Miracles Keep Happening

The night before we were to leave to come home from Texas, it was decided that it would be safest for LeAnn to fly home (she has a complicated pregnancy) and because Jimi had a job interview on Tuesday, there was no way he could ride up when we left on Monday. So, Kathy worked late into the night to get a flight for them. She was exhausted with having had a house full of people around and the Christmas celebrations, along with thinking of having to get ready for an unexpected trip to Janesville. She needed to get the tickets purchased for Jimi and LeAnn. So, in haste, she book the flights and put the name on the ticket for LeAnn as LeAnn Alsman (LeAnn has been married for 7 years) and put Jimi's name as "Jimi". His legal name is James and that is what has to appear on his ticket. It was Tuesday morning when LeAnn called with concern that with the heightened security at airports, changing names on tickets may cause them not to be able to get on a flight.

We did right then what we needed to do, we stopped and prayed--and turned it over to God to get Jimi and LeAnn safely here. Later in the day, I called LeAnn to remind her that the God who healed the hole in her heart a few months ago, is the God who wants them to be here for the service and HE will cause it to happen.

As of right now, they should be nearly arriving at O'Hare. Praise the LORD.

Mom was putting a puzzle together her last days alive. She obeyed exactly what the puzzle told her to do....

Here are the things that were posted by two of my sisters in reply to my blog. Thank you all for reading about my mother and the thoughts that have been circling around in my brain.




Mommy met Jesus tonight (Christmas Eve). ALL so clearly orchestrated by God - as you could see from Christine's perspective HERE. I'm the sister in Texas that Christine was coming to visit from Wisconsin. There are sooo many more "coincidences" that I could add, but, if you have read this far in my blog - including Christine's - you don't need my perspective to see God's hand in ALL of this.




I am not usually one to spread news like this - in fact YOU are the first one I've told other than family. But, this is a story that needs to be told - especially to those who need the reminder and/or assurance that God is sovereign and that he cares about the smallest details of our lives, and that Jesus is preparing a place for those who love him. My prayer for you, is that you are HIS.




Leila was with Mom when she went to meet Jesus. Leila & her husband - just recently left their jobs, son and friends in Wichita, Kansas to be near their 1st grandchild in Michigan. So Leila was within 3 hours of Mom, instead of 12 hours. That is a whole nother story of how God orchestrates and guides our lives - far beyond what we understand, if we allow Him to.




Another important note is that DAD has Alzheimer's - and has been in a nursing home for 5 years - and Mom has visited him everyday, although we sometime questioned WHY - he didn't seem to even know who she was or that she was even there. If you knew my Mom you'd believe as we all do - that it was just her stubbornness and need to control EVERYTHING :)!




Here are Leila's comments:




I've modified the obit some more--Mom didn't die, she went to be with Jesus, because "whoever believes in Me will never die."





I had recited John 14 to Mom when she was on the ventilator, reminding her that Jesus must have her place prepared, because he was coming to get her. I figure she's probably giving Him advice now about Dad's place, and all of ours--to be sure they're done right. (Maybe that's what I'll share at the service.)




I tried to comment on your blog, Christine, but I don't have time to set up an account--don't really understand how, so I'm attaching my "response blog." Once I got started, I didn't know where to stop--like talking. I wanted all of you to know this about my visit with Dad, too.




Just a clarification--because that's one of my "gifts"--Mom was also with us at Thanksgiving. Another gift from God was the fact that Mom recovered on her own from "fatal V-Tach arrhythmia," as the ICU Nurse, Rachel, so aptly explained to us. The ICU Staff were all "mesmerized" by her medical process. I learned later that she had "awakened" on her own after the original episode. Our son-in-law, who is a PA in ICU states that he's never seen anyone with any brain function after that length of V-tach episodes, because during those, there is no blood flowing to the brain.





I could/should write my own blog--or at least journal for my own wellness; I have had the experience of witnessing "end-of-life" episodes with several families over the past 14 years. Never have I witnessed anyone becoming lucid and being able to communicate at the end. It was like a TV Christmas movie--very unrealistic, but ever precious. I thank God that He prepared me for this experience; placed me within reach geographically to be there with Mom, and that I could get her answer, "Yes" when I asked if she was ready to leave this life.




