Hoooowwwwdeee!!!!!

Last week I had the priviledge of working at Palmetto Bible Camp for Second Week. This place is incredibly special to me, as my family has been involved with camp since my parents met there when they were around 14 years old. (Insert “awwww” here).

It was wonderful to spend the week with old friends, and even new ones, and to be surrounded by the Word of God so completely. I have a ton of pictures that I want to share with you, but they are not all accessible yet,.. so here’s a few that I can show you so far. I hope you enjoy!!

PS- A little update on Dan!
He had a doctor’s appointment with Dr. Lijewski on Friday, to get the biopsy results. He has no diseased tissue whatsoever!!!! Dr. L said he went 5-6 ft inside Dan’s colon during the colonoscopy (yeah, try not to think too hard about it,.. it’s gross), and didn’t find anything wrong, and he took 4 random colon biopsies and they all came back 100% healthy!! He said “Dan, you were a seriously sick man, and there was definitely something showing up on that CT scan. I fully expected to see a diseased colon, but I didn’t. As a physician, I can’t explain it. There is no explanation. You’re just cured and that’s all there is to it.” How amazing! It is so humbling to know that God listened to our prayers, and the prayers of our friends and loved ones, and even strangers, and He saw it fit to heal him and take away whatever was making him sick. Thank you again, from the bottom of our hearts, for your cards, thoughts and prayers.

Love,

Trudy

Movin' on Up...

Movin’ on Up…

My younger sis is moving this weekend to a cute little house in a cute little neighborhood (be very jealous). She lives in Johnson City, TN, and if you know us, you know that we can’t do anything without it being a total family affair!! My parents are going to rent a big utility van today, and my older sis is going to get some furniture out of storage, and I am bringing my elbow grease, and we are all headed up to TN tomorrow to help Heidi move. I felt like I should be bringing something cool to the table for the occasion, so this is what I put together last night. Tell me what you think…

The Waiting Room Chronicles: One-Legged Yard Chickens

Sitting in the waiting room, I hear alot of things. Tonight, I was priviledged enough to catch this end of a wonderful conversation. See if you can correctly answer the multiple choice question following this statement.


"You know how bad chickens are about getting out in the yard? Well, you know, if you don't keep em couped up good they'll wander off and stuff? Well, Jimmy told us that if you chop off one of their legs, that'll keep em in the yard and they won't wander off as far. So that's what we did and I swear to you them chickens when we ate em, they was as tough as they could be. It was like eating cats!"


Question: What is wrong with this statement?

A) Chopping off one of the chickens' limbs was easier and seemed more logical to this person than paying for chicken fencing from Lowe's.

B) This individual took advice from Jimmy that involved mutulating their chickens to make sure they didn't wander off, where they could get hurt.

C) This individual speaks of eating one-legged, free-roaming yard chickens like it's nothing.

D) This individual is familiar with the taste and texture of eating cats.

E) All of the above.

If you answered, E) All of the above, you are correct!!

Your prize is knowing that no matter how bad your day gets, you don't have to chase one-legged chickens in your yard for dinner! Thanks for playing!

No, no. Stop that. Put that back on.

While we were in the hospital, Dan would ask me about Moose (our dog) every so often. I didn't go home every day, and if I didn't go home, I would have either my parents or Lavinia run by and check on him. The first night I went home, which I believe was Sunday night (the night I first wrote about what was going on), Moose couldn't figure out where Dan was. He found one of Dan's tshirts lying around, and he drug it with him from room to room, looking for Dan. It was pitiful. He slept on it, he layed on it, he whined on it. He was totally heartbroken that Dan wasn't home. This went on the whole time Dan was inpatient. When Dan asked me how Moose was, and I told him how sad he was, he'd say "Poor thing, He probably thinks you took me back to the pound!" haha.
Last night, when we got home,.. oh boy! I really should have recorded Moose's reaction. He saw my car, and his little head popped up out of the grass. He slowly got up to his feet and saw that Dan was in the car too. When Dan opened the door, he came bouncing,.. yes, BOUNCING up to the gate! He was running around himself in circles and jumping and panting and licking. Pure joy! I just smiled and thought to myself "I know how you feel, Moose. I know how you feel!"

Today, Friday, we got up and Dan had an appetite! He was so excited, he took me to breakfast at Denny's, and then to the grocery store to get some foods that he can eat. When we came home, I cleaned out the fridge and threw away all of the bad foods, and hid the Pepsi. He's decided to try to quit. I'm so proud of him. He hasn't had one in a week now, and you'd just have to know him to know hwat a huge thing that is. Words cannot express.

