Lois is improving everyday. She is walking further and sleeping less; eating normal foods but often – she eats something every two to three hours. Saturday night Lois decided to try one pain pill instead of two and she still slept through the night. Monday, June 2, when we went to Iowa City to have the staples removed, was the last time Lois took pain medication other than at night. She does take some Tylenol and Ibuprofen during the day.

We have finished cleaning up the mess from the water in the lower level of the house. Tomorrow the carpet that won’t dry out will be removed. Although its been raining a lot the past few days there has been no additional water.

Sunday I drove to Indianola and spoke in the two morning services at the Christian Union church since their pastor was out-of-town. It was good to be with the people there some of whom we have known since 1993.

We are looking forward to our appointment with the Oncologist in Iowa City on Wednesday afternoon. Hopefully the flood waters in that area don’t postpone that meeting! We have quite a list of questions and are anxious to hear the options for reducing the liver tumors.

I’ll try to get out an update on Wednesday night or Thursday morning.

Monday morning, Lois and I drove to University Hospital in Iowa City. The surgeon, Dr Wilkinson, checked the incision and they removed the staples. He was very pleased with how Lois is recovering and gaining strength. We did talk with Dr Wilkinson about what future options we might face. He talked about it from his view point as a surgeon but urged us not to reach any conclusions until we meet with the oncologist, Dr. Halfdanarson, on June 11. Dr Wilkinson expressed serious concern about the tumors in the liver. Waiting to learn all the options is difficult. We were back home in Hedrick shortly after noon.

Lois is resting and napping a lot during the day; eating small meals every 2-3 hours; and walking more everyday. Tuesday she even ventured downstairs a couple of times and today her activity level continues to increase although she is taking more naps, too. Lois enjoys phone calls and visits and we are both enjoying the food so many wonderful people are sharing with us.

Tuesday morning the 3rd, we woke to a severe thunderstorm which dumped three inches of rain in less than an hour and, for the first time in the four years we’ve lived here, the sewer backed up. It started slowly and I was able to get everything off the floor except some flattened boxes behind the freezer. By 10 am 75% of the lower level had at least three inches of water and there were four other men helping try to deal with the flood. At one point there were two pumps that were brought in trying to keep ahead of the rising water. By 1 pm the standing water was gone leaving a lot of soaked carpet on the concrete floor.

A carpet cleaning service spent an hour sucking 260 gallons of water out of the carpet and floor. About the same time, they started working on the sewer line trying to figure out how and why it got blocked. Using a power snake, they discovered a blockage about eighty feet from the sewer access. It took several tries over two hours but they were able to break through and drains started running freely again.

I spent all day Tuesday and all day today trying to deal with the mess and figure out how to put things back in place without allowing them to touch the floor. The carpet has to come up even if we can get it dried out because of the bacteria in the water. I looked at the carpet in a closet and discovered it has a foam backing which is glued to the floor and in won’t even peal up – it disintegrates. I learned that it will take a special chemical to get the carpet up and deal with the remains of the padding.

Hopefully in the morning I can get my office functioning again. Fortunately none of the books in the library were damaged – yet. I’m worried about mildew in the air and have a fan and a dehumidifier running in that room. I don’t look forward to having to move all the books in order to replace the carpet. One of the components that made this so difficult is that much of the stuff from my Mom’s apartment, which we vacated in April, was in the spare bedroom. So I’m being forced to sort all of that quickly.

It’s been a tough time: February, the tragic death of Evyn Gentry; March, Mom fell and broke her neck and the subsequent surgery; April, vacating Mom’s apartment and moving her to a nursing home; May, discovering Lois has advanced cancer and yet didn’t show any symptoms until May 18. Now a flooded basement. I’m tired.

Lois is having a good weekend. She was feeling well enough that we decided I should go and do the leadership retreat in St Joe, Missouri that had been planned for some time. I left early Friday morning and returned about 8:30 last night. Kari spent most of the two days with Lois.

Lois is dealing with a back ache. We are unsure if this is surgery related or is from sitting and reclining and sleeping more in the past two weeks than she has in the past two years! Ibuprofen and Tylenol seem to relieve most of that discomfort. She is taking the stronger prescription pain medication at night and sleeps most of the night.

Her belly is sore and she holds a pillow to her belly when she coughs, blows her nose and gets up. Lois is usually self-sufficient and that hasn’t changed. She get ups, get dressed, takes showers – all without assistance. Many people have brought in food and she is eating small meals every two hours or so and gets her own food and cleans up the dishes, too!

Several people have stopped by and many have called. Most have remarked that Lois is much better than they imagined. We attribute the reduced pain and discomfort and the speed at which she gaining strength to answered prayer.

Tomorrow we get up early and head to Iowa City. Lois has an appointment at the surgery clinic at the University Hospital to have her staples removed. Hopefully that doesn’t leave her too uncomfortable.

We appreciate continued prayer. . .

Lois is at home and seems to be doing well for this stage of recovery. She is eating very small meals every two hours or so and all the “plumbing” is working – sometimes too well. She moves from the bed to the sofa to the recliner to the kitchen table. Whatever pain and discomfort she’s having is focused in her lower back but Ibuprofen and Tylenol seem to help. Last night she took the prescription pain medication before going to sleep and slept in the bed all night.

Friends from Northgate Alliance Church in Ottumwa have organized and are bringing in food every other day which is really nice. Several people have stopped by with flowers and cards or just to visit for a few minutes.

We continue to trust the Lord and thank Him for each day.

Lois and I arrived home at 5:30 pm. and its been a whirlwind of activity since. All the grandkids needed to come and see BaBa and she wanted to see them, too. I made a run to the pharmacy in Ottumwa to pick up Lois’ pain medication – the only prescription she has – along with over-the-counter stuff to keep her from getting constipated from the pain meds.

