Results

The colonoscopy is over, and I don't remember a bit of it. Casey has informed me that they said my colon looks "perfect." Great, right? I'm definitely glad they didn't find anything weird or scary in there, but it also doesn't really give an answer for the problems I've been having. They gave Casey a couple of prescriptions (I'm not even sure what they are yet) for me to try over the next 2 weeks. If I'm still having problems after that, then I'm supposed to go back to the doctor. Until then, I think they're sticking with the IBS-C diagnosis. We'll see how the next couple of weeks go... stay tuned. :)

I don't have a good picture to prove it yet, but Abby is getting her first tooth! It's been a long, drooly time coming, but there is finally one coming up through her bottom gums. I reached in to get who-knows-what out of her mouth tonight (she's really good at finding everything she shouldn't stick in her mouth and then eating it), and she bit me--ouch! There's definitely something sharp coming in there! As soon as we can get her to sit still long enough and smile, I'll post a picture here. In the mean time, you'll just have to settle for this:

If it's not one thing...

Abby just went down for her morning nap, so I think I have a moment to update. We will begin with a cute picture, and end with a cute picture. It's just the right thing to do.

Don't you just want to kiss all over that face?! Ok, moving on.

We don't know what in the world to do with Casey right now. The neurologist has offered to refer us to the seizure specialist at UAMS, and we're considering taking him up on that. Casey definitely does NOT want to go through more testing, but we haven't really gotten any answers that are making a difference or helping him in any way. No decision has been made yet, but we're considering it.

Do you ever get tired of reading about all of the Cochran family health issues when you come to this blog? If so, please stop reading now. There's more.

I am scheduled to have a colonoscopy this Thursday morning, and I cannot WAIT! Ok, that's a lie. I'm totally nervous--about the test itself and about what they might find. I've been having a lot of pain and other unpleasant issues which I will not disgust you with by describing on here, and the doctors think I might have some form of colitis or Crohn's disease or something. It could just be severe IBS, but they think there might be more to it. It's always the same dilemma with these things: I'd like a solution to fix the problems I'm having, but I'm scared of what they might find.

Do you ever feel like Job from the Bible?? I do. Ever want to slap yourself in the face and say, "Quit feeling sorry for yourself! Everybody has to deal with stuff!"?? Yeah, me too. I'm ready to be done with this now. How do I keep going? Here it is:

I dare you not to smile when you look at that picture. You might have even giggled a little. :) She was completely unplanned, but God knows. Totally amazing.

Casey Cochran: SIU - Part II

This was October of 2007:
And this was last week:
Oh, we just love visiting our friends at Baptist Hospital in the Seizure Investigation Unit. Apparently, they like seeing us, too. We had the same nurse to put in Casey's IV again, and several of the techs were there from last time, too. One of my favorites, Adam, even hunted down a cot for me to sleep on when no one else would look for one. What a guy. :) We were only there for 24-hour monitoring this time, so it was a quick trip. Casey was sleep deprived and didn't take any of his normal medication, so it was a rough 24 hours for him. I actually slept pretty well (thanks to Mom who kept Abby for us!), but I felt really guilty about it when I woke up and saw Casey. Sorry, honey!

We went back to the neurologist this afternoon to hear the very frustrating results. The brain activity looks exactly the same as it did before, but the physical activity is notably different. The neurologist still thinks this is stress related, but he was also very concerned that our pharmacy had switched Casey to the generic form of his primary seizure medication. Apparently, they've had a lot of issues with that in other patients. He wrote a new prescription for Casey saying that it was medically necessary for him to take the brand name pill, and we are very hopeful that this will make a difference. Only time will tell, I guess. In the mean time, we are really hoping he can get back to work soon and life can get back to normal... whatever that means. :)

As a happy side note, my baby will be 7 months old tomorrow, and she is getting into everything! She can now crawl all over the house, and she pulls up on anything that is in reach. At every meal, she eats like she has never been fed before--you'd think we were starving the girl! She loves to feed herself those Gerber Puffs, and she is now a pro with the sippy cup. If you have a cup of water, be prepared to share--she thinks she's big stuff now! Here's the latest picture of my (not-so-little) baby girl:

Yes, she did get there all by herself. Those little arms can reach a lot farther than you'd think!

