Home is good!

So here we are home for 4 days, and still basking in the happiness of being here! I'm much more weak and sore than I expected to be, which was a bit of a shock, but gaining strength daily (I hope). I am officially tubeless, which is nice, but still can't eat much since the only catheter I have right now is really, really small. But rest assured, cookie dough still seems to be well received.

I'm also getting a low-grade fever for a few hours every day. Today, it was later than usual and only lasted for about an hour, so whatever it is, I seem to be fighting it pretty well. Which is good; I still have too much yeast in my mouth from the antibiotics, so if I had to take more, I might never be able to get rid of it.

I think I figured that once I left the hospital, it would all be over. I didn't factor in recovery at home or the fact that this surgery was just plain harder on me then the other ones. So I'm not quite home free yet, but on the bright side, I've lost about 10 pounds! See, there's always something to be thankful for!

I'm just praising God for Jason and my family and friends; in the 4 days we've been home, we've had 7 guests/helpers and 6 meals provided. We certainly don't eat this well when I'm cooking! But what a blessing to not have to worry about it, and BOY is this food good!!

I think Jason is exhausted as Parker demands almost constant attention - he's pretty understanding that I'm still weak and can't play with him, but he doesn't want me out of his sight and won't let Jason do anything but play with him when he gets home. He's glad to get home with us but will quite happy when things go back to normal (or what passes for normal in our house of insanity...).

Mountains of laundry being leveled by loved ones... including Jason! Is there nothing that man can't do??

Just a quickie...

Well, this won't be a long post, seeing as I'm not as strong as I think I am and that it's really, really cold here in our computer room...

But hallelujah, I'm HOME! We left the hospital at about 4 pm yesterday and spent the night in St. Pete before heading to the airport at 5:30 this morning. I did better than expected in the airport and the flight, but we had requested a wheelchair to be waiting at the Allentown airport since we figured I'd be about done. That was right up until they announced that all wheelchair people should remain seated until everyone else left the plane. I looked at Jason and said, uh uh, my baby is in that airport, and I'm NOT waiting for everyone else to get off this plane! So I walked up the ramp until I sat in the middle of it and got a good, long hug from Parker!

He did great, which we knew he would (thank God, he takes after Jason and is very flexible) but has said he's glad to be home... and more importantly, that he's glad I'm home!

I'm beat but feel good. I still have a catheter in my pouch until Wednesday to give it a bit longer to heal. It's fairly discreet, but really, I think a plastic tube taped to your belly is a fashion craze just waiting to happen. Can't wait to sleep in my own bed. I'm much calmer now that I'm home and actually got a nap today (been too wound up to sleep during the day w/out meds), so I'm expecting an AWESOME night's sleep - back home - with my family.

God's in His heaven and all's right with my world. G'night!

See ya!

Greetings! I'm am thrilled to report that this is our last entry from good ol' Palms Hospital! After much ado (and some anti anxiety meds since I'm too hyper), I am officially being discharged today! I already am free of wires and machines and feel like a new woman. The one teeny, tiny drawback is that the best flight, logistically and financially, is tomorrow morning. Jason and I will be staying at the same Comfort Inn we went to coming in (which is new and very nice) and leaving for the airport around 5:30 am tomorrow morning.

I can't wait for a good, long shower in the hotel's oversized, granite walled tub! Ah, to feel human again!

And then, provided there are no flight delays, by 10:00 am tomorrow, we'll be in Allentown airport, and I'll be hugging the stuffing out of my wiggling, hyper, over excited, trying to squirm away son!! YAY!

I think I'll keep this blog up for a bit yet, just for the next 2 weeks or so as I continue to recover. Hard to believe that another few days would have a big difference, but tho I feel petty good in general, getting dressed this morning showed me that I'm still pretty weak. Can't wait to get home tho. Also can't wait for the coffee coolatta Jason is bringing me from Dunkin' Donuts in a little while!

Signing off from Palms (and praising God for His mercy and faithfulness - care to join me?) Love to all!

Oh, relax a little.

Well, sorry to say, this is Meggan checking in... I know Jason has quite a fan club, but I decided to take a turn anyway. So there...

Last night and this morning seemed to be such a huge setback for me, and I confess, I was quite bummed out. Having the belly tube be put back in, hearing the nurse say back to clear liquids to start the whole switch to food over... I couldn't see how that would do anything but add 3 or 4 days on to my stay. Wallowing, just wallowing in self pity. I'd forgotten to avail myself of the strength just waiting for me and didn't go to God for the help I needed.

