Ears and Eyes

A little bit spoilt with presents

On Tuesday I drove back down to the city (4 hours away), for the second time in less than a week. Nathan wasn't able to come with me this time because one of our kids had been sick, so it was just going to be me and the little guy. Thankfully, our soon-to-be daughter in law, Cate, had been here visiting Daniel, so she was able to drive with me. Poor girl, I think I talked her ear off (my way of staying awake on the drive), but it was really nice to spend some time with her and chat about some wedding stuff. It's all very exciting!

Felix and his little friend, Lilly, both turn two this week so we (Lilly's Mum and I), decided to have a joint birthday party for them in Adelaide. All their friends from Early Intervention were able to come and share the party with them. It was also a great excuse for all of us Mums to get together for a catch up since we all live so far away from each other. Cate was able to come to the party, as well as my best friend, Deb, and our beautiful girl, Amy. I was excited to be able to introduce them to all the lovely ladies from Early Intervention and show off their gorgeous kids.

Tomato sauce (ketchup) is the best!

We had a wonderful afternoon celebrating, not only Felix and Lilly's two years, but also the lives of all the other kids there. I have so much admiration for these children who, despite so many surgeries and health problems, have the most precious smiles and are so full of life and fun. They are all so beautiful to watch, and it was great to watch them play together and interact. Felix, despite usually being funny around other kids, was totally at ease just like he was last time he was at Early Intervention. It's pretty obvious to me that he feels very comfortable being around this particular group of kids. He's too young to understand that he, and the other children, all share an extra chromosome, but his level of comfort with them is very high. It's like he senses that they all have a common bond.

After the party, I got to spend the evening with Deb and another friend, which was so relaxing. We went out for a delicious meal and had coffee and cake after. Felix, despite having a long drive and a big play at his party, was an angel when we were out. He happily ate and drank, and read some books. It was way past his bedtime so he went into an overtired, deliriously happy mood. He wandered around the coffee shop, making friends with people along the way. He was adorable. I'm so proud of him; I can only imagine how exhausted he was. Later, I picked up Amy from work and Felix and I went to stay at her place for the night. After a bit of a play on Amy's bed, and lots of cuddles with her, he fell asleep in his cot. He was one very tired boy!

With big sister, Amy

The next day Amy cooked us a delicious hot breakfast and we headed off for the first of Felix's appointments. He had to see the Ear, Nose and Throat Specialist at the hospital. They were running a bit behind at the ENT, but I didn't mind at all because we had a surprise visit from one of the Mum's from EI with her little boy. He had to have a procedure done later in the day, so she was able to sit with me to pass the time, which was lovely. When Felix was called in, it was a fairly straightforward consult. He is always so good when he's examined and, once again, sat perfectly for the Doctor while he looked in his ears. It was confirmed that there was definitely fluid in his ears and, with all the previous ear infections, grommets were suggested as the best course of action. His operation has been booked for mid December.

Mmmmm....birthday cake!

After the ENT appointment, we said our Goodbyes to Amy. She is moving interstate on Monday and it's probably going to be a long time before we see her again. I'm so glad we got to spend some time together this week. Felix and I then headed off for his next appointment at the Opthamologist. There was a very long wait before he was seen, and I was so thankful I had thought to bring the ipad because it stopped him from getting bored. He needed drops in his eyes to dilate his pupils and, once they were in, we had to wait another twenty minutes until they had worked effectively. The Opthamologist is hoping to go into surgery with Felix when he has his grommets put in his ears, so that she can probe his right tear duct and hopefully unblock it so it stops weeping and getting sticky. She also wants to have a closer look at the Optic nerve in one of his eyes, which she isn't entirely happy with. We have to wait and see if the ENT surgeon is happy with that or not. She also said he is slightly far sighted and will definitely need glasses later on, but she thinks we can leave it for a little while.

Overall, it was a very successful trip and a welcome relief from all the little hiccups of the past week. We arrived home last night thoroughly exhausted. After a great night of rest Felix even slept in, which is pretty unusual for him; not that I'm complaining!!