A new day

After getting a full night's sleep (plus a couple of extra hours), my parents had a very good day today. My dad's mood has improved considerably. My mom first noticed an improvement in my dad's attitude after he talked to my brother and I last night. He has not vomited today and, thus, was able to keep some food down.

There are weeks where I lose track of the days. For me this has been one of those weeks. While listening to the clock radio Friday morning, I was confused about why there was a Friday only program on. It took many minutes before I realized that it was actually Friday.

I have shared with some people how this has affected my memory. Schedules and names have suffered the most. However, I have recently noticed an improvement. I no longer have the chronic feeling that I'm missing a scheduled appointment, event or activity.

The journey is by no means over, though. We are proceeding on this path. Along the route, we must sometimes make decisions about when to move mountains and when not to. Often without even realizing it, others have moved mountains to make things happen for us. Sometimes these people are strangers or people we hardly know, but most times it is an extended family member or a family friend. My family and I are extremely blessed to have such generous and caring people in our lives. Thank you.

"A see-saw battle"

I just talked to my dad on the phone. After feeling better yesterday, he is vomiting again today. It is very discouraging for him, and he described it as "a see-saw battle". I reminded him that he went through this after Christmas and eventually got better. I told him that it took a while that time, too. Hopefully, things will turn around soon. It is hard to see his spirits so down.

My mom has talked to Dr. Ritch who ordered some additional medications to try to get the vomiting to stop. Dr. Ritch also mentioned using an nasogastric (NG) tube to empty the stomach. My dad had an NG tube last time he was admitted to the hospital. He hated it, so Dr. Ritch and my parents are exploring other options.

On Thursday my dad has an appointment with Dr. Ritch. Hopefully, Dr. Ritch and his team at the cancer center will have some new ideas to keep my dad comfortable.

Wishing for better news

This morning I talked to my dad on the phone. He was feeling better, but tired. However, in the email I just received from my mom she writes that my dad has started throwing up again. My mom has started another IV of fluids. Please continue to pray. Hopefully, tomorrow will bring better news.

Thanks for continuing to read this blog. My family and I appreciate having so many people take the time to check the blog and keep up with my dad's progress. A special thank you to those of you who have left comments on the blog, visited my dad in the hospital or call him on the phone. That includes our family friend Allen Miller who is using the alias "Mr. Buquerque" in his blog comment! (For those of you wondering who "Mr. Buquerque" was.)

More IV fluids

My mom started running IV fluids into my dad this morning (Tuesday) because he is vomitting again. I'll talk to my mom in the morning and hopefully give a more thorough update tomorrow. We are hoping it will turn around quickly, and he stays out of the hospital.

Soccer hits another shoulder

For several years my dad was a soccer coach. He was also a soccer player. He played in an adult league for a short time, but he injured his shoulder. The shoulder injury required surgery. Following unfortunately in his grandfather's footsteps, Rhys has injured his shoulder playing soccer. On Saturday (at the opening game of the season) Rhys broke his collar bone. Although he doesn't need surgery, Rhys must wear an immobilizer for a minimum of three weeks!

However, back in July Rhys and my dad enjoyed some time fishing. Once they went out on Lake Michigan and another time they fished in the waters of Green Bay. Some camping friends took the two of them out, and they caught five salmon! Rhys caught the biggest one because he stole it from Grandpa. Rhys says that Grandpa gave him the pole. Also, Rhys says not to forget about the "quick and the dead". My dad has many often used sayings. Some of these saying are more colorful than others. But, by far the most commonly used is "the first rule of basic bayonette training: there are two kinds of people in the world - the quick and the dead". This is Rhys's defense. Grandpa must be so proud!

Time in Door County

My parents are enjoying their time at home in Door County. They have had a couple of dinners with friends and went golfing. They continue to work on a variety of projects inside and outside the house there.

Next month marks 13 years my parents have owned the land in Door County. One of the first projects they undertook was building a series of short hiking trails through the 15 acres. They have cleared trees and moved rocks. Maintenance on these trails is an ongoing project that my parents have enjoyed tackling all these years. In a recent storm several trees fell over the hiking trails. My dad cut the trees and my mom moved them off the trail. Rhys enjoyed watching and helping Grandpa with this work so much that my parents got him his own set of earplugs!

Muriel and my dad finished up their quilting class as scheduled last Thursday. The quilt was recovered by our friend Kim. She drove four hours up to Door County with her three small children to get the quilt. That got it as far as Oshkosh (a little more than half way). My family and I drove to Oshkosh to get it. While in Oshkosh, Kim treated us all to a homecooked dinner, too! Many, many thanks to Kim for helping. Also, thanks to her kids for an extra measure of patience to sit for four hours in the car.

Muriel enjoyed picking out fabrics for the quilt including a navy fabric that sparkles with lots of glitter. She also liked piecing the quilt together, but doesn't enjoy quilting all the layers. The quilt she is working on is a checkerboard (complete with checkers).

Home again (almost)

Today my dad will be sprung from the hospital. He'll have a chemotherapy treatment tomorrow. After tomorrow, he'll finally be able to get back home to Door County.

Muriel and my dad were scheduled to take the last of their two part "Me and My Adult" quilting class tomorrow, but the quilt was mistakenly left in Door County. Hopefully, we'll get this problem worked out without too much trouble. When the quilt is finished, I hope to get a picture of it up on the blog.

Muriel is using our sewing machine to put her quilt together. My dad took a quilting class in Indianapolis when he was working there. That class was about ten years ago; the same time Muriel was born. The quilt he did was a wall hanging sampler done completely by hand! It now hangs in the dining room in Door County.

Below I have included a recent picture of my dad. This photo was taken in the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) Exhibit at the Wisconsin State Fair.

The kids and I have gone to the fair for many years with my parents. We enjoy seeing the animals and the craft entries. My dad especially likes to see the prize winning animals and the prices those animals sold for. Admiring the cake decorating, quilting, knitting, sewing, and other craft entries is one of our favorite parts of the fair. Of course, there are also plenty of displays and activities of interest to us in the DNR exhibit.

Back to the hospital

After spending the weekend with family and friends in Door County, my dad is back in the hospital.

He started vomiting early Sunday morning (9/2). My mom administered a total of two liters of IV fluid on Sunday. We hoped by late in the day Sunday he would have bounced back. In the past the turn around time has been less than 24 hours with these types of incidents.

However, this time he didn't turn around in 24 hours. By Monday afternoon he was still vomiting. My mom made the decision to drive down from Door County and take my dad to the Froedert Emergency Department.

He will be admitted to the hospital.