Family....give them a hug and tell them you love them!

Last week I knew Thursday was going to be a tough day, and was it ever! I got a phone call from my sister Rebecca at 4 am in the morning that sent me into a frenzy of packing a bag and booking the first flight out of here while trying to remember all the important day to day stuff for Bobby to deal with the girls.

My Dad went into the hospital...and if you knew my Dad, he NEVER and I really mean never goes to the hospital. The Dr. told him he has congestive heart failure, he had fluid on his lungs and everywhere else for that matter (22 lbs worth). He was low on sodium and potassium, possibly had pneumonia as well. They wanted to do a heart catheterization but he wouldn't let them, because he wasn't willing to do any surgery that would be suggested. He went in the hospital Wednesday and was released Friday night with Hospice. We have a cousin that works with Hospice and came out to the house Saturday morning to get all the paperwork and everything started and set up. The same morning, 6 of my moms 7 brothers came out to build them a ramp off of their back porch to make things easier.

(Not a great picture of any of us....as you can see the stress we're all under.) It took a lot of strength for Dad to sit up for pictures...and patience, because we each wanted a picture alone and a group shot (which didn't turn out well...and we retook them 5 minutes before I had to head out to the airport...I'm waiting for someone to email me the pictures...I didn't take my camera with me so it was up to the 3 sisters with cameras!)

He's old, he's tired, he's lived a long good life and is just ready to go. Do you know how hard that is? It's rough. I'm glad I had a whirlwind of a visit down in KY to see my Dad (Mom and sisters too) but it just wasn't long enough. You don't know how hard it was to hug and kiss him goodbye knowing that that will be the last time I see him alive. So, I'm sad.

Here's 4 of my sisters...Sherri (my twin), me Heather, Angelia, Rebecca, and then Tammy.
Teresa isn't pictured here...she was in the hospital at the same time, having her gall bladder removed. She's been really sick, [I hope you don't mind that I say that Cancer really sucks!] - please pray for her.

I had a 3 hr drive to the Nahsville airport, then my flight home with a layover in Charolotte. Bobby and the girls had fresh flowers and my favorite chocolates waiting for me when I got home from the airport Sunday night (so sweet).

I slept all day Monday and most of the day on Tuesday. I tried to get back to normal today, but it's hard. I just feel lost, empty and alone. I just wish I could be cradled and everything bad would just go away.

I called Rebecca today and she was visiting our sister Teresa. I called Sherri, Tammy and Angelia were over at her house. Here I am in PA with no sister to lean on and it just really makes me miss my sisters so much. I have great friends that would hang out with me in a heartbeat if I would just ask them too....but I won't ask, I'll just sit here...missing my family.