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Once Christmas was over, we focused on the rest of the Winter Vacation. We only had 6 more days left for this 2014, which can’t be remembered as a banner year for sure. We were more than happy to see it go, but we still tried to make the most of the last few days.

Keegan went to the zoo for the last day of camp on December 26, and I tried to take care of some of the errands I left unfinished. Matt and I took a nice walk around the neighborhood and I cleaned the house a bit.By dinner time, my sister arrived from Italy. It was so nice to have her here, and a big relief, since I was now the main health provider for Matt. Yes, we had a nurse that came every few days, but still… Even though Cinzia is a child psychiatrists, she was trained as a doctor, so she could help in a medical emergency. It was also nice to have someone else to share these transitional days with, and, if I have to be a little selfish, someone who could take care of me a bit. Furthermore, Keegan was home till January 5th, so I would have needed help in that area as well. And I am sure wouldn’t hurt to have her professional assessment and advice.

We spent a wonderful vacation together. She was great, and not only played with Keegan and entertained him non-stop, but she also cooked and cleaned, and we had plenty of chances to talk and catch up, like we have not had in a long time. I felt like I was really on vacation…or almost!

We went to the bay for a beautiful walk in the sun, and then to Pacific Beach. Matt enjoyed these brief outings, and so did I. I have not walked this much in years. (-:

 goofy picture for Keegan and mom…but not Matt

 

Someone built some Minions out of sand. How cool is that?

We also did lots and lots of playing with Keegan’s new stuff, mainly Lego. Keegan and I built two full models together and Keegan did a lot this time. We decided to take pictures of them, since they usually do not last past 1 day.

The picture also shows that Keegan finally lost his top tooth, on December 30th. It has been very wiggly forever, but this time, Keegan did not seem to be in big rush. Maybe because it was hurting and bleeding a little, or maybe just because the dentist told him to take it off, as the permanent teeth were more than ready. In fact, as soon as it fell off, the permanent was already poking out. Now, we only have to get rid of the other wiggly tooth…

Matt was doing a little better, even if his mood, obviously, was not at an all time high. We all know we are in for the long haul. It is a very slow healing disease, but we are grateful for any improvement. On December 31, I took Matt back to the hospital for a tube check. We stopped by his floor, Tower 6 West, to bring some flowers and chocolate and a thank you card to all his nurses and staff. Melanie and Rennell, two of our favorite nurses, were there, and it was so great to see them and showed them how much better he was doing…and how he looked like in real clothes and not a flimsy hospital gown. They were very warm and friendly, and once again they helped us get some orders sorted out.

The tube check went well, and they removed it. Yeah! One more to go. I loved the decor in the waiting area, with large canvases wrapped as gifts.

It was finally time to say Goodbye and Good Riddance to 2014. It has not been the best year for Cinzia as well, so we were both in the same mood. I decorated the house for the new year, and got ready.

Cinzia took Keegan to the movie theater that afternoon. He asked to watch Annie, which really surprised me. A musical, about a little orphan adopted by a millionaire? It does not sound like Keegan, but he asked, and he seems that he really enjoyed it. Maybe it is not too late for him after all.

After dinner, Matt and I got a turn to go to the movies, a mini-date! We watched, Big Eyes, the latest Tim Burton’s movie. ” The film focuses on American artist Margaret Keane, whose work was fraudulently claimed in the 1950s and 1960s by her then-husband, Walter Keane “(wikipedia). I remember a similar painting when I was growing up, so I was intrigued. It was not a masterpiece, but it was nice to get out.

We got home around 10pm, just in time to watch Marrakesh Express with my sister. I have not seen it in a long time, but it is still fun. As the movie was over, we tuned in to check the time…almost there.

37 seconds to go

We got our glasses ready: a champagne glass for Cinzia and I, and a mug filled with ice for Matt.

5…4…3…2…1…Happy New Year!!!!!

For added good luck, Matt and I cheered from identical, “positive thinking mugs”. My mom would be proud.

We were all so happy to welcome a brand new year that we must have been a little loud. Keegan woke up, not too happy, but at least we got the chance to celebrate with him too. We all went to bed right after, but we made it to 12.30am!

Happy New Year everyone!

