The word home... four little letters, not a big word but it means so much.
Miriam Webster says that a home is where a person lives. Really, it's so much more than that. Home is where you live, where you feel the most comfortable, where everything is safe and well known, where daily life can happen without wondering if you're disturbing anyone else, where you can wash dishes in your underwear... if you so desire. 😉
Yesterday we headed "home" for football, cheerleading, and praise team practice. It sounds like a long trip, but really, all those practices happen at the same time! It's a blessed thing to be able to stay here at the Ronald McDonald house near Alexander, but still be close enough to home that we can let the kids have some semblance of normalcy in the midst of all the hospital craziness! It definitely isn't easy, or cheap, driving a big ol' Suburban back and forth, but the smiles on their faces, seeing friends, and participating in something other than medical speech is totally worth it! And for me, going to praise team rehearsal is another worship service during the week. It was so nice yesterday just to relax and sing and praise and not think about medical crap and beeping monitors.
I also have a new fulltime job. I have been and will be spending LOTS of time on the phone and computer making sure that Alexander has the best doctors, all the therapies he will need with the best therapists, and anything else he needs! It's kinda crazy thinking that we might get a dog back inside the house. Daddy had stated NO MORE DOGS, but I'm thinking that a service/therapy dog may be in order. It'll be easier taking care of a dog that goes everywhere with us ;-).
Friday, July 25, 2014
Thursday, July 24, 2014
Alexander is HERE!!!
So, it's been a busy 3 weeks. Alexander decided that he did not want to wait until his scheduled csection date on 7/7 and he arrived on 7/2 when my water bike and we rushed to the hospital to deliver him in the best place possible for him and for me!
Since then, we've moved into the Ronald McDonald House which is such a blessing. We ate able to stay about a block from Alexander and not have to live in the hospital eating only cafeteria food 😉. We've made great friends here, they are also living here at the RMH, and their daughter is Alexander's next door neighbor in the NICU. It's such an amazing thing to have a friend here that understands what we're going through. But, I know, that's not really what you want to know about!
Alexander was born on Wednesday, July 2, 2014 at 3:47pm. He had brain surgery on July 3rd at
2:30ish pm to place a shunt that will drain excess cerebrospinal fluid from his brain to his belly so that his body can process it and get rid of it. Over the last 3 weeks, his head circumference has gone down 4cm, but now is on the rise again, and yes, we had questions for the neuron team, but currently, they are not answered... I'm sure though that they will answer quickly as most everyone in this hospital is WAY on the ball and the definite best of the best. Yesterday, Alexander had a 3-in-1 surgery. He had. g-tube placed so that he has a more permanent feeding option whole he learns to suck and swallow and his gag reflex develops. While the surgeon was in there, he also performed a Nissen fundoplication which will stop Alexander's reflux issues that were discovered by an Upper GI. The third surgery was a simple circumcision. I know I know, so many people are of the opinion that circumcision is mutilation and not necessary, for Alexander especially I believe that it was very necessary. As he grows we do not know what his limitations will be, and if by doing a simple procedure we can take away what could turn into a hygiene issue later with his development, we'll give him the best shot we can!
So now we sit and wait, for hopefully not much longer. Once Alexander is back off the ventilator (they leave little baby's on a bit longer so they can keep them drugged up with pain meds without compromising their respiratory systems) and off the morphine, and he tolerates his full feeds by the g-tube, he'll come home! Trust me when I say, I CANNOT WAIT!!!
Since then, we've moved into the Ronald McDonald House which is such a blessing. We ate able to stay about a block from Alexander and not have to live in the hospital eating only cafeteria food 😉. We've made great friends here, they are also living here at the RMH, and their daughter is Alexander's next door neighbor in the NICU. It's such an amazing thing to have a friend here that understands what we're going through. But, I know, that's not really what you want to know about!
Alexander was born on Wednesday, July 2, 2014 at 3:47pm. He had brain surgery on July 3rd at
2:30ish pm to place a shunt that will drain excess cerebrospinal fluid from his brain to his belly so that his body can process it and get rid of it. Over the last 3 weeks, his head circumference has gone down 4cm, but now is on the rise again, and yes, we had questions for the neuron team, but currently, they are not answered... I'm sure though that they will answer quickly as most everyone in this hospital is WAY on the ball and the definite best of the best. Yesterday, Alexander had a 3-in-1 surgery. He had. g-tube placed so that he has a more permanent feeding option whole he learns to suck and swallow and his gag reflex develops. While the surgeon was in there, he also performed a Nissen fundoplication which will stop Alexander's reflux issues that were discovered by an Upper GI. The third surgery was a simple circumcision. I know I know, so many people are of the opinion that circumcision is mutilation and not necessary, for Alexander especially I believe that it was very necessary. As he grows we do not know what his limitations will be, and if by doing a simple procedure we can take away what could turn into a hygiene issue later with his development, we'll give him the best shot we can!
So now we sit and wait, for hopefully not much longer. Once Alexander is back off the ventilator (they leave little baby's on a bit longer so they can keep them drugged up with pain meds without compromising their respiratory systems) and off the morphine, and he tolerates his full feeds by the g-tube, he'll come home! Trust me when I say, I CANNOT WAIT!!!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)