PediatricDigest: Well Overdue

Well Overdue

Jamie Grant — December 24, 2024

This is definitely the longest I've ever gone without giving a Sam update. Looking back, the last Sam update I gave was when Sam got decannulated (trach removed) back in June. Of course, much has happened since then. No news is good news, right? For the most part, yes…

In July, we took a trip to the beautiful Montana. We were proud of Will as he did ninety plus percent of the driving. We stayed a few nights in Medora, ND. Let's just say with Sam and all of his medical equipment plus the four of us, a two-queen hotel room is definitely squishy.

The goal was to do as much hiking as possible. We learned real fast, Sam is not much of a hiker… yet. At first sight of a stick or rock, he plopped himself down and tossed away. If you have been to Montana, sticks and rocks are in no short supply. This worked out quite well for me and Sean. Not being able to take Sam on a full hike meant us taking turns going on hikes with Will and Abby. The two athletes are not the easiest for us kinda oldies to keep up with.

Sam's trach stoma (hole in neck) was not closed yet, but not having to bring all of his trach supplies cut the medical supply Sam packing list in half. He did attempt to "kill" himself by suddenly standing up from being content with throwing rocks into Lake McDonald and running full throttle, clothes, shoes, feeding backpack and all into the lake. I literally caught him right before he fully submerged himself in the water. Montana hospital stay aborted. Whew!!!

I was overall very impressed with Glacier's accessibility. Although we could only take Sam so far, there were many very beautiful, accessible trails. It was comforting to see many people not only in strollers, but also in wheelchairs enjoying God's beauty. It was a trip well worth the work and hope it will be a good core memory for Will, Abby, and Sam.

The rest of the summer was packed with sports for Will and Abby, the Minnesota State Fair, of course, a fun family trip with Sean's side of the family to Craigun's Resort, and Will getting into a fight with a golf cart and needing stitches, and much more, of course.

Swimming with Sam. It happened. His trach stoma did finally close. The seven days we were told, took over a month and a half, but that's okay. It was surreal to be around water and not have a death grip on Sam's arm. For the remaining of the summer, both Abby and Will kept asking if I was sure it was closed and if I was sure he could be in the water. Sean felt the same. I did too, but my actions didn't show it. Sam loved jumping off the edge of the pool. He didn't go all the way under, but he was close. What a crazy feeling it was to be around water with Sam knowing if his head and neck went under for a few seconds it wasn't a death sentence.

Summer and September were overall good to Sam. This mama heart was mostly focused on trying to enjoy some of Will's lasts as a senior in high school. How did that happen?! It was fun to take Sam to more football games. Sam does okay until the crowd goes wild and then he's out. We found some amazing noise cancelling headphones for him and he enjoyed his iPad while we were able to actually watch the football games.