A few days ago Rick and myself were approached by our boss and asked if we would like to stay in Minnesota another three months, bringing our total stay out here to 9 months and 6 months respectively. As of this time neither one of us have fully made up our minds as to if we are going to sign on for another 3 months or not, as no formal offer has been made nor have we decided what it would take for us to stay. I myself have stated that i would have to talk with people back in Michigan, and that first and foremost I would have to make sure that everything was taken care of for my daughter. In approximately my boss’ boss will be coming out to Eagan from Ireland and one of his many meetings will be with Rick and myself to discuss this opportunity. While I know that this is a continuation of a great opportunity, I will have to see what offer gets put on the table because one thing I know for certain…I miss my daughter.
Monthly Archives: October 2006
More ear trouble
Tiffany called me while I was at work today to tell me that Kylie had a very rough night sleeping and that she was not interested in anything this morning other than being held. She barely ate, had not interest in her toys, and even had no interest in the phone, even after she heard my voice. She said that the thermometer did not show that Kylie was running a temperature but she thought Kylie felt warm. So after Kylie took her nap they took a trip to the doctor. It turns out that when they got in to see the doctor Kylie did have a temperature of 101.6. After doing a checkup it turns out that Kylie has a mild ear infection in her right ear and a sever infection in her left ear. The doctor proscribed a concentrated dose of amoxicillin that she will need to take 1 tsp twice a day. Other than that the doctor says that Kylie is doing just fine and is still very happy with her growth, she is now 23 pounds 1 ounce, and all the things she can accomplish already.
Time to go back
They say all good things must come to an end, and today it did. This weekend went by way to fast for me, and now I have to wait another month before I can see and hold my daughter again.
The day was nice, but the time went by all to fast. I spent the day with Kylie and Tiffany again, trying to spend as much time with Kylie as possible, cherishing every second I got to hold her. We spent the morning playing and laughing and having as much fun as we could. Aunt Sissy came over to Mommy’s apartment and then we all decided to get some dinner at Texas Roadhouse. This would allow us to already be downriver and near the airport, so I could spend more time with Kylie and then they would all come with me to drop off my rental and then bring me to the airport. The last few hours went by faster than I thought they could, the speed in which they did go by was only heightened by the fact that we were allowed to board my plane at the time it was supposed to be tacking off, because it took them that long to turn clean the plain and prepare it for our departure.
The flight itself was not that bad, except that once again the plain was packed and this time I had a middle seat. One thing I did realize on the plain though was that I want an iPod. I will have to save up and try to get one before my next flight, because an hour and a half flight, plus time on the tarmac is extreamly boring when you have nothing to do. In any event I am now back in Minnesota, and the drive from the airport to my apartment was a lot easier than the drive from work to the airport. Now I just have to wait for the next month.
Nice calm day
Today was a nice calm day spent over at Tiffany’s so I could spend time with Kylie. Her and I played all day, read her Hop on Pop book, and even watched some Choo-Choo Soul (which Kylie loves) on the Playhouse Disney website. When the ABC song comes she screams with excitement and runs over to the computer, and then she will dance along and laugh, it is the cutest thing ever. We ordered pizza for dinner and after we all ate I started Kylie a bath and Mommy was kind enough to finish it up, unfortunately being bent over the tub is one of those things that my back can’t take to long of since my injury. After bath time it was time to get ready for bed and I was able to read Kylie her bed time story, Goodnight Moon, and rocked her to sleep in my arms before I put her into her crib. Though I am very happy that I was able to spend the day with Kylie, I am sad that tonight will be the last time I get to tuck her into bed for at least another month. I am sure the time will go by fast though, and besides I still have tomorrow with her too.
Zoo boo
Today was the first day in over a month that I got to see my daughter, and I can not even explain how good it felt to see her and hold her again. I woke this morning and went over to Kylie and Tiffany’s house to see her. When I walked in Kylie ran up to me and smiled and then ran away, she did this twice which gave me time to take off my coat and put my camera down, and then on the third time she ran up to me with her arms up and a big small on her face and said “up up”, and I was only to happy to oblige my little girl! I picked her up and gave her a hug and she put her arms around me and her head on my shoulder and we walked around holding each other (and Daddy crying slightly) for almost 30 minutes, and then when I tried to sit down on the couch with her she decided she could go get some toys. We spent the majority of the morning playing and then she sat in my lap to have her morning snack, after that she went and got her favorite book, Dr. Seuss‘s Hop on Pop, and climbed into my lap and had me read it to her, after that she went down for a little nap. We then spent the majority of the afternoon running around a car dealership because Mommy was seeing about possible getting a new car. The evening, however, was spent at the Detroit Zoo with Mommy, Erica, Taylor, and I all walking through the Zoo Boo (article). Many pictures were taken today, most of which are of Kylie and Taylor in their Halloween costumes. I will get all those and other pictures that I got from Tiffany, prepared and up on the website as soon as possible. Now I need to go look into that pile of mail that has collected over the past month and get ready for tomorrow, and more time with Kylie!
