What a year it's been! I think I can safely say it was the "Best Worst Year" of our lives....if that makes any sense!?! If not now, it will by the end of this entry, I'm sure.
~2005 began with me working a temporary (6 month) dental hygiene job for a former boss of mine, in addition to working with the dentist I've been with for 5 years. The days, weeks and hours were long; however, Steve, the girls and I were adjusting to having Mom gone most of the week....settling into our own little routine. Our plan was to save up for a nice vacation later in the year. What's the phrase in that new country song, "If you want to hear God laugh, tell Him your plans???" ... Little did we know the turn our lives would suddenly take....
~The first part of 2005 Mariah, McKenna and Miranda were blissfully involved in all the activities that go along with being active girls. Mariah was involved in private saxophone lessons, playing by invitation in her school's band (which was an honor as she wasn't an actual member of the band), being the pitcher for the Senior level little league softball team (the season was just beginning), keeping excellent grades in 7th grade at her school and all the other activites that teenage girls enjoy! McKenna was taking jazz dance lessons and was just beginning another year of minor level little league softball. She was also carrying straight A's in 3rd grade. Miranda was just getting ready to start her first year in t-ball, taking her second year of tap dance lessons and enjoying her last year at home during the day before kindergarten started in the fall. In general, just enjoying our busy lives! Little did we know the turn our lives would suddenly take....
~Steve began to have severe pain in his left hip at the beginning of this year, which he and his doctor both thought was just an injury, something easily corrected; so he began a journey of physical therapy. Again... Little did we know the turn our lives would suddenly take....
~Fast forward to April, 2005. The point in which our lives stopped on a dime. When life as we knew it ceased to exist. When everything changed. Steve, seemingly fairly healthy ~ was overnight faced with the battle of his life. The battle for his life. The battle to basically return from death's door. His doctors (at OHSU ~ Oregon Health & Sciences University ~ where he was transfered by ambulance) listed him in 'gravely ill' condition. I was told by his health care team to NOT promise my girls that daddy was coming home, because, in the words of the doctors, "most likely he will not survive this illness." From April-November 2005, Steve has been through three hospitalizations, life-support, a ventilator to breathe for him, gravely ill condition, TTP (now in remission), kidney failure, a period of daily kidney dialysis, plasmapheresis (where 80% of his blood plasma was replaced daily for almost 2 weeks), blood transfusions, a total hip replacement on his left hip, gall bladder surgery, to name a few. Even though the doctors did not predict his survival, they also prepared me for what it would be like IF he did survive. Words like stroke, brain damage, heart attack, life-long dialysis, neurological deficiencies, inability to work again, permanent disability, medicare, personality changes....were used often. He had hematologists, oncologists, a kidney/renal team, pulmonary specialists, orthopedic, critical care teams all working to save him and help preserve some of his quality of life. As I said, little did we know the turn our lives would suddenly take....
~But, as I said......little did we know the turn our lives would suddenly take.... it was the Best Worst Year of our lives: Steve survived. He not only survived, he surpassed all the expectations of each and every one of his doctors and medical teams. He's home, he's back to running our business, his blood disorder is in remission at this time, he's fighting to get his life back. What a miracle! Of course, there are differences in him and in our family and they are most likely permanent changes. His recovery will be a life-long process, one filled with steps forward and steps backwards, but at least it's a recovery....one that he wasn't expected to have. The changes and differences leave us struggling to find the "new normal" in our lives on a daily basis. But, we are so grateful to wake each day with the knowledge that God and His divine intervention saved Steve's life. I would be happy to explain his illness in more depth if you would like, so please email me if you would like more info.
~Again, little did we know the turn our lives would suddenly take....three weeks before Steve's illness hit, we found the home and land of our dreams. We made an offer, it was accepted and we were ecstatic about it! Two weeks later, Steve entered the hospital on a Monday and we were to sign final papers that Friday. Obviously, being on life-support is NOT conducive to closing a real estate deal, to say the least. I was in a bind...do I continue with faith, do I let the deal slide and hope we find another home if Steve survives, do I just stay put in our present home, keeping in mind that I most likely would be raising our daughters there alone. What I decided was to proceed in faith, because of a remark Steve had made to me shortly before they put him on the ventilator. He said, "if something goes wrong and I don't make it, I want you to raise our girls in our new home." Fortunately, the sellers were great people and they held onto the home for us. We were able to sign papers the day after Steve came home from the hospital the first time and we moved three weeks later! It was due to the grace, patience and help of my extended family that we were able to move 13 years of accumulation in only two days. What a blessing my family was to us in those days when we needed help the most. There is NO way that I could have moved us without the help of my famiy ~~ THANK YOU to each of you...you know who you are!!!! The hand of the Lord was in it every step of the way as we couldn't have planned the timing any better!
~Okay, maybe this wasn't as quick as I had planned, but a few more events to note: Mariah had appendicitis and had an emergency appendectomy in October, at the age of 14. The girls received 4-wheelers for their birthdays and are rapidly learning to navigate around our almost three acres! The house we moved out of sold two days after we listed it, cash offer for just barely under our asking price, closing in 10 days! It was amazing!
~If you've stuck with me this long, Thank You! I will try to edit and change things around to a more readable format in time. As this is my first attempt at a blog, please bear with me!
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