Friday, July 3, 2009
Friday, June 26, 2009
Fishing in Heaven
My daddy passed away last night around 1:15am. He was very peaceful and comfortable. Doug, mom and myself were there. We rubbed his head one last time, held his hand, and cried on his shoulder. Trudy, Bobby, Timmy, Lindsey, Baby Ansleigh, and Ryan all joined us to see Dad and to have prayer and comfort each other. Dad is now in a much better place and his suffering is over. He is probably fishing with Moses as I type. :)
Funeral Arrangements are below:
Wells Memorial Funeral Home
1903 W Reynolds Street
Plant City, FL 33563
Phone Number: (813) 752-1111
Monday June 29, 2009
Visitation is at 10:00AM
Service is at 11:00AM
Grave Side Service immediately following.
Please join us for lunch for the family at my grandparents home:
1501 N. Franklin St. Plant City, FL 33563
Food will be provided.
This is the floral shop we are using:
Creative Flower Designs by Glenn
116 West Alsobrook St., Plant City, FL 33563
(813) 754-7449 (800) 821-9601
Other flower shops:
Browns Flower Shop
1802 W. Reynolds St., Plant City, FL 33567
(813) 752-5189 (800) 752-4035
If so desired, donations can be made to the following in Memory of Frank Gavin.
Lifepath Hospice House
http://www.lifepath-hospice.org/donations/
Cancer Care & Research
http://www.lakelandcancertreatment.com/
Thank you for all your love and support! We love you all.
Jennie M.
Funeral Arrangements are below:
Wells Memorial Funeral Home
1903 W Reynolds Street
Plant City, FL 33563
Phone Number: (813) 752-1111
Monday June 29, 2009
Visitation is at 10:00AM
Service is at 11:00AM
Grave Side Service immediately following.
Please join us for lunch for the family at my grandparents home:
1501 N. Franklin St. Plant City, FL 33563
Food will be provided.
This is the floral shop we are using:
Creative Flower Designs by Glenn
116 West Alsobrook St., Plant City, FL 33563
(813) 754-7449 (800) 821-9601
Other flower shops:
Browns Flower Shop
1802 W. Reynolds St., Plant City, FL 33567
(813) 752-5189 (800) 752-4035
If so desired, donations can be made to the following in Memory of Frank Gavin.
Lifepath Hospice House
http://www.lifepath-hospice.org/donations/
Cancer Care & Research
http://www.lakelandcancertreatment.com/
Thank you for all your love and support! We love you all.
Jennie M.
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
Wednesday
Dad is resting peacefully now. We have had a time adjusting the Atavin (anxiety meds) to get it just right. Dad woke up again last night with breathing problems, and just overall anxiety. We talked with the doctor today and they are going to change his drug to something a little different than Ativan. Same effects just a little stronger. To relieve the anxious stress. The crew here is fine. All a little tired, but supporting each other. We have an awesome family. The people here keep telling us that Frank must be a good person to have all this family here all the time, and that some people never have any family here. So he has made an impact already. :)
Funeral arrangements have been made at Wells Funeral Home.
Burial Plot is at Shiloh Cemetery.
Lunch after the funeral will be at my grandmothers home a few blocks from dads.
The address is 1501 N. Franklin St. Plant City, FL 33563
Funeral arrangements have been made at Wells Funeral Home.
Burial Plot is at Shiloh Cemetery.
Lunch after the funeral will be at my grandmothers home a few blocks from dads.
The address is 1501 N. Franklin St. Plant City, FL 33563
Monday, June 22, 2009
Drama at the Hospice House, With a Capital D!
This afternoon, Dad woke up gasping again for breath and in fear asked to go back to the Emergency Room. Mom was there and they did a breathing treatment together. The Nurse Rebecca and also the social worker Ann and also another nurse had been there already today to check on him and on mom. They discussed taking dad to the Hospice House, but this was before the emergency request from dad. I got to the house and mom and I decided let's go ahead and take him to the Hospice House. We felt we had his pain under control, but his fear was not under control, and that they would have better means of caring for him and keeping him assured there. (Of course with us being there with him)
So we got Ann and Rebecca, they came back to the house. They are very sweet and awesome caring women. Taking care of all of us along the way. Got the call to take us to the Hospice House. The only catch was, it is in Sun City Center. (ruskin) So the transport took no time in arriving. Mom rode along with them to make sure everything was alright, and Anna Jeff, Ryan, and myself followed shortly after we gathered all our belongings and some of dads. We arrived in Sun City Center Hospice this evening around 5ish?? Maybe later... And got settled in. The building is awesome just like the one in Temple Terrace.
