Recent Happenings
About a week or two after Daniel came home from the hospital, we started realizing that my dad's cancer (which he had been diagnosed with in 1996) had returned, and was in the final stages. In mid May, the doctor gave him two weeks to two months to live. My dad grew very close to the Lord in those final days, and had such a vibrant love for Jesus. His peace was tremendous as he went to be with his Savior on July 23. I can't believe how much I miss him. Sometimes it hurts so bad that I wonder if I will ever be able to completely move on. However, I have great joy knowing that he is in heaven. His memorial service was yesterday, and at the service, a former neighbor was comforting me with the reminder that "he is in my future". When I think of it that way, the pain decreases. I know I will get to be with my dad again in heaven someday. My dad trusted completely in Jesus for his salvation, and made Him the Lord of his life. That is what I have done as well. I will get to see him again--he is in my future.
"But I do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning those who have fallen asleep, lest you sorrow as others who have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who sleep in Jesus. For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede those who are asleep. For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord. Therefore comfort one another with these words." 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18
I wrote down some memories of my dad, which were read at his memorial service yesterday. Several of my brothers shared about him as well. Here is part of what was read at Daddy's service, which is just a tiny glimpse of the dear daddy/husband/grandpa we all loved:
We were truly blessed with a very special Daddy, and we have so many fond and wonderful memories of him. He cared so much for his family, and he knew how to make us feel very loved.
As little children, we especially loved it when he would get down on the floor and play with us. We all liked the game when he would lie face first on the floor, and we would all try to push him over on to his back. He felt so incredibly strong, and we would push and strain, and brace our feet, trying to get some leverage to roll him over. He would laugh and laugh when we played this game with him! I remember winning one time because he was laughing too hard to resist us! :) We also loved playing “lions and tigers” with him, which is another game we made up. I remember being his “baby lion” (or maybe we were the tigers—I can't remember for sure!). He would get down on his hands and knees, and would crawl around, and I would crawl underneath him. I would always feel quite safe from the tigers that way!
We loved it when Dad told us stories that he would make up on the spur of the moment. He called his stories “Ma and Pa stories”, and told them in a slow drawl. We often begged him to tell us one on the way home from night church. We loved them so much, and still remember some of them. One of our all-time favorites was the one where Pa, Ma, and Junior were invited to sing at some sort of recital or performance. The “dumb dog” tagged along. They sang “The Old Gray Mare she ain’t what she used to be” and after every line the dog would start howling, which Daddy demonstrated. We always laughed so hard!
Dad loved to make up silly songs, nicknames, and expressions. He played off other expressions, like when he would compliment someone by saying, “You’re a germ and a scholar”. At random times he would pipe up with, “The names have been changed to protect the innocent”, and nobody had any idea what that had to do with anything. He definitely stretched the limits of creativity, and came up with some most interesting combinations; for instance, Daddy’s nickname for Kyle was “Ky-yi-yipee-yipee-yo-yipee-yo-Ky-yi-yipee-yipee-yo”, and his nickname for Paul was “Pauly-wally-woola-walla-way”! He most often would use the full nickname. I have even found myself adopting an expression of his, and if I am surprised, you might hear me say, “yi-yi-yi enchilada!”
When we drove places at night, I liked to pretend to fall asleep once we were almost home. That way, Dad would pick me up and carry me into the house. I loved that, and was sad once I was too big to do that anymore! :)
During times of family worship, Dad would read us the Psalms and Proverbs of the day. All of us kids eagerly looked forward to the 11th of the month, because that is when he would read the verse, “As a ring of gold in a swine’s snout, so is a lovely woman who lacks discretion.” He would predictably burst out laughing, and we loved that!
Whenever we got splinters in our hands, it was Daddy's job to get it out. We didn't mind splinters very much, because we knew how “excited” he would act when we told him we had one. He was so enthusiastic about his job as a “surgeon”, that we couldn't help but smile a little as he got out the tweezers and sometimes a needle and set to work.
We children always loved it when Daddy took us on special outings. Sometimes he would take us individually, and sometimes he would take us in groups. He was always interested in hearing about our lives, and the things we cared about, and if we ever needed anything, he would bend over backwards to help us with it.
