Darek Update

Darek went back to the Orthopedic Dr. today and they took another x-ray of the leg. Great news - the pin is right where he put it two weeks ago. The Dr. was very pleased and told him that he still needed to stay off of it for another 4 weeks. At that time they will x-ray it again and probably give him an okay to put pressure on it. He will still be using one crutch for a couple weeks after that.

Even better news! He can go back to school!!! Ye Ha! He will have to start back slowly, but I'll take anything right now.

The bad news for Darek is that no ATV or motorcycle for another couple of months at least. Poor kid. Now he will have to look forward to snowmobiling rather than motorcycle riding.

We are so glad that it is healing so well. Dr. Klatt thinks that he will need no physical therapy. He says that kids his age usually bounce back rather well. Amazing what the human body can do when you are young.

Update on Darek

Darek is doing really well. He has finally decided that it is not so bad to get up and walk on the crutches, which was a hurdle for us last week. He gets around pretty well on the crutches and has even attempted the stairs. We will keep hoping for big improvements.
Also, pray that I don't loose my mind trying to keep him entertained for 2 weeks. He is not one to enjoy sitting and watching T.V. so already he is becoming bored. I'm going to try and see if I can slip in some merit badge requirements without him knowing what I'm doing. We'll see how that goes.

Here are some pics showing the incisions for the pins.

Crash!

So, Darek decided to end the summer on an exciting note. While roller blading behind a tote goat (small motorcycle)he underestimated a turn and ended up sliding into the curb and bouncing off. The result - a broken femur right below the hip socket. Not so great. Lots of pain and tears were shed while he waited close to 24 hours for surgery.
Here is a picture of him braving thru the pain while waiting. This is what lots of Morphine and Valium do to a guy.
His accident occurred at about 9:15 on Monday night and finally at 6:00 p.m. Tuesday he was able to go into surgery. The doctor placed a rod and 3 pins in his right leg to keep everything in place. The rod will remain in his leg for 9-12 months and then it will be removed. The surgery went extremely well. It took about an hour and a half for them to place the rod.
Here is what he looked like after surgery - pale as a ghost and funnier than ever. Coming out of the anesthetic was quite comical. We got a good kick out of watching him chew ice chips like a horse and breathing into the oxygen mask so that the balloon would inflate.


Today is a much better day. The leg looks terrific and he is feeling a hundred times better. No cast on the leg and by 4:00 he was up walking around on crutches.
Tomorrow morning he will be able to return home. Doctor says about 2-3 weeks on the crutches and then he can start walking on his own. Quite remarkable what they can do these days.


Look at Darek's cute name plate on his room.

Here is a pic of Don's sleeping quarters as he spends the nights with Darek and I spend the days.