Apologies

I am very sorry that it has been so long since I have written a post. I have been busy with my second job and haven't been getting to spend much time with Jon. I have been going over between 9:45 - 10:00pm. Sometimes he is awake and other times he is sleeping. One of my jobs is to pick out his clothes for the next day. I hold up the clean clothes, he tells me which he wants to wear the next day and then I put them out and put the others away. Sometimes thats all I do, if he is sleepy.

He is very anxious to get home. We were all hoping he would be home for Thanksgiving and that didn't happen. I was supposed to order a van for Thanksgiving and didn't get it ordered in time. I was in the middle of getting new insurance as I have a new (to me) vehicle! A family from church gave me a 1998 Century. It is nice not to have to worry about whether I will make it from point A to point B without breaking down. While the new insurance was being approved, the old insurance was liability only and I could not rent a van with liability only. When my insurance got straightened out, all the vans were rented. Jon was disappointed. He told Mom and the rest of us to go ahead and go to Toledo to the Slawson side for Thanksgiving, that he would be okay here. Dad spent all day with him so I felt better about not being with him. It ended up being a good day for all of us.

His throat is healing well from the trach being taken out. The hole in his belly is healing nicely from the feeding tube. The bed sore is starting to get smaller again. Each Wednesday Jon hopes that the wound vac will be taken off and each week they keep it on. Since they took it off before it was fully healed last time, I think they want to make sure it is healed before taking it off this time.

We are just waiting for Medicaid to approve a waiver we applied for clear back in July!!!!! The social worker keeps checking with Medicaid but we don't have an answer as to why it is taking so long. One of the problems I'm sure is that he is currently residing in Columbus so Franklin County is processing the paperwork but Mom resides in Defiance and that is where Jon will be. Part of the waiver includes money to help with making modifications to the current home (will not pay for an addition but will pay for equipment needed and putting in a bathroom in the current bedroom). The house will be inspected out of the Toledo office of Medicaid so the Columbus office needs to coordinate with the Toledo office to get everything done. We don't know if this is part of the holdup or what. We are all getting frustrated but especially Jon. He just wants to get home. He hasn't been getting any kind of therapy for quite a while now and so there's no medical reason or therapy reason to keep him in Columbus anymore. We are trying to get him to agree to go to Dodd hall before he leaves for Defiance but he just wants to get home so we are having a problem convincing him to go. The goal for all of us is to have him home in Defiance for Christmas. It can't be soon enough for Jon. He has an appointment with the Rehab Doctor at Dodd Hall on Wednesday. She will be his permanent Rehab Doctor, even when he goes home. We are hoping she can get things moving (not sure how though).

Dodd Hall not only offers therapy but training for the family, counseling, water therapy, electro therapy (don't remember the actual name) and driving school to see if he has the necessary skills to drive with adaptive equipment.

I am late getting over to see Jon. I have been having problems with the computer both at home and at Jon's. At Jon's the center does not have a registered security certificate and so my computer doesn't like to use the internet there. I have to change some settings and it hasn't been working right.

Jon says hi to everyone and hopes your Thanksgiving was good.

Please pray that Medicaid approves the waiver soon and that we can get Jon to Defiance before Christmas.

Blessings,

Barb

Bed Sore gets bigger

Jon finished with the antibiotic for the MRSA. They have scheduled an MRI to check the wound again as it is now getting wider as well as deeper. The MRI is scheduled for Thursday the 12th. He has been going to bed in between meals. The aides aren't very happy with all the extra getting up and laying down but there's not much that can be done. The Dr doesn't want him on the bedsore for very long so it limits the time in the chair. They still don't want him eating in bed even though he has a different bed. So Jon and the aides just have to adjust.

Jon has gained 5 lbs in one week and 8 pounds in 2 weeks. Mom is concerned about the weight gain and was wondering if Diabetes was a possibility (what she didn't know is that Jon has been eating a lot of candy since Halloween and has been supplementing his meals with what I bring in for my meals). Dad has diabetes and Mom is borderline so it is a legitimate concern. His blood test was 115 for 2 mornings in a row. The acceptable range is 80-120.

Jon is getting anxious for work to start on the house. Cousin Dean is working on a floor plan putting an addition on the back of the house. Some of Jon's contractor friends came over on Friday and is suggesting a 12 foot extension off the back. They are anxious to get started on the footer before the ground freezes. They will be donating some supplies but need to know what supplies are needed.

Mom looked at a van that is supposed to be wheelchair friendly. However, it is geared for someone in a manual wheelchair and not one that is as tall as Jon's electric chair. So the search goes on for a handicapped accessible van.

Mom & Carol came down Tuesday through Thursday. Mom will be back Tuesday for her 4 week check up on her wrist. Angelique came down and visited Jon on Sunday for a few hours. They had a nice visit. Angelique, Jon and I took a walk over to Kohl's and did some window shopping.

Well it's late and I'm going to turn in. Maybe I can take the computer Sunday and have Jon write a posting. I apologize for not posting in so long.

Many blessings,

Barb