Sitting on the Porch

Tristan sits on the porch waiting for something. Not sure what.

Mom's Shoes

Tristan wears my shoes. Backward.

Supposed to be Working

Julius and I went out to get pictures of a house for Rob. We took a side break for a few minutes to play. I hope he's not reading this blog from work!!

Biggest Ever!

This is the biggest walking stick I've ever seen in my LIFE! This was on the outer door of my office when I came in this morning.

Leprechauns

OMG... There are leprechauns in my bathtub!!

Cool Dudes

We're out in the woods looking at a client's cabin.

Work Out

Julius says he needs to start lifting weights because he can't do the monkey bars.

Big Boy

Last time we were here, Tristan was too scared to go down this slide. He's a big boy now!

Playing

We're in the stifling heat at the park. This officially entitles me to claim I am a selfless mother. At least for the afternoon. No guarantees beyond this.

Kudos to Taco Bell

Taco Bell rocks for making certificates of bravery for kids at the doctor.

We're Always at the Doctor

I swear we're always at the doctor. Today we're at the doctor having Tristan swabbed to see if he has strep.

I Didn't

I didn't follow the directions. I'm a rebel, what can I say?

On the Field with Flint

Julius is on the field with the Travs catcher #18 Flint Wipke. They are standing on home plate. Since Julius was a catcher he got his photo with the catcher.

Waiting to Go

The boys are waiting to go out onto the field and make their big debut in front of the crowds.

Jumbotron

I don't know if you can see it, but the boys are being broadcast on the jumbotron. Woooo, go boys!

Excited!

Julius and his dad went to the Travs game today. They were doing "Field of Dreams" at the game tonight where the boys get to go out on the field with the players.

Abandoned Building

A cool old abandoned building.

Heading to the River

We're heading to the river to look at a house we have for sale.

Asking for Help for my Friends...

I have friends who are trying to get some matching funds for a grant they received to aid in their adoption. Please take a moment to read my plea over at Spread Change.

Gone Again

We stopped in at the office to check our messages and this what I found when I went looking to see where Julius had gone.

Poor guy is as white as a sheet. I'll be glad when his blood pressure goes back up!

Not Good

Poor Julius is having problems with the seatbelt when he nods off. We need a better system.

On Our Way Home

We're on our way home. This is the bridge over the Arkansas River, one of my favorite parts of the drive.

Denied

They won't let us leave. His blood pressure is too low. This is a side affect of the meds they give him prior to surgery. It's an adult blood pressure med but it also causes drowsiness so they use it to make him go to sleep. This is the resulting complication. Recovery takes a lot longer.

Other than this we are ready to go.

Last Vitals

The vitals lady is taking his vitals to go home. Nurse Seneca is annoyed with us because she heard us talking about Burger King. She does not approve. It's not like we've not done it every single time...

Pudding Cures All

It's a little known fact that pudding cures a number of medical conditions.

Groggy, So Groggy

Julius is finally awake and wants to leave but they won't let him til he drinks something.

Trying to Wake Him Up

This is actually the long part. Wake up baby!! We told him if he won't wake up they will give him lima beans instead of pudding.

He's Out!

All is well. He's done with the procedure but we're waiting for them to let us go back. He had a much smaller incident of paps but more issue from accumulating scar tissue. We're really happy about the disease being less aggressive in the past but do have concerns about this new issue which will be problematic for him.

Doc says wait til he gets a little older and we'll deal with it then. Waiting is hard. I don't want him to be self-conscious about his voice. I don't think anyone realizes how much of YOU your voice is until you deal with something like this.

He's so good and smart and funny and I'm worried people won't give him a chance.

Okay, I'll stop whining. We're actually very fortunate so for that I'm giving thanks. Who knows what the future will bring.

Doc on the Way

Doc is on the way to the OR to meet Julius there.

On His Way

There he goes off to the procedure room.

Note to the Doc

Julius did a drawing for the doctor. Here is the envelope.

Sticker Fight

Dad and Julius stick a sticker on each other and then rip it off and see how much hair comes with it. Boys!

Dad Suits Up

Dad gets on the "maggot suit". He is going into the OR with Julius today.

Dad Goofs Off Too

Julius wants dad to try the mask.

Being Goofy

Julius acts goofy with the mask. I feel this is a big step for him since just looking at a mask made him have anxiety. Every time the door opens he rips it off his face as if he's going to get in trouble for something.

Sending Out Smoke Signals

Updraft treatment. He freaked out at first but the guy nurse was awesome. He's been doing this for 28 years. Julius negotiated for SpongeBob stickers since he didn't like Batman.

Mom is Annoying

He's pretty much done with me taking his picture. Does that stop me? Hardly!

A Message from Julius

I asked Jules if he wanted to tell the family anything special and he said, "Never!" then added, "Take a picture of my butt."

That boy is pure class.

Jammie Time

Dad dresses Julius in his hospital jammies. Finding Nemo is on TV. Julius is bummed because the gift shop is closed for inventory. Glad we brought our own!

Vitals

Taking blood pressure is no fun.

67 Pounds

67 pounds and 4'3"! Wow. He's only 6. Stop growing! We have to stop feeding this guy!

Her Boo

The nurse who weighs him in calls him boo. Out of a choice of red or green socks, Julius chooses red.

Coming Up

Dad and Julius climb the stairs to the waiting room. Slowpokes!

Great Views

The hospital has beautiful grounds and lots of cool things to look at.

Roly Poly

Julius carries a roly poly from the parking lot to the hospital landscaping. Glad the gardener didn't see that!

Off We Go

We're on the road after a very rough night. Apparently Tristan has some sort of reaction to cold medicine which turns him into a raving lunatic crackhead. He was up all night, finally got to bed at 3 and up again at 530. Not a good start to our day.

Drawing

Julius draws on the dew-covered window before we head out to the hospital.