I spoke with the hospital twice this morning.  Gavin is doing pretty well but is very easily frustrated. At this junction there is now external plans in place and Gavin will likely return home in the morning.  Having said that,  we discovered something concerning today.  While speaking with the nurse on the phone this afternoon,  we discovered that there appears to be some sort of metabolic issue.  She mentioned that they've checked his medication levels and that while some were too high,  they were still okay. I asked her for the levels and realized we had a problem on our hands. Gavin's lithium levels,  which have remained at .7, basically since we hit the current dosage,  at least a year ago, is now 1.3. This is the absolute highest it…

I wanted to introduce all my new readers to a couple of very special members of the Lost and Tired family. Meet Maggie and Bella. Maggie is a 4 year old English Staffy/Boxer mix and Bella is a 6 month old pure breed Brindle Boxer. They have proven themselves to be amazing editions to our family. They are fantastic with the boys and very protective. Maggie and Bella are both extremely patient with the boys. Bella belongs to Emmett and they are very close. Bella has helped Emmett to overcome so many obstacles already. Maggie is a blessing and a half. She had been a great friend and has very often put herself in harms way to keep Gavin away from the boys during his meltdowns. She took a solid…

Elliott and I decided to change things up a bit tonight. Instead of going to bed on time we went to the park. We started out walking the track and ended up taking to the creek bed to look for whatever cool things we could find.  Elliott had such a good time and found a ton of fresh water clam shells.  He only wanted the ones that were still connected.  We also found some snail shells as well. He very clearly shares my love for nature.  I used to do the exact same things when I was a kid. This is something that I want to foster in Elliott because it's a natural love and I want him to be able to explore the great outdoors. I had so much…

I wanted to update you all as to what is going to happen this week with Gavin.  At this point, honestly, I think he's coming home. I don't like the idea because I know that nothing has changed with Gavin and it will only be a matter of time before this happens again. I don't mean to sound cold but it's not safe to have Gavin in the house right now.  At this point in time,  barring some miracle,  when Gavin is released this week,  he will return home. Lizze and I both,  have mixed feelings about this.  One one hand,  we miss our son.  However,  on the other hand, we can't absorb much more of his behavior.  The stress in the house when he's home is unbearable and I…

The other day,  while Elliott was in Cleveland,  we had some special time with Emmett. Because of his food allergies,  Emmett doesn't get to partake in some of the more traditional childhood activities, like eating ice cream.  However,  there is now a frozen yogurt bar near us that offers non-dairy frozen yogurt.  This is Emmett's favorite place to go. When he's here,  he gets to do what everyone else is doing.  He makes his own ice cream and this always puts a huge smile on his face.  We can't do this very often but when we do,  it's absolutely worth it,  just to seen his little face light up.  It really feels good,  as a father to see your child get to do something that makes them so happy.  I…

The boys are in rare form this morning. Lizze is miserable and I've lost a great deal of motivation. I have to make a phone call this morning that I never thought I would have to make.  I have to call a residential treatment facility and make arrangements for Gavin to be admitted. Just writing this makes me sick to my stomach.  The place he would be going is by Lake Erie,  north of the Cleveland Clinic.  I haven't seen it on a map but I'm pretty sure I'm at least close. They come highly recommended and we've checked them out before. I don't want to make this call.  I don't want to have anything to do with this. No parent should ever have to do this to their child,…