Frozen Van Doors and Packers

Monday, January 15th:

It was a very chilly morning and we had ice INSIDE our house!

Theo didn't have school today due MLK Jr Day, but it would have been cancelled anyways due to the -35 windchills! The three of us stayed at home all day while the contractor crew worked.

The vanity guy sent us a sketch and we gave him a deposit to build it. He will get to work on this project and the vanity will be installed after the tile is in.

The electrical work was completed in the afternoon, but we had a plumber at the house until 10:30 PM! They have an inspection coming up and they want to meet the deadline!

Another fissure opened in Iceland and the lava is destroying a small village. Luckily, the village was evacuated and no one was injured. I'd really love to see lava when we are there, but not like this! 

We've had to bathe Theo in our shower while his bathroom is under construction. It's doable.

Tuesday, January 16th:

It was only -24 when we had to leave for the hospital the next morning. It was pretty brutal.

 We had to park the van outside since the contractor had taken over our garage. Unfortunately, the van sliding doors were frozen shut, so we had to get Theo and the wheelchair in through the front passenger door. Theo was not very happy about having to sit on the back bench for a few minutes while I got the wheelchair set up! He doesn't like change!

 It was a huge pain, but we got it figured out!

[On our way to Peoria! School was cancelled anyways, so we sent in this picture for Theo's e-learning]

The air temperature was so much colder than Lake Michigan's water temperature, so it created this crazy fog.

By the time we got to Peoria it had warmed up a few degrees and we managed to get one of the van sliding doors open. None of the electrical components (including the ramp) would work, but it's better than taking Theo and the wheelchair out through the front door again.

We took Theo to get his ultrasound and then we went to see Nurse Beth Speckhart at St Judes (Dr. Kumar was upstairs in the ICU with some other patients).

While we waited to see Nurse Beth we were given lunch. They had pulled pork sandwiches, fruit, veggies, soda, water, gatorade, brownies, and cookies! After I started eating the brownie I realized that it was certified gluten free and it was delicious! I texted Andie to see if she had heard of this brand, of course she had, but I wanted to make sure. I'm so happy that there are so many delicious CGF foods out there!

Nurse Beth then came in and examined Theo. She was happy with his progress and so happy to hear that he was taking horseback riding lessons! Most kids with hemihyperplasia need to have ultrasounds done every three months until they are seven years old. That is when the risk for tumors is the highest. She said that since Theo hasn't had any signs of tumors it's likely that his appointment in April will be his final one! She will talk to Dr. Kumar and let me know what she thinks. YAY! 

While we were gone the contractor did more plumbing work in preparation for the inspection on Wednesday. 

[Our basement is a bit dirty]

Wednesday, January 17th:

Today is the last day of our extreme deep freeze! But cold weather is still coming, but it shouldn't *knock on wood* be -35. We got Theo all bundled up and sent off to school. The inspector came and everything looks good! Now the contractor can start putting up dry wall!

After school I took Theo to Thrive (where he usually has OT with Ms. Laura) to meet with Ms. Jen and Ms. Jeannine. We usually see Ms. Jen at our house on Wednesday nights, while Ms. Jeannine Zooms in. But since the contractor is loud we asked Ms. Laura if she had some space for us at the clinic. She did! 

Theo LOVES Ms. Laura and he LOVES to swing at her clinic. I was worried when we pulled into the parking lot that Theo would think we were there to swing and play with Ms. Laura. So the whole drive down I told Theo we were going to see Ms. Jen and Ms. Jeannine, he kept hitting his knee with his fist ("YES!") so I knew he understood. We arrived at Thrive and Theo was very excited to see Ms. Jen and Ms. Jeannine. When we got there Theo saw Ms. Laura. He gave her the biggest smile, but I told him that we were not there to see her and he seemed okay with that. 

I took him into a therapy room where we waited for Ms. Jen. I got my computer set up and Theo got very excited to see Ms. Jeannine pop up! Theo gave Ms. Jen a huge smile when she walked in, so I knew we were good! Theo really loves all of his therapist, but he doesn't do well with change and I was worried he wouldn't understand why he wasn't going on the swing with Ms. Laura even though we were in her clinic. But he did! And our session with Ms. Jen and Ms. Jeannine was great!

[Theo showing off his tambourine skills]

We are going to try giving Theo puffs again and mix up his pouch foods. Ms. Jeannine also suggested giving him some of the pouch foods through his g-tube. We want his GI system to tolerate all kinds of foods, not just his Kate Farms.

Theo had seven observable seizures today.

Thursday, January 18th:

Theo headed off to school, the contractor worked on the bathroom, and Josh and I ran errands.

After school we took Theo to Thrive and this time he saw and played with Ms. Laura. He was very happy to go on the swing!

The contractor put in the pocket door frames and cement board in the shower.

[Cement board to keep the shower area waterproof]

Theo had 11 observable seizures today.

Friday, January 19th:

The weather in the midwest is a little crazy. After our deep freeze it warmed up into the 20s for a few days, but then on Friday we got some snow followed by another plunge. At least this deep freeze is only -15 for a few days. But then we get back into the 30s and it's going to rain?!

Like yesterday, Theo went to school and the contractor got a lot of work done. They were able to get the drywall up and it's really starting to look like a bathroom!

After school we took Theo to PT with Ms. Cody. While he was there we went to UPS to trade in Josh's old iPhone (he got a new one with a better camera for Iceland). We then went to the new bakery, Making Sweet Memories. They bought out the Cookie Jar Bakery where we use to get buckeyes. We were very happy to see that they bought Cookie Jar's recipes, so they had the delicious buckeyes! We got a few of them along with a couple other cookies. I hope they are successful!

Theo had 12 observable seizures today.

Weekend:

We stayed home all weekend since it was -15 outside. The "tape and mud" guys were working on the bathroom all day Saturday. 

Theo and "Cow" have been friends for a long time. They were just reintroduced and Theo is very happy!

[February 2018]

He still likes Cow on his cheek! It's so cute!

[Progress with the tape and mud]

On Saturday night we watched the Packers play the 49ers. San Francisco was the heavy favorite, but the score was back and forth all game! 

[AD is a Packers fan!]

Unfortunately, the Packers lost it right at the end with a late interception. They have a pretty great team, so I'm sure they'll be back in the Playoffs again next year!

[Super strong Theo!]