Update from Michelle

Though there is not anything new to share, I thought I would take the opportunity to send out a short update.  I (Michelle) have been so blessed to be able to celebrate Dad's birthday with him, and spend a few days visiting here with Dad and Mom and the rest of the family.   It's so nice that Dad was home though some days have been tiring for him.  He is doing quite well, but still waiting for an appointment for the PET scan, and so proceed with the tests and move forward.  It is not easy to be far away but as I plan to head home to Carman today, I am so thankful to leave Dad and Mom knowing they have the capable and loving care and support of my brothers and sisters here.  It is heartwarming for me to also see all the encouragement they are receiving from family and friends.  Please continue to keep us all in your prayers.

Three Score and Ten

Happy birthday to Dad!

Today the Lord has blessed Dad with 70 years and we are so very thankful to be able to celebrate this milestone with him.  The (local) grandkids are looking forward to sharing some cake with Grandpa/Papa this afternoon and can't wait to see Auntie Michelle who flew in from Carman MB yesterday especially for the occassion.

"This is the day the Lord has made; we will rejoice and be glad in it."

Home Sweet Home

Dad came home yesterday evening.  And while we are all very thankful that he is out of the hospital, his homecoming is shadowed by the news of lung cancer confirmed.  New answers mean more questions and we hope that the PET scan he now waits for will give us more answers.  Dad feels secure in the Lord's hands, knowing He has a perfect plan for him.  Though the road already feels long, we know that Dad has much more of it to travel and we are determined to travel it with him.  And Dad is preparing himself for this and is going to fight this battle "with all the strength the Lord gives me."  So, please, when you pray, pray for strength for him. 

Your visits are welcome again -- but a phonecall to the house beforehand would be very much appreciated. 

We continue to feel love and support from so many people -- you are a blessing to us all.  Thank you for your prayers, comments, emails, phonecalls and cards.

"I can do everything through him who gives me strength."  Philippians 4:13
 

Dad kindly requests to receive no visitors to the hospital at this time.  Thank you for your understanding.

Crib anyone?

Today Dad had his second broncocospy. While he was warned that he may have a sore throat and be rather sleepy following the procedure Dad came out feeling pretty good. No sore throat, not that sleepy...in fact he figured I (Yvonne, that is) should drop by with the crib board for a game or two. Dad was feeling a little emotional this evening and is very eager to return home though we don't know yet when that will be.  None of us would be any different after all the poking, prodding and discomforts of a hospital.

 

On another note, for the past two days Dad has had very little pain in his leg and we are very thankful for this change. 

In the interm we sincerely thank you all for the words, prayers, cards and offers of support for our family. God in His divine will has placed this in our lives and we will continue to let Him lead us.

Transfer

After a relatively good day, Dad got transferred this evening to Surrey Memorial Hospital (Rm 317 South). He now awaits the broncoscopy, though we have not been told yet when that is scheduled for. Yesterday he had a bone scan done and we are waiting for the results of that test. So, yes, there is still more waiting, but we are moving forward. We have been thankful for all the encouraging comments, emails, and phone calls received. We especially are thankful for the all the prayers offered on Dad's behalf. How great our God is -- Dad is where he needs to be right now and his spirits are up. I smile as I type this entry because we really saw much of our "old" dad today again!

Faith.  Family.  Feelings.  When we talked about starting a blog to keep family and friends updated on Dad's health, we realized we'd need a title.  So this is what we came up and here's why. 

Dad lives a life of faith, faith in His heavenly Father and in Jesus Christ his Savior.  He has taught us to live lives of faith, and his faith is what is sustaining him and us all right now. 

If we had to summarize Dad with one word, that word would be "family".  His family is and always has been priority in his life.  He makes each one of us feel included, special and most of all loved.

The third "f" wasn't so easy to come up with -- we thought of "frappacinos", but Dad prefers his coffee hot.  "Fiction" came to mind since he does enjoy reading. "Fishing" and "flying" have never been any of Dad's hobbies and "finicky" he is not.  So when we considered the purpose of this blog, we agreed that though it is a place for us to share what procedures and such Dad is going through, it will also be an opportunity for us (and you too, if you so choose) to express some of our feelings as we go through this journey with our dad.

As you may be aware, Dad went into the hospital on Friday, January 6.  He has been enduring pain in his right leg since mid-November and has had no relief despite various medications and treatment.  Since Friday he has been through a number of tests and still awaits more.  The news is not good.  We have been told by the specialist that it is highly suspect to be lung cancer and it seems to have already spread, which would explain the pain in his leg.  The most recent test came back as non-diagnostic.  Unfortunately, that means another test.  As it stands now, we are waiting for him to be transferred to Surrey Memorial Hospital where a thoracic surgeon will perform a bronoscopy to ultrasound and biopsy his lungs.  If the procedure proves to be diagnostic, we will be told conclusively what subtype of cancer it is and what stage its at.  We don't know when this will happen -- could be as early as tomorrow or as late as next week.  We pray that it will happen sooner than later, of course.  In the meantime he will be getting a bone scan done today and we hope to get results from that fairly quickly.

It has been a lot of information to take in.  Dad is accepting of the news but is heartbroken as we all are.  He knows his life is firmly in God's hands.  With all the tests he has had and pain meds he's been given he has been very tired and sometimes confused.  He doesn't love being in the hospital but you won't hear him complain. 

We are aware of all the prayers family and friends and others are offering up for him and us and we thank you.  Please continue to pray -- that the tests may be done quickly and questions may be answered. 

"The Lord is the stronghold of my life."  Psalm 27:1b