Time to "Relax"

Today I decided to take the "day off". Courtney and I were at the hospital Sat and Sun from 9-9. I ALWAYS tell Courtney she should stay home and do other things, but she refuses, so I've given up the fight. After two back-to-back 12 hour days, I decided to ask Nathan to spend the day with Mike so that I could unwind and spend some time with Courtney and Brandon. In my heart, I KNOW that Mike would agree with my decision.

Yesterday the GI doctor came in and saw Mike eat for himself. Previously, the resident had ordered a swallow test, but the GI doctor cancelled it based on what I had told him. Yesterday he was able to see for himself that Mike takes the food, "chews" it and then swallows without incident. It's always after the fact that Mike gets gassy and then it becomes a problem. He indicated that they will most likely do an endoscopy, this way they can see for sure what, if anything, is going on down there. We love this doctor, he "gets it".

While it is ALWAYS heartbreaking to leave Mike at night, it has gotten a little easier. I guess this is what happens after the 6th hospital stay in a few years. Once I get to meet the nurses and they know our situation, for the most part, they seem to be very understanding and caring. This hospital stay, they also arranged for Mike to have a "one to one" from 9pm-9am when we're not there. That ALONE makes me rest easy. The fact that he has someone with him at ALL TIMES is comforting.

I look forward to "relaxing" today with the kids. We're going to the movies and then we're going to BBQ. I'm also going to plant some flowers I got about 2 weeks ago. After all is finished, we will go the hospital and see Mike.

Happy Memorial Day and God Bless Our Troops.