Plans are made to be changed.

It has been a fast and hard week.  I have not been sleeping well and am exhausted.  I feel like if I get still and half way comfortable I can go to sleep.

To top all this, for some reason my skin is crawling.  This is never a good sign.  I'm not going to say I am psychic but usually when my skin crawls a wheel comes off somewhere.  I also have the fever blisters to prove it!

So, let's catch up.

A week ago Pat went to Huntsville to keep Chloe and Carson while Stephanie went to a conference.  On Saturday, Nanny Pat and Stephanie decided to take the kids bowling.  As I understand it, Nanny Pat's first time up to bowl the ball wouldn't come off her thumb, propelling her across the foul line and onto the waxed, very slick bowling lane.  She promptly fell, breaking her right arm just below the ball joint of her shoulder and lacerating her thumb, needing three stitches.

I was in Lubbock for the afternoon when all of this happened and when I got home I learned about it through a phone call with Joni.  Obviously Memama had already heard it because she kept asking me, "Did Pat break her arm?"  After telling her numerous times that I had heard the same thing Memama asked me "What in the world was Pat doing bowling?"

I decided to spin it and told Memama that Pat was taking Stephanie's spot on the women's church bowling league and the Church of Christ was bowling against the Presbyterian's.  After Pat fell and broke her arm, the CoC women had to forfeit to the other team.

For some reason Memama could remember this, even though she seriously suspected it was majorly embellished.

Tuesday Memama had an appointment with her cardiologist.  In October I had taken her and they told us in February we would be scheduling a pacemaker replacement.  We went to the appointment expecting to schedule a date.  After a two hour wait we saw the doctor.  He listened to her heart and expressed his displeasure at her pulse rate of 140 beats a minute.  He began to do some tests on her pacemaker and found that the battery was too weak to do any diagnostic testing.  He asked if we could have the pacemaker procedure done on Friday.  We said yes.  As he began to leave the room he decided to do an EKG.  He looked at the print out and told us, "Let's do this sooner rather than later.  Can you be here in the morning?"

So we were scheduled for an 8 am. procedure which meant we had to be at the hospital by 6 which meant we were going to have a very early morning.  We had a late lunch with Georgiana at Abuello's and talked about possibly staying the night there, but even if we did we would still have to drive to Roscoe to pick up our things.

When we arrived home we talked about it and Memama told me "You decide what we need to do."  I thought and thought, wondering how Memama would do in a strange house and wondering how Memama would do with Daisy and Dexter and the doggie gates that go across some of the doors to limit the dogs access to the whole house.  I finally decided we would just stay at Roscoe.

I woke at 3, even though I had my alarm set for 4:15.  At 4:15 I woke Memama.  We left the house at 5, were at the hospital before 6 and got checked in.  In short order we were taken back, then they sent me to the waiting area before realizing they needed me to help Memama answer some of the questions plus I had the medicine lock box with her prescription information.  Stevie showed up and then Jani arrived just prior to them taking Memama to the back.  The doctor had been by and had some stuff going on in nuclear medicine, so he was late in making the 8 am start time.

Finally they called and told me the procedure was underway and she was doing very well.  In about thirty minutes the called and said they were through and her pulse was 8 and she was being returned to day surgery recovery.  We were allowed back to see her and then they asked us to leave for at lest an hour to allow her to rest and then in the second hour they would get her up and as soon as she was solid on her feet she could go home.

I ran to Sam's and quickly worked down my list.  By the time I loaded the car, I had been gone an hour and five minutes.  I headed back to the hospital and walked in to Memama's cubicle just as they were unhooking her from the telemetry and removing her IV.  It was perfect timing as I had her bag of clothes and her purse and glasses.  Stevie arrived again and came on back to where Memama was.  The nurse told me to pull the car around while she helped Memama dress.  As we were waiting, Jani arrived, then the nurse came out rolling Memama down the ramp right up to the car door.  Jani got her settled in the car and hooked her seat belt.  Good byes were said quickly and we hit the road.

We did go through the car wash and I did stop and buy Memama and I some Nikki's Swirl Shop Frozen Yogurt.  Memama stretched her yogurt all the way home.

Memama got her gownie on and settled in.  She is doing very well.

Memama's pacemaker is actually more of a regulator.  It is in place to slow down her heart and keep it from fluttering.  (When it flutters it isn't moving much blood and she feels rotten).  When the doctor had the new pacemaker in place he used a "blast" therapy to get the pacemaker ahead of her heart at 140 beats per minute, then he programmed the pacemaker to slow it down to where he wanted it.  By the time she returned to her bed in recovery she was at 60 beats a minute resting.  This is going to have to make her feel better.

Thanks to all of you who checked on her and lifted her in your prayers.  If  your were omitted from the updates I am sorry and assure you is was not intentional.  The list was quite extensive.

Who is ready for a weekend!

Happy Valentines!

FATHER, thank YOU for seeing Memama through this procedure, I ask that you continue to be with her and strengthen her.  I lift up Pat for YOUR gifts of healing and comfort.  FATHER there is so much swirling about us.  Keep us focused on YOU and let us know that YOU are in control.