Winter is here! The only thing we are missing is snow. It's been extremely cold and is going to get colder. Monday morning the windchills are supposed to be 0 to -10. No matter where you live...that's cold!

Our Christmas was very quiet and we both didn't feel well. I managed to get our little dinner cooked and we both barely ate anything. So most of the ham went in the freezer, which is OK. There is so much sickness going on now.

Because we didn't feel well, we cancelled our family Christmas yesterday. Emily was sick, too, and Kayden and Kiyann have been exposed to the flu. Mistie and Joe both have it. The kids did get their flu shots so that may help even though it's not very effective this year. We have given out the gifts/gift cards/checks in spurts. The only ones left are the ones for Kayden and Kiyann and Mistie said that maybe by Monday they will be well enough to come and get them.

We finally started feeling better Wednesday. I think we have both just been worn out from everything. Since the middle of September when both of us had a sinus infection, one or both have been sick. Throw in 2 hospital stays for Bill and then a quick trip to Mayo and it's not surprising that we are drained. 

Bill has not left the house since before Christmas. It's just too risky for him. Yet, it's not good to stay cooped up in here either. But, he won't wear a mask unless totally forced to. I've only been out to the store when necessary. Of course I am out every day to feed the cats so I do get some fresh air. And now that it's cold, it feels great to take a deep breath of it! Emily recorded their church service and sent it to me. It was a short candlelight service with carols and a short sermon, but very nice. 

When we cancelled the family Christmas, I went ahead and took the tree down and got everything except the wreath on the door packed away. This is the first time that I have ever taken the tree down before the first of the year. That's usually something I do on New Year's Day while watching the parades. But this year, again I think due to being tired, I just wanted it gone. It's not in the attic but maybe when Kayden comes over we can get it up there. He said he would help get it up and down for us now that he's not a little kid anymore (he's 13)! The cat is very happy that the tree is gone. Her perch is back in the front window and she can look out on the world. She just didn't like it in the dining room!

We have no plans for New Year's Eve, but then we usually don't have any. We can watch the ball drop in New York at 11 our time so we usually do that and then are able to sleep for an hour until the gunfire starts at midnight. This is the only place I have lived that this is done. Don't people realize that even though they are firing the gun into the air, the bullet has to come down somewhere? Hopefully it won't last too long.

So, that's been our Christmas week. Hopefully our new year will bring renewed strength and better health for us. Even though it may seem like we have a hard life, we are happy just having each other. Yes, we could wish that things are different, but they aren't, so we just make the best of it. I wish everyone joy, happiness, and health. See you next year!

Good Morning! It's 6:49 and it is still pitch black out. We've had heavy rain yesterday and through the night with flash watches and warnings. It don't think it is raining right now but can't really tell.

The house is quiet except for the sound of Bill's oxygen concentrator. He and the cat are both still asleep, although I will have to wake Bill shortly for his morning meds.

We had an uneventful trip home from Florida. Even though we didn't have to, we got up early and headed out the 2nd day and got home about 1. Stopped at the store on the way home and got some lunch fixin's.

We haven't done much since we've been home. Bill hasn't felt really well. His shoulder is still bothering him. The dr. called in a gel to use and said to apply heat. She didn't want him in the office, so much flu here. Two of the employees have tested positive for it within the last 2 weeks. Since the flu shot is not protecting from this strain, and I don't know if the one for older folks does, we are just staying in. But, the gel is working and he's not complaining about it as much. We've only had to use the gel in the morning the past 2 days which is an improvement and he hasn't used the heating pad at all the last 2 days.

I also haven't felt real well. I think mine is more just being tired. I've had a couple of little tummy upsets, but nothing major. I do know that something is going around. Mistie was bringing me a gift I had gotten through a friend of hers and she said she wasn't staying because she wasn't feeling well. A friend of Kayden's had been over to spend the night and ended up going home because he was throwing up. I told her to just put it by the door and ring the doorbell! I just don't want to take any chances! I may put a sign on the door that colds and sniffles are not welcome and if you have them, come back another day!

We are having our family Christmas on the 29th. Ryan and Amanda will be in town on that day for some business so that's when we will have it. She said they should be done around 10:30 or 11, so we are having brunch instead of dinner or supper. It's not much this year, the only present we have is for the baby. The rest are getting gift cards and checks. I'm still not in the spirit. We did get the tree up and the "Jesus people" as Kenna calls them out and up, but that's it. I have enjoyed sitting with just the tree lights on, but I'm also ready to take it down. The cat has been good with it. She gets under it and pops her head up through the branches, but she has not tried to climb it or play with the branches. She just wants her window back!

That's all for this week. It's hard to believe that the year is almost over already! I hope everyone has a Merry Christmas with family and friends!

Here it is, the long awaited post check-up post. We also had an interesting week before heading south. But, first things first...the check-up.

Bill got a good report. From his heart standpoint he's good. His blood pressure was good but it dropped on standing. So Stephanie just said to stand for a minute before trying to walk. She said that his echo from Memphis looked good also. We didn't get to see Dr. Hosenpud so we saw his assistant Ginny. We hadn't seen her for a couple of years. She said that as far as she was concerned he could start using his treadmill again, but only for 10 minutes at a time. I will probably go out with him the first few times just to keep an eye on him. Other than that they were pleased. They did want to make sure we were seeing a lung dr. for the COPD and we are. They didn't have the results of the lab work so I don't know if they will make any med changes or not. If they do Stephanie will call tomorrow. So, that's it as far as his check-up went. For those of you who are only interested in that, you can stop reading now. Otherwise keep going!

Tuesday our furnace went out. It's about 10 years old so should have had a lot of life left in it yet. I called Emily and she called a guy from their church and he came that night. A motor was frozen from corrosion and he was able to get it working. He didn't know how long it would last, and of course last week was the coldest weather we were to have for the year. He was able to get the part ordered and in on Wednesday but got hung up on another job and didn't get it fixed until Thursday. He said there is one more little part that could cause a problem and if it did he would come out and swap it out for no charge.

We were really watching the weather for the snow that was falling in Alabama. There was a lot of snow on the ground starting just north of Birmingham and ending just before Montgomery...just the route we were travelling. But, the roads were good, wet in some areas but clear. Traffic was pretty light and we didn't have any problems.

We did well with the new oxygen concentrator. He used it in the car, and when we stopped for breaks or lunch, he just used a small tank. It worked really well. So, from that aspect, it's been a good investment.

Last night we decided we wanted a light supper so decided to go to Bob Evans across the street for soup and a sandwich. But, it has closed down! So, we decided to go to Denny's instead and it was closed! It's open today so maybe they were closed for an employee Christmas party. Anyway, after driving around looking for a homestyle restaurant we ended up a TGI Friday's. It took 15 minutes for our waiter to come and take our drink order and another 10 minutes before he came back with only Bill's coffee to take our order. I had to go out to the car to get a small oxygen tank for Bill as his batteries were getting low and I hadn't brought the back-up batteries because I didn't expect us to be gone more than 2 hours. We left the hotel a little before 6 and we finally got our food about 7:45, but they brought the wrong soup and didn't bring any silverware. I did finally get my drink. We finally got some utensils and I had finished my salad and was helping Bill eat his chicken when we were told that they were out of broccoli cheese soup! We told him to forget it, I had gotten enough to eat anyway. Because it took so long Bill's meds were late and we were both pretty exhausted by the time we got back to the room.

Bill did have a rough morning. He has hurt his right arm and shoulder somehow. We think it is just muscular and Ginny did say that his muscles feel tight, but he was having a hard time with his concentrator and breathing. So, we decided to use a wheelchair at Mayo. A lovely woman offered to help us maneuver everything to the lab as she was going there too. I was figuring out how to change things around while he was getting his blood drawn and there was a nice man across from us that figured an easier way and off we went. We just parked where his next appointments were and we knew we had a 2 hour wait, but I could plug in his concentrator. I got us some lunch and we just stayed there until it was time to check-in. Stephanie was really booked today and she was actually coming out and getting her patients herself instead of having an aide do it. But, Bill walked in to the clinic area and then he attempted to walk out when we were done. We had to stop several times and I finally switched him to a small tank. It was hurting his arm to pull the other one. He is having a hard time walking. It could be that he's still recovering from the pneumonia, but it could also be that his lungs are deteriorating more. He's sees Dr. Burbeck in February and we'll see what she says.

