Tuesday, February 24, 2009
Thursday, February 12, 2009
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
GOOD NEWS! Dr. O'Neill called last night and Kristie's labs were pretty good!
Creatinine was 2.2 (down from 2.6)
Rapamune was 4
Prograf was 3.3
Hematocrit was 30
SWEET!
And the sweetest part is that she doesn't have to see the Dr. until March 10th!
I'm breathing a sigh of relief...in and out, in and out.
Thanks everyone for your prayers!
Creatinine was 2.2 (down from 2.6)
Rapamune was 4
Prograf was 3.3
Hematocrit was 30
SWEET!
And the sweetest part is that she doesn't have to see the Dr. until March 10th!
I'm breathing a sigh of relief...in and out, in and out.
Thanks everyone for your prayers!
Sunday, February 8, 2009
Catching Up
Kristie is feeling so good! Thank the good Lord! She's excited to go on vacation this week...she leaves for Sacramento on Wednesday to stay with KT and Nich for a week. They're driving down the coast to have a little getaway.
Meanwhile, Nigel and I leave for Vegas on Thursday. I'm attending my Park Lane Conference and he's golfing! We're also having lunch at Emeril's Steakhouse (YUM!) on Sunday with my Sue & Stephen, and seeing a show with September & Phillip on Monday...Wayne Brady, here we come! We come home on Tuesday.
Last Wednesday we went to see Kristie's regular Nephrologist (aka kidney doctor) and he was happy to have her back on his roster. I was fairly frank with him about my questions/concerns with the transplant team and he confirmed my hunches. Hopefully, we'll be done with the team for a while. Dr. O'Neill is so much more laid back and straight forward. He wants to see Kristie once a month...yay!
Okay, onto Cooking Class! Again, so much fun! The dishes are getting a bit more complicated and a bit more time consuming. And since Chef Tom likes to talk, I didn't get home until 11:15 on Wednesday night! Our emphasis was on braising and stewing.
So here was the menu:
Gregorio's Arroz con Pollo (chicken with chirozo and rice)
Basic Pot Roast
Corn and Leek Medley with Cream
Mixed Greens with Bacon Vinaigrette
Black Beans with Sherry
Braised Fennel with Mushrooms
Lemon Curd
I made the Fennel and learned that I really don't like fennel...oh well. I also made the salad and helped with the Lemon Curd. The Lemon Curd is to die for! I mixed some of it with my plain yogurt this morning for breakfast...nice.
Concasse means taking the skin off the tomatoes in boiling water.
We had so many leftovers that I took home dinner for Thursday! Yummy.
We have two classes left. The next class to take is the Techniques Class which, again, is a six class series. Then the Essentials Class and then the Masters Class.
But, I'm excited because after you take 5 classes with this school, you can be put on the Student Assistant list and then sign up to help with classes for free! SWEET. Michele is our SA and she said it's totally worth it.
It was Nigel's birthday yesterday so I surprised him with attending a Magic Show that was a fundraiser for Special Olympics and then dinner on the water at Saltys in West Seattle. The Magician, went into the audience and chose Nigel to come on stage for the classic stint of musical hands. It was hilarious. Kristie had a good time too. It was a fun day.
Then we came home and watched Righteous Kill...only watch it if you love Al Pacino and Robert Deniro...which we do. Good acting.
Meanwhile, Nigel and I leave for Vegas on Thursday. I'm attending my Park Lane Conference and he's golfing! We're also having lunch at Emeril's Steakhouse (YUM!) on Sunday with my Sue & Stephen, and seeing a show with September & Phillip on Monday...Wayne Brady, here we come! We come home on Tuesday.
Last Wednesday we went to see Kristie's regular Nephrologist (aka kidney doctor) and he was happy to have her back on his roster. I was fairly frank with him about my questions/concerns with the transplant team and he confirmed my hunches. Hopefully, we'll be done with the team for a while. Dr. O'Neill is so much more laid back and straight forward. He wants to see Kristie once a month...yay!
Okay, onto Cooking Class! Again, so much fun! The dishes are getting a bit more complicated and a bit more time consuming. And since Chef Tom likes to talk, I didn't get home until 11:15 on Wednesday night! Our emphasis was on braising and stewing.
So here was the menu:
Gregorio's Arroz con Pollo (chicken with chirozo and rice)
Basic Pot Roast
Corn and Leek Medley with Cream
Mixed Greens with Bacon Vinaigrette
Black Beans with Sherry
Braised Fennel with Mushrooms
Lemon Curd
I made the Fennel and learned that I really don't like fennel...oh well. I also made the salad and helped with the Lemon Curd. The Lemon Curd is to die for! I mixed some of it with my plain yogurt this morning for breakfast...nice.
Concasse means taking the skin off the tomatoes in boiling water.
We had so many leftovers that I took home dinner for Thursday! Yummy.
