Inside and Outside

Because of the size and nature of Chase’s mass, a nurse or doctor has to take his vitals and check his eye movements every hour.  Having said that, you can well imagine our night. 

Around 9:00pm, we got to meet with the surgical resident who showed us this:

A picture from Chase’s MRI…yes, the peach-sized white area…

Externally, we nodded and looked serious.  Internally, I think we both let out a panicked mental scream.  I wanted to jump up and say “Take him into surgery 5 minutes ago!” 

The amazing and astounding thing is that THAT is on the inside of THIS: 

Chase with the Beany elephant peace offering from Donald the orderly who had to pin him down for his 3rd IV port

 …who up until 3-4 weeks ago had no noticeable symptoms.  (that we’re aware of)  (could excessive wearing out of parents be considered a symptom?) 

We are currently awaiting several teams stopping by on rounds, after which, we will most likely be briefed on a surgical plan.  

Praying for peace …

When A Seizure Is A Blessing

At this moment, I’m sitting in a hospital room overlooking Lake Michigan, waiting for my baby boy (who is currently in a 2 hour MRI), having been up and functioning since my husband woke me around 4:00am with the words “Chase is having some kind of seizure.”

In this moment, our hearts and minds are almost too full to process what is happening to our son, but here is some brief info:

  • Chase has a large mass in his brain.  This is what has been causing his illness and loss of language over the last weeks.  This is also what caused his seizure this morning.
  • The biggest issue now is to keep the swelling on the brain down and medicate against seizures.
  • As we are beginning to meet with the neuro team, they are very encouraging about this type of mass.
  • The mass means surgery and surgery soon.

In this moment, we have SO many unanswered questions, but here are some that we know to be true:

  • God can handle our fears and asks us to bring them to Him (Philippians 4:4-7).
  • God promises peace (Isaiah 26:13).
  • God knows and loves Chase and has been all over this happening in his life since, well, forever (Psalm 139).

We are so thankful for all the messages of love and encouragement.  In some ways, the seizure is the best thing that could have happened because they detected the mass and moved us to a higher priority level where Chase is getting great care.

Something tells me we are just beginning this journey…

More to follow soon…

 

Chase resting before his transfer this morning

The Day After Sunday

Around here, we have what we call “The Day After Sunday” – a term that refers to the outcome of 48 hours off-schedule for children and hour 1 back on schedule for the parents.  It’s a rare and ingenious blend of insanity that tends to manifest itself differently every week.  Comprende?  That’s right, I’m talking about the disease known as “Monday“.  Know of it?  Had it?  Catch it every six days or so?  Here are some of the symptoms as they manifest in the Ewoldt house:

    • A sudden craving for “time out“.
    • Onset of flailing limbs often coupled with a high-pitched wail.  At times, this may be followed by an inability to stand and horizontal kicking which usually sends the prone individual in a circular motion on the floor. (a la Donald O’Connor in Singing In The Rain – without the backup orchestra)
    • Selective hearing loss: the loss is often triggered by words such as “chore” or “school“.  Have no fear!  This symptom is rarely permanent.  A full auditory recovery is usually brought about with the use of words such as “candy” or “movie“.
    • Loss of control over bodily functions in previously bodily-function-trained individuals. (at this time, it may become necessary to administer a sedative to the primary care giver)
    • Repeated use of the word “No“.  Most often manifests as “Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!”
    • Insomnia for the individual and ALL those in hearing range of the 60-minute “truck noise recital” with an encore of “57 ways to call your mother“.
    • Loss of appetite: especially for anything that might resemble a healthy meal choice.
    • Sudden desire to eat things not considered edible (such as legos).
    • Heightened inappropriate activity -such as hitting, punching, poking, kicking, licking and Kung fu- may occur. Such activity is usually directed at another individual, but in some cases may be directed at inanimate objects such as chairs, tables, shelves, the refrigerator, and the occasional motor vehicle.  Note: this behavior is often a precursor to the aforementioned craving for “time out“.

To date, there is no known cure for “Monday“.  However, this maternal care provider would highly recommend combining one trailer truck-size serving of your caffeinated beverage of choice with approximately 3 weekdays of detox.  “Monday” is almost always cured by such things as “Friday“, “The Weekend” and “Daddy’s Home“.

With that, I’m back to the trenches … My “Monday” patients have light sabers and broad swords.

Signed,

The C.I.C [“Crazy In Charge“]

No, make that the C.C.I.C [“Caffeinated Crazy In Charge”]

**FYI, this is a “no image” post to protect the guilty, er, uh, the innocent**

My Antique Book Kick

I love books and I love reading and I love antique books …oh, and I love reading.  Did I mention that?  Bob loves reading too and I think it’s safe to say that we came into our marriage with a lot* of books.

*this may or may not be a slight understatement

Real talk: we have three large book shelves in the living room alone.
This is my favorite section in our collection:20120624-224513.jpg
Several volumes handed down to me by my great-grandmother.  (and an adorable picture of my oldest two … Awww, so cute … right?)

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My great-grandmother’s name inscribed and then my great-aunt’s note to herself that the book might some day go to me (those are my initials under the signature).

My favorite has always been this book:

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It’s such an old-school, sensational fairy tale with kidnapping, mistaken identities, tiny Bavarian kingdoms, Europe before the first world war …ah, I can’t even help myself. Look at these illustrations!

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Okay, I’ll stop … Except, oh wait, I didn’t stop … I actually Googled the author a few weeks ago and found out that he was quite the prolific writer. And … SCORE! … Most of his books are free downloads for my Kindle!  (insert shameless Amazon plug here)

I downloaded … never mind.  I won’t even tell you how many I’ve downloaded.  It’s embarrassing.  Nor will I tell you how many of them I’ve stayed up late to read.  That’s even more embarrassing.

I don’t know what is more intriguing for me: the late-nineteenth century drama or the early-twentieth century social commentary.20120624-224833.jpg

See?  I’m waxing historical. I can’t even help myself…

Happy Summer reading to me!


What are you reading this summer?