DAY ONE OF MEDICAL APPOINTMENTS...

Hi Friends,

I'm typing this in the dark, camped out in Nate and Isaac's room. I'm on the floor between their beds, because they were talking and not going to sleep. And it's late, and they need to sleep. So, hopefully this will help and I won't make too many mistakes in the dark.

Today started out with a slight rain, and then we even had some thunder and lightning. I had to medicate poor, old Bingo because he was freaking out. One percocet and he's under control. He's a huge old chocolate lab and he's so scared of thunderstorms that for some reason he tries to jump up on things -- think a 100 lb dog up on the kitchen countertops. It just doesn't work for me.

Anyway, after getting the kids going and medicating the dog -- my home nurse, Alice, came. She changed my PICC line dressing and drew blood for all the labs. They're supposed to be done STAT and be ready for the doctors tomorrow. Alice is very nice and even takes the time to explain everything she does to my kids who are very interested. It's kind of like I'm their science/health lesson once a week when she shows up.

We managed to homeschool after that until about 1:30 when Annie arrived. She nicely volunteered (or maybe was drafted, I'm not sure!) to take me to see Dr. Lin in Thousand Oaks. He is the pain management doctor -- because now I apparently need a doctor just for pain management. Anyway, it's definitely a pain, because I can't drive at all due to meds and the lupus flare -- I am very very shaky again! But I am blessed with people who shuttle me wherever I go and even make it fun!!!

We left early for Thousand Oaks since it was raining and put Molly in charge of the boys. She had an easy time of it, though -- because soon enough Matthew called and invited them both over to his house.

My doctor's visit went well. Dr. Lin is the one of the doctors that I saw while in the hospital, so I didn't have to repeat my whole story to him and that was nice. He upped my Dilaudid to 4mg every 4 hours (for short-term pain relief) and put me back on the Fentanyl patch (you change it every 3 days) for long-term pain relief. They're both opiates, but I've used them in the past without problems -- so hopefully, they will get the pain under control until this flare subsides -- or maybe we someday (over the rainbow) will eventually get the lupus into remission. So, I'm not happy about opiates, but glad for pain relief and a responsible doctor to prescribe them. It was an insurance nightmare, however, because he's out of our network! And I'm not even going to get into that story tonight -- because it's too late!

After the doctor's visit, we hit the pharmacy to pick up the new meds. We stopped at McDonald's for a late lunch. And then I ran a few errands with Annie. It was quite honestly, just nice to get out of the house. We called to check on the kids, who were doing just fine without us. Cameron was home by then and had everything well under control. I am very proud of how responsible he and Molly are with the younger ones!

Bill ended up beating us home, and when we got there he was cooking dinner -- butternut squash soup, salad, and croissants. Annie and I had stopped to pick up dessert and brought caramel apples from the Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory. Thanks, Annie!

We ate dinner and hung out with the kids. Annie (or should I say Florence Nightingale) drove back to Simi to bandage her Dad's ear. He just had a procedure done and needs her help, too. That's another long story that I won't get into to. But she's coming back tonight, and she will spend the night.

Tomorrow, Bill and I need to leave at 7:15 for UCLA, so Annie will take Cameron to school and then hang out with the kids until we get back. At that point, Bill needs to go to work and Annie will take me to my 5:00 appointment with Dr. Cohen after picking up Cam from school. At least that's the tentative plan, I think!

It'll be interesting to see what all the doctors decide on tomorrow regarding my treatment plan. Please pray for God's hand to guide them. And pray for Bill and I to have clarity of mind regarding the decisions we need to make!

Much Love,
Michele

P.S.--Cam had fun sociology homework tonight and I got to help him. He was the "emporer of his own kingdom in the middle ages" and had to decide on coming-of-age rituals for the men and women there. He decided that at age 16, the boys would be dropped off in the wilderness for a 5 day reflection period. They would need to use that time to decide on their future jobs and purpose. They would have to live off the land and find their way home, bringing him a token to represent what they learned. The girls (being social beings) at 16 were to spend 5 days with the village women elders, learning to take care of children and to cook. They each were to create their own unique dish in a cooking contest, which he would judge. Then they were to plan a banquet for the men's homecoming. At that homecoming, they would get to pick a husband! I think Cam would make a great emporer. Now, we'll see what his sociology teacher thinks :-)