On the plus side, there is army of people going to God on my behalf, so He chose to work anyway! After a tearful morning (and being unable to even think about eating broth and jello at 8 am), my surgeon's nurse came to examine me.

Basically, she said everything is looking really good! All my preliminary labs are normal (tho we have to wait for the finals), and removing my central line got rid of my fever and put my white cell counts back to normal. She then said she felt the nausea and vomiting was a result of me getting myself too wound up! She said, relax and stop throwing up your food. She put me right back on solid food and said we're still on track for a weekend release. How good is God to work even when my faith had wavered!

So it looks like we'll be heading home Sunday morning -- the fare for the flight can't be beat, even if we have to stay in hotel Saturday night if I'm released Sat. This is actually preferred since a Sunday discharge would have to be done so that we could leave the hospital at 5 am. That's a pretty tight squeeze!

I'm so thankful that Jason is here; his presence is soothing and does much to help me unwind. I'm also thankful for a dear friend who sent me an email full of encouragement that I was unable to get until the time I really needed it. Yay God!

So tomorrow I'll let Jason take over again; his posts are much funnier than mine! But tonight I just wanted to thank you all for your comments, cards and prayers. Here's hoping this is our last visit to Palms of Pasadena Hospital!

G'night!!

Day 14

"...I'm back in the saddle again.."

Back at my home away from home. I arrived 2 hours later due to complications, not involving my flight. It's good to be with my wife!

Today was a good day. Other then me coming back, she is now catheter free! She has always had a hate/hate relationship with that contraption. Thankfully, Meggan also has not had any bladder spasms,(Praise God) another reason to celebrate Catheter Free Day. We also are happy to report, no fever!

What do you do in the airport with nothing to do but time? Think about flying. What we're those Wright brothers thinking? They must have been crazy! (They didn't create jets, I know, but follow me) A couple ton of steel, formed into bird-like structure. Thousands of pounds of food, flying equipment, not to mention people weight, seats, baggage, gas, etc. Then we actually sit down, strap in and wait for the plane to reach a speed where then the plane pushes off and rises.

The day didn't come without setbacks. Meggan became VERY nauseous a few hours after my arrival. (Not associated) It resulted in her belly tube being put back in. This is done to prevent nausea. Sometimes patients stomachs can handle food easily. This time, Meggan is not adjusting as fast as she would like. She believes it will delay her return home. No word from the white coats.

Thanks to friends, I'm now hooked on 'Alias' and cannot stop watching.

Tomorrow is looking up, I'm taking my wife on a date. Well, I'll walk 3 blocks, buy some Dunkin' Donuts coffee, walk back and we will dine in our private hospital room, overlooking a palm tree or two.....oohhh lala!

Food, lovely food

Momentous day - I was put on soft food! YAY! The GP who oversees my day to day conditions was able to push me ahead of schedule a bit, so after a yucky breakfast, I got real food for lunch and dinner. Very tasty (hospital food - but it's not so bad here) and it's nice to chew.

Doing OK otherwise and hoping to get released as soon as possible once Jason gets back down here. He comes back Thursday, and I'm soooo excited. He will also be able to walk to Dunkin Donuts and get a latte for me!! Double yay!

I also can't wait to leave so they can take my central line out. I'm allergic to the adhesive used on the dressing, so MAN does that itch!!

When I spoke to Parker last night, he said, "I miss you, Mommy." Jason said he wasn't coached to say it, he just said it. And, since he sounds cheerful and happy, it made me very happy!

Tomorrow is more food; if this keeps going well, I should stay on schedule for release in just few days. So, all you coffee drinkers, drink a sip for me - can't wait to be able to write that I have an official release date! G'night!

Isn't this a little counterproductive?

Met with another urologist today, who is putting me on stronger meds to calm the bladder. Of course, it will probably also slow down my intestines... just when I'm starting food again. Is it just me, or does this seem like a bad plan? Please pray everything just keeps working and healing so I can home this weekend as planned! I did at least understand what this one was saying, which is ironic considering I didn't like what he said (haha).

