Excitement at the hospital

I went to work on Sunday night at Clearlake Hospital and there was some drama going on. Early in the shift, the charge nurse came around and said that we were on lockdown. That means that the hospital was locked, no one in or out. There was a guy outside in the parking lot with a gun. Scary stuff! There was all kinds of rumors going on about what was happening, and of course it was dark so it was hard to see. Around 11 or 12 midnight, I heard gunshots outside. Many gunshots. I figured that the guy had done something and the police had shot him. I was right. Here is the article from the Chronicle about what happened. This guy was crazy!

Webster police shoot man wielding flashlight at hospital

A man who was shot by police outside a Webster hospital after threatening people and brandishing what officers thought might be a gun is undergoing treatment today for multiple wounds. Donna Hawkins, an assistant Harris County district attorney, today identified the man as Steven Moran. No further information about him was available. Investigators are trying to determine why Moran, who had been injured in a traffic accident before being taken to Clear Lake Regional Medical Center, threatened to shoot hospital staff members who tried to help him. He was taken to Ben Taub General Hospital in Houston after the shooting late Sunday. Police said he was wielding an object as if it were a weapon, but which turned out to be a small flashlight that he was holding in a two-handed grip as if it were a pistol. Staff members told officers that Moran was lying between two cars in the parking lot about 11 p.m. Sunday and that they couldn't help him because he was threatening to shoot anyone who came near, Webster police said. Police later learned that Moran's father had driven him to the hospital and left him in the car while he went inside to get help. The man apparently crawled out of the vehicle, but was unable to walk into the hospital. Officers secured the parking lot and tried to convince the man to put down the object he was holding and surrender. After negotiations failed, they moved in and fired at him when they thought he was about to shoot, officials said. Moran was treated there, then transferred to Ben Taub General Hospital in Houston in stable condition, officials said. As is routine in shootings involving police officers, the Harris County District Attorney's Office is investigating along with Webster police.

Anyway, that was lots of excitement for our little area.

So far so good

So I'm officially 10 weeks pregnant today and I am still feeling really good. No morning sickness to speak of and as long as I eat regularly, I'm fine. I figure this is God's way of saying, "Hey, I know you have been there,done that with the nausea and vomiting with chemo, so I will spare you having to do that again." Thank God for small blessings. The one thing I have been having are migraines more often (4-5 in the last week), but I can handle those and I would much rather a headache than feeling like I'm going to puke all the time.
I think I am getting a little bit of a belly now, but I am still wearing my regular clothes. I have been working a ton lately and scrubs are very forgiving! Hopefully I'll be able to wear those for awhile.

Jeff recently worked back room for this latest shuttle mission, so he has been a working fool as well. Now we'll be able to slow down a bit, but I'll continue to work as much as I can. I figure I need to work while I feel good, because towards the end, I know I won't feel like it.

Anyway, I just wanted to post a quick update and get some comments on the new blog look. Let me know what you think. I think it looks really nice and now that I know how to do it, I may change it up more often! (I actually got the idea from Erin and Nujoud's blogs. Thanks girls!)

LAURI IS 8 WEEKS PREGNANT!

Lauri and I are very happy to announce that she is 8 weeks pregnant, and everything has been progressing very well! Lauri and I found out about a month ago, and we have had two visits with our doctor so far. The first visit, at 6 weeks, showed a heartbeat on the ultrasound, but the pictures didn’t show much else. The doctor took some pictures again today with the ultrasound, and how things have grown. The Baby is still just 16 mm in length, but you can begin to see a head, arms, and legs.

The doctor says the heartbeat is very strong, and our risk of miscarriage with a strong heartbeat is low. Further, Lauri’s hormone levels look good too. Great news! Of course, anything can happen, but we pray for the best. Lauri is doing great, not feeling sick, just tired - which I argue is not really a "delta from nominal." Anyway, I scanned in the two best pics we got today, you can see the baby clearly; the head is on the left, with arms and legs sticking up.



We decided to press ahead with raising a family after much thought and discussion amongst ourselves and our team of doctors. It turned out to be an easy decision, but one that had to be measured against all the risks associated with Lauri’s health history, and projections of the future. In the end, we decided that raising a family was worth the risk, and our doctors agreed to support our plans. We could not ask for a better health care team. Our Oncologist has been supportive and helpful the entire way, making us aware of the dangers, but supporting us the whole time.

A good friend of ours once said, “Live each day like it was the first day of the rest of your life.” That’s what we have decided to do. Today is the first day of our family, which someday sooner than I think, will be a total of 3.