Really Long Post

I have so many things to post about I am not sure where to start. The week before Thanksgiving, my stepmom had called the family in to the hospital early Wednesday morning when my dad had taken a pretty drastic turn. My two sisters, my two step-sisters, and step-mom stayed there through the end of the week so we could all be there together. Peter was staying with grandparents and I got report that he was sick and also Pete was out of state that week. (He ended up flying back Friday night.) My dad passed away after a hard fight with leukemia on Saturday morning.
It was such a helpless and awful feeling to just sit there and watch him and then on top of that have a sick kiddo at home. It was so bittersweet to see him gone but then to see him at rest as well. So many mixed emotions and lots of ups and downs. We stayed at home Saturday afternoon and ended up taking Peter to the ER with bloody diarrhea (sorry if that is too much info) after the doctor on call recommended we go. They ran some tests and gave him IV fluids. We came home Sunday to try and get some rest before going to Junction. Peter seemed to be doing a tiny bit better by Monday morning and we took him in to his pediatrician on our way to Junction. They said the tests hadn't shown anything yet and it was probably a virus.
We got to Junction just in time for me to go to the viewing while Pete and my mom stayed with Peter. Tuesday was the funeral and Peter was not doing well at all. I really thought I might have a nervous breakdown at that point. Pete's parents were so sweet to come all the way down for the funeral and then ended up driving around with Peter the whole time, so I could just process everything that was going on. We were blessed to have Pete and a friend of my Dad's do the funeral. They did such a great job sharing stories and sharing the gospel.
Peter woke up screaming and rolling around like he was in intense pain Tuesday night, then would just collapse in a ball on the floor. The Dr. on call again recommended he be seen in the ER. We drove to San Antonio and the Dr. who pulled up his chart said "So he has Salmonella?" We were clueless and found out one of the cultures had finally tested positive that morning. He started IV medication, gave us a prescription and sent us back home. We went to our house that night and tried to sleep most of Wednesday until the first ER doctor we had seen called our house and said to stop the medication immediately, come back to see her in the ER before 6 and we would probably be admitted! At this point in the week I had no tears left to cry and all I could do was laugh. We packed our bags and went back to San Antonio. We spent Thanksgiving there and they let us come home on Friday afternoon. I felt like it was almost a blessing because I was so tired emotionally and felt like my judgement was so clouded that I didn't even know what to do anymore. They took good care of Peter and for me, even though I was there holding him the whole time, it was restful. Whew! I know you are tired of reading..we were tired too.

Pete and I had decided back in August to take the first two weeks of December as our vacation. It could not have come at a better time. We went back to Junction for the first week and I am writing this now from Galveston. I have desperately needed this time to process everything and just be quiet.

I am so thankful for so many things during this awful time so I am making a list...mostly for me.
-I am thankful for my precious family and my husband's family
-my sweet sweet husband
-the amazingly geniune nurses on the oncology floor at Methodist Hospital who treated all of us as their patients
-For everyone who just took over all of our work at our offices
-I am so thankful for all of the stories that we didn't know that were shared about our dad. They made us really proud of him
-Thankful for all of the flowers, cards, and sweet comments in honor of him
-For the Thanksgiving dinner that we ate in the hospital cafeteria.
-Glad Pete and I like each other enough to spend so many days together. :)
-For vacation time spent with family and friends and used for some healing and rest.
-For HIM who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to HIS power that is at work in us.