Otherwise, good day today! I got 1/2 my staples out, so my belly is sore, but this is another step toward freedom. The Popsicle was cherry... and it made me nauseous! They still moved me to clear liquids today, tho, and that's gone very well. Of course, I find it challenging to eat vegetable broth at 8 am (altho Jason wondered when it wouldn't be challenging to eat hospital vegetable broth... a very good point, indeed). But the cranberry juice, water ice and hot tea have been lovely and gone down without a hitch. Onto full liquids tomorrow (which means watery oatmeal for breakfast - yuck - I think I'd rather have broth!).

I got a load of mail today, which makes me feel all warm and fuzzy! I got a bunch of cards from Parker, most of which featuring a ship with a sail and flag and 3 figures (Jason, Parker and Mommy? I assume so). I have the one that says, "I love Mommy" propped up so I can see it from bed. All the nurses have commented how smart he is, and I say, well, what can I say? He is smart!!

I also received flowers from my cousin, Pat, in Baghdad. Now, here's a guy with a lot on his plate, but he still managed to make time to brighten my day. Have I got the coolest fam or what? Between those and the ones sent by my parents' small group from church, the room is looking quite cheerful. If you just look at the flowers, you forget it's a hospital room! OK, so I'm not fooling you either, but flowers do go a long way toward giving me something nice to look at!!

Time to head out for a walk. Only my second today, but I'm pushing them to be longer and longer. Haven't made it outside yet; there's still too much junk hanging off my IV pole to make it easy to move over bumpy concrete! We need all-terrain poles. Or better sidewalks. Or to not get holes in our pouches and avoid the whole thing in the first place...

No memorable dreams last night - which means I slept the whole night! YAY! Here's hoping we all have sweet dreams tonight!

This Is The Day the Lord Has Made

and I am glad and rejoicing in it! Yesterday was one of my worst days yet, muscle spams and very intense upper belly pain (standing meant 3 minutes of gasping, hunching over and frantically hitting my morphine button until movement became possible) on top of bladder spasms (it really, really hates the catheter!).

But today, and I think it's a result of prayer, there is much improvement. My belly pain is significantly better - meaning I need to be careful to overdo and strain things more - and I expect to start a new med to calm my bladder any moment now.

I am so thankful for the love and support of my family and friends, and tremendously encouraged when I think of everyone who is thinking of me and praying for me. It is such a blessing to know you are carrying my burden to the throne on my behalf! Makes it easier to stay positive even when I feel yucky.

Most recent dream: cruising down the highway when I notice a semi beside me. I think, boy if he tips over, he'll just crush me. Better be careful. So I go to brake a little and realize I'm cruising along in my hospital bed. Magic carpet ride, anyone?

Popsicle day!! I appreciate all the helpful suggestions (chocolate would totally be my vote, too, but it's just fruit flavors - ice and sugar, no dairy yet!!) and am leaning toward lime or cherry. Or orange. Or maybe lemon. I'll keep you posted. I know you're all on the edge of your seats.

I hope your skies are as blue as the one outside my window!!

Stinky Saturday

Stupid blog ate my post. Bad day but expect better tomorrow!! Love to all!

Gee, is it Friday already?

That means I'm officially one week post op. I'm amused at how all the medical professionals around here make comments about how easy I make it all look. Yay, me! Though I'd like to define "easy" for all of us some day.

I missed my note last night because, as I got up to write it, I pulled a muscle in my belly, right behind my stomach tube. So that was a whole new realm of pain... I paged the nurse, who came in to find me standing rather uncertainly while clutching my stomach. She said she needed me to sit or lay down, but I said, I need drugs first; we made a deal - I don't move and it don't hurt. But it actually feels good today, and they gave me some good pain meds last night, which means I slept GREAT!

Newest odd dream - I parked my car in a empty lot behind a used car dealership to run into a convenience store; they took it and turned it into a rental car; I couldn't seem to make them understand why I had a problem with this. I'm really wondering which of my drugs is causing these crazy dreams??

Today went well - I spent 3 lovely hours being visited by one of my college roommies, and as soon as she walked in, it seemed impossible that it's been 10 years since I was her last. She is so sweet - brought her husband, Shawn, and crazy adorable 7 month old daughter, Marley, to meet me and some DVDs to pass the time. Good friends are such a blessing, and it's odd that this is the way I could see her... she lives in California, and a visit by other means just wouldn't be possible for either of us! So my first full day "alone" wasn't alone at all!

