Yearn for Surrender: Two trips to the ER on Super weekend

What a title for a blogpost. How can a weekend that includes two trips to the ER ever be called "Super"? Well, the weekend of our big adoption ministry fundraiser has the title "Super" in it. This weekend always seems to fall in the midst of crazy situations. In 2015 I was on Jury Duty. I served for 20 hours in the two days leading up to the event. 2016 was crazy in its own way. Brandon suffers from recurrent corneal erosion. Basically his eyes stick to his eyelids and then tear when he opens his eyes. Sounds painful? You are right. Brandon had some really bad tears in the week, I think on Tuesday night. He went to the eye doctor on Wednesday and it seemed to make things much worse. He tried to work on Wednesday and Thursday, but everything was too bright. He came home and worked in our basement. Nothing seemed to help. My parents arrived on Thursday night to help watch the kids during the busy weekend (the kids didn't have school on Friday) and to attend the event on Saturday. I am so thankful they came when they did.

On Thursday night I got the kids to bed and was chatting downstairs with my parents. Brandon went to bed early and woke up to a stuck eye and a horrible tear. I heard a pounding sound and knew he was punching the bed in pain. He said that appendicitis and the blood clot were nothing compared to this. I got him a crock pot full of hot towels so he could keep them on his eyes through the night. I could tell he was still in A LOT of pain. I went to talk with my parents and we all decided that I should ask Brandon about going to the ER. He agreed it might be the best option. I gathered tons of things to do, but unlike urgent care, at the ER they are ready for you! We were led to a room and quickly turned off the lights. The Dr. put something in his eye to numb it. He was then given an eye test. He couldn't even see the biggest letters in his torn eye. The Dr looked at the eye and the tear was very big. He was able to give him a powerful Rx and another numbing drop before we left.

Brandon struggled to work on Friday and we lived in darkness while he was home. Brandon had a friend drive him to an eye Dr. and they put in a hard contact to protect his eye. Here is what Brandon wrote about his pain on Friday: "I went to the eye doctor this morning; he scraped off the damaged layer on the surface of my eye and then put in a protective contact lens, which will stay in until at least Monday. The excruciating pain is gone, which is great! It's replaced by a constant burning sensation and major light sensitivity." The kids had a fun morning at a gymnastics center and I was busy setting up for the big day. It was so amazing to have my parents here to help.

Saturday went so well. The event was amazing. The weather was lovely. Brandon was able to see well enough to work on the sermon that afternoon. My parents headed home. M had a Birthday party to attend and T and I both crashed.

Sunday was a typical day. Brandon was still light sensitive, but rallied like crazy for both services and Sunday School classes. Sunday night Charissa and I planned a walk. We had much to catch up on as I told her the story of our trip to the ER. Her son L had recently had his appendix removed and we laughed about what a rough season we were having. Suddenly as we walked along I noticed a wet area on the sidewalk and moved to the grass. Charissa stepped on it in the perfect way to fly into the air. She landed on her arm and didn't get up. She was in a lot of pain and we were at a loss of what to do. I thought of calling a neighbor. He came and drove Charissa to the ER and I followed. She just happened to be seen by the same Dr. as Brandon. I felt so bad for her in so much pain. I was with her for a while and then left when her hubby arrived. She did indeed have a broken arm. She had a long healing road and is finally feeling much recovered.

Brandon's eye is also doing much better. He had several trips to the eye Dr. those first weeks. He was given several protective lenses while his eye healed. Once it healed he was able to get Rx drops and he continues to do pretty well. He uses several ointments and creams each day. He still has some sticking issues at night, but nothing like that horrible eye pain week.

So there you have it. A "Super" weekend that included two trips to the ER.

Now for the weekend in pictures!

M: Grandpa Daryl loves it when I brush his hair.

The kids were so excited when they found out that Great Grandma B sent along a box filled with ground cherries.

T: I love ground cherries.

M: They are great breakfast dessert.

T: Grandma Kathy is really good at coloring.

M: We scootered while we waited for the gym to open.

T: Yeah, I put on some regular clothes, but don't worry, my leotard was on under them.

Such a beauty!

I looked online and read that this YMCA was having an open gym and gave my parents directions. What I failed to notice was anything about paying for the hour. My family arrived and was unable to pay because you have to buy some punch card thing at a different Y. My mom, bless her heart, navigated an area she had never been and was able to get the bunch card. The Y did let my dad and kids start their adventure while she got the card. So much work, but the kids had a great time.