I'm planning on leaving super early to get out of rush hour traffic. Tomorrow is the hard drive (longest) but it won't be too bad, I hope. I don't know if I will update this or not Saturday. I don't anticipate anything happening except for travelling for 2 days and then doing laundry and getting the cat home from Brianna's. But, check in just to see.

So there you have it. We have found that there are still good people in the world that offer to help others who need it. And, while it goes against my independent nature, I accepted the help. Now if the car would just load itself in the morning!

December already! It seems like this year has flown by!

We had a pretty quiet week, compared to the last few. We've mostly stayed in with only a few short trips just to get Bill out of the house some.

I finally went back to the eye dr. Wednesday and all is well, just watch for any other signs of a problem. I don't even see the floater in that eye anymore, although the one in the left is still around. 

Bill has been coughing a lot this week. I don't think it is anything new starting but the remnants of the pneumonia and the emphysema. I told him yesterday that I could do 2 things. He's still taking Musinex twice daily and we could possibly stop that. But, that's keeping that pneumonia area broken up. Or, I could give him some cough medicine to suppress the cough, but I think that is the absolute wrong thing to do. I'm pretty sure that it is just fall allergies from everything I'm hearing and seeing. He was also complaining of having a "full" ear for a couple of days. I did increase his Zyrtek to twice a day and he hasn't complained anymore so maybe that has helped. It is supposed to finally get cold by the end of the week, so maybe that will help. Of course the front arrives Friday and we leave Saturday for Florida!

McKenna came for school Thursday. She hasn't been back here for school since Bill went to the hospital and has been doing well on her own. But, their internet was down and instead of waiting until evening to be able to work she came here. They have their standardized tests next week. I don't know if she will need to come here or not. I read through the log-in information this morning and they are going to be monitored more closely than before so if she gets kicked out she should be able to just wait 30 minutes instead of having to contact her instructor to have it reset.

We're finally going to take Kayden out for his birthday breakfast this morning, which is one reason for getting this update done early. Now I won't forget about doing it! He wants to go to a little hole-in-the-wall restaurant, which is one of our favorites. Usually they just pick to go to Perkins since it is the main breakfast place in town, but he said he wanted to try this one.

I also may try to get some of the Christmas stuff out today. Kayden had said that he would help get things out of the attic, but it never did get into the attic last year. I just put it in the back bedroom. But, he'll be able to put it into the attic this year. I keep forgetting that he is a strong young man now and not just a little boy anymore!

I hear Bill coughing again so he may be getting up. It's time for his meds and he will need to get moving to be ready when Kayden says he's ready. I don't think I will update this until Monday night, the 11th after Bill's appointments. But, if something happens this week that needs noted, I'll post it. If you don't check back in before the 11th, you'll be able to catch up then. 

Better get moving, have a good week!

I hope your Thanksgiving was as nice as ours. It was just the 2 of us this year so it was a quiet day. But, we had a good meal (turkey is Bill's favorite food) and spent the day watching old westerns. I did some reading and played computer games.

Bill got a good report at the Dr. Tuesday. His white count was at 8000 which is normal and she said he was moving air really well, both top and bottom. His last Prednisone was last Friday and I didn't give him any insulin Monday night. His readings did not get above 200. So, we are just to randomly monitor him and if there are 2 back to back readings of 200 or above that can't be accounted for by food, then I'm to give him 4 units of insulin instead of the 8 I had been giving him. And so far so good. So, the meds and infection were the culprits. He can also start using his treadmill after we get home from Mayo. He still does get winded some walking, especially if he gets up in the night. But after laying down it all moves when he stands. Such are the effects of COPD/emphysema.

We are not Black Friday shoppers, not even online usually, so yesterday was also quiet. There were several things I could have done, but I hadn't slept well so was tired. The cat went to bed with us and whenever she does that I can't get comfortable. She likes to sleep on my legs but she doesn't give me a chance to get settled before she climbs on. Last night she was asleep on the couch when we went to bed and she didn't come in until after 5 this morning so slept much better.

Kayden and Kiyann are coming for music lessons today. Kayden had asked me to teach him to play the piano. He got a keyboard for his birthday so he wants to learn how to play it. Kiyann is starting to play the recorder at school and she is scared she won't know the songs. Kenna got a recorder with her school supplies so I can show her (Kiyann) the fingering. Bill will probably go crazy, especially since he can't go out to his man-cave!

Bill managed to get a haircut this week, but I have not. I haven't looked for a new beautician since mine left her shop. She decided she could make more money doing embroidery work than being on her feet all day. I just hate breaking in someone new since my hair grows so weird. I think a lot of hairdressers don't believe the 7 cowlicks (sp) and that it gets longer instead of shorter when it dries.

So, it seems that things are getting back to normal in time for the holidays and our trip to Florida. And for that, we were both very grateful Thursday. Have a good week, enjoy all your shopping if you are in to that. My daughter left at 5 on Thanksgiving night and didn't get home until after 3 yesterday afternoon! I don't know how they did it!

Compared to the last 2 weeks, this one was a piece of cake! We spent a very quiet week-end and somewhat recovered from all of the medical issues. I did have to get one med filled for Bill and had to go all the way across town since the nearest and best pharmacy is closed on Saturday. 

Bill has still been tired, but yesterday he said he felt better and didn't get as tired walking as he had earlier in the week. I think part of that is just so much inactivity so it's more taxing to make an effort to do anything.

We didn't pick the cat up until Monday morning and she's just so pitiful. She still has a hard time walking and doesn't want to eat much. It's affecting her bathroom habits too and I was considering taking her back to the vet. I was able to get her to eat while letting her lay in my lap and holding her food bowl and she finally starting using her litter box. We're still using the shredded paper litter (gives us a reason to shred old paperwork) and she has worried at her paws so much that there is a little open place that I'm watching. She has chewed all of the glue off and I can see the stitches. They didn't say that she needed to come in to have them removed so I'm assuming they will dissolve or come out on their own. We both wish we hadn't had it done. 

If I didn't know better I would say we are having a blizzard from the sound of the wind whistling around. We have a wind advisory until this evening and it is really fierce. It's also very warm and we are to get rain starting later this morning but ending by early afternoon. It will be a good day to do laundry.

We got the new appointments for Mayo and I'm surprised they could get them, but since it's just labs and then Stephanie and Dr. Hosenpud, it was a little easier. They are going to use the results of the echo done in Memphis. We leave on the 9th and will be home on the 13th. Quick trip, and it will be tiring, but then we should be done for awhile. 

Bill does go see Connie this week, just as a follow-up. He is now off the Prednisone so maybe is sugar will even out and his A1C go down and we can stop using the insulin. He hates the shots, although I think it would be easier for him to do them himself but he won't even consider that idea! I'm trying to make him take more responsibility for his care. I know that I've contributed to his decline by waiting on him so much, but if I'm up why can't I get him something from the kitchen. I need to redo the med list that is in his medicine box so that anyone else could fill his weekly containers if I'm not available, including him. Maybe that's something we'll work on this winter.

The part has been ordered for the furnace, we just don' know when it will be installed. I've got to get the area cleared out first. Another reason to go through things!

We're having a very quiet Thanksgiving, just the two of us. I think I'm getting a very small turkey breast and Bill has said not to go to a lot of trouble. Turkey is about his favorite thing to eat, but I read an article this morning that said to think of a meal that we don't have very often and that brings us pleasure and have that instead. I haven't really been able to think of anything yet, and since turkey brings Bill pleasure...we'll have to see. But, we're not going to have a lot of leftovers that will just get thrown out. That's one thing I'm sure of!

