Another Crazy Day

Thankfully the last week has been hectic and fun. The crawfish boil on Saturday, family in from Chicago for the weekend, and the rodeo on Monday.  I didn't fret about today's renal appointment at all. 

And this morning was so crazy.  I left the house with Jackson and Matthew an hour and 15 minutes before the appointment, thinking "no problem".  I was so wrong.  My first mistake is I didn't take the HOV lane (I lost my mind) and it took us all 1:15 to get to the hospital. Houstonians lose their minds in the rain. Then the sign said the garage was full, but the cop outside said it wasn't. After circling the garage, every floor twice, he was proven wrong. I went to valet, who said they were full.  I think the poor parking attendant saw the freaked look on my face, and said he'd take care of us.  Thank you sweet parking attendant!!  We checked in for our appointment 14 minutes late.  At 15 minutes, they automatically reschedule the appointment.  Then we waited an hour to see the doctor.  Whew!

With all of this, I had forgotten that there was anything to worry about until the nurse asked, 'are there any concerns?'  I explained he had protein in his urine at his 1 year appointment, and she said "well, no concern now. Friday's urine was clear." Yippee.  Our nephrologist came in and reviewed the other blood results, all which look good.  The one concern is Matthew's continued high blood pressure.  It's hard on his heart, can lead to and contribute to left ventricle hypertrophy (which he has), and is very hard on his kidney.  His type of kidney (ectopic fused) is known to produce hormones that contribute to high blood pressure.  Once our nephrologist reviews the most recent echo, he'll decide whether he believes Matthew should be on meds to control his blood pressure.  If he decides against meds, we'll have to keep close watch on Matthew's blood pressure and then reassess at the next appointment (with a new nephrologist).

Sadly, our nephrologist is leaving TCH.  It's a good move for him, but a sad move for us. He's been so supportive and caring since he first saw Matthew a year ago.  He sees Matthew as a unique and interesting kid. He never dismisses something by saying "it could just be part of his syndrome."  We will miss him.

After finishing up with renal, we had to RUN over to Dr. T's office which is at a different hospital.  Matthew had his final head shots to compare to pre-surgery and then we met with Dr. T who was thrilled with Matthew's recovery and the shape of his head.  No more head appointments for a year. Yipee!

Matthew and Jackson were tired from the rodeo last night, but they soldiered through the appointments well enough.  Finally Matthew was done with appointments for the day and Jackson and I headed to lunch.  At lunch, I looked down and Matthew was covered in poop.  Fantastic.  This just isn't our day.  So I looked for a bathroom with a changing table.  I assumed a CHILDREN'S hospital would have a bathroom with a changing table, but I was wrong.  Ugh!  But thankfully, after getting everyone all cleaned up and all that, the ride home was quiet and the rest of the afternoon was uneventful.