It's nearly 1:30 AM and here I am finally updating my blog after 6 months. The only reason I got around to it now is because I simply cannot sleep. Wednesday, January 13, 2010 I received a call at 7:25 AM. It was Griff. He said, "The paramedics need to know if your mom has a do not resus order." It took a moment for it to sink in. He was asking me if my mother should be resucitated or not. Then my mind went blank. I had no idea. I, for the life of me, could not think/remember anything at that moment. So I said, "I don't know." He hung up the phone, and I bawled. Tony, in the infinite wisdom of a three year old, hugged me because he knew I was sad. He tried his hardest to make it all better. He even told me that the doctors would make Grandma Moo Moo, as he calls her, all better. But I told him that I was afraid that they couldn't this time. And it turns out that I was right. They lost Mom on the way to the hospital, or so they said. Griff is fairly certain that she was gone before the paramedics ever arrived at the house.
I tried to be the strong one today. I called all my siblings as well as other family members to tell them what happened. Like always, I went into auto-pilot mode to get what needed to be done taken care of. Then I broke down later after everyone else had gone to bed for the night. After all, there were phone calls to be made to the bank, the insurance company, and the attorney's office. There was a meeting with the funeral director to make arrangements. Then I had to find a pastor for the service, make arrangements for the music, pick out clothing for mom to be dressed in, choose and contact pall bearers, and the list goes on... Nevermind my own family that was waiting for me when I returned home. I am so thankful for my husband. He really has been my rock through all of this. I love him so much.
I'm glad for Mom that her battle with cancer is finally over. Although she forever remained stoic and uncomplaining, I know that these past couple of months have been really hard for her. She's in a better place now. A place free from pain where she can be at peace. And she is again reunited with Dad. I'm also very thankful that she was able to retain her dignity. Her biggest fear was of being bed-ridden and relying on others to care for her. Her wish was granted, however, to remain self-sufficient right up to the very end. I thank God for granting her that.
I can't say more right now. But even though this chapter of my life is drawing to a close, I know that the story must go on. And in order for that to happen, I have to try and get some sleep. So off to bed I go...
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
Thursday, July 30, 2009
Check the batteries in your smoke detectors!
My mom called me yesterday while I was on my way home from work. She had a CT scan on Tuesday and got the results yesterday. Her current round of chemotherapy was shrinking her cancer but causing her lymph nodes to swell & press on her bronchial tubes. That is why she was having such a hard time breathing and was so short of breath all the time. She was supposed to get another round of chemo yesterday, but in light of the scan results they decided to skip it. She will take a break for a few weeks and she is scheduled to start radiation therapy in September. Hopefully that will work well for her. It will be three weeks of treatment, five days a week.
Eric has been switched over to his new seizure medication, Lamotrigine (a generic form of Lamictal), for a while now & seems to be doing okay with it. There are some side effects, but it is just something we will have to learn to deal with. #1 I think the meds are effecting his concentration. He jokingly calls it CRS syndrome (Can't Remember Sh*t). And #2 I think it is effecting his mood. He doesn't seem to realize it, but he has very little patience anymore & is so quick to lose his temper. He isn't a violent sort of guy, thank goodness, but he gets really frustrated with Tony when he is whiny. And of course Eric's reaction only exacerbates the problem rather than making it better.
June 1st Eric started working later hours. He works from 1:00 - 9:30 P.M. This allows us to save on babysitting costs. But we sacrifice time together. Eric has the kids to himself in the morning from 7:30-12:30, the sitter has them from 12:30-5:30, and I have them to myself from 5:30-10:00. Usually I try to get the kids in bed around 8:00 or 8:30. Well, last night I put Adrienne to bed & left Tony watching cartoons in my bedroom while I locked the doors & stuff downstairs. I wasn't down there for more than 5 minutes & when I opened the door to go back upstairs the entire upstairs was filled with smoke. In that short amount of time, Tony had unplugged my air conditioner, plugged in the space heater, turned it on and tipped it over onto the carpet. The carpet and padding was melted all the way through to the bare floor and the smoke detectors never went off. Thank The Lord I wasn't downstairs any longer than I was or the floor probably would have caught fire. And my babies were both up there! I rushed upstairs to determine the source of the smoke and saw the heater on the floor. I immediately unplugged it and sat it upright. I didn't see flames, but I knew I had to get the kids out of the smoke so I yelled at Tony to get downstairs (which of course made him freeze in his tracks and start to bawl) and I scooped up Adrienne out of her crib. I rushed all of us outside and onto the lawn and called Eric at work. I made him stay on the phone with me while I went back inside to assess the damage. The carpeting and the heater are ruined, but thankfully that is all. The carpet & floor never actually caught fire and the smoke cleared out in a couple of hours by opening windows and turning on fans. But the whole experience was absolutely terrifying! I'm always so careful about that space heater. I never use it when we are asleep. I never leave it running when we leave the house. I'm always right in the room to keep an eye on it if we are using it. Likewise, I always keep our outlets that are not in use covered with those plastic protector things. I just never dreamed that Tony would unplug something else and plug in that space heater! And I definitely urge everyone to check their smoke detectors regularly. That is one mistake I won't make again. I don't know if the batteries are dead or if I don't have it positioned in a good place or what, but I cannot believe it didn't go off with the amount of smoke that had accumulated. I think I'm going to get all new ones & get the ones that are connected together so that if one goes off, they all go off. It really was beyond terrifying. It was right up there with having to call 911 for Eric when he had his first seizure.
