We are frantically getting Matt ready to head off to Camp Oasis tomorrow. Camp Oasis if a camp for kids with IBD, either Crohn's or Ulcerative Colitis. It is located at Camp Heartland(One Heartland Center) in Willow River Minnesota. It is located just of I35 about 50 miles south of Duluth. All of the volunteers that work at camp also have IBD. One of the 2 medical directors this year is Dr. Tung. She was a big part of him going to camp this year. The other one is Diane Kocovsky, APRN (advanced practice registered nurse, I had to look that one up) from Boys Town National Research Hospital in Omaha, NE. We will meet with members from the medical team when we drop him off tomorrow. He has also met 3 of the other ladies that will be up there and one of the kids!
He is very excited to be going to camp with all kids just like him. They have very full busy days planed with rest time, medication times, and lots of other fun activities. Luckily since Matthew is on Remicade he only has to do his daily Vitamin while there. They have theme days and he is excited about Favorite sports team day, he is wearing his MN Twins gear!
I think I am more nervous about it then he is. We don't pick Matthew up until Saturday! He will be there for 6 long days!!!! I will make it! :) I am excited for the experience he will get. They have warned us a little about what he will ask and how he will act when he gets home.
If anyone wants to send him a letter while he is there the address is
One Heartland Center
c/o Matthew Schaefer
26001 Heinz Road
Willow River, Mn 55795
You may want to send it by Tuesday or Wednesday at the latest to make sure it gets to him!
Sunday, July 28, 2013
Wednesday, July 10, 2013
Only Matthew...
On Thursday, June 30th I called Ryan to tell him I where I would meet him after work and he says "Well I got a call from Cool School, Matthew had an accident. Megan says she doesn't think he needs stitches but she is not sure." Matthew and the other boys were on a field trip in the cities all day. They went to a place called Sky Zone to play on the trampolines and then to a park to eat lunch and play. While at the park Matthew was walking under the Monkey Bars while another kid, Sam, was crossing them. Sam slipped and fell right on top of Matthew. Sam's teeth went into the top of Matthew's head. Matthew and Sam both took it very well. I think it upset Will, one of the college kids that works at Cool School, more than anyone. Will was the one they went to covered in blood so he had to fill out the accident report for us. Right after it happened Megan on of the ladies at Cool School got a hold of Ryan and told him what happened. Ryan got to talk to Matthew and he seemed just fine. So Ryan told them we would just meet them back at the school when they got back and we got done.
We got there to pick him up and he was sitting with Will on the steps. He had a big bandage on the top of his head. We checked it out and said well we might have to at least go get it cleaned out. We got the other boys home and took another look at it. To us it looked like it was kind of healing, it had a whitish line where the cut was. Ryan put a finger on either side of it and could slide it back and forth so I packed him up and took him in.
We got to the ETU, Emergency Trauma Unit, in about 30 minutes. They took us right back to a room. The resident, child life specialist and a medical student basically followed us in to the room. The resident Dr. Comboy looked and messed with it a little bit. She was talking to Matthew about why it was a good thing he came in. She asked him what he thought was dirtier a dogs mouth, a cats mouth or a humans mouth. Matthew said "A humans, cuz their mouths are the grossest. They all left and The Child Live Specialist, Sarah came back in with some art projects for Matthew to do. He sat there and painted while they put Lidocaine on the cut. He said it kind of stung a little. After they let it get good and numb they came back with the consultant. It was time to clean it out. They used 2 bottles of saline and washed it out pretty good. This didn't phase Matt at all. After they got it good and clean I knew for sure that we were getting stitches. It was really deep and the "white" we saw was not it healing at all. It was the fatty under part of his scalp. The bottom side of it was swelling and making it roll over. Sarah left and came back with some thread that they do stitches with and a few other tools to show Matthew. She let him feel the thread and ask questions. So Dr. Comboy came back and started to stitch, The needle and the thread was just about the same color at Matthew's hair. The whole time he said Ouch twice and that was when she grabbed his hair instead of the thread and needle. It took 4 stitches to close him up. Then came the bad news. Because technically it is a human bite, he had to get Augmentin to prevent infection. And Also a Tetanus Shot because of the bite and he was just over due for one. So they got the shot already and got his leg cleaned and that is when he lost it. Sarah had to come back in and Ice his leg to get that numb so we could do the shot. She iced it for a few minute and then we sang America the beautiful at Matthew's request. The nurse went to wipe his leg again and he lost it again. So she just gave him the shot with out cleaning the leg. He hardly screamed for that. We got stickers and his meds and headed home.
