February 21^stTim Is In the Hospital

Message to Family and Friends

Some of you know that Tim is in the hospital. I have been spending hours keeping you loving people informed on what is happening with him.

I tried to create a chat group for you’all with my iPhone, iPad and MacBook, but I could not make it work. So I made a group with good old email.

I call it Tim Update.

News from here: Tim is in the hospital. He had either injured his leg or developed gout, or something else. On Tuesday morning, the 17^th, he woke up with excruciating pain in his left ankle. He could not put any weight on it. We took him to the chiropractor she said it was a sprain and he should R-I-C-E Rest. Ice. Compress. Elevate.

Later in the day Tim’s son, Seth, asked if the problem could be gout, not a sprain. In some light searches on the web we found that his symptoms did match gout, especially the sudden onset of the pain, and the low-grade fever. We started using home remedies for gout.

The leg was not improving with home the remedies. By Wednesday afternoon his left knee had swelled to about three times normal, was in terrible pain, and he could not lift or move his left leg. Tim called his physician assistant who told him that he could go to the walk-in clinic, or the emergency room. Tim decided to do neither since he would probably just be told the same R-I-C-E.

By Saturday his leg was in terrible pain. Tim decided not to wait until Monday to seek help. A friend, Jason Hastie, drove us to the hospital about 2:00 in the afternoon. As soon as the admission nurse started examining him, Tim was rushed him into a triage type room. He was having erratic a-fib. Alarms were going off. They gave him an IV drug that reduced his heart rate from where it was (145-175) to about 125. They continued doing more tests and prepared to admit him.

Yesterday, Saturday, he decided not to wait until Monday to seek help. A friend drove us to the hospital about 2:00 in the afternoon. As soon as the admission nurse started examining him, he was rushed him into a triage type room. He was having erratic Afib. Alarms were going off. They gave him an iv drug that reduced his heart rate from where it was (145-175) to about 125. They continued doing more tests and prepared to admit him.

My friend brought me home about 7:00. Our friends here have been wonderful support. I have not heard from Tim yet this morning. Prayers appreciated. I slept well last night, praise God. I don’t think Tim will be released until he is stable and able to sit up and get in a wheelchair by himself. This week has been hard for me having to help him do everything and afraid that he would fall. Neither of us has slept well for a couple of weeks since we took turns with the flu before the leg problem started. I am so thankful that Tim decided to go to the emergency room. That may have been a life and death decision.

My friend brought me home about 7:00. I was exhausted. A person from admissions called me and said, among other things, that Tim was in isolation and was not allowed any visitors.

Our friends here have been wonderful support.

That’s all for now.

Shalom, Shalom.

February 22^nd

I have not heard from Tim yet this morning. Prayers appreciated. I slept well last night, praise God. I don’t think Tim will be released until he is stable and able to sit up and get in a wheelchair by himself. This week has been hard for me having to help him do everything and afraid that he would fall. Neither of us has slept well for a couple of weeks since we took turns with the flu before the leg problem started. I am so thankful that Tim decided to go to the emergency room. That may have been a life and death decision.

Back at the Hospital

Latest update: Dr. Coda, orthopedic surgeon, said that there is infection in Tim’s knee. The lab is culturing the fluid that was taken out of Tim’s knee to see if the infection is in the joint or the flesh. If it is in the joint the recommendation is surgery to clean it out. If it is in the flesh they will handle it with antibiotics.

The latest word from about Tim’s heart is that it is damaged. Sounds like we are looking at lifestyle changes. He is in isolation, no visitors.

2:00 PM

Some explanations/definitions in italics

In addition to the infection in his knee:

He has a PSA number of 279

PSA (Prostate-Specific Antigen) levels vary with age, and there is no single “normal” value for all men. Instead, age-specific ranges are used to interpret results more accurately. Men aged 70 and older: Normal range is 0–6.5 ng/mL.

A PSA level of 279 ng/mL is extremely high and strongly indicates the presence of prostate cancer, likely advanced or metastatic. Such a level is rarely due to benign conditions like benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) or -prostatitis.

The doctor who gave Tim this information today made an “emergency” appointment for him with a urologist. The appointment will have to be after he is released from the hospital

Tim is in isolation because he tested positive, via a nasal swab, for MRSA The doctor told him that about 30% of the population will test positive for MRSA via the nasal swab. The obvious question is, is the MRSA present in the infection in Tim’s knee and possibly in the redness of his ankle.

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is a type of staph bacteria resistant to several common antibiotics, including methicillin, penicillin, and amoxicillin. It can cause skin infections, pneumonia, bloodstream infections, and surgical wound infections, with symptoms often starting as red, painful bumps resembling pimples or spider bites that may develop into deep, pus-filled boils.

MRSA infection is caused by a strain of Staphylococcus aureus bacteria that is resistant to many common antibiotics, including methicillin, penicillin, and amoxicillin. This resistance makes MRSA infections difficult to treat and potentially serious.

Tim is now taking anti-coagulant drugs, incorrectly called, “blood thinners” to prevent blood clots. Because of the a-fib the upper chambers of his heart are not emptying completely, blood can pool, which can lead to blood clots which can lead to heart attacks or strokes

A-fib: atrial fibrillation (AFib) is the most common type of irregular heartbeat, or arrhythmia. It occurs when the heart’s upper chambers (atria) beat rapidly and chaotically due to disorganized electrical signals, causing the heart to pump blood less effectively. This can lead to symptoms like palpitations, shortness of breath, fatigue, dizziness, and chest pain, though some people experience no symptoms at all.

6:20 PM

Here is where we are, Lord. Tim is in the hospital with multiple problems. Any one of which could be fatal to him. We trust in you for the number of our days. Give him, and his care givers wisdom as they make decisions about his health care.

I am weary, but I know your love does not run dry. You will uphold us through whatever transitions we need to make in the next weeks and months.

Monday 2/23/2026

6:08 AM

And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. ¹⁵ And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of him. 1 John 5:14-15

5:38 PM

Shayla took me to the hospital this morning. I stayed with Tim for only about an hour. I could see that it was stressful for him to try to stay awake, answer my questions, or pay any attention to what I jabbered. So I came home. I told him that if he felt better later today and wanted me to come back, I would. He said, “No, let’s just use the phone.” I understand that.

He said he does not want any other visitors, either.

How is he doing? Good question. Not easy to answer. I have not talked to any of his doctors. I have not heard the results of any of the multitude of tests that are being run on Tim. I am

dependent on what Tim can tell me, and he can’t tell me much.

He did say that he will not be released today, and probably not tomorrow. The doctor wants his heart stabilized before he is released. That doctor, or another one, is also waiting for the results of the culturing that is being done on the fluid that was taken out of Tim’s knee. Evidently the culture results will tell them if the infection is in his joint or in the flesh of his knee. If it is in the bone surgery will be recommended to clean it out. I don’t know if the culture will determine if the MRSA is a problem or just a positive nasal swab.

Tim is being given IV anti-biotics, and insulin.

He will have to address the prostate problem with the urologist after he has been released from the hospital.

Just so you know, we made NDR (do not resuscitate) statements a couple of years ago.

Thank you all for your support and your prayers.

Shalom, Shalom.

Grace

Tuesday Feb 24 Prognosis? And Goat Story

I just got back from a good visit with Tim. He was alert and mostly cheerful. He has been sleeping better, and the pain level is better.

Prognosis? There are still lots of unknowns, however the medications are stabilizing his heart rate to between 100 and 120. He is taking anticoagulants and antibiotics. The swelling in his foot and knee has not changed much, and he still cannot move his leg, or get out of bed by

himself.

I just talked to his case nurse. I told her that he needs to be able to get himself up and down, and somehow mobile before he comes home. Before he went in the hospital, I had a horrible time trying to help him sit up or change his position in bed. Part of that was because of the pain, and partly because he was, and still is, unable to move his left leg. The case worker, a nurse named Kim, said that she would take that issue up with local care facilities and Tim.

Summary: his heart is the main concern of the medical people, and they want to make sure that his heart is stable before he is released, and my concern that he will have to be able to move himself before he comes home

4:43 PM

My sister, Christy, took me back to the hospital for another visit with Tim and to take him his

hearing aids, which I had forgotten to give him in the morning.

I strongly explained to Tim that he was not going to be able to come home until he was mobile. I reminded him that I am 77 years old–I cannot lift at 220-pound man. Tim grumbled that he HAD to go home. He had work to do. I told him “lo siento, senior” You will have to teach me what to do with bookkeeping. We can be on the phone while I am in front of your computer so you can tell me what to do. I could even send you a picture of the computer screen if need be. He was not happy.

Christy had a couple of friends to visit in the hospital. So she left the room

While Christy was off visiting her friends, a Physical Therapist and an Occupational Therapist came to see Tim. They told him they were going to work on his mobility. They wanted to see how he would do in his home environment.

As the therapist started to roll the head of the bed down to make it flat, Tim cried out for them to stop. He complained, loudly, that there was nothing they could do until the inflammation went down. The therapist raised the head of his bed again.

The therapist told Tim he had to get moving; he explained “Move it or you lose it”.

Both therapists explained how detrimental it was for him to lie there motionless for days and days. When he did not allow the bed to be flattened, they told him that he would have to have a hospital bed at home or go to a nursing home.

Tim rallied, from the bed with the head still raised, and swung his legs, by himself, over the side of the bed. The therapist put a walker in front of him and a belt around his waist so he could catch Tim if Tim fell. Tim grabbed the walker and stood up—on one leg of course.

From there they guided him to the bathroom, then to the sink, then to a chair.

They left him in the chair and told him that they would be back tomorrow.

Tim was still sitting in the chair as I leaned over to kiss him goodbye. He shooed me back saying, “Wait!” Then he got up on his feet, gave me a quick kiss and said, “I am NOT going to a nursing home!”

Wow.

A while later he called me and reminded me about a goat story from Grace Harbor Farms.

Bear with me while I tell the story. This is good.

While we were raising milk goats at Grace Harbor Farms one of our does tore a ligament in her back leg while she was pregnant. She was down, and she would not get up. The vet told me that this type of injury should heal, and that maybe she would be all right after she had given birth.

She was down for a couple of weeks. Her birthing delivery was very difficult—the kids were all tangled up (three of them) and she was down. I had a hard time helping her get those kids out. But we did it.

Still, she would not get up. She was a milking goat. Her kids were born. I needed to milk her, but it was impossible while she was lying in the stall. I even tried hoisting her up with a block and tackle rig, but I still could not milk her.

So I called Mohammed. We called Mohammed when we had to “put a goat down” (euphemistic for slaughtering). Mohammed said he would come by and take a look at her on his way home. He did. He looked over the stall door and said he would be back to get her in the morning. He walked out of the barn.

Before he was out of the driveway, the doe was up!!

Feb. 25 MRI on ANKLE

1:00 PM

Lots of activity today

Another orthopedic doctor looked at Tim’s ankle. He said that was his biggest concern. He ordered the MRI for it.

We ordered a hospital bed which will be delivered to our house tomorrow.

We met the case nurse who will bring us a report from the various doctors sometime today

The high PSA count will not be addressed until he leaves the hospital

He will not leave the hospital until the doctor watching his heart is satisfied that the heart rate is (more?) normal and the orthopedic doctor is happy that the infection is under control. We

know that will not be today.

At least that is what we understand at this point.

4:30 PM

Well, the only thing we know is constant, is change. Here is the latest, as of an hour ago.

The Case Nurse, Kim, came and talked to us. She said Tim is scheduled for surgery on his knee tomorrow.

He will also have the MRI, probably this evening, on his ankle to determine what is going on

there. He may need surgery on that, too.

The surgery is called “a wash”. It is to clean the infection out of the joint. We still do not know the source of the infection or what kind of bacteria are causing it. We have heard

nothing else about MRSA, but Tim is still technically in isolation.

After the surgery, which is not supposed to take very long, his knee (and ankle?) will be wrapped. At that point the doctors should know how to proceed. The nurse said that they will base future anti-biotic measures after they know what they are dealing with. She said she expects that the need for antibiotics may be extensive and may require professional medical help. I asked her if that meant that he would be staying in the hospital. She said no probably not, but he may need to be in a care facility or have home health care. We will know tomorrow, Lord willing.

The case nurse, in Tim’s words, is Madame Positive. She encourages him to go one step at a time, and that is ironic, and true. He really must learn or be able to go one step at a time. He has not been able to walk for over a week.

She told us about MyChart where we can read about all the stuff all the care givers are going and the various tests. When I left Tim at the hospital, he was just beginning to look at that.

There are still, as you know, some other critical things going on. Heather has been encouraging me to ask for a PET scan before he leaves the hospital. That scan will show if he has any cancer alerts. The case nurse said they cannot do that because of the way Medicare Coverage works. Everything while he is in the hospital is covered by Medicare A, all out-patient procedures, like the PET scan are covered, in part, by Medicare B. Both kinds of care cannot be billed to Medicare at the same time.