Eric has been switched over to his new seizure medication, Lamotrigine (a generic form of Lamictal), for a while now & seems to be doing okay with it. There are some side effects, but it is just something we will have to learn to deal with. #1 I think the meds are effecting his concentration. He jokingly calls it CRS syndrome (Can't Remember Sh*t). And #2 I think it is effecting his mood. He doesn't seem to realize it, but he has very little patience anymore & is so quick to lose his temper. He isn't a violent sort of guy, thank goodness, but he gets really frustrated with Tony when he is whiny. And of course Eric's reaction only exacerbates the problem rather than making it better.
June 1st Eric started working later hours. He works from 1:00 - 9:30 P.M. This allows us to save on babysitting costs. But we sacrifice time together. Eric has the kids to himself in the morning from 7:30-12:30, the sitter has them from 12:30-5:30, and I have them to myself from 5:30-10:00. Usually I try to get the kids in bed around 8:00 or 8:30. Well, last night I put Adrienne to bed & left Tony watching cartoons in my bedroom while I locked the doors & stuff downstairs. I wasn't down there for more than 5 minutes & when I opened the door to go back upstairs the entire upstairs was filled with smoke. In that short amount of time, Tony had unplugged my air conditioner, plugged in the space heater, turned it on and tipped it over onto the carpet. The carpet and padding was melted all the way through to the bare floor and the smoke detectors never went off. Thank The Lord I wasn't downstairs any longer than I was or the floor probably would have caught fire. And my babies were both up there! I rushed upstairs to determine the source of the smoke and saw the heater on the floor. I immediately unplugged it and sat it upright. I didn't see flames, but I knew I had to get the kids out of the smoke so I yelled at Tony to get downstairs (which of course made him freeze in his tracks and start to bawl) and I scooped up Adrienne out of her crib. I rushed all of us outside and onto the lawn and called Eric at work. I made him stay on the phone with me while I went back inside to assess the damage. The carpeting and the heater are ruined, but thankfully that is all. The carpet & floor never actually caught fire and the smoke cleared out in a couple of hours by opening windows and turning on fans. But the whole experience was absolutely terrifying! I'm always so careful about that space heater. I never use it when we are asleep. I never leave it running when we leave the house. I'm always right in the room to keep an eye on it if we are using it. Likewise, I always keep our outlets that are not in use covered with those plastic protector things. I just never dreamed that Tony would unplug something else and plug in that space heater! And I definitely urge everyone to check their smoke detectors regularly. That is one mistake I won't make again. I don't know if the batteries are dead or if I don't have it positioned in a good place or what, but I cannot believe it didn't go off with the amount of smoke that had accumulated. I think I'm going to get all new ones & get the ones that are connected together so that if one goes off, they all go off. It really was beyond terrifying. It was right up there with having to call 911 for Eric when he had his first seizure.
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
Update since it has been a while...
A lot has happened since I last posted. First, the DMV called us in the beginning of February and told us that they had a cancellation for the next week so we could get in right away for Eric's medical review board regarding his CDL. So we took an afternoon off and drove to Madison to present our case. A week later we got a letter stating that they would not change his status and he still had to wait the two years to get his CDL back. In hindsight this was all for the best because on the evening of February 18th Eric had another seizure.
It was just before 10:00 P.M. four days after Valentine's Day and we had turned the lights off and were having some quiet time & chatting a bit before drifting off to sleep. Actually we were discussing what we should name the baby when Eric suddenly started making this strange noise. I flipped on the bedside lamp only to have my fears confirmed. Eric was writhing and convulsing similarly to what he had done the first time back in September. Although we were both thoroughly discouraged by this turn of events, we know we are greatly blessed that Eric was doing nothing other than lying in bed when this occurred because being in my 8th month of pregnancy I would not have been able to help him greatly had he fallen and injured himself. And we also count our blessings that that he was not driving or something when it occurred. In any case, that was another night spent in the emergency room where they started him on an anti-seizure medication called Dilantin.
After our previous experience with the DMV we chose to let them suspend Eric's driver's license rather than surrendering it. At least he would continue to have ID and we wouldn't have to pay to get his license back later. Frustrated with the doctors for not being able to provide us with answers as to what was causing Eric's seizures, I went on a crusade for a second opinion from someone who could help us understand what's going on. Eventually I was able to get him an appointment with the Epilepsy Clinic at UW-Hospital, but not until the middle of April. In the meantime, I went back to driving Eric to and from work every day.
My obstetrician was on vacation the week I was due to have the baby and she thought for certain that I would have the baby while she was gone, but she said to call her on the Monday that she returned if I had not yet gone into labor. A dear family friend, Sue Knight, passed away and we attended her visitation on Friday, March 27th (my due date to have the baby). I was convinced that our little girl was holding out for April to make her appearance. On Monday, the 30th, I called my OB and she squeezed me in for an appointment that afternoon. After being presented with my options, I chosed to set an induction date for Monday, April 6th in the hopes that things would progress naturally on their own prior to that. As it turned out I began having irregular contractions that evening, which turned into regular contractions at about 2:00 A.M. and our sweet baby girl, Adrienne Renee, made her grand debut at 4:17 P.M. on Tuesday, March 31st. So thankfully I didn't need that induction after all. Tony went to stay with Eric's mom until Saturday and Eric took that first week off of work. It was really nice just to have a week to rest. I have to admit that the rest of my maternity leave was not nearly as restful since I had to get up at 6:00 A.M. every day to take Eric to work, spend all day chasing after a toddler while caring for a newborn, and then making the trek into town a second time at 5:30 P.M. to pick Eric up from work again. Quite frankly it was a relief to return to work again.
