There's Water at the Bottom of the Ocean

I always knew that Mikey was scrappy and tough.  I guess what i didn't realize was how scrappy and tough he is.  Yesterday, I heard a little knock on our bedroom door and there he was.  He had scooted himself out of his room and was sitting there with a big smile on his face.

Later, he was scooting around and the next thing I see is him coming up the stairs.  He was insistent that he could do it.  I thought he would get about 2 steps and start to hurt but he kept going.




I still have to pull the reigns back a little on him so that he doesn't do too much too fast.  He really, really, really wanted to go to school today but I think we will wait one more day.

 

Q - How do you know when your son has turned a corner?

Mikey came home yesterday.  When he realized that we were going home he was so excited.  The nurse was trying to give me all the discharge papers and instructions and all I could hear was Mikey saying "C'mon mom - Mikey go home!" 


Mark had gone ahead of us to set up camp in the family room for him.  We moved a hideabed into the family room for him so he can be more comfortable until he can start being a little more mobile.  He has everything he needs right there in reach.  The girls think it is pretty cool too and have been enjoying having their brother home again.  His pain and discomfort was so much better yesterday and today.   He really didn't complain too much yesterday about pain.  He got home and wanted to start playing just like usual.  The doctors warned us that he will probably want to do more than we would think and we probably would need to hold him back.  Now I see what they mean. 

Our wonderful friends the Pesnell's came by to visit and brought him the complete Ultraman collection on DVD!  He is so stoked and now we have the pleasure of getting to watch every episode ever made! (insert sarcasm here) 

Today is mother's day and I am so thankful to be home again with entire family.  Life is good.    

I guess the title pretty much sums it up.  Sometime last night Mikey somehow managed to pull out his epidural.   At 6 am he told me his leg really hurt and a couple of minutes later he was screaming in pain.  The nurse immediately jumped into action and got him a good dose of meds and after he calmed down a bit she noticed that his epidural had come out.  They were planning to start him on oral meds today anyway - but were hoping to have a more gradual weaning process.  The poor kid was essentially med free for a couple of hours.   

That was just the beginning of the day.  He had a procedure scheduled at 9 am that he had to be at.  It meant moving him from his bed to the wheelchair.  When they scheduled this they had planned on his epidural still being in place so this threw a big kink in the plan.  His left leg was really, really bothering him and any slight movement would send him screaming.   I felt so helpless and he would look at me with those teary eyes and say 'Mama, mama it HURTS" and there was nothing I could do but pray over him. It is such a helpless feeling.  I am so thankful for the staff at Shriner's.  They have been so great and so compassionate towards Mikey and our family. I really can't say enough good stuff about the top notch care that Mikey has received over the past week.  We had to take him to radiology and then get him up on a table. The procedure itself was painless - but the process of getting him up and down was excruciating for him.  We finished up and got him back to bed.  Another dose of oral meds were beginning to kick in and he seemed to be more comfortable.   His friend Jake & two of his karate instructors came by to visit.  Mikey was trying really hard to stay awake to visit with them - but eventually the meds won.  He took a pretty good nap, but his left leg was still bothering him.  By afternoon he was feeling a little better.  Any slight movements were still very painful - but as long as he was still he was ok.  All of his other tubes came out over the course of the day and by the time I left he was in pretty good spirits.  Mark is staying with him tonight.  I pray tonight is restful and tomorrow is easier for this brave little boy.   Sleep well my little one....

Today was a pretty good day.  Mikey's friend Jake came by and visited him and really made his day.  Mikey was still a little bit out of it but was glad to see his friend. 

Later though, Mikey set out in the wheelchair to check out the rec room for a while and play some Wii.  He really started to look more like himself and began to talk more too.

By dinnertime he was actually goofing around a little bit with his sisters and showing more signs of being his fun self. 

We finally got a BIG smile out of him when the GIANT fortune cookie arrived from his karate instructors.  Zoe was begging to eat it - but Mikey wanted to save it until tomorrow.  I think that was a good idea.
Tomorrow the epidural comes out so we shall see if that smile stays put.  For now, this boy has shown a champion spirit and hasn't complained one bit about anything.  He wants to go home - but who wouldn't when you are hooked up to a kajillion wires and tubes.  He is a great kid and we love, love, love him!

The girls have been pretty tolerant of all this too.  I know it has been hard for them to see Mikey getting all of our attention and Mommy not being home at night.  Thank you girls for hangin' in there and understanding about your brother.  You all deserve big fat squeezy hugs and I can't wait to finally be home to give them to you!!

It is done and everything went very well.  The surgery took 7 hours instead of 3 - but apparently they just threw the number 3 out there to keep us guessing.  The left leg took longer because they had to reshape the end of his femur. They called us every couple hours and kept us updated so we weren't really worried - but the day got pretty long. 

Mikey was pretty groggy, but woke up enough to know we were here and that his sisters had come to visit.  I stayed at the hospital with him and he would wake up and say how hungry he was and it was just killing me to tell him he couldn't eat yet.   Finally, the nurse said he could eat.  He had some soup and a cereal bar and he was a happy boy. 

He is not in any pain yet.  They gave him an epidural with a nice cocktail of pain meds so he really can't feel anything below his waist.  The staff here has been awesome and Mikey has been such a good patient.  Everyone has fallen in love with him.  I am not sure how long he will be here.  One person says Friday - another Saturday but i can't imagine him being ready to go home before Saturday.

I guess that is all for now.  Thank you all for the calls and prayers.  We have seen a huge outpouring of love for Mikey and appreciate everyone so much. 

We had to be back at the hospital this morning at 6 am so last night the girls went to stay with my sister.  It was a tearful goodbye for Mikey since this was the first time that he was away from them.  5 minutes after they left he wanted to call them and say goodnight again and he told each one that he loved them.  I think he was more concerned about them being gone than he was about what was happening the next day.

After we arrived at the hospital they began the process of getting him ready for surgery.  Mikey did not care for the breezy gown he was given and insisted that it was for girls.  We had a couple of minutes to talk and he started to show the first signs of a little bit of fear. He said goodbye to his flippers (that is what he calls his feet) for the last time.   I could tell he wanted to cry, but wanted to show us he was brave. We told him it was ok to be a little scared - but he kept his chin up the whole time.   I am so proud of the courage he is showing.  I doubt I would have the grace he showed if it were me. 

The happy juice he was given began to kick in quickly and soon he didn't really care if he had a girl gown on or not.  He got pretty silly and before we knew it - it was time to say goodbye.  The anesthesiologist came in and Mikey looked him right in the eye and said "ready!" and off he went. (I'm sure the happy juice helped with that..)
 

Today was Mikey's surgery admission day.  This means we went to the hospital and got him checked in and then met with all the PT's, OTs, surgeons, nurses, and just about anyone else you can think of.  We have prepared Mikey the best we can for this and I truly believe he is about as ready is he is ever going to be.  He seems to have a peace over him and is *almost* looking forward to having this done.  A lot of credit goes to the wonderful staff at Shriner's and the amazing way they deal with kids.  We feel tremendously blessed to have Shriner's right here in our back yard. 

Mikey took the day in stride and had a pretty good time.  He loves the rec room and got rather annoyed when the doctors would come in and interrupt him while he was checking out all the cool stuff.   Here are a few highlights from today. 

Hey lady - you want a ride?










Not a single tear during the blood draw.  What a champ!













The Hummer is pretty sweet!















Making casts just like the ones he will get tomorrow. 












 
Tomorrow is the big day so time to get some sleep and be ready to go bright and early. 

One month post adopt and life at the Lucas house is a unique experience each and every day.  Mikey is slowly learning English and some of the things he is learning is a direct result of being placed in this particular family.  Mikey understands a lot more than he can speak - but his words are coming along nicely.  Here are some of the most commonly heard English words/and or phrases heard from Mikey.

