An update

I feel I must apologize for the ending of my last post. I just re-read it and it certainly did sound doom and gloom. Please forgive me. It was the day after I learned all this and I was still in shock of it all, I suppose. I’m not as close to my father as I would like to be, which we are both responsible for, so when this new came it brought that knowledge crashing back along with all it’s guilt smack dab in my face. I also work much better if I know what’s going on and can (mostly) understand it. I looked up what an astrocytoma is, relating that information here. Which may or may not have been the best of ideas. Only the Lord knows what lies ahead and I, for one, trust Him. I do know, however, that my father is a fighter and he’s not going to take this lying down (pun intended ). My father’s wife is not a fainting violet either, which is exactly what he needs right now. My opinions are still the same about the cruelty of this cancer (but really, what cancer isn’t cruel?) have not changed. I do see, however, that for the sensitivity of others, I will be less….hmm, shall we say “candid” about those opinions.

With that out of the way, my father is home and seems to be doing quite well, with everything considered. I’m sure they are just happy to be home! I know with my kiddos, I was so anxious to get home and get adjusted with whatever I needed to. We did learn that his cancer is a stage 4. I know what the information said about stage 4, but everyone is different and responses differently to treatment. My sister and I would like to take a trip out there to see him, but we are waiting for him to talk with the Pathologist (whom he sees on Friday) and the Oncologist (whom he sees on Monday) before we make any plans. It would just be Damaris and I, for there is no way Adam can “get off”. There is also no way I’m going to travel, either by car or plane, 2,000 miles with 6 children solo! Although it will be 6 years in July since we have see him and my step-mom and I really want the whole family to see them as well. (For those of you who caught that, that means that 3/6 of our children have never met them. And the other 2/6 don’t remember them either. While the 1st 1/6 remember them slightly, for she was 4 1/2 at the time.) I’m not sure how it can be worked out, but somehow it will be.

I was feeling much better today, which is nice. I got 10 loads of laundry washed and dried, but not put away. It’s always the “put away” part that gets me. Have I mentioned how much I hate laundry? Yeah, well this is what I get for it! I suppose it’s better all the way around just to suck it up each day and DO IT instead of letting it pile up. Which in a house hold of 8 people, takes about 2 – 3 days. Of course, you throw in sheets and blankets that were soiled by a child, on 2 different occasions, that were sitting in a bucket in the hallway for 2 weeks, misc. clothing and 3 blankets found under the girls bed once that room was finally cleaned, 7 blankets that were rescued out of the dirtiest van you have ever seen (which was cleaned out on a really cold day and the guilty workers were not too happy about it, but Mom had had enough of the squalor!) along with a million socks found in said van, a few stray jackets (?!), and the 14 blankets that were stuffed behind the couch…I can’t say it was all clothes. But still, it was laundry.

Oh, and by the way, please don’t get us any blankets. We have enough!