Even Keel

For those who follow regularly, sorry for the absence. We've had some busy days but nothing spectacular to share. Nothing earth shattering, nothing mind boggling, nothing warranting excessive jumping up and down.

It's been a pretty even, constant hum.

We went camping at a local conservation area and will tell the tales on The Roman Garden eventually. In a nutshell, we had a great time, froze our butts off at night, spent time at the beach and generally enjoyed being together. Lauren slept surprisingly well the first night and it went progressively downhill until she spent the fourth / final night snuggled in my sleeping bag.

The one surprise was Roman insisting on sitting beside Lauren at the picnic table. Usually we split them up, partnering each child up with one parent but we weren't going to argue. It actually worked. They seemed to enjoy each other's company and didn't get too out of hand.

After four nights we were glad to get home and now face a week full of activity for Roman. Lauren is generally pretty patient through days like these. So long as she's with us, she's happy. Unfortunately it's been a day of fevers and misery for her. It seems to be teething related and tylenol is keeping her temperature in check. She has become even more of a velchro child than usual. Hopefully a good sleep tonight, medically induced as it might be, will help her get through tomorrow with less drama.

Oddly, she's started to do everything Roman does. She didn't want to eat much today until she saw Roman put ketchup on his cheesy-noodles. As soon as I put some on her spaghetti, she dug right in. Roman sat for cereal for supper and she wanted Special K for herself. I'm used to this mimicry in toys and games (though more Roman wanting what she has) but this is the first for food.

Ultimately, I say, "Whatever." It meant she ate something today. I'm not normally concerned about her eating. She'll eat anything she can get her chub chub fingers on but it's a sign of how uncomfortable she truly is when she won't eat any of her favourites or mooch from me.

There is one very exciting thing in Lauren's stats from her 18 month check up last week though - she grew an inch in one month. Seriously. A whole inch! She's now officially 29 inches tall. Still 20 lbs give or take an ounce but to everyone who's said, "You've grown! You look taller!" you were right!

To the Zoo Zoo Zoo Zoo

Last Friday we went to a little zoo about an hour away. It was wonderful for the kids. Just big enough to spend a few hours and see plenty but not so large as to drive them to exhaustion.

The zoo has a Noah's Ark of animals - two of these and two of those... bears, zebras, cougars, lions, coatis, baboons, lemurs... all very cool.

They also had a Creature Showcase where animals were introduced to a hoard of children. The staff taught the kids about each animal and they all had a chance to touch most of them including an alligator and a cougar cub.

Roman jumped up to touch each one and was enraptured by the whole thing. I was so proud of him. He often watches these things intently but doesn't get involved. This time he showed how much he's growing and coming out of his shell.

Doctors, doctors and less doctors??

We had our 6 month follow up with the developmental pediatrician on Monday. It was a much smaller group this time with just Amy (PT), Paula (OT) and Dr. Carter. Lauren was her adorable self, playing shy until I remembered to pull out the snacks. Velcro-girl promptly popped up and walked quick as can be to Amy when she had the bag of Animal Crackers!

Together we reviewed Lauren's progress in all areas and brought Dr. Carter up to date on all of the various specialists we've been, and will, see. We discussed the digestive issues we continue to struggle with and cheered for all the things Lauren can now do.

We all agreed that Lauren is doing amazingly well and that we are all thrilled. OT has no concerns and Lauren even showed off by holding a pencil properly (all her own doing!) while scribbling in my calendar.

At this point, we are now off the active caseloads for all three specialists. I'm thrilled but saddened. On one hand, I LOVE how Lauren has progressed. I love how strong and smart she is. I love her smile and her personality. I am however, slightly fearful that being off their dockets means there will be less eyes on Lauren to catch things I don't know that I don't know.

Thankfully, we have a great relationship with each of them and even a progress update from us to them would be welcome. Dr. Carter even stayed to help me with content for the website I'm building.

In this, I realized that while we have had a rollercoaster of appointments, we have been fortunate to avoid many complications that would have greatly expanded our list of medical specialists. This meant I couldn't write authoritatively about everything a parent might need to know. Dr. Carter was able to fill in the blanks about who treats what Noonan Syndrome complication.

