Mia left me a voice message this morning while we were in church. She said that Gary had responded a little last night and this morning to one of the nurses. The nurse (Troy) said that when he went into Gary's room to check on him, Gary's right foot was keeping time to the music that was playing. Mia keeps music going all the time for him - mostly jazz which he loves. Troy said also that Gary smiled at him. This is the first smile that we know of. Maybe he'll smile for Mia today. I really think she needs a BIG one!

Mia also said that they were going to change his pick line again today. They said the infection started about the last time it was changed and they think there may be an infection in the line. He is still on antibiotics. Gary is still on an anti-seizure medication which seems to keep him too sedated. Mia was hoping they would discontinue that soon.

These are small things, but every day seems to bring more hope for Gary. Let's all keep praying and believing that God will heal him.

Love and thanks to everyone, Nancy and Bill

Mia called this morning to tell us that the "strainer" procedure to catch the bloodclot in Gary's leg was done around 9 p.m. last night and when they brought him back, they moved him into the room next door which had been cleaned and sterilized to keep down any infections. Mia said the procedure only took 10 minutes and went well.

This morning, Gary is a little more alert seems like. She put his glasses on him and he looked around the room as if to say, "where am I?" She tells him all the time what happened to him, what time of day it is, which day of the week, and keeps him abreast of what's going on around him. Mia said the doctors told her that he may be moved later today to a Respiratory Unit or to a Telemetry Unit. She will call me later today to let us know where he is.

Gary doesn't seem to have any pain anywhere and is apparently very comfortable. All other vital signs are good - he just won't wake up and follow commands.

Please continue to pray. Thanks so much for all your prayers and concerns thus far.

Nancy and Bill

Mia called this morning and said she had gotten the results of the CT Scan that was done yesterday on Gary. He has a small blood clot in his leg and they are going to put in a "strainer" type thing to catch it before it causes any damage. He has a small amount of pneumonia in his lungs, but they feel like the antibiotics are already working on that. He didn't have any fever this morning which is good and he was responding to feelings this morning. The nurse said that when she washed his face, he frowned and turned his head. Also, when she put the thermometer in his mouth, he bit down on it!

Mia was on her way to the hospital and we should hear more from her later today. I'll try to post more later tonight.

Please keep the prayers going for him!

Love, Nancy and Bill

We're at home in NLR. We flew in today since there wasn't much we could do at this point to help Gary. He's getting excellent care, both from hospital staff AND from Mia. Since she's a nurse, she knows exactly what to do for him and she exercises his limbs several times a day to keep them going. She said Gary seemed to be more alert today. He had the feeding tube moved from the nose to the stomach and that frees up his face for him to move around more and she said that several times today he's looked at her and squinted his eyes as though he's trying to focus and even turned his head toward some of the pictures that she's put on the walls.

We will probably go back at some point when Mia needs us most to help her and Gary. Right now she's just taking one day at a time. She's been overwhelmed at the people who are praying for Gary and sending everything from food to cards, e-mails, and even stuffed animals! Many prayer objects have been brought/sent in from all faiths and she appreciates them all.

Gary had a CT Scan today but Mia said that she had not been given the results. He gets a chest x-ray every day and the lungs are still clear. The fever is gone, but the doc is still trying to find the infection's location if it is still there.

Keep praying - let's not give up!

Thanks, Bill and Nancy

Bill and I just returned from seeing Gary. The tracheotomy went well. They didn't do the feeding tube this morning, but will do it at a later time. The surgeon did the tracheotomy at bedside instead of in surgery. Gary was free of fever and the antibiotics are working on the infection that he has. However, he is still isolated and we have to gown down when we go in to see him. He had been given more sedation for the procedure so he slept the whole time we were there. It's sure hard to kiss him with a mask on! He is stable; good blood pressure, etc. so we may try to get a flight out tomorrow or Friday and go home. There are several things that we need to take care of and we can always come back if needed here.

I'll try to update again when Mia comes in tonight with more news.

Love and thanks to all, Nancy and Bill

Gary has an infection now in his sputum and the doctors are fearful of his getting pneumonia so they've started him on strong antibiotics. He will have the tracheotomy today around noon, plus the feeding tube will be put in the stomach. Please, please pray for him that everything will go well during the surgery. I will post more this evening when I get home from the hospital. Thanks to all of you, Bill and Nancy

Not much difference today. Gary is being given Dilantin for earlier seizures that he had which have stopped now. Mia feels that this medication is keeping him more sedated than it should. She was going to talk to the doctor about reducing the dose tomorrow. He is scheduled to have a tracheotomy sometime tomorrow and we're hoping that will help him wake up. Some people that we've talked to said that following a surgical procedure, their patient came out of a coma. Let's pray that will be Gary! Otherwise, he's great. No problems except that he won't wake up fully. He opens his eyes and moves his hands and feet, but doesn't respond to commands. Bill and I sat with him this afternoon while Mia came home to be with the boys. She spent the night at home last night and plans to come in tonight if Gary is doing ok.

Please keep up the prayers!

Love and thanks, Bill and Nancy