Wednesday, February 29, 2012

In The News - February 2012

Every month I compile a list of the stories I post on Down Wit Dat's Facebook page. They are stories of inclusion, of advocacy, of education, of hope and of love.  These are from the month of February, from newest to oldest. 

Legend:

AUDIO indicates an audio clip
BLOG indicates a blog post
LINKS indicates links or resource materials
PHOTOS indicates photos
STUDY indicates a study
VIDEO indicates a video

           

Bank Of America Charged With Disability Discrimination
BLOG Punky....... Have you checked out this wonderful cartoon?
PHOTOS Actors With Down Syndrome
BLOG Discriminating against ourselves

Actors with Down Syndrome Featured in Entertainment Weekly

Funding For Down Syndrome Research Shrinks
VIDEO Down Syndrome Basketball Player Inspires Tennessee Team

Isolating a Child With Disabilities Can Do Life Long Damage

What Are You Up To Next, Jeremy?

Kathryn "Kay" McGee, founder of Down Syndrome group, dies at 91

Vote for Favorite Special-Needs Parenting Blog
VIDEO Virginia Special Olympics "Overcome"
VIDEO Adopting an Angel With Down Syndrome
PHOTOS Autism Moms (Meme)
BLOG What to Say to Parents of a Baby With Down Syndrome:  Dos and Don'ts
BLOG Disable Life:  The Person Inside

Deborah celebrates 12 years
LINKS
Periodontal disease and Down syndrome;  What Dental Professionals can Expect

Silicon Valley family finds strength, community through technology

Jane Cameron Award, 2012
BLOG Happy Birthday Davey and Will! 12 Years old Today!

Hospital Apologizes to Amelia Rivera who was denied kidney transplant

Special needs kids shine in Polar Bears basketball
PHOTOS East Dallas couple with Down syndrome discovers joys, challenges of marriage
VIDEO Love Story sheds Light on How Society Treats People with Disabilities
VIDEO My Miracle Lily

Down Syndrome Awareness Gets Boost from UN
BLOG Special Needs Ryan Gosling
BLOG Small Victories
BLOG The RIGHT Things to Say of Parents of Special Needs Kids
VIDEO The Roche Trials Explained:  Watch Online

How Down Syndrome Stops Cancer
VIDEO Watch:  The Down Syndrome Center at Hope Haven Children's Clinic

Dentistry for Special Needs Children

Donations to the Canadian Down Syndrome Society

Cambridge leads funding boost for dementia research
VIDEO Down Syndrome Guild PSA
VIDEO IMDSA 2012
BLOG Thank You!
LINKS How to talk to your child about disabilities
LINKS Healthy Eating Tips for Children with Down Syndrome
BLOG My Down's Decade

Second Opinion:  Think about the words you use

Children with Special Needs - Activities for Helping Your Special Needs Child

A child first:  a mother's perspective on her son with Down Syndrome

DNA Test That Identifies Down Syndrome Can Also Detect Trisomy 18 and Trisomy 13
VIDEO Living With Down Syndrome

Model behaviour: Five-year-old girl with Down's Syndrome becomes child model



Down Wit Dat was featured as a guest blogger this month:

"A Little Longer and A Little Different" on Life with Penis People


Down Wit Dat was also announced as a finalist in About.com's Reader's Choice Special Needs Parenting Blog for 2012!  You can vote for DwD here.


...And that's the news.  Keep the stories and information coming!

Monday, February 27, 2012

We Interrupt Down Wit Dat for a Special Announcement...

I opened my email the other day to find this:

About.com 2012 Readers' Choice Awards
Our new shiny, candy-like button

Well, that's a fine how do ya do!

In case you've missed it on my Facebook and Twitter updates, Down Wit Dat has been nominated for About.com's Reader's Choice Award for Best Special Needs Blog.

Aaaaand, we've been selected as one of the top 5 finalists!

w00t!

I would like to thank everyone who nominated our little blog.  It is a labour of love, to be sure.

Voting is now taking place to decide the winner.  If you are interested, you can vote once a day through March 21 here:


(You can sign in with Facebook or just use your email address).  

The winner will  be announced March 30.

Thank you to all who have voted or will vote.  Good luck to my fellow finalists.


We will now return you to your regularly scheduled programming...  

Tuesday, February 21, 2012

Makin' Progress

Busy, busy...

It has been such a busy week with Team Logan.  We have updates, we have birthdays, we have goals.  We have cupcakes.  What's better than cupcakes?

