AHCB 5 months

We are over the top and head over heels in love with this kid.

Solids

I took the advice not to introduce solids before the operation so as not to interfer with his digestive system. Today was the day and the term 'duck to water' was an understatement.

Back Again

All went really well. He has charmed every doctor and nurse in Subiaco with his giggling and long eyelashes.

Seeing MB and AB dressed up in hospital gowns was a sight worth a photo - but couldn't - as he was whisked away to theatre. It was a blessing that the little man was asleep on MB's shoulder once they got to the operating table. MB just laid him down, they put a mask on him, and after a small cry he was gone. They gave him an epidural (to dull his lower half) and then a low dose of the good stuff to keep him asleep.

The next hour was full of emotion for me...I didn't feel nervous or worried, just teary! I guess that's motherhood.

Once he was ready in Recovery I went down to see him. I could tell which bed was his because there were the characteristic arms and legs waving everywhere. He was groggy but I got into bed with him for a feed. They wheeled us back to the room and we shared the bed for the next few hours.

It was obvious the Anaesthetist had trouble finding a vein with 5 puncture wounds over his body before they got lucky on the ankle.

He also had a line of anaesthetic going in directly to the wound for 24 hours, a catheter and a blood/heart monitor. Four tubes stuck in him for the night.

So, we are home 32 hours later with the big fella showing no signs of the event except a 1.5cm scar on his side.

The operation was a success with Dr Andrew cutting out a kink in the ureter and partially removing a portion of the kidney. So now it’s all patched up and apparently working good as gold.

We are grateful for everything and everyone that helped our little one have the best chance of health and happiness.

The Day Before

We had a great day today with the Sydney grandparents. Angus loved his first swimming lesson at a local hydrotherapy pool. Mother and son both love the water warm and neither was disappointed. A bit of water hokey pokey and floating plastic toys and the session was a hit. After he had a little nap we went to the beach for lunch. If you were in Perth today you'll know what I mean when I say the weather was glorious. The afternoon was choc-a-bloc with some grandchild worshipping and a walk into the city. Dinner was a warm seafood salad.

So now the fun stuff is over it's time to pack a hospital bag for him and me. He'll be admitted at 7am (after 'fasting' from 5am) and in theatre at 7.30am. Apparently it only takes an hour and should be routine. MB will stay with him until he's out cold and I'll welcome him back into the world in Recovery. Funnily enough he'll be having an epidural - this means they can block the pain in the area of the kidney and give him a light amount of anaesthetic to keep him asleep. Should be home in about 24 hours they say.

See you on the other side.

Project Central

I've had a good week of productivity that makes me feel like I'm more than just Mrs Milk Barr. As our friend Bruce says "Everyone needs a project" and he is right. I have a perpetual list in my diary of things I want to do. The minute AB is asleep I continue with one of my projects. The fact that he slept for a TOTAL of 1 hour during the day today cramped my style a little! Thanks to dad (the handyman), mum (the 24/7 babysitter) and MB (the long-suffering hubby and doting daddy) I got my creative fix with ticks in the 'finished' box for a bunch of stuff.














As first seen on barrandgirl in August 2005, this classic piece of furniture (above) was captured by me in a garage sale. The old store display was not for sale but he offered it to me for $50 and I said $40 and it was mine. It sat (halfway restored) on our verandah in Sydney until we moved to Perth. Thanks to the aforementioned Dad it is now finished and in our living room. Each display window is under construction. I'm choosing a different theme for each and it's going to be fab! There's a panel an in or so behind the glass so you can't see the mess in the drawer....perfect.

MB gave me some old Sunday School trestles one year for Christmas and we use them for our everyday dining table. They were a bit rough so Dad sanded them back and gave them a lick of varnish. Voila. Tonight I resurrected a great pair of shoes (see below) that weren't EXACTLY the right shade of pink so I've tarted them up with a shade I invented with a mixture of colour. I'll be wearing them very soon.






















Then there was a quilt I have been making for Carmel for years. I collected vintage and expensive fabrics from op shops for a long time and, well, here is the finished product. It's reversible with a winter side and a summer side. It was going to be for a wedding present, then it became her 30th birthday gift and I gave it to her last week - her first child present!

And then there is this beautiful little boy who needs to sit up at the table with the big people. NOT my idea but easy enough to rip off - so I did! A great travel chair that you can take to cafe or friends' place.






















And that's the end of my story for this week. I'd like to thank Dad, Mum and my boys for all their support.

Grace

I haven’t blogged recently but in short CAM’S CANCER HAS NOT RETURNED TO HIS STERNUM – IT WAS A BLOOD CLOT! So, let the remission continue.

The word ‘journey’ has enjoyed extreme popularity over the last couple of years as a way of describing our physical and emotional well-being. It doesn’t seem fitting to use this word as a descriptor of Cam’s cancer diagnosis and treatment…in fact ANY cancer diagnosis and treatment. It has been an emotional trek where at some points you heave your guts out in despair and other points you just sit and enjoy the view, forgetting the weight of the rucksack. The word ‘journey’ seems too bourgeois to describe the experience – much like talking about labour and childbirth as a “journey”.

Within our family exists a live-and-kicking faith which has a diversity of perspectives and expressions. We are believers who know there is more to process than SKG results and some notion of fate. At times we have received good medical results and have been so grateful that the trek wasn’t going up a cliff-face again. I’ve found myself explaining to others that “the stem cell infusion seems to have been effective” or “the cancerous mass is just a blood clot”.

I was reading some words in Galatians recently and one phrase has been bouncing around in my head ever since. It says “I do not set aside the grace of God…” I wondered whether I had ‘set aside’ the grace of God in favour of a medical explanation for some of Cam’s good news. At times I have forgotten the wonder it is to receive unmerited divine assistance and been satisfied with favourable results printed on the SKG report. I have ‘set aside’ the grace. So I say GOD HAS BEEN GRACIOUS AND THE TUMOUR IS A BLOOD CLOT.