Pictures and Updates

Hello family and friends! I hope this morning found you as refreshed as we are! God is so good to us.

Yesterday was Harry Lewis Sr.'s funeral. He and my dad were very close friends. In fact, we have been very close to the entire Lewis Family since I was in middle school! I remember mom and dad hanging out at the Lewis' house watching videos and laughing until 1:00am, back in the day! I remember seeing Harry Jr. and Brian come and go before they were married and since they have been married we have enjoyed getting to know their families! In fact, Harry Jr's wife, Kristi, and my Todd are cousins! Small world, huh?

Anyway, despite dad's "bad day" on Monday (it seems his electrolytes were a little off and it was causing him to hallucinate and talk funny), he rested well Monday night and slept in on Tuesday. He woke up Tuesday morning alert, well rested and coherent. He chose not to go to the funeral but to attend the Graveside Service. Mom and I attended the funeral (along with Aunt Barbie and Shirley). It was a beautiful service honoring the life of such a great man. We held up as well as can be expected. Isn't God good?

We left early in order to pick up dad and make it to the graveside service. None of dads clothes fit him "right" (so says dad!), so in true dad fashion (and as Harry would have had it), dad wore his shorts and a pull over! :)

He made the drive to the cemetery without getting sick and was able to see his close friends and grieve the loss of his best friend. He sat in his wheelchair the most of the time, except when he wanted to pop up and greet someone.

After the service the family announced they were going back to Harry's church for a small reception. Dad firmly told us that he was going! Our only response was, "Yes, Sir!". We loaded him back up in the car and drove to the church. This drive was not as successful and dad got sick in the parking lot. Thankfully, we have learned to be prepared for this. He gathered himself and allowed us to wheel him in. He stopped to pay respect at Harry Sr.'s pics in the fourier and then wanted a tour of the sanctuary. He then informed us we weren't leaving until he got to talk to Harry Jr.! We searched til we found him and he and dad enjoyed a wonderful chat.

On the way back to the car, dad ran into a man who (long story short) was healed by God from cancer. He shared his testimony with dad and gave him a book that really ministered to him when he was going through what dad is now. "Praying the 23rd Psalm" by Elmer L. Towns, is the name of the book. I would greatly encourage you to read it.

The whole day brought much needed closure for dad and allowed him to grieve the loss of his best friend. God was so gracious to my dad in allowing him to make have enough strength to make it through the events of the day with some energy to spare!

I look at dad everyday and am amazed by the strength he has. He told me on Monday that when he looks at me he sees an angel. How do you respond to that? Well, all I could do was cry!

On to today....

Dad had his feeding tube put in at 8:00 this morning. He came through the procedure with flying colors and should be in radiation as I type.

Even though dad has been eating more, lately, we (and the dr.) still felt he needed the feeding tube. The bottom line is his body is exerting more calories than he is taking in.

Please pray that dad will be able to recover quickly from the procedure and that this tube will be a means of helping him get stronger.

Dad says everyday that he believes God is going to heal him; he is staying strong and pushing forward everyday! He keeps a 10 lb. weight next to his bed and does a couple of arm curls every morning! And yesterday, he called and asked me to pick him up some chocolate milk... he said he thought the calcium would be good for his bones! :)

Here are some pics of dad this past week! ENJOY and thank you for your continued prayers and support! We love you guys!

Here is "silly dad" showing off his empty plate! YUMMY!

This is me and Todd with Mom and Dad outside the church yesterday.

This is dad and Harry Jr.. (notice the pic of Harry Sr. in the middle)