We don’t have any supplemental coverage. I will be looking into that soon.

The a-fib is still a big deal, but we didn’t hear anything new about that today.

Tim is distressed, as you can imagine. He had been hoping that he would be coming home today or tomorrow.

I am blessed, no matter what! The love and prayers that you all have been pouring out in beyond beautiful.

I am also weary, and a bit cloudy-minded. This has been a lot to process. I have, though, been able to hear everything since you all prayed for me to be able to do so. I also recorded, with transcriptions, all the doctor and nurse conversations today.

Christy is going to take me back to the hospital before 9:00 tomorrow morning. We don’t know yet what time the surgery will be, but I want to be there when it happens.

The living room here will be transformed into a hospital ward tomorrow, waiting for Tim to get home

February 27 Knee Surgery Scheduled

10:30 AM

Tim just got taken away for the MRI on his ankle.

The surgery on his knee is scheduled for 3:30 this afternoon. If they find this same infection Streptococcus dysgalactiae subsp. equisimilis in his ankle they will clean it out at the same time as the knee surgery.

There is a mystery to be solved about how and where in Tim’s body this infection started. The doctor who was just here said that sometimes this infection starts in the heart. They have already done an external ultrasound of his heart. If I understood correctly, they are going to do a more extensive ultrasound inside his heart to see if they find the infection there.

https://search.brave.com/search?q=streptococcus%20dysgalactiae%20ssp%20equisimilis

(SDSE) is an emerging human pathogen increasingly recognized as a cause of both non-invasive and severe invasive infection

Thought break: Another Amusement

A little while ago Tim said, “Remember when you came home from the conference and I wondered if we could get away for a few days to some place with a view of the water?”

Then he pointed out the window.

1:40 pm

MRI revealed enough concern in the ankle that the orthopedic surgeon is going to flush it out at the same time he does the knee. Tim will be taken for the procedures within the hour.

3:00

WOW!

Tim has gone in for the surgery. I probably won’t see him for about three hours.

In the surgery center Tim and his bed were rolled into a small consulting room. We were told that the doctors and the anesthesiologist would come in to ask lots of questions.

The first was Dr. Lee, the anesthesiologist. He did ask lots of questions about Tim’s health. Then he said he wanted to ask one more question. He told Tim that Tim could refuse if he wanted to, but Dr. Lee asked if he could pray for Tim. We, of course assented with joy and Tim said he would also like to pray for Dr. Lee. Dr Lee smiled and asked if he could invoke the name of the Lord Jesus Christ as he prayed.

Then he dropped down on one knee and prayed so eloquently!! He acknowledged God as creator, savior, healer and Lord of all.

Mind if I say “WOW” again?

Then, one at a time, the orthopedic surgeons came in to ask their questions. They were both Dr. Larson. I asked the second Dr. Larson if their names were a coincidence. “No,” he said, “the other doctor is my younger brother.”! They were both born in this hospital, went separately to medical school, and now work here together.

And. . . if that is not enough for another WOW. . .the second Dr. Larson also expressed his faith in God and that He would guide his hands and bring healing to Tim! No doubt first Dr Larson is also a believer.

WOW.

Tim told them as they were pushing his bed out of the consulting room “You are the instruments God chose today to serve Him in caring for me.”

OK, here it comes—another WOW.

5:00

Just talked to the doctor. Everything went well. Tim in in the recovery room awake, but groggy. He should be back in his room by 6:00 Praise God!

The doctor said Tim will need 3-10 days more in the hospital, depending on the lab results

February 28 PICC and Roller Coaster

11:00 am

A PICC will be installed in Tim in about an hour. He has a serious bone infection which may have begun in his heart. The PICC will be able to get the antibiotics he needs very close to his heart. Oral antibiotics would not be able to do so. He will be needing IV antibiotics for the next 4-6 weeks. After he is released from the hospital, and we don’t know when that will be, he will need to come to the hospital here in PA every day. I don’t know how soon Tim will be able to drive, so we will need a designated driver every day until he can. We could us UBER if no one is available. I don’t know how long the daily dose applications will take.

(A PICC line (Peripherally Inserted Central Catheter) is a long, thin, flexible tube inserted into a vein in the upper arm and threaded to a large vein near the heart. It is used for long-term intravenous treatments such as chemotherapy, antibiotics, IV nutrition, or blood draws. It reduces the need for repeated needle sticks and can remain in place for weeks to months.)

The PICC insertion will take about 90 minutes. I plan to walk over to the Chestnut cottage for lunch while that is happening.

Tim is exhausted and emotionally overwhelmed. A little while ago he looked at me with sad eyes and said, “I never planned to be this sick.”

12:45 PM

Suddenly things change

Dr. Davinsky just came in and told us that as soon as the PICC is installed, Tim will be released to go home! The procedure has not started yet, and there will have to be some time afterward to give us our ongoing instructions.

More anon

1:45

Time out.

I questioned the wisdom of sending Tim home the nurse agreed with me. Discharged delayed

3:15 Roller coaster

Tim is being moved to the intensive care unit.

I am a wreck. Shaky. Hungry. On the verge of tears for the first time in this ordeal.

6:00 PM

I hope I can explain what happened today. I believe there was an intense spiritual battle behind it.

The technician who came to install the PICC in Tim set off alarms in me. I can’t explain it, but something was not right about this guy. Until then we had heard nothing from anyone else about the PICC having been ordered, or what it was for. The technician did not listen to our questions. He just wanted to get his job done and move on.

Tim was overwhelmed with anxiety. He said later there were two forces at work on him: fear and control. He was distressed that in just a few days in the hospital he had lost all sense of freedom of choice and quality of life. After some discussion and initial consent, he told the PICC man that he wanted to wait to make the decision about the PICC.

We talked to the nurse, Megan, who was taking care of Tim. Both of us expressed our concern about the PICC. She felt it was the best choice for Tim’s needs, and so did our friend, Judy, who consulted with us by text. We understood the value. So Megan ordered the PICC installation.

Dr. Devinsky came in and joined the discussion. He told Tim that once the PICC was installed, Tim would be released because the joint infection would be under control. He would have to come back to the hospital every day for the next 4-6 weeks for antibiotics to be administered through the PICC.

That shocked me. I was glad to hear that Tim would be released, that the infection would be taken care of, but what about the heart issue that had landed us in the hospital to begin with?

Heather texted a question to me: Does Tim feel strong enough to go home? I asked him.

He thought for a few seconds and then answered, then answered “Yes”. He went on to explain all the things he was able to do on his own, including getting out of bed, getting back and forth to the bathroom, and even working at his desk. He expressed his distress that in just a week he had completely lost his quality of life by being tied to pharmaceuticals and daily trips from home to PA for injections. He wanted his life back.

And, by the way, there is this huge PSA number which ordinarily means that he was already dealing with masticated prostate cancer. Tim said what difference did the all this other stuff matter, if his body is full of cancer.

Megan, the nurse came in to say that the monitors downstairs had noticed that Tim’s a-fib numbers were high again. She started looking at things and asking questions as to why that might be. Tim told Megan to cancel the PICC installation.

Dr. Devinsky came back because of those numbers and also because he had heard that Tim had refused the PICC installation.

Tim tried to explain to him about his concern about the other issues: a-fib and prostate cancer.

Dr. Devinsky said they were separate issues and not related to each other.

I told the doctor. “You have compartmentalized these issues, but they are NOT separate issues. They are all part of what is happening in Tim’s body. He is dealing with all of them at once.”

I told Dr. Devinsky that we had been in the hospital for a week because of the a-fib issue had instigated the admission and we had not talked to one heart doctor!

A nurse said that they did not have a cardiology doctor at OMC.

What?

We asked to talk to our case nurse. Her name is Kim.

Dr Devinsky and Kim explained the value of the PICC. They explained that the IV antibiotic was the best way to treat the bug that is in him. If he did not agree to it, the infection would not be conquered and Tim would be back in the hospital with the same problem again. They had seen it happen. They also explained the benefits of the PICC in taking blood samples.

Tim agreed to the PICC installation. which will not happen until Monday. In the meantime Tim would get the same drugs that he will get with the PICC with regular a regular IV.

Somehow while all of that was going on, the a-fib numbers came back into the picture. Dr. Devinsky ordered a different drug for Tim’s heart and ordered that Tim be moved downstairs to the intensive care unit. Megan told us that Tim would get better care for his heart there.

Within minutes that had happened. When I left the hospital at 5:00, Tim was settled in room 104—still with a great view of the water.

Tim apologized for the flip-flops. The doctor, Kim and Megan were gracious. They told him they would support whatever decisions he makes. He told them that he had been a private business owner his whole adult life because he wanted to be in COMPLETE CONTROL. He told them a big part of this experience was letting go of the control. He had to put his life, literally, into the hands of people he didn’t know. That is a tough place to be.

Earlier in the day I had reminded Tim that God gives us tough places so we can draw closer to Him.

Shabbat Shalom,

Grace

February 28 ICU

5:16 PM

I am home from a full day in ICU. Tim, of course, is started his 8^th day in the hospital, his 2^nd in ICU.

He was sent to an upgraded room at the end of the day yesterday because his heart irregularities, which had been just in the upper chambers of his heart (the atria) began to appear in the lower chambers (ventricles).

Dr. Devinsky noticed. He immediately changed the heart drug and ordered to Tim to be sent downstairs to ICU.

Downstairs turned out to be an upgrade—much larger room, much more attention, and the same great water view–just one floor closer to it.

Jason Hastie gave me a ride to the hospital in this morning.

The nurses are great. They have few patients each to watch so Tim is getting even more attention than he got upstairs. Our friend Judy’s friend, a nurse at OMC, came to give her best wishes to Tim.

While Jason was there one of the Larson brothers who had performed the surgery on Tim’s leg on Thursday came in with his physician’s assistant, Ryan, to check Tim’s leg.

Dr. Larson was concerned because Tim was still in a great deal of pain, and the swelling has not gone down in his knee. His ankle looks better—less swelling and not so flaming red.

Dr. Devinsky was also there, to order the tests I presume. He is a great, thoughtful, man. I already told you about the Doctors Larson.

Dr. Larson decided to take fluid off of the knee to test for continuing infection. He had trouble finding the fluid. He got only blood. He did send the blood to the lab to test for bugs.

BTW, when Tim arrived in ICU the evening before, the nurse, Brie inserted a couple of IVs using an ultrasound machine. She did not have to poke around for a vein. She could see exactly where to go with her needles. Amazing. In the picture above the blood on his knee is from the surgery spot. Tim is taking anti-coagulants (colloquially known as “blood thinners”, but that is a misnomer).

Dr. Larson did not use an ultrasound. He dug the needles all around in Tim’s knee. (The knee had been numbed.) I heard someone say while that was going on, that it would have been easier with the ultrasound equipment. Humm.

After the doctor and his PA left. Jason prayed for Tim. What a beautiful thing that was to witness.

The blood was sent to the lab. By the time I left to come home, the results were not back.

Most of Tim’s day was spent trying to get comfortable in the bed or the big recliner chair the nurse brought to him. I spent the day doing little things to help him be more comfortable.

Sometime in the afternoon I requested a visit from Kim, the case nurse. First of all, I thanked her for her peaceful presence the day before. She had been a calming force during the frightening time about whether to go with the PICC or not.

Then I told her how surprised I was that there is no cardiologist care in OMC. She said that the staff doctors are in constant contact with cardiologists in Silverdale and Seattle. OMC does not have the equipment to deal with all the heart issues. She did assure me that the cardiologists that they consult with are competent. If OMC cannot help the particular heart issues that come up, the patient will be sent to Silverdale, about an hour away, or to Seattle.

OK then.

I also asked her about the supplement insurance we are going to need to pay for the expensive drugs that Tim is going to need. Sounds as if those are going to cost $500 a month or more. I told her that I was confused about what I had read about Medicare D. She helped me understand, A LOT.

In October or November we can add Medicare D to our A and B Medicare. That’s the time of “open enrollment”. Before then we could acquire an independent insurance agency. However, she strongly cautioned me about that. I won’t go into the caution concern right now. Her ultimate advice was to get an appointment with someone at the Senior Center who is well informed about Medicare. That was a good idea. I will follow up on that next week, Lord willing.

At this point I don’t believe that Tim will come home before Monday afternoon. He may have to stay longer than that in the hospital. There are still lots of issues. I have the living room converted to a hospital ward. I think we have just about all we need for his comfort. I may try to find one of those recliners the hospital put Tim in this afternoon.

Right now, Little Buddy is snoring gently on my lap. I am going to fix myself a mushroom with grill onions and smoked gouda burger patty; eat it with a glass of CRW (cheap red wine*); and go to bed.

Shalom, shalom,

Grace

P.S.

These “Tim Updates” help me process what happened during the day. It really doesn’t matter to me if you read them, or not, but I do thank you that you have said that the updates prompt you to pray. That is one of the good deeds we are here to do, pray for one another.

