Merry Christmas!

I can't believe it's been 5 months since I last posted. It's all for good reasons -- Daddy has been doing so well that sometimes I forget he was so sick. Just wanted to put a quick note on the blog for anyone who still reads this so you can celebrate with us. Daddy had a scan recently and he got the results on Fri. (which, by the way, was my parents' 39th anniversary!). The surgeon said he looks GREAT and he doesn't need to see him for 6 mo. Praise God!

I still get nervous around the time of his scans. Pancreatic cancer is such a horrible disease, and my dad, by God's grace, really has defied the odds. This time 2 years ago, I was sure that it would be my last Christmas with my dad, but I get to sit next to him next week at the Christmas Eve service for the third time since his diagnosis. Christmas for me has taken on new meaning in the past few years and I treasure this time to focus on and teach my children about Hope in the One who transcends all our sufferings, fears, and pain. Merry Christmas to all of you from our family!

A Good Report

Daddy went for a follow up appointment with his surgeon this week, and got a good report. The doctor is sending him for a follow up scan and lab work, but said that the recent lab work he had done at his annual physical looks good, particularly the indicator of his liver function (I know what it's called but don't know how to spell it). Apparently Daddy ran into all the surgeons while he was at his appointment (they are all amazed to see him doing so well), and was handing out business cards left and right!

Happy Father's Day!

To anyone out there who still checks this occasionally, Happy Father's Day! We are grateful to celebrate another Father's Day with Daddy. It almost slipped my mind to post because we are celebrating with him next weekend instead (along with all the June birthdays in our family) since he and mom are en route back from Texas as I type. This time last year when Daddy was in the hospital, they were talking about taking a road trip to Texas this summer and (honestly) I was thinking, "Yeah, right." But God is good, and they got to go (driving Daddy's big truck all the way to Houston and back) and should be home soon. I talked with them this morning and they had a lot of fun visiting my mom's sister and her husband. Every time I call my dad and he answers his phone, I think about how blessed I am that he is still here to pick up the phone and talk to me, even if it's just for a minute. He's a great Daddy who has taught me about what's really important and valuable in life. I'm posting a new family picture taken in May when we celebrated his recovery -- notice that we have one more than this time last year. :)

One Year Ago Today...

We were sitting in the waiting room at the hospital waiting to see Daddy in recovery after he had the cancer removed and his insides rearranged. The two months that followed were two of the most difficult of my short life, and I'm pretty sure that the rest of my family would say something similar. Today, looking back I am so grateful for the friends and family who came alongside us and held us up on many of those days. We are acutely aware of God's grace in allowing Daddy to be here celebrating with us today. And he's not just "here" -- he's active, back to his usual activities and working on new projects. His garden looks better than it has in years. He's learning new programs on his new computer (although I don't think blogging is on his list yet). He's back to making BBQ -- to everyone's delight. He gets down on the floor and plays with the girls. He goes to "the spa" almost daily (his words -- otherwise known as the gym), and has actually gained back some muscle.

This time last year, I could not envision this day -- I struggled to hope for this day and believe that it could happen. Even now I wrestle with why God has allowed Daddy to beat the statistics (which are horrendous, by the way) and we have lost other friends and family so suddenly and unexpectedly in the past year -- even the past week. Don't get me wrong -- I am so very thankful to have this time with my Dad, and for my girls to know him and make more memories, but I am also aware that this is purely the result of God's grace, not a result of anything we have or haven't done -- our family does not deserve this, it is a gift from God. So...

Praise God for allowing us this time with Daddy. Praise God for teaching us and carrying us through the past year. Praise God for His church, family, and friends who are like family. Thank you for all your encouraging words and prayers over the past year and a half!

Here are a couple of recent pictures...

Shock and Sadness

Let me preface this by saying that Daddy's doing great-- preparing to celebrate his good health one year after his surgery, and we continue to be grateful and feel extraordinarily blessed. However, today our hearts are heavy. Our family learned this morning that my cousin Nicole (my dad's niece, daughter of my Aunt Betty) passed away suddenly overnight. They suspect she had a heart attack. Please pray for my Aunt Betty and my cousin Trey. We are all in shock and sad, obviously. My Aunt Betty and Aunt Linda were quick to come up here to encourage my parents and have tea parties with my girls when things were especially tough for our family last summer, and we hope that we can love on Betty the same way. I do know that in these tough times, I am so thankful for our huge, crazy, generous, loving extended family.

Pray for Clara!

I think I posted a while back about Wendi's close friend (Chrissy) who was pregnant at the same time as her and had found out that her baby had a serious birth defect (CDH). Clara was born the week before Chloe and is still fighting. She was able to have surgery to repair the diaphragmatic hernia last week, and now her lungs need to kick in. Below is the link to their blog. Please pray for this little baby girl, her parents and her grandparents -- they have loved my sister like family, and thus we consider them family as well! http://thehardylife.blogspot.com/

New Grandbaby!

Chloe Elizabeth arrived early, early this morning at 12:53am weighing in at 8lbs, 11oz. Mom and baby are doing great! I'll post pics when I get permission from the mama... Pop-Pop and Nana have already visited and returned home.

Famous Belly

Daddy had his follow-up post-hernia surgery this week, and apparently his surgeon has been using pictures of his belly (just his belly, not his face) as he teaches all around the country about how to repair this type of post-surgical hernia. Mom and Dad were a little tickled that his belly is famous, I think--certainly they are glad that his experience can help others. In other news, we are anxiously awaiting the arrival of our past-due niece/granddaughter/daughter. If she doesn't make her arrival on her own, Wendi will be induced next Wed.

