Letter from Yaya and another gross picture!

We got more good news in our clinic visit today (*editor's note - she sent me this on Thursday)! 

 1) My creatinine has stayed at 1.2 to 1.5 for the last three weeks, meaning the new kidney is working great.  YEAH!

2) From this point forward, I only need to go to MUSC in Charleston every two weeks instead of every week.  YEAH! 

3) Two more medicines were removed this week, and the dose of one of the anti-rejection drugs was cut in half, so I'm only taking 23 pills per day instead of the 32 per day I started with.  YEAH! 

4) I feel so much better in every way.  And even though I can eat almost anything I want now, and I'm eating 3 meals a day (for the first time in 2 years), I've begun losing weight.  YEAH!

 

Thanks be to God and to all of you who have continued to pray for me.  God has heard us and blessed us abundantly.

 

Last Thursday, at their clinic visit in Charleston, Yaya's staples were removed. There were 23 in all! Since then, she's been moving around a lot better, although still not 100% healed.

 

 

Letter from Yaya

South Carolina man finds kidney donor for ailing wife after taking to the streets | Fox News

 

Cute story!!  This transplant occurred at MUSC last Wed (Sep 11) by the same surgeon who did mine.  We'll probably see them at the clinic this coming Thursday.  Everyone who loves their wife or husband say "Amen!".

 

Love,

Yaya

Letter from Yaya!

Yesterday, we left Greenville at 3:30am for our 2-week checkup in Charleston, and were back home by 2:30pm.  Needless to say, I aced the exam!  My creatinine level is down to 1.4, which is in the range the doctors are looking for, and indicates the new kidney is working well.  They did mention that my white blood cell count is still high, indicating that there is an “intruder” in my body (the new kidney!).  That’s why I’m taking extreme precautions against infection.  But they were very pleased with all the other results.  The other good news is that the staples have been removed, which is great since that was the most uncomfortable part.  So now I can walk and move better, and I think I’ll be back to normal soon. 

 

Many people have asked if I notice a difference since the surgery, and my first thought is that there was no choice:  Either a kidney transplant or go on dialysis.  But yes, I feel more energetic, and I’m so glad I don’t have diet restrictions.  Being on a low-potassium, low-phosphorous diet meant giving up so many things that are good and good for you, but that’s over now!  And I want to thank the two who made it possible:  God and Joe!

 

Thank you to all our dear friends for all the prayers, thoughts, notes, cards, Masses, and concerns that you have offered for Joe and I.  We are true believers in the power of prayer; we live by that rule.  Thank you!  Thank you!

 

To my Christian friends, don’t forget that Pope Francis has called for a special day of fasting and prayer for world peace from 1pm to 7pm tomorrow (Saturday, September 7).  Join in for special blessings!

 

Marta

Busy week!

Yaya went locally for blood work on Tuesday and then she drove with Yoyo to Charleston for her Thursday blood work. And all is well! Her creatinine level is 1.4, which is below 1.5 as we hoped! While in Charleston, they also took the staples out of her incision - 23 staples! So now she is moving around even better.

Pely went home on Wednesday. She will be missed! Thanks Pely for all the hard work you did these past few weeks!

From here on, it'll be twice weekly blood work (once in Greenville, once in Charleston), taking her meds, and continuing to rest whenever possible.

God has been so good to us! Thanks again to everyone for all the prayers and well wishes!

What's in a name?

Time for Frequently Asked Questions! We've gotten some friends-of-friends asking where the names "Yaya" and "Yoyo" came from - here's Yaya's answer!

Many have asked me where we got the names Yoyo and Yaya.  Well, here's the story. I just hope Joannie can "take it", since she'll be publishing it, because we still can't agree on all the details.  But this is my story and I'm sticking to it!

 

I always wanted to be called Abuela (grandma in Spanish, since I was born in Colombia, SA).  But when Abby, my first grandchild, was born 11 years ago, my plans got changed.  When she was just 14 months old, as I held her in my lap and looked into her eyes, she said, "yayayaya".  So I shouted "She's calling me Yaya!".  Joannie and I still have a "difference of opinion" over which she said first: Yaya or ball.  I remember telling Joannie that she had called me Yaya, and Joannie said, "Mom, she doesn't even talk yet".  At that moment, Abby looked at me and said "Yaya" again, in front of her Mom.  That was it; I was Yaya. 

 

Two weeks later, my husband Joe came up to me and said:  If you are a "Yaya", I guess that makes me a "Yoyo".  We all thought that was so funny, we all started teasing him by calling him Yoyo, and the name stuck.  Once when we took all of Joannie's kids to Lowe's for a kid's project workshop, the workshop teacher told me, "I don't know which is funnier, that they call him Yoyo, or that he answers them!"

 

So now we are the Yoyos!!!!  We found out later that, in fact, "Yiayia" is Greek for "grandma".  Little did we know that Abby was bi-lingual before age two! :-)

 

That's close enough so we'll leave it like that! :)

On being an organ donor...

From Yaya:

While I was in the hospital last week, many lives were saved.  A person died and three different lives were saved by receiving his two kidneys and his liver.  Two days later, another person died and three more lives were saved - one with a kidney, one with the liver, and a type 1 diabetic received the pancreas and a kidney and is no longer diabetic.  A day later, a 20-month old baby was saved by receiving a portion of a donated liver.

 

If you're not already an organ donor, consider going to the Department of Motor Vehicles to sign up to be an organ donor after your passing.  You go to the DMV because they mark you as an organ donor on your driver's license.  Imagine what a legacy you can leave behind!

Picture time!

As Yaya says, this picture isn't for the faint of heart, but lots of people asked for it so here we go...a picture of the kidney!

Originally, Yoyo had a big piece of paper he'd signed with the same message but I guess it didn't hold up well for a photo so they wrote it out on a whiteboard.

Also, we took these pictures for fun. The first is from Yaya and Yoyo's wedding (a certificate and flowers)...

And this second one with their matching hospital IDs, a letter of congratulations on their match from MUSC, and a "bouquet" of medicines.

We're so happy for you both!