As you know people all over the world are praying today. May His will be done. Amen.

March 1^st

When I got to the hospital this morning, Lisa Bower drove me there, the orthopedic PA said the results from the blood/fluid draw yesterday look good. Infection level decreasing. No further surgery needed at this time

11:30 AM

I am home again. I was way too tired to sit with Tim today.

Jason brought me home. I took the dogs for a short walk. Now I will, Lord willing, rest.

Tim is still having a significant amount of pain in his knee, but it was good news that the infection levels have gone down, and he will not need more surgery on his knee at this time.

His heart is still unstable.

He is hoping to rest, sleep, today. Me, too.

Thank you for your support and prayers.

Shalom,

Grace

3:00 PM

Here is the latest.

Tim will have the PICC inserted tomorrow, Lord willing.

The doctor told him that he no longer needs to be in ICU, so if someone else needs the room, Tim will be moved somewhere else.

Tim thinks the doctor hinted that he might be able to be released after the PICC is inserted.

His heart was still irregular, i.e. in a-fib, when I came home a couple of hours ago. I suspect that will have some impact on the decision about whether he can be sent home or not.

I will go back to the hospital in the morning, Lord willing.

Since I came home, I am getting some rest—conked out for a two-hour nap after taking the dogs for a walk. I was shaky exhausted before the nap. The walk in the woods was therapeutic. I love the new trails that have been scraped out in the woods between our house and the river. The dogs love it too. They can run, sniff, and pee all they want to.

When we get the discharge order and our instructions as to what we are going to have to do for Tim’s care–if and when he will need to be taken back to the hospital for antibiotic injections through the PICC, I will need to put together a plan for transportation back and forth from here to the hospital. It is about 20 miles. At this point, I don’t know how long the procedure will take or what time he will need to be there or even if it will be a daily appointment time. As soon as I have that information, I will see how you local people can help us. We have a generous husband and wife couple who have offered to pay for Uber drivers to take us back and forth, but I don’t know if that is feasible. The cost would be more than $50 each way, and it appears from the Uber app that we would have to wait for a driver to be available. The best idea may be to make a schedule and those of you who are willing to drive could pick your day of week. We will be happy to pay for your gas, if you will allow us to do so.

More anon.

March 2^nd Big Pharma

Tim called me at 5 this morning to tell me that he had been given an EKG this morning. The nurse told him that the EKG had been ordered because of changes the main monitor had seen in his heart. A different medication had been given to him yesterday. His heart rate, for the first time since he got to the hospital was normal—80 beats per minute as verses about 120.

I have mixed feelings about this. I am thankful that his heart rate is normal, but that “normalcy” is not because whatever the cause of the a-fib has been found and cured. What we apparently have is another drug manipulating the chemistry and energy in Tim’s body.

Those of you who know me, know that I am not a fan of big-pharma. Ever since my life was changed by the intelligence of a naturopath doctor almost 50 years ago, I have not been participating in the pharmaceutical market. But now, in this crisis, Tim and I have submitted to that world. That is disconcerting. On one hand I am thankful that Tim is in the hands of skilled people who truly care about his welfare, on the other hand. . . well you get the picture.

The PICC is scheduled to be inserted in Tim this morning. The purpose of the PICC is ease of IV drug insertion and blood draws. Tim will not have to be poked with needles every couple of hours as he is now, nor will he have the IV insertions on the back of his hands. I understand that the PICC will be inserted under the top of his arm, the right, I think. It will have a tube across inside the top of chest that will reach close his heart. The closeness to his heart, the doctor told us, will allow the antibiotic drugs to get to his heart. The present IV or oral drugs do not have such access to his heart. Sigh. . .

We have heard hints that after the PICC is installed, Tim might be released. That’s good. We are both eager for him to be home.

I will know more, I hope, after we meet with the doctors or the case nurse, today and get our walking orders.

I will keep you posted.

As I have told a couple of you, I really do feel the love. Love is spelled in different ways, one of the ways is P-R-A-Y-E-R.

I trust you feel my love coming back to you.

Shalom,

Grace

1:20 PM

The PICC line procedure has begun. Should be complete in an hour or so.

Then an X-ray will be taken. If everything is all right, we will get our marching orders and be ready to go home. I am guessing that will be about 4:00.

After we hear the briefing, I will know how often we must come back here for the antibiotic injections.

2:42

PICC insert done, well. We will be headed home in about an hour. Wow

But, from what I understand at this point, he will have to go back to OMC at least once a day for the antibiotic treatment via the PICC, for the next 4-6 weeks. Yikes. That’s a burden. We are going to need help. Judy (for those of you who don’t know Judy she is a dear friend, a former nurse, whose job it was, among other things, to insert PICCs) told me yesterday about a transportation service here that can take Tim to and from the hospital, door to door. I printed off the application for that service yesterday and will take it with me to the hospital this morning. The application needs a medical person’s authorization. Then it will take about 21 days, I read, for the application to be approved. So. . . we will need drivers for those weeks. I sure don’t know when Tim will be able to drive again, and he can’t get into a pickup truck, yet. Depending on how far this goes, and what Tim’s driving ability is, we may have to trade the F150 for a car.

Once I know when, and how often, we need to go back to the hospital, I would like to set up a schedule with as many of you who are willing and able to drive to the hospital. Perhaps it could be 7 people with each one taking one day per week. I don’t know how long the procedure takes once he gets to the hospital either.

March 3 Shortness of Breath

8: AM

We still need lots of prayer, especially for wisdom. Tim is experiencing shortness of breath. He will call his PA physician assistance/primary care person when that office opens. Now that he is out of the hospital, he can choose how much of this paramecium he wants to continue. He is still taking OxyContin for the pain, and he is scheduled for three weeks of antibiotic injections.

The PA told Tim they don’t have any appointments available

March 4^thChallenges and Revelation

As in : March Forth!!

Numerous Challenges, at least one revelation

As most of you know, Tim came home from the hospital Monday evening. We are both so glad that he is home, but challenges remain.

#1 prayer request is for wisdom from the Lord for Tim and me as there are so many decisions to make, and processes to set up.

One question: Does Tim really need the 8 prescriptions proscribed for him?

#2 Prayer Request is about the driving Tim back and forth to the hospital every day for his antibiotic infusions. We had the first appointment yesterday. We hired an Uber driver for that one. I am enclosing with this email a chart of the days we need drivers. Any days that we don’t have drivers lined up we will use Uber

For those of you who are willing and able to drive:

He needs to be at the hospital by 5:00. Yesterday the Uber driver picked us up at 4, and that worked well
The appointment will last about an hour
We will pay for your gas.
You will need to have a car that Tim can get into.
It is possible not to take our wheelchair to the hospital and use one of the ones available at the entrance to the hospital.
Tim is able to pull himself into the car and onto the wheelchair
If you cannot handle the wheelchair, I will go with you and do that

Other challenges:

We have had to make several changes in the living room/hospital ward to find a way for Tim to sleep comfortably

We tried getting him to bed in the bedroom. That didn’t work. Next, we tried the couch, the twin bed, and the hospital bed. None of those gave him the comfort he needed.

Yesterday we bought the recliner. Tim was able to breathe better in the recliner and slept pretty well.

So now, my revelation.

I now understand why Jewish women are not required to take part in the scheduled prayer times. Sometimes it’s because you have babies to nurse, sometimes it’s because you have little children to watch over, sometimes you have to pay attention to what your teenagers are up to, sometimes you have elderly parents to care for, and eventually you will have to care for your spouse—in sickness and in health. Through all that there is a constant need to manage the house—food, laundry, tidiness, schedules and on and on.

While Tim was in the hospital there were a number of people every hour of the day to help him with everything. Now it’s just me. At first, I was overwhelmed by the constant responsibility. But we are getting a routine now. Moms sleep when the babies sleep. It is the same when you are caring for an adult who is disabled. Thank you for your prayers for me.

March 5^th Ambulance Ride

We were on our way to the hospital for Tim’s PICC Jason Junior driving us and we ended up getting as far as Walmart and calling 911 because of his breathing problem we are waiting for the ambulance to come now so thanks for your prayers.

Jason Junior is taking me to the hospital and will drop me off.

It’s rough, but we are trusting in our Creator for his will. Our family of friends here has been beyond awesome.

Tim was released from the ER about 7:30 last night. The final word from Dr. Zink, whom I liked, was that there is some fluid in Tim’s lungs and it might be from fluid retention, so they gave him a diuretic that made him pee, a lot. He had that same drug a couple of times while he was in the hospital. The doctor also gave us a prescription for the same drug to take by mouth.

The drug may have helped, a little, but the shortness of breath continues. Tim tries to find a position to sit that eases the discomfort. Lying down is the worst.

He will see the “Primary Care” PA tomorrow. That will be our first step to other caregivers. He is scheduled for a follow up with the orthopedic doctors on the 10th, and PET scan on the 20th.

I have had no experience as a patient in the hospital for more than 50 years. Tim has not been in a hospital bed since he weighed more than 8 pounds. We don’t like this. Nobody does, I imagine. My daughter, Heather, said the system is broken and we have to advocate for ourselves. Two nurses told us the same thing, not about the broken part, but about the self-advocacy part. There is not one personal doctor who knows you and is ordering treatment for you. All the care providers are in their own compartment, and they don’t know what the other people are doing. For instance: one doctor ordered Ibuprofen, another ordered Eliquis (apixaban). When I picked them up at the pharmacy at Costco, I was told those two drugs should not be taken together. Last night in the ER, the nurse told us the same thing. Both drugs were on the list of things that Tim was told to take, though the Ibuprofen was “as needed”, not on a schedule. Obviously, the drug is on OUR not needed list, for now. There have been other examples of that kind of lack of communication, a lot of them, in the hospital indicating that one caregiver was not aware of what others had done, or not. (For those of you who know what I am talking about, I sure miss Joe Wessels.)

Some men trust in horses, some men trust in chariots (AKA pharmakea?) but. . . we will trust in the name of the Lord–Hashem, by the way, means “The Name”.

Tim is still very uncomfortable. We bought him a recliner yesterday. He is trying to get comfortable in it. Comfort comes and goes, but he did sleep some last night.

We have the driver issue taken care of. Thank you all.

March 6^th Compartmentalized Health Care

Since my sharing with you the frustration, and danger, of the compartmentalized health care system we have, I have heard several confirmations about this issue. It is serious, and yes, as some of you have shared, I too, miss the good ol’days with the “family doctor”. There is no “Dr. Welby” now.

I give credit to a naturopath for saving my life when I was in my early thirties. I probably referred a hundred people to him over the years. Except for an eye doctor, he was the only medical person I dealt with until now. That was Joe Wessels, in Bellingham. He is retired now.

Today we have an appointment with the Primary Care Physician, who is really a Physician Assistant. He is supposed to be the one who keeps track of everything and calls the plays. We will see what happens. Judy is going to drive us to the appointment and be our advocate. I am thankful for that. Some of you know that our precious friend Judy was a nurse, a massage therapist, and walked her husband through the last days of his life a few years ago. She has been on several sides of the medical world.

Tim’s breathing is better since our visit to the ER. The diuretics he was given, and is still taking, have evidently reduced the fluid in his lungs, and some of the swelling in his leg. He is still in a great deal of pain and general discomfort.

A man, Ray, from Home Health Care was here a few days ago. He gave Tim a list of things he needs to do to help restore movement in his left leg. So far Tim has not done any of the exercises. Please pray that he will be able to do so.

My daughter, Heather, is encouraging us to ask for an earlier appointment for the PET scan. (It is scheduled for March 20^th). Please pray for the Lord’s will on that request.

As you know, we are “blessed beyond measure” no matter what. In this world we will have trouble, but Yeshua Mashiach has overcome this world. It is rough water, but we know Who is on the helm.

There is a better world coming. Halleluyah!

Thank you, for your prayers, support and love.

March 7th

Lots of things to update today after the first visit with the Primary Care people since Tim left the hospital.

Summary: We are dealing with three main issues, listed by importance of care response:

Congestive Heart Failure and Atrial fibrillation (AFib)
Septic Arthritis in the knee and ankle
High PSA count

Congestive Heart Failure: Congestive heart failure (CHF) is a chronic condition where the heart cannot pump blood effectively to meet the body’s needs. This occurs when the heart muscle becomes weakened or stiff, impairing its ability to fill with or eject blood properly. As a result, blood and fluid back up into the lungs, legs, ankles, feet, and other organs, causing congestion—a key reason for the term “congestive.”

The condition is not the same as a heart attack or cardiac arrest, but it can lead to serious complications like pulmonary edema (fluid in the lungs), kidney or liver damage, and sudden cardiac arrest. CHF can affect the left side (leading to shortness of breath and fatigue), right side (causing swelling in the legs and abdomen), or both (biventricular failure).

Tim CHF is what is evidentially, causing the edema in his body—the swelling in his legs, the shallow breathing, and rapid weight gain.