It was always so fun when Dad would tell mom that he would take care of dinner that night. He would go to the store and pick out the ingredients, and then set to work in the kitchen. His food usually had a very distinct “Daddy flavor”. I remember his “alphabet soup meatloaf” that he mixed with his hands, his famous tuna noodle casserole, and the Beans and Weiners that he spiced with half the spices in the cupboard! I think he even used Taco Seasoning! Whatever looked good he would dump in. :) Those Beans and Weiners were definitely the spiciest I had ever had, but they tasted great to us because he made them. :)
Dad would help Mom by doing most of the grocery shopping and errands for the family during a lot of our growing up years. He was also the chief chauffeur, and was always driving us to the different places we wanted to go. He faithfully went to work to provide for us, sometimes getting up at 3:30 in the morning so that he could beat the traffic. Even when his health was bad and he felt terrible he still persevered day after day.
Dad made lots of decisions that were unpopular or unusual to the general public. He wanted to homeschool us children, which he never regretted. He loved his family and made lots of sacrifices for us. Even though he loved to watch the TV he got rid of it for our sake, so our minds and hearts wouldn't be filled with worldly thinking. I don't think I'll ever forget watching him take the TV apart piece by piece to show us how it worked. Then he threw it away. We’re so grateful for all the decisions that he made that were so hard for him, but so helpful to us!
When I got married, Dad encouraged me to fly the nest completely so that we would have our own, independent family. He had such a nice balance. He was always there if we ever needed him, and he made it obvious to me that he was so proud of me and my family. He was a special “Papa” to his five grandchildren, and is already greatly missed.
Of all the things we appreciate about Dad, one of the very biggest things was his love and support of Mommy during all of their 31 years of marriage. He liked to sing silly songs that he made up about her. One of them went like this: “My wife is so cute, let me count the ways: 1, 2, 3, all the way to eternitay”. He also loved to reminisce about when he first saw her. One of his many nicknames for her was “Spicy Meatball”. You can imagine how he laughed when we made him Spicy Meatballs for their wedding anniversary one year! He was so affectionate to her, and loved to kiss her—even in the middle of the hallway, blocking all traffic, much to our chagrin and exasperation! :) We secretly loved it, even though we pretended to be annoyed when we had to stand and wait there till he was done kissing. He praised Mom a lot, and was very loyal to her. Loving marriages are SO rare nowadays, and we all feel so blessed to have grown up in a home where both our parents loved each other a lot.
We thank the Lord for the wonderful dad, husband, and grandpa that He gave us. We will miss him very much, but rejoice that we can have the joy of seeing him again someday.
"But I do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning those who have fallen asleep, lest you sorrow as others who have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who sleep in Jesus. For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede those who are asleep. For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord. Therefore comfort one another with these words." 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18
I wrote down some memories of my dad, which were read at his memorial service yesterday. Several of my brothers shared about him as well. Here is part of what was read at Daddy's service, which is just a tiny glimpse of the dear daddy/husband/grandpa we all loved:
We were truly blessed with a very special Daddy, and we have so many fond and wonderful memories of him. He cared so much for his family, and he knew how to make us feel very loved.
As little children, we especially loved it when he would get down on the floor and play with us. We all liked the game when he would lie face first on the floor, and we would all try to push him over on to his back. He felt so incredibly strong, and we would push and strain, and brace our feet, trying to get some leverage to roll him over. He would laugh and laugh when we played this game with him! I remember winning one time because he was laughing too hard to resist us! :) We also loved playing “lions and tigers” with him, which is another game we made up. I remember being his “baby lion” (or maybe we were the tigers—I can't remember for sure!). He would get down on his hands and knees, and would crawl around, and I would crawl underneath him. I would always feel quite safe from the tigers that way!
We loved it when Dad told us stories that he would make up on the spur of the moment. He called his stories “Ma and Pa stories”, and told them in a slow drawl. We often begged him to tell us one on the way home from night church. We loved them so much, and still remember some of them. One of our all-time favorites was the one where Pa, Ma, and Junior were invited to sing at some sort of recital or performance. The “dumb dog” tagged along. They sang “The Old Gray Mare she ain’t what she used to be” and after every line the dog would start howling, which Daddy demonstrated. We always laughed so hard!
Dad loved to make up silly songs, nicknames, and expressions. He played off other expressions, like when he would compliment someone by saying, “You’re a germ and a scholar”. At random times he would pipe up with, “The names have been changed to protect the innocent”, and nobody had any idea what that had to do with anything. He definitely stretched the limits of creativity, and came up with some most interesting combinations; for instance, Daddy’s nickname for Kyle was “Ky-yi-yipee-yipee-yo-yipee-yo-Ky-yi-yipee-yipee-yo”, and his nickname for Paul was “Pauly-wally-woola-walla-way”! He most often would use the full nickname. I have even found myself adopting an expression of his, and if I am surprised, you might hear me say, “yi-yi-yi enchilada!”
