We enjoyed last Monday's holiday and being able to spend time together. I took Preston into his pre-op appointment and he weighs 8 lbs 2 oz!! I THOUGHT that nurse weighed him wrong at his last appointment! Good going big boy! Preston's circumcision went great and he only stayed in the recovery room for 30 minutes while he woke up and devoured the sugar water they gave him. The surgeon came in and told me that everything went great, but when they took his breathing tube out, there was a some "gunk" on it from his lungs and they were going to send in a test to the lab to make sure it wasn't brewing pneumonia. Then the anesthesiologist came in and said that Preston did just fine but when the breathing tube came out there was a bunch of "crap" on it. Do doctors seriously go to school for years and years to learn such medical terms as "gunk" and "crap"? We went and stayed in Preston's patient room for about 30 minutes and then they released us. He's a little trooper! And I can't forget to thank Megan for watching the other kids during our hours at the hospital!! She and Jeremiah did amazing with 6 children ages 6 and under!! Thank you!
Thursday we made a trip into the pediatrician's office to check out the gunk/crap in his lungs and I talked the doctor into writing me an order for a suction machine so I can keep his nose and throat clear. He's also on a bit on antibiotics for 10 days just to fight any infection he might have and help the congestion. I thought his appointment would be no big deal, and also didn't want to bother someone to watch the kids at the last minute so I had Hailey & Benjamin with me also...BIG MISTAKE! Preston started spitting up while the nurse was doing his O2 check and meanwhile, Benny climbed up on a chair and then promptly fell off and started screaming. Yeah, we made it through but I was not a happy Mommy. When I got home and faced voicemail messages about my church calling, the phone ringing off the hook for this and that, and trying to feed the kids lunch all at the same time - I just felt like I wanted to explode! I have 5 young children and an infant with special needs!! Don't call me unless you're offering to help in some way!!! Thank you to my buddy Jill who said she had been thinking of me and wondering how things were going. She let me have my pity party, tears were shed, frustrations explained, etc. Then Brian called...he let me have my pity party, tears were shed, frustrations explained, etc., again and when he got home from work, he immediately began to repair the wreckage from the day. I met up with my stamp club that night and had a great time.
Friday was a great improvement upon the prior few days. Preston and I went to a group session of music therapy. Usually the therapist comes to our house to work with Preston one on one, but once in a while, she has all her down syndrome kids get together to sing and play and dance. What a fabulous thing it was for me to see these adorable little faces (all with their tongues sticking out - just like Preston's!) and see how happy they were just playing and being with their friends. It was nice to talk to the Moms...and guess what?!? There are other people who know what we're going through!! After music therapy, we went to a little Mom's lunch for the Down Syndrome Association. We laughed together, we cried together, we ate Philly cheese steak sandwiches...what could be better than that? I feel blessed that I have come into contact with such remarkable people.
Friday night was Living Legends!! A BYU dance group was performing at a local high school. They were fabulous, as always! At the end, we were dragging the sleepy Nathan, Hailey & Preston to the car through the cold and Sydney pipes up, "I don't want to go. I want to watch it again!" The next morning she said that she watched it again in her dreams. Hailey said she liked the girls, but not the boys and Nathan liked the Indian fighting number - but not the loud drums. Courtney's favorite part was the Hawaiian dancers with flowers in their hair. It was a fun night out.
Saturday was work day, play day, everything day. The girls were so pleased in dressing Benny up like a girl. That's what little brothers are for, right? I went to play Bunko at a friend's house. I'm really glad Megan was there with me because I felt very out of place next to the "I'm going to put my baby in the $800 a month preschool for 3 days a week because it has the absolute best curriculum and then I can continue my career" lady. Thanks for the laughs Megan!
On to the next week....wish me luck! And please send out prayers (and $5 if you can) to Preston's buddy Rhett and his family! They are facing a very hard week coming up.
