Heading Back in to the World

This morning Elise headed out in to the big world and actually got out of the car this time. (Over the weekend we went on an adventure as a family to locate an intriguing building that we can see from up on our hill. It was great fun trying to look through binoculars to see what landmarks were nearby then heading down in to town to find it. Elise never got out of the car that day.) But this morning she did get out of the car. We went to a new bakery down the hill from us and bought a loaf of sourdough bread. We'll make great french toast for dinner tonight and make it nice and gooey so Elise can actually eat it. Mmmmm!! Then we headed to Fred Meyer to grab more children's Tylenol and a couple of other things. I think this day is really a turning point in her recovery; not just because she made it out of the house, but also because she is actually eating and drinking today without us begging her to. She had a bit of oatmeal for breakfast! For lunch she had the left over oatmeal & canned peas & carrots (Yuck! But whatever . . . she's eating! That's great!) She's drank more plain water today than I've seen her drink in a week. She has mentioned wanting to return to school. I asked her what she thought of the idea of going back tomorrow and she said, "Maybe even today."

I think the turning point may have actually been last night. Yesterday was a pretty sad day. She just seemed so depressed. She wanted to sit in her bed alone rather than being out in the living room during the afternoon. As she went to bed last night, she complained of her stomach hurting and it dawned on me that she must be starving. So we said, "Up, out of bed, you need to eat." She sat with Mark and I and actually ate. She ate two helpings of applesauce and two helpings of ice cream!