Grandparents day with Keanna

Dear Friends and Family,

The high point of this day was wheeling Nan into a classroom in Brentwood and seeing Keanna who was up front singing suddenly recognize us and smile from ear to ear and mouth Grammie and Papa. She knew all the motions which match the song she was singing and I found myself with tears running down my cheeks I was so happy at that moment. Then I realized that if Keanna saw tears she would think something was wrong so I breathed deep and smiled at her. Her room is so interesting, teachers are great and they were ready for the grandparents today. We were lined up and a photograph was taken, quickly printed and handed to us before we left. We sat with Keanna at different tables where she prepared a necklace, then prepared a beautiful frame for the photo, they also had pumkin pie and milk at another table but since Nan's tummy was quesy we skipped that table. Just as we were arriving at school Nan's phone rang and it was the doctor's office telling us that no we could not get blood on friday afternoon after all since the blood would expire on thanksgiving eve so we would have to come today. I had my day scheduled tightly and so we drove back home and grabbed what we needed, drove to the hospital, signed in at 11:50 and at 1:30 they started the blood. After Nan was settled in I left for a noon appointment in Oakland which I was very late to. Turned out fine though. Then I tried to do research on the laptop using our data card and discovered that the service was on hold for lack of payment, we've paid every cell phone bill in sight but missed this one for the data service. So paid it on line and then waited for nearly 4 hours for them to figure out what was wrong, never did get to take the photos of comps I needed, finally gave up and went to the next appointment, a driveby appraisal of a home located in beautiful Piedmont which the owners think is worth 1.4 million. I think about 1.2 million. There are no straight streets in Piedmont, everything is on a hill and streets are narrow, curvy and almost impossible to find. Finally around 5 I headed back to the hospital. Nan had slept nearly the entire time she was there and actually received the blood at a much faster level than on prior visits. We got home around 8 pm to find Jason, Jo and Clayton were here, had a fire going, had power washed the spa and had it filled with fresh water, had beautiful flowers in a vase on the dining room table. The warmth of the house was welcome after the rush of the day.

Nan has had a really rough day health wise. She has not felt good and has some pretty intense pain in her hip and legs, has been on the edge of nausea most of the day and has been pretty low energy which is not surprising considering her blood was probably 7.5 or by today. She has been a brave trooper, enjoyed Keanna's big day a lot, slept as we drove to the hospital, slept after the blood started and slept coming home. We wore one of the new dresses Barb brought to her, it fit perfectly and she was so pretty in it. She felt good about how she looked I think.

Now everyone is asleep and its so special to have Jason and Jo home for the day. Tomorrow we will have a big day with everyone making food so all Nan has to do is make mashed potatos which she thinks she can handle. Pam, Ryan and Shannon are coming, Nikki, Steve and Keanna will stop by for awhile, Jason, Jo and Clayton are here so we should have some really good times tomorrow.

As we consider what we have faced this year we are very thankful to be able to be together again here at home. There were many times when we questioned whether this day would ever come. Nan has toughed through so many things, some of which she knows about and others she does not really fully understand. It has been about as difficult as it could be for the past year with some good times, some hard times, some very frightening times and many days of just holding on like Sharon says, just hold on. We can trace God's hand in some things, others we do not understand at all, only time will supply answers and solutions.

Nan was thrilled to get the chance to talk at length with David, her brother this evening. They had been missing each others calls and finally they hooked up. Nan treasures time talking with her family whether it be David, Sharon, Dana, Jo and Linda, Barbara, Aunt Ann, Jan or others.

So we move forward, seeking your help. Can you lay out before the Lord Nan's case, how much she needs His special healing hand in so many ways? Will you remind Him of her love for her Lord and for people in general, for her gentle ways of talking with other Gisters, of caring for people in hurting times.

Thank you Lord for our wonderful world of friends and family, truely we are blessed by their words, deeds and prayers.

tim and nan, jason and jo, clayton