Life has been crazy......

Many things have happened since my last post:



I took my baby and went to Boise, Idaho to pick up the GMC Jimmy that Jeanette and Chuck gave to us. Everything was going fine until I reach 25 miles outside of Boise and the Jimmy's service engine light soon came on. I pulled over to check out what was going on with this vehicle. When I got out, I could smell that the engine was hot. I decided to just sit there and let the engine cool a bit and take care of Ben. Then I drove up the road a bit until I came to a Truck Stop and then I decided to pull into the station and see about getting some Antifreeze. After putting the Antifreeze, Ben was really hungry so I fed him. By the time I got to Twin Falls, everything was fine but it was really late. Instead of stopping in to see my sister-in-law and her family for a couple of hours, I ended up staying at her house for the night (which I really appreciate). After talking to the Mechanic, Randy and going over a few things about the vehicle, he came to the conclusion that as long as all the fluids were full, that the reason that the Jimmy's service engine light soon would come on was because of an oxygen sensor or something like that. So, off to Salt Lake City to stay with a friend and see some more friends and family.



On the way to S.L.C., the service engine light came on again. I ignored it but it kept coming on. So I called Randy again and he reassured me things would be okay. I finally arrived in S.L.C. after many "baby stops" and was very grateful to see and stay with my friends for a few days.



On Saturday, I gathered my things, made some phone calls to see family and friends upon leaving S.L.C. and got ready to head home. I visited Gema and her new husband, then my other sister-in-law, and then on to Payson, Utah to visit a Mission Companion. I headed home that evening after eating a wonderful, typical Spanish dish (Pailla) for dinner. Right before I reached Cove Fort, Utah, I started up some steep hills when I noticed that the engine was working really hard while in cruse control. Tapping the brake to slow the Jimmy, the RPM gage backed off. The second hill, I didn't use cruise control but even so, it was very hard on the engine to accelerate to the speed limit and I really didn't want to anyhow--I didn't want to push the engine too hard. By the third hill, I heard a pop, like a rod had been thrown and then the engine died. I pulled over and thought, "Well, I'll just sit here for a while and let the Jimmy cool. The reservoir to the radiator was boiling.



While I sat there waiting for the vehicle to cool, a tow truck came by and asked if I wanted a tow. I really didn't want to be towed for I believed that possibly it would take some time for the Jimmy to cool and then I would be on my way. Cedar City wasn't very far and then I could be with my family. The tow guy pointed out that the Jimmy may have more damage than I think it does and that it is better that I'm towed and have it repaired than trying to drive the Jimmy. I agreed and the guy towed me to Cove Fort which was less than a mile away--in fact, I could see the Chevron station from where I was.



I called Mason after arriving at the garage at Chevron in Cove Fort, so he would come and pick me up. When Mason's parents found out what happened to our vehicle, they were completely shocked. We slept at Mason's parent's house and left in the morning. Mason's Dad was kind enough to let us barrow his truck again--until they got back from Africa (Mason's parents are serving a LDS Humanitarian Mission).



A week went by. Mason and I were trying to figure out a cheap way to get our vehicle down to St. George. The tow truck guy wanted to charge us $400 just to tow us to Cedar City. A week later, when we could go and get the vehicle, Mason got the idea to rent a U-haul flat bed car trailer for $50 plus the gas it would take to fill up the truck, and go and get the vehicle (it was a Tuesday).



Mom had not been looking so good and hadn't felt well all week after I got back from Idaho. Late Saturday night, Mom didn't look well at all. I called her Doctor and discussed what had been going on. Mom's doctor instructed me to take her to the ER. Dad wasn't doing so well either so I took them both. We spent most of the night/morning in the ER. Come to find out that the Doctors for Dad decided to do an ultrasound on his legs because one of the tests that the docs ran indicated that Dad might have some blood clots. Meantime, the docs got Mom's heart rate under control and sent her home.

Two days later, Tuesday, we went to pick up the Jimmy. On the way out, I'd hope Mom would be okay because of our previous trip to the ER. Mason and I left with our children to pick up the Jimmy to bring it home. While on the road, I called my parents to check in with them, to see how they were doing. While talking to Dad, Dad mentioned that Mom said she'd like to go to the ER. My Mom never wants to go to the ER. I told Dad, that if Mom wants to go to the ER, then take her to the ER.

We arrived home with the Jimmy. It was 10 p.m. Mom and Dad still weren't home. About 12 a.m. Dad called and said that they were admitting Mom to the hospital. Mom had gone into Congestive Heart Failure. The docs told us that Mom's heart was beating extremely in efficiently that if she didn't get Anagram and an Angioplasty and install a Pace Maker, basically she would die. (That's a summary). My Mom decided to get the surgery that she had been so against for years. Luckily, Mom's arteries in her heart weren't blocked but her heart is really worn out. The docs implanted a Pace Maker, hoping to regulate the heart efficiency and make it better--thus making the quality of life lots better. She had the procedure (surgery) a few days ago but unfortunately, the Pace Maker isn't able to do exactly what the docs hoped it would do for Mom. If Mom was completely resting and not doing anything, her "A fib" was making her heart beat up to 170-180 beats a minute--that was just getting up to go to the bathroom or walking around her bed.

Today, the Docs went in and did what is called and Ablation. What they do is go into a vein in her leg with a Catheter and continue moving it up to the heart. The docs will find the nodes in the heart and burn the nodes off. This will disconnect the signal from the brain to the heart to have the heart beat. Then, the docs will set the Pace Maker to where the Pace Maker will be the message to the heart to beat--Pace Maker dependant. This will help to improve the quality of life with what time she has left. Yes, my Mom is dying. It may not be today, tomorrow, next week, next month.....no one really knows how long but hopefully it will be long enough so she can attend my sister's wedding in November. Who knows, maybe she'll even live a few more years.

Jasmine had a water activity up at the church with the Primary. I was going to go with her but I was informed of the Ablation at the last minute and had to go to the hospital. Jasmine seemed to have a good time at the activity and she enjoyed playing with the kids at my neighbor's house.

Well, I think that sums it up. I would love to hear from you. So either give me a call or email me and tell me what you're up to.

:-) Kathleen