Virginia Bound

Child by Michael Tait

Child wipe your tears away 

Cause Jesus cares for you 

He knows you're hurting 

And all you're going through 

Won't you try just test your faith and see 

You'll walk the oceans and believe 

He's right there by your side

Oh child

It's very comforting to remember that I am God's child. Knowing that since He is my Father, I am well taken care of and have nothing to fear. I am never alone. Jesus understands my hurt; He suffered way more than I ever have or will and is always interceding for me and you.

Cry out to Jesus by Third Day

There is hope for the helpless

Rest for the weary

Love for the broken heart

There is grace and forgiveness

Mercy and Healing

He'll meet you wherever you are

Cry out to Jesus, Cry out to Jesus

I was listening to the songs on my iPod on a lovely, relaxing drive back to NC from a respite weekend at Mom and Dad's, and these two chorus' resonated with me. Maybe they'll speak to some of you also.  We each carry burdens, some are outwardly obvious, others are not, but each carries a pain all it's own. Jesus knows, cares, and is there. Cry out to Him.

Saturday morning was a rough one, but with Keegan's help, we got through it and then I headed out to Virginia about 11am. Mom and I enjoyed an outing to Blackstone on Saturday night for dinner and a 1 act play.  When I opened the program, I was delighted to see that a friend from High School was one of the actresses. She and the other 5 ladies did a fantastic job and we thoroughly enjoyed the evening.  

Keegan & Mike joined Carol, Ed, and their granddaughter, Zoe, for 2 games of bowling on Saturday. Keegan said it took a little bit for Mike to settle in but then he did fine.  Sunday afternoon was very rough for them, but they made it through. I had an appointment with a tax accountant in Blackstone on Monday, so Rod came and stayed with Mike until I got back in the afternoon.  I called Wound Care at WakeMed and told them due to Mike's behavior I did not think the wound vac was going to work and could be dangerous. So it was cancelled. The rest of the day passed fairly well and Tuesday also until someone flipped a switch about 4:45pm. From then until about 9, Mike paced, sat-stood-sat-stood-sat-stood, repeated phrases, etc. until Keegan and I finally got him in bed and he was out like a light.  We had been working on a puzzle in the afternoon, Cheryl came and took him for a haircut plus helped with laundry and did the vacuuming. When we finished the puzzle, he got up and just started zinging back and forth between the kitchen and bedroom.  Could not sit still to eat and so Keegan and I took turns feeding him.  So strange.

This morning he was so calm when he woke up, was following instructions, was easy to get him showered and he helped himself get dressed.  During devotions, he started getting restless and said his legs hurt.  I decided to try an experiment and just give him the Gabapentin and percocet and not the Risperdal since he was verbalizing more and being more cooperative. Thinking maybe it's just pain that agitates him and the Risperdal fogs his thinking too much.  All went well through devotions and most of breakfast then the switch was flipped again. So much for that experiment. I gave him the Risperdal.  He did well the rest of the day, took a nap and was mainly calm tonight.  Sometimes I do wonder if he is just super tired and I need to encourage a nap more often. Thanks for praying. The week is going better than I had imagined.

Never have heard from the labwork. We go to see Dr. Gualtieri tomorrow so will find out the results then. We also go to have the stitches taken out in the morning and will see what they think of the open spot beside the incision.  I think I will go ahead and make an appointment with a wound care facility in Virginia for next week, just to be sure this thing closes properly. Seems there may be one small area that is open deeper down, because it is still draining a good bit.

I cannot talk about moving, packing, leaving, storage, etc. in front of Mike because that really sets him off. Definitely cannot pack when he's around. Any of the above sets him to grabbing things, zinging around at high speed and just generally being frantic. Thanks to Gayle, Ed, Barbara, and Kris, we've actually done a good bit of packing little by little.  Things are disappearing gradually and I hope he isn't noticing.  Due to his unrest, I felt it was best to get to Virginia as soon as possible. On Friday, Rod will come as usual, take Mike out to Trinity to exercise and then my friend, Kristin, is coming to help me pack the car with clothes and necessities and I hope by the time Mike and Rod get back, we'll be ready to hop in the car and head to Virginia.  Then on the 21st & 22nd of March, I'll come back down while Kallyn (my cousin who is a nurse) stays with Mike in Virginia. Vivian, Carol, Ed, Keegan, Hugh & TR (maybe others) will be helping me pack and load on those days and hopefully we'll be all cleaned up and out by the end of the 22nd.  I am ready to be home. I'll miss seeing Keegan and Amy all the time, but they can come visit.  Our new friends from here too - it's not a bad day trip!

All the Pampered Chef boxes arrived today from Amy's shower.  It worked out perfect. I was afraid boxes would upset Mike and had been praying he wouldn't see them. I came home from running errands and 4 big boxes were sitting in front of our door.  Rod and Mike were inside. Mike wouldn't let Rod change him so while I went to change Mike, Rod brought in the boxes. He put them in the spare room, and Mike never saw them. Thank you Jesus!! These small details make a huge difference!

Am tired. G'night!
10:41pm