Wyatt went for his one year hearing test a week ago and did very well on all accounts.  As yours truly was working, Sean had to take both babies by himself.  Wyatt did not have to be asleep for this test (thankfully); I think that would have been almost impossible to achieve. You may remember from the last audiologist appointment that Zoe screamed loud enough to be heard inside a soundproof room.  She stayed true to form and did not disappoint this visit either.  However, despite the not-so-ambient noise from my daughter, the audiologist felt that Wyatt's hearing was within normal limits except for one small area which was inconclusive.  She was unsure as it could have been Zoe's interference and distracting abilities or just Wyatt deciding not to respond to the sound.  Regardless, we took it as good news.

The very next day was their first birthday.  Although I did blog a bit of a retrospective in the morning, the afternoon and evening were spent with the babies.  Lots of pictures were taken and vids were shot.  Both Wyatt and Zoe loved their first taste of cake, which wasn't anything fancy.  For Quinn's first birthday I went all out and made a special no added sugar, no egg thing that tasted vaguely like raisin bread.  This time around I didn't have time (or the desire, frankly) to make anything like that, so instead we opted for angel food cake cupcakes (with confetti sprinkles) and whipped cream.  Naturally, they loved them. 

Babies Eating Cupcakes.  YUM!


Saturday was their birthday party.  Unfortunately, we woke up to a blanket of snow.  That meant that most of our party guests (who were coming from out of town) were unable to make it as they were pretty socked in.  It's February.  In Canada.  What can you do?  We still had a great time with the few that did come and the babies were thoroughly fĂȘted.   

Aside from cake, they've explored quite a few new foods and textures lately.  Both are crazy about cheese (cottage and cheddar) and were treated recently to their version of mac n' cheese (just don't tell them it has pureed cauliflower in it).  They've attempted very small pieces of cooked broccoli;  Zoe was nonplussed while Wyatt thoroughly enjoyed it.  That is, until I discovered that he was just stashing it in his high palate.  Pancakes, raspberries, watermelon... and the list goes on.  The biggest change in their diet this week has been switching them from formula to homogenized milk.  They are still breastfed most of the time, but their diet was supplemented with formula when I was at work and with a small "top up" at night.  That has been switched out to milk and thankfully, everything is well so far.  Next up:  eggs.

At our session this morning, we discussed future goals with Wyatt's therapists.  At six months, we hoped that by this time Wyatt would be sitting independently (while bracing himself), propping himself up on his hands while on his tummy, pivoting while in that position and starting to commando crawl.  As of this morning, he can sit up independently while braced for 5 minutes (and without bracing for a short period of time).  He props himself up on his hands while on his stomach and can pivot slightly less than 90 degrees.  His rolling has improved to the point where he can log roll non-stop and in both directions.  He is not crawling, although he did demonstrate a little "going backward" today when he was trying to reach for a toy (and was able to "push off" of his worker's hand and slide forward to reach his goal).  Everyone is pleased with his progress overall.  Today we set new goals:  Hands free sitting, pivoting 90 degrees, backwards or forwards commando crawling and feeding himself more independently.  The last is a bit of a tricky one as he is quite content to grab a handful of my hair or another foreign object and put it in his mouth but not food.  He picks his solid food up, plays with it, but if he eats it, generally it is because we are putting it in his mouth.  I think it's just a matter of proper motivation, as I turned my back for a second on Saturday to help a party guest with something and turned back to find this:

Wyatt's Ninja Noms

No one can resist a cupcake.  No one.

Slowly and carefully, Wyatt is developing, albeit at his own speed.  He is strong and healthy and continues to delight anyone in his presence.  At one year in, we know we are still new at this;  it will probably get a lot harder as he grows older.  Right now we are progressing and that deserves to be celebrated.  Quite possibly with cupcakes.

-------------

I've also done a guest spot on "Life with Penis People" this week.  Stop by, say hi to Danielle and read my post "A Little Longer and a Little Different".  You won't be disappointed.

Thursday, February 16, 2012

Happy Birthday, Babies!

A whole year has gone by. 

I'm still in shock at this realization.

One year ago today saw the beginning and the end of a lot of things.  One year ago brought us some harsh realities, packaged up into two bundles of joy.

