A Week of Thanks-Golden Style

Yeah, I'm going to join in on the "22 days of thanks" for Thanksgiving.
Weekly.
Of course, keeping it "Golden".

Day 1, Nov 1:
Our Angel Donor
Without him/her, Weston would not be here.

Day 2, Nov 2:
Modern and Not So Modern Medicine
After a dose or two of Amoxil, Emmy was back to normal!

Day 3, Nov 3:
Old Friends and Tequila
Yep, a two-fer.
Pretty self-explanatory

Day 4, Nov 4:

Homecomings
There really is no place like "home".

Even after a much needed weekend vacay from Mommy-land.

Day 5, Nov 5:

The Ability to Say Nothing If You Can't Say Anything NiceOh em gee.
I would have been fired, deported, excommunicated, arrested, defriended, alienated by now.

Day 6, Nov 6:
A Great Husband
Can't tell you how nice it was to come home after a long day plus two hours of call to dinner and bathed babies.
Love you, B!

Day 7, Nov 7:
New Friends
So nice to be able to debrief after a stressful day with new pals.

Day 8, Nov 8:

Days Off
Extra sleep, DVR and housekeeping
(its not that I like housekeeping, I HATE mass amounts of trash and crap everywhere)

Day 9, Nov 9:
Waking E
Never have seen anyone wake up with a smile on her face.
She is precious.

Happy Halloween 2012

Well, another spooktacular Halloween has come and gone.
Unfortunately, this year was pretty anticlimactic.
I didn't bust out all the decorations and poor Emmy has been sick all week.
I refuse to believe its the flu, but it sure seems like it.
High fever all week, stomach ache, and a little vomiting.
She was fever free this evening and was so upset about missing her school Halloween party, so we figured a little trick or treating around the block would be good to lift her spirits.

Our Little Dinosaur, Take 2

He was so excited about getting candy.
After the first few houses, he was more interested in eating his candy.

There he goes!

My beautiful Rapunzel in her coveted dress!

Mommy had spooky makeup, too!

She had so been looking forward to Halloween and Trick or Treating, but when it came time, so was so shy! Weston went running up wielding his pumpkin and demanding candy. Emily lagged behind and was too timid to even say Trick or Treat.
Poor baby girl.

The loot in all its glory.
She had to line it up, so she could assess it.

Happy Halloween Boys and Ghouls!!

All About E

I cannot believe my little girl is 4, itching to be 5, and wearing a size 6 slim pants.
I should add that she can still wear a 3T in the waist, but needs the 6 for length.
Still a little baby supermodel.

Still feisty as ever.
Still keeping us forever on our toes.

My precious preppy pumpkin

Have you seen Modern Family?
I swear Lily is based on Emily.
She even looks like her!!
Check this out:
Lily Cusses
Lily Runs Away
Cussing Again

Speaking of unruly behavior, her inner gangster has recently blossomed.
Driving her to school last week, she was concerned that I was speeding and that the police were going to take me to jail...therefore she would then have to seek utmost vengeance, Ice-T style.
o-O
We had to have a discussion about that.
Don't get me wrong, I'm pleased as punch that shawty got my back, but lets channel that energy into non-violent protests or making sure mommy has a good attorney.

She's also taken to pronouncing "yellow" as "YOLO".
Which is always hilarious.
Driving in the car around Stephenville with my 4 year old, screaming "YOLO!!" like the badasses we are.

She is a total, dramatic mess.

I pray for a cloistered convent, for either herself or me, come the teenage years.
She's had a rough patch at school, lately.
Notes home; getting her card flipped to black!!
"Emily...why can't you listen to your teacher and follow her instructions?"
"Mom...I can't stay on yellow (yolo). It's complicated."

What could possibly be complicated in a 4 year old's life??

