A little bad, and good stuff . . .

I got a call at 1:30 this morning (last night) from my sister, Kari.  My whole family, except my brother that lives in Washington, was at the care center where my dad is.  The nurse that was taking care of him called my mom and said she'd better come quick because he didn't think my dad would last too long.  Last Saturday he got really sick with a UTI and he had some pneumonia too.  Mat and I had just visited him on Sunday.  He was a little confused, which is typical for him with a bad infection, but that was it.  I was amazed the pneumonia had progressed to "near death" in just a day.  When I got there, the sound of his breathing was so disturbing, it broke my heart.  He had so much water in his lungs that he "gurgled" when he breathed, he was breathing rapidly because of dimished lung capacity, his oxygen levels were low and his heart rate really fast.  It was really scary.  I stayed for about 3 hours, but needed to go home because I took an Ambien at about 12:30, so I was numb and struggling.  (My sister picked me up, my brother-in-law drove me home.)  Everyone else stayed about another hour and then went home.  I stopped in for a few minutes this afternoon.  He actually improved some today to the point to where the gurgling wasn't audible, but he is still very weak, tired, confused, etc.  I don't like this "end of life" stuff, it is very hard to see your parents go downhill.

I had a follow-up with the plastic surgeon today.  She is very pleased with my "C", healing and progress.  She said it is best to wait until after chemo to do the other side, so I can regain my health after they succeed at knocking me down.  That will probably happen in October or November.  She's very efficient, so that is all I got from her, but I love her!  I am so happy I decided to do reconstruction the same day as the mastectomy!  If I ever meet anyone who is having to make that choice, that is what I would tell them.  Since you're "under" anyway, get as much done as possible!  : )

Maddie had New Beginnings tonight (aaahhhh!  I've got one old enough for that?!?).  Mat and I both went, and we brought the baby because that is what we do when Maddie isn't home to tend!  We had a nice lasagna dinner and program.  During the program, the baby got fussy, so I took her out into the hall.  As long as I can do her "one-handed", I can do it.  I was talking to a 12 yr old boy in our ward, he was playing with McKinley.  I looked down the hall and overheard a conversation between a couple and a woman.  I recognized the couple, they are in our stake.  The woman was talking about her experiences with her breast cancer.  I could not restrain myself, I walked up and said, "I'm sorry, but can I be a part of this conversation?  I was just diagnosed in November and had surgery and I start chemo next week."  So, we stood in the hall and talked for half an hour about our experiences.  This sister was diagnosed 4 years ago.  Her youngest was 5 at the time, so she has a sense for what I will be going through.  She was so encouraging and offered me her wig, some books on cd that really helped her, and whatever help she could give me.  She gave me her phone number, and she took mine and said that she would be checking up on me to see how I am doing.  Was this a chance encounter?  I don't believe so.  This was one of those Tender Mercies that I have seen so prevalently in my life since all of this began last year on November 20th.  This was just another reminder that Heavenly Father is so aware of me, my thoughts and concerns.  He is right there, leading me to where I need to be in the moment that I need to be there.  Wow.