Last year, my twins were born six weeks early.  Wyatt first, then his sister Zoe a few minutes later.  Wyatt weighed in at 4 lbs, 13oz, while Zoe was much smaller at 4lbs, 1oz.  Both had oodles of dark hair and the gossamer skin of prematurity.  Both had bright blue eyes.  You could tell right away that Zoe was going to be the spitting image of me.  To the medical staff at least, you could tell right away that Wyatt had Trisomy 21 or Down Syndrome

I was certain of his diagnosis as I looked over at his warmer a few moments after he was born.  Each baby had a team at his or her bedside, including a physician and several nurses.  Zoe's team was joyful;  there were jokes and occasional pauses in their work as they reflected on some nuance of my beautiful, yet feisty daughter.  Wyatt's team were a stark contrast.  They spoke in hushed, respectful tones as they worked on my son with efficient, businesslike hands. My husband jokes that my writing is often a string of homilies.  He's right.  This is the moment that began as I looked back and forth across the surgical suite, comparing and contrasting Team A and Team B as they saw to the needs of my newborn children.

Wyatt's cry at birth was different than Zoe's.  When he let forth the first breath of air that he had sucked into his tiny lungs, he sounded all the world like the newborns you hear on TV... only in short bursts. Zoe's pitiful wail would change shortly to the commanding screech she has now, but I did not hear her until after she had been totally suctioned out.  "She is the one that sounds abnormal", I remember thinking to myself.  "He sounds just fine to me."  I would later understand that she sounded like any other premature baby, but at the time, it gave me something to rationalize.  After the Neonatologist gave his awkward pronouncement,  they eventually brought Wyatt over, sleepily bundled up for me to see.  I gave him a quick peck before he was taken away by his procession of gowned attendants to the NICU.  "He doesn't look like he has it..."

Zoe was brought to me, mummified and scowling.  She was so tiny... so much smaller than her twin.  Even bundled up, she was still smaller than a football.  Zoe was too far away for me to kiss and I was about to ask for her to be brought closer when she was handed off to my husband and they too were whisked off to parts unknown.

"So small... So small.  Please be okay...  Please..."

I did not get to hold my children until the next day when I dragged myself and my IV pole almost the length of the hospital to the NICU.  After a night of lying half awake and in constant pain, I needed them and they needed me. Anyone that ever refers to a Caesarian section as "the easy way out" need only talk to me and hear the particulars about that walk.  My nurse was very concerned as I forced myself along... after all, we were supposed to be just dangling my legs over the end of the bed and here I was, on a mission, with my ass hanging out of a johnny gown.  She knew better than to stop me however, for at that moment, I would have crawled there over her broken body if that is what it took.

The babies were in separate isolettes and I visited each one in turn.  I was there for over three hours as my nurse came and went with a wheelchair, hoping to coax me back to my bed where I needed to rest.  The sad part was that I was resting;  the NICU, despite housing very sick babies, is the quietest place in the hospital.  The frequent spine-jarring announcements are hushed, the lights are muted and everyone talks in dulcet tones.  I spent a good while with each of them and examined Wyatt myself.  His ears were smaller and lower on his head and had a telltale fold.  His eyes were almond shaped with epicanthal folds.  His nose had barely a bridge and his face was flatter than hers.  His skull was shaped differently, being wider at the back and smaller at the front, giving the appearance of "points" on either side.  The back of his head was flattened and you could feel that his soft spot was open in a V to his eyebrows.  His hands, much to my delight, did not have a singer palmar crease and his toes did not appear to be parted with a sandal gap. Other than his heart, no other "abnormalities" were discussed.  "Maybe he's Mosaic... "  My husband came and finally convinced me to return and if not rest, eat.  Which I did, ravenously.

Flash forward a year and here we are.  My husband is in the kitchen putting stew in the crock pot and the kids are having great time playing together on the floor behind me.  Those fragile little humans are now thriving babies, who astound and delight us daily.  The only thing that has developed more in the last year is us.  Our thinking, our way of doing things.  There was a time where Wyatt's diagnosis would have meant something terrible.  (It isn't.)  There was a time where I would not have thought that I would have so much interest in genetic disorders and have time to make a difference.  (I do).  There was a time where it seemed that nothing was going to be right again.  (It didn't turn out like that at all).  There was a lot more born a year ago on this day than just these two babies:  Team Logan,  our network and support systems, our awareness, our desire to educate and advocate.  Two parents of a special needs child came into existence too.  We have all come so far.  It has been very difficult at times, of that I will not lie.  We've made therapy a casual everyday thing, something we can do while we play.  We make mealtimes fun.  We explore our world through the kids eyes, whether they be blue, brown or have Brushfield spots.  We love our son and embrace his differences just as much as we do his "sameness".

