Annie's accident

Two days ago Annie fell down in school! Apparently a drain cover had a bar missing and her foot went into the drain and she knocked her knee against the cement edge!!

The poor dear was in a lot of pain so I brought her to the A & E to get the wound cleaned and dressed and to see of she needed stitches.

Well fortunately it wasn't too deep and did not require stitches. The nurse did a good job of cleaning it up and I requested for an Opsite waterproof plaster instead of the bandage they were going to use. The waterproof plaster is much easier to change and she can bathe with it.

Much to Annie's dismay though, she had to get a tetanus jab. Since she's in a private school, they do not give free vaccinations. So when the doc said her DTP jabs when she was small only covered her for about 5 years, we agreed to have another booster which should cover her till uni, where she hopefully doesn't fall into drains anymore! Lol!

x-ray archive

So yesterday Hubby went to the A&E to get an x-ray done because he has been having abnormal back pain for a few days. We were dreading news of another screw misalignment, but the doctor seems to think it looks okay. This doctor however is only an MO, and upon reviewing the x- rays, I noticed a bit of a shift, but this time on a bottom screw. Hubby's pain has reduced, but he will still see his spine specialist ASAP just to make sure everything is okay.

Anyway, we forgot to bring along old x-rays for comparison, so I showed the MO pics of the x-rays which I posted in my blog. She was quite impressed and suggested that I post the other x-rays taken from different angles as well, so that they would be easy to access during emergencies when traveling etc.

So here are the x-rays I'm posting for future reference.

24/4/2013: 5 months post first op.

24/4/2013: 5 months post first op.

29/1/2014: one week before second op.

29/1/2014: one week before second op.

5/2/2014: day after second op.

5/2/2014: day after second op.

27/4/2014: 3 months post second op.

27/4/2014: 3 months post second op.

second spine op!!

Before Chinese New Year, Hubby was experiencing quite a degree of pain in his back. He felt something was not right and decided to see the doctor. Luckily he caught the doctor early in the morning before he left for an operation. If not, he would most probably have had to wait till after CNY.

Anyway, the doctor took a look at him and immediately ordered an X-ray done. Then came the bad news: one of the screws inserted into his spine at L4 and L5 had shifted, so now the plate was bent and the top right screw misaligned! So the tip of he screw was now poking into his nerve and causing great pain! This meant another operation to correct it!!!!! 

Before this, the doctor had already reassured Hubby countless times that his bone had fused and everything  was secure and he could return to his normal activities, even going to the gym and playing golf. So that is exactly what he did, he went back to playing golf and practicing his swing for hours at the driving range. Now the doctor changed his tune and said that the bone graft must not have fused properly and thus the joint shifted, causing the screw to become misaligned!!! 

 I think the problem was, most of his patients are elderly people who are less active. So in his experience, when he recommended that his patients return to normal activity, there was never a problem, as they did not swing the golf club for hours a day! I think the twisting motion puts the most strain on our spines.

Whatever the case, this guy is the best in Sarawak, so second op it was then!

This was taken (after the first op) on 24/4/13 - around 5 months post-op

This was taken around 9 months later, before CNY on 29/1/14. Notice how the top right screw has shifted to point upwards.

So on the 5th day of Chinese New Year Hubby went in for his second spine operation. All the kids were carted to Sis No.2's house, except for Solomon who went to Kung Kung Titus' house to stay with cousins Benedict and Dominic.

This operation was not as major as the first one. For the first one, there were two incisions on his back, for this one, there was only one incision, following the previous one on the right. The procedure also did not delve as deep in as compared to the last one. The screw was not replaced, it was just removed, then placed back in again at a different spot. The doctor also added more bone grafts. The bone grafts are small pieces of bone placed between the joints to make them grow and fuse the joint into one whole piece. This time to be extra sure, he used Hubby's own bone, harvested from his pelvis, instead of artificial bone which was used the first time around. Using our own bone gives a better chance of fusing. This procedure using pedicle screws to secure a spinal joint and putting bone grafts to fuse it into one is called TLIF: Transforaminal Lumbar Interbody Fusion.

Fortunately, Hubby recovered much faster from this operation. Immediately after the first operation, he was in so much pain, it took him half an hour just to get off the bed to go to the toilet! This time round he managed to walk pretty fast and did not need a walking frame at all. The doctor also prescribed a lumbar support, which is like a corset, except it has metal plates to make it sturdier. Hubby says this helps a lot as it limits his movement and prevents painful positions. The doctor should have asked him to use it the first time around.

