Two down and one to go...

Today is a monumental day...they took out the second chest tube...two down!! Roger only has the feeding tube (one to go) left and a semi-permanent (long term) IV line. We are so many steps closer to going home. The doctor said today that we should - depending on how Roger's chest xray looks - get to go home TOMORROW. Huge HUGE HUGE. (I'm really excited, if you can't tell)



The tube feedings are turned off during the day to stimulate Roger's appetite. And slowly but surely the appetite is coming back. I mentioned much earlier during this blog that during chemo/radiation, Roger's appetite virtually stopped; when he did eat...it was the ever nutritious FAST FOOD DIET that appealed to him. I'll pause for a moment while I let you guess what his food request was for this first meal request off the feeding tube.......

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...... you win if you guessed Kentucky Fried Chicken....ugh. He didn't eat much, only a couple bites of chicken and a bite of mashed potatoes, but it was a start (even if not the most healthy). Today he wanted to try soft tacos from Taco Bell. Oh well, eating is eating, right? I won't win any prizes for getting good nutrition into him at this point. If we can get enough hydration/nutrition in him by mouth then we'll get the feeding tube out sooner. For the near future, I'll hook Roger up to the feeding machine pump every evening and flush his feeding tube a couple times a day. A visiting nurse will come to the house a couple times when we first get home to work with me but I don't anticipate any problems. I've been watching this for so long here at the hospital, I can practically do it in my sleep as it stands. I will also change the remaining dressings.



One of the additional benefits to Roger not being hooked to the feeding machine during the day is that its one less tube/device that he has to carry around with him. Basically now during the day, he has to be hooked up to an IV pump twice during the day for antibiotics (about 30 minutes each time)...but that's it. So, for a period during the day he is "free as a bird" to move about without having to lug around his shadow, the IV tower. Closer to our new normal. Closer to getting the hell out of here.



We've had a couple Roger moments. A recent one: Roger's bones and muscles are stiff, tight, and just worn out. In particular, his legs, low back and butt. Think about it. Being in bed this long, makes sense to have aches and pains. I've been giving him massages and physical therapy to help with his legs/back but couldn't get to his bootie because he was always sitting or laying on it. So, to be accommodating Roger rolled over onto his hands and knees with his forehead down on the bed. I started to laugh with the thought that a nurse or Dr. Freeman might walk in with Roger's ass up in the air and me squeezing his cheeks. Fortunately he decided that the pain from this position was too great and rolled over before a nurse walked in. We had a reverse of this yesterday when I leaned down to him in bed to give him a hug. My butt was swinging in the breeze towards the door. Fortunately no one walked in. We make a fine pair with our butts in the air. Guess its a good thing we're not overly modest. We have a reputation with all the nurses. I think they enjoy our sense of humor and certainly our love for one another. They genuinely seem to enjoy caring for Roger.



No more posts tonight. I need to run home and get things for Roger to wear out of the hospital tomorrow. Once I get back, we'll watch a movie. Then he'll take a sleeping pill and then it will be a race to see which one of us falls asleep first. I give him a run for his money on that.



Gotta tell you it almost seems like a dream....from where we started...to where we were over a week ago....to where we are today. Completely surreal. There were moments when it would have been so easy to let go and be swallowed by fear and worry - to utterly be suffocated by it. At the door steps of those moments, it took stern conversations with myself that it would serve no good to anyone most especially for Roger for me to be fearful or worry. I looked at each of our doctors and told them that I was putting my faith in them - told them that they needed to communicate openly and honestly with me and give me as much information as possible. And in return, I would not melt down, would not succomb to the fear - essentially I would not worry until they told me I needed to worry. And each of them held up their part of the bargain.



As if life weren't challenging enough, my employment situation has changed. Its another layer of complexity in our life... The team on which I have been working at CTMT has moved to a new firm, Jones Lang Lasalle. It was a quick decision and pretty much happened while we were in our bubble here at St. Vincents hospital. I won't start at the new firm until the end of the month so that I can be with Roger throughout his recovery. It means a temporary stopping of income which of course I'd prefer to NOT have....but it is more important to me to be with Roger than to worry about the money.


So, I started this post considerably earlier. It is now midnight and I have just returned to the room. I left around 7:30 to go home and get a change of clothes for Roger to leave the hospital tomorrow. Here's the newest funny of the day...related to why I'm just now getting back (and missing two hours of Roger sleep time!)...I got home to a chilly house....the furnace wasn't working. Weeeeeeeee! Isn't this fun??? I was able to get a service guy to come to the house at 11 to tell me that I need a piece (which he, of course, did not have with him) that only costs $1,000. Weeeeeee! Isn't this fun???

Ok, someone out there can turn off the "fun switch" . I have offically had all the fun I can stand.

Going to sleep to hopefully dream away this part of the night mare. G'nite. ~a