Friday, March 9, 2012

On The Road To

Grandpa's Recovery

Grandpa is 82 today and he has lots to celebrate!
God intervened when the doctors did not know quite what to do and to make a long story short here are the pics in sequence.....

We all waited patiently {Grandpa was in ICU} and the news was that he had stopped breathing while they tried to do a Heart Cath on him. But we had previously prayed for God's hand upon the doctor's hand during this procedure.

It took a few hours for Grandpa to wake but he was breathing on his own. They still did not know exactly what was wrong and/or how to deal with the problem.We found out later that that evening he had suffered a mild heart attack.  He was still having difficulty with his breathing which was why he was here to begin with. A few days had passed. We visited with cousins for family support.



Hung out at the hospital with Grandma and Grandpa too. He joked and laughed with us. We even snuck him some sweet treats.

He had some oxygen helping him to breathe. And he was really tired and not so hungry {not like Grandpa Petty} but the doctors said he was better. So we headed back to Tallahassee once we were certain of this. Only a few days had passed  when we got the call that Grandpa had to once again undergo a Heart Cath; since the doctors just did not know why he was still having trouble breathing. Grandpa Petty did not want another Heart Cath since the last one seemed to be so traumatic and we think may have even triggered the heart attack. But the doctors convinced him to do it this time through his arm and not his leg. They also told him he was a very sick man which was confusing since the last report was that he was doing better. We were packed and heading back to Jacksonville to be there with him through this time.


 While on the way to Jacksonville we booked a hotel through Hotels.com and though it was not what the website portrayed we made the best of it.

GROSS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
But we were together (missing Gabe terribly~he stayed back in Tally for school) and we made the best of it.
And we were with Grandpa!


 And we were laughing and joking and smiling. In the above pic he was telling Meggie the story of how he would pull her daddy's loose teeth with a string when he was little ~ I don't think she liked the thought of this since she has two new loose teeth.

The new news:
The attempt to perform Grandpa's Heart Cath was not successful. (God knew what did/did not need to be) They could not get his arm straight enough nor could they get a vein. So it was back to the drawing board. What would they do? They did it in a less invasive way. Did you know that you can drink a liquid and they can bring a big machine into your room and take pictures of your heart and all of the valves??? Duh, really, why did they not do this to begin with??

The newer news:
Grandpa needed to have fluid removed from his lungs and a defibrillator put in to help in case of another heart attack. They removed almost a full liter of fluid and Grandpa was feeling so much better!! They never did the defibrillator and guess what????
Even better news:
Grandpa was getting released to go home!!
And we were able to stay with him and Grandma a few days to be sure he settled in and was comfy. He only needs oxygen sometimes (they told him he would need it the remainder of his life ~ every day ~ all day)

Meggie got to visit her friend that lives next door to Grandma and Grandpa; his name is Carl. I was so happy she could run and play and get some kiddo energy out. She told Grandma that she was missing things at home but that being with family was more important to her than anything else. (that's my girl)



Look how he is looking at her ~ sweet!

Fell asleep in Grandma's arms ~ Love


 Night was falling and it was time to turn it. We were planning to return to Tally in the morning BUT

YUP ~ NOT ONE BUT TWO FLATS on the new mini van! God must have wanted us to stay a while. 

It was Sunday and we were out in the middle of nowhere land (Florahome) bet you never heard of it. So, we waited until Monday morning and drove to the Kia dealership for a new tire.

They were great and got us on our way! 

That was Monday and today is Friday ~ Grandpa's 82nd birthday. We called him and sang to him. We are so thankful for him each day!! I thank God that HE was in control of it all. Grandpa's report was a good one today!! The doctor told him his heart was LOOKING GOOD!!

John 10:10
For I have come to give you life more abundantly.

Thank YOU Jesus!