What did you do with your summer break?

One of my classmates pointed out that we have 20 days without homework until our next semester starts.  Here is my Kaysville cohort--missing me (I was taking a bathroom break apparently) and Sylinda (who was out of the room as well).

I said that I was going to clean my house in preparation for the upcoming 9 months of no time to clean.  The other moms booed that idea and said I should give it up entirely until we graduate and have fun instead during the break.

Apparently I chose another option because I am not getting much house cleaning done nor I am having too much fun.

First, the day after our last class, Ben was finally admitted to the State Hospital down in Provo.  We don't know if this is a good thing or not, but it seems like our only option to try to improve the quality of his daily life.  Everything else he (and we) have tried hasn't seemed to stabilize him or prevent his illness from getting worse.  We aren't sure how long he will be there but the average stay is between 6-9 months although it is highly variable.  He is still in the settling in phase.  Unfortunately, because he is a new patient he is restricted to "in the unit" only, so it is still very similar to the hospital.  In the future he will gain access to many more activities and learning experiences as he can take vocational classes, recreational activities including swimming and a gym, and maybe even have a job somewhere at the State Hospital.  It adds a whole new dimension in visiting him as it is about an 1 hour 15 minute trip down there with no traffic.  Hopefully the staff and doctors will be able to figure out some type of medication blends which will help him and allow a bit more quality of life for him. On that first day the staff was great with Ben and with me as we had many questions about everything and what to expect.  This coming Tuesday we will meet with his treatment team for the first time in person (I think that is crazy that it has been two weeks and we have yet to meet anyone and haven't even talked to the doctor assigned to Ben, but I am trying to be patient and work within their system.)  Anyway that was the first day of my "summer break".....

Since the beginning of August I have felt like I was almost getting a bladder infection so I just kept drinking more water.  Then starting last Sunday I felt sick like a stomach bug which included some significant pain. Finally on Tuesday I decided that I should have it checked out so we went to the urgent care clinic at my doctor's office.  I was just assuming that I had a developing bladder infection but no--I have another kidney stone.  I had a CAT scan on Wednesday which confirmed the stone and met with the urologist's office on Friday. The plan right now is that I will have surgery to have it removed on Wednesday because the doctor doesn't think there is any way for it to pass on its own given my experience last time.  I don't want to have surgery because because I was sick for a couple of weeks due to the plastic tubing they had to leave in to allow the tube to heal.  So mostly I have been reclining around with heat, ice and medication.  Even reading is hard due to the medication and pain. At least it was during the Olympics so I watched more Olympics than I ever have before.

So it looks like this week will be spent having and recovering from surgery.  On Friday I have to go to The Children's Center for a meeting to start my internship and then I start there next week.

And how was your summer break?

(Not my best vacation but you don't have to go far on Facebook or the news to see that many MANY other people are struggling with so much more in their own lives--personal tragedies or flooding or fires or whatever.  I might not feel great but I know what is wrong and it will be fixed and I will be fine.  Ben is in a safe place and with caring people and with some new opportunities for help.  Our other kids have jobs and homes and darling kids.  Life is so rich and so good even with a pain in the side.)