It can be an uplifting experience when you walk into your child’s room in the morning. Usually you expect to see them sleeping soundly all snuggled in bed as the hints of the rising sun announce its inevitable arrival through the window.  It is one of those Zen moments that you look forward to each day.

This morning however, threw me off guard as Zachary was not sleeping peacefully but fully awake and happy to see me. Yeah, that’s right. Me! Upon my entrance he turned his head and watched me approach his crib where he promptly flashed me a smile. For a kid that has recently restarted to grow his teeth this took some effort. His smile really made my day . . . and it was only 9am.

Let me bring everyone up to date on Zachary. Last week he had a line infection that required his admittance to the PICU at Children’s Hospital. The peripherally inserted central catheter or PICC line that Zachary needs for the administration of various drugs was found to have some nasty bacterial bugs growing on it. The best way to take care of this situation is to remove the line, begin dousing the patient with antibiotics and after 24 to 48 hours reinsert the line.

Zachary now has a newly inserted PICC line in his left arm . . . no wait, it is in his right arm. Wait, no, left. Ah, this has happened so many times that I really can’t remember. The point is that my son has a new line that is bug free. We paid extra for that. Zac has been discharged from Children’s Hospital and has been occupying his old room at The Children’s Home for the past several days. He is back to his daily routine of stroller rides, tummy time exercise movements and a few episodes of Mickey Mouse videos. His new hearing aids appear to be doing the job as Zac is fully attentive to the tv in his room as it blares at near full decibel volumes.

His mood has been incredible. Zachary is smiling so much during his waking hours that I am beside myself with joy (and somewhat deaf now that the tv is this loud). Instead of acting like he is in some type of discomfort with frowns and grumpy faces, Zachary will look at anyone with interest and happiness. The early morning smile is not something of an exception. Lately it has become the norm.

So the question is this: Is Zachary in a better mood because the doctors at Children’s Hospital did a great job or is Zachary just happy to be back at The Children’s Home? Since I have friends at both locations I will hedge my favoritism and say that it is probably a little bit of both.

Zachary’s doctors want to wait until his regiment of antibiotics has run their course before discharging him to Maryland. Using a complex algorithm of highly advanced mathematical calculations I have determined this to be next Wednesday. Basically I took the 14 day regiment and followed the calendar although I must admit that the math thing sounded way cooler.

So Deanna will have to hold the fort down a little while longer at our house in Severna Park. Just another week. Just another 7 days. Just another 168 hours. More than enough time to see smiles from Zachary.

Brian & Deanna
johnjoss22@msn.com