One more night
We’re hanging in there, thanks to an army of friendly volunteers helping wrap, pack, carry, load, move, feed and care for. Austin is still in the hospital, but should be released tomorrow which means that, yes, thankfully, we will have our last night together here on Edgehill Road, a minor issue in the grand scheme but one that seems extremely significant nonetheless.
His fever continued to rage throughout the night on Thursday, due in large part to his adamant refusal to take Tylenol. He doesn’t usually mind Tylenol (and, in fact, sometimes he downright loves it … ) but on that particular night, he simply would not take it. I think it was the one thing he was able to exercise some control over and he would not give that up. Finally, around 2 in the morning, the nurse and I held him down and forced it into his mouth. He, of course, spit half of it out but enough made it into his system to begin the long, slow (and very necessary) process of lowering his temperature. Early the next morning, I told him we wouldn’t be allowed to ride the tricycle in the hallway if he had a fever and he happily and quickly downed another dose. He then turned to me and said, “Ok, let’s go.”
He was briefly allowed out today after twenty-four hours of no fever but only while wearing a mask. He was surprisingly okay with this rule and donned his Mickey Mouse face mask while cruising the halls:
His counts have been slowly rising but we need to wait until his blood culture continues to be negative for bacteria growth. I think the deadline is midnight tonight so if all goes well and no last minute symtoms arsie, we should be sent home before lunch on Sunday.
The small fact of our being together in our home one last time somehow makes all the insanity of these few days bearable. And trust me, there has been insanity. Take, for instance, the gas leak at the new house in the main line from the street that required a full crew out there on this 15-degree morning digging a new hole and placing a new pipe. But, it’s fixed now, the heat is up and running yet again. And, as is somehow always the case, this too will be okay. We will be out of that damn hospital and home together. Home here and then home there. And that is all that matters.
We will be happy for you to be settled in your new home but we will also miss you on Edgehill. I hope all goes well the next few days.
Wow – what more can happen? (I don’t even want to think about that!). Just a hint on getting that tylenol down – we used to “hide” Abby’s meds in all kinds of foods (I can remember squirting liquid morphine into raspberries with a syringe, which was the only thing she had a taste for, for months on end), or you can hide liquid meds in fruit smoothies. Just a thought – and sometimes hard to do when it’s 2AM, in the hospital. Glad you’ll be all together in your old home, and then your new home. You know what – it will be nice when you’re all home – wherever that is!
Barbara
k-
Sorry I wasn’t able to help this weekend. Kept thinking Lola was better and tried little outings (like Botanical Garden instead of Little Heights), but she’s still not feeling well. Glad/hope you got home in time for your last night in what I know was a very happy home. Hope to see you this week. Love, cyc