Prayers for Thomas Carmichael

[Rocket]

Thomas
I think about you every day and wish you the best.  Hope to see you on the trails again soon.  Really a cool picture of you on your steel-tanker from a "few" years ago!!
Rod "Rocket" Gorzny

[454MRW]

As we continue to pray for Thomas and Ron as well, please be sure to include Rons wife. I have learned not to take anything for granted, even if small and seemingly insignificant. We are all very blessed to have them in our extended family. Mike

Michael R. Winter
I enjoy rebuilding and appreciating Pentons!
1974 250 HS Pentons-1980 KTM 175-400'S

[firstturn]

Thomas had another tough day, but he made it to the weekend.  What they talk about using the mask to hold his head steady can be a real challenge.

From Clinta - Although today was another low day, 4.5, this was to be expected and I know that Thomas is very frustrated with his fatique and not being able to get out of the bed on his own.   Thomas is struggling with delusions and especially speech.  After his morning nap, he asked me when we were going to radiation and after telling him that he had already been, he had no recollection of going, at all.  I told him about a conversation that we had with one of the technicians and he vaguely remembered it.   He told me that it was very dangerous of me to take him there while he was sleeping.  I explained to him that he was very much awake, he has just forgotten.  

What he doesn't remember is that he got very upset during radiation and called for the technicians to stop the radiation.  Apparently, he has additional swelling so it made his mask very tight and he felt as if he was suffocating.  They told me that he finished the radiation before he had called them so it wasn't shorted.  

His temperment is either depressed or angry so the kids and I are being very gentle with him and offering him lots of tenderness and empathy.  It gets a little unnerving sometimes because he will ask me, very often to post comments on facebook or the penton website that don't really make any sense.  So, I will tell him that I did or will post something similar but not exactly what he said so as to not confuse people.  When I got home from Spartanburg yesterday or maybe the day before, I came across postings that Hannah had done for him, (he must have asked her to post them!), that were kinda crazy.  So, if you run across these postings, understand that they were probably done at a point where Thomas might have been a little confused.  

I think it's quite an understatement to say that I'm glad the weekend is here.  No special plans other than setting up a salt water aquarium.  I've lucked out because Hannah is good friends with the manager of a Pet Shop that I've bribed with dinner for tomorrow night so I may be able to be a spectator of the event.  

I hope that all of our friends and family will have a wonderful weekend!  I'm praying that Thomas will get lots of rest and will have a better Saturday and Sunday.  We are meeting with our new oncologist, (who we love) on Monday so I look forward to finding out what we should expect after the final radiation treatment on Wednesday.  Thanks for all of the prayers and thoughts, we couldn't get through this without you!  Love you!    


Ron Carbaugh

[Ernie Phillips]

Clinta & Thomas,  I know its been a long row to hoe, but you'll be done Wednesday.  Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday.  Hope you all get some rest this weekend.  -EP

Ernie P.
Chattanooga, TN

[firstturn]

Great day for Thomas.

From Clinta - I'm calling today a 6.  There weren't any spectacular events but we will gladly take dull and boring!!   Thomas had a very calm and peaceful day.  He has slept the majority of the day which I think is good.  He literally laid down after breakfast at 8:30 and did not wake back up until 2:00 this afternoon.  

Hannah's friend, the pet store manager, is coming over tomorrow instead of tonight because he wasn't going to be able to get here until 8:30 tonight and since the aquarium is in Thomas's room, I didn't want them working late on it and keeping him up.  So, he's coming over after church tomorrow and they will work on it till Hannah goes to work at 4.  

We are having to go with Plan B on the aquarium.  I talked to someone this afternoon that works at Ocean Floor which is a retail outlet that sells salt water fish.  He said that once you have the aquarium set up with the water, you should let the water "cycle" for one month before adding the fish.  He also said that based on the size of my aquarium, I should only have 2-4 fish in the tank.  Apparently, salt water fish need their space!  

Thomas has been very anxious to get the aquarium set up and running and I just don't have the heart to have him watch water and coral for a month with no fish action.  With only 2-4 fish anyway, once we can add them, there probably isn't going to be a lot of action.  So, I've decided to make the aquarium a tropical fish aquarium which can be just as lovely and colorful as a salt water aquarium and definitely a lot less work.  

