Scary Christmas

This morning the kids woke up and brought their stockings into our bed. We were all piled up in there, while they opened everything. Matthew started choking, and gagging on something. I did a finger sweep in his mouth, and felt something- I couldn't identify it. I also couldn't get it out. He was coughing, and gagging yet breathing fine- so we decided to take him to the ER ourselves rather than call an ambulance.
We got there and he was taken back quickly- I waited with the other three kids for my dad to get there for them. By the time I got back to the room they were doing an x-ray. They didn't see anything, but we knew that what he had swallowed was either plastic or paper, and neither would show up on x-ray.

The dr decided to call in an ENT (Dr Littlejohn) and do the scope on him. This required a trip to the OR.
The nurses came in and tried 5 times to start an IV on him, and every vein blew. So they took him to surgery.. Pastor Jim came up and prayed with us, and I got him to go to sleep on his own before they took him away. Once they got him back to surgery and put him to sleep they tried to do the IV again. Again, every vein blew. All in all they tried at least 15 times to get an IV in the poor guy. Dr Littlejohn decided to go ahead without an IV and did the scope. If what he swallowed is what we think it is- the scope pushed it down into his stomach. It would be very hard to see on camera. We think it was one of those little clear plastic, t-shaped tags that hold price tags to clothes etc.

He came through the ordeal ok, they had to take a lot longer to wake him up because without the IV he would have a spasm, and closed off his airway. He is still pretty miserable..and has a nasty cough, which makes him cry- I'm sure his throat is very sore. The Dr did say that his throat looked pretty scratched up.
If he is still coughing within a couple days though, we are to bring him back. There is a very slim chance that it went into his airway and not his stomach. He said that is very rare though.

So I guess the prayer at this point is that he will heal quickly..that the tag did in fact go to his stomach and not his airway. Also pray for comfort- the little guy is so sore from all his sticks.