Nephew Thom Turns 25

Happy Birthday, Thom!!!

Thom is the son of my brother Scott. Thom turns 25 tomorrow (on the 29th).

Twenty-five years ago, Scott and daughter, 4-yr old Erica dashed over to M'ville from Bremerton when mother Donna went into labor. I was the only relative Scott could find at home so I was chosen to care for Erica. Since Scott had to make the round trip from Bremerton to M'ville and back to B'ton, Scott was a bit late for Thom's birth. Missed it -- but not by much.

I loved entertaining Erica and was one of the first to learn that Scott had a son and Erica had a baby brother! Again, Happy Birthday, Thom!!

(Thom graduated from my old school, Central. Little-known-fact: Veronica was born in Ellensburg.)

Lunch in the Sun on Sunday

Papa, Angelo and I enjoyed lunch in the sunshine today, Sunday, Septemer 28th, 2008.
The thermometer still says 75 degrees and it's after 4:00; it may have been 80 today!!

The New Woodpile and Appreciation

Our new woodpile: I'm kinda' slow with the thanks and gratefulness, but many, many thanks to Pat, Chris, Dave and Rich for procuring, hauling, and stacking our winter supply. We shall be toasty!!
Chris,the good son!
Pat, a good nephew. Pat doesn't just fish; sometimes he loads, hauls and stacks wood!

I don't have a picture of Dave or Rich, but thanks also to them. Dave provided the truck and the trailer. Rich found the wood for us.

The woodstackers/haulers were here on Wednesday, Sept. 24th. Thanks, guys!

Megan Turns 13 at the Great Wolf Lodge

Megan celebrated her 13th birthday with us on Friday night, the 26th, with cupcakes and ice cream. She was looking forward to Saturday when her folks were taking her, Tristan, and several schoolmates to the Great Wolf Lodge for a day and night of waterslides and revelry. How exciting! Maybe Denise will share pictures with us of the "big" party!!

Look! Megan has a big owie on her chin (double-click the scanned picture).

(Look again; Papa took his oxygen off!!)

Madison Turns 10 Sept 16, '08

Madison went shopping for art supplies: sketch books, watercolors, paintbrushes, colored pencils, charcoal pencils. She promises to bring us some of her artwork soon!!

Tom Before During and After

Tom Skinnies Up

Thanks to all those water pills, Tom's health is returning. The oxygen need is toning down, the weight is "running" off of him, and he's feeling much better. Besides trips to the deck to bask in the sunshine, Tom is walking short jaunts, yesterday making it as far as the Cox's house down the street. To many of you who know our neighborhood, that's Joe's house, (Joe the Brittany Spaniel) and also Angelo's second home.

Tom is down 33 pounds since leaving the hospital on 9/10. He had gained 25 pounds of water while hospitalized so as of this morning, he has a net loss of 8 pounds.

The iron pills 3 times a day have returned the color to his cheeks and he looks like Tom again! When he first gets up in the am, he's ready to take on the world. After 2-3 hours of being up, having breakfast, and taking 10 pills plus insulin, he's wasted and back to bed. The anemia should be lifting after 5 days of iron sulfate, 3 times a day.

More soon......

Granary Cottage Wexford, Ireland, and Green Cows

The M's called from Wexford am Sat. the 27th. Madison and Denise were here when Papa answered the phone.

V asked "Guess what we're looking at outside our window?", and we guessed leprechauns, 4-leaf clovers, pots of gold???

"No -- cows!! Irish cows." said V.

Madison asked "Are they green cows, Ronnie?"

Mais non (?? in Irish), regular brown cows.

The M's plan to stay a week at Warren Farm granary cottage; Chloe found an attic room for herself. (warrenfarmireland.com) Waterford tour coming up!! Then on to County Clare and County Mayo.

Erin go braugh!

Take the Quiz here!

From Dublin

V and Family called from Dublin about noon on 9/24. They had spent their first day in Ireland touring the area close to their B & B. A grocery was nearby so, as Frank says, they were "makin' groceries". They stockpiled a few necessities into the refrigerator in MJ and Chloe's room with hopes of saving a few bucks by eating in a time or two. And they were pleased, I'm sure, about having the required munchies at hand!

V says that after North Carolina and Italy, Dublin is pretty cool and they're chilled. It is a period of re-adjusting and preparing to return to the Northwest!

Another Day of Tests

Tom went to his regular physician, having been discharged by his surgeon yesterday.

Well, the doc today was very concerned that Tom is still on oxygen, so off we went for a chest x-ray, then a CT Scan. Tom has a lot of fluid in his lungs but no infection so no pneumonia. No blood clot there either, thank goodness.

He's now on Lasix, potassium and iron, also being anemic. Dr. T cut the atenolol in half!! Tom is ecstatic about that and the fact that he doesn't have a blood clot, and therefore did not have to return to the hospital. He was miserable there.

So far so good!! 10 days of lasix will hopefully do the trick!!

Veronica posted from Milano!! Hooray, they're having the trip of a lifetime!!

"Big Time" has a birthday ending in "0"

Happy Birthday, Artie!!

and many more!!!!!!!!!!

News from Priest Point and from Venice

Priest Point
Tom is resting up. He has cut his pain meds in half. Walks, talks, eats good but only half of normal. He is still on oxygen; can sit in a chair without it but his oxygen level drops to 90 and goes back up to 95-98 when on oxygen. He has to practice deep breathing because his lung capacity was somewhat diminished prior to the surgery (left lung). As I listen to his breathing while asleep, I'm sure he will soon be in sleep apnea correction school!!

