"I will refresh the weary and satisfy the faint.” Jeremiah 31:25
When I arrived at the hospital this morning, Cale was already gone for x-rays! Busy day! I took a few minutes to straighten up his room before he came back. He still had on his pj's! They had whisked him away while he was eating breakfast. We attempted to get him ready quickly, but then the nurse came...and then the doctor...and then another staff...and then the nurse again! We had people in and out in a steady stream until 10am and then we finally were able to finish getting him dressed! Yikes! It didn't stop either! He then left for OT.
I stayed behind this morning and opened my Bible. It was such a crazy morning full of information and plan making. I knew the day wasn't going to slow down, and neither was the next couple of days. I had to find a point some where in the blur, to sit at Jesus' feet. It was wonderful and refreshing. The Lord has been teaching me so much through several different outlets. I'll write more about that later...
As soon as Cale was back at settled, it was time for the family meeting. For the most part it was normal updates, mostly everything I already knew. We discussed discharge plans too. As of right now, we're looking at February 7th (and of course this date can always change!). I haven't written too much about what's next for us because it's always changing! I wanted to get things more in place before I shared too much. So, as of right now, we're going to be leaving here the 7th (less than a month and this makes Cale so happy!), and heading towards Seattle. There is another VA hospital there, which is a network site for here. It's set up as a step down unit before Cale gets to go home. When I visited the facility last month, I felt so excited about it! It's going to be a change and I'm going to miss all the staff here, but I know just like last time that everything will be ok :) Cale is super excited about getting closer to home, so for that I can't wait! As of now, the plan is we'll be there until summer and hopefully home after that! Yay!! When you think of it, please add all of that to your prayers for us!
Right after the family meeting was over, we had to rush to his eye appointment. This did not go over well. :( He was not a happy camper at all! I know it must be so frustrating for him. The lady that helps every time is really sweet, but she constantly talks to him asking him to do the same thing over and over. Cale needs time to process and when it comes to controlling his eyes-he needs lots of time. This gets him angry and even with me trying to step in and help rather than the lady, it never works! She just keeps talking! haha! So...we're just going to keep praying that the Lord puts a shield around all of his nerves!
Once again, as soon as we got back to his unit, it was time for lunch. Cale looked at his tray and gave me a look. Thankfully, I was able to fix it up for him a little and he ate most of it. He told me today, "the food here is gross. All of it!" Poor guy! He's such a good sport!
No break for us! PT time as soon as he was done eating! He did have time to get back to his room and we joked around a little bit. It's so much fun to have jokes with each other now! His normal frisky (hmm...not sure if frisky is the right word...) joking came out, which I loved! We had so much fun! Pat had him walk to the gym with out anything. Cale is getting so much better. We're working on keeping his head up because he always keeps his eyes on the floor, and also keeping his right foot straight because he turns it out when he walks. After about 30 minutes of PT, the nurse came in to give him Ativan. They have to give him a higher dose than normal because In August when they did the MRI, he moved even after he was given it. Back to his room we went!
We had a couple minutes in his room and then Patty came in to do some speech. She had to change her time because of his appointment. Not too long into the session, the nurse came into to start an IV. This was new! He played Hang Man with Patty and myself at the same time as getting poked with a needle! I think it helped :) When the IV was in and ready to go, it was time for us to head to his MRI appointment.
I had a chance to breathe at his appointment while I waited. I could feel the sleepiness start to drift in. I wasn't ready for it because the day still had a lot involved! The last time Cale had Ativan, he wasn't eating yet really, because he was so nervous and scared of it. He also hadn't started using the muscles in his face all the way. When he came back from that appointment, he was all smiles and loopy! That was also the first time he ate the whole container of pudding! Haha! He wasn't quite so bad this time, but he was pretty happy! Heehee! We were telling him the stories from last time. :)
We also skyped with some really special friends I had met in NC, and then his brother and his family. It was so great to see their faces! I loved it!! So did Cale! Everything calmed down and we finally had a time to pause about 30 minutes before dinner! It wasn't like it was way different from other days that we have here, as far as being constantly going to the next thing, but I think on top of that, there was a lot of information given and talk about plans for the next couple days. It wiped me out! The massage therapist came around tonight, and when I left, she wasn't done and Cale was snoring! It was nice because I was able to scoot out a little early and get some hopefully good rest tonight! Tomorrow is going to be round 2 of the madness!
This was us at the end of today!
Hahaha... hospital food is gross!!! The eye lady needs to learn how to interact with people.... wonder if she was left wondering why her approach didn't work??? Praying for you guys!
ReplyDeleteOh, My dear Kathleen, I don't know what to say, except you are one of my most respected and honored people. I love you. Aren't we glad Father is with us every step of the way. I am so blessed with how Cale is doing. Last night I was visiting a friend in the hosital in Puyallup. She said the hospital food was great. Maybe the VA hospital should get some recipes from them!! I look forward to your being in Seattle. I will get to meet you and Cale in person. WooHoo!!!!!! Hugs, Marion
ReplyDelete