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Christmas Day was really special this year. Throughout the season we truly experienced the real meaning of Christmas, spending time with family and friends and helping others in need thanks to the loving help from our families. In fact, if I have to find a silver lining on this bad situation, that was being able to spend so much time with Matt’s brothers and sister. It made us realize that we should really make an effort to see each other more.

Christmas Day, however, was just us. For as much as we have enjoyed and appreciated all the visitors, it was nice to have one day for ourselves, in our own home. We relished it even more, because it was the first full day Matt was home.

Keegan of course, woke up bright and early, ready to get to his presents. Even though he said he was somewhat disappointed we did not have to bring the presents to Matt in the hospital, he was happy we were all at home. I know I was. A bright red ribbon decorated Matt’s pole, so we were all decked out and ready.

Keegan loved to see all the presents under the tree, and since he now knows that the Elf on the Shelf it is just a toy and there is really no Santa, Fifi was sitting on top of our tree, watching the proceeding. With Christmas music playing in the background, Keegan did not waste any time.

Star Wars dominated, but other presents were a big hit, such as Electronic Battleship, a present from Matt. I guess, on this Christmas, Matt got to relive his childhood and buy the toys he could not get when he was a child.

Matt got his own gifts too. My favorite was the Tetris Lamp, a movable lamp, that can be rearranged in many ways.

Matt also asked for a scientific calculator…I could not resist getting him an Instant Nerd Kit to go with it.

I am getting my gift too…oh and presents as well

After opening the presents, I went back to sleep for a early morning nap, and Keegan got to watch some TV. He wore his Santa hat, to get into the spirit.

The day continued quietly. We called family and friends to wish them Merry Christmas, and also to share the good news of Matt’s release from the hospital, and took a short walk: doctor’s order. Dragging Keegan out was not an easy task, but we managed to get our 30 minutes in. It was peaceful and bright, if a little chilly. Overall, we had a very mellow day but we could not ask for anything more after the crazy weeks we have just finished.

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We did not have any time to rest after the marathon birthday celebration: Christmas time was upon us. In fact, the season had started even before the big party, with Keegan’s school Winter Wonderland on December 5th. This annual event includes vendors, food trucks and, most of all, snow! A small slide is set up for inner tube fun, and a minuscule area is covered with snow for snowball fights and sloshing around. Keegan could hardly wait till I picked him up, and we raced toward the snow slide…despite that, the wait was pretty long. Fortunately his friend Aiden (yes, the same kid he is constantly fighting with) was waiting as well, so the time passed by much more quickly.

The day after his party, we got 0ur Christmas tree and we decorated the house. Online shopping was also well under way. It starts to look a lot like Christmas…

I was settling in my usual holiday stress (I do not like the holiday period, AT ALL) and getting ready for two more weeks of running around, and crazy holiday stuff. This year, however, the “happiest time of the year” turned out to be everything but.

On Tuesday night, December 9th, Matt, suddenly started feeling a really strong pain on his shoulder and back, aggravated by the fact he was having trouble breathing. We waited out a bit, but when it did not got any better, I decided to take him to the ER. It took some convincing (typical guy), but we finally got Keegan up, and made it to Sharp ER by midnight. We were really impressed by the efficiency: by the time I parked after dropping him off, he was already on a bed, blood test and EKG done. No bloody people waiting in an overcrowded waiting room, no long form to fill out. it was all very clean and efficient. The ER doctor suspected pulmonary embolism (blood clots in his lungs), and after various tests, CT scan, x-ray, ultrasound, blood tests, the hunch turned out to be true.

It was a long, scary 4 hours, and amazingly, Keegan was pretty good for most of the time, despite being woken up in the middle of the night. By 4am Matt has been admitted to Sharp Memorial Hospital. This hospital has been recently renovated, and I remember reading about the project, and how they used the latest techniques in patient care, including lots of natural light, feng shuei, etc. I even thought, then, that I would have liked to be in that hospital, if need be. I guess my “wish” got fulfilled. The hospital was really beautiful: large, private rooms, with a wide window, allowing lots and lots of natural light. Each room had a private bath with shower, a sleeping couch, TV with various channel and also relaxing music, free internet throughout the hospital, and a keyboard to use the tv as an internet center. Toiletries were provided, as well as sheets and towels for relatives, slippers, socks, etc. More than once I called it the hotel, instead of the hospital.

