Short Synopsis: Kayla has been off the ventilator now for 2 days. This is tremendous progress. They try to push her to improve her breathing but there are often plugs in her airway. She needs suction a few times a day to help. Certain times of the day, she has trouble breathing.
None of the doctors or nurses are perturbed by any of this. Kayla's monitor numbers are perfect. Her oxygen saturation is 100% so there is no problem. There is still some residual pneumonia but all is going in a positive direction.
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Long Story: I look forward to the Tarrytown Sunday brunch, which I don't make very often. Years ago, families would have a special Sunday meal together - the whole extended family. Mom taught us that this was how you kept families together. They would all go to church and then meet at someone's house and have a big meal. Mom loved her Sunday meals when she was a child growing up in Providence, Rhode Island.
Ty, Deirdre's husband, has become the family chef for Sunday brunches. I have been hearing about these gatherings. My sister Valerie comes every Sunday from Norwalk. This morning, I decided to stay and afterwards, my two sisters, Valerie and Deirdre, were going to drive down with me to NYC to see Kayla in the hospital.
Deirdre is quite buff these days. My original family is very much into sports for physical fitness. I grew up with swimming, diving and tennis. In high school I was on basketball and volleyball teams. In college I was competing in diving and lacrosse. As an adult, I branched out into triathlons and continued to do volleyball, basketball, slalom water skiing, wind surfing, kayaking...just about anything was fun to try. Older now, I still do small triathlons, swimming and loads of walking...but the Doo-Dah (my nickname for Deirdre) is the true family athlete.
In high school, she walked away with all kinds of physical fitness trophies. Nearly 40, she is not giving up her fitness. She plays second base on a town co-ed softball team. I watch her as she leaves to go to a spinning class at a nearby gym. Her muscles are tight and strong.
I am a little disappointed that I continue to barely train for my upcoming triathlon, which is only a few weeks away. The only way I can train is to climb the back steps in the hospital behind the elevators. Now I climb to the seventh floor. My legs feel it and it helps but it is not the long distance biking which I should be doing. I will never get in the 10-12 fourteen mile bike training runs I need before June 5th. My daughter's life and care are more important now than this training, so that's that.
Deirdre leaves and Ty begins to prepare for the family brunch. I watch as he takes a load of potatoes, washed them and then scraps off the skins. He is paring strips of potato for the family favorite - hash browns. He looks around and discovers he needs more ingredients as there are more showing up this morning for the 11:30 meal.
He enlists me to text Deirdre for the needed additions from the food store:
Deirdre: I'm headed home now 10:56 a.m.
Stephanie: Get bread says Ty 10:57 a.m.
Stephanie: Ty needs eggs too! 11:06 a.m.
Deirdre: OK 11:08 p.m.
Stephanie: Also need syrup 11:10 a.m.
Deirdre: Right 11:11 a.m.
Stephanie: Just buy up the whole store! 11:11 a.m.
Deirdre: LOL! 11:12 a.m.
Dad is now involved. He is standing at the edge of the living room telling me all the additional items he wants. He sees the texting system is a great way to communicate. He does not hesitate to add that there was a small grocery list left on the counter and he wonders if Deirdre saw it on her way out the door.
Stephanie: Orange juice also! :) We r super hungry. 11:12 a.m.
Deirdre: :)
Stephanie: Lactoid milk - Grandpa is demanding c u in a few hours after u find all this stuff.
11:13 a.m.
We are all cracking up thinking about Deirdre running around the store looking for more items as we keep texting what we need.
It's the most incredible meal, hosted by our gracious cook Ty! Everyone gets a fried egg or two. There is bacon, hash browns, all kinds of toast, orange juice, coffee - a good old fashioned meal from the old days. We enjoy great conversation and laughter. Grandma is not with us. She is roaming around Buffalo and Syracuse with a bunch of 80-something women, all competing in a bowling tournament. She scores over 200 regularly as she has been bowling all her life.
Deirdre and Valerie climb into Kayla's red Honda with me. Kayla's new ICU room is so spacious and wonderful. There is a fabulous guest chair that you can push back into a semi-reclining position. I often take 2 hour naps in it next to the napping Kayla! Deirdre is exhausted from her hard week at work. The landscaping business is incredibly busy in the Spring. She is drawing landscape plans like crazy now.
Kayla needs a nap because at 11:30 each day she gets physical therapy and tires from it. After that, she frequently takes a nap. Kayla feels guilty and was falling asleep, but I encourage her to do so - it's great for her healing process. We then encourage Deirdre to sleep next to her in that grand chair. Valerie sits next to Kayla on the other side and holds her hand.
I go out for a coffee...
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On Saturday, May 14, 2011, 7:32 p.m.
Stephanie wrote:
Yes, we are still looking into hypnotism - trying to find someone qualified and not hocus pocus.
