Four Again

The day after Matthew's 5th birthday, all of the binkies in the house suddenly disappeared. Matthew searched until the thought crossed his mind. The Binky Fairy. He understood that his was taken since he had just turned 5 and that in the United States, 5 year olds were not allowed to have binkies. But he questioned why Jacob's binky was taken as well since he was only 3 years old. The Binky Fairy does not discriminate. He also questioned why the Binky Fairy had not left him a gift in exchange. She must have been confused when she saw all of his Chanukah, Christmas, and Birthday presents. Later that afternoon, Matthew discovered the curly ribbons attached to a new toy for him and a new toy for Jacob. He decided that Santa must have come or perhaps the Tooth Fairy. He proceeded to check his teeth but there were none missing. Then I suggested that maybe the Binky Fairy had come, that I had heard a strange whisper that sounded like the whisper I heard when the binkies disappeared. Matthew cursed the Binky Fairy and wished that he was 4 years old instead of 5 and Jacob swatted at me.

The binkies are nearly forgotten now.

Jacob is scheduled for surgery on Tuesday to have tubes placed in his ears. He has already had two pneumonias and two ear infections this winter. The same pattern as last year. About a week after he finishes his antibiotics, sneezing, runny nose, coughing, and we brace ourselves. He will be seeing his pulmonologist next week as well and we may need to explore the anatomy of his lungs because the acid reflux medication, inhalers, and breathing treatments are not preventing the pneumonia. I reasoned a long time ago that if he has right-sided weakness in his core and extremities, then he may also have weakness in the muscles that contract to expel mucus and infection from the lung. His right lung is always affected, and because of the anatomy of the lungs, he was thought to have aspiration pneumonia or that his stomach contents may have been creeping up at night when he was laying down. We shall see.