Shriners Day One

We got up around 4:45 am to drive to Cincinnati by 6:30. The staff quickly came and got her and prepped her for her surgery around 7:30. Around 10:30 they brought her to her room in ICU groggy, bloody but okay. The staff was aware of her past reactions to anesthesia and prepared accordingly. Still, she began to vomit blood...1,...2,...3,...4,....5,...6, and just this morning 7 times. Poor little girl.

She has been so strong. Not crying much, just asking to go home.

Since a possible risk of the operation is breathing difficulties, someone had to watch her at all times. So that meant while I slept and she slept, a nurse had to be in our doorway watching us sleep! I did prepare them in advance that I have been known to be a loud snorer!

Still the bed they provided was actually quite comfortable and I was very tired and slept off/on for about eight hours.

This morning she is awake, but unfortunately was unable to keep anything down. So, we wait...until her body is ready.

One amazing thing about Shriner's is the awesome staff, and the amazing patients here from all over the world. They had a trick or treat for the children and to see what some of these babies have to overcome humbles one immediately! The little girl from south america, in the room next to us, has been in the hospital for a year and half. She is four years old and burned over her entire body and face. Yet, she is alive and was taking small steps out of her door.
Everyone clapped and danced for her in celebration of her newest comeback feat!
Although she can no longer smile, you could see the joy shining in her brown eyes.

A Brave Little Girl

Oksana is such a brave little girl. She has endured so many surgeries already in her four young years. I can't even imagine what her surgery in Ukraine must have been like! They never even supplied pain medication twenty-four hours after the surgery for her cleft lip was finished!

She has been in the hospital for cleft palate repair, ear tubes, MRI, tooth extractions and tomorrow she will go to Shriner's for her pharyngeal flap surgery. It is such a scary sounding surgery and will be very painful. I have talked to her about having an ouchie for a while and that she will be in the hospital for a few days, but she will get a big "surprise" when she is all done!

She will also miss trick or treat.

She has been asked by others"what are you going to be for Halloween."
And she in a very mature manner past her age has answered, "I will not be doing trick or treat, I will be at the hospital."

What a brave little girl!

eyebrows

As we were driving home Oksana asked me this:

Mommy what are these? (pointing to her eyebrows).

I said they are your eyebrows.

Why?

hard ..thought...why is a good question..(so I debated)

So, I said " eyebrows are to make your eyes happy!"

Then she said:

"Oh, they are eye warmers!"

A lesson learned from a four year old!!!

pests

As innocent as she looks:

and this one too:

They are not...
They have invited an unwelcome guest into our home
which is this:



((Makes me shudder just to look at it!))
All because I didn't spend $200.00 to buy two different doses of this from my vet:

* big SIGH*

So now I have spent $100.00 for flea baths here (not this exact company but you get the idea):

And will be spending money on this:

and other assorted pest remedies.

Lesson learned!

Sauerkraut Festival

Saturday morning, I decided to take Oksana to a local arts and crafts festival based around the theme of sauerkraut! So we got up early to beat the crowd (that didnt happen of course) and headed out. Since the festival involved:

a. arts and crafts

b. sauerkraut

c. huge crowds

I knew the boys would not be interested. Here is Oksana enjoying a hot dog.

Braving the crowds

And people watching (it is quite entertaining to see people eating sauerkraut dishes at 9:00 in the morning!)

We had so much fun shopping and the weather was beautiful! A perfect autumn day to spend together.

Extraction

Well I have decided I have found something to add to my list of least favorite experiences which have included:

Seeing a big spider on the couch
Losing a nail
Getting jalapeno juice in my eye
Major turbulence on a plane
“Picking up” after the dogs
Riding anything that spins around

And the list goes on…

Today, I am adding tooth extraction!

Nothing as fun and exciting as having a Dentist tugging, and pulling on your front tooth, while you lay there looking at the bright light and thinking…please just don’t let me hear it crack…please just don’t let me hear the tearing!!

Fun to be had by all!!!

It all began after my front tooth was chipped at the age of nine while:

Falling down while roller skating

Then around ten:

Being hit in the mouth by a bad kid throwing rocks at school,

Then around the age of twelve:

Hitting my same tooth at the bottom of a swimming pool,

Then capped for the next thirty years…

And now, I have a permanent shiny white new tooth (bridge) at the age of 41!

Summers End

As summer came to a close, Vitaly was granted the little boy rite of passage known as Mowing the Lawn!

He was allowed to mow with a push mower!!! How excited was V? Well, he talked about it for days!

While V was busy beautifying the yard, the virtual wonder twins were up to their silly antics! Who knows what promise they made but I guarantee it is probably being up to NO good and involves a prank!

(disclaimer (in case anyone wonders) this is not a "real" kiss they were just teasing each other.)

Drumroll...

And now for mommy's summer pride! I had purchased a four pack of sad looking pepper plants for a quarter from a church yard sale. I planted them in a cute mexican style pot, and put them on my front porch ...

I have a beautiful large pepper! My plant now has three more peppers coming, but I feel bad to pick them!

I guess I will make some stuffed peppers, store some of the seeds and replant them next year!