His left leg is suffering already from the trauma of the infection and the surgery. The ace bandage is supposed to help move the excess swelling up. He tries to keep his legs elevated to help facilitate that, but when he leans back in his chair and lifts his legs, he has a lot more trouble breathing.

The trouble breathing is because of the fluid in his lungs, caused by the heart’s failure to pump adequately.

We learned of the rapid weight gain at the Primary Care appointment yesterday. Here is the history:

212# Before hospitalization Tim’s weight was holding at 212
220# February 21^st first day at the hospital
234# March 6^th

Yikes.

The physician assistant, Erica, told us to weigh Tim every day. She said that if he gained more than 10 pounds in a day, that would be an emergency, but a couple of pounds a day was acceptable.

Yikes!

I asked her at what point would two pounds a day weight gain would be considered dangerous? at 75 pounds told weight gain? She did not give me an answer.

BTW we liked Erica. She did an exceptionally good job sorting through myriad of things we have to consider.

I tried to weigh Tim this morning, but the digital scale we have did not know how to handle his one-foot stance on it, so I ordered an old-fashioned familiar scale with a dial in it from Walmart. It will be delivered sometime today. I so appreciate the Walmart delivery service!

Atrial fibrillation (AFib) is the most common type of irregular heartbeat, or arrhythmia, affecting the heart’s upper chambers (atria). It occurs when electrical signals in the atria fire rapidly and chaotically, causing them to quiver instead of contracting effectively. This disrupts the normal coordination between the upper and lower chambers (ventricles), leading to an irregular and often fast heartbeat.

AFib and CHF are why Tim is taking anticoagulants because when the heart is not strong and pumping out completely blood can pool in the heart’s chambers, form a blood clot and cause a stroke or heart attack.

2. Septic Arthritis: Septic arthritis is a serious joint infection that causes rapid inflammation, severe pain, swelling, and warmth in the affected joint. It is most commonly caused by bacterial infections, particularly Staphylococcus aureus, which can spread through the bloodstream from another site or enter directly via injury, surgery, or trauma. Less frequently, it may be caused by other bacteria, viruses, fungi, or mycobacteria.

The condition is considered a medical emergency due to its potential to cause irreversible joint damage, including destruction of cartilage and bone, within hours to days. It most often affects one large joint, such as the knee or hip, though multiple joints can be involved, especially in certain populations or with specific pathogens.

This is what sent us to the hospital. This is why Tim can’t walk. This is why Tim had surgery on his knee and ankle. This is why Tim is going to the hospital every evening for the antibiotic injection trough the PICC for two more weeks. This is why Tim will continue to take oral antibiotics for four or more weeks after the PICC treatments are completed.

Tim is in a great deal of pain from the infection. He takes an oxycodone tablet when the pain is intolerable. He has been given a 600 mg prescription for Ibuprofen. Ibuprofen is an anti-inflammatory drug that also acts as an anticoagulant. Usually the drug Tim is taking for anticoagulation is not taken in conjunction with Ibuprofen. Together they could cause too much anticoagulation in the blood, leading to severe bleeding problems. The druggist at Costco told me that when I picked up both RX’s at the same time. I asked the PA about this yesterday. She said that the Ibuprofen, even with the cautions, is still the best choice for Tim’s pain control, short term. I asked her what “short term” means, “Two weeks” she said. Tylenol is not a good choice because it is not anti-inflammatory, she said.

We have a follow up appointment with the orthopedic surgeons on Tuesday next week.

3. High PSA count –270

A PSA level of 270 ng/mL is extremely high and strongly indicates advanced prostate cancer, likely with metastasis (spread to other parts of the body). While there is no strict upper limit for PSA, levels above 50 ng/mL are typically a very strong indicator of prostate cancer, and values in the hundreds are almost always associated with significant disease.

In ordinary circumstances, this would be at the top of our list. We are not in ordinary circumstances. The high PSA count as indicated above, probably means that Tim has prostate cancer, and the cancer has probably metastasized. A PET scan will help to determine if that is so. Right now we have an appointment for a PET scan on March 20^th. Erica, the PA, is going to try to get that moved to a closer date. The present date puts the scan at the end of the PICC treatments, so that may be the “one step at a time” provision from the Lord.

The deal on prostate cancer, as most of you probably know, is that it is slow moving, most men—if they live long enough—develop it. Lots of men, especially old men, die with prostate cancer, not of prostate cancer. So, with two other more urgent medical problems ahead of it, prostate cancer is at the bottom of our list.

Care for Tim is a constant occupation for me. Even right now as I type this update, I am sitting next to him with my laptop on a portable stand. He needs help with most activity.

Trying to help him be comfortable is my main job.

How am I doing? So many of you have asked and are praying for me. I cannot possibly thank you enough. I am weary, but I know His love does not run dry. It is pouring through me in immeasurable amounts. I am, truly, blessed beyond measure, no matter what.

Obviously, what has come upon us is changing everything. Please pray that we make all the right decisions going forward.

Shabbat Shalom,

Grace

PS I forgot to mention that the PA has requested an appointment with a cardiologist in Silverdale. Don’t know the date yet. Please pray that it will be soon.

March 7^th In Another Hospital

Tim is in Saint Michael’s hospital in Silverdale Washington.

How did that happen?

This morning our friend Jack called. Tim was not doing well. His breathing was labored; he could hardly talk and was in significant pain. Jack told him that he should consider going to Saint Michael’s in Silverdale. After Jack talked to Tim, he called me. He pleaded with me to take Tim to Silverdale. Jack said he would pay all expenses, just please, please do it. I talked to Tim. We agreed to go.

Jason and Shayla drove us to the hospital. We got there about 1:00. Immediately, I mean immediately we felt the difference in the level of care. In minutes Tim was in triage, being seen by a doctor, x-rayed, c scanned and blood tested.

Jason and Shayla sat with Tim and me for about three hours while all the information from OMC was gathered. By about 4:00 we were told that Tim was being admitted.

He will be kept here for a couple of days until a few things happen. The doctor who admitted him said that he is dealing with more heart failure than a few days ago. He will be seen by a cardiologist in the morning. He will be kept in the hospital until his weight/water retention is reduced to acceptable and stable condition.

The Hasties and I started getting ready to leave Tim in the hospital and start for home. As we were doing that my phone started to ring. The phone had not worked all day! It was Ai Ling. She had just read my email update. She asked if I were in Silverdale. She told me she lives only 10 minutes away from the hospital. She asked if Tim could have visitors. When I told her what we were getting ready to do, she asked if I would like to come spend the night at their house. Her husband Lance came to the hospital and brought me to their house.

I am overwhelmed and exhausted.

March 8th

10 am

As some of you know, there is this lady who lives inside me. I call her “Our Lady of Perpetual Responsibility” (thank you Garrison Keller). I wrestle with her. This morning she was released from duty. I did not even have to fire her; she was just gone. With her departure, the tears I have held captive were also released.

Thank all of you precious people for suggesting/insisting and helping Tim and me get to this fabulous oasis.

Remember “You are in good hands with Allstate”? Well, “all states” are not the same. The state of our hospital experience has changed.

There are many comparisons that could be made but suffice to say we are in good hands.

We are waiting for the doctors’visits. I will update later.

7:30 pm

Tim has been taken for more tests

I have a couple of hours to wait, so of course, I am doing some research.

Below is info on the cardiologist. We instantly trusted him.

Cardiologist Matthew Voorsanger

https://www.healthgrades.com/physician/dr-matthew-voorsanger-ybnmq

Dr. Matthew A. Voorsanger is a cardiologist in Poulsbo, Washington and is affiliated with multiple hospitals in the area, including Jefferson Healthcare-Port Townsend and Virginia Mason Franciscan Health-St. Michael Medical Center. He received his medical degree from Saint Louis University School of Medicine and has been in practice for more than 20 years. He has expertise in treating coronary artery disease, heart failure, hypertension & high blood pressure, among other conditions – see all areas of expertise. Dr. Matthew A. Voorsanger accepts Medicare, Aetna, Cigna, Blue Cross, United Healthcare – see other insurance plans accepted. Dr. Matthew A. Voorsanger is highly recommended by patients.

Specialties

SPECIALTY

Cardiology

Cardiologists treat diseases of the heart and blood vessels, which are collectively known as the cardiovascular system. Common conditions treated by cardiologists include genetic heart defects, heart rhythm disorders, heart failure and coronary artery disease (narrowing of the blood vessels caused by the buildup of plaque and cholesterol).

March 8^th

Serious news. The cardiologist was just here. Tim has a leaking heart valve. It showed up in the echo thing they did while you were here. He had had the same test at OMC. The leak has gotten significantly worse in a short amount of time. The doctor said he is very concerned about Tim. Tim is being moved to the cardiac part of the hospital. The doctor did not want him to have anything to eat. Tim may have to have surgery.

Tim is going to have three invasive tests within the hour. The cardiologist said they may move him to Virginia Mason hospital in Seattle tonight. Even the procedures they will be doing are dangerous. The doctor did not hesitate. He said Tim needs them.

He is very sick. Bring air lifted to Virginia Mason hospital on a few minutes.

March 9th

1:15 am

A couple of hours ago Tim was airlifted by helicopter to Virginia Mason hospital in Seattle. The pilot was kind enough to let me fly with him.

Since the moment we arrived, the staff at Virginia Mason has been working on Tim nonstop.

The reason for this drama is just an introduction to the drama to come.

Tim is facing open heart surgery.

Just the facts, ma’am, just the facts.

Meet our cardiologist at Virginia Mason

Dr. Robert Moraca

Dr. Moraca is very concerned about Tim. After looking at the tests he ran on Tim, he came to talk to us.

Tim has a dangerous infection in his heart. He has an abscess on his aorta. The infection is damaging his heart. It has caused a flap on one of the valves and something similar in the aorta itself. This is an immediate life threat. If the abscess bursts the doctor will not be able to save him.

The surgery to fix it is complicated.

We talked to two doctors today explaining this to us. He could die at any time, and he could die during surgery.

The recovery from open heart surgery is long and hard.

Tim wants to go for it.

The high PSA count might kill him someday, but probably not for years. He is willing to take the risk of that, but first fix the heart, if possible.

Please pray for wisdom.

Meanwhile, three things remain: faith, hope and love. The greatest of these is love.

March 9^th

7:17 AM

Tim in on his way to the operating room.

I won’t hear more, Lord willing until mid afternoon

Both Dr.Voorsanger and Dr. Moraca told me us that Tim may not survive the surgery. The patient going through “Normal” heart surgery, whatever that is, has a 1 in 100 chance of mortality during the operation. Tim, because of the complications in this case, has a 1 in 10 chance of dying during the procedure. Both of the doctors made it clear that Tim may die during this operation.

As he was being transferred out to surgery, we both knew me not see each other again until the resurrection. We said all the important things to each other.

Noon

Tim is out of surgery!

“All went well,” Dr. Moraca told me. The infection, he said, was not as bad as he thought it was. They still have to wake him up, make sure there is no bleeding and make sure that he is stable.

I will not be able to see him for a couple of hours.

“. . . I stand in awe of you”

I will update again later

Thank you for your prayers

My mind cannot process what happened in the last 24 hours. I am exhausted emotionally and physically. I can do all things through Him who strengthens me, but he has also told us to rest. Rest has not happened for me for more than month. I have been given a gift to rest here in Seattle while dozens of other people are taking care of my husband.

I have rented a room in The Inn at Virginia Mason. I will describe it later. I will describe lot of things later. For tonight—just a list.

Yesterday it was discovered that Tim needed open heart surgery
We were airlifted to Virginia Mason hospital in Seattle
We were told there was high risk that Tim would die during the surgery
He didn’t die

He will have a long, painful recovery

There are lots of stories to relate, but I must accept this gift of rest tonight.

Thank you all for your love and prayers

Updates missing. Find in my emails by date

March 11

5:30 am

News, prayer requests, and need revealed yesterday

Tim is doing well. The doctor’s words were that he is not out of the woods yet, though. He said that he rebuilt Tim’s heart. He replaced the aorta and the aortic valve

The aorta is the body’s largest artery, originating from the left ventricle of the heart and extending down through the chest and abdomen to supply oxygen-rich blood to the entire body. It is critical for systemic circulation, with major sections including the ascending aorta, aortic arch, and abdominal aorta. Common, life-threatening conditions include aneurysms (bulging) and dissections (tearing), often caused by high blood pressure or atherosclerosis

Aorta replacement surgery replaces damaged sections of the aorta with a synthetic graft, offering near-zero rupture risk for aneurysms. Open-heart surgery lasts several hours, requires a 1–2 day ICU stay, and 6-8 days in the hospital. Full recovery takes 4–12 weeks. Success rates are high, with 1–2% serious complication rates.

Heart valve replacement is a major, often life-saving open-heart or minimally invasive procedure to replace a diseased, non-repairable valve.

Tim May released early next week to a skilled nursing facility. He will need to be there until he is through with the PICC injections he will need for six weeks.