We were also fortunate to be assigned a room in the new wing, facing west, overlooking the city, and with a small view of the ocean. The sunsets were absolutely spectacular and we saw quite a few of them.

That first night, Keegan and I got home by 4am, after making sure Matt was settled in his room and comfortable. I made a few calls, and of course, called in sick at work. I also assumed Keegan would have been late for school, and made sure to warn his teachers, but at 7.30am, he got up, and absolutely insisted he wanted to go to school right then. I drove him there, and he seemed happy to have his normal routine untouched. He immediately went to rehearsal for the Christmas show.

I tried to make arrangements: my friend Daniele, informed of what happened, immediately offered to keep Keegan overnight for as long as I needed it, so I could spend the night at the hospital. So Keegan got two sleepover in a row with Gaia. I spent most of the day at the hospital. Everyone was absolutely wonderful, and made us all feel comfortable. As a “care partner” I was given a bracelet that gave me free parking and access to the snack room. Alternative medicine services, like holistic massages and reiki was also offered, and Matt took advantage of it almost daily.

The final diagnosis was multiple pulmonary embolisms, probably caused by an acute pancreatitis that caused pleural effusion (liquid in the lung cavity) and the forming of a large pseudo-cist.

In this scary time, we were amazed to see how many people offered to help. Pretty much any parents of Keegan’s friend offered to take him at any time I needed, and our babysitter offered to watch him any time, for free I assume. (-:

Also, we are so deeply grateful to our families, who immediately put their own life on hold to help us. Sue flew in from NC within 2 days of Matt’s hospitalization, and even extended her ticket when Matt seemed to be doing worse. Mike, came in the weekend before Christmas from Virginia and stayed till Christmas Eve. And Jim and his family drove down from San Jose and stayed till Christmas day. My sister flew from Italy on the 26 and left on January 5th. We really don’t know how we could have done it without their help, especially as far as Keegan is concerned.

So, a very sincere and huge THANK YOU from the bottom of our hearts. And thank you for all the prayers, thoughts and positive energy that was sent our way, from friends, family and strangers alike.

With all the help, we were able to have someone at the hospital with Matt most of the day (and often night) and Keegan also received plenty of attention too.

Aunt Sue spent lots and lots of time playing with him, and just entertaining him. She even took him for a full day of Legoland fun. He finally won his fear of roller coaster and rode them all, multiple times.

This was great for Keegan, who seemed to be taking the situation pretty bad, as expected. At first, he did not even want to talk about it, with me or anyone, which is an extremely rare and worrisome event. He did not even want to visit dad in the hospital, but slowly warmed up to it, especially when he found out they had ice cream and frozen lemonade there. He could not really stay longer than 1 hours, but we tried to take him there as often as possible. Occasionally we even spotted a wild rabbit outside, and it was funny watching it hop around the hospital ground.

playing the patient in daddy’s bed

Good thing he could keep his normal routine at school, preparing for the big show and doing all sort of holiday related activities or drawings.

preparing the Christmas present

is this Frosty the snowman?

They talked about international holiday traditions and even had an international feast. Too bad we had we leave early for his annual check up, but he got to bring a plate of dessert with him.

Keegan is the kid upside down on the bottom wearing an Italian soccer uniform

For the school gift exchange, this year they chose Silly Socks. Every kid brought some silly socks, all wrapped up, and the kids took turn choosing them. Keegan got some monster trucks ones. He was pretty satisfied with his choice.

Keegan brought his Christmas gift at the hospital, for daddy to open. It was very nice. He painted a wooden tray and wrote a sweet message on it. He chose the wrapping paper: orange because it is his favorite color and blue because it is dad’s. He punched out the bells on top. So cute!

His school finished on December 18 (why on a Thursday??? I really would like to know) and it concluded with their annual Christmas show. It was a little bittersweet, because Matt could not be there, but fortunately I met a couple of parents there that really cheered me up. The kids were adorable in their matching holiday pj. Keegan had to goof around, of course.

