic levels, her liver would pretty much shut down and she wouldn't be around by the end of the week. I was very scared and anxious for them to draw her blood and tell us what her levels and liver function were showing. Well, the ER is always slow and several hours later they came back with her lab results which showed a significant amount of tylenol in her blood and slightly eleveated liver enzyme levels. Okay, so she was okay, right? Given the unknown time of ingestion (go responsible mom and dad) they wanted to proceed with the antidote treatment . .always playing it safe rather than sorry. So, eventually we were transferred down to the pediatric ward of the hospital and she was stared on her 1st of 3 doses of the medication that would be distributed through her IV for the next 21 hours. I felt awful and yet so grateful that she was going to be okay. She has a severe dislike for the doctor in general, and normally starts screaming the second she sees the scale at her well child visits . I'm sure this experience is really going to help. My mom came out to take care of the boys so Dave and I could switch off staying at the hospital and I could get to work that evening and the following morning. It was a long night at the hospital, Brooklyn trying so hard to sleep in her metal crib/cage and being woken up every few hours for her vitals (It reminded me what a joke it is trying to sleep in the hospital and I've decided for once I think I'll just come home as soon as they'll discharge me after delivering this next baby). She pretty much screamed every time they tried to check her and as a result her blood pressure was always high . .so I get to go back to the pediatrician in a few weeks to try and get a normal reading. . .(Good luck with that . . .didn't we already determine she hates doctors!) Anyway, what I've learned from this awful experience is that childproof containers aren't childproof . .not even for a one year old and medication shouldn't double as a rattle . .most of you have probably already made this brialliant discovery, but just in case learn from our mistake and save yourself the scare. Also, I realize how precious these little ones are and that nothing is more important than they are. It was a neat experience to spend so much time with Brooklyn . .one one one . .and comfort her when she would get worked up. She is a sweet girl, totally fine and back to being happynow. How blessed and fortunate we feel. Thanks to all of you who knew about this when it was going on for your phone calls, support and encouragement that I'm not the worst mother ever . .I was having my doubts, but am doing better now.

Silver Falls State Park Hike

This Saturday we decided to take advantage of a day free from required things to do and make a semi-spur of the moment trip out to Silver Falls. We had heard that it was a beautiful area and had added it to our list of "things to do before leaving Oregon". Basically it is a state park that, within about a 5 mile loop, you can see 10 waterfalls (more like 6 during the non rainy season, a few of them were more like trickles that fell really far.) The kids handled walking up and down amazingly well and definately logged more miles than probably all previous hikes combined. There were a few times that we (mostly almost 8 months pregnant Bri) were literally applauded as we climbed switchbacks with children in tote. Of course no trip would be complete without the surprises of Dallas peeing in open public, using a rock to "color" on the minivans paint job, and Brooklyn falling out of the stroller 6 inches from about a 30' drop off. Just living the dream.

I'm Melting . . .Melting!!!

When I first found out I was pregnant and started calculating my due date, I realized I would be living large through the summer and began dreading those days where temps linger around 100 and I would be stuck with small children in a home without a/c. Well, this week those days arrived and it was miserable just as I anticipated. We tried to find refuge in our kiddie pool, sprinklers, fountains at the park, the mall, the gym and we were able to cool off occasionally. The nights were uncomfortable and I fear the kids are always going to want to sleep in nothing but underwear or diapers (or completely nude as we found Dallas in the middle of the night once this week) from now on. It has cooled off to the mid 90s today and is suprizingly pleasant comparatively speaking.

A little bit of SoCal does a Relationship Good

Dave and I took advantage of the chance to visit San Diego last weekend without the kids and witness my good friend Bret tie the knot. We laugh because he and his now wife Courtney actually met for the first time the same weekend that Dave and I hung out for the first time. Here we are close to seven years later and we are about to have our fourth child and they are just getting married. Maybe it's the difference between being LDS and not or more likely... ....Dave and I just learn really slowly. Either way, we had a fabulous weekend! We have come to the realization that we are different people when it is just the two of us. We are both much more fun to be around and it's amazing how much we actually get to enjoy each other's company when it isn't just for the seconds in between changing dirty diapers, wiping faces, refereeing fights, cleaning up messes and falling asleep at night. We joke (but this goes along with the whole 99% of sarcasm is truth) that we are already so embarassed by our lack of control over three kids and we're about to have another one. Wish us luck and hopefully a few more weekend get aways over the next several years! Anyway, back to our trip:

We did what we rarely get to do: laid out on the beach and by the pool, swam in the ocean and in the pool, took long leisurely walks, went out to eat, went shopping (aka RELAXED). It was the first trip away from the kids where I actually didn't "miss" them . . I think I could have stayed several more days before that sentiment kicked in. The wedding was absolutely beautiful, just what one would expect on a beach in San Diego at a resort called Paradise Point. Gorgeous flowers, delicious food, amazing decor, long lost friends, a stunning bride and groom and lots of fun!

Happy Fourth

We spent the Fourth with Dave's family in Salt Lake. It is always nice to get everyone together. The kids especially love the rare opportunities they get to play with their cousins.

Trenton shows off his glow stick skills while waiting for the fireworks to begin.

Dallas and Kate hamming it up.

Brooklyn taking after her mama by eating lots of brownies.

Trenton, Austin, Luke and Kate.

Visit to Colorado

Dave had a two week break from school beginning the last week of June and we filled it with a camping adventure, a kid-free trip to Colorado and a family excursion to Salt Lake. The trip to Colorado was great. . . . 3 full days with just the two of us and lots of reunions with long lost college roommates and friends. We stayed with one of my old roommates, Tracie, who is just weeks away from having her first baby. Watching her did not make me excited to reach those end stages of pregnancy, but she looks great and I can't wait for her to experience the joys of motherhood. Thank you Troy and Tracie for the fantastic weekend.
What do people do on planes

when there not just trying to

keep kids quiet anyway?
After dinner in downtown Denver, we walked to a nearby outdoor concert where we stayed rather briefly to hear Gnarles Barkley rock out. Dave just wanted to make himself look awkward as the 5th wheel while I took the picture.


We posed in front of Union Station for a quick "deer in headlights" photo.

Tracie, Robin and I taking a break from the concert.

Photo Morphing

As I was browsing some old photos I came across a fun hobby of mine I haven't done in a long time: Photo Morphing. Man was it entertaining.

For example:
What my brother, sister, and I willlook like when we get old...
Dad + Mom

=

Little Miss (Insert Random City Name) Butler

So it's fitting that following a post about us expecting our next child that there is a serious lag in posting. We do have a lot to post about and will catch up sometime. I did notice that we forgot to mention that the next addition to the family will be another girl (hooray for keeping the teams even). Now the challenge is what her name is going to be. Shall we make it a blogger contest? The rules are simple: If you didn't already notice (Trenton NJ, Dallas Tx, Brooklyn NY) we've got a theme going on so we might as well keep it going. Happy name guessing!

*cue attempts at humor with names like Pocatello Butler*
(I guess we could call her Pokey for short)



Don't even think about it!