I guess I need to get better at having more timely updates. She came home on Saturday, Dec 19th. We have been back to the Dr. 2 times and things are progressing very well. We appreciate the meals that many of you have brought. This has been the most needed time we have ever received meals so thanks so very much.
I have to say one story about Terese.
While Terese was in the hospital, she had to have constant care for a few days and then just the normal care after that. Every nurse loved my wife and it was because she had the light of Christ in her. It was convicting for me because I get mad and cranky when I need a simple shot and Terese is lovely when she gets over 500 stitches. She is pleasant even under difficult circumstances.
My favorite story was on the last day when the final nurse told me to go down and get the car and pull around to the front of the hospital. The nurse was calling for some other person to take Terese out in a wheel chair. As I was going out, I overheard this one lady on a cell phone saying to the person on the other end "Hey, I have to go now. I have to release my most favorite patient ever." I didn't know this lady and she didn't know me. I just smiled at her and got the car. When I pulled the car around, it was the same lady getting Terese. I was very encouraged to hear that about Terese. It was quite amazing for me as her husband to hear this. When you look at a treasure of a wife, this is what I treasure. She is so precious to me. I want to learn to be more pleasant even when times are hard. Maybe that is what God means when He says that Christians are different than the world. I always was taught as a child that we were different because we didn't drink or smoke or swear. I think I had it wrong for so many years. We are different because we can love the unlovable and we can rejoice when times are so difficult.
Thanks for all your prayers,
Bruce
Tuesday, December 29, 2009
Thursday, December 17, 2009
Out of ICU.... YEAH
Wednesday morning, before I was able to get to see her, she had a blood transfusion. That was a bit creepy for me but after talking to her Dr., he basically said that he would not have done it. The resident Dr just wanted to be safe since her counts were low. I got to see her Dr. twice yesterday and he said that all is well. She had a couple times where she had a fevor but he was not worried about that at all. He gave her the nod to get out of ICU, get on solids and walk. She did all three Wednesday.
She is now in a normal room. She is doing very well. I have checked out of the hotel next to Mayo and am back home. I am at work today and tomorrow but Terese is in good hands. I will see her at night and her mom will see her in the morning. Our plan is to be out of there Saturday morning. I am off next week so this will work out perfect. Thanks for all your emails, texts and prayers. They have been encouraging to all of us.
God bless, Bruce
She is now in a normal room. She is doing very well. I have checked out of the hotel next to Mayo and am back home. I am at work today and tomorrow but Terese is in good hands. I will see her at night and her mom will see her in the morning. Our plan is to be out of there Saturday morning. I am off next week so this will work out perfect. Thanks for all your emails, texts and prayers. They have been encouraging to all of us.
God bless, Bruce
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
What a long day
Yesterday was a very long day. We got to Mayo hospital at 6am. Terese got admitted and then by 8am, we had to say our good byes and they wheeled her off to surgery. Terese's mom, Josh, Caleb, Mark and Cami all came throughout the day for support. It was appreciated. The surgery was over at around 6:15pm and the Dr. came out and told us all about it. He said that Terese was doing well and is awake but will not remember anything. He told us that everything went well. The only complication was this one something that got kinked but they fixed it and it added about 40 minutes to the operation. Besides the time to fix it, there should be no other compilcations from that. 40 minutes is a long time for a 2 or 4 hour surgery but for a 10 hour surgery, it didn't seem that bad. I guess I should ask Terese huh??
I finally got to see her at 9:45pm. She will be in ICU for 2 days. When I came into the ICU room, all I could see is her feet. She had a large something on from her knees to her neck. She immediately said "Is that my man?". I knew she was awake then and I smiled. I then went to her side so I could see her face and gave her a little kiss. She could barly move her head. To be honest, it was hard to see her like this. I know the surgery was successful and for that, I am very thankful but I felt very bad for her. The room was wicked hot and she was wicked thirsty. She kept wanting some ice but they would not give it to her. They didn't want her to get sick.
