Surgery #12 is tomorrow October 14th 2013

Hi everyone - remember me - Sherry the Blogger.  

I hear I'm a blogger and I didn't realize I even had it in me to do this.  I really enjoy keeping everyone updated on MC's progress, but I will admit, I took a week off and it was a much needed vacation.  :-)   I'm BACK!!!  Feeling a little more refreshed. 

MC, as you can see from his photos, is doing pretty darn good.  On the positive side:  It's been 2 weeks since his skin graft and it is 95% healed.  Looks amazing.  His H&H blood counts are coming UP. His energy level and even his appetite has increase slightly.  He's also claiming "I want to go home".  These are all positive markers.   On the not so great side:  Mike is still pretty weak.  His foot needs A LOT of healing and he has another surgery scheduled for tomorrow morning at 11:30.  Surgeries also set him back a little bit.  We estimate his weight loss to be about 50lbs.  The hard way!!!  OUCH.  He is working hard to get plenty of protein in his daily diet and also making healthy choices.  

Overall, MC is looking and feeling so much better than he was even a week ago.  He's even dressed! 

On the fun side of things, Mike has had so many visitors.  I manage to capture a photo if I'm there when the visitors are there, but I just can't seem to turn Mike into a Photo Journalist.  :-)  So I have missed photos of so many of his wonderful friends that have come by to see him.  Too many to even remember who they are.  I was in yesterday and managed to grab some new shots.  Here we go...

Ed and Ann stopped in after waiting in the Family Lounge for PT to finish with Mike.  They had a wonderful visit and they did a lot of reminiscing. 

Next JR and Stephanie rolled in.  M&M's and a People magazine - what more could you ask for.  While they were visiting, Mike's Nurse came in to do a dressing change.  Stephanie had a tough time with it.  I guess I'm just used to how it all looks.  

Mike is VERY GOOD at telling each Nurse (new ones all the time) how to change the dressing on his foot.  Here he is raising his foot up with his chair hoist.  They have gotten very creative when it comes to getting proper and easy access to his foot. 

Once the bandages are off, ON they go again.   Mike usually has to tell them how to get all the bandages to fit.  It's also the Project Manager in him.  I think he feels like he's at work and he feels very engaged in this, his own project.  After all he is very invested in the outcome. 

After Julie finished the Gonzales Family came by again.  This time with a surprise visitor, their son Alex was home from school for the weekend.  

I wasn't there this morning when Doc Dustin came in to look at Mike's foot but I did get to listen in on Mike's speaker phone while he assessed the foot.   Dustin was representing the Frome and the Gellman Team.  Word from Dustin is that everything looks great.  There is a lot of swelling but due to the fact that the skin (now Mike's skin) on the foot is taking so well, that seepage and drainage is not occurring. The swelling will go down over time.  We could only hope.  

Tomorrow is surgery #12.  Dr. Gellman will be putting wires through Mike's heel bone via a small drill.  Once these wires are in place he should be able to begin to add weight to the foot plate on the bottom of the frame.  That's the idea!  Dr. Frome will most likely be there too and there may be a reason (or not) to take a little more skin from Mike's leg due to the fact that there are a few places that didn't take during the original skin graft 2 weeks ago. 

That's it for now - will keep you update after surgery tomorrow.  

Big hugs from the S&M couple. 

We love you and thank you for ALL the support that keeps coming Mikes way. 

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