When Eric was finally able to get in to see a doctor at UW we learned a few things about the medication that he was on. First, it is most suitable for partial complex seizures and from what I described to the doctor she believes that he has generalized seizures. Second, Dilantin is very hard on the liver and Eric could cause severe damage if he combined this with even a small amount of alcohol. (Not that Eric drinks all that often, but he does enjoy a beer on occasion.) Third, the medication binds with calcium which keeps it from being absorbed and basicly renders it ineffective, so you cannot have any dairy products nor antacids containing calcium within 2 hours of taking the medication. In light of these things, the doctor advised that Eric change over to a different anti-seizure medication called Lamictal. The change must be made gradually over a period of weeks, so he is in the process of doing that and should be completely switched over by the middle of June. The other thing that we were told is that 60-80% of people are never able to ascertain what causes their seizures. The only way to see what is happening in the brain is to have an EEG machine hooked up while having a seizure. This is highly improbable in Eric's case since he went 5 months in between having the two seizures. The only way would be to somehow induce a seizure, and that is not advisable. So Eric is slowly coming to terms with the fact that he will have to take medication for the rest of his life, and we are hoping that the medication will prevent him from ever having another episode.
Eric saw his neurologist in Janesville a couple of weeks ago and got the clearance letter to get his driver's license reinstated. As of May 18th his 3 months should have been up. We had mailed the letter in to the DMV, but we never heard anything back from them so on the 19th Eric had his boss drive him down there on his lunch break. Apparently it is not the doctor's responsibility to report the episode to the DMV as we were previously told, but rather our responsiblity to do so. We were supposed to have gone in there within 10 days of when the seizure occured, and because we didn't they could suspend Eric's license for an entire year! Thankfully, they believed Eric that he thought his license had been suspended for the last three months and that he had not been driving all that time and that he did not willfully break the law. So they chose not to suspend his license. Whew!
In other news, my mom had a CT scan last Wednesday to check on her cancer and it appears that it is no longer in remission. After she had her last chemotherapy treatment in December, the doctor has periodically been doing scans to keep tabs on it. Although it was not gone, he believed that it had gone into remission because it was not advancing. Unfortunately this latest scan showed that the mass had doubled in size from the previous scan. So she starts chemotherapy treatments again tomorrow. She will be on different drugs than she was last time, and hopefully this form of treatment will not be as damaging to her immune system. The doctor told her that since they did not diagnose the cancer until after it had spread to her lynph nodes that it is impossible to erradicate it entirely and she will have to deal with it for the rest of her life. Their goal is not to get rid of it, but rather to shrink it down and put it back into remission. I looked back at the research I did in the beginning and it says:
"In general, the prognosis is poor, especially if the lung cancer has spread to areas outside of the chest wall or has involved the lymph nodes of the mediastinum. This cancer can only be cured when surgery or radiation therapy can completely remove the tumor. However, many lung cancers are diagnosed at a stage when this is not possible. About 17% of people with adenocarcinoma survive more than 5 years after diagnosis."
In light of this, I am greatful that it has been almost one year since diagnosis and we still have Mom with us. I remind myself that everyday I have to spend with her is a gift.
My sister Laura called me recently as well. It seems that she had a hysterectomy on March 30th due to some condition similar to endomitriosis. That is not what she called it, but it was some really long name that I had not ever heard of before. In any case, she was laid off from her job one day after returning to work after she had the procedure. Although she is on unemployment, she had finally saved up enough money to move out into her own apartment and she tells me that she is seeing a therapist. I think both of these things are in her best interest, and I hope that she is able to turn her life around for herself and for the sake of her children. Her second oldest daughter, who is 20 years old, was hanging around with the wrong crowd and found out the hard way what "guilty by association" means. Her so-called friends were breaking into cars and stealing stuff. And although she swears she didn't have any involvement in this, she now has 10 different felony convictions on her record by being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Aiding and abetting are the legal words they use for that I guess. So she sat in jail for the months of February and March and has 5 years probation along with some fines and community service. But she was able to cut a deal for fessing up to everything and if she minds her P's and Q's for the next 5 years, they will expunge the felony convictions from her record. I just hope for her sake that she can manage to keep her nose clean and stay out of trouble for the next 5 years.
Well I think that brings it up to date for now. Until next time...
It was just before 10:00 P.M. four days after Valentine's Day and we had turned the lights off and were having some quiet time & chatting a bit before drifting off to sleep. Actually we were discussing what we should name the baby when Eric suddenly started making this strange noise. I flipped on the bedside lamp only to have my fears confirmed. Eric was writhing and convulsing similarly to what he had done the first time back in September. Although we were both thoroughly discouraged by this turn of events, we know we are greatly blessed that Eric was doing nothing other than lying in bed when this occurred because being in my 8th month of pregnancy I would not have been able to help him greatly had he fallen and injured himself. And we also count our blessings that that he was not driving or something when it occurred. In any case, that was another night spent in the emergency room where they started him on an anti-seizure medication called Dilantin.
