Monday, November 24, 2008

No skin grafts today

Well, Rob did not get skin grafts today. I guess the plastic surgeon wants to wait until his bili is down more because he's afraid that they won't take otherwise. So, instead they did some more washouts and did a "purse cinch" method on the fasciotomies for now. What they do is thread the tissue and cinch it up to make it smaller. They will do this little by little so when they do skin graft it, they won't have to do as much. They also said his legs are looking really good. They said the other day, the color around one of them looked a little off but today has pinked up. I'm not sure when his next surgery will be. Also when I was with Rob, the ortho dr came in the room and we were talking. The chaplain was also there. The dr asked if Rob was squeezing hands. I explained to him that only a little but sometimes it's pretty hard-esp when he's shivering. I told him that Rob was doing eye commands for me. The dr asked if I could get him to close his eyes for me because he hadn't seen it. So, I told Rob the dr wanted him to close his eyes tight for a few seconds and he did it!!! :) The dr said that was definetly him doing it. The nurse also told me that Rob's body is doing things that for some people it takes months to do. That's very encouraging. We'll get there. Slowly but surely. The girls will be here tomorrow!! YEAHHH!!! Can you tell I'm excited! :) Also, I know many of you have asked: my family members who were in the car accident are doing pretty good. My one aunt who was hurt the worst broke 2 cervical vertebraes, collarbone, and 3 ribs. She is able to move her extremities and had to be put in a halo for a few months. This will be a long road for her too. So, please keep them in your prayers. The accident could have been so much worse and we are truly blessed that they are all alive.

48 comments:

Anonymous said...

We are all so excited for your Thanksgiving week to begin with the arrival of your biggest, but smallest blessings....your girls!! And we have much more to be thankful for this year, as Rob fights every day and makes miraculous strides in his recovery. This Thanksgiving, our family and many we suspect will be making your family a very special part of our Thanksgiving prayers and blessings!

We love you and are very thankful for your family,
Karen, Craig, Logan, and Zachary

Anonymous said...

way to go rob you are so strong i am so proud of you and i am so proud to call you my brother you are the most amazing person i know, dena try to enjoy your thanksgiving with the girls and tell them i love them very much!
love
natalie

Anonymous said...

Dena,
I'll be praying for a true, blessed time with your girls and Rob this week. We are still and will keep on praying for you at our church. A lot of people want "Rob updates" each Sunday. It is good to hear that your aunts and uncles are going to be okay. I sure miss your mom, but I'm gald she gets to be there with you and Rob.
In Christ,
Diana Johnson-(Bev's friend and co-worker)

Lodmell said...

So excited for you to see the girls tomorrow. I am sure you miss them a lot.
We are praying for Rob's continued recovery.

kkazor said...

Hey Dena,
I'm so glad you get to see the girls tomorrow! I'm sure having them there will lift everyone's spirits! Its so good to hear Rob is responding and interacting more and more. I check this blog countless times during the day and pray for continued healing and strength. Like Karen said, your family will have a special place in countless Thanksgiving celebrations across the country and beyond. Best wishes for a wonderful family reunion and continued progress and healing!
Love and prayers,
Katie Kazor

Anonymous said...

Dena and family,
All of the Roberts family is sending special Thanksgiving blessings to all of the Gissler and Yllescas families.
Love,
Charles and Jane

Scott H said...

What a special day tomorrow - the arrival of your girls. Enjoy the day. There is nothing as special as the smiles and giggles of little girls.
Scott and Kelsey Hayes

Jodi Lilly said...

Dena,

I'm excited that you'll get to see your girls soon. I'm sure they are anxious to see their mommy. Enjoy your time with them and have a blessed Thanksgiving!

Jodi (Seifert) Lilly

Anonymous said...

We are so glad that Rob is responding more and more and the continued good news on the healing of his wounds. We know you will enjoy every minute with Julia and Eva. We pray for safe travel for all of them.

Love,
Aunt Jo, Uncle Steve, Brooke & Ashley

Becky said...

Dena,
I talked to your dad today as he was leaving for Omaha. We are praying for a good flight for him and the girls.
All our family would like to extend Thanksgiving blessings to your family. We will be with you in thought and prayer.
Love, Charles and Becky

Anonymous said...

Hi Dena, Grandpa and I just finished reading your Blog. We are so happy that Rob gains improvement every day. I don't know who will be the most excited to morrow, You to see th girls or the girls to see their MOMMY. I know their Grandma is going to be happy too. HAPPY DAY TOMORROW. Love ya, Grandpa and Grandma O.

