As we wrap up July and head into the first week of August...there have been a few fun things.
Ryan headed off to camp....he had a great time, and was so filled. He came home and said he wished he could just stay there forever, as he said he'd never met with God like he did this last week.....never heard God speak to him, like he did there. I reminded him that God does speak to us...we just don't make the time, take the time, or think we need to listen. I'm sure its a lesson we all need to heed.
(Thanks Aubree for the great pictures!)
As you know, Ryan was baptized last Sunday (July 31) and what a proud day that was. We had a great BBQ at church and headed to Canby to Jason's 7th Birthday Party. WOW...seems like yesterday that I was fighting for snuggle with him as a baby.
We had a nice visit, and headed back to Sweet Home to visit with friends Pat, Ray, Robin & Jim. We sure wish they lived close. Always a nice visit visit with them, and a great ending to a very busy day. Sadly, I did not take one picture....not like me!!
This week Kristin has been getting things ready for camp...and Ryan is trying to plow through his room and organize before school starts. We need to take inventory of what clothes are needed!! On Friday a BOX showed up from Grandma R....seems there was one treasure of Papa Richards that Kristin wanted....nothing else. A coin counter that he had on his dresser. Grandma R fixed her up well and sent all the coin wrappers that Papa had stashed away....I don't think Ft Knox has this many coin wrappers!!! She won't run out for a long time!!
These next few weeks will be busy, at least for Ryan, who starts football practice, and by the latter part of the month will be practicing twice a day, and not doing much but eating & sleeping in between!! I am sure the grocery bill will be impacted!
Until next time.....blessings!!
There is not much more that I can say, other than we are SO proud of Ryan.
About a year ago Ryan started asking if he could be re-baptized. We discussed it with him, wanting to know what made him think his first baptism wasn't "valid" and he simply said--"Because it was your choice--not mine. I want God to know it's my choice". You can't argue with that. A chat with Pastor Tom, and he confirmed to Ryan that it was A-OK to do this again! We didn't hear much more about it until several weeks ago. It was decided by Ryan that he wanted baptized when we returned from Michigan. His Youth pastor called, and said they hoped he wouldn't mind changing from the 24th to the 31st, since Sr Pastor Tom would be gone, and he wanted to be there. Ryan was fine, and this morning, he found out that Troy was doing music, and while a little disappointed, he said it really didn't matter...but was thrilled when it was Pastor Tom that baptized him, as that is the man that first spoke to Ryan's heard about the Lord. Troy played music and sang one of Ryan's favorite songs, and the two most important influences were part of his baptism today.
It filled my heart when one of Ryan's friends came forward as well, and from the back came Sam, who did not intend to come to church this morning, as he just got home from a mission trip, but when he saw Ryan was being baptized this morning, he came over...and was a huge support. Thanks Sam...it meant a lot to Ryan, and to this Mom especially, knowing that he has such great friends in the Lord to be with!
My heart is full, I am so Thankful....
The latter part of June, and the month of July have been a blur! It has been SO busy, it's hard to remember it all. I guess I'll break it down like before!
The end of June, Kristin and Tanya spent a few days painting the windows & doors of the new coop. Bill put them up, and it's starting to look pretty cool. We are trying to get it finished before we fly out on the 30th. The nesting boxes are complete, but not painted yet...but the girls have finally figured out where to lay. Bill also put a perch inside, but the chicks don't seem to like it, but maybe it takes time.
Ryan has been busy with fund raisers for church camp, and football. He's been a busy kid, and will no more than get out of school than we leave for vacation.
After the coop is fixed enough that it can be used, we then concentrated on fencing. We thought we had some figured out, but it sold before we got there. Oh well, better things in store, right. On Saturday, we got up and I checked Craigs list. We found some fencing for a great price, and the only problem, was that it was in Washington....just over the state line. It was a beautiful Saturday, so we called, and told them we were on our way. We work Kristin, dropped Ryan at the football car wash, and headed out. What was really neat, was it was in an area that Bill used to live in when he was in the service. So..he showed us where he was stationed while in dry dock. It turned out to be a productive day in getting fencing, and a fun day too!
The fencing goes up, and we head out on vacation 2 days later.
