Day 61 - Is TMZ hiring?

     We're continuing our wait-and-see approach with Evan and his treatment plan until Thursday.  He's been without fevers since Sunday night and overall is making positive strides in his recovery.  The day started off a little bumpy with me being overly hard on him to try and eat breakfast, which he promptly threw up.  Once we got past that first hurdle and gave Evan some Ativan (anti-anxiety medicine) it was a very productive day.

The start of our laugh session.

     My parents came by to drop Nolan off for us after spending the weekend with them.  When they arrived Evan was happy and playful and that only continued as the Music Therapist came in and gave him his own harmonica.  We sang and played a few songs and got everyone involved.  Our commotion drew the attention of our favorite Child Life Specialist (Katie) and she came in to join in the fun.  This was followed by playtime with one of our favorite nurses (Jackie) and eventually the medical team.  During this most recent stint they had never gotten a chance to see Evan acting himself.  The boys lit up the room with their smiles and had the staff laughing, allowing us to forget for a brief moment that we were in the hospital.  These are the memories I cherish more than any others.  We were told later this afternoon that our visit really brightened their day.

Disturbing our neighbors with loud music.

Giggle time with Jackie and the boys.

     Cristy met with the Hayes Elementary staff this morning to devise a plan for keeping Evan up to speed with his kindergarten curriculum.  Until he's able to attend school in person we'll have a teacher work with Evan at home for a few hours per week.  In the meantime Evan began working with the CHoA teacher this afternoon.  She was very pleased with his reading, logic and comprehension skills at such a young age.  Cristy and I were very proud and it made me thankful that Evan gets his scholastic aptitude from his mother.

Working on his reading with his CHoA teacher.

     Upon returning to his room relaxation would have to wait as he was promptly thrown into PT with a hospital therapist.  Make no mistake it was hard work, but from what I understand he fought through every exercise despite the pain and discomfort he was feeling.  The swelling is almost non-existent in his ankle and he rarely mentions any soreness.  Once the wound site is fully healed and he has worked through the range of motion issues he will then be ready to start building his muscles back to the state they were before this prolonged bed rest.

One of many steps towards upright mobility.

     Thursday Evan is being sedated for the administering of his spinal chemotherapy.  The question that the medical team is discussing internally is whether to take out the PICC and put another one in or if he's healthy enough to move forward with another port install.  Should the team go that route I'd be shocked if the fevers don't return for a brief period.  His blood counts and inflammation scores look outstanding at the moment.  This would lead me to believe that his immune system could more effectively clear any potential infections before they can cause serious problems.  We'll know more tomorrow.
     Wrapping up with a few more pictures.  If my IT job fizzles out at least I know I have a potential career in taking candid photos of people with low quality cameras.

Shape and number recognition exercise.

More work with the physical therapist.

Enjoying his school work this afternoon.