Man Day

While Susanne was away for her sister's bachelorette party, the men were left home alone. This would be the first full day that it would be just the two of them. Scott and Paxton had a great weekend of manliness planned. They were going to change the oil, duct tape some things, kill a can of WD-40, wrestle some bears, and carve things out of wood. They knew that nothing Mama was doing in NC would come close to how much fun the boys would be having!

It was going to be a great weekend!

Musical Babysitters

Gigi was so kind to have stayed until today to watch Paxton so that Susanne could get on the road to NC for her youngest sister's bachelorette party weekend. Gigi was going to get on the road herself once Moppy was able to relieve her after she got off of work.

Moppy would be having a slumber party with Paxton because Scott wasn't able to come home until tomorrow due to previous plans he had made a long time ago. Moppy, of course, did not mind one bit that she had to stay overnight with the baby. The more time she could have with her grandson the better. She had actually missed seeing him so much since her duties had been relieved over this last week.

This evening, Scott had an end of the year party for his internship that he didn't want to miss out on. It would be the perfect way to end a wonderful experience and give him the opportunity to say a proper goodbye to all. There was a fun evening planned for everyone that was full of food, drinks, and...kickball. May the best man win.

Scott was hoping to get a good night's sleep so that he would be well rested for the drive home in the morning. He needed to be able to put his game face on to take over the bug's care. He knew from his talks with Susanne that once he does Paxton's schedule for more than 24 hours by himself, the exhaustion kicks in.

Susanne was able to leave for Asheville at a decent hour. She was excited to see everybody and eager to help celebrate this wonderful occasion. She was a little anxious to leave Paxton for the entire weekend, but she knew he was in good hands. Despite knowing that, it was still difficult to let go because she had been with him everyday of his life thus far. When she thought through it a little more, she realized that it truly would only be one full day without seeing him since she kissed him goodbye this morning and would return on Sunday night. She would still need to muster up the strength to push through, but she knew that her sisters would do a great job of keeping her mind busy with other things.

Mom's Know Best

Paxton had an appointment with his pediatrician this morning. Susanne scheduled it early enough for her to still be able to get to work on time.

Paxton weighed 13 lbs 12 oz and was 25" in length. His pediatrician thought he was looking good. Paxton was due for his next set of vaccinations. Susanne had specifically requested that they separate them out this time since he had previously had some difficulties with them.

Susanne returned home in time to eat a delicious breakfast that Gigi had prepared for her before heading off to work. She was so thankful that her mom was going to stay through tomorrow to watch Paxton so that she could get on the road early to head down to Asheville, NC for the weekend for her youngest sister's bachelorette party. Gigi had become so proficient with Paxton's care. At this point, she was an old pro.

Susanne had a good day at work. She got home late, but her mom had a meal ready and waiting for her when she arrived. Susanne could definitely get used to this. She liked being pampered.

Near You Always

It was getting harder and harder for Susanne to say goodbye to Scott. Each time he would come home, it would make it that much more difficult to see him go. They only had such a short time before he would be home for good, but it still felt like forever. She was thankful that he was able to come home for the night, but she yearned for more time with him. It just never quite felt like enough. She just kept reminding herself...don't get too close and don't get too comfortable because before she could blink he would be gone again. In due time, she would have him back in her arms.

Near You Always

By: Jewel

Please don't say I love you,
Those words touch me much too deeply
And they make my core tremble
Don't think you realize the effect you have over me
Please don't look at me like that
It just makes me want to make you near me always
Please don't kiss me so sweet
It makes me crave a thousand kisses to follow
And please don't touch me like that
Makes every other embrace seem pale and shallow
And please don't come so close
It just makes me want to make you near me always
Please don't bring me flowers
They only whisper the sweet things you'd say
Don't try to understand me
Your hands already know too much anyway
It just makes me want to make you near me always
And when you look in my eyes
Please know my heart is in your hands
It's nothing that I understand, but when in your arms
You have complete power over me
So be gentle if you please, 'cause
Your hands are in my hair, but my heart is in your teeth
And it makes me want to make you near me always
Your hands are in my hair, but my heart is in your teeth
And it makes me want to make you near me always
I want to be near you always
I want to be near you always
I want to be near you always

Supermom

Paxton had an excellent morning. He did not have any gagging episodes to start off his day. This was a record so far.

Susanne and Gigi had a nice breakfast together before Paxton's therapy appointment. Today, they would be working on oral stimulation. He did such a great job at the last visit that Susanne was eager to see how he would handle today's session.

The occupational therapist came prepared to make Paxton work extra hard today. Unfortunately, he was immediately on guard and resistant to even the external palpations of his face. He was swatting both of his arms more aggressively and making sure they knew what he thought about the whole thing. The occupational therapist had to hold one of his hands while Gigi held the other one. This helped Susanne to be able to focus on his head control and introducing the bottle. This system worked out well. Paxton was receptive to the bottle again today. He was still not taking much if anything by mouth, but he was gaining more and more strength everyday. The positive side of it all was that he was at least interested in accepting the bottle in the first place. Hopefully, these small improvements would set a solid foundation for the future and eventually all come together for the little guy.

