A little sunshine

If you've been keeping up with the blogs (or have been in Northern California for a few weeks), you may remember that it had been raining and storming pretty nastily. Well, I think we're on day 3 of sunny days. Today, I ventured the furthest I have gone since surgery (the reader is now aware of the author). I went out to the hospital front door and out by some nice fountains with a few ducks lounging in the corner. Despite my new low weight (165 down to 145 and now up to 148), I wasn't too cold in the January air. It was nice to see the outside and feel real air.

Earlier this morning, the doctors changed my wound vac. My skin did NOT appreciate the removal of the adhesive covering, and the whole of the procedure hurt pretty badly, even after taking some pain meds beforehand. But the doctors said it looked better than it did before. It is 'granulating', which is a step towards healing, I have been told. I am getting tired of having an open wound, so this wound vac that is speeding things up is my friend right now. I mean, had it not been for an infection, the wound would have never been reopened and my only concern would be the drains. Too bad. Speaking of the drains, I think they're still at their low pace (about 140/day combined), so that's good.

My surgeon thinks I'll be out of the hospital in 5 days. That is not the greatest news, because that also means Ashley will have to go to school while I'm in the hospital. But at least it's better than 'we'll wait and see.' Here's some sunshine breaking through the clouds: after 3 or 4 days, they're going to put me on a food trial and see what happens with my drains (as was the plan before- if the output goes up, I go back on TPN, but if the output stays the same, I can go home and eat!) Either way, I get to eat soon. You may or may not know how elated I am by that thought.

We've been loved on by some special women today. First, my mom came (and is still here) to spend the day with us. Then, we got a care package and some letters in the mail (I get more mail here than at home!) The package was from one of Ashley's nursing instructors, and had stuff for Ashley and me, including a 5-year-old's rendition of a football game between the Jets and the Angels (he has some learning to do). The cards were from a friend of my mom's; she and the people in her office pitched in and gave us some money to pay for Ashley's flights to and from LA. Then my Aunts Patty and Debbie wandered in and talked for a while, then took my mom and wife out to lunch.

Today was a good day (all things considering). We needed a good day. There have been a lot of mediocre to bad days. There might be some more coming, too. But today--- today was a good day. It was a nice gift from God. I'm open for more of it.

pray for
drain stoppage
wound vac efficacy
wise decisions from the doctors
sleep-filled nights in the hospital
more good days
:)