Time

How about a song?



Ready to sleep!


How is it that such a little kid can take up so much time? Mary and I keep asking that. He sleeps and eats. Those are the two highlights of his day and night. It seems simple, but any parent can tell you, a little one can take up quite a bit of your time. Now this is sounding like a complaint, but I can assure you it is not. It has been a great week. Joseph has done well. He continues to grow. We watched the baseball playoff games together and even some football and NASCAR. He was very happy that Notre Dame got their first win of the season---although I scared him a bit when I celebrated an interception as he was falling asleep. While Joseph hung out at home we mixed in soccer games with the girls, work, practice, school, homework, church, and a few movies at home. Hunkering down is pretty good when you are with family. Mary has many scheduling issues to deal with to keep things operating. She has done an amazing job of keeping everything running somewhat smoothly.

We have been in a good rhythm, however, Joseph has given us a few scares just to keep us on our toes. The tubes in his nose get clogged on occasion. We have to suction them out several times a day. I will spare you the gross details but I will say that it takes a little getting used to. He has trouble breathing and he is still learning to breathe through his mouth when his tubes are blocked. He will have to master this skill before the surgery to remove the tubes. I think I have written before that infants are "obligate breathers." This means that they have to breathe through their nose because they do not know to open their mouth to breathe. Joseph had 100 percent blockage of both nasal passageways. What is interesting about this fact is that Joseph went two days after he was born without a breathing tube. Medically this is not supposed to happen. Infants with 100 percent nasal blockage have to be put on a breathing tube right away. They figured that he had some opening on at least one side because he was able to keep breathing. The doctors were shocked during the surgery to find out that he was completely blocked. Devine intervention is how I explain it. Joseph had several miracles along this path and I thought it was important that you know about the first one he received. The prayers kept him breathing.

We are and always will be, grateful for what Joseph has received. Until next week---

Kenny and Mary