He did really good with the whole thing. On that Saturday, Ryan was at scout camp with Braden and it was just me, Matthew and Zachary. I noticed that Matthew's leg was a little red around the injection site. I watched it through the day and it seemed to be getting bigger. I felt it and it was hot. I knew something was not right. I called in to the Nurse Line and she asked a lot of questions. While on the phone, his leg was getting bigger. The red area was now from his knee to groin and swelling. He said it jiggled when he walked. Because of the Remicade, Matthew has a weakened immune system. She told me to bring him in right away with all of his Crohn's issues we didn't want to take chances. We were in and out in 30 minutes. Matthew ended up with Cellulitus in in leg! So a second antibiotic to get rid of that.
He was Trooper that's for sure. He is all healed up now. Stitches are out and Cellulitus is under control! This would Only happen to Matthew!
We got there to pick him up and he was sitting with Will on the steps. He had a big bandage on the top of his head. We checked it out and said well we might have to at least go get it cleaned out. We got the other boys home and took another look at it. To us it looked like it was kind of healing, it had a whitish line where the cut was. Ryan put a finger on either side of it and could slide it back and forth so I packed him up and took him in.
We got to the ETU, Emergency Trauma Unit, in about 30 minutes. They took us right back to a room. The resident, child life specialist and a medical student basically followed us in to the room. The resident Dr. Comboy looked and messed with it a little bit. She was talking to Matthew about why it was a good thing he came in. She asked him what he thought was dirtier a dogs mouth, a cats mouth or a humans mouth. Matthew said "A humans, cuz their mouths are the grossest. They all left and The Child Live Specialist, Sarah came back in with some art projects for Matthew to do. He sat there and painted while they put Lidocaine on the cut. He said it kind of stung a little. After they let it get good and numb they came back with the consultant. It was time to clean it out. They used 2 bottles of saline and washed it out pretty good. This didn't phase Matt at all. After they got it good and clean I knew for sure that we were getting stitches. It was really deep and the "white" we saw was not it healing at all. It was the fatty under part of his scalp. The bottom side of it was swelling and making it roll over. Sarah left and came back with some thread that they do stitches with and a few other tools to show Matthew. She let him feel the thread and ask questions. So Dr. Comboy came back and started to stitch, The needle and the thread was just about the same color at Matthew's hair. The whole time he said Ouch twice and that was when she grabbed his hair instead of the thread and needle. It took 4 stitches to close him up. Then came the bad news. Because technically it is a human bite, he had to get Augmentin to prevent infection. And Also a Tetanus Shot because of the bite and he was just over due for one. So they got the shot already and got his leg cleaned and that is when he lost it. Sarah had to come back in and Ice his leg to get that numb so we could do the shot. She iced it for a few minute and then we sang America the beautiful at Matthew's request. The nurse went to wipe his leg again and he lost it again. So she just gave him the shot with out cleaning the leg. He hardly screamed for that. We got stickers and his meds and headed home.
He did really good with the whole thing. On that Saturday, Ryan was at scout camp with Braden and it was just me, Matthew and Zachary. I noticed that Matthew's leg was a little red around the injection site. I watched it through the day and it seemed to be getting bigger. I felt it and it was hot. I knew something was not right. I called in to the Nurse Line and she asked a lot of questions. While on the phone, his leg was getting bigger. The red area was now from his knee to groin and swelling. He said it jiggled when he walked. Because of the Remicade, Matthew has a weakened immune system. She told me to bring him in right away with all of his Crohn's issues we didn't want to take chances. We were in and out in 30 minutes. Matthew ended up with Cellulitus in in leg! So a second antibiotic to get rid of that.
He was Trooper that's for sure. He is all healed up now. Stitches are out and Cellulitus is under control! This would Only happen to Matthew!
Remicade Appointment for June!!!
Matthew's Remicade infusion for June went really well. It was the first time I could not be there. It kind of made me very nervous. I felt like I should be there but I couldn't get off of work. So Ryan and Braden brought him. It was Braden's first chance to come and see what Matthew has to go through every 8 weeks. Lucky for me I work 7 floors below the Pediatric Infusion Therapy Center. My friends Chuck and Katie covered for me so I could sneak up and check on him. My first trip up was just in time to see the "Good Guy" Arik finish up his IV. I poked my head around the corner and said "Yeah we got the good guy" and Matthew and Arik both laughed. I ask Arik how he did and he said Awesome as usual. I hung out for just a few minute and then had to head back to work for a little while. Ryan, Braden and Matthew played on the computers and Ipods and watched movies and had snacks. Nothing too exciting happened. I stopped back up before I had to go catch my bus, to see how they were doing. Ryan and Braden both complained because it was boring! Matthew was just hanging out in the chair watching a movie. I left them to be bored a little longer, it usually takes about 3 hours. I think Matthew is pretty used to how boring it is, but he knows it makes him feel better so it is all worth it!
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