Homecoming set for today!

We've done our training and we are set to bring our little guy home this afternoon! Mike made it up to the hospital yesterday afternoon and we spent the rest of the day together doing Ian's feedings with meds, gave him a bath and did his G-tube clean-up. I've been there the last 4 days until late evening doing it all as well.

Yesterday, after dropping me off at the hospital, and visiting Ian, (which is always such a sweet but hectic time with Lila) my sister took Lila to the zoo. After which, they went back to her hotel for a sleep-over and are flying up to San Jose this morning to stay with my parents in Aptos for the week. It's so sad she will not be here for the homecoming. When this plan was originally in place, he was to come home on Friday and we would have the weekend together as a family of 4 (or 5 if you count our dog Bella) and leaving Monday would have been a great break for all of us. But because I was sick and it pushed his homecoming off a few days the plan was revised and Ian will come arrive at a home without his big sister awaiting him. I'm sure it will be fine as we will have the whole week to get adjusted and, hopefully, be much more in control and organized upon her return. My parents are driving down at the end of the week and she will ride with them to return. We will miss her so but we're hoping that between my parents, three sisters, two nephews and four nieces who live up that way she'll have plenty of family to keep her having fun.

We all arrived right at his noon feeding time. My brother-in-law popped in to see him for a minute and then swapped places with my sister while I prepared to nurse him. Lila stayed in with me and was giving him hugs and kisses. I have it down so that I begin his feeding by nursing him and after he's been on for a few minutes and is beginning to get frustrated because he's not able to take in enough to fill his tummy quick enough, I give him a bit through his g-tube. This way he'll keep nursing and associate the act with getting full. Lila and my sister helped with this portion. I'm not sure how Lila's little mind was making sense of it but I thought we might as well introduce it now, and she really wanted to help, so I just went for it. After her asking questions and holding the syringe I could see her little mind working to figure it all out.

We finished up with the feeding and I put Ian back in his crib to walk them out. She was being kind of fussy anyway and kept tripping because of her shoes. They must be too small or something. We gave a hug and she went off with my sister. I told her the when she came home her little brother would be there. She seemed very excited but frustrated to go. They started to head down the hall and then she turned around and called me. She began to run back and tripped and fell. So sad! I gave her a hug and they headed out again. Life would be very different next time I saw her. At least we'll all be home together.