Post Surgery-Day 3

Yesterday was a busy day for Tim. And all at once too! The excitement started around 11am when the physical therapist came. Tim was not quite ready to crutch around due to his catheter still in. So, the nurse came and took that out. It took Tim awhile to "re-adjust," then we had to cut was some underwear to fit around his bandages. Finally, Tim got up on the crutches and hobbled out to the nurses' station and back to his bed. He did great!! As soon as we got him back in bed and comfortable again, the new station arrived for the big interview! The crew got some footage of Dr. J interacting with Tim, then they interviewed the doctor, Cory & I and finally Tim.
(Tim and Dr. J! This guy is amazing. Not only is he a great surgeon, but he really cares about his patients. He spent about 2 hours with us yesterday for the interview and just hanging with Tim and making sure he was comfortable. While Cory and I were being interviewed, the two of them talked math and did some problems on the white board in Tim's room! How cool is that?)

Ed Yates from KSL is doing a story on Rotationplasty to get people aware and more comfortable with the procedure. A lot of people should have the surgery, they are just scared because it is a little weird looking. But, the benefits do out weigh what it looks like-at least they will eventually! Tim needed a little help from medicine after all that, and he ended up sleeping for about 2 1/2 hours! After he woke up, we ordered numerous things from room service to get Tim eating again. The only thing that tasted good was a popsicle. He finally ate half a PB&J that Cory brought from home. So of the five things that Tim has to do in order to go home, 2 of them have huge check marks next to them - using the bathroom on his own or the urinal in his case, and breathing without oxygen. He has a small check mark next to walking with crutches. He still needs to eat and take pain medicines orally in order to go home. Hopefully he gets check marks next to these last ones and he can come home tomorrow! What a great Mother's Day gift!!

Post Surgery-Day 2

Tim gets better each day! He was awake for most of the day, taking a nap in the afternoon. He ate a couple of crackers and took a few bites of a cookie. He had a few sips of a smoothie and blue "Mountain Dew." The only pain medicine he is getting is when he pushes his button. No more continuous drip! Tim went off oxygen for a little while this afternoon as well. But he got agitated with how uncomfortable his foot was and had to go back on the oxygen. Tim's foot is still swollen from the trauma of the surgery, but he is slowly getting some feeling back! We are also dealing with some sores on the right side of his body:( He got these from laying on that side of his body for 11 hours during surgery. In the way of physical therapy, Tim sat up in bed early this morning. Then, around 12, he stood up with the crutches and hobbled twice to a chair and sat there for about half an hour! Baby steps!!(Check out Tim sitting up!)

Tim has quite the collection of friends that keep him occupied. I made the mistake of not putting them back on the bed after his sheets were changed. He was a little annoyed with me, but I know it's just the meds talking:)
(Tim's friends. When I left the hospital for the night, he added two more to this group!)

So, the thing that was the most frustrating for Tim today was getting his left leg comfortable. He spent most of the day moving pillows and rearranging his body. But when he did finally get comfortable, he either fell asleep, ate, or watched tv with me.

(Tim comfortable=killer smile!)

Post Surgery-Day 1

Tim is doing great! Yesterday, he started out in the PICU. I guess Tim spent most of the previous night watching movies. Duh, he only had an 11 hour nap! Actually, he liked the tv that was in the room. Cory's Dad and Mom visited with Tim in the morning. And Tim tried to nap. I got to the hospital in the early afternoon after spending the morning with the girls. The "parent break" group that I meet with received some Build-a-Bears the day Tim was in surgery. Cory and I picked out an Aviator Bear for Tim and he held onto it all day. (See below)

Around 2 in the afternoon, Tim was transferred to the 3rd floor where most kids recover from surgery. We are actually in a room just around the corner from where Tim gets chemo. So it was like going home:) It took us awhile to get Tim settled in and comfortable again. He sure does like pushing the pain medicine button! But, as long as he is comfortable, it does not matter. The rest of the day was spent watching tv while Tim was in and out of sleep. He was a little bummed to leave the PICU because of the tv in that room. Go figure:)

(Tim in is room on the 3rd floor trying to sleep)

Around 5, the girls, my Mom and my Aunt came to visit. They actually spent more time in the cafeteria than in Tim's room. The girls thought the cafeteria was the coolest place ever:) Before I left around 7:30, Tim got some benadryl to help with the itchiness from the pain medicine. Hopefully, that helped him fall asleep and sleep well!

