Day 2

I am here with Bill. It's amazing, he looks so good. If he wasn't hooked up to IV's, it would be hard to believe he under went surgery yesterday. He is doing well. He says he is in a lot of pain. It's worst then the last surgery. He is tired as well. The medical staff kept coming in his room though out the night. He said they did a chest X-Ray at 1 AM. He is up and about today. The catheter is out. We walked around the hall way and he did well. He is on a clear liquid diet and is waiting patiently for his spaghetti dinner.

He has his cell phone. It's OK to call Please do not call pass 8 so he can get his sleep. The kids are doing well. Zachary is having a lot of fun with his aunt and cousins. He misses home and wants to go home today. I miss them to and will be happy to have them home, It was sad last night to see an empty crib next to my bed. Last night, Zachary was home sick. We were able to do video chat and he felt better. Hopefully he will be able to do video chat with his dad today.

Bill did not feel like writing the blog today because of the pain. I did read him all the comments and guest book. He enjoyed hearing them.

A Scorcher.

Not inspired to write tonight. It's been an extremely hot day. The family was up late last night. We visited with our neighbors. By the time the kids were fed and bathed it was after 10:30. I missed mass this morning but went to church to pray. It's easier for me to pray there. At home there are many distractions. After praying,I did a couple of errands. I went to Menards looking for a O-Ring for the power washer. I also went and bought a flat of flowers. Sally planted flowers before Mother's Day. Because of the weather being cold some of the flowers didn't survive and the planters looked bare.

I came home and took a nap. I went outside and fooled around with the power washer. The O-Ring I got was the right size but, not the right thickness so looks like I will be on a scavenger hunt looking for a O-Ring. Sally needed to run to Walmart and I went with. I would rather go shopping then keeping an eye on Zachary and a neighborhood kid who has been rubbing me the wrong way. Michael took Zachary swimming again this evening. Right now it's a quiet house without them home.

Since it was so hot I didn't feel like eating. I just wanted to drink. Tonight Sally made a batch of flour tortillas. They were good like always and I wanted more. Sally made more dough and I made the next batch. They were deformed but taste delicious.

Tonight I did watch America's got talent. There was a lot of lame performers. Some were fairly good for local talent but, nowhere near national stardom. There was one guy who was able to turn his feet a complete 90 degrees, to where is feet were totally behind him. Not good for a talent show but, circus maybe. I still think Zach's Dolphin sound would win the show.

My stomach is sore,so I will be getting to the shower soon. I think with all the sweat coming off of me, the sweat on the stitch area with the staples is what is causing me the soreness. So now I am going to get cleaned up and head to bed. I will be getting up around 8am to do a few things in the morning like my daily prayers. Later at 1pm I have an appointment with my Oncologist. So tomorrow I will have news about that.

Thank you for visiting and God Bless.

Update

Bill went in for surgery at 4:45. I will try my best to keep updating. His surgery is expected to last between 3-5 hours.

He is out of surgery and in recovery right now. There was so much said, I will try to give the information to the best of my ability. About 5:15 the surgeon came into the waiting area to speak with us. He was successfully able to remove the lymphnoid but he could not find the spot in the liver. He was waiting for an ultra sound to see if they could detect the spot. He came back a little while later saying even with the ultra sound they could not find the spot. When he is recovered and feeling better another ultra sound will be done to see if can be detected. If so, there is an out patient procedure that will be done to the spot. If not spot is found,then they will closely watch to see. There is a chance that the cancer can come back. Right now his chances of survival is 30-35%. The longer he goes cancer free the higher is chances will be. He was out of surgery at 6:30.

He just left the recovery room and is being transferred to his room right now. He will not have to be in the ICU as previously planned. When I was him in the recovery room he was in a lot of discomfort and they were trying to control the pain. He was thirsty and hungry. He told me he wanted spaghetti. He looks like he feels better now . He was waving to me as he passed the waiting area. Before the surgery an epidural was done to help manage the pain. He will have the epidural in for a couple of days. I am in the room with him now. He is watching the Cubs. He is very thistry but can not have any thing. Not even ice chips, poor guy.

If anything changes I will try to keep you posted. Thanks for the prayers.

If my eyes are closed forever.

