I thought I would give you all an update on Daddy. Sorry it's taken me so long!
Tuesday morning (the 18th) I got up at 4am to get ready to go to the hospital. My Aunt Helen and my Granny James (my mom's mom & sister) rode with me and it was nice having someone riding with me or I might have cried the whole way there!! We got to Greenville Memorial close to 6am and we were all allowed to go back into the waiting room with Daddy. That tiny little waiting room became cramped really quickly!! My mom and sister came as well as Bonnie's friend Tim and the preacher from my parent's church. Bonnie & Tim arrived at the hospital at the same time as us and once we reached Daddy's room we prayed with Daddy. Daddy had a good attitude and was joking with everyone. Finally Dr. Gardner came in and talked with us and it was time to say our good-byes. Before we all left Preacher Joe prayed again. Then I kissed Daddy & told him I loved him. That was hard. Suddenly I thought, 'I might not see him again!' I just had to take a deep breath and pray to the Lord for comfort and peace.
We shared a waiting room with 3 other families - all of whom had a loved one that was having neurosurgery as well. A nurse from each surgical room would call and give us an update about every hour or so on how our patient was doing and how the surgery was progressing. Daddy's surgery started at 10am (even though he was taken back at 8am). The nurse called us at 10am, 11:30am and then she never called again. Around 1pm my sister and Tim decided to go get lunch. When they returned my mom and I took our turn. I was so worried - I kept wondering why they hadn't called to give us an update in almost two hours!! My mom, Granny, Helen and I had just sat down to eat when my sister called and said Daddy was out of surgery. Finally :-)
When we returned from lunch my mom, Bonnie and I were taken back to the recovery room to see Daddy. I almost cried then from the relief of seeing him again. He was saying some really crazy things...my favorite being when he told the nurse he was going to rob a bank and she could drive the get-away car!! Dr. Gardner came in and talked to us. He said the surgery went really well, he didn't have to touch any nerves or Daddy's brain, and that the tumor was actually bigger than they originally thought. He told us it was roughly the size of a crab-apple. After about 10 minutes or so we left so they could move Daddy up to ICU. After he got situated there I visited him again for a few minutes and then headed home. I slept like a rock that night!!
Wednesday evening Daddy was moved out of ICU into a regular room. He spent two nights there before he was moved to Roger C. Peace for in-patient therapy. He was walking okay but was still having some problems with his left leg and his left arm. The therapists wanted him to stay two weeks but by Monday he was ready to come home!! I went to help with his therapy Saturday morning and he wanted to come home then! Really they just wanted to make sure that Daddy wouldn't fall and hurt his head when he got home and they wanted to see if his leg/arm would make a full recovery. I don't really blame him for wanting to come home. Bonnie went Monday to help with his therapy and that's the day he ended up coming home (24th). He's going to finish his therapy at Oconee but won't have to go very long b/c he's recovering so quickly!!
Tuesday I took the kids to see their Papa because they hadn't seen him in a week. I know a week doesn't seem very long but we're used to visiting them 2-3 times a week. The first thing Hannah did was look at Daddy's head (he graciously leaned down so she could get a better look) and say, "Papa you don't have any hair on this side of your head!!!" Nice. Samuel promptly went for the 'candy bucket' and brought it to Daddy. They both have a weakness for puff peppermint candy.
Wednesday when I visited (yet again) my Dad was walking without his cane. He was a little slower but moving so well and no having a problem at all with his left hand. Every night I just thank the Lord that He brought Daddy through the surgery and is blessing him with a speedy recovery. You can just see the relief and happiness every time you look at my Dad. Wednesday we were sitting on the porch with my parents when Hannah looked at her Papa and said, "Thank you Lord that Papa's tumor is gone and that his leg and arm feel better." Amen.
