Thursday 3 May 2012

The hospital - my second home

I have to start by saying its been so long since I have been on here!  I have been so busy - mainly involving hospitals - that I have been very slack, so I am going to attempt to update this to the present.

My Bro spent about three weeks in hospital and finally had the 2nd operation on his on his ankle on my DS2 birthday.  They insert a plate and about 6 or so screws into the bone in his lower leg and ankle.  They are going to stay in there for the short term, and possibly permanently. He has been attending physio and even had accupunture (which he highly recommends) and working his bum off to get rehabilitated so he can get back to work.  He hurt his other foot about 8 years ago and he tells me that he isn't going to limp anymore, he is going to strut!

I can't believe my baby is 2!  His birthday was back in Feburary and we have been working with the speech therapist and physio therapist to advance his skills.  His speech has taken off in leaps and bounds.  He can say his brothers name and most of the families - but point blank refuses to say my sister's name.  I think he realises how much she wants him to and he thinks its funny to keep her hanging!  His current obsessions are big trucks, big diggers (he says big dig which sounds rather like dick :o)), buses, mixers and motorbikes and absolutely loves going out in the car. He even sleeps with his trucks or a handful of matchbox cars, which I can't imagine is comfortable in the slightest but it makes him happy! He is able to ask for food and drink now, although the foods he will are still very limited - toast, cereal, chips, biscuits, tuna & vege in a tube, yoghurt, fruit in a tube etc.  His physio is helping get his co-ordination sorted, I think is biggest problem now is the fact that he won't do anything slowly, he runs everywhere.  He is still half covered in bruises - mainly on his legs now which I guess is better than his head.  He does still have the occasional one on his head though, he does have a habit of headbutting the tiles when his is frustrated.  He was 91 cms at 2 years so I reckon he is going to be at least 6ft and tower over his Mumma!

DP father had also been in hospital, for almost two months!  So I was going up there almost every night to sit with him after I got the boys to bed.  Hospital is such a depressing place and I can't imagine being stuck in there for as long as he had been in there.  He is much better, although he is still recovering at home with the community nurse coming to see him twice a day. I hope that this inspires him to retire - he is 72 and I want him to realise that work is not everything and he should spend some time enjoying himself.  This has meant that DP has been much more busy, trying to help his mum and dad plus running the business.

On the 19th April, I went to work, I got tummy ache mid-morning and didn't have any lunch.  Around 3.30-4, I was struck by the most intense pain just below my ribs I have ever felt before in my life!!  I called to my boss who was in his office, he came out and just looked at me and asked if he should call an ambulance.  I was rather resistant, so he got the first aid officer who called an ambulance straight away (my first ever ride). I told them it felt like I had gall stones, but I couldn't have that because I had my gall baldder removed about 11 years ago.  I asked my boss to call my Mum because DP was at a golf day that day, and I wanted her to pick the boys up for me.  I also asked for someone to call my Dad, he works in the same Dept as me and in the building across the road.  I had to wait a while for the ambulance but when they arrived I got a green whistle and then they chucked in a canula and hit me up with some morphine - some relief!!  They took me to the hospital where I was left in a corridor for an hour or so before I got a bed.  They gave me morphine whenever the pain started to get out of control again.  They wanted blood but couldn't get any from the canula they had in, so they had to insert another one.  They took a urine test.  They did a chest xray.  The doctor finally saw me at 2 am!  They couldn't find out what was going on and at about 5 am they decided to send me home as my pain wasn't so bad (morphine=good) and took my canulas out.  I got up and started to get dressed and began to vomit and so they decided to put a bag of fluids into me before I left so in went canula number 3!  I had a piece of toast and was sent home.
DP arrange for his Mum to stay with me for the day, to help me with the boys, thank god!  I must have slept 3/4 of the day.  Then around 4 o'clock again the pain began to become so intense again that I couldn't get comfortable sit, lying or standing and began pacing around.  My Dad came over and I asked him to take me to the doctors, the doctor said he thought I had a stomach ulcer/s and gave me some medication and I would be feeling better in no time.  All I felt was like throwing up.  About 5.30, I asked DP to call the ambulance again.  They came, I had another green whistle, another canula in and some wonderful morphine. My sister came with me, DP stayed home with the boys.  I was delivered to the hospital where I lay on stretcher in the corridor for four hours - the first two weren't so bad, with the whistle and morphine but after they wore off I was in unholy hell!  My sister called with my Dad to do a swap and my poor father had listen to me moaning and screaming for two hours.  I was finally admitted and got some endone, which made me throw up again.  More blood tests and that revealed that my liver enzymes where off the wall! So I was taken up to the ward immediately.  As it turns out I had what was believed to be a common bile duct stone, a chest infection and a urinary tract infection.  So I had to have an ERCP to remove the offending blockage which was moved up from Monday to Sunday as it looked like I was developing Pancreatitis from the blockage and was a beautiful shade of yellow from the jaundice.  I am waiting to go back to outpatients clinic for further tests, hope that happens sooner rather than later!  The upside of getting sick is I have quit smoking - two weeks today!

