MIA

Well hello!  It has certainly been a while!  I wish I could say that my absence has been full of crafty fun, but unfortunately it hasn't.

Work slammed me pretty hard in the last half of the year and then we were slammed with personal problems.  My husband's cancer came out of remission and attacked his adrenal glands.  We found out over Thanksgiving and my husband was put on medicine to help until his surgery to remove the glands.  Life certainly has not been easy since November!  Husband's med's made him continually feel sick which impacted him both at work and at home.  Luckily, his work was very understanding and lightened his work load significantly so on days that he just couldn't make it in, he was able to work a bit at home.  He wasn't allowed to do anything physical (not even take out the garbage- I know!) and that hit him hard since we are relatively active people.  His surgery was the first week in February and I am not exaggerating when I say that it was the worst 2 days of my life.  It lasted 7 hours, finally finishing up at 11pm.  The glands were larger than expected (though they were expecting quite large) and they had to "scrape" them off of other organs because they had essentially cemented together.  One was the size of a cantaloupe and the other a volleyball.  How they fit in his body, I will never know.

He was in the ICU afterwards on a respirator and looked like nothing I have ever seen.  We weren't allowed to stay at the hospital (unless we sat by the exit doors in the lobby), so we were sent home.  Thankfully, the nurse did let me stay for a couple of hours until he settled down enough to sleep, so I got home around 4 that morning.  I was back shortly after and eventually he was put in a specialty unit where he stayed for 8 days, 7 of those he wasn't allowed to eat.  The staff let me stay with him, probably more for their own sake than for my own since he needed something every 45 minutes.  He couldn't even move his arms to reach the mouth swabs.  Sleep was just not an option.  On the fourth day I was so tired that I crashed between 12 and 3 that night and did not hear him calling my name.  I was so freaked out that I couldn't hear him I didn't sleep for the rest of the night.  It was nothing I was expecting.

Richard's right gland (1.75 lbs)

When he came home it was a bit better, mostly at night.  He was only up a few times and because he wasn't hooked up to 4 different machines, it was much quieter and I could hear him a lot easier.  He was using a walker for a couple of weeks and needed to nap after each time he would get up and move, but it now significantly better.  He can go up and down stairs and walk continuously for 40 minutes, walker-free.  His incision is finally healing (it is about a 12" incision from his rib cage vertically to just past his belly button) and we are in the stages of adjusting his medicine.  The doctors believed they got everything during the surgery and we had a few check-up appointments and haven't seen any signs.  They are concerned that it will attack his para-thyroid, but there is nothing to do but wait.  I am hoping by summer he can ride his jet skiis, but I am doubtful.  He has not gotten the ok to lift anything heavier than a milk jug, so I know it will still be a long way to go.

I thought that I would be able to start making a string quilt that has been on the books after I moved him home, but there was just no time.  I think soon it will be started, though!  My house is looking back to normal after appearing to be a pseudo-hospital with mountains of gauze and medical tape, oddly arranged furniture and walking aids.  I did have a baby shower last weekend and I managed to make a little minky blanket.  It was super fast and easy, but I think that a baby will love it.  I made it the week before the surgery when Richard was at work one day and I was home.  I am sure glad that I did because I would have never gotten it done otherwise.

I hope that your near-year has been full of happiness and good tidings!  Perhaps the next time you hear from it won't be too long!