2010: Odyssey 2

Wow. February already, and this is my first blog entry for 2010. I guess writing blog entries was not one of my New Year's resolutions.

Well, it's been a busy year so far. Grammy and Grandpa came out for a visit, but not really for fun. As you may recall, Sweetie had surgery in 2008. Well, she decided it was time to have the follow-up surgery, so we needed someone to look after the Things, and Grammy and Grandpa came right out. Coming from the mid-Atlantic states (where it's been cold) they anticipated having a nice week of hikes and exploring the island. HAHAHaHahahahahahahaha! They were in for a surprise. Poseidon must have gotten angry at Los Angeles for making fun of the rest of the country (which seems to be turning into Siberia this winter). G&G showed up on a Monday, and the marine forecast turned nasty, leading Sweetie and I to leave for the mainland a day early.

We went out to eat and saw a movie (Sherlock Holmes) - it was like a real date night. The next day was a few errands before the Dreaded Prep began. But this time, having a foreshortened GI tract, Sweetie had a much smaller prep, which meant she had to drink less stuff, was done sooner, wasn't as wiped out as she had been for prior preps. (Maybe not being sick also had something to do with it.) All of this was a pleasant surprise, even if it was tempered by knowledge of surgery the next day. There was a great deal of dread on that front, since recovery was so difficult last time.

We had to be at the hospital at early o'clock, so we got up at ridiculous o'clock to make sure we didn't get stuck in LA traffic. We got to the hospital in plenty of time. After checking in and going upstairs to pre-op, we found out Sweetie was first on the docket for our doctor. We waited patiently, yet nervously, wondering why we were voluntarily going through this again while nurses repeatedly asked Sweetie her name, birth date, doctor, procedure, etc. At one point activity noticeably picked up in pre-op and soon thereafter, Sweetie was rolled away. I went down to the lobby to wait.

The doctor had said surgery should be about 90 minutes if there were no complications, and sure enough, about 2 hours later, he was down to report the procedure was a success and complication-free. Hooray! First hurdle cleared with flying colors. While Sweetie went to recovery, I had lunch.

To make a long, happily uninteresting story short, Sweetie's hospital recovery went very smoothly. None of the pain management problems we had before. Her incision was much smaller, so there was less discomfort to start with. Very shortly, she was feeling pretty good, and was getting very bored in the hospital. The hospital stay was just 3 1/2 days, and we adjourned to the apartment.

Originally, we had planned on staying in the apartment for a week, but things were going so well, we considered trying to get back to the island early. So, of course, a series of storms hit southern CA, dumping 5 inches of rain on the island and stirring up the channel so badly that all ferries were canceled all week. Poor Grammy and Grandpa had two boys bouncing off the walls of a small house. School was even canceled Thursday and Friday (yes, they cancel school here for rain), so the Things didn't even have that to distract them. I went up to campus that week and worked, while Sweetie recovered at the apartment. This was marginally less boring for her than recovering in the hospital. (It is a very good sign when your patient is restless, rather than listless.) We finally got back to the island Sunday. The Things were very glad to see us. G&G were glad the rain had stopped and the boys could go outside.

Our weather drama was not over, though. Yet another storm was threatening, and we had to balance boat schedules against the weather and decided that G&G should leave a day early to avoid a 2 1/2 hour crossing on potentially bad seas, or even a possible boat cancellation. That was a bit disappointing for us; what with us having to leave early beforehand and them leaving early at the end, Sweetie and I hardly got to see G&G at all.

Sweetie is not 100% recovered yet, but is getting quite close. This has been a much easier process than last time, which is what we were hoping for, but not necessarily expecting. Sweetie's Mom and sister came out for a week in anticipation of helping out during Sweetie's recovery, but Sweetie was feeling well enough by the time they got here (the day after G&G left) that it turned into more of a social visit. (Not to say they didn't help out - they did, or that it wasn't appreciated - it was, but I think we all expected to have to nurse Sweetie at least a little.) We got to do a little sight-seeing, and Aunt T collected many rocks from the beach, some for our garden, some for hers.

So thanks for all the prayers and good wishes during this process. We are continuously thankful for Sweetie's doctors and the support of family and friends.