We head to Portland on Wednesday the 29th, and fly out on Thursday the 30th, arriving in Michigan at 12:30 AM on Friday. We get a good nights rest, and spend the day with Bill's mom and sisters, and of course, we hit Michaels favorite place, LEOS for breakfast and then head to Ohio to my folks lake property for a weekend of fun with my brother & sister, and their families. It's been many years since we've all been together. We get a great treat of fireworks...and Bowerstown puts on a good show for such a tiny town!
On the second day at the lake, the boys stay and play while a few of us adults, and the two girls run to town for some needed supplies, and of course, corn on the cob!! We had a nice evening and Jason brought out the fireworks...which turned out to be a smoke show. We still had fun!
On the Fourth of July we headed to Salem to Aunt Cece's and Uncle Rudy's to celebrate my Grandparent's 70th wedding anniversary. What an inspiration they are to all of us. It was a special treat for all of us to be together, and to visit with some very special people in our lives. The day is never long enough, although we got some awesome family pictures, and we were only missing two out of our family of 30!! Jason & Jeannine head home, and we talked them into leaving Natalie, if we promised to bring her home on Friday with us! The boys were already scheduled to be at the lake with our kids for the next two weeks.
The following day we spent a great day at the lake. It was so much fun playing with the kids in the water. They would all ask Bill to come out to swim, and they run and scream as they played "King of the raft". We also had a great visit with my Aunt Dolly & Uncle Dick...the man who introduced me to Uncle Wiggly! We also got to visit with Debbie their daughter (my cousin!). Lots of fun--visiting--laughing...catching up!
On Wednesday, we headed to Amish County and the cheese factory. It was a great day, and we were able to meet cousin Sarah and her kids there. Back to the cabin, and we share a last night with Tam & Eric, Nick & Erica before they head west on the vacation to Yellowstone, Grand Canyon, and all those beautiful places there, back & in between! We had a great day, and on the way home, stopped at an old mill....that really was still like it was in the day...very cool!!
The following day was sad and sulky for us, as Tam & Eric packed up and headed down the road with Nick & Erica. We tried to enjoy the relaxing day, but there was a lonely cloud as Kristin missed her only girl cousin there, and I of course missed my sister. The kids went fishing and swimming, and we spent our last evening enjoying the cool on the porch. It had been hot & sticky all week, and we certainly enjoyed the lake to cool off in.
On Friday, Bill,Natalie & I headed back to Michigan. It was very strange to have one child in the car, and a younger one at that!! She was SO quiet!! We dropped Natalie off, along with Jeannine's car that she was kind enough to let us borrow, and then headed back to Bill's Mom's to enjoy a visit from Todd and Erika, of course with Abby & Maddy. It was a great evening, again, always too short. I will forever remember dancing with the fireflies!
Saturday, Bill, Margaret & I spent the day in the basement, sorting through boxes of things that had not been unpacked yet. 90% of it were things from Bill's Dad, and 75% of that was tools. We made a big dent, and then we got cleaned up to head to Cracker Barrel...one of my favorite places when we hit back to the Detroit area. This trip, no chili dogs, no White Castle...a much healthier trip being that Bill's wheat & sugar allergies kept us in pretty good check!! We enjoyed a nice visit with Patti & Randy, Brooke, Karen & Jeff, Michael & Beth afterward, and the we headed to bed at a decent hour, since my flight was the next morning at 6:30AM.
I arrived in Portland at 10:30 AM on Sunday the 10th...and headed to the airport to pick up our car, and head home. It was a LONG two hours, having to stop, since I was SO sleepy from getting up so early!! Bill stayed in MI to help his Mom clean out some of his dad's things and get things ready for a garage sale. They made a major improvement in the basement, and Bill was able to sort through Dad's tools and has a stash to bring home....which translates into a trip home next summer!
Bill flies home on Sunday, and arrives at 10:30. We head home...have a nice nap, a nice dinner, and enjoy being back together after a week apart. You would think after 23 years..we'd enjoy a week off from each other...guess that's not the case!! Friday I took the day off, and I joined Bill in going to get the kids. We had a nice day together, and spent the weekend painting the chicken coop!! It was a good day, and on Sunday, it was nice to be back with our church family.
Monday, Ryan packs up to head to camp for the rest of the week....and so the summer continues!! Football starts again this next week, and tomorrow is a special day as Ryan is being baptized. Yes, he was infant baptized, but as he said...it wasn't his choice...this time it is. We are so proud of him!!