Tuesday morning (the 18th) I got up at 4am to get ready to go to the hospital. My Aunt Helen and my Granny James (my mom's mom & sister) rode with me and it was nice having someone riding with me or I might have cried the whole way there!! We got to Greenville Memorial close to 6am and we were all allowed to go back into the waiting room with Daddy. That tiny little waiting room became cramped really quickly!! My mom and sister came as well as Bonnie's friend Tim and the preacher from my parent's church. Bonnie & Tim arrived at the hospital at the same time as us and once we reached Daddy's room we prayed with Daddy. Daddy had a good attitude and was joking with everyone. Finally Dr. Gardner came in and talked with us and it was time to say our good-byes. Before we all left Preacher Joe prayed again. Then I kissed Daddy & told him I loved him. That was hard. Suddenly I thought, 'I might not see him again!' I just had to take a deep breath and pray to the Lord for comfort and peace.
We shared a waiting room with 3 other families - all of whom had a loved one that was having neurosurgery as well. A nurse from each surgical room would call and give us an update about every hour or so on how our patient was doing and how the surgery was progressing. Daddy's surgery started at 10am (even though he was taken back at 8am). The nurse called us at 10am, 11:30am and then she never called again. Around 1pm my sister and Tim decided to go get lunch. When they returned my mom and I took our turn. I was so worried - I kept wondering why they hadn't called to give us an update in almost two hours!! My mom, Granny, Helen and I had just sat down to eat when my sister called and said Daddy was out of surgery. Finally :-)
When we returned from lunch my mom, Bonnie and I were taken back to the recovery room to see Daddy. I almost cried then from the relief of seeing him again. He was saying some really crazy things...my favorite being when he told the nurse he was going to rob a bank and she could drive the get-away car!! Dr. Gardner came in and talked to us. He said the surgery went really well, he didn't have to touch any nerves or Daddy's brain, and that the tumor was actually bigger than they originally thought. He told us it was roughly the size of a crab-apple. After about 10 minutes or so we left so they could move Daddy up to ICU. After he got situated there I visited him again for a few minutes and then headed home. I slept like a rock that night!!
Wednesday evening Daddy was moved out of ICU into a regular room. He spent two nights there before he was moved to Roger C. Peace for in-patient therapy. He was walking okay but was still having some problems with his left leg and his left arm. The therapists wanted him to stay two weeks but by Monday he was ready to come home!! I went to help with his therapy Saturday morning and he wanted to come home then! Really they just wanted to make sure that Daddy wouldn't fall and hurt his head when he got home and they wanted to see if his leg/arm would make a full recovery. I don't really blame him for wanting to come home. Bonnie went Monday to help with his therapy and that's the day he ended up coming home (24th). He's going to finish his therapy at Oconee but won't have to go very long b/c he's recovering so quickly!!
Tuesday I took the kids to see their Papa because they hadn't seen him in a week. I know a week doesn't seem very long but we're used to visiting them 2-3 times a week. The first thing Hannah did was look at Daddy's head (he graciously leaned down so she could get a better look) and say, "Papa you don't have any hair on this side of your head!!!" Nice. Samuel promptly went for the 'candy bucket' and brought it to Daddy. They both have a weakness for puff peppermint candy.
Wednesday when I visited (yet again) my Dad was walking without his cane. He was a little slower but moving so well and no having a problem at all with his left hand. Every night I just thank the Lord that He brought Daddy through the surgery and is blessing him with a speedy recovery. You can just see the relief and happiness every time you look at my Dad. Wednesday we were sitting on the porch with my parents when Hannah looked at her Papa and said, "Thank you Lord that Papa's tumor is gone and that his leg and arm feel better." Amen.
A beautiful sight to behold!!
It only took 48 staples to fix him up! I took this picture b/c he couldn't see the whole incision.
*I just want to thank every single one of you for your prayers and encouragement. It has truly meant a lot to our family!*
1 comment:
I'm so happy to hear that your dad is doing good again! A big hug to you and your family, Claudia :)
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