The lumbar support helps a lot.

Anyways, Hubby was house bound for only 3 days, before he escaped on the 4th day!! Well, recovery is slow, but much faster if compared to the first procedure. Let's pray that there are no more operations in the horizon! Hopefully by the end of the year, his back will be as good as new! Hubby is giving up golf for good and both him and the doctor are now more conservative! No more gung ho nonsense...

The latest x-ray taken after second op - 5/2/14. See how the screws are nice and parallel. Let's hope they stay that way!

Christmas 2013 - New Year 2014

Wow! It's been super busy and fun this past 2 months!! I've gotta catch up on the back log of events!

So Christmas holidays were a blast! The cousins from Singapore and Miri came back and it was the usual year-end havoc! Kids everywhere and a whirlwind of non-stop activities!

I don't know where to start, so I'll let the pictures do the talking...

 First up was Christmas carolling at Ee Poh's coffee shop! They sang all the fun songs since there were so many kids!

 Dad rushed to another Christmas party after that. One organized by The Lions Club for their various charities.

While I was busy with my Merdeka Band reunion, the kids followed Kung Kung to the church at Tebedu to distribute the gifts and food that they packed.

 

 Here are the kids and Kung Kung at yet another Christmas party, this time at Home of Peace, the old folks home at 10th mile.

We also cooked some 'balls' (tang yuen) for the winter solstice festival. I remember mum used to say you have to eat the same number of balls as your age! It signifies growing a year older or something like that! I think next year I should eat 21 then! lol!

Next up was Christmas carolling at Dad's house. We had the usual group from Holy Trinity Church.

Before we knew it, it was already Christmas Eve! Time sure flies when you're having fun! It was time for our annual Christmas eve dinner. Christmas Eve was mum and dad's (Kung kung Titus and Agnes Popo) anniversary, and mum is always sorely missed during this time of the year.

My bacon wrapped turkey was a little burnt, but yummy nonetheless!!

Dig in! All home-cooked dishes.... Ever since we heard from Sis no.2 the story about the pak lo duck ordered from a famous shop that was full of maggots, we try to cook our own food whenever possible!!

The main event: opening Christmas presents!! Solomon had been asking me everyday for more than a week, when we were going to open them!

 

Uncle Polycarp bought a putting mat for Kung Kung.

The kids were more excited than him!

 On Christmas day, Dad invited the old folks from Home of Peace and members of the Society for the Deaf over to the house for lunch.

 The kids sang Christmas carols and Cousin Alaena performed two of her rhythmic gymnastic routines for them. She was very confident and so graceful!

In return, the members of the Society for the Deaf performed a line dance number for us. Even though they cannot hear the music, they managed to do just fine with the help of a couple of leaders who were not hearing impaired.

 Modelling another set of matchy matchy t-shirts! Teeheehee...

Christmas Day dinner was at Kung Kung Paul's house. Yes, more food!!

 Then of course, it was more presents!!

 The next day, Boxing day, it was dinner at Sis No.2's house, followed by even more presents!!

Hubby came back from Indonesia at midnight on Boxing day (yup, he and SIL both missed Christmas at home. Both were in different parts of Indonesia). So we saved some presents at home to open with Daddy the day after Boxing day! That means the kids had presents to open over 4 days!!

 Another Christmas dinner that night, at Taiku's house! Look at the gorgeous turkey Uncle Dylan roasted!

Of course there were gifts to give out!!!

 Eva playing with her Play Doh set; one of  their many presents!

 Laksa at Mei Mei is a must, for Sis No.4, before leaving for the airport!

Creating a ruckus at the airport as usual!!

Look at Adam hanging on Uncle Richard's leg!

 

 We went bowling at Crystal Bowl. We like it there because at the last two lanes, there are railings that can be pulled up so that the balls cannot go into the gutter!

There was even karaoke! Though all the songs were pretty outdated!

... and Play Station to entertain the wee ones.

Before we knew it, everyone had left for home and we welcomed the new year! Here we went to the arcade at City One for a bit more fun before school began the next day!

I managed to squeeze in some doctor's appointments. Claire and Annie had their eyesight checked. Claire saw a skin specialist for the wart on her foot. Eva went for a hearing test. She's always ignoring me when I call and since her hearing test came out normal, I know it's not a hearing problem but selective hearing!

Well anyway, that was it, the end of 2013! Here's to another busy year ahead, filled with joy and love!!!