I know that I am sounding like a pessimist. I usually try to be an optimist but right now I am going to be more of a realist. I know that I have been receiving a whole heck of a lot of support and prayers but, there is no guarantees. So that is why I feel it is important to let all of you know how important you are to me and my family.

My brothers Mike(Leann) and Dave(Sara) sisters Dawn(Dave),Carolyn(John) and Lisa(Dave) Including the wives and husbands. All of you have been there for me at the beginner to help me cope with this very serious illness and throughout my life. I want you all to know just how much I love each and everyone of you. I love you all the same, so Mike just because your name is first doesn't mean I love you more I want to make that perfectly clear. I would have liked to say this in person or over the phone but I really don't think you will understand what I am saying. There isn't any thing I wouldn't do for any of you If I could. Let all of the kids to know that I love them.

My sisters and brothers in law Susie(Jim),Sandy(free- any takers)and Stacie(Tom) I want you all to know how much you all have meant to me during the 14 years I have known you all.(Sandy and Stacie a little longer) You all have been good to my family during these rough times. I love all of you too, equally as well. Tell all of yours kids that I love them as well.

My Mom and Dad Yolanda and Frank and Mother in law Mary. I want you all to know that you are very important people to me.All three of you have helped mold me to who I am today.( an old man with cancer,just kidding)I know that I haven't been the best son and husband but I did try my best. I hope the memories are all good. I love each and everyone of you. Thank you for everything.

My kids Michael,Zachary and Kaitlyn. I hope you all know that I love you all very much. Michael I know that someday you will be great lawyer. It won't be easy but , I KNOW YOU CAN DO IT. Zachary I know that you could be a great race car driver if that is what you still want to do in another 15 years or so. I know you both will be outstanding young adults.I hope that I played a role in that.Kaity my little girl. I love your kissies. I know that someday when you get married you will be the boss of the house like you are now. I know that I wasn't the best Dad but, I did want the best for all of you. Michael you need to understand what your mother is going through and how things will change. It's not all about her. It's always been about you and the kids and then me. Not only will Mom need you but, so will the kids.

All my old friends and the new ones and other family members. There are so many of you that I can't even begin to mention all of you without forgetting somebody. I love you all and wish the best for you. Thank you for the prayers and kind words of encouragement. God Bless you all.

Sally my wife who is one of the most important people to me. There isn't any words that can properly express how I feel about you and how much of a impact you have made on me. I love you now and forever. I know we have had some dips in the road but we learned from them and our marriage got better. We have had a very unique marriage with a lot of laughter. Usually we always laughed with each other and not at each other. We have had some sad moments but, it always made us better.I love you sweetheart.

I hope if something does happen to me that no one forgets Sally. She isn't one to make calls. So I hope that she can count on some check up phone calls once in a while. She is my wife and I care about her as much as anyone can.

Patrick,Eli,Cloe, Evan and Rachel I hope you all have long and fulfilling lives. I love all of you.

Jacqueline and Joseph I hope you have a very long and prosperous marriage.
Nathan,Matthew,Nicole,Stephanie, Elliott, Noah,Bekka and Holly I hope you all have long and fulfilling lives . I love all of you too.

I know that this isn't what everyone expected. I just didn't want something to happen without expressing some of my thoughts. I really am thinking very positive but like I said earlier there are no guarantees. So I felt like this is what I needed to do. So thank you for visiting and love you all.

Hopefully in a week or so I will be back to telling stories, Stay tuned.

info

I am sure Bill will be on tonight to write his blog. Just wanted to let everyone know he will have to be at the UIC 1pm tomorrow. The surgery should be around 1-2. However, the doctor is performing another surgery before Bill's so the exact time is uncertain.

I am planning on posting a blog tomorrow night to let everyone know what is going on. The surgery should be 3-4 hours. A little longer if they run into complications or find more cancer to remove. He will be in recovery for 2 hours and possibly he might need to spend the night in the ICU.

When Bill is feeling up to it he should be able to post and read your comments while he is in the hospital recovering.