Amazingly, after having some troubling days, Roz (Steven and Beth's mom) is rallying again. She surprises everyone. They are having end of life discussion with her regarding her kidneys. If her kidneys do not rally, Steve says it is over. They cannot give long term dialysis to VAD patients and have a reasonable quality of life. I guess it would mean going three times a week, 5 hours a day, to a facility that is very far away in New Jersey. Beth is very upset about everything. Steve is driving back to D.C. but will be back in one week.
Our cozy corner is very lonely and empty. Everyone is clearing out. Have to invite new people in. People are even nabbing the blankets, right off the chair! Right in front of me!
We miss our Cohen guys! Hope all is well with you.
Regards,
Stephanie
P.S. I had a really wonderful time this morning, working 3 hours with my son on splitting logs. We work well together and it felt like a normal life again. I ran around and did errands. Wonderful feeling all around.
On Sat, 5/14/11, 10:41 p.m., Mordechai wrote:
Sorry you are so lonely,
I just phoned in and was told that while my mom was off the respirator for 12 hours, she also had regular dialysis.
When they come around and tell us ok, we'll do the surgery.
Let's keep hearing all around good news
All the best,
Mordechai
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I go and visit Judith Cohen, Mordechai and Dovid's mother again. Her heart rate is 54. Her oxygen saturation is 100% Her blood pressure is 125/54. She is off the vent - great! They have washed her hair and it's in a sweet side ponytail. I stroke her hair, arm, hands and feet. You can tell she likes listening to conversation. I continue to tell her about things, the weather, is she comfortable, etc...
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I see Gunther and his daughter, Sarah. These are the most enjoyable new people in our corner. Gunther is happy that his wife is in the step down unit and will be moved soon to a rehab facility. They are following the hawk livestream cam, along with nearly 5,000 others.
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I have decided to go and see the red-tailed hawk's nest in Washington Square!
Ross has invited me to come down and have a drink at his friend Matt's new apartment on 34th Street. I buy a $10.00 metro card and head down. Walter is recovering well from open heart surgery. They are the most wonderful new New York City friends.
The street life is full of excitement, even in the middle of all the downpours. I have my crappy umbrella but it works great to keep me dry. I carry my notebook computer in its special case that hangs like a book bag from my shoulder. I should have brought the new bottle of wine that I bought with me. It is just sitting in the cozy corner behind the recliner. It's surprising that no one steals it. It's been there for days but there is no one to share it with.
The apartment is on a high floor and has no furniture in it yet, but it has inlaid wood floors, a sweet bedroom, a great bathroom, small functional kitchen and nice living room with two windows overlooking the streets below. Matt's refrigerator has only cheese and champagne in it. He has one chair in the middle of the living room and a TV. Open space makes you feel free.
I stay for one hour for the cocktail hour, but I am on my way to see the hawk's nest. Ross has this idea that I could walk a half hour down to it but I have little time. It is going to get dark soon the choice is the subway.
When I arrive I get a sandwich and head to the park. I see a tall building and search for the nest. From the hawk cam, one can see the Washington Square arch in the lower left corner in the background. I try to situate this and...
There is it! One building looks like a military fortress, a large imposing red brick building that dwarfs all the surrounding buildings. It has a powerful appeal. Up high at the twelth story are tucked in rectagular nooks. The architects for this building had no idea they were designing the perfect perch for hawks. It is obvious the birds of prey can survey their kingdom all around from this place, especially the greenery in the park below where lots of live rodent type creatures reside.
I am looking up at the top of the Bobst Library, one of New York University's newer buildings. The second recessed rectangular space from the right is where they live. There are sticks hanging out from it and I see a hawk, like a sentry, stone still up there, looking out.
My first thought as I look all around is - it must be so hard to get food! You realize how much effort goes into getting food. There are no rats visible and only a squirrel or two about. One of the adult hawks soars out and down.
The people who are walking everywhere - tourists who take lots of pictures, children playing and shouting on a playground, students resting on benches...no one knows the hawks are up there!
I sit with my sandwich next to the center fountain of water. I eat and watch everything. Over the next half hour, only two people are peering up as they walk through. They know!
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I have no car to drive myself back to Tarrytown. Mike was supposed to come and see Kayla but she tells him not to come for a few days. She schedules him for Friday night. She has plenty of company. My sisters have driven the car back to Tarrytown.
I decide to take the train. First the subway to Grand Central Station. When you get to 42nd Street, you have to take a shuttle to Grand Central. It is getting late and there are fewer trains going out of the city due to budget cuts.
Deirdre has agreed to pick me up at the station when I get in - just need to text her.
I see an attractive group of ladies who are all dressed up.
"Do you know how to get to Grand Central Station from here?"
One gal, elegantly dressed in black, hair perfect, great shoes...she is going in that direction, she says, so I can join them.
"Why are you all dressed up?"
Shira is a journalism student, near my age. She is graduating with a journalism degree from Columbia University. They are coming back from a graduation party boating trip around Manhattan Island.
We strike up a conversation...
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