Someone...a friend...just gave me the BEST. ADVICE. EVER. That, like Mary "pondered in her heart"....maybe this was a time for me to do that. It actually applies to several different things in life....advice I needed for sure. Sometimes, you have the urge to "just tell someone"...but that is not always prudent, or necessary. Sometimes the best thing is to just wait. So, as I do that....I do want to come to you and ask for prayer.
Last night my dear Daddy-in-law was taken to the emergency room. Backtracking, he had awoken early Friday morning with what seemed to be a bad stomach bug. By Saturday afternoon, when we saw him, he was very weak and we urged him to go ahead and be seen by a doctor, because perhaps he needed fluids for dehydration. His blood sugar was 200. Backtracking some more, my FIL has had 2 open heart surgeries in the past 12 years. He had rheumatic fever as a child, that weakened his heart. He also has a pacemaker that runs full-time. But for the most part, he has done well considering. It's only been the last few years he has continued to decline in his activities, but even more recently, he can hardly walk from house to car without getting very winded. He has congestive heart failure and COPD. He had recently gone to oxygen at night, a CPAP, and about 3 breathing treatments a day. He will be 79 the end of the month. He's a good man. He has taught me the real life virtue of literally "giving the shirt off your back" to others. Almost to a fault, he would give and give to others, but especially to his children and grands, until he had nothing else to give. And it doesn't matter how bad he feels, he demands to see his "youngin's" ....especially the littlest of the bunch, which is currently Mariam :) As he told the nurse today, "that's his little princess." :)
Well, anyway, lately we'd notice more of a "decline." In his health, and in dear Momma-in-law's. She has suffered through a bad case of Shingles the past 4 weeks, and just did not seem "herself." In fact she was forgetting appointments and other things. Could she be in the early stages of dementia? Her mother had it for several years. We don't know. But we suddenly saw a need.
Two of our grown nephews have been living with them, but one moved out because he has joined the Army and the other is just busy. It's a large house. They rebuilt it to be so, after a fire completely destroyed their old home 10 years ago. They are such survivors. Taking it all in stride and faith upon the Lord.
Anyway, with all of the above in mind, we've decided to move back in with them, to help them out. We'll have plenty of space to ourselves, with some things in storage. We are planning out a weekly schedule, and I hope to get up and cook some breakfast each morning, do the cleaning and chores, grocery buying, etc and we'll share the bills, hopefully help them to their appointments and with their meds. It's a new season of life. It may not last, since D's brother will be home from Afghanistan after the end of the year, and may be able to take over some of this stuff. But for now.... Yes, it will mean a little "inconvenience"...being 30 minutes from the parish, instead of 3 minutes (sob) ...but, it will all balance out and be worth it. God's will, in God's time....
So back to FIL, in the hospital....they still are not sure what is going on. His cardiac enzymes were up, indicating a heart attack over the weekend. But his liver enzymes were up too and other things. No fluid around his heart, oddly enough,...that is usually the main issue he has had in the past. His blood pressure was unstable for a while, but seems to be under control now. His blood sugar was 48 when he went in, but is back up to normal now. He is keeping food down, and normalizing in other areas. So....hopefully, he is on the mend, and has many more years ahead. We just ask your continued prayers for his health and quality of life, and for MIL's, and again, our "new season of life" that is upon us. More exciting things on the horizon...but for now, I will ponder....and pack...we have to move by the end of the month somehow, between Doug being out of town 2 weekends in a row, and everything else going on.....
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| Micah as a baby, riding w/ "Pawpaw" :) |
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