Sally

Not again

Today I am mentally and physically beat. I am very nervous about Wednesday. Please don't tell me not to be. It's much easier said then done. Sally is terrified to drive in Chicago. She has in the past but knows her limits and driving to Chicago is one of them. So we decided to take public transportation to UIC for a practice run. Sally looked up on line for information how to get there. I called UIC and was given the same directions except was told to get out at a different stop since the one that was listed is closed. We were told what bus to get on and that it would take us right there. Well that wasn't the case. First we couldn't find the bus. I called CTA and was told I would have to take 2 buses. So we did. We finally got there and went to take the buses back to the train station. We have so much to do before Wednesday so Sally and I wanted to get home as fast as we could. The bus we got on didn't announce the streets. I think we missed the stop but not sure. Sally suggested to get off the bus and take a cab to the bus station. She worked in Chicago for a couple of years right after High School. We were on the street she use to work on so we decided to walk. It was about a 20 block walk to the train station. Needless to say Sally has no clue how she is going to get there now. The Amtrack is one option but the schedule is very limited plus it will cost her about $30 a day to see me which is $10 more then her taking the South Shore and the buses. I am going to call Grey hound tomorrow and see if there are any stops close to the hospital.

So what we planed on at the most to be a 3 hour trip took us over 5 hours. We got the little ones from my sister's house (we almost took the kids with, glad we didn't) and went out to eat. I ate my last supper which was spaghetti. I will not be able to eat tomorrow. Starting at 1PM tomorrow I have to take a series of medication and have this powder stuff I mix with water to drink to clean me out. I wish I was able to take the pills instead like I did for the colonoscopy. After dinner we had to run to Walmart to pick up some prescription. Kaity was beyond tired and cried most of the time. I had to run to Walgreens tonight to pick up some more medication.

I haven't even had the surgery yet and the little ones are feeling the effects already. Kaity has been more clingy then usual especially with Sally. She usually takes naps and goes to bed without any trouble. Thursday we had trouble getting her to bed and it's been like that ever since. We were gone for a long time on Thursday and wonder if that has something to do with it. Tonight Sally had to sit in the back seat of the car because she was crying for her. After we got the kids to bed tonight, Zachary came out of his room crying to Sally. He said that he doesn't want to spend the night any where and wants to be with Sally. Sally explained to him his Aunt Sandy who will be keeping him for a couple of nights was planning on taking him to the park and beach. He felt a little better but still was very sad. He told Sally "she is the best mom ever.".

Another thing which is making it difficult is not knowing the surgery time. It's hard to plan transportation and getting the kids to my sister in law without knowing a time. I won't know until tomorrow between 1-4. If I have to be there early in the morning before public transportation is running Sally and I might have to spent the night tomorrow night. Tonight Sally will be washing clothes and search for a way to get to the UIC. She has to pack for the kids still. Not knowing how long the kids will be at her sisters will make it harder for her to pack. It's not like she can run over and bring them more clothes or diapers. Here sister lives in Valpo which is about a 45 minute drive. Also, I won't have a hospital room until after the surgery. So everything I bring that day including what I wear in she will have to carry it around with her. I wish she wasn't afraid to drive it would have been much easier on her. While she is doing her thing tonight, I am getting the living room ready so I can clean the carpet tomorrow. Kaity has a doctor's appointment in the morning so I figured that would be a good time to do it when she isn't home.

That's it for tonight. I need to get busy so I won't be up all night. God Bless.Sorry for the boring blog but, not really into it today.

Take it easy?

Today I went to mass with the family. Came home and did some cleaning around the house. Kaity didn't want to take a nap so I laid down with her and we both fell asleep. Sally and I went out for dinner for our anniversary( which is actually on the 13th, but I will be in the hospital) and then we went to Target.

