Happily Ever After at last.....

SO it has been a while since I have posted anything mostly because I was waiting for this moment to post a happy ending to our long roller coaster of a story. So first of all Abby's health has been good she has been just getting stronger every day and is back to work and working full time again. She is back to her normal self she is goofy and fun and cares about everyone. She had a few issues with her Potassium levels being kind of high but they are getting that figured out and it isn't anything serious now. She has no drains and no PICC lines she is device free. She looks absolutely beautiful and her hair is back and she looks so cute with her short sassy hair cut.
So in past posts I mentioned her prince charming who was by her side this whole time. Jake has been our prince and Abby's prince. He came home from his Mission 2 weeks after her transplant and has been by her side ever since he visitied at the hospital every chance he got. And he kept her spirits up even when things got tough. He sat with her the whole night when our brother got married and we all had to be at the wedding and he kept her company on that hard night. He was there for all of the ups and downs and stayed strong for her. When she was at her worst in the SICU and was barely responsive the only name she would respond to was his name. And the day he came home from his mission he came to the hospital and she responded to him when he walked in. It was the most alert she was since the surgery, so we knew she was waiting for him. She held on for him and because of him she is alive today. We feel so lucky that she has Jake they make a perfect couple.
So for the best news of all they are ENGAGED!!! Jake had such a cute plan and made us all a part of it which made it so special for the all of us. He had collected pictures of Abby from baby pics to recent ones. Then he made video and in the video he was playing the guitar and singing their song. A Keith Urban song Always on My Mind. But before he showed his video he had his little sister blind fold her at the door while we all hid inside his house. He then had me take her by the hand and tell her my favorite memory of her as we walked around and I held her hand. Then I passed her on to Courtney, then Caleb then Jake's parents then our Mom then my dad finished and sat her infront of the TV and started the video. Then when the video was over Jake got down on his knee and asked her to marry him. The ring is beautiful and they are both so happy to be engaged. And we couldn't be happier. We have had a hell of a ride the past 11 months and it has felt like a make believe story with the ups and downs and crazy things happening. We fought our dragons and had our knights and our prince and now we have our fairy tale ending. Happily ever after is all they deserve from here on out. We love Abby and Jake so much and wish them nothing but the best! Here is to happy endings and thanks to all who have had a hand in the happy ending!

Just a little update....

So things have been pretty good for Abby Jean. It feels good to say that it actually brings tears to my eyes. Abby has gotten so strong she is amazing, we even walked around Temple Square last weekend and she was in very high heels. It seems like something small but to see her doing normal things again is huge!

She had her pancreatic stint out and all is well with that no leaking which is great. So the drain came out last week. Abby got a nasty cold last week but is getting better every day.

She had to reapply for her job because her FMLA ran out. So she is having an interview tomorrow, she is so ready to go back to work and have a normal life again.

Abby still has to be on the antiviral because she still has a little bit of detectable virus, so they want to play it safe. Hopefully her next blood test will show no virus. Then the PICC line can come out.

So things are finally good in the Fullmer family life seems normal again (knock on wood.) We joked that at least Abby slept through winter and now she can enjoy Summer to its fullest.

We are so very thankful for this chance we have to be a family and to have fun with each other again.

So enjoy your loved ones laugh a lot and don't sweat the small stuff. Family is a special gift and I got a great one!!

Great things are happening.....

