Sad Day Five Years Ago

I can't believe that five years have gone by.  January 26, five years ago my Grandson Shawn passed away at the age of 25.  He had some kind of a rare heart condition.  I can't remember if there was a medical name for it.  He had been having some health problems, like passing out in the shower, and some other incidents.  The sad thing is that he had been to the doctor about these health concerns, and they didn't catch the heart problem.  I think I remember being told that it would have been hard to diagnose.

Shawn was very athletic, in fact he received a baseball scholarship and went to  Dakota Wesleyan  college in Mitchell, SD.  He played baseball for them all three or four years that he went there.  He was an outdoor person and loved to hunt and fish. So it was hard to believe that he passed away due to a heart condition, especially at age 25. 

When he was a young boy he went with us to our condo in the winter time.  He didn't ask to take any of his friends, and was happy just to be with us.  He and Frank had a lot of fun sledding down a hill by our condo.  It is a memory that I will cherish the rest of my life. Also the memory of his beautiful wedding in South Dakota.  The last time I saw Shawn, we talked about us returning to South Dakota in the summer and going on a site seeing trip together.

Shawn had married the love of his life, and his wife Tara was just finishing up her schooling to become a pharmacists.  Shawn had graduated from college and was working. Unknown to Shawn, the police department was getting ready to hire him at the time of his death, in fact they had his uniform waiting for him.  Shawn and Tara were getting ready to start their family.   I guess it just wasn't meant to be, but is so sad to me.  Tara has just recently got engaged and I am so happy for her.  She had a really hard time getting over Shawn's death, and I am so glad that she is moving on with her life.  Shawn we miss you, and sometime in the future, we will have a wonderful reunion.

One Week Report - Frank's Diet

I am using this as a starting picture

Frank started the Medifast diet a week ago.  On Monday he weighed and had lost 7 lbs.  I am so proud of him to be able to stick to the diet as it is kind of a hard diet to be on.  He has been hungry for some of his favorite foods, and we have a good laugh over him looking at what I am eating and  making a crying sound of wanting some.  His sense of humor has been great.  His goal is to stay on the diet for two months and meet his goal weight.  "Nothing taste as good as being skinny" a quote from Jamie's sister.

Frank has lost a total of 21 lbs. as he had started to watch what he was eating before he started Medifast.  He is wearing pants that he hasn't worn for a long time, and also shirts.  Keep up the good work Babe, I am so proud of you.

On another note today we went to Mike Rowland's funeral, so sad.  I was surprised to find out he is the same age as me.  I thought he was younger.  It was nice and there was a good showing of people for such a short notice and being on a work day.  Frank got to see several of his old buddies from Nevada Power, and I got to give Melissa a hug before we left the chapel.  We could have stayed and ate lunch, but with Frank dieting, he needed to get home and have his shake. My heart aches for Melissa, for I know it will take some time for her to grieve.  So hard to lose a loved one especially a husband.

We have been staying home as much as we can, as I feel that it makes it easier for Frank to eat what he is supposed to.  Tomorrow we will be going to Mesquite for his pain management appointment so we will see how that goes.  We want to stop by and see Robyn and Braxton as she lives across the street from the doctor's office. 

Cancer Strikes Again

I have been following a good friends facebook remarks as her husband was battling lung cancer.  It was just a few months ago that he found out he had lung cancer. He was operated on and they took out the cancerous tumor.  Then he started the Chemo treatments which made him very sick, he lost all of his hair, eyebrows, etc.  Melissa started putting daily reports of his progress on facebook.  For some reason the doctors decided to lengthen his chemo to twelve treatments and it seems to me he just got steadily worse with the side effects.  I am not sure why they extended the treatments.  Melissa had quite a following of her facebook remarks and had a lot of prayers and support.  Mike ended up with pneumonia in both lungs, and then ended up in the Critical Care Unit.   Here are the last two facebook reports.

JANUARY 19, 2012
MIKE UPDATE: I got home at 6 this morning thinking I could sleep, nope. Mike has taken a very hard turn for the worse. He is septic with infection in his lungs and blood. We all agreed to put him on the ventilator to make him more comfortable; no other heroic measure will be made, his wishes. We are holding to a little ray of hope but he is very, very ill and so far the antibiotics have not worked. We pray now for God to do his will and for peace and love for all.


JANUARY 20, 2012
The love of my life lost his battle with cancer at 4:04pm today. He gave it a valiant fight and passed peacefully. We don't always understand Gods plan but need to hold close to our heart that he loves his children and does what is right for them. Mike was an awesome man who never turned his back on anyone which made him loved by everyone he touched. We have all been blessed to have had him in our lives and he will live on in joyful memories. Good night honey, we will be together again ♥


This is so sad, and my heart aches for Melissa.  I have had Mike on my mind all day today remembering the times we chatted at various places around town, and at the Mesquite bowling alley.  Frank worked with Mike and he always called Frank blue eyes.  Well Mike had beautiful blue eyes too.  We will miss you, but I know you are out of pain and suffering.
 
