Happy Christmas!

Christmas is wonderful! Christmas at the hospital probably sounds gloomy, but it isn't. Not here, anyway. The kids have piles of presents from the hospital. I rearranged Sarah's room. Well, I did not do it. i requested that it be done, and i stood watch as three people who worked here did. I thought I had made a simple request. I wanted to turn the bed perpendicular to the way it was, so that i could set up a Christmas tree where Sarah could see it. I wanted a little Christmas corner, where we could sit together as a family and unwrap presents, and I wanted Sarah to be a part of it.

It was quite a thing, watching these nurses and techs maneuver the various lines and tubes. They are all hooked up to big bits of equipment, and connected to the bed. Have you ever played the game where you get a group of people to all grab hands- any hands- and then try to untangle temselves without anyone letting go? It was kind of like that. I kept apologizing. I had no idea it was going to be so difficult, They did it. They assured me it was no problem. I draped a hospital tray with a white sheet and I set up the tree on top. I piled the presents around the tree and scattered them down- not on the floor which is a dirty hospital floor- but on the sheet fell to the floor and trailed a bit.

Josh and Lily came, and we all went to Mass at the Shrine of the Immaculate heart of Mary. We were blessed with confusion about the appropriate time to arrive. We thought Mass was at 4, so we arrived at ten till. It was at five, but the seats were gone long before that. It was beautiful. The choir was good. Some children performed a pageant. Lily loved the angels!

After Mass we came back to the hospital and unwrapped presents. lily chose Sarah's presents first, She unwrapped Sarah's first doll, and she climbed on a chair so she could reach high enough without help to place the doll in Sarah's arms. It was lovely.

Josh and Lily celebrated Christmas Eve at his grandmother's house. I was not there, so I have little to note excpet that Lily asserts that the excursion keeping her out well past her bed-time was worth it.

Christmas morning was lazy here. Sarah and I slept in peacefully. Josh, on the other hand, had a very excited three year old. They did the Christmas morning thing, complete with a feast for breakfast, stockings filled brimful next to the fireplace, and mountains of presents. They did this all at my parent's house.

I did go home, to my parents' house, for Christmas dinner. It too was a feast, followed by yet another round of gifts. Aunt Lucy and Uncle Peter were there, and I had a lovely evening with only minimal worried for my Sarah. We left her in the care of a wonderful nurse.

Our house never did get decorated. That's OK. No one is there anyway. Our hospital room is decorated.

Sarah is looking well. She is still intubated. Tomorrow they are going to reevaluate, but they say they would like to give her a test to see if she is ready to extubate.

They have given Sarah a full sized hospital bed this time. She looks tiny in it! I have, thus far, resisted the growing urge to pile all her stuffed animals around her. We'll see.

The bed is cool. It does all kinds of neat things. It inflates in a rotation in one mode. That keeps her body moving, gently, while she is sleeping- sedated. That way the pressure moves around, so she does not get stiff muscles and bed sores. It also has a "Chest PT" operation. It basically thumps her back, gently but firmly, as you might if you were trying to burp a baby. That solid bounce helps her loosen some of the stuff in her lungs. It raises and lowers and inclines, as hospital beds do. It alarms if we forget to put the sides back up. It knows enough to not want to drop the baby. Its cool.

Christmas, so far, has been pretty wonderful. I have been surrounded by good people and laughter. I have enjoyed a feast. I watched my daughter thrill at one present after another, and very sweetly make sure her sister was not left out. What have I missed really, except the breakfast feast with scrapple and egg nog?

This really is the best place that you do not want to be. Maybe I will make it home before the end of Christmas. I am a Catholic, after all. We celebrate Christmas for a few weeks!