Hungry! (usually heard several times a day.  This kid can eat!)Chicken (one of his favorites)
Noodles (when asked what do you want to eat)
Spoon (he uses a spoon with EVERYTHING)
Apple
ZOE!!!!!! (said in various tones ranging from frustration to excitement)
I don't know (said with a shoulder shrug)
YES SIR!  (learned at karate - it is usually heard in and out of context)
We gotta go! -We're late (my favorite - I'm sure this was learned from the frantic morning school routine)
and of course, Please and thank you.

Please forgive me for not blogging so much.  A nasty cold virus violated our seemingly impenetrable fortress of wellness and we have been blowing snot for several days.  (That and life seems to moving at light speed) 

Sorry I have been slackin in the blog department - but life as the Gosselin's is not for the faint at heart!  OK, it isn't that bad - but we have had a film shadow for 3 weeks and you always had to be careful that the camera was on.  I really think this movie is important - and trust me - you will get the good, the bad and the 'OMG!  what is WRONG with that family' when it finally comes out.  Cherry was with us 99% of the time and if she didn't already have the camera on - she was saying "oh - can you say that again?" 

We have some respite now and we have settled in as a family of 6.  Mikey has daily pouting fits about who knows what but we take it in stride and roll with the punches.    He started school today.  We started him in afternoon kindergarten every day.  You would have thought this kid had won the lottery when he found out he was going to school like his sisters.  Mikey was not allowed to go to school in China.  Cherry was a huge help when it came to asking him about school.  He wanted to go - but he said "Only kids with parents get to go to school"   I know that SWI kids get to go so I think he probably was not allowed because of his legs.  It was the school officials that didn't allow him to go - not the fear of him being teased.  He told a story that his foster sister went to school one day only and was sent home.  She was not allowed back.    He told the story with such sadness and a little bit of anger that he was not allowed to go too.    So when we asked him if he wanted to go to school now - he asked "But what about my legs?"  Cherry told him it didn't matter here and he nodded and gave a thumbs up!   

His pouting fits are usually due to language frustration.  Mikey is used to getting and or taking what he wants.  He is figuring out that Lucas Boot Camp is not a walk in the park.  The girls adore him and he adores them.  Zoe and he struggle for the spotlight - but when he is sweet - he is super sweet and when he is pouty - he mumbles under his breath, crosses his arms and won't look at you.    Most times I just let him sit and pout and eventually he joins the family again.  Sometimes I have to physically get him to join the family (like when it is time to go and he is having one of his sit-ins under the desk and I have to pull him out and carry him to the car)  I don't want to paint a bad picture - he is a sweet and loving boy that is struggling to let go of the independence he had for so long.  If he can just figure out that it is ok to be a kid and let Mark and I take care of stuff - all will be well.

Tomorrow is his first Shriner's appointment.  I think we will wait until the language is further along before we do surgery.  He knows that he will have surgery at some point and he definatly wants new legs.  I tell you - this kid is sharp.  There is no way I can put him under the knife without him understanding more about the process and what to expect.   These are his legs and he deserves to know exactly what is happening.

Oh - and if you didn't already think we were doing too much too fast (ha)  Mikey has started karate.  He LOVES it.  This boy is confident and has absolutely no problem marching around the other kids and showing them that he can do it too.  Mikey has never once shown any signs of self pity.  If anything - he is a tiny bit arrogant.  God has huge plans for him. 

Now - if he will just learn English!!

Mikey at karate

Before we left for China Zoe asked us if we would take purple cow with us and take pictures of her.  Now, for those of you who don't know who PC is – PC (purple cow) is Zoe's best friend.   PC is a girl (despite her obvious horns) and she has been with Zoe for many years.  For Zoe to trust us enough with her most prized possession really says something.    The LAST thing she said to us was "I love you but PLEASE don't leave Purple Cow in China!"

 

So – here are some pics of purple cow on her adventures.  Enjoy!

Here is my attempt at posting a movie. I hope it works.
We went to the park across the street and Mikey showed off for us a
little. He has some attitude around other Chinese people and other kids
and wants to show them that he can do anything. Look at this kid climb!

I think the pictures work now!  Let's give it a try.

 

Here is the trip to DongGuan