Cross Your Fingers

We are heading to surgery tomorrow and *hoping* that nothing comes up to prevent it. This will be our third try since January. Every time we set the date, Wyatt decides he doesn't want to go and throws a major kink in the plan. Like a seizure or pneumonia. Little rascal. But he has been very healthy (KNOCK ON WOOD) and so I think we'll make it.

The surgery is for a fundoplication. Pretty standard procedure I think. It is one, however that we have put off in the past. Wyatt's vomiting has become unbearable. For him and for us. It's often, violent and really keeping him from gaining weight. He hasn't been losing any, but is still gaining so slowly.

SO keep your fingers crossed that he doesn't have any excitement tonight, that he makes it through the day tomorrow and he recovers. Quickly. So he can enjoy the sunshine!

Like Father, Like Son

or is it like son, like father?

lately, as wyatt has become our little boy, no longer our little baby, people are commenting on how he looks just like Ben. just like his daddy. i agree. but what is it? could it be their matching dimple chins?
their handsome green-brown eyes?


i'd like to think it has more to do with their personalities altogether.... case in point, the time i came downstairs and witnessed this little nap scene:


i do know that Wyatt loves his dada so much, and Ben is enamored with his little buddy. and i love watching the relationship grow!

All Sunshine and Smiles

amazing kids. its a tag-line i swiped from The Children's Institute. wyatt is one of those kids and this week he has proven to be a seriously AMAZING little man. he seems to have made a full recovery after last week's scare. the pediatrician told me that after she saw the lab results from the ER, she expected him to have a long stay in the ICU. maybe permanent. but he's stronger than ever, now. hungry as ever, too. and we've enjoyed spring's arrival, spending time helping dada build his compost pile and going for walks in the tripped out BOB stroller. we are all feeling great. and here's hoping the sunshine and smiles last! thanks to all for the emails and phone calls. we really thrive on the support of our family and friends. SMILE!

Adversity

we've made it to spring here in the east and it couldn't have come soon enough. my next post was intended to be this inspirational talk by Aimee Mullins. i watched it with tears rolling down my cheeks, and felt hopeful by the end that i, too, will make the best of the challenges that life has set before me.

then tuesday came. darn tues. Wyatt had another febrile seizure, but this time he stopped breathing. for a long time. crazy sounding words were thrown out in the ER, like intubate and resuscitate, call social work and other exclamations i, luckily, have blocked out. the breathing tube came out relatively quickly, and he has been breathing fine on his own for over 24 hours. we are likely going home tonight. we have been through this before. fever hits, sometimes a seizure, trip to the ER, a few days inpatient, an antibiotic, and home again. this time feels different. there are conversations about a "plan". mom, dad, do you have one? let's think about one. etc, etc.

i'm not sure i'm ready for a plan. planning doesn't always seem to work out for me. i planned to have a soccer team of kids. i planned to go on camping trips with my kids. i planned to braid their hair and play dress up. i planned to color with them and scold them and wash the dirt from their boo-boos. i know that this type of plan is different. but i never "planned" that parenthood would come with this kind of choice. maybe it will all be for nothing and it will never be put into place. but adversity like this seems too much to plan for, today anyway.

Cabin Fever

i've got it. man o man. after a week long hospital stay, i was ready for the real world. and now on top of that a week of being stuck in the house because of the snow...crazy i tell 'ya. i'm going crazy. it has been really nice having Daddy around. sometimes Aunt Goo makes the trek from her neighborhood and that's fun too. and Wyatt is handling great. sleeping in, lots of naps. what a trooper. i think he likes having everyone around! we've taken a few shots of the silliness that has kept us busy for the last 7 (SEVEN!!!!) days!

Wee, Wee, Wee...All the Way Home

actually, more like cough, barf, wahhhhhhh all the way home. but we are here. and luckily it's only a 15 minute trip! they released Wyatt last night from Children's with a few new meds and a little less congestion. not much though, he is still raspy and full of mucous (ew, too much information?), but is in a much better mood and eating better as well. i hope to keep him healthier, somehow, and make the best of a missed week of work. for now we are all happy to be sleeping at home! thanks for the well wishes everyone!

Back Again

thanks for all the comments about Wyatt's newest endeavor, yoga. we've had to put his practice sessions on hold for the past 4 days - we are back at Children's with another bout of respiratory illness. i'm not specifying the type because the truth is i really don't know if it's pneumonia, croup or whatever. didn't you ask? (you might ask) of course. it's never clear. everything is pneumonia-like, a possibility of this, a chance of that. and since Wyatt's diagnosis complicates most areas of his functioning, it slows the processes down. anyway, we are surviving. if only i could sleep at night, this would be like a vacation for me. the new Children's Hospital here in Pittsburgh is quite comfortable. a sushi bar in the cafeteria, a view of the city that anyone would pay an arm and a leg for. i have hours upon hours to kill, with no house to clean and no paperwork to complete. but since i'm dog tired i am not enjoying myself. Wyatt isn't either. he hasn't been his happy, smiley self lately and it stinks to see him so crabby. but we started him back on the full feed a few hours ago and he hasn't needed any oxygen for 24 hours....so here's hoping we are home tomorrow! wish us luck!