During the down times, Gigi helped Susanne try to organize the endless amounts of paperwork that she had accumulated since Paxton was born. They made a lot of progress, but they quickly realized it would take a few days to complete this task in its entirety. Susanne was already such an organized person as it was, but the paperwork still managed to get out of hand. The filing system she had already put in place really helped to expedite the ordeal.

Before Susanne knew it, it was time to leave for a walkthrough at their townhome since the tenants were moving out. It was so nice to not have to worry about what to do with Paxton since Gigi was around. Another nice thing was that Scott had called to tell Susanne that he would be driving down to meet her at the townhome to help with the walkthrough. He didn't think it was fair for her to have to take care of Paxton, maintain the house, work at the clinic, AND manage the rental property all by herself.

Luckily, the tenants had taken great care of the property and the walkthrough went smoothly and quickly. This meant that the rest of the night could be spent at home as a family.

The Grand Initiation

The morning came way too quickly, especially when Susanne stayed up talking to her mom well into the wee hours of the morning. It was well worth it though because they got to catch up. Gigi's goal today was to learn how to set up Paxton's NG feedings and to learn his medication schedule. When she was last down, she learned how to breakdown his feedings, but now she was ready for more of a challenge. The reason she was being over zealous was because she wanted to feel comfortable with Paxton's total care by the time Susanne had to go to work on Wednesday. She had planned on giving Moppy a break and staying long enough to be able to help out with the child care this week. What a treat!

Paxton had a typical morning where he was slow to rise and he struggled to organize the secretions in his mouth well enough to know what to do with it. It was difficult for Gigi to watch Paxton have episodes of gagging and dry heaving, but she quickly learned that it was part of his routine. Gigi got to watch Susanne initiate therapy and she even learned some techniques she could use when Susanne wouldn't be around.

Gigi actually got to watch Paxton's therapy session in the afternoon. This helped to reiterate what Susanne had shown her earlier in the day. Finally, Paxton was holding both arms down by his side for longer periods of time. He was also opening up his hands more, which was something Susanne had been working on a lot over the last week. His new favorite thing was to have his hands down by his side and explore the world around him by continually opening and closing his hands on any material he could reach. It didn't matter if it was his clothes, a blanket, or a toy, they were all just as interesting.

The day flew by. Susanne was able to check some things off of her endless to-do list, which was relieving. One of the things she needed to do was to run to the grocery store to pick up a couple of things for dinner. Gigi volunteered to watch Paxton at the house to make it easier. It hadn't even been an hour since Susanne had left when she got a call from her mother. Paxton had managed to pull his tube out. This had definitely become his favorite way to initiate new babysitters. It was like a game to him. Luckily, Susanne was on her way home and it was in between feedings.

Gigi got to watch Susanne replace Paxton's NG tube, which was never fun. This was not a preferred spectator sport for anyone. It went as well as could be expected. He survived with only a few tears shed. Susanne always enjoyed trying to make him laugh afterwards so that he would quickly forget what had just happened. This always seemed to do the trick.

After Paxton went down for the night, Susanne and Gigi cooked dinner together. They tried a new recipe that Gigi had found that sounded delightful. It ended up turning out really well. Other than the major garlic breath that ensued, they were both pleasantly surprised.

Shower of Surprises

Susanne was excited that Scott was home. She was sad that he would have to leave tonight after Susanne's work's annual picnic. Even though it was a short visit, it was well worth it. It was always so comforting to wake up next to him in the bed. The other luxury of having Scott home was that he shared the responsibility of taking care of Paxton. Susanne got up at 6:00am to take care of the little guy and all of the furry friends. Luckily, she got to go back to bed for a short time and Scott took care of the 9:00am feeding. Any extra time to catch up on sleep was a blessing.

Susanne had so much to do around the house. She was hoping to be able to utilize what little time she had left with Scott by putting him to work. There were just too many things that she could not do alone. Unfortunately, Paxton had a rough start to his day. He needed a lot of tending to. By the time they got him settled down, it was getting close to the time that they needed to leave for the picnic.

It was a scorcher once they arrived at the picnic. Paxton lasted all of about fifteen minutes outside before Susanne and Scott had to take him inside for a break from the heat. After he recuperated, they headed back out to join everyone in the festivites. Paxton was excited to see that Aunt Julie had arrived. She was glowing.

After less than thirty minutes, there was an unusually violent gust of wind that stirred up the place. It almost felt and even looked like a tornado. It was all very strange. Shortly thereafter, the rain started. Everyone had to either huddle into the barn or on the front porch. It didn't let up for a while. Eventually, it became time to feed Paxton again. Scott and Susanne had to leave so he could stick to his schedule. It was perfect timing as well because Scott had to leave that evening and it was always good to get a head start.

As they tried to leave, they were presented with a little bit of an obstacle. The powerful wind had knocked down a tree that expanded across the entire road. There was no way around it. About this time, they became very thankful for the invention of a GPS. They were able to figure out a detour. They were cruising along when another car stopped them to let them know that there were power lines that were blocking the road up ahead. Once again, they were able to avoid disaster because they found another route.

