June 11 - the final update

Well, this will probably be the final update from me. I am going to try to get Dick to put a final note out here but if you know Dick that will probably be impossible. Although, he does appreciate all those who followed the blog he is not much for writing. I just wanted to let you know that he has had his G-tube removed as of Tuesday June 9th. It was a little painful and for a little while he thought he was going to have to make a trip back to Florida to have it removed since no one here had ever seen the type that had been inserted in him. But in the end they were able to remove it successfully and he is now free of all medical apparatus and free of all memory of the accident. He is back to riding and walking up to three miles a day. He has had a long journey, as have we, but we are all thankful for such a wonderful outcome and a terrible lesson learned. Thank you for all your prayers, cards, calls, well wishes and everything else that brought him through and back home. He is that same ole Dick that we started out with on the ride in Florida on that sunny day in February.....no worse for the wear.

May 28 - Another stone unturned

Yep - it's not like he hasn't been through enough. He had to go back to the hospital on Sunday (May 24) . He had another kidney stone episode. He had pain on Saturday and woke with quite a bit of pain on Sunday, so much so that he had Mike take him to the emergence room. He was sent home on Monday late afternoon on pain medication. He is waiting to find out what the will do for this stone. He has a 6mm stone about the same place he had the last one and he has another stone in his kidney that they saw on the ct scan. He is still hoping to go on the Relay for Life ride this Saturday but the pain medication may keep him from riding. Keep your fingers crossed that he is able to pass this stone before Saturday and he continues on his road to riding and recuperation.

May 23 - Back on two wheels

Dick got his bike back from being repaired and is back on the road. He has never ever thought of quit riding. But he has decided that it will be a safer ride with a helmet from now on. Jer and I can't wait to get back on the road with him. Our first ride together will be on May 30 when we will do a Relay for Life ride starting and ending in Morton.

He still has that G-tube and it makes him uncomfortable because it stays sore but he is dealing with it but he only has a little over 2 weeks before it comes out.

Smooth roads ahead, Uncle Dick. And remember...Catching a yellow jacket in your shirt sleeve doing 70 mph can double your vocabulary.

May 19 - 64 - what a sweet number

On May 16 Dick turned 64. Most people wouldn't think this is such a big deal but in this family it is a great big deal. Not only did Dick beat the odds when he made such an amazing recovery but he has also beat the odds of turning 64. You see Dick is the first one in his immediate family to make it past 63. His dad (Harley), his mom (Doris), his brother (Denny) and even his wife (Marianne) all passed away before their 63rd birthday. He is the first and it was a very big deal. He talked about it long before the accident how he would be the first.He came close to joining the others but he beat the odds and we are all so greatful to have him home and doing so well. Happy Birthday Uncle Dick and many more!

May 10 - Update

Just a quick note to let you know that Dick's lithotripsy was a success. He went through is with out a hitch. He was a little nauseous that day but other than that everything is fine.

May 6 - He Has Wheels

Hi everyone. I just wanted to let you know that Dick went to the doctor on Tuesday and they have given him the ok to drive. He is a free man of the open road again and is taking advantage of it. He has gone to a couple of B's ball games which I know he has missed and Braden is glad he is back in the stands. The doctor also has taken him off of all but 2 of his many medications. He still has to take one pill until he has his kidney surgery on Thursday morning (5/7) and he needs to stay on one for his stomach. He even was taken off of his cholesterol medication since he has lost weight. He will be going back to his doctor at a later date for a complete physical but he wants to get the last couple of things taken care of (kidney stone surgery and g-tube removal) first before he gets his final physical.

He still has a few weeks before he can have the G-tube removed and it is still his biggest source of discomfort. He has done very well with it though and when he gets his dressings changed he has become quite the pro at opening the valve and inserting the syringe tube for the water flush. He does it all so casually now. I teased him about being so use to his tube he would probably miss it when it is gone he said that is the last thing he wants to get use to.

His lithotripsy is scheduled for 6:00A tomorrow. It should only take a few hours and it will be done as outpatient. He again has missed is Diet Squirt since he has not been able to have any soda since his kidney stone problem. He has had to drink a lot of water and if you know Dick very well that is his last choice of beverage.

So as you can see he still has a few things to work through but he is gaining stamina and doing very well. I will keep you posted after his lithotripsy. Bless to you all for hanging in there with his journey

April 29 - Update

For those of you still checking in, I wanted to let you know that Dick is doing well. He went to the eye doctor the other day and they say his eye is fine. He has a little double vision only when he looks out the corner of his eye to the far left but they say even that should eventually go away. He is back to wearing his contact and he can read the paper with it again although he thinks he might need to get it increased just a little. (that might just be his age creeping up, he will have a birthday next month)

He has increased his daily walks from once around the block twice a day to twice around the block two times a day and hopes to soon be driving. He has been busy with the grand kids which he has enjoyed tremendously, helping Avery ride her bike, pushing Brock on the swings, playing catch with Braden and keeping up with Brooklyn and Carson.

A home health care nurse visits once a week and has given him good reports each visit. She is impressed with his progress (who'd have guessed).

He still has to go through his lithotripsy and have that irritating g-tube removed but these will be a cake walk for him. So as you can see his recovery is still ongoing but it is proceeding in the right direction. Slower than he would want but that is to be expected the overachiever that he is.
Check back. Updates will be posted occasionally as there is more to report.