Another journey to the Eastern wastes!

On 5 July the Burgas family got on a plane and flew to Newark airport, and thence to Pennsylvania to visit our families. We stayed with my parents, but Krys and Norah did spend a night up in Pottsville, where my in-laws live. We had a good time, even though it was almost as hot as Arizona. It's a good thing global warming doesn't exist, or we'd really be in trouble!





On Friday and Saturday (6-7 July) we went to New York with my sister and her kids. We decided to leave Mia with my parents, because she wouldn't have liked it and riding the subway is not the most wheelchair-friendly thing in the world. We went to the Met on Friday and the Museum of Natural History on Saturday, because Norah wanted to see the museums and we figured it would be easier staying in one place than wandering around a lot, given the limited time we had. Norah enjoyed both museums - she liked the Egypt stuff at the Met and the dinosaur section at the Museum of Natural History - and my nephew and niece weren't all that annoying, as they certainly can be. We had dinner with my cousin, who lives in New York, and it was nice to see her. All in all, it was a pleasant few days.





On Tuesday we went to the Franklin Institute in Philadelphia - we figured the kids would enjoy it because it's a bit more interactive than the two museums in New York. We took Mia, but while we were there she pooped, so I had to take her home early (we didn't have an extra diaper) - luckily we took two cars because we had so many people. The Franklin Institute is always fun - there's a giant heart that people can walk through, there a Foucault's pendulum, and there's quite a lot of stuff kids can play with. My sister's kids were still around (my sister had to go to work, but her kids stayed with my parents a few extra days), so Norah had fun with them.



On Wednesday we drove up to Pottsville to see Krys' parents. We took Mia, but she and I didn't stay overnight, because it's too much of a hassle. Krys and Norah spent the night there, and Krys got to see her best friend, which was nice for her. Norah got to play in a creek, which is quite the rarity here in the Basin, so I think she had a gran old time too.



Finally, on Saturday we went up to Easton to check out the Crayola "Experience", which is the old factory where the crayons used to be made. Now it's just a place to learn about crayons and draw a lot, so Norah had a fun day. Mia actually enjoyed herself, too, which is always neat. She claimed she wanted to go home all the time, but she also got to paint and draw some stuff, and while she was doing that, she actually didn't whine about going home. We'll take it!



Krys and I got to go out with people, too, which is always a good thing. Generally, it was a pretty relaxing stay. I think Krys relaxed, too, which is good because she always has trouble with that at home - she always thinks of something else she could do! She had nothing to do in PA, though, so she calmed down. Good times!



It's always nice to go on vacation, and in a few weeks, Krys and Norah are going to Disneyland for a few days, so maybe that will be relaxing too. I don't know when we're going to get back to Pennsylvania with the kids, so I was glad we were able to see so much and so many people. Everyone likes seeing the kids!

Odds and ends

Man, time just gets away from me all the time!

Friday, 22 June was Norah's seventh birthday. Man, I'm getting old. I started writing this blog before she was born, after all. I don't update it enough, but that's still a long time. She had a nice weekend - she had a little birthday celebration at her "summer school" (it's more like a camp at which they sometimes do actual school work) - and on Saturday she had a party at Little Gym (the pictures of which are below). On Sunday Krys took her to see Brave, which she enjoyed even though parts of it were a bit scary (I guess the mom turns into a bear, which frightened Norah just a bit). She got an American Girl doll among her presents, and it has instantly become her favorite doll EVAH. She got a few other very nice presents and generally had a grand time. It's hilarious inviting boys to a girl's party - when the mothers call to R.S.V.P., they have to ask if other boys are going to be there, because their son can't be the only one!!!! Kids are awesome.



Mia has been having a rough few weeks, unfortunately. She's been really constipated, and because she was at summer school and camp so much, we kind of got behind trying to treat it aggressively. She's also eating hardly any solid food these days, so we think that makes her stool a bit mushy and she doesn't show her usual signs of trying to get it out, which are pretty obvious. So we forgot that she hadn't pooped in a while, and that made her sick. She has been throwing up pretty consistently over the past few weeks, even after we got her to poop a few times and clean some of it out of her system. Her doctor said that she probably still has quite a bit inside her, so we're trying even harder to get it out of her. Instead of giving her suppositories, we're giving her a lot of Milk of Magnesia - 120 ml twice a day. If you don't know how much that is, well, it's 4 fluid ounces, or half a cup two times a day. We were told to do that for three days and see what happens, and we really, really hope it works. Mia's lost a little weight and she seems kind of miserable recently - she's tired, the terrible heat (June was more awful than usual) is bothering her, and the constipation may be causing her gag reflex to work overtime, so we're even scared to brush her teeth in the fear that she's going to puke. If the Milk of Magnesia doesn't work ... well, that won't be fun at all.



Last week she got measured for a leg splint, which we hope will help her problems with stretching it out. The Botox and the muscle relaxant has helped, but we think keeping her leg stretched all the time will really help her. The orthotic guy is very good, and I'm hoping to get the splint before school starts (8 August) so she can start wearing it. I've gotten her leg almost all the way stretched while she's lying on her bed, but you can see how tenuous it is - she's always just a tiny moment of distress away from pulling her legs up to her chest. The splint will keep it stretched, of course, which might help her brain recognize that having a straight leg isn't the worst thing in the world.



We're heading to Pennsylvania on Thursday to see the grandparents and others; we're going to New York on Friday with my sister and her kids, and I have a feeling Norah will love Manhattan. We're also going to visit the Franklin Institute in Philadelphia; Mia won't be joining us in New York (we don't think she'll enjoy it at all, and we're staying overnight, so it would be a total hassle), but we think she'll enjoy the Franklin Institute. It's always fun visiting the grandparents, so I'm sure we'll have fun ... as long as Mia can stay regular!