Homeward Bound

Hello all. I'm pleased to report that Dad is on his way home from Rex Hospital. I just talked to him a short while ago (I'm in Atlanta with Melinda and the kids visiting Melinda's family) and he is doing quite well. The past few days have brought much in the way of progress. Dad's been able to regain more of his strength and some of the cognitive setbacks (stringing words together, comprehension, etc.) have improved as well. So, with the guidance of his doctors, dad was cleared to go home today and that's where he is now. Needless to say, this is a major milestone in our journey and while it will still be challenging for him at home as he needs the aid of a walker, tires quickly and is a little restless, it will be easier for him to relax in his own home.

So, here's where things stand at this point. Radiation is still on hold as we were told it cannot resume until 10 days after the surgery. He's completed 7 of 14 treatments, so he's 50% complete. He did resume the chemo on Monday of this past week, but only took the pills for 2 days as it coincided with a major setback in cognitive function. The doctors aren't sure that the chemo was causing that, but once he stopped, cognitive abilities began to return fairly quickly. So, the chemo is on hold for the time being, but will likely resume with the radiation. Lastly, earlier this week, we did have to shave dad's head as he was loosing a considerable portion of his hair each day, so shaving it was a little easier. And now, as my Aunt Betty (dad's sister) said, he looks a lot like Howie Mandel on the TV game show!

We appreciate all of your prayers and support. Being in the hospital for 3 straight weeks is not easy under any set of circumstances and being there over Christmas is even more difficult. However, we truly appreciate how special family and friends are this year as you have stood right beside us during these difficult days. Clearly, we have a long ways to go, but as dad said to me just a short while ago, the goal for each day is to be 110% better tomorrow than he is today.

Several of you have asked what you can do to help. I've asked Mom and Dad to think about some things that they may need help with and I'll post some of those items to this blog once I have them (hopefully later today). But for now, I only ask that you hold off on visits in the immediate future until dad has a chance to get readjusted to being at home. Once he's settled, I'm sure he will welcome a few visitors, so we'll let you know when he reaches that point.

Thanks again and I'll let you know more as we have it.