The Beck Family

Measles and the Work/Life Unbalance

2008-05-18T22:45:00.002-07:00

So it seems that we could write a novel on the many medical issues we've had with our first child. These would include very stints at the hospital, common sicknesses, and recurring ear infections. In each instance, we've had to adjust work schedules since daycare won't take him and we don't have family in town. The latest was just last week - the measles. Evidently measles have largely been irradicated from the US through routine vaccinations...but every once in awhile an outbreak occurs. This is usually becuase the rest of the world does not have measles under control...including Europe. Tucson was lucky to have an infected tourist from Europe that came over, went to the hospital, and started a chain of infections. The only people suseptible are those who haven't had the vaccination, those with weaker immune systems, elderly, and the such. Still, we now have 20 confirmed cases and some 100 potential cases and counting. On Monday, we learned an infant was in Evan's class with a measle-like rash so they closed the school to all those without the vaccination. Unforntunately, infants aren't scheduled to get their vaccination until 12 months old (one month away). So he had to leave school for 3 weeks until all was clear.

The past week has been difficult with me staying home during the day while Irene goes to work and then me trying to put in a full day once she got home. Since she's only been at her new job for a couple months, we try to accommodate her schedule. I have more flexibility in schedule but also more responsibility. I would typically get 2-3 hours of work in between 5am and 2pm and then go full time from 3pm-8pm. Talk about a long week. Luckily last week was fairly clear of meetings and we could swing that without advanced notice...not always the case. Fortunately, the infant was cleared of measles but they never said what it was. So daycare is back in session this week. Thank God!

Spring has Sprung

2008-05-02T16:55:00.005-07:00

It's now May and Tucson is almost through with it's Spring season. I think it lasted almost two months this year. May is predicted to be in the mid-90's with the first 100-degree day usually hitting around the last week of May. Our plants have already flowered and the bird eggs have hatched. Our mesquite tree in the front yard now has it's 3rd nest - two have been there and used annually for 3 years (mourning doves). This new one is different and I'm guessing it's a finch nest. I haven't seen any birds yet but its shape is like a sideways urn...fully enclosed. I treated myself to a couple new lenses for the heck of it but haven't had a chance to use them do to April's health. Yesterday I finally unpacked them and here's a couple spring photos in our yard and a few of Evan.

Long Month of Sickness

2008-05-02T16:35:00.003-07:00

No posts for April...and there's a reason. April was a month of sickness in our family. Evan continued on his streak of ear infections and had a respiratory infection both of which landed him in the hospital. His chest infection started as a cough but soon got to the point where he wasn't sleeping and was struggling to breathe. We took him to the pediatrician and found that his oxygen levels were very low and he needed direct oxygen to get back on track and inhaled treatments. We spent a full week in the hospital trying to get him better. Trying to keep a young 10-mth old happy and occupied within a confined hospital crib was challenging. The nurses loved him since he pulled off the heart monitor leads from his chest, the oxygen sensor on his toe, and the oxygen tubes in his nose. It was really tough the first few days/nights seeing your baby so sick but he ended his stay as the hospital clown once he turned around. During the hospital stay, he developed another ear infection. So the following week after being released, he had tubes put in his ears. Only a 5 minute procedure but I still fear the bill. The great news is that he's been 100 percent healthy and happy since the treatments - something that didn't exist Dec-Mar.

Irene and I have also been sick during the month likely from Evan coughing on us and a long hospital stay with lack of sleep. May should be much better :)

San Diego Zoo

2008-03-29T08:37:00.006-07:00

Since we've been in survival mode for the past 2 weeks, we've fallen behind on the blog (and the bills and the cleaning, exercising, etc). At least we can catch-up on one...

We went to San Diego in early March for a wedding. Now Tucson isn't really a small town (1 million and counting) but evidently the Tucson to San Diego weekend trip is popular with those in our business. We ran into 2 separate people at the Tucson airport that were on our flight to San Diego. One is the owner of a local engineering firm and owns a condo in downtown San Diego so we might always run into him (evidently he flies there every weekend). Another was a planner that I work with on numerous projects...she was going to a family reunion and staying there longer than us. Then while at the San Diego zoo, I saw a senior engineer from our Phoenix office with his family. They were on the other side of the exhibit so, unlike the others, we never actually met. Then when returning to Tucson, we saw two sisters that run a small 3-person real estate company that has been next door to my company for 5 years or so. And on the shuttle to get our car, we run into Irene's old boss' daughter. Sounds like a stretch but we really know her well and have hung out several times before. I'm not sure what to make of all that...either we are really connected or Tucson really is small.

As far as the zoo, it was great. We had lots of fun showing Evan around but the only things that caught his eye were the fish, turtles, monkeys, etc. If animals wanted attention, they had to be moving...the turtles, elephants, and snakes really didn't do it for him. I posted pics here. Several people have already told me that they never need to go to San Diego now because I posted pics of every exhibit...not quite true but close. My favorite - the 3 monkeys: Evan, his uncle, and an orangutan (you choose the order).

Survival mode

2008-03-29T08:18:00.003-07:00

Having a little one is one of the greatest joys (I know, sounds a little Hallmark). Well it is unless they are sick. Then it is miserable, exhausting, frustrating, debilitating, ... Evan is now on his 5th ear infection in 6 months - October, December, January through February, and now March. Considering that it takes us 2-3 days to figure out he's sick, another 2-3 to schedule an appointment, and a 10-day medicine routine, I figure he's been healthy for less time than he's been sick recently.

