Wren is sick

Wren woke slept lightly for a lot of the night and when I went in at 4am I found he had a fairly noticeable fever. I gave him Tylenol and he slept until 7.40am! This was fairly late even for our daylight savings morning and I think it was because he slept so badly and felt sick.

When he got up this morning he had a bad head cold and sneezing. His fever had gone in the early morning but came back before lunch and has remained at around 101-102 (I guess) until now, despite Tylenol.

He is not acting very ill - still running around and playing for short periods - but has a short attention span and likes to nurse a lot and be carried.

He has not lost his appetite and guzzled a tub of yoghurt at snacktime and chewed satsumas, goldfish and pears for lunch.

I hope he recovers soon and this doesn't become a family thing.

Toddler Property Laws (from infant preschool)

1. If I like it, its mine.
2. If it's in my hand, it's mine.
3. If I can take it from you, it's mine.
4. If I had it a little while ago, it's mine.
5. If it's mine, it must never appear to be yours in any way.
6. If I'm doing or building something, all the pieces are mine.
7. If it looks just like mine, it is mine.

Wren slept in

This is big news. Wren slept from 7pm-4.30am and then nursed. He woke again just before 7am.

"What, seven am?" I hear you say.

I nod.

"Blessed 7am."

It was so much later than usual that I managed to have a dream in that early restlessness. I dreamt that I got a Brazilian bikini wax by mistake when I went to the hairdresser. Don't analyze that. However, I have made an appointment with Laurie's hair-guy to have all my long hair cut off on April 4th.

The Finger Drama

Yesterday I called the police because I thought I had found a severed human finger in the garden. I found it among the dirt and sawdust while cleaning up the back yard. At the time the kids were making leprechaun traps and fairy houses and I was looking for the source of a rotten smell. I expected to find a bird caught by the kitties but instead I turned the earth and a rotten finger appeared on the surface.

Here is a picture of it in the bucket.



I asked my neighbors for their opinion and short of prodding and picking it up they felt it was real. We were all particularly impressed by the bit of gristle and bone protruding from the bottom. I also called the tree service which cut down our tree to ask whether they had had an accident while doing the job. My thought was that one of them had cut off their finger and lost it in the yard!

Of course, now I am out of the twilight zone such a quiet accident sounds improbable but at the time it seemed more likely than a raccoon stealing the finger from a neighborhood serial killer.

We emailed the picture to Joshua who commented that it looked rather like a rubber finger he had bought for Frost at Champion Party Supplies last Halloween. He said I should poke the nail with a stick and if it was rubbery then it was the fake finger. I kept thinking, but if its not?

Still, I managed to poke it and the texture was slightly rubbery if I tried very hard to believe so I canceled the police call (that was embarrassing) and promised to call them back if it turned out to be real when my husband had investigated it further.

When Josh came home he said it was definitely the fake finger. He remembered the shape.

Even then, I couldn't touch it.

The conversation with the tree service was very amusing. They assured me that they could not cut off a finger without the home owner noticing. And thus everyday reality was restored.

This morning I showed it to Frost and laughingly told him I had thought it was real. He said "Shannon that is very creepy" and when I offered him to take it to school [what was I thinking?] he wisely added "Shannon, that is very creepy. Its like a horror film. You wouldn't go and tell school about a new M-rated movie would you!"

I was chastised and put the finger in my pocket. All day I have imagined leaving the finger in different places (under the desk in the bank, on the seat of my car, in my pocket where I would appear to accidentally show it to someone) and fantasized about what people would do when they found it.

What would you do if you found what looked like a finger buried in your yard? How much investigation is warranted before you cry wolf?

A Domestic Accident

Yesterday evening Wren was playing in the garden and started crying suddenly. When I ran over to him I saw that his eyebrow had a small but deep cut bisecting it. It was bleeding a lot.

I called the doctor to see whether they might stitch it and they suggested I bring him in. I am glad they did. She said it was gaping and would need a stitch or two or a Dermabond seal to avoid a more noticeable scar. He will probably have a scar regardless although most of it will be in his eyebrows. I now have a reason to hope they are bushy.

He cried a lot when they squirted syringes of water to clean it and did not like being held down for the gluing. It worked well and was quick and he looks wounded but does nto seem to be in pain from it.

I am still unsure how he became injured and despite some sleuthing in the yard none of us has come up with a clear culprit.

We are going to try and babyproof the yard a bit more this weekend because he loves being out there and is very bold.

Hospital records and ponderings

Yesterday the mailbox contained a large cardboard envelope. It was copies of Wren's hospital and clinic records which I had requested from Children's. Apparently, it is a good idea to keep copies of these records.

This got me thinking, and thus googling Shone's syndrome/complex and anomaly. These terms are used interchangeably for Wren's condition. I found a new blog about a boy wo is ten with Shone's. He has had 2 OHS. I also found a record of a survey of the medical literature:

"Louis, J. D., et al. - Conclusions: Long-term survival of patients diagnosed with Shone complex is excellent. Operative strategies for this complex group should be individualized. Mitral interventions may generally be deferred."

This sounded very encouraging. I stopped googling before I found something ominous. It made me realize that I am still very anxious about Wren's survival. I just wish our cardiologist would say something like that all the time. Long term outcome is EXCELLENT. EXCELLENT!!!!!!

