WOW...has it really been THREE months since my last post? Apparently so.
Time really does fly by faster the older you get.
A few months ago, while doing a Bible study with some close girlfriends, I really started to feel like I needed to shift my priorities, so one of the things that fell to the wayside was this blog. I've had several friends email me and ask if something was wrong, because I hadn't 'blogged' in so long.
And truth be told, I just haven't had the desire to share what has been going on in our personal life until we had some more definitive answers.
Ava has been pretty sick for a few months. After a couple ER visits and a string of inconclusive bloodwork, Mark admitted her to Jasper Hospital for further testing. After an abdominal ultrasound and CT scans, it was determined that she has some GI issues and a gallstone.
Mark called Marcus (the dr who performed my gallbladder removal and mastectomy) to come evaluate her and decide if he felt surgery was needed. After much discussion about her age and the rarity of gallbladder issues at this age, the unknown of the cause of it, it was decided that her care needed to be transferred to Riley's.
Her medications were adjusted to keep her comfortable until we were able to get in to see the Pediatric Surgeon on March 20.
Dr. Billmire said Ava's cause is unusual and she wanted her to see the GI specialist to try and determine what else is going on.
So, on Monday we were back at Riley's bright and early of another ultrasound and an Upper GI with small bowl follow through. (Meaning she had to drink Barium and have her organs scanned as it passed through). This test took awhile, and she wasn't able to eat until the Barium made it to a certain point in the digestive track. The poor kid was starving by time that happened.
That afternoon we met with the GI specialist, Dr Croffie, at IU North. After a long evaluation, he decided that she also needs an Endoscopy with Bravo implant. We are waiting for scheduling to call us with the date of that appointment, but with this procedure they will be testing the pH of the acid her stomach is producing, repair any ulcers they find, and take biopsies from within the duodenum and intestines, which will tell us if she has Celiac disease (aka: a gluten allergy). She has about 9 out of the 10 symptoms for this disease, and we've recently found out that it runs on her paternal grandfather's side of Curtis's family.
The procedure will take about 3-4 hours and she'll have to be put under anesthesia for it. A small device will be attached to her esophageal wall, and she'll have to wear a pager sized recorder on her belt that will record the pH readings from the acid that is causing the esophageal damage during the reflux. With the information they gather, Dr Croffie will be able to adjust her medication to better treat her.
So, that's where we are with all of that.
Now for the good news....
Four other women from my town will be participating in the 3-Day in Chicago, and I'm so excited. We've been getting together a couple days a week for training walks, and it's been a lot of fun to get to know them better. If you follow me on Twitter or Facebook, you'll see the MapMyRun app postings about these training walks. :)
We're also encouraging our big kids to exercise more, so as a family, we've started a 5K training program. They are pretty excited about it, and regularly ask me to wait until they get home from school to run so that they can run with me. This past week-end, Chris and I went to Adventure's Recreation to get some new running socks, which lead to me getting a new fanny camelbak for my 3-Day. (I absolutely LOVE it, and the best part is.....IT'S PINK!). And Chris also bought me my first pair of Pearl Izumi's. He bought himself a pair, too, as motivation to start running with me. lol. They are honestly, the most comfortable tennis shoes I've ever ran in.