I got back to my hotel at about 10:30 or so and my heart was heavy but I was tired. I just knew that she was in major pain and hot and thirsty. I also knew that they had to wake her up every 30 minutes to check her. I was not allowed to be in the ICU so I did call to see how she was doing at around 4am and her mom called at 5am. All the nurse said was that she was doing well but the first night is difficult. When I got to the room, somehow, she had a card on my pillow for me to read. Of course, it was very encouraging for me. She was thinking about how I would be doing at night. I don't deserve her but it is too late for her. She made her vows!! haha
They let me see her at 9am this morning. When I came in, she didn't have that that massive thing on her chest and looked GREAT. She said it was a good night. Of course a good night to her is different than to most people. She is very positive. If the table was turned, I would have said that the night was horrible but not Terese. She was talkative and really looked good. It really calmed my nerves to see her doing so well. I don't know how long she will be in the hospital but I think they will take her out of ICU tomorrow if all is good. Please continue to pray for her since it is not over yet.
Thanks for all your calls and prayers. They really mean a bunch to me and our family.
Bruce
I finally got to see her at 9:45pm. She will be in ICU for 2 days. When I came into the ICU room, all I could see is her feet. She had a large something on from her knees to her neck. She immediately said "Is that my man?". I knew she was awake then and I smiled. I then went to her side so I could see her face and gave her a little kiss. She could barly move her head. To be honest, it was hard to see her like this. I know the surgery was successful and for that, I am very thankful but I felt very bad for her. The room was wicked hot and she was wicked thirsty. She kept wanting some ice but they would not give it to her. They didn't want her to get sick.
I got back to my hotel at about 10:30 or so and my heart was heavy but I was tired. I just knew that she was in major pain and hot and thirsty. I also knew that they had to wake her up every 30 minutes to check her. I was not allowed to be in the ICU so I did call to see how she was doing at around 4am and her mom called at 5am. All the nurse said was that she was doing well but the first night is difficult. When I got to the room, somehow, she had a card on my pillow for me to read. Of course, it was very encouraging for me. She was thinking about how I would be doing at night. I don't deserve her but it is too late for her. She made her vows!! haha
They let me see her at 9am this morning. When I came in, she didn't have that that massive thing on her chest and looked GREAT. She said it was a good night. Of course a good night to her is different than to most people. She is very positive. If the table was turned, I would have said that the night was horrible but not Terese. She was talkative and really looked good. It really calmed my nerves to see her doing so well. I don't know how long she will be in the hospital but I think they will take her out of ICU tomorrow if all is good. Please continue to pray for her since it is not over yet.
Thanks for all your calls and prayers. They really mean a bunch to me and our family.
Bruce
Sunday, December 13, 2009
It has been a Swell Season
It has been about 7 months since Terese has updated her blog. I think it is appropriate to do now since she is current in surgery. It is a long surgery (10-12 hours) and she will be in Mayo hospital for 5 to 7 days. Of course, we are hoping for 10 hours and 5 days. Please pray for her and the surgeon. Pray for a quick recovery. Also please come back here for any updates as it is difficult to update everyone by phone/email/text. We do covet your prayers more than you can know.
A very encouraging event happened to us a few weeks ago that I would like to share. Caleb introduced us to band called “Swell Season” a few years back. We got the movie “Once” and loved it and in turn, fell in love with the band. They won an academy award for best song in the movie “once”. It is definitely our favorite band not only together but also as individuals. Last October, we went to Tucson to listen to them in concert. It was so AWESOME for us. We thought we would never get an opportunity again to hear them in a setting like that (We were very close to the stage). It turned out that Caleb let me (Bruce) know that they were coming in November. I immediately bought tickets and their newest CD and a few days before the event, I surprised Terese with the CD and the tickets.
