Friday & Saturday Update

Friday started off with breakfast with the folks to begin celebrating our 27 Year Anniversary! Next, off to Sears to purchase a snow blower for me to use since Jim has been ordered never to shovel snow. Then, home for some rest before heading to dinner and then Candypalooza at the church in the evening. Several people shared how they had been praying for Jim and was so glad to see him doing so well.

Saturday was a great day to sleep in. Jim was nice enough to cook us breakfast and then we had a wonderful visit from Bobby & Tonia! Its been a blustery Fall day full of relaxation.

20 days til Surgery!

Thursday Update

Wow, what an early morning! Ashley did a great job of keeping dad up and he only caught a couple of minutes of sleep on her watch.

We arrived at the hospital a few minutes after seven and it took them 45 minutes to hook up all the electrodes they had on his head. He was sporting quite a look with 28 wires hanging all over his head. Yes, I have a picture! He slept thru most of his test which is what they wanted. The nurse said there were some abnormal spikes but the Neurologist would have to read the whole test to see if there was anything to be concerned about. We'll find out next week what those results are. The whole family is exhausted and is turning in early tonight.

Thanks for all your awesome prayers! We'll publish the results as soon as we hear.

21 more days til surgery!

Wednesday Update

Started the day attending a funeral for an 18 year old beautiful young lady who lost the battle to cancer. Very emotional as Jim walked past the casket knowing how close he came to lying there. God definitely has a plan for him and the journey has just begun. Tomorrow is the 8-Hour Sleep Deprived EEG which means he stays up all night tonight. Ashley is on dad duty to keep him awake so mom can sleep. Thank you!!

Please pray that anything that needs to be revealed will be and that God's will be done during this test.

You have my heart
and I am yours forever
You are my strength
God of Grace and Power

Tuesday Update

We received the pre-op blood work and CT Scan results from the Dr. His hemoglobin is a little on the low side, but nothing to prevent surgery and his CT scan showed no change from the 9/13/09 scan which is great! He is officially cleared for surgery on 11/19/09, so now we just have to keep him healthy so nothing else prevents that.

Tuesday we got up and went out to breakfast and visited with a few people at church. Spent the afternoon relaxing and napping and an amazing dinner with friends. We are so grateful to God for how far Jim has come. We are so thankful for all of you that have continued to pray without ceasing for his recovery. As the surgery date approaches, we are excited for him to get his bone plate put back in, but he is a little anxious to go under the knife again. So, we just ask that you continue to pray and that God gives Jim a sense of peace about this.

1 more day until his 8-hour EEG
22 days til surgery

Monday Update

Jim woke up with a headache today and stayed in bed until noon. He ran one errand and was back in bed with another headache. Woke up around the dinner hour and felt much better. It will be an early night for bedtime and hopefully a good day tomorrow.

3 days til the EEG
24 days til the cranioplasty

Thanks for your continued prayers

Saturday & Sunday Update

Saturday started out with a meeting at church, lunch, then home for a two hour nap. Then it was off to dinner at the folks and an early bed.

Sunday morning went to church, lunch, then home for a two hour nap and then dinner and bible study. It was another early bedtime for Jim.

The goal was to get him out everyday and keep him moving so we were sure he'd be tired enough to sleep thru the night. Mission accomplished! He's slept thru the night for weeks and hasn't had a sleeping pill in 10 days!

3 more days til the 8-Hour Sleep Deprived EEG.........
25 more days til the Cranioplasty...........

Thursday & Friday Update

Thursday morning we met some friends for a fabulous breakfast at a nearby cafe, a quick run to the store and home for a nap. Relaxation and reading the rest of the day.

Friday started out with breakfast with a friend, home for a nap, reading and more reading and then off to a fabulous potluck dinner at church. Awesome chicken dip and dirt cake!

Tuesday & Wednesday Update

Tuesday was a relaxing day, a visit to church, and early to bed.

Wednesday was a good day until early afternoon when the headache began. Hopefully a good night sleep will remove it completely. Weather related? Maybe.

Monday Update

Jim had a Dr. appt. with his primary Dr. as a follow up check to see how things were going. His blood pressure, strength and meds are all good, so we won't go back to the primary dr. until after his surgery. After that, he had coffee with a friend, home for dinner and relaxing and reading until bedtime.

31 more days til surgery!

Sunday Update

Awesome day at church today with a great message and inspiring music. After church, we went to lunch and went for a walk. That pretty much tired him out, so its been a relaxing evening on the couch watching movies and poker tournaments.

32 days til surgery!

Friday & Saturday Update

Friday was a lazy and quiet day and the first time Jim was left alone since July 19th, but only for an hour. He was fine with it, but we were nervous. We made him promise not to do anything but relax and I think he was happy when we finally left. Of course when we returned, he had taken a nap and was just fine. He stayed home all day and did some reading and relaxing.

Saturday we met the folks for breakfast, out of town friends for lunch and more friends for dinner. I didn't have to cook all day on Sweetest Day! Needless to say, Jim is tired, but he did get to take a two hour nap before dinner.

33 more days til surgery!

Thursday Update

Today started out good with Jim sleeping in late and then going to lunch with a co-worker. After that we went to the hospital for some blood work, urine sample and CT Scan which are the final tests he has to take before his November 19th surgery. So, if we hear nothing in the next two weeks, then Jim is good to go for the19th.

On the way home he developed a headache and took a two hour nap, got up for dinner and is spending the rest of the evening on the couch under a blanket. Thanks for all the prayers!

