Wordless Wednesday: Walking

Just about every evening Noah and Granddad have been taking a walk together. Granddad does the walking and pushing while Noah listens to his headphones. 

For more Wordless Wednesday check out 5 Minutes for Moms, Special Exposure Wednesday at 5 Minutes for Special Needs, and Wordless Wednesday Headquarters.

Happy Birthday Andy!

Happy Birthday to my brother, Andy. He turns 31 today. 

(And his puppy Hansel turned 1 on July 16th!) 

Health Updates and News

I've gotten slack lately but I just haven't been feeling like myself. I've been pretty sick, went to the doctor, got sicker, end up dehydrated, and went back to the doctor. At that point, I'd lost 13 lbs in 12 days and was dehydrated. They think I have a bacteria infection in my blood most likely caught from when Noah was in the hospital. I got new meds and was feeling better then I relapsed again. Went back to the doctor and am on different meds now. I'm feeling a bit better again but am still going to go to a GI so we can get to the bottom of these issues. 


Noah's doing well. He is able to get off the bed by himself again although it does make me a tad nervous again. He is crawling around some too. Still haven't made it into his regular wheelchair yet but we'll try that soon since school is less than a month away! Once the school opens back up, I'm going to call and get their advice on whether or not he should go to school in the reclining wheelchair or his regular wheelchair and a couple of other concerns. Hopefully he'll be up to full days but if not we'll figure something out or if the reclining wheelchair is an issue we'll just drive him to school instead of him riding the bus for a bit. We'll get it all worked out - he is going to be so excited about going back to school! 


And the news..... we found a house!! I'm beyond excited to begin living in our own one story (no more lugging a 60 lb child up and down steps - thank you Lord!!!) house. It's a cute little house in an older neighborhood and as I said no stairs and all hardwood floors - which is going to be awesome for Noah! It's three bedrooms and has a fenced in backyard for Paisley. We get the keys on Thursday! We have some painting (the kitchen is currently bright lime green - I need sunglasses to deal with the brightness!) to do first and once that's all done we'll begin to move our stuff in.

So, if I get quiet again, it's probably because I'm busy fixing up the house or moving. Once we get the house looking like a home, I'll bombard the blog with pictures. 

Quote of the Week: Making the Best of It

“Some stories don’t have a clear beginning, middle, and end. Life is about not knowing, having to change, taking the moment, and making the best of it without knowing exactly what will happen next.” 

Wordless Wednesday: Talking on the Phone

For more Wordless Wednesday check out 5 Minutes for Moms, Special Exposure Wednesday at 5 Minutes for Special Needs, and Wordless Wednesday Headquarters.

Quote of the Week: Thank You God

"If I sat on a perch across from God,

I'd thank him for lending me you."

~ Flavia

Surgery Before and After Photos

Considering all that he has been through since May, Noah is doing so well. He still has moments of pain, mainly only when he is being moved or carried and is no longer on any pain medicine other than Motrin or Tylenol occasionally. He’s not totally one hundred percent yet and that may still take a little while (it was a brutal surgery after all) but each day he seems a smidge more like the “old Noah.”

I had previously written how Noah was having a lot of “flutters” (seizure like activity) and am happy to report that those seem to have gone away on their own. The stress and pain of surgery could likely have been the cause of them. He is having more meltdowns than he typically does but again, with all he’s been through I think it’s understandable.

He is sitting up pretty well but still not for long periods of time so we will be working on that as he will need to be able to sit up for most of the school day when school starts in a little over a month. Seeing him sit up now is just amazing. He does so well. He looks much taller (well he is taller, the surgery did add a little height) and more grown up now.

I leave you with some amazing before and after pictures……

You can click on them to see them larger if you need to. Amazing don't ya think?!? 

Wordless Wednesday: Noah and the Big Bear

Noah cuddling with "Mr. Bear" while watching a movie which was a gift from a friend. 

For more Wordless Wednesday check out 5 Minutes for Moms, Special Exposure Wednesday at 5 Minutes for Special Needs, and Wordless Wednesday Headquarters.

