Joye's Update 7/11/08

It was kind of a hard day today for Andrew. He started off his wean this morning okay, but by about noon he was beginning to breath too shallow and was not blowing enough C02 out. It was making him very sleepy and we were having trouble keeping him awake during a lot of the day. When I left tonight, he was doing better, but they are going to watch him closely tonight and may decide to take him off his wean and put him back on the vent early. Please pray for Andrew to regain strength again to continue weaning . . . I know God is hearing our prayers and will see Andrew through this. Good Night and God Bless. Joye

Joye's Update 7/10/08

It was a pretty good day today. Andrew woke up this morning kind of tired as he said he didn't sleep well last night. He weaned 18 hours and was up in his chair about 6 hours today. I had to take James to the airport this evening . . . Andrew was sad to see him go, as was I. It was great having him here. Last Sunday at church, I received 3 books from the pastor's ministry and I've finally had a chance to read one. It's the story of Dodie Osteen's cancer healing. It is a wonderful story of how by faith and through prayer she was healed from liver cancer after having been given only weeks to live . . . that was over 20 years ago. In the book, she provided 40 healing Bible passages and an explanation of each and how she prayed with each. I've had a chance to read Andrew some of her story and we've decided that we are going to study each of those passages (one per day) to assist us with our prayers. I will also provide each daily verse here on the blog so you can keep up with what we're studying as well. Our pastor, Barry, told me that it was up to me to keep the Word of God in Andrew and I think this will be a great way to do just that. I will also write out each verse on a card and I'll tape one to Andrew's TV every day to be in his view for him to read throughout his day. I believe that God will heal him . . . we just need to continue to pray with faith that He can and will do this for Andrew. Good Night and God Bless. Joye

Marconato's Update 7/9/08

This is "Marco" (AKA James Marconato), Andrew's friend and co-worker from Yuma. Today we went to the car show that the hospital put on for the patients today. Andrew found a car he wanted to buy . . . a new yellow corvette. We had barbecue for lunch and then we went to occupational therapy where Andrew is trying to get his "driver's license" for his chair. Then I used the rest of the afternoon for some grooming time. I shaved his head with clippers and shaved his face with "Magic Shave." When I was finished I gave him a mirror so he could see how and looked, and then he said, "that's the Big Dog." After that Andrew was in La La land and ready for bed, so we left for the night. It was a good day, his spirits are really up and he's like his normal self. I'm looking forward to tomorrow. Good Night . . . Marco.

Joye's Update 7/8/08

It was another pretty good day today. Andrew's good friend, James arrived today and he really enjoyed having him here. Andrew was practicing his driving in his chair while I was picking James up from the airport today and he had a pretty good wreck into a wall. No broken bones though, so I'm still able to keep my title as "crash." I can't imagine what our walls are going to look like at home once we're there; I pray we both get better at driving before we're sent home. Please continue to pray for Andrew . . . specifically for him to gain enough strength to develop a better cough which will help him to get fully off the ventilator. He's still weaning tonight as I write and the goal is 18 hours if his C02 remains at a decent level (the ideal level is in the 30's or 40's . . . anything higher is not so good). Thank you so much for your prayers. Good Night and God Bless. Joye

Joye's Update 7/7/08

It was another good day today; very similar to the past few days. Andrew weaned for 16 hours, was up for about 7 hours, we had class, and he had his therapies. Andrew is very encouraged that they have decided to up his wean time to 18 hours, starting tomorrow. He can now be up in his chair without his C-collar on, so I'm determined to get Andrew to let me shave his head and his face. Maybe he'll let me do that this week. We pray daily and nightly and are keeping our eyes on God. Our faith is in Him . . . we know He will take care of us . . . it's in God's hands. Good Night and God Bless. Joye

Joye's Update 7/6/08

It was a nice day today. We went to church this morning, Andrew weaned for 16 hours, and he remained up in his chair for about 6 hours today. Church was nice; each week a different pastor from bible based churches in the Denver area conduct the service here at the hospital. Today's pastor actually once was a patient here at Craig as he was hit in his car by a drunk driver about 25 years ago. He was standing tall and able to walk and only had slight signs (physically) of ever having had a spinal cord injury. He preached on the topic of prayer and how by faith and God's grace can a miracle happen . . . he was proof of that. It was an inspiring sermon for sure. God is good and I know that He will heal Andrew. We have to continue to pray in faith that God can and will do this for him and He will show us all His glory. Good Night and God Bless you all. Joye

Joye's Update 7/5/08

A pretty uneventful day today. Andrew weaned for 16 hours, got up in his chair for about 6 hours, and we basically just hung out in his room today because there are no classes or therapies on the weekend. We are planning to attend church tomorrow morning, and Andrew is really hoping that on Monday his respiratory doctor decides to up his weaning time. His respiratory therapist that he's had for the past couple of nights told me tonight that she felt Andrew's cough is really becoming strong. That is really good news because a good cough can mean the difference in whether or not he will be able to get his trach out. If his cough is not strong enough, he may have to keep the trach in for suctioning secretions in his lungs even if he is able to get totally off the ventilator. His home care will be much easier and safer for him if he's able to get the trach out. We are now on the list to go into a room on the east side of the hospital. That's where he and I will live together in a small apartment type hospital room so that I can become accustomed to taking care of him throughout the night, on my own. This will really prepare us for home. I believe we should be able to get into one of those rooms sometime in August. I'm looking forward to it, but I'm a little nervous too. The good thing is, a nurse is only a few steps away as there is a nurse's station right outside the room. We continually pray that God will heal Andrew, and we also pray daily for the Lord to take care of us as we go through this life-changing ordeal. We know that God will heal Andrew in His own time and we definitely feel the Lord taking care of us each moment of every day. We could not get through a minute of this without Him. We also know that your daily prayers are being heard and answered . . . we thank you so much for that. Good Night and God Bless you all. Joye