Things and stuff

I am very aware that I am overdue for another post. However, I feel very scattered at the moment, so this might be a I'm-totally-rambling-in-efforts-to-catch-up-but-go-to-bed-soon post. Here are the important items I feel warrant mentioning tonight:

• Casey's seizures have gotten worse this week--so much that he hasn't been able to go to work since last Friday. We went to Little Rock to see his neurologist today, and it looks like we're going back to the Seizure Investigation Unit at Baptist in 2 weeks. The doctor is concerned that the seizures are more frequent and severe, and he wants to make sure we're still dealing with the same thing.
• I somehow miraculously created 120 tile coasters in 3 days and delivered all of them this past Monday. 24 sets went to Davis-Kidd Booksellers in Memphis, and 6 sets went to Aunt Janet to give as gifts to her Tupperware managers. In the rush of it all, I forgot to take pictures of the new floral set, but I hope to make it again and post it on my Etsy site.
• Throughout the insanity of this past week, I have also been trying to prepare and pack for a week long trip to Kentucky to visit Kyle and Melissa Vath. I'm SO excited to visit them now that they're back from Tanzania, and I can't wait to see Mel as a beautiful pregnant woman! My friend Lindsey and I are packing up everything we own along with our baby girls and making the long drive to northern Kentucky together. It should be quite an adventure!
• I am currently searching for peace. I usually thrive on being busy, but I'm feeling a little overloaded/overwhelmed right now. Too much to think about and do--not enough hours in the day. Hopefully, things will calm down soon.
• Abby now thinks that she can stand up all the time, and she is driving us crazy with trying to pull up on everything! She almost has the crawling thing down, and the poor girl just can't sit still! There's always something across the room or higher up that she just has to get to. I know I will regret this later, but I really am looking forward to her being able to stand and move on her own without having to cling to Mommy and Daddy constantly. Here's my little crawler:

See that last picture? She just has to get that box! :) Ok, I'm sure there are other things I could mention on here, but it is definitely past my bedtime. I hope this was enough to appease the masses (*ahem, Becka*). :)

Early morning

Abby was having a hard time breathing at about 4:45 this morning (time for another cold, I guess), so I got up to give her some more medicine, clear out her nose, and rock her back to sleep. After I had her back in the crib, I realized... I was totally awake! Since I knew there was a Zumba dance class at the gym at 5:30 this morning, I decided I was just going to get up and GO! It is now almost 9:30 a.m., and these are the things I have accomplished so far:

1. Folded 2 loads of laundry and started another load
2. Worked out at the gym--I love Zumba!!!
3. Taken a shower
   
4. Put dishes away
5. Prepped Abby's bottles for the day
6. Made a pot of coffee
7. Changed 2 diapers
8. Talked to Dad
9. Fed Abby breakfast (yum, rice cereal!)
10. Had waffles and coffee for breakfast
    
11. Rocked Abby back to sleep for a nap
12. Washed tiles for sample coasters I need to make today

Hmmm.... maybe I should be napping, too! I'm afraid if I stop going, I might not be able to get back up! I also have to work from 3 - 8 p.m. tonight, so I'm sure I will crash when I get home from that. This is the week Abby turns 6 months old, so I can start taking her with me--more hours! This is going to be a very busy week, so I guess I'm just trying to start it off well. I'm working 25 hours at the gym nursery, and I also got another order of coasters from Davis-Kidd Booksellers in Memphis. I have until this coming Monday to make nearly 100 coasters--yikes! Looks like I don't really have time to keep blabbing on here! :)

Too Fast!

My daughter will be 6 months old as of this coming Wednesday, and I have to tell you that it is entirely too early for her to be doing this:

What's that? Did we put her there?? Did we prop her against the crib railing??? Oh, no. She definitely pulled up there on her own. Actually, this is the third time she's done it... after we had already lowered the crib mattress following her first time. And now we're going to have to get one of those teething rail thingies because she just wants to chew on it! Plus, she now thinks she can stand all the time and wants to pull up on everything, so she's no longer content to sit around. Noooooo...... you just try to sit her on the floor with a bunch of toys and see how that works for ya. Good luck, friend. The crying is getting to be a bit much, actually, but I know I should be thrilled that she's working so hard to get mobile. *It's only a phase, it's only a phase...* Oh, and the talking has turned from mostly vowels to lots of consonants since she found her tongue a few days ago. Here's the current favorite face:

Love it! My world is totally changing (every day, it seems like!). She is such a joy, and I cannot believe how quickly she is growing up!

The RIGHT Way

We had two biscuits left over from dinner last night, and I decided that was going to be my breakfast this morning with butter and jelly. This is not necessarily anything of importance to blog about, but I always think of Papaw when I eat biscuits with butter and jelly because he knew the right way to eat it. If you are a Curtis cousin (or aunt, or uncle, or any other relation) you know exactly what I'm talking about. It was just a happy thought as I ate my breakfast this morning. I will make sure Abby grows up knowing how to eat her biscuits with butter and jelly appropriately. :)