Adjusting

On Friday morning I felt like our family maybe needed to have a special celebration for not only making it through this past summer, but also for making it through the first full week of school.  But then everyone got home from school, Anna had some physical therapy, and I figured that none of us had any kind of extra time or energy to do a celebration.

School seems to be going as well as can be expected.  At the beginning of the week, we all (Anna, parents, teachers, classmates, etc.) learned quite a bit about what it means for Anna to be back at school, but by the end of the week, everyone had settled into good routines.

Anna loves going to school every day, is full of good stories when I pick her up at 11:30, and has been taking a longer nap now that her entire system is being challenged on a daily basis.  But when she wakes up from her nap, she has been excited to do her homework (although it takes her much longer than it would for many other 2nd graders) and she even has energy for some home therapy and nursing visits in the afternoon.  Late on Friday was the only time all week that I saw a glimmer of bad attitude from her ... amazing.

Kate is doing well, too.  She was still hesitant about leaving us in the mornings at the beginning of the week, but thanks to her teacher and some creative motivation, Kate seems to be getting over that.  She is also full of smiles when we pick her up, but she doesn't usually recall many details about her day at school.  She will always be the kind of person who lives in the moment :)  It's fun to watch her adjust to kindergarten.

Ethan is a trooper.  Now that he and I have our mornings to ourselves, we are "free" to run errands and go places while the girls are in school.  This boy loves his van rides and is often the first one out the door when it's time to leave.  He likes going to new places, but sometimes seems a bit lost at home without Kate.  When he needs a buddy to play with, he'll find me and ask "pay tucks, Mommy?" (play trucks with me, Mommy?).

Matt and I are adjusting, too.  Our mornings are more stressful than they have been for a long time, and our evenings involve many things that must be done to prepare for the next day.  But summer is over and many other families are experiencing those same kinds of transitions.

Personally, I was amazed at all of the things I was able to do last week that I hadn't been able to do on my own all summer ... sort through Ethan's dresser (babies and toddlers grow so fast), rotate out some of the baby toys, vacuum the basement, go to Woodman's and a few other stores during the week (!), and go to story time with Ethan, among other things.  Every day still has its challenging moments, but the open time in the morning when the girls are at school and the time in the afternoon when Ethan and Anna are napping are gifts that I appreciate on a whole different level now.

Anna went to the hospital today (Monday) to have her g-tube peg switched to a button.  It's considered a surgical procedure even though no incisions are made because anesthesia is required.  Apparently they used to do this procedure during a clinic visit with no sedation, but it's pretty painful and so now kids are allowed to be given medications so they don't feel the pain or remember the experience.

Amazingly, things were ahead of schedule on the surgical floor today and Anna went in for her procedure almost an hour before she was actually scheduled!  Everything went smoothly and we were home in time for me to pick Kate up from school.  We were prepared for a long afternoon of waiting around again, but she and I barely even opened our bag of packed activities.

One of the personal challenges we have faced in the last few weeks has been related to the changing circles of influence in our life.  Over the summer, many of the people with whom Anna has spent time saw her at her weakest, at the end of April and beginning of May.  At that point, she barely had enough strength to hold up her head, and a ride to or from the hospital was enough to exhaust her.  At the beginning of July, she did not yet have enough strength and coordination to hold a marker and color.  We have watched Anna's recovery step by step and have rejoiced with all of the little successes.

With the start of school, Anna's circle has widened to include people who remember her before cancer, or who work primarily with healthy grade schoolers.  We are interacting more with Anna's peers and are reminded what Anna could have been like had she not experienced the kind of disease that she has.  It has been difficult to go back and forth between the world of medicine and the world of education, and yet retain perspective in each.  But we're trying, and for the most part I think we are all adapting.

Time for prayers

Thanksgiving
Please give thanks that our family made it through the first full week of school without major hiccups.
Please thank God for the wonderful community and educational system in McFarland.
Please give thanks that the g-tube switch went even smoother than expected.
Please thank God for the relaxed schedule of weekends for our family.
Please give thanks for all of the wonderful people who are continuing to work with our family.
Please thank God for the new school year routines.  Although parts are challenging, I think we were all ready for school to start.

Requests
Please continue to pray that Anna's treatments are 100% effective.
Please continue to pray for all those working with our family (hospital, home health, school, etc.).
Please continue to pray for Kate and Anna's teachers and classmates.
Please continue to pray for strength, wisdom, peace, patience, health, etc. for everyone in our family.
Please pray for the the family and friends of my mom's Aunt Ruth, who passed away over the weekend; please pray that they feel God's presence in their lives during this time.

Here comes another week!