Until next time.....
Baby and Birthdays--April 29th & 30th
We were blessed to have the girls for a few hours on Friday night. I got my baby fix, and to top it off, an Audrie fix too!! It was fun to have the girls. Kristin was a great help, and really wanted to take care of Allie, so she had the practice. She did a great job. Zorro was very interested in Allie, but each time he came close she wanted to pet him, and he was unsure. When Allie took her bottle, he came up on the couch, and checked her out...then let her check him out when she was done. We took the girls home and tucked them in bed, and waited for Nate & Katie to get home. A great afternoon/evening with the girls!! 
ON Saturday, Audrie's 4th birthday party was at Papa's Pizza. Lots of people, so glad that we had the chance to spend some time with the girls the night before.
A few days later, we headed to see a Nutritional Specialist for Bill. We have a friend at church who highly recommended us to Dr Popp. He finds food allergies by Nutritional Testing, instead of prick testing. We had been to Bill's Dr in February, and she said she has done everything medically possible for him regarding the migraines. She told him he needed to seek natural methods, and change his lifestyle. Ironically enough, after this visit, Bill has. He found out he has a wheat AND a sugar allergy. TOUGH STUFF to deal with. He cannot even have natural sugars, fruits, honey, etc, and no substitutes. The only one he is not allergic to is Stevia, which is a sugar from a particular plant. So far, I have been unsuccessful baking with it. We have made a lot of adjustments, and just one week being off wheat and sugar, Bill was noticing a reduction in the severity of his headaches. After two weeks, he actually had NO headache. A first in Many,many months...as he suffers every day from some degree of headache. It has been about 6 weeks now, and he said had he not seen results, and felt so much better, he'd have thrown in the towel by now. He's pretty limited on foods, as we are finding sugar or sugar substitutes of all kinds in all foods. Kidney beans packed in water...sugar, really?? Potato Chips...sugar, you bet...some brands. Fritos Corn Chips are his only saving grace!! He has lost almost 20 lbs, and is more himself than he has been in a few years. It is so good to see him happy, goofing around, and wanting to do things again. I know that hurting for such a long time has been very depressing, let alone all the other things we've been through this last two years! Praising God for leading us here, and for helping Bill to stay on track!
New Chicks--May 24, 2011
Actually these chicks are 2 1/2 months old, and we decided to buy them from a kid who raises them from the chick stage, to the "put with other birds and not need chick feed and heat lamps" stage. I was quite impressed with this 13 year old who runs his own business, and was very professional. I'm thinking we will be getting chicks from him again. For one, he guarantees them to be female, and if there are any problems he will take them back. Yahoo!!
We brought them in the yard to meet our older girls, they looked at each other, and our older girls took off running away. The next meeting, they pecked the smaller ones...so we've kept them separated at night, and have had them getting used to each other during the day. Tonight (saturday 6-18) the smaller ones went into the coop, and we pushed the bigger ones in. There was a lot of cackling going on, but after a few minutes, it got quiet.
Trip to Bend to see Charlie 5-29-11
We headed out early Sunday morning to meet Charlie & the guys from TC at church. It's been kind of fun visiting different churches when we visit them. Some of them have become familiar to us, and we are getting to know them. It's much easier in a smaller environment than Shed, but we also weren't this closely tied in previously. We met Charlie at church, and caught up a bit before the services, then headed a back to the center to have lunch, and visit. We were able to play some cribbage, visit, watch a great movie, I Am Number Four (one I didn't think I'd like), and visit with some of the guys. Ryan has gotten to know some of them, and enjoys his time there with them as much as he does Charlie. He still thinks it's cool that they all call him Charlie's Little Brother.
We drove through Sisters, and it was perfect...I needed to take this for my Aunt Cece, as it's always seemed foggy or cloudy when she gets to go through here. Thought of you today Cec!!
We had a great visit with Charlie, and the time always flies. So good to see him happy again, and loving the Lord.
Birthday Weekend for Bill (although I reaped benefit too!) June 10-13
What a wonderful weekend away!! Bill & I got away for his 50th Birthday. He asked in January that I not plan a party as we have for every "Decade" birthday since we've been together, and asked that we get away for a quiet romantic weekend. Since our money situation is tight, I honored his request, and found a smoking deal in Medford. We usually love the coast, but the cost during the summer is way too high, and the heat of Medford gave us a chance to get a good deal!