There is a song on their first CD called “Leave” that is very significant to Terese. It is really about a guy listening to his girlfriend break up with him and then he tells her thanks for the info but now it is time for you to leave. He sings it with such passion. It is really amazing. Terese would play this song daily as she would go into her radiation treatments and just belt it out. Of course, she would be talking about the cancer. Basically, you have taught me my lesson (cancer) now LEAVE!!!!! It was very powerful and emotional for both of us.
Unbeknown to me, Terese emailed their web site and asked anyone if they could pass along her letter to the lead singer (Greg Hanson). All the letter said was that she went through some cancer treatment and that the song LEAVE meant very much to her. She didn’t ask for anything in the email but only that if he sings it, there will be a gal with very short hair singing along with him. She got kind of a form email back from a producer that said he was going to sing that song during his solo time. Well, she thought nothing of it but was happy he was going to sing that song since radiation was not that far from her memory. They played for an hour or so and then the band left and he said that he wanted to dedicate this next song to “Theresa” and thanks for the lovely letter. Terese turns to me and says “That’s me!”. I just laughed since the name was not right and I didn’t know she send any email. But when the song started (LEAVE) and tears were swelling up in her eyes, I knew that the song was dedicated to her. I just hugged her and enjoyed the music. At the end of the song, Terese yells out “Thank YOU!!” and Greg responded “No, thank you!”. It made the night so very special.
Well, it didn’t end there. About 30 minutes later, he stopped again and this time said “I have another song that Terese would like” He asked if how to pronounce her name. The lights went on in the auditorium and he asked her to stand. They had a little dialog and then he sang this new song (dedicated to Terese) that we both have not heard but it was appropriate and wonderful. It was a great night!! We didn’t want it to end.
Thanks God!!
A very encouraging event happened to us a few weeks ago that I would like to share. Caleb introduced us to band called “Swell Season” a few years back. We got the movie “Once” and loved it and in turn, fell in love with the band. They won an academy award for best song in the movie “once”. It is definitely our favorite band not only together but also as individuals. Last October, we went to Tucson to listen to them in concert. It was so AWESOME for us. We thought we would never get an opportunity again to hear them in a setting like that (We were very close to the stage). It turned out that Caleb let me (Bruce) know that they were coming in November. I immediately bought tickets and their newest CD and a few days before the event, I surprised Terese with the CD and the tickets.
There is a song on their first CD called “Leave” that is very significant to Terese. It is really about a guy listening to his girlfriend break up with him and then he tells her thanks for the info but now it is time for you to leave. He sings it with such passion. It is really amazing. Terese would play this song daily as she would go into her radiation treatments and just belt it out. Of course, she would be talking about the cancer. Basically, you have taught me my lesson (cancer) now LEAVE!!!!! It was very powerful and emotional for both of us.
Unbeknown to me, Terese emailed their web site and asked anyone if they could pass along her letter to the lead singer (Greg Hanson). All the letter said was that she went through some cancer treatment and that the song LEAVE meant very much to her. She didn’t ask for anything in the email but only that if he sings it, there will be a gal with very short hair singing along with him. She got kind of a form email back from a producer that said he was going to sing that song during his solo time. Well, she thought nothing of it but was happy he was going to sing that song since radiation was not that far from her memory. They played for an hour or so and then the band left and he said that he wanted to dedicate this next song to “Theresa” and thanks for the lovely letter. Terese turns to me and says “That’s me!”. I just laughed since the name was not right and I didn’t know she send any email. But when the song started (LEAVE) and tears were swelling up in her eyes, I knew that the song was dedicated to her. I just hugged her and enjoyed the music. At the end of the song, Terese yells out “Thank YOU!!” and Greg responded “No, thank you!”. It made the night so very special.
Well, it didn’t end there. About 30 minutes later, he stopped again and this time said “I have another song that Terese would like” He asked if how to pronounce her name. The lights went on in the auditorium and he asked her to stand. They had a little dialog and then he sang this new song (dedicated to Terese) that we both have not heard but it was appropriate and wonderful. It was a great night!! We didn’t want it to end.
Thanks God!!
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