Happiness Boosters

Life has been stressful.
In my family we deal with stress in a very simple way...
laughter, smiles, and little giggles.
Yep.
It's simple,
but works every time.

Here are a few things that have made me laugh, smile, or giggle.

One night I fell into a YouTube blackhole and landed in a snorting with laughter fit.
This video was the reason.
Dave Franco & Conan Join Tinder

I love me some hash browns.
There may not be anything else that I love more than finding a restaurant that has crispy, yet not too greasy hash browns.  Mmmmmm....it sounds really good right now.

#Hashbrown Huntdown 2K15

I love food. (Yes, food will be a topic today.)
This is a given.
When I'm done with eating, I start thinking about what the next meal will be.
Yep. Food.

Jennifer Lawrence is my homegirl.
She understand the deep devotion that food can have in your life.

18 Times Jennifer Lawrence's Obsession With Food Got Real

A-hole Cat Knocks A Glass Off A Table

Cats.
Enough said.

I hope that you had a little laugh, smile, or giggle.

And may your days be filled with more of all three.

Time Warp

Time moves very differently in a hospital.
We would think that it slows down,
but the weird thing is that it doesn't.
In fact, time seems to move in these swift batches.
It's very strange.
I feel like it's been a few minutes,
but as I watch his monitors and listen to the hustle in the hallway,
time jets by.

It's surprising

because I would have guessed that it would just crawl by,
but nope.

It's this weird time warp, 

where you wake up, drive to the hospital, 

get updates, then sit and listen....

Repeat the updates, 

the sitting, 

taking care of mom while she takes care of dad,

Drive home, exhausted, them hit repeat the next day.

That's the other thing that has been so shocking to me.

I'm exhausted!!!

It must be the emotional toil of it all.

I feel like I've built three fences, 

had parent conferences, 

and had a grueling day of clearing a yard of blackberry bushes...

all in ONE day...

EVERY DAY!
IT'S CRAZY! 

But it's not surprising.

My dad means the world to me,

so each breath tells me that's he's ok,

and his strength is inspiring.

He wants to get up and walk as often as they see fit.

He wants to heal.

He wants to keep his strength.

I guess that's the difference between my SuperDad and some others,

he's a fighter.

And though the cancer kryptonite might weaken him for a bit,

it won't take he down.

With the help 

soon he'll be back battling evil...
like moles, weeds, growing grass.
:)

Thank you to Dr. La Rochelle,

all of the awesome nurse and support staff at Good Samaritan Hospital

for taking such good care of my dad.

I really can't say enough good things about the nurses here.  

They are IN-CRED-IBLE people.

Your care helps us as we transition home and care for Dad 

without all of your expertise.

Good thing you are just a phone call away.

Thank you!

Learning to Wait and Loud Talkers

Waiting...
I'm not good at waiting,
but I'm going to have to be good at it
for the next week or two.
Crazy, but my Dad may need to be here for 2 weeks.
I was aiming for 1.5 weeks,
but I guess we'll see.
For now, I'm just learning how to wait.

Looking around the waiting room,
most people are just on their phones...
I'm not much better,
because I'm on my computer,
but the main difference between my family and everyone else...
We're talkers...
LOUD talkers.
It always stands out to me
when everyone else is whispering or trying to read.
Not us...
We're talking,
LOUDLY.

I was just talking with my students about the volume
in which my family expresses all of their feelings.
Apparently we have a lot to say
and it happens to be so important that EVERYONE should hear it too.
Ha!  Not really.
I think it has something to do with the fact that we're so use to talking all at once.
In that case, you have to make something important loud
so that other people will pay attention to you.
Yep.  It's a talking battlefield.

Here in the waiting room it definitely stands out.
I think it's also because some of my family have trouble with their hearing.
There's also a lot of "huh" and "what" phrase that can be heard around us.
Go figure...we're loud and have to repeat what is being said...Geesh!
Don't you feel bad for the other people in the waiting room?
Yeah, there are moments when I do too.
At least they're not bored...
they can just listen to us talk about everything from
cars to politics to what's on tv or to purchase on QVC and then back to cars again.
Don't you wish you were here too?!
Nah, I wouldn't either,
but I'm so glad that I'm here for Dad.
And I'll wait for as long as it takes for the surgeons to make sure that everything is done well.
They can take as long as they need.

 I was tempted to tell the nurse to take special care of him,
but I think he already knew that by my face.
I gave the silent look of,
"Dude, you know that this man means the world to me, right?!
So you better make sure that it all goes well
because my life would not be the same without him!"
Yep, that look.
I didn't have to say anything,
because that look was enough.

And now I'll just keep practicing my waiting skills
and patience.
Thank you for all the LOVE!

February is for Dad

Sure,
people may think of February as Valentine's Day
and that is true too.
But for me, this February is all about my Dad.

You may know him,
you may not,
but what you must know is that
my Dad is the GREATEST!
You may think that yours is,
and I'm sure that he's awesome too,
but to me,
there's nothing better than my Dad.

My Dad is used a lot as an example of awesomeness
to my students.
In fact,
they probably feel like they know my family pretty well...
you see,
I brag about my family often.
You would too if you had family like mine.
Trust me,
you would.

It all comes back to love,
and my dad follows a simple rule...

He loves my mom.
It's the kind of love that is dreamed of
and displayed in one form or another in movies.
Hollywood must have framed it after my parents.

It is that love that moves my family and
draws people together.
It grows and bends to encompass everyone around.
It's a love that withstands and strengthens through trials.

February will be a trial for sure.
Love will sustain and move us all through.
That is the one thing I know for sure.

This month is about love,
in my family will we be joining around a man
that is half of the duo that showed my brother and I how to love.

My dad is usually the strength,
but this month, we will be his strength.

He is the one who fixes things,
others will fix and maintain things for him.

My dad is the hugger and healer of hearts,
we will hug,
surgeons and nurses will heal.

Yes...surgeons.
I don't like to talk about cancer.
It feels too real
when that word is said out loud or written.
But it is real.
My Dad has cancer,
and has for awhile.
Though if you saw him,
you wouldn't really know.
He's a rock.
A pillar of strength.
And it's that strength that gives us all confidence
that he will heal and make history with his recovery.

By the end of February,
my Dad will be cancer free
and on his way to living it up at car shows.
Telling his ridiculous jokes,
and my mom will be giggling at his side.
I can't wait.
I want to listen to those stupid jokes for the next 30+ years with the constant accompaniment of giggles.

So as you celebrate love,
please send some loving thoughts to my Dad.
We are going to need all that we can get.

May happiness and love be abundant in your life,
Lori and the Murph too.

Side note:
I will not be having a Valentine's Bake Sale this year.
The most important thing, of course, is my dad.
I may start taking orders again in March.
Hugs!