Category Archives: Personal

Letter To My Son – Adam – 6 Months Old

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Dear Adam

My goodness, 6 months already?  Mummy is amazed at how fast it has flown by.

And you are developing like crazy.  You can sit up from leaning back against Mummy and do a sort of tummy crunch motion for lying flat on your back: –

And you can sit up if someone puts you into position:

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You have shown no new interest in rolling over, however.  You keep looking at me, when I place you on your tummy, and it seems you are saying ‘Look, I’ve done that already.  Can we move on now?’

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You’ve started sitting in your high chair and joining Daddy and I for dinner.

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Mummy even started you on solid food this past week!

But the very best thing? Is you’ve slept straight through until 7 for 3 days in a row now!  Of course, that will probably change. And change again.  And again….

Next week, on the 16th, is your MRI.  Mummy and Daddy are a little worried, since they have to put you under a general anaesthesia so you’ll be very still during it.  But Mummy is sure you’ll be fine.  Really.

Then just  few days later we get on an airplane!

First we will be in London with your Aunt, Uncle and baby Cousin.

Then we get on another airplane and off we go to California for 10 whole days!  Mummy is so excited!  And Aunt B told me she cannot wait to get her hands on you!!!  Mummy and Daddy hope they’ll be allowed to bring you home. 🙂

Oh and Daddy and I both swear you’ve said ‘Hi!’

But we’re probably delusional.

Love

Mummy

Now Let’s Talk About The Copenhagen Summit, Shall We?

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Let me start this particular blog post by acknowledging two things: –

Thing 1 – Simon  and I do not recycle.  This is because until about a year ago recycling was not made available to the apartment dwellers at Belfast City Centre.  Then, once it was, we discovered that our buildings recycling room was locked from about 430pm to 9am Monday through Friday and 24 hours on the weekends.  In other words, it was only open when we were at work.  So we had no where to put our recycling.  Now that I don’t work, I suppose we could start.

Thing 2 – Adam wears disposable diapers.  Because they are easier for me.  And I already do enough washing, thank you very much.

Those two things being said, I would suspect that Simon and I have a fairly low carbon footprint anyway.  We don’t own a car.  We go everywhere either on foot or on the bus with the occasional taxi ride.  We rarely fly any where (yes, we are going to California for Christmas, but our last trip on a plane before that was to Tuscany for Simon’s sister’s wedding in September 2008 and the one before that was Florida 2.5 years ago.  So maybe we fly once a year? Maybe?).  We are both obsessive about turning off lights, not leaving the TV on standby etc.  Our biggest electrical expense, we imagine, is the washer/dryer which is on nearly every day thanks to baby vomit etc and our dishwasher.  We have lived without, and will probably again live without, a dishwasher.  But we are enjoying it while we have it!

Now that that’s out of the way…

I have some serious doubts about what we are being told about climate change.  Yes, I’ve read both sides of the story.  I’ve seen the charts that show the average rise in temperature over the past 100 years or so.  And about the melting of the Polar Ice Cap.  I am still not sure I believe it.

Why? Because I have been told many many things over the past 40 years by so called experts about our planet that haven’t come true.  I remember being told in elementary school that by the time I was out of school there would be one long city stretching from New York to Florida.  Where is it?

I was told in high school, by my father, who worked for Kennecott Copper Corporation (who were purchased by SOHIO in the early 80s which was in turn bought by BP in the late 80s) that we would run out of copper by the beginning of this century.  I still see an awful lot of copper top batteries about.  And copper wire.

I was told, also in elementary school, that we would run out of fossil fuel just about right. Now.  Funny, still seems to be flowing.

So how on earth is anyone truly suppose to believe that the world might be in real trouble in another 40 years?  Especially with the language that is used.  Might. Possibly.  Could.

Nothing is definite.  It can’t be.  There are too many variables.

And what about this summit that is starting?

Well, first of all, why isn’t it being done via teleconference and over the web?  I read recently that the carbon footprint of the conference? Is equal to the amount of carbon being put into the air by Luxembourg over a year.  So they are off to a great start, aren’t they?

I am not precisely sure what they are hoping to get out of the summit, although I have heard that it is a do or die sort of situation.  That all the governments must come to an agreement about carbon emissions or the world will end in, maybe, 40 years. Yeah.  That’s gonna happen.  Cuz all the G8 Summits have been such big successes (really really need a sarcastic font!).

And, honestly, the planet is going to be fine.  The human race may die out, but maybe we deserve that.  But the planet will recover.  Its been around a very long time.  And will be here long after we’re all gone.