When we drove places at night, I liked to pretend to fall asleep once we were almost home. That way, Dad would pick me up and carry me into the house. I loved that, and was sad once I was too big to do that anymore! :)
During times of family worship, Dad would read us the Psalms and Proverbs of the day. All of us kids eagerly looked forward to the 11th of the month, because that is when he would read the verse, “As a ring of gold in a swine’s snout, so is a lovely woman who lacks discretion.” He would predictably burst out laughing, and we loved that!
Whenever we got splinters in our hands, it was Daddy's job to get it out. We didn't mind splinters very much, because we knew how “excited” he would act when we told him we had one. He was so enthusiastic about his job as a “surgeon”, that we couldn't help but smile a little as he got out the tweezers and sometimes a needle and set to work.
We children always loved it when Daddy took us on special outings. Sometimes he would take us individually, and sometimes he would take us in groups. He was always interested in hearing about our lives, and the things we cared about, and if we ever needed anything, he would bend over backwards to help us with it.
It was always so fun when Dad would tell mom that he would take care of dinner that night. He would go to the store and pick out the ingredients, and then set to work in the kitchen. His food usually had a very distinct “Daddy flavor”. I remember his “alphabet soup meatloaf” that he mixed with his hands, his famous tuna noodle casserole, and the Beans and Weiners that he spiced with half the spices in the cupboard! I think he even used Taco Seasoning! Whatever looked good he would dump in. :) Those Beans and Weiners were definitely the spiciest I had ever had, but they tasted great to us because he made them. :)
Dad would help Mom by doing most of the grocery shopping and errands for the family during a lot of our growing up years. He was also the chief chauffeur, and was always driving us to the different places we wanted to go. He faithfully went to work to provide for us, sometimes getting up at 3:30 in the morning so that he could beat the traffic. Even when his health was bad and he felt terrible he still persevered day after day.
Dad made lots of decisions that were unpopular or unusual to the general public. He wanted to homeschool us children, which he never regretted. He loved his family and made lots of sacrifices for us. Even though he loved to watch the TV he got rid of it for our sake, so our minds and hearts wouldn't be filled with worldly thinking. I don't think I'll ever forget watching him take the TV apart piece by piece to show us how it worked. Then he threw it away. We’re so grateful for all the decisions that he made that were so hard for him, but so helpful to us!
When I got married, Dad encouraged me to fly the nest completely so that we would have our own, independent family. He had such a nice balance. He was always there if we ever needed him, and he made it obvious to me that he was so proud of me and my family. He was a special “Papa” to his five grandchildren, and is already greatly missed.
Of all the things we appreciate about Dad, one of the very biggest things was his love and support of Mommy during all of their 31 years of marriage. He liked to sing silly songs that he made up about her. One of them went like this: “My wife is so cute, let me count the ways: 1, 2, 3, all the way to eternitay”. He also loved to reminisce about when he first saw her. One of his many nicknames for her was “Spicy Meatball”. You can imagine how he laughed when we made him Spicy Meatballs for their wedding anniversary one year! He was so affectionate to her, and loved to kiss her—even in the middle of the hallway, blocking all traffic, much to our chagrin and exasperation! :) We secretly loved it, even though we pretended to be annoyed when we had to stand and wait there till he was done kissing. He praised Mom a lot, and was very loyal to her. Loving marriages are SO rare nowadays, and we all feel so blessed to have grown up in a home where both our parents loved each other a lot.
We thank the Lord for the wonderful dad, husband, and grandpa that He gave us. We will miss him very much, but rejoice that we can have the joy of seeing him again someday.
Posted by Katie on 8/15/2010 | 7 comments
Daniel was discharged from the NICU tonight! He's home!!! :) Thanks so much for all the prayers for him! He will still have to go for frequent blood draws over the next few months, but we are rejoicing that he is healthy enough to come home!
Posted by Katie on 4/16/2010 | 3 comments
Daniel's number yesterday morning was 14.3 again. This morning it dropped to 11.4. He is in the low-risk category now. Thank you, Lord!
Thanks so much for your prayers for us!
Thanks so much for your prayers for us!
Posted by Tom on 4/15/2010 | 1 comments
We just found out the results of Daniel's blood test at 6:00 pm tonight. His bili number dropped to 14.3! He is now in the "Low Intermediate Risk" zone, rather than "High Risk". This is the lowest zone he has been in so far. We are praising the Lord! Thank you so much for all the prayers on his behalf! The doctors at the NICU will continue the treatments until the numbers are down to an even safer zone.
Posted by Katie on 4/13/2010 | 0 comments
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