Last night's sleep was another series of two hour stints like the previous nights. Marita was awake an hour earlier at about 8:30am. I persuaded her to stay in bed to allow me time to got ready. We were bathed, dressed and fed by 10am. That has been the goal so far. Breakfast was scramble eggs, sausage and toasted muffins. Marita's appetite is holding up pretty well.
Glenda came at 10:30 for Marita's massage session. Vanessa and Dan have been providing this comforting therapy since August. Marita spent an hour or so tuning out while I was able to catch up on some phone calls.
We finished off Jeanne's Italian wedding soup for lunch.
Later Lynne came by with pastitsio for dinner. She was kind enough to sit with Marita and hold her hands. She also covered for me while I went to exchange walkers for Marita at the hospital. It's a long story but the gist is that Marita was fitted for a walker but it disappeared from her room. We made a stink about it and were sent home with the wrong size. Additional stink finally yielded a replacement.
When I returned Bob and Shelley had showed up to cheer Marita. They also helped calm Marita during a pain breakthrough.
Gwen and Shelley L. came after they left and caught Marita up on happenings at CT Reed and other events.
Deniz came to give Marita another back massage.

Such a Sad Day

We rose today to the saddest, most stunning news. Scott Hunter passed away last night. Marita's brother Joe had been with us since Tuesday and had returned last evening to New York. He was totally exhausted when he got home. Scott was complaining of chest pain and had to be taken to the ER by ambulance. Tragically, it was a heart attack. He passed away at the hospital.
Joseph, this is more sadness than we can bear. We love you. We pray for you and Scott. We wish we could hold you in our arms, just as we did yesterday and all through the week.

Marita rested well overnight. Again, she slept late. The routine now is that I get up and get ready for the day; I wake her for either bathing or medications; she gets dressed and we have breakfast. We try to get this done by 10am.

Today Kathy came by with sandwiches and energy-rich smoothies. Then Thelma and Louise stopped by to visit. They also did a little walking around the floor with Marita.

Sherry came in early afternoon to check on the medications. We are waiting for some longlasting pain meds to replace what we were discharged with. Sherry also did a plan for the home care aide who will come in twice each week starting tomorrow.

We finished off Jeanne's Italian Wedding soup along with some cookies, fruit and carrot cake for a quick snack. Marita is supposed to do short, frequent meals so the great variety of food we have accumulated since Thursday will allow some variety.

Adrian covered while I went out for a haircut. That was also their signal to start a Star Trek marathon. Beam me out of the room for that. I had it cut pretty short so it won't need any attention for awhile. Joe advised that I not do the bald thing. It just isn't me and it might freak Marita.

For dinner we made a dent in the Chicken Noodle soup and casserole provided by June. We are eating well and the cupboard remains full.

We slept well again last night. Marita was able to get back to sleep quickly after rising a few times. She was zonked from 6-10am. Now that I am totally on her schedule the challenge is to catch naps during the day.
Joe prepared breakfast again. We had scrambled eggs, blueberry muffins and a side of the fruits Ann and Henry sent. Tom and Halie stopped over on the way to signing the lease to their new apartment on Capitol Hill. They are staying with Dan, Vanessa and the kids. Lots of cheer for the lady today.
Then a couple of our longest (oldest?) friends Jim and Claudia came all the way from Warrenton to spend a few hours holding us in hand. Marita had a afternoon of massage from Dan and then Claudia.
This evening Rima brought us another edition of the tasty Moroccan lamb stew she brought us in January. We all enjoyed multiple servings and look forward to a mini-taste later in the week. Deniz joined us for dinner and to give Marita more massage while we caught up on the shows we missed during the hospital sojourn.

Other important events of the day:

Yesterday was a long day with lots on our plate so we slept later this morning. Joe made cinnamon pancakes with bacon and sausage for Marita. She polished them off eagerly. Apparently we don't have to rely on cream of wheat.
Julie stopped by to say hello and offer warmth and support.
Dan and Siu came later in the afternoon. They brought a delicious butternut squash soup which we polished off for dinner. Joe and I rustled up some barbequed chicken legs and hash brown potatoes. Deniz joined us for dinner.
Marita ate pretty well all day and was able to nod off several times. She gets antsy when she sits too much so we need all the help we can get to walk her around the house.

Very busy day today. This was our first day without the support of Holy Cross Hospital, and a test of how well we would manage. Joe stayed over instead of going back to his hotel. He handled getting coffee and breakfast ready while I helped Marita bathe and dress. Then we negotiated the maze of medications. Marita had a good appetite and was soon busting around the place testing her walker skills.

Lots of nice packages came in the mail, via FEDEX and store deliveries. Thanks to my co-workers at the Academies it looks like we have candy from here to Halloween. The odds and ends were also cute. Ann and Henry sent a lovely fruit bouquet from Edible Arrangements. For dinner Linda and Jack graciously provided pies from Pie Gourmet.

We also had our first encounter with home hospice today. We met Sherry and Chaya, our nurse and social worker. They explained the various kinds of help that we can access during the next few months. Sherry will be very tuned in to pain issues and how we handle all medications. Chaya will be our counsel and assist our access to other social services.

D-Day

Well, here we go. Today is discharge day. Together we start a new passage unlike any we have encountered before. I hope we are up to it.
It's noontime. Marita had her bath and I did her hair. This has been one of her daily highlights at the hospital. Unfortunately, the water was running a little cooler than she likes.
Marita wants to leave sometime after 2pm so we are not rushing off. We need to choose an outfit to wear home, get all the new meds, get the word out.
Of course, Marita is worried. Worried about today, tomorrow, next week, next month and on and on.

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We left the hospital about 4pm as rain began to fall. When we opened her walker we discovered that it was too short. That will need immediate attention because the lady wants to amble.

We had fajitas for dinner. We hope Marita can keep up her appetite. We also took time to sort out her new pile of meds.

Good News

We just got word of the results of Marita's second spinal tap.
Knock on wood, they did not find atypical, ie. cancer, cells in the sample. Even though this is a split decision on the spinal fluid tests it gives us hope.
We expect her to remain in the hospital the rest of today and be released to home Thursday. Arrangements for home hospice are in progress.
Thank you for all your expressions of love and support.

We are still waiting on the results of Monday's spinal tap. It looks like we can expect them tomorrow. Release is dependent on getting the results and developing the plan for home care.
Marita is doing her walks and stretches. Arlene came by this afternoon to visit. Brother Joe arrived later in the afternoon to help out. Jeanne W came this evening. Adrian, Joe, Dan and Rink rallied until bedtime.

Thursday 9/18, Marita had a spinal tap to follow up on the MRI she had the prior Friday. Problems were noted so she had a second spinal tap today to determine whether her breast cancer had spread to her spinal fluid.