Another hospital visit

My dad is back in the hospital, and while not dire, it's not great news either.  It almost certainly seems to be the heart.  Congestive heart failure can be a condition with which a person can live, but in Dad's case, it's just not good.  On the upside, he currently seems to feel better than just this morning, and hopefully it will be a short visit and he can be home resting before too long.

I meant to write...

...but there just were not enough hours in the day.  Or, I guess I should say days at this point.

Last week was spent in a continuous effort to get our old house emptied so a final clean can be done.  Our realtor doesn't want to list it until it is completely empty.  I made a trip over on Tuesday, two trips on Wednesday, and another on Thursday.  After work on Thursday, my husband and I made another trip over because I had reached the point where not only could I not carry everything, I needed him to make some decisions on things.  Besides, loading and unloading four van loads of things had taken a toll and I was physically hurting.  While we were there and the kids were here, we decided to partake of our favorite Mexican restaurant.  It has a steak meal that I love and can't find replicated here.  It was as close to a date night as we are going to get anytime soon.

Friday we planned to hit the road early for Columbus, but we awoke to no hot water, a cabinet broke, and we learned our credit card (primary card we use) had been canceled.  GRRRR.  We finally deal with what we can deal with and hit the road...so that our GPS could stop working.  We laughed a little at all of it, and even my laid-back husband pointed out that all of these little things were starting to add up to one big irritation!  We really had a good time though.  The trip was our gift to Catherine so that she could visit the American Girl doll store.  I was so proud of her.  She knew exactly how much money she had to spend, and before she even came to close to it she announce, "That's plenty.  I'm done."  She had researched from catalogs before we went and we were in and out in 20 minutes.  That is my kind of shopping!  Our evening was spent at the 40th birthday party of a good friend.  It was near our old home, so we stopped on the way for another load, and everyone tumbled into bed later than I would've liked.

Saturday Robert had his final cross country race of the season.  It was a gorgeous day, although somewhat warmer than I had expected.  Robert started our very strong, and we could see about 1/3 into the race that he was one of the top six.  The race then goes out of sight, and I positioned myself at the finish line.  Runner after runner after runner finished, and there was no sign of Robert.  He was one of the very last ones to finish, and then he collapsed at the finish in a pile.  Apparently he was dizzy and having trouble breathing.  His coach said the dizziness was probably from not drinking enough.  We keep telling him to hydrate, but he's a teenager and thinks he knows everything!  The coach said the breathing could be from a "bug" or allergies that Robert didn't even know he had, but as a competitive runner it makes itself known.  That does appear to be the case, as by last evening he wasn't feeling so swell.  We spent Saturday evening at the birthday party of a four-year-old (we mentioned that ironically, he had as many candles as the forty-year-old the night before) and since that party was also near our old home, we again stopped for another load before coming home.

Yesterday Andrew and I spent the entire day at our old home.  I washed the woodwork and mopped the floors of the entire second level and the stairs.  We are hoping that by tomorrow at the latest, everything will be out of there and I won't have to keep making trips over.  Andrew wiped down the entire kitchen, and the attic and basement are empty.  We just have a few more things to get out of the laundry room and garage, and I'll need to sweep those as well as clean the living room.  We are almost there!  I will feel such a tremendous relief when that house is ready to sell!

A beautiful day

Today was about the most gorgeous day you could ever ask for.  There was literally nothing but blue skies, and with the leaves changing it was so bright and vibrant out.  I had to drive to the other house and work, and I'm grateful that I did.  I even took the back roads on the drive back (thanks to paving...ugh!) and while it takes longer, it was even more colorful.  The temps are also perfect...it was exactly the day that I needed to refresh the soul!