Finally, they got home. Scott had just enough time to eat dinner and then he had to get back out on the road. Susanne got Paxton settled down for a nap. He woke up an hour later with a wet diaper. Just as Susanne was finishing up, the doorbell rang. She thought it could only be one of two people. It was either a neighbor or someone trying to sell something. BOY WAS SHE WRONG. Susanne was completely and utterly surprised when she opened the door to see her mother standing there. She was so elated and even screamed loudly with joy, unfortunately for Paxton. It was always so difficult to surprise Susanne. Her analytical mind and astute nature prevented a lot of people from being successful. This time Gigi got her good....really good. Susanne's jaw was to the floor for hours after her arrival. What an awesome way to end the day.

Thank Heaven for Little Boys

Today was the first day Susanne would have to get back in the car that was running on empty because she had to work. She had managed to take her own car that Moppy was currently using on the other days she had to go in. Today, she didn't have that option so she was stuck with risking the chance that she might not make it to a gas station in time. Luckily, Scott was home to save the day if need be. Susanne made it to the gas station closest to her home. A major load was lifted off of her shoulders once she had a full tank again.

Scott was going to be in charge of Paxton all day while Susanne was at work. Scott was excited at the progress that Paxton had made since the last time he saw him. He was entertained by Paxton's new obsession with purposely batting at toys. He was still doing a remarkable job with reaching out and grabbing whatever was in front of him. Paxton got a special treat today. His daddy spent some time massaging the various tight regions of his body. The two worst spots included his neck and his hamstrings. Scott was able to feel improvement after just a few minutes of massaging them.

During Paxton's nap time, Scott worked on the final stages of his dissertation. The end was so close now, Scott could taste it. He was impressed with how much he was able to get done in such a short time. Productive days were so uplifting.

Moppy was Susanne's last client of the day. They were hoping with this set up that it would help Susanne to be able to get out of there faster to get home to her boys. Unfortunately, the plan backfired. Moppy and Susanne started talking and before they knew it, almost an hour had passed by. It was so interesting that they see each other usually three days a week and they could still find endless amounts of stuff to converse about. Girls will be girls.

Susanne finally got home. Scott and Paxton greeted her at the door. Susanne couldn't think of anything better in the whole world because she had it all right in front of her. Susanne read Paxton a new book that Moppy got him for his bedtime story. It was a book full of Mother Goose rhymes. This brought back many wonderful childhood memories for Susanne. Once they were finished with the book, it was off to bed for sweet baby Paxton. He was definitely tuckered out from his day with his daddy. He would sleep well tonight.

Scott and Susanne decided to try one of the meals that Aunt Kerry and Uncle Nick had purchased for them through "Let's Dish". The dinner they choose for the evening included a well marinated steak with noodles on the side. They were more than impressed with the end result. It was fantastic and they ate every last bit. They couldn't wait to delve into the other meals that were still in their freezer.

Look How Far We've Come

Take two! Susanne got up early today to make sure she was prepared for Paxton's therapy session. Paxton seemed to sleep right up until the time of the appointment which Susanne was hoping would be a good thing. She was thinking that a well rested mind would be more open and ready for new challenges.

Susanne was eagerly awaiting the arrival of the therapist. She probably checked out the window too many times. The time of the appointment came and went. No therapist was seen. Five minutes passed, then ten, and then fifteen. Susanne could not believe it. Could she have possibly messed up the schedule again? She double and triple checked the calendar. The therapist was supposed to come out today, but maybe she forgot. Right when Susanne thought about calling her, the phone rang. The therapist got caught up in a meeting and was on her way.

Susanne was able to show the OT all of the progress that Paxton had made over the last week with his non-nutritive sucking. He had been extremely receptive to Susanne squirting little drips of breast milk into his mouth over top of her finger as he suckled away. He didn't always appear to like the taste or feel of it as it entered his mouth, but he almost always continued suckling. The therapist was so proud of him. She was so excited by the improvement that she wanted to challenge him even more. She had Susanne fill up one of the special bottles that she had worked with before. She tried to offer it to him and he gladly accepted it. He seemed to be much more receptive to the bottle this go round than in the past. His breathing was also much more controlled and he appeared more relaxed. Susanne felt like they were getting close to a breakthrough.

Susanne asked the therapist her thoughts on Paxton's need for a G tube vs. continuing with the NG tube. The therapist felt that with the advances that Paxton had made in such a short time with therapy, she had high hopes that he would not need the G tube. This was great news! Sometimes patients relapsed after their heart surgery, but they usually bounced back with great resilience.

After the therapist left, Paxton went down for a nap. Susanne tried to clean the house up a little bit since she had some extra time. Later in the day, she received a phone call from the critical case specialist from the insurance company. She was checking in on Paxton and his progress. In the short time that she spoke with Susanne, she managed to offend her once again. The nurse was always so condescending and outright rude to her. Susanne once again decided to be the better person and bite her tongue. She decided that she would give the lady one more chance before she verbally attacked her. She was tired of being talked down to and misunderstood.

Scott got home later than expected. Susanne waited to cook dinner until he arrived. She prepared him one of his favorite meals. They ate their delicious food in front of the TV and took a load off. It was such a good feeling for them to be in each other's arms again. They missed being this close.