Getting him to stay still for 1 picture was almost impossible. It took a good 8 shots before getting the photo below.

Matt ended up spending two full weeks in the hospital. We had lots of ups and downs, hope and disappointments. We even had a big scare with two days of 103 fever. The worse part, though, was the not-knowing when he would be able to get out. While we were at the hospital, a quick storm brought a beautiful double rainbow: we took it as a good sign.

Many friends and acquaintances sent their good thoughts and prayers, and Matt’s cousins sent some gorgeous flowers. We brought them to the hospital, and filled the room with their fragrance…maybe a little too much, because by the end of the day Matt was sniffling. So, back home with me they came. Good, so I got to enjoy them fully, for more than two weeks.

Keegan was slowly getting used to the fact that Matt was not feeling well, and finally started to talk about it, with me and his friends. He even started expressing his feeling, and saying he was a little mad because this was supposed to be the happiest time of the year, but it wasn’t and he had so much to worry about. I saw it as a positive sign: he is finally processing what happened.

On his first day of vacation, he went to work with me. He did not mind it too much, because he got to watch 2 movies, and eat ice cream at break. He even got to scribble and draw on our board. So funny, he is so small, you can barely see his head above the computers.

That weekend, Jim and his family arrived in San Diego. It was great, because Keegan really gets along with his cousins and he spent lots of time with them. He even slept over their hotel, his favorite Embassy Suites. What a relief he could have some fun! And fun they did.

hot tub time

cousin love

pillow fight!

The following week we enrolled him the the YMCA camp. He was not too thrilled, but I really needed to have him do something during the day. Oftentimes, he still met up with his cousins afterwards anyway. Camp took him to Boomers for mini golf, Solid Rock for indoor rock climbing, Laser Tag, and at the zoo. You can’t really complain about that.

After two very long weeks, and some very pointed questions (and requests), finally, on Christmas Eve, they decided that Matt could go home. We could not have asked for a better Christmas gift! We were also very lucky because that day, our nurse was Melanie who was one of our favorites. Everyone has been great, but she always went well beyond her duty, and was also a very sunny, positive and fun person. She spent lots of time to teach us what we need to do at home and how to make sure everything went well.

She loaded us up with lots of medical supplies and finally we were ready to leave by 4pm. We loved the hospital, but we were SO GLAD to finally go home.

goodbye memorial Hospital

Keegan spent the day with the cousins, fortunately, since there was so much to do.We met the home nurse  and learned how to use the equipment, we got all the supplies and medications…except painkillers. By the time we noticed, the main pharmacy was closed, and at 8pm we began the odyssey to get painkillers that included a wrongly written prescription, begging with the hospital staff for a new one, a drive over to get it, and almost an hour at the pharmacy while the pharmacists was checking, verifying, contacting the doctor and finally filling ti. You would think I was trying to buy drugs…oh wait, oxycodein is misused as a drug! I finally made it at home by 11pm with the precious stuff…but it was all worth it. Matt is home!

welcome back home Matt

I stayed up to wrap and get the presents ready. I did not even looked at what time it was, but I got it done. Christmas can now begin!

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It is hard to believe our little guy is turning 7. He made sure we did not forget, as he has been talking about his “birthday week” for a while. We tried to explain that there is no such a thing as a birthday week, but guess what? He was almost right! We started celebrating on Tuesday, and we finished off on Sunday.

This year, once again, it was all about Star Wars. He only asked for Lego sets, which is interesting, since he still does not like to build LEGO according to directions, but lucky for him, I DO. So, it was fun for me to pick sets to recommend to family and friends. We set up everything in our bedroom, except for the huge birthday banner over the fireplace, so he could find them in the morning.

Morning came way too early. For some reason we all woke up around 4.30am…maybe there was some weird noise outside. We all got back to bed, but Keegan did not last past 5.30am, and by 5.45 we are opening the presents.

He seemed pretty happy about them, and he better be, lucky boy!

birthday morning hugs

He went to school, despite his protests, but he had fun. I met him there by 2.30pm for his birthday celebration. It was very nice. The kids got to ask him 7 questions, such as his favorite movie or toy.

The he got the little music box that plays Happy Birthday. It always seems to sound the name of the birthday kid.

