Naso what? Videofluoro what?

Today our little trooper added yet 2 more medical procedures to her ever-growing list of invasive things that a 4-year old should never be subjected to -- all in preparation for possible p-flap surgery in August (I lose so much sleep over these things). First up was the nasopharyngoscopy which involved numbing one of Helaina's nostrils then snaking a very long, thin, flexible tube/camera through her nostril and down the back of her throat (eeewwwww) to view the p-flap in action, all while the doctor instructs her to speak, say certain words and make certain sounds. Before Dr. Bob started (he was absolutely wonderful) I warned him that the adorable, charming little girl he had been chatting with so nicely can go from zero to wildcat in under 4 seconds flat. "Ok, well maybe she should sit on your lap then." Yah, good idea. Our little gal surprised the heck out of Jim and I by being SO brave and so cooperative that we were astonished. There were a few tears when the cotton-soaked numbing solution was being inserted in her nostril then some squirming when the tube was being snaked on through (can you blame her), but she sat still and said all the words and sounds they asked her while capturing the flap in action on several TVs in the room. We even got a DVD copy to take home and watch for ourselves! Helaina is so funny. As soon as we got home she said to Jim "Can we watch the movie of my throat?" Warning: gross picture up next. The flap and x-ray pics on the DVD cover aren't of Helaina. Won't find this movie rental at any video store now, will ya?

Next was the videofluoroscopy - a little bit scarey with the GIANT x-ray machine in a relatively small room. Jim, myself and a crowd of people in the room (technicians, radiologists, our speech pathologist who ran the show, and a few interns) all got lead vests to wear. Helaina then got strawberry scented "milkshake" (which was actually some type of barium) squirted into both nostrils. She was supposed to sniff it in but she fought that part - definately didn't like it and cried a bit. After that she had to stand still in front of the machine while our speech pathologist positioned her head in 100 different directions while instructing her to say certain words and sounds, all being captured on a blue-screen TV in the room. We could see her whole head on the TV and we could see right through it - her eye sockets, nasal area, swallowing movements. I watched for a while then had to turn away because it started to make me feel weak! Jim, of course, thought it was great. "Look, at her teeth." No thanks, that's another future nightmare. Helaina was so good and cooperative through the procedure. She was hungry, thirsty, tired and wanted to go home in the worst way but she endured and did what was asked of her. For both procedures everyone commented on how cooperative she was and what a good sport she was. I was practically in tears, but Helaina did great. We are so proud of her. During her bath tonight the "milkshake" was still leaking out of her nostrils. While trying to clean it up I said to her "You didn't like that stuff being squirted up your nose, did you?" Her response: "No I did not and don't ever take me there again!"

All cozy in bed tonight in her Disney Princess jammies with her clown sheets, Dora pillowcase and her new favorite stuffed animal, Buckle the horse (more on Buckle some other time). Night night, sweet dreams, my brave little warrior - you deserve sweet dreams after the day you had today. We're headed out on a much-needed 3-day adventure tomorrow morning and we can't wait to get out of town and think about nothing but fun!

We went fishing last weekend but caught no fish (gee, what a surprise). It was sunny and not windy at all at our house that morning but out on the lake was an entirely different story. Windy and choppy as all heck. I snapped this picture as we were gaining speed after getting out of the marina and Helaina was laughing hysterically. She loves going fast and bouncing over the waves.

"Daddy, I want the shiny purple octopus on my pole."

Sunny and choppy. There were birds diving into the water after some small fish. At one point I thought they were after us (I had a Tippi Hedren Birds movie flashback). They were coming so close and were very agressive.

Safely made it back to the calm marina. Helaina loves driving the boat with her Daddy.

Parkway Sundays

Parkway Sundays are here. "Agadaga" Lake parkway is closed off from traffic for 3 hours each Sunday morning and people gather to walk, ride bikes, rollerblade and jog right in the 4-lane road. Helaina thought it was cool to ride in the "big road" without any traffic to be careful of. It also meant a stop at her favorite park, and fortunately the mister was going today. "I get wet?" she asked when she saw it. Sure, why not, it was a hot morning and she squealed with delight. "I soaked!" she said when she was finished.

Of all the kids playing at the mister, Helaina got the wettest.

Helaina liked exploring the Butterfly Garden of Hope right on the parkway. "We go back to that bazebo?" she asked. "Bazebo" is 4-year old talk for gazebo.

Sniffing the pretty roses.

Throwing stones in the lake. What form she has.

Checking out the pigeons nesting in the bridge.

Yet another scorching hot day. I think we've been in our pool at least once every day since it's been filled with water. Jumping into Josh's arms.

