An arrival of good news

“Gone to the gym, back at 9:30″ I thought of writing… But Christian already knew I was going before he left for the airport. I grabbed my coat, keys and gym pass, feeling the excitement of getting back into my routine workouts, which had been abandonned for some time after the miscarriage, in favor of House and Grey’s Anatomy. I came back home to Christian who had decided to shovel the walk. These past few days, snow fell like icing sugar, enough to dust everything white, but not enough to worry about. It has noticeably accumulated on the non-major roads where our little Honda Civic spins and slides before finally getting ahead.

“So, everything went well?”
“Yes! The flight was only 10 minutes later than they said”
“And David is fine?”
“Yes… he’s really excited about Sébastien. He’s eating everything!”
“Is he digesting what he eats?”
“Yes. Except for that piece of carrot that came out of his ostomy, but yes, he digests everything. They give him yogurt in the morning… And they’re teaching him how to crawl!”
“Wow! That’s amazing!” Amazing how not long ago we were so worried, and now everything is looking so promising.

Later as we are about to go to bed Christian remembers: “Oh and it’s cute… Sébastien sits in his chair and plays with toys while listening to a movie and David and Jasmina can leave him alone. And when the credits role, he waves ‘Bye’ to the tv screen.”

I smile. I don’t recognize the Sébastien that I remember from some months ago. He is changing and growing and charming us all with his vivacity. His platelets are up and he is scheduled for a small operation on Tuesday to remove his NG tube and have instead a tube that goes throught the skin to the stomac, thus continuing his enteral nutrition. This will facilitate eating for Sébastien, as he will no longer have to contend with the irritation of a tube in his throat.

Quote of the day

“Call them what you will — rituals, routines or almost-superstitions — these patterns impart the sense that your day will go well, that there’s a cause-and-effect relationship within your power to influence,” writes Connie Midey in The Arizona Republic. “If not taken to extremes, they can even enhance your physical and mental health. . . . Studies by Barbara Fieseof Syracuse University and other researchers have shown that the security of following such routines can reduce stress and promote overall well-being. Kids expected to do chores, join family meals and go to bed at regular times, for example, experience fewer respiratory illnesses, Fiese found.” Believing you must apply lipstick before leaving your bedroom, putting your clothes on in a particular order or drinking a morning latte, “is pretty normal,” says Michael Shermer, a former psychology professor and founder of the Skeptics Society.

Who knew schedules could help kids avoid respiratory problems?

A cheery call

I try to reach Jasmina to tell her to take a peek at the new blog - I’m anxious for her reaction, but she says she’ll call back. Right now she is busy: Sébastien is eating, carrots, pizza, watermelon… and they have a visitor. The last time I called, I was excited to catch Sébastien’s voice in the background saying “Go, go…” Every child is special, every child is the cutetest, and more so when you know them. Sébastien certainly charmed a reporter here last Christmas…

Later in the evening, the phone rings as I sit watching the Academy Awards and guessing with Christian which nominee will win the award over Lemon and Ginger Yerba Maté. As soon as I say “Hello” Jasmina passes the phone to Sébastien who is in a cheery mood after his bath and ostomy change. He is babbling and the bird-like twitter makes me smile as I put him on speaker phone for Christian to hear. We listen, as though we were spying in on his imaginary conversation with an invisible character – perhaps Dora the Explorer. I suddenly realize that Sébastien is changing and feel a tiny regret that we’re so far away. Jasmina comes back on to say that he is beginning to stand by himself and teases saying that by the time we come, he’ll be walking. David is coming back on Tuesday and is bringing with him a videotape of Sébastien. In anticipation I’ve set up a YouTube account. Check back soon!

Where is the old blog?

It’s like the recent Swiffer commercials, when the business woman looks across her desk to the feather duster and says that she’s sorry, she has to let it go, and merrily adopts the far more efficacious Swiffer. For us, Blogger was the feather duster, and WordPress is the new Swiffer. I didn’t think it would have to be so obvious… I’d hoped to discreetly incorporate all the Blogger posts into WordPress (Surprise!), but since Blogger has upgraded, the plug-ins, and workarounds it would have needed to import would have been too much and too risky for my limited computer knowledge. In order to view the 2005-2006 blog postings by Jasmina, you can click on “The old blog” (right hand side).

What do you think of the new “Swiffer” version?

The Gift

Last night, I successfully added the PayPal Donate button. My Prince, immersed in a cartable of homework witnessed my victory dance as he officially tested the button and donated 5 $ to see how it works. The PayPal donate option had already been suggested by a family friend back when Sébastien was still waiting for a transplant. I was unwilling to install PayPal anywhere on the website because it seemed to me to be too upfront. Since then, I suppose one can call it a change of heart… A button is a suggestion, making a gift so easy to do - a click, a supply of information, and done. 

Why do we offer the donation option?

Showing you that you can donate takes some guts. For anyone, receiving in time of need is often harder than giving. There never could seem to be enough “Thank-yous” to express gratefulness. In the end, it’s a matter of trust. The person who gives trusts that their gift will be used for something good, even though they risk not benefiting from it directly. The person who receives trusts that the giver will think no less of them for taking the donation. We can’t say that your donation will further medical research. We can’t even offer you a tax rebate. We aren’t able to guarantee that you’ll be feeding a family for one month. Instead we can try to explain that Sébastien will be needing it soon for the anti-rejection drugs he’ll be taking as an outpatient. Instead, we can hope, along with you, that someday, you will see him walk. We hope, along with you, that you can see his smile in person.

Working on a surprise

Hello to all,

When creativity is confined to the indoors, one may end up with a redesigned bedroom, an organized house, or even a new blog! It is still a surprise, a surprise dedicated to our godson Sébastien. The website will be one year old, and receiving the subscription notice by e-mail, prompted me to give into the urge to re-design. It all starts with the blog…

Where did the name come from? 

As I sat setting up a WordPress account - the only way to really experience what it really had to offer - the site asked for a name. I was tiring of the uncharismatic “Mom’s Journal” and decided something a little more romantic would suit the site. Looking for inspiration, I picked up the Valentine’s Day card Jasmina had sent the day before. Jasmina had written on Sébastien’s behalf: “Tu occupes une place de choix dans mes pensées”. That’s it! The aha moment was that simple. Sébastien has ”une place de choix” in our hearts that doesn’t easily translate. In a bigger sense, Sébastien is where he is because of his parent’s choice to fight for his life.

And mamarraine?

Mamarraine was a bit serendipitous, as Ma Marraine was easily Mama and Marraine (Godmother) at once, reflecting that this blog, unlike the first would have two authors. One could hardly expect that anyone, not even the superwoman Jasmina herself could keep up a blog and take care of a two-year-old 24/7. In order to encourage website traffic, creating something that could have two inputs seemed like the solution.

Now, if I can just get the PayPal donation button up…