Hannah and her friend will have to go back to Pet Smart tomorrow and trade out the equipment that is salt water only for a tropical environment.  I know that once it's set up he will be pleased but I'm worried that he will think I'm disappointed, which I'm not, if anything I'm somewhat relieved.  

I'm going to wait until tomorrow to tell him because I don't want him to feel bad and one of the side effects of this type of cancer is that you are very emotional, a side-effect he has absolutely no control over.  If I can even avoid having to tell him, I will because tropical fish can be very colorful also and like most people, he probably won't be able to tell the difference.  

Another big event is happening tomorrow.  I'm going to Lowe's to purchase "stuff."  I can't remember if I've ever gone to Lowe's on my own to buy anything, oh that's not true, I did go one time to buy a plunger.  I'm having the vinyl in 2 of our bathrooms floors replaced so I have to buy shoe molding, a reducer and wax rings.  I know you are probably pretty impressed by the ease with which I threw out these words, but I know them only because the installers told me what to get.  I'm also buying Scott's Fertilizer and Weed-B-Gone.  I'm impressing myself now!  

I'm so glad that today was better.  Thomas's spirits are raised and I think we will have a good Sunday.  I'm preparing a traditional breakfast tomorrow and if I'm really in the mood, I might make grits.  

I hope that you are enjoying your weekend also.  I am ready to get these last 3 treatments done so that we can move into our next phase.  What that phase is, I don't know but I'm hoping to learn more on Monday and will share it with you on my Monday night post.  Stay tuned for more aquarium updates!

Thank you so much for your loyalty to Thomas and Team Carmichael through this experience.  Please continue to pray for his strength and for our stamina.  We love you!

Ron Carbaugh

[sixdazed]

Thomas,Sounds like your in the homestretch as far as this phase goes.Keep the Faith and hang in there for the duration.You are in my thoughts and prayers.
                      Ric

ric emmal

[tomale]

I have been out of the loop for a few days... I am at my Dad's  once in awhile I can find enough signal to post. None the less, I pray for Thomas everymorning... Remember Thomas, it is not so much that we are holding on to faith It is that Christ is holding on to us.. I have seen people who seem to have very little faith seem to abound in it when tought times come a long. My conclusion is that He hangs onto us and He gives us the faith we need.. I love ya brother...

Thom Green,Still crazy after all these years!
76' 250 MC5 (orginal owner)74'
250 hare scrambler (project bike)

[firstturn]

Thomas finished his Radiation and has one more week of chemo so thanks for all the Prayers and we move forward.

From Clinta - I apologize for the late post but I had actually posted earlier and somehow lost it.  So, since that time, I've had dinner with Thomas, run to Staples to buy a report folder for Trey, helped Trey with a final exam for one of his classes, cleaned the kitchen, given Thomas his 10 pills, put lotion on his feet and saw Aaron voted off American Idol.  It's been a full night!  

Today was a day that we have prayed about and looked forward to for six weeks!  Thomas had his last radiation treatment and that's over now!  He is very happy to see this day come, no more mask fittings or being strapped down on the table.  The radiation clinic gave us his face mask, I'm hoping I never wake up to it in the middle of the night, it's really scary!  

It's hard to know what to expect but the doctor told us today that for the next two weeks, Thomas will experience his worse fatique.  She said that the harshest side-effects of radiation generally appear about 2 weeks after the last treatment.  He is extremely fatiqued with little to no energy to do anything.  I tried to get him to sit up several times today, but he wouldn't.  I've been somewhat insistent in the past about his sitting up to eat, but I couldn't get him to do that either.  He has had a severe reduction in his appetite and I have to prompt him to eat.  The reduction in the steriods has helped made a big difference.    

Today was a 5.5 because of his fatique.  Although, I'm happy that Thomas will no longer have to deal with radiation, I'm nervous about what to expect going forward.  He will take chemo for one more week and then have a break from everything other than physical therapy.  This is where faith and belief come in to play and even with a solid foundation with both, I think it's normal to be scared.  

Major thanks go out to Mike Gasque today who came and visited with Thomas which was a huge help to me.  I worked in Asheville today and Hannah, Trey and the sitter were unavailable to be here with Thomas so Mike graciously came and stayed with him.  I am so appreciative of the help and of course, Thomas enjoyed visiting with his friend that he calls brother!