Scott and Susanne ended up watching a show called, "Boston Med", which was a reality medical drama that took place at 3 major metropolitan hospitals in Boston. The strange thing was that the first episode they watched featured a family that had a child who had a severe congenital heart defect. The show went through the trials and tribulations that the family had to go through, especially after the child was born and had to endure heart surgery at an early age. There were a lot of surprising parallels between their story and what happened with Paxton. It made them both very emotional and caused a lot of old memories to resurface. It was not a pleasant thing to look back on, but they felt so blessed to see how far they had come.

Innocent Mistake

Susanne rushed to get ready this morning in preparation for Paxton's therapy session. She was able to clean the litter box, pick up the yard, take out the trash, and bake some homemade banana muffins all before the scheduled appointment. She felt bad because she had to wake Paxton up thirty minutes before the therapist arrived so that he would be somewhat awake for the session. He was extra sleepy this morning for some reason and had not woken up on his own yet. Susanne hated to do it because he was so sound asleep. He must have been dreaming of something funny because Susanne caught him smiling and laughing. It was very cute. She was feeling good about herself because, after all was said and done, she had a few minutes to spare. She ended up needing every second of that extra time because Paxton's diaper was dirty.

Susanne put James away and waited for the doorbell to ring. She waited and waited and waited. The therapist never showed. This was not typical for her. She was usually very prompt. After about fifteen minutes, Susanne decided to double check her planner. Unfortunately, Susanne had been mistaken. Paxton's appointment was actually scheduled for tomorrow. Susanne forgot that this was the first week with the new schedule. She decided to take advantage of her unnecessary preparation and go ahead and work with Paxton on oral stimulation. He continued to do well with the non-nutritive sucking especially when Susanne would put her index finger in his mouth. He had a strong suckle reflex and his tongue was in the proper position. Now if he could only just learn how to swallow correctly.

Paxton and Susanne were excited to see Aunt Leenie this evening. She was coming over tonight for Pajama Party Thursday. They couldn't wait to hear all about her trip to Mexico. Paxton was especially interested because he could potentially learn something about his roots. To make it feel more authentic, they ordered in Mexican food for dinner. It was delish as always! Susanne had never met a Mexican meal she didn't like.

Ungrateful People

Susanne had to work today. It was really busy, which helped pass the time. Unfortunately, since it was so busy Susanne fell behind on writing up her records, which meant she would have that much more to do after she finished her last appointment.

At one point during the day, Susanne assisted one of her colleagues with a cat that was very critical upon arrival. She dropped what she was doing to try to help save this pet's life. The prognosis was poor, but they didn't give up. In the end, the cat survived. Susanne was disappointed to find out that the owner was less than appreciative of their efforts and was very unkind to Susanne's colleague. The owner wasn't thankful, at all, that they had saved the cat's life and she could only focus on the bill. The owner didn't think she should have to pay anything and that this type of service should be free of charge. It was hard to understand someone's thought process, especially when the outcome was so positive. It was always so difficult for Susanne whenever she came across ungrateful people. People all too often take for granted the small things in life. With what the Padilla family had been through over the last year, they made sure to appreciate it all.

The Tube Moves In, The Tube Moves Out

Susanne was up and at em' quite early this morning. Paxton had an occupational therapy appointment at 10:30am. He had been up well before his appointment so Susanne was worried that he would be tired for his session.

Paxton ended up doing much better than Susanne thought he would. He showed off his new skill of being able to pull both of his legs to his chest. He did a great job grasping for toys and tracking objects. His head control was improving, but not as quickly as they had hoped. Only time would tell. Susanne learned some new techniques to try to encourage him to roll on his side on his own. Also, she worked on different positions to place him in to promote the instinct to crawl. He was forced to put weight on his knees for the first time.

Paxton slept for a long time after his session was finished. He was tuckered out. When he woke up, Susanne spent some quality time with him. She was surprised to see how sensitive Paxton had become to certain sounds. He seemed to startle very easily these days. He would almost flinch at times when Susanne would start up with a song or say his name. It was actually quite humorous.

At some point during the day, Paxton had multiple episodes of dry heaving and gagging. They became closer in succession over such a short period of time. It was not common for him to carry on like that for as long as he did. Susanne noticed that when he would cough, sneeze, or even just breathe, his NG tube would move in and out of his nose. It looked like the stickers that held the tube in place were loosening up at the edge. This was due to all of the saliva that he wasn't swallowing. Susanne knew what she had to do. She decided to replace the stickers before Paxton had a chance to pull the entire NG tube out. One would think that this would be an easy task, but not so much. Peeling off the sticker that was adhered directly to his face appeared to be straightforward, but the challenge came when trying to separate it from the overlying sticker that was holding the tube in place. Susanne had to use scissors to cut the stickers apart while also restraining a flailing, crying baby in place. After multiple attempts, she was successful. Thankfully, no one was injured during the process.

Susanne read Paxton a few books before bedtime. He really seemed to take a liking to "Go Dog, Go", in particular. It was so interesting to observe him processing each and every page. Even though it was probably impossible, he actually looked like he was absorbing it all and following right along. Susanne just knew this kid was going places.

Rainbow Bright...What a Sight!

There was another thunderstorm last night as Susanne was getting ready for bed. It had been a long time since she had remembered this many thunderstorms in such a short time. She was used to the rain, but the thunder and lightening added a whole other element.