Today we celebrate many things along with the birth of our children.  Today will celebrate life and love.  We celebrate inclusion, we celebrate acceptance.  We celebrate strength and endurance.  Knowledge, education, awareness, advocacy... the list goes on and on. 

We celebrate new beginnings today. 

Happy Birthday, Wyatt and Zoe.  You are both perfect in every way.

You Rock, Babies!
You guys ROCK!

Saturday, February 11, 2012

Sittin' Pretty

Life has been kicking my ass lately.  Stress is high, motivation is low.  Haters gotta hate.  Between appointments and bookings and weekly therapy and work and the never ending train of things going by, I've found myself impatiently waiting for sight of that caboose.  Thankfully here is a break in our schedule, this train has finally passed and the crossing bar is going up.  I'm off for a few now and I could almost hear the engine revving in my head to get the hell out of Dodge. Which I did, as soon as the lights stopped flashing.  Zoom!

Team Logan has been hitting the milestones hard in the last while;  there have been quite a few "firsts" and realizations with our little brood.  For example, we seem to have a finite amount of teeth in this house.  Zoe has sprouted three little pearly daggers, while her big brother Quinn has lost two and is possibly working on a third. The first one to fall came out by accident;  Quinn was running around the living room and slipped and bumped his mouth on the couch.  There was blood... lots of it.  He was pretty freaked out at first until I explained a few things.  1) the bleeding would stop eventually and 2) his hysterics at the sight of blood would have nothing to do with [this weeks goal of] becoming a doctor.  Thanks, Wonderful World of Psychiatry

His second tooth came out a few days ago as I "accidentally" popped it out as I was "assessing" it.  His two adult incisors are growing in at a furious rate and the baby tooth had fallen over and had started to imbed itself sideways in the gum.  After the initial shock and surprise (and less freakout as there was less blood), it lay in it's jewelry box totally forgotten about for two days.  He finally remembered to put it under his pillow last night and was rewarded with a dollar.  He added it to the five dollars he got for his first tooth and is [quote] a happy miser [end-quote]. 

Zoe's latest kick is shouting.  I don't mean yelling as she is hungry/tired/hurt, but rather shouting for shouting's sake.  She'd make a great Vogon guard.  Her babbling just seems to be set on 11 at all times and when not exploring the endless permutations of "Dada", "Daddy", "Bob" and "Bop", (complete with wild hand gestures) she works on her version of The Who/CSI Yeeeeaaaaah!.  At all hours. At random intervals.  It's especially charming after a couple of night shifts. *shiver*.

She's also almost walking.  The cruising is one handed at best and every object that she can roll or shove across the floor is an assistive device.  This includes (and is by no means inclusive of):  Wyatt's "Bean", the Bumbo chairsthe musical table, and a 10 lb basket of toys.  She'd roll Wyatt along if she could.  I'm not kidding.  She's a bulldozer.  You have been warned.

We've added a few things to the babies' diet as well.  The pediatrician was shocked that we had Wyatt on more than a simple puree.  We've been slowly bringing more texture/less moisture to their food for some time now.   Zoe should be eating a lot of finger foods, but it is hard to have two completely different meal textures on hand at all times.  Instead, we've reached a happy medium.  Our homemade oatmeal has more lumps, as does the barley.  They eat rice shaped pastina:  mixed into their food, in clumps with melted cheese, and individually if they want.  If they have a pureed banana with their cereal in the morning, we set some aside and cut it up into tiny little bits for them to work on.  Zoe works on her pincer grasp with Cheerios, Rice Krispies and Special K, while Wyatt works on his tongue muscles and synchronizing his chewing and swallowing.  You may have to feed the pieces of cereal to him, but you also have to count your fingers afterwards. Recently, we've added cottage cheese, mashed textures and tiny chunks of cooked fruit.  It's been successful all over.  I haven't quite introduced them to their Momma's famous homemade mac and cheese yet, but after some pretty frustrating months, it looks like we will get there.

The best news all week was Mr. Wyatt's sitting progress.  He's been improving slowly in this area for the last little while.  We've been working on his core, improving his posture and putting him in a sitting position as much as possible.  Our perseverance paid off yesterday as he managed to sit, unassisted for over a minute!  It was amazing! 

Look Who's Sitting!
Look what I can do! We managed to get him to do it again, at least long enough to take the above picture.  He's tired... you can tell as he is starting to list to port.

