Uncle Sal visits

Uncle Sal had business in L.A. this week so he made a side trip to visit us.  He arrived in the late afternoon and we headed out to have dinner.  

 The kids got to build their own sundaes for dessert.  The bowls of ice cream were definitely not kid sized, but we helped them on.

 Sal is an amateur pilot so a natural destination for today was the Hiller Aviation Museum.  Here they are checking out the cockpit of a real 747.

 Cool little planes on display.

 There were a lot of hands-on exhibits inside the museum.  The kids got to sit in the cockpit of a Blue Angel jet.  That's all that was on display, the cockpit.  It was a bit weird to look at but the kids thought it was cool to sit in it.

 They also got a chance to try out the helicopter simulator inside a helicopter.

They also got to try a flight simulator and land at San Francisco airport. 

 They had a couple of backseat pilots "helping" them out.

Sal originally planned to fly out early tomorrow morning, but the snowstorm on the East Coast has canceled his flight.  He'll get to enjoy a relaxing Sunday watching football with Tom.  

Completely unrelated...check out my dining room chandelier.  I'm in love with this sputnik light.  Tom is accepting of it, but has to admit it looks great in our house.  

Serafina's Post-op appointment

Serafina saw the ENT yesterday for her post-op appointment.  The doctor said everything looks great with just a little bit of swelling left.  She told Serafina she could eat anything she wants and resume all her activities.  

 The doctor said we won't have to see her again.  We've been seeing her since Serafina was pretty little and I'm so very impressed with her.  She's always been direct but kind with me about everything going on with Serafina.  When Serafina wasn't eating after surgery and I was worried out of my head, the doctor called to check on us after hours from her personal cell phone.

 Completely unrelated...I got a cool new turquoise toaster for my new kitchen.

Kicking off ski season

This past weekend kicked off our fifth (FIFTH!) season going to Tahoe.  Tom and I didn't prepare as well as we should have and were rushing around Friday night trying to get everything organized and loaded into the car.  

The kids were excited and the car was loaded up with stuff.  Apparently, not all the stuff though since the duffle bag with all the kids regular clothes (pants, shirts, socks, undies) and most of their ski stuff was left behind.  

 When I realized our error on Saturday morning, I was physically ill.  How could we manage three days without that bag?  There is no Target or Walmart or even a mall in the small mountain town where we stay.  After I calmed down, I took inventory of what I had and what I needed.  Fortunately, one of our ski house sharing families was staying at the house with us and have similar-sized kids.  My friend Aida was in town with her family just for the day and loaned us some clothes too.  We also have a washer and dryer in ski house, so I was able to clean their clothes every night.

On Saturday we went to Squaw Valley ski resort and Tom bee-lined us to the Funitel.  I assumed this was a small gondola ride that would take us to a mid-mountain lodge.  Well, it wasn't small and mid-mountain was a long ride that gained an alarming amount of elevation.  I was a little anxious about the experience, but I breathed through it.  My kids didn't mind the ride.

 At least the Funitel was warm and protected.  Once the kids were outside to ski, they were pelted with sleet.

 They weren't exactly excited about the weather, but they were good sports and headed out with dad anyway.

 Serafina and her buddy Nico (who loaned her the pants she's wearing) were done earlier than the big kids, so we took them back down to the base of the mountain in the Funitel.  It was easier to handle riding it without a crowd.

 Serafina was tired after a late night and some hard skiing.

 She was happy to spend some time with her friend Ana, who generously loaned Serafina some clothes and made the drive home in her pajamas.

 The next day we headed to Alpine.  Leo had some crazy hair.

 Serafina bundled up to face some nasty weather.

 The skiing Mirriones.

 The conditions were bad and several lifts were closed.  Oh and it was wet out.  Very wet.  

 Leo was still smiling.

 I tamed his mane after a shower.

Monday was beautiful weather and the kids had fun skiing.  The traffic on the way home was pretty miserable, but we made it.

Serafina back to school

Serafina is doing better.  She still is uncomfortable at times, but she's backed off how much medication she needs and we aren't using the prescription medication any more.  Unfortunately, she's still not sleeping through the night.  She went to school this week.  It's been tiring for her but she makes it through the whole day.  Each day I've come to school to give her a little medication to get her through the second half of the day.  

On Monday, she needed to rest after school.  

 On Tuesday, she was extra cranky when she got home.  I had her lay down in her room and sure enough, she fell asleep.  After her nap, she had enough energy to go to dance class.  She made the decision to go a bit late, so she missed the first 15 minutes.  I guess that wore her out though because she fell asleep on the way home.

 Today she was grumpy before school and didn't want to have any breakfast.  I finally got her up and out the door.  She had a cereal bar on the way.

We are headed to the mountains this weekend for our first trip of the season.  I have no idea if she'll feel up for skiing, but hopefully she has fun either way.

