The road to recovery

Dad is doing very well today! His ribs are sore from surgery but they have had him up and walking today which is great! Lots of pain but its manageable. He is a little sleepy due to the pain killers but at least he remembers more today than he did last night! We found out today that dad doesn't remember his beauty shot....bummer it's a keeper! Haha All in all he's doing very well and even surprised the doctors by how well he's doing. They still won't allow visitors until Sunday and if you do plan on visiting please contact my mom first so we can make sure he's up to it and let you onto the floor. Thank you all for your prayers and well wishes!

Post surgery

Thank you for all the prayers and well wishes. Things went very well. It took about 8 hours or so but it seemed like way longer to us. He is awake but drowsy and already back to his joking self. He's a little dry mouthed and hates his oxygen mask but he's doing well. We even got in his close up beauty shot as you can see. :) The doctor said that he didn't have a lot of scar tissue build up so it was a lot easier than his previous patient. He took about 2/3 of the esophagus and part of the stomach so now it's reattached towards his collarbone. He said everything else looked good as far as no more cancer but we will hear for sure from the pathologist on Monday or so. He's got a couple chest tubes and a feeding tube so he won't be able to eat or drink for about five days. They will keep him in the ICU where he won't be allowed any visitors so please don't plan on visiting until at least Sunday or when he's home. If you would like to visit you must call my mom first so they can let you in because he is in a lock down facility. They plan to get him up and walking tomorrow but he will spend at least a week in the hospital as he recovers.  We feel extremely blessed by all the love and prayers we have felt today. I know heavenly Father was watching over our family today and we all felt that as we waited those very long 8 hours. If you would like to get a hold of either of my parents we ask that you do it by email or Facebook while they focus on his recovery. Thank you again for all the love, support and prayers!

Pre-surgery craziness

Hey there family and friends! I know I said I probably wouldn't post again until after surgery but we've felt so much love and concern about dad. He is doing well, just very  extremely busy. He will be admitted into the hospital tomorrow morning so he is just trying to get everything situated with his company before his absence. If you would like to contact him please do so by email or Facebook and he will respond as soon as he can. We feel so overwhelmed with all the love and support and can't thank you enough. You are more than welcome to check with my mom or I if you have any questions or concerns or are wondering how to help and I promise to post if we need anything. I cannot express how grateful we are for all of you and your prayers on behalf of our family

Surgery Date

Friends and family we finally have a surgery date! Dad will be having an Esophagectomy on Thursday February 4th. He will go into the hospital the night before and then have the surgery at 8:15 on Thursday morning. He will be in surgery for at least 8 hours and will spend two nights in the ICU. He will not be allowed visitors while in the ICU. He will then be in the hospital for at least a week. He should be able to have visitors by Sunday February 7th. Please call or text Lisa if you'd like to visit as dad will not have his phone available. He will not be able to eat while in the hospital so please don't bring him any food. Thank you all for all the love, support and prayers. We feel overwhelmingly blessed! I will update once the surgery is over and will let you all know how it goes!

Surgery

I apologize for not having updated sooner but things have been a little busy. We found out recently that dad has a pulmonary embolism in his lung which has caused a lot of coughing. After a pet scan revealed no clots, the doctor put him on some medicine to help dissolve the embolism and pushed the surgery date back four weeks. The plus side was that the pet scan showed that the Chemo and Radiation had done it's job. Dad was wanting to look for a new surgeon with more experience in this particular type of surgery. After looking through the options he has found a very experienced doctor that has decided to move the surgery to February. After some testing we will know the exact date. We appreciate the continued love and prayers on his behalf. I will update as soon as I know the date of surgery.

Happy new year!

Hope you all had a very merry christmas! We sure did. Well dad is officially done with Chemo and Radiation! He's feeling a bit fatigued but doing great! The doc was a bit surprised by how well things are going. He will go in on the 7th to schedule the surgery.
2015 has been a little crazy but we have been so blessed. We have seen so many miracles in our lives and have been blessed with the best friends, family and neighbors in the world. Thank you all for your continued caring, love and prayers. We hope you all have a happy new year!

December

December is upon us and it's nothing but Christmas craziness for this family! Last month we were able to get some wonderful family pictures taken that we absolutely love! It was fun and we got some really good shots thanks for the fabulous and way too generous Kim Jepperson. I'd personally like to thank all of you that have prayed, brought treats, sent cards, and the many other things I have heard of or seen. We have never felt so much support and love and it has been greatly appreciated. 

Dad has been really fatigued lately. If you are planning on visiting knock quietly. :) He has completed 4 Chemo treatments. He will have two more and then he will have radiation through the 18th. He has handled all of this with great strength and optimism. We continue to be grateful for the prayers and kind service. We are so blessed!