It’s good to be home
After a very stressful day, I am finally back in Michigan for the weekend. This is my first time back since leaving for Minnesota, and I am very much looking forward to seeing Kylie. My day started off pretty well and I was very happy that I would be coming home, I left work a little early to make sure that I would make it to the airport on time, so my day at work seemed to go by quickly. I had gotten directions from work to the airport from mapquest and they said that the drive should only take about 15 minutes, an hour later I had finally made it to the airport. Lets just say the highway signs out in Minnesota suck, my directions told me to get off on 55 but failed to mention that I shouldn’t take the exit for 55 because the road I was on turned into it, even though there was an exit as well. I have to admit that I was really afraid I was going to miss my plane, but thankfully checking in my luggage and going through security was a lot faster than I had anticipated. The flight itself was packed but thankfully short, only an hour and ten minutes once we took off. Getting my rental car once I got into Detroit was nice and simple and relatively quick, as was the drive from the airport to my apartment. In addition to spending as time as I possibly can with Kylie, I have a months worth of mail to go through and various other things to do, I am sure this weekend is going to go by way to fast.
Mall of America
So today I finally adventured out to the Mall of America, which is only about 20 minutes away, and I have to say I am really not impressed. The mall itself consists of 3 floors that circle around a small amusement park in the center. I only walked around the third floor and half of the second, but I feel like there was a lot of store repetition, either of the exact store or the same type of store. For instance I think I saw 2 or 3 Lids in half of the store. I took a few pictures with my phone while I was at the mall, mainly of the amusement park so everyone could see it. I am planning on going back one of these days to see the rest of the mall, if for no other reason then to say I saw the entire thing. All in all though it is just another mall, rather large, but still just a mall.
New Pictures
I finally got around to adding some new pictures up in the gallery. Nothing of Kylie unfortunetly, but being 600 miles away from her has had a negative impact on the amount of pictures I can take of her. I have added some new cemetery pictures, and pictures of my truck. A while ago I also added pictures from up north, but I think I forgot to mention it. I still have more pictures to add, mainly of things out here in MN, they will go in as soon as I have some more time. Until then feel free to look through whats already here.
Coxsackie virus
Kylie went to the doctor today because Tiffany noticed that she had little bumps that looked kind of like pimples on her hands, bottoms of her feet, around her mouth, and her diaper area. By the time they got to the doctors she had them going up her legs as well, and during the examination the doctor stated that she also had some on the back of her throat. As it turns out Kylie has the Coxsackie Virus, more accurately she has hand, foot, and mouth disease, which is a type of Coxsackie virus syndrome. According to the CDC (see the previous link), HFMD is usually not serious and “occurs mainly in children under 10 years old.”
Infants, children, and adolescents are more likely to be susceptible to infection and illness from these viruses, because they are less likely than adults to have antibodies and be immune from previous exposures to them. Infection results in immunity to the specific virus, but a second episode may occur following infection with a different member of the enterovirus group.
Kylie’s doctor basically said the same thing and that it was not really something to worry about. Even though certain people believe they know better than the doctor, I think he was right on the money, amazing how that whole seven years of medical school thing works, huh?
In any event, Kylie is going to be fine and there is nothing to worry about. Although this does make it a little difficult as Tiffany will now have to juggle some schedules to make sure Kylie has someone to watch her, as she is going to stay away from other children for a few days to prevent possible spreading. But in a few days things will be back to normal.
Three weeks
Its hard to believe that I have been out here for three weeks already. Some days the time seems to go by fast depending on what I have going on at work, and then of course others seem to drag on. But every day I have spent out here so far has had the same highlight, the same moment that is the best part of my day; that moment is when I hear my daughter’s voice. Everyday when I get home from work I call Tiffany to see how her and Kylie’s day went, and Tiffany always puts her phone on speaker so I can talk with Kylie. Sometimes she lets Kylie walk around with the phone and she just chats away with me. On the days I don’t get to talk to Kylie I listen to a voice mail that she left me and that helps me make it through until the next time I get to talk to her. I am glad the days seem to be going by faster than I had realized, hopefully the next two weeks go by just as fast, as my first trip back home is scheduled for the weekend of the 21st.
Work is going well, and regardless of being so far from Kylie I think it was a smart decision to come out here. I am meeting more people from within the company and getting more exposure to different things that I would otherwise not see. I do not think a day has gone by that I have not learned something new; how to set up structured cabling runs, assembling wright line racks, installing and mounting many different types of servers, and all kinds of network equipment. Hopefully I will continue to learn and continue to enjoy my time here.