CT Scan

Stephen must have been jealous that Joshua had a procedure that he hadn't had because now he has had a CT Scan. (Not really...but the timing is really something.)
What happened is that Stephen was running around the AWANA circle last night when he lost balance and ended up hitting the wall with his head. There was an instant goose egg. I ran to get him some ice while Mark sat with him. One of the other leaders told me that her husband was helping with the Cubbies and he is an ambulance worker. So then I ran the 2 flights up to get him and back down. (Where fortunate I didn't need help by then.) He checked Stephen out and said he should be all right.
We had Stephen sit in with Mark for the rest of the evening but by the end he was starting to feel nauseous. Our friend checked him over again and recommended we take him in to have it checked out. So we ran Rachel & Joshua home and took a trip to the ER. Hadn't been there since June so it was about that time!
At first they thought they wouldn't do any extra tests but as Stephen complained of nausea everytime he moved much, they decided to do a CT Scan. The scan only took a couple of minutes but we asked the tech how long before the results and she told us an hour. Not what I wanted to hear when it was after 10p.m. by the time they took the CT. But it was really only 10-15 minutes before they came in and said that the scan was all clear. They officially called it a concussion and sent us home.
This morning, Stephen is doing rather well. I can't believe how much the swelling has gone down already. He also was really late going to bed but was still the first one awake. He wasn't moving very fast this morning but that is his usual speed in the morning.
It might have had something to do with today being Grandparent/VIP day at school. Since grandparents weren't available, Stephen invited one of our pastors who was very happy to be asked. Joshua has his Sparks leaders coming to see his classroom today.
So that was our excitement for last night. We have now had 2 hospital visits in 2 days. That should be our fill for a while again, I hope!

MRI

Well, everyone is home safe & sound and getting back into the routine of everyday life. The entire trip was wonderful! I hope to post some pictures when I can. Mark also had a great time in Austin and learned a lot for his new job!
Some of you know but not everyone so I thought it time to fill you all in. Joshua has been having trouble with controlling bowel movements. For quite a while we just brushed it aside as immaturity but this summer it became apparent that it was something more. We went to the pediatrician who did xrays and sent us to a pediatric gastro specialist. Fortunately, we were able to be on a cancellation list or else we would still be waiting for our initial appointment with them. We are told that he truly has lost sensation in his pelvic area but the question is why.
Yesterday, we took him in for an MRI to try to find out some answers.
Well, no answers yet but I have to tell you that Joshua did awesome! He was able to hold still enough that they didn't need to sedate him. Instead he was able to watch a movie while in the MRI machine. We were planning for them to sedate him but after the nurse talked to him a bit and mentioned possibly watching a video he wanted to try it without going to sleep. They gave it a try and it worked just fine. We could hardly believe it! Joshua isn't usually very still but he did for the test!
We are told that it will probably take a week before we hear from the doctor. Hopefully though this will give us some answers. I'll keep you all informed as we find out more.

Travelling

I just have a minute for an update here. I have been travelling with Mom and a group of "seniors" from our church since Sunday morning. Mom wanted to go on this trip and having me as a travelling companion wasn't going to be much more expensive then travelling alone so she invited me to join her and boy am I glad she did!
Sunday we travelled to Niagara Falls through Canada and stayed on the Canadian side. We saw the Falls twice. We just had to go back and see them after dark when they light them up. Monday we travelled to PA. We thought we were going to see the Flight 93 Memorial but there were no signs on the highway to get to it. We were told later there isn't much of a memorial yet so we didn't miss much. It was then on to Lancaster. Wednesday we went to Gettysburg in the morning and then to the Sights & Sound Presentation at the Millenium Theatre. We saw their presentation of "In the Beginning". It was really spectacular! They had angels wearing "Heelies" so that they could glide down the aisles and across the stage. They also use real animals and robotic ones. It is really had to describe the awesomeness of this production!
Today we head back to Niagara Falls and view them from the American side. We will spend the night back on the Canadian side then head back to GR tomorrow.
To add to the normal confussion before a trip, Mark has spent this week in Austin, TX. He had to have 4 days of training there for his new job. Friends of ours from church have had the 3 kids this week. It sounds like things are going well there. I even got an email from Stephen's teacher saying he is doing fine this week. Only 2 more days to go so hopefully it will keep going.
The weather & scenery has been nicer than we dared hope for. We even started on this "Creation Extravaganza" with a deer running in front of our bus less than a 1/2 mile from the church. We didn't get near hitting it but it was really something to see running along the road.
Well, the bus is starting to load and we don't want to be the last ones. (That has only been once.) I'll get this posted so we can get on there.