Climbing and Halloween

While we were at meetings in Cambodia, we took the kids to a play place.  

Truett got to do some climbing and he did GREAT!

 These are some of the fun walls he got to climb.

Can you see how high that ladder is?  It's at least 3 stories tall

 It took him several tries, but he finally made it up to where Paisley and I were watching.  

So, he had to stop and pose.

 And then he kept going!

 And made it to the top!

 I think his favorite part was getting to "fall" down.

The kids also got to go trick-or-treating.  All of the people at the meeting had a little bag of candy to give to the kids.  So, we went door to door at the hotel and came away with a nice stash of American candy (which I think the kids have thankfully forgotten about . . . but I haven't!  YUM!)

I'll leave you with my new favorite picture of the kiddos.  This is at the mall in Cambodia.  

Aren't they just the sweetest?

 

Hospital in Indonesia

So, you know that we've spent the last week in the hospital here.  A little more about it . . . we returned home from Cambodia and Thailand and Tru had a fever that night.  That's not so uncommon, he sometimes has random fevers that usually go away in about 48 hours.  We don't ever take him to the hospital until it's been three days, but then they always tell us to come back in another three days if he's still sick.  So, this time we just waited the whole six days (we were talking to an American doctor, we didn't just make the decision on our own).  We game him some antibiotics and he developed a rash.  So, we stopped the antibiotics and gave him some benadryl.  By the next day it wasn't any better and his fever was really knocking him out.  So, we went to the doctor.  His platelet numbers were a little low, so she wanted us to come back the next day to check him again.  We did and his numbers were too low, so we checking him in to the hospital.  I really thought we'd only be there over night.  But, his numbers weren't improving.  We realized that his rash was not from the antibiotic because it would fade and come back throughout the day, mostly when he had fever.  The rash finally went away after a few days, but then he developed pneumonia.  His platelet levels had finally stabilized, but now his blood oxygen levels were too low.  So, we had to start him on oxygen and a nebulizer a few times a day, and also started him on an antivirus medicine.  So, our poor kid had an IV (three times), an oxygen tube, several finger pricks each day, two full blood draws, an abdominal ultrasound (which found a slightly enlarged spleen), and 2 x-rays.  He was so brave through it all and we were so proud of him!  Not that he didn't scream and cry, but he eventually calmed down and let the nurses do what they had to do.  The most odd thing I found about being in the hospital is that they do not provide toilet paper!  We had to bring our own.  The dietitians were nice enough to make food that Truett may eat, as opposed to the Indonesian food that usually provided.  There was a nice little courtyard out our window (we were on the 3rd floor), which we could look across and see our doctor's office.  We knew when she was on her way over when she wasn't in her office anymore.  Overall, we were very pleased with all they did for Truett and us.

Here are some pictures of our adventure:

This is Wednesday at the doctor's office, the day before he was admitted to the hospital.

The first or second day, when the fever was down and he was feeling pretty good.

When his fever came back, he did not feel well.  All he wanted to do all day was lie down in bed and watch tv.

After 5 days in the hospital, he started regaining his strength and energy.  He enjoyed playing with his new hotwheels, climbing in and out of his bed, doing crafts with his sister, and eating in his hospital bed.

That last day, boy, were we ready to get out of there!!  Adios, hospital!

Cambodia and Thailand

We had some meetings in Cambodia last week and then headed to Thailand for a little family vacation.  So, over the next few weeks, I'll put up pictures of some of the things we did.  First, I'll start with some horseback riding in Cambodia and then elephant riding in Thailand.

While Michael and I were stuck in our meetings . . . I mean, learning a great deal of interesting things . . . the kids got to do some fun things.  Their favorite was probably riding horses.  Here are a few shots.

In Thailand, we rode some elephants.  I must say, we were less than impressed.  We pretty much just walked up a road, went about 30 feet on a mountain path, and turned back around.  And they tried to sell us some type of souvenirs.  And it was more expensive than we planned.  And I was a bit scared that high up on a shaky seat on an elephant.  But the kids had a good time, I think.

Look in the background, you can see the other elephants chained up, waiting under tents to give people rides.

 Before we started, Truett said he wanted to "drive" the elephant.  Well, he accidentally knocked his shoe off and the driver had to just down to get it.  Then, he asked Truett if he wanted to sit up on the elephants head.  He was so excited!  But, I think he got a little nervous and wanted to get back up on the seat.  You can see him sitting on the elephants head in the middle picture.