Almost to the finish line ...

We're just waiting for the final papers and a wheelchair and then he's OUT OF HERE! This is the first time he's been able to wear real clothes in over 6 weeks.

Stay tuned for a picture of him crossing the finish line of his first ultra, ULTRA marathon :)

Knock On Wood

So the latest from the doctors is that if, IF everything continues to go well that Dad will be heading home this Sunday in time to watch the Super Bowl!  Although his daily X-rays continue to show a small amount of fluid or air around his lung which is what is still causing him to still be short of breath, the doctors say that as long as they see it get smaller and not bigger, then it will most likely be absorbed by the body on its own.  The doctors have asked to meet with our family Sunday morning to go over the long list of medications and care that he'll need in the coming weeks and months.

He's so excited and we all are too, and at the same time we're all a bit nervous about caring for him at home.  He'll need to be driven to appointments 3x/week to University Hospital for the next month or so, and maybe more for the administration of an IV medication that he'll need daily for the next five weeks.  Any volunteers from his neighborhood and ward to help drive him to and from these appointments would be so helpful.  We also may need to have some of you family and close friends volunteer to come by during the day and also some of you to spend the night in their guest room - just so we know there's someone else there to help in an emergency so my mom doesn't feel so overwhelmed.  His diet and nutrition will also continue to be important in the success of his recovery, so all of you good cooks out there, now's your chance to shine!  We'll post a list soon of the foods and snacks that sound good to him and are helpful to his recovery.

We'll keep everyone posted on how he does over the next day or so.  Today marks his six week anniversary of living in this hospital 24/7.  If this actually does happen and he ACTUALLY gets to finally leave the hospital ......I think we may need to hire a marching band or a fireworks show or something. 

Seriously, knock on wood ....... please!

Dang!

Just spoke with Dad. He just got back from another X-ray which they're still looking at. He was discouraged because they told him this morning that they did find more fluid from last nights X-ray. He's on 3 liters now, tired from walking, taking pills etc. and said he does feel like its a little harder to breathe. He wants to rest for a few hours with no phone calls or visitors, so I told him I'd update everyone and check in on him in a couple of hours.

Chest tube out ... hopefully forever!

The last couple of days have been a bit confusing and frustrating, to say the least. I think we've all started to feel a little numb to all of the doctor-speak and have realized that they don't have all the answers either, but they care about his recovery just as much as we do.

They put a water seal on the chest tube, then they clamped it completely, then X-rays showed another air bubble, so they unclamped it and then more fluid came out and dad wasn't feeling right. Almost as soon as I left the hospital this afternoon feeling frustrated again, I had just finished updating Bryan on what little information I had when Dad called me an hour later and said the doctors had come in and decided to remove the tube completely. Whaaat???

Honestly, I can't keep up anymore with what's happening and why, all I know is that Carter was just with him tonight and said Dad was feeling great - even better than he was earlier. I'm sure the nurses are watching him closely since the only other time they pulled out the last chest tube his lung collapsed later that night. (I was there when it happened. Not fun. Not fun at all.)

So please keep him in your thoughts and prayers. The thought of him having to have that chest tube put back in again and having to stay here past the six week mark is just, well ..... let's just not go there. Not gonna happen. Happy thoughts and positive vibes from here on out :)

And on that note, I'll share some pictures of my 4th grade twins' science fair project. Maybe someday one of them will find a cure for IPF :)

Scone-O-Rama

Dads still doing well and things look like they're on track for him being able to go home this weekend. His chest tube is still in but it's completely clamped off and sealed shut. Hopefully they'll be removing it completely within the next day or so.

Many if you have asked about how the other lung recipient Diane is doing. I was able to visit with her yesterday for a few minutes and she seemed like she's doing well. She had just come back from taking a shower and was so happy to hear my dad was improving. It's crazy to me to think that they still haven't had the chance to meet yet. Hopefully that will happen this week if we're lucky.

Apparently this blog is being read by more than just a few people :) My dad told me that last night that some friends in his neighborhood, the Crows (I cant remember their first names!) brought by a whole plate of ChuckORama scones for my dad after hearing about his craving. Then, when I stopped by to see my dad at lunch today, he was visiting with some old friends Bob Whitney, Don Mauss and Duane Moss.  Ironically enough, both Don and Duane recently lost their fathers to the same disease my dad has - pulmonary fibrosis.  I don't remember Duane's exact title, but he's one of, if not THE head honcho at ChuckORama. My dad had not met Duane before, but when he heard about my dad's situation (probably from my sweet friend Kassidy Spiers - thank you!) he wanted to help.  When they heard about my dads craving for their scones and honey butter and brought him a whole platter of them, along with some other food and swag and some gift certificates. We're so grateful to all of them for being so thoughtful. We'll be taking Dad to ChuckORama for sure as soon as he gets the thumbs up from his doctors.

Geez, first Coach Whittingham and now ChuckORama? I'm half tempted to write a post about how much my dad would just LOVE to meet Bono, but I'm pretty sure you'd all see right through that one, wouldn't you? ;)

5 Weeks In The Hospital - Good Times!

Tonight at about 8:00pm, Dad will have officially been a patient at University Hospital for five, count them ..... FIVE weeks in a row - without ever having set foot outside the hospital doors for even a breath of fresh air! Just the thought of it makes my heart ache for him.  Lung transplants are hard enough knowing that if everything goes as planned you'll be in the hospital for up to two weeks.  Five solid weeks in a hospital is a whole different ball game.  Six weeks?  Six weeks just might send all of us over the edge, stay tuned. ;)

Despite this not-so-happy anniversary tonight, things are actually going well for my Dad considering what he's been through.  He's now been out of the ICU and in the same room on the 5th floor for one week, which is a record, and he's doing better each day.  He still has the chest tube in to continue suctioning and draining the fluid and air that kept showing up and causing all of the problems.  The plan is to seal off the tube today, leave the tube in place for a couple of days and monitor him, then remove the tube, monitor him again for a couple of days, then hopefully send him on his merry way by the end of next week.  His nutrition has improved and he actually has had a much better appetite lately, but he's lost a ton of muscle mass - especially in his legs, so he's still got a ways to go before he'll be strong enough to do simple things like get out of bed and walk around on his own.  Now that he's feeling a little better, he's also more vocal with the nurses and doctors about how he's feeling, what he needs, and what he thinks should happen next.  It's pretty funny to hear HIM telling THEM when he's planning on going for a walk, or that the respiratory team needs to come back later or adjust his oxygen, or to call his doctor to get permission to do something.

Thanks so much to all of you who have come by to visit.  Now more than ever, he appreciates visitors to help break up his day and evening - especially if you call ahead of time and see if there's something that he's craving :)  His favorites lately have been Hires rootbeer floats, McDonalds cheeseburgers, Pizza Factory pizza (pepperoni and green peppers, an Osborn family fav) cheesy potatoes, lemon meringue, peach or apple pie or carrot cake.  His doctors want him eating a high fat, high protein diet so anything that meets those criteria is even better.  He's so sick of the hospital food and really appreciates anything homemade as well. 

By the way, if anyone knows how to get their hands on some Chuck-o-rama scones and honeybutter then my dad will seriously love you forever.  Sadly, Carter was unsuccessful in his attempts to beg the cashier at Chuck-o-rama to let him just buy some scones to take to his dad in the hospital (apparently they don't allow take-out under any circumstances.)  This did not please Carter and he may or may not have gone a little postal on the heartless cashier, as the past five weeks of stress even got the best of someone as mellow and easygoing as my little brother. :)