Friday Update #2 - 9:15pm

We just finished dinner together at the Wright house. It was an emotional dinner, as we feel like we have been through the ringer this week. We have talked many times this week about how difficult life must be for people who don't know our Lord. As difficult as the week has been at times, we always knew God was in control. Mom, Dad, and Poopsie rolled into town around 6:00 this evening. Mom made the trip fine and was so glad to be home. Brooke and I got here about 6:30 and Nonnie wanted to go walking outside. So we went into the backyard. It was so nice outside, so Brooke played in her playhouse and Nonnie sat in the chair and played with Brooke. It was such a blessing to be home, together. God has truly blessed us.

Luckily, I have talked to Kyle the last two days. He has been worried about mom and we have had two short conversations to update him. I am so grateful that he has been able to call. The stress of him being in a tiny village in Peru, added to the stress of mom's week has almost been too much. So they are good and it made my heart feel better. They will be starting back down the mountain in the morning at 8:00am, so I am asking for prayers for them as they start back down. It is about a 4 hour trip down and he is supposed to text me when they get to the bottom. Hopefully, this is the last "mountain" of the week. I thank you so much for your prayers. We attribute our week to God's merciful hand and we know we have had so many petitioning for us. Thank you and much love from the Wright/Reeves crew!

Friday Update #1 - 10:45am

Well, we made it to Friday. What a week it has been. But the amazing thing is that mom and dad are on their way home!!! They were loading her in the car around 10:00 this morning to head home. They had a good night last night. She couldn't get comfy and finally took Tylenol PM around 1:00am and then pain pills around 3:00am and then she slept until 8:15. She sounded great this morning and is just ready to get home! They are in no rush to get home -- dad is prepared to stop pretty frequently to let her get out and stretch. So we are expecting them home sometime this evening. We will have a celebration blog when they get here to let everyone know! Thank you for all the prayers and phone calls and visits this week. We are truly surrounded by an amazing group of family and friends.

Thursday Update #1 - 10:15am

Good morning! Another round of reports from Zale Lipshy! But today may be our last day of reports from the hospital!!! Dr. Madden came in this morning and said that if she continues to have a good morning that they might dismiss her this afternoon!!! We are so excited!

Dr. Isaacson just left the room and we got a good report. He was pleased with her progress. He said that we would continue to watch her hearing and see what it does. Mom said she could hear things out of that ear and he asked if she had talked on the phone yet. He said that would be a true test of her hearing. So... mom got on Loren's phone and she called Bo out in the hall and she could hear him on the phone! Dr. Isaacson was very glad that she could hear on the phone -- he said that was a good sign. He said that they would be dismissing her today. Yahoo!!! I think they are planning on staying at our hotel again tonight and then maybe starting out for home in the morning. But they are excited about a good night's sleep. They were up and down all night with vitamins, vitals, blood draws, etc... Mom is back to her old self this morning. She is spunky and is ready to get out of here! Her face looks so much better. The swelling has gone down a lot and she looks so good!

You know, this week has been a week of metaphorical and literal 'mountains' in our lives. The anticipation leading up to mom's surgery was torture on mom and the rest of us. Just not knowing what to expect and the worry for mom was about to eat us alive. But we knew that our God is in control and that mom is covered by his healing hand. So once Monday was over and mom was out of surgery, I felt like we had scaled that 'mountain'. Then we got a phone call that night from Kyle. He was letting me know that the guys had made it up the mountain to Cordova. This mountain, part of the Andes mountain range, is 13,000 feet above sea level. The road up the mountain is one lane on most stretches and is treacherous at times. So once we knew he was safe on top of that big mountain, there was another mountain we had conquered! Poopsie shared some wisdom with Kyle before he left - she said that God won't send Kyle anywhere that God's grace won't protect him. And we felt that way with mom too. We know that God had our whole week in His control.

So, as I speak, they are taking her IV out and we are about to get her in the shower to wash her hair and take a bath. Then as soon as they get her discharge papers ready, we will get her across the street to the hotel! I will post again this evening. As I have said before, we can't thank you enough for all your prayers for mom. God is good, all the time!!! Love!

Wednesday Update #4 -- 9:00pm

We just retired to the hotel for the night. Loren and I helped mom with a sponge bath earlier this evening and got her zebra pjs on her. She felt SO much better to be in her own clothes. They told her she could take a shower and wash her hair tomorrow, so she was pretty exited at that news. We left her and dad at the hospital and ran to get some dinner (we had to eat at Pappadeaux's before we left Dallas!) We went back by to check on mom and dad after dinner and they were doing good. She had eaten half a grilled cheese, some chicken noodle soup, and a cup of applesauce. She hasn't been very hungry, but she said she knows she has to eat to build up her energy. She was tired, so we got out of their hair so she could rest and so we could rest as well. It has been a tiring, week, but we are so glad mom is doing better. Love!

