First appointment down

More adventures in Boston...

Sunday

We took our time getting started on Sunday morning.  Once Harlie was up, she started signing "fish" -she clearly wanted to go to the aquarium.  So, off we went.  We stopped at the front desk to ask them how to get to the "T" (train).  He told us to take a right out the doors and to follow the family that just left - because that's where they were going.

Once we were on the "T" the little boy in that family said, "So, you're staying at the same hotel we are."  I told him yes.  And then he told me that he is having surgery at the Children's Hospital.  I told him Harlie was, too.  He asked why and then told me why he was having surgery.  He was eight.  It was really cute to have that conversation with him.  It made me wish Harlie could have a conversation, too. At her age, she'd be able to talk to him about it, which would be really cute.

Anyway, we took the Green line to Government Center, where we switched to the Blue line and then got off at the aquarium.  We went to go stand in line and within seconds an aquarium employee came up to me and told me that we could skip the line and go straight into the building.  What?!  So, I thanked her and we headed on in.  Totally awesome!  Then they let her in for free!  Wowza!  Things were really looking up!

We walked all through and the kids had a good time.  I don't think I'm supposed to upload a lot of photos because I'm using a wireless card or something (not tech savvy over here) so I'm going to have to post photos later.

After the aquarium, we walked over to Fanueil Hall, which was pretty cool.  They have a Crocs store and Harlie needs a new pair.  So, we went in there and she flat out REFUSED to try any shoes on.  Which is really weird because she loves her Crocs.  Which might explain why she didn't want to try any on, now that I'm thinking about it.  They didn't have the ones that she has at home (I think they are getting too small).  Interesting.  And annoying.

Anyway, after that we went on a Duck Tour, which I thought was awesome.  I know the girls didn't appreciate all that the driver was saying, but Heather and I thought it was very interesting.  And the driver was pretty funny.  After the duck was in the water, he asked if anyone wanted to drive it.  So, Mallory and Harlie got to drive it for a little bit.

We were supposed to meet up with a friend of mine from high school, but unfortunately that didn't work out.  My brain wasn't as sharp after all the walking around we did and when we were figuring out the times of when we had to be where, I messed up.  Ugh.

After the duck tour, we headed back to the T to go back to the hotel.  It was a little after 8pm by then, and the girls were worn out!

We got on the Blue line and headed towards Government Center again.  We checked the map and found "Longwood" and took the Green line that would take us there.  I have to admit that Heather and I were pretty darn proud of ourselves for all of our navigation.

By this point, it is after 9pm and it is dark outside.  So, we get off at the Longwood stop (which is an outside stop) and I immediately set up Harlie's chair and get her in it.  While I was doing that Heather said, "Christy, I don't think this is where we got on."  I stop and look around.

Chirp, chirp.  

The station is almost empty (there is one guy on the other side of the tracks waiting for a train) and the street is dark.  And Heather is right.  It is NOT where we got on the train that morning.

We look at the map and realize that there are TWO freaking Longwood stops.  One is just "Longwood" and the other is "Longwood MEDICAL."  Great.  I know exactly what we did.  We were tired.  We looked at the map, found Longwood, and stopped looking, so we never even saw that Longwood Medical was a different stop.  On a different line.  So, getting back on the train really wasn't a good option.  That would have cost us a lot of time.

We look down the street to our right.  Pitch black.  No city lights in sight.  Just a bunch of trees.  We look down the street to the left.  Exact same.

And then Mallory yells, "ARE WE LOST?"  Both of us shush her immediately.

We can see from the map that the Children's Hospital appears to be in the middle of the two Longwood stops.  So, it looks like it's not that far to walk it.  But, what are we walking through?  We didn't know the area at all.  Was it safe?

Heather pulls up the GPS on her phone and we decide to try walking for a little bit.  Within just a minute or two we got up the hill and then civilization!  Woohoo!  And we walked straight "home" to the hotel without incident.  And - just to note - it was actually a more direct and quicker route than the one the hotel staff recommended that morning.  Nice.  Thanks, a lot guys!