I feel better already.

Finally, a family photo

On dark afternoons when the house is full of rumpusing boys and the avocado has hit the carpet I feel I am single parent. However, this is not true. Most days Joshua is at work doing diligent and productive labor to support our way of life (and of food dispersal). He also helps a great deal at night since he is nocturnal and I turn into a ghoul after 10.30pm.

ASIDE: It is an interesting psychological fact that after 10.30pm and until 2.00am I lose any semblance of being a good parent. Even Frost has noticed it:

"Shannon, why do you kiss me goodnight and put me to bed and say nice things but when I come out of the bedroom you are very angry? You have a Dr Jekyll side."

Its true. I exhaust my last nugget of happy Mummy at books and bedtime and any child waking before I have recovered some Me-Time and Sleep gets The Shark Parent. SNAP!!! It is at these moments that Joshua is particularly useful.

Last night Frost woke with a night terror (a nightly occurance when he is slightly roused when I come to bed) and was babbling about Not doing it and You Love Him. Joshua calmly reassured Frost we love him too and took him to pee and tucked him in. It is Josh's theory that night terrors are caused by a full bladder. I don't know why terror and peeing are associated. Perhaps it is a boy-thing. I didn't say anything except "wake UP" and "Argh" and "God, he needs to start sleeping in his own bed." See, I am a total ....

Which brings me back to the family portrait taken by mum on the front steps. There we are - Josh looking slightly sinister, me posing as usual in a futile attempt to look fabulous, Frost caught between expressions and so somewhat blank and Wren rather puzzled because his photographic disposition is still to be determined. For now, he just wants the camera.

Granny is G-O-N-E

We are very sad to have seen my mother back to the plane to Australia. According to my calculations she is about to touch down in Sydney on the long trip home. My only consolation is that we could talk about our plans for a visit at Christmas.

Meanwhile, we have the kitchen contractor and his crew in to demolish the kitchen wall and install patio doors between the kitchen and back yard. The wall has already been removed and the frame installed. It is ridiculous how light and airy the room is. Wren has been upset by sheets of plastic and reciprocating saws but managed to nap through much hammering. Frost has taken the day off to 'watch' and just finished watching a movie with Josh and is polishing off the jelly beans Granny gave him.

Night weaning strategies revisited

This morning at 5.30am I was reviewing the night weaning literature.

Option A: cold turkey aka frantic baby. You just stop nursing at night and hope he gives up within three days as is "usual". No specific references to 14 month olds who like to nurse twice a night and get up at 5.15am.

Option B: gradual withdrawal. The troops remain in the bed each night but the volume is slowly reduced. You try and respond BEFORE he usually wakes but at around that time. Theory is that he will not associate crying with the milk arriving. Some crying and complaining may result but at least you know you are not leaving him hungry. You can't give in because you think he's thirsty.

Option C: Strategic delays. Each night you respond to crying AFTER a set time. The time drifts later each night or so. Eventually you are only nursing at a wake-up time. This is not such a shock to the system but involves crying at the usual waking time.

I am leaning towards option C. I am thinking of starting with 3am as the deadline.

Last night was ludicrously sleepless. Frost woke at 12.30pm and needed help. Then again at 1.50 with painful legs (growing pains?). I gave him tylenol. Wren woke an hour later and nursed. Then again at 4.30am. I nursed him in exhaustion and he slept for all of 15 minutes before crying. After ignoring him a bit he quieted then cried. When I went in he was still clearly tired by crying. Ugh. I got him up but he has been cranky ever since. I am not cranky because it was just such a bad night that you have to shrug about it. I shall be hitting Zoka for a double later on.

Today is my first Monday workshift at school so Heather, the nanny, will reap the benefits of his early rising and get a long nap this morning. I may ask her to wake him so I can steal a bit of it later. We shall see.

Mum is still visiting and is reading to Wren and entertaining him which is why I am able to type right now. I have also had a shower and washed my hair, normally on the Do No Do list according to Mister W. Mum is also coming to school to do a short talk on her trip to the Desert in Namibia.




The sun should be rising soon and perhaps it will be another sunny day. The summer garden plan is in its draft stage and Joshua and I have begun the annual debate about whether to grow peppers. He tells me that broccoli is on the list. Both our kids love to eat broccoli.

I don't often post pictures of Josh but I am not a single parent. Here are Josh and Wren in the basement with Frosts replacement kite in the background. Kite #1 was lost out to sea on a KapKa camping trip one summer. We shall not revisit the pathos here.

Mum and the Moon

The blog has been quiet in the past few days because life has been extremely busy. My mother is with us for a visit from Australia and we have been dashing about and Doing Things before collapsing in bed in exhaustion. Meanwhile, Mum has been taking some wonderful pictures of Wren and Frost and a few passable ones of me.

Here are a few. First, Wren playing with the brio trains. He loves to help them along the track and push them through the tunnel.
Tonight, we watched the total lunar eclipse. Even Wren saw it before bedtime.

Wren was playing the drum before we tried to photograph him. Then he was less enthusiastic.
Wren likes to help unpack the Pioneer Organics box. Here he has the carrots and is biting them on the couch. He offered to let me bite them too.

Aah! He will play the drum after all!