We are having a family supper at the hospital. As you can see, Larry is attached to an IV pole. Much has transpired this past week. Larry went from being healthy a week and a half ago to coming within a hairbreadths of being on life support a few days later. He developed septicemia from a bladder infection that made it's way into his kidneys, then into the bloodstream. Within 24 hours he went into septic shock which necessitated him being admitted to ICU last Monday morning. If you'll remember, we had a blizzard that day! I was called at 6:30 in the morning (he'd been kept in observation overnite) and told he was stabilized but had been in bad in pretty rough shape. Fortunately, I had Jay around to drive me in. I was told the next step would have been to start him on a ventilator which would have meant a transfer to Winnipeg. It was only because of God's grace and goodness and the prayers of His people that Larry responded quickly to the treatment and so this wasn't necessary. By Tuesday he was doing much better so he was transferred to the medical ward and by Thursday he was discharged! To our amazement, he had gained 20 pounds during this time due to all the IV fluid with which they had saturated him. After another appointment with the doctor, he was treated for this with a diuretic, as it was causing difficulty breathing for him during the night. After two days of treatment, he is down 16 pounds and breathing easier at night! We are so VERY grateful that this didn't end in a different way. We've been doing a little research on the internet & have learned that 50-60% of septic shock cases are fatal. We had to cancel our Palm Springs trip - we were supposed to leave last Saturday. However, by yesterday Larry was feeling so much better that we rebooked it and are planning to leave tomorrow! There's no better place to relax and recuperate! Between all this happening, I was busy with a few things myself. I had a filling done on a chipped tooth, narrowly avoiding a root canal, had the tooth crowned the following day and had a mammogram appointment the same morning. I think we're ready for holidays now!
Our granddaughters, Hannah and Sadie. It's their first hospital experience and they're not bothered in the least by it!
Two days later, the day Larry is discharged, my Mom comes over to see her latest great-grandchild. We take the opportunity to get a four generation picture.
Our last morning in Palm Springs we had a bit of a family reunion. No better place to hold a reunion than the Rock Garden Bakery in my opinion! Kerry & Jo stayed with us for night, helped with the clean-up and then it was time for breakfast. For Larry & me, one more huevos rancheros before we go home. We had a great time soaking up the sun. By the time breakfast was done, most of us had shed our outerwear as it really warmed up nicely. From beautiful springtime, we returned home to...
...winter! The only thing that's changed is there's more snow than when we left!
Correction, that's not the only thing that's changed! We came home to a dusty house despite the attempt to isolate it to the kitchen.
We arrived in the middle of mudding and sanding!
