yes, i know, it's been a few days...

... but other than wendy's post the other day, there hasn't been much to report.

asher's infection seems to be responding to the vanco (they stopped the gent a couple days ago, thinking it was overkill). the redness is almost gone now, so that's good news. but they've already had to save his IV a couple times, and the dose this morning was likely the last for this line. he'll likely be getting a new line this afternoon. i just hope they don't take him to the treatment room for that. he's terrified of that room, and personally, i think he's suffered enough already.

by tomorrow morning, they'll have the results from his blood culture, so they'll make a decision then about the vanco. please pray etc that they can switch him to a different med for the duration of the course.

asher's drainage has slowed significantly, as well. on friday afternoon, dr c popped in to check on asher. the drain had been off suction since the night before, and was still draining quite a bit (25 ml in overnight). so he ordered it back on suction, then clamp it for a few hours. this would basically trick the body into thinking the tube was gone, so we could see what would happen if they did, indeed, pull it. after a few hours clamped, open it back up and see what happens (they were looking for respiratory distress, fyi). if worse comes to worse, they'd do a chest x-ray overnight to see what's up. so we did that, and when the clamp came off... he drained almost 30 ml (an ounce, for my non-metric readers) in 20 mins. yeah. so the tube stayed in, with suction.

but...

the resident came in last night to talk to me, because she is super keen to pull the drain. i said, "are you freaking kidding me???" (not my exact words, but i thought it! LOL). i said that since our previous admission was because of pleural effusion, i'd rather the drain stay in one more day. "well," she said in a tone that showed clearly that she has no idea who she's talking to, "any time you have something from outside going into the body" (note the terms she uses. yeah, clueless.) "there's a chance that --" "yes, i know there's a risk of infection. but right now he's covered by vanco, which is pretty heavy-duty, so if we leave it for one more day, it won't be a huge problem. besides, if you pull the tube, send us home, and he's re-admitted for effusion again he won't be covered by the vanco and he'll be susceptible to another bug, and given that he's immunocompromised, i'd prefer to leave the tube where it is for now and re-assess in the morning." she relented.

but they're pulling it today. and (i think) i'm ok with that.

as for me... well, this week, i wasn't doing so well, myself. i am exhausted in so many ways, completely drained. in fact, one person described me as looking "deflated." i told her i felt like i'd had the crap kicked out of me for the last 6 weeks, and she said - get this! - "well, you have." nice. so... last night i came to hamilton for the night. i got to spend some time with the kidley-winks (we played snakes & ladders - wow, i'd forgotten how fun that game can be!) and had burgers, and i got some much needed sleep, some restful sleep... and it was lovely. today i feel much better, and ready to face whatever crap gets thrown my way.

thanks for all the prayers/vibes/crossed crossables. we really appreciate them. please continue to do whatever it is you do, because we're not done yet. and please remember all the other kidlets out there, including Hannah (with TGA) who had her switch done on friday and is in the unit, and taylor who has a rare syndrome which includes cranial issues, feeding issues, and heart issues, and Mia who is 7 years old and was in a horrific car accident last weekend, and will require extensive plastic surgery to reconstruct her face and limbs (her mother was asked to bring in a picture so they would know what to do). ethan is still here, but out and about a bit, and there's a code blue plan in place for his mom Shawna (who has CHD and a history of strokes). so there's quite a few people to pray for, but we all need it. thanks so much. :)