Home from surgery.

Let's see, we left yesterday (Tuesday) at 5:15 am and headed to the hospital. We arrived and were all checked in by 6:32 and Sam and I got our visitor badges and the boys got their bracelets. (They put Conor's on Aiden at first, the first & only time any incident of confusion occured). They sent us over to pre-op where they started talking to us about everything (anesthesia, surgery issues, etc) and took the boys stats and we put them in their matching pajamas. The staff at Children's is amazing, so they brought the boys some toys to play with and kept them entertained.

Conor and I went in first, I carried him into the OR, held him in my lap while they put the mask on and he went to sleep. Then I went back to pre-op to hang out with Daddy and Aiden. Within five minutes one of the anesthesiologists was back to say - he's done! Tubes are so easy. After a few more minutes their doctor came back and let us know how he did (fine) and went over the paperwork we had left for Aiden. A nurse came out a few minutes later and said one of you can go to recovery to be with Conor. So Sam went to be with Conor and Aiden and I waited a few more minutes and were lead back to the OR. After he was put to sleep (a struggle let me tell you!) they took me right to recovery where I hung out with Conor. Conor was already awake and had already drank half a bottle they had provided. He finished it for me (doesn't eat well for daddy) and they said we could put him in his pajamas and give him a formula bottle. He drank that no problem, they came over, gave us his ear drops, had his sign his discharge paperwork and he was done. We stayed back in recovery while we waited for Aiden. Conor was a little fussy due to gas (from the gas) but was himself by the time Aiden was brought back, which was at around 8:45.

Aiden came out of anesthesia like he went in, screaming. And they probably wouldn't have had us witness how he was feeling had we not already been back there. They at least let closed the curtain between us and we only had to hear him for a bit, he was not happy. After a few doses of morphine he was in a better place...though still pissed as all hell. I went over to his side to be with him and try and calm him, there was only one point where I almost had to leave because I was going to cry. Conor heard his brother cry and was crying and when Sam brought him over, the look on his face broke my heart as he was staring at his brother...so Sam took him back over to the other side of the curtain.

By 9:15 we were ready to go up to his room. Once he was all situated in his bed, hooked to his machines and got his IV hooked back up to his port he was out in no time. Sam ran down to the cafeteria for me and got me a salad since their options are minimal being a smaller version of Children's Hospital and they didn't have much to choose from that was GF. He came back up and he and Conor went home, they were home by eleven. Conor was great, blabbering a lot more than usual as the boy can finally hear clearly. I got a little bit of a nap and Aiden woke up at a little after eleven, he woke up much better this time! He's been great ever since, except when we got home. He actually had salad for lunch yesterday, which his nurse was absolutely shocked about...he would have preferred chips though and kept asking for them. He thankfully was never sick and he was up and about pretty quickly...he wanted to go, wanted all his attachments off and wanted to get out of there pretty quick yesterday. But we found him a wagon and he and I went for walks around our floor. They are not really an inpatient hospital, so it was nice, there were only four kids there over night, all of us patients of my doc and all tonsillectomies. They didn't have as much to do as the regular Children's Hospital in Boston, and the caf closed at two and they had no GF options for Aiden's menu really so we had scrambled eggs at each meal (not that he ate anyway), but this way we had or own room.

The kid is so sweet. He did great with the nurses, was very good and did everything they asked. He slept great last night. His O2 levels kept dropping and going back up but his alarm kept going off because of it so they had to adjust the levels his O2 goes alarm goes off at or we'd be up all night. Of course he chose this time to no longer to use his diaper, even overnight while attached to the IV so we had to have the nurses come down and un attach us to the monitors and IV's all night so he could use the bathroom! So funny to wake up dry when you are attached to an IV! At one point I was coughing (I have a sympathy sore throat I guess) and he said "Are you okay mommy" in the middle of the night, so sweet. His voice sounds a little different, I guess his uvula is extremely swollen according to the NP and she said he'd probably still snore for a few weeks while that goes down. Anyhow since we've been home he hasn't really wanted to swollow, so we are making him drink more often so it doesn't get all nasty back there and keeping on top of all his meds. His meds, Conor's drops...I think I need to write myself a schedule. Conor is all over the place and into even more trouble than usual...this balance/hearing thing has him excited. LOL

Thanks to everyone for thinking about us and all your prayers and well wishes.

Staying up late and cake for dinner. :)

The boys have their surgeries tomorrow. We have to be there at 6:30 am and no food past midnight for them (including formula) and nothing but clear fluids until 4 am. Which is tough with Conor because he gets up for bottles at night to alleviate ear pain. So he's staying up late. :)
Aiden had cake before he had dinner. He's being spoiled too since he won't be able to eat any really good foods for a while.
A quick update since I still have to get us all packed.

