A Happy Baby. An Outside Baby.

I can't tell you how long it's been since we had a happy baby. Not a baby that's happy momentarily only to vomit 3 minutes later, but a happy baby. Full stop.

There's a very good chance it had something to do with the 12.5 hours sleep she had, with no resettling, back in her own cot. And there's an even better chance that being home, no longer on high alert that someone was going to sneak up and put a cannula in, or shove a tube down her throat, or take her obs, or put a camera down her throat, also helped.

She woke up at 8am. A first for this tiny dinosaur. And we headed straight to the climbing gym where all of the regular crew, who know Frankie very well, were waiting. They danced for her. They waved. And today...she smiled at them! All of them! She sat on a chair and simply played. She watched us climb. She stomped around like the owned the joint. And she was happy.

After an hour's sleep she woke up happy. She didn't wake up crying or vomiting. She was happy. We took full advantage, loaded the doggo into the car and took off on our second adventure of the day...to a huge off-leash dog area. Nuptse swam and Frankie seemed very keen to get involved too. Which is strange because we're so used to her hating everything. She's never liked sand. Dirt. Water has been hit and miss. Strange environments or sensations have always been very overwhelming for her. Not today though! Not for this happy girl. I grinned as I watched mud squelch between her tiny toes on her tiny feet that just says prior were bandaged up with a cannula. What a difference a day makes. She waded through the water and my heart sang for the moment we were being gifted. While other families might get hundreds of these moments throughout the week, for us, this was incredibly rare.

After yet another sleep she sat on the bed and watched while I cut her fingernails. Again...unheard of! Who was this kid? The Frankie I knew screamed and pulled her hand away. Is this the kid who has been hiding beneath all of that reflux and vomiting? The kid who has been just waiting to come out? Were the doctors right? Could a centimetre or two difference to the tube placement make a difference?

Don't get me wrong...she still had a vomit today when I gave her some avocado to try and my heart skipped a beat when she retched. I then felt horribly guilty that I would be the cause of her tube coming out of place ever so slightly and ruining whatever this joy we were experiencing was. And who knows...tomorrow might be back to hell. But today was a damn good day. Especially with the perspective that 5 days at the children's hospital brings.