Unknown said...

We are also excited that your girls (and dad too) will be there with you tomorrow!
A special Thanksgiving indeed and one we will all be sharing, in our thoughts and prayers for you and your family.
"Don't be afraid, for I am with you. Don't be discouraged, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will hold you up with my victorious right hand." Isaiah 41:10.
Love,
Kathy Jo and Dean Heine

Anonymous said...

Yeahhhh!!! I'm sure that Eva and Julia are just as excited to see you!!! I hope you guys have a good thanksgiving together! I know that its hard with everything that you are going through...but you deserve to eat some pumpkin pie.
It sounds like it was a pretty good day. Everyday is another step closer to that wakeboard. Hang in there...we'll keep praying. Love ya, Annaka, Aaron, Aizlynn and Amarae

Anonymous said...

Dena,

A day without surgery sounds like a blessed relief for Rob. Shutting his eyes for the surgeon and the nurse telling you that Rob's body is healing at a phenomenal rate is awesome. It's a God thing. You didn't mention the blood fungal infection. It's all those prayers coming from Jesse and me yesterday! We know you are so excited about seeing Julia, Eva and your Dad tomorrow. Don't forget to share the little ones with their grandmas! Get a good night's sleep, Dena. You'll probably be dreaming about Julia and Eva all night!

Much love,
Aunt Joyce and Uncle Doug

Wendell said...

I am so glad Rob had a good day...I wish he could have had his last surgery and had the skin grafts but it was not met to be! But it will be in time...
I am so excited for you, your mom and the Yllescas family to be all reunited this weekend and enjoy this wonderful Thanksgiving!!! Know our thoughts and prayers are on your side!
All our Love,
Uncle Wendell, Aunt Jonell
Haylie and Emily

Anonymous said...

Dena,
Even though we not always write comments, please tell Rob we are checking up on him every day and are very glad he is slowly progressing. Still in our prayers!
Love,
Patty
Xela

Anonymous said...

You do not know me, nor I you, but I feel compelled to write to let you know that I am praying for your husband and your family. I am very thankful to all service men and women for doing what they do to protect our freedoms. As the Thanksgiving holiday quickly approaches, I give thanks for people like you. May God richly bless each and everyone of your family members and give you the strength you all need to overcome and sustain you. Everyone in the Cornhusker state is praying for your full recovery!

Beth Barger & family,
Lindy, NE

Long-time RN said...

Yeah! Confirmation from a doc that Rob's progress is miraculous. Amen. Have a wonderful visit with your girls. Keeping prayers lifted for Rob and your family.

Dorahilda Miller said...

I have Robert and all of you in my daily prayers. You can be sure that God is holding you all in His arms with so much love. When we are in pain physically, or emotionally, is when He is closer to us, otherwise, we wouldn't be able to go through such a difficult times without dying ourselves. God's blessings be with all of you now, and always.

Anonymous said...

Dena im so happy Rob is improving a lot... You can see Prayers have been heard by God... Dena tomorrow is a great day for you, please take a time for you and enjoy it with your little girls, Tell Rob there are million of people praying for him..

Unknown said...

Dena, I just wanted to let you know that I think you are a STRONG and AMAZING WOMAN!!
Enjoy the Thanksgiving Holiday with your beautiful girls. Please let me know if I can be of any assistance.
Rob, WAY TO GO!!!!! Keep up the fight and continue on your road to recovery.

Stacy Hughes CPT, AN

Anonymous said...

Definitely thankful for the great news about Rob and for the chance to see your girls.....I am praying for a miracle that he will respond to the kids. We are thinking of you daily and have been sending lots of prayers your way. Keep us updated, I am following the blog religiously :)
ginny lee

Liz said...

Hope time passes quickly so you can see those lil ones!!! And so happy that Rob is showing the doc his skills as well. We are thinking and praying everyday Dena. I hope you have a very special holiday with your family. God bless.

Anonymous said...

Hi Dena...the girls are on there way!!!It was pretty interesting on how your dad was going to walk in with 2 bags... a diaper bag...2 suitcases...2 car seats and 2 kids!!! LOL...I had to laugh! And, you know the Omaha airport, you can't find anyone with a cart to help you...but, I went in a "stole" a workers utility cart ...temporarily!! Anyway, I enjoyed them and, I can't wait for you to have them in a few hours!!
Have a wonderful time and, this thanksgiving....OH my goodness...the BLESSINGS are pouring down on our lives!
We will keep praying that Robs Bili #'s keep going down and the infection is cleared up,,, and that his boundless energy is restored! God is the doctor of MIRACLES!!
xoxox Aunt Nancy

Anonymous said...