Susanne had a hard time sleeping last night because her brain was on overdrive with things she needed to finish. At around 4:00am she got a text from Scott because he couldn't sleep either. They ended up talking on the phone for about thirty minutes before they forced themselves to try to get some shut eye. Susanne had to be up again at 6:00am to feed Paxton so she really needed to try hard.

Susanne was successful. She was awakened by her alarm clock long before she was ready to get up. If it weren't for Paxton, she would have definitely hit the snooze button.

Paxton and Susanne started the day off together. Paxton did well during playtime. Susanne was trying to push him a little more and more each day. For some reason, he was extra tired today, even more so than he had been in the recent past. He took much longer naps than he usually did. Susanne continued to let him dictate his own schedule somewhat because of his medical condition. If he wanted to sleep more, than he probably needed it. It was also a perfect opportunity for Susanne to catch up on a few things, including sleep.

Later in the day, Susanne was able to syringe feed a small amount of breast milk to Paxton while he suckled on her finger. He was always unsure whenever something new was introduced, but he seemed to handle it okay.

There was another thunderstorm this evening. It was pretty remarkable because the sun was still shining and the sky looked clear, but there was a tremendous amount of rainfall. The thunder and lightening decided to join the party again as well. Susanne knew that if she waited long enough, there would be a rainbow. Sure enough there was and it was a magnificent sight.

Susanne was counting down the days until Scott would be home. It had been two weeks since she saw him last. He would finally be coming home this weekend for a visit. They only had a total of three weeks left until he would be finished with his internship and moving back home for good. This was very exciting and a reason to celebrate.

Cause and Effect

The day seemed to fly by. Susanne spent a lot of time playing with her baby boy. She enjoyed watching his face light up when she talked to him. Her new favorite thing was to give Paxton a zerbert on his lips or stomach. This was the sure fire way to get Paxton to smile and sometimes laugh. It seemed thoroughly entertaining to him and he seemed to love it.

During his playtime, Susanne was in awe at how strong Paxton was getting. He could easily grab for toys and, more times than not, successfully wrap his little fingers around whatever he was trying to reach for. He was kicking his legs a lot and pulling them up towards his belly regularly. He was even lifting his head up more regularly during tummy time. The newest thing that became apparent was his fascination with cause and effect. It was interesting to watch him think through what he wanted to do and then deliberately complete the thought. For example, he would purposely hit certain toys knowing that he woud get a sound in return. His mind was so amazing.

When Susanne went in to set up Paxton's feeding at nine o'clock at night, she was greeted with Paxton's smiling face. He had rolled from his side onto his back and was staring at his mobile. She thought he was sleeping, but obviously he was entertaining himself. He was almost startled when he saw his mommy's face at first, but then he was delighted. Even though he was so young, it almost seemed like he knew he was caught doing something he wasn't supposed to be doing. Susanne left a dim light on for the duration of his feeding so that he could continue enjoying himself. He remained quiet and content the entire time. When the feeding was finished, Susanne tucked him in and made sure he was snug as a bug in a rug. He slept peacefully the rest of the night.

Sleep My Child

Paxton got up when his mommy did this morning. He played with his toys while she got ready for work. Moppy came over shortly thereafter to watch him during the day.

Susanne had a great day at work. She left at a reasonable hour. She was hoping to run a few errands before she got home because it was difficult for her to do this with Paxton. He always stressed out so much when they left the house. He would easily get overheated in his car seat and his breathing would become more labored the longer they were out and about. Susanne tried to avoid putting Paxton in these types of situations as much as possible because it caused him to work too hard and burn too many calories. This was not good for him or his fragile heart. Susanne was able to fill one of Paxton's prescriptions and return a shirt she did not want. It seemed like everything was going well until she tried to exchange her bridesmaid's dress for the third time. She quickly realized that this time she had forgotten the receipt. This was getting ridiculous. Better luck next time.

Moppy thought that Paxton had a good day. He had a few episodes of gagging and even spit up a couple of times, but this was becoming the norm for him as he figured out how to move his tongue and swallow normally. Even though it was a slow process, he was definitely showing signs of improvement.

Susanne had recently noticed how Paxton was becoming a lighter sleeper. It used to be tha the overhead light could be on and a conversation could be happening around him and he wouldn't budge. This talent came from all of the time that he had spent in the hospital. He had become desensitized to the all of the lights, beeping monitors, and other extraneous noises during his stay. Now, if James barked or his NG tube was touched to hook him up to his feeding while he was sleeping, he would rustle around. He still slept well overall and would rarely cry. Susanne still felt very lucky that he was such a good baby.

Desperate Need for a Maid Brigade

Susanne was hoping for an uneventful morning, but that didn't quite happen. Once Paxton starting waking up, Susanne spoke to him sweetly and moved him slowly to his play gym. They both were having such a good time. He had done so well by not having any gagging episodes all morning. Of course, the second that Susanne started pumping, he started dry heaving and proceeded to spit up everywhere. She was also on the phone at the time with Scott. She had to abruptly end their conversation and close up shop for the moment to clean up Paxton, clear his airway, and prevent him from panicking. In the middle of all of this, she heard another odd sound in the background. It was James vomiting up his breakfast all over the carpet...AGAIN. So Susanne managed to accumulate two full loads of laundry in less than five minutes. That was a record. First things first, she needed to clean up Paxton. She hadn't realized before then, but Paxton had also dirtied his diaper and it was seeping out of the sides. She decided to put him in the bathroom sink as a holding facility until she could fill up his bathtub. She got him squeaky clean and she put him down for a nap. Next, she cleaned up the mess that James had made. Finally, she got around to starting a load of laundry. By the time all was said and done, it was time to feed Paxton again. It was well past the lunch hour before she had a chance to make herself something to eat. She often wondered how one little baby could take up so much time. It just seemed to fly by. She savored every moment, but it still went by too quickly.

