Watch out for the door!

I am tired tonight but joyfully so. We had an interesting day at the Center for Reconstructive Surgery - also known as plastic surgery. Gotta love the new nomenclature! We were planning to stop at the beauty salon to get T's hair washed but at the last minute, he remembered that he wasn't supposed to stretch his neck too much. So we canceled. Good call because that no excess stretching directive was reiterated this afternoon! The surgeon used some veins in T's neck to keep the imported flap alive. Dr. S is a real character. I can't remember what T said to get the doctor to respond the way he did, but it was something about the drain in his arm. I think T asked if it was coming out today or not, and the doctor replied, "Oh yes, we'll tie it to the door, slam it, and run like crazy!" We knew we had a kindred spirit in Dr. S. We started laughing and honestly, it just got better and better.

The drain was removed, without the use of the door. Then the doctor removed the heavy cast from T's arm, the flap donor site. I was surprised by the extent of the scar - not the flap scar - but the long cut that went from the inside of his wrist almost up to the inside of his elbow. It must have had something to do with that drain. We will need to treat and bandage this, plus wrap it with an ace bandage. It appears that this is something he will be doing for the next several weeks.

The next step was to remove the bandage on his thigh and check out the site of the skin graft donation. Dr. S wasn't all that happy with the way it had been bandaged and proceeded undo everything, add a different kind of pad, plus a certain kind of cream - silver something. As he showed me what to do, I remarked that it was like frosting a cake, and he agreed. After putting the pad over the wound, it also needs to be wrapped with an ace bandage.

I asked about cleaning all these wounds, and the doctor informed me that T could take care of this himself in the shower! Yay! He is also allowed to shave, as long as he uses an electric razor - something about his numb face and a blade not being a good combination.

Tonight we'll go to sleep knowing that all is healing well. We have an appointment with Dr. M, the head and neck surgeon. He was the guy who removed the cancer and surrounding tissue. Thursday we'll go back to see Dr. S and find out all the limitations that may be facing us. We will rest over the weekend, try to see a Dr. E (our original surgeon) on Monday morning, and fly out Monday evening. We are thanking the Lord for the strength he provides as we walk through each day of appointments. He is so faithful to provide peace and healing. Now, to rest.

Blissful Rest

The first night in the hotel went so well. I had a hard time going to sleep and staying asleep at first. I think that's because I became used to being awakened every hour or so. Terry had a good night as well. I was able to get our breakfast from the breakfast room this morning and now the laundry is running. We hadn't planned to stay this long so I am very grateful that this hotel has a washer and dryer! 


We will head out to the plastic surgery appointment about noon today. The appointment isn't until 3 o'clock but MD Anderson has a beauty shop that is free for their patients. We want to get T's hair washed properly, something we don't have the facility of doing here. The shower head is fixed with no wand. 


This afternoon's appointment is a big deal. This is where we will learn the limitations of T's mobility (or not). We will see the arm wound for the first time and hopefully get the drain removed and receive some answers about the rest of the wounds that are still in recovery. Please help us pray for good results.


Our return to Seattle is fixed for Monday evening the 26th, and dear friends, Sam and Carmen Harrison, have volunteered to help us with that process. I am so grateful for our extended family of God that literally encircles the globe! Blessings on you all.

At the hotel

It's about 10 o'clock here in Texas, but I decided I would write one quick post just to let everyone know that T is doing well. The cast on his left arm is driving him crazy, and he's a little concerned what his arm is going to look like once it's off, but all in all, he is really doing well. Tomorrow afternoon we'll see the plastic surgeon and have (supposedly) the cast and the drain removed. I think this is a pretty sure thing, but I've learned to always expect the unexpected. 

We did learn we won't be able to return until Monday, but that probably works out for the best. The trip back should be pretty interesting. T is not allowed to lift anything with his left hand and no more than five pounds with his right. That has him pretty concerned but I think I have figured out how to make everything work for us. Yeah, I have a plan - I know, no one is surprised by that. 

So, we are ready to crash. The idea of sleeping without interruption (unless we choose to wake ourselves for whatever reason) is pretty appealing. Have a great night all. Oh how grateful we are for the prayer cover! Blessings!

Too Much?

I think T went at it too hard yesterday. I tried to calculate how much he walked and I think he was pushing three hours or so. He is exhausted today. Of course, part of that could be from the giant blood blister explosion yesterday. That took the starch right out of him! The doctor is supposed to be in soon to give us some final direction. Looks like we may head to the hotel tomorrow. I really think getting some extended rest without IV hook-ups and nurses taking vitals every two hours will help the healing process. Keep us in your prayers as we transition to the next steps in this process. Blessings on you all.

