Home, Again

DJ was released from the hospital today. He looks really good and is feeling much better. His next surgery will be on February 24th, so hopefully we will have very little going on until then.

I knew there was a name for it!

My friend Clara sent this to me in an e-mail and I thought y'all might enjoy it. It pretty much sums up my life.

Recently, I was diagnosed with C. A. A. D. D. - Child Activated Attention Deficit Disorder.This is how it manifests:I decide to do the laundry. As I start toward the laundry room, I notice that there are cheerios all over the floor and my car keys are in the cereal bowl. I decide to pick up the cheerios before I do the laundry. I lay my car keys down on the counter, put the cheerios in the trash can under the counter, and notice that the trash can is full. So, I decide to take out the trash. But then I think, since I'm going to be near the mailbox when I take out the trash I may as well pay the bills first. I take my checkbook off the table, and see that there is only one check left, my extra checks are in my desk in the office/playroom, so I go to my desk where I find a sippy cup full of juice.I'm going to look for my checks, but first I decide I should put sippy cup in the refrigerator to keep it cold. As I head toward the kitchen with the sippy cup, a vase of flowers on the counter catches my eye--they need to be watered. I set the sippy cup on the counter, and I discover baby wipes that I've been searching for all morning. I decide I better put them back in the bathroom, but first I'm going to water the flowers. I set the wipes back down, fill a container with water and suddenly I spot the TV remote, one of the kids left it on the kitchen table. I realize that when they go to watch TV, I will be looking for the remote as they fight over who lost it, but I won't remember that it's on the kitchen table, so I decide to put it back in the den where it belongs, but first I'll water the flowers.I splash some water on the flowers, but most of it spills on the floor. So, I set the remote back down, get some paper towels and wipe up the spill. Then I head down the hall trying to remember what I was planning to do. At the end of the day: the laundry isn't washed, the bills aren't paid, there is a warm cup of juice sitting on the counter, the flowers aren't watered, there is still only one check in my checkbook, I can 't find the remote, I can't find the wipes, and I don' t remember what I did with the car keys. Then when I try to figure out why nothing got done today, I'm really baffled because I know I was busy all day long, and I'm really tired.I realize this is a serious problem, and I'll try to get some help for it, but first I'll check my e-mail.

Complications

DJ was readmitted to Primary Children's last night. He has not been able to keep any kind of nutrition down since his surgery, so they want to observe him for a day or two and see if they can get him feeling a little better. He seems to be doing alright this morning, but they have not given him any kind of feed through his g-tube or anything by mouth. They should start a feed here in the next hour or so and we will see how it goes. I will keep y'all updated.

The Day that Wouldn't End!

Today DJ had his surgery, so of course we had a strict regiment last night. He was on his feed until midnight and then had Pedialight through his g-tube until 5 am. At 5 we woke up, got dressed and headed to the hospital where we registered and waited in pre-op until around 8:15. They took DJ in and put in another g-tube that matched his first one and they did dilations up to the size of a pencil. The Dr. said that everything went well and that we will meet again in three to four weeks to repeat the dilations. DJ, however, is less pleased with the situation. He doesn't like having the long tube back in and he is in quite alot of pain from his throat and also from where they they had to make the hole in his tummy bigger. We were in Recovery for almost four hours because of the amount of pain he was in and because he refused to drink anything. Finally at one o'clock we were able to leave and come home. He seems to be doing alright for now. He is well medicated and coloring in his books on the couch.Now if only I could catch a nap somewhere! Maybe in 15 years when all the kids are out of the house. Here's to dreams!

Plans

We made it to the Dr.'s today without any drama, which was nice for a change. They got us in right away and we met with the Dr. and made the plans for his dilations. His first one will be on Tuesday with another following in three weeks, and then possibly one per week after that. He is hoping that once he reaches the six week mark they will be able to be a little more aggressive during the dilations and be able to stretch things a little more quickly and not have to do more than four or five dilations. He cleared DJ to eat soft foods, but that is proving to be easier said than done. Apparently he has alot of scar tissue build up already, which is why they are starting next week. Anyway, he tried to eat some food for lunch and couldn't swallow even the tiniest of bites. It made me realize how bad he still is, even though he looks great on the outside. Hopefully after his dilation on Tuesday it will be a bit easier on him and he will be able to eat a little bit better.

