Bunion Surgery - Right foot

Megan's first bunion surgery was a success, and her follow-up visits have all confirmed that she is healing well, and that the left foot was now strong enough for regular activity. With that news we shifted our attention to the bunion on the right foot. It too causes pain and is a candidate for surgery.  

The coronona virus pandemic has dragged on and escalated through the holidays. Public Schools have continued to operate virtually so we were again presented with the least disruptive time for a teenager to deal with recovery and inability to engage in activity. We scheduled surgery for the middle of February. Our winter had a series of decent snow storms in which we actually got accumulation. They called for another one the morning of surgery. 

I think Megan and I were both more tense about this surgery, because there was a big chance it would be canceled. She was the first surgery of the day and when we got up it was still on, despite there being a few inches of sleet piling up already. We headed out early and I slowly made my way to Kernans. It was bad out.  But we got there and got checked in. It went smoothly from there, except that Dr. Brandao got delayed by the weather. They did some prep but not meds until they confirmed he was there, and then everything went in fast forward. I gave Megan a blessing and they moved her almost immediately to the OR. 

The surgery took about the same amount of time. I got some breakfast, said a rosary and waited. Then in quick succession the patient liaison came out, then Dr. Brandao, then the discharge nurse and as the nurse was reviewing things, Megan was rolled out in a wheelchair. The discharge seemed to happen very quickly and it was a bit overwhelming. Last time I had gone back and I sat with her as anesthesia wore off. Megan looked scared and disoriented and said she wished I had come back. I really wished I had come back too. Especially when Megan shared on the ride home that she had fallen in the bathroom. We just wanted to get her Subway and get her home

Luckily this time we knew what we were doing. I had a plastic bag to cover her foot. Jim had come out and chipped away at the 6 inches of sleet that solidified into ice. We got her into the house and into her room. I had a medication chart and timing system already set up. It was good to be back safe at home. 

We were able to keep Megan comfortable and stay ahead of the pain. We had talked with Dr. Brandao and he updated the recovery plan. Megan would get out of the splints sooner and get into a boot sooner than with her first surgery. Megan had much less swelling this time. 

Ice pack help from Hanna and Momma

Cards with Katherine

Visit from Zach

In the fall Megan had a lot of pain when the wraps and stiches were removed, and she was really relived that it was not the case this time. He said that he used external stiches instead of the internal dissolving stiches like last time. Taking pain meds before the appointment probably helped with this too. She was cheery on our way home instead of being in tears.

Megan's recovery has been rapid. She has more confidence walking in her boot. We are hopeful that her transition to the hybrid high school schedule will go smoothly. 

Bunion Surgery- Left Foot

Sept 10, 2020- Surgery

Megan has been struggling with foot pain because of her bunions for a few years and 2 years ago I took her to the Orthopedist. He said that she had significant juvenile bunions and was a candidate for surgery.  With this pandemic upon us and activities canceled Megan was eager to have surgery.  We went back to Dr Brandao and were surprised at the speed in which she could get on the surgery schedule.

Surgery day was the 3rd day of school and I was a little worried about starting the year by taking days off but Megan worked to get a handle on classes in those 1st two days. We arrived at Kernan Hospital, got registered and brought back right away. Then the medical staff came by and asked questions, the nurses, the anesthesiologists, the surgical nurses and Dr. Brandao. It turned out one of the nurses went to Mary's Land farm store regularly. We were texting updates to the sisters and Jim as things progressed. Megan got prepped as I sat with her. Everything went pretty smoothly. We brought crutches and she got instructions of using them. 

They were going to do a nerve block guided by ultrasound so there was prep for that. Dr. Brandao marked Megan's toe and incision points and added a smiley face. He marked her heal and I asked about it and he said that was where they would harvest bone for the graft. It was the first we heard about that, but everything else was as expected. The anesthesiologists asked Megan if she was ready to be sedated, and I got to give her a kiss and pray for God's blessing. 

