oh, what a wonderful morning!! oh, what a beautiful day!!

ASHER GETS HIS G-TUBE TODAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

mind you, the site is infected right now, which took us to emerg last night, but we got a script for the antibiotic that doesn't clog the tube, so i'm happy. now just cross your crossables that they will still change the tube, despite the infection.

now i'm off to do some meds (a touch late, but it's still good), and feed the kidley-winks, and get ready for the day ahead. (oh, and collect garbage and maybe do some dishes and tidy and change bedding.... aaaaarg! why can't housework ever just STAY DONE?!?!?!?!?!?!)

WOOHOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

WE'RE GOING HOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

the team was in a few minutes ago, and they all agree asher looks great and is ready to go. so once they're done rounds, the resident will come in, check asher out one last time, and we can leave.

we're already packed. ;)

i'm happy! (it's like they read the blog or something LOL)

the team came around just a few minutes on rounds. they're very happy with asher's progress today. and all his cutures have come back negative, so no little buggies anywhere, so that's good, too.

so, the plan at the moment is:

• stop the antibiotics
• cancel the LP
• send us home in the morning.

now, usually, they would just send us home immediately once they stop the meds. but this is asher, and they all know that, so they're keeping us overnight, just to make sure he doesn't relapse. and given that he can now move his head and next, and he has some energy (as he babbles and flops all over his crib beside me right now, LOL), and he doesn't seem to mind the light so much now, they're calling off the LP.

now all this is assuming he stays on the track he's on at the moment. if any of this changes, and he gets at all sicker tonight, they're going to go ahead with the LP, restart the antibiotics, and keep us here longer. but right now it doesn't look like that's gonna happen, so i'm ready to go home tomorrow morning. YAY!!!!!

also, i just got off the phone with GI, and apparently, we have an appointment in Interventional Radiology next monday (31 aug) to get a g-tube. so that's exciting, too! :)

adn a quick note to those who'll understand this: i saw that doc, a few times now, actually, and yes, my IQ remained in the triple digits, so that's progress. ROFL

a treat for us all ;)

asher, cuddling with his new doggie, charlie (yes, the dog even has bum wrinkles!!!). as you can see he's doing much better today, though still not back to 100%. the bigger doses of antibiotics seem to be doing the trick, so i'd be content to stay here for one more day, and go home tomorrow. that would be wonderful. and hey, if they don't do the LP, i'll be happy. ;)

wha-???

well, today is another day. asher still looks like crap, though he has a bit more energy, he's talking a bit more, and he's not yelling at us so much today, so that's good.

on the other hand, he's still lethargic, he's still sensitive to the light. he still doesn't want to eat or move. he's still grumpy and doesn't want anything. oh, and he's still sweating like a pig.

as for the title of this post.....

cardio popped in this morning. and looked at asher and agreed that he's sick, but that it's not cardiac (which i know it's not, so that's fine). she noticed that he still doesn't like the light, and that he's not even close to his usual self, and that he's still somewhat febrile. so they're going to keep an eye on him, albeit from the peripheries, but still. she was supportive, and pleasant, and agreeable, and open to discussion.

so still no news from the team if/when they'll do the LP today. asher is looking a bit better, but that's after huge doses of big antibiotics, so who knows. i'll post when i know more.

it's a rollercoaster with this kid, it really is

so karin talked to tomorrow's attending, and he suggested waiting till tomorrow to do the LP. the idea is this: if asher does anything, well, asher-ish, there will be a whole hospital of people who can handle it. whereas right now, there's not so many people around, so it wouldn't be as easy to handle any asher-esque complications. as for the infection itself, he doesn't believe there would be too much of a change overnight, so it's reasonable to wait till morning. he starts at 8, and karin will try to get him to come see asher early, and we'll get on top of this as quickly as possible.

in the meantime, they're doubling his doses of antibiotics to meningitis doses, and hopefully that will do something. because, as i said in the last post, he's been on these 2 big meds for over 24 hours, and he's only getting worse. karin also gave me a heads-up that they might be changing his meds tomorrow. apparently, ampicillin isn't commonly given to older kids like asher. they're reserved for younger kids. so they may decide to switch it to vancomycin.

frankly, i don't like that idea. i know it's probably for the best in some ways, but asher's been on vanco before, and it wasn't pretty. it tends to destroy his iv's. and since he's a VERY difficult poke, it often takes several attempts to get a new IV started. and since they blow with almost every dose, you can see why this is not my favourite part of the plan. i mean, i get the whole "do what you gotta do" thing, but i don't want my baby to get hurt again. it took at least 6 pokes yesterday to get this one line in, and his hand is already looking puffy (though still soft, so we're just watching it and keeping our fingers crossed).

so that's the plan as of right now. i have no idea what tomorrow will bring, but i'm trusting God to take care of my boy. He's gotten him through some pretty scary times before, so let's just pray that He'll bring asher through this one, too.

i'll post tomorrow with the details, as i know them. so, yeah. ttyl.

worst. choice. ever.

ok, this will be quick, because i'm nauseous thinking about it.

doc karin came in tonight to check on asher, and in the course of her assessment, she saw:

• he doesn't like turning his head
• he has a headache
• he looks terrible, even after 24 hours of two big antibiotics
• photophobia. which means that he's afraid of light. she went to look at his throat, and he freaked out, squeezing his eyes shut, covering them with his hands, and freaking out.

so here's the thought:

meningitis.

now, if it's viral, there's really nothing we can do, other than treat his symptoms and let the virus run its course. if it's bacterial, we'll need to attack it with meds.

so they're doing a lumbar puncture (spinal tap) tonight at 11. i'll post afterward with details.