I have to tell y'all the funny thing that we laughed about in CCU on Tuesday. It was 6am, and I wasn't supposed to be in Dan's room yet, but if they didn't want me in there, they should have locked the door better. :) He was just waking up, and I was standing by his bed, holding his hand and we were talking. This really loud nurse walked by, a tall guy, kinda young. Dan said "You hear him? All night long, he kept yelling at the guy in the room next to me." I was kinda intrigued, so I asked what he was yelling about. He said "I don't know. He just kpet saying 'No no, Mr. So-and-so, Stop that. Put that back on." I was really intrigued now. I asked him "Don't you want to know what it was he was doing in there?!" and Dan laughed and said "I most certainly do not!" I told him I had a mental image of an old scrawny man, standing in his hospital bed, gown wide open, swinging his blood pressure cuff by the cord and shaking his hips with a micheivious grin on his face. It has kinda turned into our inside joke now. We just randomly look at one another and put our hand on our hip and say "No no, Dan. Stop that. Put that back on!"
We are so weird. haha.

Now that Dan is doing fantastic and seems to be on the right track for getting better and better everyday, I would like to ask you to focus your prayers on the Tesnear and Tracy families, as their loved ones are still in critical care. I'm not sure about the Tracy family, but Ms. Tesnear was to have brain surgery today to alleviate some swelling. They were trying at all costs to not have to do surgery, because it would be a very dangerous and difficult case, but apparently that was not how things turned out. I haven't heard the results of the surgery, but I have seen all of your prayers work this week and I know they could sure use them. Thank you again for everything. You are all the best!!

Much Love,
Trudy

There's No Place Like Home!!

We just talked to Anita, NP, and she said we are being discharged today afterall!!! Dan and I had taken a walk around the floor, and he said it felt so good to be up on his feet, he wanted to walk some more. So we went downstairs and walked around the hospital cafe, the gift shop, the lobby, bought a drink and sat down for a while, and when we came back, Anita was waiting on us with DC papers!! Yes!! She said they are decreasing his TPN to 50% for an hour. Then they will cut it off completely for an hour. Then check his blood sugar, wait about 30 mins for results and orders, and if it's in a healthy range, we're out of here!

I saw the Tesnear family a while ago. No changes in her condition. Her daughter is here now, and she's holding up wonderfully. Such a strong, sweet family. They are still in Neuro ICU.

I also talked to the Tracy family. He's having a rough time, but the doc said he'd be okay eventually. They are still in CCU.

Maybe the next post will be from 111 Country Place Dr!!
Love,
Trudy

Wakey, Wakey, Eggs and Bakey!

When we were kids at Palmetto Bible Camp, we had this amazing counselor who used to wake us all up in the morning with "Wakey, Wakey, Eggs and Bakey!" to get us up for breakfast. This morning, Dan ate yes,.. you guessed it,.. EGGS AND BACON! I can't believe it. Dr. Lijewsky (Loo-Ess-Key) the gastroenterologist, called this morning to check on us and said that all we need now is to slowly come off the TPN (total parentel nutrition) through his PICC line, and increase his oral diet, and then we can go home! If not tonight, then tomorrow.

Again,.. I could never express my appreciation and love for all of you who have called, texted, emailed, sent cards and facebook/blogspot comments, etc. We are so humbled and grateful, and I feel like everything happens for a reason. I have already seen some of those reasons manifested in ways that only God could have planned. How blessed we are to be His children!!

Also, and update on my friends. Ms. Tesnear's condition is sorta improved. She's still on a ventilator, but they are weaning her off of it. Her daughter graduates high school on Tuesday, and her heart is breaking for her mother. Ms. Tesnear is responding to commands by wiggling her toes and blinking, so that is where she stands as of 11 am today. Mrs. Tracy's son is still in CCU with some internal bleeding that they don't know where it is coming from. He's been given two pints of blood this morning, and that's the last I heard on him. I will check on both families after Dan finishes eating lunch and we take a walk around the floor. I'm excited. We're calling it our "date night". haha. I might just put on makeup for this!! (Does it matter that I'm wearing the same jeans I wore for the past three days on this date? I do'nt think so. haha.)

Miss Patsy, our sweet nurse, just told us that we are not going home today. We're really not that dissappointed though. I kinda thought it would be too soon to wean him off TPN that fast anyway. So it's looking like tomorrow. That's still good news to us!

Love to you all!
Trudy and Dan

Jello never tasted so good!!!