So, now we cross a few more people of the list and dive further into the NS web project...

Oh Sleep Where Art Thou?

What a horrific few days it's been. My little girl, prior to this week, has had a solid bedtime routine of bath, tooth brushing, night-nights to everyone and everything, into bed for stories, songs, snuggles and sleep. Total time: approximately 30 minutes. The routine hasn't changed from my end but it has from hers. Everything is the same up to the stories. She enjoys snuggling in to read but as soon as the books are done, she's rolling, kneeling, standing, chatting, playing with animals, stalling, stalling, stalling. Some nights it gets so bad that Roman is asleep before she is. For the first 3 or 4 nights Kevin would take over for me after 40 minutes of 'entertainment' and within minutes Lauren would be sound asleep.

How's that make a mom feel? Her littlest pumpkin, who used to fall asleep content in her arms, now won't sleep for anyone but Papa.

Tonight I persevered and actually got through all the adorable stall tactics and managed to woo her to sleep after nearly an hour.

Seems that getting to sleep isn't the only time she favours Papa. Staying asleep is a treat reserved for him too! We've had a few really good nights lately where she's actually had good, long, solid sleeps. For the record, these are not the nights I am with her. No no. These are Papa's nights. I, meanwhile, am on Roman patrol and Roman is in the final stages of night time potty training. He's now waking up during the night when he needs to pee and comes to get us for 'help' which is wonderful. It just means there are no nights of long sleep for Mama.

To add insult to injury, last night included a three hour marathon of crying, fussing and misery. And Lauren was up too. Not only was Lauren up and in a state in the horrible morning hours, she was then up before 6 am and ready to go.

Perhaps some day sleep will return to our home. Perhaps it will sneak in the window and pounce on us when we least expect it. Perhaps it will move into our home and bring all of us good nights, good days, more happiness and less dependence on caffeine.

On the go, well, technically, VIA

We took a family trip on Saturday to visit friends in Toronto. Having received the invitation, we decided to make an event of it and take the train. I had enough points from commuting before Roman was born to cover my return ticket. Lauren is still young enough to travel free and ViaRail has a summer promotion where kids ride free with an adult ticket purchase. Nice!

AND, they had a bonus discount to try and make people happy after the strike they had.

Super Nice!

Here's the but.

When we got to the station, the train had broken down and we would actually be on a bus. Seriously. A bus. The whole point was to take the train. Roman LOVES trains. He was SO excited about the train. Can you imagine the song and dance I had to do to make a bus okay?

In the end, all was well. Lauren loved watching the 'tuck! tuck!' trucks go by. The more cars, the more excited she got until she was bouncing on my leg and slapping the window for each one.

The visit was amazing. The beautiful daughter has NS and has had quite a struggle. It was amazing to see how much she's changed in the 6 weeks since we saw them last. She's sitting on her own, smiling, interacting with her big brother. It makes me smile to remember it. I'm so looking forward to the next time we see them to watch how she 'grows'.

I hope our family relationships grow too. I see the potential for Roman and their son to be a support to each other as they get older. They're about 6 months apart in age and their lives will be similar - a little (chronologically and physically!) sister with a disorder, parents attention divided, near constant appointments with all eyes on sister while they, the older brother plod along side and are expected to understand, be patient and caring.

Who knows what the future will bring for any of us but for now, this is a small piece of the picture I hold onto.

Braving the breakfast world

We decided yesterday morning, spur of the moment at 7:40am, to go out for breakfast.

Yes. To an actual restaurant.

What can I say? I wanted some eggs benedict, Kevin wanted pancakes and neither of us wanted to clean the kitchen after.

Roman wasn't sure what to think until I offered him french fries. I know. I know. Blatant bribery but Golden Griddle serves their whole menu all day and if that's what it takes to get him out the door...

The waitress' comment when we arrived is the first thing that sticks in my mind. She was showing to our table. She picked up a single pack of crayons and started walking stating, "Only one of them colours right?" and rambled on about, "Usually when I see one walking and one in a parent's arms I know they're not old enough..."

