On Mother's Day

My Mother's Day started like any other day, to the sound of at least one baby crying. Now, as it is the weekend, I've let their schedule slide a little bit which gave me a few extra hours sleep going into Saturday. Last night they decided to take that back; this morning was not greeted as happily as the one before.

Over the course of today, I've received: 1 handmade card (from Quinn), 1 decorated cup full of dirt (that I am assured that a seed lives in), 1 handmade necklace (also from Quinn), and three commercial cards (one from each of the twins and one from Sean). We had to forgo the usual brunch as my husband has been suffering from a migraine all day... which was a bit worrisome as he does not get migraines. The day has progressed like any other day otherwise; dishes, laundry, babies. Meh.

Speaking of babies, both are doing very well after their excellent medical adventures. We were at the pediatrician 2 weeks ago and they had gained a whole pound each. By last week, they had gained another pound, which puts Zoe over 8 lbs and Wyatt close to 9. Wyatt has actually made the growth chart. Hooray!

Last Monday saw us heading to the Family MD after a trip to the polls. All three kids were due for shots. Zoe cried real tears after her needles (one in each thigh) and Wyatt almost turned blue after his... and Mommy was not far behind. Quinn too needed a jab and he took his like a trooper. He had to: Mommy quietly restrained him for the shot. Everybody got Tylenol and a couple of hours later no one was the worse for wear. Including Mommy.

No more ouchies pweeze.

Tuesday was a trip in the rain to Wyatt's cardiologist. They had called us the day before stating that there was an opening and they wanted to sedate him for his test (presumably for a trans-esophogeal). Needless to say, between the 5 year old, the weather and Brampton Transit, we were very late and had to forgo the sedation (not that I minded terribly about that either). Instead, they did a regular echo and were very pleased to note that the ventricular aspect of his Atrioventricular Septal Defect has in fact narrowed significantly. On top of it, there is a significant amount of occlusion, meaning that part of the hole is mainly blocked. He therefore does not have the gross mixing of blood from the left to the right side, which means it is not overloading his lungs and, as we speak, is mainly asymptomatic. He will still need surgery eventually, but I am very happy to report that it can be held off until he is approximately 3 or 4 years of age. That is fantastic news. It allows his heart (and him) to grow and makes the surgery that much easier for everyone. Especially Wyatt.

Yay for me!

As for his Down syndrome... well, to this humble, non-expert, he doesn't look that far behind his sister and most of that (to me) can be chalked up to him being a boy. He does have more variety in his vocalizations, when he uses them. He's more active as well (when he is awake); he can wiggle across the crib to Zoe. I'm pretty sure she can do the same, but she's too busy yelling. I've connected with Infant Development of Peel, so we're now on the waiting list for resources.

Next on our list of specialist appointments for Wyatt will be an ENT (Ear, Nose and Throat) and an opthamologist, all within the next month or so. The appointments have settled down to part-time status, which is a blessing too. Getting these kids out the door is a major manoeuvre; the planning, the anticipating, the preparations, the packing, the equipment... I swear, it would be easier to annex a small country. I had a Region of Peel nurse through here not too long ago and she was amazed at my "organization". I told her it was do or die, and she laughed. She's the mother of twins as well, which left me scratching my head a bit. But, it was nice to know that the cheese hasn't totally slid off my cracker. It's been pretty close some days...

It's the little things that are keeping me sane these days, I think. Well, I'm not totally sure, it could be the chocolate, so that excuse is as good as any. ;) I received a 1 TB (Terrabyte) drive for Christmas and recently I've been archiving all my photography, etc. I've also been archiving my writing, especially since I stopped by my MSN Page on Quinn's birthday and found it deleted. After that little heart attack/discovery, I set up an account with WordPress and have slowly been moving things over. As an interesting footnote here, there were quite a few pieces that I thought lost forever. I took a chance and relit the fuse on an old dispute with Facebook. It only took a few emails, but I got my original profile reinstated. I was delighted (but also a little disturbed) to see most of my stuff still as I had left it, three years prior. It had switched over to the new format but all the rest was the same. I picked off what I could and then reposted them on the WordPress Archives (and then deactivated the account). We shall see... I like the layout and interface there better, however I can (and am) importing posts from my Blogger account. I guess only time will tell. I gave it a facelift as well as it looked a little crappy compared to the WordPress design. I'm also undecided how to post to Facebook... The RSS feed is flaky (see dispute link above) and it's already given me trouble today. I may just have use an old fashioned cut+paste...

I hope everyone had a Happy Mother's Day. Mine, like most days, had its moments of supreme joy and moments where I wanted to stab myself in the face*. It's the hardest job in the world... but I wouldn't trade it in for anything. Even chocolate.

Quinn and Zoe (in a rare, non screaming moment)

Quinn and Wyatt

*Note: a turn of phrase, not an actual desire. Please, you don't have to call the experts, which would be me anyway, so relax. Really...