The rest of the day was pretty routine for the two of them. She was able to catch Paxton laughing on the video camera. It was still amazing how hard she had to work for one little giggle, but it was well worth it. Her was heart warmed everytime he smiled at her.

Paxton went down really well for all of his naps today and he was ready to go to bed for the night right after the six o'clock feeding. Susanne spent some time talking to Scott on the webcam this evening. They enjoyed singing together as Scott played his guitar. This was one of their favorite things to do together. It was actually one of the things that brought them together as a couple. Susanne was so impressd with Scott's many talents. He was so hot!

I Brush My Teeth...ch-ch-ch-ch-ch-ch-ch-ch-ch

Susanne had fallen into a bad habit recently. On the evenings that she came home from work, she would get settled in and then sit down to eat dinner while watching some TV. She would stay up until Paxton's midnight NG feeding and then have to try to stay awake until it was finished. She was usually successful, but somehow afterwards she would manage to get into her bed for a minute to try to muster up the energy to go through her bedtime routine. She would try to convince herself to get up to get ready for bed, but somehow she would always wake up hours later realizing that she had fallen asleep. It didn't make it any easier to do everything in the wee hours of the morning, but it would get done. Hopefully, she would learn her lesson.

Paxton slept well throughout the night. On most days, he usually started to stir between his 6:00 am and 9:00 am NG feeding. Most recently he would wake up gagging because he had so many secretions built up in his mouth from overnight. He couldn't seem to clear his mouth properly since he was still learning how to swallow normally. When he would do this, Susanne would generally pick him up over her shoulder and pat his back to elicit a cough. This would typically clear his throat enough that he would feel much better.

Susanne's new favorite thing to do in the morning was to take Paxton from his crib when he started to wake up and put him next to her in her bed. She had a sleep positioner in her room that was perfect for him to lay on while she snuggled right up next to him. She liked to hold his hands or cup his head while staring deep into his eyes. They would then fall back asleep for a short time before starting their day. Paxton always slept so soundly when they were hand in hand. They both felt so safe and warm when they were together.

Paxton had an occupational therapy appointment today. The main focus was to work on oral stimulation. Paxton did extremely well and impressed the therapist. They started the session by doing some light massage to his upper body, followed by some light touching to his face and neck. They gradually increased the pressure applied to his cheeks and lips to wake up his muscles. Once he appeared to be relaxed and comfortable, they tried massaging his gums. Early on, Susanne had started singing the Raffi song, "Brush Your Teeth", to Paxton anytime she went to do this. She thought that this would distract Paxton enough into thinking that it was something fun and exciting. He was always so responsive to Susanne's voice and he almost depended on her talking him through everything. He needed to always be reassured that whatever they were doing was safe and that he was doing a great job. Susanne thought of herself as Paxton's own personal cheerleader...she did have a lot of years of training under her belt...

Before the therapist left, she helped Susanne figure out how to make the Baby Bjorn work for Paxton. Susanne had tried to use it previously, but it always seemed to encourage bad placement of his head, neck, and arms. They had to get a little creative, but they found a way that he could safely fit into it and still be positioned nicely. He was well supported and he enjoyed being that close to his mommy. The therapist also helped Susanne figure out new sleep positions for Paxton since he was outgrowing his SECOND sleep postioner. This was unbelievable. Paxton continued to grow like a weed.

Throughout the day, Susanne worked with Paxton on different exercises. At one point, she actually witnessed him rolling over to one side without any help or encouragement. He also curled both of his legs to his chest on his own for the first time. He really seemed to be continuing to progress by leaps and bounds daily. This was so awesome.

Later in the afternoon, Susanne decided to see what Paxton would do if she put his rattle shoes on his feet. He was doing so well with kicking around that Susanne thought they would be entertaining for him. She was right, he was absolutely fascinated by them. Hopefully, this would help him to discover his feet.

She read him a couple of books before she put him down for the night. She was eager to try out some of the new positions for him to sleep and see if he would make it through the night with the new change. She would have to wait and see.

Susanne was bummed that "Pajama Party Thursdays" would not be taking place this week because Colleen was on vacation in Mexico. She was hoping that Colleen was having fun in the sun with a margarita in hand, but she did wish she could be there with her. Maybe next time.

The Beautiful Sound of Vomiting in the Morning!

Susanne was abruptly woken up this morning to the lovely sound of her dog vomiting on her carpet. This wouldn't be so bad if James would just do it on the bathroom floor, which in turn would make for easy clean up. Somehow all of the animals liked to vomit in the most visible, high traffic areas for all the world to see. This definitely made it challenging to keep the house looking new, especially since the carpets were a light color. While Susanne was cleaning up the mess that James had made, she was serenaded by the sound of Paxton dry heaving and gagging in the background. Luckily, Moppy had stayed the night and was able to help out the situation.

