We woke up at 6 am and rushed to the airport. We got into Oahu at 9 am, rushed to get to the rental car and then proceeded to WAIT at the doctors office. They asked us to come to an earlier appointment and then in fact, did not see us until after our regularly scheduled appointment. UGH...we should be used to that by now, but it still is quite aggravating!!!
The first appointment was with the Gastroenterologist aka tummy doctor. (Ethan told Caleb "Dr. XXX is your tummy's best friend) The doc is very pleased with Caleb's progress, as he is gaining weight and growing quite well. We are still concerned that his enzymes are not quite working perfectly, so we get the joy of collecting some poop and sending it off to the lab...FUN...
Ethan is still in the shady area. He grew, which is awesome, but his weight, although it did go up, just needs to go up a lot more!!! We know that his enzymes also are not working to the best of their ability, so we get the double fun of collecting Ethan's poop too. We discussed concerns about Ethan's eating habits and got some really good feedback. Basically, Ethan has issues with food that does not have a VERY smooth texture and gags to the point of vomiting when things are not chewed up to utter smoothness. The doc, told us that he really only deals with food once it enters into the stomach, so this is not his area. But, he explained a couple reasons for Ethan having these issues and seemed to be able to describe exactly what Ethan is struggling with. SO.....we are heading to a speech therapist, to see if we can desensitize some of the over-reactive nerves in Ethan's mouth. It is highly unlikely, but I am praying that they have a specialist here on the Big Island, otherwise, there will be more island hopping in our future.
God has revealed yet another reason why he moved us to Hawaii. In Phoenix, we never saw a tummy doctor, and thus, we never really got to address some of the major weight issues we have been having with Ethan. So, we now know the benefits of seeing a tummy doctor, and wherever we end up next, we will insist on seeing one at least every 6 months.
After a bite to eat at a very busy McD's, we headed to the Pulmonologist aka lung doctor. The kids absolutely love this guy and I do have to say he interacts very well with them (VERY HYPER.) He is very kooky, and not even close to being up to date with CF care, but for some reason I am comfortable with that (for now) as I feel like I am up to date and the CF clinic in Phoenix is just a phone call away. He said they both sound great lung wise and he has no concerns. The worst part of this visit is that they do a DEEP throat culture. He sticks a stick in their throat and then swabs as far back as he can go for a good 20 seconds. The doc asked for a nurse to come in and hold Ethan's hands and Ethan told him "I'm okay." Afterward, he said it was no big deal. At Caleb's turn, he got up on the table and the doc asked for the nurse again, and Caleb said "I'm okay." Such big, brave boys I have :)
These cultures look for any bad bugs that might be growing in their lungs. SO prayers would be appreciated for NO BUGS!!!!
After the appointment, we headed out to Whole Foods, which we don't have on the Big Island. I walked in looking for a couple items and after about 15 minutes, I walked out empty handed. If you think things are expensive at your Whole Foods, multiply that price by three and you will have the price in Hawaii.....UGH!!!!
We got to hang out at a mall for a little while. Let me tell you, it was a pretty weird feeling, after being in the small towns of the Big Island. I hadn't realized how different the Big Island is from a real city. The people are different, the dress is different. I felt a tinge like I belonged a little bit better over their, but mostly a longing to be back on the Big Island, where there wasn't such a concern over what you wear and where things are so much more relaxed and slowed down.
We had a while to waste before heading back to the airport, so we drove around looking for a place for the boys to run around and let some energy loose. We just happened upon a very beautiful place off the freeway, Moanalua Gardens.
This is a Koi pond, that you see in the picture. A very kind couple had a bag of koi pellets and asked the boys if they would like to join them in feeding the koi, ducks and the zebra doves. This was most definitely the highlight of the day!!! All 3 boys (#3 is my hubby:) enjoyed having the zebra doves eating out of their hands.
After a quick bite to eat, we dropped off our rental car, hopped on a plane and arrived safely at home, just in time for bed.
No comments:
Post a Comment