Since I posted earlier than normal yesterday, I did not share with you the incredible dinner that Thomas and I had last night.  Donna, the culinary master, Lazar brought over dinner and honestly, it was better than what a 5 star restaurant could do!  Sometimes, fancy isn's always better and last night we had a very simple, no frills dinner.  She had made a casserole with 4 or 5 types of beans, (I didn't say it wasn't lethal!), bacon, hamburger meat and other ingredients I can't name, slaw and Mexican corn muffins!  Oh my gosh, it was so good!  

Please continue your prayers, they are so helpful and we need them now more than ever!  We love you!


Ron Carbaugh

[firstturn]

Thomas is having tough days...Please keep him in your Prayers.

From Clinta - This is a difficult time for us now.  I repeatedly have to remind myself that Thomas's condition is normal for the time period that he's in with his treatment.  Today was a 4 and a very stressful day for him.  To say he's weak is an understatement.  He's eating very little and is very short with everyone but me.  I worked out of town today but apparently he was very hostile towards the kids and although we rationally know that his behavior now is not really Thomas but the repercussions of the chemo and radiation and perhaps to some extent the cancer, it's still very hard on Hannah and Trey.  Hannah has been close to tears with him for 2 days now.  

For the first time since he has been diagnosed, he complained of a very painful headache.  I actually had to dose him with Tylenol, loritab and a sleeping pill to get the pain to a manageable level.  I'm hoping that the headache was just the culmination of a day that he tells me was a day from hell.  He complained also of freezing even when I put the A/C up to 80.  I had Hannah close off the vent above his bed so I'm hopeful that will help with his room tempature for him.  I'm very hot natured, so I'm sweating bullets working downstairs.  

Thomas woke me at 3AM this morning because he had spilled something all over the oriental rug under his bed.  No problem, I got that cleaned up, went back to bed and the smoke alarm went off at 5AM.  We have 8 smoke alarms in our house so I had to go through the process of figuring out the culprit.  Knowing that once I located the one that's lucky to still be in one piece today, I wouldn't know how to make it stop, (again, not something I've ever had to deal with, thank you Thomas!), so I went ahead and woke the back-up, Trey.  Unlike Thomas and I, he was sleeping peacefully in la-la land while this awful chirping noise went off every 3 minutes.  He got up begrudgingly and located the problem, replaced the battery which was defective, so we are still being serenaded and finally I told him to take the thing down.  It was the one in the den and we have another one in the next room over, the kitchen, that's just crazy!  

We've had a couple of people call to request visits and for now, we are asking everyone to hold off on visiting until Thomas has an opportunity to come back around.  He's just too tired to even pretend to be paying attention and this request comes directly from him, not me.  He's usually good about visitors but all he wants to do for now is sleep and since, according to the doctors, he hasn't reached the peak of exhaustion, I want to give him every opportunity to rest.  

We continue to appreciate your prayers so much!  Please pray for Thomas's strength and energy and for rest and stamina for Team Carmichael!  We love you!


Ron Carbaugh

[Ernie Phillips]

Thomas,

My prayer for you and your family is that today will be better than yesterday and that tomorrow will be even better than today.  Hang tuff.  -EP

Ernie P.
Chattanooga, TN

[firstturn]

A rough weekend for Thomas.  Thanks for the people that have signed the guest book.

From Clinta - The Thomas Richter scale is staying at a pretty steady 4.  I was concerned that it had slipped lower this morning but I think we're remaining steady.

Thomas has had an extreme headache since yesterday afternoon.  This morning, I maxed out on all the pain medicine that I could give him and was worried that it wasn't going to reduce or eliminate the pain.  I called the oncology office and luckily it was his own doctor on call. She is not allowed to "call in" morphine but said that if his headache continued for me to take him to the ER.  She said that they most likely would do a scan but that they could give him pain medicine and a prescription.  

Thomas does not want to go to the ER and he does seem better.  I would not hesitate to call an ambulance if I felt he needed to go, but for now, he seems like he's in less pain.  I don't know that the headache is gone completely, but it's definitely not on the level that it was last night and this morning.  

He has not sat up all day and won't eat anything.  I even offered him a vanilla shake but he wasn't interested in that either.  For now, I'm trying to moniter his pain and keep him comfortable.  I have been able to get him to drink some so I know that he is getting some liquids.  

Throughout the day, I have rubbed lotion on his legs and feet and aloe on his scalp from where the radiation has burned him.  I'm going to sleep on the couch beside him tonight so I will be close if he needs me.  