We have two classes left. The next class to take is the Techniques Class which, again, is a six class series. Then the Essentials Class and then the Masters Class.
But, I'm excited because after you take 5 classes with this school, you can be put on the Student Assistant list and then sign up to help with classes for free! SWEET. Michele is our SA and she said it's totally worth it.
It was Nigel's birthday yesterday so I surprised him with attending a Magic Show that was a fundraiser for Special Olympics and then dinner on the water at Saltys in West Seattle. The Magician, went into the audience and chose Nigel to come on stage for the classic stint of musical hands. It was hilarious. Kristie had a good time too. It was a fun day.
Then we came home and watched Righteous Kill...only watch it if you love Al Pacino and Robert Deniro...which we do. Good acting.
Tuesday, February 3, 2009
Olympia WA
Chris Strano and Kristie McCleary lobbying at the Capitol today in Olympia today! What a GORGEOUS day!
Don't they look cool???!!! Very cool.
We had a GREAT time and I'm glad we went. We met with Senator Fred Jarrett, Representatives Judy Clibborn and Marcie Maxwell.
It doesn't end today; please keep making those phone calls. We'll be attending a Town Metting next month to keep it in the forefront.
Monday, February 2, 2009
I turned on the Superbowl just to see the score with 6 minutes left...nuff said. I'm sure my family in Arizona were not happy...sorry Dad, Ken, Sue, Stephen, Laurie.
What was I doing before then?
Went to church and listened to an amazing preacher, Roosevelt Hunter. He's an African American who preaches around the world. The topic was A Perfect Storm. A few months ago, he wasn't feeling well, was dizzy when he stood up so he went to the doctor and they found a 4 inch tumor on his colon. The guy is in his 40s so a bit unusual. So during the surgery, it was not 4 inches, but the size of a grapefruit. They took it out but it had already spread to his lymph nodes and he's at stage 4. Sigh.
He's a dynamic speaker and talked about the passage in Mark 4 where Jesus was in the boat with his disciples; Jesus fell asleep and a storm came up. The disciples were afraid so they woke him up. Jesus calmed the rain and winds and waves.
The point was if we never go thru a storm, we don't have the chance to draw near to God. To trust him to get thru the storm; to get thru to the other side.
I feel like with Kristie's illness, we're going thru a storm. We're not thru the other side yet, but we're getting close. And, it's been a test. Definitely. The bad news is, I haven't always trusted as I should. I've screamed and cried and said a few explicit words. But the good news is I have grown closer to God.
Then, Kristie had her friend Greg over and we all watched a movie together - Jurassic Park. This is actually a monumental thing...Kristie's never in her life had a friend over. Greg lives with his sister and niece.
We're fighting the Governor's budget right now. She's trying to eliminate the Adult Day Health Program entirely from the budget. This program is vital to about 2000 developmentally disabled adults in WA state. Kristie attends this program 16 hours a week.
Kristie and I are lobbying in Olympia tomorrow with about 150 others to try and save this program. Pray we succeed. It's really important.
If you live in WA state, PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE call and ask them to save this program. The number is 1.800.562.6000.
Why does everything have to be such a struggle for people who, thru no fault of their own, were born different...Good grief.
What was I doing before then?
Went to church and listened to an amazing preacher, Roosevelt Hunter. He's an African American who preaches around the world. The topic was A Perfect Storm. A few months ago, he wasn't feeling well, was dizzy when he stood up so he went to the doctor and they found a 4 inch tumor on his colon. The guy is in his 40s so a bit unusual. So during the surgery, it was not 4 inches, but the size of a grapefruit. They took it out but it had already spread to his lymph nodes and he's at stage 4. Sigh.
He's a dynamic speaker and talked about the passage in Mark 4 where Jesus was in the boat with his disciples; Jesus fell asleep and a storm came up. The disciples were afraid so they woke him up. Jesus calmed the rain and winds and waves.
The point was if we never go thru a storm, we don't have the chance to draw near to God. To trust him to get thru the storm; to get thru to the other side.
I feel like with Kristie's illness, we're going thru a storm. We're not thru the other side yet, but we're getting close. And, it's been a test. Definitely. The bad news is, I haven't always trusted as I should. I've screamed and cried and said a few explicit words. But the good news is I have grown closer to God.
Then, Kristie had her friend Greg over and we all watched a movie together - Jurassic Park. This is actually a monumental thing...Kristie's never in her life had a friend over. Greg lives with his sister and niece.
We're fighting the Governor's budget right now. She's trying to eliminate the Adult Day Health Program entirely from the budget. This program is vital to about 2000 developmentally disabled adults in WA state. Kristie attends this program 16 hours a week.
Kristie and I are lobbying in Olympia tomorrow with about 150 others to try and save this program. Pray we succeed. It's really important.
If you live in WA state, PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE call and ask them to save this program. The number is 1.800.562.6000.
Why does everything have to be such a struggle for people who, thru no fault of their own, were born different...Good grief.
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