Getting ready to take my first walk; I was lazy today, but it was nurse sanctioned because of the pulled muscle. Last night was remarkably comfortable, even after the pain meds wore off, so I'm hopeful I'm over the bulk of sleep discomfort. Gas pain greatly reduced - yay.

Really looking forward to my popscicle tomorrow or Sunday - any votes on the first flavor??

Now, I realize my posts are much less exciting than Jason's, so I'm preparing myself for a deluge of comments on how much he is missed! ;-P

By request, the address here is: Meggan Musselman, BCIR, Rm. 261, Palms of Pasadena Hospital, 1501 Pasadena Avenue South., St. Petersburg, FL 33707.

5 Day Post

Meggan is doing well. She had problems again last night when trying to sleep. They gave her a "sleeping cocktail" but she's up around 2ish anyhow. Nausea still happens but only after taking some meds. The docs said it's normal. Hopefully the docs will up the dosage on her sleeping meds so she gets her rest. One prayer request would be that Meggan would not have nightmares. They tend to wake her.

We were challenged to a race today by Room #262. No joke, 262 was callin us out! They were toast in my mind because we have youth on our side. 262 is a little farther along in her recovery but I thought Meggan could push through the pain onto victory - isn't that what the pain button is for?!? But 262 stood us up!

We just returned from our third walk of the day. Each walk we go on is two laps up and down the long hall. It's exciting because it's the most walking we've done! Walks, like I mentioned before, help to declog everything. "Slim possibility" is the official word for a fourth walk!

Something struck me on our last walk. If you have weak stomachs....be warned. So we're walking and we both happen to burp at the same time. (Burping is encouraged because it gets the air in the belly OUT!!) If you know me, you know that burping if part of my charm, or lack thereof, take your pick. I was done, but my lovely wife continued........... for another 10 feet. Now, normally 10 feet is 3 paces and a foot length. But moving at the '5 day post surgery' pace, it's a good time lapse! She let 'em roll. I felt, proud. What a woman!

Food time, last meal. Actually, the food is pretty good. I think it's fish!

Tearful Tuesday

OK, OK, slight emotional breakdown today. Chalk it up to a combination of trying to do too much this morning, finally being assigned to my favorite nurse Karen and one of those stupid nanny TV shows reminding me that I miss Parker terribly. That's right; I blame reality television. Good lesson for me, tho, because there is a lot to focus on here besides how much I miss Parker; must be careful what I watch when Jason leaves. No nanny shows. I'll stick with Alias, Voyager, Seinfeld, and my personal favorite hospital guilty pleasure, What Not to Wear. I get so close to thinking cable would be nice when I watch that show, but a few Victoria Secret commercials (and stupid nanny shows), and I always remember why we DON'T have it.

All tears aside, tho, it's been a pretty good day. My digestive system always wakes up around Day 3 or 4, which means it takes the brunt of absorbing and moving out all the gas that gets caught in the abdomen during surgery. This may sound merely embarrasing, but the resulting pain is intense... and in my case, somewhat nauseating. I've learned in the past tho, not to be a hero - take the drugs. We like the drugs.

My darling Jason is amazing. He's spent 5 days now looking at the same 4 walls. Getting very good at computer pinball. He got to wash my hair for me today, just for a change. If we were on vacation, I would be loving all this concentrated time together, but (I never thought I'd say this) being waited on 24/7 by my husband is a little frustrating. It feels unfair and I end up just becoming annoyed. But I need to not speak too soon; he booked his plane home for Thursday to be with Parker for a week before coming back to bring me home. I'll be missing him before he boards the plane; I know. Well, maybe not that soon - his flight leaves at 7 am, and I hope to be sleeping until at least 7:30!!

To balance that sad event, tho, one of my college roommates, Amy, who I haven't seen for a decade or so, is in Florida visiting her in-laws and showing off her adorable new daughter. It looks like she might be able to come visit on Friday since she's only an hour or so away! It's so sweet of her to give up family time to come see me, and I'm so excited to see her!

Next week, I'll be on my own. However, I did learn today that the center has 8 new BCIR's scheduled for November beginning next week, so maybe I can be of some use as the resident alumni. It's a bit lonely around here with only 4 or 5 patients right now, but one of my contacts here told me that she suspects the schedule reflects my surgeon's love of baseball - he wanted to be free to flit here and there watching his beloved Rays play in the World Series. I knew I should have written "Go Rays" on my tummy before surgery to stay on his good side!!