So, that's been our week, just a normal one again. I hope everyone has a nice Thanksgiving. Be thankful for what you've been given, even if it doesn't seem like much. Emily and I helped a young mother this week. Her ex-husband has custody of their children and he announced he was dropping them off this week-end for the week since school is out. She's been out of work with medical issues and told Emily she wouldn't be able to feed them, which would give him more ammunition. So we went together and got a Kroger gift card so they could have Thanksgiving. That's what the holiday is about. If you go black Friday shopping, be safe and use your heads. It won't be the end of the world if someone else grabs the last item of something you wanted. As for me....I'm staying home!

What a week, what a week, what a week! It's hard to think that it is Saturday again already!

Let's see, since I last wrote, our week-end was quiet after Bill came home on Friday. I called the vet and made an appointment for Cat to have her front claws removed for Tuesday morning. And, if I had known just what they do during this process, I wouldn't have had it done. Yet, at the same time, since they were suspecting that Bill had Bartonella, which is also known as Cat Scratch Fever, his health is more important. So, they told me no food or water after midnight and let me tell you, she was one miserable kitty by the time we left! Those great big eyes looking at me and following me everywhere thinking that it was FINALLY time for food was almost enough to make me give in for just a little water. But, I just took her in early. They told me that she would be there overnight and I needed to have shredded paper litter to use for 7-10 days so there wasn't any chance of infection.

Wednesday was Bill's follow-up appointment with our dr. and his white count was back up and he was crackly again. I had noticed Monday night that he was short of breath walking again and Tuesday night he started coughing again, so it was a good thing he had the appointment. Connie decided that she didn't want to take any chances and called the Infectious Disease Dr. So, we left and after I took Bill back home, went to pick up Cat. That poor kitty! She was very vocal as they put her in her carrier and in the car. She threw up in her carrier (she does get car sick if she has recently eaten) and could barely walk. I had moved her food, litter box and bed into a small towel covered area in the dining room so we could see her, but all she wanted was to be held. 

Connie called about 1:30 and told us that the infectious disease dr. wanted him re-admitted and to just go to the emergency room again and he would have made the arrangements. So, I called the vet back and asked if I could bring her back for boarding, then packed a small bag for Bill and a bag for my stuff (knitting and books) and loaded everyone up. Bill held Cat's carrier and unzipped the end a little and she put one paw out on his chest and had her head out enough to get a little head petting. Dropped her back with the vet and we hit the road.

We got to the hospital as the school across the street was letting out and traffic was horrible. Luckily it is a high school so there weren't a lot of little kids about. There was no parking and since I'm uneasy leaving Bill where questions will be asked, we unfortunately had a long walk. We finally made it to a bench close to the door and I was able to get a wheelchair. There was nothing in the system about him being a direct admit back to the transplant unit and we were in the er for 5 very long hours before he was taken upstairs. He was very grumpy by then, mainly because he was hungry and they stuck him so many times. They had to take samples from different arms to rule out a blood infection. I know at one time they ordered 29 cultures! The er dr. was the same one we had seen and his first words were "I remember you". Finally at 8 we made it upstairs and the nurses remembered him. We got all the questions answered and meds gone over and he was waiting for transport to take him for another ct scan of his chest when I left. I was so tired I talked to Mistie most of the way home. There had been an accident on the northbound side of the interstate the day before that damaged an overpass so it was closed and traffic was being rerouted and it was a nightmare. We had seen the back-up on our way south and I didn't want to go that way. Mistie knew a way through the country and I thought I knew the same way. It would bring me out on the west side of the town (where we live) instead of the east side where the detour was. I got home at about the same time I would have normally. I fed the outside cat, took my meds and was in bed 10 minutes after I got home.

I had told Bill I wouldn't be there early because I had some business to take care of. I had to cancel an appointment and make a couple of other phone calls and it was mid-morning before I got there. Of course I had missed some of the drs! I did see Dr. Yusuf, the transplant cardiologist in the hallway as I was leaving and he said he needed to talk to me, so he detoured to Bill's room. He said the ct showed that the pneumonia area was still there at the bottom of his lung, in 2 places, but it was smaller than before. So he thought some more IV antibiotics were necessary.

Before I go on, I need to say that Connie had checked with home health on IV antibiotics at home and they said all they do is teach someone in the home to administer them. They just change the bandages and bring the supplies. And, the antibiotic he had been on was $4000 a bag and insurance would not pay for it!

OK, back to the hospital. I told Bill when I left that I would be there early yesterday so I was up at 5 and out the door at 5:45. And of course, the drs. didn't start rounding until mid-morning! I never did see Dr. Yusuf, but did see the nurse. We got lots of conflicting info, he was going home on IV meds, he was going home on no additional meds, he was going off the IVs and being watch for a day...very confusing. Finally it was decided by a different infections disease dr., who I really liked, that he didn't think he needed any antibiotics. He said, after consulting with the pulmonary dr., that this pneumonia may never completely go away. But, again, everything they were testing for was negative. The only thing that showed up was E.coli in his urine and that could have been from a little accident he had in his pants. They didn't seem to be concerned about it as being the cause. So, after another long wait, we were finally discharged about 4. Of course I hadn't brought any oxygen with me, but Lincare brought us a tank to get home on.

I talked to Stephanie after both of us playing phone tag and she cancelled his appointments. She had his records and said that it included the echo so they could use that. They are going to reschedule him and we are just waiting for that. I don't know if they will be in December or have to be after the first of the year.

I was going to get the cat this morning, but I think we may leave her through the week-end. I have until noon to decide if I'm going to get her. I do miss the little critter!

We had talked about needing to get some good room air purifiers with HEPA filters to maybe help and when I told Emily she said that they have a friend who is a heat/air guy and he could install a filter on the furnace itself that would purify the air before it gets forced into the room. She checked with him and it is only $200, which we would spend on the room ones if not more, she she's going to tell him to order it tomorrow when she sees him at church. Maybe that will help both of us. She knew someone who had it installed because the whole family was suffering from allergies all the time.

So, that's our week. Hopefully we can have a relatively quiet week-end. Tomorrow Emily will be 40. Doesn't seem like my little girl should be that old! See you next week!

Sorry I didn't update last night. Yesterday was a whirlwind of a day and then we made it an early night.

I was up and out the door by 6 yesterday morning hoping that I would be at the hospital before the drs. rounded, and I was. Bill was up but still in bed and watching TV. He said he hadn't slept well, whether it was noisy or just his bed not being comfortable, I don't know. This was the first morning I had been there for his morning pills and discovered they were only giving him 1/2 of his cellcept, which is one of the transplant drugs! It was put in wrong in the ER and because I wasn't there to question it the other days, he was not getting the correct dose. It doesn't seem to have done him any harm, so I'll just keep an eye on him. Of course I got him back on his usual dose last night.

He was discharged at lunch time, which actually is a good time to get out of the city! We were home by a little after 2. I called Stephanie because they wanted to make some other changes to his meds. They had been in contact, at least from the ER, and she was going to request his records and then is going to call me next week. We will be there the 20th for his regular appointment so they will be able to check him out for themselves then.

He did come home with a slow acting insulin that he gets at night. The pharmacy was able to fill it in the pen form and the pharmacist showed me how to do it. I told him we had no clue what to do. There were also good instructions with it. But, we weren't given any instructions on what to do if it was high. I know at the hospital, only from yesterday's nurse, that they were supplementing with a fast acting before meals if it was 150 or above, because at lunch it was 149 and that's when she made the comment. We do have a test kit and strips and hopefully it will work so that I can test it some during the day even though I can't do anything about it.

We are to see our regular dr. this week, probably to make sure his white count has stayed down and that he is still moving air well.

I picked up some bbq plates for supper last night and will now take stock to see what groceries are in the house. I'm supposed to take the cat in for her allergy shot, but I want her to get de-clawed in the front so I'm going to see about taking her Monday morning for that and get the shot at the same time. 

