Who Says ....... ?

When young, I remember seeing the local TV news doing a special segment on children at the hospital during Christmas. Hospital staff went out of their way to make the holidays special for kids who would be under special care on December 25th. The same would occur on their birthday, that staff would decorate their room or bring them a special celebrity to help make the day special. It seems like the hospital is the wrong place to be on a holiday or a birthday. But if you do, then there are people who will help make it a special event.

This happened to me yesterday with my family. On September 6 I turned; well older. And being here stuck in the UW Hospital on the 5th floor seemed like the wrong place to be. Well, the day before my sister was stopping in for a visit. When she arrived, she had my brother from Las Vegas along for a surprise visit. I had been talking to my brother Joe on the phone earlier in the week. But to have him here with me was a huge treat. I was shocked and a little over come that my sis and brother had gone to all this trouble. After a great visit, he told me he would be back for a visit the next day. Everyone was able to keep the secret that he was coming; that's what got me. Nice gift.

So now going into my birthday, I knew brother and sister would be visiting. Then my oldest son, Derek, said he wanted to stop in with his family to say hi. This was again going to be very nice as I enjoy seeing my son and his family. They were arriving at 1:00. Rose had decorated the room with fresh flowers and balloons, the place looked festive. At 1:00 I heard people coming down the hall so I got out of bed to greet everyone. I was greeted at the door by my youngest son who I have not seen for several months. It was a very special moment for Dad, again very over whelmed, as I embraced my son after too long of an absence. This was the "icing on the cake" for the day; my wife, both sons, my brother and sister plus in laws and grandkids. And again everyone knew about both son's visit and no one let on. (This, plus the Blog greetings, cards and well wishes sent by other three children and friends). It had to be the best Birthday a Dad could have. So who says you can not enjoy a birthday in the hospital? Thanks everyone for making this a most memorable day.

One special event this week, our daughter Lanette will have her second child, Jude, on Wednesday. Remember both Mom and child in your prayers.

Now my health. Today I got a feeding tube (not fun but manageable) to help me with getting nutrition. I have had a real problem with appetite and eating. Tomorrow, I will get a "Swan", device to measure blood flow output from heart, possibly as a temporary or a few days. If a few days, I get moved to the ICU. If there, this blog may not get a timely update. I will do my best to keep people informed. That's all for now.