Thursday, January 24, 2013

Caddyshack

Sloane has been wearing big girl undies all week without any major issues. I think we have had a total of 5 accidents in the last 2+ weeks. I am thrilled with Sloane's progress.

The one issue that lingers is poop. Sloane fluctuates between running into the bathroom and doing her business without any help to days when she will try to do her business 4 to 5 times within an hour while whining "momma, I can't do it, it hurts, no poop." You never know what kind of day it is going to be!!

Sloane had some poop issues this week. There were good days and not so good days. My hubby has been traveling all week so tubbies have been all mine! The other night, I had Sloane in the tubby and it was like a scene from Disney World. Fun, Fun, Fun!!

Until I saw a teeny tiny little poop floating in the tub. It wasnt exactly a scene from Caddyshack since it was just the 2 of us, but it was a scene!! I surveyed the tub and all the toys floating in it with thoughts of Clorox...Take Me Away dancing in my head!!!

Sloane looked at the teeny tiny poop as it floated by with big eyes....big OMG eyes. I scooped her up with as much softness as I could. I didnt want this to be a negative experience at all. I dont want Sloane to have any uncomfortableness around the bathroom. Knowing that the warm bath relaxed her, I plopped her on the potty and sure enough there was a large showing in the potty.

As Sloane did her business, I emptied the tub and gave it the quickest, most thorough cleaning I could. Unlike the movie Caddyshack, we couldnt close our tub for business. I longed for my hubby who would have cleaned our tub like nobody's business. But within a few minutes, she was back in a fresh tub doing her thing.


Thursday, January 17, 2013

Click Your Heels

I am not even sure how to begin this post. I could make it all about me and the issues I have with keeping to a schedule OR I can make it all about how finally after 15+ weeks of our renovation the wheels are falling off the bus OR I can make it about Sloane and how her little world is upside down.

A bit of background knowledge. Our internal renovation has been over since before Christmas. Our external continues on. All was good in our hood until "the floor people" used the incorrect floor cleaner to remove glue off the very gorgeous reclaimed barn wood floors my hubby chose. The floors were ruined and needed to be sanded down and redone. Exactly what we didn't want to do and why we chose these rustic floors. Yes after we settled into our new space, we moved everything out again. We have known this since Christmas, but decided to not start the process until last week. We started the process on January 7th. The process is still going on.........OMG

We are in the poly stage and because of the smell, we had to leave the house. After all these weeks, now we had to leave the house!! WTF!!! We decided to move into ti-tis because she had 2 extra bedrooms so there was enough room for us all to reside comfortably. I did not have any negative foreshadowing in regards to this, since Sloane frequently spends days and naps at
ti-ti's house. In fact, she freaking loves it there! So my thoughts were all of fun and games in a good way.  She sleeps at mammie and poppie's all summer without any issues and last month we battled through 2 nights at nonni's with some trouble, but not enough for me to put the kibosh on over nights. I did not imagine that our new temporary home would be an issue for Sloane.

We arrived at ti-tis for the day yesterday and all went well right up until 8:10pm when Sloane told me she wanted to do nite nite. My aunt looked at me in amazement with a comment of "she is so easy." Off we went to bed. Sloane snuggled in nicely and I relaxed some. What I didnt expect was that Sloane would still be awake 2 and half hours later!! Yes, folks for the first time ever my child was up until 11pm. As each minute went by, I got more and more frustrated and somewhat exhausted because I had tried everything to get her to settle down. Sloane was wide awake, tossing around, making music with her lips, hiding under the covers and simply being 2. This was all new behavior to me!

I was a bit constrained on my creativity because uncle was already doing nite nite after working an all night-er. I didn't want Sloane to wake him so my old school "GO TO SLEEP" tactics weren't an option as they are usually followed by Sloane crying. As well as normally, if she was in a crib I would have shut the door and went on my merry way. Considering that the bed has rails on only one side, I hunkered down like a prisoner in a dark cell. Horrible isolation!! After the 9:30 mark, I started texting my hubby with updates from under the sheets so missy muffin wouldn't see. Not exactly fair of me because he was having a quiet night to himself, but nevertheless I wanted to share my trials and get some ideas on other ideas. Then I started texting ti-ti so she would feel my pain. I didnt want her to think I hit the hay for a long winter's sleep. Lastly, I texted my go-to mommy as she would have some words of advice or at the very least make me laugh....which she did!

When we rounded the corner to 10pm, I got up exited the room and listened to the cries. I was at wit's end with no answer in sight. Ti-ti came to Sloane's rescue, only for Sloane to cry that she wanted Momma Tarra. What Sloane didnt know is Momma Tarra wanted to cry too!! Back upstairs I went and snuggled in to no avail. At 10:45, I gave up. Threw in the white flag and left ti-ti to clean up the battlefield. Sure enough, Sloane collapsed into dream land at 10:56pm. I was drained. Ti-ti was clearly in shock because of these new antics as well as my utter disgust at the entire scene. Mentally, I was beyond the long gone bedtime and on to the disaster of a day that was going to be welcoming me in the morning.

