it's been awhile {update}

I know it's been quite awhile since my last update, things have been a little crazy around here. I haven't even looked back to see what I put on my last blog post... so I'm just going to wing it and do a brief summary. (As a side note, all of the following pictures were taken on my phone, so they're not the best shots... I don't have much time for editing photos these days.) Just to forewarn you there is a lot of medical information in this post, it's not graphic just wanted to give fair warning...

In January my dad was diagnosed with autoimmune hepatitis (where your body attacks it's own organ as if it were foreign.) Then 10 days after my dad was released from the hospital my mom was driving and her hand fell off the steering wheel (the first symptom she had). A few weeks later she was diagnosed with glioblastoma multiforme, a very aggressive cancerous brain tumor. Both of my parents moved into my house, and my mom had brain surgery in March followed by radiation and chemotherapy to help slow the growth down for a time. My dad had been struggling through the daily life of someone with liver disease. He has six liters drained off his abdomen every 7-9 days, has lost most of his muscle mass and a host of other things. We began working with the University of Washington (UW) to get him on the transplant list. After three months of testing, meetings and procedures he was accepted onto the list. However at the last appointment they found a spot that appears to be the beginnings of liver cancer (something people with any type of liver cirrhosis have an increased risk of getting). So we've had lots of appointments for both mom and dad from Seattle to Everett to up here near Camano Island.

Fast forward to July 13th. Mom had her first seizure. We've known all along that she would eventually have seizures, and eventually came on July 13. Her fist seizure lasted 10 minutes, the second was 45 minutes and the third seizure was finally brought down after three hours in the ER.

Mom spent the next 6 days in a coma from the seizure. Lots of tests followed while we waited to find out if she'd wake up... which she did! During my mom's stay at the hospital, we spent two nights in the ER with dad who had a raging headache that wouldn't quite. They did several tests both nights and sent us home with no answers. After a two week stay in the hospital, we got her all ready to transfer to inpatient rehab close to home.

An hour before mom discharged to rehab, we got a call that dad needed to come to the hospital right away. One of the ER tests came back positive for cryptococcal spinal meningitis. So my sister took over mom's discharge from the 8th floor and I zipped downstairs to admit dad onto the 5th floor. They began to treat him with IV meds for the meningitis which ended up sending him into a close call with kidney failure. His team of doctors grew to five at the hospital, one at the UW and his regular GI specialist. They were able to switch the meningitis medicine and narrowly avoid dialysis for his 16 day stay.

With everyone in a treatment facility and reasonably stable, my sister took the reins for a couple of weeks and we got a last minute opportunity for a little respite. We decided to take a road trip. Planning a road trip in two days at the 11th hour turned out to be a little tricky, but we made it happen... We visited Lake Shasta Caverns and Shasta Dam, Burney Falls, Lassen Volcanic National Park, Virginia City, The American Chesterton Society's annual conference, Carmel by the Sea, Fort Bragg and the Coastal Redwoods.

Lake Shasta Caverns
California


Burney Falls
California
(I'd love to go back and camp here, it's beautiful!)


Stan & Torrey
Virginia City,NV


Emma & Stan
Virginia City, NV


Virginia City, NV


Carmel Mission Basilica
Carmel, CA



Building St. Peter's Basilica in the sand in Carmel-by-the-Sea, CA


Emma grew an inch in the two weeks we were gone, and is now taller than me.


The Golden Gate Bridge




A slice of redwood
Fort Bragg, CA




Glass Beach
Fort Bragg, CA

This was one of the coolest things ever!
More than a foot deep of tumbled sea glass. Looked like little jewels all over the beach.






 The Drive Through Tree - and it's alive!
California



Fort Bragg, CA

We arrived home just in time for mom to be discharged from the hospital. Emma decided to share her hair with Grum for a little while. Mom was able to walk again after her time in rehab, and we transitioned into life with the adjustments in mobility.

On Thursday evening mom had a couple more seizures and we took another trip to the ER to stop the cycle. We went home with yet more seizure meds, and an appointment for another MRI the following day.

On Saturday dad ended up back in the hospital with cellulitis (an infection) on his foot. With thin skin on swollen feet and a weak immune system he's susceptible to all things like this. He's still in the hospital, and they're working on a treatment plan so he can come back home in the next few days. We had to postpone his checkup at the UW till next week.

Today we had appointments with oncology and the neurosurgeon to go over mom's treatment plan and MRI results. The tumor has grown some in the last couple of months, we're going to continue with another round of chemo and check back with another MRI in a month to see where things stand. and nervous not knowing when the next one will show up.

In between appointments for mom, I was able to wheel her across the street to the hospital to visit dad for a little while. Their 39th anniversary is on Saturday, and I'm praying they'll be able to be together...

Thank you for your continued prayers.
Sorry for the long absence and post.