Oh, but she's smart.
Being the gold star parents we are, DaddyDaddy and I were trying to fish out which one of us is her favorite. (me, of course)
"Emily, who do you love more? Mommy? (Big Cheshire cat smile from mommy) or Daddy?"
-"I love you both the same."
"But if Mommy and DaddyDaddy lived in two different places, who would you want to live with?"
(I KNOW! We are awful. Don't judge.)
-"I want to live with Amanda in Austin."
(her previous babysitter that she just adored.)
Can you believe?!

Love that little girl. <3 br="br">

Single Parent

That title was a little provocative and perhaps a little bit of hyperbole.
The Daddy has been in "Okamhoma" on business since the 17th.
It's been a long 9 days and we still have 3 more days to go.
Being a parent is hard...being a working parent is really hard.
Being a single, working parent is the hardest thing I've ever done.
AND I work part-time!!
Hats off to all the single parents that have to keep it together at work and then come home and be loving and nurturing to their precious pumpkins.

We miss The Daddy. Lots!

Thankfully, we get to video chat with him every night.
He looks so tired. :-(
Can't wait to have him home Sunday night!!

Weston has been having weekly labs drawn.
His AST and ALT are improving every week. His GGT hasn't really changed much at all.
:-/
But, we are still staying put, so I guess it can't be THAT bad.
AND as long as it's not getting worse, right?

So, this is what I thought nights would be like while Daddy was gone...not so much :-s

We have been trying to keep busy and entertained. Last weekend, I completely went out of my mind thinking that two 4 year olds and a 2 year old would sit still in a movie theater. Not so much...

Exhausted after the movie and ice cream shenanigans.

Bubby refuses to hear that athletic shorts and cowboy boots don't go together.

Check out that bruise.
W rolled out of bed and crashed into nightstand.

Bathtub Rave!!

Pre-bruise cuteness!
Look at my little buns!

You're looking, aren't you?

Good, Not so Good and Concerning

Starting off on a positive note; the GOOD:
♡ Dr. F is our attending. I know I said that yesterday, but I cannot even begin to explain the important role this plays. We know him; we think the world of him; we trust him; he loves Wes; he kniws how I have the tendency to go from zero to apocalypse in 2.3 seconds
♡Bubby is back to "the old Bubby". Super sweet; tons of smiles; cuddles galore; very little tantrum throwing

♡We will probably get to go home tomorrow! Holla!

♡The liver biopsy showed no inflammation and little to no scarring. Any that is present is totally reversible

♡Because the inflammation is gone, the steroids will be weaned off.

♡We should be able to keep our big plans for the weekend: going to Dallas for the State Fair

The Not So Good:
:-\ Bubby had an urgent ultrasound at midnight to check for bleeding. He was pretty uncomfortable and his red blood cells dropped after his biopsy

:-\ As a result of the above, he had to receive a unit of blood.

:-\ Because his liver is not 100%, he is a more inclined to bleed, say when stuck in the liver with s sharp instrument. He was slowly oozing, but seems to be doing better

The Concerning:
Ok...when we left last week, it was agreed that this was a case of rejection/chronic rejecting. Although, not a classic picture of either.
The most recent biopsy still shows little to no bile ducts. Well, it's only been a week or two. It wasnt expected that it would be full of ducts.
The issue is, the inflammation is gone. "Rejection" is not present anymore, but bile ducts are still not there. Why? We don't know. Amoxicillin? Maybe. Strep? Maybe. Some other infection? Maybe. Atypical rejection plus something else? Likely. What that something else is, is the missing puzzle piece.
The plan is to increase the immunosuppressants and allow the liver to hopefully regenerate its ducts. He will have to have another biopsy in a few months. In the interim, he will have labs at least once a week and we will just have to live with the crappy liver enzymes for now.
That's doable. The hard part is waiting. If, in a few months, the bile ducts are still missing...we've got a pretty big problem.

Dr. F told me, "I told you that I'd be honest when it's time to worry.Right now, I'm concerned; but not worried. If we don't see ducts next time, then it's time to worry."
To say I'm on red alert is an understatement. I asked if I had to become obsessed with the color of his poop again, taking pictures and examining it in different light sources...I was told no; but, lets be honest; I probably will. Lol.