I went to see Dad at noon after Mom had gone to Jesus; I felt it was important that he be informed whether he understood or not. He looked at me when I sat down next to him, and then closed his eyes (I think this is his way of hiding when he doesn’t know how to deal with what’s happening around him.) I told the CNA who was getting people ready for lunch about Mom’s passing. She, of course, was shocked and expressed her condolences—then she evidently ran to pass the word to the rest of the staff. Another staff member who had been in the activity room returned and said across the room, “Rita? You said Rita died?” When Dad heard Mom’s name, his eyes popped open wide and he looked toward the lady who had said this. While he was engaged, I told him, “Mom went to be with Jesus. She won’t be able to come visit you anymore.” He didn’t show any indication of understanding what I had said, which didn’t surprise me. As we sat there, he began to hum, so I reminded him that it was Christmas Eve, and that he used to hold Christmas Eve candlelight services and we always sang Silent Night. I began to sing, as much as my tears would allow, and he hummed with me. I’ve tried singing to him before in an effort to connect, and he has never before responded. As we sat there, a radio was playing Christmas music, and “Rudolph” played. I started singing along, and Dad again engaged and nodded his head in time with the music, smiling. I helped him eat lunch, and then Mike and I took him for a walk down the hall. We “caroled” a little as we went. Dad seemed to enjoy that.




This is what one of the staff members posted for Christine in response to her blog about the whole experience:

Beautiful Blog Christine . I will miss your mother coming up to see Andy everyday . I can tell you all Andy kept saying Rita is gone . My heart ached for him. I told him she will be watching over you in heaven. He said " yes she will." He was fine with that comment. My heart goes out to you and your families. She will be missed at Rock Haven. She was a wonderful lady, she was like 2nd family to most of us at Rock Haven. She would kiss him goodnight and always say "going home see you tomorrow I love you ." Andy would always smile back at her.

Mom knows God's amazing love in a clear way now, whereas, with all the counting of blessings that we're doing, we only "see through a glass, dimly." God is good--ALL THE TIME! Praise His holy Name!




All this to just say!




God is Good!

Shocking December News

Where do I begin with the story of what has taken place over the last several days? A few weeks ago, when we realized I had two weeks of vacation with Christmas falling in the middle, Jim thought we should go to Texas for Christmas. I have a sister who lives in Austin, she has lived there since 1984. We have never made any effort to drive all the way to Austin for Christmas in all the years they have lived there. We all went to Austin in 2003 for Josh and LeAnn's wedding which was December 20th--so we celebrated together, but never have we ever made that journey specifically for Christmas.

This story may get long and details may seem strange, but this is a reflection of the things God has revealed to me today about how much he loves me, how much he cares about the tiniest most insignificant details of my life, and how he uses those things for his glory.

As we began our preparations for our trip, we knew Ryan had no school after Tuesday, the 21st. So, the plan was to leave on Wednesday, the 22nd early morning. We weren't thinking that Dan would be able to go along due to work and school obligations, so made our plans accordinly. When we told Dan of the plans, he said he could take off work only one day and with his last final on Wednesday afternoon, if we waited one more day, he could go along. So, we changed our departure date by one day.

We asked my mother if she would stop by and feed the cat while we were gone. She said she would rather we find someone who lives near us to do that. We were in a way put out, it was really no big deal for her (so we thought). But, we made other arrangements and just moved on.

On Saturday, I told Ryan we were going to church. He said he wanted to go to church with Grandma. It wasn't that he wanted to get out of going with me on Saturday night, and not where he wanted to go, he didn't care where, he just wanted to go to church on Sunday with Grandma. While Ryan and I were going to Rockford to church on Saturday evening, he told me he wanted to go to Panda Express for supper. Since I had put a roast in the crock pot, that was out of the question. I suggested he ask Grandma to take him for Chinese. So, Sunday morning, he went to church with Grandma and then to Panda Express for lunch. It was a special day he got to spend with Grandma.

Mom made cookies for us to take on the trip, not a couple of batches, but MASSIVE numbers of cookies. I couldn't for the life of me figure out why she needed to send that many cookies with us, but we packed them all up and took them with. Jim and I went over to her apartment to pick up the cookies. Mom was very tired, but was planning her daily trip out to Rock Haven to spend time with Dad. She was tired, Jim commented that she looked pretty tired. She said, "Yeah, I am tired, I probably need to get out and walk more." She sat down in the lobby while we loaded the cookies into the car. Her usual routine would have been to stand out and tell me just exactly how to put each and every container into the trunk.

We rarely (never) get on the road very early for trips. Our intentions are always to get going early, but it never happens. For some reason (and I know now why) we got packed quickly and orderly, and were ready to head out the door by 3:30 AM. I drove until we stopped for breakfast. With limited traffic, we made very good time. We were very far ahead of schedule and the trip was going smoother than ever before.

