Great News!

Today, Connor had his 1 month PT evaluation. The therapist were very happy with his ROM numbers. Hip 75 degrees and his knee was 45 degrees, which was done all on his own. Due to his progress he only needs PT 2x a week at this point. Yahoo!!! One less trip to Baltimore, I'll take it! We were told it is typical protocol to reduce PT at this stage of the journey as long as the numbers are right. However, if there are any signs of regression we will need to increase to 3x again. Connor has been working really hard at home with exercises. We are hopeful that he can continue to have progress. After our clinic appt. Monday, I had more questions regarding Connor's X-rays. Dr. Standard reviewed his X-rays again and sent this email. 
EMAIL: I was able to go over Connor's x-rays. It is still too early to see any signs of regrowth at this point. We usually start to see the earliest signs at about 2 months, definitely by 4 months we should see some changes. No further fragmentation after the fixator was placed. Shenton's line looks good, this means that the hip is positioned well in the fixator. Overall the head looks very stable and is in a good position. It is still too early to see x-ray changes for healing but is optimistic that Connor should have a good result.

Making Progress

One month, post surgery clinic appt. Overall the appt went well. Dr. Standard was very happy with Connor's X-rays. It showed the hip in a great position and it is distracting well. The hip bone has yet to show signs of regrowth but we were told that could take 3-6 months after surgery. I, of course, was hoping to see a little sign of regrowth but I guess we have to continue waiting. PT continues to go well. His latest ROM numbers were 70 (Hip) and 55 (knee). The Dr was happy with those numbers. Looking forward to the end if the week when Connor gets re-evaluated at PT. His determination continues to shine. After our long day in Baltimore, we made it home in time to get Emma off the bus. Connor decided to walk home with his walker from the bus stop which is about 5 houses up. By far the most distance he has walked.

Praying for Peace

The weekend was rough. Connor was waking up several times throughout the night and was very restless and agitated. His complaints are some of the skin around the pins are pulling (which is common when the distraction bar is in during the evening) and his back and butt are so tired of laying on them. Lately, we have been using the stomach position but he can only be in that for a few hours AND one of us has to be with him the whole time for safety reasons. Which means we have been catching some Zzzzz's in the hospital bed with him or in his wheelchair next to him. He is currently off all medications that were originally given to him post surgery. He continues to take Tylenol before PT sessions. At night, we have also been experimenting with Melatonin as a sleep aid. The last 2 nights have been better with less interruptions. We are trying a new routine at night which makes him more comfortable to sleep through the night. This week's prayers are for peace and comfort for Connor.
Here is a picture of Connor during a PT session with Ms. Melissa. The staff takes such good care of Connor. He walks in and they make him feel like a celebrity. As you can see, they make PT fun even though it is painful.

A Special Visitor..

Connor had a special visitor this evening along with some friends. The one, the only....Miss Morris!!!!! Miss Morris is Connor's computer teacher at school, and is also the one who set up this wonderful blog for us. My kids were so excited to have her visit. Our awesome friends, the Zeiders', made a visit as well. Good times had by all!


PS- Miss Morris and the Zeiders family had just as much fun with Connor and family.....Here they are playing Wii and games together. I'm not sure who is more excited..

Connor's Progress at Home..

Connor was very excited to go out for trick or treat. Thankfully, the mild weather was in Connor's favor. Cold weather tends to cause the pins to vibrate into his bone when he shivers. Ouch! He went out for a while with some friends. We even decorated his wheelchair with glow sticks for fun! One of his buddies carried Connor's bucket the whole time and filled it with candy for him. What an awesome friend!!!
First full week of driving to Baltimore down, many more to go. PT continues to go well. The knee is still stiff but gets better each week. We never really know what kind of night Connor is going to have. He still has nights where he wakes up very agitated and tired of laying in the same position. It can be a struggle to get him back to sleep.
We continue to be blessed by phone calls, texts, emails of everyone's prayers and well wishes. Although, days may go by before my next blog update (due to the craziness around here), I will continue to posts updates throughout his journey. Much love to all of you.