We went to the zoo last week with friends. What a great idea to take three boys & their little sisters to the zoo together & have a picnic lunch! Of course, only one of the two sisters wanted to be in the photo-when the other one burst into tears & screaming mid-shoot, YoYo looked at her & declared, "That's pitiful."
Sunday nights, the same three boys, parents, & sisters get together with Susan at the home of "pitiful" to enjoy potluck dinner & a few hours of train table time (or TV, or the swingset, whatever). We needed to leave early this past Sunday to make a quick appearance at a high school graduation party nearby. YoYo protested, "I just want to play!" & our sweet friends insisted we leave him with them while we made our grownup jaunt. We joked on the way down the road that it would be funny to "talk someone down from the ledge" if YoYo filled his colostomy pouch to bursting. It was whistling in the dark--worst-case scenario.
You know what happened next. Within 20 minutes of arrival at the fete, a call came on my cell with Ken (pitiful's Dad) saying, "Anna, what happens if..." & the call was dropped.
Oh, no. So the host gave me a land line & I called to find out that the worst-case scenario happened, & it was time to tell my dear sweet Susan via phone how to change my son's pouch. These are better friends than we deserve. A fellow partygoer (a health-care pro) told us, "Take your time, finish your cake. He's fine." We did, & when we got back to YoYo, he had new clothes & still wasn't ready to leave-"WordWorld" was on TV. By the time we got home, we had to change him again.
Monday night, he complained of a bellyache, & then strange things happened with his pouch that raised alarm. We called the right folks & ended up in the Vandy Children's Hospital ER. Until 5 this morning.
Two x-rays, two vials of blood, many tests, & a worn-out YoYo later, we learned he's fine, just a little backed up. The possibilities ranged from that to stoma blockage to liver problems to anemia to scary. Our boy hollered proper when his blood was drawn, & the observation room we had was the size of a Chicago bus stop shelter, but it's all ok. He's ok.
I don't know how long it will be, though, before we're brave enough to leave him & go on a date again. This was the 1st time that we left him with someone other than kinfolk for a date-like moment. As another fellow partygoer declared, "I guess sh*t really does happen!" I shouldn't laugh, but I did.
I do still. I guess it is a light & tumble journey from the Eastside to the park, just to find a fancy ramble at the zoo.
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