Day 126....long days with time for learning and fun

Wednesday, January 23, 2013

I am exhausted tonight because of lack of sleep.  The past few nights I have not rested well due to some allergy symptoms that consist of a burning nose, itching ears, and a sinus headache.  Now that I figured out what is going on I hope to treat it effectively and get some much needed sleep.

We have begun (not terribly consistently I must admit) to review math and writing skills.  Dillon is currently reading 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, I am reading aloud to him The Hobbit, and I am reading One Hundred Years of Solitude (quite studious of us, don't you think??  :))

Dillon and I went to the Denver Zoo yesterday.  It was 63 degrees and sunny; read that as....natural vitamin D supplementation :)).  It felt like spring.  Dillon was able to walk through about 1/3 of the zoo before his legs decided they had enough.  The zoo allows Brent's Place kids and families to enter the zoo for free....so we can go a few times in the next month (weather permitting) and see all of the animals.  Also, teachers don't necessarily take kids on field trips to the zoo in the middle of the winter.....so there were not hoards of screaming children (and adults trying to herd the children) blocking all of the viewing areas.  It was fairly empty and quiet, which was especially nice at the indoor exhibits. 

News on the belly front......every day seems to be a little better than the one before.  Dillon has now been without his IV fluids for a week.  There is less and less nausea combined with more and more consistent food intake.

Today's clinic news:  Dillon gained about a pound in the past week.....GO DILLON!!!!!

Two meds were discontinued today lowering his pill count by 3 each day, which brings the daily total down to a totally reasonable 29 per day (do you hear the sarcasm dripping off that last statement???).

Today Dillon endured PFT (pulmonary function) testing, (those of you with asthma or other lung problems can appreciate what a joy that experience is).  He also had an EKG and an echocardiogram today.  These are both part of his regular followup care and will happen every 3 months until his 1-year anniversary in September. 

His lab work today was great; kidney functions, liver functions, white blood cell count, platelets, hemoglobin, electrolytes; everything was within normal limits for a post-transplant patient.  Dillon's immune system is still not functioning particularly well so infection and illness continue to be something we guard against and watch for closely.  It takes a year to regain relatively strong immune function and closer to two years to be "back to normal" and fully functioning.  At the two year mark we can start the discussion of re-immunization (yes, if we so choose, he has to get all those dreaded shots that he had as a baby and toddler).  

Nana is driving up tomorrow and will be here until Sunday.  She has not seen Dillon since Christmastime and they are both very excited for some good old fashioned fun together.

Ornery personality....fully intact!!!  This evening I reminded Dillon that he promised to trim his nails tonight.  With a glint in his eye and a sly little grin on his face he said, "Mom, I had a really hard day....you even said it to Dad AND Nana....so there is just no way I can do my nails tonight."   Hahaha...you gotta be kidding me!!!  Classic Dillon style....about 10 minutes later, without a word, he was in the bathroom yielding the clippers :))