Prayers for your whole family, Dena! I know God is watching out for all of you. I'm so glad that the girls will be there today! I can't imagine how it's been being away from them. I'm so glad that Rob is making such great strides. We will continue to pray! Have a blessed Thanksgiving!!!
~Christy

Anonymous said...

I am so glad to read about Rob's progress. We will continue to pray. Hope you have a very Happy Thanksgiving. I am so glad you get to see your girls!

Anonymous said...

Good progress Rob! We keep praying for you and having you all in our thoughts and prayers everyday. As you face this long journey ahead, be assured that you have a lot of people who are with you on this journey. God bless you and stay strong.
Ewald

Anonymous said...

The below is a a quote from Dennis Raney of Family Life Today:
-----------------------
It’s easy to focus on the struggles in our lives and not recognize what God may be doing. I’ve always thought this historical summary I read from Ted Engstrom, who headed Youth for Christ and World Vision in his fruitful lifetime, was encouraging:

"Cripple a man, and you have Sir Walter Scott. Lock him in a prison cell, and you have John Bunyan. Bury him in the snows of Valley Forge, and you have George Washington. Raise him in abject poverty, and you have Abraham Lincoln.

Strike him down with infantile paralysis, and he becomes Franklin Delano Roosevelt. Burn him so severely in a schoolhouse fire that doctors say he’ll never walk again, and you have Glenn Cunningham, who set the world record in 1934 by running a mile in four minutes and six seconds.

Call him a slow learner, retarded, write him off as unable to be educated, and you have Albert Einstein. Have him or her born black in a society filled with racial discrimination, and you have Booker T. Washington, Harriet Tubman, Marian Anderson, George Washington Carver, and Martin Luther King."

We could add many others to that list. People like Corrie ten Boom, Dietrich Bonhoeffer and Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, whose incarceration in a concentration camp or prison cell became their classroom. Or Joni Eareckson Tada, whose wheelchair has become her platform for amazing ministry. I could tell of others whose names you wouldn’t know, just as you could add names from your own life. Each is proof of what Charles Spurgeon said: “The Lord gets His best soldiers out of the highlands of affliction.”

Could it be that even now—on the front lines of your current ordeal—God is making you more battle-worthy than ever before?
--------------------

I had just finished reading your blog update and then saw that email come in. Thought it might mean something.

Enjoy your Thanksgiving with your family and remember all the little blessings you have had each day in the road to Rob's recovery.

David Black
Papillion, NE

Anonymous said...

I am one of the parents at your daughter's school and was made aware of the situation some weeks ago in regards to Rob. I have been watching your blogs very closely because for some of us, this sort of thing hits really close to home. I have both a husband and a son that are both on their way to Iraq (4th time for my husband and first time for my son). I will continue to stay intune to your family's blog and continue to say the deepest of prayers for all of you! God is on your side when you have a bond as close as I feel that you have as a family. You are a very strong person and are doing what I am not sure many else would do by staying on top of your blog each and every day and can only imagine how you must sometimes feel. The rewards of your strength out weigh anything else. You are thought about every single day and We will coninue to pray for you and your family!!

Anonymous said...

Dena,
We will be thinking about you and your courage and faith this Thanksgiving. May you have a very special Thanksgiving.
Our prayers are with your family.
Teresa

About The Caddo Tribe said...

Thanks for the update. I hope you have a nice Thanksgiving with your girls. We will continue to pray for Rob's progress. Kaine got in yesterday and talks very highly of Rob. All the men really respect him as a leader.

Shani and Mike Ginani

Anonymous said...

Duane Johnson said

Dena, it looks like every corner Rob is going around is better then the one before. His progress is nothing short of miraculous, prayers are working! Rob,You and your familys are in our thoughts and prayers daily. Enjoy thanksgiving with your family and tell your Mom amd Dad hi.

Sincerely
Duane and Ruby Johnson

Anonymous said...

Dena,Rob & family,

Tim and I have all of you in our prayers daily. Rob's progress sounds very good. I know what a relief it is to have Rob respond to you and that is a wonderful sign of his continuing recovery.
Also, you are right in continuing to take care of yourself. Unfortunately, you have a long journey ahead of you: fortunately,
you have the strength and faith to handle it!
We are so glad your girls will be with you for the Thanksgiving holiday! Again, you have been stong enough to know the best place for them while Rob is fighting to come back to you.
So, have a wonderful Thanksgiving. We have so much to be thankful for, and our prayers will always include your family.