I'm not looking forward to the time change tonight, even though sleeping for an extra hour seems nice. I know that won't happen and it means that Bill starts taking his meds an hour earlier. I also don't know what time the cat will start trying to get us up. It was 4:30 this morning!

I will probably go back to once a week for the updates, unless something else happens. Happy Time Change!

We are still on for discharge tomorrow as far as I know! His white count is normal, the slow acting insulin is keeping his sugar in check and he's moving air well. He still gets short of breath with exertion, but it comes back up as he rests and takes some deep breaths. I know he's ready to come home!

There is still no definite diagnosis as far as the infection goes. Some of the more obscure tests they are running take several days to grow. One thing they are testing for is cat scratch fever. He did get scratched by Kitty, but we immediately washed it and applied Neosporin, but who knows. I think they are testing for everything they can think of since everything so far has come back negative.

I don't know if he will come home with insulin or if we are just to monitor it. I also don't know if he will be on oral antibiotics or still IVs. The internal medicine dr. came in while I was getting something to drink and he said he would be back to talk to me, but I waited 2 hours and then had to leave. It was the time of day that traffic was very heavy on the interstate so I came through downtown. There was still a lot of traffic, but it was manageable. It just took and hour to get to the bridge instead of 30 minutes. But, traffic was lighter once I got across so it wasn't too bad. I stopped at the store and got something to cook and the cats and I have eaten and now I'm wearing out fast. I didn't sleep well last night and didn't feel well this morning. My lunch stayed with me all night and into the morning. Finally chewed an antacid and it finally stopped.

I'm going to try to be at the hospital early in the morning, so I'll probably need to set an alarm. But I definitely want to be there when the drs. round, and maybe they'll make the decision for sure to discharge and we'll get back home sooner.

So, the crisis has been resolved and hopefully he will continue to improve. He's making plans for things around the house, and they are things that need done but most will have to wait until spring. At least his mind is working better!

All for tonight. Now that I've eaten I'm getting sleepy. Goodnight!

Bill had a good day and now we are looking at going home Friday, if he can transition to pill form of the antibiotics instead of the IVs. His white count is now back to normal, but it is still a mystery since everything they have tested for, as far as the infection goes, has come back negative.

They have started giving him a low dose of a slow acting insulin and supplementing it at meal times if necessary with a fast acting one. His A1C went from 7 last week to 8 yesterday. The Dr. still seems to think that it is all steroid driven, but since his dad was diabetic in his later years, it's entirely possible. The dietician came in this morning and gave us some information on watching carbs, so we may have a new phase of eating there.

He still is getting short of breath when he is walking and I don't know what they are going to do about that, or if it will change as the pneumonia is cleared. It could also just be a progression of the COPD/emphysema.

I came home early today to beat the rain that was coming in and have paid the bills and filled my pill container. I went to Walmart to grab a couple of things, and mainly to break a big money bill, and got so disgusted that I did what I had threatened to do many times, left my basket and walked out. They had 3 lanes open and they were backed up past the first walk-through. All of the self-checks were open and they were all full. I did get lucky that Subway was able to break the bill. I got a foot long sandwich and will take half of it with me to the hospital tomorrow.

I am really tired and went to bed last night at 8. My phone beeped at 10:30 and it was nothing important and I didn't wake up until 5 when the cat came and licked my cheek and told me it was time for breakfast. I felt really rested, but I had a very hard time keeping my eyes open on the drive down, until I hit traffic and then it was much easier. Hopefully that won't happen tomorrow morning.

I just talked to Bill to see if he remembered the baseball game and he had. He also had a visitor after I left. His son Joe came to visit. He had an appointment across the street so he stopped in. We haven't seen him in so long that Bill said he really didn't recognize him, but they had a nice visit.

That's all for now. I'm going to watch as much of the ballgame as I can and then hit the bed. I've already had my shower and I don't think there's anything for me to gather for tomorrow. Goodnight for now!

I feel so much better this morning! I got up early and got to the hospital about 8:30. He was very grumpy again because they couldn't find the waiver he signed against being alarmed. But, they are looking for it and the tether has been taken off.

One of the nurse practitioners from cardiology came in first and when I asked why he was moved she said he should have been in this unit in the first place! That made me feel better. She said the other side doesn't monitor the meds as closely and don't seem to realize the tight schedule the transplant meds are on. 

We have seen the infectious disease dr. and the cardiologist. The CT did show pneumonia in one lung. The echo didn't show anything amiss so that's good. They have increased one of his transplant meds as his level was low. It had been a little high earlier and then they got it too low. So they are trying to level it out. All of the tests that have been done as far as the pneumonia goes have come back negative as to what kind it is.

Depending on how he continues to respond to the IV meds, and when they can be changed to mouth, he may get to come home in a couple of days. He still hasn't been able to give a sputum sample because he's not coughing as much so they may have to do a bronchoscopy. 

Physical and occupational therapy have just taken him for a little stroll down the hall. His O2 dropped from 98 to 82 when he was walking but it has come up to 94 now. OT isn't going to work with him anymore but physical is going to come and keep walking him.

So, a much better report today. Now maybe the hives will stay away!

I'm pretty tired tonight and confused, and a little apprehensive. Bill seems to feel better, but he is still congested and has a hard time going from laying down to sitting up without coughing. He also is still getting very short of breath on any exertion. It could be that he's been inactive for a few days now, and with the congestion it is harder to move.

The internal medicine dr. said that his white count has finally started to come down, so the meds are finally getting on top of the infection. It's still not clear what has caused the infection and I don't know if we ever will. He was going to have physical therapy start walking him to see if that helped to move the congestion around to get it out. He also said that his sugar is high but that could be because they were pumping him full of steroids. They have started him on some insulin in the interim.

They did an echo today, which didn't really surprise me, if  for no other reason to rule out any problems with the heart. The lung drs. are changing his inhalers again. We found out that we were told wrong on the new inhaler. She told us to stop the Advair and use the new one with the Turdoza when in fact it should have been the other way around. So, he was in effect overdosing on that med and not getting the steroid from the Advair. So they are going to fix that.

As soon as I left today they moved Bill to the transplant unit, but no-one knows why. They told him that they didn't have any tests results back that would warrant the move. Of course he doesn't process things very well so I don't know. He just called me while I was on my way home and told me the new room number. Bryan had stopped in just after they moved him and he didn't know anything either.

I called Bill to get the name of his nurse and to have her call me to tell me why he was moved. I would like to know if I need to go back to the hospital tonight. But, so far I haven't heard anything and I'm getting to the point that I'm too tired to drive the 1 1/2 hours to get there. I don't think this should be done ( and it was done before at this hospital ) without notifying the family. Bill said he told them they should have done it sooner before I left. They also didn't let food services know so they had to scrounge him up supper since his dinner went to the old room. 

You know, I hadn't realized until that I was hoping I would never have to do these daily posts again. Sometimes they did make me feel better and it did let me remember things. But tonight, this post is just making me sad.

With that being said, I'm going to the hospital website to see if I can find a phone number for the unit or some number that will get me there. When I know more, you'll know more.

If you read the last post, you know that there was something going on with Bill since he wasn't getting any better. Well, we ended up heading to Memphis to the emergency room yesterday (Saturday). I really had to talk him in to it and Connie had wanted him to go Friday night but he refused.

We were very impressed with the staff at the ER. Within 5 minutes he had been checked in and was heading to a room. Emily barely made it in the door from parking the car to follow along with us. Within 45 minutes he had been connected the monitor, had bloodwork done, a chest xray and they had called and consulted with Mayo. Then, aside from a breathing treatment, it was a very long wait for results. The things they were looking at were pneumonia, congestive heart failure, or a rare rejection with the heart. Rejection can happen at any time, but it's usually closer to early transplant.

When the hospitalist came in and said that it was pneumonia in both lungs, I told him I would take that over the other choices and he agreed that it was the best of the diagnoses.

So, he has been admitted to the hospital for a few days.

