Saturday morning 2-28

Well it's Saturday morning. Felix is feeling better, but two days in bed has set him back on his movement and walking. It looks like he'll be spending another day in ICU. We got his bed moved so that he can look out the window. He has a beautiful view of the city and the ocean. The sunset last night was fantastic. It is a beautiful day and the sky is clear and you can see a long way into the distance (We can even see Mexico!!!) When we told Felix he could see Mexico, he said why would he want to see Mexico. Hope to have more progress today - if not, it will put off his release date again. We're all tired of sitting around in the hospital. Couldn't ask for better care, but it would be nice to get home.

Friday morning

Felix is much better today. His blood pressure has been stable. He is being given Vancomycin and Flagyl Metronidazole for his Cdiffricile Colitis (infection caused by antibiotics). They are going to keep him in the ICU today and possibly move him out tomorrow. He ate a good breakfast and is sleeping. Hopefully by the end of the day he might be ready to get up and move around a little. More tomorrow.

Thursday afternoon - back to ICU

Felix had a set-back. He has an infection in his bowels which is causing his blood pressure to drop very low. They decided he needs to move back into the ICU for closer monitoring. The doctor had planned on releasing him tomorrow, but now plans on keeping him over the weekend. Hopefully he'll recover quickly. Hopefully we'll get him back up on his feet soon.

Thursday Morning

Sorry I didn't post anything yesterday. The wireless connection in the hospital is difficult. Felix did get up and walk on Tuesday night/afternoon. Yesterday was a very good day. He got up twice yesterday. The second time he walked without the walker for the second half of the walk. He actually does better without the walker, but has to start with it. The challenge for him is getting up into a standing position. The therapist was able to get him to stand up several times. When we tried a few hours later, he wasn't cooperating. He was pretty tired; so maybe that was his excuse. The cardiologist and pulminalogist both said that Felix was good to go as far as they were concerned. We made an appointment to see the doctor who installed the defibrillator on Tuesday for his last checkup with him. We only need to the ok from the Primary Physician and the Cardiac Surgeon. Both of these doctors are looking for him to be up and moving well before he leaves. Well - that's about it. I probably won't be posting anything more today. We have to pack up and move to new lodging tomorrow for a couple of days. Thanks for all of your prayers.

Tuesday 2-24-09

Another day in San Diego - Felix had a pretty good night. He ate a really good breakfast and had a visit from a therapy dog. The dog's name was Dakota and he is a Bernese Mountain Dog. He's a really beautiful and gentle giant of a dog. The doctor came in a removed his drainage tubes and said that it was now up to the therapists. The therapist (Paul) showed up and was showing Luise and Henry how to help Felix get up and walking, but Felix decided not to cooperate. So they put him back in bed and Paul left. Paul said he would be back this afternoon and hopefully Felix would be up to getting up and walking. It is now around 3 pm and Felix wants Paul to show up "NOW". So hopefully he'll show up soon. Still hoping to get home this weekend, but might not be until beginning of next week.

Monday Evening

After a 2 1/2 hour delay Felix went into the operating room to have his new defibullator put in. The surgery went well. They did have to stop his heart in order to test the unit, but it worked well and immediately restarted his heart. (Doctor wanted to reassure us that this was part of the procedure ((Kill him and bring him back to life!!!!!)). When he got back to his room he was a little bit groggy, but recovered very quickly. So now he has his card showing he has a difibullator and can get onto a plane. Hoping to get him up and walking within the next few days. Will keep you all posted.

Monday - Defibrillator

Well today is the day the will put in a defibrillator. Surgery is scheduled for 1 pm. If everything goes well they will just numb the area and insert the unit. Henry's example is that it is similar to putting garlic under the skin of a chicken. Felix liked that example. Felix was doing well when we came in today and walked further. The therapist said it would be at least another 3 days after surgery before he would be released. Well my battery is running out - so I had better get this message off.

Sunday morning

Well Felix was upset with us when we came in this morning. They had moved him to a private room and I guess someone told him that we could have stayed all night. Of course it doesn't make any difference that there was no place to sit (they brought in 2 folding chairs). Felix insists that we are to stay in the room and we can eat and sleep in the room. We are not to leave. Henry told him that we would stay if he would get out of bed and walk (we weren't going to sit around and watch him lay around). Since there are only 2 chairs, I came out to the waiting room to write this message (he did ask why I was leaving). Anyways - I think the move to a new room confuses him. The therapist came by and took him on a nice walk (around 50 ft). His oxygen level and blood pressure were very good after the walk. We'll try and get him up several times today and get him moving more. Surgery tomorrow for the defibrillator. Luise is telling Felix he has 3 days to get up and be able to walk onto a plane. We'll see if that does the trick or not. More later.