Yesterday I was so darn tired to type. So tonight I wanted to elaborate more on yesterday's events. Sally was telling everyone on Friday how I need to take it easy. I know many of you agreed with her. Well, you won't believe what she did to me yesterday. Like I said yesterday we went to visit her friend, Kim, at the hospital. Sally asked me if I wanted to stay home with the kids or go with her. I was tired and decided it would be more restful to go with her then staying with the kids. When we first got there Kim was nursing. So Sally and I told her we would come back in a few minutes. I didn't eat very much yesterday and I was starving. I suggested to go to the cafeteria. We walked to the elevators and while we were waiting Sally came up with this brilliant plan. Let's take the stairs. Without even including me in her decision she said "Come on let's take the stairs." Before I even had a chance to reply she had already darted to the stairs. She didn't even wait for me to catch up before she flew down stairs. By the time I caught up with her it felt like I just had completed a marathon. "Hmmm" I kept thinking "Glad she wants me to take it easy. I can't imagine what it would have been if she wanted a work out with me." If that's not bad you should have seen her the day. I like to go shopping with Sally ( I know that's weird being a guy and all, but I like looking at boy toys). The other day Michael had a couple of hours free to watch the kids. Sally needed to do some running around and I wanted to go with. So I was thinking maybe one store. Nooooooooooooooo not Sally. She likes to compare prices. She also likes to go on line and read reviews before making a purchase. I am surprise she doesn't check the reviews when she buys my drawers. I guess I should be lucky because she really isn't a browser. She likes to get what she needs and leaves. I on the other hand like to take my time and look around. So the other day she kept dragging me in and out of stores. Not only that but she kept walking fast and kept telling me to hurry up because we didn't have enough time. I did get upset with her because I was getting tired and I felt like she didn't understand. I wish I was still the studly athlete she fell in love with( keep all comments to yourself). Chemo has really taken a toll on me.

Not sure but I think chemo has effected my hearing as well. Of course I can't hear Sally half the time. I think that has a lot to due with being together almost 14 years. I finally have mastered the fine skill of tuning her out. But now it's getting to the point I can't hear other people as well. Yesterday, Zachary was talking to me and I kept saying "What Zachary? I can't hear you?". While this was going on Zachary asked Sally why I couldn't hear. Sally said it's because I am old and deaf. Zachary went to repeat what Sally had said to me and I still couldn't hear and said "What?". A roar of laughter came from the both of them and Sally had to explain to me what just happened.

Michael was a crab yesterday. Zachary felt like Michael wasn't being nice to him. It's hard because Michael is so much older then Zachary so most of the time Zachary can't even get Michael back. Once in awhile Zachary will come up with a clever way of getting him back. Like peeing in a cup and telling Michael he made him lemonade. Last night Zachary said he wants to build a robot. A Clone Wars robot to be exact. He wants to program the robot to be mean. In his exact words " I want the robot to be mean to Michael so it will scare him away and he will never come back home." It breaks my heart to see Zachary sad. Zachary is a good boy and it hurts him when his brother isn't kind to him. Life is hard enough for him without having a big brother to make him feel bad often.

You know it's a good day in Chicago when the Cubs won 6-3 in 14 innings and I won't rub it in any one's face about how the Sox did ( lost 8-4 to the Indians). Take care and God Bless.

I'm getting there

Last night I went to the first Friday service at the Carmelite Monastery. This is something that I would like to get in the habit of doing.It's a all day affair and you can come and go as you please. I get there at about 11:30 or 12:00Am to say my prayers and the Rosary. At about 1:30 AM there is a break for coffee and other munchables. I like going later at night cause it is quiet and not a whole lot of people there to see me do stupid things. When it was time to take our break, I went to get a cup of coffee. People were there chatting away.I grabbed a cup and started to fill it up. I took the cup filled with coffee and it hit the nozzle and spilled all over my hand. I said "!@#$%^&** and ^&&*(*&%$. I know that wasn't very nice considering I was at the Monastery but, that coffee was hot like McDonald's hot. The worst part was everyone stopped talking to see what all the ruckus was. I kept on cleaning up my mess and ignoring everyone else. I got done and turned around and everyone was looking at me. Now there will probably be a picture of me in the food area telling everyone of my verbal assault and that the coffee is very hot and to be very careful.

Sally and I went to see Sally's good friend Kim in the hospital cause she had a baby girl named Sophia Marie and weighed 5' 9 . Her and her husband tried for a while to have a baby. So this was truly a God send. That really made me think of the birth of my kids. I remember the first time when Zach was born. It was one of the happiest days of my life. I always thought I wouldn't have a child of my own. Sally and I had a hard time trying to have little Dolphin Boy. We had to have help with a Fertility Doctor. It really didn't take as long as I thought it would, it was about 5 mos when Sally got pregnant. When Zach was born I remember seeing him bend his foot and it would touch his shin. I said to myself"WHOOOOA. I thought that maybe he had a broken ankle or something. He didn't, I guess newborns can do that.