Please keep him in your prayers. Along with his recovery, I also am asking for strength and faith in God's plan and understanding that it's according to His time; not mine. Definitely easier said than done!

Leaving on a super cute positive note:

Son of a B*SCREEEEEE!*

If you've watched Rango, you know what I'm talking 'bout.

Five glorious days at home.

Someone crashed out in the middle of the floor

 Emily and I had a date afternoon. She got her first mani/pedi. She picked sparkly purple with flowers. She did such a good job and the ladies were so nice and patient with her.

Bubby is not going to miss an opportunity to slide, no matter if its raining.
Checkout his wee little boots!!
Ostrich boots, courtesy of GD; admired by all.

 Granny and Grandpaw are visiting from Nevada!
Yay!
Talk about some serious baby spoiling.
Sunday, we went over to Billy's step-brother's house for a BBQ to celebrate his recent engagement to sweet Mindy.
We are so excited for you guys!!
Talk about a super cute couple!

My beautiful girl <3 br="br">(She may have received the coveted "Rapunzel dress" and matching accouterments despite technically "earning" it; even though she's been a sweet girl. Mother's guilt may or may not have been part of the decision making.)

Swinging in the rain

I don't even know.
He mad, bro.

 Which brings us to current events.
Monday morning, Bubby had blood drawn at our local hospital lab.
He went to school.
No biggie.
Until around noon.
His labs were significantly elevated and needs to come back to Houston now for another liver biopsy Tuesday morning.
*Insert blog title here*

So, we packed up.
Including our own straws, diapers, diaper trash bags and graham crackers. Oh, and emergency chocolate.
(This old dog learns pretty quickly)

Bubby was all smiles this morning before his biopsy. 

So much so, we are suspicious of the so-called "IV fluid".

Cutie pie is all smiles

 On his way down to International Radiology.

He loves to ride in wheelchairs.

Pre-procedure snuggles

 His biopsy went well and they also placed a PICC.
YES!
No more pokes for the time being.

Recovering
I don't know how he was able to sleep, as there was a screaming contest going on just behind that curtain.
I am so glad I don't work in pediatrics.
o-O

No news until tomorrow late afternoon.
An awesome bonus is that our beloved Dr. F (regular liver doc) is on hospital service this week!!

Thank the Lord!
Not saying anything negative about anyone else, but it is so nice and reassuring to see the familiar face.

He's doing well this evening.
A little crabby, but ok.

Liveration, Part 2

We are home!!

We were discharged from the hospital late Tuesday afternoon and spent the night locally because we had to have labs drawn in the morning. 

My uncle and aunt put us up and fed us REAL food aaaaaaand perhaps the best part, they live maybe 5 minutes from the TCH West Campus, which we were able to go to instead of traveling all the way down to downtown Houston.

I just heard the news.
I'm too cool for this place.

Tuesday, before we left, the wives of the Houston Texans visited and brought some goodies.
They were oohing and awwing over my Bubby, and he let out the biggest burp.

lol

Good. He just loves the Mommy.
And the Cowboys.

On his way out.

Houston traffic has never been so beautiful

I'm free!!

We got home to Stephenville Wednesday evening.
I was so excited to see Emily!!

She was a bit more excited to see Wes, but I'm ok with that.
I was pretty excited to shower in my own bathroom and sleep in my own bed.

Weston was so excited when he realized we were home.

Clapping. Cheering. Big smiles.

My big guy

These are my toys!!
I remember them!!

So, here's the plan:
Labs AGAIN tomorrow and then weekly thereafter.
:-(
We went from just one medication twice a day, to five all through the day.
It is going to take some time for the liver numbers to normalize (they are no where near normal, yet) and they are going to watch him like a hawk (hence the weekly labs).

He should be able to go back to school on Monday, though.
I think it's good for him to get out and get back into a routine.
We've got to go shopping for Bubby. Thanks to the steroids, all the new clothes he had for fall don't fit anymore.

We are all so happy to be back together and start getting back to the new normal.

Thank you again, for all your prayers and support.

:-)