So last Monday my little sister was not feeling very well at all and so she stayed home from school and then that night my mom felt her tummy and it was all red, hot and distended so she took her over the the after hours clinic. Dr. Hacking was there (dun, dun, dun) (Remember to consult me when chosing a pediatrician :)) and he ordered a CT of her abdomen. I was at a bridal shower but I left as soon as I knew she was at Timpanogas (gotta keep an eye on them) after her CT they did some labs and then we waited and waited then Dr. Hacking called and said that we needed to go to Primary Children's and see the GI doctor. Because the CT indicated Crohn's disease. yuck. So in short they put my cute little sister Josie (15) through all kinds of torture. They made her drink 2 rounds of Go lightly before her colonoscopy, the actual colonoscopy, several iv's, etc. Then on Thursday when I got up there they told us that she was going to do home. We were a little surprised but pleased- and Josie was pretty excited. But then her doctor came in and said he just couldn't send her home because what he was seeing on the pics from the scope didn't match her pain. So they ordered another test. This was torture to watch. They put an NJ down (the tube goes down your nose and into your small intestine) and then pumped 1500 cc of NS into her one 60 cc syringe at a time. That poor girl took it like a champ. After they got all the water in they did a CT and then sent us back to the room to wait. The doctor came back in and told us that they had found an abscess on the outside of her sm. intestine and they needed to operate. So much for going home! So then the surgical resident Dr. Miller came in (he's a stud) and told us about the surgery. Then I got him to show us on the CT what was up- pretty crazy! So it happened really really fast but they took her into surgery (for the second time that day) and we got to go wait. It was the worst, longest time ever waiting to hear! But finally it was over and my mom got to go to the recovery room with her and my dad and I went and moved her stuff to the surgical unit. She was pretty out of it when she got to the room and she had a foley catheter in and an ng (a tube from her nose to her stomach) which was keeping everything out of her recovering digestive system. She was pretty miserable. I spent that night there and most of Friday and then went home to watch the boys. I went up Saturday with Erica and we gave our parents and Josie and break and we stayed with her overnight we watched movies and stuff to keep her entertained. The doctor let them take the foley out on Sunday morning and that made her really happy and later that night she got the ng out too! We are all happy at how quickly she is progressing! She did end up with a PICC and she is getting TPN and lipids to help get her nutrition and she was able to start eating after a week of being NPO. (I would have died.) We are hoping that she comes home today or tomorrow! I have learned a ton through this experience! 1. that my family is amazing and I love them so much and I am glad that we can count on eachother. 2. That the church is awesome, we've had tons of people calling and offering help, and that everyone in the ward loves Josie (hard not to)! 3. That I am very grateful for the technology that we have - who knows what could have happened without it? 4. That I am dead set on being a nurse now, I love the environment and the human body and spirit amaze me. 5. That I am glad I am the sister and not the mother because pretending to be Mom to a 17 and 12 year old is not so easy. 6. I am grateful for the priesthood and that my Dad is a worthy holder and can give us blessings. 7. I think that my family has had enough hospital visits for the next year or two so hopefully we'll stay out of there (Both of my grandpa's have had surgery already this year, as well as one of my cousins having surgery and another one having heart problems.) 8. Trust Mother's Instincts I'm glad my mom wasn't too anxious to get Josie out. 9. Everything comes down to poop, from the top of your head to the sole of your shoe.... kidding (if you watch Scrubs:My Musical, you'll get it.) 10. Last but not least I get to have some tests of my own done! Stand by for pics! 11. I'm continually reminded that the Lord has got everything figured out and the right time and place thing keep working out for me...(it's kinda crazy) but I'm pretty sure that if this had to happen last week was the best time because Erica, Charlie and I all had work off because we had planned to go to Cali to see Vecca Bean graduate as a service dog, but she didn't match this time. So we didn't miss seeing that (we'll go in May) and we were able to spend the time we needed with our family and could take care of the boys. Funny, isn't it? Peace out!