Here's Pictures

Spoiler Alert--if you scan down, you can see a picture of DJ's tummy. I mean it.

We've had a fun time with the fact that DJ's room is down the hall from where Tre' spent 3 weeks after his appendix ruptured. Tre' was convinced he could be a drill sargeant for DJ to make sure he was walking lots. Unfortunately, DJ walks lots already--it's not sprinting, but he keeps moving.

It's nice that DJ is able to laugh. Tre' kept a running commentary of everything going on in his life--and it was reason to laugh. DJ's not regrowing his beard; he's just not shaving as much in the hospital.

Yesterday was a happy day for DJ; his NG tube came out, and he got something to eat/drink for the first time in 9 days.

OK--if you don't want to see very gross things, don't say I didn't warn you. The surgeon left the wound open to let any infection drain. After a week, DJ's body will be ready to be stitched together tomorrow morning. The incision is about 10-12 inches long; the muscles underneath were closed up earlier, but his dressing has been changed every 8 hours. Next to the incision is his stoma inside the bag--basically, his bowel has been brought to the surface to allow the rest of the colon to heal. After 5 months, DJ will have another surgery to reattach everything.

Everyone--eat your vegetables and fiber!

Future Careers

Grandma and Josh came by today to see DJ after he got out of kindergarten. The nurses had just changed DJ's dressing (see last post), and we had a picture of the open incision. DJ showed Josh, who promptly sat down on my lap, buried his face in my neck, and said that he did NOT want to be a doctor when he grew up. I hugged him, told him that it was OK, and asked him what he wanted to be. He looked at me and said, "Mommy, what are you?" I told him that I was a CFO and I worked with numbers (I knew that was his favorite thing in school). He smiled and said, "Mommy, I want to be like you. I will be a UFO, too."

The Magical Fruit Didn't Work!

Well, we never got the chance to get to the magical fruit stage (see last post). DJ was feeling better on Saturday morning, but was laying down for a rest. I was working, when Tre' came running into the room and said that DJ needed me RIGHT NOW. I ran in, and he was writhing and moaning. He said he felt a sharp, stabbing pain in his abdomin. He refused to let me call the ambulence, so I drove him in--Tre' called Grandma Judi to have her watch the kids.

At the ER, they brought out a gurney, and got him back for examination; it turned out that he had ruptured his colon, and he'd need surgery that day. We had the kids come in to see him, and then they took him in for surgery. At midnight they were done; the surgeon said that most times if the colon was perforated, it needed to go to a pathologist to see the tear; however, with DJ, he could see it with the naked eye. There was pus sprayed throughout the abdominal cavity, so the surgery had to be more extensive to make sure everything was cleaned. They removed about 6-8 inches of the colon; the incision was about 12 inches down the center of his stomach. The surgeon stitched the muscles closed, but left the top layers open for any potential drainage and to allow for easy access in case more infection was discovered later.

As part of the surgery, DJ will have a colostomy (poop bag) for the next 5 months. The colon needs time to heal, so they brought part to the surface and the bag. After 5 months, they'll go back in and reattach everything. Unfortunately, even that surgery can't be done lapriscopically, so he'll have another 2-3 days back in the hospital. Let's just say when the colostomy nurse was describing what needs to be done with the bag, I was glad that it will only be for 5 months :).

DJ, of course, wanted pictures of the wound while they were changing the dressing. He's trying to convince me to post it, but I don't think so. We'll see if he can convince me later on.

The Magical Fruit

Come on--you know the saying...."Beans, beans, the magical fruit! Everywhere we go we like to toot!" OK--I didn't know it until my younger brothers reached a certain age, but everyone else knew it. There are wonderful magical properties to these. They DO make you toot, they're great for chili (yum--I'm in the mood for chili and breadsticks right now), and most of all, they are high in FIBER.

Oh yes, fiber is a big topic for discussion in our family. Yesterday, DJ had significant pains in his stomach; it took me all day to get him to go to the doctor, and by then, it was too late to go anywhere for tests besides the emergency room. Picturing appendicitis, necrosis in his large intestines, etc., we headed over to the emergency room. They got him in quickly, but things take time, and it was 10 pm before we got the diagnosis: diverticulitis. It's frankly rather disgusting, but not deadly, and the way to remedy (after the infection is gone) is: FIBER. Lots, and lots, and lots of it. Best source of fiber: the magical fruit.

I think we'll love the tooting soon....

AL

Al's one of our new favorite names around here. No, it's not Roker, not Franken, and definately not Gore. I think the name will grow on you as well.

We got the results of the state standardized testing back, and the kids all did really well. However, we were amazed by who got the highest scores in our family. Reagan's always done well with school because she's so determined to be the fastest and best; she holds the record for the most "5's" (equivalent to A's), and is the first to get a 4.0 and hold that GPA. Tre' is naturally bright in academic subjects--he instinctively understands what is being taught and can explain it to others as well; he still wants to be a teacher and he'll excel at that. Nobody in the family is surprised by their scores--they really reflect their known abilities.

However, our high scores belong to our little blond (in spirit). She's the one who'll be the cheerleader, and that will fit her perfectly. She's not the overly type-A personality of her mother and sister; in fact, she loves being sweet and loveable. When we made the grand announcement, Madi said, "So, does this mean I'm as smart as Al Frankenstein?" Huh? When she saw our faces, she said, "You know--the really smart scientist?" Oh yeah--Albert Einstein.

Yes Madi, you're as smart as Al Frankenstein.

OK--1 more

While I was on youtube getting the last commercial, I ran into this one--do you remember spelling things on your calculator as well?

"Advanced Math"

I've been a fan for a VERY long time of the Staples commercial. This year it has special meaning. Yes, all four Risks are in school now!

We've had a lot of schedule changes; in fact, everyone but Josh has had their schedule rearranged. However, there's one that was the piece de resistance--Tre' came home from school yesterday, laughing as hard as he could. He went to school, and went to his first period to get his schedule; he looked around, and wasn't very impressed with the quality of the students there; when he looked at the board, it said "Advanced Math." Under it was written "9 + 2" That was the math problem he had to work on. When he looked around, he noticed some kids humming and at least one drooling on his desk. He sat there for an hour, in middle school hell, before going to his elective. He passed Reagan as he did so and muttered "They've got me with a kid that's drooling!"

When he got back to his "Advanced" math class, the teacher asked him how long he had been in special ed. "Never," was his reply. Well, what school and teacher did he have last year. He told them, and they asked if she was a special ed teacher. "No, she taught the GATE students," was his reply. The special ed teachers did a huddle and got him down to the office immediately for a schedule change. With the new school, evidently there was a slight snafu in the class assignments.