We've found lately that putting one of the smaller nursing pillows around him while he sits gives him a tiny bit of support (and a handy crash pad).


Sittin' and Grinnin'
Sittin' and a' grinnin'

Life with Team Logan is never dull.  But, that's life with special needs.  Sometimes you need a helmet, sometimes it feels like your heart is about to burst.  Big girl panties are a must and we don't have any positions open for part time people.  Somehow though, it all works.  It isn't easy to get out of bed some days, but we are getting there, one milestone at a time.  We may not be rich or have the best of things, we may be short on sleep... but we are sure sittin' pretty. 

Yes.

Thursday, February 2, 2012

Gimme Shelter

Oh, a storm is threat'ning
My very life today
If I don't get some shelter
Oh yeah, I'm gonna fade away
-The Rolling Stones,  
"Gimme Shelter"

I've been a little on edge lately, even more than usual.   After last week's scares at both the cardiologist and the pediatrician, it surely felt like a storm was coming.  I went from the dramatics of last week, straight into another tour of four twelve hour shifts (two days, two nights) and right back out the other side into Tuesday with the OT's.  Plus, as it turns out, a surprise cardiology appointment downtown at Sick Kids.  I'm usually pretty ugly coming off of nights in ER... after my fourth shift I just want my bed and some peace and quiet.  This week, I was extra ugly.  I'm talking Jim Morrison standing on the hood of a car yelling at random passers-by that they are "...all a bunch of f☠cking slaves!" kinda ugly.  Surprise trips to the city are not my bag at any time, so it was a pretty mean scene (even if I am the Lizard Queen).

Wyatt's first appointment was at 7:30 which makes for a very early morning.  After spending an evening packing bags and getting things ready for the other two kids to spend a day at friends, I tossed and turned most of the night.  Although I really only had two hours sleep that day (after working my night shift), I couldn't still my thoughts until well after midnight.  When the alarm went off at 4, I knew it was going to be a hectic day.

After showering, dressing, gathering, running around like the proverbial decapitated chicken and trying to remember everything, we got a rather reluctant Team Logan into the van.  Drop off two, get gas, wagons ho.  Or, as it turned out, wagons "no", as the highway was backed up to infinity.  Our radio in the Whaaambulance is fried, so until I figured out that I could broadcast through my phone, it was a pretty quiet and tense drive, punctuated by Sean's oaths and random gesticulations at the seemingly never ending parade of psychotic drivers. The cherry on the top of our Poop Sundae of a morning came in the form of an overzealous, overly bitchy security guard at Yorkdale Mall (where we would get on the subway to go downtown).  You have to understand a few things about Yorkdale:  The paid parking for the subway is poorly marked, it is underground and everything else is blocked off until after 9:30.  We also have a behemoth of a vehicle which does not park under anything very well due to it's sheer, mind blowing bigness.  We also had not been there in a while (especially to get the subway), so we did not know any of this.  Already woefully behind schedule, we circled the area where we thought the subway parking would be and then went farther afield.  Spotting a security "car", we headed over to ask directions. I say "car" with my tongue firmly planted in my cheek, as they seem to have blown the budget on the enormous blindingly blue flashing light arrays on top and had to resort to buying bathtub toys to mount them on.  The conversation went like this:

Sean: "Hi.  We're trying to get to the subway to go down to Sick Kids and we're trying to find parking..."
Blondie: "Turn around, go right then go right.."
Sean:  "Oh, ok...We were just down there and..."
Blondie: (louder) "Sir, I just told you.  Turn the van around, turn right and then turn right!"
S: "Ok, thanks... (about to ask about the height clearance), but..."
B: "You have to PAY for parking here sir!  You don't get to park here for FREE!"
S: "I know that, but..."
B: "You are not listening to me and I've told you TWO TIMES ALREADY!  Turn YOUR VAN AROUND, TURN RIGHT AND TURN RIGHT!!  Do you not UNDERSTAND what I'm saying? 
S:  "Yes..."
B: "Turn your van around NOW, Sir, TURN YOUR VAN AROUND..."
S: "Yep.  You're the best" [ed note:  This is family code for "you suck"]
J: "What a c☠☠t!"

We turned the van around, followed the blonde harpy's directions and found ourselves facing what was a very low hanging entrance to a garage.  As this was our only option and we were now going to be late, we nervously nudged the Whaaambulance inside as our antenna whacked on every pipe, sign and low hanging beam.  We found a spot, unloaded Wyatt and the stroller/clown car and headed to the subway.