Maybe that’s a weird attitude for me to have.  If it all happens in the 40 years they predict I will probably, based on my genetics, still be alive.  And my son will be 40.  So why am I so blaise about it?

The same reason a lot of people are.  Because even 40 years is a very long way away.  Its the entire time I’ve been alive.  My whole life.  To me? That’s a very long time.

So until they (ah the infamous they!) can give me, and many others, a definite answer that something horrid is going to happen in 40 years if we don’t change our ways, we aren’t going to change our ways.

Sorry.

Personally, what I really hope? Is that this mythical occurrence in 40 years will give mankind the push it needs to truly reach for the stars and colonize other worlds.  Even if I don’t get to go.

So, Let’s Talk About Health Care…

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Most of you may not know, but I used to work for Kaiser Permanente in California.  To be specific, I worked for KP-IT, which is exactly what it sounds like KP’s information technology division.

In fact, I just found out that the project I was assigned to, which was called something like NIS (National Insurance System), has finally gone live.  When I left KP in 2003 to move to the UK (well, actually, when I was made redundant, but I digress) the project was about 5 years overdue and about $1m over budget.  It was (and apparently finally is) a system to allow KP’s clients to access their health information online.  It was 99% ready to go when HIPAA was passed and we pretty much had to go back to the drawing board.

Anyway, I only mention this so that you, my lovely readers, realize that I have quite a bit of experience with US healthcare, at least HMOs and of course with the UK system.

Let’s also straighten that out real quick.  I don’t live in Ireland.  I live in Northern Ireland.  They are, in fact, two different countries.  Northern Ireland is part of the UK, and hence part of the NHS.  The Republic of Ireland is its own country and I know nothing about its health care system. Although I hear its about in great of shape as the US’.

Let me also state here that the NHS is a huge organization serving millions of people.  And that I already know that my experiences here in NI can be very different from the services in England.  Each ‘trust’ or area can and does have their own criteria etc.  But for the record? For the most part? The NHS does an amazing job.  For not one penny out of pocket for its users.

Yes, of course, we pay for it through our taxes.  But we don’t miss that money.  You can’t miss what you never had.  It is taken out before the pay goes into our account.  All it really is, is a number on a pay slip.

And because of that number on that pay slip I never have to think ‘OMG Adam is sick, where am I going to get the money to take him to the doctor.’  Or, in our very real case, ‘OMG Adam needs an MRI.  I hope our insurance covers it.’  Because our insurance does cover it.

Yes, we had to wait 3 months for that MRI.  But that’s, really, for a very good reason.  Because there are other people more ill than Adam who need the MRI machine first.  The Lump doesn’t affect Adam at all.  As far as he’s concerned its always been there.  Its grown with him just like his arms and legs have grown with him.  The Lump has stopped growing, which is a bit of a relief for Simon and me, but for Adam? He couldn’t care less.  He rolls onto his left side as easily onto his right.

However, if it was affecting him?  If he had needed to be seen right away? He would have been, of this I have every confidence.  Why? Because when I dropped him and he hit his head? We were seen by a doctor within about 30 minutes.

Not that we haven’t waited ages in A&E.  About 2 years ago Simon cut his finger very badly on a broken coffee mug.  We waited most of the night in A&E that time.  Because, again, there were more urgent cases in front of us.

But what about day to day, non-urgent or usual care?  Well, if I call my doctor on Monday? And I say its fairly urgent? I can usually see one of the GPs by Tuesday.  If I say its very urgent, such as when I had a cyst on my shoulder that got infected and then burst? I was seen within 2 hours.  Just the other week when Adam was exhibiting signs of an ear infection and had a croupy cough, I got him in to see one of the GPs within 2 hours of my call.

Now, it wasn’t his official GP.  But that’s okay, because part of the reason Simon and I are with this GP practice is because we both like all three of the GPs in it.  And Adam is with the same practice.  He doesn’t have a paediatrician he has a GP.

If he needed a paediatrician, like when he broke his skull and his rib, he had one.  And she was lovely as well.

Also, let’s keep in mind that my pregnancy was classed as high risk from the moment that little stick said pregnant, because of my diabetes.  And I had my first OB/Endo appointment about 3 weeks after my GP sent the referral letter.  And, again, paid not one penny out of pocket.

So, yes, you hear bad things about the NHS.  About dirty hospitals and overworked staff without enough resources.  But I haven’t experienced that here in NI.

