T2E-D11

Hello From Houston,

Wow, what a day here at MDA. First thing this morning, I found Trudy was being weaned down on the Ventilator. She was and is doing most of the work all by herself. So, the goal is to see if we can get her off the ventilator over the next day or so. That is news that was different than we were hearing earlier from the doctors. And, "Good is...Good!"

Another great thing, the White Blood Cell donors are beginning to line up in a nice queue that should provide us with a regular rotation of every other day donations/infusions. With such challenging logistics, that is a huge relief for all of us in Trudy's family.

Speaking of WBC's, it was a beautiful moment for me to watch the first infusion this afternoon. Katy was the first donor, and the process went well for her. She was back in Trudy's room in time to see her own WBC's travel down the tubing and into Trudy's central line. For the first time since she experienced the crisis event last weekend, we feel that we are taking the offensive against the Pneumonia infection. At the risk of putting this in "guy" terms, I really want to see our valiant warrior gettin after the enemy and puttin it into a running, screaming retreat! Well, I do wax eloquent and I must balance this with Dr. DeLima's admonition: "Yes, this is an encouraging day for Trudy, but don't forget this is a process. We are in this battle for at least two weeks." So, friends, please continue to pray, pray, pray! We celebrate each victory, and we remain vigilant for the coming days by keeping our focus on the bigger picture...Trudy having the needed time for producing her own WBC's.

Another encouraging item, today her kidney function was a little improved. That means that she did not have to have dialysis again. We pray that she will have another day free from dialysis tomorrow.

In closing, Trudy, Katy, Wendy, Brian, and I; thank you for your prayer support. You can't walk into Trudy's ICU room and not feel the awesome presence of the Lord. Even one of her nurses felt inspired to write a portion of Psalm 121 on her marker board today...a nurse from a middle eastern nation, who is a Christian. There is power in prayer! Thank you God, for letting us view up close and personally, a glimpse of your power today.

Blessings,
Trudy and Robert