So far today (Sunday) we have seen the hospitalist, infectious disease practitioner, transplant cardiologist, respiratory for a breathing treatment and waiting for pulmonology. Dr. Burbeck doesn't have privileges here, but her group does so they have requested a consult with them.

We do know that the type of pneumonia he has is not airborne, like legionaires. So they took away 2 of the high powered antibiotics. He only has 2 antibiotics and they are both IV drips, but he doesn't have to continually connected to IVs. They initially had him as a fall risk and had his bed and chair alarmed but he signed a waiver after I got here refusing that. We tried telling him that it was just a precaution but he wasn't having it. We also tried to make a compromise that he would be alarmed if I wasn't here, but he wouldn't agree to that either. 

The transplant dr. is going to consult with Mayo tomorrow and he said that he wasn't planning to make any changes to anything. He did order a CT last night from head to chest and I told him that he would see a "nodule" on his left lung that is just a fold. I told him that after it was seen on the scan a year ago the PET scan had been done and that was when it was discovered that it was just a fold. He said that he was so glad I had told him so he wouldn't be alarmed when he got the results. He also said that he was just going to monitor his meds, especially the transplant meds. He also suggested that we start using them as a back-up transplant group, without giving up control to Mayo, and then he can be see yearly just for a regular check-up much closer to Mayo. I'm going to talk to Stephanie about that when we go next month, but as far as a regular cardiologist, we will be making an appointment for that.

So, that's where we are now and for the next few days. Usually when we are here I just stay with him all the time, but I'm not going to this time, and he is fine with that. It is a long drive, but it's not a bad drive until Memphis proper and, depending on the time of day. But I can work around that as far as heavy rush hour goes.

The cat was very glad to see me last night and followed me wherever I went. She slept on Bill's side of the bed most of the night and didn't wake me until 6, which is very unusual for her. She usually starts about 4!

I will update this more frequently until he's back home, so keep checking in. If not, you'll have lots of reading to do next weekend!

Posting early this week since we have a busy morning tomorrow. It's Kayden's 13th birthday and we have a tradition of going out for breakfast and then shopping. He wants to try a new restaurant (for him) and then shop for a winter coat. He's then going to come back to the house for a piano lesson. He got a keyboard from his mom and he's always liked messing around with beats and rhythms so he wants to add to that. I pulled out all of the old lesson books and there are a couple of things here that he can take with him.

Bill is not really any better, although he's having a good day and then a bad day. It's becoming quite a mystery. When we were at the dr. Monday he was still crackly so more Prednisone. He had lost 3 pounds so took some fluid off, but he stays so dry I think it did more harm than good. Since it has been about 6 weeks, she was going to contact Dr. Burbeck the pulmonologist instead of Mayo first. I haven't heard back so I don't know if she was able to get with her yet.

His blood sugar was a little high 2 hours after eating but I think that's due more to the Prednisone and the infection he's fighting. It can also be high if he isn't hydrated enough and since that is an ongoing problem, with the Lasix added in, it could also be that. They were going to check his A1C from the blood draw and I haven't heard anything on that front either so I'm assuming that it is OK.

Connie changed one of his inhalers and he's been coughing a lot more since starting it. I don't know if that's good or bad. McKenna has even noticed that he's coughing more. It is a wet cough so things are moving, but whether it's from whatever he's fighting or just from the COPD and emphysema, or from the new inhaler is unknown. He's only been on it since Tuesday so it may just be getting into his system and getting the Advair out. Another thing to ask Dr. Burbeck.

He's been cold all day today and has on a heavy flannel shirt and 2 blankets. He's also got a low grade fever and just looks like he doesn't feel good. It's been a cold, damp day here and I've turned the heat up twice. It still feels a little cool to me, but I've got on a short sleeve Tshirt. It's not supposed to be above 60 tomorrow and down to freezing tomorrow night. I wish now that I had called the chimney sweep last week like I was going to!

We got the new concentrator Monday. It seems fairly straightforward to operate and I've charged all the batteries. We have the little bag packed with the extra batteries and will give it a tryout tomorrow with Kayden. Hopefully Bill will feel well enough to go. He said a little while ago that I could go without him and that will depend on how he actually feels. I think Kayden will understand if it doesn't happen this week. There's always next week-end!

We got a new great-granddaughter today. She came 3 weeks early, but weighed 7 lbs and was nearly 20 inches long, so maybe the due date was just miscalculated. Her mom said that she's perfectly healthy and won't have to spend any extra time in the hospital. As far as I know, she's the last one coming for awhile, although with 2 grandsons recently married, it may not be long before there are more. 

That's about it for now. Hoping we have a better week next week. See you then!

The morning has gotten away from me today. Took the cat to the vet for her shot. The area on her neck that we've been treating has dramatically improved this week, so maybe only a couple more shots and she'll have cleared up. She's feeling a lot better and starting to play with her toys. Then, after bringing her home, decided to go to Walmart for a few things. Bill decided to stay home and I got more than I had planned. But, as I was driving I remembered we were out of this and almost out of that so I got those things too.

My voice came back Sunday somewhat. It was a little hoarse for most of the week but it's fine now. I also haven't had any hives for most of the week and all the meds have been added back. It's still quite the mystery and could have all been just a combination of stress and being sick and maybe the antibiotic. But, I'm basically well now. I got my flu shot while we were there Wednesday so we're both good to go.

Bill is still fighting it. He's had a 3 day round of Rocephin shots and some Lasix and Prednisone. I think she's thinking that there is some fluid build-up around his heart. He went back to the dr. Wednesday and she said his heart sounded good but he was still a little crackly. Some days he coughs a lot and other days he hardly coughs at all. He's to go back Monday to see what his chest xray looks like and if it hasn't cleared she's going to call Stephanie at Mayo to see what they recommend.

I worked on tracking the progress of the order for the battery powered oxygen concentrator and it should be here Monday. If I had done it earlier in the week we would have it already, but I waited until late afternoon Thursday so it didn't get shipped until yesterday. Hopefully this will give Bill a little more freedom.

We're to get some storms sometime after midnight. The weatherman doesn't think they will be severe, but there will be some heavy rain. Another reason to get the running done today. It sprinkled on me a little on the way to Walmart, but the sky is clear now. We may take a ride this afternoon, or maybe we'll wait until next week-end and try out the new concentrator!

That's about it for this week. Hopefully things are now looking up as far as health goes. See you next week!

It's a good thing that this blog is actually typed and not spoken into life. I woke up this morning with no voice above a whisper, and not a very loud whisper at that. So it will be pretty quiet in the house today, at least on my part. It's not going to bode well for the ballgame tonight if I can't yell at the TV, but I'm sure Bill will like it!

Our week has been so-so. I think Bill's trying to get sick again. He's coughing more and a couple of times seemed to be winded when he's walking. I did turn his O2 up yesterday, but somehow it had gotten turned down to 1 1/2 instead of 2 so it needed turned up anyway. I don't know if the cat did it jumping on top of it (she likes to lay there and watch the bathroom/bedroom doors, and there's a shield on the filter to keep the hair out) or if Bill did it when he got up in the night thinking it wasn't working.

I don't seem to have any hives this morning. They still haven't gone away completely but they are tolerable now. We're eliminating medications now before doing further testing and so far it seems that the culprit might be Lipitor, my med for cholesterol. I've been on it for about 20 years with no problems, but I guess an allergy can develop at any time, not just when it is first started. At first we thought it was Aleve and I haven't added it back yet. I really hope I can because I really hurt. It's true when they say getting old isn't for wimps! 

Kenna finished her testing for school. There are no results yet, and they may go to Emily and not me since she's the parent. The first 9 weeks has ended so it will be interesting to see her final grades. She's also caught this same crud that we've had. But, the weather has been so erratic. Started the week in the upper 80s/low 90s, middle of the week down into the low 60s and only in the low 70s in the day, but today will be back into the 90s. We did have a little rain, but I don't think it did much to clear the air. I've heard a crop duster a couple of times this week so they are still defoliating the cotton, and then picking it along with other crops and then burning the fields. The local weatherman showed some satellite pictures and you can see the smoke from space...and this is just from farmers burning fields, not the wildfires in California.

