karenulijohn

As I predicted, Wednesday was a very happy day on so many levels.  By the time I arrived at the hospital, I had missed both Dr. Suhag’s  and the hospital doctor’s visits. Fortunately, Harvey was able to relay, to my satisfaction, most of the information that he had heard.  The best news, of course, was that his blood levels were now in normal range, and he would be discharged.  However, they were still a little concerned about his anemia, so they  scheduled him for a blood transfusion before his discharge.  After cross matching his blood, they said it would take a little while to get the blood from Sacramento.  We decided that hospital time is counted in hourly increments.  It wasn’t until about 3:00PM that they began the transfusion.  The only home treatment is to take two Immodium an hour before each meal.  That way, he will be able to benefit from the nourishment he is consuming.   It will take several weeks for Harvey to recover and return to his “normal” self.  I can wait, as long as he is going in the right direction.

Our daughter and granddaughter arrived at around 12:30PM with love and kisses all round.  Harvey’s face really did light up when they walked into the room.  We visited for an hour or so, and Harvey began looking longingly at the bed.  So, we tucked him in and went out to have a bite of lunch.  I was pretty confident that he would sleep most of the time we were gone. We had a lovely lunch together, catching up on what has been going on in their lives.  I especially enjoyed hearing about Claire’s (granddaughter) plans for her sixteenth birthday on Thursday.  She is so lovely and such a pleasure to be with.  Of course, I don’t have to tell anyone how I feel about Dawn.  I’m just crazy about her and everything she does (pretty much!).  I am friends with a wonderful group of ladies here in Lincoln who were having an afternoon get together, and I so wanted Dawn and Claire to meet these wonderful ladies.  They welcomed us with hugs and laughter, and we enjoyed an hour of delicious food and story telling.

When we arrived back at the hospital, Harvey was about a third of the way through the blood transfusion.  We visited and laughed and teased as usual and when it came time for him to be unhooked from all of his tubes and wires, he became a little impatient.  I reminded him that they could decide to keep him, just for spite, and he calmed down.  He did not want to stay another minute longer than necessary.  We said goodbye to the girls in the parking lot and they headed home to San Mateo.  What a wonderful day!

Since coming home, Harvey has improved tremendously.  I have tried to follow the example of the hospital with mealtimes and just let him eat what he wants of anything.  He managed to eat about three ounces of salmon, some yellow squash, and a pear half.  He had a very good night, and in the morning he had a scrambled egg and a pear half.  Those pears seem to go down well.  Last night he enjoyed Teriyaki vegetable rice, a “Karen Special.”  This morning he went for a blood test at Twelve Bridges and has an appointment with Dr. Suhag on Monday.  I’m so pleased that they are looking after him, making sure that he is making good progress.  He just came in the door, looking a little harried.  It turns out that Twelve Bridges would not do the blood test because he did not have the proper coding number.  He ended up going down to the hospital.

To everyone who follows this blog and has sent good wishes, love, and prayers, thank you from the bottom of our hearts.  It has meant so much to both of us.  We love you!!