Here I am: 2022

Let's begin the countdown to Christmas!

Monday, December 19th:

I finished getting Theo's gifts packed up and safely attached them to his wheelchair. They made the wheelchair a little top heavy, but it was still safe 🙂 I wasn't able to fit all the gifts on his wheelchair, but since I would be going to Theo's school to feed him today, I figured it would be okay for me to bring the rest of the gifts later.

Theo was very excited for PJ day!

I put Theo on the bus, went to the basement to exercise, and then got ready to go to Theo's school. Since I wouldn't be home for the piano tuner, I left her a few notes about a couple keys that were bothering me.

I arrived at Theo's school, passed out the rest of Theo's presents, and then went to Theo's classroom. The kids were sitting in their seats (adorable!) while they learned about religious celebrations around the world. I sat next to Theo and gave him his food while he teacher showed them slides about Ramadan.

After feeding Theo I headed to Starbucks to kill some time, work on a few things on my computer, and get a hot chocolate. I messaged Theo's Epilepsy Specialist and she asked me to increase Theo's clobazam dose in the hopes that we can start to decrease his clonazepam in the next few weeks. She also asked if we could do some more bloodwork in the next few weeks. I then reached out to Oncology and Hematology and told them we were going to do bloodwork for Epilepsy, so if they wanted us to do some for them we can. She said that was a good idea and sent over the orders. We'll get all the bloodwork done next week when we are in Ottawa getting Theo a CT scan and meeting with Neurosurgery.

Since Theo's aid, Ms Jess, was still quarantined, so we decided that it would be okay if she came to the house and waved to Theo from the other side of our glass storm door. That way Theo could give her his present. He was very excited when she showed up at the door!

[Looking good for the Chargers! Still gotta clinch a spot though!]

We kept hearing about this nasty storm on the news. It was scheduled to hit here on Thursday around noon, so Josh decided that he would cut his trip to Wisconsin a day short and drive home on Wednesday. Theo's therapists were also concerned so we moved Theo's OT appointment from Thursday to Wednesday and cancelled PT on Friday.

Theo had one seizure today.

The next day (Tuesday, December 20th) was pretty similar to Monday. I went to Theo's school again to feed him and then took him to therapy.

[I love Theo's art!]

[More news on the upcoming storm]

Josh was able to see his dad (George), step-mom (Julie), mom (Grammy Suzi), nephew (Braxton), grandpa (Grandpa Joe), sister (Jessi), and others while he was in town, but he only took one picture:

I put Theo on the couch next to me and we took some selfies and sent some Marcos!

Theo had one seizure today.

The next morning (Wednesday, December 21st) I told Theo that he was going to ride the bus "two times today." He doesn't like change and I usually pick him up from school, so I didn't want him to be worried. It was an early release day, so Theo could take the bus home and take a nap before we went to OT and then had therapy with his feeding/speech therapist and dietitian.

Theo and his classmates had a fun final day at school. They played some fun Christmas games, but still worked hard. AND Theo's new chair showed up! YAY! He sits in his wheelchair a lot, but now he will be able to sit upright in a more supportive chair during some of his lessons.

Josh got home right after Theo's therapy. It was already snowing when Josh left Superior, but luckily it was pretty clear once he passed Maddison. Phew!

[Bring back the sun!]

Theo had one seizure today.

Thursday, December 22nd:

We made a grocery/storm survival list and Josh ran to the store before the storm hit. At about 10:00 AM it started snowing and right after Josh got home at 11:00 AM the wind picked up. We didn't leave the house again after that.

[Sooo accurate!]

Our snow totals kept dropping, but the wind speed kept increasing AND the wind chills dropped some more.

[Storm is starting]

This storm was awful and affected people across most of the country.

Theo had two seizures today.

We woke up the next morning (Friday, December 23rd) to a little snow, but BITTER windchills. I opened the door slightly to take this picture and the metal door handle on the storm door was so cold it felt hot! 🥶🥶

We spent the day watching Christmas movies and checking in on the news. In the afternoon while we were watching Strange World, we lost power. Luckily it was only out for a few minutes and our house is pretty insulated. But other people around the country were not so lucky.

Later that night we made hot chocolate and watch the infamous Star Wars Holiday Special. I've seen bits and pieces before, but never the entire thing. And it was awful. Good thing we watched it on YouTube and I could speed up the bad parts.

[Carrie Fisher actually has a pretty nice voice]

I love Star Wars, but this was just painful. No wonder George Lucas demanded all copies to be destroyed.

Hey look! Our snake plant grew some flowers!

Theo had two seizures today.

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVE!

We were able to FaceTime with most of my family on Christmas Eve morning. We were only missing Brodee, Cason, and Hayden. It was so fun to see everyone and chat for a bit. The kids are getting so big!

It was SOOOO COLD outside and these two doves took refuge right outside our window. I know they aren't turtle doves, but I think it's a good sign!

That night we watched my FAVORITE Christmas movie: The Muppet Christmas Carol! It's a tradition and I love it!

We also made Mexican food, which is a tradition that Missy brought to the family 😋

Theo was supposed to put out this "Reindeer Food" but it was just too cold and windy. I hope Santa will still find us!

[🙃🤣]

Theo had one seizure today.

CHRISTMAS DAY!

Looks like Santa found us!

We started the morning with another tradition: pigs in a blanket. Our breakfast wouldn't be complete without some eggs and tea in my FRIENDS "Holiday Armadillo" mug.

We then opened presents:

[All milk chocolate Bordeaux from See's!]

Theo got some really nice gifts: a few toys, seven Tonies, and tickets to Disney on Ice!

We tried to take a few family photos, but Theo was a little tired.

[Gifts from Theo to us]

Josh brought me back these beautiful opals from Wisconsin. They belonged to his late Grandma Judy and I just think they are perfect! Thanks Grammy Suzi for passing them onto me.