Tim's Surgery

I have to be perfectly honest, yesterday was the longest day of my LIFE! Tim, Cory and I left the house around 5am after only 4 hours of sleep. We got Tim checked into same day surgery around 6, and waited to meet with the doctor one last time. (Tim sitting in the same day surgery waiting room)

Cory and I said "See ya later" around 7:45. At 9am, we got a call from the nurse telling us they had finally started! Then came the waiting. Cory and I went home for awhile to change and "freshen" up a bit. Then we headed back downtown and went to the Salt Lake Temple. For a couple of hours, I was able to put all "the cares of the world aside" and relax. I knew Tim was in good hands and all would be okay. After, we went to lunch and while eating, we got the coolest phone call ever! Bronco Mendenhall, BYU's Head Football Coach, called to see how Tim was doing!!! He wants to throw a party for Tim this fall when Tim is up and walking on his prosthetic:) Then it was back up to the hospital. We visited with a social worker for awhile and some friends in the ICS unit. Cory and I were able to see some pictures and video of Tim's surgery. Very cool, but not for the faint of heart! A local news station want to do a story on rotationplasty and the awesome benefits of the surgery. Tim will be in the story! Then we sat and waited for the nurse's phone call. At 5:30, she called and said another 2 hours. Wow! So we got some dinner at the hospital and waited some more. Just as I got comfortable on the very small and uncomfortable chairs in the waiting room hoping to take a little nap, the surgeon walked in a little after 7:30pm. 10 1/2 hours after the first cut! Tim did great! He was stable during the whole procedure, but lost a lot of blood. He needed 3 units of blood and a unit of platelets during the surgery. All of the blood vessels and 4 of the 5 nerves were saved. The entire cancer tumor was removed!! The ankle was rotated and attached to his femur. Dr. J was exhausted as he did not leave the OR the entire day, but he was elated with how well everything went. Finally, around 8:30, we got to see our "Bug!" He spent the night in the PICU so the staff could watch his foot closely. Tim was pretty much out of it, but he acknowledged Cory and I there and pushed his pain medicine button a lot!! I took a peek of Tim's new limb. It is a little weird to look at, but it is pink, warm and the blood is flowing. Tim even moved all of his toes for us :) But, no matter how long the day was and how swollen Tim looked, as far as we know, HE IS CANCER FREE!!(Tim in the PICU)

Cory and I can't thank all of you enough for the prayers that were offered for Tim yesterday! We know a lot of you prayed for Tim and had him in your thoughts all day. We have felt so much over whelming love and concern for our little guy. Thank you, thank you, thank you! We know that Tim had angels with him yesterday because of all the prayers that were said for him and our family. Tim truely is a warrior!!
(Holding a Good Luck sign the night before surgery.)

Countdown to Surgery

So much has happened this past weekend! So, I decided to post a countdown starting with last Thursday to let you know what took place.
Thursday-5 days to go: I took Tim to the Riverton Hospital for an early blood draw. The results came back, and his white blood cells were really low! Not good. But, Cory and Tim still loaded up the trailer and headed to the sand dunes a day early for the Scout Camp-out!
Friday-4 days to go: Cory and Tim managed to survive the cold night and cold day at the sand dunes. They rode in between warming up and eating. While I was at the movies with the girls, the hospital called and told us to double Tim's nuepogen shots. (These shots jump start his white blood cells after chemo.) So, we arrange for more nuepo to get to Tim almost 2 hours away. Cory's dad, Rick, and his wife, Annette, arrive from Montana later in the night.
Saturday-3 days to go: The garage sale fundraiser is canceled due to bad weather. I went grocery shopping for the upcoming week and got the house ready for more guests. Cory and Tim got home around 1pm from camping. They both had a great time, even though it was terribly cold the entire weekend. Cory's Mom, sister, and sister's family arrive around 2:30. At 4:30, the family and close friends gathered at the house to start a special fast for Tim. Cory ordained Tim to the Aaronic Priesthood and gave him a blessing. We spent the rest of the evening hanging out with family.

Idaho cousins eating dinner: Katie, Monica, Mak, Kelli, Alex, Tim and Kenya.

Sunday-2 days to go: Tim performed his first duty as a Deacon-he collected fast offerings before church. During church, Tim passed the sacrament. What an amazing site and such a strong testimony meeting! Later that afternoon at 4:30, we gathered at the church with other ward members to break the fast. The spirit was so strong and there was so much love and support there for Tim and our family. It was such a spiritual feast! Family from Idaho went home. Tim finally broke down and showed how scared he was for the surgery. So, Cory and Tim spent some time together to get Tim's mind off the procedure.

Tim and his little buddy for the weekend, cousin Alex! Alex followed Tim everywhere, watched him play video games and cuddled up next to Tim as they watched a Star Wars movie together!!

Monday-1 day to go: This morning, Cory, Rick, Annette and I took Tim up to PCMC to have some blood drawn and to meet with the surgeon. Dr. J is an awesome guy! He explained the procedure and answered any and all questions that we had. Tim's counts were super high so a call was made to confirm an operating room. Later in the day, Tim, Cory, Rick, Mak and Mik went out to play some laser tag. The arena was closed, so they found a nickel arcade! After dinner, Tim broke down again. Cory and Rick gave him a blessing. The blessing was beautiful and so comforting! Then Tim, Mak, Cory and I went for a walk with Toby. Before bed, the six of us and my Mom signed Tim's leg and knee good-bye. Then it was off to bed for an early morning! We are to check in at 6am and the surgery is scheduled to start around 7:30.

"Die Cancer," "No Fear Here," "Do Not Remove" (arrow pointing down toward foot), "Keep Foot," "Kelli, "Makayla (smiley face), "Please Donate to Cancer Research," "Tim Kicked Cancer's A_ _!" and "So Long, Will Miss U (heart) Tim."