I will be talking to the case nurse today to work on finding the skilled nurse facility. From what we have heard there is not one in Sequim or Port Angeles. We will be looking in for one in Silverdale and vicinity.

These means that I will not be coming home for up to six weeks, too! I will need a place to stay near the facility — ideally somewhere I coiled ride my trike to and from the facility. Judy suggested I find a BNB and relax for six weeks. Really? I thought. That would be interesting! How would I do that. I told Judy, “I guess I could write a book.”

Ai Ling and Lance have graciously offered me shelter if we find a skilled facility near their

place in Silverdale. Ai Ling said she and Lance would drive me to the nursing facility wherever it is.

Thank you all for your overwhelming love for Tim and me. Obviously, this is life changing. We will have lots more decisions to make.

“Blessed beyond measure, no matter what” means that this is all under the control of and guided by our God. His word tells us “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and thanksgiving make your request know to God, and the peace of God will guard your heart and your mind in Christ Jesus”

That was one of the first verses I memorized when I began this journey with Him 50 years ago on July 4^th 1976. He has given me His peace, not as the world gives peace, but His peace —through troubles and trauma and led me to tranquility and triumph.

4:00 pm

This is the procedure that was performed on Tim’s heart

This is what his chest looked like today:

Michelle, who was part of the cardiac team was just here. She was with Dr. Moraca through the whole surgery. He said he could not have done it without her.

We talked with her about release options. I explained to her about the lack of a nurse trained in doing the PICC injections at home in Sequim.

She said she didn’t see any reason why I could not be trained to do it. Then Tim would have to go to Port Angelous only once a week to make sure the PICC is clean and all right.

Here comes another wow.

WOW! Wouldn’t that be awesome. I told her I was totally willing to learn to the treatment. I told her about my experience with health care of animals. Tim told her that we owned and ran a dairy processing business for 20 years. We know about cleanliness. She said she would see if she could make this happen.

I don’t know who will train me if this idea is approved, or what kind of equipment we need at home to carry out the mission. The next few days should reveal those things.I am thrilled that this was even brought up as a possibility. It may be that we will find out that for insurance reasons the procedure must be done by a nurse certified in the procedure.

The last question I asked her was when she thought Tim could be released from the hospital. She said that medically, he should be ready to go be released this weekend.

If I cannot be legally trained to do this we will go back to the plan of taking Tim to Port Angeles for the treatment everyday via the Jasons—Jason Parkinson’s van, and Jason Hastie and son Jason, as drivers. Reminder: Jason means “The Healer.”

Ed Kissam brought a suitcase over today with some things I asked Laura to gather. One of those things is this computer.

As I was tying the above sentence a Social Worker named Jaylyn came in. She had the list of skilled nursing facilities that could accept Tim. I told her about the new option that had been presented to us.

She said, “absolutely”. She would call the nursing agency that would come here to hospital to train me and make sure that I am comfortable with doing it. She will also make arrangements for a nurse to come once a week to our house to check the PICC line, etc.

Wow!

FYI

Virginia Mason Medical Center reports a total of 11.75 nursing hours per patient day, which reflects the overall nursing staff-to-patient ratio. This includes both registered nurses (RNs) and other nursing personnel. Specifically, the hospital has 8.74 registered nurse (RN) hours per patient day, with 74.38% of nursing hours performed by RNs—a strong indicator of clinical staffing levels. These figures are based on data from the Leapfrog Group’s 2025 survey and reflect the hospital’s commitment to maintaining high standards in nursing care and patient safety.

7:00 pm Wednesday,

Several IV’s and tubes removed today.

Prayed for lady at the bar

Had to order power cord. Resaw the people I prayed for yesterday in the cafeteria!

All things ordained by God.

Tim is not feeling good today—uncomfortable, pain in his chest and trouble breathing. He is on oxygen again. His left lung partially collapsed yesterday. The staff will be taking x-rays of the lung for the next few days to make sure that the air pocket outside of Tim’s lung does not get any bigger.

We are back to trying to find a good rehab place for Tim. The cardiac doctors are meeting with the social worker at 10:00 this morning. After that I should hear something. I told the doctors that I would love to have Tim close to our home, so that I could live at home, and visit him via trike, but it is much more important that he is in a good place with competent people to take care of him.

The social worker we talked to yesterday has a list of facilities that could take Tim—including Medicare and skilled nurses for the PICC. We didn’t keep the list because we thought we could go home. Today we see that going home is not possible because of the leg issue. Tim would have to be able to get up and stand without pulling or leaning on a walker. This morning two nurses got him to up to stand on a scale. His left knee collapsed. He cannot hold himself, push, pull, or lift for several weeks.

Medically, the cardiologist said he could be released in a couple of days, but he will have to go to a skilled nursing facility.

I know that the Lord has the perfect place for him. I don’t know where that is yet, but I will know when he tells me.

HaShem told Israel, his people:

I know the plans I have for you, plans for welfare and not for calamity, to give you a future and a hope.

We gentiles receive that loving promise with faith and certain hope.

1:30 AM

Thinking, can’t sleep

Thoughts:

Tim may, probably, will be released next week.

We will have Olympic Ambulance bring him home in a wheelchair.

As soon as we get the order that he will be released the next day, I could go home and get things ready.

What this would require:

Someone to take me home
1. The best thing, I think, is that someone from Sequim, probably Jason, would come from Sequim to get me. He could bring the wheelchair with him

8:30

The social worker we talked to yesterday has a list of facilities that could take Tim—including Medicare and skilled nurses for the PICC. We did not keep the list he had in his hand because we had just learned that I could be trained to do the PICC so we could go home. One of the possibilities was Avamere. Today we see that going home may not be possible because of the leg issue. Tim needs to be able to get up and stand without pulling or leaning on a walker. He is not feeling good today—uncomfortable, pain in his chest and trouble breathing. He is on oxygen again. His left lung partially collapsed yesterday. It has not corrected yet, a doctor from cardiology just told us.

10:30 AM

Snowflakes falling on puddles, melting

There must be a metaphor in there somewhere. I took a short video of it from the window in Tim’s room.

This has been quite a day.

Most of you got the email this morning about Tim not going home, but to rehab. Here it is in case you missed it:

Medically, the cardiologist said he could be released in a couple of days, but he will have to go to a skilled nursing facility.

I know that the Lord has the perfect place for him. I don’t know where that is yet, but I will know when he tells me.

HaShem told Israel, his people:

I know the plans I have for you, plans for welfare and not for calamity, to give you a future and a hope.

We gentiles receive that loving promise with faith and certain hope.

The social worker, Stephen, brought the recommendations for Skilled Nursing Facilities back to us. Nothing in Sequim is recommended. I worked through the list.

Then I received this message from Missy, a retired nurse who used to live and work in Sequim and Port Angeles

Oh, Grace…I totally understand your high hopes and eager willingness to learn the PICC administration as a loving wife. What may seem like hopes being dashed, may truly be YeHoVaH’s perfect mercy toward both of you. Tim will definitely need a solid, effective professional rehab program to regain the much needed strength and endurance drained from him by virtue of open heart surgery alone, adding to that post-op knee and ankle surgery that requires regaining strength and mobility. Then there’s the PICC…I have no doubt you can learn it’s many tasks and procedures as you are a very intelligent and astute woman. What may be Abba’s greatest mercy is the re-directing of its care temporarily until you, too, are fully rested and have regained clarity and acuteness. If you missed even one step accidentally in the process, infection can quickly be introduced and it goes directly to Tim’s heart that is clearly still compromised -that would be so hard to bear as a deeply loving wife. Tim being in rehab for a few weeks gives you more time to learn every aspect of the PICC and once he’s more stable, he can then be discharged to rehab’s out-patient program, and you can take over PICC care with more confidence.

We are praying, dear sister, as you and Tim are still, waiting upon Abba YeHoVaH’s perfect plan and timing. He’s carrying you both.🙏🥰💖

I answered:

That is wisdom, Missy. Thank you. I have been praying for that.

I read Missy’s letter to Tim. That cinched it for us. As much as I would like to be at home, this is what we need to do.

I spent much of the day looking at the list of Skilled Nursing Facilities (SKF) that the social worker had given me. I looked at websites, google maps, and reviews.

Later I got this letter from Rosemary, who lives in New Zealand.

Dear Grace,

I’m so sorry that Tim is not able to go home yet. I understand how much you both want that to happen. But I’m also really relieved – for you both. At home, Tim would just not be close enough to the medical care he may need (like today, when the staff could treat him and make him more comfortable immediately). I would find being so far from hospital nerve wracking. I am also relieved for you, I would worry that caring for Tim at home would be too exhausting for you, even though you are working on curbing Our Lady of Perpetual Responsibility, I was so overjoyed to read that – it’s a tough balance to get to.

Worse scenario, it may be several days at a time when you can’t get to visit Tim in a nursing facility. But in those days at home you would get a little of your life back, which is a good thing. You can also be in phone contact, and maybe local friends wherever he is can visit him. Think of it as short term pain for long term gain. This time next year, or even a few months from now, when Tim is so much better, looking back the potential periods of separation will have been worth it for a successful recovery period where Tim will have all the urgent assistance he needs.

I hope I’m not overstepping with these comments. Clearly you are both richly blessed with your relationship together. I wish that for you both for many years to come.

with love

Rose

I answered Rosemary:

Thank you for those words, Rosemary.

I had not even considered being at home while Tim is an hour away in a nursing facility. I am still not considering that idea, but I will listen to what HaShem says.

We have found a good place, called Northwood Lodge, recommended by people we know who have been there. It is in Silverdale, an hour away from Sequim. It is close to Saint Michaels, the hospital that gave us the help we needed. The clinic of the cardiologist who saved Tim’s life is in Silverdale, too. I know you haven’t met our friends Ai Ling and Lance. They live less than 5 miles from the Northwood . They have enthusiastically invited to me stay with them while Tim is in rehab. At this point, that is the plan. He may be released to go there early next week. I don’t think anything happens on the weekends.

I simply can’t imagine leaving him alone in the rehab place. He needs me beside him. He needs my advocacy, and I need to be alongside him to know what is happening.

But, again, thank you for those words. I will listen. If the Lord tells me to re-think the plan, I will.

Shalom, Shalom,

Grace

I told Ai Ling and Lance what I am thinking. They reiterated their invitation. You might remember that I had spent the night with them when Tim was in Saint Michaels last weekend.

I talked to someone at Northwood at 4:30. The admission people had already gone for the weekend. I don’t think anything happens on the weekends. The person I talked to said she would get my message to someone in admissions. She said they work remotely. She assured me that someone would call me soon.

Still snowing at 5:30 PM—I got the metaphor, watching the snow melt as it hits the ground.

“No weapon formed against us will prosper.” Amen

March 12^th

Thursday

I woke up at about 4:00 this morning in The Inn. I felt an urgency to come over to the hospital to see Tim before I did anything else. I knew he need a charger for his phone, so I delivered that to him. He was fine, sleeping when I came in.

I read him the prayers and scriptures that people have been sending. He was quite groggy. I prayed for him then went back to my room. I planned to have coffee, breakfast and a shower.

I lay down on the bed. I went soundly to sleep. When I woke up I looked at the time on my phone: 7:22. Disoriented, I did not know if it was 7:22 in the morning or the evening. I opened the shades and still couldn’t tell. I tried to think it through. It must be morning, I thought. David is coming to visit today. But I still could not confirm that in my mind.

I quickly dressed and went downstairs. Kiki, the barista was working in the lobby. “Oh good,” I thought. “It’s morning.”

So, I ordered coffee and breakfast. The barista brought it to me:

Breakfast:

Life is hard. God is good.

John 16:33 “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”

Complete Jewish Bible translation: John 16:33

“I have said these things to you so that, united with me, you may have shalom. In the world, you have tsuris. But be brave! I have conquered the world!”

g2293. θαρσέω tharseō; from 2294; to have courage: — be of good cheer (comfort). Compare 2292.
AV (8) – be of good cheer 5, be of good comfort 3;
to be of good courage, be of good cheer

March 14^th

Another chance to pray for someone: Beverly age 98. She and her husband struggling with their possessions. I helped them get to their car, then prayed. Thank you, HaShem

Waiting for word about Northwood Lodge

Northwoods Lodge in Silverdale, WA, is a senior care community offering skilled nursing, short-term rehabilitation, and memory care services. Located at 2321 NW Schold Pl, Silverdale, WA 98383, it operates as part of Encore Communities and provides 24-hour medical care, physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech therapy, and specialized programs for residents with cognitive impairments.

The facility is certified for up to 57 residents and serves as a skilled nursing and outpatient rehabilitation center, ideal for individuals recovering from surgery, injury, or acute medical events. It also offers memory care with secure, protected environments to prevent wandering, along with daily activities, healthy meals, and assistance with bathing, dressing, and mobility. Amenities include a fitness center, dining room, media room, outdoor space, and transportation coordination.