Wednesday Update #3 -- 3:45pm

We are now hanging out in the 5th floor waiting room. Some friends from Lubbock came up to visit, so we have just been visiting and catching up. We were sitting here and in walked Nonnie!! We were so surprised to see her! They told her the more she was up, the better she would get. So by golly, she is going to be up and around! She came and sat with us for a little bit. Brooke sat in her lap and they just loved on each other -- they have missed seeing each other this week. She started getting tired, so they headed back to her room and she is resting now. But here is the great news -- her doctor came in after they moved her up here and said that she would be up here 48 hours!!! Which means that she will probably get dismissed Friday!!! Yahoo!!! Nothing is in concrete, but we were glad to hear the words "go home"!!! Love!!

Wednesday Update #2 - 2:15pm

Mom had a good morning. They got her up and walked up and down the hall with her. She did really well. Loren, Brooke, and I got to the hospital about noon and went up to see her. She was pretty worn out, so we offered to leave her alone sso we all went down stairs to eat and let her rest. Of course, while we were eating, they called and were moving her to a room. Typical. So we finished eating really quick and loaded everything up to head to the 5th floor. Brooke was SO excited to see her Nonnie and I think Nonnie was equally excited to see her Brooke. I asked mom how the trip up here was and she said she walked the whole way. They put her stuff in the wheelchair and mom pushed the wheelchair up here. She is pretty wiped out now, so I think we are about to go down the hall to the family waiting room and let her rest. We are just so thrilled to get her out of ICU so she can have some peace and quiet. So thank goodness for answered prayers. We appreciate all your diligence in praying for mom. We feel like she is finally on her way to healing! Love to you all!

P.S. *She is in room 526.

Wednesday Update #1 - 9:00am

Good morning! Well, we are now on post-op day two and are hoping for a good day. They got mom up yesterday afternoon late and she sat in a chair for about 30 minutes. She was pretty queasy and wobbly, but she did really well. We sent several shifts of family through during that time to distract her from the dizziness. She said when she laid back down that she could tell the dizziness wasn't as bad as it had been earlier. She had a good evening. She had a few bites of Jello and some tea and water. They kicked us out of ICU at about 6:30, so we ran to have some mexican food at a great little restaurant called Ojedas. After we ate, Poopsie and Debbie kept Brooke at the hotel for us and Dad and us kids went back up to see Mom. She had been watching Dancing with the Stars and was just chilling. They got her up to use the restroom while we were there and did really well. It took three nurses to stabilize her, but the nurses were impressed at how well she did. We left about 9:30 as she was getting tired. So it was a good end to the day.

Dad and Bo headed back about 7:30 this morning. I talked to dad about 8:30 and he said she barely slept at all last night. They made her sleep at a 30 degree angle to help decrease the swelling in her eye. He said her eye looked much better and that she could actually see out of it! But she is exhausted. He did say that she had eaten some broth, jello, and drank some tea. During the surgery, they had to cut her jaw muscle, so she isn't able to chew at all right now due to the pain. The PA for one of her doctors came around earlier and said that they were dismissing several patients this morning from the neuro floor, so we are hoping that they can get her moved up there this morning sometime. Debbie is leaving around noon today, so we sent her and Poopsie on up to spend some time with mom and I am here at the hotel with two sleeping girls! Everyone is worn out. We will head up after they get her up to her new room. Brooke and Nonnie are going to have a great reunion when we get up there. They both have been waiting to see each other! That is what I know for now. I will update when we know more! Thanks for your prayers! Love!

Tuesday Update #2 - 3:50pm

We have been playing the waiting game today. Brody and Loren took Brooke to a playground at Children's Hospital, which is in the same medical complex as Zale Lipshy. All three of them had a blast! Poopsie's sister and brother in law came by to see us, so Poopsie and Debbie have been downstairs visiting with them. Dad and I have been in the ICU waiting room, just chilling and letting mom sleep for a while. Dad just went back to check on her and they were giving her more meds to help keep her comfy. They still don't have word on a regular room. They are just waiting on someone to get discharged from the 5th floor, which is the neurology floor. The nurse said if a room doesn't open up that she would have to spend the night in ICU again. :( Bummer. Also, he said that they are going to try to get her to sit in a chair about 4:15 and see how she does. PT and OT still haven't been around, but I guess this is the first step. Please pray for a few things for us -- that a room would open up soon so she doesn't have to stay in ICU again tonight, and that she would tolerate the movement of sitting up at 4:15. Thanks for all the comments. I hope that once she feels better she can read all the blogs and comments from you guys and maybe can blog a message of her own!!! Love!