In other things, Kenzie is at the temple doing baptisms tonight with the youth. She fought with me about going, but I know she will be wonderful when she gets back. That is how it always is, she argues about having to go, but while she is there the spirit is able to speak with her without interruption and she comes back refreshed and happy. Savannah is playing a game with Dallas in the living room and DJ is in bed on his feed and dozing off into dreamland. I will be following suit shortly, since i have school tomorrow. I am kind of sad that there are only four more months of school left. I have enjoyed my preschoolers, and I can't wait for next year. I will be better acquainted with the curriculum and can be a little more creative with a few things. TTFN

All I want for Valentine's...

...Is a maid. Dallas and I have been going through the house the past couple of days and cleaning everything out. We took a huge load over to the DI and now we are trying to figure out what to do with all of the stuff we threw away.My goal is to have the entire house clean including walls and baseboards washed by the end of the week, but we will see how it goes. It is nice to be a little more organized and to actually have all of the Christmas stuff out of my hallway. Now if only I could get Dallas to take down the lights outside, we would almost be caught up!

DJ is doing fine, although he has been really cranky today. We are trying to get him to walk around a little more so he can build his strength back up, and he does for a little while, but then he gets tired and very fussy. I hope that I can have my normal three year old back soon, but I don't know if that is possible. He is frightened of things now that he wasn't frightened of before and he is much more moody. We have moved his bed into our room so that hopefully we will all sleep better and that should help some. The most frustrating part is when it is time for dinner. He wants to eat real food and will just cry and cry for something that isn't a liquid. That is really hard for me, because I would love to give him something, but I can't so then he is mad at Dallas and I. Anyway, enough of my complaining. Things really are going alright, and we love having our little man home again. Tomorrow is his appointment with the surgeon, so we should know when his treatments will begin . Thanks for all of your support!

And we're home!!

Okay, so I have had much better days in my life, but on the other hand I have also had much worse. It's always fun when you go to the doctor's office and your doctor is on vacation and the other doctors are just looking at you and saying," We're not really sure what to do here." They did all put their heads together and come up with a plan, though, for which I am truly grateful. And luckily it did not involve another surgery which would have landed DJ in the hospital for another week. They took him down to Radiology, where after taking about half an hour to come up with a contraption to recover the string, place a new string/tube and a new g-tube, they sedated him, did an esophagram, and placed everything where it needed to be. It will at least get us to our appointment with Dr. Black on Wednesday where he can look at it all and see if it will work for what we need. If I never have to see and do something like this again I will be happy. I would like to take this time to thank the Army for training my husband in Combat Life Saving because he was calm enough in this situation to be able to place the Foley catheter into the hole in DJ's stomach while I was freaking out inwardly and trying to keep DJ calm outwardly. You never know what life is preparing you for.

And the Fun continues

Today has been eventful to say the least.I am right now at Primary Children's waiting for three o'clock. DJ tripped this morning and pulled out his G-Tube so we called the Doc and they told us to get right up here. Once we arrived they weren't sure what to do because his site is so new. As of right now they are going to take him down to radiology and do another esophagram. If all looks well they will try and place a new string and a new g-tube. If not then they will go back to the drawing board. Hopefully they will be able to place everything without another surgery and we can make it home tonight. Otherwise, back in the hospital we go. Please pray for us again, we need all the help we can get!

