Doing Better!

We went to Hope Lodge to see Dad this weekend. It felt different being there with him instead of in the hospital. He was doing pretty well. He had been back to the clinic on Friday to get blood work and to make sure he was doing OK. He was a little dehydrated so he had to be hooked up to liquids. He went back on Saturday and everything in his blood work seemed to be OK. He is tired still. It will get better once his blood counts start going up. He was in good spirits. He was joking around quite a bit. Dads friend Sammy and Sammy's mother Jean are staying at Hope Lodge also. They have been letting Dad and Sharon know what to expect and how he may feel. Sammy has to stay close to the hospital for 100 days and he is on day 77. He still has bad days where he doesn't want to get out of bed. Rest is the best medicine right now. It is going to take a while before he is going to feel great.

Good News!!

I talked to Dad and Sharon last night and Dad had good news to share. He is getting released from the hospital TODAY! He will have to stay in Buffalo for at least two weeks and be checked at the hospital every day. They still have to check his blood counts and platelets. They also have to make sure he doesn't get an infection or have a fever. He can't wait to take his first breath of fresh air! We will let you know how he does.

Nice Friend?!

Dads friend Phil stopped in to see dad during the week last week and said to dad as they were visiting ........

"Man Butch your head looks like a Dandelion!!!!"

Do they look the same to you???
As dad was telling us the story on Saturday, his nurse (Denise) was in his room and she just started to giggle about it. Then she took a deep breath and blew at dads head. Dad was cracking up. It was good to see him laughing again.

Kaminski Park & Gardens

When dad was at Roswell for his first round of Chemo we could see a garden area out of his window. We finally decided on Saturday that we were going to stop and take some pictures.

Kaminski Park & Gardens: Walk of Life and Gardens of Hope

Introduced in July 2002, the park features perennial gardens, teak benches, inscribed pavers and trees dedicated to exceptional individuals.

The Walk of Life is located adjacent to the Institute. This area offers you the opportunity to pay tribute to a beloved family member, friend, coworker or health care provider. The path is outlined with inscribed red bricks donated by patients and loved ones.

The park offers sanctuary for people to sit quietly, to read and reflect, or to join family and friends in conversation.

The gardens are beautiful and very peaceful. We really enjoyed our visit.

Weekend Visit!

We went out to see Dad Saturday. He was doing pretty well. He is still somewhat tired and he isn't eating a lot, but he did eat a little while we were there. His friend Marty stopped by to see him while we were there. They had a good time picking on each other.

Sharon came home for the day to visit with a friend that was here for a visit so we said we would stay with Dad. He really didn't need us since he is in the hospital and the nurses are so good to him, but he seemed to enjoy the visit.

Dads hair started to fall out again so he decided to just have it shaved off again. We brought our clippers and Chris shaved him down. It was the first time Chris had shaved any ones head.

Dads counts are going up. Dr. Smiley said that he may be able to get released from the hospital next weekend. He will have to stay in the area for two weeks, but he said he can't imagine what breathing fresh air is going to feel like. He hasn't been able to leave the hospital at all for 3 weeks.

Update!

I talked to Dad tonight and he sounds stronger on the phone. He has been doing a few laps a day. That's not as many as he was walking, but he is getting up and taking a walk every day. The Dr. told Dad that he should start to feel better by the end of the week. That is a good and a bad thing. When he starts to feel better is when he runs out of patience, and that isn't good for any of us. I also talked to Sharon tonight and the nurses told her that on paper his numbers look good and he is where they want him to be. His numbers should start going up towards the end of the week or weekend.

Dad had a surprise visitor today. All of our family that reads this will get a kick out of this. The visitor was Dave Whitehill!! He had an appointment out there but came on the wrong day. Uncle Randy had told him about Dad being in the hospital, and he stopped in to see how dad was doing. Sharon said he even had dad laughing a little bit today. Yep I said Dave Whitehill and Dad in the same room together with laughter!!!

Still Not Feeling Well!

We went to see Dad on Saturday. Boy were we shocked when we saw him. He was so weak. He could hardly stand on his own. He was sitting up when we got there, but he just didn't look good to us. He was so weak that he was having a hard time even keeping his eyes open. He had had diarrhea for 2 days and he hadn't been able to eat much. His immune system and blood count are way down. The doctors said this would happen and it is where they expected him to be at this point.

This is Dad's friend Sammy. He has Non-Hodgkin’s T-Cell Lymphoma. He is staying at Hope Lodge. He just had a stem cell transplant also. The stem cells he received were donated by his sister. Since he just went through the transplant he has told Dad how he is going to feel and what to expect.

This picture is of Dad, Sammy and his mother Jean. They have been very helpful to dad and Sharon.

Dad has also been retaining fluid and has had double vision for a couple of days. They are pretty sure that the double vision was caused by one of the medications that dad was taking. He stopped taking it today and we hope that it clears up soon.

Dad and Sharon would like to thank everyone that sent cards or left comments and E-mails.

We will keep you posted.