April 16, 2011 - A short visit to the O.R.

Jason had a short procedure in the O.R. and it was a pretty simple procedure, where the doctor pretty much just needed to clean up a couple of things, and he was only there for about an hour. Once he was out it took a couple of hours for the medications they gave him to wear off. He was not put under General Anesthesia and we were pretty happy about that, and so was Jason. Between Bridgette, Mom and I we were were with Jason for a good part of the day, though we did give him some time to just sleep. The down side of the procedure today is that his temperature went up again, and it seems to be that way each time he goes into the O.R. They did check him for infection, and ran other blood work and didn't find any reason for him to have the fever. We were told that it would probably be gone by tomorrow, and even if it should still be around it will be greatly reduced.

They have begun taking more steps to get him off the narcotics and have him taking his medications orally. It seems to be working pretty good, as the number of machines controlling the different drips has been reduced. I know he is anxious to get things going with his physical therapy, while still understanding that he has some healing that needs to get done. His right hand is still very tender, and they are keeping it splinted as he really can't do much with that hand. However, his left hand is really doing well, and he holds his own drinks and is even learning to sign his name with a pen - He's right handed. We figure that by the time he is all healed he will be ambidextrous.

I haven't said much about the weather, since starting this blog, so I thought I'd mention it now, since today has been pretty interesting. Since being here we have had snow, cold days, rainy days, clear and cold days, and even clear and hot days. Today, however, we had some pretty good thunderstorms and it rained quite a bit. I guess this is typical of the spring weather here and the trees are all starting to sprout their leaves, with a bunch of them with blossoms, especially the cherry trees. Something else I haven't mentioned much, is the amount of construction that is going on. The ICU that Jason is staying in was only two months old when he first got here, and the rest of the campus is still being worked on. There is this parking garage very near that is probably one of the largest that I have ever seen. I think it is going to have 12 levels, though they are not done building it yet, so it could go higher, but not likely. One of the biggest complaints around here is the lack of parking, so everyone is anxious to see it open. The reason for all the construction is that Walter Reed Medical Center is being transferred here, and is supposed to be all done in a matter of a few months.

Right now Bridgette is over saying, "Good Night," to Jason, and we're with the girls. Linda and I got a chance to say the same earlier. So, with that I will be signing off the blog tonight. I want to thank you, for all the support and prayers. Please continue to pray for all of us, and especially for Jason and the other Marines and the military men and women who are defending our rights. Take care and God Bless.