Baumgarten Family Blog

I got plugs today in the lower tear ducts of both of my eyes. I must say that the dryness has improved but not to the point that I can drive or look at a computer screen for too long. The doctor said that it may take a few days for the dryness to clear up. In the meantime, I am using lots of drops.

On a side note, not only can Nolan spell his name but he can also write it! We are very proud, too bad he is still wetting his pants on occasion.

Nolan got some roller skates as a birthday present and after showing no interest in them, now we can't get him to take them off. When he's not skating around the house, he's watching tv with the skates on. He wanted to sleep in them but we had to draw the line somewhere!

My minor heatlh issues are now very frustrating. When the graft v. host disease affected my face, it also bothered my eyes. So for the past month or so, I have been using Restasis so my eyes weren't so dry. This past Wednesday night, I complained to Steve that my eyes were really dry and bothering me by Thursday morning my eyes were burning and my vision was blurry. Friday, I was able to get into an eye doctor who said that my eyes were extremely dry and gave me a whole bunch of drops. I was hoping that by today things would have improved enough with the drops but they have not. I have an appointment to go back to the eye doctor tomorrow, one thing we will discuss is putting plugs put in my tear ducts to allow my natural moisture to stay in my eyes. Needless to say, I was told to not drive or work because since I can't see the road or a couper screen clearly enough. In fact, I can barely see what I am typing right now so if there are typo's, sorry.

So, I will update tomorrow as to the what is said at the eye doctor.

Today is my immune systems 11 month birthday. It's crazy to believe that it has been almost a year since my transplant. I went to the doctor on Thursday and she wasn't too happy about the nose piercing and tattoo (yep Mom, I got another tattoo) but there wasn't much that she could do or say after the fact and she did give me permission.

My blood work looks great and my liver functions are becoming more normal and my iron stores are coming down. My only big complaint is the exjade that I take for the excess iron has less than glamourous side effects (gas, bloating and sour stomach) but it should only be temporary medication. My skin is improving but you all know me, it's not fast enough!!

We had a busy weekend with a pool party on Saturday and then Father's Day on Sunday. I would say that things have slowed down during the week but we have life to live.

It's not a party without a Slip n Slide.

Nolan proving that the middle name "David" was a perfect fit.

Today is my mom's birthday. So, Happy Birthday, Nana! My parents are somewhere in Northern Canada. I guess as a way to get a gift, my Dad went panning for gold, he came back empty handed. So like most years, she didn't get anything for her birthday :(

We had a busy Saturday. We had soccer and swim lessions this morning then we went to a birthday party. The party was at Skateland and Nolan was very excited about skating. He wasn't very good at it but for his first time, he didn't give up. I couldn't tell you the last time I was on skates but I must say, I wasn't too bad!

Roller Derby

Our summer is already in full swing. Nolan started swim and sports lessons at the Y on Saturday. He really liked the soccer lesson but wasn't too sure about the swim. He likes the water but was afraid of being on his back or putting his face in the water. Steve was able to work with him on Sunday at home in the pool and we got him to lay on his back and jump in. It's just going to take practice.

On Sunday, I volunteered at a Bone Marrow Donor drive. I bet you can only guess who the monkey is.

Nolan had no idea that I was "Molly" the Bone Marrow monkey and when he saw me out of costume, he was so excited to tell me about her.