here, there, and away for a while

I am still here, even though I haven't spent much time blogging about it. Gabriel, however, was not here (gone on business for a few days). I am always glad to not be a single mom, but even just a few days of solo parenting is enough to remind me never to take him for granted. He is home now. It's a relief.

Liam has been especially challenging these past few weeks. For anyone who knows the energy required for daily life with him, that's really saying something. I am working on my patience. He is working on unraveling it. 

Let's just say, he is a lot to keep up with. And clean up after. 

My camera is also gone for a little while. I took it in to Best Buy because I was having trouble with the focus. The Geek Squad informed me that it is messed up and will be gone for repairs for the next few weeks (Hurray for warranties!).

The good news is that the camera is messed up, not me. I took so long to take it in because I thought the number of blurry photos I had been taking were because I didn't know how to use my camera. Glad to know that wasn't the case. The bad news is that I am camera-less for the next 10 days to 3weeks.

At least I got this shot at the Farmer's Market before sending my camera off for repairs. Couldn't help myself, Mom.

15 is no fun

Today was River's last infusion with the home health care nurse. Except that infusion didn't really happen. Those pesky IVs kept coming out and River's little veins did not want to cooperate for the replacements.

Our first home infusion Wednesday morning with Sarah, the nurse, was no big deal. His hospital-IV was still going strong; but by yesterday, it no longer worked. She coaxed a vein to work on the second try, and made him an extra large splint/boot to try and immobilize his foot enough to get us through until this morning.

  

He klonked around, and climbed, as if he didn't have two pieces of wood taped to his foot with plenty of fabric cushioning. And that stethoscope is a new favorite. He presses the end (pulled off and stashed somewhere else by Liam in this picture) up to my heart, his, or Piper's and whispers a beat: bum-bum-bum.

And then this morning, the IV was still in place, but it had formed a clot in the base that Sarah could not work through.

She stuck him 4 times, trying to work her way into a vein. Two of them worked initially,but then slipped before she could give him all of his medication. He ended up with maybe 1/3 of a dose. She didn't have the heart, and he didn't have any more ready veins, to continue.

Since his bleeding finally tapered off yesterday, he should be fine without the last of his last dose.

From all of the attempts in the OR through all of the pokes today, River has had a total of 15 needle-sticks since Monday. He has the marks to prove it. And he is one good little patient. He cried and responded to the pain, but he never fought it. Instead, he buried his face in my neck, leaned into me, and watched Sarah work.

It was terrible to have to hold him still, feeling his pain. I would have taken all 15 needle pricks for him if I could. But all I can do is pray that he won't need a 16th.

Despite the ordeal this morning, River still smiled at Sarah, waving goodbye, when it was time for her to go. And he has been in a great mood all afternoon. He is one amazing little guy.

what about Liam?

We didn't take Liam with us to Little Rock. Instead, he stayed with Grammie, and was thrilled with that plan. 

They played on the playground, watched movies, made pancakes, went swimming, and had lots of fun time just the two of them. Liam was able to go with my mom to work on Monday and Tuesday, spending the day in class with the other 3 year olds. How perfect is it that she works at a pre-school? Liam had a great time and didn't seem to miss us one little bit.

making the most of it

Instead of waking up and hitting the road at 1:30 am, like we did the morning of Liam's surgery, Gabe and I decided to book a hotel room the night before since we had no idea how much sleep we'd get in the hospital after the surgery.

And that's why we ended up driving to Little Rock Sunday afternoon, timed perfectly with River's nap. He woke up when we were nearly to the hotel, happy and a little confused to be the only kid in the backseat.

Every time we drive down I-40, I always see this sign, laugh out loud, and say next time I'll have my camera ready. This time I finally did. Ha! Arkansas, you sure are funny.

We stayed overnight at the La Quinta downtown, which was the fanciest-schmanciest La Quinta I've ever seen. And look what was across the street:

Naturally, I introduced River to the banana milk shake and it was love at first taste. And those french fries are just as good as I remember.

Later, we jumped in the pool and River giggled and laughed and squealed the entire time.

This is the first time he has been in a swimming pool all summer. I know. That makes me sound like a bad mom. But would you want to take my two little boys to the pool by yourself? I didn't think so.