After our previous experience with the DMV we chose to let them suspend Eric's driver's license rather than surrendering it. At least he would continue to have ID and we wouldn't have to pay to get his license back later. Frustrated with the doctors for not being able to provide us with answers as to what was causing Eric's seizures, I went on a crusade for a second opinion from someone who could help us understand what's going on. Eventually I was able to get him an appointment with the Epilepsy Clinic at UW-Hospital, but not until the middle of April. In the meantime, I went back to driving Eric to and from work every day.
My obstetrician was on vacation the week I was due to have the baby and she thought for certain that I would have the baby while she was gone, but she said to call her on the Monday that she returned if I had not yet gone into labor. A dear family friend, Sue Knight, passed away and we attended her visitation on Friday, March 27th (my due date to have the baby). I was convinced that our little girl was holding out for April to make her appearance. On Monday, the 30th, I called my OB and she squeezed me in for an appointment that afternoon. After being presented with my options, I chosed to set an induction date for Monday, April 6th in the hopes that things would progress naturally on their own prior to that. As it turned out I began having irregular contractions that evening, which turned into regular contractions at about 2:00 A.M. and our sweet baby girl, Adrienne Renee, made her grand debut at 4:17 P.M. on Tuesday, March 31st. So thankfully I didn't need that induction after all. Tony went to stay with Eric's mom until Saturday and Eric took that first week off of work. It was really nice just to have a week to rest. I have to admit that the rest of my maternity leave was not nearly as restful since I had to get up at 6:00 A.M. every day to take Eric to work, spend all day chasing after a toddler while caring for a newborn, and then making the trek into town a second time at 5:30 P.M. to pick Eric up from work again. Quite frankly it was a relief to return to work again.
When Eric was finally able to get in to see a doctor at UW we learned a few things about the medication that he was on. First, it is most suitable for partial complex seizures and from what I described to the doctor she believes that he has generalized seizures. Second, Dilantin is very hard on the liver and Eric could cause severe damage if he combined this with even a small amount of alcohol. (Not that Eric drinks all that often, but he does enjoy a beer on occasion.) Third, the medication binds with calcium which keeps it from being absorbed and basicly renders it ineffective, so you cannot have any dairy products nor antacids containing calcium within 2 hours of taking the medication. In light of these things, the doctor advised that Eric change over to a different anti-seizure medication called Lamictal. The change must be made gradually over a period of weeks, so he is in the process of doing that and should be completely switched over by the middle of June. The other thing that we were told is that 60-80% of people are never able to ascertain what causes their seizures. The only way to see what is happening in the brain is to have an EEG machine hooked up while having a seizure. This is highly improbable in Eric's case since he went 5 months in between having the two seizures. The only way would be to somehow induce a seizure, and that is not advisable. So Eric is slowly coming to terms with the fact that he will have to take medication for the rest of his life, and we are hoping that the medication will prevent him from ever having another episode.
Eric saw his neurologist in Janesville a couple of weeks ago and got the clearance letter to get his driver's license reinstated. As of May 18th his 3 months should have been up. We had mailed the letter in to the DMV, but we never heard anything back from them so on the 19th Eric had his boss drive him down there on his lunch break. Apparently it is not the doctor's responsibility to report the episode to the DMV as we were previously told, but rather our responsiblity to do so. We were supposed to have gone in there within 10 days of when the seizure occured, and because we didn't they could suspend Eric's license for an entire year! Thankfully, they believed Eric that he thought his license had been suspended for the last three months and that he had not been driving all that time and that he did not willfully break the law. So they chose not to suspend his license. Whew!
In other news, my mom had a CT scan last Wednesday to check on her cancer and it appears that it is no longer in remission. After she had her last chemotherapy treatment in December, the doctor has periodically been doing scans to keep tabs on it. Although it was not gone, he believed that it had gone into remission because it was not advancing. Unfortunately this latest scan showed that the mass had doubled in size from the previous scan. So she starts chemotherapy treatments again tomorrow. She will be on different drugs than she was last time, and hopefully this form of treatment will not be as damaging to her immune system. The doctor told her that since they did not diagnose the cancer until after it had spread to her lynph nodes that it is impossible to erradicate it entirely and she will have to deal with it for the rest of her life. Their goal is not to get rid of it, but rather to shrink it down and put it back into remission. I looked back at the research I did in the beginning and it says:
"In general, the prognosis is poor, especially if the lung cancer has spread to areas outside of the chest wall or has involved the lymph nodes of the mediastinum. This cancer can only be cured when surgery or radiation therapy can completely remove the tumor. However, many lung cancers are diagnosed at a stage when this is not possible. About 17% of people with adenocarcinoma survive more than 5 years after diagnosis."
In light of this, I am greatful that it has been almost one year since diagnosis and we still have Mom with us. I remind myself that everyday I have to spend with her is a gift.
My sister Laura called me recently as well. It seems that she had a hysterectomy on March 30th due to some condition similar to endomitriosis. That is not what she called it, but it was some really long name that I had not ever heard of before. In any case, she was laid off from her job one day after returning to work after she had the procedure. Although she is on unemployment, she had finally saved up enough money to move out into her own apartment and she tells me that she is seeing a therapist. I think both of these things are in her best interest, and I hope that she is able to turn her life around for herself and for the sake of her children. Her second oldest daughter, who is 20 years old, was hanging around with the wrong crowd and found out the hard way what "guilty by association" means. Her so-called friends were breaking into cars and stealing stuff. And although she swears she didn't have any involvement in this, she now has 10 different felony convictions on her record by being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Aiding and abetting are the legal words they use for that I guess. So she sat in jail for the months of February and March and has 5 years probation along with some fines and community service. But she was able to cut a deal for fessing up to everything and if she minds her P's and Q's for the next 5 years, they will expunge the felony convictions from her record. I just hope for her sake that she can manage to keep her nose clean and stay out of trouble for the next 5 years.
