Update No. 3 concerning Jon . . .

  • Jon must spend a sixth night at French Hospital.
  • We are hopeful he will be released tomorrow (Thursday) morning to come home.
  • His platelet count was up slightly today which is a good thing.
  • The hospital used the opportunity to run a few additional diagnostic tests.
  • Still waiting on some lab test results.
  • Jon was queuing for 2:00 p.m. for the new PICC line but the procedure didn’t begin until about 3:30 p.m.
  • Home health nurse could not come to our house so late tonight to teach us how to push the prescription antibiotic into Jon’s new PICC line.
  • Since Jon’s staph infection is in his heart on a valve that has already been repaired, they’re not taking any chances on skipping any IV antibiotics or altering his infusion schedule. This is very serious!


Preparations are underway to make necessary adjustments so that when Jon finally comes home, we’re ready and able to care and provide for him and for me in the best way possible.

Thank you so much for your prayers,
words of encouragement, and
thoughtful acts of kindness 

that help bolster endurance
in such a time as this.

Update No. 1 concerning Jon . . .

Here’s what we know so far, but keep in mind . . . information changes without notice.

  • Jon has tested positive for MSSA staph infection (staphylococcus aureus).
  • There is still fluid in his lungs.
  • They performed a TEE test yesterday (TEE – A transesophageal echocardiogram is a special type of echocardiogram. It is usually done when your doctor wants to look more closely at your heart to see if it could be producing blood clots. Like an echocardiogram, the TEE uses high-frequency sound waves [ultrasound] to examine the structures of the heart.) Jon was required to swallow a tiny camera for this procedure.
  • Jon’s TEE was inconclusive—the doctor noted enough shadow or “vegetation” on the valve to be suspicious.
  • This type of staph is known to cause infection on heart valves, especially heart valves that have been altered/modified—Jon had an open-heart mitral valve repair in 2004.
  • Jon had a PICC line inserted yesterday to prep him for a six-week round of home-health antibiotics, but we just learned that line will need to be swapped out for a different PICC line tomorrow.
  • He was moved out of ICU late last evening to a step-down room.
  • His blood platelets are low, but they’re not sure why.
  • His appetite seems to be improving—he ate a pretty good breakfast and lunch today.
  • He could be discharged as early as tomorrow. No guarantee.

This has all been very overwhelming. Kathryn arrived Friday evening. Liz flew in yesterday from Houston. Todd and our three-year-old Grandson Finn, will fly in on Wednesday evening. Without their help, I may have been put out to pasture by now.

Thank you for your concern, prayers,
and heartfelt comments.

Even though it may not be possible to respond to each of your notes, please know I will read each and every one. As I texted to a friend yesterday—

“If life here on earth gets any more ‘exciting’ than this,
I don’t want to know about it.”