Our grandson is getting married this week-end in South Carolina. We haven't talked to his mother since we told her that we would not be able to go. But, since Bill made the decision himself, she couldn't say much. We have talked about travel, and prioritized which trips/visits are the ones that need to be made. Others will just have to come and see us!

So, that's our week. Our month of October hasn't been good so far with all of the sinus infections, hives, colds and whatever else we've suffered with. I have a feeling it will be back to the dr. this week for both of us. Other than that we have no plans to go anywhere or do anything. As for today, warm drinks for my throat and maybe some knitting. After all it's love yarn day! Oh yeah, and the Cubs game tonight!

If all good things must come to an end, why can't all bad things do the same?

Bill is greatly improved and finally started using his treadmill again this week. He only went out and walked once, but at least he did. We had a little discussion about him needing to take a small oxygen tank out with him when he's walking from the house to the apartment and back. He doesn't think he needs it but I told him when he walks without it his oxygen drops too low and he could pass out. He got really testy after that until I told him to stop because he was just ticked at me. After that he was fine.

We ordered him a portable, battery powered concentrator this week. Dr. Burbeck had said that she would pursue us renting one for our trips to Florida, but we want to be freer than just those 2 trips. We want to be able to pick-up and go somewhere all day or week-end without worrying about how long we can be gone before we have to change tanks and all the other stuff that you've read about here. So, after some research for the one that would give him the flow he needs, we ordered it. We also ordered extra batteries and an external charger and the total was less than $3000, including shipping. The rentals are minimum $500/week so it wouldn't take much to get to the cost and beyond. They have to get the prescription from the dr. before shipping it so hopefully it won't take that long. I can plug him into the car and off we can go. Maybe he'll use it walking outside then too. We're still going to keep the tanks as back-ups for the back-ups, and having the little ones for a quick meal out will be better since the battery one is bigger than the ones advertised on tv.

My finger looked horrible for most of the week. The swelling didn't last much past dinner (I think it was keeping it cold that helped) but by Monday it was almost black in places. It looked like the skin of someone on blood thinners who have hit their arm on something. That has finally all gone away. Just another reason not to keep using the tanks!

I'm still dealing with the hives! I had my thyroid tested this week as a nurse friend had sent me an article on hives being a sign of thyroid problems. It came back within the normal range. Normal is .4-4.0 and mine was .67. I talked to that same friend this week and she said she's been on thyroid medication for years and sometimes her test will show wacky numbers and the dr. will ask if she's taking her medicine. I remembered, or seemed to remember, that I had an under-active thyroid when I was a teenager and had to take meds for a while. I confirmed it with mom and she reminded me that I went from a size 7 junior petite to a misses 14 then! Why did that have to be the result of kick-starting it! Anyway, that's when I had the test done. Thursday evening I looked like I had the measles, little red spots (they weren't even bumps) over my entire body!

Yesterday morning I woke up at 4 and got up and had no hives and felt wonderful and rested and had energy all day. I did buy groceries and while I was at Walmart the hives came back on my arms, but after coming home and sitting for a bit they went away. I still wasn't tired during the day and only got sleepy about 9:30. Didn't sleep as well last night and woke up to welts on my arms and a rash on my neck! The Zyrtek and Prednisone are working again and they are fading, but I can still see them under my skin.

I read a blog this morning that I follow and this writer detailed that she had been to her semi-annual check-up and her thyroid numbers were out of whack again so they were tweeking her meds. She then said that she has suffered from hives caused by thyroid problems since she was a baby and can have outbreaks that last for 5-6 months! She did say there is a new treatment, an infusion of some kind, that will stop the outbreak almost immediately, but she said insurance sometimes balks at paying it and some drs. don't want to give it. But, after reading that, I think I'm going to pursue the thyroid angle. I don't think it is dermatological, I think it is all internal. And, depending on the cost, what price sanity? It's only money!!! If it means that I'm not itching and grumpy (Kenna said yesterday was the only day I haven't been crabby) it's worth it.!

I'm taking the kids to see the baby this afternoon. Bill is staying home so we won't stay long. We also have to take the cat in for her allergy shot. Hopefully her new skin treatment will be in so that we don't have to keep taking her. 

I know I've told you about the neighbors across the street that have borrowed so much money. We had finally just quit giving it to them. The father came over at some point in the last 2 weeks and need 150 for the dr. for his son. He said he needed to be in the hospital but wouldn't admit him without the money up front. We didn't give him any (mainly because we didn't have the cash on us) and I noticed over the next few days that their car was gone, even though there were lights on in the house. I read early this week that the son passed away Sunday. He was only 57. The dad has only been back to the house a couple of times. I think he's staying with a daughter in Jonesboro. I feel kind of bad for not giving them the money, but I know it's not our fault. He had some major medical problems, including a leaking aortic valve that he wasn't getting treated. His mother passed away from the same condition at about the same age, if I'm remembering right.

OK, enough bad stuff! The Cubs made it to the playoffs and won their first game last night, defying all of the pundits, including the game announcers who were singing the praises of the opposing team and pitcher...until the Cubs scored the first run. Then it was how brilliant the Cubs pitcher had been and yada, yada, yada. Game 2 starts late this afternoon...hope the kids want to listen to it on the radio!

See you next week, I'll keep you posted on the hives!

I can't really say it's a good morning. I've had a miserable week. Bill is somewhat better. He's still a little congested and is white count is still elevated, but is cough is easing. He's on another round of Prednisone and a new antibiotic and the really good cough medicine, that he hasn't needed, so maybe this time it will get knocked out. She also increased his Zyrtek from 1/2 a pill to a full pill. He doesn't have to go back to the dr. unless he relapses. She told Emily, although she didn't tell me, that because of his diminished lung capacity, he will take longer and longer to recover from things like this. Of course I know this and a time will come when he won't be able to recover. His lungs are only going to get worse, what we are doing is just buying time. I know that sounds morbid, but you don't recover from COPD and emphysema unless you have a lung transplant, and that's not going to happen.

So, while he is feeling better and can't wait to be able to get back to his treadmill, I'm totally falling apart. Sunday afternoon I noticed that my left side was itching and when I looked there were several huge welts. I had just been outside feeding the cat that lives under the house and noticed that there were several mosquitos hovering around her. So I thought I just got bit through my clothes. But, by the time we went to bed I had a good case of hives starting. Hives aren't a new thing for me but I haven't had any outbreaks since we've come home from the transplant and that will be 5 years in December. So I took some Benadryl thinking that it would be gone the next day. I was definitely wrong! I was covered when I got up. The only places that didn't have them was my face (although my neck looked terrible), my calves, and my hands. The dr. was more concerned with me than with Bill and offered me some Prednisone, but I get a rash if I take it so I'm was stuck.

By Tuesday I was so miserable I decided that I was going to take the Prednisone anyway. My reasoning was that I already had a rash so what could it hurt! The allergy to it doesn't affect my breathing, just the rash. I also remembered the concoction they give Bill when he has a heart cath. It's a mix of Benadryl, Zantac, and Prednisone. I'm not taking the megadose they give him, but I'm taking that every morning. Thursday all of the hives were gone, and I felt really good. Got some stuff done around here. But, at bedtime they were starting to come back. They were hit and miss yesterday, coming and going, and last night they were coming back. This morning they are everywhere again, including my face and hands and behind my knees.

The mystery to all of this is that I haven't changed detergents, soaps, shampoos, perfumes, no new foods...nothing! The only things I can think of that would have any effect is the cat's flea collar (we've since taken it off) and I finished my antibiotic on the Friday before they first appeared Sunday. So, all I can think of is stress, even though I don't feel any more stressed than usual. But it could be. Emily thinks that it's a mix of Bill not recovering from this infection and having McKenna here every day, even though she's no trouble. Plus Ryan lost his job the week before they started on Sunday, so maybe it is just a culmination of everything. Anyone want to come and live in my house so I can have a vacation alone? I would probably worry the whole time anyway!