I climbed into bed, kissed my angel and the rest was history. Until 5:30am when Sloane started whining and whimpering. I had no idea why. After a few attempts to comfort her, I felt her diaper (we havent conquered a diaper free night yet) and she did have some junk in her trunk. What I found when I changed her should have shocked me but it didnt......

More background knowledge. Sloane hadnt pooped in 2 days so I was a bit obsessed with poop yesterday.  I was very concerned that Sloane was constipated and that that would put a glitch in our potty training progress. We tried the potty all day and had no results. Sloane tooted her way through the day with little comments of "I stink" and "PPPUUUU". LOL My hubby tried to get me to relax about the absent daily poop but it was eating away at me. I spent the day offering Sloane every fiber filled food I could think of. Hoping something would get the party/potty LOL moving. Ironically, I had spoken to my friend earlier in the day when in the midst of our convo she told me about her 3 year old niece and how she is holding in her poop. I am well versed in poop issues because I have friends who have children with poop issues and friends who have issues themselves. She did tell me something that I hadnt heard before. Because her niece was holding in her poop all day, she would poop in her sleep because her body was relaxed. The information settled in the land of "that could happen" in my brain.

So I take Sloane's diaper down and what do my wandering  (not exactly....they were half shut) eyes see...a poop. Not just a poop. An overcooked poop that hadnt made its whole way out into the world. Sloane was trying to poop in her sleep!!! What is going on???!!!??? The thoughts of "that could happen" had quickly turned into this is seriously happening. Could this night get anymore odd?? Obviously, Sloane has relaxed enough and her poop made it debut. Not enough to make this mom happy, but enough for me to know she wasn't going to explode. After the diaper was changed, Sloane said "momma please I sleep." And this momma said "yes, please sleep."

We opened our eyes at 7am to begin day 2 of our 4 day floor debacle. I geared up for what a day with a toddler who is 3 hours low on sleep looks like. My aunt and my oldest friend tried to reason with me on my sleep nazi and schedule freak behavior over an early am cup of tea. I listened and I tried to reason back which was hard to do because it didnt sound too rational when I said it out loud. I like the structure, I need it and I want it. I know I am a mom who needs structured to a fault and I know that all this structure may not be the best thing on all fronts for my free spirited child.

So as I sit here blogging this post, Sloane sleeps at our house LOL (there is no smell in our bedrooms....yahoo). I couldnt wait to get home and regroup a bit before we take another spin at living on the edge.

Tuesday, January 15, 2013

Normal Problems

Our normal toddler problems continue to plague our house. Night night time has become a battle most nights. The ritual bed hasnt changed. The time hasnt changed. But the behavior once Sloane hits the crib has. Sloane has been crying "daddy, daddy, daddy", "daddy why you leave me?", "momma, i'm mad!" from her crib on and off while standing up looking ready to rumble for about 20 to 30 minutes. Now, of course, we do go in and check on her which is problem numero uno. I want to let her cry but Im afraid she will fling one of her daddy long legs over the side of the crib and get out of dodge. I would like the days back when Sloane would drift to sleep like an angel.

Potty training is moving along swimmingly. Sloane was clearly ready to tackle this milestone. It is like a switch has been flipped. She independently uses the potty for all her needs. We are both quite surprised at how well she is doing. In classic Sloane form, she wants to be a big girl right from walking into the bathroom when she needs to, pulling down her own pants, using the potty, emptying the potty into the toilet, flushing the toilet and to yelling "I did it all by myself. I need wipe." We went out today in big girl undies!!! Yahoo!!!

Today was my birthday. A milestone one!! My 30s are over. We celebrated my happy day over the weekend, so today was a regular day which just happened to be my happy day (in Sloane's language). I did something crazy today though. Something in all my years I havent done. I am not sure if this admission makes me a nerd because I've never done this or kooky because I did it today. After Sloane went down for her nap, I poured some wine into my Birthday Girl wine glass and slapped a piece of cake on a plate. I sat down at our new island and dove in! Minutes later, the glass was emptied and the dish just about licked clean. It was mid-day and I had enjoyed a glass of wine and birthday cake alone! It truly was very serene. What made it all the more special is that I left the dirty evidence in the kitchen and tip toed into our room to look at the sleeping angel. Apparently, I looked a bit too closely because I woke up almost 2 hours later fully dressed in our bed snuggled against Sloane!!! LOL I hope I am just a lightweight and that because I am 40 an afternoon nap is not going to be a normal forty year old problem.

Thursday, January 10, 2013

Top 10

The medication has left the building!! Thank god! I think Sloane consumed 7 peanut butter cups, 4 Hersey kisses and one cotton candy lollipop in the past 10 days. We decided to take the bribery approach after the med administration began to look like it needed a straight jacket!!!