Love to all, Jan & Tim Decker

tjdecker said...

Dena,Rob and family,

So glad to hear of Rob's improvemenets! He sounds like he is really fighting--No surprise!
Also, we are really happy you are taking care of yourself in the process.
The best piece of good news is your daughters will be there with you. How wonderful to have the whole family together on a day when there is so much to be thankful for. Enjoy the time together.
We will continue to pray for Rob's
recovery and give thanks for all he and our soldiers are doing and giving for this great nation.

Love to all, Tim & Jan Decker

David M said...

The Thunder Run has linked to this post in the blog post From the Front: 11/25/2008 News and Personal dispatches from the front and the home front.

Anonymous said...

Rob,
I'm so glad the whole family will be gathered near you for Thanksgiving. God Bless

Anonymous said...

To all the Gisslers, Yllescas' and your extended families: May God continue to bless and keep you in his tender loving care--let us all give thanks for his gifts of goodness and mercy and healing. Have a wonderful Thanksgiving--we anxiously await your updates! Love, and prayers...Joe & Jackie

Unknown said...

Yeah for Rob! Loved what we read today in your blog. Also glad to hear the update on your Aunts and Uncles. Enjoy your joyous Thanksgiving with the girls. We will be thinking and praying for you.

Love & Friends,
Mel, Quinn, Lauren & Meghan

Anonymous said...

On this Thanksgiving I am especially thankful that there are men and women like you Rob, who give their all for me and mine!

I am so grateful to their families as well. I know they spend many holidays alone while their loved one is deployed to all parts of the globe. How can we possibly thank someone who has to go through so much?

This holiday I am praying that a miracle will happen and that when your little girls arrive for Thanksgiving you will open your eyes and be able to tell your family, "I love you and I will be OK!!!!"

Have a wonderful holiday....all of you.

Anonymous said...

Dena, Rob, and Family,

I think the progress Rob has made is amazing! I know how I've felt after having 1 surgery and he's gone through terrible trauma, plus has had so many surgeries in the past 4 weeks I can't count all of them. He is an amazing fighter. I'm so glad you will be able to spend time with your beautiful little angels. We will keep praying for continued strength and progress for Rob and may you and yours have a wonderful thanksgiving.

Colleen

Anonymous said...

Dena, You are so lucky to have so many people who care about Rob, you, and your family. I hope that Warren, your father, and your girls had a wonderful experience flying today. I'll bet Julia took charge and led them all through the airport, explaining why they had to take their shoe's off to pass through security. I don't think Omaha's airport is equiped to handle 2 old men with 2 young children, luggage, and a diaper bag. :~)

We continue to pray for Rob's recovery and to you and the girls. I hope everyone has a Happy Thanksgiving, and can enjoy the company of people that care.

Uncle Pat and Amanda

Anonymous said...

Oh, to hold the children again! I've been following Rob's progress, and only hope that his girls can bring him some comfort as he struggles through the painful healing process. We are all thinking of you, and thankful for the progress Rob has made thus far.

SouthLakesMom said...

Dena, I am an Air Force wife who lives in the area -- I was at Bethesda today for a check-up -- even drove by Fisher House. It sounds like you have a routine now and pretty much know your way around, but if you need anything while you're here in this area, please do not hesitate to contact me. I live 30 minutes away and know the ins and outs of the military system as well. You can contact me via e-mail (westenhoff@gmail.com) and I'll send you my phone number. Blessings to you and yours. Rest in the promises of God.

Anonymous said...

Thanksgiving blessings to all of you. Dena, I'm so happy the guys made the venture with the little girls, how wonderful for all of you to be united. And Otto, for you to see your grandaughters too. Rob, you have already made miraculous steps, God blesses you.
Many prayers and blessings,
Cathy Bell

Nancy said...

Are the girls there yet??? I hope so! xox!

Anonymous said...

Glad to hear that the road to recivery is continuing. I hope you and the entire famil have a happy thankgiving with the girls and your dad.


Philip Davis

Anonymous said...

Many Prayers from the
Wallin/Levendoski family and wishes for the best. May God Bless Your Family

Anonymous said...

All of you are in our prayers. May you feel God's loving arms around you and may you know that He is holding you close.
Love from Texas