We left on Friday morning. Bill had the laundry done when I got home from work on Thursday as he was finished with school on Wednesday. He had a lot ready to go, and we finished up, and woke early to take off before 9am. The kids stayed home, and did a great job here alone. We spent a lazy drive, stopping at places we always said "I wonder what that park is, or that museum or that scenic drive". It was great. We hit a detour with the GPS that took us on some very high logging roads, and 2 miles from where we were to get back onto the back scenic drive, was a gate. Oh well, 12 miles or more back, but a great drive, beautiful views and good company. We visited Jacksonville, a beautiful old town, although I was disappointed there weren't more shops...but there was an awesome kitchen store, and an incredible toy store...I could have bought half of it! A nice dinner at Red Lobster after checking into our hotel, followed by a nice walk, and a relaxing evening.
Saturday took us on a drive to some of the local Saturday markets. A great day, great weather, and again, we just enjoyed being "Shawnna & Bill". We were blessed to meet up with friends Lucy & Rick (and no, not Ricardo) for dinner. We had a great visit and headed back to their house to visit more...dinner wasn't enough!!
Sunday we woke sad to head home after such a great weekend. We did take the long way home, and stopped to see friends Flo and Harry for lunch. After a nice visit, we finished the trek home to join the kids in their fundraiser at church for camp. They each have 195.00 to make for camp. Ryan is 11.00 away from goal, and not sure on Kristin, as she has not has as many opportunities as Ryan. The kids did a great job of serving dinner, and working with the pie auction. It was a late night getting home after a long day,but well worth it.
Happy 50th Bill..hope you enjoyed that as much or more than a party!! You've now officially been with me more than half of your life!!
Play House to Chicken Coop in 2.5 hours!! June 16, 2011
An era has come to an end....at least in the Richard's yard. After 13-14 years of great use, our swing set/play house has come down. Kristin used the playhouse a little last year, mostly getting away to find someplace to write (we found an old diary hid in there!!), and she still swings when the weather is nice...she is the only kid I know that swings with chickens. She holds them, and they nuzzle their heads right into her neck/shoulder and seem as content as can be! At any rate, the chickens is what brought demise to the swing set. As you read in previous posts, we got two more chickens....and the wonderful coop we bought last just a short year ago, has fallen apart. Bill was discussing "rebuilding" it to a bigger better coop when he thought of the renovating the playhouse. With Kristins permission and excitement, they started planning. I came home from work on Monday to find the swingset part removed, the railings and slide removed, and the fencing around the house gone...it looked so sad down there. For so many years, it has been a focal point of that corner. I've spent lots of hours with various stages of swinging, from baby swings, to airplane swings, to regular swings. From being carried up to slide down, to standing on the ground "helping", to only being near to watch. It's been through a lot with us, and if it could talk, I'm sure would have lots of secrets and stories to share that we did not witness.
My sadness faded when I heard how excited both Kristin & Bill were to do this project...they discussed nesting boxes, Kristin did research on spacing, perches, square footage for birds, and she figures we can have 10 birds for 5 nesting boxes, but also have friends that have way more birds in less space, so we could have tons!! The work began, and by the end of the week, new nesting boxes were built, doors and window shutters (they were open before...no covers or closings), and plans for fencing and feeders were in place....now for the move!!
For the move, it required some equipment and some muscle...both we have in our good friend Nate. He brought his tractor, a sturdy trailer to put the house on, and of course his head....the most important part...as the house was on 4 Ft stilts, and the house stands 8 or more feet tall on its own. Bill had it worked out in his head earlier this week, but of course, needed to confer with Nate, as to how they could do this. Before long, they were lifting, supporting, and cutting down the supports. The trailer went under after the first two supports were cut...and then they worked on getting the other supports relief cut, so that they could support it and then push the house off the supports. It worked beautifully.
I was in awe when I saw Nate turn the trailer around in the field and back up the hill, next to the house & 5th wheel, between the fruit trees...."tons of room" to him has a different definition to me!! TONS of room is 50 feet clearance, not less than 2 ft!! After chopping a huge limb off our cherry tree, they made it to the back, and came part two...getting it off the trailer! A crane would have been handy, but three guys, a tractor and some straps worked just as well!
