Hi. I am sitting here with the kids out of school because of not only the poor air quality but I am certain that so many teachers are out due to evacuations and such that the district would be hard pressed to find as many subs as they would need to effectively run all of our schools. So, here we are. A day of non-stop video games, television watching and let's not forget to mix in A LOT of sibling rivalry! I hope not the last one but we all know when 3 kids are cooped up together it is more than likely inevitable!

Gary is actually leaving right now to go and help a client that he worked with for a year or so with his old company. He is very fond of his old clients and he wanted to help them after they phoned him. He is so incredibly dedicated and loyal! I love that about him.

Gary is making progress every day. His bladder is beginning to work better. I sent him to a Hematologist last week to see why he is bruising and bleeding so easily on his arms. The doctor at UCI is not concerned as Gary's system was septic for so long it will just take a while for his body to return to normal. We do not go back to the surgeons until Dec. 13th - thank God.

He has more good days than bad and he actually walked 2 1/2 miles with Hobie and I the other day. He was a bit sore the following day but after months of not doing much of anything I guess that is to be expected. He has been at more of the boys baseball games and has been helping me pick Jax up from school so that I can be at my office a little more. I love going to my office because I can get more things done without being interrupted.

My Mom is traveling all over Great Britian for a month with friends and I think she is in Scotland right now. I hope she is enjoying her time. She has an amazing love affair with Great Britian! I am truly happy for her.

Hobie has had quite an infection and is in the process of healing. I am praying he heals completely by Halloween because he is going in for the BIG OPERATION! Hopefully he will quit humping anything and everything that comes near him! It is so annoying.

A special mention to our friends, The Briwick's. They had to say goodbye to their beautiful 5 year-old dog Zoe yesterday. She was diagnosed with lymphoma just a couple weeks ago and the cancer was so fast moving and she hung on for as long as she could. We are all so sad for their family and will keep them in our prayers. Hobie loved walking with Zoe around the Lake! She will be missed by so many!

I have to get rid of my migraine! I have had it for 4 days now. I know I am prone to getting them with this air quality but enough is enough!

Christmas is coming and it is my absolute most favorite time of the year! I can't wait to get all my stuff down and decorate. I love the way everything looks and smells! I love having a fire in the fireplace and I love the music. Gary better recover completely by then because he has lots of bins to get down out of the rafters! :)

PLEASE CONTINUE TO PRAY FOR GARY'S RECOVERY. HE NEEDS TO GET STRONGER AND THE PAIN NEEDS TO DIMINISH EVEN MORE FOR HIM TO BE ABLE TO GET BACK TO WORK. PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PRAY FOR A JOB OPPORTUNITY TO PRESENT ITSELF TO GARY. ONE THAT WILL BE SATISFYING AND BETTER THAN HIS LAST OPPORTUNITY. HE HAS GROWN AND CHANGED IN THE PAST MONTHS - He actually has gone to mens events and socialized and has had many visitors witout me being home that he has hung out with and gone to breakfast with and so on. God does do good things through trials with his children.

Stay inside if you live in our area and stay happy! A positive attitude is EVERYTHING sometimes! Once again, we are so grateful for the involvment that everyone has had in our lives! We constantly think about how blessed we are amidst our struggles and we thank you for all of it!

Love and Happiness,
Lisa

WE ARE STILL HERE

FRIENDS & FAMILY
How on Earth do people keep up on this blog thing on a daily or even weekly basis? Most of my time is spent being crazy and the fact that I am actually awake right now is astounding considering I am usually passed out COLD by 8:30 every night!
I wish I could keep everyone updated more regularily and I am vowing to do just that right now. I will update weekly so that I can keep you up to speed.
So, a few weeks ago we hit some seriously shakey ground with Gary and he began to slide into a depression filled with self doubt, low self worth and just plain miserable. I was very concerned with his outlook. I know you are all probably asking yourself why in the world would he feel this way when his cancer is gone and he is 5 weeks post op and he should be on the upswing. Well................
Gary has been through a lot. He has been sick since the beginning of the year and now is recovering from a ginormous procedure. He still does not have complete control of his bladder, when he eats he feels miserable afterward (from the intestinal resection) and he is out of work. They have removed his prostate and this has caused some temporary pain for him as well. His new bladder is working he just does not know how to work it completely yet.
He is struggling with being out of work. Gary is a man who enjoys leaving everyday as much as he enjoys coming home. Much of his identity and self worth (like most men) is wrapped up in what he does for a living and the kind of provider he is.
Back to the depression - I got a hold of him, slapped him across his face and told him to stop whining like a little sissy girl and get off his butt and do something about the way he feels dangit! He is such a baby!
OMG - I am totally kidding. I did however tell him something like that but I did not say those things exactly to him!
Basically, we explored getting him some help or I told him that I would work with him to help him get through it. I explained that it would take complete honesty and that working through some of what he is going through was going to be rough but I am in it with him for the long haul. So, he agreed and we have made progress (lots of progress) over the past 2 weeks.
Friends from church came over last Friday night to play Texas Hold Em with Gary. He had a great time. Dave and Zach have the killer poker tables! The Elders from our church have been visiting Gary and calling him and checking on him which has been HUGE! Ren meets with Gary once a week and Gary got to go to Mollies for breakfast this morning!
Todd has been great about getting updates from us and our friends, family and church family (ALL OF YOU) have been super supportive.
I am working on getting thank you cards out to everyone who have been a part of our journey. It is so hard to do everything! My heart goes out to the single parent! God Bless you!
Gary has been getting out a little more each week. I wish his discomfort would go away for him so that he could make it through a day without feeling cruddy. I know his will happen in time.
The boys are really well. Zach and Nate will be Mad Scientists for Halloween and Jax is going to be a Whoopie Cushion complete with a real life fart machine! That is so fitting for Jax!
I am actually going out to dinner this weekend with Stacy and Julie for the first time in months. I am really excited to have a night out!
Okay, Grey's is on and I am ready to call it a night. I promise to keep everyone in the know!
Love and Smiles,
L