Hannah and Megan were going to get the aquarium set up today but under the circumstances, I told them to wait.  Right now, Thomas justs wants to be alone with the kids and me and no noise so I'm going to be strict about keeping things as sedate as possible.  

I hope you are having a good weekend and enjoying time with your friends and family.  The weather is awesome here and a great opportunity to get outside!  I look forward to the day I can take Thomas outside to sit on our deck.  

Thanks for the prayers and well-wishes.  We appreciate all the support and concern that we've received!  We love you!


Ron Carbaugh

[firstturn]

Thomas had to go to the hospital.  Not much of a Happy Mother's Day for his Bride, but I will assure you Clinta is the best Bride, Mother and Caregiver anyone could Pray for.  Thanks for all you Prayers and I will assure you Thomas is as Tough as they Come and he is giving it his all.

From Clinta - I know that it's unorthodox for me to do a journal update mid-day, but we've had a very eventful last 12 hours.  I am just getting home from being in the hospital room ER since 3AM.  I was following an ambulance taking Thomas to the hospital this morning at 2:45, with Hannah riding in it with Thomas.  En route to the hospital, the ambulance pulled off the road, the paramedic who had been in the back with Thomas, climbed out and the driver climbed in.  Naturally, I stopped my car to ask what was going on and Thomas was profusely throwing up and they were trying to get an IV in him as quickly as possible.  

When I wrote the post last night, Thomas was settled and his headache was much better, still had not eaten but was much calmer.  Throughout the evening, I continued to encourage him to try and sleep but as it got late, he started getting more and more distressed.  By 2AM, he told me that his head was killing him and that he felt very nauseated.  Well, for me, that's all it took.  I told him that I was taking him to the hospital where he could get medicine to stop his pain.  Trey helped me dress him, I called 911 and Hannah, who somehow beat the ambulance to the house and they strapped him on the stretcher and loaded him up.  

First thing they did when we arrived was to do a CAT scan to eliminate bleeding on the brain.  There was no bleeding which was great news.  They ran additional blood tests and told me that they would get him into a room as soon as they could.  Keep in mind, that we arrived sometime between 3 and 3:30.  At 5:30, I was getting pretty antsy about his getting moved but they told me that it was going to be another hour.  Hannah and I both were exhausted since neither of us had been to bed yet so I determined that it would be best to take her back home so at least one of us could get some sleep.  When I got back to the hospital, still nothing.  At 7:30, I called Thomas's oncologist to see if she could move the process along faster.  Apparently, they were extremely busy on Mother's Day and so backed up that a typical 3-4 hour wait was now going to be, in the end, about 9 hours for us.  

While all of this is going on though, Thomas has been given medicine for the nausea and by the time I left at 12:45, 2 doses of morphine.  He was finally transferred to his room at 11:30.  He has been in and out of a very deep sleep, due to the drugs.  I let him know before I left that I was going home to sleep for a couple of hours and that Hannah and Trey would be there shortly.  Trey is working and Hannah was getting some sleep herself.  

They are running some additional tests but the primary purpose of his being at the hospital is to get his pain managed.  Additionally, they have him on fluids and clear broth to make sure he's fully hydrated.  Dr. Gardziola told me that when he leaves the hospital, we will have a new set of prescriptions for him.  He is actually on the oncology floor and as I was leaving, his nurse told me that they've called in a PT and OT consult for tomorrow.  I told her absolutely NO!!!  He's exhausted and you really think he's up for Occupational and Physical therapy??   He can't even sit up to eat!!  

Thomas needs your prayers for pain relief and good medical decisions.  I'm completely comfortable and happy with his oncologist, I know she will take very good care of him.  I want to do everything possible to completely eliminate or severely reduce any pain for him.  It's absolutely horrifying to have to stand by and watch someone you love so much be in pain!  I was a wreck at the hospital insisting that he get pain medicine!  But fortunately, the staff in the ER were great, the system just moves so slow!  

Thanks for your prayers, we need and appreciate them!  For all the Mothers out there reading this, I hope you have a wonderfully special day!  We love you!


Ron Carbaugh

[firstturn]

Update on Thomas.

