A letter from my mom

Dear friends and family,

I'm asking Loni to post this message on her facebook and blog and wherever she thinks we might reach loved ones. I've also asked her to post it exactly as written without editing the part about her sainthood, which she will be tempted to do. :)

As you all know by now, Mike had a stroke on Wednesday, June 9th. Physically he's doing very well. He has weakness on his right side, but the therapists tell me that should be fixed with rehab and exercises. The stroke affected his speech and you know what a champion talker he is so this has made his awfully frustrated. The therapists and doctors all say "no crystal ball- but we should see constant improvement with time and therapy." Everyone has told us stories of success that they are all aware of, so I'm optimistic. Mike, the consummate pessimist, isn't so sure. We'll just have to prove it to him.

He does have a blood clot in a brain vessel that they are watching. It isn't going anywhere, but they have to make sure that blood can get around it to all the parts of his brain.

I've told Mike that after all the phone and computer well wishes, thoughts, and messages to us and to Loni, I'm going to start calling him George Bailey (as in It's A Wonderful Life). You really do find out how much people love and care about you when something like this happens. We're SO lucky to have the family that we have. I can't say enough about the support and help they give. Within an hour of arriving at the ER our niece and two of my brothers and a sister-in-law were here with us. Of course Loni, my rock, met us at the door. I can't even begin to express what Loni means to us and what she does for us. And with three little girls five and under it's not easy for her. You can refer back to family for the thanks for all the help for her to be able to be with us as much as possible. She's been a communicator, cheerleader, and just general love of our lives. I thank God for her everyday. And of course, the first day that Mike was here at the hospital, Natalie and Vanessa, our precious granddaughters, made their Papa cards for his windowsill. I'm sure Allison would have also if she older than seven months!

My coworkers have been wonderful! Coming to the ER and making sure that Mike is getting the best possible care that they can do anything about. Let alone assuring me that they understand that my place is with Mike and to not worry about the work on my desk or anything else. Thank you so much ladies. I love you all.

I'm thankful that the four days before this happened, Mike and I spent together and being happy. A laid back weekend with movies, homemade pizza and celebrating our 40th anniversary on Sunday. Monday and Tuesday we spent at Kanopolis Lake and Mike got to do a little fishing. Not much due to the weather, but a little anyway.

With finances a little tight this year, my anniversary gift to Mike was a love letter. The first line was "I've known since I was 15 that I wanted to spend the rest of my life with you and I haven't changed my mind". I still haven't changed it, and I never will.

Please send Mike your good thoughts and prayers. We love all of you.

Patty.

UPDATE BY LONI (Saturday 4pm): Yesterday they found what appeared to be a hole in Dad's heart. Today they did a more extensive test and did determine that there is a defect (hole) and some blockage. We don't yet know how much blockage as this info came from a nurse, not an actual doctor. So now we wait. The doctor should come consult with us on Monday as to what the next steps are. Treatment for the heart could range from taking a few pills every day to surgery. We, of course, are hoping surgery of any kind is not necessary.

Dad is still very frustrated with the lack of communication. He understands everything we say and knows exactly what he WANTS to say, but he just can't get his brain to relay it through his mouth. But I KNOW that soon he will. It is just going to take some hard work and patience. But he can do it. And with two world-class nags such as my mom and myself behind him, he really has no choice!!

I also wanted to thank everyone for being there for us during this time. I have the best friends and family ever. I truly believe that.

I love my Dad so much. I have always been a daddy's girl, and it is so hard to see him like this. I am looking forward to a time when my dad and I can talk basketball for hours on the phone again or he can take Natalie for a walk though the fields to find various animal homes. But the important thing is that we still have him. Now we all just have to work to get him back to being "him".