He then got to make a wish and blow out the birthday candle.

His classmates presented him with a birthday card: every kid made a small drawing, and guess what was the most recurrent theme? You got it: Star Wars. Kaylee showed her usual talent, drawing an amazing Darth Vader.

Then, they asked me a few questions about Keegan’s birth day, and how he was as a baby. Finally, we got to have a special snack. It was a rainy day, so they all had snack inside. We brought caramel and vanilla gelato and fresh strawberries.

He was so happy about the celebration, he did not even mind leaving early: so many new toys to play with. When Matt got home in the evening, we set up 7 candles on the muffin he chose at the store. He made a wish (hopefully a good one) and blew them out.

The following day, there was more celebration at Italian Class. We brought mini brownies and whipped cream, and he had at least 3. I politely excuse myself from this celebration…

It was almost time for big party: the invitation were created, replies sent, and I actually had an exact count by the day before the party. Miracle!

First, though, we had to create goodie bags. It was not as easy this year, as Star Wars stuff is very expensive, but I think we did a great job. We got nice licensed bags, Star Wars pencil, finger lights, Joda or Darth Vedar rings, our traditional custom M&M’s and my favorite: a bookmark/thank you card/glowstick combo. I can’t take the credit for the idea, but I think it turned out great, if I can say so myself.

Lego mini figures photograph amazingly well! Good thing Keegan got the Cantina Lego set for his birthday, so I had access to a young Luke Skywalker figurine.

The party was on Saturday afternoon. Amazingly enough, Keegan was pretty patient and was not bouncing off the walls. After picking up the Star Wars cake we headed to…Pump It Up of course.

pre-party videogames

This year we chose to do a “glow party”: the kids’ version of a 70’s disco party. Lights are dimmed down and strobes turned on and every kid gets glow sticks and necklaces.

They even got to do games, including hide and seek, which Keegan really loves.

The staff took lots of cool pictures (for extra price, of course). It was nice to see them projected in the party room, though.

I had a good time catching up with everyone and the kids had a blast. There lots of kids (20+) this year, and adults, but fortunately we got enough, and more than enough food. The food was standard fare, but nothing too horrible. The kids had fun playing on the throne.

The cake was a big hit. We had to provide our own toppers, but the store made it look almost like the photo we provided.

Once again, Keegan loved sitting on his throne and being the center of attention.

make a wish…

Once again his eyes were bigger than his stomach. He asked for a slice the size of his own name, and he barely ate half of it.

We made it home by 6.30, and of course he immediately tore through all the presents. There were a few duplicates, but he did not care and did not want to exchange them. He also got a few gift cards, so he can finally buy something when his birthday is just a distant memory.

He was very happy about all the presents, but particularly excited about Ezra’s present: Anakin’s Star Wars Lego ship he wanted. He actually built it all by himself, practically a first!

We were not finished yet…the following day, Melissa, our neighbor and her son Kelson, stopped by to give him his present (a gift card) since they could not make it to the party. It was so nice of them…the least we could do was to offer them a piece of cake. Kelton was really happy, and the two kids played a bit.

As a final birthday-related thing, we finally flipped his bed over. He had been asking to do it for a while, but we obviously wanted to make sure he was done with pull-ups first: changing sheets in the middle of the night is never fun, but having to do it on a top bunk is hell. Since he got done with the training just before his big day, we could finally grant him his wish. Now he has his own single bunk bed, and sleeping under the little canopy is even more fun. He is very good at getting down the stairs at night with his flashlight and he feels like he has his own little private space. Plus, he now has the perfect space below for sleepovers.

With that, we finally put the words The End to the birthday celebration for another year…I was exhausted! But not time to rest yet: Christmas will be here before we know it. So, taking advantage of the weekend, I spent the rest of Sunday decoration, trimming the tree, etc.

I did enjoy seeing Keegan so happy about his birthday, especially because he seemed a little sad not to be 6 anymore (another little Peter Pan in the family?) and I am sure glad he has so many people that want to celebrate with him. I hope he feels that, beyond the mound of presents, there are so much love coming his way from everywhere!

Happy Birthday, my sweetie: may 7 be your best year yet!

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