I then headed out. Megan didn't remember the sedation but was soon asleep. I returned to the waiting area and settled in. They had a the TV set to Law and Order so I popped headphones in and journaled and read a book. It was drizzling but I went outside and prayed a Rosary while doing laps on the grounds. The patient liaison came out to let me know that Megan would be done soon and be moved to recovery. Shortly afterward Dr. Brandao came out to talk to me. He said everything went well and got about a 95% correction and that he was happy with how it went. We also talked about his newborn daughter. I eagerly waited for them to come get me so I could go back to see Megan. The patient liaison came out and said that Megan was so sweet and that she woke up crying that she had to leave Hogwarts. About 20 minutes later I got to go back and Megan was really drowsy and weepy, but they had her sitting upright and she looked pretty good. She was actively listening to things around her and was worried for the man in the other hall because he looked like he was in a lot of pain. She is a caring young women right at her core. Shortly she mentioned she could use the bathroom and that started a whole process, of unhooking and shifting and putting a stabilizer on. Luckily it was also the process toward going home so after the bathroom visit there wasn't much to do to get released. 

We were really hungry as it was now after 6 and Megan hadn't eaten since last night and I had only had snacks. Megan asked for Subway which was across the street. The drizzle turned into a downpour just at that moment I got out. Megan was so hungry she ate her foot-long sub on the ride home and felt much better. It also was the night for picking up materials at the high school. We drove to the school and after seeing the back up of cars, I made a U-turn and headed home.

Rachael came out with an umbrella when we pulled up at home. I grabbed a plastic grocery bag from the back and quickly tied it over her big wrapped up foot. Megan was good with the crutches and we got her in to her room. She had spent the previous few days cleaning so it was welcoming and easy to navigate. 

We settled into a routine of alarms and pain meds, including a middle of the night dose. My interrupted sleep reminded me of those long gone years of infancy. Megan slept most of the weekend but also had time with visitors. She would come to the dining  room for dinner and her friend Zach came over one night to join us. The kittens kept her company and her sisters came in to play games. 

As the days have gone on, her pain isn't as intense. She has been doing her classwork and virtual school, with a few sewing projects mixed in. Her toes have gradually disappeared into her bandages and we are looking forward to getting them off, for whatever the next wrappings will be.

Covid-19 Pandemic

It has been 3 weeks since the wave of COVID-19 crested over our lives. It started with trickles of worry from international flights, to cruise ship quarantines, and nursing home tragedy. These trickles rippled out across our country, our state started canceling large events, then schools, then all non-essential businesses. March 13, 2020 at started to get real to us. Maryland issued a Stay at Home order on March 30th. People weren't abiding with social distancing recommendations and cases were spreading in Maryland so day by day more restrictions were put in place.

   Guinness canceled St. Patrick's day celebrations and then had to close completely. Guinness told everyone they would be paid for through the week, then they paid them until the end of March and then they put them on a laid off status that lets employees maintain insurance. Jim hasn't worked since March 12th. It's hard. I'm trying to work from home, and only going into the office once a week.
   The girls all had school closed as of March 13th, first it was temporary, then closed until April 3rd, then the public school system said they would be switching to digital learning through April 24th.  The colleges closed campuses even earlier as they have more exposure. Spring breaks in March were extended and then they were told not to return to campus.

Zoom Call - Johanna's Class

   The US quickly took the #1 spot in the world, most likely due to the testing that we started doing and the data from China being withheld.
    Rachael's spring break visit to MIT to see Josh was canceled, Megan's SWE National Rube Goldberg competition in Indiana was canceled. Those were big losses.  Religious Ed class is canceled, dance, scouts, choir, all canceled. I am thrilled to not be a taxi driver, and thrilled to have Jim and the kids at home, but we are all a bit sad. This is hard but I am so blessed with a good family that I enjoy to be with.

