I just wanted to update you really quickly on mom's condition. The new medicine is really starting to help. She is doing really well. She had a great week last week and even did one day of physical therapy. She will start regular PT in January.
On Sunday, her good friends David and Dianna were singing at Second Baptist West Campus and since that is right across the street from her house, we all went. Danny and the kids and I spent the afternoon at the house and then went with her and Kim to hear the music. It was a great performance as always.
Mom also had new ornaments for the kids to hang on her tree. I've included pictures below.
I'm sure she'll read this and get mad at me if I don't tell the story behind her Christmas tree. I hate 'blowing my own horn', but while they were at the Mayo Clinic, I mentioned to our friend, Mark, on Thankgiving Day, that I wanted to hire him to decorate my mom's tree for her. He is a talented Christmas Tree decorator and I knew he could make it look like she did it herself. He said the only time he had available was the following morning. So we decided to make it a surprise. I gave him the key to their house and Mark, his wife, Mary Jo, and my mother in law, Karen, all went over to Mom and Kim's and decorated their house, and tree for them. When they got home later that day, there was a big surprise waiting for them.
It was a ton of fun surprising her and Christmas is her favorite time of year and I knew Christmas just wouldn't be the same if her tree wasn't up. It already was going to be different anyway.
So, THANK YOU to Mark, Mary Jo and Karen for decorating Mom and Kim's tree.
Thank you for your continued prayers. The medicine really is starting to work better and we are so grateful that God has allowed it to work. Please don't stop praying, she has a long road ahead of her with the therapy starting in January. My prayer is that she'll have some sort of 'normal' by the beginning of the summer.
Merry Christmas!
Such great news...keep your strength up, Anne (ok...Kim too, I suppose!) May God bless you (yes, Kim too) this Christmas and I pray you are on the road to recovery by summer, if not sooner! Love you so much, Audrey
ReplyDeleteIt is so wonderful to see your beautiful face. The tree is gorgeous! What a blessing to look at that everyday. Thank God for good medicine. To Him be the glory. I hope i can see you in person very soon. Much love and a very merry Christmas,
ReplyDeleteJenn
I loved looking at the pictures! The tree is as beautiful as Anne herself! Yippee Skippy--she is getting better! D2
ReplyDeleteHello Anne, seems like a hundred years since I have seen any of you...loved the pics that Stacy sent of the concert you were able to attend.....I am soooo sorry that you are having such a rough time health wise...I know that pain like that is awful...and am praying that you will be better soon with the new medication and added PT..in the coming year....all of you look so good even so...and THE TREE is beautiful...glad you have that support system...and Thank You Stacy for the faithful news...I am always glad to get updates from you.....
ReplyDeleteGod bless you and may you all have a blessed day tommorrow and a much improved healing for your body... I always remember the precious times in Springfield, especially when Christmas rolls around....you know Anne that I love you like my own family even tho we are years and miles apart...I KNOW we are on our way home tho and will live forever together.....again....I will be praying for you and look forward to better news..and am happy for the most recent glimmer of better times ahead.......shower the people you love with love......Ann
Hi Anne,
ReplyDeleteIt was so great to talk to you the other day. I have your Christmas gift here, and will drop it off one day this week, probably after Christmas Day. Things are pretty crazy right now, and I'd like to be able to spend an hour with you, just to visit and catch up. I'm tickled that you are feeling better... what a great Christmas gift! Answered prayers...
Well, I sit here at Memorial Hermann Katy, with my mom and my laptop. On Tuesday, she had to be rushed by ambulance to the ER... she was already seriously dehydrated from dialysis (that's another story in itself), and she developed some type of infection, and her fever soared to a whopping 103.3. She was vomiting profusely, dehydrated beyond words, and in what they call AMS (altered medical status), which is basically non-responsive and delirious. It was touch and go for 6 hours while they worked to stabilize her and determine what was making her so sick. And the doctors just told us that she appears to have had a mild heart attack when all this happened. She just can't catch a break. We really thought she wouldn't make it. But she did. And so I could be whining about having such a horrible Christmas, but really, we're all thrilled to be able to spend it with her, regardless of where.
The shopping is done, the presents are wrapped (finished the mine and the last of her's at 5 AM this morning), and Steve did our grocery shopping this afternoon for dinner tomorrow. I'm waiting for Steve and the kids, along with my step-dad, to bring me dinner from Roadhouse, then I'll go home to spend the rest of tonight with the kids, open a few gifts tonight, then more tomorrow, and we'll come back to the hospital to open a few gifts with Mom. She's very disappointed that she has to spend the holiday here in the hospital, but I keep reminding her that it sure beats the current list of alternatives... and that seems to settle her down.
Maybe I'll have time to do our annual holiday letter sometime this week, while I watch her sleep!! Lord knows, there hasn't been a second to do it any other time over the past few weeks. It's just such a relief to have the rest of the work associated with the holidays behind me, and I'm almost enjoying the few hours of peace that I get while I'm here. Tonight I was able to wash her hair, blow it dry and curl it, so she would feel better with the way she looks. She still has the remnants of that horrible fall she took a couple of weeks ago, so anything I can do to help her get past that is good.
This holiday has sure been difficult, but also full of blessings. I'm learning to find the positives in the most challenging life situations. I know God only gives us what He knows we can handle, and I'm realizing that I can handle much more than I would have ever imagined possible. His blessings have been abundant this year...
I love you, my friend. See you soon. Merry Christmas to you and Kim, Stacy and her family...
Robin
Hi Anne,
ReplyDeleteJust thinking about you. Hope you are doing better. Love you and praying for you,
Jennifer Richard
Hi Anne,
ReplyDeleteI was just thinking about you and wanted to send you my love. I pray for you often and will continue to pray for strength and energy and healing.
Happy New Year!!
Cari
Dear Anne and Kim,
ReplyDeleteI am so thankful Stacey found me and has posted this for you. You look beautiful as always my friend. I am so sorry to hear you are suffering so and I will pray you begin to feel some relief from this.
I will catch you up a bit on my life! The last time we spoke I had told you about Al and I. I have survived and I moved back to Virginia in June 2008. I moved in with my parents and have been living here since. Sadly my mother passed away last May. It was a rough year and she had quite a bit of suffering. She was diagnosed with ALS in February and lived until May 31st. It has been a strange time. I can't tell you how thankful I am to have been here. I can't imagine my dad going through this alone and I was able to have some time with my mom.
My son, Greg moved here with me to go to school here in Virginia at James Madison University. He is a sophmore and has done great. I am very proud! My daughter Jessie stayed in Fort Myers and finished her nursing program. She had her pinning in December and she just moved here after Christmas. She is preparing to take her Boards and hopes to find a job soon locally. I hope she finds a job too!! She is a wonderful young woman and I am so excited to have her here with me for however long she will stay.
I am working for the Department of Veteran's Affairs in Martinsburg WV. I really like my job and I work with some great people. So, things are good, I am happy and feel so blessed to be back home and now have my children close. I would love to talk to you and will get your number from Stacey. I look forward to catching up. Until then please know I am praying for both you and Kim and will hold you close to my heart!
Love you!
Lori