Sorry for the break from blogging, I wanted to post an amazing update again and by waiting I am getting to do that... So Abby came home from the hospital on the 12th and things have been pretty dang good. She has still had to be on antibiotics and an anti-viral through her picc line but she is handling the meds well. They make her feel a little yucky but she seems good. The 14th was her Birthday and we celebrated like we always do. But this time is was more special because there was a time in the last 6 months when we didn't know if Abby would have another birthday and she did and it was great. We had a little party with some family and friends she god a lot of great gifts and hugs from people who love her. She even got tickets to a Kenney Chesney concert from her Jake. She was so excited she hit him, it was funny. The concert is in July so she should be good as new for the concert.
Her viral load went up a little so she had to increase the medicine a bit, but now the load is non-detectable as of Wednesday. So we are happy about that, they are going to keep her on treatment doses of the med for another week just to make sure. Also she found out that they will be taking her pancreatic stint out on Friday, if that goes well and there is no more leaking or bleeding they will take out her drains.
May 7th is the last day of her antibiotics so after that the picc line will be removed. And if I dare say it she will be free from all medical "stuff" in her body. This is huge for Abby she has had some sort of line or drain in her body for almost 7 months. She is excited to be able to take a bath again. We might not be able to get her out once she gets in, she has been dying to take a bath especially the days where she is achy.
She did have a skin infection the last couple weeks but that has been resolved so that is good. She is still on blood thinners and will most likely will be on them for a couple more months just in case. But they will take her off the blood thinners for a few days for procedures that she is having on Friday.
Easter Sunday was a great day for Abby, she was able to attend church for the first time in over 6 months. She looked GORGEOUS, she had a new Easter outfit and a cute hat. My mom, Courtney, my daughter and I all wore hats as well which was fun for Easter. My dad spoke in church that day and did an amazing job. It was great to be in there ward and for Abby to see the people who have prayed and fasted for her a lot.
Abby is getting so strong and even she can see a difference. She can get around without help now even up and down the stairs. She gets ready and everything by herself now. She is amazing and amazes us all daily. She also has been driving her car again the last few days. Which is awesome to see her do again and her car is manual so it takes some effort to drive. She also went on a date last week and she really enjoyed that. I think it gives her more motivation to get better and stronger and she is doing it.
We all feel very blessed Abby has had a LONG road and a lot of ups and downs. But now the downs are getting fewer and the ups are hanging around. Abby is such a strong girl and anyone who has seen her lately knows that. She went from being sick in bed to getting around and being beautiful as ever. She is even eating better and keeping food down as well. Hopefully she will just continue to improve more and we know once she gets off all the antibiotics she will feel much better.
Thanks for the continued prayers and thoughts on Abby's behalf we couldn't have done it without all of you. She is alive and well!

Well we thought we were done....

So last time I posted it was all happy news I wish I could say the same today. Last week Abby had to cut her trip short because of a very high fever. They came home and went straight to the hospital. She was admitted AGAIN and they ran tests. They found that she was dehydrated and that could be a cause of the fever and she also had a picc line that could have an infection. So they thought they would pull the line and see what happened. Well the line site was hurting a lot so they did a scan and found multiple blood clots in the vein around the line. This was very frustrating, so they had to decide what to do. They started her on blood thinners and tested for infection. They found that she had an infection in her blood from the line. And most likely was caused from the clots. So they started her on a couple of IV antibiotics and an oral one as well. They also found out that the CMV virus was NOT gone like they thought it was. The blood test was wrong, so they had to increase her dose of the nasty antiviral.

So most of that was last Friday so Abby and my parents were pretty down. Abby just is sick of being sick. She hates that she has lost her hair and that her skin is so dry and peeling. She is still beautiful but she doesn't see it.

Today things were a little better, her blood infection seems to be gone. But they will keep her on antibiotics for a month to be on the safe side. Her viral load is way down it was 3.5 last week and today it is under 1. So they were able to cut her dose in half of that nasty med. Her pancreas doesn't seem to be leaking anymore but they can't pull the stint out while she is on blood thinners. So once she is off of the blood thinners they will pull the stint out and watch the drains for a few days or so and if it seems like all is good they will pull the drains.

So the plan is for her to go home tomorrow, that doesn't mean she is all better. She just isn't sick enough to be in the hospital which is great. But she still feels pretty sick and it is a lot of work for my parents at home. This has been a long road for Abby and she just needs this to be over. The complications that is. I hope that this is the last of the complications, this poor girl deserves a break. As of yesterday it has been 6 months, that is too long for anyone to be so sick. I have complete faith that she will make a full recovery but it will take a long time.

My parent's have been by Abby's side this whole time and we try to help when we can. But the most of the burden has been on them. Now that she is going home my parent's realize they can't do it on their own anymore. If any friends and family out there would like to help we would love it. All we are asking is for people to take a few hours each week and just come and be there. So my parent's can run errands and so Abby can have different people around. It will help in her healing process as well. So if you are able and can maybe take a few hours out of your week, please let us know. No medical care is needed just someone to encourage her to eat and drink and walk around and just to lift her spirits. And to give my parent's a break. If you are interested in helping please email me ls.jess@hotmail.com.

Abby has been through so much and she has done it gracefully. I hope that the end is in site, right now she is still doing pretty well. Her labs look good and her organs are functioning like they should. So we know she can do this. But she needs our help to raise her up and keep her going. She has been blessed with some great friends and family who have been there this whole 6 months. So to all who have been there thank you so much. I especially want to give Jake a shout out. You have been great and I truly believe you have been an important part in her healing. So for that I am truly grateful!

Abby your beautiful your hair and skin will get better with time I promise. But either way you are still so beautiful and everyone thinks so. Just keep getting better you have a lot to live for. You are the strongest girl I know, I am amazed by you!

Next post will be all good again I just know it! Thanks again for all the prayers!!

