Track- Pac 7 Championship

Okay, well my spring sport this year was track. In track I started out just doing the mile. By the Pac 7 (the championship with approx. 8 teams or so) I was doing the 1600m. (1 mile), the 4 X 200m. relay, and high jump. At the Pac 7 I placed 6th in the high jump, jumping 4 ft. 6 in. Then, I got 10th in the mile (not my best). Finally, my relay team got 5th place. It was a great night overall. The boys won 1st place!!!! and the girls won 2nd!!!! It was so much fun. We were all cheering. It was a good way to end the season and the school year! Good Job, TRIWAY!!!

Weekend Up North Visit 4/20/09

Would you pick this semi-masked man up or help the damsel in distress? Neither since they were  both enjoying the view of the Osprys, Bald Eagle, Crane & Herrons along the side of the road at a nature nesting stop. What a wonderful treat that was on our little outing around Houghton Lake. What a beautiful Saturday it was with the weather in the 70’s which is just unnatural at this time of year in Michigan. Mike & I had a nice, relaxing, and quiet time with the folks during our weekend visit with “NO KIDS” which is a first for us since they are usually home or Mike has to work the weekend. Well this time Mike didn’t have to work and No Kids(Justin at his Dad’s and Maggie & Mike at the Carneys), so we took advantage of our “FREE” time and to get the hell out of dodge.

Spring Track and Soccer Begin

Okay, we all love spring time. This means the end of winter (and hopefully the cold) for a while, and the beginning of spring… the warmth… the sun… the plants and animals. For some people, however, this means the end of basketball and the beginning of new sports. I think the most common spring sports are track, baseball, and soccer. All kids put in committment when going out for a sport, especially if that sport is a new experience, and I am starting a sport that I have never done before.
Tthis year I have decided to try to take on track and soccer in the spring. My mom doesn’t think I can handle both, but I would really like to try, because I have found out that I like both sports.
Track practice began 2 weeks ago and we have been working on conditioning and things like that. Our first meet is a week from this Thursday.
Soccer practice began Monday night, but I was not able to go, because I was babysitting that night. Our games begin in mid-April and the championship is the last weekend in May.
I hope that everyone doing a sport this spring can work hard at it and have lots of fun. I also heard that my brother, Alex, might be doing spring soccer (MAYBE) we still have to convince him, though. So, if you have any comments or anything at all to say, just leave your comments on the site! We can still keep up with what’s going on in other family members’ lives. We can still comment even though events like Grandpa’s surgeory are over. We can still use the blog. If you are not sure how to do commenting or writing blogs, you can check out my blog from a few months ago, just search for Blogging and Commenting for Beginners . I hope you learn and have a lot of fun!!! Happy Spring and Happy Easter!!!!!!!!!!

Grandma & Grandpa visit 3/16/09

What a nice dinner visit with Mom & Dad on March 16, 2009.  They stopped on the way up north, but had another diversion to Jodi & Chris’s house before their final destination of HOME. Dad looks great and we are so happy with his recovery. “Keep Up the good work Karl & Mary Ann”…We Love You!!

Today March 12, 2009

Well everyone is letting know they want more information. Karl is doing fabulous. He is bright and cheery. He is staying the same weight wise–164#, but Cleveland told us to now worry about it. They said the cortisone will catch up and he’ll be complaining about gaining too much weight. He is getting his blood drawn frequently and they are adjusting his medications frequently. I guess that will go on all year. We were is Cleveland early last week, and he had his second bronchoscope(tube down the throat). They do this to look for rejection. His results were a-okay. There were no signs of infection or rejection. We go again this Saturday or Sunday, but it is an appointment for the study he is on. The doctors will check him also. Then we won’t go until mid-April unless something shows up. His energy is coming back–he does the cooking now as everything else will be up to me. He does a good job with that. He also has been walking on the tread mill about 15 minutes yesterday. So he is trying to build his strength up–golf is coming you know.
Nothing else is new. Our grandsopn, Michael, was in ER Monday-bad headache and bleeding nose that started at football strenghtening. He is okay but the parents are watching him. Our granddaughter, Kayla, is now on a bus to Washington DC for her 8th grade trip.
Again thanks everyone for all the thoughts and prayers. The phone calls help–they let Karl know you care. Love ya all Karl and Mary Ann

Freedom Friday February 20, 2009

Hi all!!   Well yesterday was an interesting day.  We did the vital signs in the morning and Karl’s pulse was 34!!  That was scary.  So I put a call into our coordinator.  Then Karl had about 3 bouts of throwing up.  So when we went for the study medicine appointment, we told them about it.  Well there was even talk about admitting him.  He had an EKG and was seen by Dr. Budev.   She lowered his heart medication and wanted him to just eat lightly.  She also okayed his study medication for the day and that we would see  how he did through the day and tomorrow.  So we went back to the hotel.  I found a JoAnns to wander around and when I got back to the Guest house I fixed him dinner, which he kept down.  Then we got in bed to wtch TV and the hotel fire alarm went off!!!  So we got upp, got dressed and went down stairs.  Everyone was evacuating–we at least got to stay in the lobby and stay warm.. I don’t know what it was.  There was firemen all over the place.  When we went back upstairs there were many more alarms  for the next several hours.  We didn’t sleep well consequently and Karl had early blood work today anyway.

Today, we went for appointments.  Karl’s weight is up to 172#’s and his pulse was 55.  He did not throw up and looked real good when we went to the doctor’s appointment.  So after all our study training, and delivering his medicine through inhalation, the doctor said we could go home.    We left Cleveland about 2:00 pm and made it to Jodi’s about 6:30 pm.  We plan to stay the night here and leave early in the morning  as there is a major snow storm headed through Michigan.  Can’t wait to get home!!!!  Love everyone–Karl and Mary Ann

Semi-Finals!