But I would have to say, in my very humble opinion, it is better than what goes on in the US.  Where it would appear that health care, decent or otherwise, is a privilege and not a right.  Where if you aren’t rich, or don’t have health insurance, as so many don’t, you can’t afford to get sick.  Its disgusting. And heart wrenching.

If I did live in the States I would be happy to have my taxes raised so that those without coverage could get it.  Because there were times when I barely had coverage.  Where I paid outrageous premiums through COBRA or private insurance just to make sure I was covered if something horrible happened to me.  Where I didn’t go to see a doctor for about 2 years just for a check up because I didn’t want to have to pay the money for it.

Yes, people abuse benefits systems.  People abuse it here in the UK as well.  But at least here in the UK we all know, all of us are entitled to the same level of health care as everyone else.  Yes, there is private health care if you want to pay for it.  But you don’t have to have it.  And I don’t.

As an aside, do you know  how KP got started?  The organization that is now Kaiser Permanente began at the height of the Great Depression with a single inventive young surgeon and a 12-bed hospital in the middle of the Mojave Desert. When Sidney Garfield, MD, looked at the thousands of men involved in building the Los Angeles Aqueduct, he saw an opportunity. He borrowed money to build Contractors General Hospital; six miles from a tiny town called Desert Center, and began treating sick and injured workers. But financing was difficult, and Dr. Garfield was having trouble getting the insurance companies to pay his bills in a timely fashion. To compound matters, not all of the men had insurance. Dr. Garfield refused to turn away any sick or injured worker, so he often was left with no payment at all for his services. In no time, the hospital’s expenses were far exceeding its income.

Read the rest of the story.  Its the beginning of the pre-payment and co-payment insurance system.

Too bad the system is now so very broken.

Just A Quick Post

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to say Happy December!

Its been a very busy week and Simon was out of town in England for overnight so I was alone with Adam for about 36 hours and how the hell do single parents do that all.the.time?!

So I’m exhausted and looking forward to the weekend.

But coming up in the next week or so:

Adam’s 6 month newsletter!

Some thoughts on the climate change summit in Copenhagen next week.

An answer to Jane’s question about health care in NI!

So watch this space!!

Changes

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So obviously, my life has changed since having Adam.  I’ve mentioned this before.

But I have been thinking about physical changes lately.

Some of them are small, like the fact that my hands seem to get waterlogged a lot quicker these days.  One round of washing  up and my palms are all wrinkled.  I used to soak in the bathtub for hours and barely be wrinkled.

Or the fact that I get hangnails, which I never used to get.  I think that’s because I use that alcohol rub stuff after nappy changes, since there is no sink in his room.  Could be the reason for the wrinkly hands too, I guess.

Of course, some of them are big.  I have a very long scar just above my pubic bone, for example.  But I like that scar.  It brought my son into the world.

My hips hurt more than they used to.  Also due to my son.

Of course, all of these things are due to my son.

And I revel in every one of them.

Its a Sham! A Sham with Yams!! A Yam Sham!

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You will only get that title if you are a Buffy fan.

Happy Thanksgiving.

And to anyone worrying, like my mother, that I won’t have a turkey today since I couldn’t get one at Sainsbury’s on Tuesday?  I’ll get one today at Marks & Spencer.

In other news, as Adam was eating his first bottle of the day (slept until 6!!!) I explained Thanksgiving to him.

I am not sure he got all the nuances.

Adam and Mummy’s Next Big Adventure!

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So today I put Adam into his Bjorn, grabbed my sholley and my shopping bags and headed for the big Sainsbury’s.  Its a huge supermarket about 15 minutes away by bus.  Well, if you catch the right bus.  If you catch the wrong bus you go all the way through East Belfast and it takes more like 1/2 an hour.  I managed to catch the right bus both coming and going.

The only entertaining thing about our adventure was the little old ladies who kept looking at him in his Bjorn sort of like this:

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Slings and Bjorns are not very common in Belfast.

It was fun.  And Adam was facing out so I could see his little head going back in forth looking at all the bright lights and pretty packages.

So we did the shopping for the next 4 days.

Including Thanksgiving dinner.  Well, except for the turkey.  Apparently they only have turkey joints of any kind around Christmas.

But don’t they know I’m an American and need my Thanksgiving turkey?!?! 🙂

Although Adam is Feeling Much Better

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I decided I didn’t have enough spoons for the supermarket today.  So today we stayed home.  We played, he napped, I cleaned a bathroom, we played some more.

Let me say that again…he napped.  As in was put in his cot and stayed in his cot.  For a whole half an hour this morning and so far a whole hour this afternoon.  Its a miracle.