To say it has been a whirlwind of events and information this week would be the understatement of the year!! Dan has recieved so many sweet notes, cards, phone calls, visits, etc and countless prayers have been said on our behalf. From the bottom of our hearts- THANK YOU!! You will never know how much it all means to us, and we will be eternally grateful to you. We have been so blessed!! Here's a rundown on Dan so far...
Monday- I got to the hospital around 9am. We talked to Brantley Eske, NP for the gastroenterologist who said we would begin prep for a colonoscopy in a few hours. The prep would involved ingesting some contrast, which they would put through his NG Tube, and that in the morning, Dr. L (I can't even begin to spell the last name! sorry!) would do a colonoscopy, take a biopsy of the blockage and tissues, and make a diagnosis and prescribe treatment. We'd be leaving the hospital in about 3 days. I stepped in the hall to call family to let them know, and she came back and said that Dr. L had decided against the c'scopy. He said Dan's system wasn't strong enough to handle the prep for it, and that we would treat him with steroids for about 2-3 days, and then try the c'scopy. I called family to tell them the new news. When I walked back to the room, our nurse stopped me and said she'd recieved an order for steroids, which I expected, and an order for a PICC line, which I did not. I was not happy. Neither was Dan. I explained to Dan that they were giving him a PICC line, and that it was a great thing, because he could recieve nutrients through it that would keep him strong while we were waiting for the c'scopy. He was too high on morphine to understand. A few hours later, two nurses came in with equipment for a line, and the process began. It's a long, detailed process, guided by an ultrasound and followed up by a chest xray. Dan tolerated it like a trooper though. Never once complained! I would have been such a baby about it, but he was soo brave and cooperative! They began the TPN (nutrients) and I left to go to work.
Around 5, my MIL was walking around and came to see me in the waiting room. She said he was doing well, and would probably start some clear liquids in the morning. Great news! Two hours later, she called and said "Trudy, don't panic. He's gonna be okay...". I was immediately scared. They had to call a Code Rapid Response on him,.. he was on his way to CCU (Coronary Care Unit) and something showed up on his EKG that the doc didn't like. I know, why are they doing an EKG on him? A thousand questions hit me all at once and I broke down. I managed to get out of the waiting room and get to CCU as fast as I could. When we met the cardiologist, Dr. Shah, he said that the PICC line went in too far and actually was touching Dan's heart (right atrium). This disturbed his natural cardiac rhythm, and sent him into atrial fibrillation. He was in danger of having a stroke, blood clot, pulmonary embolism, and even cardiac failure. Dan had apparently told the nurse that his heart felt funny, and she paged Dr. James, who thankfully ordered a cardiac enzymes screening, EKG (so that's why they took one) and a chest xray, STAT. This saved Dan's life. (I'm choking up as I type this. I never, never, never want to relive that feeling).
He spent the night in CCU, and was alert, oriented, and miserable, but stable.
Tuesday- I snuck into CCU at 6am (visiting hours begin at 9). We sat in the dark, while he tried to rest, and listened to all the beeps and whirrs and hums of his machines. Now he had a nasogastric tube, an IV, a foley catheter, a PICC line, and they were checking his sugar (he's been anywhere from 179- 224!!!!) every six hours, and giving him insulin shots in his non PICC line arm- not to mention he had at least 8 or 9 monitor pads on him checking his heart!!! Dr.Shah said he could go to a regular bed as soon as Dr. James signed some papers. This was around 8am. Dr. James came around 4pm, and signed him off. I called admissions to find out his new room #, and it was 422 (a regular bed). Then they called me back and said Dr. Shah changed his mind and wanted a monitored bed, #612, just to be on the safe side. It was about 7:30 when they wheeled Dan into 612. NOw he has a portable heart monitor on top of everything else. And he was NPO (No Pas Os- "Nothing By Mouth") since he got here Sunday morning. Not even water. After a few hours on the floor, Dr. James came by and said he could start some clear liquids, and if tolerated well, he could take out the NG Tube in the morning. He also took out the foley cath. With help walking, Dan could get up and go to the bathroom or take a shower. It was the first shower he'd had since Saturday afternoon!!!! And the clear liquids were great.
Wednesday- Dr. James came by this morning around 8am. He asked Dan if he was tolerating liquids well. He was. So he let Dan do the honors of pulling out his own NG Tube!! It's in the trash can, people!! He has been working up to a full diet with no restrictions, and in a little while, he will be eating some homemade chicken soup from my mother. God answers prayer!
Dr. James let us know how seriously dangerous surgery would be for Dan right now, but that as a surgeon, he knows it's on of the fastest ways to find out what's wrong. He said "Guys, I have to tell you that there were many times I almost pulled the trigger and said let's go to the OR, but I know now that would have been a devasting thing. I prayed for God to give me wisdom and guidance on your case, Dan, and He blessed me in that. I'm so thankful for that, because now you are getting better!!". I will always feel like I owe Dr. James my husband's life. And I will always be thankful to God for guiding him in his care.
As I type, I'm waiting on Dr. L to come check on Dan and let us know what's next. We've spent the past 2 days trying to get his heart back to where it needs to be, and now that it's stable again, we can begin focussing on his colon again. Right now, the plan is to go home maybe on Saturday. We're not really sure yet, but I've learned to just hold on tight, because this is a bumpy ride with alot of quick turns, but with prayers and good family and friends, we're making it through. Thank you all again so much.

AS a side note, please include the Tracy family and the Tesnear family in your prayers when you remember us. These are some of our church families that are in critical care units here, and they are in serious need for prayers too. Thanks again!
Trudy