Well I think that brings it up to date for now. Until next time...
Wednesday, December 31, 2008
DMV
Eric is so mad at the DMV. When he had the seizure the doctor told us that we should go to the DMV and surrender his driver's license. Otherwise it would be suspended. So we went in and they gave us the paperwork that he could fill out to get it back in 90 days. They told us it would cost $28 for an ID card in the interim and $4 for Eric to get his license back when the 90 wait was over. Eric decided he could live without an ID card for 3 months because he thought it was a ripoff to have to spend that kind of money.
So when 60 days was up we had Eric's neurologist sign off on the paperwork for the DMV and then we mailed it in and after another 30 days he went in to get his license. First, they charged him $14 rather than the $4 they originally told us and we were informed that when he goes back to get his CDL (because that was a 6 month wait) he will have to pay an additional $14! So Eric was pretty ticked about that. He said he never should have surrendered his license to begin with; that he should have just let them suspend it. But that's what we get for trying to do the right thing I guess.
Then a couple of days later we got this letter in the mail from the DMV stating that it is a TWO YEAR wait in order for Eric to get his CDL back rather than the 6 months stated in the DMV's manual that the neurologist printed from the DMV's website. The letter also stated that we could request a review of Eric's situation from a medical review board, but we had to submit a request in writing to them within 10 days of the date of the letter if we wanted to do that. Well, the letter was dated December 11th and we didn't even receive it until December 18th. So that gave us a very limited window of time in which to make a decision. I called the DMV and asked for an extension which they were either unwilling or unable to grant. So we went ahead and mailed a letter requesting a medical review. Upon consulting with Eric's neurologist, he advised that it would be worth our while to do that anyway.
So now we are waiting for them to get back to us with a date that this medical review board is to take place. I truly dislike the DMV... Eric and I discussed this, and we're quite certain that you cannot be hired at either the DMV or the Post Office unless your personality meets certain criteria - meaning you have to be a jerk!
So when 60 days was up we had Eric's neurologist sign off on the paperwork for the DMV and then we mailed it in and after another 30 days he went in to get his license. First, they charged him $14 rather than the $4 they originally told us and we were informed that when he goes back to get his CDL (because that was a 6 month wait) he will have to pay an additional $14! So Eric was pretty ticked about that. He said he never should have surrendered his license to begin with; that he should have just let them suspend it. But that's what we get for trying to do the right thing I guess.
Then a couple of days later we got this letter in the mail from the DMV stating that it is a TWO YEAR wait in order for Eric to get his CDL back rather than the 6 months stated in the DMV's manual that the neurologist printed from the DMV's website. The letter also stated that we could request a review of Eric's situation from a medical review board, but we had to submit a request in writing to them within 10 days of the date of the letter if we wanted to do that. Well, the letter was dated December 11th and we didn't even receive it until December 18th. So that gave us a very limited window of time in which to make a decision. I called the DMV and asked for an extension which they were either unwilling or unable to grant. So we went ahead and mailed a letter requesting a medical review. Upon consulting with Eric's neurologist, he advised that it would be worth our while to do that anyway.
So now we are waiting for them to get back to us with a date that this medical review board is to take place. I truly dislike the DMV... Eric and I discussed this, and we're quite certain that you cannot be hired at either the DMV or the Post Office unless your personality meets certain criteria - meaning you have to be a jerk!
Holiday Festivities
Well, tomorrow is New Year's Day and I have managed to survive the holiday season! In spite of some crazy weather, we were able to take part in four different Christmas celebrations this year. The first was at Eric's step-father's sister's home. It takes approximately 2 hours to get there & another 2 hours to drive home, so that was a lot of time for Tony to spend in the car in one day. But he slept most of the car ride and in general behaved himself fairly well that day. Most of the other kids that were there are several years older than him, and he enjoyed the attention he got from the "big kids". We had a lot of good food and overall the day went off without a hitch.
Then on Christmas Day we went to two different gatherings. The first was with Eric's mother's family at her home. I felt bad for her because I knew she was on the verge of a nervous breakdown when she started freaking out over having forgotten to put the crescent rolls in the oven. Eric's cousin Oscar and I jumped in and took over that task for her in an effort to calm her down and keep the peace. I think she is alot like me in the respect that the overwhelming idea of hosting a party like that tends to stress her out. In any case, after the feast was over we relaxed and watched the kids open presents. Tony made out like a bandit! Eric's mom really spoils him since he is her only grandchild so far. Then we played the ornament exchange game. We do that at previous party that I mentioned as well, only this one was much more laid back. Fewer people play and it is far less competetive. I enjoyed it more than I do when we play at Eric's step-family's party.