Tuesday Update #1 -- noon

Hey everyone! Sorry for the delay between posts -- the wifi at the hotel wouldn't work, so we are just now getting hooked back up at the hospital. I wrote out a 15 minute blog at the hotel this morning and then it wouldn't post, so I am going to try it again. :)

ICU closed from 6-8 last night, so we all went back to the hotel to eat and chill for a bit. Dad and Bo went back to the hospital at 8:00 and us girls went back to the room. We were all pooped and we wanted to get Brooke ready for bed. Brooke was AMAZING yesterday at the hospital. She was such an angel and we were all so proud of her. Dad and Bo got back to the hotel about 9:15 and said that mom was much better. She was getting more like 'Tina' again. She was settling down and the nausea from the surgery was subsiding. So we all crashed hard last night after a hard day and were so thankful that she was okay.

Dad and Bo were back with her at 8:00 this morning. She didn't rest much last night -- she had a CT scan at 2am and blood work at 4am, so they didn't leave her alone much. She laughed about ICU -- she said they were constantly saying "I see you." Brooke, Lolo, and I slept until about 9:00 and got ready and came up to the hospital about 11:00. It was so good to see mom and to get to talk with her. Her right eye is completely swollen shut and it bruised, so she looks pretty rough. The side of her face is swollen as well. They said that the fluids from her incision will pool in her eye, but it will go away in a few days. She was having more pain in her head today, but they were keeping her on the pain meds regularly. She gets very dizzy every time she moves, due to the loss of the nerve that takes care of her balance. Then, she gets nauseaus when she gets dizzy. PT and OT are scheduled to come this afternoon. They will be getting her up and around. The nurse said that the only way to alleviate the dizziness would be to move her around and re-train that left ear. Mom cringed at the thought, as I know it will make her feel terrible. But hopefully it will help the dizziness go away faster. They put in an order for a regular room this morning and they will move her to the 5th floor as soon as a room is available. Her hearing in the right ear is still questionable. She is hearing a few things in that ear, and they are hoping that when the swelling goes down, that her hearing will continue to improve. So we are here, hanging out in the ICU waiting room. They gave her more pain meds and nausea meds about 20 minutes ago, so we are trying to leave her alone and let her rest. We have lots of family and friends who have been stopping by -- we are so appreciative

We want to thank you all from the bottom of our hearts for the amazing outpouring of love and support. Our cousin in Beaumont, who is a nurse, sent mom the following message: "The recovery of the patient is in direct correlation to the number of the people in the waiting room." We had the most amazing support system with us here, both in body and in spirit. We know that God is taking care of our sweet mom and we are so thankful for all your prayers and thoughts.

I will post again once we get her moved to a regular room and will let you know her progress. Thanks again for all your love and support!

*Also, I heard from Kyle last night. They had made it up the mountain to Cordova and were trying to get settled. So two major praises from God yesterday -- mom made it through surgery and Kyle made it up the mountain! Please keep praying! Love!

Surgery Report #4 - 4:35

They got mom to her ICU room and we got to go in and see her. She is very nauseated from the anesthesia and has been throwing up on and off. As I said in an earlier post, there was some concern about hearing loss. When we got to see her, she commented that she couldn't hear on her right side. Dad filled her in about the auditory nerve and said that we are just going to have to watch it and see what it does. Dr. Isaacson came in to check on her while we were in there. He said that everything went well. He had her do all sorts of funny things with her face and said that her facial nerve is fine, thank goodness. He had a tuning fork and checked her ears. She could hear the fork on her right side, it was just not as loud as her good ear. He said that there was probably a lot of fluid in that ear and that hopefully she would retain some of her hearing. He also said that her eye would probably swell shut due to the fluid building up near the incision site. But all in all, everything looks great. The doctor said that we would probably have her in a regular room sometime tomorrow as long as she is doing good. We are so thankful for your prayers and we are so glad the surgery is over. Let the healing begin!!! Please pray that her auditory nerve is still in tact and that she gets over the nausea soon!

*As a side note, I have been in contact with Kyle throughout the day. We figure that they are about 2 hours up the mountain to Cordova right now, so please pray for continued safety as they finish the last leg up to Cordova and as they minister to the lost in this village in Peru.