Big brother is lots of fun in the pool.

Saturday night dinner at Tulley's - the cousins.

Back to work tomorrow for Jim. I think he needs the rest.

Once a year at Darien Lake is enough

Darien Lake is a great amusement and water park but once a year is enough for me. The park is huge and spread out all over the place which means lots of walking to get from one end to the other - several times. We spent almost 9 hours at the park. 89 degrees and not a cloud in the sky - sounds perfect, right? Not for me - way too hot! We spent more time than usual in the waterpark to try and stay cool.

Helaina and Josh in the spinning balloons.

A flying Dumbo, what luck, and the kiddie ferris wheel.

Tin lizzy cars. Helaina was annoyed that she couldn't drive - her foot didn't reach the gas pedal.

Cooling off with a ride down a water slide.

Helaina liked this red curvy water slide. Josh helped her climb up the netting and passed her off to Jim. Josh swooped her up when she would come flying out the bottom.

Running through the water mushroom.

Josh rode this motorcycly roller coaster 3 times in a row.

Helaina's all-time favorite ride is the kids roller coaster. I don't know how many times she rode this, but it was a lot. She rode in the front, the middle & the back and she liked the front seat best - our little daredevil.

Arms up for an extra thrill.

Bumber cars and motorcycles.

8:30pm, alseep pretty quickly on the way home.

No time to recover from Darien Lake. Jim took a 4-day weekend so we were off to a bounce house, the next day at Helaina's request.

Earlier in the week I took Helaina to Snip-its for a trim to try and even out the scraggly ends of her hair. She's holding in her hands the prize card and 2 lollipops while she balances the entire bucket of lollipops on her lap. Good thing they are sugar free.

Well, baby birds finally flew the coop. They were getting too big to fit in the nest. All in one day, one by one, they stood on the end of the nest then decided to take flight. They didn't go far from our yard that first day and Mommie Robin continued to follow them around with bugs in her mouth. See, it's even hard for robins to let their babies go off on their own!

"Are you ready?"

"Are you ready? Catch me!" That's all the warning we get and then we better be ready to catch the 44 pound jumper. Helaina waits for nothing. There have been a few close calls. I predict that the first full head-under-water experience will be when she jumps off the edge too soon before someone is there to catch her. Oh well, maybe she'll like it!

Penguin Palooza at the Zoo

When you combine a trip to the zoo with all the ice cream you can eat, how bad can it be? The Penguin Palooza is basically a huge ice cream social, with ice cream stations situated all over the zoo - help yourself to whatever you want and as much as you want. And yes, there is such a thing as too much ice cream. At the end of our evening on the way out we rounded a corner and there were 2 more ice cream stations, one serving rootbeer or orange floats and the other serving ice cream sundaes complete with chocolate sauce and whipped cream. Josh and I passed because of ice cream overload, but Helaina and Jim found room in their bellys for the floats. Let's just say that Helaina was experiencing sugar overload (as we all were), and it's a good thing the Palooza is only once a year.

Helaina got to meet Romani tonight for the first time and as usual, she could hardly contain herself while waiting to touch this amazing animal.

A few tricks from Romani's performance.

There were lots of games for the kids to play, complete with prizes whether you won or lost.

A few funny animal pictures.

Momma and baby swan.

Obsessed with finding the face painting station from the moment we arrived at the zoo, Helaina finally got a penguin painted on her cheek.

Squinting into the sun, she wanted me to take a picture of her cheek so she could see it.

Brother and sister penguins.

Josh was excited to find out that former SU basketball player "G-mac" was at the zoo. We waited in line for a few autographed pictures and this photo. Helaina was impressed when I told her that Gerry knew Otto the Orange!

"Oh, there's Siri and Romani again!"

The fire department always has some trucks in the zoo parking lot for the kids to check out and get behind the wheel. Helaina waited for her turn and was hoisted up into the driver's seat by a firefighter.

Earlier in the day we had a much-too-short visit with Helaina's Aunt Terry and Uncle Mike. After they left Helaina said to me "I forgot to play Candyland with Aunt Terry. She loves games." Maybe next time, if Candyland lasts that long. It is Helaina's absolute favorite game to play lately and we all play it with her at least ten times a day. Jim, Josh and myself included are sick to death of it but for some reason Helaina can't get enough of it.

A few days ago I parted the leaves on the robin's nest tree and this is what I saw. The babies have gotten so big so quickly - must be because Momma robin keeps bringing them back lots of bugs to eat. They are getting so big now that I can't believe all 3 of them still fit in the nest.

Helaina had a full day today and hopefully she'll sleep well tonight. I know I will.