actually pre-date the September 22 posting.
When I left off on this blog in July, we were waiting for Amy's family to return from California. It was such fun to have them with us a few more days. (It turned out that their visit was in the hottest days of the entire summer!) But on Amy's last night here, I was sick again all night...and then again 48 hours later. That Friday night Tom took me to the emergency room where I was diagnosed with a severe gall bladder attack. The doctor kept me in the hospital, I had surgery on Sunday morning and came home Monday evening. What a relief not to have to think about an attack again! Recovery went smoothly and I was soon driving again.
We quietly celebrated our 40th wedding anniversary on August 17th. Generous as always, Tom and DeeAnn prepared a delicious dinner for us in their home. The last weeks in August were pretty routine as I got my full strength back. Several annual doctor visits for both of us, prosthetic check-ups for John and once again regular mornings at the SpoFit gym filled the days.
The BIG change occurred when John's new CANE arrived from Amazon on August 22! He was up and walking with it immediately - it allowed him to walk smoother, faster and much more normal. Over the next three weeks he used it most of the day while he wore the prosthetic leg 12-14 hours a day. This new ability and confidence also allowed him to begin walking around the house a bit even without the cane.
We realized a dream we have had since this journey began - we took a driving trip to Albuquerque to see John's brother and sister-in-law, David and Ann. We were gone five days, September 4-8. It was just glorious to be traveling in the car together again and beautiful through the pine trees of Tonto National Forest.
La Posada Hotel in Winslow, Arizona. This is one of the string of hotels and restaurants built by Fred Harvey along the Santa Fe Railway in the early 1920's and staffed by the Harvey Girls. It was designed by the famous architect, Mary Colter. "It was the last great railroad hotel...a romantic Spanish castle with 70 guest rooms, fabulous dining and exquisite public spaces." It has quite a history - one of public service, neglect, use by the Santa Fe Railroad as their offices, then restored to a first-class hotel - all displayed in the museum on the grounds. It was a beautiful, restful, peaceful place we thoroughly enjoyed. Dinner in their restaurant was delicious. If you ever have a chance, we encourage you to spend some time there. We certainly hope to return. Many thanks to our children and their spouses for this treat!
We had a lovely visit with Dave and Ann. We were able to see nephew Charles and his family and nephew Andrew and his family. We even drove up to Santa Fe and had lunch with niece Lesley and her husband, Jim. We were concerned about the higher altitudes and my breathing (5000 ft. and 7000 ft.) but I had no problems. It was encouraging - and I was able to do all the driving.
Soon after returning, John had a visit with an ENT specialist at St. Joseph's to look at the continued occasional choking when he eats and also the cause of his wheezing. The suspected cause was scar tissue or a nodule resulting from his several intubations and the long term period on the ventilator. Using a scope, the doctor found the larynx and surrounding area to be "normal" - "What a relief after a year of nothing normal," John said. They will schedule a barium swallow test soon.
The remainder of the month was spent working on our strength at the gym and John walking with the cane. As the Guillain Barre runs its course, he feels his strength on the right leg is about 2/3 what it was when he got sick. Naps are still necessary each day. We were looking forward to his fourth (and hopefully last) surgery on the stump which was scheduled for September 22. (Pick up on the postings for September 22 below.)
No comments:
Post a Comment