Some more pics...from Reiley Photography

http://www.reileyphotography.com

The owner of this photography studio (Reiley Photography) is one of the members of our moms group so we had a kids at play photoshoot at the park last week. It was a lot of fun, here are some shots of the boys.

Happy Earth Day

We went to Capron Park today for a "Party for the Planet" w/ the moms group. It was fun, a bit crowded, but Aiden had a good time and Conor enjoys people watching like his momma so he was cool with it. :) Afterwards we went to BJs to get a crap ton of stuff. I needed formula, so figured I may as well stock up while I'm there.

Conor's labs all came back normal, so I'm happy we don't have to worry about any of that...but we are still going to keep him gluten free, at least for the time being. It is actually working out well with both of the boys and I'm happy to say Conor has slept through the night the last three nights, something he hadn't done in quiet a while!! Hopefully I haven't jinxed myself.

Last night I made homemade GF Chicken Nuggets - They came out okay though I think I need to figure out some seasonings to add to it to spice them up a bit, a little bland. :) Aiden ate them though, and even ate his mashed potatoes. He's been great about eating lately since I do the block trick with him now. I put blocks (building blocks) on his left hand side stacked in a pyramid, for each bite he takes, he gets to move a block to the right hand side and do whatever he wants with it (he makes a train, pyramid, or just moves them) and this way he knows VISUALLY how many more bites he needs to take - 1 bite = 1 block. I have gotten him to try so and eat so many new foods this way, its working out wonderfully! Conor isn't an issue, he'll eat anything you give him, mostly things he shouldn't.


Mozzarella Stuffed Chicken Nuggets from Glutenfreeda.com



Servings
Makes about 12 nuggets
Difficulty
Easy
Ingredients

2 chicken breasts, skinless and boneless
Mozzarella cheese, cut into 1" squares
Salt
1 egg
2 Tablespoons milk
1 cup gf flour
1/4 cup vegetable or canola oil
Toothpicks
Directions
Place chicken breasts between 2 sheets of plastic wrap and flatten with a kitchen mallet. Cut flattened breasts into 2 or 3 strips lengthwise depending on size of breasts. Cut each strip in half.

Sprinkle each chicken piece with salt and place a square of cheese in center of chicken. Roll chicken around cheese so that cheese is completely covered with chicken. Hold in place with a toothpick. Repeat for all chicken pieces.

Beat egg with a fork, add milk and blend. Pour egg mixture onto a dinner plate.

Pour flour onto a separate dinner plate.

Heat oil in a large, heavy skillet over
medium-high heat. When oil is hot, dip chicken pieces into flour, then egg mixture, then flour again and carefully place in skillet. Brown nuggets on all sides.

Remove to a plate with a paper towel and sprinkle with salt. Remove toothpicks and serve immediately.

A quick update...

Gluten Free Chicken Nuggets are a success. They are round, so cut is better to get rid of that 'looks weird' factor and they aren't as tasty as the greasy bad for you stuff. Only 11 come in a box and they are a bit $$ so use sparingly and in case of emergencies. I'm going to try and prefect a recipe. ;)

Gluten free boys

The boys are going gluten free. The decision has been a long time coming but made final yesterday after Conor's nine month check up with his pediatrician. He is doing well size wise, he's 24.4 lbs and 31.5 inches. Big boy all around. :) His feet are now being seriously effected by this skin issue he has and he has red raw blisters forming between his little toes. We did a test of all common allergens today and the pediatrician and I decided that it is time to make them both gluten free. So far so good. Last night we ran to Whole Foods and stocked up. Aiden ended up having GF waffles for dinner, but had a nice GF mac and cheese for lunch today, it was great that I got to eat it too! I made the Mac and Cheese using Tinkyada pasta (Fussilli)and a couple of slices of cheese (3 to be exact) a little bit of milk and some salt and pepper. Pretty good actually!

I went out today and bought a Breadman cool Touch Automatic Bread Maker and am using one of my new boxes of bread mix in it right now. It is Gluten Free Sandwich Bread Mix from 365 (Whole Foods). Its cooking now, so we'll see how it works out. I'll update.


** I'm an idiot. I am not telling what I did. But the bread would have been good if I wasn't such an idiot...but like I said, i am...so I'll have to just buy the mix again some other time and I'll share the results.

