Moving along

Moving along
No big updates to share, just the usual (which is oh so very much welcomed!!!).

Annabelle is pretty tired but we're using it to our advantage. She's too exhausted to put up much of a fight about most things, and I enjoy it.
Me: "Annabelle, mommy is sleepy, do you want to come cuddle with me?"
Belle: "No - I want to go play with my puzzles..."
goes to play with puzzles.
...3 minutes later.
Belle: "Mommy, can I cuddle with you? I want to watch Mickey Mouse"
voila!

While she isn't doing back handsprings around the house anymore, she is still full of her silly self and conversations. She loves singing lately and makes up new songs everyday. She loves Katy Perry Firework & Roar. I bought her a new 101 Dalmatian puppy and it's apparently the best thing since buying her Lambie. She's obsessed with the water, any way she can get it. She loves going swimming and is completely fearless. She loves bathtime, washing her hands, playing with the water hose, or just sitting outside splashing in a bowl of water. She loves water. She also loves giving out kisses and hugs lately. When she is wild and on baby roid-rage, the hugs are few and far between.. but when she is sleepy and worn out like right now, she becomes quite cuddly and reminds you multiple times x day how much she loves you.

She doesn't stop talking. Ever. She's learned to communicate and her speech is absolutely EXPLODING. She tells you stories, counts on her fingers the things she has to say, sings, chants, marches to a beat and hums. She loves to talk. . . . . too darn much.

AK and I left town this past weekend, and on the first day of my mom watching our girls, Annabelle decided to make that the time to begin the weekend of heart attacks for nenaw. (grandma). Mom called me worried, "She hasn't eaten anything. She's had all of her medications and isn't touching anything. I drove her a few minutes down the road in YOUR car and her carseat. She never got out the car and all I did was put some tomatoes in the back. I turned around and she's covered in hives on her face, arms, chest, legs etc. What is this from?!"
It became the problem solving that never revealed itself. We have no clue what initiated her immune system to set off. It could be absolutely anything - it could be something airborne, something she touched, ate or smelled, or could also be stress. Yes, stress itself can do the exact same harm and damage as her eating a handful of peanuts. That's the hell of having an auto-immune disorder. Anything can set it off, and it's root cause may never be determined.


 We have no idea what happened Saturday morning. She was dosed with the safest form of benedryl (bc the standard store-bought kind is unsafe for Belle), took a nap and woke without hives. The rest of the weekend was less eventful and at 1am Tuesday morning, our flight landed and we were finally able to see our little girls for the first time in 4 days - the longest we've EVER gone without seeing our girls!

Belle was so happy to see us in the morning, and we were so heartbroken to have to give her kisses and immediately say goodbye as we headed to work. The week has been well - AK and I are dragging from all the travel, but the girls are good. Annabelle is dragging as much as we are so for that, I am actually counting our luck.

Next week will be another eventful week, we have more tests and labs to perform. Hopefully we will have made contact with a specialist to see Belle by then and get some of the work started that needs to begin to get her there. Traveling out of state and insurance coverages are not an easy task to accomplish - they're a nightmare that feels as if the system is built AGAINST traveling to seek better medical care. It will be fun, Im certain.