We had a goal to make it to the south side of Dallas. We were just outside of Tulsa when a phone call came to my phone. Jim answered since I was driving. The one sided conversation was making me crazy. "What was going on?" I finally YELLED...."tell me what you are talking about...." Jim stopped the conversation and told me, "Your mother has had another attack, the paramedics are there now, she was a Kay's house watching her soap operas." Jim then went back to the phone and heard the remainder of the details. When he hung up, he told me that Mom had gone to Kay's apartment (her routine) so the two of them could watch soap opera reruns. They did this every night, either the soaps or a movie. Their friendship had grown over the years as Kay supported my mom during the early days of placing Dad in care, it just grew and grew. There was never a time when I was with Mom or spoke to Mom that she didn't say, "Kay said......." and I would be updated on the latest event in both lives or their thoughts on politics or the latest current event, etc. Mom started coughing and Kay asked her if she was all right. Mom--of course said yes. The next time Kay looked over at Mom, she was obviously gone, passed out cold and colorless. Kay activated the emergency system in the building and called 911.

We talked, had decided that we were too far into our trip to try and turn around to be of any use to Mom back at home. We made several phone calls to family to alert them of the situation. Renee was the closest by geography, she was called first. She was by far the closest to Mom and needed to be with her during what seemed to be her last hours. Renee started on her way. She called and told me she didn't know what she would do if Mom was on a ventilator knowing that she did not want to be sustained on life support. I told Renee that if Mom was on a vent and she didn't want to withdraw on her own, to wait. We trusted whatever decision she made. I assured her that I knew she loved Mom and would not do what Mom did not want.

When Renee arrived, Mom was on a ventilator and Dopamine to keep her blood pressure stable. Leila had been called and was on her way from Michigan. We only had the option of just waiting. When Leila arrived, she said she would not have even recognized Mom. During all this waiting, we just pushed forward to try to make it to Dallas.

Renee called and told us that the doctor told her that if they took Mom off the ventilator, she would die within 1-2 hours. I told my kids that Grandma was going to die this evening. Ryan said, "I never got to say good-bye," tears falling down his face. Ryan had just spent Sunday with Grandma--I remind him that spending time was more important than actually saying words. I promised him that he would have a chance to get to say good-bye.

I called Renee, nothing much had changed. I told her we needed to get a phone to Mom's ear. Ryan needed to say good-bye to Grandma. Within a few minutes, Renee called and Ryan took the phone and said his final good-bye to Grandma, then, Dan took the phone and said his good-byes. This led to the decision to call each of the grandchildren and have them say good-bye.

We pushed harder and arrived in Austin at 2:30 am. Exhausted, yes, but thankful that we made the decision to push our way to the end. Kathy and I needed to be together. Leila and Renee gave us updates. At around 4 we decided we needed to go to bed. I encouraged Leila to make the move to withdraw life support quickly. Not that I wanted my mother to die, but I did want my mother to not live in a permanent vegatative state and I knew prolonging life support may contribute to a longer waiting period for her to enter into her eternal rest.

At 5:58, my phone rang. It was Renee, she called and said, "Mom went home." Later, I spoke with Leila. This is what she revealed to me about Mom's last moments. They took the ventilator off and Mom awoke, totally aware of her surroundings and coherent to speak. She looked at Renee and Leila and said, "What are you doing here?" They explained that Mom's heart had stopped and she had been on a ventilator but was no longer. She asked! Then, they clarified with her that she did not want her life maintained on life support. She said, "I don't want to be on a ventilator." Renee once more said to her, "Mom, you will die if we don't put you on a ventilator, is this what you want?" Mom told her, I don't want to live on a ventilator. Leila asked her if she had remembered hearing from each of her grandchildren, she had not. So, Leila told her that each one had called and said their goodbyes and that they loved her. Within a few moments, her heart went into ventricular tachycardia and she passed out, revived again by God's intervention, was aware of her surroundings. Leila told her she was going to go rest, Renee told Mom she was going to go home to bed, and Mom said she wanted her to do that. Renee left and Leila went to rest in the waiting room. The nurse came to get her and she went into the room to see Mom pass into her next life. She called Renee, Renee had just made it to the parking lot.

We are so thankful for so many things. So many details of this ordeal were so orchestrated by God far before we had any thought that all of these things would happen.