Reviews highlight strong nursing care and effective rehabilitation programs, with one family noting excellent recovery support after a hip fracture. The community is rated highly for its skilled staff and comprehensive services, though costs are above average—starting at $3,090 per month and averaging $4,891. It accepts Medicare and Medicaid and is recognized as a top-tier nursing home nationally.

May you open this door for us, HaShem, Father, Abba—help me know how you would like me to address you., if this is the place you want Tim to be.

March 14^th

3/14 it is Pi’s 8^th birthday.

Scott sent this picture to me today:

I am home, for about 12 hours.

The dogs were delighted to see me, and even Meg greeted me.

Ai Ling and Lance are planning to pick me up in the morning. Jack and Mary brought me home.

I am here to collect some clothes and do a few things for Tim about bookkeeping.

Looks like we may get moved to a skilled nursing facility on Monday. We are trusting HaShem to put us where he wants us. We are hoping it is in Silverdale at Northwoods Lodge. It will be determined on Monday, we hope.

Thank you all again for your wonderful notes of encouragement and your prayers. Tim is doing well. Most of the tubes have been removed from his body. With the therapists help, he stood on two legs to brush his teeth today—then he was exhausted. He was able to sleep well in the afternoon. I pray that he sleeps through the night. He says the nights are the hardest part.

March 15^th

I woke up this morning in my own bed in Sequim, with Little Buddy snuggled behind my knees. Poor little guy he missed me so much. He was delighted beyond measure when I got home. I know his sadness will be of the same measure when I leave again.

After I got up, I sent text messages to several people in our fellowship group. I told them that I would be home until about 10:00 when Ai Ling and Lance would be there to take me back to Virginia Mason in Seattle. At about 9:00 those people all showed up!

Left to right: Laura, Shayla, Jason, Suzie, Pi, and Judy

Tamara called while we were having our impromptu fellowship, too. Ai Ling and Lance arrived to greet all these people. What an amazing mishpacha, (family in Hebrew), pronounced mish-paw-khah.

Lance and Ai Ling got me back here to Virginia Mason about 1:00.

I received this email from Jean, in Florida, this morning, she had written it last night.

Dearest Mama Grace,

I have been lifting you and Papa Tim to the One who sits on the mercy seat. He perceives and sees all your ways. He knows all the details of your life affairs. He is orchestrating for help to be available with you and Tim in this valley. He keeps your mind in perfect calmness as you wait, you watch, and you pray. May HaShem bring healing and restoration swiftly to Tim. HaShem gives you the endurance for this trial and testing.

We have also been praying for Pi and Buddy and Meg. We are ever praying with you for His will to be done. His kingdom is at hand.

I love you.

Shalom

Imagine my friend in Florida thinking to pray for Pi and Buddy! A little later in the day today, Laura told me that Scott who has been walking the dogs every day, noticed that Pi seemed fine at first on the walks, but then slowed down as if he were in pain.

Several months ago Pi was in so much pain he could hardly move. A friend gave him an adjustment. He recovered completely! I contacted that friend today to see if he would give Pi another adjustment. About 10 minutes ago, 6:00 this evening, I heard that the adjustment had been given, and Pi seemed to have received it well.

There is proverb that says:

A righteous man has kind regard for the life of his animal Proverbs 12:10

Praise God for people who love animals! I am so grateful.

So, what’s new with Tim?

Just the facts:

He lost 7 pounds of water since yesterday.

The only tube still connected to him is the PICC

He walked a little bit with a nurse, walker and stabilizing belt

He has very little appetite

He sleeps most of the day.

I just asked him about his progress. He talked for several minutes. I wish I had recorded what he said. It was beautiful. The summery is day by day he is making a little progress. Without the amazing support of the people we have around us, he would be inclined to despair. But with so much love he is encouraged. He ponders the Rabbe’s question: Why are you still here? His answer is to be kind, look for ways to bless the people around him. Be kind to the nurses. Summary: Love God, Love your neighbor. He is so thankful that I am here beside him. He is grateful beyond what he is able to express for the love, prayers and support that is being poured out on him. He says his task is to look for what HaShem has for him next. His life has become and will continue to be entirely different from what it was. So he must watch, listen and be patient to hear and obey. In a word, Shema!

The expectation is that he will be transferred to a skilled nursing facility tomorrow. We don’t know where that will be yet, but we do know who will make the arrangements. We have heard good reports about Northwood Lodge in Silverdale. Northwood is close to where Ai Ling and Lance live. I could stay with them. Tomorrow will tell. Please continue to pray that the Lord will open the door where he wants Tim to be. The PT person who helped him today said he should expect to be in the nursing facility for three weeks or more.

My current plan for after Tim is moved to the nursing facility, if it is in Silverdale, is to go home on Friday and come back after Shabbat. Tamara said she would be glad to take me back to Silverdale. She even said she would be glad to drive me to Sequim on Friday. That is super generous of her. Perhaps someone else would be able to pick me up on Friday morning to take me to Sequim, or I could hire an uber driver. After being home for one night this week, I can see how valuable that would be for me if I could do it every week.

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, you have navigated this trial like a warrior my dear friend. I know Hashem is beside you and Tim in all decisions and treatment that are being made. I know He has guided the doctors and nurses every step of the way. Why is Tim still here? Because he and his mentorship are still needed. Tim has been such a guiding light to Jason. The father figure he never had on this earth and I am so grateful to you both. And you have been such a huge help to Shayla and a second momma for her.

I pray Adonai holds you both close in healing and comfort.

Shalom Shalom, dear friend.

Tamara Allen

March 16th

Tim is being released from Virginia Mason this morning.

So far the only rehab center that will take him is in Port Townsend. Port Townsend is about 15 miles closer to Sequim, I think.

We had hoped we could be in the one in Silverdale, but that place may not have a bed available and not the Lord’s choice for us.

The rehab center wants us there by 3:00, so Virginia Mason wants us to be ready to leave here bye 12:30. About two hours from now.

A cabulance has been ordered with a request that I be able to ride along with Tim.

Eventually today, I will need a ride home, from somewhere.

We are trusting our loving Father to take the best care of us possible, wherever we go. There may still be time for Northwood in Silverdale to have a change, but if we go to Port Townsend we will be well cared for, and closer to home.

In either case Tim and I made the decision that wherever he goes for rehab, I will go home.

Still problems with the PICC, that could change everything, again!

Prayers welcome,

Grace

There is still a problem with the PICC line.

March 16th

Another x-ray will be taken shortly to see if the technician was able to straighten it out.

This is the 3rd time it has shifted, I think. It may need to be reinstalled.

There are no random coincidences.

If Tim needs to stay in this hospital longer, or wait for a bed to become available at Northwood, this problem with the PICC could be HaShem’s way of making sure that happens.

I will keep you posted. Thank you all for your prayers.

1:51 PM

We are working out the plan to go home to Sequim tomorrow.

“Really?” You ask, “How did that happen?”

One crazy turn of the roller coaster at a time.

The case nurse/social worker was going to send us to the nursing home in Port Townsend today. We objected, but the plan was moving forward. . . until there was no transportation available to take us there. Godly interfereance at work.

There were no other skilled nursing facilities with a bed available within a 50 mile radius.

Tim said, “Princess Bride. ‘What are our assets?’”

We added them up. The plan developed from there.

An ambulance wheelchair service can take us home
Our house is set up well to handle an invalid
Our friend, Jason Parkinson, has a wheelchair van he said we could borrow to take Tim to the OMC Short Stay clinic for his antibiotic infusions.
Jason Hastie and son can get us to OMC daily
Physical Therapy can be scheduled to come to our house

The case nurse/social worker is try to put all of this together now. Final plan may be in place by morning.

Thanks for your prayers. We are as delighted to get home as the dogs will be when we get there!

March 17^th

The plan is for us to go home today. There is a cab-ambulance service that will take us home. Tim will be going back to OMC daily for the PICC infusions. We believe he will be able to get in and out of Jason’s car, the Subaru we used to have. Tim can back up now, put his rump down first then swing his legs onto a bed or chair. That should work well for getting from the wheelchair into the car with the help of the walker. At home we have everything we need to take care of him, including a nurse who lives upstairs. Jason has also volunteered to sleep at our house if we need a strong man to help in the night. I doubt that we will need that. The PT/OT people will come to the house. The case nurse is setting up all the details today. Dr. Moraca came to talk to us last evening. He approved the plan.

So we are waiting for the signal to go!

Email from Missy:

Missy Wagnor:

Good morning, Grace.

Praying, praying, praying.

Before this latest change in plans, you wrote that Tim had little appetite and was sleeping most of the day. Is this still his current state? Do you feel undoubtedly confident and assured that Tim will be able to tolerate getting into and out of a car four times a day, every day for possibly several weeks without debilitating him further and that you are up to handling it?

The reason I am asking is that a patient and their family have the right with Medicare to delay discharge by a few days or more, if they believe they or the patient are not ready or able to perform the discharge plan. Getting out of the hospital is by far the best game plan, if the patient, primary caregiver and support team can reasonably and successfully perform the tasks of the discharge care plan.

Your description of Tim’s energy level at last mention is concerning. We are praying with you for wisdom, discernment and prudence at this critical juncture by the healthcare professionals monitoring Tim and you, as primary caregiver, recognizing weaknesses, limitations and realities in truly being able to accomplish what is being required.

We love you both so much.

Grace Lukens:

Thank you for your concern, Missy. We just met with one of the cardiac doctors. The plan to take him home is approved. His energy is much better—he can breathe now. Loss of appetite, she said, is absolutely normal after the surgery. She encouraged him to eat as much as he can, especially protein. He is able to back up now, put his rump down, then swing his legs onto the bed or the chair. He gets stronger every day. The PT men who worked with him yesterday mostly stood back and told him to do it himself. He did! Things are going well. Also, we have a nurse living upstairs, and a precious friend who is a home care person—she wants to help. Jason Hastie is amazing. He has volunteered to do all the driving for us, and spend the night at our house if we need a strong man around. We also have a friend, you might know, Jason Parkinson, who has offered us his van for the daily trips to OMC if Tim can’t get in the car. Jason is quadriplegic and has a wheelchair van. We have a wheelchair, walker, commode, reclining chair an amazing group of friends!

Set back 10:00 AM

Set back. Low blood pressure. 87/48 Waiting for the doctor. Symptoms not good while PT person was here. Consulting going on. Pretty sure we are not going home today.

Symptoms: dizzy, lightheaded, weak, vision problems, nausea. Looks pale

Word to us just now: It is not safe for him to go home with these symptoms. They are stopping the blood pressure meds and will try to get him stabilized. Maybe he could go late this afternoon, the nurse said, but I don’t think so. Maybe tomorrow.

12:00

Nurse says it was a combination of dehydration from the diuretic they have been giving him and the medication to lower his blood pressure. They are making changes to stabilize him. She said they will see how he is tomorrow. The PT guys will be here again tomorrow and will be able to assess the situation.

I have also put a call in to Northwood again. This incident is for sure a message from the Lord that Tim is not ready to go home today. What about tomorrow? I don’t know. He does.

On Tue, Mar 17, 2026, 4:58 PM Grace Lukens <grace.g.lukens@gmail.com> wrote:

We are told that the trouble today was dehydration caused by a conflict between medications.

Tim is all right now, blood pressure is normal.

We are told that the “problem” has been solved.

He is scheduled to be released to go home tomorrow. The cabulance will pick him up at 11:30 am, Lord willing.

After all the fits and starts, many of you have expressed concern about taking Tim home so soon after surgery. If there were a good place to take him we would consider doing so. However there is no place within 50+ miles that can take him, and has a good reputation. The Olympic Peninsula is a great place to live, but not such a good place to need skilled post-surgery nursing care.

The best option for us is to take him home. Home is a place of healing. God gave us families, not institutions, to care for each other.

At home we have OMC to administer the daily PICC drugs, the orthopedic doctors who operated on his leg are in Sequim as is Tim’s “primary care” physician, OT/PT people who come to the house, a friend who does home-care work, a nurse who lives upstairs, and numerous other people wanting to help–including my sister who is making dinner for us tomorrow.

We are trusting that this momentary setback was orchestrated by the Lord before we leave the hospital so that the medications could be balanced.

Many metaphors have been used to describe what we have been going through–roller coaster, spinning plates, and rough seas.

Thank you for your love and support.

Shalom, Shalom,

Grace

March 18^th

The plan for today is to go home. A minor crisis arose in the planning of our trip home. A reservation for a cabulance from Olympic Ambulance (OA)was secured and paid for by us. It is scheduled to arrive to pick us up at 11:30 this morning. When I talked to dispatch at OA, I was told that the OA does not use the ferries. We would be going the long way, around Tacoma.

