out of a drug. had it called in to neighboring larger town. went there and they said oh it wont be in until tomorrow. grr. except they called this morning first thing to tell me it did NOT come in today. so now they are out of zidovir. who knows when it will come in. soon to be out of kaletra but hopefully not before our appt. I also looked up the drugs they take. each kid had one that was taken on empty stomach and I found that the absorption of THESE drugs is NOT affected by food or no food. only ONE, the bedtime one for one child, said a meal heavy in fat could affect it. since we dont eat high fat meals and he doesnt take that one until bedtime I decided to give them all the meds in the morning with breakfast and at night with dinner, not splitting up the single one that was to be given alone between meals. I checked also for intereaction between drugs, nothing. cant figure out why they had them taking them alone.I did discover though that if you mix the drug inside the capsule along with the colored part of the capsule(in water) the water/med turns that color, in this case blue. well BLUE medicine is way better than clear or white and have had no problem getting them to take it.  limiting meds to morning meal and evening meal(and the single bedtime one for one child) makes life a bit easier around here. I feel llike all I do is give out meds!

they have hiv?

I see my beautiful kids now that they are home and say wow! I am so lucky that I got to have them. then I remember why no one else in their country wanted them. They are such great kids. Lil bit is a bit of a wild thing, but glam girl and freckles are wonderful, all boy is doing well and is...well... all boy. = ) I feel like all I do though is give meds. breakfast its aluvia kaletra lamivir lamivudin between meals its stavudine and zidovir and dinner its aluvia kaletra lamivir lamivudin again and another one at bedtime for one kid. 6 or 7 meds times 4 kids is overwhealming! and some are take with food some are take on empty stomach. some kids are on this one and that one some are on that one not this one. but I really feel lucky to have them. I couldnt be happier with the way this turned out. They have fit right into our home and family. 

since we previously adopted 2 children with some orthopedic problems, people often ask if these kids have special needs. I usually say yes they are special and I need them. but if they press the issue it is hard for mne to say the right thing. I dont want to lie but at the same time I dont want to share either because most often it really isnt their business. I dont share my pap results with strangers why should I share my kids hiv status? but the state I live in is known for being "nice" and I have a hard time with being anything less. I need to come to a middle ground where I can still be nice but feel ok about not sharing.

super hyperactivity?

one of the kids is SUPER EXTREMELY hyper. could be sensory needs, could be brain function, could it be one of the  many meds he takes? seriously this kid is beyond hyper. I cant cook because i have to keep the gas turned off or he is turning on burners and putting things in the microwave and pulling things off shelves and climbing things and opening the window(on the ThIRD FLOOR!) that has no screen or bars tossing things in the toilet jumping on the bed and so on. he just goes from one thing to the next. he jumps until someone makes him stop then he runs to something else until someone makes him stop and so on. I can not leave the stove for a second when cooking and yet I cant stay there because he is into things when I am not looking. he is on zidovir, lamiver, lamivudine, and kaletra.  I cant help but wonder if the meds have an effect on him that way.

update

I am with the children in Ukraine., All four kids are on several different medications. some are on this one and that one. others are on different ones. I feel like a pharmacy sometimes. some are to be taken at meals otehrs to be taken 30 mins before eating or one hour after. the kids are great and do pretty well taking their meds. Kaletra makes them whine and cry though! I usually give them an M and M or juice and that works out. They eat ALL the time. like 5 meals a day plus snacks. We are starting to adjust. but of course once they are settled here it will be time to hop a plane back to America.  overall they are doing well.