58) A few random things

I've been struggling to write lately. Some of it feels like writer's block, but some of it is also due to having less time after dinner. We're well into June, approaching the summer solstice, meaning it's staying bright in the evenings, almost until 9:30pm. Because of the late light, the boys have had difficulties falling asleep. In the past two weeks, I think there have been maybe 3 or 4 nights where we haven't had to load at least one of the boys in the car, and drive around until they're out. Some evenings, they're not sleeping until 10:00 or 10:30pm, leaving minimal amounts of downtime.

For today's post, the first in a while, I'm just going to write about a few random things that have happened in the past little while. This was originally going to be last night's post, but J was having problems sleeping, so my wife asked if I could go lie down with him. I did, but I fell asleep too, and was TKO'ed for the night.

E just completed steroid week, and weirdly, it was fine. He sailed right through it. Almost every other time he's been on steroids, he's okay for the first 2 or 3 days, and then he turns into an emotional Baby Hulk. This time, I don't know been different, but there's next to nothing in terms of roid rage, and upset.

E has exited his PAW Patrol phase, and he's now into cars. Specifically Blaze and the Monster Machines, and Disney/Pixar Cars. If he's watching something, he usually wants Blaze, or Peppa Pig. He gets quite excited when one of his shows features a duck or a chicken. Most of his play activity involves driving around die cast cars of the Disney/Pixar Cars variety. He much prefers them over Hot Wheels, or Matchbox cars. Maybe it's the faces on the cars that he finds so alluring, I don't know.

The week before last, in a 24 hour span, E learned how to both push on the family room gate so that he can crawl underneath of it, and also how to climb out of his crib at will. He spent a couple of nights sleeping in our bed, in between us until there was a chance to convert his crib into a daybed, and buy a gate to install in his doorway.

J has been significantly better behaved for about the last 3 months, coinciding almost exactly with the time that he turned 4. He still has his moments though, but I suspect all 4 year olds might. J still has his poor appetite, and is picky like you wouldn't believe. We've also been giving him an iron supplement as directed by our family doctor. J has had low iron, likely due to his poor diet, and we think he's been feeling tired and unwell because of it. Whether it's the supplements helping him, or it's an age related maturity thing, a few of our worries and fears about him have recently eased, which is a good thing for two already stressed out parents.

A few weeks back, we were driving home from dinner at my in-laws' house. J was being his usual loud, fireball self in the back seat. I told him that if he settled down, and was asleep when we got home, I'd carry him up to bed. He didn't fall asleep, but he pretended to be asleep. I went along with it, and pretended to thinkg that he was asleep. I carried him to his bed, tucked him in, and didn't hear a peep out of him. My wife was SHOCKED that he stayed in his bed, but I said that he didn't have a choice. Because he had pretended to be asleep and I carried him inside, I could call his bluff if he revealed that he was actually awake. All of the sudden, we heard the sound of water running upstairs. My wife went up to investigate, and it was J. Under the category of c for cute, he'd gotten out of bed, and taken himself to the bathroom to brush his teeth because he didn't want to sleep without having done it.

I've mentioned in previous posts that now that E is in maintenance, he receives chemo every day. In our household, we go through a ridiculous amount of latex or nitrile gloves because we need to use a pair for every. Single. Diaper. Change. Recently, to entertain the boys, I've found that you can make a latex glove look like a chicken if you inflate it, tie it like a balloon, and then creatively use red, black, and yellow markers.

A latex glove inflated & coloured to resemble a chicken.