I am so excited! For the last several weeks, Parker would only nap if I was holding him, and the longest he would sleep was 20-30 minutes. He used to take 2 1 1/2 hour naps. Yesterday he only took 2 10 minute naps. He needs more sleep!!! I talked to the Dr about it and he recommended essentially swaddling him and putting a large heavy pillow over his midsection. I also downloaded some meditation/white noise with water and birds. He just slept for almost an hour. His eyes even fluttered open a couple of times and he went back to sleep. This is HUGE!!!

Parker's Christmas stocking so far. Thanks Tami for getting me started way back then.

This little boy is troublesome. He is in a very oral phase right now. Think 4 month old with teeth. LOTS of teeth. Sharp teeth. He got 4 new teeth in the PICU. I always say, If you are going to get 4 teeth all at the same time, you might as well be on morphine.
He is chewing on EVERYTHING, including his dad's and my shoulders, as well as therapist's fingers if they are not diligent enough. Yesterday he was completely useless in therapy because he was chewing on every toy, o...r shirt, or finger in reach. We finally had the brilliant idea to give him a piece of Graham cracker during OT which he LOVED. (My idea, actually) He could grasp it, bring it to mouth, take a bite and bring it down while he chewed. It was awesome.

This morning he bit my shoulder so hard he left teeth marks through two layers of shirts- hence being troublesome. During PT today his shirt was soaked because he kept chewing on it. He was so one-track minded chewing on a sock that protects his PICC line that I finally switched it to his right arm so he would engage his right side, which worked until he realized he could not pull it with his teeth to his favorite left side. He started chewing on his PICC line dressing instead until... He got a really sad face. Then started crying. Hard. With big crocodile tears. It was sad... but a little funny. All right a lot funny. Poor kid. But sometimes you have to laugh or cry. And sometimes it's good to get a taste of your own medicine.
And on the bright side his hand/mouth coordination is improving by leaps and bounds! And bites ...

Since I only see my kiddos a few times a week at the moment, I may or may not be a sucker for things like blanket tent sleepovers in my room on a school night...I really miss my kids. I think this is one of the first school nights I've been home to actually help them with their homework, see what they are learning in school and hear them practice the piano. We Skype sometimes for homework, or they have brought it to the hospital, but it is not the same. I want to cherish these moments and never get too busy when life gets back to normal. I really love my kids and miss them. This makes me want to go in there and snuggle with them... Think they'd mind me squashing them?

 

I am feeling much more organized and less overwhelmed. A good friend recommended getting a 3 inch binder for all of the bills and paperwork. Thanks to fancy hole puncher, shredder and a long counter at the nurse's station I am feeling a whole lot more on top of things. Now I have a specific list of people to call, questions to ask, and bills to pay instead of an overwhelming stack of papers and envelopes and legal jargon and.... I think I will go to bed now.

You can tell you've been at the hospital a while when you go to check the hours at Costco and you enter in the hospital zipcode... Parker is doing well. He is still throwing up, but he is eating better and his tummy seems to be feeling much better. He started vocalizing today, mostly really adorable sighs. Ahhhhhh. He has always been fairly quiet, but since being here he has definitely preferred the strong silent type. He is a hard sell, but I've gotten him to chuckle almost every day. He is finally starting to get ticklish! Oh, and the swelling and fluid have gone down a ton. We sure adore this little boy!

 

I am glad we never got rid this toy! It has been a favorite with all of my kids at this stage. He can kick with his legs or play with the toys... Or grab the side with his hand and manhandle it which is what he's doing as I write... He is obviously a little big, but it really is perfect at the moment anyway. The kiddos came up to visit this morning. It is cool to have a break for a few days both for the break and also to see the changes that are more obvious. Jes was playing with him and he was finding her nose and mouth when she was asking him to, which was fun. He did throw up this morning when he overate, but I noticed he is eating a whole lot better than last week. He does not seem nearly as upset and nauseated. Overall it is a great start to another week.