...And then other times it's so easy

SMILE's sleep deprived EEG happened today.  Now, just to recap, this is the first of several tests that will rule out or confirm several possible causes for SMILE's erratic movements.  The purpose for the EEG is to see if he has a seizure disorder.  I suspect the results will be normal.  If the results of his MMR (which will detect tumors or physical malformations) are also clear, SMILE will likely get a firm Tourettes diagnosis. 

But here's the fabulous part.  My little SMILE, who is only six years old, rocked his EEG.  Dad and I couldn't put him to bed until midnight and then we had to drag him out of bed at 5:00 A.M.  I expected him to be a surly beast but, except for the first ten minutes after his wake-up call, he was an angel. Once we got to the hospital four hours later, he endured 30 minutes of prodding before the test began.  I mistakenly thought a technician would stick four wires to SMILE's forehead while he sat in a chair and, bing bang bop, he's be done with the test in minutes.  Not so.   SMILE had to lie in a bed with his arms at his side while over twenty wires were glued all over his head.  Then he had to do deep breathing for four minutes, try to relax with strobe lights going off in front of his face, answer questions, and then (the worst by far) do nothing in intervals that lasted another 30 minutes total.   My little star didn't complain once.

WINK had a great day, too.  He stayed with an extraordinary friend and spent the morning playing video games with her eight year old son.  At one point, my friend heard WINK yell, "You want a piece of me?!"   Priceless and perfectly age appropriate.  Once we all got home, WINK helped DAD cut down some tree limbs on our property that were damaged in a recent storm.  My usually quick to tire little boy morphed into a lumberjack.  He helped DAD hold the saw and carried away tree limbs half his height to a clearing DAD had made.  After about 45 minutes, the little stinker demanded a paycheck but he was as proud of himself as DAD and I were of him.  I think he took some very important steps today.

They both did. And DAD and I took a few steps back. And that, too, is a very good thing.