Friday, December 30, 2011

Spring Hill RV Park in Chapel Hill, NC

We have arrived in Chapel Hill and are parked and set up at the Spring Hill RV Park. We were beginning to think that we might be delayed but Brown’s finished what they could do by noon today so we made it!

As you heard two days ago we had a leak in our gray tank that had to be repaired and Brown’s actually replaced the galley tank and not the gray tank. Well, as it turns out that tank also had a leak so it would have had to be replaced anyway – so I guess that is a good thing. They did get the new valve in and installed that yesterday afternoon. Then they found that the new galley tank was not installed properly and was leaking. The tech finally determined that the sink drain line had to be lowered so that the pipe would fit into the tank. This is why there was a leak!! (Half-a$$ed job in our opinion). Not to mention the fact that Charley asked if they checked for leaks the first time around and was told yes, there were no leaks.

We still have to go back to get the second replacement for our gray tank installed (our original problem). So after all of that we are back to where we began, with our gray tank still leaking. We can survive with this problem by leaving the valve open so that water is not stored in the tank.

Needless to say, after we get our gray tank replaced and all is working well, more than likely we will never see Brown’s RV again!!

Note – I have my first appointment at the Duke fitness center on Tuesday and will let everyone know how that goes and what our plans will be for now. I believe we will enjoy our stay here more this time because our two fur babies are with us. We had to leave them with our daughter last time.

Happy New Year to all!! And safe travels!

Wednesday, December 28, 2011

Well, Guess What??

We hope that everyone had a wonderful Christmas!! We did but boy are we ever having a bad time right now!!

It is a rather long story but here goes…..

We are currently sitting in the lot of Brown’s RV, where we purchased our 5er. We had a leak in our gray tank that had to be repaired which we attempted to take care of before Christmas. We found that the leak in the gray tank had not been repaired after all. And the galley tank drain line had been cut in two. Charley asked why that line was cut and, as it turns out, they replaced the galley tank and not the gray tank!!! So all the water that was used in the kitchen sink went straight onto the ground!!

We never said a word about anything being wrong with the galley tank! The valve for the galley tank is now leaking and has to be replaced. A replacement is being overnighted so that it can be installed tomorrow.

This afternoon, since they already had our gray tank replacement, they installed that one. After checking on it, since the underbelly had been left off so it could dry out, Charley found that it was leaking!! He quickly went back to the service department and told them that they needed to check it. The tech found a hole in the “NEW” tank and another leak around the valve that could easily be fixed. However, now another tank has to be ordered – so another trip back to Brown’s RV will be necessary when we can get here from NC.

Let’s hope that the valve has no problems when it gets here!!

So we will be staying here probably through tomorrow night and leaving for NC Friday morning as planned. Brown’s has been told that we have to leave Friday for NC.

Charley keeps calling it an adventure!! I am here to tell you that this is NO adventure!! Smile

All I want is for our 5er to be all well again!!

Saturday, December 24, 2011

Merry Christmas!!

Hurray!! We have our 5er back and all is well. We have moved back in and are so glad to be home!!

Hope everyone out there in blog land has a wonderful Christmas wherever you are!! And, as always, be safe!!

Monday, December 19, 2011

5er Still in Shop

Well, we are still living with our son and his family. When Charley called to check on the 5er last week he discovered that Keystone had sent the wrong gray tank for our replacement. So, they had to ship the correct one and it MAY be in by tomorrow!! Needless to say we are not very happy right now. This has messed up everything we had planned for this week and new arrangements had to be made for almost everything. Not to mention that we are having to continue to impose on our son and daughter-in-law!!

Not only are there Christmas preparations still needed, but I also have a colonoscopy scheduled for Thursday that has to be done for Duke. I would be a much happier person in my own home!!

But, as Charley says, it is an adventure! However, this is not the type of adventure that I can cope with as well!! We will survive and we will get over our frustration eventually…. Keystone may have just lost a customer when we decide to purchase the next time…..

This is about all there is for now. Hope everyone has a wonderful Christmas and a Happy New Year!! God Bless you all!!

Wednesday, December 14, 2011

We Heard from Duke!!

We heard from Duke today. I have been approved for a double lung transplant based on certain conditions being met:

1. Must gain weight (and this is the #1 priority)

2. Must complete pulmonary rehab successfully

There are a couple of other, more minor things also.

