Ben is Home!

Lots of new developments this afternoon.  Laada just brought Ben home from the hospital.  Yay! 

Earlier this afternoon, Josh and I went for a walk around the block.  While it's a relatively short distance, it's a pretty strenuous walk, as Ben's house is on the side of a hill, so most of it is either uphill or downhill.  We took it slow, and Josh made it all the way around without stopping.  That must have helped kick his digestive system back into gear, because when we got back to the house, he headed straight for the bathroom and had his first bowel movement since Tuesday.  Normally, this isn't the sort of thing I'd care to blog about, but it's a major milestone in recovering from surgery and a serious cause for concern if it doesn't happen in a timely manner.  In fact, half of the meds the doctors prescribed to him are for pain management, and the other half are for... let's say "bowel management."

After all that, Josh is literally pooped out, so he's having a lie-down and listening to his iPod while Ben gets settled back in at home.

Meanwhile, Josh's aunt Priscilla came by this afternoon with some food and took charge of Larissa (age 6) for the afternoon.  Larissa has a busy schedule this weekend -- she was invited to a birthday party yesterday and another one today.  Since we all have our hands full taking care of Ben and Josh, Priscilla generously volunteered to take care of Larissa so she didn't get underfoot or feel neglected.

Ben has to go back to the hospital tomorrow morning to meet with his doctors, and Josh has a post-op appointment on Thursday morning, so we haven't seen the last of the UW hospital.  Here's hoping they'll give us the all-clear to fly home on the 22nd.