Hanging in there

Dorothy is doing well. She got her NG tube and her catheter out yesterday and they got her sitting up in the afternoon. This morning, she will be allowed to start having fluids by mouth and hopefully they'll have her walking this afternoon.

I did meds for the babies yesterday morning and then went shopping at 4 different locations for food, kerosene, meds, and laundry supplies for the house. I went straight from shopping to the airport to get Kathy and Sam, and on the hospital. We spent the afternoon with Dorothy and came home early enough to do dinner meds. Jamson had a fever of 104 when we got home, so I spent my evening working over him, getting his temperature down to normal. I do not know what caused it to spike that high.

This morning, I am teaching at Quisqueya until 11, then we'll all go the hospital. Sam and Kathy are doing some more food shopping, getting water, and preparing jello and soup for Dorothy while I am teaching. I will leave Kathy and Kevs at the hospital while Sam and I go fill our gas tanks for the stoves and then we'll come home in the early evening. Our nanny, Lucienne, will spend the night with Dorothy again tonight.

The number of things that I am responsible for has jumped exponentially. All the shopping, making sure the nannies have milk and water for the kids, all their medical needs, the generator, running the pump, the dogs and cat, Kevs....When Dorothy and Tasha were in charge, I helped out with all of these things, but now they are all mine. Add to them the teaching and the daily hospital trips, and I am flat out overwhelmed. It's a constant juggle to fit in everything that I need to do. My days are packed and they are exhausting.

On a happier note, it is heaven having Kathy and Sam here. Emotionally, I am much more stable now that I have someone around; even though I still have to do most of the daily tasks, it makes a big difference having someone to talk to and being able to give them simple jobs to do. Plus, if they were not here, I would have had to back out of substituting, which would have put the school in an awful pinch to find a replacement. I know that Dorothy particularly appreciates having Kathy around (they have been friends for years as opposed to the 3 weeks that I have known Dorothy) and I particularly appreciate having Sam and his guitar around. Music is a major spirit booster for me.

So keep praying for Dorothy's swift healing and for my mental status. Praise God for Sam and Kathy coming. Praise God that she got sick after I was comfortable driving. Praise God for our friend Dottie who has been spending every morning at the hospital with her. And praise God that wonderful Doctor Bijoux got her into surgery as fast as he did. 2 more hours of waiting and we would have lost her.