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First Vows

07 Aug 2008 by

Congrats to my sister, Sr. Maria Kolbe, O.P. who made her first profession of vows this past Wednesday with the Dominican Sisters of Mary, Mother of the Eucharist. Sister took the vows of chastity, poverty, and obedience for 3 years, after which she will make her permanent vows. It was also during this ceremony when she exchanged the white veil for black.

Sr. Maria Kolbe O.P. First Vows

After a 3 week home visit, Sr. Kolbe will return to her community and take up studies at university to work towards her teaching degree. Congrats, Sister! We couldn’t be more happy for you!

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The Thin Man’s Plot Thickens

07 Aug 2008 by

A week post-surgery on Tuesday, Adam had lost twelve pounds.  This is totally unacceptable.  So I’ve been crunching numbers on how to increase his calorie intake.  Since the fluids have had a tendency to fill him quickly, I’ve settled on 5 “meals.” Each meal has to consist of at least 560 calories and 17 grams of protein for 2800 calories/day and 85 gram of protein/day.  I’ve pretty much forbidden drinking water since water has no calories.

His swelling has gone down considerably. Although he’s still a little swollen and numb, with the weight he’s lost, he looks almost back to his old self.  He has some pretty tight rubber bands holding his teeth together. He’s not as intelligible as he was even last week when he tries to talk.  This morning at his orthodontist appointment, he was shown how to change the bands himself and encouraged to go 3 hours/day without them.

But the plot thickens in my husband’s jaw saga.  The orthodontist this morning said that the plate on the left side of his jaw needs to be removed.  (*aaaarrrrgggghhhh!*)  However, apparently the orthodontist says that by removing this plate, he can–through orthodontics–move the back teeth on the left closer together faster thereby speeding up the recovery time by 3-4 months.  The removal of the plate will be an outpatient procedure that will be done at the surgeon’s office next Thursday.

He has yet to have a good night’s sleep even with a sleeping pill that the doctor prescribed.  Please pray that he can get some good rest.  He’ll start back to work from home half days next week with his new job.

Category: Family, Health  2 Comments

Update from the Nurse

03 Aug 2008 by

Can someone convince my husband that he needs to drink even though he doesn’t “feel” hungry?

Adam had a rough day which actually started last night being unable to sleep well.  He woke up with a tight chest, head ache and a low grade fever that climbed to 100.1 last I checked.

I called the doctor.  Adam has to take deep breaths hourly and cough to make sure he doesn’t get fluid in his lungs.  Dr. Quaroni thinks this is why Adam is getting a fever.  He also said Adam need to increase his fluids and told me to give him Benedryl to help him sleep better at night.

Adam is officially sick of liquids.   He entertained the idea of blending some shells and cheese until I told him I’d have to thin it out for him to drink.

Please continue to pray for my beloved husband.

Category: Family, Health  One Comment

Update from the Patient

02 Aug 2008 by

Greetings, everyone. I can’t thank you enough for all you have done for me and the family these past few days. Your help has been very appreciated. I’m well enough where I can give my beloved a little break on the updates and fill you in myself.

  • All my meals will be through a straw or a large syringe for the next few weeks. I expect to tire of it shortly but I never expected that the meals would be filling. It could also be that I don’t have much of an appetite. Sharon sure does know how to pack a lot of nutrients into a glass.
  • I take medications regularly: Pain meds, antibiotics, mouth washes, and nasal sprays. These have been very helpful, but they do make my drowsy. I rest as often as I can.
  • The lower portion of my face is quite swollen. Talking and swallowing are difficult and tiresome. I occasionally apply hot-packs to my face for temporal relief.
  • Nosebleeds are frequent and expected. Part of the surgery was done in the sinus area so the swelling pressure is relieved through the nose.

So far there hasn’t been any surprises and we can hope that recovery will continue at a good pace. I see the orthodontist and the surgeon early next week so I’ll have more news to report then. I’ve remembered all your prayer intentions for those of you who sent them. I haven’t forgotten a one and still turn to them in moments of discomfort. Thank you again for all your prayers. I cannot do this alone.

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Post Surgery Day 4

01 Aug 2008 by

Adam came home yesterday! It’s so great to have him back.  His swelling has gone down a little but not much and that’s his major discomfort.  It’s also been difficult for him to sleep well since he still has to sleep propped at a 30-45 degree angle and sleeping on his back isn’t his favorite position.

The kids are adjusting out of necessity.  Unfortunately Adam isn’t talking very well because of the numbness and swelling.  So he can’t read to them.  And he can’t pick up the kids as his weight limit is about 20 lbs.  Dr. Quaroni only really gave him permission to pick up Gianna.  Since she’s a squirmy worm, it’s probably not a good idea if he even does that.  He’s not supposed to bend over or even squat.   So “playing” with the kids is quite limited.

Meal time is fun.  I know I’ll never open a restaurant!  :) HA!  Adam is on pure liquid diet for at least a couple of weeks. This mean everything I make has to be strained of fibers, seeds and the such.  We don’t want to risk getting any particles in his incisions that might cause an infection.  So between Adam’s meals, Gianna’s diet restrictions (since she’s not a year old yet there are still some foods to avoid), and the other kids, I’m having to keep up with a lot of meals.   We got our first meal from the Care Calendar today and that was a blessing!  Thanks Mary!

So far Adam hasn’t lost any weight, in fact maybe he gained a couple of pounds!  Heehee…could be all that cream and super fortified milk (milk with powdered milk) I’m using in stuff!  He’s supposed to get around 85 grams of protein a day to help in his healing and recovery.  I found a protein powder “meal replacement” that has 38 grams.  Hopefully that’ll do the trick.

Adam is a great dad and a super help when he is well.  I’ve really come to appreciate even more all the things he does for me and the kids when he’s home.

Category: Events, Family, Health  One Comment
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