Then on Christmas evening we went to Eric's step-sister's house. All of his step-siblings were there as well as their spouses, kids, and their mother. It was rather crowded and it was getting late so we didn't stay long. Eric's mom gave me a nativity scene (again) so I traded with Eric's step-niece for her snowman candle holder instead. Mindy really wanted a nativity and I already had one that I was given a couple of years ago, so it worked out well. We finally made it home and collapsed into bed. On the drive home though I got a call from my own mother. She wanted to let me know that she had spoken to my sister's ex-husband and wanted to make sure that it was okay that she had invited him to dinner at my house the following evening. I was fine with that. It turns out that he couldn't come anyway, but he is always cordial and I think it's nice that he brings my nieces and nephews over to visit occasionally. It sounds like he is winning the custody battle over the kids too. He told Mom that Laura physically attacked the child placement person, and now she is only allowed supervised visits with the kids. It is such a sad situation. I really think that my sister is having some mental issues and needs to get herself some help.
Friday, the 26th, Eric had to get up early and go to work. I asked him to take Tony to the sitter's that day so I could have some free time to cook and clean in preparation for my family to come over that evening. Everyone started showing up around 6:00 PM. Lisa called and said she and Frank both woke up with the flu so they would not be able to make it. But we still had plenty of people. Mom & Griff, Dane & Sue, Pat & Margaret, Tom & Holly, and Eric's dad were all still able to come over in spite of the awful fog that enveloped the landscape that night. Dane prepared an excellent ham that he brought with, Tom made deviled eggs, Holly made spinich and chipped beef dips, and Mom brought scalloped corn and a cheese tray. Then we had green bean casserole, potatoes & gravy, stuffing, baked beans, and home-made apple pie to go with that. It was a wonderful meal with good company! I probably gained 10 lbs. from eating so much that week. :)
So now I can relax a bit. I just have to decide what Eric and I should do for New Year's Eve tonight. We have a sitter for Tony; Holly's daughter is going to watch him for us. But we still have to figure out where we want to go or what we want to do. I think we should go out to dinner or something, but we'll see when I get home from work. :)
Then on Christmas Day we went to two different gatherings. The first was with Eric's mother's family at her home. I felt bad for her because I knew she was on the verge of a nervous breakdown when she started freaking out over having forgotten to put the crescent rolls in the oven. Eric's cousin Oscar and I jumped in and took over that task for her in an effort to calm her down and keep the peace. I think she is alot like me in the respect that the overwhelming idea of hosting a party like that tends to stress her out. In any case, after the feast was over we relaxed and watched the kids open presents. Tony made out like a bandit! Eric's mom really spoils him since he is her only grandchild so far. Then we played the ornament exchange game. We do that at previous party that I mentioned as well, only this one was much more laid back. Fewer people play and it is far less competetive. I enjoyed it more than I do when we play at Eric's step-family's party.
Then on Christmas evening we went to Eric's step-sister's house. All of his step-siblings were there as well as their spouses, kids, and their mother. It was rather crowded and it was getting late so we didn't stay long. Eric's mom gave me a nativity scene (again) so I traded with Eric's step-niece for her snowman candle holder instead. Mindy really wanted a nativity and I already had one that I was given a couple of years ago, so it worked out well. We finally made it home and collapsed into bed. On the drive home though I got a call from my own mother. She wanted to let me know that she had spoken to my sister's ex-husband and wanted to make sure that it was okay that she had invited him to dinner at my house the following evening. I was fine with that. It turns out that he couldn't come anyway, but he is always cordial and I think it's nice that he brings my nieces and nephews over to visit occasionally. It sounds like he is winning the custody battle over the kids too. He told Mom that Laura physically attacked the child placement person, and now she is only allowed supervised visits with the kids. It is such a sad situation. I really think that my sister is having some mental issues and needs to get herself some help.
Friday, the 26th, Eric had to get up early and go to work. I asked him to take Tony to the sitter's that day so I could have some free time to cook and clean in preparation for my family to come over that evening. Everyone started showing up around 6:00 PM. Lisa called and said she and Frank both woke up with the flu so they would not be able to make it. But we still had plenty of people. Mom & Griff, Dane & Sue, Pat & Margaret, Tom & Holly, and Eric's dad were all still able to come over in spite of the awful fog that enveloped the landscape that night. Dane prepared an excellent ham that he brought with, Tom made deviled eggs, Holly made spinich and chipped beef dips, and Mom brought scalloped corn and a cheese tray. Then we had green bean casserole, potatoes & gravy, stuffing, baked beans, and home-made apple pie to go with that. It was a wonderful meal with good company! I probably gained 10 lbs. from eating so much that week. :)
So now I can relax a bit. I just have to decide what Eric and I should do for New Year's Eve tonight. We have a sitter for Tony; Holly's daughter is going to watch him for us. But we still have to figure out where we want to go or what we want to do. I think we should go out to dinner or something, but we'll see when I get home from work. :)
Monday, December 15, 2008
It's Always Something...
Well our 90 day wait was up yesterday, and other than the typical winter cold Eric has been fine. So he is headed to the DMV today to see if they have processed the paperwork to give him his drivers license back. Yay!
Mom was last in for a chemotherapy treatment the day before Thanksgiving. Her CT scan showed that the cancer is indeed shrinking - excellent news! However her blood cell count was lower than the doctor would have liked. He gave her the choice of taking a reduced treatment that day or putting it off an additional week. Mom didn't want to put it off because if she did then her next treatment would be pushed back a week also making it for the day before Christmas. Therefore she opted for the reduced treatment. She is going to have another treatment this Wednesday, December 17th and then she will have a break from them for a while. The doctor explained that while the chemo attacks the cancer it also attacks the rest of her body as well, and she needs to give herself a break and rebuild her immune system before continuing with treatments.
