As some of you know, November was quite a month for trials.  We almost lost my mom.  My sister called me one day at work and said, "They are taking mom by ambulance to the Montpelier Hospital, they don't know what's wrong but it's looking pretty bad, I'll call you back when I get more information." 

That information didn't come for a long time.  When it did the message was that they had decided to Life Flight my mom to the University of Utah Hospital in Salt Lake City.  I was beside myself but trying not to panic.  I started making arrangements for Xyla and I to fly to Utah.  A difficult thing to have to try to deal with less than a month on the new job.  Fortunately I am in the exact right place at the exact right time.  I was told to go, let them know what was going on and we would figure out the rest when I returned.  I felt blessed that day for having employers who understood and treated me like a human.

When you are flying to Utah for something like this with a small child you have to take things one step at a time.  You have to put the subject out of your head so you don't miss anything.  With new flying regulations and check in procedures it would be very easy to miss something important.  I was trying very hard to live in the moment so that Xyla wouldn't get anxious on the plane.  I tried her out to see if she would fit as a carry on.  She was a little big but they let me take her on anyway.  In the everyday things she is still trying to exert her independence.  She insisted on learning how to buckle her belt herself.  A child being able to walk is both a blessing and a curse at the airport.  She is big enough to help out a little but doesn't have the restraint and sense of direction to know where we are supposed to go.  No fewer than three melt downs but none lasting more than 2 minutes.

The food is pretty good and they cater but I don't recommend the University of Utah Hospital to anyone for family reunions.  If you are here it is most likely not a good thing especially if you are visiting the ICU, which is where mom was for more than two weeks.

This was kind of a weird experience for all involved.  The three people you see on the top left are mom's newly found half-brother, his mom and their friend.  She had just been visiting them the week before she wound up in Uof U.  Even though medical issues abound for them right now they just wanted to make sure they weren't going to lose her as soon as they found her.  Aunt Brenda (right) is one of the most level headed people I think I know.  She always remembered to ask questions no one else thought of.  Most of us were just glad that the doctors were coming in the room that we'd forget what it was we wanted to know.  We found out over time that an infection was causing her kidneys and liver to fail.  It was the size of a softball in an abscess on her liver.  How long it had been there, where it came from who knows.  On the bottom left you see Uncle Bob and Carol and Grandma Rena.  It was really hard on Grandma Rena.  She lives near Brenda but she lives alone so all the chaos and commotion and people and my excessive talking were more than she could handle, add to that the thought of losing your oldest child and honestly I am surprised she came out of it all ok.  On the bottom right you see what we did the most.  Waiting.  Waiting in various areas of the hospital.  Mostly we waited in the burn unit waiting room.  There were more chairs and another couple kindred through motorcycle enthusiasm, who were waiting also to hear about their mom who was in with pneumonia.  
Only two people could go in to see mom at a time so we all took turns.  The most cruel thing we witnessed was when they would bring her a breakfast of pancakes and steak (of all things) and then just as she was about to eat they would find some other test or procedure or some reason to take away the food.  When she was on dialysis they told her not to drink too many fluids, later the told her to drink copiously.  It was very confusing.  The fever, the toxins running through her body, the pain of dialysis and mom was delirious.  She was saying weird things and trying to stay lucid enough to "entertain guests" to no avail.  So many people came to visit her there.  I tried to get pictures of everyone but so many of them were able to sneak in and out before I could snap them off.  We all had the same reaction.  How weird it is to see the strongest women any of us knew in a hospital bed and uncertain as to how it would turn out.
The last little picture here could be mistaken for blood so let me be clear:  That is the second bag full of infection drained from the abscess.  It was several weeks and she was home before the tube was removed.  Once her kidneys and liver started functioning again they continued the antibiotics through IV.  Just before Christmas she went in for an appointment and they sent her home with a clean bill of health.  It is insane the body can go through so much and just pop out on the other side like  nothing happened.  Some people will tell you it is times like this that you start to realize what people mean to you.  I didn't need this event to emphasize that.  I have known all along what my mommy means to me.  I told her next time she needs a cleansing that we need to schedule some time at a spa.  I am going to have to make good on that.