So now River is officially a big fan of swimming pools. And the elevator up to the 3rd floor of the hotel. And jumping on the King size bed in the room. And cartoons on the TV.

Yep, our trip to Little Rock wasn't exactly a vacation, but we were still able to squeeze in some fun.

home again, home again, jiggity jig

River had surgery at Arkansas Children's Hospital yesterday morning. This was the surgery we knew would be happening ever since he was born. The -ahem- boy parts surgery.

Everything went well, but because of his vWD, he was admitted for 24 hours following the surgery so he could receive his factor infusions and be monitored before going home.

Now that we're home, he will continue to receive a factor infusion once daily for the next three days, which means he still has his IV in place and a home health care nurse will be coming over to administer the medication.

I am so glad that Liam had his hand surgery first. A trial-run of sorts for me. It made all of the extra stuff with River a little less overwhelming:

• the pre-op echocardiogram (he still has those holes in his heart, but he was fine for surgery...)
• deciding with the anesthesiologist whether to give him the IV before he is asleep in the OR so he can wait the full 30 minutes for the factor to take effect or wait on the IV and medication until after he is asleep so he doesn't have to experience the needle prick, which meant only having the factor in his bloodstream for 15 minutes before the surgery began (So, so, so glad we went with the latter option since they had to stick him twice in each hand and three times in one foot before finally getting a suitable vein in the only limb left)
• Watching my baby sleep in a hospital crib with beeping monitors and keeping him calm through all of the nurse's assessments

This list could go on and on, but the staff took excellent care of us, his surgeon was great and came to check on him a few times, and his bleeding is undercontrol. I really have nothing to complain about.

River didn't either. He was either happy or groggy or both nearly the entire time. But as good as everything turned out, I am really glad to be home.



This was before they took him back for surgery. And his little friend's name is Piper. He was a last-minute I-need-to-make-something impulse sewing project. River loves him and kept him close by the entire time. Which I love.

a bedtime prayer

Liam:

Jesus, thank you for Liam in the mud. The end.

there will be mud

Backyard playtime is not complete for Liam without some water. And water means mud. Lots of it.

River wants in on the mud play, too. Unfortunately, he is less of a playfellow and more of a plaything.

Mud bath, courtesy of Liam's bucket.

Dallas is for Ikea

A little over a week ago, Gabe and I celebrated our 8 year anniversary with an overnight trip to Dallas. This was our first night away from our children. Ever.

We had been planning to go somewhere overnight for our anniversary, and still hadn't decided where to go, when Brighthaven, the children's learning center where my mom is the assistant director, hired Gabe to build some furniture that would be perfect with some storage bins from Ikea. We happily volunteered to go to Dallas and buy 68 trofast storage tubs.

And that's why we ended up with this as our anniversary meal (can you guess which tray is mine?):

Ikea is super kid friendly, but Ikea without kids in tow is even better. We were free to sit on all the couches, open all the drawers, and imagine our home Swedish for as long as we wanted. It was a lot of fun.

We stayed at the Sheraton across the street from the Galleria, which was really nice except for when we were ready to shower in the morning and discovered that the shower knob was broken. We each took a bath instead, which sounds romantic, but it really wasn't. We took turns in the tub, laughing at the awkwardness of bathing in a small little bathtub and trying to remember the last time we took baths just to get clean. Other than that, the Sheraton gets two thumbs up.

More highlights from the weekend include breakfast at the Paradise Cafe, where Gabe had his morning oatmeal in a cookie bowl, and stopping for dinner at the Okie Restaurant in Muskogee, Oklahoma.

Liam and River had a fun Grammie-filled weekend while we were away, and, really, I think we missed the kids more than they missed us.

c is for caterpillar {and cast}

Since Liam's arm has been in a cast the past two weeks, we have not spent much time outside. Water and dirt are too likely. Lucky for us, some caterpillars decided to feast on the parsley in a pot on the back deck. This was perfect for some morning outside play before the sun got too hot, and kept Liam happily occupied on the deck instead of out digging in the dirt.



We have been reading books about caterpillars, making crafts about caterpillars (and butterflies), drawing pictures of caterpillars, and sculpting play dough caterpillars. He says he loves them. 