Kenna finished all of her schoolwork for the week on Thursday, so she got a day off. We decided to go to Jonesboro to get me a new phone. We stopped at Olive Garden first for a late lunch/early dinner and as I was switching Bill's tanks, I had a blood vessel pop in my middle finger on my left hand. It swelled so much I though it would split open! I couldn't bend my finger at all! I held on to my drink glass to keep some cold on it and pressed it into the table to kind of move the blood around and by the time we got to the ATT store next door, I could somewhat bend it. I got a newer phone than I wanted and which cost $200 more, but I think I will like it when I finally get it all set up.

We were going to go see the baby today, but Amanda said that next week would be better. I don't know why, and it doesn't matter. Maybe he's not sleeping good and they're all exhausted, who knows. I hadn't said anything to any of the kids except McKenna, and she'll be OK. Kiyann can't wait to hold him and Mistie has said that all she talks about is being an aunt!

It doesn't seem possible that October is already here! It has gotten somewhat cooler, at least in the mornings. It is still in the mid 80s in the day but that is better than the 90s. Some of the cotton is almost ready to be picked. I didn't even realize they were defoliating this year. I guess when you don't go out much anymore you do miss things! I noticed they were cutting something yesterday. I think it was rice since the beans haven't dried enough, but it could have been an early planted field. Hope everyone has a good week ahead! Who knows what ours will bring!

This has been another week of doctors for us. Tuesday night I started seeing flashes of light at the side of my vision with my right eye. This happened several years ago with my left eye, and it's a sign that the retina may detach. So, Wednesday I got in to the eye dr. This also happens with normal aging when the eye dries out and pieces of the viscous pulls away. The eye is fine, I have a new floater and the retina is fine. But, he wants to check it again in 6 weeks. McKenna was very interested in it. When I got home I told Bill that they had dilated it and she told me I wasn't supposed to drive with it like that! I had my sunglasses so it was OK. She was also interested in keeping track of how dilated it was. She told me at one time I looked like a frog!

Wednesday night Bill started running a low grade fever and was chilled. He also started coughing again. He had just finished the Prednisone Tuesday but we were both still taking the antibiotic. He coughed most of the night and stayed in bed all morning Thursday. I messaged the dr. and asked if she just wanted to do another round of steroids or if she thought she should see him. She did call in more Prednisone, but she wanted to see him Friday and do more bloodwork and a chest xray.

The xray was clear but his white count was still up so she gave him a Rocephin (sp) shot and take the steroid through Monday and repeat the bloodwork Monday. He seems better today. I told him the shot should knock out whatever was working on him.

Today it was the cat's turn. It was time for her shot to clear up the place on her neck. They are going to try another hormone the next time if it has come in. They've been waiting for a trans-dermal form instead of pill form, because we will never get a pill down her. I did get some more Neomycin gel since I can get that on the sore while she's laying down on my lap.

Our granddaughter had her baby yesterday morning. He was born about 5:30 and weighed about 6 1/2 pounds. They have already been discharged this morning. I told them we would wait until our infections were cleared up before coming to see him. McKenna can hardly wait to see him. She wants to kidnap him! We'll also have to take Kayden and Kiyann to see him.

That's been our week. I don't think we have anything going on next week, but we didn't have anything going on this week either! Happy Fall everyone!

And again, all good things come to an end. We both started feeling a little odd Wednesday evening, like we were getting a cold. The weather had changed from hot and dry to cool and rainy, so it wasn't surprising. Thursday I woke up feeling absolute horrible. Not only cold symptoms, but upset stomach and diarrhea, but Bill felt fine. I started pushing fluids (as soon as I took care of the bathroom problems) and taking some cold medicine. Felt worse as the day wore on and had a miserable night. Woke up yesterday morning and hit the couch, still feeling queasy. Bill asked if I needed to go to the Dr. and I said yes. I haven't felt this bad in years, ever since I had strep way before Bill had is transplant. I noticed that his cough sounded a little worse, so we both went to the Dr.

The good news is that I don't have strep. But, we both have severe sinusitis. Mine is worse than Bill's but we both have it. We are both moving air well so it is not in our chests, which is also good, especially for Bill. So, meds for both of us. We have the same antibiotic but Bill has Prednisone and I have Sudafed. I can't take Prednisone and the pharmacy was out of Sudafed. Even though it is over the counter, since it is one of the main components of meth, Arkansas made it so that you can only get it by prescription, and it has to be a paper script, it can't be called in. Brianna took it in for us and got the other meds. The Sudafed should be in Monday.

We started the meds last night and I already feel better, but I'm having a reaction to the Augmentin. It is aggravating my rosacea. I have a red streak starting down my cheek and my face is started to itch after only 2 doses. So, I'll call Connie and stop taking it and see what she wants to do. I thought I was better when I got up, but when I walked into the kitchen to feed the cat, I was suddenly so weak I could hardly stand, so I know I still need to take it easy again today. Coffee and food helped, but I told Bill that loading the dishwasher may be the only thing that gets done today.

Our Florida family made it through the hurricane with minimal damage. Bill's sister didn't get power back until yesterday afternoon. Don said he was very grateful for air conditioning! A niece lost part of a fence and some branches. They also lost power, but have a generator. Our part of the hurricane just brought cooler temps and rain, which probably contributed to the illness.

That's pretty much the gist of our week. We're going to just keep things quiet for a few days. Things around the house will get done eventually. I really need to mop the kitchen floor. I was opening a bottle of ginger ale and it exploded. Even though I wiped everything up, the floor is still pretty sticky. But I don't think it will get done today...maybe tomorrow!

Hope everyone has a good week, I'm going to curl up with my book!

It just now hit me that I hadn't updated this yet! I'm sorry for those of you who look at it in the mornings. It's been a busy day and it just slipped my mind. I guess since I slept an extra hour might have had something to do with it.

We've had a very boring, normal week, although I'm beginning to suspect there is something going on with Bill. He seems fine, but he walked to the front door from the loveseat, which might be about 10 feet and got really winded. He has also said he's tired and just has no energy. But he denies feeling bad or that something is wrong. So, being extra vigilant again.

His burn is healing but it's going to leave a scar. A friend suggested looking on Amazon for the burn spray that is so good and I did. Alas, they make it in a cream but not in the spray anymore. I don't think the cream would have the immediate effect that the spray had. It was instant cool and the burn didn't have to be touched. Oh well, Elizabeth, it was a good suggestion that I hadn't thought of.

We took the cat back to the vet today for her shot. She's having to have shots every 2 weeks for a place that got inflamed on her neck that is taking a long time to heal. She's also got fleas, and this week I noticed some worms in her stool. So, the allergy shot, a worm shot and the 3 month flea treatment and she's been a miserable thing all afternoon. She roamed the house and was on things she knows she's not supposed to be on, like the hutch and piano and dining room table. I think she was looking for some place to cool the itching from the fleas moving so much after the treatment. She finally settled down about 5 and slept until just a few minutes ago. She did eat a little but she's back on the back of the recliner and, she's moaning in her sleep. It's just pitiful. Hopefully tomorrow she'll feel better and be back to her old self. I guess we'll know if she jumps on the bed in the middle of the night or early in the morning for breakfast.

Our family in Florida is riding out the hurricane at home. At least they were before it turned and is now going to be a more direct hit. Some of our friends have evacuated and others are staying put. So, until everyone checks in, we'll be on pins and needles.

We went to Dyersburg Sunday for our anniversary. We hadn't really planned on doing anything. But, I got a coupon text from Joann Fabrics and Bill said that we hadn't been there for awhile so we should go shopping and then get something to eat. So, I got the yarn for Kayden's afghan and then we had lunch at Applebees. It was a pretty day for a drive and we both had a good time.

That's about it. Like I said, just a normal week. We don't have anything going on next week either as far as I know so it will hopefully be just as dull and normal! See you then!

