Up and at em

Today Judy continued to shine. She was given the challenge to walk to the nurses station and did just fine, not only once but twice. She had a very able, inspiring, and caring staff today that cheered her on with each step. Judy really responded to an aide called Stephanie. Dr. Bayles was able to adjust her feeding tube at the bedside, so a trip to interventional radiology was not needed. The nutrition seemed to perk her up quite a bit and tomorrow she will get a boost from a blood transfusion and another dialysis session. We hope that this will help to reduce the swelling, which by the way, is a source of discouragement for Judy. She looked in the mirror and saw how swollen her neck was and you could see the dissappointment in her eyes. She has been encouraged by her medical team that it is only a temporary setback and it will eventually go down, but may take a few weeks to get back to normal. Her surgeon is very happy with the graft on her tongue. Judy also saw the speech therapist today for the first time she was very nice to Judy and told her she was doing just fine. Tomorrow Ingrid will bring in the grandkids to the hosital for a visit. This will be good therapy. Elin (one of Judy's granddaughters) says that she is going to teach grandma Judy some sign language so she can comunicate! Today we see Judy's biggest struggle is her self image. We ask for specific prayer in that area. Thank you for loving Judy and praying for her. Bill and Ingrid