Our appointment for Tim’s PICC infusion at Olympic Medical Center (OMC) in Port Angeles is 4:00. Based on OA picking arriving to start this journey at 11:30 this morning there was no way to get Tim home in time, unloaded from the ambulance, reloaded into some other transportation vehicle and get him to his appointment on time. In addition to the potential of missing the appointment time, Tim would have to endure all that shuffling. The trip is going to be hard on him physically without the pressure of getting him to the PICC treatment on time.

After many conversations with OA, the nurse, OMC, the case nurse, and consolations with the doctors, I was completely frustrated. How could we possibly make this work. Tim resolved the frenzy. He said the cabulance could take us all the way to OMC in Port Angeles, Jason Hastie could meet us at OMC with Jason Parkinson’s wheelchair van to take us home. Jason would bring our wheelchair and walker. So, I called OA to lengthen the trip to PA; Tim called Jason H to help him understand what he would have to prepare in Jason P’s van to secure Tim either in his chair in the van, or in a seat where he could be buckled in.

OK. We have a plan, and Tim showed his alacrity.

The main thing that contributed to my angst is the critical importance of Tim getting the PICC infusions daily, at the right time. The infection in his leg is still life threatening. The bacteria must be completely eliminated to ensure that it does not resurface and be transmitted to his heart. That would be, in the doctor’s own words, a disaster. (In watching some of the news from the middle east, I see the parallel between our fight against infection and the “elimination” of the enemies in Iran. Interesting comparison.)

So please pray for a safe transition to home care.

I got a “severe weather” notification this morning, heavy rain and flood warnings.

Be anxious for nothing.

No weapon formed against us will prosper.

Some men trust in horses, some men trust in chariots, we will trust in the name of the Lord.

Email from Jason Parkinson

Pay it Forward in Life	Tue, Mar 17, 8:22 PM (14 hours ago)
to me

“ Home is a place of healing. God gave us families, not institutions, to care for each other.”

You should make that a bumper sticker! Very powerful what you said here. Very powerful . I have been in hospitals for long periods of time. Seven months when I first broke my neck and another three months right after that. To be Frank it was hell emotionally and spiritually. It killed me on the side. It felt like prison. I can not possibly emphasize how powerful beiing at home is.

I was pushed and pushed by all the “medical professionals“ and so was my family for them to put me in a nursing home for life. They said that my mother cannot do it all. Too many skills and too much stress. Yet she fought them. she says teach me at all. I can do it all. And she did! We had no place to live when I was released from the hospital after I broke my neck. No money and no place to live. BUT GOD! He opened the doors. Friends, family, and community all came together and all pitched in. my best friend Jason’s mom took us in to her house. She gave up her very own bedroom for me and my mother slept in my best friend Jason‘s old bedroom.. the community raised money to get me a wheelchair accessible van. My mother did my care 24 seven. Which typically still to this day takes at least 3 to 4 people. Here is the big catcher though , where God really stepped in. They pushed and pushed to put me in an institution because that’s where all high-level quadriplegics went back in 1990. For life. There was no funding for at home care. There was no concept of it either. So God placed upon my heart to fight the government. To take them to court. To say to them instead of spending these absorbances amounts of money to put people in institutions and nursing homes to give them the individual the money and have them delegated out to caregivers so they could be at home productive members of society. They said no. I told them it would save them money and give people hope. they still said no. I fought them. I took them all the way to the state Supreme Court. I became the first person in Washington state to get in home care. I won the case and change the laws. Now there is over 70,000 caregivers in Washington state giving in a home care. BUT GOD!

Luke 17:6 (KJV): “And the Lord said, If ye had faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye might say unto this sycamine tree, Be thou plucked up by the root, and be thou planted in the sea; and it should obey you.” 

These emphasize that genuine faith—even as small as the tiniest seed—can accomplish the impossible through God’s power, not our own strength.

10:30 am

Tim is ready to go. We are waiting for the cabulance.

That was the plan for yesterday, too, but Tim had a dangerous drop in blood pressure due to dehydration by the diuretic drug and the blood pressure drug he was taking. My understanding, via the nurse, is that the blood pressure drug was discontinued. She would not, or could not, tell me if that drug had been a new one just added yesterday. She said sometimes these things happen over a few days as the body reacts to what it is being given. She told me that it was all science, and I could trust it. I tried to tell her that it was not “science”; it was experimentation hoping to find a solution by trial and error. She wasn’t listening.

March 18^th

I made a mistake this morning. I didn’t realize that the meds we had before the heart surgery which had the same name as the ones re-prescribed after the heart surgery had differing mg per tablet. It had been a confusing mess to me to figure all the med stuff out. Yesterday I talked to a PA at Virginia Mason. He helped me understand which meds Tim should be taking, and how many times per day, but he did not explain to me the milligram differences.

One of the drugs is a blood pressure medicine called Metoprolol. I learned that I should give Tim one of these twice a day. What I didn’t know was that the prescription from OMC after the leg surgeries was in 100 mg tables, and the one prescribed after the heart surgery was only 25 milligrams. I gave Tim the 100 mg tablet. A couple of hours ago his blood pressure dropped to 94/73. I called the doctor. A nurse gave me changes in the medications to get his BP back in the normal range. The top number should be 100 or more. She instructed me to give Tim ½ tablets of the Metoprolol twice a day instead of a whole tablet. When I went back to split the tablets, that is when I had given him the 100 mg pill instead of the 25 mg one! Now she wanted me to cut the 25 mg pill in two. I was shocked at my mistake.

Tim’s BP a few minutes ago was 104/68. Praise God!

All of this started because I called the doctor because Tim’s ankle looked awful, and his BP was low.

March 16^th

I pray Adonai holds you both close in healing and comfort.

Shalom Shalom, dear friend.

Tamara Allen

March 20th

We got home Wednesday evening. The cabulance picked us up at Virginia Mason at 12:30. We arrived at the Olympic Medical Center in Port Townsend just in time for Tim’s 4:00 infusion appointment. The ride in the cab was terrible for Tim—rough and noisy.

Jason Hastie met us at the hospital with Jason Parkinson’s wheelchair van. The half-hour ride home was wonderful, smooth and quiet. Jason P has graciously allowed us to use his van to take Tim back and forth for his daily infusion appointments.

Jason P is a remarkable man.

Let me share

“ Home is a place of healing. God gave us families, not institutions, to care for each other.”

These emphasize that genuine faith—even as small as the tiniest seed—can accomplish the impossible through God’s power, not our own strength.

March 17^th

This was a tough day.

I got up thinking we were going home. I checked out of the Inn.

Mid morning the PT guy came in to work with Tim. All of our plans fell apart. The details are in my emails.

Tonight I go to sleep in my third room in this Inn.

Tomorrow, Lord willing, we will go home.

March 20^th

First official day of Spring is tomorrow, I think. New life. Appropriate for what we are experiencing.

We got home Wednesday evening at about 6:00. The cabulance picked us up at Virginia Mason in Seattle at 12:30. We arrived at the Olympic Medical Center Short Stay department

March 22^nd

I have been step by step dismantling all the things that were in place for our fellowship meetings here at This Place.

MPu

just in time for Tim’s 4:00 infusion appointment. Tim suffered on the trip. The van ride was rough and noisy.

Jason Hastie met us at OMC with Jason Parkinson’s van. After Tim’s treatment, Jason brough us home in Jason P’s van. That half hour ride was amazing—smooth and quiet. The van is still parked in our yard. Jason P is graciously allowing us to keep it parked here unless he needs it.

Let me share with you an email I received from Jason Parkinson this week. Jason had been the first one to tell us to figure out how to bring Tim home so that we would not have to go to a re-hab center.

Pay it Forward in Life	Tue, Mar 17, 8:22 PM (3 days ago)
to me

“ Home is a place of healing. God gave us families, not institutions, to care for each other.”

These emphasize that genuine faith—even as small as the tiniest seed—can accomplish the impossible through God’s power, not our own strength.

March 22^nd

We came home from Virginia Mason on Wednesday. Today is Sunday. We are so glad to be home. We have peace here. As I have said, healing happens at home.

Step by step I have been dismantling all the things that were in place for us to have the fellowship meetings here.

This is what it used to look like:

Here is what it looks like now:

We will be able to have our group meeting here again? I don’t know. In the meantime I am blessed to know that you are meeting at Teddy’s clubhouse. Baruch HaShem.

Today we are going to see if Tim can get in and out of Jason Hastie’s car. If so we can give the wheelchair van back to Jason Parkinson. We are so thankful for the use of that van. We would not have been able to come home without Jason’s generosity to let us use it to get back and forth to PA for the PICC infusions.

March 23^rd

Tim is able to get in and out of the Subaru! Jason P has his van back, and Tim is much more comfortable riding in a car without being in the wheelchair.

People are asking how we are doing. Good question. Answer is not so easy. We are VERY glad to be home and not in a care facility somewhere. We are weary. The first thing Tim said to me yesterday was “I’m tired of this.” We have been thrown into a pool we did not expect. We can’t stop swimming. My days are full keeping track of Tim’s vitals, medications, appointments, and keeping him as comfortable as possible under the circumstances. His situation is complex because he has to be very careful not to push, pull or lift with his arms, and his left leg doesn’t work either. He needs help to get up and down out of chairs. He is walking very little, and that with a walker. Most of the time he is in the recliner. He has little appetite. His knee is very painful.

We are getting started with follow up appointments with all the different clinics and doctors–that also is complex.

We had an appointment this morning with our Primary Care PA, Andrew Lazio, here in Sequim. That went very well. He has been worried about Tim. He has been “watching” Tim on the computer information. He said the info is on his screen every day. He gave us good advice today on the follow-up path.

We are trying to reschedule the PET scan ASAP. Tim has been too much distress in the other problems and procedures to want to address the high PAC numbers–prostate problem. Andrew Lazio is helping us get the scan scheduled ASAP. I told Andrew that I was concerned that the recent exacerbation of pain and swelling in Tim’s knee could be from the prostate problem. Andrew said he was concerned about that, too. The PET scan will help determine if that is the case.

We are a long way from out of the woods.

Even so, He is the good shepherd. He leads us beside still waters, he restores our soul. He will have us lie down in green pastures. Even though we walk through the valley with the shadow of death on both sides, He will guide and comfort us.

We are, still, blessed beyond measure, no matter what!

Shalom, Shalom,

Grace

March 24^th

Well, I believe the Hand of God just moved in our favor.

Tim has an appointment for the PET scan tomorrow morning at 9:15.

“That’s a miracle,” one of care givers said.

The main “new” thing yesterday was our meeting with Andrew Lazio. He is our “primary care” PA. We liked him. Tim’s knee is very swollen and painful. I asked Andy, his preferred name to be called, if the continuing knee pain could be caused by Metastasized bone cancer from prostate cancer. He said that he is concerned about that, too. He understood why Tim did not want to address the high PSA count while he was in the middle of open-heart surgery—very understandable, he said. But he and I urged Tim to find out now what he is dealing with by getting the PET scan ASAP. Andrew said he would contact the urologist right away and urged me to contact her too. I left her a message yesterday, and I will try again in a few minutes.

I left two messages then sent a message to the Lazio team via MyChart, along with some pictures of Tim’s knee.

Then I got call back from Sequim Imagining. I talked to Jennifer. She said their first opening was April 9^th, more than two weeks from now. She said they only did one PET scan a day so I could understand why the appointments fill up so fast. I asked her if we could try to get an appointment somewhere else, sooner. She said I could try calling St. Michaels in Silverdale to ask them how far out they are scheduling.

At that moment, Kelly from Lazio’s team called me. She had not received the pictures and wanted to know about Tim’s knee. I told her I was trying to get a sooner appointment for the PET scan in Silverdale. She gave me the phone number for the Silverdale Imagining clinic

I called Silverdale and talked to Jess. She asked lots of questions about what is going on with Tim and what to expect from them. She told me that our Primary would need to send a referral to get an appointment scheduled. I asked her if our Primary decided it was a good idea for Tim, how far out would she be scheduling. “Usually a month after cardiac surgery,” she said, “but it would be completely up to our Primary if he wanted to schedule the test sooner.”

I asked her, “If he does decide to request the scan when would you be able to schedule it?”

She said, “Oh, my, we just had a spot open for 9:15 tomorrow morning at 9:15.”

“That would work,” I said. “We have an afternoon appointment in Silverdale at 2:30.”

So, I called Kelly back. “That’s a miracle,” she said. Then she told me how she would work out the details for us to take the appointment

Jason Hastie will drive us to Silverdale tomorrow. After the PET scan our 2:30 appointment is with Dr. Voomsanger—the man who sent us via helicopter to Virginia Mason. He was the one who realized how serious Tim’s heart problem was. He was one of the instruments in the hand of God to preserve Tim’s life.

Isaiah 41:13 – “For I am the Lord your God who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, Do not fear; I will help you.”

6:00 PM

The PET scan is not going to happen tomorrow. There was a whole lot of misunderstanding. Most importantly St Michaels imaging in Silverdale does not do PSA prostate PET scans.