Another week in the books!

I forgot to fill you in on Bill's burn last week. He dropped a plate of spaghetti and it landed on his calf and foot. He just kind of sat and looked at me and McKenna jumped into action! She pulled his shoes and socks off but it had already burned through his sock at his ankle. While he went in to change she even helped me clean up the floor and get him another plate. The burn spray I have, which is the best stuff in the world that can't be found anywhere, is almost empty and it didn't do anything to help. I looked through every medicine bin in the bathroom but couldn't find anything for burns. I finally thought to look in the first aid kit in the car and there was 1 little packet of burn gel. So, I used that and then covered it with a big bandaid. It is healing and doesn't hurt anymore, but it looked nasty that night. So, that catches you up with what I forgot last week.

The week was mostly quiet. Kenna is doing well in school and I hardly need to do anything at all.

We got some rain from the hurricane but that is all gone now. The weather is supposed to be much cooler the next 2 weeks so maybe we can turn the air off.

Yesterday McKenna had a school fun day at Barnes and Noble in Jonesboro. She didn't really want to go, but I insisted. Brianna also needed to go to Jonesboro so she went with us. We had a nice time. Went to Hobby Lobby for them to get some craft things. McKenna likes to do the easy cross-stitch things and Bri got some big yarn to crochet something. Ate at Chick-fi-let and then went to the mall. Kenna was a little stand-offish to start with but she did participate and actually won the first game. There was another 8th grader there and they finally started talking together and spent the rest of the time together. She even told me to just go away! We all got some books, although Kenna thought that making a friend should let her off the hook on a book. She doesn't like reading, but that is more due to her mild dyslexia. But she got a Sudoku book and a family tree book. She worked on that all the way home. That can also be counted as supplemental education so she got some hours in, including the outing hours.

I had told Bill that all we had for lunch was peanut butter. That is easier for him to fix a sandwich. When I got home he told me that he had eaten some pasta in the refrigerator. I looked and he had eaten 3 week old lasagna that should have been thrown out long ago. Luckily he didn't have any ill effects from it!

His memory has gotten much worse it seems, which makes me reluctant even more to leave him alone for any length of time. But, he won't hear of having someone come in to stay with him if I have to leave for several hours. Makes it harder on me to get some free time and not worry about him.

He's also still coughing more again and choking more on liquids. He had the swallowing problem after he had the trach and it took quite a while before he was able to have liquids without needing them thickened. But it may come back to that. I don't know if it's because he doesn't sit up straight much or it he's just forgetting to swallow, which really concerns me. I mentioned it to him about thickening his coffee if it continued, and reminded him that that is probably what caused his pneumonia.

Our grandson got married yesterday in Oklahoma. Bill made the decision that we wouldn't go back in July. We didn't hear anything from his mother so don't know if she is upset or not. We have another grandson getting married in October in South Carolina and he's already said we are not going. He knows that being in crowds and out of his comfort is very hard on him. The kids (his) will just have to understand that now is the time to visit him if they want to see him. They always have excuses, working or children or distance, but circumstances change. He has decided that the trips to Mayo and on down to his sister's once a year while we are in Florida, or a shorter trip to Illinois are the only trips we will do and they will just have to understand. I haven't declined the invitation yet, but have a couple of weeks yet.

I think that is everything that happened this week. Our anniversary is tomorrow. I don't know what we are going to do, if anything. I'll let you know next week!

Good Morning everyone!

We've had a decent week, started out busy and ended busy, with a normal in between. 

The baby shower was a bust...the guest of honor was not there! She had gone to the baby's daddy's house and, even though they promised to bring her home and had the money for gas, at the time the shower was supposed to start she sent a text saying that they wouldn't bring her back! The only attendees at the shower were me and Emily, Kayden and Kiyann, and Ryan's step-mom Julie. None of the family on Amanda's side came. It was sad and disappointing in that regard. But, the kids got to see their daddy and play with the kitten and we ate cake anyway. Emily and I both wanted to bring our gifts back with us until we could give them to her in person, but we didn't. I don't know if she's seen them yet or not.

Monday we set off about 10 in the morning to see the eclipse. Surprisingly traffic was very light. I had checked the Missouri traffic map and it showed normal traffic until it got to the split into Illinois and farther north. So, we decided to play it by ear. We were able to get within about 10 miles of the Mississippi river. For folks who have travelled this road, we were able to get to Boomland. There is a McDonald's there, so we ate lunch just as the eclipse was starting and then moved the car to the truck parking lot (which was relatively empty) to watch. We didn't get totality, but got about 99%. It was rather eerie, the light changed, the birds settled and got quiet, the cicadas started chirping and all the street lights came on. We could see into McDonalds when we couldn't before. Kiyann was amazed. It seemed like every 5 seconds she would say "It moved!". Bill had a hard time watching it because his neck doesn't have much mobility and it was hard for him to keep looking up. When it started to get light again, we went over to Boomland for a potty break and let the kids get a snack, although we had plenty of food in the car. We also gassed up for the ride home. Traffic was a little heavier on the way home once we got onto I55 again from people who had gone on toward St. Louis and Cape Girardeau. Brianna came through part of that area later in the evening and it was at a standstill in places.

We were back in school mode Tuesday and she somehow managed to get her work done in less time than it was supposed to take. Her grades are decent for the first 2 weeks of school, so she's at least reading the material. 

I had not gotten the prescription for Bill's quarterly labs, so I called Stephanie and she said she would fax it to the lab so off we went yesterday morning. Since they are fasting labs we went early. They had not gotten the fax, but they took care of calling her and getting it. They also had to call back to clarify something so had to wait longer and then had trouble getting any blood. This happened when they were trying get labs when he was sick last week. Usually there are no problems with his veins, it's always been mine that give problems. But, we were finally on our way a little after 10. A stop at IHOP for breakfast and then a quick stop at the mall to get my ring inspected and we were home by noon. Tiring, but at least everything is done.

Today the cat has to go to the vet and I'm taking her in just a little bit. I think I'm leaving Bill at home, it he will stay. It's always very busy on Saturday and they are only there until 12 so sometimes it's standing room only. She won't be happy because it's for another allergy shot.

We have nothing planned now until November as far as medical goes, unless something else pops up. Bill is coughing more again, but the weather has changed yet again, so I'm just keeping an eye on him. He may get a breathing treatment this afternoon.

See you in a week!

Decided to post tonight instead of in the morning. I don't think anything will change between now and then except we will go to sleep.

We made it through the first week of school at the Have Homeschool Academy! Actually McKenna did much better than I expected she would. She didn't have to be prodded to keep working and she got most of her hours in. She lacks about 2 hours and she can do those over the week-end. By Arkansas law they have to attend 30 hours per week.

Bill did quite well with the extra commotion. I can tell he's feeling much better, although he did more coughing today than he had. But, the weather was so strange this week, it's not surprising. I've been stuffier the last couple of days too. It's supposed to rain through the night and then clear off by afternoon.

Tomorrow is the baby shower. I still have to wrap everything but since Kenna isn't here tomorrow the dining room table will be available. I'm leaving Bill alone, but that will give me an out to leave the shower. It doesn't start until 4 and it's about an hour each way. I'll need to head back to make sure I'm home before pill time. I'd like to be home before dark, but don't know if that will happen. We went out to eat tonight to a place I knew we'd bring some home, so he now has supper for tomorrow and I don't have to worry about him trying to cook something.

We're heading off to view the eclipse Monday. I don't know how far north we will go, it will depend on how heavy the traffic will be. We're going to get 90% coverage here so we won't have to go too far to get almost total coverage. We have our glasses and I'll use this weekend to make sure we have plenty of water and sandwiches and snacks in case we are delayed on the road. I did find out that this will count as an education outing for McKenna so she will get credit for the hours we spend watching.

That's been the rest of our week after the Dr. appointment Tuesday. We'll get back on to our regular posting schedule now, I hope! See you all next week. Remember, if you're going to watch the eclipse, make sure your eyes are protected!