Home at last..........

We are finally home!
Luke was released from the hospital Wednesday afternoon and he made it home after being in the hospital for 3 weeks.

He has some stitches to get out next week and a surgical follow up in 2 weeks, but otherwise he is doing pretty good.

Thank you for all the prayers....we felt everyone's love and support more than you know. We could not have done it alone.

KAAL

So close, we can taste it!

The Dr's just came in this morning (following a "stat" 6:45am xray) and said that things look good. They are waiting for a final report from radiology, and assuming that they concur with his Dr's, we will begin the hospital discharge procedure. There is no visible pneunothorax (collapse) of his lung, although they did say that his left lung remains a bit shy of 100%; due to the stapling that took place near the apex. They did say however that the lung may gain some of that capacity back, as he gets active again and his breathing improves.
If all goes well, we hope to be home this afternoon!

More to follow.

KAAL

No more chest tube!!!

Moving at a slightly quicker pace than we had expected, the Dr's came in this morning and removed Luke's chest tube. Even with a dose of drugs, it was a painful process, but one that we are all very glad that it took place so soon. There was another chest x-ray done today and we expect that there will be another one taken in the morning. Assuming that all goes well, it looks like we will be heading home sometime Wednesday.....finally!!!!!
Stay tuned for more details.

KAAL

More pictures

Alex w/ Ike Holt

Grandparents w/ new helmets for their off-road "Razr"

Grandpa w/ Christmas present

Grandma w/ Christmas present

Luke w/ you know who

Here are some additional pictures from our stay at Stanford.

KAAL

The Home Stretch

The Waters family

Nick, Nick, Emily & Mom

The Herrins & Lisa Cardenas

Allison's new Christmas tray

Grandma & Grandpa

Well, a lot has happened since the last entry, so I will do my best to catch up.
In the previous Christmas Eve post, it left out our evening visitors, who helped to make the evening very special. Our friends, the Herrin family & Lisa Cardenas, came out to see Luke and along with my parents, Owen & Carol, we enjoyed a very wonderful Christmas Eve together.
Luke remained in a fair a mount of pain on Christmas Day, but we could see some improvements and his lung remained leak-free.
Sunday was a fairly quiet day, with a lot of rest, some football watching and more visitors (thanks to Luke's friends Nick, Nick & Emily as well as the Waters family).
At the end of the day, Alex left with my parents to head back to the hotel for a good night's rest, and before they could get to the elevator, she had a seizure. To say the least, it took us all by surprise. But it goes without saying that if you are going to have a seizure and you want immediate medical attention, have one in the hospital. Also, make a note that if you want to be surrounded by a lot of doctors and nurses quickly, just shout Code Blue a few times, late at night in a hospital.....that seemed to work pretty well.
They rushed her down to the ER, where a series of blood & urine tests were done, an xray of her neck (she was in a lot of pain) and once everything checked out and she was stable, they released her. We took her back to our home away from home (room #3525), and she has been resting since.
This morning, grandma & grandpa came back by to check up on the kids, before they headed home to SoCal. We really enjoyed their long visit up here (since last Thursday) and we really appreciate their help in making Christmas in the hospital a special and memorable occasion.
The Dr's finally turned Luke's suction off today and things continue to look good there. We will remain on this course until Wednesday, when they will finally remove the chest tube altogether.

This has been an unbelievable journey for all of us and I know there will come a time when it will all make sense. We are really looking forward to coming home and helping Luke to enjoy the remainder of his Christmas break.

Thank you for all the support!

KAAL

Christmas Miracle!

For the 1st time in 2-1/2 weeks, Luke's lung is not leaking!! Last night, we could see over the course of several hours, that the leak was becoming less noticeable. But when we got up this morning, there were no bubbles and when the surgeons came in, they smiled and said that it was the Christmas miracle they (we) were all hoping for.
We have about 48 more hours on suction to make sure that the leak is gone, then another 48 hours on water seal, then I believe we can think about coming home.
We have enjoyed our "makeshift" Christmas here in the hospital today. We started with hot cocoa and some donuts & pastries. We then opened presents with grandma & grandpa (Owen & Carol); all the while Luke was struggling with his pain. They gave him Oxycontin for the first time today, and he has been able to sleep better than ever; and we are thankful he can get the rest.

Thank you all for the love, support, prayers & visits.

KAAL

Christmas Eve

A little Yuletide cheer

Holiday snack buffett

Carolyn Lewis working her magic on Luke's aching head.

Glen & Carolyn Lewis

Steve & Braiden Young

Matty & Seth's visit yesterday

Today has been a busy day so far, with our main focus being Luke's comfort and pain control. Things are looking up after the surgery and not only is the leak in his lung way less than before surgery, but it looks a tiny bit better now than it did last night.
There have been some wonderful Christmas Eve experiences so far. Earlier today we heard some beautiful Christmas music coming from a harpist and a family musical ensemble, out near the nurse's station. Luke's grandparents (Owen & Carol) have been here since last night, Brad & Quinton Ambridge as well as Glen and Carolyn Lewis came to visit, along with a surprise visit from Steve & Braiden Young (thanks to Susan Miguel).........not to mention the one & only Santa Claus!!!
Luke remains incredibly strong, in spite of his pain & discomfort. We are so happy that things went well last night and we are very hopeful that he will make a full recovery.

Thank you for the continued love & support.

KAAL