An unexpected tribute

Today I was sitting with my mother and sister waiting for the funeral to begin.  Several co-workers were seated around me, and on the other side of my mother sat some of her friends.  It was a Catholic funeral (although not full mass), and it was lovely.  After the formal religious ceremony, the eulogies were to begin.  My sister had mentioned to me that Mark, the youngest son, had mentioned that his eulogy was going to include a shout out to my dad.  I responded by saying I better get the tissues ready...and thank goodness I did!  Mark's eulogy was very nice and did include a brief shout out...certainly more than I expected to hear during another man's funeral.  Rebecca, the daughter, then spoke.  She echoed Mark's "shout out" to my dad, then mentioned him in a couple of other stories she told about her dad.  Rebecca's husband (Pete) then got up to give the "official" lengthy eulogy, which included an all-out tribute to my dad.  It mentioned how much Dad and Chuck had been through and how loyal Dad had been for the 32 years he has worked there.  He went on about how many of the things Chuck was able to do for others was due to the fact that my dad had done things that allowed Chuck to do them, and Pete then explained to the crowd how ill my father is and that the family's thoughts and prayers are with us at this time as well.  It was completely unexpected that my father be included in such an overt manner, and to be honest, my mother, sister, and I sat and wept.  We love this family dearly, and it was truly shocking to us that in their time of sorrow they made such an attempt to comfort and include us.  I don't even know how to explain it really, but I am so grateful that even though my dad couldn't be at the funeral this morning, he got to be a part of it.  Dad and Chuck were so completely intertwined in their lives, and I know that is a huge part in what is making me so emotional about this...their deaths aren't going to be that far apart either.  It just wasn't supposed to happen this way.

Everyone is still asleep

It is silent in this house, and I'm grateful for that.  Life has been anything but silent lately.  Yesterday morning, Thomas managed to lock us out of the house.  It was an accident and I wasn't angry, but I quickly realized my well-planned day was not off to the best start.  A kind neighbor took me to the high school and I was able to take Andrew's keys and drive myself home.  This meant I had to pick him up at the end of the day, which wouldn't have been a problem except that we were on a tight schedule to leave for the funeral visitation last night.  We left much later than I had wanted, but still were there to pay our respects.

In fact, we waited two hours in line to do so.  That is how well respected and loved this man and his family are.  The entire thing made me so very emotional because it is so closely tied to my dad.  When it was finally our turn, my tears couldn't hold back any longer...seeing the family was just too much.  They all mentioned how they were glad Dad had been there earlier, and that he seemed to be having a good day (and Grandma echoed those thoughts).  Many others that I encountered throughout the visitation asked about Dad, and one of them even mentioned he was glad to hear Dad wasn't in there, because he didn't think he could handle seeing Dad grieve.

I'm on my way back to my hometown shortly.  The funeral is this morning.  Dad isn't strong enough, and I know that the family understands.  I also know that they would understand if I didn't make the trek back up again today, but I feel it's important that I do so.  This man gave me the opportunity to work with my dad for over six years, and I'm always going to be grateful...not to mention all the other things he's done.

It's been emotional, and I'm grateful for some quiet time right now.  And trust me when I tell you everyone could stand to catch up on some sleep!

I ache everywhere, but it is worth it

One of the things I've been doing in trying to get the house ready to sell is painting.  I'm not changing any colors, just freshening things up a bit.  So far, I had painted the ceiling, walls, and trim (primed and final coat) in the boys' room, I had painted the ceiling, walls, and trim in our upstairs hallway, and I had painted the walls and trim in our dining room.  Yesterday I was ready to paint the floor in there.  To be honest, I was really looking forward to it.  No hands over head, no up and down a ladder...sounded awesome.  IT WAS NOT!  It couldn't be rolled because there is too much uneveness on the floor.  Four hours of crawling on my hands and knees took one heck of a toll.  I've lost most of the feeling in my left hand because of the leaning on my wrist through it all.  I have pressure bruises not only on my knees, but on the tops of my feet...and that doesn't even include the muscular pains!  It is so worth it though.  That should be the last painting, although I'm pretty sure I'm going to want to repaint the step faces...that can be after the "for sale" sign appears though.  Andrew and I will be spending Sunday working hours on end at the house clearing it out and cleaning it up.  Let's hope it sells quickly!

C'mon October!

I'll be honest (and this isn't going to shock anyone), upon deciding to move and dealing with my father's deterioration, July & August were pretty high on the stress-o-meter.  And being further honest, the months prior to that had their own share of stresses...it's not been the most fun and carefree year I've ever experienced.

So when September came, I had HIGH HOPES!  Each month is a new opportunity for fond memories and good times...except that September is the month where Thomas passed out at school and was squadded to the e/r, and it finished with our family losing a very, very dear friend.

But here we are, at another new month...and October is usually one of my favorites!  I love the weather, the sights, sounds, tastes, and this year we even get a day off school next week!  I am completely certain that this is going to be a fabulous month!