Susanne had a busy, but good day at work. She was hoping to get out in time to make it to the mall to run a couple of errands she desperately needed to do. Unfortunately, she got out right as the mall was closing. Now she would have to postpone those few things on her to do list AGAIN. Bummer!

Moppy thought that Paxton had a relatively great day. He was really responsive to therapy. He even lifted his head during tummy time without being prompted. He was gaining strength every single day. She also noticed that she had to give him little to no help when encouraging him to roll to his side. They were sure he would master this all by himself in no time. Also, Paxton did not require any support under his shoulders to help him extend his arms up in the air. He was able to fight against gravity and grab for toys all by himself. His daily improvements were so encouraging to Susanne. It really helped prove that all of the hard work and dedication that had been put forth towards Paxton was well worth it. He was such a little fighter and a true inspiration. Go little man, go!

Stain, Stain, Go Away!

The Padilla household was going to have a busy day. Susanne had to get up shortly after Paxton's 6:00 am NG feeding to start getting ready for the day.

The first thing on their list of things to do was Paxton's therapy session at 10:30 am. He was doing quite well with the exception of his gag reflex. He was discovering his tongue more and more everyday. Anytime he would stick in out for fun or after a good yawn, he would gag himself. Once he got started, he usually couldn't get control. He ended up spitting up once, which only slowed up the appointment just a little. He continued to show off his reaching and grabbing skills. There were times that it actually looked like he was reeling in a fish. Susanne thought he was just getting a head start on dance moves that would instantly attract the ladies.

At the end of the therapy session, Susanne was interacting with Paxton while the occupational therapist was writing her notes. Paxton decided to drop a load in his pants, which always made him feel better. As they all got up to say goodbye, the therapist noticed that Paxton's diaper had leaked onto Susanne's shorts. Susanne was trying to figure out which side the leak was coming from when the therapist noticed that his diaper had actually leaked so much that there were two major spots on the carpet. This was the first time that Paxton had successfully soiled something other than his clothes.

Susanne cleaned up the mess the best she could before she heard a knock at the door. She was so excited because one of her colleagues and good friends was stopping by for a visit. Elissa, a.k.a. Thorny, had been such a constant source of support and love for Susanne and Scott since day one. She was so encouraging and uplifting. She always knew the right thing to say at the right time. She had this incredible intuition about what people where really feeling and what they truly needed.

Thorny could not believe how big Paxton had gotten since the last time she saw him. She immediately noticed the significant improvement with his motor skills. Paxton was so thrilled to have such a captive audience that he decided to show off a little bit. He kept grabbing at her chin and reaching for her hand. He was mesmerized by her and wouldn't look away...not even for a moment.

The time flew by quickly before they had to head out on the road to go to a meeting at work. Paxton was going to be a guest since he couldn't just be left with anyone. Susanne noticed right away that her gas light was on when she started driving away. She was comforted in the fact that the car's computer system calculated approximately how many miles were left before the car would run out of gas completely. Susanne decided to risk it, go straight to work, and worry about it afterwards. She had already postponed it from yesterday, so what's another fifteen miles of driving.

Paxton did very well throughout the meeting. He didn't even cry one time. Sitting still for an hour and a half was difficult for anyone, but for a infant it was a miracle. Paxton continued to amaze his mommy every single day.

Susanne set up Paxton's NG feeding first thing when they got to the car. Her next stop was definitely going to be a gas station. She timed it just right and made it with five miles to spare. She began looking for her bank card, but had no luck. She realized within minutes that her drivers license and her bank card were still at the house. She had taken them out of her wallet yesterday and stuck them in her cell phone cover so she wouldn't have to lug any additional items around with her as she went in and out of different places. Before she left today, she grabbed her purse thinking that everything was in there, forgetting that the cell phone cover with all of the essential items was still on her bed. Susanne continued to look through her purse for any other options for paying for gas. She proceeded to come up short. The checkbook she had was all used up. She wrote the last check yesterday after paying the bills. Scott had their only credit card with him in Pennsylvania. She usually did not carry cash because she always used it on superfluous things. This began the search for loose change in the car. Susanne was banking on the fact that this was Scott's primary mode of transportation for years prior to the switch back in April. He was notorious for collecting change even though he never carried cash either. Somehow coins would show up out of nowhere. Susanne would find them in his cup holder, pants pockets, seat cushions, and dresser drawers. He was change making fool. After her extensive search, she only came up with one dollar and twenty five cents with most of it being pennies. She went into the gas station and explained her situation and the guy allowed her to pre-pay for just that much. Afterwards, she started the car to find that the alloted time before the car would shutdown did not change. She decided to see how far she could make it. She got about five miles down the road before the screen indicated that she had one mile left before disaster. She decided not to push the envelope and she ended up stopping at another gas station. Scott was unavailable for advice, so Susanne called the next best thing...her mother. In a moment of desperation, it had crossed Susanne's mind to possibly use her credit card that was affiliated with her health savings account. She knew deep down this was not lawful or honest. Her mother helped confirm her feelings and brought her back down to her senses. The options at this point were to beg for money or see if the gas attendant would take Gigi's bank card information over the phone. The gas attendant was less than impressed. He was not willing to take any information over the phone especially since Susanne did not have her drivers license. He did offer to give her two dollars as a sympathetic gesture. Susanne had actually found an additional fifty five cents in the car and gave that to the attendant. She was hoping that she would be able to get a full gallon of gas with the two stops combined. In the end, the gas attendant really only gave a dollar and forty five cents because he did not add Susanne's contribution to the two dollars. Unfortunately, the screen did not change with its estimation of how long she had before the car would shut down. She decided to gamble once again and just drive all the way home. She kept thinking that if she had to stop at another gas station, she would probably make headline news. She could see the frontpage now, "Serial Offender and Master of a Gas Station Scam". They would have to note that she probably had a baby for sympathy purposes and even tricked them into believing he had a serious medical condition with the tube coming out of his nose. They would totally think that she defrauded the people who trusted her sob story.