Lisa and Frank came down for Thanksgiving and stayed with Mom until Saturday afternoon. Eric and I were at his aunt's house on Thanksgiving Day, but I spent the day at Mom's visiting with everyone on the Friday after. I think it was a much more pleasant way to spend the day than battling crowds for all the deals at the stores that day! My brother Dane got busted by the game warden for shooting a buck without a buck tag. That was plenty of excitement for the day. Luckily for him they let him off easy. Only a $250 fine. They even let him keep his hunting license! They did, however, confiscate his trophy 10 point buck that he had already gutted. :( But Lisa made sure to take a picture of it as the DNR was driving away with it in the back of their pickup truck! The one that got away...
I ended up leaving work early on a Friday a couple of weeks ago. My ex-brother-in-law called me on my cell phone to tell me that my nephew, Charles, had apparently been hit by a truck while riding his bicycle to school at U-Rock. He asked if I could possibly go be with him in the emergency room. Of course I dropped everything and went right over there. It turns out that Charles was not actually hit by a truck, but rather ran into the side of a van or truck. Apparently he was riding his bike down a steep hill (on the sidewalk) and the truck pulled up in front of him at a stoplight. Charles tried to stop but the brakes failed on his bike and he ran smack into the side of the truck! He ended up with a few stitches and staples on either side of his face near his temples and he broke 3 bones in his face as well - both of his cheek bones and his upper jaw. The plastic surgeon looked at him and it seems that although the bones were broken, they were not displaced. So he did not need surgery. Yay! He also had some bruises on his lungs. He stayed in the hospital for a couple of days, but he was doing really well so they sent him home on Sunday afternoon. He tells me that he is doing just fine now and is back to work and school like normal.
Eric and I went to my ultrasound appointment on November 13th and it seems obvious from the pictures that Baby Paul is a girl! My little princess weighed approximately 14 ounces and was in the 75th percentile for her age. Her heartrate was 146 beats per minute and she looked completely healthy. It seems that she is a good sized little munchkin just like her brother was, so perhaps she will decide to join us a bit earlier than her due date of March 27th. Only time will tell! Now I am faced with the dilemma of finding a name that both Eric and I can agree on. We did decide to keep it a secret until she arrives in case we change our mind. That way something will be left as a surprise for everyone that was so disappointed in us for 'cheating' and finding out the gender in advance. :)
I'm sure I will have plenty of more news to share after the holidays. Until then, Merry Christmas to All!
Mom was last in for a chemotherapy treatment the day before Thanksgiving. Her CT scan showed that the cancer is indeed shrinking - excellent news! However her blood cell count was lower than the doctor would have liked. He gave her the choice of taking a reduced treatment that day or putting it off an additional week. Mom didn't want to put it off because if she did then her next treatment would be pushed back a week also making it for the day before Christmas. Therefore she opted for the reduced treatment. She is going to have another treatment this Wednesday, December 17th and then she will have a break from them for a while. The doctor explained that while the chemo attacks the cancer it also attacks the rest of her body as well, and she needs to give herself a break and rebuild her immune system before continuing with treatments.
Lisa and Frank came down for Thanksgiving and stayed with Mom until Saturday afternoon. Eric and I were at his aunt's house on Thanksgiving Day, but I spent the day at Mom's visiting with everyone on the Friday after. I think it was a much more pleasant way to spend the day than battling crowds for all the deals at the stores that day! My brother Dane got busted by the game warden for shooting a buck without a buck tag. That was plenty of excitement for the day. Luckily for him they let him off easy. Only a $250 fine. They even let him keep his hunting license! They did, however, confiscate his trophy 10 point buck that he had already gutted. :( But Lisa made sure to take a picture of it as the DNR was driving away with it in the back of their pickup truck! The one that got away...
I ended up leaving work early on a Friday a couple of weeks ago. My ex-brother-in-law called me on my cell phone to tell me that my nephew, Charles, had apparently been hit by a truck while riding his bicycle to school at U-Rock. He asked if I could possibly go be with him in the emergency room. Of course I dropped everything and went right over there. It turns out that Charles was not actually hit by a truck, but rather ran into the side of a van or truck. Apparently he was riding his bike down a steep hill (on the sidewalk) and the truck pulled up in front of him at a stoplight. Charles tried to stop but the brakes failed on his bike and he ran smack into the side of the truck! He ended up with a few stitches and staples on either side of his face near his temples and he broke 3 bones in his face as well - both of his cheek bones and his upper jaw. The plastic surgeon looked at him and it seems that although the bones were broken, they were not displaced. So he did not need surgery. Yay! He also had some bruises on his lungs. He stayed in the hospital for a couple of days, but he was doing really well so they sent him home on Sunday afternoon. He tells me that he is doing just fine now and is back to work and school like normal.
Eric and I went to my ultrasound appointment on November 13th and it seems obvious from the pictures that Baby Paul is a girl! My little princess weighed approximately 14 ounces and was in the 75th percentile for her age. Her heartrate was 146 beats per minute and she looked completely healthy. It seems that she is a good sized little munchkin just like her brother was, so perhaps she will decide to join us a bit earlier than her due date of March 27th. Only time will tell! Now I am faced with the dilemma of finding a name that both Eric and I can agree on. We did decide to keep it a secret until she arrives in case we change our mind. That way something will be left as a surprise for everyone that was so disappointed in us for 'cheating' and finding out the gender in advance. :)
I'm sure I will have plenty of more news to share after the holidays. Until then, Merry Christmas to All!