So, on our way back, we got to explain to Mallory why you don't shout, "ARE WE LOST??!!" in an unfamiliar place.  At night.  Mallory now knows the meaning of the word, vulnerable.  And then Heather and I were proud of ourselves once again for figuring things out.  We're awesome.

The girls fell asleep and Heather and I stayed up into the wee hours drinking wine.  Again, laughing and talking and having a blast.  Oh, and eating a bunch of cold pizza and candy.  It was a great day.

Monday

We got a really late start to Monday.  We took the T back to the aquarium area.  It was lunch time and we were hungry.  Heather wanted to try a Lobster Roll.  So, Tom found the Yankee Lobster Fish Company and said we should go there.  Unfortunately we had to take a cab.  But it was good.  And then we headed back towards Fanueil Hall (near the aquarium).  We walked along the shops and since I am pretty stubborn, too, I took Harlie back to the Crocs store to see if she was in a better mood to buy some new shoes.  Nope.

Then we headed back to the hotel for our 4pm appointment with the oral surgeon and another surgeon.

Heather's flight didn't leave till 8pm, so they went with us to our appointment.  And I think that had to have been fun for Harlie.

4pm Pre-op consult with Dr. Padwa and Dr. Taghinia

I'm going to try to brief, because it is now 11:50pm and Harlie JUST fell asleep and I am struggling to keep my eyes open.

The highlights are:

1.  I really liked both doctors.  We had a comfortable conversation with laughing (which always wins me over).

2.  Dr. Padwa (oral surgeon) thinks she might wire her mouth shut for a few weeks.  But she won't know for sure until she gets in there and sees how things look and how things go.

3.  She examined Harlie's mouth and just with a little bit of touching, Harlie gagged a little.  She is a little concerned that Harlie won't be able to tolerate getting the dental molds tomorrow.  This was my worry, too.  So, if it doesn't work tomorrow, they are going to sedate her for the CT scan on Wednesday and do it while she's sedated.

4.  Dr. Taghinia will be working with Dr. Labow to harvest the bone and vascular tissue from her fibula.  I asked if they are going to take a vertical sliver or slice from her fibula.  And he said, no.  They are going to take a section of the whole bone from the middle of her leg.  So, they are going to cut her bone in two places and take the piece from the center. I asked if they are going to replace it with anything.  And he said, "No."

WHAT?!?!

So bone will go down from her knee and will just end.  And bone will come up from her ankle and just end - without the bones touching in the middle.

Isn't that crazy?!?!

Apparently that is not a weight bearing bone and we don't really need it.  But it still seems pretty freaky to me.  I can picture those x-rays now...

5.  Her leg will be casted for a few weeks and she will not be able to bear weight.  So, that should be fun.  Have I mentioned how much I love her new stroller?

6.  Just in case you're curious (as was I) they take turns taking breaks to eat, drink, etc. during the surgery.  It will last 10 hours, give or take.  I told them I did not want them to be distracted by their hunger.  It was actually a funny conversation.

7.  After we covered all the info, Dr. Padwa asked how I was doing.  Nice, huh?

Then we left.  We stopped to get Heather and Mallory some dinner before they had to head to the airport.  Then we went back to the hotel, Heather packed and we all headed to the T station.  In the meantime, my friend from high school (Mike) was on his way to meet me for dinner.  On our way to the Longwood stop, we met up with him.  Then we had to say good-bye to Heather and Mallory.

I am so thankful for them coming up this weekend.  We all had so much fun.  And I think Harlie and Mallory got to bond a little.  They were actually very cute together.

So, then me, Harlie and Mike went to dinner.  It was great to catch up with him.  Thanks for dinner, Mike!

So, you're all caught up now.  We have to be at the hospital at 10am for our first appointment.

That's it!  More later!  Thank you!!!
~Christy