Update on my mom

Mom's doctor asked Sharp Hospice to contact me so, I just got back from meeting with the hospice nurse. Mom is now refusing some meals so it is only a matter of time before her body starts shutting down. The nurse is going to recommend that mom be taken off all of her supplements and most of the medications since treatment is a mute point. She will start getting morphine for pain and hospice will visit several times a week. She'll remain at Balboa Nursing and Rehab unless she gets to a point where they can't continue her care and then she would be moved to Sharp Coronado.

Hospital visit

Yesterday afternoon Thomas had back-to-back seizures so he went to Grossmont Hospital. They did a few tests with not so good results. One was a test to see how much phenobarbital (one of his anti-seizure meds) was in his system. It came back as almost none. The drug will stay in a persons system for 2-7 days so he's probably not getting that medicine (which makes one wonder what other drug is he not getting). The other test was a CT scan that showed that his shunt might be clogged or not working properly. The shunt takes the excess cerebral fluid out of his brain so it's pretty important.

They are keeping him in the hospital for observation, the neurosurgeon was going to see about the shunt. We'll probably get more of an update tomorrow. He is doing pretty good under the circumstances, but please keep him in your prayers.

A new video

Nothing new to report. I did post a new video on Youtube.com! He doesn't like getting his picture taken so it's a short one.

Another Hospital visit

Thomas went to the hospital on Saturday. Brian, his brother Brad and I were visiting with him at Villa on Saturday when I saw some bumps on Thomas' arm. When I mentioned them Thomas pointed to his chest and I asked if he had more. When I lifted his shirt to check, there was his feeding tube laying in his lap! And no, it wasn't connected to ANYTHING! I grabbed it an quickly went to the nurses station to ask what the heck was it doing laying in his lap. Everyone there was just as surprised and gasped as I was swinging it in the air!!! lol ... Needless to say, he was sent to the hospital within the hour. Now he was scheduled to have his feeding tube replaced on Monday, Sept 1st because of the problems he's had with it pulling and the site being infected. The date was just moved up because he couldn't go for 48 hours without his food and his medication. He is doing pretty good now and is back at Villa. They put the feeding tube in a different area and put in a different type so now maybe he won't have the problems he's had. (I never did ask about the bumps!)

On a much happier note, my sister-in-law, Jeng, gave birth to a healthy 8lb 8oz baby girl on Saturday! My brother Mike says that the baby looks a little like me! I can't wait to go visit her.

I'm still here ...

I haven't forgotten about my blog! There isn't much news to report. My mom is still at Balboa Nursing and Rehab. She hasn't improved much at all. She still is not able to stand up and I don't think that will be changing anytime soon.

Thomas is doing very well. He is still using the demo from DynaVox. All of the paperwork has been completed so now it's just a waiting game. He uses it every day and gets a kick out of the silly things that the machine tries to make words from. If he puts in the alphabet, it tries to make a word and he just laughs and laughs! I thought that things would start to move a little more now that he has medicare and at first, he was getting therapy and things were good. But, as far as I can see, his therapy has stopped and we are back at a standstill. There is a place in La Mesa that is specifically for his type of injuries and I'm looking into their program.

BC was laid off from Toyota Lift a couple weeks ago. He is looking for work but he knows that he doesn't want to work on fork lifts for the rest of his life so he is registering at Mesa College and deciding what he wants to do with his life besides play in the desert!!!

Brian is Brian! What more can I say about him?? lol

I am still working at Invitrogen (Life Technologies). They extended my contract to Sept. 18th but I'm putting my resume back out there on the market. The first half of this year flew by and I know that September will be here and gone before I know it! I do love working with this company and the people are wonderful. It would be awesome if I was hired on full time but I haven't gotten any indication that that will happen.

We'll, I guess I'm going to get ready for work. Bye for now.

Happy Memorial Day

I know it's been a really long time since I've posted and I'm sorry. I have no good excuse either!

Anyway, Thomas is doing wonderful. He has been given another DynaVox, an alternative communication device, to demo. This one is a bit smaller than the last one but still works the same way and he loves using it. He should be able to get one of his own now that he will start getting Medicare on June 1st. He will also begin getting physical therapy on a full time basis, instead of only the ten sessions that medical paid for.

My mom is doing about the same. She isn't getting any therapy anymore because the believe she has plateaued. I am trying to get her to come out with me so she might be more willing to try to stand and walk. So far she's very hesitant. I am also trying to find a place for her to live. It's very hard since she doesn't make enough money.

My job is going good. My supervisor asked me to stay on for another three months so I'm at least employed till September! It doesn't look like I'll be hired on permanent though, once the work I do is complete, they won't need me any more.

Well I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday.

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I'm finally working

I started working today for a biotech company in Carlsbad. It is a temp position but the company is really great so I'm hoping they offer me a permanent position. I am working on their e-learning and LMS programs.

Thomas is doing very well. The other day Brian was visiting and had walked down the hallway to Tom's room and heard a loud noise behind him. It was Thomas making a noise to let Brian know that he was there!!! We were so excited! Although he still isn't talking, he is trying to make more noises and he communicates very well with a letter board. We are still waiting to hear about the DynaVox machine since it will be much easier for him to communicate with that rather than having to type each letter out for every word he wants to say.

My mom is doing the same. I wanted to get her transferred to Villa Las Palmas but they are hesitant since they aren't sure about her condition. They are looking at her situation and will make a decision soon.

Nothing new

Well I don't have any new news to report. My mom is still at Balboa Nursing and Rehab. She is doing OK. She has a doctor's appointment tomorrow with her oncologist then I am going to get her moved out to Villa with Thomas.

Thomas is doing fine. He was finally approved for Medicare A&B so he will be able to start getting therapy! We are very excited about that. We are hoping that once he starts progressing at Villa, they will move him to Sharp and then home.

Hospital Visit

Well Thomas went to the hospital on Sunday evening. His stomach hurt, it was hard and distended and he had a slight fever. When he got to Sharp Memorial Hospital, they did a CT Scan and said they saw something irregular on his large intestine so he was admitted. They thought he might need surgery. It turns out he is fine and it was probably due to the stomach virus that he had. But of course, he got a UTI since he wasn't getting enough fluids and then he tested positive for MRSA and when he takes antibiotics, he gets C-Diff so he was pumped full of different antibiotics to take care of all the different ailments! He is doing much better and has been cleared to go back to Villa Las Palmas this evening.

My mom is still at Balboa Nursing and Rehab. She is doing about the same. I was hoping she would show some improvement and maybe be able to move back into her apartment but it doesn't seem realistic for her to live alone. I am trying to get her moved out to Villa with Thomas so she will get more visitors than just me and they know her there so they will hopefully be more encouraging with her physical therapy.

Updates

Well I had the flu last week and I'm finally getting better enough to get to blogging again! Thomas had been doing really good but Villa Las Palmas got an epidemic of a stomach virus (that was where I got it!) and today Thomas started getting sick. Brian is also sick so we have quarantined ourselves so we don't spread it anymore.

My mother, Sudie, is doing better. She is able to talk and get around in a wheelchair but she cannot walk. She is living at Balboa Nursing and Rehab in Mission Hills. We are not sure what the future holds for her but her insurance has declared her as plateaued which means she can no longer receive rehab. I am talking with the social worker to see about getting her moved back to Villa. That will save me from driving back and forth between her and Thomas.