   Church also went through a reduction and then soft close, and then a firm close. I am sad that our church is not open. We have been engaging with lots of virtual options and have watched Mass each week in our living room. It isn't the same but I am still grateful for it.
   I am glad for the time we have to make masks, and do puzzles, and play games and build Legos. It is wonderful to have everyone home for dinner. We have gotten take out a few nights to support local businesses. Grocery shopping was anxiety inducing and supplies were inconsistent, eggs, milk, bread were all chancy, and toilet paper and cleaning supplies have not been on the shelves but we have enough and we have what we need and we are blessed.
   We are praying for the sick and the dead and for the safety of those who are on chemo, especially Aunt Heather.  We pray for Emma as she works in the restaurant and does carryout. We worry for them and we have been watching a lot of news, too much news. but we are blessed to be together and to have a safe place to live and work. I am so grateful.

Camp Hidden Lake - Bridget

July 14-20

Bridget got an invitation to join middle school girls from another local youth group to attend a summer camp.  The camp is Called Camp Hidden Lake and it is run by LifeTeen. The biggest worry was that the camp was in Georgia, and that felt quite far away to send our Bridget.  Bridget though only hesitated for a moment, she said she would love to go if her other friend would go as well. Luckily her friend, Joanna, had the same response.

This would be Bridget's first summer sleep away camp but she has done many other shorter sleep away events like GS camping and 6th grade Camp pu'tok. Bridget got the packing list and knew how to get herself and her stuff together. I went over everything with her and was impressed. I added to her gear a manila envelope for each day filled with a treat and love notes from the family.  Then  after Sunday morning Mass at St. Augustine's I gave her a blessing and sent her off on a 10 hour drive to Georgia with 2 youth leaders and 5 others girls in a rented suburban stuffed to the ceiling.

It is hard to be separated without any checking in for a week, but I was happy that the camp had a family page.  I got to see Bridget's picture after the first day and I took a deep breath. It looked like they were having fun out on the lake, on a mud course and playing games and that they were spending time in prayer in daily Mass and evening sessions.

Sitting it out

Then on Thursday we got a call from the camp to let us know that Bridget had a stomach bug.  She threw up Wednesday night and twice on Thursday. She was proud that she always happened to do it in a convenient spot, like outside or in a trashcan. I was so sad for her. Being sick stinks and being sick away from home, and missing things is terrible. I talked to her Friday morning and she sounded happy just not a lot of energy. She said that she was going to the different things on the schedule, but she wasn't doing anything active. She said that everyone was wonderful to her and made sure she was ok. I worried for her on the long ride home and couldn't wait to see her Saturday night.

Bridget couldn't really eat yet but she had no complaints. She only had stories of bonding with the girls in her group, silly songs and games. Stories of mud and prayer. The praise and worship was a new experience for her and left an impression. We were glad to have her back.

One thing she didn't bring back with her was her appetite. The stomach bug she got ravaged her system and she couldn't eat much. After a few days of her being home and eating very minimally, Bridget's shoulder and hip bones were disturbingly prominent. I got her the high calorie nutrition shakes and that helped alot.  It took weeks before she was eating regularly and looking her healthy self again.

Making a change

April 2017

The 2nd half of Sophomore year has been a huge challenge. Rachael had been struggling in the first half of the year but by Christmas depression and anxiety had gripped her. Rae stopped engaging in activities, she struggled to get up in the morning, or get to school or to do her homework. She spent a lot of time in her room sleeping, or just wrapped up in her big red blanket (Jim's old blanket). During this time her social life effectively stopped. She didn't go to any activities, and missed a number of special events. She was inducted into the Math and Foreign Language Honor Societies but didn't attend the ceremonies. None of the extras were possible and some of the necessities like eating  and showering were over-looked. It was really hard and it was incredibly difficult to watch her suffer. We had started with a therapist in the fall, but switched focus in the new year and found a psychiatrist, who worked really well with Rachael to find a good medication and a good dose. It took months and a few switches but the depression got a little less heavy.

Jim and I were very hands on and were just trying to not let her get too buried. The school morning routine required a lot of assistance. We were just trying to get her through. I'd go down a few times every morning, pick her outfit, help pack her backpack, make her lunch and breakfast and walk her up the stairs. We drove her in everyday but some days she arrived very late.   By the end of May she was finally able to regularly make it to school on time again. We prayed, we prayed so hard. God was with us through it all.

