Opposites and Extremes

It hardly seems fair to be writing that we enjoyed one of our most relaxing, slow-paced weekends in quite some time. We took a leisurely road trip to the Twin Cities to send off a dear friend as she follows her heart to LA. The going-away party was full of pleasant well-wishers and long-time friends. And of course, it's fun bringing two well-behaved kiddos along to show off their almost-walking skills a bit.

Today, we stopped in at my cousin's house to meet the newest family member, sweet itty bitty Chloe. What a treat to hold such a teenie little baby again - and such a darling one! The visit was just the right length for us - our babies fell asleep in the car soon after we left. And hopefully our stop was quick enough so that the new parents still had some alone time before more of their relatives arrived.

As lovely as our weekend was, my parents had a time on the opposite end. My dad, as the proxy/power of attorney/oldest child, etc., has been faced with making the decision about whether to allow my grandpa to continue receiving dialysis. My grandpa had his last dialysis session on Friday, and now my folks get to spend grandpa's last moments at the nursing home this week. While all this has been going on, my dad's mom was found on Saturday, having collapsed and hit her head on her bathtub. She's in the hospital for night number 2, ready for a barrage of tests tomorrow to see what can be done about her numerous, very serious conditions. My folks left the hospital near midnight last night.

I guess that at around 5 this morning, the sound of wind woke my dad up and he said he felt it was his dad calling him. My folks called the nursing home, and sure enough, the nurses said they'd better come quickly. Grandpa perked up a little later today, but my oh my, I hope this all happens quickly for everyone's sake. Especially my grandpa's.

Needless to say, my folks are exhausted. Emotionally, this is so hard. Physically, they're not sleeping well and juggling all their time with parents in different locations, while trying to coordinate care at the same time. Please keep my family in your prayers, and count your blessings for the health you have every chance you get. I sure am.

Good night, friends.