Happy Birthday Graig, Contacts for Federica

Federica decided to get contacts so we took her to visit Dr. Houghten.

Happy Birthday Graigry

It was nice to have Graigry home for his birthday.  He had a few friends and his cousins over for games the weekend before.  On his birthday, he went to his BYU class and did other errands around BYU.  We had some gifts for him and a special birthday cake made from fresh fruit.

Bath Time

Buddy gets washed in the big yellow tub and then Milo gets washed in the hose.  Tyler is really nice to Buddy and heats up the water he puts in the tub.  Milo gets a cold shower.

First Week of School

Federica and Tyler, Seniors at Lehi High School

No More Tonsils, Driving Privileges for Melanie, Welcome to Federica

On Monday, Tyler had is tonsils taken out and they trimmed his uvula. They would have taken out his adenoids but he didn't really have any.  When we got to the surgery center, they put him in this cute lavender gown.  It is a pretty fancy suit that could be blown up with hot or cold air to cool or warm him.  A nice nurse named Mindi got him all prepped and put in an IV line.  The doctor came and explained again exactly what he was planning to do and how to take care of him after the surgery.  We waited for a LONG time (about an hour) before the anesthesiologist came to get Tyler.  The doctor put some medicine in his IV that he said would make him really happy.  About 30 seconds later Tyler said, wow that worked fast... and they wheeled him into surgery.

 The doctor came back quicker than I expected to report in and show me the tonsils he took out.  It reminded me of when I take my car to the mechanic for a repair and the mechanic shows me the old part to prove he really replaced it.  I knew Tyler would want a picture.  Dr. Porter said that Tyler's tonsils were bigger than he expected and kind of recessed.  He warned that his recovery might be worse than expected.  Dr. Porter is really hopeful that the surgery will get Tyler breathing better at night and hopefully make it so he doesn't need his CPAP machine.  We won't do another sleep study to check his sleep apnea for a few months.

When they brought Tyler back to me he was just waking up.  Heather was his nurse but Pepe was his CNA.  Tyler wanted me to know that Beonce was his surgery nurse.  I thought that would make a great story.  I asked Heather about that and she said his surgery nurse was actually has a name that rhymes with Beonce and she could see how Tyler might have heard wrong in his drugged state.  Tyler kept asking what happened to Cheryl his first recovery nurse.  He was really grateful that Cheryl held his hand as he was waking up.  When he got back to the room, Pepe spoon fed him frozen lemon Italian Ice.  He was a cute man and Tyler wanted to know where he was from.  When Tyler found out Pepe was from Peru he started talking to him in Spanish.  Pepe was really great to Tyler, getting him drinks and other food to eat.  He even helped him to the bathroom and wheeled him out to the car.

Once Tyler was settled in at home, I took Melanie to run errands and left Tyler talking to my Mom on the phone.  He just needed to hear a comforting voice over the phone because he talked with her for four hours.  I think most of that time she was just telling him stories.  

Later that night, Tyler got sick from the anestesia and threw up a few times.

The first errand with Melanie was to the DMV to have her take the written driving test so she can get her learners permit.  We wanted to sign her up for drivers education class at school but needed her to get a learners permit first.  We then ran over to UVU to pay for her UTA pass so she can ride the train and bus to school.

A lot of the week was spent nursing Tyler.  He has been pretty sore all week.  It is a good thing they gave him the whole week off work.  It was also fun to get ready for Federica to come from Italy.

Federica's plane was right on time.  Melanie and Tyler painted the sign to welcome her.  It was fun to see several other exchange students also meeting their host families for the first time.

First selfie on the ride home.

I couldn't help but have the words in my head from the song, "I watched it begin again.."

We look forward to having her as part of our family this next school year.

Lifeguard Games

Tyler had a great time this summer working as a lifeguard at the outdoor swimming pool.  He got really tan but most of all got to work with some of his best friends.  They trained all summer and then competed at the annual lifeguard games.  His team got 2nd in the state.

What the other lifeguards think of Tyler: