Hope for Maggie

I took this information verbatim from my friend Camille's website.  But she worded it perfectly: 

Some of you may remember Maggie. She is a 2 year old girl that lives in my neighborhood. She has been featured on the news several times about her mysterious illness that continues to elude doctors. Last summer our community pulled together and did a yard sale that raised thousands to help with the medical bills and help the family get back east to doctors that might have some answers.

The update on Maggie isn't what we hoped and things are not looking good. Maggie is continuing to lose weight and her health is suffering greatly. We are once more going to try to help Maggie, but for a different purpose. We hope to raise money for her and her family to do something that will create a great memory for them.

On September 18th we will be having a Boutique/Bake Sale/Games/Etc.... to help raise money.  If you can donate anything, please let me know.  I will be handling the games, so specifically, if you have something that will work, I would be VERY grateful.

Since the last time we spoke...

Well, I'm back!  I's been almost 8 months since I've blogged.   I actually think I have the time to keep it up again.  And... I've been looking for jobs.  Many are asking me to provide my blog as a sample of my work!  How bizarre. I guess that shows I'm good at social media.  What happened to good old fashioned samples of my writing?  I tried a short lived stint doing a pop culture blog, but that I REALLY didn't have time for.  Sooo, you can look forward to the return of my Thursday Pop Culture Dish!

As the title suggest, I should fill you in on what we've been up to since January.  Here's the Reader's Digest version:

• January - May was a big blur.  It was really devoted to my dad and writing John's grandma's personal history.  They were both at CareSource Hospice Center together and I would go there almost every day to visit.  My sweet dad passed away on May 20th and Faye followed on May 29th.  It was a highly draining and emotional, but spiritual time for our family.   These are experiences I couldn't possibly even try to describe in a blog.
• In January, my friend April threw some freelance work my way for the Dental Assisting School of Utah where she works as Marketing Director.  John and I converted their website and made updates, set-up a CRM system, and I did some web content and admin stuff.  I still help them out when needed.
• In March, I started freelancing for a New Jersey based company getinterviews.com that my friend Liz referred me to.  I write and edit resumes for them.  I never thought I'd like it, but it's kind of a fun gig.  When it's busy, I can spend 15 hours a week doing that.
• I've started a personal history business: Remember Your Story.  I'm working on my mom's right now to add to my portfolio and John and I are doing the website.
• I'm working on a children's book and a novel -- both are going VERY slowly.
• I'm interviewing for another part-time editor job that is flexible and/or work-from-home, so I can continue doing my freelance stuff.
• John is still Sales & Marketing Director at Aquaveo (a water modeling software company).  But, he's been working a lot in Provo.  In August, they merged the South Jordan and Provo offices, so starting next week, he will be commuting every day to Provo.  Ugh.  John went to BYU, but never lived in Provo.  He took SL Center classes and commuted when he needed to.  He says he's used to it and it will be fine.  I say that it's been 11 years since he graduated and he was single most of that time.  It's going to be TOTALLY different now that he's married, has a kid, and is busy with church.  But, we're not in a position to move right now, so we're just going to try and make it work.
• We've pretty much stayed put with all that's gone on, but we did get to go to Idaho and Jackson Hole in July, which was a total blast!  We spent a couple of weekends in Heber at John's mom and step-dad's cabin.
• In June, I put on a Stake Carnival (I'm Stake Cultural Arts Director).  It was one of the hardest things I've done for a church calling.  Mainly because of my dad's health and his death, I didn't plan well at all and didn't delegate much.  Most of it ended up on my plate; a lesson I learned the hard way and will NEVER do again.  But... it was a huge hit, so that's good!
• In July, John got to travel to Shanghai, China for work!  I really wanted to go, but we just couldn't pull it off.  Fortunately, I've been to Beijing, so at least he didn't go somewhere that I was dying to visit.  He  was gone 10 days for a conference... and he even ate Chinese food!  That's a big deal for him since he's uber-picky.
• Katie is doing great.  Started 4th grade!!!  We had a low-key summer.  No camps, no lessons.  It was actually really nice.  We did compete in the South Jordan Chalk Art festival with our neighbors Linda and Maddie.  We won first place in the Family Category!  Katie finally lost some teeth, so that was the great achievement of the summer!
• I'm an aunt again to cute baby Scarlett: Jimmy and Libby's daughter.  I'm a great-aunt again x 2.  My nephew Sparky and his wife Holly had their cute baby Austin in February.  Liz and Marshall had cute Drake in August.  
• Been helping out my mom a lot.  She's doing well considering everything.  We (her fam) have been remodeling her bedroom -- something that wasn't done in probably 30 years.  It's really good for her to have a new room after all the years it was like a hospital wing.
• Just when I think we've made progress with our house, something else happens.  Our back fence fell down (John's in the process of replacing it now) and we have to do some plumbing work downstairs.  The garage is tilting and the back is rotted.  Arson sounds like a good option right now.
• I met my birth father's family in August.  He was killed in a car accident at the age of 28 in 1979.  I met my grandparents, two aunts, and an uncle.  It was a really good experience and so great to get some answers.
• Katie and I are 90% complete in Harry Potter Lego Wii.  We did get a Wii Fit in April, so we're not complete couch potatoes.  I've actually lost 22 - 25 lbs. (depends on the day; it fluctuates), which I'm crediting Weight Watchers, the Wii Fit, and walking Bailey, but...
• ... on the bad side, I got sciatica after going on a school field trip up Red Butte in April.  It was snowing really bad and we hiked 2 miles.  On the way down the mountain, I totally strained my left leg.  I've been trying to "fix it" myself for 4 months, but it is KILLING me.  I started physical therapy last week.
• Then there's Bailey... the dog who lived!  Still love him!

Who needs to blog everyday?  Take 20 minutes and just recap the last few months of your life and you're set.  Those are the highlight/lowlights I can think of.  Anyway, please come back, so I'm not totally lonely on here!

Please visit my new blog!

Hi to the 20 peeps that visit my blog.  So, as you can see by my link on the left, I have a new blog full of my pop culture ramblings.  I was really gung-ho at first, then kind of slowed down.  Right now, there's a lot about the "Bachelor" but I'm going to be posting more.  So please add this to your list and send me some love! :)

www.momknowspopculture.com

Holiday Pictures

Here's some pics from our holidays.

Dutch Christmas Party - on the first Saturday of December, John's siblings, spouses and the kids celebrate their Dutch heritage by celebrating Dutch Christmas.  We go to the Dutch Store by our house and meet Sinter Klaus and Zwarte Pete.  Then, we go over to Jen and Brandon's for a Dutch dinner, treats, games and then the kids leave their Dutch shoes out (filled with hay and carrots for the reindeer) and Sinter Klaus fills them with goodies.

G.G. and Kent (John's mom and step dad) took all of us up to the Hogle Zoo to see the Zoo Lights and have hot chocolate.  It was REALLY cold that night -- lots of wind -- but we had a lot of fun.

Christmas Party at GG and Kent's where we continued our tradition of gingerbread decorating (this year we did trains), had dinner and did our present exchange.  Chad (my BIL) loves this picture because it makes his bicep look so huge.  Em, this is for you to take and put on Chad's FB!

Mortimer Christmas Eve party - we have dinner, a really irreverent nativity although Sparky and Holly tried really hard to make it more normal than usual (see Katie as the camel), Santa Claus (my bro Dave) comes and this year, we had a hilarious White Elephant game.  Here's Jennie with the creepy CPR baby that Brad brought and Jimmy wearing some funky stretchy shirt that Dave and Shelley donated.  Jimmy convinced Katie to take it and now its a part of our dress-ups.

Christmas day was a blur.  Katie, for the first time ever, woke up early (we usually have to GET her up).  We had a nice Christmas morning.  Then, it was off for our "Four Christmases" (Reese Witherspoon and Vince Vaughn have nothing on us).  We picked up my dad from CareSource and took him up to the house, spent a little time up there and exchanged presents.  Then, we rushed off to Silverado (an Alzheimer's Care Center) to visit with John's grandpa, step-grandma, dad and step-mom.  Next stop, was CareSource again to see Grandma Rees, John's grandma who is my dad's neighbor.  Finally, we went up to GG and Kent's for dinner and games.  Crazy day!

Hope you all had a GREAT Christmas!!!

New Year, New Me

Wow.  I had no idea how much of my life was really sucked up by my job at Utah Family.  I've emailed friends and family and posted on FB, but in case you're not in the know -- I quit my job on January 2nd.  I don't want to go into details, but let's just say that even though its for the best, it was really hard to let it go.  Fortunately, I'm doing some contract work for a dental assisting school that my friend works at -- working on their website and helping students write their resumes.  And I've got other resumes out and I'm focusing on freelancing.  I'm kind of throwing the spaghetti at the wall and seeing what sticks.

I definitely feel in limbo, a little depressed AND a little bit gleeful.  It's very strange.  But the most important thing is that my job was consuming me and now I'm forced out of my comfort zone.  I'm taking on a new challenge to get my life back and find the NEW ME!

Part of this commission is to do more things I enjoy.  And blogging is one of those things.  I took a failed attempt at quitting blogging back in May, because I thought it was the right thing and I was wasting my time.  But I realize now it's just that I honestly had no free time and being on the Internet for fun really just felt like an extension of work.  Even in the last few days, I've been so liberated not being glued to my laptop.  So when I'm on it now, it's because I want to be.

As you know, I love dishing about Pop Culture.  So, I decided it was high time that I started a new blog devoted only to that.  Hut-234 is going to be focused on my personal and family life.  And my other one will be about all things entertainment.  So, check out: www.momknowspopculture.com.  I wanted to do something about Mom and Pop Culture, but I'm obviously WAY behind on the mom blogging about entertainment trend.  There is a TON of stuff like that out there.  So, I may not be the first -- or the most original -- but really, I'm just doing this for me.  John is making me a great header and I'm hoping to add more to it, but I hope you'll visit and enjoy!

Happy New Year!!!

The Annual Christmas Newsletter 09 Edition

Oh little neglected Blog. How many weeks have I gone without Dish? And so much to talk about (Tiger, hello???). I promise to do a big happy end of the year wrap-up next week, but for now I wanted to post our Christmas, er... New Year's newsletter for all to enjoy! :)

Where to start? The start of 09 was pretty much the usual winter for us. Broken resolutions, Award season, hibernating from the cold, watching "Lost" and indoor house projects. Thank heaven for spring to get us out of our winter funk. This is when our year really starts and of course, we always bite off WAY more than we can chew.

2009 was no exception. We decided it was finally time to upgrade our ghetto bathtub and do more updates on the bathroom. Fortunately, John's mom's old house (she got married and moved into her new husband's home) was empty while they were getting it ready to sell. We moved up there for 2 months, which was a blessing and a pain. I had to drive Katie down to school every day. Her almost perfect record was tainted with 13 tardies in those two months. And with our church responsibilities, the commute just got annoying.

During this time, I was asked by the Stake Cultural Arts director to help direct one of the short plays for their upcoming stake activity "Comedy Tonight." Instead of doing one for a variety of people in the stake, I suggested I write and direct a play just for my ward. We're the lucky ward in the stake to actually have a good number of great young men and women: talented and willing to perform, so of course, I just wanted to do one with them! So, I wrote a 30 minute version of "The Wizard of Oz" and with the help of a LOT of people, we performed the beginning of May. I don't even have to fake humility -- ours was definitely the best!

I was also on the Highland Park Elementary Arts Night Silent Auction committee which is a BIG deal at the school. The Arts night raises about $20,000 each year. I helped get donations for the auction and worked the event that night. It fell on Katie's 8th birthday, but she actually had a blast running around unsupervised like she owned the school

Katie was baptized Easter Weekend. It was a dismal gray day outside, but definitely a wonderful, warm one in the Grant Stake Center. John performed the baptism and confirmation. It was attended by a lot of family -- real, ward and friends a like. We had a breakfast buffet at our ward building afterwards. It really turned out to be a special day.

No one was heartbroken when school let out since that also led to us moving back in our home and not having to do the mad rush back to the Brickyard every day. John really had worked his a-- off and the bathroom looks awesome! June was pretty low-key and it started what is now known as the "Summer of Parent Doctor Appointments", which little did I know would turn into the "6 Month Mom and Dad Health Saga." There was at LEAST one doctor appointment a week I was chauffeuring either parent to. Some weeks two and a few, I swear, three. Maybe I'm exaggerating, but I know there were a lot.

Katie got to do some fun camps over the summer. We had the Mortimer Family Reunion, spent a weekend in Park City, and went to the Uintahs camping. Well here... if you really want to see what we did, check those posts from June - August!

Our Young Women's presidency was released in May (I think?) and I was called over the summer to be the Stake Cultural Arts director and a 4th-Sunday-teach-once-a-quarter Relief Society teacher. Leaders were definitely inspired, because there is NO way I could've handled an every week, demanding calling with all that's been going on. John continued serving as 1st Assistant TO the High Priest Group Leader. :)

In the fall, Katie happily started 3rd grade and got the "best teacher" at Highland Park. She also started piano with my mom, but my own rebellion seems to still be there because I don't even make her practice, much to Mom's chagrin. John got promoted to Sales and Marketing Director at AquaVeo. There was about a 6 week break from any medical drama with either parent, so we went on a much needed, fabulous 10-day vacation to So. Cal. We left the trip with our roof torn off the house and came home to a fantastic new one (that was NOT cheap - hence, all future house projects are on hold). And as most of you know, came home to all the latest stuff going on with my dad. In between his hospital stay, subsequent hospice stay, then back home with hospice care and back to hospice permanently, I was over the Stake's "Culture Night" - a dinner and entertainment night celebrating cultures around the world.

Update on my dad. His health is really declining, but he's still smart as a tack. Since he went to hospice the day before Thanksgiving, the last 6 weeks have been absolutely crazy since he was in the middle of a bunch of Christmas projects and other things. I've been playing secretary for him. As always, his spirits are good and we're just enjoying the time we have with him.

So, what people really want to know? The sum-up...

- We live in the same house -- updated bathroom, new roof = broke & no new projects on the horizon!

- Our jobs are the same, but John got a promotion. Katie is a total tween. Bailey is whining at me to get him a treat as I type, so nothing has obviously changed for him in a year.

- We still feel EXTREMELY blessed, despite (or maybe because of our) challenges. And we love all of you, our friends and family!

Merry Belated Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Jude's Thursday Dish #51

We've all got gnarly colds, so I knew we needed to get to the library -- books to read, DVDs to watch. I picked out some DVDs for Katie, who's always very timid of trying anything new. I told her what I always say: "Trust me." And this time added, "Every movie you love now is something I either got for you, told you watch or took you to." The rest of the way home, she tested me and I guess I failed on "Mr. Magorium's Magic Emporium" which she hated.

As I'm typing the Dish, Katie is laying on a blanket on the floor with her American Girl dolls, her Cabbage patch, the 6 leftover babies from my Octomom costume (we gave 2 away). She starts "Horton Hears A Who" and lectures her dolls in a shrill mom voice, "Every movie you love is because of me." Nice.

Anyway, I have a lot on my mind, so here's some Dish. Actually on a Thursday! My dad got put on some sleeping pills, and he's had a pretty decent week. I think this is the first time he's gotten rest in years.

1. As I've mentioned in past posts, I'm not a big "Twilight" fan. I really liked the first book, wanted the 2nd and 3rd to be one book, and could've totally done without the 4th. And maybe this makes me a hussy but I thought it was all a little too tame for my taste. I'm not looking for "True Blood" here just maybe a little more sauce. The movie was pretty good -- of course, you'd have to be dead not to appreciate Edward. I'm not rushing to see "New Moon" this weekend, but I think I'd like to see it in the theater.

2. On that note, I put this on my FB status and when it got no reply, I figured it really should've been reserved for my blog. I was watching E!'s Red Carpet Live of the "New Moon" premiere and could NOT believe how objectified Taylor Lautner and Robert Pattinson were/are. It's not the fandimonium that bothered me, it's all the frenzy over their physiques. If a bunch of middle school aged boys were freaking out over hot-bodied girls, say Megan Fox, we'd say that they were pervy, oversexed boys. But it's totally okay for women and girls to do that to guys. I'm not on a high-horse here. I've done my share of objectifying men (Iceman, anyone? - and my latest celebrity crush: Jon Hamm), but I think it's just funny that it's such a double standard.

3. I've finally realized why I hate "Showbiz Tonight" on CNN. I'll watch it sometimes and wonder why it always leaves me irritated unlike watching harmless Nancy O'Dell and Billy Bush on Access Hollywood. It's simply because stupid AJ Hammer is always using these fantastical adjectives to describe the show and it never lives up to it. "The most provocative entertainment show", "shocking", "startling", "scandalous", "outrageous" -- his news is the same as every other celebrity news. Their writers just pull a page out of the thesaurus and go off. Watching this show is like having someone hype up a ride and you find out it's totally like every other one you've been on.

4. So thrilled "Lost" is returning. They announced the date as 2/02/2010. Speaking of being a hussy, I'm usually a spoiler hussy but since this is my last year to get to enjoy my favorite show, I'm avoiding them like the plague. Still -- this isn't very spoiler-ish but just interesting stuff about the last season.

MILD SPOILER ALERT....

on the series-regular billing it includes Sayid, Richard, CLAIRE, Benry, Frank, Jack, Hurley, Sawyer, Jin, Sun, Kate, Locke and Ilana. Ilana must play a really big part if they bumped her to series regular. Other guest-star or recurring stars are JULIET (my girl crush), BOONE, CHARLOTTE, CHARLIE and Desmond???? Only guest star or recurring? Does that mean he doesn't play a bigger role in the show ending. If that's the case, I'll be really disappointed because I've had my own fantasy of Des saving everything. Sigh... the countdown is on... 74 days!

5. "America's Next Top Model" SPOILER ALERT in case you haven't watched it, which I think only Jennie and Emily are watching this with me.

Very happy with the winner. Models don't need to be the whole package. High fashion models are rarely spokespeople and you don't have to have some bubbly personality. Runway was a little awkward, but the winner took Kick A-- pictures. Nice to see someone win who might really have a career afterwards.

Quick bits:

- Not heartbroken that Oprah is going off the air in 2011. I rarely watch her. I do like her magazine a lot. That would make me sad if it stopped.

- By now, I'm totally starting my Oscar predictions and getting jazzed about the contenders. But I'm totally not into it this year. I have hardly seen any movies this year, because there's really nothing that fabulous out there. TV is doing everything much better.

- Please Sarah Palin. Go away.

That's it for this week!

I Miss California!

I need to go back to Cali! No, I just need another vacation which is REALLY sad since I just got back from a 10-day one in October. I caught John's stupid cold and I've been nursing a migraine all day. The good news is I've made myself stay home and been catching up on a bunch of silly things that make me happy. Like organizing my photos. So, it's several weeks past due, but here are some picture highlights of our trip!

Day 1: Drove to So Cal with John's 3 siblings, their spouses and our 4 nephews. Stopped at the first available In N Out burger in St. George.

Day 2: Spent the day at Sea World. The kids insisted we sit in the Splash Zone and we got soaked.

Me and Katie at the starfish pond. I think that Sea World is a little overrated for what you pay. Is it an aquarium, a zoo, a show, an amusement park? It was REALLY crowded (their Halloween celebration day), but we still had a lot of fun.

Day 3: It hits the fan. Several of our party get the stomach flu including John and Katie. Fortunately, the only thing on the schedule was lunch at Rainforest Cafe, shopping and swimming. But as you can tell, they both felt awful. John looks a lot like that gorilla actually.

Day 4: Katie is miraculously healed since we're going to Disneyland. Could I love my favorite holiday even more? Halloween at Disneyland ROCKS!!!

Katie with her Auntie Em and Uncle Chad. Loved the cute additions to "It's A Small World" -- if you haven't been there for a while, they've added a bunch of Disney characters throughout the ride.

The highlight of the day: 'Twas the Nightmare Before Christmas Haunted Mansion!

James, Katie and Ethan with Winnie the #2, as they called him.

The parade was a street party for their theme "Celebrations"
so the kids had a blast getting out there dancing.

Day 5: Fun day at Laguna Beach. The waves were crazy high, so the kids could only get in ankle deep. But all the adults got in and seriously, risked our lives. I biffed it into the sand so many times and my suit was so full of it, I ended up throwing it away (it was 3 years old, so it was about time and an excuse to buy a new suit next summer!)

Day 6: More Disneyland!!!! The lighting on this pic is whack, but Tinkerbell was so cute. This trip was really different than our last visit when Katie was 6. She was SO into the princesses. Now, she's all about the Disney Channel heroines (Alex, Hannah, Sonny) and Tinkerbell. Tink is VERY cool in the tween scene & the new Pixie Hollow spot was a totally cute, minus the 30 minute wait!

No trip is perfect. John was sick this whole day. He only made it until noon and went back to the hotel while we were at California Adventure. We only spent a few hours there and were totally rushed. I was in a pretty foul mood because I wanted John to be there. The two saving graces were California Screamin' which I've never been on and the new Toy Story Mania ride. Fortunately, John came back at dinner time much better and was able to enjoy the rest of the night there.

Day 7: No pics. We said goodbye to the Huts as some went home, some went to visit other family. With Disneyland out of the picture, Katie got sick again and John was still recovering. We shopped a little in the afternoon and went to see "Toy Story and Toy Story 2" in 3D, but Katie had to keep leaving the theater to go to the bathroom and my dad got admitted to the hospital during the movie, so I kept leaving to talk on my cell. Thankfully we had seen it before! That evening, we went to stay with my birth mother, Margaret, and her boyfriend, Billy. They live in Tustin and are the best hosts. It was nice to just relax and hang out, especially because I was really worried about my dad and Katie was recovering.

Day 8: New day and everyone sis recovered! So glad I didn't get it. Drove up to L.A. with Margaret and Billy and went to The Grove to shop and go to a little girl's mecca: The American Girl store. That place is crazy! It's like Bloomingdale's for an 8 year old. Two stories of doll loveliness! Margaret and Billy are so generous: Katie's doll, Mia, got a cleaning and new hairdo in the salon and then, we all had lunch in the Cafe. Margaret bought her a new doll, Kit, and some accessories. Now she has 3 dolls. She's not spoiled... much.

Day 9: More relaxing, getting caught up on "Mad Men", visit with my Aunt Maureen, and swimming in the pool.

We went to a local pumpkin patch. Again, John with the goats. I dubbed him "Man Who Stares at Goats" but he didn't think it was that funny.

Me, Katie and Margaret

Day 10: Drove home!

Such a GREAT vacation -- even with the bumps along the way.

Judy's Thursday Dish #50 (Served Cold)

I had a bizarre afternoon -- I helped my dad write his obituary. It wasn't sad; we actually laughed a lot about it. But my brain hurts. I need a good distraction, so here's some cold Dish. 50 Dishes -- can you believe it?!!

John and I were talking to our friend, Camille, last night and she said she was anxious for my take on that Carrie Prejean chick. I've got a hungry family coaxing me off the computer, so this is going to be my one and only topic this week.

At first, I felt sorry for Carrie Prejean. She was pretty much railroaded for stating that marriage should be reserved for a man and woman. Now, by beauty pageant standards, I think she should have said it with a little more finesse as to not offend anyone, but I totally agree she should have the right to say how she feels without getting lambasted. Then followed all the craziness of whether or not she was meeting her obligations to the Miss California organization, blah blah blah. But then there was the lawsuit, the semi-nude photos and the of-course-it-was-bound-to-come-out sex tape. Sympathy gone. She's just a mess.

And to blow a Larry King interview? Puh-leez. King just phones it in. He reminds me of the TV host on "Reality Bites" played by Frasier's dad who doesn't even read his cue cards before the show starts, so Winona Ryder's character conveniently gets him to say (real) inappropriate stuff due to his lack of preparation. King is the softest interview around. He asked her a logical question. He pursued it, yes, but she's a Pageant winner. Aren't they supposed to handle grace under pressure? Or at least fake it? She could have said some pat answer and he would've moved on. And to tell him he's inappropriate? Um, inappropriate would be asking the details about the sex tape -- or pulling his pants off. He even looked shocked by her behavior, which is strange since he usually only has two or three expressions. Even Jerry Seinfeld showed more grace when Larry King forgot his show was off the air. What an idiot! If you didn't see it, check it out...

more

That's it for this week!