From Clinta - Thomas called me at 3:47AM to talk.  I wasn't able to go back to sleep so I got up and packed a bag for him and gathered stuff for him in the hospital.  I left the house at 6:30AM so that I could ensure being in his room with him when the doctor came.  Since I was here early, the doctor hasn't come in yet today.

Thomas has a very low oxygen count so they have him on oxygen as well as he has been having high blood pressure issues.  While typing this, his nurse who we have become quite fond of and she feels the same way about us, just told me that they got back the results from the blood cultures that they did yesterday and Thomas has tested positive for a staff infection.  UGH!!!!  Both the oncall hospital doctor has been notified as well as the oncologist who will be seeing him today.  

I could just scream.  Another complication!!  If you are familiar with staff infection, it's not an infection that you can mess around with and the nurse told me that going forward, the hospital staff will be coming in with sterilized gowns, gloves and masks to reduce their exposure to it.  

I'm waiting on the doctor to arrive but there's no telling when that will be since they aren't on a specific time clock for visitation.  As soon as I have new news, I will update again.

Ron Carbaugh

[firstturn]

Tough Day in South Carolina.  When you read this understand what a port is?  When you are having a lot of IVs (needles) the doctors have to perform surgery to put a post in your body to put the drugs you need in one place without sticking needles in you all day long.  Infection in these ports are not uncommon in my experience.  Thanks for your Prayers for Thomas and his Wonderful Family.

From Clinta - I apologize for getting this journal post out so late, I just got home from the hospital.  So much happened today and most of it on an off-the-chart incredibly stressful level, that I am just too beat to go into detail on all of it.  So, for the purpose of needing and wanting to get some rest, I'm going to give a very brief summary.

It is confirmed that Thomas has a staph infection.  Apparently, there was some controversy on the first set of cultures drawn so they drew another set on Monday.  Both the cultures that were taken on Monday, came back positive.  There are several staph infection strains, but there are 2 that are particularly nasty.  One attacks the valves in your heart, (they did an echocardiogram yesterday) and the other is referred to as MRSA.  Both of these are extremely dangerous and we don't want him to have either, (we don't want him to have the infection at all, but he does) so we are hoping that he will have a very mild, common strain.  It's referred to as a community strain because it can be picked up out in public or anywhere there are a lot of people.  Due to the fact that Hannah, Trey and I have been Thomas's primary caregivers, we also have to be tested now.  Tomorrow, someone from the infectious disease department will be coming by to examine Thomas.  They suspect that he may have the infection in his port.  The port is a tube that was surgically planted in his chest for IV activity.  If they find that the infection is there, he will have to have another surgery to remove it and put another one in.  

Additionally, Thomas was scheduled to have an MRI today to take a look at the brain area.  The oncologist wrote the order and the nurse, (she and I did not have a good day and that's before this even happened!), translated the order incorrectly.  Thomas was prepped for the test, which means morphone and an anti-anxiety medicine, taken down to the department where he waited his turn, only to find out that because the order was written incorrectly, they had to postpone the test until tomorrow.  

Very, very stressful day!  It's good that the windows to Thomas's room are locked and I'm not referencing Thomas or me being the one to go through them from his 5th floor location!  On top of all the challenges that Thomas is facing, I'm incredibly exhausted and as his advocate, I have to go behind and question everything, there is no hoping that it's all ok.  Our first night, they had scheduled him for 5mg of his chemo, his dosage is 150mg.  I could mention more, but the importance of this post is not the battles that we wage with the hospital or staff, it's about Thomas and I don't want this to dissolve into a rage fest or a venting tool which I've done in the past.  I want to try and keep it positive but real.  

Tomorrow we will get the results to the echocardiogram, (I hope I'm spelling that correctly because I'm too tired to look it up!), we will find out the strain of the staph infection, meet with the infectious team and Thomas will have the MRI.  It's going to be a busy and full day.  

There was a huge highlight to the day and because it was so special and important to Thomas, I can't close without mentioning Ken and Anne Norton stopping by this afternoon.  I've told you before how much Thomas loves these two and I know that he always feels better after seeing them!  

Thank you for your prayers.  When conversing with God, I've given you lots of options to ask him for, and we appreciate it so much! We love you!



Ron Carbaugh

[firstturn]

Very encouraging and Thomas called to let me know how he felt.  He is a fighter and his Family are just the best.  As you can tell this situation takes it's toll on the Family, but I will tell you I have met the Family and they are just the Best Loving Family anyone could imagine.  Thanks for your Prayers.

