John Update

VA Home Health Care and Southern Care (hospice) are stepping in to help John. He's going to start seeing the primary care doctor who admitted him to the hospital before Christmas. He really wants to see John be comfortable and enjoy a reasonable quality of life, for how long, only God knows. John is already in assisted living, but the extra help will be a blessing for him.

I am still working on plans to go to PA for an extended time. Some things are falling into place. Some things still need to be worked out. I would really like to be there to help out and give my sisters some relief.

I saw my surgeon yesterday and my medical oncologist today. Other than my blood work showing slight anemia, everything else is fine. My surgeon wants me to have a mammogram in addition to the breast MRI I had last month so that is scheduled for this Thursday. I'm trying to get all these doctors' appts. and tests done this month. Once I do I won't need to see them again until April. That would be good.

Sigh

John is going to need his stomach tapped again. Not sure when. He's very tired all the time, which is not unusual for his condition. I may go up there for awhile. Trying to work out the details, of which there are many. Keep John in your prayers! xoxoxo

Back in Florida

I am so very glad I made the trip home to PA. I got to spend a lot of quality time with John. He's doing better, but not great. I continue to be very worried and I would really appreciate your prayers.

I squeezed in some very short visits with friends, but most of my time was spent with family. I'm grateful for the trip.

The dogs and the cat were very happy that I was back. Levi was a little ticked off at me, but that's a cat for you! I came back with food...mostly things you can't get here. Like basket cheese, really good ravioli, pastina, cookies and lots of Jameson's Chocolates. I shared all with Joe, Linda and the girls. It is time for New Year's resolutions and I think they will look very much like last year's!

My breast MRI from the 19th was all clear, thank God. This month I have a round of doctors' appointments. Never a dearth of those.

Wishing you all a blessed, healthy, happy and prosperous 2009. xoxoxo

Christmas blessings

First we thought John would be released Tuesday. However his GI doctor didn't want to release him....he wanted to remove more fluid and get cultures since it previously showed a bacterial infection. So on Christmas Eve, John received platelets and plasma, and had his stomach tapped again, this time removing 2100 ccs. The cultures won't be back until Monday or Tuesday so I figured he'd be in the hospital at least till then. The next day his admitting doctor was pleased with his bloodwork and said he could go home. It was the best Christmas present! He felt good enough to join us for Christmas dinner. He's tired, but in much better spirits. Praise God. We're not sure what's ahead for him, but we're just taking one day at a time.

I hope you all had a beautiful Christmas. I'll be heading back to Florida on the first.

Merry Christmas!

Arrived in PA very late last night. The flight was delayed an hour. Left Orlando at 9:30, arrived in Pittsburgh at 11:30. Spent most of the day with John today. He will probably be released tomorrow. They want to remove some more fluid and test it for bacteria. I'll explain more in a later post. He's in good spirits and looking forward to going home.

Wishing you all a blessed, peaceful Christmas and a healthy, happy 2009. May God richly bless you in the coming year!

Much better

John had a decent today, THANK YOU GOD. They gave him 2 more units of blood and he has his appetite back. Not sure what's next on the agenda. Thanks for all your prayers!

John Update

John had a much better day today. Yesterday was a bad one for sure. He rested comfortably most of the day. I think he just had bloodwork and an ultrasound today. They removed 2400 ccs of fluid from his abdomen, roughly 72 ounces. That helped relieve the pressure on his diaphragm which was making it difficult for him to breathe. I truly appreciate your prayers and please continue to pray. I'm looking forward to getting up there, mostly to provide moral support!

I had a breast MRI today. I moved around a bunch of appointments to January since my holiday plans changed. My cold/sore throat/congestion is getter better.

I had a great time with Steve, Kim, the kids and Kim's mom, Judy. I spent Wednesday afternoon and evening with them at Disney. The prior Sunday, Joe, Linda, Angela and I met them at the Rainforest Cafe for dinner. We were craning our necks trying to check in on the Steelers-Ravens game on the TV above the bar. Afterward we spent some time in a huge Disney store and we kept checking the last few minutes of the game on Steve's Blackberry! It was pretty funny, us standing there amidst all these shoppers staring at the Crackberry. LOL