An update on a variety of things.

First of all, an update on Reuben. After I posted last night, he and I went up to bed, and I didn't even bother putting him into his bed (a mattress on the floor within sight of our bed) but just tucked him in with me for closer monitoring. Matt and I decided that he (Matt) should sleep in the living room with our cell phone so I could call him from our home phone if I needed him, but so he could get some sleep, because unlike me, he can't go back to sleep in between seizures, so he had essentially been up for the whole night the night before.

Reuben was awake every 20-30 minutes last night for about a minute and a half at a time, vivaciously "talking" with me about whatever he could see - the moon! the glass of water! the cat! the pillow! - and then would be back to sleep as soon as I could get him onto his pillow.

But he had no seizures. Not a single one. And I know, because I was next to him all night long, and awake every 20-30 minutes, and there were no seizures.

What a joy it was today to wake up to a normal Thursday, and not an emergency admittance to the hospital for a VEEG.

He went all day today without any seizures. We always like that. ;) We don't need to set more personal records.

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Work happened on the house today! Even knowing what it entailed, Joel came back to help Matt fill the hopper for the cellulose blown-in insulation for the walls. Chad had time available today, too, so he was here for much of the day helping...with something. I don't know. ;) But all three men were pretty messy by the end of the day!

I am so excited to live in this corner of the living room! It looks out over one of our larger perennial beds, and will have a table in it for puzzles, crafts, (client meetings), games, whatever.

Looks like Joel's working and Chad's keeping him company. ;) (Just kidding Chad - I know you've done more work around here than anyone other than Matt!)

[Just got back downstairs from helping Reuben work through a complex partial seizure - the first one of the day, but apparently a reminder that the night ahead may not be quite as smooth as I was hoping for!]

Reuben was bummed that I wouldn't let him go out and "bum bum" with Daddy. Too messy. ;) This window is still our primary access between the house and the addition. Cutting it out will likely be one of the very last steps. 

Around 3, both Joel and Chad had to leave, and Matt was able to finish up the last few wall cavities at the entry by himself. The insulating is DONE!!

Over the next week Matt has plans to hook up the last of the fresh air ducts and get the mechanical rough-in inspection completed, put up the rest of the rigid insulation under the upper level radiant heat tubes, and frame up the mechanical chase in the basement so he can get the next load of sheet rock delivered because next week Saturday, he's got a group of seven guys coming to help him sheet rock! They're hoping with two teams of four (one for the main level, one for the basement) that they'll be able to get at least all of the big stuff done, if not ALL done. Super exciting. (But still a long way to go. Finish work is putsy work. So I'm not holding my breath for a grandma-moves-in-before-Baby-arrives situation, but again, I tend to be an optimist...Remember, Andrea, it will happen at the right time!!)

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And last, but not least, a few tidbits on Krassi.

He had an eye exam earlier this week, and there is nothing mechanically wrong with his vision, so he doesn't need glasses. ;) That's good. ;) Mr. "I don't want my hat on or my mittens on, or my sleeves below my elbows" probably wouldn't take well to glasses. He did not enjoy his eye exam, and told me so for the whole ride home.

Krassi is still not eating well (as far as quantity). He does not have any scheduled doctor visits coming up soon, so I'm thinking we'll need to do something just to check his weight (our scale is not good if you're looking for anything beyond a generalization. We may need to remedy that!) to make sure it's not declining again. Because I wouldn't be surprised if it was. That boy does NOT like to eat.

Along those lines, we're seeing him be more vocal and active about the things he does and does not like. He now will not only cry when he has to give up a toy, but if he even sees us handling something that he would like to play with but is not able to (or allowed to for safety reasons), even if he hasn't had it in his hand he will cry, and loudly, about it. It doesn't last too long, but he's pretty effective about getting his point across. This means that brushing and flossing his teeth before bed has also become increasingly difficult. Or putting his orthotics on. Because he's both getting stronger, and more comfortable expressing his own opinion about these things it is no longer as easy for us to just take care of them! This also manifests itself in more pleasant ways. Last night he was on the far end of the kitchen and Matt and Rinnah were in the living room starting to do their Wednesday night airplane ride routine. Matt told me later that as soon as Krassi saw what was happening, he turned on the speed and made his way over to the doorway between the kitchen and living room before Rinnah's ride was even over! He was so excited for his turn. And two more times that night he got himself right over by Matt asking, through his presence, for another turn.

HA! Got you, Dad!