December 11, 2012

Well as you can see, we put Christmas lights up this past weekend.  It was about 70 degrees, sunny and not a cloud in the sky.  We took our time, enjoying the beautiful Arizona day.  There are about 6 houses on our street that have also put up lights, not too many lights, just the right amount.  They all look nice.  Putting up the lights did provide somewhat of a challenge for Marty, since he has been wearing a walking boot cast to help stabilize his ankle.  It helps him tremendously as he walks, but going up and down the ladder was something he had not yet done with the boot.  But the lights are up and look great.

It is also flu season, so that seems to mean I turn into an overbearing "nurse type" person. "Do you want a mask?  Did you bring your hand sanitizer?  Are you sure you want to go there, there will be a lot of people?, What is your temperature?, What is your O2 saturation? Your heart rate?  Your BP?   etc..."  Marty always answers with a kind word, and I try to not be so overly cautious.  The truth is, any little bug/virus/bacteria, scares the heck out of me.   Marty has NEVER shown any signs or symptoms of illness after is original onset of his lung disease 6 years ago.  The few things he has been ill with, he hasn't had any symptoms, even the Swine flu.  Just have to keep on trusting God...He has been and continues to be right here with us.

Today we got our Christmas gifts wrapped and sent to Ohio.  Marty did some of the wrapping, and of course I let him do all of the totally weird shaped packages.  So Ohio family, if you get a package with tons of tape on it......I'm not going to say anything else.

Today on Facebook I got an update from Help Hope Live, formally National Transplant Assistance Fund, with a suggestion for a fundraising idea for tomorrow, 12/12/12.  We thought it was a pretty unique idea, so we are passing it along... the idea is that since 12/12/12 is a once in a century date, to post on blogs, Facebook and Twitter asking for your supporters/followers/ friends to contribute $12.00 to your fundraising campaign. So that is what we are doing.  Just go to www.helphopelive.org and in the section that says "Find Patient" type in Marty's name.  Thank you for considering this.

Well, it is getting late,  so I am going to close for now. More later when it is not so late.

November  29, 2006....
I know, the wrong year is posted.  I am not crazy (no smart remarks here please).  But on this date in 2006, Marty was sent to the ER at the Scottsdale Healthcare Osborn campus from his PCP.  He was at the PCP for a follow up from an Urgent Care visit 3 days prior.  At his point we are thinking "ok, this is more that an upper respiratory infection like the Urgent Care said".  After we arrived at the hospital, it is kind of hard to describe.  Things moved so slowly from the standpoint of Marty needing care immediately, to moving so very quickly that I couldn't keep up with what was being said regarding his health.  At this point, all I could gather was that He was very sick, that he was going to be admitted (and it didn't sink in that he was going to the ICU yet), and that his coloring, which was purple, was getting a deeper shade of purple as time went on.  
He was hooked up to a pulse oximeter (now fondly known just as a pulse ox), heart monitoring machines, blood pressure cuffs, and the obvious.... oxygen.  This was all happening all at the same time by various ER staff.  I heard one nurse say "HIS O2 is 72"  I had no idea what that meant.  Now we both realize that it was bad... anything above 90 is "normal".

He was taken to his room in the ICU.  Room 238. I was asked to leave him while they assessed his condition. An hour later, I was allowed to come back in to his room.   A pretty scarey sight I must say/  I had never seen so much medical equipment attached to one person before in my life. Little did I know how much more equipment  he would be needing the next day.  

As Marty was intubated the  next day, That is when our new reality slapped me in the face.  In some previous posts there is some history and photos of his journey through this.   

So this day holds some very strong emotions for me and as I have related the day to Marty, strong emotions for him as well.  Everytime we pass Scottsdale HealthCare, I can look up and see the window of his room.  I am very thankful for the memories, although some are pretty scarey, I have from him being in that room.  How many people prayed for us, and his healing.  How God used this time in my life to draw me closer to Him.  You have to have faith... 

From this date on November 29th, 2006, our lives were forever changed for the better.  Long struggles with health, but God has been so good to us.  There are so many things that the world would view as lost or impossible in our situation, But we view them as blessings from God.   So in a weird way, This date has become "the first day in the rest of our lives"   Every day is a special occasion, a gift from God.  Use it wisely, and be the best you can.

This Christmas Season, the best gift you can give to everyone is to become an organ donor.  Without this gift given, Marty and countless others have received the gift of life.  Please consider contacting you states Motor Vehicle Department or Donate Life Organization.

Thankful

November 2008

November 22, 2012

I know, I know, it has been over a year since anything has been posted here.  I have had some thoughts about sharing too much personal stuff on the net... but if someone wants to find out something, they will anyway.

First off, Happy Thanksgiving to everyone.  Thanksgiving should be an everyday thing a verb.... an action we express and act on. 

It is also a time of reflection for us.  Six years ago Marty couldn't even finish his Thanksgiving dinner.  We were pretty sure he just had a bad cold.  You can read previous posts to gain some history or to refresh your memory if you so choose. That was the beginning this journey we have been on.   I am so thankful that today Marty was able to finish his dinner including seconds and desserts.  We were invited to a friends house for dinner, so I didn't have to prepare any food.  She wouldn't even let us help out with the dishes.  She just wanted all of her guests to have a restful time visiting, and we did as we sat outside eating our dinner. A nice time was had with friends, old and new.  It did feel a bit strange not having any family around this year though.  Phone calls were made to family back home, as well as Facebook contact, so we did get to spend some time with family. What in the world would do with social media, Face Time, and Skype...???

Marty is 4 years and 4 months out from his transplant. His annual testing was in July and he had good results. He is doing well; with the expected issues and complications that occur with a lung transplant. We just deal with them as they come up, and are thankful they don't come up often. His lung function had decreased consistently for awhile, but has been stable now for a year.  His complications are no where near what some of our transplant community of friends have experienced this past year.  The thing that is limiting him most right now is his ankle.  It is bone on bone and because of some blood clots in the same leg, treatment of the ankle is on hold.  He was given a walking cast to help stabilize the ankle and give him a feeling of what an ankle fusion would feel like.  So hopefully his clots will clear up so the ankle can be treated...

We are enjoying the beautiful weather here, the air conditioning hasn't been on now for over a month.  After 14 years, it is still strange to me to have such beautiful weather during the Thanksgiving and Christmas season.

Well, that is it for now... We are so thankful that God has been with us and has provided all things for us (because by all human reasoning, Marty shouldn't be here;  and we should be so down and out-but that is a totally different subject for a later post date), But God had/has different plans...

                                             

4 year testing at St. Josephs!

                 

Desert Botanical Garden 11/13/2012

                   Like the Hallmark slogan says "Life is a Special Occasion"