Charley and I discussed where we felt I should do the rehab and we agreed that Duke’s facility would be the best. So, we have canceled our Rock Crusher Canyon reservation in Florida for Jan-Mar and have postponed our plans to go to Disney in April. We will be leaving for Chapel Hill on 12/30 and will be staying at the Spring Hill RV Park indefinitely. My rehab begins on Jan 3. After the above two things are successfully completed I will be subject to more testing at Duke before I actually make the list. Nothing as grueling as this past week though (I hope!!).

So even though many of you have already wished me well (and I thank you so much for that), please keep me in your prayers that all of this will be successful!!

Monday, December 12, 2011

Back in SC

We arrived back at our son’s house at around 2:00 this afternoon. Dropped the 5er off at Brown’s RV to have some work done. We should have her back by Wednesday or Thursday.

Charley and I rested over the weekend and are almost back to normal for us. We will not be doing much for the next few days without our home so maybe we can get some more rest!! Smile

Thank you to all who posted comments regarding my evaluation at  Duke. There are so many wonderful people in this world and you all belong in this category!!

Saturday, December 10, 2011

Our Week at Duke Medical Center

Well, we finished our evaluation at Duke yesterday afternoon. It was five full days of medical tests and consultations that took its toll on our energy!! We were too tired to do anything but grab a bite to eat and crash every day.

We now will be waiting to hear the official word on my status by the end of next week. Based on what we heard this week, I will have to gain some weight and go through some pulmonary rehab before I make the list. We will be working on gaining some weight starting now until we get the official word on next steps for a lung transplant.

Duke is very thorough in their testing. I have never had a physical anything like what they put me through! It is good to know that they did not find anything else wrong that we know of right now.

We did meet a couple of transplant patients who have been through the surgery and are doing well. One lady we met was 13 days past her actual transplant and she looked wonderful and was so happy. Her story was very encouraging and she could not say enough about how it is all worth it and to do whatever it takes to get to the point of transplant. It sounded like she was in about the same shape that I am in when she first started the process.

So we will do what we can to put some weight on my skinny bones while we wait for the word. Will keep you posted on our progress.

We will be staying here in Chapel Hill until Monday morning and then will be heading back to our son’s place in Blythewood, SC. We have to drop the 5er off for some work on our way. She will be there for a couple of days getting her gray tank replaced and being checked for other possible leaks.

Safe travels everyone!!

Sunday, December 4, 2011

Clemson Tigers Win!!!

Our Clemson Tigers won the ACC Championship last night!! We are so proud of them. Cannot wait to see the Orange Bowl!! And, amazingly enough, Charley and I actually stayed awake for the entire game!!

This afternoon we are planning to drive over to Duke and get our bearings for the week ahead. We will be going to 2-3 different facilities and need to make sure we understand where they are since our week starts at 7:30AM tomorrow morning! Planning to find a nice place for dinner while we are out.

More to come later. Be safe everyone!

Friday, December 2, 2011

Chapel Hill NC

We have arrived safely near Chapel Hill, NC and are checked in and set up at the Spring Hill RV Park. This is a very nice, wooded park with gravel sites that are very level. We will be here at least until the morning of December 12 when all of the testing has been completed. Not sure what might happen during next week but we will see.

Thank you to everyone who commented on my last post. Your kind thoughts and encouragement means a lot to me and Charley. We are very hopeful that Duke will approve me to move forward in their transplant program and that I may some day get back to a more normal life!! Keep me in your prayers!!

Thursday, December 1, 2011

The Next 10 Days

For those of you who don’t know this, I (Sherry) have COPD. It has gotten progressively worse over the last year or so. My pulmonary doctor asked during my October checkup if I would be interested in being evaluated by Duke Medical Center for a lung transplant. Of course my answer was yes. Anything that could possibly improve my health would be welcome!!

It did not take long for the initial paperwork to be done but took a few days to get everything processed for insurance purposes. After that was completed we immediately received a call from Duke to schedule this for December 5-9. This will involve 5 days of testing before we will know if I am approved to go forward and get on the list for a transplant. We do not know much more than this at this point in time but we hope to learn a lot more while we are there.

We will be leaving for Durham, NC in the morning and will be staying at the Spring Hill RV Park in Chapel Hill, about 15 miles from Duke. I am hoping it will not snow!! Extra stress is not welcome!!

Safe travels everyone!!