Healing cupcakes

It's been a tough week for Serafina.  On Wednesday, she still wasn't eating or drinking, so the doctor called in some prescription pain medication and made it very clear that if things didn't change immediately, she would be in the urgent care with an IV in the morning. Between the pain medicine and the threat, she decided to eat.  She hasn't been eating a lot, but it's enough and thankfully she's been staying hydrated.  

At 2am, she woke up in pain.  Screaming pain.  I got some medicine in her and settled her into my bed.  Today she mostly took it easy, but mustered enough energy to make some cupcakes.  Both Serafina and Leo like to watch cooking and baking shows with their Nana so she's been asking to do some baking at home.  I found a recipe that makes just six cupcakes.  

She enjoyed making them and was able to eat a little of one, but then she went back to bed.  It's hard to imagine her putting in a full day at school on Monday, but hopefully we can do some small outing over the weekend that will build up her stamina.

Recovering

Recovery has been a little bit of a rough road today.  Last night Serafina was up at midnight and again at six am.  She was very willing to take medicine both times because she was in a lot of pain.  After her six am wake up she got in my bed and I got up to get Leo ready for school.  Once he was off, I got into bed with her and marveled at how quiet and still she was while she slept.  There is a difference already. 

She wasn't interested in eating or drinking or taking medicine most of the day.  She gave in to some ibuprofen around noon and I hoped that would give her enough relief to eat something, but it didn't.  I was starting to worry and didn't want her to get dehydrated.  I spoke to the doctor in the late afternoon and she said she needed to eat at least a yogurt this evening or she would have to go to urgent care tomorrow and have an IV.  The doctor said that most kids are motivated by this threat and sure enough, she ate the yogurt.  

When Leo was dropped home after school today by my friend Kristi, she had a big bag with her and our friend Aida on FaceTime on her phone.  Apparently, Aida and Kristi decided Serafina needed her first American Girl Doll as a reward for being brave during her surgery.  Aida and her daughter Ana had a lot of fun picking it out and the resemblance to Serafina is a bit uncanny.  

Needless to say, Serafina was thrilled.  

 And of course, here's this goof ball.

Goodbye Tonsil and Adenoids

Serafina did great today and it wasn't an easy day.  She didn't complain of hunger in the morning which was surprising, but I think she was preoccupied by her nerves.  

Despite being very nervous, she gave me a smile while we cuddled in the waiting room.  

 We were taken back to the same room Leo was in when he was prepped for surgery almost seven years ago.

 Being reassured by dad.

 The anesthesiologist came in to explain to Serafina that he would put a mask on her and she'd breath some funny smelling air and go to sleep.  She told him she was nervous and he said he could give her some liquid medicine to relax her but that it tastes bad.  That turned her off and she said she'd wait for the mask.  After the procedure, the anesthesiologist said she didn't like the mask and it was a little bit of an issue.  I wanted to say, "well if you had skipped the line about the bad taste, she would have had the liquid sedation before hand and it would have been easier."  I didn't say that though.

Still smiling in her funny hat.

 Starting to feel the nerves more but still hanging in there.

 Time to go back.

 The procedure didn't take long and the doctor came out to tell us she did great.  She said her tonsil and adenoids were big but they are gone now so it's not an issue.  Good riddance tonsils and adenoids!

It seemed like a long time before we could go back to see her.  When we did get into the recover room, she was crying and in a lot of pain.  They gave her a popsicle which helped, but I requested some pain meds.  I know how much it sucks to have surgery and be hurting.  I didn't want that for her.

 As the pain meds kicked in she got to watch some videos on Tom's phone.  They wanted her to be in recovery for a full two hours before being discharged.

 Since we still had a while to wait, Tom went out to get some lunch.  Just a few minutes after he left, she said she felt like she wanted to throw up.  I couldn't find the call button for the nurse, so I grabbed the trash can and she started dry heaving.  Then she started screaming.  Blood curling screams.  That got the nurses' attention.  One got her a proper barf bag, another one got her cool cloths, and most importantly, they got her some anti-nausia medication.  We had lots of nurses rushing around as she screamed and wretched and it was terrible.  Thankfully, she calmed down and the medication kicked in.  It caused her to zone out quite a bit, which we both needed after all that drama.

 I was worried the episode would delay our release, but she was still able to go home after the two hours.

 I set her up with a little nest in my bed.  She ate a little jello and relaxed.

Nana came over to bring Leo home and visit the patient.  Serafina was happy to see her and definitely perked up for her.  Some friends came over with get well goodie bags and she was up for them too.  But she wasn't talking.  It hurts too much right now.  She also isn't doing that great with eating, drinking or even taking Tylenol.  I'm not sure how the night will go but I'll be prepared for anything.  I'm also hopefully she'll do more eating and drinking tomorrow.  The nurses warned me that the pain will be worst on day three and four.  She's been very brave and I'm so impressed with her resilience.