Let The River Run

T has had quite a day! First I washed his hair with a shower cap shampoo thingy. It was amazing. The nurse gave me this really cool, thick shower cap, which had been kept warm in a heater, that had product all through the inside lining. I put it on T's head and massaged his head for 2-3 minutes. He really liked that part; afterward I took it off and toweled his hair dry. And it was clean! Amazing product - and believe me, his hair was a good test, like wire from all that yellow surgery stuff!


Next, T decided that he was going to be the marathoner today. Good grief, he walked and walked and walked. He's a rock star with the nurses. However, it did lead to one tiny problem, hence the Carly Simon title. This whole plastic surgery process has been about taking skin from one place and putting it somewhere else. After the section of tissue and skin (plus tumor) was removed from below his eye socket, a flap (skin with blood vessels) was taken from his left arm to fill that in. Then skin was taken from his right thigh to cover the flap wound. Imagine a cheese cutter, the hand-held kind that you pass through the cheese to lift off a thin slice, that's kind of what they did to him. To cover this wound they used something called Tegaderm Film. It's a cross between saran wrap and contact paper. It allows something similar to a blood blister to form underneath, a really big thick blood blister, like 2" x 5"! With all T's walking, this blister started to pool toward the bottom of the film, until this afternoon when he set out to walk yet again... and the big blister burst. Oh well, he needed new slippers anyway. I'm talking a river, right by the nurses station! They cleaned it up and added more film, only to have it happen again. I got him into bed to rest this evening, and thought I should check it and sure enough, the nurse had to add yet some more. He has at least five sections stuck on him and I don't think he's done with it.  Boy, is it going to be fun taking that all off!


Tonight he's tired, as he should be after walking for miles all day. The nurse pulled the IVs (happy, happy, joy, joy!) and tomorrow someone will remove at least one drain, possibly two. Little by little, we're getting there. We are thankful for your encouragement and prayers as we go through this process. Bless you!

Sunday Morning Worship

No, we didn't go to church. The nurses (3 of them) came in at 4:30 this morning to do their routine and with bright lights and lots of conversation, T was wide awake. It was time for a bit of worship, so we opened the computer and played the Talley Trio. It was a lovely moment. After a short snooze, we got up and started walking. I walk beside T, holding up his arm that is in a cast. He can't wear a sling because of the drain in the side of his face/neck. Walking this obstacle course is quite a challenge, but T likes to tease me as well. I try to match his steps; if he starts on the right foot, I do too. Every once in a while he will shuffle his feet to get me off rhythm. Sometimes he'll start taking mincing little steps or big long strides. It makes him laugh to see me try to keep up. What a guy! Somehow we got three pod laps and five hallway laps done early this morning.


Right now the nurse is here again to give him the daily shot in his belly. Nice, right? That's to help prevent blood clots. It's a process that I don't enjoy watching. Shudder. Another thing that is funny to experience is the different doctors countermanding each others' orders. The head and neck people cancel things, and the plastic people put them back. Right now we're rooting for the head and neck people. They give us the best time table for getting out of here! Plus once we're out of the hospital, no more belly shots!


I will have some errands to run today while T naps. I haven't been out of the hospital since Friday, and I know T would love to go. He pretends he's going to escape each time we walk. There are so many places we would rather be right now. We're thinking of our kids in France as they worship today, praying the Lord will bless their ministry. Also, our lovely Kassie heads off to KC today for sister duty. Jenny gave birth to a beautiful baby boy on Sept. 5th then found herself in ICU, fighting for her life. We are all so thankful for God's healing power in her and for the love her big sister has, to fly back there and stay for a week of home care. Scott will be Mr. Mom all week, something he does quite well actually.


We hope you can find a place to worship today. As we have studied the intricacy of the skull this week, we have wondered how people are able to believe that we all started as pond scum. My goodness, there is just no way. The only answer is the presence of that Holy Creator, and we worship Him today.

New Room

Terry was moved out of advanced recovery into a room on the 11th floor that specializes in care for Head and Neck cancer patients. We got up here about 3:30 or so, a bit later than expected. On the wall is a white board that the staff uses to communicate to patients, and I thought it would be a good thing if we communicated back. First I put up my cell phone number. Just doing that lets them know that I expect to be called if anything happens while I am out, which isn't often. Then I thought I would list the things he does such as how many laps walking around the pod or the long hallway and how long he sits in a chair. Basically, anything that he does, they want to document.  The nurse came in and told us that he is way ahead of normal patients. They have no idea how much he wants to be out of here! 

We still have the friendly pole to drag around but little by little, things are being removed. He now takes pain meds by mouth rather than drip and they have eliminated some other items. All I know is that he's gone from six to eight bags on the pole down to two. Nice work in a short amount of time. We know that part of this is due to his own determination, but a big part is due to the strength he receives from the Lord and the community of believers who have his back. Thank you all!