Nate pulled the house off the trailer as far as he could with the tractor before hitting the back hill, then pulled the trailer forward, so that we had more room. It worked like a charm, except it wanted to come off sideways...two guys pushing against it to guide it and it came down without even a dent!! Thank you Nate for your expertise in trailer backing, tractor maneuvering, and thinking skills...how were Katie & I so lucky to find two of you so much alike??!!
Friday brought Bill cutting the side of the house, to install the nesting boxes, while Kristin & Tanya painted the doors & window shutters. They are nice & bright, while the rest of the house is faded. They were much easier to paint before Bill put them up...so now the rest needs a paint job, along with the nesting boxes. Hinges need installed on the door, as does a cable for pulling the door open & closed for night. Fencing is the last thing and only cost for this whole project...how blessed are we!!??
The last week has been nothing but short of incredible, and a testimony to how God can pull it all together, and make something happen that we could have never orchestrated on our own...
As most of you are aware, Charlie, who used to live with us has been out of sight for some time. We've been worried about him, and were thankful to hear that he was OK through a friend. This friend did share with us that he was looking to go back to teen challenge to restoration. Of course, hearing this...we really began to worry. Not more than 10 days after I heard the news of Charlie, and after some long prayer sessions with the Lord, Charlie called!! He told us that he was thinking about restoration and I asked him where he wanted to go. Ten days prior, I had hooked up with Kim, from the Bend Teen Challenge, who originally got Charlie to the Teen Challenge in Shedd. She told me they had an open bed, and if I could get Charlie there, she & her husband would love the opportunity to work with him. I shared this with Charlie, and he asked to think about it. He also had to commit to Bend for a year program. This was something we weren't sure that Charlie would do. It was a long night of fret & worry, however, when morning came, Charlie talked with the Bend Teen Challenge, committed to the program, and asked us to come get him in Portland and take him to Bend. We were MORE than happy to do this.
Saturday morning, and we were ready to go...we drove to Portland and got there about 12:00. It was a great reunion, as it had been since September since we had seen him. Lots of hugs and then good bye to his uncle, and off we headed to Charlie's Mom's to pick up his clothes. We stopped for a quick bite and were on the road for the 3 1/2 hour trip to Bend. 
Sadly, I left my camera in the back, as the snow and sky were beautiful as we headed from Salem to Bend. We had a nice visit on the way...and lots of slushy snow, and whiteout conditions on the way to Bend. Thankfully, when we came off the mountain, it was beautiful and sunny again!
We stopped for coffee and a pit stop in Sisters, and then headed to Teen Challenge. Upon arriving, we went in, and had a tour. It felt like home right off. It was a much smaller environment than the Shedd facility, and of course, fewer guys. Charlie seemed to feel pretty comfortable, and after a tour, unpacking his things, and some goodbyes we were headed once again over the mountain for home. It was with mixed feelings, as we didn't know when we'd be able to see Charlie again, being his is now two hours away, and visits are on Sunday afternoons. Long drive for a few hour visit...but I'm sure we'll make it!
We headed again, out of sunshine, into snow....and then more snow, and more!! We forgot the chains, so we were thankful for new tires, and 4wheel drive! We stopped for some pictures, and then Bill took lots as we drove through the snow.
We spent a busy week and found out that the Teen Challenge Spring dinner was this last weekend. We knew it was a good opportunity to show support to TC and to Charlie. During the week we had some sad events....as Kristin lost both of her rats within 5 days of each other. Tommy, one of our Youth Pastors was here to borrow our truck, and blessed her by helping Ryan bury the first one, and having a short service. He & Ryan even made a cross. Our kids are so blessed by the adults in their lives!
Friday finally came, and we made a fun weekend out of it, and got a room on Saturday night so we didn't have to come through the pass late, and it was just a good excuse! We left Ryan at home because he had a Youth Group event....the VELCRO WALL!! Not sure it sounds too exciting to me to dress in the loop suit and hit the other side of the velcro, but then again, I'm not 15! Kristin enjoyed being an only child for two days!
We arrived in Bend around 2, and checked in to our hotel. It was very nice, and right on the river. We had a few hours, so we headed into town and found the coolest Christian Bookstore. We spent most of our time there, taking it all in! It had wonderful gifts, many books, t-shirts, etc. We finished up in town, headed back to the hotel to get dressed for dinner, and headed to Eagle Crest for the Teen Challenge Banquet.
