When we got back home, the Christmas season had begun. Mom was happy this year and wanted to have Christmas all together with a full snick snack meal, normally she likes to "do" Christmas one on one with each of our families because she wants to be able to watch and see everyone open their gifts. She was excited that she and dad would get to see their two great-grand babies that they had never seen...Addison and Gabe, they live in Virginia as Justin is in the Navy and that's where Mandy and him are stationed. She was also excited that she was getting her cataracts removed and a lens
replacement for her right eye. She did have the eye surgery on Dec. 19th and she was amazed at all the colors that she could see again.
We did have Christmas at Mom and Dad's, but Justin, Mandy and the babies couldn't make it. Logan
made "fish" salad and it was delicious. None of us had ever had that before, and let's face it "fish" salad sounded kind of weird. Even Hellen liked it and she doesn't do fish. All in all we had a good time and enjoyed our time together, with lots of laughs and love.
January 2013 rolled around, we ate our black-eyed peas and didn't do any washing or things you aren't supposed to do. Mom and Dad had their annual exams, there was nothing different for mom, but Dad was saying to doc he had some indigestion--he had high blood pressure and doc gave him Nexium for the heartburn. Both of their exams were odd because Mom was still feeling bad and Dad never has high blood pressure or indigestion. We were going to have to go see new doctors.
McKinzy's 64th birthday was on the 15th and Keeley had to have him a birthday cake, to her it's not a birthday unless you have a cake. Later in the year he will have to decide about his retirement date
and medicare and social security benefits. The next birthday would be Donny's, but we didn't get to celebrate his.
On January 24th, Mom had a massive stroke to the right side of her brain. On that day, she really wasn't feeling well so we didn't go shopping we stayed home. We cooked dinner together and had a good time. I left her and Dad on the front porch waving me goodbye at 2:00 to make it home in time to get supper started. When McKinzy and Keeley got home at about 4:30 I was busy fixing supper. I had my hands in water when the phone rang at 4:45 and couldn't get to it. I dried my hands and called Mom right back,she told me her right arm was hurting like it did when she had her eye surgery and that her blood pressure was 200/110! I told her wake dad and go to the emergency room as fast as Dad could get there. Dad got to North Hills emergency room at 5:05!!! She was just beginning to have the stroke, they tried TPA but it didn't work, she was Care-flighted to Plaza downtown Ft. Worth.
The whole of 2013 has been a roller coaster of things happening to Mom and Dad...(Dad had a heart attack on February 19th while we were visiting Mom at the hospital) . It has also been one horrible emotional roller coaster for me, my whole world and life has changed as I have become the major care-giver for Mom. Since her first stroke there has been a chain of events that has lead to her speech loss and not being able to do anything for herself.
With Hope and Prayers and God's powerful healing, 2014 will surely be a better year. If anyone takes the time to read my ramblings, your prayers would be greatly appreciated.
Oh, there is one more thing, before my Mom lost her speech she wanted to make sure that everyone knew what caused her stroke, she had AFIB (Atrial fibrillation is the most common cardiac
arrhythmia). She didn't know she had it. Make sure you get checked for this if you have any type of heart issue.
