More event/observations

*My Gpa is one tough cookie. He's still hanging in there, love his baby heart. We Goldens (that's my maiden name) are some stubborn people, let me tell ya. Gpa's mother was the same way, which is why she lived until she was 91.

*I'm so stinking proud to be a Golden. I had stepped out of the room this afternoon to get myself back together (I had started crying). This older couple steps off the elevator, takes one look at me and says "You HAVE to be a Golden." I sure am! 100% Golden indeed....and proud of it.

*Gpa's white count is dangerously low. It dropped last night to .6 (normal is 6-10, the Dr said). At this point no one can figure out why. They gave him two pints of blood today and that should help as far as his weakness is concerned, but as of right now, we are just hoping and praying that the white count comes up on it's own.

*He's still not eating anything and he's hardly drinking. He just doesn't want to.

*The fever is still there which is super concerning. The highest it got today was 102.3. so that's progress I guess.

*Those blue masks that you have to sometimes wear in the hospital....yea, they are neither comfortable nor are they fashion friendly. They do provide a small amount of entertainment though if you try real hard and use your imagination. The nurses made us wear them today due to his dangerously low white count.

*A margarita and a dinner date with the hubby does the body and the soul good. When we got home tonight, I got one of my man's fabulous hugs. I'm telling you, in those arms of his, all is right with the world and life is good.

*Watching my little brother say goodbye to Gpa and Gpa reaching for his hand was just precious. What was heart breaking though was watching as my little brother sobbed his eyes out while holding Gpa's hand. Matt told Gpa that he was leaving and would be back and Gpa told him "You know your 'ole Grandpa loves you right?" Matt said "Absolutely" and then Gpa reached for his hand. He didn't let go until about ten minutes later.

*I saw Gpa smile once today and you know who he smiled at? Steve. We told him we were going to get a bite to eat and Gpa opened one eye and saw Steve. He just smiled, took his hand and faintly said "Your such a good guy, you know it? Grandpa loves you."

*Gpa may not have any physical strength right now but by golly, he's still got his wit about him. When my little brother walked back in tonight and told Gpa that he was there, Gpa opened his eyes, looked at Matt and said "Are you packin'?" (Both my brothers are Police Officers) Matt laughed and said "It's out in the car, want me to go get it?" Gpa said no and closed his eyes again. Matt told him Mike (my other brother) was out in the hall and hollered for him to come in. Mike came in and leaned down to talk to Gpa when Gpa opened his eyes and asked Mike "You packin'?" It was a hoot! We laughed and laughed. Gpa just closed his eyes.

*I've always known that I'm a part of an awesome, close knit family. Heck, up until about two months ago when I found out there was some hurt feelings between my Gpa and an Uncle, I thought my family was just perfect, more or less. As a kid, you just don't realize the importance of family. As an adult-oh my gosh, I'm learning this more and more. These last few days I've seen just how awesome my family is. We stick together through thick and thin. We let each other cry (and we make fun of each other when we cry too much!), we laugh together, we pray together. There's not a lot of families anymore like mine and I'm so thankful and so blessed to be a part of such an awesome group. I'm not sure why I got so lucky.

*I saw again today just how much my Grandparents love each other. My Gma came in this afternoon and stood, oxygen tank and all, by Gpa's side, rubbing his hand and wiping his face. At one point, Gpa's hand opened up and he took Gma's in his. It was so precious-here this man is basically on death's door and yet he's holding his wife's hand. Oh my gosh, it just, it just...I can't describe it, but it was awesome. I hope my marriage is half of what theirs has been.

*Here's an example of just how spoiled (I prefer to use the term loved) by my Grandparents that I am. When I went to MCC to college, they got a 1-800 number just so I could call them whenever I wanted and it didn't cost me anything. Pretty cool, eh?

*I'm exhausted...mentally, physically and emotionally. I think we're going to see how Gpa is in the morning and then decide whether or not we are going to go back to Arkansas or whether we're going to stay another day. It will be horribly hard to leave and I'm not looking forward to it, but ya gotta do what ya gotta do. I've gotten to spend lots of quality time with my Gpa over the last few days and I feel truly blessed to have gotten to do that.

*Though the selfish part of me doesn't want him to go, I'm still praying that God takes him home soon. I ask that you please continue to pray for him and for our family as well. Thanks!