After months of barley functioning, her grades were suffering, but I got in touch with all of the teachers and they helped Rachael prioritize assignments and they waived late penalties. Rachael focused on the biggest assignments that would have the most impact and luckily she is an amazing student and had very high 1st and 2nd quarter grades. She made lists and started to check some things off. Her D's were rising and so was her mood.

I knew her energy had returned when she wanted to show off her hand-done hair cut. Rachael's bounce and excitement, that we had been missing, was back. It suited her and so did her hair cut. Some days continued to be heavy and difficult but the burden of depression was easing.

Rachael's braces come off

Rachael's orthodontia journey has been a long strange one and we were happy to reach an end to a huge part of the process. She got her braces off! She is happy to have moved to this point. There is still a lot of uncertainty as she is missing 3 of her adult top teeth. One of the baby teeth fell out a few years ago but the other 2 baby teeth are still holding on and we are going to try to keep them there as long as possible.

We have had many conversations with dentists about what to do or how to plan for the future and those conversations have revealed some discrepancies in values. There have been assumptions over and over again that Rachael would be self conscientious about her missing tooth. And a projection that of course she would want this fixed or hidden. The problem is that the fix offered is implants which involves screwing fake teeth into her jaw bone. I remember the look on Rachael's face when the orthodontist mentioned this 3 years ago. It was an immediate no and Rachael was not comfortable when they brought it up on subsequent visits. Finally the dentists stopped bringing it up.

Rachael now has retainers that she has to wear for a decent amount of time each day in order to keep her teeth from moving. The orthodontist made a comment when we picked up the retainer that obviously Rachael would wear it during the day. Rachael did not feel that this was obvious and it bothered her that other peoples presumed negative perception of her smile and how that would make her feel was given such importance. Rachael is more focused on the ease of eating and talking. She decided to wear the retainers at night. She is of course aware of her appearance and wears makeup and has curated outfits that she likes. She has an aesthetic. But function and comfort play a much larger role in her sense of beauty. Rae isn't phased by her missing tooth and she has options open to her in the future to keep her teeth accomplishing their purpose.

 I am glad she has self confidence in her physical self. She is beautiful, now just with less metal.

Vision Therapy

After twice a week sessions and regular check ins with the Developmental Optometrist, Megan has graduated from Vision Therapy. Megan started with a big deficit, but surpassed all of her goals and did it well ahead of schedule. She was motivated and did all of the exercises well during each session. Jim was the one who drove Megan back and forth each Monday and Wednesday and the 2 of them enjoyed the car rides to Columbia. It gave them a chance to talk and share music and stories.

Since Megan's eyes and brain made huge adjustments in a short period of time. Her Optometrist prescribed glasses for her to wear while doing close up work. The glasses will probably only be a short term aid with the hopes of making her improvements in therapy permanent. We are really proud of how hard she worked and did so without complaint. She said that double vision and headaches are no longer a problem, and her school work has gotten easier. She has had straight A's all year.

Megan gets Pointe Shoes and other achievements

My dancer had been anticipating the day for many years now and it has finally arrived. She graduated to her first pair of pointe shoes. Pointe shoes have to be earned, time and energy need to be put into the sport of dance in order to rise to that level. Megan did it! She and I drove with Magaly and Sophia to the dance supply store with her ballet class. Each girl took a turn in the fitting chair and the store consultant went through the process of checking feet and pulling different brands of pointe shoes to find the right fit for that particular dancer's feet. This was Megan's first fitting and she has narrow heals with wide toe span and crossed toes. She had a little bit of everything going on and so the consultant pulled out brand after brand and then size after size until she found the right pair. Megan loved the process and beamed when the consultant was surprised that Megan could roll up in every pair without much trouble. They commented on how strong she was and Megan took pride in the observation. Right before Megan's next class I sewed the ribbons on and the ankle elastic, she was nervous to wear them and admitted that it was really difficult. I reminded her that she is capable of doing difficult things.

