Dressing up for the Skating Party

Every October our church has an annual "Skating Party" at our local roller rink. Here's the kids in their outfits, and it was the first time Aidan was ever on roller skates (although it seemed like the skates weighed more than him). He did a fine job ... with mom's and dad's help, of course.

Paintin' Pumpkins

We had some fun the other day painting pumpkins to prepare our porch for those nocturnal visitors tonight.

Here's Aidan showing off his masterful brushstrokes.

And here's the rest of us in the studio ... I mean the dining room.

Just a reminder that today's the day in 1517 when Martin Luther posted his 95 Theses on the door of the castle church in Wittenberg, Germany and the Reformation got rollin'.

The final product ... a real Picasso!

And here's the next Mary Cassat with her latest work of art!

Four Falls at the Pumpkin Patch

Thought this would be fun to share. Here's evidence that our little princess is truly growing. This is at the pumpkin patch which we visit every fall here in Marysville. The picture at the right is from October of 2006 and the one on the left is from our visit today.

Aidan's doing well... and a trip to the pumpkin patch!

It's been a rough week since Aidan's surgery. He seemed to be in a lot of pain, even with the pain medication, and had some trouble sleeping at night. We couldn't figure out if it was due to being in pain or the congestion that still seemed to be bothering him since before his surgery. We can tell that he's also getting frustrated not being able to feed himself. He's still on a soft diet and not allowed to feed himself for fear of poking his newly reconstructed palate with a utensil.

Upon the recommendation of the folks at Children's Hospital, Julie took Aidan in to see our pediatrician. She ended up prescribing an antibiotic. So here we are, two days later, and Aidan seems to be much better. He seems to be finally getting back to his perky self.

Here's evidence below at our visit to the pumpkin patch today.

Lily picked out a pumpkin. Actually, that's not the one she picked out. It just was convenient for a pose.

And Aidan was just wondering, "Hey, can I have a refill on this fine hot chocolate?"

Our tradition of measuring Lily at the big ruler at the pumpkin patch continued this year.

And this time Aidan got the chance to be included in one of our family traditions.

Thanks to all the folks at Seattle Children's Hospital

I can't say enough good things about the people at Children's Hospital. Every single person - from the surgeons to the interns to the nurses to the orderlies - has been tremendously caring and compassionate and showed the utmost concern to my son and to my wife and me. I suppose you have to have that kind of "bedside manner" when you work at a place like this. Here, it does not come across as feigned but completely genuine. Visits to the hospital are not always pleasant, and this makes the less pleasant visits...oh, shall we say, more "palatable"?

Only one VERY minor complaint. I wish they had the Sprout Network! My son loves it! But we managed with PBS Kids.

Mashed potatoes down the hatch!

And that means that Aidan probably gets to go home before the day is through. Up to this point he's only had a few ounces here and there of apple juice and a little bit of chocolate milk. Then for lunch today he had almost a whole bowl of chicken broth. But before he goes home, the goal was to see if he could handle some solid yet soft food. The mashed potatoes did the trick. Now, if he keeps it down, discharge is right around the corner.

Recovering from Surgery

Nice luxury room at Seattle Children's Hospital. Wireless internet, too. But it's no consolation when you have to listen to your son cry and moan after surgery. Tubes and wires are connected to his arm, along with the restraints to keep him from picking and pulling and probing.

Julie is at his bedside while I type this. The nurse just arrived with some Tylenol. Jello is on the menu, it sounds like. More liquids and soft foods for the next two weeks.

We're thankful that the surgery went off as planned. The congestion we heard was not much of a concern after all for the anesthesiologist. We've been here since 6 AM this morning. Aidan left our arms around 8 and he got to his room a little after 2. About an hour before that, I was summoned to the recovery room because he was apparently inconsolable once the anesthesia began to wear off.

Now, Aidan just needs to have his mouth heal and get used to eating and drinking and talking with his reconstructed palate. He also had tubes put in his ears to drain some of the fluid that was there, evidently a common occurence in cleft palate kids. Another surgery is on tap sometime in late winter or spring to fix his lip.

Thanks to all of you for your prayers. Thanks also to two good friends who stayed with us during the surgery and to another who stopped by to visit. You are very much appreciated! Thanks also to the surgeons, nurses, and staff at Children's Hospital. Everyone has been so kind and helpful.

Julie will head home this evening to be with Lily (thanks to Julie's parents for staying for a few days) and will return in the morning. I get to stick around at the hospital tonight and try to comfort Aidan the best I can. Hopefully, Aidan can go home tomorrow if all goes as planned.

Surgery Day...we hope!

If all goes well, Aidan will have his cleft palate repair surgery tomorrow morning. He seems to be a little congested which might prevent his surgery from happening. We go in tomorrow to Children's Hospital in Seattle at 6:45 am. If they determine that everything is okay, then the surgery will go as scheduled. We ask for your prayers on his behalf. We promise to post an update one way or the other.