Just wanted to give everyone an update on Ed.  He is doing ok.  He got out of the hospital last week and was very happy to be home.  He is still not 100%.  They had him on 2 antibiotics to help cure up the wound on his pacemaker site and they have caused a bit of trouble for him. 

He is having a bit of stomach upset and one of the antibiotics caused "frequent urination"  yea, about every 30 minutes or so.  So he hasn't been sleeping 'cause he wants to pee.  I took him to the MD on Monday to the specialist.  His blood work from the neurologist showed positive for lupus and he sent him to a rheumatologist.  That MD did a bunch more lab work and all turned up negative.  I wasn't too concerned because when I was growing up my best friend's mom had/has lupus and dad didn't have any of those type symptoms, especially the very known butterfly face rash. 

Then on Wed we went to the regular GP, Dr. D.  She is doing a urine culture just to make sure he doesn't have an infection.  She is also giving him a drug that will cause the urethra to expand so that his bladder will empty.  She said that he may not be emptying the bladder and thinking that he still has to go.  So she gave us some samples to try for 2 weeks.

Overall, he is a bit quieter, I think he still has a bit of pain with the wound and he perks up when the pain pills (Tylenol) kick in.

We got Dad some Love Birds!  They were to be brought to him the day he went into the hospital, so they had to wait.  I got them from a friend of my boss.  They are gorgeous birds.  Not tame at all, but Anna is trying to get them to feed from her hands.  The love birds are a Lutino.  That means they have lost some of the pigment (blues and greens) and are yellow and red and white in color.  It is a genetic thing that happens pretty often, but the birds don't look like your average love birds.

The birds don't really have names yet.  We think they are male and female, but you don't know for sure unless you do a DNA test!  So we are calling them male and female.  Sometimes Dad calls them Joe and Stella (his oldest brother is Joe and his wife is Stella or Dad's sister is Stella,  we don't know what Stella it is, but feel if they are a "couple" they will be brother Joe and wife Stella)  Other times he calls them Mary and Joan.  I like Joe and Stella the best so far. 

Some of Joe and Stella's kids are on this e-mail list and you dad must have been very close to Ed.  He talks about them all the time.  He tells me stories of what they used to do together.  Dad also picks up a picture that is on the dresser and looks at them every day (actually multiple times a day - it is on route to the bathroom)

Dad makes quacking noises at them and sometimes he meows at them too.  If they pick up any speaking/mimicking it will either be "do you want to pee?" or "quack, quack, quack" or of course "meow meow."  Dad really does watch them and is very interested in them.

Dad is still missing Mom very much.  He looks at her picture on the way to the potty too and says "that's my girl"  But overall he is doing well coping with her death.  Actually a bit better than I thought.

Some of the PA folks are talking about having a Dombroski family reunion this summer.  I am interested in going.  We have our nephew, Andy's college graduation in June and we may take Dad to that.  Tom talked about July, but that may be too soon/hot for Dad.  Maybe Labor Day?

Well, it is about time for me to head out for the weekend.  Y'all have a wonderful weekend and keep Ed in your prayers.

Love and hugs to y'all,

Mary