Wednesday Update

Jim has to go for a CT Scan on Thursday and some bloodwork which should be the last of his tests before surgery. We're hoping he has no excess fluids which would be a reason to delay surgery. So, we're praying everything looks good and that Nov. 19th will still be the day for the Craniotomy.
Not sure when we'll get these results, but we'll let you know when we find out.

Thanks for the continued prayers and support! We know God is still in control and we trust him completely.

Tuesday Update

Today was a headache day until into the evening hours. He took lots of naps and meds but the headache never completely left. Hopefully a good night sleep tonight will be the cure!


I am yours regardless of
the clouds that may loom above
because you are much greater than the pain

Monday Dr. Appt. Update

The surgeon was very pleased with Jim's progress and had no hesitation in setting the date for his Crainiotomy for November 19th. Before this surgery he has to have another CT scan and more blood work to ensure everything is within range.

This surgery should take approximately two hours and his stay in ICU will be two days. They will be re-opening the original cut and replacing the skull and stapling the cut back. They will leave the staples in for three weeks since its an area that has already been opened. He will no longer have to wear his helmet and will be able to do those things we all take for granted such as: coughing, sneezing, blowing his nose.

We appreciate all the prayers and look forward to the 19th!!

Important Dr appt in the morning

Unfortunately, Jim has a headache tonight. He has a very early appointment in the morning with the Doctor to see when his bone can go back in his head.

I would like to ask that everyone please pray that everything goes well and that his healing process is right on target.. or even better than expected!

we'll keep you updated.

Friday & Saturday Update

Our goal is to get Jim out of the house to gain some stamina and to give him new walls to stare at.

On Friday he slept in very late and then got up and went to lunch with his daughter and some friends. After that he came home and relaxed and went out to dinner.

Saturday morning was a breakfast meeting at church (right up Jim's alley) and we spent the rest of the day completely relaxing, watching movies and the Michigan game.

Wednesday & Thursday Update

Wednesday was a very relaxing day for Jim. He had a lazy day for most of the day, but we finally got him out of the house in the early evening just to make sure he did some moving around. We took him to dinner and then came home for some more relaxing.

Thursday he woke up with a headache (weather related) and laid around most of the day again fighting it. It was one of those nagging headaches that didn't want to go away so we got him out again to go to dinner and a movie at a friends house.

He is very anxious to go to his Dr. appt on Monday to see when the bone flap is going back in and hopefully get rid of these headaches. He received a letter from the Neurologist that scheduled his 8-Hour Sleep Deprived Video EEG to increase his seizure medicine to ensure he has no more seizures.

Thanks for your continued prayers and support. You'll never know how much we appreciate you all.

Monday & Tuesday Update

Monday was a lazy day with a headache in the afternoon that lingered into the evening hours. He was unable to sleep, but finally called it quits about 5:00 a.m.

Today we went to breakfast with the folks and lunch with friends, then spent the rest of the day taking naps while relaxing, watching tv and reading. Hopefully tonight he will sleep much better.

Sunday Update

Jim woke up with a small headache that seemed to linger throughout the day, but manageable with meds. He was able to go to church, then out to lunch and relaxed for the remainder of the day. We are still thinking these kinds of headaches are weather related since they don't put him to bed. We will hope for sunshine tomorrow so the nagging headache will go away.

Jim continues to meet new people who share stories of a family member or someone they know with a brain aneurysm and are amazed at how remarkable he is doing. We are constantly reminded of God's Glory and know that God has a plan for Jim.

everything you hold in your hand
still you make time for me, I can't understand
Praise you God of earth and sky
how beautiful is your unfailing love

Friday & Saturday Update

Friday Jim had a relaxing day and slept 12 hours! He developed a headache in the afternoon but was able to sleep it off after a two hour nap. After that we had some homemade chicken noodle soup and then went to church for a meeting.

He didn't sleep good at all Friday night, but we were still able to make it to a memorial service for a wonderful man. He came home from that and took a two hour nap and went to church for a great sermon and then out to eat with some friends. Hopefully tonight he will sleep much better after good conversation, laughs and great food.

Thursday Update

Jim had a very busy day today which started with breakfast and reading, then off to lunch with a co-worker. After that he showed off his grand daughter to his co-workers and back home to rest for a while. For dinner, we went o A&W for his first root beer since his surgery and he still likes it! After dinner we went to church for a meeting and Jim enjoyed listening to the band practice for the weekend service. He even got a bonus because they were celebrating a birthday and he enjoyed a piece of bumpy cake and ice cream. He came home and was exhausted and a slight headache and went to bed by 8:30. We just pray that he sleeps thru the night and wakes up feeling refreshed and no headache.

Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. James 1:2-3

Wednesday Update

The day started with Jim cooking breakfast and then relaxing and some reading. He developed a headache and took a nap for a few hours. After that we spent some time with our granddaughter and took her for a walk. Jim felt well enough to assist me in some yard work by holding the bag open while I pulled the plants up that no longer produce vegetables. We worked up an appetite and went to dinner with one of our daughters at Bob Evans where Jim was spotted as that guy in the newspaper. Its great to be able to share his story with so many people and talk about God's Glory. Sleeping is still going good and we're SO grateful for that.

His 8-Hour Sleep Deprived EEG is scheduled for late October, so we'll have to see what comes first, the test or the surgery for the bone flap. Of course we won't know this until his appointment with the Surgeon in a few weeks.