June 24 – Surprise at OHSU Visit

We were headed to the outpatient clinic with a little apprehension since my temperature seemed to be up. That means the possibility of a hospital visit. Darn, our suspicions were correct and we were admitted Friday afternoon. That was disappointing as we expected to be home when the Pavlik family came to our area for short overnight visit on Sunday. They started pumping me up with more antibiotics and taking blood samples, while Nancy was putting on miles rushing home to get the house ready for guests and I concentrated on getting rid of that temperature so I could be released. Much to our surprise the doctors sent me home Sunday morning so we had a great time visiting with Terilyn, Mark and Mackenzie on Sunday afternoon and Monday morning before they had to hit the road to visit a few more colleges that Mackenzie was interested in. We did not get to see Zachary who had a summer job or Nathanial who was attending a soccer camp, but maybe we will see them in a future road trip. I have lost a lot of weight and have to be careful when out in public to be sure my belt is cinched up tight to keep my pants from slipping down. I am being weaned off of many of the pills and hope that will allow me to regain some of my muscle and strength that seems to have left my body. I get around slowly and usually use a cane since my strength and balance are somewhat compromised. It is nice to be down to only two visits to the clinic a week and we look forward to some diet restrictions to be lifted as well, as I pass the 60 day mark of the transplant. We have had to avoid crowds which include restaurants for far too long. We had two more visits to the clinic during the week and then had a short but wonderful visit with Carol and Lou Brewer for lunch on Saturday as they passed through with their granddaughter, headed to Olympia, Washington to visit their son and family. Our friendship with them goes back to high school days for Nancy, and our wedding for Ray (45 years ago as of June 18!).