Thursday, October 23, 2008
Test Results, Birthdays, Bills, etc.
So we finally got the results from all of the tests that Eric had done as a result of his seizure. And the conclusion is that they have no idea what is wrong with him. Everything indicates that he is perfectly healthy. So I guess that's good news, but it sure would be nice to have an explanation! They sent us on our way & said to just keep an eye on things to see if he has another one. We have a follow up with the neurologist again on November 19th and if nothing has changed, then the doctor will put in the recommendation to the DMV to give Eric his license back. The soonest he can get it back is 90 days after the incident though, so not until the middle of December.
We also got our first set of bills from all of the doctor visits and tests. I have come to the conclusion that I am going to be paying off medical bills for the rest of my life! Thank goodness those things don't adversely effect your credit rating.
I had a chat with my mother the weekend before last also. I was somewhat upset with her because she had Eric working like a dog all day Saturday and Sunday to fix the clutch on her farm truck. So I called her on her hypocritical attitude (since I'm not even supposed to let him do anything around the house afterall.) Of course she seemed completely oblivious to what I was referring to, and all she could say was "I hope you don't think that we blame you for what happened to Eric." Right...
My soon-to-be-ex-brother-in-law was down this way for work on Friday again, so he brought the kids by our house. Sarah came with as well as Ben and Alicia this time, so it was nice to see her and see how she's doing too. I've emailed back and forth with her a bit and I think she's having the hardest time of all the kids with her parent's divorce. I tried to get Mom to come over to the house and see them too, but she had spent all afternoon at the bar in the bowling alley and claimed she was too tired to drive over. Oh well...I tried.
Last week Wednesday and Thursday were Eric's and Tony's birthdays. Eric had Wednesday off of work since he had to work this Saturday. He kept Tony home with him for the day and they spent time doing some father/son bonding for Tony's birthday. They spent the morning splitting wood and the afternoon grinding feed for the cattle at mom's house. That's probably the best present that Tony could have gotten anyway. He adores spending time with his daddy. :) (Not to mention that he is currently obsessed with "moo-moos" as he calls mom's steers.) This coming Saturday we are going to have ice cream and cake and open presents to officially celebrate his birthday. The grandparents have all been invited as wells as his godparents and a few of his friends.
Tony had his 2-year checkup on Monday. He's slowed down a little on his growth, but he's still a healthy-sized boy. He weighed 29 lbs. and was 35 1/4 " tall.
I went to the doctor for my 18 week pre-natal check up just yesterday and everything seems to be coming along nicely. The baby has a nice strong heartbeat of around 150 beats per minute. I scheduled my ultrasound for November 13th. Hopefully we can find out the gender of the new munchkin at that time.
I'm sure I have left out some trivial things, but I think that about sums up what's been going on during the last month. Mom will be going in for some additional tests to see if her chemo treatments have been working. But so far the doctor is really happy with her because she's actually gained 5 lbs. rather than losing weight. So he went ahead and scheduled a 4th dose of chemo for Nov. 5th.
I'll try to write more later...
We also got our first set of bills from all of the doctor visits and tests. I have come to the conclusion that I am going to be paying off medical bills for the rest of my life! Thank goodness those things don't adversely effect your credit rating.
I had a chat with my mother the weekend before last also. I was somewhat upset with her because she had Eric working like a dog all day Saturday and Sunday to fix the clutch on her farm truck. So I called her on her hypocritical attitude (since I'm not even supposed to let him do anything around the house afterall.) Of course she seemed completely oblivious to what I was referring to, and all she could say was "I hope you don't think that we blame you for what happened to Eric." Right...
My soon-to-be-ex-brother-in-law was down this way for work on Friday again, so he brought the kids by our house. Sarah came with as well as Ben and Alicia this time, so it was nice to see her and see how she's doing too. I've emailed back and forth with her a bit and I think she's having the hardest time of all the kids with her parent's divorce. I tried to get Mom to come over to the house and see them too, but she had spent all afternoon at the bar in the bowling alley and claimed she was too tired to drive over. Oh well...I tried.
Last week Wednesday and Thursday were Eric's and Tony's birthdays. Eric had Wednesday off of work since he had to work this Saturday. He kept Tony home with him for the day and they spent time doing some father/son bonding for Tony's birthday. They spent the morning splitting wood and the afternoon grinding feed for the cattle at mom's house. That's probably the best present that Tony could have gotten anyway. He adores spending time with his daddy. :) (Not to mention that he is currently obsessed with "moo-moos" as he calls mom's steers.) This coming Saturday we are going to have ice cream and cake and open presents to officially celebrate his birthday. The grandparents have all been invited as wells as his godparents and a few of his friends.
Tony had his 2-year checkup on Monday. He's slowed down a little on his growth, but he's still a healthy-sized boy. He weighed 29 lbs. and was 35 1/4 " tall.
I went to the doctor for my 18 week pre-natal check up just yesterday and everything seems to be coming along nicely. The baby has a nice strong heartbeat of around 150 beats per minute. I scheduled my ultrasound for November 13th. Hopefully we can find out the gender of the new munchkin at that time.
I'm sure I have left out some trivial things, but I think that about sums up what's been going on during the last month. Mom will be going in for some additional tests to see if her chemo treatments have been working. But so far the doctor is really happy with her because she's actually gained 5 lbs. rather than losing weight. So he went ahead and scheduled a 4th dose of chemo for Nov. 5th.
I'll try to write more later...
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