Saturday

I wrote a long message but it appears to have been lost in internet space. So I'm going to write a shorter one and see if I can get this one to post. On Monday afternoon they will be putting in a defibrillator. This must be done before he will be released to travel by plane or car or anything. The surgery only takes approximately one hour. So we hope to have him up and moving quickly. If everything goes well, he might be able to head home to Kansas by the end of the week. Well let me send this and I'll write more later.

More info on Operation

The operation went well. We went in to see Felix and he knew we were there, but was still a bit groggy. We got word tonite that they removed the ventilator and he was complaining about paid (which is a good thing). We'll send more news tomorrow.

Operation Complete.....Finally

I just talked to my mom and she said everything went well. My dad had one bypass and the valve replacement. They had to get the vein for the bypass from his chest. In about an hour, she'll get to go in and see him. more later...........JR

Weds - Surgery Day

We're waiting for Felix to be taken down for surgery. He's in good spirits and ready to get it done. They should be picking him up in about an hour. All of the Doctors that came by yesterday said that he was ready for surgery and doing great. After surgery he'll begin therapy and then when he is able to get up and walk on his own he'll be heading home to Kansas. The hospital staff say this could be within a week after surgery. Felix is hoping to set a new record and be out sooner than the week. If you know Felix - you know he would be the one to do it. More after surgery.

Surgery scheduled

Felix has been scheduled for surgery tomorrow (Wednesday) at 8:30 am. He will have an aortic valve replacement and coronary artery bypass. They will be using a pig or cow valve. Surgery takes approximately 4-4 1/2 hours. Felix is doing well and anxious to have the surgery and get well so he can return home. Luise is doing fine - she's still standing. They are going to show us a video of the procedure and what will happen before and after. The staff here at the hospital are absolutely fantastic. Felix had several #2's yesterday - so we advised the new nurse that she might want to think twice before giving him any stool softeners. More later.

Monday - Presidents Day

Physical Therapists showed up and are working on getting him up and moving. Told him they want him to walk 2 miles. We got him up; he ate breakfast by himself; got him back into bed and had him wash himself. They will come back and work on him some more later. Dr. Huang came in and said he's looking to do surgery maybe Wednesday or Thursday. They are going to do a scan to take a look at the heart and area around heart to see what Dr. Huang has to work with. The valve will be replaced with a metal or pig/cow skin/tissue. Metal requires use of blood thinners, but is smaller and lasts longer. Dr. Huang right now thinks the pig or cow tissue would be better for Felix because he bruises enough now and with blood thinners any cuts would bleed easily. Dr. Huang is also going to look at the veins for the bypasses. Leg veins are no good. There is one in the chest that they are looking to use and possible veins in the arms. He'll come off of all the medication and blood pressure medicine today which needs to be done before surgery. That's all for now.

Sunday

Felix is getting stronger every day. He's sitting up and eating lunch and breakfast on his own. He's continually flirting with the nurses and they all come by to see him. Henry and John headed home today and Bonnie is leaving tomorrow. We don't anticipate Felix having his heart surgery until the middle to late in the week. Will keep you all posted on what's happening. Our hotel stay last night was very sleepless - there was a very loud group next door who didn't quit partying until around 5:30 am. There was a group at our hotel and the hotel across the street who were having tailgate parties. Not sure what the parties were about, but they were quite loud. That's all for now.

The King!

John just sent this picture by phone. This morning when they came to the hospital, felix was sitting up and in a chair! Great news.
xxooMO

Friday the 13th

Felix is eating more and was able to do several "#2's". Haven't seen any of the doctors today. Hope to see the surgeon today and get a date for the surgery. We had to move out of the condo we were staying in. John and Rita managed to use every square inch of trunk space to pack the luggage for 5 people. We are moving into a hotel (one room) for 4 nights. This will be a real test of everyone's patience and ability to get along and share one bathroom. Henry will not be allowed to bring a book with him when he enters the bathroom. John will not be allowed to #2 at the hotel. Bonnie will have to wear the same clothes for the 4 days (no way to get her luggage out of trunk). More later - after doctors show up.

GET WELL GRANDPA

Just a picture to make you smile.

We Love You, Margret Nick and Jake

No more tubes

Well, he got the breathing tube removed yesterday and the feeding tube this morning. He got to eat some "real" food today. (pretty much baby food consistency). Now they are waiting for him to produce a good #2 (poop).

Weds progress

It's Wednesday morning and we're at the hospital. They took Opa/Felix off sedation and he's awake and responding. The plan is to ext abate (remove ventilator tube) in the next few hours. More later.

Felix ICU

Felix is in ICU. They are trying to clear up the infection in his lungs. As soon as he is well enough they will be performing open heart surgery to replace the left aortic valve and at least one bypass. He's still on a respirator but hopefully tomorrow if his lungs get better they will take him off of it. All of his family is here (Mother, Henry, Bonnie, Rita, and John) .......more later