Megan also got her first middle school report card and got straight A's. It was an honor to get to attend the Straight A Breakfast that the school puts on, with her. Megan said the 6th grade is complicated and although the work is hard it isn't too hard. She was moved up to the GT section of World Cultures were she will be challenged a little more. The academics seem under control but the social side of sixth grade is still a point of unknown. Her social groups are shifting and she is feeling out where she feels most comfortable. I pray that she will surround herself with true friends who will appreciate her gifts and encourage her to be her best.

Also new for Megan is Vision Therapy. She has convergence insufficiency, meaning her eyes are not working together. This causes double vision. Her doctor was surprised at how successful she is in school and made sure we knew how hard she is working on something we take for granted.  With all that she has accomplished so far, I am excited to she what she does when she can put that brain power toward other things. She will be in twice a week therapy for about 6-8 months.

When my Mom broke her Femur

I don't communicate with my mom on a very frequent basis. It just kind of happened that way. Obviously growing up I talked to her, but my life got active as a teenager, with school and a job, and a youth group. At some point I stopped really checking in with her and then I moved across the country. I couldn't afford to call home, they rarely called me and letters almost never happened, oh and the internet didn't exist. It was always good to see my Mom when I did see her but in the time in between there was no precedent to actually talk or communicate regularly. As an adult I trusted that I was on her mind but more importantly in her heart. (This level of trust was not as high as a teenager but it did exist.) We caught up when we saw each other. Since moving back to Baltimore it luckily is about once a month for a family event.

Then in the last few years, the catching up included stories about injuries, or major life events in extended families lives. Sometimes those stories weren't shared at all and I heard about them from other family members. I began to worry a little that I would miss important information. This didn't change how we communicated though. I didn't hear from my mom on my birthday this year, which I didn't even realize at the time.

At the beginning of November my Uncle's mother died and I visited his house as they sat Shiva. When I was there my Mom's sister mentioned that Mom didn't look good when she saw her the day before and commented that she had fallen recently (on my birthday). This was the first I was hearing about the fall and I made a mental note that I should call her. I didn't. On Sunday afternoon, the 15th, I got a call from Magaly that she was at shock trauma with Mom. I don't really panic; I got as much info as I could and then started contacting the rest of the family. Mom is an amazing patient and was on top of her care while in pain with a broken femur.  We guess she had a small fracture from the fall and it became a stress fracture when she was getting out of the car on the way home from Mass, a week and a half later. My dad, myself and siblings all visited at the hospital and continued to keep tabs on Mom both in person and through messages. It was a long week of prioritizing things and coordinating with family. Our girls prayed for her every day and were very understanding of my missing classroom visits for American Education Week. Megan really wanted to visit and internalized her worry into an upset stomach, but other wise the girls handled it well.

I went down in the evening a day after surgery and Mom was in a lot of pain. She was dozing and clutched my hand. I stroked her head and she opened her eyes and asked if I was leaving. On my previous visits she shooed all of us (except Dad) back to our families, so I thought she was going to do this again. I told her no I was going to stay with her for awhile. She whispered she was so glad I was there. I stood and stroked her hair and told her she was more important than she knew.

They moved Mom to a nursing rehab center after almost a week at Shock Trauma and our whole family visited on Sunday. Mom will be in rehabilitation for a few weeks, (just guessing right now) and we will continue to visit and coordinate. I feel confident that she and I both know that we are thought of by the other but more importantly I think we are both confident in our love for the other. Maybe we will be able to translate that into a little more concrete regular communication.

Fourth of July - gone spotty

The Fourth of July this year looked like it might be a wash out. We had been getting strong storms one after the other all week and more storms were expected. We brought umbrellas and our pop up canopy to Becky and Erik's in case. But aside from some drizzles, the day stayed clear in our area. We dropped Rachael off at her friends house, so we were a Kehrman short through the festivities. We made rocket pops the day before, painted our nails patriotic colors and Jim packed the van with the usual stuff, chairs, cooler, sweatshirts. I sprayed the girls down with bug spray and we walked over to the parade.

