Friday, November 30, 2012

Doing Things a Little Different


        Henry is HOME. After over 4 months of Henry being in the hospital we finally got to bring him home the day before Thanksgiving. We were so excited we could hardly stand it. We had been working hard to get things ready for him here at home.





        We spent the day saying goodbye to some very special friends.
 Have I mentioned how much we grew to love the Drs and nurses who cared for Henry??
 They will always hold a place in our hearts.
Then we packed up and brought our little boy home!! It didn't take long for the excitement to fade and for reality to set in. Of course we were so happy to have Henry home but our life was going to be forever different. I spent Thanksgiving at home with Henry while Art took the kids to eat with his family. Because of Henry's respiratory issues it is important for us to keep him away from large crowds and germs...Yes...life is going to be different. 
         Our little (or not so little anymore) family has had the tradition of going to cut down a Christmas tree on Thanksgiving weekend. We have tried different places over the years but we loved where we went last year and the kids were already asking to return to that farm.  Determined to get a tree and keep some normalcy for our other kids, we made a plan to get a tree on Saturday.  Art agreed to stay with Henry and I loaded up the children. We bundled up for our tree "cutting" adventure.
We left the house and the kids were surprised when we arrived here:


     Yep, that's right, we are at Target. Because of Henry's breathing issues I didn't want to put him at risk by bringing new possible allergens in the home. We ALWAYS opt for a real tree. So much so that we didn't even have an artificial tree. So we went to "cut" one down together. 
It didn't take us long to find one that we loved.
On the way home we couldn't help but stop for donuts because we knew dad would be doing this:





Donuts and Hot Chocolate..what could be better?
Then we proceeded to decorate that new tree right up!! There was much glee as ornaments from years passed were unwrapped and memories flooded the air.

Dad and Henry decided to do this:
I started the day mourning the fact that our tree cutting experience would not look like it did in years past


And at the end of the day I realized that traditions are far less about what you do, and more about who you do them with.
I sure love this family of mine! They are crazy to the core, but they are mine! 



Monday, November 5, 2012

Gratitude


         Lately my heart has been so full of gratitude, that I fear it may explode. I feel very thankful that Heavenly Father trusts me to be Henry's mother. 
         Sure there are those days where I am overwhelmed with this great responsibility. I cry and wonder how I will ever be able to be enough for Henry and for my other children. But then I look at this sweet face and instantly my heart swells with gratitude all over again.                                                                 
Henry has these eyes. They seem to look straight into my soul with so much trust and adoration. Reminding me how blessed I am.
       I also have so much gratitude for so many friends and family who have served our family since Henry's
birth. My dear sweet friends saw to it that I had babysitting set up for my other children everyday that I needed it. I never had to request or ask. They just did it. And not for just a week or two. They have continued day after day, week after week for the last almost four months. Never tiring or allowing me to feel as though I am a burden. They cleverly have promised that taking my children was more of a help to them then a burden.
     Family has stepped in as well cleaning and babysitting and ensuring that not one need has gone unmet. 
I can't write a post about gratitude without putting in a word for the angels at Children's Hospital. Henry has been blessed to have been cared for by some of the most amazing people I have ever met. I am in awe as I have watched those dear nurses tend lovingly to my son and so many of the tiniest and most precious little babies. The Doctors, the therapists, the surgeons, even the sweet ladies that run the family center. Our family has been touched by so many wonderful and caring people it would be impossible to express the amount of gratitude I feel. 
    As we prepare to bring Henry home next week, it would be impossible for me to recount the experiences we have had up to this point. But it would be suffice to say it has been nothing but a roller coaster ride, with many difficult moments, and also some of the sweetest moments we have ever had. I haven't written on this family blog for some time now, but I hope that it can become a place for those wanting to keep tabs on updates about Henry's health and also on the rest of our family. Henry has been through a lot these last few months and he is a strong little boy. Most recently he had to have a trach placed to assist him in the difficulties he was having with his breathing. He also recently had casts placed on both of his legs to correct his club feet. We are busy learning all of his care in hopes to get him home next week. He will have a home care nurse that will come at night to watch over him during the duration of the time that he has his trach.  We could not be more excited to get him home.