"She's older than she looks" I stated. "They both colour but they can share.

I'm pretty sure she never heard a word.

Regardless of her oblivion, both kids were amazing. No fighting, yelling, squabbling, whining or otherwise being disruptive. Lauren ate and ate and ate. Roman didn't but was happy to play and eat a bit of Lauren's toast with jam instead of Papa's. No french fries even entered the conversation but chocolate milk solves all...

My eggs benny were a bit of a disappointment - overcooked - and Lauren's chewy scrambled eggs gave her gas last night but that, in the end, wasn't the point. We went out. We enjoyed it and proved to ourselves that we can do it without drama and with fun and laughter.

A camping we will go...

Last Thursday to Sunday we went camping at a provincial park. Loved it. Left in the rain, played in the rain, slept in torrential rain...

We did have one glorious day of sun that included time at the most wonderful beach. Roman loved playing in the sand, Lauren loved playing in the water.

The tales for this involve the whole family so come on over to The Roman Garden to read more.

The summer of our discount-tent

Thursday, July 23rd

Thursday we went on a family adventure. Camping for three nights at a provincial park with Oma and Opa.

It was wonderful. It had its moments of difficulty but overall was a wonderful trip and not long enough.

When we left home Thursday it was raining. It was an auspicious start but the weather forecast for our destination was encouraging. We expected more rain but Friday was destined to be warm and sunny.

Lauren fell asleep almost instantly in the car. It was, as planned, her nap time. She woke up just in time for lunch about 45 minutes from later.

As much as I'd like to say we had lunch in some little diner somewhere off the beaten path, we didn't. We had Wendy's. Thankfully there was a spot open we could drive straight into with the Jeep and cargo trailer! As I carried Lauren into the restaurant I said we were going to have french fries for lunch. She smiled, made her happy noise and said, "Ketchup!" Yes. With Ketchup. Mama replied. I also asked if she wanted some Frosty. Again, a big smile and a very happy noise complete with emphatic bounce.

Eventually we were back on the road with Tim Horton's in hand. I know. Not REAL coffee but it was there and had caffeine in it. It was now my turn to drive which Roman proudly proclaimed, "I asked Mama to drive now.." which indeed he had while Papa was getting the coffee...

Within minutes, Roman was snoring in the back and Lauren happy to chatter and watch the world go by.

We arrived at the campground to find Oma and Opa mostly set up. I very smoothly backed our trailer into the site. It wasn't exactly where I wanted it but, for anyone who's driven with a trailer knows, backing up the first time is a bit intimidating. I was thrilled when my dad - the guy responsible for teaching me to drive stick in the first place - said I did a respectable job backing up. See me grinning? Still makes me happy. Guess girls never outgrow loving kudos from their dad.

The tent was soon up on soggy ground and the kids happy to snack and play.

Surprisingly, the first night was relatively calm considering all four of us were in one big tent. A seriously big tent. Not our ideal tent but affordable. And did I mention that it's big? Lauren settled at her usual time and Roman asked to go to bed at his. We should've known better. He had napped. He needed to stay up later but instead, we put him to bed only to have him toss and turn for almost two hours... When he finally crashed, it was just in time for us to go to bed too.

Oddly, Lauren slept nearly the whole night through with only a few little chirps. Guess Wendy's agrees with her.


Friday, July 24th

Our morning started far to bright and far too early at 10 to 6. My mom (half?) jokingly pointed out that the campground rules firmly state that quiet hours are from 11pm to 8am.

Things had a chance to dry out a bit more and we were adopted by a kitten. I was sitting with the kids, drinking my coffee-pressed Italian blend Starbucks. That batch of coffee was not quite what we expected - first time out of the box with the press, one scoop too many grounds and half a cup too little water. Woo! We could've staked the tent in it! Cousins were also camping on the grounds and had found a nest of cat birds in one of the trees. Hearing faint meows, I commented to Roman that cat birds really were aptly named. Sure they are but even more so when a tiny 6 week old kitten comes creeping into the camp site.