On a good note, Aiden ate a great dinner of gluten free grilled cheese sandwiches, made on Tapioca bread in my new TFAL Avante Sandwich and Waffle maker (using the sandwich maker option obviously). They were actually really good and didn't burn or anything as Tapioca bread usually does for me on the burner. He didn't complain as he ate two sandwiches! (He also had some fruit too)

Piccys...

I haven't added any in a while...so here's A LOT!

First day and Bloodwork

Aiden had his first run through with preschool yesterday. He went in at ten (his usual start time is nine) and came home after speech at twelve. I didn't speak to his teacher yesterday, since I saw Ms. Tricia when I picked him up but she (Ms. Sara) called today and told me that he was very willing to do everything they asked and he had a lot of fun and enjoyed himself. I figured he would. He's good like that...especially when he's not home! HA!

While he was at school Conor and I went over to the lab and got his bloodwork done...poor dude. They had such a hard time finding his veins. We got his results back today and all is well, except he has elevated triglyceride levels. We will discuss that next week, but Sam tells me that Aiden had the same thing...huh I completely forgot about that!

Today I had a bit of a breakdown, not sure why, I'm just tired I guess and not sleeping so that doesn't help. I tried so hard to go to bed early the other night and got into bed at 7:30 and never fell asleep until after midnight. Uggg so much for that effort. I got a little nap in this afternoon while Conor was asleep and Aiden fell asleep too, so that was good. Aiden is asleep still, Conor is destroying things and I'm doing the smart thing of updating my blog, instead of starting dinner and preventing the boy from knocking over the trash...

Chop off his ears...

Conor has another ear infection...after over three weeks of amoxycillion (well interrupted w/ a dose of Zithromax at the beginning due to an ear infection that wouldn't leave). I noticed the other night he started to tug a bit on the right ear and he is being pretty fussy at night. Wanted to take him in yesterday but they were closed so we went this morning and YEAH...ear infection number one million. I swear. I just don't know what to do anymore...he has another month until his surgery. UGggg. So we are off the amox, as it wasn't working anyway and he has another script for Zithromax and a lab sheet for a liver panel since he's looking a bit orange...and they aren't sure if it is his diet or if his liver is pissed at the amount of antibiotics the kid has been on over the last four months. Uggg uggg uggg I feel so terrible. For him and about this.

Aiden starts preschool tomorrow. It's not a full day, but he'll be at school for two hours straight without mommy there! Im sure he's going to have a blast.

I got a ton of books today for a great deal. $13! for 25 books!! We went to a book sale this afternoon at a library in East Providence.

I bought 7 kid books for Aiden (some kid encyclopedias, some classic books like Dr. Seuse and Abiyoyo) and the following for me:
Memoirs of a Geisha
The Poisonwood Bible
The Hours
A Thousand Acres
Snow Falling on Cedars
Almanac of the Dead
Turtle Moon
Daughter of Fortune
The Last Time They Met
Sea Glass
Songs in Ordinary Time
Romola
Summer Sisters
Angels & Demons
The Amateur Marriage
The Memory Keepers Daughter
The Jane Austen Book Club
Cavedweller


I had them in a stack in front of me, trying to choose which one to read when Sam called, he's on his plane on his way back from DC (they haven't taken off yet) and I told him to pick a number 1-15. He picked twelve and the twelfth one in the stack was The Hours...so I guess I'm starting on that one.

That's all for now...

A new Meal...

Trying out a new dish tonight. I'll update w/ how it was:

IT WAS GOOD! Def. will make again, next time I think I'll use a clove or two of garlic, I like a little more of a garlic kick. :)

Artichoke Chicken

INGREDIENTS

* 1 (15 ounce) can artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
* 3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
* 3/4 cup mayonnaise
* 1 pinch garlic pepper
* 4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves


DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
2. In a medium bowl, mix together the artichoke hearts, Parmesan cheese, mayonnaise, and garlic pepper. Place chicken in a greased baking dish, and cover evenly with artichoke mixture.
3. Bake, uncovered, for 30 minutes in the preheated oven, or until chicken is no longer pink in the center and juices run clear.


Right now it is still cooking, thus no update. But as I sit here feeding Conor the kid is fussing and pulling at his ears. ARE YOU SERIOUS? He has been on Amoxycillin every day for almost a month now to PREVENT ear infections until his surgery and he is still going to get them?? Ugggggggg I can't say for sure he has one, but I'm guessing he does, we'll know tomorrow I guess...I'm going to take him to the ped. Ugggh uggggh double uggggg

Aiden had his last day of language group today w/ Ms. Kristina. Since he will be starting school this week he will no longer be going to see her on Monday afternoons. :( It'll be great for him but I know he enjoyed his time with her. His language group will now be on Tuesdays in his classroom and his other therapist (Ms. Tricia) will be coming in. I still haven't completely broken it to him that he's going to be going to school...he'll want to go that second...

