It was time for Kyle to go pick up his prom date. They were going to go eat dinner with some other couples. Kyle was so nervous. He had never done anything like this before, and wasn't even sure what to do. He had her flower in a box in his nervous hands. We arrived a little early so we could get some pictures of the cute couple. His date wasn't quite ready, so he had to wait outside while she finished getting her makeup on. He paced back and forth outside, trying not to sweat too much in his cute little "chocolate" colored tuxedo. She was finally ready so Kyle was allowed to come inside. He handed her the wrist corsage and with a little help from her aunts, she pinned Kyle's boutineer onto his tux. After a few pictures, they left to go eat. About 2 hours later, people began to gather at the school anxiously awaiting the promenade. Two by two, couples would pull up in their vehicle of choice and the guy would walk around and help the girl out and escort her past the crowd. Kyle and his date were riding with one of his friends, another freshman, and his date. After they pulled up and Kyle's friend had escorted his date past the crowd, Kyle got out of the vehicle and walked around to open the door for his date. She stepped out and he offered his arm and she accepted, and they walked past the crowd, occasionally pausing for pictures from various cameras. That was the outward appearance of what happened. From a mother's standpoint, I saw my son get out of the vehicle and as he began to walk around to get his date, I heard a comment from someone behind me... "He can't be a freshman! He's so little!" That was disheartening from a mother's viewpoint. Here was my son, on a very special night, learning how to act like a man, and I was caught up in it also, until I overheard the comment. Back to reality. Yes, my son is different. But he deserves a chance too, just like everyone else. Immediately, though, my eyes focused on a group of girls that are in Kyle's class and they were all squealing at how cute Kyle was. That helped. I was quickly able to get past the negative comment made by the person standing close to me, who didn't realize I was the mother. I can't blame her, though. People are automatically programmed to recognize differences. I just have to remember not to take it too personally. That's something I have to constantly remind myself. It's okay to be different.
Kyle had a doctor's appointment on May 5th for his 3rd testosterone shot. He had gained one pound since his last appointment one month ago. But he had still not grown any taller since his end of February endocrinologist appointment. Still 4'll". I know I'm supposed to be patient because this is a very slow process, but COME ON!!! We live in a society of instant gratification, yet not everything has immediate results. So as I watch my son give himself a daily growth hormone injection, swallow a daily pill which prevents his growth plates from fusing, and go to the doctor to get a monthly testosterone shot, I have to constantly remind myself, and him, that this is out of our control and we just have to be patient.
On another note, Kyle likes the outdoors. And, the outdoors likes Kyle. Especially poison ivy. Kyle is very susceptible to poison ivy. Poor guy. Takes after his mother. So after a weekend of turkey hunting, he ended up with poison ivy. Normally, this would be no big deal. Just get a prescription for some oral steroids and that'll keep the PI from spreading. Simple enough. We've done it a million times. However, if you read the fine print for growth hormone usage, oral corticosteroid use can affect growth hormone secretion and should be avoided. So, Kyle's doctor prescribed a topical cream along with some Benadryl. It's now 3 days later and thankfully, the poison ivy didn't get into his system and spread.
So for now, 3 testosterone shots down, 3 to go. I think his body is being tricked into puberty.