1. Our plans to go to Texas meant we were with Kathy and Bob and family at a time when they normally would have been alone. Bob would have been in Illinois with his family had we not been coming down. Matt joined us in Texas, he would have been alone in Wichita.
2. We would have been the first ones to respond when Mom went to the hospital and potentially would have prevented the starting of the ventilator and possibly prevented Mom from having the last conversations with Leila and Renee--as well as making sure the grandchildren each were able to say their last goodbyes before she was gone.
3. Mom told Leila and Renee not to make any special plans to be with her for Christmas, so no one had to change or cancel their plans for the holiday.
4. Mom was at Kay's when she had her attack--she could have been alone in her apartment and not found until the next day--not having had the opportunity to hear from her grandkids and spend the time with Renee and Leila that she had.
5. Mom told us when we were getting ready to leave that she would not feed our cat. I was a little miffed that she wouldn't do that for us, but having said no, it allowed us the time to find someone else to take care of the cat, thus, we didn't have to find someone to do it while we are on our trip.
6. We left early in the morning, that put us much closer to Austin than we normally would have been by that time of day.
7. I called Mom while we were on the road to chat with her, I had a conversation with her just hours before she went to be with the Lord. During this time, she told me the results she had received the day before from her pacemaker check and that she had been diagnosed with atrial fibrillation and would need to begin anticoagulation therapy.
8. Ryan insisted on spending Sunday with her, he had never done that before.
9. We spent Thanksgiving with Mike and Leila, Michele, Tim, and Oliver (and Tim's family).
10. She died over Christmas break allowing most of the family time to come home for the funeral when normally the long trip would not be possible.
11. This past summer we had a family reunion in which all but one person was there. He will be able to make it to the funeral.
12. Matt can go to Janesville with a passenger (Dan) and that will make his trip a little less boring.


I am sure there are many other things that as time goes we will see God's divine hand in all of this.

Thanks for reading my thoughts and for all the wonderful responses I have received.

Christine

The Worst Week EVER!

I was feeling all right when I arrived at the hospital. I had to put on the ugly green gown and take a picture to prove to my friend Shabvon that I do look good in green. I appear to be okay in this picture, and truly, I was--the pain was so intermittent that I debated going to the emergency room. I had gone to my primary doctor's office and saw the PA who started me on Bactrim for his diagnosis of diverticulitis. I got home and took the first dose and hours later decided that I could not deal with the level of pain I was having. So, off to the ER we headed. I felt so strange when I looked like I was in little distress, but I knew how bad it hurt when it came on.

I was treated so well--it helps when people think you are a "boss". The doctor was working real hard not to put me through too much and wanted to spare me of the contrast for my CT scan. I didn't care, I told him I wanted him to find out what was causing the pain, even if he didn't fix it, just tell me what is causing it. On the way to the ER, I said to Jim, "The only thing that could be worse than this pain is if I had to push a baby out and then raise it." I did feel like how I would imagine labor pains.

I was admitted because I told the doctor I didn't want him to treat me like I was a nurse, but treat me like I was a patient. So, I was started on IV antibiotics and admitted. I got very good care--although some of my long time so called friends said the staff probably drew straws to decide who got me as a patient. Really, am I that bad??

I was not allowed to eat for the whole night and the whole next day. I was too tired to worry about it. I realized my body was working hard to recover from the infection and that was why I felt so tired and blah. During the night on the second night, I started to develop pain in my right hand. I thought it was from a combination of not moving it much due to the IV and lying my head on it while I slept. When I got up and moving on Wednesday morning, I realized my feet hurt about as bad as my hand. I once again tried to rationalize that lying in bed for two days probably caused stiffness. I prepared to go home, I was feeling so much better other than my stiff joints. I didn't really worry about it though, figured it would get better with moving. I had my first meal--hospital food.


We headed home, first going to get some lunch and then shopping at the Dollar Store. When I got home, I vacuumed. I was feeling great--other than my stiff joints. The next morning, my hands looked like the picture. I could not bend at my knees, my feet were killing me. I went to the doctor. I was disappointed that she was not quite as impressed with my swollen joints as I was. She did lab work but offered nothing else. In time, the swelling had gone down. I now am feeling a lot better and decided that with my past experience with antibiotics, I most likely have an allergy to Bactrim. I feel that one tablet probably led to my extreme swelling of my joints.

During the painful time, I had to really learn to trust God that he would take care of me, I know I was not dying, but I was fearful of long term pain and not sure I could handle it. Thankfully, my body is healing and I am thankful that God cares enough about me that he would not allow my body to give out on me.

Thanks so much for praying for me.