Boston Days 18-22 ... HOME STRETCH!

Has it been five days? They've all just kind of run together. Here are some of the most exciting happenings.

Last Thursday we had some visitors--a friend, Stephanie, and her son Noah, who I've known only online for more than 5 years! We went on a walk to the park and the boys played some. It was a great distraction from the boredom.

Nate was starting to get around slightly better that day. He's still not walking, but he can get around when holding a hand or on to something.



This kills me. Nate thinks the Talking Carl app on my phone is the funniest thing in the world. These two had us laughing so hard we were crying.

 So, all week we said that Friday would be the day we went for a train ride. We did a little (very little) research and decided we'd take the subway (the T) to Waterfront Park. There is a T station close to us, and we could take the green line to the blue line, which would take us directly there. So we walked to the station, figured out how to purchase our tickets, and then when the train got there, the driver (are they called drivers?) had to get out and let the ramp down for Nate's wheelchair. He asked us what station we were headed to so he would know where to help us out, and we said Government Station. He said, "Nope, it's not handicap accessible, no elevator." So he had to let us off at the station before that and gave us this complicated plan for how to get to the Waterfront, starting with "Go sit and wait on that bench right there." We thought we were waiting for the orange line, so we were confused when we saw green train after green train. After a few trains, one of the drivers actually got out and asked us where we were going and said, "You would have sat there all day." :) He had us get on his train, go down two stops, get on the orange line, go one stop, and get on the blue line to go to the next stop. An hour and a half later, we got there. Even Nate was sick of riding the train by then. We were starving, and there happened to be a restaurant right outside the station, so we stopped to eat. While eating, I checked the GPS on my phone and found out we had gone 5 miles from where we started!!!!

Then we went outside and saw Boston Harbor, took a quick picture, couldn't stand how cold it was, and caught a cab back to the family house! Hahaha!

On Saturday, we had to run some errands and walked to a street where there were actually shops and restaurants. It was a nice surprise. Also, here's Nate sitting outside in his pajamas (it was really too cold for this) watching the green line behind the house.

Yesterday (Sunday) I woke up with a raging migraine. Took some medicine, got a little something to eat, drank some caffeine and went back to bed until 1pm. Then Nate acted like a little monster for a couple hours. That was pretty much the gist of that day. Not fun.

Today was a lot more fun. :) My friend KT who had come to visit us at the hospital came back to visit and brought her little girl, Taylor. She picked us up and took us to the Museum of Science Boston.  Remember the "ball thing" from the children's hospital? Well, there's an even bigger one at the MOS.

Of course Nate found some trains.

 

I think Nate and Taylor's favorite part was this little track where the kids could run/roll and see how fast they are going.

So fast he's a blur! 1 meter per second, to be exact.

And here's just the view from the museum. Boston is a pretty city!

Some other things worth noting. Nate has been using the potty a lot this week!!! He's doing great! He's nowhere near potty trained, but he's slightly less resistant to using the potty (sometimes) and he has a lot of success and knows when he needs to go. I'm very pleased with the progress. We have just happened to have the time to work on it.

One of Nate's favorite activities here has been playing cards with Granna. They play War, Go Fish, and all sorts of made up games. They've done crafts, like with popsicle sticks and glue and paint. We've played lots of board games, and Nate sometimes has problems with being a sore loser or a bad winner, but he's learning. His two favorite sayings right now are a whispered "Yes!" when something good happens and everything is "weird."

So now on to the really important stuff! WE ARE GOING HOME TOMORROW!!!! I know I said last week that Nate's appointment with Dr. Warf would be today, but it was moved to tomorrow morning at 8:30. Not really the ideal situation since Nate hasn't been waking up till like 9:30, and when he gets up earlier he has a meltdown (that is putting it mildly--it's actually like screaming until he passes out) around 4pm. Well, tomorrow at 4pm we will be on a crowded plane! Oh well, I don't know those people, and all I care about is getting through tomorrow and arriving home at 7:35 p.m.!

I don't anticipate any problems at Nate's appointment with Dr. Warf. His back is healing awesome, as is his head. He tires out a little more easily than usual, but that is a good thing, so he can rest. I have been working little bits at a time on getting him back up and walking some this week, but he hasn't been too interested. He LOVES that wheelchair--too much! But tonight while I was sitting here writing this, Nate came up next to me and said, "I'm going to try to walk a little bit" and just took off across the room!!!! It was so great! His first independent steps since his last surgery!

(If you're viewing on facebook, go here to see the video of Nate walking.)

I am so thankful to be going home. But I'm also thankful for the care Nate has received here and for Dr. Warf (we got him a UK bow tie as a thank you gift!). I'm thankful for my mom coming here with us, because I would not have been able to do this on my own, no way, no how. I'm thankful for the family inn, where we have not only received low cost lodging but also been able to spend time with other families who are going through the same kind of things we are and worse, and it's helped us feel not so alone. I'm thankful for a husband who could take care of our baby girl while I'm gone, and a mother in law who came three weekends in a row to help out at the house. I'm thankful Nate is healing well and on the road to recovery.

God has had his hands all over this. It has not been easy, but every need has been provided for. Thankful doesn't even come close.