Sam took today off so he could work around the house. ;) He started on our garden boxes and they are almost done...we have them cut, drilled and stained for the most part. Then will come the easy part of assembling them and filling them. :)

Well only twelve minutes left on that chicken so I best assemble some more side dishes... :)

Have you seen this???

Seriously! Tramp Stamps for kids. WTF is wrong w/ our society?

How funny...

Today's Church Sermon was about Silence. Discussing how we are never silent and when we are silent, that is when we learn so much, hear so much, are so much, become so much, etc. Funny timing considering my post last night. Anyhow, more later but now I'm going to go prevent Conor from destroying everything in sight....

Noise.

Sam and I have been enjoying John Adams. It's a great story and amazing what the founders of our country (and their wives) accomplished, even at such young ages (John Hancock was in his thirties when he wrote and signed The Declaration of Independence for example). And we were discussing how many things we could probably accomplish if there wasn't so much 'NOISE'. No TV, No Computer, no constant interruptions and thought pollutions. I know for certain I'm pretty addicted to the computer and the TV as well...and I've at least realized that and am trying to make a change. I have started to attend a UU Church and wanted to share this recent article from the Spring Addition of UU World. It touches a bit on my thoughts on the matter...its something I'm going to work on for our family...though I doubt my belly button is ready for a trip to the backyard...just yet.

Establishing connections with self, family, and the earth.
By Louise Nayer And Virgina Lang
Spring 2008 2.15.08

The sun rises, an enormous ball of fire thousands of miles wide, yet we hardly notice. Alarm clocks buzz unmercifully in our dark rooms and, as if on automatic pilot, we do our morning duties, alone or with family, only subliminally aware of the magic that has just occurred. The sun has risen once again and the darkness has vanished, but we have not been a part of it. How can we see the magic in each day and connect with the natural world, our fellow humans, ourselves?

When many people are struggling simply to survive, we are constantly bombarded with hollow materialism; stores stay open seven days a week, beckoning us, and demands of work and family far exceed our ability to respond. In our hearts, we know that something is missing, that we are not fully present in our own lives, that the carousel of busyness and consumerism is spinning faster and faster, placing in jeopardy the very earth on which we live. We have traded lighted candles and soft shadows for the neon glare of computer screens and the bleeps and blips of our technological toys.

We seek a certain numbness to quiet the fears of a post-9/11 world. We live in a time of terrorism, natural disasters, and the fear of global warming. We are understandably overwhelmed, but this is precisely why we need to be especially vigilant about deepening bonds with family and friends and encouraging hope in all our children.

How, then, can we reclaim the very part of us that makes us human? How can we establish a loving pace amid the rush and chaos?

We met twenty years ago at the Blue Danube Café in San Francisco. Our meeting was coincidental. We found out we knew people in common from the East Coast and realized, as we got together more and more often, how much we had in common and how much we both wanted to build a community embracing family and friends, young and old—especially children—in our circle of love.

We are not looking to replace ancient truths or the community and faith that can be found in a place of worship, but we have found useful and heartfelt ways to express ritual and ceremony in lives that embrace blended families and differing backgrounds and lifestyles. We believe that we all have family, however we choose to define it.

We believe our everyday lives deserve celebration. As our world grows more complex, it takes more thought to do less. Through simple ritual and ceremony, we slow down and open our eyes to the beauty and meaning in our lives, awakening to the natural world and the richness of our relationships with others. When we take time to see the sun rise and set, to really see the exploding colors of the universe, we awaken ourselves from cynicism and despair and open our hearts to the mysteries of nature, our bodies, our lives.

Expression night at home

We are all attached
like tiny red and white carnations
whose stems touch
at the bottom of glass.
—Louise Nayer

Growing up in Greenwich Village and later becoming a poet, I have always had a house full of artists and writers. I moved to San Francisco to be part of the poetry community, immersing myself in workshops and readings. Over the past fifteen years, working full-time as an English professor and raising children, I have found myself going to readings less and losing some of that inspired, magical community that gave me so much.

In an attempt to bring more creativity into our lives, my family has started a monthly gathering at our home on Bosworth Street where both seasoned artists and novices can share their work. Everyone is an artist, so no one is turned away! Our art has included sculptures made from lemons and oranges, piano recitals, poetry and prose readings, and a computer calendar art show.

As people become increasingly fatigued from the pressures of work, this regular gathering adds magic to the month. I have been surprised and pleased at how many people ask, “When is the next Bosworth Café Night?” and how excited they get about practicing a piece on the piano or learning a new song to sing.

