SPICA Day 4 - Miracle Day!

Day 4 (yesterday) was full of little triumphs and even some normalcy (I cooked dinner last night).  Today was Graham's first day off the couch.  We decided one of our carseats would work quite well if we leaned it against the couch.  At first, G did not want to be lifted at all.  He was in quite a bit of pain still when we lifted/moved him from the hospital.  I promised if it hurt I'd put him right back down.  I promised I would go slow and soft.  He liked the soft part.  "Not bumpy, Mommy?"  Not bumpy.  As it turns out, it did not hurt to lift him this time and once he was upright in the seat and realized this, he was so happy!

We now refer to his legs as "the good leg" and the "work in progress leg".  He kicks the good leg when he's happy and excited!

Since this picture, Chad has modified his little play table so that it slides right over his legs at the perfect height.  We were able to play with his Imaginex ship, playdough, markers, etc.  Little G is back!

Since I had grown more confident in lifting him, Graham and I decided to practice walking to the toilet together.  We walked down the hall and I (softly) set him on the toilet so we could both see that this was possible.  The next time he had to "go" we went in the potty instead of the diaper.  GLORY!  Which also meant that his first BM was in the potty instead of the diaper. GLORY again!  This milestone is going to make the next 5 weeks and 3 days much more tolerable for both of us!

We also hopped in the red wagon to tour the house while Daddy was mowing the lawn.  First stop:  the play room.  He gave me orders as to which toys we would retrieve to take back to the living room.  We toured everyroom in the house and watched Daddy mow out the window for awhile.  Then, back to the chair set-up.  He wanted nothing to do with that couch yesterday.

Finally, we tried out the jogging stroller on loan from one of the football families.  This will be our main mode of transport to and from the car.  He LOVED it. 

The only downer was at bedtime.  G and I were going to camp out in his bed together.  We were trying to get back into sort of a routine with books and songs.  BUT the leg cramps kicked in.  The doctor said it's "like a charlie horse x 100".  He immediately went into screams and cries.  His little head was drenched with sweat.  We were prescribed Valium which helped the first time this happened, but not last night.  We finally gave a dose of codeine along with the Valium and moved our slumber party back to the couch.  With all of the fun he had during the day, the exhaustion from the leg cramps, and the drugs, we didn't even make it through one episode of Peppa Pig before he was out.  And he's still out at 9:00 the next day (Day 5). 

Too bad I couldn't sleep when I had the chance!  I made Chad let me do all of the lifting yesterday, because he starts 2-a-day practices today and I wanted to make sure I could do it all while he was still around.  Hence the strained back and the lack of sleep.  That and the fat yellow cat that kept pawing at the couch and meowing because he wanted to play.  I locked him out and he busted through the cat door.  Fat cat may not make it through another night if he pulls that stunt again.  No rest for the weary. 

It appears I lied about the next posts being shorter.  It's also therapy people.  You've been warned!