DS1 is growing fast, and you have to watch what you say around him. He can repeat verbatim something you say to him even if its a couple of weeks later.  So I have to think before I speak. He is a very sensitvely little man.  He recently asked if he could learn to do ballet, which I am looking into.  He just wants hang around with the girls. He also wants to learn to play tennis!  So look out world! 

C U Soon

Sunday 5 February 2012

There is a little magpie speaking

This evening my sister and I took the boys on 'the magical mystery tour'.  This involves me either dropping various items at various locations (ie returning crockery after a party) or just driving where the road takes me, as I am bored of the usual night time routine and I need some time out of the house. The ultimate goal is to put both the boys to sleep - but this doesn't often happen.  Tonight was just a drive, quite a long drive.  DS1 went to sleep quite fast but DS2 was just babbling the whole way, to his baby (doll), to Mumma and all this was punctuated with random raspberries.  His vocab is small but the variety of noises that little man can make is quite amazing.

This drive reminded me of the magical myster tour we took to deliver the local Christmas cards in early December.  We drove all around the southside, and delivered all the cards and still the boys were both asleep.  I told DS1 that we need to have some quiet time so that DS2 could go to sleep. My sister and I were keeping silent in the front seat and trying very hard not to wet ourselves laughing.  With this DS1 started with eeeeeeeeeeewwwwwwwwwwweeeeeeeeeeeeewwwwwwwweeeeewwweee, followed by Mumma, Mumma, Mumma, Mumma, Mumma, followed by look at the Christmas lights, who put those lights there, look at the Christmas lights, who put those lights there, followed by there is a little magpie speaking, there is a little magpie speaking followed Mumma, Auntie P gone to sleep,  Auntie P gone to sleep (Sis was pretending to sleep).  This must have gone on for at least 40 minutes.  And then he was quiet for a minute and then out cold!  The boy could talk with a mouthful of marbles!!

DS2 had his swimming lesson this morning, he is doing quite well, but really isn't interested in doing much work.  He just enjoys being in the water, and seeing all the different people.  I can't believe this week he is going to be 2.  I have been looking at the photos of his birth, and I never quite comprehended the massive changes he has made in our lives.  He has made our DS1 a big brother who is protective and sharing (most the time) and become so responsible in his own little way.  Daddy has become more of a Daddy, spending more time at home.  I have learned that there is more room in my heart than I could have ever expected, that my mother's instincts are usually right (no matter what anyone says to me) and that every little person on this planet is different and so unique, no matter if they were made with the same ingredients and came out of my tummy looking like they could be twins!!

DS2 has been placed in an early language group to help him with his language skills by his speech therapist.  I hope this continues him on a road to being better able to express himself and work towards the goal of having him caught up on all his major milestones by the time he reaches primary school age.