The other day I was saddened again to see another young friend had passed away from complications of cancer.  He had a rare cancer that was in his heart.  I knew him as a young boy on up.  He was a very special man and also will be missed by many.
 
 

Such a sad few days.  Lost some very good friends.  CANCER SUCKS!!!!!

Day One and Two----Diet

Yesterday was the first day of Frank's Medifast diet, and it went well.  He didn't get any hunger pains until the usual evening cravings.  So he had a small cup of sugar free jello, and I had one too.  He has to remember that he has to eat something every two hours or so.  This will keep him from feeling hungry and is supposed to change his metabolism.  I started the dreadmill, along with trying to watch what I eat. 

Today I made Frank some egg beaters with red pepper in them and he ended up with heartburn.  He couldn't eat all of the eggs, and I don't think he liked them very well.  "Where's the Bacon?"!!!!  I am sure he was missing the bacon and toast.  He really is doing well on the diet so far.  I have to remind him that he needs to eat as the two hours go by really fast. 

I made me some spaghetti with whole wheat noodles and had a big salad tonight.  I got way to hungry last night, so I need to try and eat something every two hours too.  I was glad I had grilled two chicken breasts last night as that is what Frank had for dinner tonight.  Chicken chopped up on his salad.  I can't wait for the weight to start coming off from him, as I know it will help him with the pain level.  We have been staying home and being hermits as I want him to adjust to the diet before we venture out.

Pigging out Today

The last visit Frank had with his cardiologist, he was told he had to lose weight or be medicated.  Frank had to go off from his Staten as it was causing muscle pain, which he is still dealing with.  I am hoping that there isn't permanent muscle damage.  Dr. Savron gave Frank a few months to lose weight. His cholesterol was way too high and his blood pressure is too high. So we decided that he should try the Medifast diet that two of my granddaughters have lost a lot of weight on.

Frank ordered the diet after he talked to a Medifast diet coach and picked out the things he thought he would like.  He decided that Monday is the day to start, so he has been having a last visit with the food he loves.  Today we went to Inside Scoop and he ordered a banana split.  I had a one scoop hot fudge sundae.  Of course I wasn't going to be left out.  Yesterday, we had a hair day with Renee, and after shopping we ate at our favorite Red Lobster.  We ate more biscuits than usual, but our dinner was more on the healthy side.  I have to quit all this eating too, as the baked potato and biscuits showed up on my blood sugar test this morning.

So on Monday, I am going to try and get back on my low carb diet.  I have started the "dreadmill" again, but only twice this week.  Hopefully I will do more next week.  That usually will take the weight off from me, as I have gained a few pounds from holiday eating.  I want to lose the weight. I have started some natural pills along with some other things that are supposed to help lower cholesterol as I am off from my Lipitor too.  It was starting to cause me muscle pain.  Any way I want to wait a couple of weeks and then go to see my doctor for my A1c test, and other blood work as it is time for my checkup.  I am crossing my fingers that what I am doing will show up in a good way in the blood work.

The Medifast diet isn't an easy one, but you are not supposed to feel hungry. I will have to help Frank with the meals and we have bought some salad stuff, as you are supposed to eat one of your own meals a day.  Dieting is never easy, and I sure hope we can stick to it, as we both know it will help him with his back and leg pain, and me with my blood sugar.  So Monday is the big starter day.  Wish us a whole lot of luck.

A post from Facebook

♥ Family is family: You argue, you fight, you stop talking at times, but the truth is the love is always there. Love your family with all your heart because you never know when they will be gone & you will never get to apologize or say goodbye. Always remember what FAMILY stands for: Forever Always Mine, I Love You.

This is so true and I wanted to share it on my blog.  I hope that one day my family can be at peace with one another before it is too late.  I love them unconditionally.

Visit with Sherry

Sherry called last week and asked if we could come into Vegas and stay at her condo while a man came and fixed the back of one of her new dining room chairs.  I told her yes, as we wanted to get some shopping done, and I wanted to get my monthly pedicure and manicure.

We headed into Vegas Thursday morning and I was able to get a nail appointment for two that afternoon.  So we had time to eat some lunch, and unload our overnight bag before I left for my nail appointment.  I got home just as the furniture repair man was leaving.  So we spent the rest of the afternoon shopping until we dropped.  Stopping just long enough to eat some dinner at Red Robin.  I had a long list of things to shop for, and we had to go to several places to get it all done.  By the time we got back to the condo, Sherry was home from work, and we were exhausted. 

Friday morning Frank ran back and forth to RC Willey's trying to get a part ordered for Sherry's recliner.  Then we went to Dick's Sporting Goods and finally found the New Balance Shoes that Frank wanted, and then went to Costco. I was glad that we had done most of the shopping the day before.  We both were tired as we didn't sleep very well the night before, so we went to Red Lobster and had lunch and then headed home.  After things were all unpacked and put away, we both took a badly needed nap.

New Dining Set