We arrived, and saw Charlie as soon as we entered. He saw our name on the list, so our surprise was not a surprise. He seemed very happy to see us, and we enjoyed a very inspiring, fullfilling evening, and enjoyed our visit with Charlie. It turns out there was a baptism the next morning and a BBQ, so we checked to make sure we could attend, and planned our next day at the park.
We enjoyed a fun evening in the pool and spa at the hotel, and crashed in our room to be awakened by a pair of swans that thought the hotel residents should feed them breakfast. We went out on the deck, and the waddled up to below our deck, and waited....joined by a pair of ducks, and a pair of geese. This must happen daily for them! We had breakfast, headed to pick up a few things that Charlie needed, and headed to the BBQ for Teen Challenge.
It was incredible to watch 5 men give their lives to the Lord. Braving the icy Dechutes River was enough to make most back out! It was a great afternoon, and after we headed over the mountain and arrived home in time to unpack, and head to our leadership prayer night with our church.
Talk about exhausting. It was a mentally enriching and draining night and about 25 of us met for a few hours of sharing, worship and prayer. Both Bill & I were mentally drained when we got home. It was a weekend we were both so met by the Lord. What a few weeks this has been! God is good, and he shows his grace and mercy to us in so many ways. Thank You Lord!
Seeking prayers for our direction. God has provided for us so much since Bill has been laid off. His unemployment benefits are now exhausted as of April 3rd, and he will finish school this June, with one class to finish next fall. Please pray for a way for our financial needs to be met. God has been good, and we are trusting him. Prayers are greatly appreciated for guidance and peace.
Our funny shot from today.....Bill & Ryan were both off this last week for Spring Break. While we just had two weeks away from here, it was not a vacation by any means. So, while we spent the last few weeks catching up, we decided we still needed some down time. While I was scheduled to have the whole week off, we decided it best to cancel that idea, and just have a few days off.
Mon-Wed, Bill & Ryan worked on wood (the shed is empty!), while I worked. Even Kristin helped some. She was excited that she is finally big enough to keep the tractor running, so she could drive the loaded trailer full of wood to the shed, dump it, and head back for another!
Bill got his grades, and being off two weeks did hurt them, but not as bad as he feared. He still ended up with 3 B's and 2 A's....not bad for 18 credits, and two weeks off the week before finals. It was tough catching up, but we are all very proud of him for a job well done! Ryan too, had a lot to catch up on, and although he has one class to complete some work in, the teacher is being kind enough to allow him another week or two, and will change his grade for the class. It was a lot of work to catch up on in a week. We'll keep you posted there!
I took off Thursday & Friday...making it a long weekend. Thursday, we pondered what to do...we wanted to go to Sisters, but the forecast was snowy....and the coast forecast was rainy, so we headed to the pass, and took a drive back toward Eugene. There are some pretty waterfalls there, that have some great hiking trails. What we didn't realize, was the altitude was higher than we thought and there was WAY too much snow to hike. We'd have been better fitted with snow shoes or ski's.
However, the drive was beautiful, and we did get out in the fresh air, and enjoy the sun, snow, rain & hail that we had!! We rounded out the day with a trip to Dickijoe's for burgers & dogs, to help support our friend Nate, as they were doing a fund raiser. We headed back home the long way, and took an old logging road from Marcola to Sweet Home! Once home, we finished up our puzzle we started the night before, and called it a day...a good day!!
Friday we slept in, got a few jobs done, worked on the taxes, and enjoyed a lazy day. We anticipated rain again on Saturday, and woke at 7 to rain, so rolled over, woke later to sunshine. We showered and headed off for the coast. While we got plenty of rain, we also had plenty of sunshine, some pretty rainbows, and a lot of fun. We hit some favorite spots, hit the outlets, and got an early anniversary gift from Bill...an awesome flash, that is mount, or stand alone for additional light...it's incredible!!
We rounded out the day with dinner at the Sea Hag, and headed for home, taking some nice sunset pictures on the way with some new filters I got a few weeks ago. FUN!! Got home around 9, played with the new flash...and am VERY pleased with the lighting....awesome. Thanks Bill!
