Sunday, August 19, 2007

OK, so it's been a while . . .

Sorry for the long layoff. The ghostwriter's union was on strike . . .

He's excited for the first day of first grade tomorrow. He'll go to school full time, but leave at around 1:00p.m. on Monday, Wednesday and Friday so he can go to dialysis. He can do some schoolwork at the hospital, although it's more likely he'll play Nintendo DS and watch TV.

He's doing OK. He's off the Depakote (seizure medicine), which has helped his tummy. As a result, he's vomiting much less.

He's generally in good spirits, but he can get a little cranky at times. Some of that is due to the fact that he gets worn out a little faster than normal, and some of it is due to the fact that we have get him used to hearing "no" on occasion. We presume that they won't be able to indulge him at school like we were during the summer, so it will be a bit of a culture shock for him. He likes the teacher and knows most of the kids in his class, so we're hopeful. As a general matter, he's pretty good in familiar settings (play dates, etc.), but has more trouble with groups of unfamiliar people (birthday parties, etc.).

He recently had a kidney function test (which samples 24 hours worth of urine collection). His kidneys are currently working at 7% of normal capacity. We don't know whether that's improving (this was the first full test since he left the hospital), but if he can get to 15% he can live without dialysis or a transplant. I wouldn't say that the medical staff is optimistic about a recovery, but it's enough of a possibility that they've slowed down the preparations for a transplant. Right now the transplant schedule is deferred until at least next summer.

I'm out of town all week for a trial (my karma-impaired opposition wouldn't agree to a continuance). Jen's holding down the fort alone, so I'm sure she'd appreciate some help - at least until Wednesday, when my Mom comes to town.

Since we're pretty busy on medical issues, all out-of-town athletic travel(duathlons, triathlons, etc.) for the fall has been cancelled. If anyody wants my spot for IronMan Florida, let me know.