My Dad

There is so much I've wanted to post, but I haven't known where to start. So I want to write about my sweet dad.

While we were in California, he was hospitalized. I had made him an appointment before I left, because he was really struggling with fluid in his lungs. Quite a while ago, he was diagnosed with Congestive Heart Failure, but when I took him up to LDS Hospital in August, the cardiologist (who I thought was going to be all great and helpful, because he was hot and British, I was thinking "House") declared his heart was just fine. Dad's fantastic primary care physician, Dr. Parkin, disagreed and said he knew there was problems with his heart, even if the latest tests didn't point to Congestive Heart Failure. He also had borderline kidney failure.

Now, here is a man who has survived so many things. He was never sick a day in his life. Almost instantly after he retired as publisher from the Deseret News in 2000, his overworked body caught up with him and he started having multiple health problems. He's had diabetes for years, but he was soon diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease. He's endured 2 major back surgeries, a period of time where he had to use a feeding tube for a year, and survived 2 pulmonary embolisms, which should have killed him. This, on top of diabetic comas, falls, etc., we always joke that he has 9 (or more) lives. Dad being rushed to the hospital isn't uncommon. We are actually kind of used to it.

But when I heard that Dr. Parkin admitted him to LDS hospital while I was in California, I knew this was different. This last year, especially since Spring, he's been really declining. While he was at the hospital, they did many tests on him. They pumped 23 lbs. of fluid out of and around his lungs. They determined that his heart was much worse than those tests in August (I suspect Dr. Not-At-All-Like-House missed something). His right side of the heart was alright -- just aging, but his left side was almost shot. The doctor said it was some of the highest (meaning bad) numbers she had seen. They were worried he would get aspiration pneumonia due to food particles stuck in his bronchial tubes and suggested he have a feeding tube to keep him alive.

This is when my dad, prayerfully and thoughtfully, decided he was done with all these life saving treatments. He said that "being alive" doesn't mean you are happy, running, playing ball or dancing. It may keep you alive, but it doesn't build a lifestyle that makes you happy. He decided he would go under hospice care and enjoy the rest of the time he had left, so he could leave "with a smile on his face." His doctor wholeheartedly agreed and said he could go fairly quickly -- a few days or hang on for a few months.

That was 2 1/2 weeks ago. He was released from the hospital and admitted to CareSource in Holladay, the hospice residence, where he stayed for 48 hours. Since he didn't have unmanageable symptoms and he wanted to go home, they released him to have hospice at home care. It didn't take longer than another 48 hours for him to realize he really should go back to CareSource for full care. He's on the waiting list (now he's #1) to get in, but he's had great care at home with a CNA coming in every morning, nurse visits, social worker visits and help from my mom, Jimmy and Libby who live there and us kids, and his ward family.

He's not in pain, just very uncomfortable. It's so strange to see a body shut down and in a way, how long it can hold on under such duress. His mobility is almost completely gone. Since the hospital, he can't even stand without help. He's totally coherent and in most ways, still very much Jim. He's completely disobeying all the doctor's orders about food -- he says he wants to eat what he wants while he can! He really wanted to go up to Maddox in Brigham City one last time, so we went up with him, my mom, my younger siblings, their spouses and my nephews, Mitchell and Jack, for a Saturday afternoon lunch. He totally loved it! We're just helping him be comfortable, happy and enjoying spending time with him.

I've been so blessed during this time. I've been with him almost every day since we came back from California. For once, I actually feel like I'm giving back just a little for all he gave to me. It's been completely overwhelming and at times -- very hard. This is one of the worst things we will all go through in our lives. However, I've had a lot of peace and seen God's tender mercies all around me. I've been led by the Spirit to be at the right places, at the right times -- or to be inspired to remember things which I know I normally wouldn't -- or be impressed that I need to take notes or take action on something.

I could go on and on, but I've written enough. So many of my friends and family have inquired about how we're doing and expressed they are thinking about us and praying for us. Thank you for your kindness. It's reassuring to know we have such a great support system during difficult times.