Every day gets a little better - so no tears tomorrow! I'm afraid if I get too emotional, they'll sic that psychologist on me. AGH!!

Monday, Monday!!

Blame the auto save for this blog! Meggan did write, but there was some kinda hiccup. And her version didn't post and hence, she was too tired to rewrite!

Day 3 - post surgery. Today began on the wrong foot. Meggan didn't sleep well. Over the night, she had a fever and headache. The fever resulted in our room ac to be turned on.....sweet! The headache the docs didn't know what was causing it. The theory floating around was lack-of-coffee or caffeine, more specifically, in her system - go figure! I think I need more coffee.... (sip)... ..mmmmm.......ok where were we? Mid day was rough cause belly became hard. How is this bad you might ask, well a hard belly means things getting in and not getting out! Which also caused some discomfort.

If ever you find yourself planning for a long hospital stay. And lets say you're in CVS and you're eye catches a bottle of "Waterless Shampoo" and you say "Oh, this could work when I'm in the hospital without water." Fight you urges! It doesn't work!

Meggan went for 3 walks today. Mid morning, later afternoon and evening. Each one, getting longer. The last walk we went all the way down the hall, almost to where we stayed in 2007! The walks also help with the hard belly problem! The walking loosens everything up!

Hopefully tonight, Meggan will sleep better!

Sunday Morning

.....as dictated to jason.....
"Hello everyone, Thank you for all your prayers. I'm doing better now that pain medicine is now loaded properly. Happy to report nausea is gone! Please pray for a quick recovery. Not looking forward to the estimated 2 week stay."

....not dictated to jason....
Saturday progressively got better. There was a lot of pain in the morning and a lot of nausea. After some experimenting, Meggan was able to get the right combination of pain meds with nausea meds. She was able to get out of bed Saturday evening, less than 24 hours from surgery. She stayed seated for 40 minutes.

Sunday color is coming back, rather than the post surgery pale white/blue green feel from the 'cocktail', she look more like herself. Meggan also went for a walk this morning.(Let the race begin!) We exited the room, hung a right and raced down to the nurse's station, and back. It was a tight race. If I hadn't been blindfolded with crutches, I could have won! (The replay showed her IV pole blocked me. I thought that was illegal!) After her walk, Meggan sat in the chair again for close to an hour. She's now resting after a busy morning.

This is Jason blogging for Meggan who is still recovering from the "cocktail" she received!

Surgery day. Long day. First you know surgery is coming, so everything moves slowly. Tv, games, internet, bathroom, breakfast - all before 9:00 a.m. - now what do we do? Finally lunch, but there's still another hour and a half before 'the call' comes. Then the time comes to wheel her down the hall, only to get a phone call saying that surgery is delayed. The waiting continues.....until you get a call saying we're still waiting. Meggan was scheduled for surgery at 2ish. She leaves me at 1:37 for prep. I then received 2 calls and a 'real person fly-by' saying "Still Waiting!"

I did get some guy movie in. Braveheart. A crazy long movie. Did not help the wait.

Success. Meggan finally got in. Five thirty - surgery began! Six thirty and Meggan is out. The doc called and said everything went fine. She did have a hole in there that he fixed. I don't know how extensive the surgery was (if there are small cuts or large cuts like last time) Meggan is now recovering. The wait is over......well no. I'm waiting for her to come up from the recovery room.

To pass time, Meggan and I played a game (before 'the call' came.) - The Settlers of Catan. If you're not familiar with the game, it's a board game in which you build settlements and roads, cities and armies with resources in your region. It's very involved, but we played and it's tied (Meg 1, Jas 1) Lets just say after surgery, I think I have the upper hand!

She's back in the room at 8:27 and is busy sleeping!

I think we need to rename the hospital to the waiting. It makes sense. Cause that's what ya do!

Surgery Day

We've found out that the surgery is scheduled for 2 pm today, altho they said it's also common to be called earlier. I would be grateful for that since I am VERY THIRSTY!! Haha. Jason is looking forward to Braveheart and/or Gladiator (Maximus! Maximus!) while I'm gone.

Amusing little twist today - they now have a psychologist who does the rounds. This makes sense to me, since I know this (actually all) surgery can be a huge stress, and a lot of people have a hard time adjusting. But of course I was laughing to myself; everyone is quite encouraging... but the psychologist did a good job of pointing out all the possible complications. I'd say he's a good means of his own job security!

