One step forward - two steps back

A good night, then a difficult morning. Maverick had two chest tubes placed - one on each side for pleural effusions (fluid around his lungs). His coags (the parts of his blood that helps it clot) are a bit off, so they're keeping up with those. His heart function is still good as is his blood pressure. He is still very edematous and needs to stop third spacing (his blood vessels leak fluid into the tissues instead of keeping it in and processing it through his kidneys). Good news is his kidneys are still functioning well and he had 30mls of urine out this last hour. They have added more strong antibiotics. All of his cultures are negative, but they say he's a set-up for infection, so they're just trying to stay ahead of things. It's just hour by hour. Wish we could fast forward a few days from now. Dr. M. says he thinks he just needs time and he's encouraged that his heart and kidneys are functioning well, although he is still very critical. Keep praying. This whole experience has brought new meaning to "pray without ceasing" for me. Thanks for your thoughts and prayers. Please forgive me if you've called and I haven't called you back. I just haven't felt like talking. I'll keep you all posted.

P.S. Mom and Brown left yesterday. The kids will be back at home later today and back in school tomorrow. I'm not sure they'll want to talk about all this too much, though. Thanks jc