Weak

See? I didn't even make it two weeks. I'm addicted to blogging and I just couldn't stay away any longer...

First and of utmost importance, I want to let everyone know that my dad is finishing up his hospital stay in Rochester and may (crossed fingers) be allowed to come home tomorrow. I asked if that was for good behavior, but it sounds like it's for speedy recovery.

For those of you who didn't know, Dad was diagnosed with a squamous cell carcinoma in his jaw a couple of weeks ago. He was referred to Mayo Clinic, where he underwent a bunch of tests last week. He got the results of those tests last Thursday--all clear. The cancer has not spread anywhere in his body. He had surgery the next day during which the doctors removed a portion of his tibia and used it to reconstruct the area of his jaw that was cancerous and had to be removed. The last obstacle to overcome was testing of the lymph nodes around that area that were extracted during surgery--those also came back clean.

We are very, very blessed. I thank all of you who have prayed for Dad, those of you who visited and supported Mom during the surgery (thanks Steve!), and those of you who took time to call Mom and check up/in during these stressful days. Dad says that he has been amazed at the outpouring of love and can hardly believe that so many people care about him.

Well, get used to it Pete. We were a secret society, but now all the members are out there in the open. We love hugs and teddy bears, too.

Anyway...Dad is doing great in the hospital. I think that his mood has been up and down, from what I have garnered from my daily calls to Mom. I'm sure that this is normal. He hasn't had a stay in the hospital or any surgery since he was a little guy and had his tonsils removed! And of course, he has Florence Nightengale personifed in Mom, who has been with him almost non-stop. When I called the other night, she had just finished giving him a sponge bath. Those two kids, I tell ya!

As for us. I'm not sure what infected me the week I wrote my last post. I guess I was just in a case of the doldrums. The weather was nasty, gray and awful all week. The kids were unusally fiesty and sassy. I needed a haircut and none of my clothes were acceptable. My Dad was diagnosed with cancer. Stuff like that. Thanks for understanding.

How about a few pictures to make it up?

Comments

Peder said…
I'm so glad to hear that he's doing well. I can give tips for how to eat with a jaw injury if you'd like.
MamaD4 said…
I asked him why they didn't just make his jaw out of titanium like yours...he didn't know.
DD4 said…
Rachel, I'm thrilled about your dad's good report and so happy that he can go home soon. Yes, many, many people have been praying for him, your mom, and your whole family. I know it was terribly hard on you to be so far away. Bless you and Hans for your commitment to serve our country. (That could be another whole blog entry!)

May your dad continue to get stronger every day!

And I'm glad you feel up to blogging again. We missed you! :-)
Anonymous said…
I was hopeful that after Pete got the great pathology results that you would be back to blogging. It is hard to be so far away when serious things happen. I know. It was so great to hear the results from Jan via Mom (mine). Love the pictures of Annika.
Welcome back, Rachel! We missed your writing although we understood what you were going through.
I'm so glad that your Dad's surgery is over and he seems to be doing very well.
Badger said…
I'm actually glad about the LOA, it made catching up a lot easier.
Badger said…
Could have lived without the sponge bath comment though. Ew. Can't help but get a visual. Agh! There it is again!!!

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