So in the two weeks since my last update much has happened. While Shands Hospital accepted mom as a patient, they didn’t have an available ICU bed. We waited for 2 days while she continued to decline, and then the neurosurgeon brought onto the case told us that he believed she wouldn’t survive the 2 more days we might need to get her to Shands – in fact he wanted her in surgery that night.

2 brain surgeries later, we’re still at our regional hospital and we still don’t have a definitive diagnosis. She was in the surgical ICU for a week, then moved to the neurological progressive care unit. Less than 24 hours later we had a big setback and we’re currently back in the ICU again.

Their latest theory/guess/hunch has yet to be confirmed – the samples they took from her second brain surgery were sent to California for testing. It may be a week or more before we have results from those; so we wait and hope and pray that she starts improving soon.

I wanted to wait for good news to share, and although we had some small victories we also had some big setbacks. Trying to remain positive has become a challenge for me but I’m doing the best I can; Dad, my daughter, and I are at the hospital every single day and it is physically and psychologically exhausting.

Dad has slept at the hospital every night, in her room when they allow it and in the waiting room when they don’t. They’ve been married 53 years and he refuses to leave her side. I have gone home a few nights to sleep, but have spent the majority of the nights sleeping on chairs and couches in the waiting rooms trying to take care of both mom and dad. My daughter comes to the hospital every morning before work, bringing coffee, breakfast, or whatever we need from home – she works all day long and then comes back at night to visit and take care of all of us. I have an amazing family. 💕

As I sit here unable to sleep at almost 2:30 in the morning, I’ve been looking through old posts – so many of them mention my momma and our adventures puzzling together. My post from Mother’s Day last year says it all. I love her to puzzle pieces!💖💖