Sox finally won 4-2 against the Indians.
Cubs are tied 3-3 against the Reds at the top of the 11Th.

This is a short blog. I really need to get some sleep so I can get more done tomorrow. I hope to have a more refreshed day tomorrow. Thanks for visiting my blog and God Bless you all.

to tired to write

Hi it's Sally reporting to you tonight. Bill was going to write the blog but was exhausted. I asked him to sit and watch TV with me instead. He has been busy today. He woke up early and went to mass. He had a doctor's appointment after that. By the time he came home it was 1 pm. He spent a lot of time today working outside. When it rains a lot we have been noticing water in some of the heating vents. He digged around the back side of the house looking for foundation cracks. He also put a sealer on the side of the house along the driveway. After that he went with me shopping because he wanted to go to Borders. I am trying to get everything done before Wednesday and I was shopping a lot longer then we anticipated. We didn't get home until 9. I feel bad for Bill because he looks tired and worn out all the time. I can even hear him breath when he is so tired. I wish he would stop and rest when he gets that tired but he doesn't. I think if he were to get more sleep he would feel better. We go to bed fairly late and he wakes up early to go to mass. We need to start going to bed earlier. It didn't help that I took Kaity. She is a little Houdini and is able to escape from being fastened in the cart. So Bill was trying to watch and chase her around the store. Every time he would stop to look at something she would wonder away. Once I saw her wondering off and kept and eye on her until Bill realized she was missing. Another time she had wondered away and Bill had to find her. After that he dropped Kaity and me off at Kohl's so he could look around Borders. This time I had her fastened in the stroller. I also bribed her with fruit rolls ups. She was good until she ran out of the fruit roll ups ( on her defense she had been out with me for 5 hours and was getting bored and tired). I was shopping and looked down and that little stinker had escaped. I put her back in there and watched her. She is able to move around enough that she was able to stand up and escape that way. Bill left Borders to help me with her. Chasing her around would wear anyone out.

So now it's just a little after midnight. I begged Bill to go to bed but of course he didn't listen to me. He just left to go to the first Friday all night vigil. He will be there for a couple of hours. People bring in food and they take a break around 2 to eat. I am sure he will stay to eat. Plus, we have to wake up early in the morning. Zachary has a soccer game at 9. Plus, I called today about donating blood for Bill. I was told it has to be done tomorrow at the latest. I was told that their schedule for tomorrow is full and I need to call back at 7am to see if they handle extra donors. Originally there was going to be 6 of us but it probably will be more like 4 if they aren't able to squeeze us in tomorrow. So, I might have to leave early in the morning and Bill will have to be up to take care of the kids. Plus, he has to put all the dirt back on the side of the house before he it rains tomorrow. He wasn't able to do it today because he had to wait for the stuff he put on to dry. Tomorrow, we also have a graduation party to go to. Plus, we were planning on going out in the evening to celebrate our wedding anniversary since he will be in the hospital for it. I am hoping he will agree to stay home tomorrow night so he can rest. We can go out Sunday night instead.

I know I am not entertaining like Bill. He is the amusing one in our family. If I wasn't so tired I would write some embarrassing stories about him to get him back. I do have a correction for yesterday's blog. The music and people at the monastery last night was not Korean. They were from the Philippines. I know it really doesn't make a difference but I wanted to prove Bill wrong once again.The name of the healing priest is Father Fernando Suarez. You can google his name to find out more information about him.

Moon over the Cell

It has been a very long day. Sally and I left the house at 7am for the UIC. We had an appointment at 8:30 but were given directions to take the sky way. Well the direction were to the University of Chicago not for the University of Illinois at Chicago. After driving around for 30 minutes looking for the parking garage we finally realized we were at the wrong place. It took me another 30 minutes to find the express way. During the entire time Sally and I were bickering back and forth. Sally accused me of driving in circles. I didn't have much choice when the streets were all one way. Finally after we got there I met with the nurse and the surgeon first. Then we sat and waited for over 2 hours to speak with the anesthesiologist. After that we had to go back and talk with the nurse again. I will not know of the surgical time until Tuesday. Right now we are waiting for the authorization from the insurance company. Hopefully, the clinic filed it today. The surgery will be approximately 3 to 4 hours long. There is a good chance that I will need a blood transfusion. My sister in law (Sandy) and Sally offered to donate blood for me. Sally is going to call tomorrow to set that up. Also, there is a possibility I might be in the ICU after the surgery which is common after that type of surgery.

