Benscoter Family: November 2014

On November 1st Grandma, Grandpa, and I took the kids to trick or treating at the church. The kids had fun at the potluck dinner and getting even more candy. After that, we had several low-key days of preschool, work, and therapy appointments until November 10th.

On that night, Sophia was running around in our house with her friend Jay when she slipped on an area rug and hit her head on the threshold to the front door. I heard her crying hysterically with blood all over her forehead. With Patrice's help, I was able to control the bleeding and get the kids packed up into the car. We drove to the local ER and Sophia was seen quickly. I was also very lucky because Jessica, the kids' favorite babysitter, and her husband met us at the ER to take Tyler home and get him bathed and tucked into bed. In the meantime, Sophia was strapped to a board (which she thought was hysterical) while they cleaned the wound above her right eye, injected lidocaine, and placed 5 stitches. She was not thrilled about the needle or stitches but the whole process only lasted about 5 minutes.

Sophia had her first school pictures at preschool on November 12th. She looked adorable and it will be fun to tell her about why she was wearing a band-aid over her eyebrow that day :)

Tyler and I went to CHOP for check-ups with his Hematology and GI doctors on November 13th. Tyler continues to be very stable on Coumadin since he began taking it in September of 2013. Because he has been on the medicine so long, we are now eligible to get a home monitoring machine. This means that I can do a quick finger prick (much like a glucose monitor for diabetics) to check the thickness of this blood instead of taking him to the lab on base to get his blood drawn in his arm every 1-2 weeks. His GI appointment was relatively uneventful. His G-tube has been functioning well for him and he has no real "plumbing" issues. He is barely on the growth chart for both height and weight so we did get an order from the doctor for a higher calorie formula. We hope this will help him get bigger and stronger than ever! We will go back to CHOP in May for check-ups for both specialists.

On November 16th we celebrated Jay's 3rd and Sophia's 4th birthdays at a joint Daniel Tiger themed birthday party at a local indoor playground called My Little Adventures. The kids had a bunch of fun and it was a great venue for such a chilly day.

Sophia had her stitches removed at the base clinic on November 17th. As we were driving to the clinic, I was explaining to the kids what was going to take place. This is how part of the conversation went.

Me: We are going to get your stitches removed, Sophia. Don't worry, it will be quick.

Tyler: I want Jessica to be at ah (the) door. *Jessica came to the door of the ER room when Sophia got her stitches in*

Me: She cant come today, buddy. She's at school.

Sophia: She goes to school?

Me: Yes, she is a student, just like you!

Sophia: Does she sit on a carpet square?

As we walked into the clinic, Sophia impressed me with her memory by saying, "I want Terry to take out my stitches". Terry was the physician assistant that put in her stitches. Anyway- the stitches came our quickly and easily so we were all thankful.

On November 24th Sophia, Tyler, and I flew to Atlanta for Thanksgiving week. Papa met us at the airport and the kids were great on the trip. On November 25th, Nana and Papa played with the kids while I ran errands and met up with Rebekah for pedicures. After that, we drove to Ashley's house for an Auburn roommate reunion dinner. I love getting together with those girls...we always have so much fun catching up! On November 26th, Julie, David, and our awesome Air Force friend Brad arrived! That evening we celebrated Sophia and Nana's birthdays after dinner. Thanksgiving day was on November 27th. Of course we spent the day eating, relaxing, and watching football...the best kind of way to spend the day :) On November 28th we celebrated Christmas with everyone. The kids were spoiled with lots of fun toys which kept them entertained all day. During the kids' nap time, Melissa, David, Brad, and I went to Movie Tavern to have snacks and drinks while we watched Mockingjay. We all had an amazing time and the movie was so good!

The kids and I flew home on November 29th. When we landed in Philadelphia, my parents were there to pick us up. Benjamin was waiting for us at our house when we got home. It was so awesome to see them all as soon as we got back!

That pretty much sums up our month! I will end this post with a couple of my favorite quotes from the kids-

(As we are in the car and I'm flipping radio stations)

"What are you doing, Mommy? I like that song!"--Sophia

(Talking to his five month old friend Luc Grimes)

"Do you like my Auburn shirt, baby Luc?--Tyler