Our Christmases

We had a crazy Christmas this year, but we were still able to celebrate with our family. Twice in fact. Once on Christmas Day and then again with DJ last Saturday.Mackenzie cleaned up on Twilight merchandise, Savannah got the new book she had been wanting, and DJ received plenty of toys to keep him busy. Santa Claus managed to find a Wii and deliver it Christmas Eve. The girls have been playing every chance they get, and DJ even gets into the action with the help of mom or dad! Dallas was happy when he opened his gift . It was a picture of Troy, Emmitt, and Michael with tickets from the three super bowls. And I finally got a new digital camera along with a couple of movies I had been oh so subtly hinting about.DJ needed some help opening his presents, but he enjoyed it and has been playing with his toys everyday. After all of the excitement with the family on Saturday he fell right to sleep and slept through the night! There's nothing like a little Christmas to exhaust a person!

A Timeline in Pictures

I thought I would put up a few pictures of DJ from his first day in the hospital to his release yesterday. Last night was a bit rough. He is having some problems with mucus build up, and when he can finally cough it up it makes him sick. Unfortunately this tends to happen around three a.m. and then he wants to stay up and watch cartoons. Just know that if I am talking to you and kind phase out it is nothing personal, just a lack of sleep!

Very Tired, but Happy

Okay, so I know I have not written in a week, but we had a couple of snowstorms which meant no Internet for me. I will start with last Thursday and work my way up.

Thursday morning they put DJ's ventilator on standby to see how he would do. They did not expect him to breathe on his own for more than ten minutes, but he surprised them all and after an hour and a half they decided to bring in the ENT doc. They looked at his airway and said he could be extubated so that is what they did! He was still on quite a bit of morphine, but he was awake and looking marvelous in my opinion. They did not go in for a scope on Friday, but they did move him up to the surgical floor, which was wonderful. We had more privacy and Dallas and I were better able to spend the night with him. They weaned him off most of his meds over the weekend except for the morphine since he had surgery scheduled for Monday and he would just be put right back on it. Monday the went in and put what they call a G-tube into his stomach where he can receive his nutrition. Also they did another camera scope and placed the string from the g-tube up through the esophagus and out his nose. This will be used for his treatment later.Dr. Black said that he healing wonderfully and that he has never seen anyone with the severity of DJ's injuries heal so quickly. We were all very excited with the news. DJ, however, was not thrilled about the surgery at all and shot at his nurse with a Nerf dart gun! Tuesday was rough, but he did sleep through the night Tuesday night which made Wednesday much better. Dallas and I had alot of training for the G-tube so that we would be able to feed and medicate him ourselves which will come in handy since we were able to bring him home today!!!! That is right! We have our very own cranky three year old sitting in the living room! He will have to go back to Primary Children's for treatment, but whether or not he will have to be hospitalized again is not known yet. I would just like to thank everyone for all of their prayers. Dallas and I both know that every one's faith and prayers is why he is able to come home at this time. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts!

More News

Today was the Esophogram and things went well. They shot dye into his esophagus and there were no holes in his esophagus and things are open as far as they can tell. They are taking him completely off the paralytic tonight so that his lungs can strengthen up some and see if they can extubate on Friday. If they can then they will do the camera scope again to check the esophagus from the inside and also place a feeding tube in his stomach. If they can't, he will go back onto the paralytic and we will wait another week or so. We are hoping that all goes well and he is out of PICU and in a regular room by this time next week. Happy New Year to everyone, and may you all have fun tonight!!

News

Tomorrow is the big day where we might possibly get some new info!! Dallas and I will be at the hospital by 7 am and plan on being there all day. I talked to the doc today and there is an issue with his right lung. He is having fluid build up and while they don't believe that it is an infection they may still go ahead and put in a chest tube. That decision will also be made tomorrow after his scope. His mouth is looking great though. It is nice and pink and his lips are actually starting to look like lips again!

DJ's Boots

As I said earlier DJ has to wear boots of some sort to support his feet so that he does not have problems later. Last night my mother in law and Dennis bought him some cowboy boots to wear while in the hospital. I think he will like them very much when he wakes up.(Savannah picked them out)

They started oral care today, so his mouth was very raw and sore. He cried a couple of times because of pain, and that was heart breaking, but all in all he seems to be doing alright. They are switching around some of his medications so that hopefully it won't be as hard and traumatic to bring him out of the coma when they need to. We are hoping to have him awake by this weekend, but it could still be several more weeks. The doctors say to hope for the best but expect the worst and that is what we are doing. The Lord has blessed us and we feel that although this may be a long trial all will be well in the end and DJ will be healthy and active again.

