Scarless Ivory Skin

Pictures can be powerful things, they can evoke multiple emotions and perhaps that's why people love them so much, I am frequently moved by images that I see and I think that is why I decided to become a photographer but the other day a picture stopped me in my tracks. It was one of those annoying lets see if this picture can get 1000 likes on Facebook. The picture was of a little baby fresh out of heart surgery with the staples still holding him together. I seriously caught my breath, I had the sudden realization that my child would soon look like that. His ivory soft skin would have cold metal staples embedded in them and the thought made me sad. My goal for years has been to get Maxwell stable enough for surgery and its finally happened but I had never thought about the actual surgery or what would follow after.
I tried to put the thought of my little boy with a giant scar to the back of my mind. On Saturday I had my annual reading with L and while there is still a certain level of healthy skepticism there is also a sense of awareness based on the fact that she has been accurate about many major things over the years. During my reading she said that she didn't see any major surgery, illness or injury, I thought she was off her game because I knew that we were waiting for the phone call about Max's upcoming open heart surgery. Then less then 48 hours later I get the long awaited phone call from cardiology, there is a surgeon at Sick Kids Hospital that is fairly confident that he can repair Maxwell's atrial septal defect via catheter instead of having to open his chest! Holy Cow, a day procedure instead of a week long hospital stay, a small scar in his groin vs a giant scar running down his chest, a band aid instead of staples... this is incredible news.
So now we wait again, the coordinator is going to call with the dates and times for his pre-op tests and then we cross our fingers and hope that the surgeon's confidence proves accurate. 
I guess "L" was right again.

Buckle Up

Today was a big day for my biggest boy, he got his G1 learners permit and can now drive. He has been asking to go write the test for months and I have kept stalling.  The truth is that having him behind the wheel of a car terrifies me. That's a lot of responsibility for someone who only recently learned to do his own laundry and work the Tassimo machine.  I worry about whether I have taught him well enough to make the choices that will not only keep him safe but others as well. Will he wear his seat belt, will he drink and then think he can drive home, will he be distracted and careless or give into the rage that can sometimes occur. These thoughts scare me to death but there is nothing I can do except let him spread his wings and fly a little. He is signed up for a drivers ed class in the spring which will give him 25 hours of in class instruction and 10 hours behind the wheel. As much as this preparation is for him it is also for me to. This is another step on the road to adulthood that I am not fond of my kids traveling down.  I know.... I know.... I have mothering issues.... I'm aware and working on them LOL.

Its Been Months!!!

Hi everyone! Its been brought to my attention that I havent blogged in months so I figured I should make more of an effort since clearly people wonder about us.
Over the last few months life has been busy, our renovations have been completed and I love the end result, now is the fun stuff, the customizing and creating the feel that I want our home to have. Dom returned to work after a four month hiatus to manage his newly discovered diabetes and anxiety disorder and the kids all returned to school... ALL of them. I am now the parent of school age children!
I debated about what to do with myself as this is new territory for me, I even handed out some resumes and toyed with the notion of going back to work but given the amount of appointments and days where Max feels under the weather I would be away from my job more then I was there. Clearly its just not the time to return to the working world yet. Instead I spend my days being a domestic goddess (*giggle*) and focusing on my health. I have lost a bit of weight and improving my health is a focus so that Dom and I can move forward with using those seven little ice baby's that we have stored safely at the lab. Last month I participated in a Color Me Rad run and while I don't feel the need to do it again it was a fun life experience and something that I wanted to cross off my bucket list.
We recently had an appointment with cardiology and Maxwell now is considered medically stable enough to have his open heart surgery. We are currently waiting to hear from the hospital regarding the next steps but from what we were told it will likely be in the early months of 2014.
Stay tuned for more blog updates from this newly appointed Domestic Goddess...