While We Were Out.....

Zach and I took a trip back to Mayo Clinic for his two week checkup.

It was time to get rid of the big heavy cast that was now very loose due to swelling going down. When the cast was loose like that it bumps the pins in the top of the hand and that would cause Zach to suck in great gulps of air way too often. I cant imagine the pain.

He was very relieved to have air to the hand if only for a very short time!
Eleven stitiches were removed.

It took a long time to remove the cast with all the stuffing and the pins that can not be touched for multiple reasons.

We had four people work on him in the casting room. All were good but the one nurse named "Cynthia". She was not very careful while cleaning the wound for the final time. She did not take extra care not to bump the pins whatsoever. Zach about came off the bed a few times. In her haste(lack of patience/care/concern) she bumped one of the pins out of place. And then it popped up. Soon we had another guy working on the hand. Our surgical nurse came and then the doc-who was in a procedure and wouldnt be able to see us just the xrays. Doc reassured us that the pin that got knocked out was ok as the remaining pin is the one holding the grafted bone in place. We are praying that is true.

Very frustrating to have someone like that in a place where people are in alot of pain. A little care and compassion goes a long ways.

I dont think she understood that she with her lack of care could be jeopardizing the surgery someone just went through!!! VERY frustrating.Soon he was back in a hard cast. We go back in two weeks again to replace this cast as the swelling goes down some more. Oh joy!
We also seen a hemotologist and an infectious disease doc for the nail they removed during the surgery. We will repea this with the next visit too.
Note on the third pic he has a plastic fingernail sewn on til a new one grows back. He just figured it out the other day and was very excited to tell/show me.
When Zach and I headed east Daryl headed west to haul the "new-to-us" baler to Wyoming. And he had to pickup the one he traded in to bring back to South Dakota.
So Dirk headed south to stay with the kids. And not to leave Maria out- she stayed to the north to keep working!!
We covered all directions!

Zach is excited as he can now drive once again with this new cast. And being he had surgery and cant work construction again he is taking my place in Wyoming this summer. I wont have alot of time to be out there with different things that are going on and the wedding that in the making