The Lighter Side of Life

Many of you have asked how we as a family are doing. We are all coping as best we can. Dallas and I are trying to keep things normal for the girls and let them have some fun. Friday we went sledding with Larry and Angie and these are a few pictures from that. We have learned through other experiences that if you want to survive the trials you must learn to laugh in all types of situations. That is how you keep sane. We want to have good stories to tell DJ when he wakes up, and this will be one of them.

Larry getting ready to go down the hill.


Kenzie jumped on with Dallas and Savannah at the last minute.

She then fell off going down the hill.

Sunday Update

Things are about the same. We are still waiting for Wednesday to roll around. They have reduced the paralytic so that he has a bit more movement in his hands and legs now, and his mouth is looking much better. He did have a small issue with his heart rhythm last night, but they adjusted his medication which stopped the issue. He is going to be wearing cowboy boots part of the time to help prevent drop foot and keep his muscles in his ankles in good shape. He will be happy about the new boots. That is it for now. I will hopefully have new pictures for you tomorrow. Thank you all.

Update

Hello every one. We have just gotten back from the hospital so I thought I would let everyone know what is up. The doc has decided to do another scope on Wednesday for sure. They are trying to get all the way down to the stomach to see if things are good enough to put in the feeding tube. He has had a low grade temp, but nothing out of the ordinary for his type of injury. His lungs were a bit junky last night, but the respiratory tech came in and suctioned everything out really well and he is sounding clear again. They have put him on Lasix to help move some of the fluids he has been holding onto. His hands have been pretty swollen, so I am hoping that it helps. Dallas and I will be heading up again tomorrow to hang out with him. We are looking forward to the time when they can wake him up, but it will be a few weeks before that happens, and the process will not be fun. Thank you all again for your support and prayers!

Pictures of DJ

The top picture is from yesterday and the bottom one is from today. He is resting comfortably and even breathed a few breaths without the ventilator last night. His mouth seems to be healing quickly and the swelling there has gone down quite a bit.

DJ

Some of you may have already heard what has happened to DJ, but for those who haven't here is the news. Tuesday DJ swallowed some drain cleaner while we were fixing the sink and was life flighted to Children's Primary Hospital. He has severe burns to his mouth and esophagus and has been put into a drug induced coma. He is stable and although he is on a ventilator, his lungs sound clear and he will hopefully be able to breath on his own once the swelling has subsided. They will do another scope next week to see how he is healing and to see if any restorative surgery is necessary. I will keep everyone updated via the blog. We appreciate every one's support and prayers. Thank you.

A Little Sanity Please!!

Okay, so today has been a little nuttier than usual. Everyone woke up just a little cranky this morning, which did not bode well, but I got every one off to school or work with very little complaining. The snow started coming down at about ten and at ten thirty Dallas called for me to come and pick him up. HE felt miserable and could not see out of his right eye. So I pick him up and we call the doc and set up an appointment for three o'clock. Meanwhile, my mom callas and says that she is coming by to pick up Ramos because, Surprise ,Surprise, my brother did not come home when he said he would and doesn't know when he will be back. So, I get Ramos ready to go with mom and pray that she doesn't get into an accident on the icy roads. She makes and takes Mos with her, which leaves just me and DJ to ourselves.(Dallas is trying to sleep in the bedroom) I do some dishes and some laundry and then go shovel the drive so that I can get out. I take Dallas to the doctor and it turns out he has strep, and ear infection, and a severe migraine. Several shots and a couple of pills later they send him home with. Now I am taking Savannah over to her Nana's house, where Mackenzie already is, so they can spend the night and the house can be kept fairly quiet. Wish me luck with my sick husband, may his grumpiness be minimal and my compassion be great!