December 4, 2008

Today is the day! We get test results and a course of action on treating the cancer. We are determined to kick this thing to the curb and have it gone for good. We pack up and get to the hospital just in time. Dad and Carol are leaving today after all the results are revealed. We go in for the results with Dr. Jauni and he starts with the head to toe CT scan. It is INCREDIBLE the kind of technology that is available. They were able to do a scan from head to toe and we were able to see everything as if we were inside my dads body starting below the neck and going down through his abdomen. Dr. Jauni stops the scan at my dad's liver and points out a spot he 'is not happy about.' He says it could be one of two things. Cancer that has spread or temporary scars from the stomach surgery. He then goes on to point out some lymph nodes and 'stranding' that also look suspicious. We all sit in the tiny office stunned. How can this be? Just a few weeks ago the CT scan showed nothing. NOTHING! I am absolutely shocked beyong belief. If it has in fact spread to the liver and other parts of my dad's body, his cancer would then be catergorized as Stage 4. Terminal

December 2, 2008

Today is a rest day...for my dad. I, on the other had, have to go to work in Houston. My company was generous enough to let me work in Houston without having to use vacation time. My dad rescheduled his CT scan for today. I get off work at 7 and Chris picks me up. We go to Chipotle to get dinner for everyone. Just a plain quesadilla for Dad. Cheese and tortilla. He can't afford to have another episode like the other day. Chris and I get back to the hotel, eat then go to sleep. I'm tired from working and worrying about what the test results will show.

December 1, 2008

We leave for Houston where we will see Dr. Jauni at MD Anderson. It's a full day at the hospital. We will be checking in at 1pm and won't be leaving until 11pm. We check in to the hotel and immediately leave for the hospital. I'm amazed at the medical village in Houston! There must be over 10 hospitals in the area. We finally find MD Anderson and walk into a first floor aquarium! The hospital is huge. We go to the seventh floor, the gastrointestinal floor. My dad checks in and we wait for a while. After 30 minutes my dad gets called in to give all his information. My dad has an initial consultation with the doctor and his assistant while Chris and I wait in the waiting area. Chris goes downstairs to eat and bring Carol and I food. It seems like forever before my dad and Carol come back out from the consultation. It's only about 3pm and my dad has back to back appointments until 10pm. After a few more appointments and lab tests, we go downstairs to the cafeteria to get something to eat. Dad tries a few things to see how they will settle. Every new food, no matter how much he liked it with his 'old stomach,' is a test. Will it settle? Will it react immediately? Will my dad get sick? After eating we have a little bit more time until the CT scan. We go up to the aquarium on the main floor to relax. I have so much work to do for my works' holiday party. It's nearly impossible to try to feed 100 people on a tight budget, but I have to make it work so I start calling any restaurant I think will cut me a good deal. I can see Dad isn't feeling well and is walking around trying to force gas to come up or down. We are wondering if it was something he ate that is not settling well. This goes on for a while and eventually we have to go up for the CT scan. He starts feeling even worse and thinks he's going to vomit. We ask if we can reschedule the appointment for tomorrow and they say of course. We leave MD Anderson in a rush to get back to the hotel before my dad hits rock bottom. This is the worst I've seen him in my life. We finally get back to the hotel and my dad heads straight for the bathroom. Everything he ate that day came back up. After that episode, we all go to sleep exhausted. We later find out from a nurse that olives are high in fat and not a good idea for someone who has recently had stomach surgery. My dad loves olives.

November 30, 2008

We get up a little late this morning. We had such a long and exhausting day yesterday, sleeping in felt great. We decide to look around town a little bit today. We hit a huge consignment store and a few local shops. After all the 'window' shopping, we head to one of our favorite restaurants, Shady Grove in Austin. After lunch, we go to a few more shops then head home.

November 29, 2008

Chris and I go to the airport to pick up Dad and Carol. I'm so excited to see them again! It seems like I haven't seen them in forever but it's only been about 3 weeks. They come down the escalator and I can tell my dad has lost some weight. His pants are a bit big. We get to where we're staying and eat lunch. Dad still needs to make sure to eat every 2 hours. After lunch, we relax a little bit. After getting some rest we go out to look for a Christmas tree with Chris' family. After picking the perfect one, we go to eat at Southside Market barbeque. We head off towards home and decide to stop at Target to pick up a game. Our family loves playing games together to pass time. We go to Crate and Barrel next to look around. There wasn't a Crate and Barrel in Cincinnati until a couple days ago so Dad and Carol wanted to see what it was about. Of course I don't protest because it's one of my favorite stores. Once we finally get back, we unwind a little and decide to play Apples to Apples. We play a few games then go to bed.

November 11, 2008

Chris and I are leaving Kentucky today. I'm dreading leaving. I just want to spend time with my dad. I can't imagine doing anything else. Carol, Dad, Chris and I pack up all of our things and head down to the farm for a few hours. It's peaceful on the farm. You can catch a glimpse of deer, Great Blue Herons, beavers or turkeys on the farm. Today we see lots of turkeys. We eventually park on a hill and I fall asleep. I'm exhausted from running back and forth from the hospital and home. We start to drive out from the back side of the farm. We walk through an old house that is on the property. The floorboards are falling through and there are more holes through the roof than there are shingles covering the roof. We leave the farm and head for the airport. I sleep and just sit and stare on the airplane. I don't know what to do. I had to leave my dad. I want to go back to Kentucky.

November 10, 2008

We get up this morning early. Chris and I have to take Dad to Dr. Miller's office today. He looks at the wound and says it looks great. He takes out every other staple. He tells Dad what foods to avoid (celery and sweet potatoes among others) and schedules a follow up appointment for Thursday to remove the rest of the staples. We leave his office and realize we didn't bring anything to eat! It turns out to be a bit of a problem. My dad has to eat every 1 1/2-2 hours to keep up his strength and calories. We go to Panera and can't eat anything. Who would have thought most of their sandwiches are premade? We go home and I make a small meal for my dad. We eat and talk.