Water Ball

While at the pool on Saturday, Noah and my Dad played a little bit of water basketball. Noah enjoyed this more than I thought he would and they even scored a couple of baskets!

Splish Splashin' in the Pool

On Saturday, we took Noah swimming for the first time since his surgery. Noah enjoys swimming and even receives swim therapy at school. He's been asking to go to the pool in my parent's neighborhood for awhile now and after recently getting the clearance from the doctor we were finally able to say yes. We had previously gotten him a new life jacket and swimsuit in preparation. 


We went to the pool late Saturday afternoon and stayed for about an hour which was plenty of time to exhaust him. Thankfully it wasn't too crowded and most of the people were playing pool volleyball at one end of the pool so we just hung out on the opposite end. The pool manager was very sweet and accommodating to Noah. The music was blaring when we got there and that's a little too much for him in an already noisy setting so I explained that it agitated him and asked if she could turn it down a little bit and she was super nice about it. She even came over to warn Noah that the lifeguards were going to be blowing their whistles soon so that it wouldn't startle him. 


He seemed most comfortable floating on his back but would do some kicking and what not while floating. I think it was good exercise for him and he clearly enjoyed it. I'm sure we'll be going back again soon. 

(As always click the pic to see it larger.) 

Quote of the Week: Life's a Journal

"Life is not a book that you can just pick up and read.
It's a blank journal waiting for you to fill up the pages." 

~ Unknown

MIA

Missed me lately? I've missed you too! I have been sooooo sick, my friends, so sick. It all started about two weeks ago when I was picking up Noah and my back spasmed. I went to the doctor and they said I either had a pulled muscle or a bulging disc and sent me home with pain pills and muscle relaxers to rest and the promise of a MRI if things hadn't improved in a week.

A week later I was no better and had added stomach pain and nausea to the mix. Went back to the Doctor who thought it was the pain pills making me sick. He switched me to a different type of pain pill, added a pill for the nausea, and sent me on my way again.

Things continued to get worse. I began having writhing stomach pains, got severely dehydrated, and lost 12 lbs in 11 days. Yesterday I went back to (a different) Doctor. First thing he did was hooked me up to an IV and started pumping fluids in me. Then he started running tests to figure out what the heck was going on. Turns out I have a bacteria infection in my blood stream - probably the same infection I caught when Noah was in the hospital and was treated for only that round of antibiotics didn't kill it, just made it weaker, and it's been festering ever since. It's probably just an odd coincidence that it all happened at the same time as the back pain.

So now, I'm on a stronger dose of antibiotics and a stomach tranquilizer for the stomach pains. I am feeling better today. Not 100 % yet but definitely better. I go back to the Doctor on Saturday so they can re-check my blood levels and make sure the antibiotics are killing the infection.

Noah is doing well. He is recovering nicely and seems to be a bit more like the "old Noah" each day. He still has moments of pain and still gets frustrated about things and I'm sure not doing a whole lot this summer (he usually has summer camp every summer) is starting to get to him.

I'll post some new pics and what not once I'm feeling more like myself. 

Independence Day

Have a happy and safe 4th of July!

Blogging

In the month of June I blogged more than any other month since I have had this blog. I wrote 39 posts. A lot of that was due to Noah's Surgery and Creativity Boot Camp.


I blogged every day during Noah's surgery and hospital stay. Some of that blogging was to keep you updated but a great deal of it was for me. I needed this blog during that time - I needed to write. I needed to vent. I needed to be able to share the good and the bad that was going on with my baby. I have enjoyed blogging in the past but during this time I have grown to love blogging. I love having my own place to vent and to share. For me, writing is just so healing. It always has been healing for me ever since the days of my Hello Kitty journal. And now this blog has become a place for me to write and feel and heal. 


And you have been a part of that healing. I love having regular readers who leave me positive comments and virtual hugs. You dropped to your knees in prayer when I wrote that Noah had developed pneumonia in the hospital, you rejoiced with me when we were finally able to come home, you spread the word about the card drive, and you encouraged me and complimented my photos during Creativity Boot Camp....

Thank you for being a part of that.

Photo: Me updating Facebook from the hospital