I took DS1 with me to the hospital to visit my brother today.  I had told him that Uncle S had an accident and hurt his foot on the day that it happened.  A few days later I asked him if he would like to see a photo and he did.  He asked me if it hurt, I told him yes.  He asked if Uncle S had cried, I said yes and that was ok, because its fine to cry when something hurts us. The next day I mentioned I was going to the hospital and DS1 said I don't want to go, I am scared.  I told him I would be visiting after he went to bed, so he didn't need to worry about it. This morning I asked him if he would like to go and visit with me when DS2 was napping and he said yes.  He looked at all the pins on the outside for a good minute with a worried look on his face and then he was fine.  We took Uncle S outside in his bed and we did colouring in and chatted and DS1 was fantastic and behaved so very well.  I am very proud of him.  I have found that when we are doing something that might scare him (like when he had his needles or when he had to have a blood test) that if I pre-warn him and give him time to think things through and asks questions and resolve things in his own mind, that he copes so much better.  He has such a wonderful mind and he seem to work through concepts in his head and then he can tackle them without a worry.  Such a beautiful little boy <3

Friday 3 February 2012

Bull Sugar

Its been a big few days - you know how it goes, it never rains but it pours!

Last week I received confirmation that DS2 had been placed in an Early Language Group to try to help him catch up with his speech progress.  Only problem is its on a Wednesday morning at 9.30, one of the 3 days a week that I work.  It means I am going to have to take another three mornings off, the other two mornings fall on a day when I am taking my sister for an MRI and when I have a week of rec leave (or sanity leave) booked.  It makes me thankful that I have a boss who is so understanding of children (even though he has none of his own) and is happy to work around anything I need when it comes to them.    So I need to make up two days of work, some how......

Earlier this week, I got a phone call at work from my brother fiancee to tell me my brother was on the way to the hospital, he had an altercation with a rock whilst out fishing and dislocated his ankle, broke both bones in his calf (almost to the knee). He has now had one lot of surgery and will have another lot next week to have have a bunch of pins and plates inserted.  Poor boy.  I can't even begin to imagine how much that hurt.  And he managed to injure his good foot, so now they are both bodgey.  He says it will help to even out his limp, and that he will walk with constant strut instead.  He has still got his sense of humour ;o)

DS1 has been testing me the last couple days, trying to see how many times he can do something he has been told not to before my head literally pops.  I am trying to keep it together!  Especially now DS2 is heading into the terrible 2s!  He has a temper and likes to headbutt when he doesn't get his way and is a tantrum thrower.  The joys.  Anyway like just like DS1 said to me yesterday - "its BULL SUGAR"!  I had to smile at that one :o)

Anyway I have to go, off for a last Friday playdate with my lovely chickies and their boys!  Shame about the rain, no park today!

Saturday 28 January 2012

Some days

Do you ever have those days when you feel like the worst Mumma in the world??  I was trying so hard today not to raise my voice but no matter what I couldn't seem to keep everyone happy. Ears were not working.  It started with an early morning as usual, washing day, five loads of washing, stripping and re-making three beds, keeping the kids clean, feed and happy etc. 
I heard crying when I was out at the washing line so I dashed inside to find DS1 with blood streaming out of his nose - DS2 had whacked him in the nose with a matchbox car :(.  Timeout for DS2 which resulted in him falling asleep. 
I had to go to the bathroom at one stage so I pulled the plug out of the side of the paddling pool which was still set up in the backyard since Australia Day.  I didn't want DS1 going anywhere near it when I wasn't nearby to supervise.  I came out to find that he was wet through to the skin, so this resulted in a time out, with many tears and screams. He woke DS2 up!!  I had to tell him that he wasn't allowed back in the garden for the rest of the day (the ultimate punishment for him).
There was incidents of headbutting, hair pulling and wrestling and multiple time outs.  By this afternoon I was just over it!!!  I put dinner on and had it on the table at 4.45 and the boys showered by 5.30.  When I had to replace the DVD for about the sixth time because DS2 would wait til we got it all set up again and then run and push eject, DS 1 started yelling at me and his brother, and generally having a melt down.  I decided I was done for the day..... Both boys were taken to bed, no cuddles, no stories.  Ten minutes later they were both asleep by 6.10 pm. 
So I have spent the evening feeling guilty and trying to figure out where I am going wrong.... can I create more hours in the day?  How can I be more involved with them and spend more time playing, and still manage to keep the house in one piece?
Tomorrow I will do a better job!  I hope that when I come back to this in years to come I don't have a pair of teenage boys who can't stand me because I was the cranky Mumma.  Although, DS1 says I am still his friend!  Let's just hold on to that as long as we can.....