Part of the problem was my being told to call St Michaels in Silverdale to see if they could schedule an earlier appointment. The person who told me to do that did not know that the PSA PET scan was not done in Silverdale. The person I asked in Silverdale about trying to get an earlier date, did not know that I didn’t know what kind of a PET scan we wanted.

It all got ironed out in the end. We are back to having the PET scan done here in Sequim on the 9^th of April.

Tomorrow we will go to Silverdale to see the cardiologist for a follow up appointment.

Disappointed? Somewhat, but like Tim just said, let’s slow this freight train down. He has asked for another blood draw to check the PSA numbers. It is possible all the stress he was under in the hospital could have elevated those numbers.

Thanks again for all your prayers.

March 24^thSeptic Arthritis

What has been diagnosed so far in Tim’s knee is septic arthritis. The orthopedic doctors explained to us some of the dangers of this. It is serious stuff. I suspect that it may be what lead to the heart trouble. Tim’s knee had been getting more and more painful and weak over the past year–at the same time he was losing energy, initiative, and stamina. After we learned of the heart trouble, first the a-fib, later the leaky valve and “abscess” on his aorta, we thought that the heart issues were what were contributing to his malaise. After the surgery, Tim is breathing normally, and so relieved. He did not realize how compromised he had been.

Now, the leg is the big issue. He may not have bone cancer in his knee; he may not have metastasized prostate cancer; he may not have prostate cancer at all; but he does have septic arthritis. We have not had a follow up appointment with the orthopedic doctors yet. One of them met us at the Short Stay a few days ago to take a quick look because I was so concerned about Tim’s “purple foot”. He assured us that is normal. Keeping it elevated changes the color. We missed our post-surgery follow up about the leg because we were at Virginia Mason having heart surgery on the day that had been scheduled. I sent a message to the Primary, Andy, this morning to get that appointment reinstated. If I don’t hear from that office by noon, I will call.

We go to Silverdale this afternoon, Lord willing, for our first follow-up with the cardiologist at St Michaels. We have another appointment next week with the heart surgeon and the infectious disease doctor next week.

Right now, if it were not for the leg, Tim could be taking short walks in the sunshine. As it is, he can’t get up without assistance, and he can’t “walk” more than a few feet with a walker.

March 26^th What’s Next?

Yesterday we had a follow up appointment with Dr. Voorsanger in Silverdale. As you may remember, Dr. Voorsanger was the man who recognized how serious Tim’s heart problem was and sent us to Virginia Mason in Seattle via helicopter on March 7^th. Without that diagnosis, Tim probably would have died a couple of weeks ago. I was looking forward to thanking Dr. Voorsanger. I did. I asked him if I could give him a hug. He said yes. I gave him a hug. Then he took a look at Tim’s leg.

We missed our post-surgery follow up about the leg because Tim was at Virginia Mason having heart surgery on the day that had been scheduled. One of orthopedic doctors from OMC did meet us at the Short Stay a few days ago to take a quick look because I was concerned about Tim’s “purple foot”. He assured us that is normal. Keeping it elevated changes the color as the blood flows away from his foot. The doctor did not address the swollen, painful knee.

Here is the deal. Tim’s case is complicated—open heart surgery on top of surgery on his knee and ankle for septic arthritis. Dr. Voorsanger told us to forget getting a PET scan. A PET scan should not be taken when there is a live infection in the body. The infection will make the PET radiation light up like fire in the scan, giving a false positive result.

The leg is the big issue. Tim may not have bone cancer in his knee; he may not have metastasized prostate cancer; he may not have prostate cancer at all; but he does have septic arthritis.

The knee is the big problem at this point. Septic arthritis is potentially lethal. Dr. Voorsanger confirmed what I had learned online.

Without prompt treatment, the mortality risk is approximately 66%, whereas with treatment, it drops to about 15%; delayed intervention can lead to joint breakdown, sepsis, or long-term disability.

Dr. Voorsanger said Tim’s knee is not responding as expected to the IV anti-biotics. It is swollen, hot and painful.

After looking at Tim’s knee, Dr. Voorsanger said he was going to call Dr Chihara, the infectious disease doctor we had seen at Virginia Mason. Dr. Voorsanger told us that the knee must be “cleaned up”. That could mean more surgery. Dr. Voorsanger said he wanted Tim to get whatever he needed next through Dr. Chihara and the orthopedic team at Virginia Mason. Dr. Voorsanger wasted no time. He left the examining room to call Dr. Chihara.

When he came back to the room, he told us that Dr. Chihara would be in touch with us very soon. Dr. Voorsanger said we should get going so we could make our appointment at OMC for the PICC infusion.

After we were in the car for a few minutes, Dr. Voorsanger called me. He said that he had talked to Dr. Chihara. Dr. Chihara would arrange everything he deemed necessary with the orthopedic people at Virginia Mason.

A little more than an hour later we arrived at OMC short stay for the infusion. The nurses were waiting for us. They had received an order for a blood draw from Dr. Chihara.

I took a picture of the blood draw order for my photo/journal updates:

I was impressed. These guys wasted no time. This is serious business.

This morning we expect a call back from Dr. Chihara to learn what’s next.

7:30 PM

I did not speak personally to any of the doctors at Virginia Mason today, but their scheduler called me. We have three appointments set up for Tuesday, the 31^st, orthopedics, infectious disease and the cardiologist. The appoints are back-to-back 1 hour apart. Obviously, the infectious disease doctor, Dr. Chihara, did not feel the need to bring us by helicopter today to Virginia Mason. That is good news. We should get all the questions we can think of answered on Tuesday, the day before Passover begins. Perfect!

Tim slept all night, and most of the day today. He is feeling much better this evening, bright eyed and cheerful. Praise the Lord.

Blessings to all of you. Thank you for your prayers.

Love,

Grace

Appendix

Definitions

Define arthritis: see

Arthritis is a general medical term describing joint inflammation or the loss of smooth cartilage that lines a joint, resulting in bone grinding on bone during movement. The word literally combines arthro (joint) and itis (inflammation), referring to a group of over 100 different conditions that cause pain, stiffness, redness, swelling, and reduced range of motion.

While the term broadly covers any disorder affecting joints, the two most common forms are osteoarthritis (degenerative “wear-and-tear” arthritis) and rheumatoid arthritis (an autoimmune disorder where the immune system attacks joint tissues). Symptoms can range from mild to severe, and in certain types like lupus or psoriatic arthritis, inflammation can also affect other organs such as the skin, eyes, or heart.

Key characteristics include:

Primary Symptoms: Joint pain, stiffness, redness, warmth, swelling, and decreased mobility.
Underlying Causes: Vary by type, including aging, previous joint injury, obesity, genetic factors, infections, or autoimmune responses.
Chronic Nature: Arthritis is typically a long-term condition, though some forms may be episodic or temporary.

Septic arthritis, also known as infectious arthritis, is a medical emergency defined as the invasion of a joint by an infectious agent (bacteria, viruses, fungi, or parasites), resulting in rapid inflammation, severe pain, and potential joint destruction. This condition typically presents with redness, heat, and swelling in a single joint, most commonly the knee, and often accompanies systemic symptoms like fever and weakness.

Cause: It is most frequently caused by bacteria, particularly Staphylococcus aureus or Streptococcus, which usually spread through the bloodstream from an infection elsewhere in the body.
Risk Factors: Individuals with artificial joints, diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, or compromised immune systems are at significantly higher risk.
Urgency: Without immediate treatment involving antibiotics and joint drainage, the infection can lead to irreversible joint damage, with a mortality risk of 66% if left untreated compared to 15% with treatment.
Dr. Robert J. Moraca currently serves as System Medical Director of Cardiac Surgery at Virginia Mason Franciscan Health, and Section Chief of Cardiac Surgery at Virginia Mason Medical Center in Seattle Washington.
Dr. Moraca returned to Virginia Mason Medical Center in 2020 with nearly 11 years of experience in academic cardiac surgery as an Associate Professor of Surgery at Allegheny General Hospital, Pittsburgh, PA where he served as Director of Thoracic Aortic Surgery, Director of the ECMO Program, Director of Cardiac Surgical Research and Surgical Director of the Chronic Thromboembolic Pulmonary Hypertension (CTEPH) Program.
Clinically, Dr. Moraca has an extensive experience in all aspects of adult cardiac surgery and has special expertise in redo cardiac surgery, complex aortic surgery, revisional and multi-valve reconstructions and septal myectomy. In addition, he has unique experience in the multidisciplinary treatment of CTEPH and Pulmonary Thromboendarterectomy (PTE).
Dr. Moraca has been an active clinical investigator in multiple national transcatheter valve, arrhythmia and heart failure trials and he has been a co-principal investigator on several National Institute of Health (NIH) R-01 funded research trials in both pulmonary hypertension and ECMO. He has been program chair for more than 15 multidisciplinary regional meetings; Dr. Moraca has published nearly 40 peer reviewed articles and book chapters and has been an invited lecturer at multiple academic institutions and national meetings. Notably, he served as the President of the Eastern Cardiothoracic Surgical Society (ECTSS) in 2016. Since his arrival in Seattle, WA in 2020, he has been recognized as one of Seattle’s Top Doctors in 2021-2025.
Dr. Moraca enjoys being able to positively impact his patients through the stress of cardiac surgery by listening, education and shared decision making and is consistently inspired by his patient’s courage and fortitude. He is both humbled and proud of the entire Virginia Mason Medical Center team’s notable quality accomplishments obtaining a 2024 STS 3 Star ratings in cardiac surgery and also being recognized in 2023 by the U.S. News & World Report as #46 in Cardiac Surgery and Cardiology Care in the United States.
Away from work, he enjoys reading, climbing, skiing, biking, and spending time with his family and two dogs.

April 1^st

Thank you, all of you awesome Pray-ers!

Everything we learned at Virginia Mason today was in the category of, so far so good.

Tim’s heart is doing well.

The incision is healing well.

The last stitches were taken out.

There is still a long recovery ahead of him, though.

In about 6 weeks Tim will have an echocardiogram to make sure the new valve is working properly and that there is no “vegetation”, i.e. bacteria growing in his heart.

Most people require three months for the sternum to heal, Tim’s case will need twice that long.

The possible danger to his heart is the infection in his knee. That infection must not settle into the heart again.

Dr. Moraca, the heart surgeon was more concerned about the infection in Tim’s knee than the infectious disease doctor than the orthopedic PA seemed to be.

The knee is still hot, and very sore. The Ortho PA took blood from Tim’s knee, which will be cultured to assure that there is nothing to worry about. The soreness can be, probably is, he said, caused by the blood in his knee. Because Tim is taking anticoagulants the blood in his knee may not clear up. I don’t really understand all of that, yet, but it sounded as if as long as Tim is taking the anticoagulants he will continue to have pain in his knee. He could, at some point, have the knee “replaced”–i.e. surgically altered but that can no way be an option if there is still active infection in the knee.

And the danger of blood clots requires the anticoagulant drugs, we are told.

I think that Dr. Moraca said that the antibiotic infusions will continue for another month or more. I think the blood “markers” will indicate when there is no infection left in his body. Those markers have been going down as indicated in his last blood test.

So Tim’s fears of having to undergo another stint in the hospital, have be assuaged.

We are on our way; going first to Port Angeles for the next IV infusion, then home to rest.

Happy Passover! Chag Pesach Sameach

Grace

April 2^nd

Passover 2026

The perfect last entry for the Tim Update Saga

On the way home from Port Angeles, Jason took Tim to our fellowship groups Passover celebration. A place was prepared at the head of the table for Tim. He read the Haggadah.

Click Here to Watch and Listen

I came down with a cold the day before Passover. I did not go with Jason and Tim for Tim’s IV infusion appointment, or the Passover Celebration. This too, was perfect. We weep with gratitude for what God has done.

The bridegroom is the one who has the bride; but the bridegroom’s friend, who stands and listens to him, is overjoyed at the sound of the bridegroom’s voice. So this joy of mine is now complete.

John 3:29

Tim Health Saga 2026

February 21st Tim Is In the Hospital

Message to Family and Friends

February 22nd

2:00 PM

6:20 PM

6:08 AM

5:38 PM

4:43 PM

1:00 PM

4:30 PM

10:30 AM

1:40 pm

3:00

5:00

February 28 PICC and Roller Coaster

12:45 PM

1:45

3:15 Roller coaster

6:00 PM

3:00 PM

1:20 PM

2:42

8: AM

March 6th Compartmentalized Health Care

March 7th In Another Hospital

March 8th

7:30 pm

March 8th

March 9th

7:17 AM

Noon

8:30

10:30 AM

March 14th

March 16th

March 16th

1:51 PM

March 24th Septic Arthritis

7:30 PM

April 1st

Share this:

Like this:

Discover more from Faith Walking

February 21^stTim Is In the Hospital

February 22^nd

March 6^th Compartmentalized Health Care

March 7^th In Another Hospital

March 8^th

March 14^th

March 24^thSeptic Arthritis

April 1^st