Check out the pictures from today...and Thursday!
Today, March 3rd, 2011--we said goodbye to Bob. There were more people at the church than I could possibly count, but while working on the thank you notes, there must have been more than 200 people. It was amazing to see the support that the family had, and we are so grateful for those prayers, hugs, cards, calls, emails, and the "just being there". Bill & I are especially grateful for those friends of ours who made the time to come out and support us. It means so much to us.
We enjoyed visiting with so many that we haven't seen since our wedding. Friends of Bill's that he hasn't seen since since before we got married. It was a beautiful service with a nice message from an old friend, and a teaching/sermon from Mom's pastor who did an awesome job of pulling all of "Bob" into the message. After, we gathered in the fellowship hall to enjoy some of Bob's favorite desserts.
Once the service was over, we headed back to Bill's Mom's to have dinner with the immediate family that was in town. While the reason to be together was sad, the evening was enjoyed by all of this family, who are more like friends, and enjoyed our short time together. Beth (Bill's oldest sister) made Dad's favorite cheese fondue and everyone had a toast to Bob. It was a great evening, and an opportunity to visit with those who we don't get to see often.
<
If anyone told me last Monday that we would be traveling through many states to get to Michigan quickly, I would have told them they were crazy.
On Monday, Presidents day, we got a call from Bill's sister saying we had better head home. Bill's dad had fallen on Friday night/Saturday AM, and broken his hip. He was scheduled for surgery, but due to his potassium levels due to kidney function, it was delayed. However, sometime during the night on Sunday, he had a heart attack, and things headed from bad to worse. We tried to get a flight in on Monday, or at least Bill out on Monday, and due to the weather in Michigan, we were unable to get a flight until Thursday. Bill could have gotten out Wednesday night, but we didn't figure we would gain much. Long story short, we found flights on Expedia, and arrived Tuesday night, after taking three planes, and two airlines.
We went straight to the hospital, and were able to see Bob. Long story short, things were not good. We had a family meeting the next day, and it seemed that things were going in a positive direction, so we held onto hope. Thursday, Bob was breathing on his own, and we really had hope. Unfortunately, on Thursday night, things turned, and he was back on the respirator on Friday morning. The doctor stated that she would pull him off all pain and sedation meds to see if they could get any response. Unfortunately, by late afternoon, there was still no response. Bob had been on continuous dialysis for 5 days, along with the heart only functioning at 50%, and the respirator, things were not moving in a positive direction. The Dr then suggested that we meet with the Palliative team and decide what to do next. Bob's patient advocate stated that he did not want life support unless it was short term, and there was hope for recovery. The palliative team informed us that they had tried all forms of treatment, and that he was not responding. Being that this was against his wishes to continue keeping him alive by machinery and medication, the family honored his wishes and had all the "stuff" removed. Pastor Dave was with us, and all of the family was there, and after a few short hours, he drifted quietly off to sleep, and was finally at peace. It has been a few tough days, but we are thankful that we are all together.
The last few days have been busy with planning for the service on Thursday. We spent Saturday at the funeral home and florist, and Sunday, we stayed home, going through pictures and paperwork. Bill & I found a great photo of Dad that none of us had seen. It speaks volumes of Bob's character and it is now a favorite of ours.
Monday, Kristin & I snuck to Ohio for a few hours to visit with my grandparents. It was three hours and a smidge down, and about 4 hours back with a dinner stop....all worth it. It was a surprise for Grams & Gramps...and we stopped to get flowers for Grams, as her birthday is Thursday. It was a nice day, and Kristin got to see her Big Papa. Ryan & Bill stayed here and worked on some things for Thursday. We were able to change our tickets to fly back to Oregon on Sunday, and are so thankful for Jenny who is watching the house and all the animals for us.
Today we did some cleaning...some running around, and then spent a nice evening with some life long friends of Bill's. It was a nice change, and the place we met in Ann Arbor was full of character, and great food!
I have also posted a few pictures..I guess it's not all been a drag. Ryan is tired of shoveling snow....we did get some REAL chili dogs, and cribbage has been played with Grandma.
Off to bed, a few things to do before Thursday....and hoping to sleep in tomorrow!
Thanks to all for your prayers, your cards, your calls, your e-mails and your face book messages...it means so much to us.
(Thanks Aubree for the great pictures!)
