back in the hospital

So plenty of time to blog as we are sitting in All Children's for the 3rd time in 2 weeks.

Nico throws up a lot on a good day and it had gotten to the point that he was not gaining weight anymore and an endoscopy showed signs of a chronic inflammation of the esophagus, various ulcers throughout the stomach....................not good.

Decision was made to replace his G tube with a GJ tube, same stoma just a different button that on the inside of his stomach would have a tube going through his stomach into his jejuneum/intestine.

The new GJ tube was placed on 12/14/10 and he was discharged that same afternoon. He did fantastic for 3 weeks, no vomiting at all ! he got used to wearing a small backpack all day, he was on a continuous feed for 23 hrs a day.

Oops, someone wants to be held. It's amazing how fast kids turn in to little dictators when in the hospital !! LOL

missing one

Oscar will be 18 in a couple of months, a senior in high school..............doing awesome, already has his letter of acceptance from the university he really wants to attend, really can a parent wish for anything else............!

So he left on Friday to go spend the weekend with girlfriend and friends at UCF in Orlando, he will be home tonight, thank God.................I am so not ready for him to move out....................... :(

a much needed haircut

The before and after, so stinking cute !

Max turning 7

I can not even believe he is 7 ! Last week was his birthday, and in true Collado crew fashion, his B-day was celebrated over the whole weekend, the 3 day weekend ! Teachers had an in service day, don't know exactly what that means, but it sounds like mom's need those too !

So......what to buy for a child that does not play with anything, loves speed, his motor cycle...............I went to the motor cycle store, thinking I would get him gloves and maybe pants, or a jersey, but walked out with the whole enchilada of what he should wear..................awesome boots, pants, chest protector, jersey, gloves.

What can I say..........they gave me a good deal.............LOL

Papa knocked it out of the park, he set up a go-kart driving lesson ! The morning of his special day, they went together and got him a cool new helmet and goggles. Late afternoon we took him to his go-kart class, which he loved........!

Saturday, the boys ( Max and papa)went wake boarding, first time for Max, and seriously, does it surprise anyone that he got up on the 4th try..........
I can not wait to see him and take some pics !

Sunday was the first time for him to ride his motor on a real track, with little humps and bumps. he was a little discouraged at first, but kept at it ! Now he wants a bigger bike, with gears ( the one he has now is a beginners bike, no gears)

at ACH

Little one had to come for a 48 hour EEG, so he was admitted yesterday. All Children's moved into their brand new building months ago, this was our first time in patient in the new building.

It is beautiful, all private rooms, with bathroom, spacious, huge flat screen for the child and a smaller one for the parent, with internet access. The couch pulls out to a bed, no more c(r)amping on a recliner......................

He has been doing pretty good, little cabin/crib fever from time to time, but doing much better than I expected ! So far no seizures noted, good news !

We also saw GI yesterday and the gastric emptying scan showed definite delayed emptying, so dr upped the dose of erythromycin, hopefully that will do the trick !

Papa is holding down the fort at home, with some help of babysitters this afternoon and tomorrow morning we will be done here !

funny

All the kids wake up pretty good in the morning. Sofia likes to step straight in the shower, Liliana gets dressed quick, and gets her own breakfast. Sebastian wakes up every single day with a smile, telling you all about his dreams, etc.

And then there's max.............Max likes to be woken up gently........I usually wake him up first, give his meds with his Pediasure, after chugging that, he rolls over and goes right back to sleep.

He needs a LOT of encouragement, loving, hugs and if all else fails.......threats LOL

This morning he was happy, laughing, getting dressed ( I still help him all the way, it's just faster) and he asks me; "mom, can I wear my Starbucks shoes today...."

Starbucks shoes...........gotta love it ! He meant his All stars, close enough right ?

of course I knew exactly what he meant........we had a good laugh though !

Growth.......

Last year we frequently had a teenager moping around the house........grumpy, borderline depressed, not knowing what to do with college getting closer.

Over the past month ( after a summer of hanging with friends and having fun) he has seen the light.......hallelujah ! first he came home and announced he wanted a haircut ! Holy mother of God, I could have kissed his feet ! His new "do" looks great, we can all see his face again ! so, so handsome ! He has also decided to go straight to university, much better than the old plan of doing the local college for a while and seeing if they could make enough touring with the band, to sustain themselves.......

yes, can you imagine.......touring with his band..............uhm, don't think so honey. This is where mom laid down the law and told him he would at the very least get a master's......................seriously, college is paid for, he has a 4. some GPA

You are going and that's it ! Well now he has decided and is all enthusiastic, happy.
Still between 2 different universities..........but he will major in music.

He has also joined the local youth opera..........very excited about that. soon the auditions will start for all state.............

AND he has a job, wahooooooooooooo

Very proud of him and tickled pink to see him so gung ho about all the happenings !