And since we know many of you who read this blog pray, please pray for Wendi's friends Chrissy and Robert, and particularly baby Clara. Chrissy is Wendi's best friend from college, and they were excited to find out they were pregnant and due within a week of each other. They found out fairly early on in the pregnancy that Chrissy's little girl, Clara, has a birth defect called a herniated diaphragm (CDH). Clara arrived yesterday, and did well through the birth but had a rough night last night. The short version is that she is a very sick little girl, and she faces many challenges particularly related to breathing and getting the oxygen she needs. Please pray for Chrissy and Robert as they watch her struggle, and as Chrissy recovers from a C-section. If you want the link to their blog, please email me and I'd be glad to send it your way.

No News is Good News

Daddy has recovered from the hernia surgery fairly well. He started physical therapy for the pain in his shoulders, which they think is related to losing so much muscle mass and being in bed for so long. He's back to driving, and Mom is trying to keep him from doing too much. He says he feels fairly normal these days -- pretty amazing considering all his body has been through. In other news, we are anxiously awaiting the arrival of our new niece/cousin/granddaughter any day now! (Wendi is due March 18 so it could be any time!)

Quick Update

As hoped, Daddy is doing much better the past couple of days, and is eating and drinking fairly normally with no problems. He is getting up and moving around the house, is a little sore (actually probably a lot sore!) and very tired. He's in good spirits, he just wishes he had more energy. All 3 of the girls spent the afternoon out at Mom and Dad's, and it seems that everyone had a big time!

Home Sweet Home

Well, Daddy made it home before lunch time today. He has been in a fair amount of pain, and this afternoon was having a hard time keeping any food or drink down. The girls and I went to visit and hang out with him while Mom went to pick up some medicine for him (including some anti-nausea meds). By the time we left this evening, he had kept down a cup of tea. The anti-nausea medicine makes him groggy, though, so then he wants to sleep instead of eat. His spirits were fairly good despite feeling lousy and he was acting like himself. I have a vague memory of the pain meds making his head spin way back when he was first diagnosed with cancer, so I'm hopeful that as he heals and needs less pain medication, everything else will fall back into place. I know that he is glad to be in his own bed, and I know Mom will be, too (she spent the night with him last night at the hospital).

Successful surgery!

Daddy had his hernia repair today, and everything went very smoothly. If everything continues to go well overnight, then Daddy will get to come home tomorrow. I stopped by to see him this evening after work, and he was a little sleepy but very lucid. He ate his jello and chicken broth right after they brought it, and was asking about another friend who was having some health issues today. He was in a little pain, but they were managing it effectively. His anticipated full recovery time is 4 weeks -- so if you see him picking anything up in the next month, remind him that he needs to take it easy! He also will be laying low at home for the next week, so if you want to visit, I'm sure he'd appreciate it -- just call before you go. Thanks for the prayers.

Shunt Functioning, Resume Plans

Daddy went in yesterday for a scan, and they determined that the shunt was functioning properly -- they think maybe it had a blockage that worked itself out. Mom and Dad had spent some time trying to get it to pump on Thurs. night and Fri. morning Daddy noticed an improvement and felt better but they wanted to have it checked out before he has surgery next week. (The shunt is placed just under his skin in his abdomen, and he has to find the spot and pump it twice a day). Shunt malfunctions are not uncommon apparently, so there was not much concern about this incident. They took about 2 liters off his belly, so he's a little sore today but otherwise doing well -- he drove to Wendi's by himself today because he wasn't ready to leave when Mom and I did. The hernia surgery is back on for next Tues. And today we got to celebrate Wendi and our soon-to-arrive addition to the family. Thanks so much for your prayers!

Shunt Malfunction

Well, Daddy was scheduled for surgery to repair the hernia next Tues., Feb. 15 but in the past couple of days, it has become clear that his shunt is not functioning properly. His belly is retaining fluid again and he's gained 12lbs or so. Tomorrow he will go into radiology (for a CT scan, I'm assuming) to check what's going on. Assuming this is just a common shunt malfunction, they will remove some fluid, and he is scheduled for surgery to correct the problem (whatever they discover the problem is) on Monday. There is a possibility that they will go ahead and do the hernia repair on Monday as well, but otherwise it will be postponed. We should know more tomorrow afternoon. Sorry for the vagueness, but that's all I've got right now. We appreciate your prayers. We are all supposed to go to a baby shower for Wendi on Saturday, and are hoping that we can carry with the celebrations as planned.

Happy New Year ... and a few weeks!

Daddy is doing well -- and, as I've said before, when he's doing well I tend to forget that we have a blog to keep people posted. So I apologize that it's been a while, but that's a good sign! He visited his oncologist the week after Christmas, and his oncologist released him to his surgeon's care for follow up. Dr. B (the oncologist) told him that he doesn't need to see him anymore unless he has problems. They (all his doctors) don't seem to be concerned about his shoulder pain, and think he may have injured his rotator cuff when he tried to get back in to exercising too quickly. The shunt is working beautifully so far. And he has surgery scheduled for Feb. 15 to repair the hernia near his incision from the Whipple procedure. This is supposed to be a rather complicated repair so prayers are appreciated, and I promise to update more closer to that date.

In other news... Daddy got a new truck! He brought it by and let me take it for a spin today. :) And he has finally gotten his new computer up and running at a decent speed, so maybe I'll talk him into posting. However, don't get your hopes up because when I first asked him if it was ok that we do a blog to keep people updated, he said, "As long as you know what a blog is."