We're Home!

We've been home for a full day. Sorry still no pictures to share - just not enough time to post them :-)  We're so happy to be home, but it is aLOT of work. Thankfully, we mentally prepared for the changes the boys would experience, so nothing is a surprise or unexpected.

Remember that while you read, please. Nothing is a surprise or unexpected. I'm just sharing our real life here and keeping it real.

The boys have regressed a bit. They are once again both super-duper-needy. Of course the munchkins want to be comforted by us all the time since they feel so crummy.

How is David doing?

David has been waking up at night crying and screaming again. He seems really afraid and anxious especially at night. He doesn't like to swallow. I think it is a combination of pain and things in there just feel so different. We are keeping him on pain meds, but he doesn't need them exactly right on time ~ we can stretch out the time between meds for him. His voice sounds about the same. So far he doesn't need to wear his no-no's (arm restraints) all the time. He seems to understand that he shouldn't touch his face and mouth. He wears no-no's when he sleeps and when we're in the car.

How is Samuel doing?

Samuel is swallowing better than David, surprisingly, since he should be in alot more pain. We are keeping Sammy on pain meds religiously every 4 hours. He starts fussing almost right on time, so we make sure we are staying ahead of the pain. Samuel doesn't try to touch his face yet, but I predict that he'll wear his no-no's most of the time as he feels better. One finger in his mouth could pop his stitches and ruin the surgery. His voice sounds so much different and he speaks more clearly. That part has been really cool.

What about these no-no's?

The boys are cooperative when we put the no-no's on. I'm waiting for the munchkins to use their no-no's as weapons on each other...

What about eating?

Mealtimes are a trip. David is on a pureed-type diet. We are learning it is much easier to keep him happy. We've got more choices for what we can feed him. Samuel is on a liquid diet. He doesn't like sweets very much, so it's been tough to figure out what to feed him. Pediasure is very sweet. Most smoothies are pretty sweet. Sometimes he wants broth, sometimes not. He hasn't wanted any milk yet. We usually have to prepare a few selections for the munchkins each mealtime before we find something they like. This means we present one thing at the table and if it bombs we run to the kitchen to figure something else out while the unhappy munchkin screams and/or whines. We have to feed both boys because they can't put spoons in their mouths. They can use a cup by themselves, but they don't want to do that for very long. I suspect this is mostly because their upper lips hurt, and partially because they want us to take care of them. Ya, mealtime is a trip.

Are they taking medicine?

The boys have four medicines each. Two are taken every four hours, one is taken every six hours, and one is taken twice a day. I made a chart to keep track. We have a cup full of syringes on the counter.

How is Josh doing?

Josh has been a wonderful big brother. I haven't been worried about him being too rough with the boys, and he's been really helpful. My (Chris') mom has been here to take care of Josh while we were at the hospital, and now she is taking care of all of us again.

                                                         Thanks, Mom!

How do they look?

Their faces are swollen. They look like they hurt. They each have four or five steri-strips across their upper lip. You can see stitches in David's upper lip, and Samuel's 3 lip parts are swollen in 3 big bumps. You can still see Samuel's tooth that was on his funky lip-bump. Samuel's steri-strips look like they are pulled tight. David has a nose splint sewn into his nose. You can see the two plastic round pieces in his nostrils, and little dots across the bridge of his nose where the nose splint is sewn in. They both still have crusty blood in places.

Despite all the challenges they have right now in their little lives, overall, the boys are doing a-ma-zing! We see their happy and content and silly little personalities coming back slowly. They are little troopers!

And even though this has been incredibly stressful for our whole family, I do believe that having both surgeries on the same day was the way to go. No, it isn't easy for any of us. Yes, I will still worry and be stressed out way more than I should. It just forces us to lean harder on God for His strength and grace and peace. He brought us to these beautiful, perfect little boys. We still know that this is His grand plan for our lives. We'll just trust that God will bring us through all these challenges.

He always does.



Then Jesus declared, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty. But as I told you, you have seen me and still you do not believe. All those the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never drive away. For I have come down from heaven not to do my will but to do the will of him who sent me. And this is the will of him who sent me, that I shall lose none of all those he has given me, but raise them up at the last day. For my Father’s will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day.”     John 6:35-40