He also told me that he loves his cast and wants to wear it all the days (meaning forever).

Managing the cast has been so much easier than I thought. It helps that the weather has been too hot to spend much time outside at all. Instead, we have been crafting, reading lots and lots of books, playing with legos, and trying to find other fun indoor activities. I'll also admit to relying on the computer for movies and tv shows much more than we normally would, but it hasn't been so bad.

Tomorrow, we go back down to Children's Hospital in Little Rock for the follow-up with the surgeon. He says he's ready to get his cast off so he can use two hands again.

And then it'll be back to the water play with plenty of mud, and maybe some more caterpillars too.

it tastes like summer

In case the 100+degree days weren't sign enough, the last few trips to the farmer's market have announced loud and clear: this is summer.

And while I want to complain about the unrelenting temperature outside - it's 109 right now - I'd rather fixate on the summer produce. Beacuse it's not everyday that we get to eat a fresh-picked pint of blackberries.

We can't visit the market without a basket of berries to snack along the way. Not many make it home after these two boys take turns eating them right out of the basket.

River would gladly eat the entire container in one sitting. See those chubby cheeks? They're blackberry-stuffed-full.

And the summer fruit sampler would not be complete without peaches. They're a new favorite snack.

And since summer will be over before we know it, I bought an extra bag of blemishes and made Lord Grey's Peach Preserves from Bon Appetit's August 2011 issue: fresh peaches cooked down to jam with earl grey tea. It's delicious as it sounds.

since we've been home: Gabriel turned 28

A few weeks ago now, we celebrated Gabriel's birthday with a treat every mature 28-year old man requests for his birthday cake: a traditional dirt cake with gummy worms.

Wait. This isn't typical?

Maybe he was wanting to feel young again, or maybe he was really in the mood for some crushed oreos with pudding and gummy worms.

I had thought about making a healthier version with homemade pudding, real whipped ream, Newman's Own oreo cookies, organic gummies. But then I remembered that it's not my birthay. It's his. So we went with the original recipe: high fructose corn syrup, artificial flavoring and coloring, and what Gabriel calls the real stuff, Cool Whip.

Even I have to admit that the treat tasted wonderful. And finding gummy worms hidden in the layers was a big hit with all three boys.

The boys painted a picture for him on a piece of plywood. Liam did a great job covering the entire board with differnt shades of red, yellow, pink, and orange.

And River managed to give himself a bindi. Namaste.

When they were done painting, I helped them with some handprints and text. Then it was off to the scrollsaw to cut it up.

They had a lot of fun putting together his birthday puzzle. This just might become a yearly tradition...

since we've been home: Forest was here (and today's a special day)

While we were still in California, my brother, Forest, flew out here to spend some time with my mom. He still had a few days to visit once we got home. It was strange to see him in San Diego, and then in Arkansas a few days later, but I am definitely not complaining.

His last evening here, we all walked downtown for pizza at Fratelli's. It's just a short walk, but the weather here has been unbelievably hot. Right around 100 degrees everyday since we've been back. So, we arrived for our pizza, hot and sweaty. But the food was great as always.

We stopped for a family photo along the way. Molly, wish you could have been here!

After pizza, we walked over to Pour Jon's for for coffee, tea, milk shakes, and air conditioned relaxation.

Liam and River both love the little stage area at the front of the coffee shop.

River discovered a new way to drink from a cup. Perfect for playing and pausing for a sip every now and then.

Gabriel might not like coffee, but he won't turn down a hand-stirred milk shake.

************

It's kind of hard to believe that we have been married for 8 years today. It's been a long journey, but one that has gone by so fast. Back on our wedding day, there was no way I could have pictured our life together as it is now. For one thing, we are still in Arkansas. But through all of the not-changing and changes, the childbirths and hair-pulling, the laughter and everyday craziness we share with our boys, we will always have each other. And with so much uncertainty in our world around us, that is something to hold onto.

It's easy to forget how much I love being with him. We drive each other crazy: he can't sip a drink, only gulp; I always load the dishwasher from the front when he prefers to start from the back. Those silly little things somehow become big enough that we scowl and nag and forget. Forget that right here. Together. That's where we want to be.