The parade was full of bands this year, which is my favorite part. We stood to honor the color guard and the veterans with flags as they walked past. Johanna stood up with us and put her little hand on her heart. When the fire trucks sounded their sirens she covered her ears. Bridget settled into a chair next to Sarah, and Megan squeezed into the wagon next to Savannah. Emma  and Melanie shared a chair as only girl friends can do. Jim and the Dads had the back row covered. I brought a chair and I even got Hanna to sit in my lap for some of the parade before she started walking behind our group. The girls got a good collection of candy, balls, and other stuff. And we parents scored my favorite "Life is great in 21228" car magnet.

We got back to their house and settled into cookout mode. More cousins and family arrived, food was set up, and conversation were started. Bridget came to me complaining about a itchy patch of red bumps on her leg. We got her some itch stick and I re-sprayed her. She is always the tastiest and no one else was being bitten. We ate and the kids played. As the sun started to get lower we got out the desserts and the rocket pops. Bridget came back again covered in more bites, this time on her thighs and arms. She was pretty miserable.

We moved to the front year to watch Catonsville's great fireworks display. The kids all gathered on blankets and the adults pulled over chairs. It was past 10 by the time it was over and we headed home. Johanna fell asleep in the van as soon as the doors were closed. Poor Bridget had bites all over her exposed skin and was exhausted and itchy, so we gave her Benadryl and she crashed quickly.

They still look a bit like bites here

The spots were still bad the next day, Sunday, so twice we had her soak in a baking soda bath and we put cold towels on her legs as she lay on the sofa. We went to the mall for Hanna's haircut and then to the pool where we ate dinner, regularly offering itch relief. At the end of the evening Bridget came over to complain that her hands and feet hurt. Her joints were swelling. We decided these spots, which had begun to coalesce over the day and looked more like hives, were not going to wait for a Monday appointment. I dropped people home from the pool and we headed to Urgent Care.

Bridget was a trooper and was hopeful to get some answers. The doctor looked her over, reviewed the rash and told us we would have to go to the ER because they didn't know what it was. Bridget wasn't feeling well and was really tired by now. She was full of questions about what they would do to help her in the ER. We arrived at the ER on the Sunday of 4th of July weekend and humanity was on full display. It took forever to get checked in but as soon as we did and got to head back to the pediatric ER it was much better. Our nurse Katie was great and the doctor was also fantastic, both young compassionate women who knew their stuff. The doctor checked Bridget out and asked lots of questions. She went to look some things up and came back again to verify what she suspected. She brought me a medical book of conditions and showed me the page on Henoch Scholein purpura (HSP); it seemed to match. The doctor wanted to rule out some other things and make sure that Bridget wasn't suffering from some of the more serious parts of HSP. Bridget asked me lots of questions about maybe having to stay at the hospital and wanted to be sure I would stay with her. The doctor ordered a lot of blood work and Bridget gave a urine sample. By now it was after midnight and Bridge was falling asleep in my lap. Katie came back to draw blood. Bridget was such a trooper. The first stick did not go well and she had to wiggle the needle around. She got a few vials and started an IV. Bridget didn't yell or cry but she did keep asking to take it out. Katie then had to stick the other arm. She still had 7 more vials to fill. Bridget sat still again and this stick went better but after 5 vials the vein collapsed and the wiggling for the last 2 vials began. I was so proud of Bridget, she suffered through, holding her Lamby in my lap.

Bridge feel asleep almost immediately in my arms and we stayed that way for an hour or so. The Dr came back with good test results around 1AM and said Bridget wouldn't be admitted overnight. This could last over 4 weeks and we would have to check her urine and blood pressure weekly with our pediatrician. There isn't any treatment, just managing symptoms and staying alert to bigger problems. It wasn't a clean bill of health but Yeah we could go home. An hour later the IV was out and I was carrying Bridget to the van. She fell asleep almost immediately upon getting home.

Iv and 4th of July nails

Watching her sleep on the ER bed was a tiring but peaceful time. I leaned my head in and rested against hers and sang her favorite bedtime song "Twinkle Twinkle" in my head. This is the most natural thing for me to do by her bedside and I smiled at my tired self.  They don't ever know what causes HSP but it is usually in response to the immune system being assaulted previously. We are guessing that the bee stings triggered the event but no way of knowing for sure. I am grateful for her health and for the amazing girl she is.