The rest of the trip to Sick Kids wasn't too bad except for the stairs.  The TTC has many Accessible stations, but Yorkdale is not one of them.  Sean carried the stroller and I carried the diaper bag and Wyatt in his car seat.  It's been a while since I have traveled around the T-Dot in the morning rush and I will say that it will hopefully be a while until I have to do it again.  Everyone runs up and down the stairs and looks skinny and immaculate as they scamper along.  We, by comparison, looked like Jabba the Hut's family as we crazily puffed and sweated along, open coats flying as we dragged our kid and luggage to the train.  We arrived at the desk at 7:40, ten minutes late for the appointment and 25 minutes after we were told to be there.  The receptionist was a lovely woman who was very kind and I cooled off as I filled out the paperwork.

Wyatt has had many echocardiograms, dating back to before he was born.   This time however, was going to be very thorough and was expected to take upwards of 90 minutes.  Due to this, he had to be sedated.  After undressing, weighing and measuring him, the nurse handed me a loaded (oral) syringe full of chloral hydrate.  This is a drug that I am very familiar with;  it's an olde-timey sedative that we still use occasionally, especially on little old ladies who don't respond well to benzodiazapines.  It also tastes terrible, so with my grown up patients, we usually mix it with orange juice or something similar.  Wyatt had to take his straight up, which he did, like a champ.  As soon as the medication started to work however, he started to fight it.  He got really restless and irritable (which I am sure was compounded by the fact that he was starving).  His nurse turned on the coolest star projector ever and he eventually drifted off to shooting stars and purple clouds.

We were sent for a half hour break and found ourselves some coffee in the Atrium.  Sick Kids is a fabulous hospital and the attention to detail is astounding.  The nurses have uniforms made by Roots...  Each floor has a kid friendly theme:  we were on the fourth floor, which is all about space.  The washrooms have aliens, the walls are festooned with stars and there is a giant interactive "asteroid" outside the CDIU (Cardiac Diagnostic and Intervention Unit).  It is fabulous.  Our few minutes of freedom were over all too quickly and we had to return to Wyatt's side.  We returned to find him with an oxygen mask as his O2 saturation levels had dropped during the test.  At the time, I shrugged it off to the sedation and possibly positioning.  He woke up slightly for his ECG and was pretty irritable by the time I tried to give him his breakfast.  He only fed a little bit and then drifted off again.  By now it was just after 9:30 and we got him dressed and wheeled him across the hall for his next appointment with the cardiologist (which was scheduled for 9:30).

We didn't get to see the doctor until 11:45, which was a little distressing, especially with a baby who alternated between hyper-fussy and unconcious.  The end result however: the doc is "not impressed" with Wyatt's heart.  This, in medical speak, means "good news" as there is nothing in particular that needs acting on at the moment (where as normally, "not impressed" would be a negative response).  Wyatt has a balanced AVSD which in itself isn't causing him too many problems, however his mitral valve is causing some regugitation which may be the cause of the higher pressure in his lungs.  This may also be caused by sleep apnea apparently, so we now have to take Wyatt for a sleep study.  As these appointments are few and far between, it won't be for a few months and in the meantime, the two cardiologists will meet and discuss his progress.  The sleep lab will call us with the appointment, so with that, we took our leave.

Aside from all the drama of the last few weeks (and all the truly unimportant things, like ignorant guards and stairs and the like), we have been very lucky with Wyatt.  What could have easily have been devastating news over and over again has turned out to be not as bad as expected.  He will still have to have his surgery and it may end up being sooner than age 3. He may also have sleep apnea;  we won't know until after his sleep study.  In the meantime he is still a happy almost-one-year old boy who loves to play and listen to music and cuddle.  He was also a hoot yesterday as in his inebriation as he would crack himself up making fart noises.  We've been lucky.  We are also very blessed, a fact that was very clear to me yesterday when we picked up two very happy kids who spent a glorious jammie day playing with their friends.  The storm had passed harmlessly overhead.

Sick Kids has a wonderful multi-level fountain in the Atrium of the hospital.  Before we left, I touched a penny to my sleeping son's lips and tossed it into the water, asking for a little extension on our luck.   I bent over and stroked his velvet cheek, knowing full well that come what may, I will find shelter from any storm;  with my friends and within my little family. 

"It is in the shelter of each other that the people live." - Irish Proverb