Friday, January 25, 2008



Nothing much is going on. Neal is doing fine. We had a night of really high blood pressure and a night of a little vomiting, but have made it through. The worst part has been that our cable is out. I have become quite the cable guy and was able to rig it so that we could have cable or internet, but not both at the same time. But as of right now it has been fixed thanks to the real cable guy. According to him he really set us up. Whatever! Unless my bill is reduced 50% and I have every channel imaginable, I still feel ripped off. Neal is still not moving around much. We got his labs back from yesterday and all looks well. The dogs have been great. I put a blanket in the kitchen for them and they have been sleeping there.



Ryan is recovering as well. Sounds like the biggest issue for him is tiring out easily. From what I have read, this is pretty common. I am hoping to make it over to their place this weekend to see them.

Tuesday, January 22, 2008

Neal is home. The drive home during rush hour made me second guess if it was too early for him to be going home, but he made it. I am very nervous having him home as I always am his first day home. It is always a day to early in my opinion. I am not a trained nurse and do not try to be one. I will spend his first night home watching him breath for 8 hours. Now it is a challenge to keep Tippy and Luke away from him. Those of you that know our dogs realize this will be impossible. Right now I have Tippy muzzled and both of them locked out of the living room by a child's gate. We will see how long this lasts, I am guessing I will be working the rest of the week locked up in our bedroom with the dogs. We will not have to venture out again until Thursday for blood work. Hopefully that ride is smoother.

I did not really get to catch up with Ryan and Leslie. All I know is that they spent a good hour and a half with a writer from The Columbus Dispatch. The only thing that sticks out is that Leslie was not in our wedding! Neal and I will never live this down or the fact that Matt was not in our wedding. I have accepted that I will be taking crap for this the rest of my life. Perhaps Neal and I will renew our vows and have these two front and center wearing the nicest of clothes to steal our thunder. Once Neal is up to it we will have the reporter over to our house.

Thank you for all of the posts, we appreciate them.

Monday, January 21, 2008

There isn't a person anywhere who isn't capable of doing more than he thinks he can.

I took the title quote from another blog I read. It is so true! Neal was in quite a bit of pain last night, but I believe they now have it under control. He was starting to not make sense and laugh in his sleep, but it has worn off since. He will be getting his last dose of medicine to kill off his T-cells tonight. So far he has had no reaction. Considering the last time he had it this is wonderful news. The other good news regard the cost of prescriptions. Luckily I put Neal on my insurance because they cover much better. From what I can read it will only be $270 for 3 months supply of his new medicines.

Ryan is doing good. He is going to be playing some Wii today. I think he is progressing a little slower than he anticipated, but he did not know what to anticipate. Neal has been through many major surgeries, so he know what to expect. He was a healthy man going into surgery, therefore I would assume this is a shock to his system. I am sure by the end of the week he will be in much better shape. He is getting around just fine on his own. As the guys keep saying whatever the doctors say is normal may not apply to them. For some reason, nothing is ever normal around us!

Who is out there? We like to hear comments, so please post or at least let us know you are out there. I never did figure out my counter.

I am went back to work this week until Neal comes home so anyone that is healthy can visit. He is still pretty tired, so he may doze off.

"I have heard there are troubles of more than one kind. Some come from ahead and some come from behind. But I've bought a big bat. I'm all ready you see. Now my troubles are going to have troubles with me!"
--Dr. Seuss

Sunday, January 20, 2008

Neal is still in pain and is not moving around quite as much as he should, but by tomorrow I am sure he will be more comfortable. He did get his catheter out today, which is a step in the right direction. His inputs and outputs are looking great. He should be coming home on Tuesday. His numbers continue to look great. I cannot tell you how many bananas he has eaten. We requested a consult with a Neurologist and he came in today. Unfortunately they will not clear him to drive until early April.

Ryan is doing well. He is comfortable in his house. He seems to be getting around pretty well. I was able to snatch him another pair of non-stick socks to wear around the house. His appetite is slow to come back, but hey, it is the Neal Kothe diet. Nothing like ice water. Connor is back at home with his parents and doing well.

We got a call from 10tv news today. I will post when/if they do a story, but they are asking when they can meet with the guys. Hopefully they can inspire more people to be organ donors.