Triway Girls 8th grade team had never beaten the Fairless Falcons… until Last Night! The game was tense and overwhelming.
All the girl contributed to the game. Jen cheered us on. Hannah blocked a lot of shots and fouled out near the end (good job Hannah!) Shelby and Erica scored 10 points each. Tessa scored 7 points. Sabrina, Katie, Ariel, and Alayna all contributed good defense and played hard. I scored 6 points and had a steal. By the end of the game we had maybe 20 seconds left and Shelby scored again, tying the game 33-33. We went into 3 minutes of overtime. Erica chipped in a layup and I also had a layup making the score 33-37 by the end of the game. The explosion of screaming and cheering from Triway fans and players was great! It was wonderful. We all went into the locker room jumping around, screaming, and hugging each other. We all got ready and ran out to the bus. We got to celebrate at Mc Donald’s on the way home. We were all so excited.
Carissa entertained us all (as told in Carissa’s Moments) and we all had fun eating and celebrating. It was a great bus ride home.
This Saturday we will be playing for the championship (either Tusky Valley or CVCA.) We are confident and excited, but we have to keep our heads in the game and play good defense.
I will have pictures up as soon as I can!

GO TRIWAY!! Good Luck Triway Lady Titans on Saturday!

Carissa Moments

Okay, we all know that Carissa is a crack-up, right. Well, we decided we’d better start recording all the funny stuff that she says. So, we’ve decided to do this post, so whenever she says/does something hilarious, we’ll be able to remember it here.
So, if you have some moments to share e-mail me and I’ll post them here! Or you can comment on this and tell us your own stories!

Karl Thursday–February 18, 2009

Well today is  a quieter day–we had a clinic appointment at 10:00 am and Karl received his second dose of the study drug.  His PFT’s (pulmonary function tests) are very good and he is learning how to add his medicine to the inhaler.  However, the study coordinator wants me to fix it tomorrow as Karl’s tremors are very pronounced.  He has no control  over them and it does bother him as well.  In fact, he tried to sit and write thank-you notes yesterday and his writing is so shaky that even he can’t read it.  So everyone be patient, he will be sending out his thank-you notes!  He does not want me to write them as he feels strongly it is something he wants to do.  He took a nap this afternoon, after our visit with Shirley.  It was so good to see her and we enjoyed talking with her and we took her to lunch.  But it is raining hard here and it is suppose to turn to snow, so it was best she get on the road and head home before she had to drive in it.  
Greg is right–you need pictures.  So here we go.  All our love Karl and Mary Ann

Karl’s Ride Still Going!!!

Well today is Tuesday, February 17, 2009 and I have missed blogging and keeping you informed for a few days. But talk about busy–that we were!! We had many pleasant surprises and much fun. Let me begin. Sunday, we did get to church in the hospital chapel–actually the auditorium, and it was very nice with a sermon on leprosy. How appropriate that it was on healing. Then we took a ride and went to Kim and Greg’s in Wooster , Ohio. She had a nice home cooked meal that included homemade bread. We enjoyed the visit immensely and Carissa just hugged her Grandpa’s legs over and over. She wanted to be by him constantly. Alex showed Grandpa everything he had made with Lego’s and Kayla shared all her precious moments with her new love in her life. We got back to the guest house about 8:00 pm and found our very dear friends from New York waiting for us in the lobby. We were so happy and excited to see them. They came up to the room and visited till about 9:30 pm. The next day they came and visited as did my brother and his wife, Jim and Jane. They are from Jackson, MI and had come to Cleveland to visit their twin 3 year old granddaughters. Then they came here for their visit with Karl and were totally shocked with Karl’s appearance. We all went to the hospital cafeteria for lunch together and back to the room for a visit. My brother left about 4:00 pm and headed back to Jackson. Afterwards, Our friends, Jim and Marg, took us out to Macoroni’s Grill to celebrate Karl’s new life. It is Karl’s favorite resturant and he loves the chicken portbello there. He ate the whole thing! So all and all it was a busy day. Jim and Jane brought Karl and wonderful bag of goodies to try and put weight on him and included a generous gift. So that was Sunday and President’s Day.
Today, Tuesday–Karl had a appointments beginning at 7:15 am. He is now accepted in the research study and will receive the inhaled medicine–cyclosporin. So we had to begin testing and training as well as get his first dose of the medicine. He met with his lung transplant physician, Dr. Budev, and she is loving how well Karl is doing. his oxygen saturation was 98% this morning. So those of you that knew what his saturation was before (70-83%) know this is a major improvement. We talked to her about his weight and she is not worried about it. She said the meds and his increased activity contributes to it, and according to her scale at the clinic he has not lost that much from last week. She said his weight will come back. His insulin doses and blood sugars look great and that should also change shortly. She still did not have the lung report from his lungs as we are very interested in the final diagnosis and what was actually wrong. She really loved the sound of his new lungs as she listened to them.
We also want to recognize our dear friends, Marg and Jimmy, from new York (they feel like part of our family and you all know them from Jodi’s wedding) for their generous gifts to make Karl’s recovery as stress free as they possibly can. Also, Jimmy ran around yesterday finding Carnation instant breakfast to fatten him up. Thank-you and we love you so much.
Well that is all folks!! And I am tired too!! Hope you enjoyed the update and keep the prayers and comments coming. We love you all Karl and Mary Ann