On May 2, Lew achieved a major milestone in his recovery, with a visit back to USC-Keck to see some of his surgeons.  They removed surgical drain from his neck, which in turn allowed removal of the IV line for antibiotics.  He is now free of things stuck into his arms and legs, his tracheostomy insert has fully healed, and his strength is rapidly recovering.  He is now up from bed most of the day, walking around the house freely on his own (with a walker on wheels for support), pain is under good control, he is eating all meals with the family instead of in the rented hospital bed, and generally alive, awake and enthusiastic.  He has regular PT visits that help strengthen him to return to normal function soon.  He seems well on the way to recovery.  It is still a long path, but it now seems well illuminated and free of major barriers. 

Having seen his rate of progress, Dale and I, in consultation with Lew and Cathy and Liz, departed for home yesterday (May 3).   Dale has been there since March 30, and I since April 11.  It is a pure joy to see Lew coming back to health and strength, and we feel confident that Lew and Cathy and Liz will no longer need our assistance there.  They will have ongoing nursing presence as needed (LPN now, not RN, since the IV use has ended). 

Cathy has finally had a bit of respite (once Lew was home) and is recouping her own strength after an amazing 6 weeks “on duty”  24 x 7 in Norway, in transit, at the hospital, and home, all with no “time off.”  They said in Norway that “Mrs. Phelps is a real trooper” and Dale and I can assure you that this FAR understates her strength and willpower to make things work right.  She is amazing. 

 Liz has finished exams for her Masters’ degree in Occupational Therapy, where she’ll “march” in the USC academic procession next Friday, May 10.  Hurray for Liz!!  A wonderful achievement, despite the huge interruption created by the Viking Cruise event and the lingering complications of her concussion several months ago when back-ended in traffic in LA.  Lew and Cathy will be able to attend in person.

Saying "goodbye" for now was difficult for all, but perhaps none more than for our standard poodle Kayli and Lew and Cathy's field spaniel Rory, who spent a good part of each day in the backyard pretending they were filming a Godzilla vs. Gargantua movie.  They became close friends on this trip.

Since I’m no longer on site, I won’t be able to report first-hand anymore, so this will be my last entry on this site.  Thanks to Susan Bentley for setting it up!

Signing off,

Chuck Phelps (Lew’s evil  identical twin)