After all of that is was after 1 PM. We were hungry since we didn't eat all day. So we decided to check out the cafeteria. The hospital and the out patient clinic is on 2 separate streets but connected by walkways. After we were done we walked outside to the garage. Sally and I started bickering again like and old married couple(Fred and Ethel Mertz is a good comparison). She accused me of having us walk around in circles. She claimed to have said to walk back were we started but I don't recall her ever saying it. She doesn't realize it but, I got lost on purpose. I love to take walks with my wife. What is a better time then in Chicago on a chilly day not knowing were we are going. When we finally got to the garage the bickering started again on where the car was parked. I swear some one moves my car every time after I park it. I will tell you one thing though, that I will know University Village like the back of my hand by the time my surgery is over with.

Last night myself,Michael, Zachary and my good friend Dan went to the Sox game. It was a great game because they lost 5-3 to the worst team in baseball right now. One of the Oakland players hit a Home run and Zach did his Dolphin noise in Dan's ear. Dan liked it so much that Zach did a oncore without even being asked,that's my boy. Later, as I was watching the game I heard a crunching noise coming from behind me. I looked and saw Zach eating peanuts from off the ground. He said,"It's OK Daddy they are in the shell so they are not dirty".He got me there. I thought it was nice of the people that were there and left to leave Zach the mother load of peanuts. It wasn't just a couple it was practically a whole bag on the ground. Not once did Zach watch the game until every peanut was devoured, that's my boy. Again I go back to watch this beautiful game and then I hear some girls laughing. I looked back at them and just smiled thinking they were flirting with me. This was going on for a while and then Dan told me what they were laughing at. Zachary because he was so into the game(he really wanted to go to a Cubs game) was playing with his legoes star wars that he smuggled into the park.Dan said look at Zach. As I did this I was speechless cause now I knew what the girls were laughing at. I said to Zach" Zach pull your pants up". The whole time they were laughing, Zach was just smiling back at them without realizing it. Earlier Dan got a close up of Zachs moon when he was climbing over a chair to be closer to Dan, his new buddy. I do have to admit Dan was a real trooper. We were all cheering for the A'S and Dan took it well.When we went to the Cubs game earlier he wasn't quite as mean like we were but then again the Cubs won that game.

I went to a healing mass at the Carmelite Monestary in Munster. I never went to anything like this before. It was given by a priest named Fernando Suarez and another priest who works with him who I really don't remember his name.The Mass itself was pretty long, than afterwards he did the healing. There was a lot of people there and most of them were Korean. I am not making fun of that but, stating that at least half of the people if not more were of Korean decent. The music that was being sung during the mass was written and said in Korean. They do, do a lot of different ethnic masses there. The healing priest was of Canadian Philippine decent the other one was Canadian. They have gone to over 40 countries and healed about 2,000,000 people last year. There was people from all walks of life there. There was a child there that was very loud and out spoken during the singing. I believe he had severe ADHD. I am not making light of any of this. I thought that it was a very nice thing that anybody could come to,to be heal for anything. First the people in wheel chairs and then families with kids 8 and younger could go first. Next time I will bring Zach so maybe he could be cured of his mooning. Then it went by rows.So you know were I was sitting, practically in Illinois. I was thinking if I could have a couple of things to be healed of. Sally says that I have a problem with snoring and farting not to forget the cancer. So what do I do.Be cured of the Snoring and Farting so the wife I love dearly could have a good nights sleep,( she will usually go on the couch) Or the cancer that can help me live a more prosperous life but than again my wife who I love dearly will have many sleepless nights. This is a tough one, I ultimately chose the cancer.I thought that she is suppose to love me no matter what, with or without the gas. Sorry honey maybe next time. I hope no one thinks that I am making fun of my little boy. I am not, there just isn't a day that goes by that he doesn't make me laugh and I want to share.

Thanks for visiting and God Bless.
Sox lost again to the worst team in baseball 7-0. Cubs game was post poned.