This morning they confirmed the test yesterday on her bladder showed no problems and the labs from this morning were all within parameters. About 8 am the nurse removed the bladder catheter and Lois has urinated normally since then. She also continues to have normal bowel movements. We waited most of the day for the lab work on the abdominal drainage tube which finally came back and then we waited for a resident on the surgical team to remove it and that happened about 3 pm. The discharge process moved quickly and we were out of the hospital parking lot by 3:45.

Lois is sore and tired but very happy to be home. We know we face 6-8 weeks of healing before anything else can be done about the tumors in the liver. In fact, the oncology team doesn’t even want to meet with us until after the first of July. So, we’ll wait.

I’ll continue to update everyone every couple of days for a while and then stretch it out to a week. You’re welcome to email for updates.

Again, thanks for praying.

Lois has had a good day. They have taken her off all the IV’s, she is eating solid food, has been able to have two bowel movements, has walked the “circle” four times already today, and is looking a lot better than a week ago.

The Drs ordered a cystogram today to test the sutures in the bladder. The test didn’t get done until 3:30 this afternoon and we haven’t heard anything. Lois said the test was quite uncomfortable. They clamped off her catheter and filled her bladder until she was in pain. Then they took several x-rays and drained the bladder. Lois is still feeling the effects of all that. If the test was OK they should remove the catheter yet this evening, but they are very busy with three new admissions right in our area including a new roommate for Lois.

We have not heard any results from pathology or oncology. This morning, Dr. Wilkinson, our surgeon, said we might not hear much until June 9 when we come back to have the staples removed. The holiday weekend put everything behind.

We’ve been told to expect to go home tomorrow, so this afternoon Peter stayed with Lois and I went home to retrieve clothes Lois thought she could wear without irritating the incision and still accommodate the drainage tube and “bulb.” I also switched vehicles so Lois could have a van to come home in since we think that would be more comfortable that a car. Grabbed three extra pillows for the ride home, too.

If we do get to go home in the morning, it might not be possible to send an update before we get home so I decided to get this out tonight. Many thanks for all your thoughts and prayers.

I arrived in Lois’ room at 6:15 this morning and the surgical team of residents came in at 6:35 this morning. Here’s what we learned:

• yesterday they did a culture from the abdominal drainage tube and there was no infection.

• The PeT Scan to check for other problem areas where the carcinoma might be growing will be delayed for several weeks because they don’t want to risk getting a false reading due to everything that was done during this recent surgery. The resident thought it might happen in a month.

• Lois will have a Cystogram where dye will be sent to her bladder via the catheter and then x-rays will be taken to see how the bladder is functioning. They are especially looking for any possible leakage where the bladder was repaired where the carcinoma was attached.

• The surgeon, Dr Wilkinson, should be in later.

• If her bowels move today there is a good possibility Lois will be able to go home Wednesday.

Yesterday Lois rested a lot. Getting used to the oral pain meds will take some time. She did walk an extended route four times yesterday. Because of the holiday, there were some split shifts and the man pain med Lois should’ve had at noon was two hours late. It took some time to get ahead of the pain following that. That occurred just Kari and Joy and their families stopped in before heading home and I wasn’t paying attention to time.

Lois was able to eat some more yesterday and then dealt with the sensations of the digestive system dealing with solid food. She didn’t get nauseated but sure felt queasy for a while.

We had a number of visitors yesterday and that was appreciated.

Several people have emailed and called concerned about how I’m doing and my answer is, “I’m doing as well as can be expected.” This has all been a shock and there are so many unknowns that its very frustrating. In many ways I’m responding to this crises the same way I respond to others even thought its very personal. I’ve been staying at a local hotel that offers special rates for families of those hospitalized. It’s a room with two beds and Peter had stayed with me many nights. I’m quite sure Joy, Peter and Kari are in collusion to make sure one of them is here all the time. They’re adults so I can’t really tell them what to do but I am concerned about their lives and families and jobs.

Monday, May 26

It’s 1 pm. Lois is sitting in the chair after a walk and is comfortable. If she complains about anything its discomfort in her lower back. We’re not sure if that’s because she’s spending so much time on her back or because of the surgery.

We’ve had a busy morning. Lois’ sister, Mary, who arrived Saturday, visited until 10 this morning and then left for her 4 hour drive home. Shirley Will and her Dad stopped by, and Joy and Tony and Kari and Jeremy along with all the kids spent about an hour taking turns in Lois’ room before they headed home. (They stayed at a local hotel this weekend and let the kids enjoy the pool. Tony and Jeremy took major responsibility for the kids.) Peter is probably arriving this afternoon.

Somehow during all the commotion, the Nursing Assistant helped Lois take her first shower since Wednesday and that helped her feel a lot better.

Yesterday we started doing all her meds by mouth except the IV antibiotic which they tell us she’ll be on for seven days following surgery. The pain medication works better when it goes through ordinary metabolism, but sometimes Lois feels a little queasy after taking it although she has not been nauseated. She usually falls asleep for about 20 min within 20 min of taking pain meds and is then awake and able to carry on conversation until the next round in four hours.

The drainage tube discharge and urine output continue to be encouraging. Vitals are good although they are now becoming concerned about blood pressure running 155-165 over 55-65. The systolic number is higher than optimum. No fever but they continue to push a bag of IV antibiotic every five -six hours.

Lois just finished a small container of ice cream and has talked about asking for a grilled cheese. Food is beginning to sound good again and that’s a good thing.

That’s the news for now. If we learn anything significant, I’ll post again.