From Clinta - I can confidently tell you that this morning was the best morning Thomas has had since finding out that he has a brain mass on February 15th.  Barbara and I got to the hospital at 7:30 and went straight to his room.  I had not been in there  long when the oncologist came into the room and immediately said, "I have the results from your MRI."  My first reaction was complete alarm. One obvious reason was my concern over what we would hear, but far more concerning was the doctor's announcement that she had news that she was going to openly share with Thomas and me both together right then.

Since this process began, I have asked the doctors to please talk with me first regarding any news or developments so I can help filter the information that Thomas receives.  The number one most important healing tool, (besides prayer) is hope and I know that just as there are millions of different personalities and styles of people in this world, the same is true of doctors and their bedside manner.   We have interacted with doctors that have come across as cold and disengaged or blue-skied everything to the point of giving us inaccurate information, doctors that have chosen to avoid answering questions directly to doctors that are very compassionate yet truthful and forthcoming.  

It has been very important to me to ensure that Thomas be protected from unnecessary worry and to keep him focused on the positives and not dwelling on any negatives.  I believe there is a total mind-body link and it's very influential to a person's spirit and healing capabilities if negativity is not in the picture.  Thomas is involved in everything happening, I'm just the Press Agent that will, in many cases be the one who delivers the message to him.  

The oncologist told us that the news of the MRI was very good and that the tumor has shrunk.  I talked with her afterward and she told me that this is the expectation of what six weeks of radiation should do.  There have been cases where the radiation didn't affect the tumor, but shrinkage is the response that they are targeting.   The CAT scan that was taken on Sunday did not have good results so that's why they decided to do an MRI on Tuesday, (which didn't happen until Wednesday) to get a closer look at everything.  If Thomas had had the ability to shout from the hospital roof-tops, he would have and flown a banner over Greenville!  We are so happy!  

As far as the staph infection, (this is just one example of why I like to meet with the doctors first!), on Monday, they told us that he had the staph infection, infectious disease team will have to come in, suit up, we all need to be tested, hopefully it's not the deadly one, etc.  My children were scared to death!!  On Tuesday, they said, we're not sure now, it possible that the results are a false-positive, we're going to do the cultures again.  Needless to say, this is upsetting to Thomas which in my book, causes unnecessary stress.  On Wednesday we were told that now they think it's positive again and later that day the infectious doctor came to meet with us.  He's not sure what's up, he's not happy about the hospital report or how they've handled the situation, but hold on, we should get even more results on Thursday, (today).  

This afternoon the hospital doctor told me that they think the tests were contaminated, meaning whoever drew the blood did not clean the area well enough or there was bacteria on the needle or a million other things because the 4 different cultures all showed  different types of staph strain and if it was truly an infection that Thomas had, all the cultures should have had the same strain not a different one for each culture.  This whole situation was lunancy and unfortunately I could tell you a dozen more stories that go back to February where there was confusion or miscommunication but again, let's not be negative!  I'm thrilled though that he doesn't have a staph infection.  I dreamed last night I was shopping at Publix in a Hazmat suit!  

The oncologist told me today that they are not going to be able to tell us why Thomas had a severe headache, nausea and vomiting over the weekend.  It's most likely related to the cancer but we will never know for sure.  But, no matter because Thomas will be coming home tomorrow from the hospital, yeah!!  It's back to the whole doldrums but I welcome it.  Since being in the hospital this week, I will have to tell you that Thomas has a way of putting my cooking in perspective.  While eating scrambled eggs that he had to scoop with a spoon and grits that he had to cut with a knife, he looked at me and told me that he can't believe how good the food is at the hospital.  I'm thinking it's time for me to invest in a Betty Crocker cookbook!  

On their way out of town today, Robert and Carolyn Cross came by the hospital to tell us goodbye and to check on Thomas.  They are headed over to Germany and somewhere else until the end of May.  We sure are going to miss them and wish them safe travels and so much fun!  With all that they've done for us, we should have had a bottle of champagne waiting for them in Frankfurt!  

You may have picked up on my weariness, but it's a happy weary!  I'm so glad that Thomas is coming home, I can go back to work on Monday and we can get some normalcy back at the Carmichael homestead.  Thanks everyone for your support and prayers, we couldn't get through this without you.  We love you!


Ron Carbaugh