The complicating factor is daycare and the medicine. The only antibiotic that works is Amoxicilian which kills his stomach. The 10-day medicine works great for the first 4-5 days but then he gets stomach pains and diarrhea for the last 5 days. And the diarrhea is literally about every hour (yes, the stockpile of diapers is gone). That limits us to fluids only and usually he is so fussy that daycare won't take him. That results in us juggling working hours and business meetings. And to top it off, the past 3 days he hasn't slept for more than 2 hours in a given stretch. Poor guy is so exhausted as are we.

To top it off, when Irene picked him up from daycare this last week they had him in his crib drinking on his back. That is one of the contributing factors to ear infections (not the only one but still). They even told us to watch out for that at home! So now the suspicion of daycare actually causing all this is unreal. I could forgive them for a mistake but their response was so defensive that I think they believe placing the kids down like that is OK if they are short-handed. I think we'll pull him out soon...

Childproof...NOW!!

2008-03-05T20:50:00.008-07:00

The past 2 weeks has been a major change around our house. About two weeks ago Evan went from sitting on his own to what we termed "commando crawl". It was cute and exciting...he would use his arms to move around, kick his legs and drag his belly. It was harmless. Then this week, it morphed into speed crawling. Once he figured out how to get his knees under his big belly, we were doomed. This kid can move - fast! All this translates into Evan getting into everything including all the random stuff we have laying around. We finally installed a baby gate upstairs, put in outlet plugs (though he continually tries to pull out cords), and have slowly put things away. His biggest joy is CD cases - they make lots of noise when pounded against furniture. Of course when he finds something new and we take it away, he gets offended and cries. In the midst of all the action, he also has his two bottom teeth and counting! Solid foods, here we come!

Below are some recent pics of his possible future talents...His first audition for Baby American Idol and an impersonation of Jack Nicholson.

Photographers Galore

2008-02-18T08:41:00.004-07:00

Okay...so evidently the rise of digital photography and the internet has created a whole new generation of semi-pro photographers. Either that or the way in which photos can now be shared (i.e. to complete strangers outside of the traditional bound photo album) makes it seem like there are more photos floating around. Long story short, I was feeling left out this weekend so I went through all my photos and uploaded my favorites. I think it was mostly a cathartic exercise for me but enjoy! My Photo Gallery

Rodrigo y Gabriela

2008-02-13T16:13:00.004-07:00

Last night we finally got to see Rodrigo y Gabriela live in concert. We had tickets for their scheduled Tucson show last September when suddenly they canceled the night before!! We were hesitent to buy tickets this time since we were still sore but friends encouraged us to show support...and for good reason. The concert is easily the best I've ever been to - small venue (at least in Tucson), all guitar with no vocals, and two of the most talented musicians without question. And who doesn't like acoustic guitar with the occassional classic old school metal rifts played with a flamenco flair? Buy the CD, you'll see what I mean. And the heavy bass, drums, rythyms, and all the other sounds are coming from Gabriela hitting her guitar (of course you have to see it to believe it). If you have the time and the means, go to a concert for almost 2 hours of non-stop guitar played with much more energy than the CD.

http://www.rodgab.com/history.htm

Off to a Lagging Start

2008-01-30T06:44:00.002-07:00

As promised, we seem to be lagging even on the blog. Amazing how little time you have available after you subtract work, fixing dinner, and trying to get an 8-mth old ready for bed. However, there is a lot that has happened this first month.

Irene quit her job after about 4 years at the same company. She took a 3 week break between the old and new jobs and we took the opportunity to visit the grandparents in CA. The 3 weeks seem to go by fast (at least according to her...I didn't notice a difference).

Unfortunately, the new year hasn't been the best for 2 of our 3 "kids". Maverick started the year off with an unforeseen accident (read "huge vet bill"). Somehow he got a pin-sized prick on his tongue and luck would have it that a blood vessel was involved. Evidently blood vessels in your tongue never clot so the garage looked like a seen from CSI. The only solution, of course, was to anesthetize him to place a single stitch over the tiny prick. And anesthetize equals dollars. Two hours later, he was the happiest dog ever. If you're squimish, don't pay attention to the photo :)

Evan, poor guy, was next. He had a common cold that kept going and eventually caused his third ear infection. Weird thing is that he never really minds the pain and we can't tell he's sick since he's so playful. Nevertheless, the doctor gave us some numbing drops which are supposed to help since this infection was so bad. There are no generic versions of this liquid which was $160 for 14mL. For those US folks keeping track, that's $43,250 per gallon. Of course you can't put a price on a happy baby.

Christmas and New Years

2008-01-04T17:25:00.000-07:00

Evan's first Christmas was a busy 3 week ordeal. We hosted the Beck's for a weekend, flew to Texas for Christmas week and then hosted Grandmom Taylor for New Year's! It was fun, went by fast and was full of good food and family! Evan was so thrilled with the wrapping paper that the actual present seemed secondary. Of course now he loves his new toys and has initiated each one with a slobbery kiss and a smile.

New Year's Day was an adventurous 8 mile hike to Seven Falls in Bear Canyon. Evan enjoyed his view from the pack on Scott's back. Lucky guy! The scenery was awesome with trees changing colors, flashing their yellow and orange leaves. We counted 7 stream crossings that required some balancing talent on rocks. Amazingly there was water in the canyon and the falls were running! I know, water in Arizona...who would have guessed! See pics...

Cheers to a great start in 2008! Longs Peak, here we come....

Mission Statement

2007-12-24T20:45:00.001-07:00

We don't claim our lives are so exciting that others will log in daily to catch up on our adventures. However, after the birth of our son and frequent emails from relatives, friends, and others, we are finally starting a blog to keep everyone posted. The purpose is really to update everyone on his progress and growth (and occasionally our vacations/wanderings). Selfishly, we are also hoping it will cut down on the missed emails since we are very bad at sending pictures in a timely manner.