Angelo still doesn't know what to make of the walker and the oxygen condenser. He's leery of both and doesn't go see Tom if the walker is too close. Tom still uses the walker for stability because he knows if he falls, I can't get him up and we'd be calling 9-1-1. Although his balance is better every day and he does forget to take the walker with him from time-to-time.

Venice
Meanwhile, Veronica called from Venice about noon yesterday, Saturday 9/20. She must have heard me worrying about her and hers!! They had just recently gotten to Venice from Rome and had taken their first great gondola ride!! On her next canal cruise she will look for "Via Canonica", the name of a bridge over a canal. (Lynn found it when she was there.) After a few days in Venice, they return to Trentino or Garda Lake, then on to Milano and fly to Dublin next Wednesday, the 24th.

Veronica called on MJ's phone which was about battery-dead. I hope someone has a charger and they call us again soon! I must remember to say "Pronto!"

Tom is Doing Well

Today marks two weeks since the AAA surgery and Tom is beginning to bounce back. He saw Dr. Papenhausen on Monday so they could check his water retention and pain. The ultrasound proved there are no blood clots in either leg and the CT Scan proved there is some water in his belly but no infection signs so all we can do is wait for it to dissipate.

On Monday the 22nd, Tom will see Dr. Cook again for another analysis. Just like Grey's Anatomy: I do a lot of "presenting". Tom felt great yesterday but today is gray and he's feeling kinda' low and wasted. Coco and Bob brought him a "Paint By Numbers", a book of crossword puzzles, and a Kids' "Search-a-Word". He is currently doing a crossword.

The visiting nurse Deb was here about noon. BP good, HR good, Oxygen 90 percent, seated and on oxygen. He has to get off the pain pills before oxygen levels return to normal. I didn't know that. (It says so on the bottle.) He can sit and watch TV without oxy but no exertion.

Ann and Mike brought caesar salads from Cristiano's for dinner. And birthday cake from Wayne's 49th yesterday. Good stuff!

Ciao! for now. And love and thanks for all the good wishes and support.

More homage to MJ the loved at sweet sixteen

A couple special pictures of the birthday girl!!

MJ Turns 16

MJ's in Italy celebrating her Sweet Sixteenth birthday.

Happy Birthday, MJ. We love you and miss you, but we know you're having an "awesome" time!!!

I'll try to learn to scan in some baby pictures and embarrass you!

The Italian Connection

I should mention that Veronica called yesterday and again today, checking up on Tom. The Maier family is happily ensconced in Chiara's grandparents' lake house on Garda Lake, northern Italy. While V talked today, Chiara was there doing dishes and I could hear her chattering in the background. The M's had done a bit of a tour today near the lake and tomorrow will be going into Trentino for a bit of sightseeing in Chiara's hometown. Everything is beautiful in Italy!!

Note to self: 8 AM here is 2 or 3 PM in Trentino.

We're home and Tom is doing well

We did bring Tom home yesterday. He's pretty comfortable, good painkiller, recliner, and just plain HOME. That says it all.

The incision is healing, Tom's hip is better, the bloating is receding (we think), the pain is controlled, and Tom is feeling more normal every day.

This morning he walked out to the deck (wearing his new "Gobble Happens" hat from Pat) and watered his lawn and plants for a few minutes, then went back inside to lie down again. He took a couple walks inside during the heat of the day and then this evening when things had cooled down, he sat in a chair on the deck for a while enjoying the view, the serenity of his surroundings, and the cool air. (It's supposed to be hotter tomorrow.)

Tom is eating a little now, small portions, and it is agreeing with his stomach. Breakfast was Fiber One cereal with nectarines; lunch was a hamburger patty (rebuilding iron in the blood; no transfusion) with cottage cheese and homegrown tomatoes; dinner was pasta with chile and beans, cottage cheese and tomatoes. He drinks LOTS of water, some with sugarfree Koolaid packets in it. He takes all the same meds as before the surgery, including a vitamin.

He is sleeping in the recliner, this is his second night, with extra pillows, padding, and extra back support. His back hurts now from all the time spent in a hospital bed. So far, so good. Keep those cards and emails coming!! And, thank you everyone for your support.

The Go Home Day!!

The phys asst said Tom can come home tomorrow. Hooray!! Tom's doing really well, very little pain. He's able to get up out of bed, walk short strolls, make it to the bathroom, and eat solids! (Not always in that order!)

The nurse had him try Percoset today and he's no longer nauseous and no heebie-jeebies!!

He's ecstatic. As am I.

More soon -- after we rest a lot!!

Mary

Another Great Day at PEMC

Tom walked into the hall and back this morning, then sat up in his recliner/bed/chair most of the day. He ate a cherry popsicle for breakfast, apple juice, jello and broth for lunch. It all stayed down so he even had a few sips of Coke! He wanted the fizz.

About 3 PM, nurse Rebecca removed the "pic" line from his neck, added an IV to his left hand, had previously stopped the epidural and the blood pressure raising meds. They removed lines left and right and soon he was free!! Still has heart monitors, oxygen by nose, and the two IV's, one in each hand.

So, he moved out of ICU or and transferred to the Coronary Care Unit down the hall. He feels great, the right leg and hip are working, and he's pretty much out of pain (unless he moves and the incision pulls).

He is taking pain meds orally now and will soon be off the narcotic dilaudin drip.

Chris and Denise showed the 4th floor nurses how to make the ICU bed into a large recliner. They were impressed. The things you learn in ICU!!!!

Veronica was still in NC when I talked with her this am about 9. Steph was also there, along with the rest of the family. It sounded like a party in their room. The plan was to travel by plane tonight to JFK and NYC, stay in a cheap Hilton, fly to Dublin on the morrow, followed by a flight to Milano. Hope they have a wonderful, wonderful trip!!