—L.N.
What you need

*

Invitations with dates for the next six months
*

Food and drink brought by everyone

What you do

Send out flyers marked with dates for the next six months. You can make a Café Night logo or an unusual flyer using your street name.

When people arrive, serve the food and drink. Afterward, sit in a circle in the living room. Ask one guest (a different person each time) to bring a poem, a passage from a book, or a song to begin the evening. It can be something written for the occasion or a favorite song or poem.

Then, begin the sharing time. Keep the performances to ten minutes per person so that people will want to return to the next gathering. Encourage one another, whether the person is a first-time poet or a widely published author. This is a time to remember that the creative spirit lives in all of us. End the gathering by holding hands and passing a squeeze, each person focusing on the beauty of what has been presented that night.

Rite of spring

This morning the green fists of the peonies are getting ready to break my heart . . .
—Mary Oliver

Spring explodes in Pennsylvania. It comes with an urgency and a will that is unstoppable. Ready or not, it spews forth armloads of brilliant forsythia, then scarlet azaleas, lavender rhododendrons, milky-white dogwood, and deep-grape Siberian irises.

In springtime, life pours from the earth without our having to do anything. It is a wonderful time to remember that we are not in control of nature, yet we are part of it. We deserve to be here just as much as the trees and flowers, not dominating the natural world but in a state of conscious participation with it.

—V.L.
What you need

*

A place of privacy outdoors
*

One of your favorite poems about nature

What you do

Find a comfortable spot to lie face down on the ground. Let your body fully relax as it blends with the earth, and simply lie quietly, feeling the dynamic, life-giving power below you. A practice of the Q’ero Indians of Peru includes letting your navel come into direct contact with the ground to meld with the earth, considered the navel of creation. This simple, childlike posture can offer a profound experience of connection and peace. Stay as long as you like and breathe deeply.

Just before bed, read one of your favorite poems about our connection to nature. The words will help you sleep well and savor the magnificent gift that is spring.

PreSchool Here We Come

I had Aiden's Team Meeting yesterday. Previously he was diagnosed w/ a Communicative Disorder. He had reduced auditory comprehension and expressive language vulnerabilities. He has an IEP with the school system and has been receiving outpatient speech services for this since November. One of his speech pathologists, who is also his case worker, pushed to have him further evaluated, due to difficulties they were having and things they 'noticed' (his oddities) while trying to work with him. He had an Educational Assessment which showed he does have vulnerabilities in self-social awareness, direction/position, time/sequence, and most of these vulnerabilities were also evident in the auditory comprehension area. However, his school readiness component he scored in the advanced classification, in the 91st percentile. Quiet the discrepency to go from 91% to 9% and 5% (his other scores). He had an OT assessment as well, that also stated that if she removed the auditory component and just showed him how to do something (instead of showing AND telling) he would do it fine...something about that auditory comprehension just throws him all off. With his OT results there was such a huge discrepancy (over 20 months) between the two tests that they just didn't know what to do with him. His speech pathologist (Kristina, he has two) had herself, Tricia (his other therapist) and myself fill out Children's Communication Checklist 2. Typically they can't score it until the child is over four, so she couldn't use it formally, however if she were able to score, she said it would have shown a serious delay. Because of that, and his other auditory issues, it was discovered that Aiden also has issues
with Pragmatic language. Which is something that his speech therapists can't help. Sooo long story short, he qualifies for the ELC Preschool now and will be starting NEXT WEEK! He will be going T/Wed/Th from 9-11:30 and during the summer will only be going two days a week from 8:30-10:30. They asked if I wanted him to take the bus (eek!) but I declined, I'm SO not ready for him to be on the bus.


Here's a recent pic of the boys.

Green Clean

This morning while Swiffer WetJetting the kitchen floor, Conor thumped by - crawling away and I thought...EEEK! Danger! Chemicals! On the floor! Touching his hands! That go in his mouth!!! And....from there it became a mission for the day to get all natural items to clean my house with, and remove the 'dangerous' ones. I am a SUCKER for cleaning products. So this is going to be really hard for me. Wish me luck! White vinegar, baking soda, corn starch and lemon...here I come!!

Boys are doing well btw, Aiden finished up his testing last week so we'll see what his results have to say for us on Thursday. I think they will be leaning away from the ELC preschool and a 'regular' preschool recommendation. AND my insurance won't cover neurological testing to see 'what else is going on' so it will be $3,500 out of pocket and the waiting list is 13 months...maybe by then they will cover it??!! At least if gives me time to fight it.