The first one.....

I have been thinking more and more about a way to remember all the things my boys say and get up to, and I think this would be good way to do that, plus this way I can share it with my family and friends.  I will be able to look back in the years to come and share with the boys some of the funny things they have said and done.

I have to two beautiful, funny, sweet sons.  DS1 has just turned 4, and one of my good friend described him as bold, and I think this is the perfect description of him. He can be shy to start with but given some time he is just exploding with energy, in your face and barely comes up for breath between sentences.  He blows me away with his thought processes - I am not sure if this is due to my lack of experience with little children prior to my own or he is a bit outside the box.  I have been posting some of his questions and quotes on Facebook for a while now, simply because I find them so amusing and below are some that I have mentioned in the past -
  • We were walking through the carpark of a shopping centre, and DS1 said to me "Mummy, one day I think I will have a magpie and a duck", I asked him - knowing him as I do, "Do you mean to eat?"  "Yes, Mummy" was his response.  I told him I didn't think there would be much meat on a magpie.....
  • He asked one day if we could listen to bolognese in the car - it took me a few seconds, but I realised that he meant Meatloaf.
  • At one of his friends birthday parties he turned to me and ask "Who kills the dogs when we want to eat hot dogs?"  I explained that they weren't made out of dogs and he seemed rather disappointed.
  • When his father was pouring him a bowl of cereal, his father said "Say when" and DS1 response to that was "Today, Daddy!".
  • When I arrived home from picking up Chinese take away for dinner, he came running to the door to ask if I had any "pink crunchy pigs ears" for him - this also took me a few moments of thinking to figure out he meant prawn crackers.
  • Yesterday his Auntie ask me to pick up some tiger balm for her, when I relayed the message to his father  DS1 looked at me and asked "Why does Auntie P need a tiger farm?".
He is so active its unbelievable, he does not cope at all being couped up.  I have spent hours freezing my butt off sitting in the sand pit building sand castles, pushing him on the swings etc.  He reminds me in so many ways of my brother when he was little.  And I occasionally call DS1 by my brothers name....ooppps!

DS2 will be 2 in less than two weeks, I can't believe how fast the time has gone.  When DS1 turned 2, I was eight months pregnant.  DS2 hasn't started speaking much yet as he had a some issues.  My bubba is had his tonsils and adenoids out when he was 20 months, plus fluid vacuumed from his ears and grommets inserted.  The size of both the tonsils and adenoids are blocking his eustachian tubes, causing fluid to fill his ear cavity.  I know children fall over when they are learning how to walk but by the time he had been 'walking' for 4 months he was still falling over literally 100 times a day and had nearly permenent bruising across his forehead from banging his head so often. I seriously thought he was going to end up with brain damage from the amount of blows to his head. And I felt awful, I just couldn't seem to get him to stay upright.  We have sorted out his balance issues, mostly and he is just as active as his brother.  We still have some big issues around his association between food and pain - plus he is really fussy, so food time is very hard!  He has gained back some of the hearing he has lost and that has meant a great improvement in his speech and vocabulary.  He has a new favourite word - NO!  But he says its in such a sweet way, I can't help but laugh half the time.  I am sure the novelty will wear off soon enough. 

I am not sure how I will go updating this, but I will try to come on every couple of days, and journal some of our adventures and all the interesting things they say! :o)