Lupron... I'm going on it as of tomorrow.

With that, I'm still nursing a little one 1-2 times per day.

From what I can find, this is fine - the biggest issue is that my milk might dry up from the Lupron and she might stop nursing. I have to say that would be fine as well... she's 2.5, which is very different from any type of exclusive breastfeeding type circumstance where you wouldn't want to dry up.

This was the age where my other two self weaned, which is what I'd like Chloe to do. So maybe this will help, actually. :-)

I FINALLY made it to lab today for the first time for BioStats. Something (i.e. illness) got in the way each week until now.

I think I'm glad I didn't waste my time, to be honest.

I was very comfortable with the material - I just need to make sure that for the exam I keep all my numbers straight, and actually answer the question they are asking, rather than making it harder than it is. But in lab there were so many questions being asked that were formed out of confusion that it was confusing me. I had to leave. I took the handout, because it had extra practice questions, but I need to just sit down and work them out on my own. A question that should have taken 5-10 minutes max was taking the group 45 minutes, and it was literally making it MORE confusing.

Please, do not think I have any delusions that I'm "too smart" or "above" this - rather, I'd learned it my way... and practicing it "their way" was not helping.

From now on I'll go to lab, especially if I'm struggling... but I won't be shy about leaving if it's making things worse rather than better. It is, afterall, my third time through stats!

Looks like I've got one who gets hyper on Benadryl.

It's not that I want her groggy either, but WOW does she get crazy!

She still has a head-to-toe rash without the Benadryl, and it DOES respond to the medication, so I am more certain than I was before (which was really certain) that it's "just" hives.

I will no longer hesitate to give her the Benadryl during the times she's supposed to be awake, though - I'd been holding off until nap and bedtime, which has made those times raaaather interesting. Now I will consider holding off at bedtime, and checking her regularly at night.

"Reflections at 6 months~"

[snip]

"Since Matthew has passed away, I've discovered that I just have to go through the pain~ that I couldn't sleep it away, travel it away, or shop it away~ but to just experience the sorrow and trudge through it head-on, doing my best to keep going with life and make the best of it (with as many smiles as I can) with loved ones. We have been FOREVER changed. Matthew permanently took a part of each one of our hearts with him to heaven, and we are just learning to live with the permanent wound now. We just have to trust in God and lean on each other to get through this new chapter in life."

[snip]

"One heartfelt realization that I came to recently~ Ely and I thoughtfully chose the name 'Matthew' because it meant 'gift from God'. And so, we are grateful that God gave us our amazing son, MATTHEW YI-WEI TSERN, and his 8 1/2 beautiful years of life, as His gift. From here, we hope to move on from feelings of profound pain to profound blessing."

[snip]

"That is why we never give up. Though our bodies are dying, our spirits are being renewed every day. For our present troubles are quite small and won't last very long. Yet they produce for us an immeasurably great glory that will last forever! So we don't look at the troubles we can see right now; rather, we look forward to what we have not yet seen. For the troubles we see will soon be over, but the joys to come will last forever.
2 Corinthians 4:16-18"

The strength of this family continues to inspire me.

Chloe's hives ended up rapidly all over her body. I had to dose her with Benadryl, which is just taking the edge off the rash for her, and I stuck her in a tub with baking soda.

She said "I don't WANT nakey soda!!!" That's my girl.