Tuesday, October 26, 2010

Fun, Fun, and More Fun

Wow! That was a huge blogging break. If you can imagine, the only chance I have to do this is when I put Sidney to bed. I am literally typing in the dark. Our life has reached its chaotic school year pace.  Add fun weekends into the mix, and I am left with minimal time. We spent the weekend with great friends a few hours from home. They definitely inspired us to follow our lifelong dream of adopting a child having completed three adoptions. Getting the kids together is such an awesome thing. Once Sidney understood why we were there, she dove straight into the fun. Of course, Eli was immediately in the mix. Three boys and two girl could be heard, alternately, screaming and laughing over the majority of the weekend.

                                                                                   

Tom and I had another reality check on Friday night driving up. We know we have overcome much with Sidney’s emotional well being, however there are subtle reminders indicating her heart continues to heal. When something changes in Sidney’s schedule, she becomes hyper vigilant. Anyone who has experienced this with a child understands it is more than simple excitement.  It is a raw instinct. She stays awake, literally, out of fear of the unknown. While driving up, she would not allow herself to sleep. This might have been normal for a 2 1/2 year old if she had napped more than a half hour on Friday. Of course, this did not take away from a great weekend with our friends. 

Many glasses of wine, bowls of spicy noodles, and scotcheroos later we were back on the road for home. Tom’s mother passed away five years ago, and his stepfather remarried. With his new wife came a boat load of extra cousins, in addition to the many already in our family. This makes for a fun time when we all get together. Each year, they go to the Amish and buy enough pumpkins that the kids can carve them (ok, I guess adults are wielding the sharp knives). It is an awesome way to celebrate the holiday and a great excuse for the cousins to play together. Of course this all happened after four hours in the car, so I think both kids did a face plant on their pillows when they went to bed last night.
We heard from the cardiologist today, and Sidney will have an echo cardiogram in the middle of November. This is a preventative procedure suggested by the genetics team at the university hospital. Rarely, children with limb anomalies have heart defects. We want to make sure we cover all our bases, so this is a precautionary measure. This seems simple in comparison to her hand surgeries but scary at the same time. We are pleased this procedure can be done close to home at a hospital about 20 minutes away versus the hour drive we complete for her orthopedic and surgery appointments. We pray there is nothing else, however we know God continues to guide us through her healing. 

OK, off to work on my project. Mom has decided there are not enough hours in the day, and I am looking into taking Sidney to a daycare for drop off a couple of hours a week or having someone come to the house. Something about writing contracts, bookwork for our business, and most importantly two children and a husband that need more hours than there are available. Before I check myself into the state mental facility in our community (I am kidding of course), I am looking into something a few hours a week to create a bit more calm in our lives. Stay tuned.

2 comments:

Rachelle said...

Love the pumpkins! Good luck with the school for Sidney! It has CHANGED MY LIFE for the GOOD!

Jen said...

It looks like you had a great weekend! And I'm anxious to hear what you figure out to create a little space in your life.