The comments on 'not feeding a stray' or 'don't get too attached' were promptly silenced when everyone saw how tiny and how cute she was. Soon a name was pronounced - Purwell. Next she was fed - left over cereal milk. When lightly chastised for feeding a stray, I stated what would become our cat feeding theme, "It was going to be thrown out anyways." Hours later, after we thought she'd moved on, Purwell reappeared out of the engine of my parents SUV. Seems it must have been a nice warm place to nap.

The day warmed up enough for us to spend time at the beach which is one of my favourite places on the planet. The beach is very long, very deep and the water shallow for quite a ways making it relatively warm for such a large body of water. There was enough breeze to keep us cool but not enough to tear away the umbrella.

It was amazing. In retrospect, I don't think I spent enough time just watching Lauren and Roman. I don't mean 'watching' in the supervisory way but 'watching' in the enjoying, relishing, absorbing way.

Roman spent most of the time sitting on a ledge of sand, moving it with his roller and bulldozer. First with Oma, then with Opa.



Lauren loved the water. She squealed and giggled when she got wet. She stood and watched the waves at her feet wash the sand out. She reached down and splashed. Oh if only I could do it again and stretch out the time. Watch it all again in slow motion. Hear the giggles, the waves, smell the water and the sun on her head.



Roman eventually went in the water but admitted it was a bit freaky not being able to see the other side. He was just getting into it and ready to play with a pool noodle when a wave took him completely off his feet. That was it for the water but lead to beautiful moments with Oma.



We kept Roman up that evening to watch for fireflies and stars. Alas, not too many fireflies but one very courageous raccoon. It crept right under our chairs looking for nibbly bits. Roman has a zebra flashlight that makes a fun noise. He kept using it to see the raccoon and consequently, scaring it off. At bedtime, he decided Opa should have his zebra flashlight to keep the raccoons away.


Saturday, July 25th

Saturday was another early start but the coffee was much better this time around. Lauren had her usual two or three breakfasts, we went for walks, Roman rode his bike and we putzed around until mid afternoon when the rain drove us 'indoors'. We gave Roman a Leapster with a Diego game that absorbed him for an hour and a half before finally being induced to sleep. Lauren had a second nap falling asleep in my arms on a lounge chair sheltered under a tarp, lulled by the falling rain. That was a wonderful hour for me. Both children sleeping, one content in my bed, the other content in my arms.



Dinner was shared with all the cousins in an impromptu pot luck affair. Anything anyone had in quantity that could be shared was and we had a wonderful feast.

Uncle Mark (my brother-in-law) and Kevin went to the local village and purchased fresh pickerel to fry for the meal. It was amazing and Lauren LOVED it. One bite and "Yummm" she says. Three portions later I think she finally had enough. Meanwhile Roman thoroughly enjoyed a hamburger with far too much mustard. What can I say? My kids love flavour.

It was another late night for all as Lauren was fussy and Roman had napped. When we finally all crashed around 9:30, it was amidst torrential rains. Kevin and I had the same thought at the same time, "It's so loud I won't hear Lauren right beside me. Guess we don't have to worry about someone a campsite away!"


Sunday, July 26th

The morning was clear of rain clouds and we could pack up our gear in relative dryness. The kids spent the morning eating, playing and reading with Oma and Opa while Kevin and I gathered, sorted and packed everything for the ride home. Purwell stayed behind with Oma and Opa and we hit the road around 11.

It was a quiet drive with both kids promptly falling asleep and staying that way for most of the drive. We picked up pizza on the way through town, started to unload the trailer and threw a soggy load in the washing machine.

Just in time for a thunderstorm to roll through and take out the power for the next 6 hours.

There was electricity for the laundry being done and no running water for Lauren's much needed bath. Everything came to a standstill.

By 10pm, when we were all in bed, all was back to relative normal. We discovered the next morning that whatever took out the power also fried our modem, wireless router, network cards, UPS and, oddly, the timer for the fish pond pump. Zap! All toasted.

It's taken a week for life to get back to normal. The trailer is finally out of the garage and gear stowed.

Just in time for the next camping trip.