After a very busy weekend in Savannah,Georgia, this week has been pretty quiet. Besides our Tuesday and Thursday trips to the beach for lunch we were laying low. On Friday we went to see Shrek Forever After which I thought was one of the best movies I have ever seen. We had a fun night together. Unlike the movie theaters in California, big and packed with people, this theater was roomy, but not filled with people. Overall we had a fun week and are looking forward to spending the long weekend with one of my mom's friends and her family near Daytona Beach.

Our home away from home

These pictures are of the Mayo grounds, hospital and our hotel.

Family Visit

Great weekend with Dave, Joan, Carl & Nick! We went to the beach, the boys got to surf, had a BBQ steak dinner on the patio at our hotel and just enjoyed being with family. Already looking forward to your visit next month.:) Love you guys!

Hurdle number one - Cleared

Hello All,

Testing is finished and as of today we are officially on the Mayo transplant list. Now, the waiting begins. But, every day is one day closer to transplant! Looking forward to a fun weekend with my sister, brother in law, and two nephews who will make the four hour drive from St. Petersburg Friday to spend two nights with us. Thanks for all the notes and prayers. We love hearing from everyone.

Joe, Julie, and Janelle

TGFS!

Thank God For SKYPE! Skype is Janelle's new best friend. She is spending lots of time on Skpe with her little cousins who are home during the day and her friends & family at home so she feels very connected. We get to see and talk to Jimmy so we don't miss him so much and we even got to see cousin Megan with Tyler off to the prom. We're still homesick but it definitely helps. :) We shopped at a fabulous mall (like Victoria Gardens at home) today. Hmm, I think this place may be OK!! We are also looking forward to the weekend when Joe's sister Joanie and her family are coming to visit us from their home in St. Petersburg, FL. Janelle is excited to hang out with her cousins - I think she is a little tired of adults. Our evening walks around the hospital grounds, which are set in the middle of lush, woodlands, are introducing us to all of the animals in the area. We've seen raccoons, opossum, frogs, ducks and geese but Janelle's still watching for a gator to emerge from the 10 lakes that we pass.

Slower days have begun

We saw the geese families today along with a turtle. He was swimming in the nearby pond and decided to come over and eat the bread that I was feeding the fish with. I also got the mother and father birds in the nest on top one of the hospital buildings. My dad and I researched the birds and found out that they are called Osprey's.Then the oddest thing came out of the bushes. It was a cat! I wondered if it was a stray but turned back to see what it looked like and noticed that it had disappeared into the trees.We will have to see if we can see it tomorrow.
Later in the evening we went to the fountain in front of the hospital to watch a couple from our hotel renew their marriage vows.She was very sick. Then we went into the hotel dining room for cake and punch.The couple had invited everyone in the hotel to come to the ceremony.It was beautiful and we all had a lovely time. Love, Janelle

The Testing is Done!

The second week of testing and meetings is finished. Each individual who met with Joe and I, Transplant Surgeon, Cardiologist, Pulmonary Specialist, etc. all said everything looked fine. The final meeting on Friday was with Joe's personal doctor. He said that he saw no potential problems or reasons why the approval at Wednesdays Transplant Board meeting shouldn't go through. If that holds true Joe should be on the transplant list by Thursday. Keep your fingers crossed. Best case senario for wait time would be 30 days, but it could be longer. Joe's MELD score according to the first blood draw after we arrived was 24, up from 22 before we left. His new MELD score as of this week was back to 22. Back to 24 would be great.

Hi everyone. Joe here. Mothers Day Weekend is here. We started off early Saturday Morning watching the sun rise over the Atlantic. Next was breakfast at a local eatery recommended by a lady who has been in Jacksonville beach for life. It was very good. From there it was off to Sawgrass to watch the The Players Championship golf event that was right here in town with some passes that we received from someone that we met who was not able to use them Saturday or Sunday. Watching those guys live was unbelievable. We will see what Sunday brings for a fun Mother's Day. Happy Mother's Day to you moms. Thanks for all the well wishes and prayers. Go time is one step closer and we need them all. Talk to you all soon. Joe, Julie, and Janelle.

Hi everyone Janelle here. My dad had 3 education classes today. My mom and I went to the beach today and touched the Atlantic ocean for the second time. We also had another rain storm at around dinnertime that lasted for a couple of hours on and off. We also went to the emergency room this evening because of the shingles that I have. We were there for a couple of hours but I think that it will be worth it, to get the medicine started tonight. As testing winds down for my dad he will be busier with work so my mom and I will hopefully get to spend more time playing at the beach. Talk to everyone soon, Janelle

St. Augustine Lighthouse

In St. Augustine we visited the lighthouse where Janelle & I climbed all 236 steps to the top and boy what a view! That is the Atlantic Ocean behind us and the wind was gusting at the top. Beautiful.

A New Week

Hi Everyone, Janelle here. We had a fun weekend after a busy week. Saturday was spent at the zoo in Jacksonville. It was small but had some great animals. Sunday morning we went to the University of North Florida to watch a kids triathlon. The age groups were from 5-10 years old and 11-15 years old. The youngest kids were the best to watch. Some of them even had training wheels for the 3 mile ride. Sunday afternoon we headed to the Town of St. Augustine, the oldest city in the U.S. It was part of my project on the State of Florida that I finished for school before I left. We came home on the coast and past Sawgrass, wear we hope to watch part of the PGA golf tournament next weekend. My dad has another busy week. Monday has meetings with a doctor who will talk about infectious diseases and another with one of the transplant surgeons who will talk about everything surgery related. Tuesday brings meetings with his RN who is the transplant coordinator and the transplant center pharmacist who will talk about all medications before and after transplant. Some of these my dad will have to take the rest of his life to prevent rejection. The last meeting is with the nutritionist who will talk about all the foods he can and cannot eat after transplant. I hope she doesn't rule out Fruit Loops, dad will be mad. Thursday is the only icky appointment this week. A camera down the throat to check for any internal bleeding. Friday he has his first blood test for a new MELD score (23 we hope) and a meeting with his personal doctor who will tell him what his recommendation to the transplant board will be the following Wednesday. Lot's going on but the week will go by fast and we will have fun next weekend again. Talk to you all soon, Joe, Julie, and Janelle.