We're in good spirits; I've heard nothing but positive news from the tests yesterday. The one real downer is that they insist on waking us up at 7 am! Why? Where are we going to go? Is there something we're late for? You'd think they would just let me sleep!!

So that's the scoop... thanks for checking in!

Fun, fun and more fun

Here we are, installed in one of the rooms in the new rooms at the Continent Ostomy Center at Palms of Pasadena Hospital, St. Petersburg, Florida. Weather conditions are sunny and warm... which means the view from the hospital room is lovely! Phone is (727)381-1000, room 261.

Traveling yesterday went fairly smoothly; all the flights got in early and departed on time. And, praise God, I was not too devastated to leave Parker, altho I was missing him before we had finished walking to our gate! Unfortunately, we weren't quite to prompt to the hotel; our shuttle driver couldn't find our hotel (a flaw in the GPS being that it can't find roads whose names were just changed) -- Jason pointed out that it took longer to drive 15 miles to our hotel than it did to fly from Atlanta to Tampa!! But the hotel was clean and quiet, so the test prep went well, and we both actually managed to get some sleep.

Today has been long - full of tests and tubes and pokes and prods and, most recently, some nausea. But now we're just waiting until tomorrow and surgery. The pouch was scoped this morning; thankfully, it looked great, but that also means we still aren't sure what the problem is. The radiologist is still working on my scans, but we were encouraged by the doctor who did the scope. Since he couldn't find anything, that narrows down the problem quite a bit and means the pouch will not need to be replaced! YAY!

Jason, dear man, is bored and has been since he got done unpacking before lunch! But I'm much calmer just because he's here (and spending this much uninterrupted time together has reminded me how goofy he is). Tomorrow will be a guy movie day while he waits for the surgery to end and then for me to wake up; but maybe he'll have some company since one of the techs here couldn't stop watching the Jackie Chan movie we had on whenever he came in!

I've seen some familiar faces today, including one nurse who really went above and beyond for me before. It's good to be in familiar hands, and I love that all they do here is pouch stuff!

Parker doing well; he got to milk a cow today. Sounds like more fun than we had. I'm thankful he's old enough to understand this a little better! Probably won't be up to posting tomorrow, but Jason is happy to answer any inquires -- we're praying for good news to report on Saturday!

How are you?

For those of you who don't know... Jason and I are heading to St. Petersburg, Florida, because I need surgery... again! The briefest description is that I have a modified digestive system that has a hole in it (and is being a real bully to some of my other organs) and needs to be repaired. If the hole is as small as we're hoping it is, this will be a 10 day (or less) total trip. I thought it might be nice to have a place you all could come to see how things are going. Our crazy little man, Parker, will be shared between both sets of his grandparents, which means he will have a nice little vacation and probably be sorry when we get back! (Just kidding.)

Today has been crazy, of course, as I rushed around with a lot of frenzy and no clear objectives. Subsequently, I'm not ready to leave tomorrow! The laundry has mounted another counter attack, the dust bunnies are big enough to ride again, and I haven't seen my kitchen counter in days. So I can't tell you how much I'm looking forward to coming home, sore and not back on my feet, to the chaos that is my house. Oh, well, at least it will be familiar chaos!

But I'm very proud of the most important thing I did today... play with Parker because he wanted me to.

On the positive side, tho, the last few weeks of waiting (and enjoying the lovely side effects of a long course of antibiotics), I have been awash in the love of my friends and family. Of the 700 plus people that I share Cedar Crest Bible Fellowship with, I think I've been hugged by at least 537 of them. How lovely to be asked, "How are you?" when someone actually wants to know! Such love is a glimpse of the divine, and seems to me to be how God wants His children to behave - loving and supportive, helpful, prayerful, unified by our mutual faith.

It's also been a huge blessing to be once again reminded how incredible my family and friends are - they've been bending over backwards to help and encourage us.

We leave tomorrow for St. Pete. I expect our layover in Atlanta to be a good time to drink some ginger ale (oh, how I love clear liquids...) and play some Settlers with my hubby. Tests begin on Thursday; we hope to get results that will give Friday's surgery a clear goal. If you've taken the time read my ramblings, I can only say, "Thank You". And the next time I see you and say, "How are you?", I really do want to know!!