Granted, he fell asleep in my arms first, but one step at a time, okay?  The fact is that he is not only napping, which he fights like he’s going to miss something vitally important, but napping somewhere other than my arms or his pram.  He’s in his room.  With the door closed.  In his cot.

Well, the baby monitor just flickered (it has a visual indicator of noise along with being able to hear), so he might be waking up.  But he slept.  For a whole hour.  In his room.  With the door closed.  In his cot.

And there’s only been that one flicker.  So he could have just been breathing hard.  So he’s still asleep.  In his room.

Nope, awake!  But a whole hour! In his room! In his cot!!

Get The Baby Book Out – Adam’s First Ear Infection!

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So he has been coughing for a few days.  And then on Thursday I noticed he was batting at his ear.  So off to the GP on Friday morning.

Yup, slight ear infection, but much more concerned about the dry croupy cough.  So he has Amoxocillian.  Which smells vile and, I imagine, tastes worse based on his reaction.

I also set a new ‘mummy must change her clothes record’ on Friday.  You see, if he just does a bit of spit or saliva on my shoulder, I don’t bother to change.  But on Friday we had: –

  1. A pooh that went all the way up his back and when I was twisting him to get it all, rubbed it onto my shirt.  New shirt.
  2. A major spit up.  Not really a vomit, but enough that I felt damp. New shirt.
  3. Another major spit up. New shirt.
  4. Vomit.  Major major vomit.  Like a whole bottles worth. On me, himself, the sofa and the floor. Gave up on shirts, put on my PJs.
  5. Major major vomit 2.  New PJs.

Simon was home for that last one.  He kindly got me a towel. 🙂

He’s been much better today, all smiles and not batting at his ear as much, so I do believe he is feeling better.

And now, my most recommended baby accoutrement:  The Eezimed Baby Syringe.

Another Day, Another Trip to Children’s Hospital…

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So when Adam had his 4 month appointment and his jabs, the health visitor flagged up that she thought he might have Developmental Dysplasia of the Hip – DDH.

From the GP’s reaction when she checked him, I could tell she didn’t agree, but since the HV had said so, she had to write the referral letter.  She also told me it was not at all urgent and when I suggested we wait until he had to be at Children’s Hospital anyway for his Paediatric Surgery consult for his lump, she said that was a fine idea.

Well that appointment was Monday.

So our gallant heroes, Mummy, Daddy and Adam, got a taxi about 930.  The surgical appointment wasn’t until 2pm, but since last time he needed XRays it took 4 hours we figured we’d do that, have lunch at the hospital and then go to his appointment and come home.

It was absolutely bucketing down out.  And, since it never rains in Belfast (someone really needs to come up with a sarcasm font, BTW), traffic was one big snarl.  It took us about 20 minutes to do a trip that normally takes about 5 minutes.  6 if you don’t hit the lights right.

We arrived at A&E and I handed over the GP’s letter.  The very nice receptionist said she didn’t think we needed triage, checked with the triage nurse who agreed, and sent us straight up to XRay.  We checked in there and sat down to wait.  There were about 5 children there with their parents, so we figured it would be a long wait.

10 minutes later we are called.  They weren’t doing an XRay, they were doing an ultrasound.  They do the ultrasound and sent us on our way.  It was about 11 so we headed home!

Got home, had lunch, fed the boy.  Headed back to the hospital at 130, since it was still bucketing down and we figured it would take another 20 minutes to get across town.  Of course this time it took 5 and we were early for our appointment.

Actually saw the consultant at exactly 2pm.  Turned out 2pm is his first appointment in the afternoon.  Lucky us!

He felt The Lump, listened to it with his stethoscope (which no one had ever done before) and agreed that there was nothing he could tell us until after the MRI.  Simon did ask what next steps might be, but the consultant really didn’t want to say until he saw the MRI.

I confirmed with him that there should be no problem taking Adam to the States for Christmas just a few days after the MRI and he couldn’t think of any reason why there would be.  Even with his MRI appointment being at 2pm, he shouldn’t need to stay overnight.  He said he’d see us in 2 months and sent us on our way.

So, once again, we wait.  MRI on 16th December.  Next surgical consult on 18th January.  And then we find out what, if anything, they are going to do about this lump on our son’s side.

In other news, wow 2 new commentors!

To answer Lisa’s question, I have no idea if my hit count includes the RSS feed.  I forget I have an RSS feed, since I never use them myself.  I will have to ask tech support, AKA my brother.

Keep commenting, people! I promise to keep writing! 🙂