Dr. Reibman called yesterday to discuss the the pneumonia event. Her hopes are that Sloane's pneumonia was not cleft related. She, too, was thrilled that Sloane will be resuming thin liquids within the next week or so.  As per usual with Dr. Reibman, she gave me a talking about general toddler health. I'll assume that she thinks I get caught up in laryngeal cleft issues and forget that Sloane is a normal toddler.

So here is the top 10 list of toddler issues we are dealing with in our home:

1. When a time out or visit to the thinking chair is necessary
2. When to leave the house with big girl undies on
3. Which battle to pick in regards to nutrition
4. When to move your toddler into a toddler bed
5. How much and which TV is acceptable
6. Which behaviors are "she's two" and which behaviors are "she's a brat"
7. How much sleep is enough sleep
8. Should there be fashion battles at 2 1/2 years old
9. Which kind of independence does my toddler need
10. To leave your toddler or not to leave your toddler for an extended time

Number 10 is a hot topic in our home this week as I am getting ready to leave Sloane for 48 full hours!! OMG! The longest I have ever left her in almost 2 1/2 years!

Monday, January 7, 2013

Hope

Its official! Sloane is back to her old self. We had a bopping session tonight while I was preparing dinner. She caught on some sleep these past few days which has helped her attitude. A note on giving a child meds., WTF!!! It borders on excess force when we pin Sloane down to get her to swallow her meds. The scene is ridiculous, Sloane is out of control screaming "No", "Wait a Minute", "In a little while" with her arms and legs flailing. I HOPE someday that someone finds another way to administer meds to toddlers.  While Sloane has been home bound recuperating from pneumonia, a few extra special things have happened in Sloane's world.

The first being that her binky has been completely removed from her life. After she spent a few of her high fever nights snuggled in bed with me without a bink, when she went back into her crib my hubby told her that her bink was being fixed. LOL!! She hasnt asked for it since that little white lie! We HOPE she believed us. The bink didnt have a large presence in our home, in fact it just sat in the corner of her crib for night night emergencies. Nevertheless, it is nice that the bink now sits in my sock drawer for safe keeping.

The second being that potty training has hit high gear. Sloane is diaper free while at home. With our renovation nearing its end, she has been bouncing around the house with big girl undies on. When she needs the potty, she walks into the bathroom and completes using the potty without any help. There is usually a "I need privacy" sentence lingering in the air as she shuts the bathroom door. I HOPE to push full steam ahead over the next few weeks to say goodbye to Pampers for forever!

As for Sloane's pneumonia, we did get the answers that we were looking for. It is not common for LC children to get pneumonia after a cleft repair. It does happen on occasion. So we can assume and HOPE that Sloane's bout with pneumonia is an isolated case. If she continues to have frequent respiratory illnesses, Dr. Rahbar will complete an endoscopy of her airway to access the condition of her repair in regards to another surgery.

Once she has finished her medicine and has had a few more days to rest, we will resume thin liquids and HOPE for the best. I am sure I will be a bit more structured with Sloane's drinking this time around. I would like to have a bit more control over it as we move forward. My HOPE would be to have some kind of super powers and to be able to stop the aspirations before they become pneumonia again.

Wednesday, January 2, 2013

Turning The Corner

Sloane has turned the corner. She does not have a fever anymore and is more alert. Her little body is exhausted and her coloring is one that reminds me of her first few days in the NICU.

Today was another day of do nothing. There are many more of those in our future I think. Sloane hasnt been able to be home and freely play in months because of the renovation and I think it is just what she needs these next few days.

Dr. Rahbar's office emailed me back. Their response was as it always is clear and progressive. It is a good things I am not employed by them. I would upset the apple cart. Basically, he wants Sloane to have thickened liquids until she has recovered from this bout with pneumonia and then he wants to resume liquids in their natural form again. We understand his logic or rather my hubby does. I would keep Sloane's liquids thickened for the rest of her life to not see her so sick again. It is clear though that Dr. Rahbar isnt going to pull the plug after one setback. He isnt that kind of doctor. We, also, do not want Sloane to be frequently sick. We need a bit more insight.

So I followed up with another email to get some clarification. We have started to wonder if this is what other LC parents deal with and if we have just been lucky? Sloane has remained pneumonia free since 1 month old. Is that rare for a LC child with a level 2 cleft?

I will speak for myself although I do think my hubby feels the same.....this weekend was an eye opening experience. We have been living with having a child with a birth defect, but we have not been living the life of a parent who has an ill child. Sloane has not been ill. She has been healthy and always full of life. Watching her this weekend, made me realize the difference. I do not know how parents of chronically ill children do it. It was and is painful to watch her so lethargic and out of sorts. I have seen Sloane sick before, but she was an infant with a personality and affect we hadn't met yet. Now to know my Sarah Bernheardt, Drama Queen, Rock Star, Extroverted Actress and to see her so sick is something I am not interested in again.