Lucy's battle has ended

Lucy passed away at 10:45 PM CDT tonight (Friday). Her passing was peaceful. Funeral arrangements are pending.

Please keep Lucy in your thoughts and prayers.

Two weeks at home

Lucy is still with us. She has been home now for two weeks. I can honestly say that she is comfortable and relaxed. She does have some period of tension, but I am learning how to better manage those.

The hospice volunteers have been so amazing so far. I have been administering Lucy's comfort meds round the clock for the past four days with some dosage and timing adjustments to help keep Lucy as comfortable as possible. Having the volunteers here help relax Lucy, and I can get some power naps or complete some errands. Checking items off a to do list is very satisfying. Something as simple as having lunch with my parents away from the house helps keep me refreshed.

Two Janes have been here today. Volunteer Jane did a phenomenal job at getting Lucy to relax. Her background included being a psychotherapist for a number of years plus time spent working within the healthcare profession. Lucy really enjoyed the hand massages and the soothing voice. Nurse Jane checked on Lucy's condition, reviewed the meds log and observed how peaceful Lucy was. The meds do not need adjusting which is a relief.

I haven't been doing daily updates because Lucy's condition has not changed much. Our gardens, on the other hand, are surprising me with how early some of her flowers are blooming. Our miniature irises

are already blooming about three weeks early. The daffodils are already done for the season, and the early tulips and lilac bushes will bloom in the next couple days.

We are so thankful for all the love and support everyone so generously gives us. It helps gives us comfort and strength and we are so grateful to you all!

It takes a village

Lucy is still with us. However, she was extremely tired all day. At this point, I do not think she will be able to wake up enough when she has company anymore.

The amount of resources available for hospice is amazing. Lucy's aide came by to wash her hair and freshen her up a bit. Lucy's hospice nurse, a nursing student, and the social worker came by to see Lucy. A volunteer came by to sit with Lucy for a couple hours. The volunteer is a nursing student at Normandale College and wants to specialize in hospice care. I used the time to get my hair cut and my parents got our lawn mowed.

All the people involved with hospice are helping make our burden lighter. We are so fortunate that some people choose to help families facing loss of a loved one. The level of compassion and professionalism is so high. They have been so patient and supportive when I have called.

We wish all of you the best and thank you for caring!

Monday, Monday

Lucy is still hanging tough though her body is slowing down even more. She is managing to wake up for short periods of time. Both of her sisters were over today and Lucy managed to smile at them. Even something as simple as smiling or speaking a few words saps her energy. She is resting comfortably and seems very peaceful.

She had an aide over to clean her and the hospice chaplin stopped by for a few minutes. For her, that was a very busy day.

My parents came back today. They left early yesterday afternoon because bad weather that was rolling into their area. Steve and Liz had dropped off a nice Easter dinner on Saturday, so we enjoyed that tonight.

Tomorrow her nurse will be by to check on her. A hospice volunteer is coming over to give me a chance to run errands for a couple hours. I may elect to nap instead.

Thank you for your caring! Lucy and I deeply appreciate that!

Two year anniversary

Two years today Lucy had her surgery and found out she had out she had ovarian cancer. Today is Easter Sunday for the majority of Christians. One of the messages of the season is that love transcends life and we take comfort in that.

Lucy is still with us. She has been home for nine days. She is resting a lot and occasionally tries to fully awake. Her hospice nurse stopped by today and told me to stay the course on her comfort medications. Her body is slowing down.

My parents are on their way home. They will be back tomorrow afternoon. Lucy will have a bath aide here tomorrow and may have a nurse stop by. Her case manager nurse will be here on Tuesday. I can manage the remainder of her care tonight and tomorrow.

Enjoy your Easter! Lucy and I will enjoy each others company. That is the best Easter present I can receive. Give your loved ones an extra hug from us today!

The goodbye begins

Lucy slipped into a coma while the hospice nurse was here. While her battle will be ending soon, her journey will continue on through all of us. She is part of each of us.

Your love and support will help with the sadness of her impending loss.

She has requested that we celebrate her life. We will mourn her passing, but we should take comfort in knowing our lives were bettered by her friendship and love.

One week at home

Lucy has been in home hospice care for a week now. I have had to call their hot line several times. The call backs are prompt and the person on the other end is calming and supportive.

Today has been a quiet day for Lucy and she badly needed the downtime. We have had a number of visitors Saturday, Sunday and Monday. Tuesday we had the hospice social worker and charge nurse by for almost two hours. After that, Lucy had an aide come out to help her clean up, and then she had an equipment delivery for her new mattress.

Lucy is very nervous about getting out of bed because her blood pressure is low and she gets vertigo. Once the spinning subsides she is fine. She got to sit in her wheelchair and enjoy her sun porch for almost 45 minutes yesterday.

Lucy will have an aide come tomorrow to help her get cleaned up. Her nurse will be by Friday to check on her and she will be seeing a hospice doctor in the next few days. Starting Monday, she will have an aide assigned instead of having different aides. That will help her anxiety a bit.

Lucy is really tired right now. She has been waking up about every 90 minutes asking for water. Even though there is a "bubbler" on her oxygen talk, she still gets a dry throat. Lucy doesn't need oxygen during the much of the day so her throat gets a chance to get re-hydrated. The other thing is when Lucy gets really tired now, she can get a little confused. Many of us have experienced brain fog when we have had to pull an all-nighter to two.

Lucy still needs your thoughts and prayers. Her battle is still underway.