Susanne and Paxton finally made it home sweet home. She was so thankful. She decided that she would worry about filling up the rest of the tank on another day. It was so difficult for her to understand how such an organized, detail oriented person could be so forgetful and last minute. She had this battle with herself a lot.

Once again, she got everyone situated before she could focus on herself. After things calmed down, she realized she had a message on her answering machine. It was from a publisher of a magazine informing her that she had won a gift certificate to a local spa in town. She had haphazardly entered a contest and actually won. This was the sort of thing that never happened to her. As the saying goes, you can never say never. What a wonderful way to end a crazy, eventful day.

Rainy Days and Mondays Always Get Me Down

Paxton had a cardiology appointment today. Susannne had to try to leave the house by 9:45 am to make it on time. It was still a bit of a struggle to time everything appropriately because Paxton was always either just finishing a NG feeding or needing one to be set up.

They made it to the appointment on time. He was seen right away. He had the usual baseline tests done which included an oxygen saturation level, blood pressure, and an ECG. Today he was also scheduled for an ultrasound of his heart. His cardiologist was going to reassess the shunt that had been surgically placed on the first day of March. Depending on how everything looked, she would decide what the next step would be.

After being on the table for an hour, Paxton was finally done. He did very well overall and sat still considering. He only got upset once and that was because he was getting overheated. His mama fixed the problem by offering him his WubbaNub laced with Sweet-Ease. He totally fell for it and went right to sleep.

The cardiologist felt like Paxton's heart looked overall about the same as the last time. His shunt still appeared to be wide open and functioning well. His oxygen saturation levels had gradually decreased from the low nineties to the mid-eighties over the last few months. Her suspicion was that he would need his next heart surgery within the next two months. She was still tossing the idea around about which surgical approach would benefit him the most. She was having a difficult time deciding because there were so many options. Her plan was to present Paxton's case again at the cardiology conference and get a collaborative opinion on what the group thought would suit him best. The cardiologist also offered to mail a complete packet of Paxton's medical history, copies of chest x-rays, ECG's, and all of the echocardiogram results to the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota. They were world renowned for their work with patients that suffered from Ebstein's Anomaly. They were the only hospital that had surgeons that did the two ventricle approach. If this was even a possibility for them to attempt on Paxton, then Scott and Susanne would definitely want to take him there for an evaluation and even his next surgery. From day one, Scott and Susanne had been interested in the doctors' opinions from that hospital. The fact that Paxton's cardiologist was willing to mail them information on Paxton and get their initial assessment and opinion on the situation was so comforting. Before Paxton was to go under the knife again, Scott and Susanne wanted to make sure that they were doing the very best for him. When Paxton came back in one month for the next follow up appointment, his cardiologist would inform them of Paxton's fate. This was exciting, but extremely scary at the same time. It was difficult for Susanne to sort out her emotions when it came to this topic. She knew it was something that had to be done, but she cringed at the thought of her baby having to go through something so menacing again. Scott and Susanne's faith had gotten them through everything thus far, so this was no time to question it now.

After a three hour appointment at the cardiologist, Susanne had to make a quick stop at her work to drop something off to meet a deadline. Paxton got to visit with some of his favorite people including Aunt Julie and Aunt Cory. Julie was able to see him smile quite a bit. Everytime she would laugh in response to his beaming face, he would get startled. He just stared at her with amazement. He wasn't quite sure what to make of her. She was finally starting to show a little bit of a baby bump. Paxton and Susanne were getting so excited at the thought of him having a new little playmate...not the kind with bunny ears. Her pregnancy seemed to be flying by so quickly.

By the time Susanne was ready to leave, the skies decided to open up. It wasn't just raining, it was pouring. The rain was coming in from all directions...diagonal from both sides, left and right, down and even up. It didn't matter what Susanne tried to do to protect Paxton, he still got wet.

Susanne had to run a few errands on the way home, but she decided to forego the majority of them due to the inclement weather. Quickly, she realized that her journey home would not be straightforward either because it just so happened to be rush hour. No matter what she elected to do, she was in a sticky situation. Paxton was hungry and tired and so was his mother.

They finally got home well after six o'clock in the evening. Susanne got Paxton situated, then the animals, and then she could focus on herself. The only thing that would make her feel better was some yummy food and some good ol' trash TV. Hallelujah for "The Bachelorette".