Skip to main content

Silly Spencer

So I took Spencer to the doctor this week to get his Strattera renewed.  He is doing well, the dosage is good, and no, I do not want to take him off of it, thank you for asking. We do, however want to check his blood to see if the thyroid medication is dosed correctly, not because we are thinking it isn't, it just hasn't been checked for two years. 

It worked out that he didn't have play practice after school on Tuesday, the day we went to the doctor, so we had a good window of time to take him to get his blood drawn at the American Fork hospital.  Sarah came with us.  Spencer didn't seem nervous about getting this done and I thought maybe, just maybe, he has overcome his fear of needles. When he got called back I asked him if he wanted me to come.  I am used to accompanying my children for medical procedures, but he is 15 now and I was told that I was not allowed to watch him audition for musical theater because it is "unprofessional", so I thought I better ask what the protocol was for blood draws. Apparently, moms are still allowed to watch needles being inserted into blood veins because he said he didn't care.  So Sarah and I followed him in.  He bravely sat down in the designated chair.  Not wanting to hover, Sarah and I sat down on a couch just across from him.  He correctly stated his name and birthdate when asked then looked up at the ceiling when the needle got pulled out.  He didn't flinch or squirm; I was very proud.  He didn't even turn pale or look faint; he was a cool as a cucumber... until we got to the car. Then he let it all out.  He squirmed in his seat and shared the gory details of how it feels to have a needle jammed into your vein and having your blood drain out.  He could see a drop of blood seeping into the cotton ball that was placed over the site...oh no more lost blood! He wasn't sure how he was going to have enough strength to lift his dance partner at practice the next day.  Worst of all he made the mistake of looking at Sarah as well as the ceiling during the ordeal.  She was clinging to my arm with a terrified look on her face. How were they both going to recover?

Luckily we didn't need to get him a barf bag, or recline his seat this time.  We did reminisce about the first time he had to have blood drawn.  We both chuckled, ok I chuckled and he was grateful that we didn't have a repeat of that day.  He was nine-ish when we took him to see a psychiatrist.  She ordered a battery of tests to make sure that his behavioral issues didn't have a biological connection.  After he had his blood drawn and we quickly ran to the bathroom where he promptly vomited.  He was vary pale and wanted to lie down on the hospital bathroom floor--I don't think so! You know the cord that is in hospital bathrooms that you can pull if you need help, well, they don't actually get you any help.  I pulled it while trying to convince him to remain upright.  I stuck my head out and asked if there was a place for him to lie down.  A kind nurse escorted us to a bed and explained what happens to our bodies when we get nervous.  I stood to the side stifling a giggle and he lay there trying to remain conscious.  After a few minutes we both gained our composure and were able to walk to the car.

We are making progress and memories!

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Yesterday we had a "Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad" morning that ended with a Christlike Kindness

Last Saturday morning SHOULD have been an ordinary Saturday morning.  The children have "Saturday chores" that they are required to do before they move on with their day.  There are a few exceptions.  This morning Spencer had an exception because his scout troop led by Destry went on a rock climbing expedition.  It was a gorgeous day!  They had a great time thanks to Destry's former missionary companion and friend, Dallin Ward, who shared his talents and expertise with the group.  Spencer was the star as I was told.   For those of us who stayed behind, it should have been chore time after they left.  They were all playing together nicely for a while and I just let them.  It is fun to see them getting along and playing well.  At around 10:00 I reminded them  to get get started because Emma had her first basketball game of the season and Estelle had a birthday party that both started at 1:00.  That should have been no problem. ...

Responsibilities of the Oldest and Youngest

I began this 9/25/15. I am going to publish it as is. I am sure I had a story for each about each of my children, but I only made it to two. My heart is full of love and joy for the blessing my children are to me. Each one of them are working through their own set of challenges and are blossoming. I came home from work yesterday to find that Spencer had fixed the car. On his own. It was making a weird noise before he left school and he and a friend checked it out and determined that it was an easy fix and that he could drive home with it the way it was, but it should not be driven more than that until it was repaired. He went to the auto parts store and purchased the part and fixed it. Just like that. Wow! How awesome that he is developing the skills and taking the initiative to be responsible for the maintenance of the car he gets to drive. Notice I didn't say "his" car even though he likes to think of it as that. I was so impressed and proud of him for doing that...

Dancing into My Heart

My girl, Estelle, has become quite the dancer this past year. She decided to stop taking tumbling and move on to dance classes. This was inspired, in part, by watching the Westlake Dance Company perform at the high school where Spencer was taking some dance classes. She progressed quickly in her tumbling class and is flexible and graceful.  We were too late for her to audition for a team, but I found a studio that would let her compete on their beginning teen team. She enjoyed it, but her skills and her motivation surpassed most of the other members of the team. She learned a contemporary solo dance from a neighbor, Sara Fike. It was a beautiful dance and Estelle placed at every competition, taking second twice and first once. She was told by at least one judge at every competition that she should move up to a different level. Since this was her first year dancing she competed with the beginners. Her tumbling skills definitely helped her. She also learned skills by watching YouTu...