6-8 am - this is quiet time...and the only real time in the day that i can catch up on emails etc. Nurses generally begin their rounds at around 630, cleaning staff is in by 730. The hot water doesn't get turned on until 7 ish so it's often a rush to get showers in for Trent and I between 7 and 730.
7:00 AM - Mmmm....instant coffee. The only real sort of coffee to be found is espresso beverages at the cafe. Nobody drinks perked coffee. It's all instant....and comes complete with "cream" and sugar.
8:00 AM- Morning meds....there is also noon meds...4pm meds...8 pm meds...and IV meds. It's all good fun! (that was sarcasm...trying to convince a 5 year old to take consume a pharmacy a day is a little difficult)
Playing is a good way to start the day! The dr. usually comes in at this point and tries, to no avail, to engage Tatyanna in some form of conversation. The constant poking and prodding has left her a little wary of anyone wearing white. Her usual attitude is very much one of "if I don't look at them or talk to them....maybe they'll just go away" It's a little frustrating for everyone. The dr.s here are amazing! I wish I could bring the medical staff home with me. 
930 AM - As soon as Tatyanna leaves for therapy with her dad, it's shower time for Lexi
930 AM - At Occupational Therapy/Speech
Playing with the fish with the OT therapist. OT is Tatyanna's favourite therapy.
1030 AM - Rainy days = much computer playing and TV watching
11:00 AM - Physical therapy. Tatyanna doesn't really like PT as she is made to do things that she doesn't want to do...and always gets sent out with homework.
We still haven't figured out if she's in room 12 or room 21 and we know that is says Tatyanna....we are also fairly certain that what's written after her name reads "the one with the bratty little sister" in Chinese, but we can't be sure.
12:00 - Lunch is generally rice...or noodles...or sometimes, if we are feeling particularly adventurous, rice and noodles. 
1:00 pm - Pearl/Hongqio Market - My first kid free moment of the trip thus far! A great many of the buildings here are being renovated or restored for the Olympics. Within a few months the city will be a totally different place. It's kind of fun to watch the transformation!
This is one of the allies that branch off the lane leading to the centre. The lane is truly a fascinating place and seems to be its own micro community. The lady that cleans our room informed me that the second second door in is her home. What are the odds of that happening?! I've got to say that I felt a little strange, but she didn't seem to mind at all.
11:am. & 3:00 pm - "The Food Lady" - She comes around several times a day to see if we want to order anything from the menus seen in her arms. It's interesting to see what we get sometimes as she doesn't speak any English and half the menus are in Chinese. Usually, we just order dinner and make our own breakfast and lunch. Dinner for 4 here generally costs us less than $100 RMB ($15 CAD)
1:00 - 4:00 - Today because I am out, everyone feels sorry for Trent and stops by to help out. These are 2 of our favourite people here and have really gone out of their way for the girls.
6:00 - Dinner! We actually found a menu that said "No MSG" on it. I wouldn't be surprised if this will be our first MSG free meal since we've arrived.
Rice and curried vegetables. Yummo! (Actually, I believe that Rachael Ray is really the only person who can get away with saying that.)
6pm-9pm - IV meds. The time is variable and depends on the number of meds on that particular day and when we chose to have Tatyanna sit quietly. Usually we start earlier in the day as numerous bags of fluid equals numerous trips to the bathroom.
9pm - Once the kids are sleeping, Trent and I pretend to watch T.V. We have the entire series of Firefly as well as Season 3 of the unit. If you watch an episode or two of one, then the other, it's kind of like being at home....sort of.
1 comment:
Wow. I know I just wrote you an email, but I thought I'd comment here too. Thanks for posting pictures! It's amazing to have the visuals that really provide the full scope and impact of what you guys are doing. I'm glad to hear you got a bit of time to have an adventure, and that Tatyanna has some therapies that she likes. And good call on bringing Firefly. I love that series, and chillin' with some shows will hopefully give you guys a small break (and normalcy) in the hectic schedule of your lives over there.
Good luck! I hope everything continues to go well - we're thinking about you lots at home.
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