IT'S ABOUT TIME......

So this has been a LONG journey for Abby Jean but we are finally seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. So in the past week we have had nothing but good news which is a first throughout this whole journey. Wednesday Abby had her clinic appointment and found out that her viral load was ZERO which was completely unexpected. It had only been dropping by like .7 each week, the week before it was 4.6 and now it is zero. A true miracle for sure. Then yesterday Abby called to inform me that her results came back from her stomach drain. Well her pancreas has been leaking for almost 6 months and now the results show that there is very little pancreatic enzymes in the fluid. Which means it isn't leaking anymore!! She will have a CT scan soon to see how big the fluid collection still is, if it is about gone they will pull the drains out.

This is it, the news we have been waiting for! For 6 months it has been ups and downs and worry and tears. But now the tears are happy tears, she is getting better she really is! Her liver is great her kidney is great, her pancreas is better, her virus and pneumonia are gone, and her white count is great. She is even keeping food down now as well and has a little bit of an appetite again. She still has to stay on the antiviral for another week so she will still have side effects from that. Which are no fun it makes her hair fall out and her skin peel. But that will be over with soon enough. She still needs to build her strength back as well, it takes everything she has just to get up a few stairs. But she will get there we know she will!

Really this is the healthiest she has been in 6 months and we couldn't be happier. Life is good in the Fullmer family again. She is even celebrating by going on a little vacation with my parents this week.

We are so blessed and want to thank everyone for the prayers, fasting and thoughts on Abby's behalf. She is our miracle for sure who would of thought that we would have so many in this family.

Way to get better Abby!!

She is home...

Abby is home, she got discharged yesterday. We didn't really tell anyone yesterday because yesterday was our Grandma's 90th birthday and we wanted to surprise her. So Abby showed up at the party and surprised everybody.

She is doing pretty good, the antiviral she is on makes her feel sick but she is doing ok. It makes her skin very dry so that is a little painful. And she has a hard time regulating her temperature so she is always hot or cold. She will have to be on that med until her virus is gone so hopefully the virus goes away quickly. Abby is eating a little bit more which is good but she still gags sometimes. All in all Abby is improving she has a hard time seeing it but she really is improving. And she is still beautiful as ever and once she is off of that med she will improve even more.

Abby and my parents would still love visitors at the house. Visitors really break up the day for them so feel free to visit.

Our prayer is that Abby will stay home this time and that she will be able to heal quickly and get off of that medicine. We are so pleased that she is home again and that she was able to celebrate with us last night.

What a difference a week makes...

So last Thursday things were looking pretty grim and we were all very scared. But today things are looking up in a big way. I don't want to jinx it but Abby is on the mend. The doctors kind of freaked us all out last week when they started talking about all the possibilities with her CMV pneumonia. They wanted to move her to SICU and they were talking about an antibiotic that would take her kidney and having to intibate and all sorts of scary things. But my parents knew better they did not let them move her ti SICU. They did the immunoglobulin and it went well her last dose is today. She isn't needing as much oxygen anymore and her lungs sound really good. Her viral load is down that is the number that measures the virus in her blood it started at 6.8 it is now 4.5 so it is on the downward trend which is good. It means she is getting better which makes us happy.

She will have to stay on the antivirul until her viral load is down all the way. She is doing so good though she looks very good and she is eating a lot more then she has been. She still gags a lot and sometimes throws up but we have determined the cause is reflux so they are treating that.

Her drains are getting a lot of stuff out of her stomach which is very good. And on Sunday her stomach where her incision is opened up a little bit and more of that fluid leaked out everywhere. This was a little alarming for Abby she was on a walk when it started leaking. But the doctors are actually glad that the "stuff" in her abdomen was finding an out.

Abby has been walking a lot and is not as sick as she has been . So yet again we proved the doctors wrong. She is a fighter and she proved that once again. She isn't out of the woods yet but we can see the light through the trees. The doctors think she can go home by Monday we aren't holding are breath but are hoping for the best.

Abby has been through more than I any of us can imagine and she has stayed strong and doesn't complain much. I hope this journey will come to an end soon in a happy way. I feel like it is she has had so many complications but hopefully those are done.

She still would love visitors it helps break up the day she is in room 5206 at the U. It helps my parents too they need the distraction. And once she gets home they may need some help if anyone can sit with Abby for a few hours during the week let us know that would be a big help for my parents.

We are in awe of all the love and support we have received from our friends and family. We thank you for the prayers on our behalf. We have the best friends and family out there.

Please keep Abby in your prayers so she can continue to get well. Prayers work and she is the proof!