The first nurse we met with was not very personable. She was ready to go off shift. (and we could tell) While filling out paperwork, Dad had a wheezy coughing spell and she didnt even get up to see what was going on. Of course all of us are around him trying to help, and he was just coughing badly, asking for help. So mom asked the nurse to get up and come check on him which she seemed to do with much reluctance. She said his lungs sounded fine. His coughing stopped on his own. Thanks for nothing.
After the shift change, there were a few nurses and aids in and out of the room but nothing serious. Until it was time for his Atavan (which is his anti-anxiety medicine). When it comes to this stage of dying a patient can become extremely anxious, fearful, not know what is going on. THAT IS WHY WE ARE HERE. So the nurse barges in the room with this syringe full of his medicine, hollering the whole time, "I'VE GOT YOUR MEDICINE, HERE WE ARE, BLAH BLAH, HERE WE GO, TIME TO TAKE THE MEDICINE" like at the top of her loud football cheering voice. And heads straight for his head and would have jammed the syringe in his mouth and probably out the other side of his head, had he not fought her off. Oh yes, and for those of you who have seen dad in the last week, you know he can barely move his arms. He was awaken from a dead sleep, now panicking, flailing his arms in front of him AND ALL THE WHILE SHE IS STILL TRYING TO GET THIS MEDICINE IN HIS MOUTH. Of course we are all right there frozen in shock and disbelief, when I speak up and say something like, you have to be gentle and quiet. And mom jumped right in and said this is not going to work... and she went on to help him and the nurse get the meds taken. When the nurse barged out, we were all kind of standing there shocked now, and dad is all shaken up. Anger!! You have no idea. So mom goes out and speaks with the nurse about how that just completely upset her whole family and especially the patient. And how that is unnacceptable, and how she has read the Hospice manual and you are supposed to enter and come at a patient with gentleness and concern. Not boisterous hollering. And as mom was coming back to the room, I was walking out and they did not know, and as I walked by they were all kind of mocking us. Basically giving a major attitude like they had done nothing wrong.
Soooo Mom got on the phone for about half an hour to 45 minutes and got like the head of Hospice on the phone after about 7 phone calls, and completely told all of them about ALL of the unpleasant people we have dealt with....
OH YEAH and the other big thing is while mom is on the phone complaining, Dad is in the room asking to GO HOME!! :(..
And we are all like we were doing better at home with a 24 hour care person than here with this crap! So finally the head person asked mom, what can we do to make you happy, and she said move us out of this wing and into another room in another hall without having to move him from his bed. AND THAT IS WHAT HAPPENED.
We are now in a new hall with very pleasant gentle nurses and aids. (who I am sure have been warned about us) but that's fine, cause they have been like a million percent better.
And now Dad, Mom, and Doug are all sleeping in beds, and recliners, and I am about to go to sleep in my recliner. :)
UPDATE ON TIME: We do not expect Dad to make it through the week. We know nothing for sure. The social worker today said that he was fighting it tooth and nail. And asked if we had talked to him about it being ok to go. We haven't really but we may do that tomorrow. His beautiful plot is waiting for him to rest.
Going to do funeral plans tomorrow. (Thats where I was when I got the call to come help with all of this) :)
Love yall! Thanks for your love and support. Feel Free to leave comments on this!
Good night!
So we got Ann and Rebecca, they came back to the house. They are very sweet and awesome caring women. Taking care of all of us along the way. Got the call to take us to the Hospice House. The only catch was, it is in Sun City Center. (ruskin) So the transport took no time in arriving. Mom rode along with them to make sure everything was alright, and Anna Jeff, Ryan, and myself followed shortly after we gathered all our belongings and some of dads. We arrived in Sun City Center Hospice this evening around 5ish?? Maybe later... And got settled in. The building is awesome just like the one in Temple Terrace.
The first nurse we met with was not very personable. She was ready to go off shift. (and we could tell) While filling out paperwork, Dad had a wheezy coughing spell and she didnt even get up to see what was going on. Of course all of us are around him trying to help, and he was just coughing badly, asking for help. So mom asked the nurse to get up and come check on him which she seemed to do with much reluctance. She said his lungs sounded fine. His coughing stopped on his own. Thanks for nothing.
After the shift change, there were a few nurses and aids in and out of the room but nothing serious. Until it was time for his Atavan (which is his anti-anxiety medicine). When it comes to this stage of dying a patient can become extremely anxious, fearful, not know what is going on. THAT IS WHY WE ARE HERE. So the nurse barges in the room with this syringe full of his medicine, hollering the whole time, "I'VE GOT YOUR MEDICINE, HERE WE ARE, BLAH BLAH, HERE WE GO, TIME TO TAKE THE MEDICINE" like at the top of her loud football cheering voice. And heads straight for his head and would have jammed the syringe in his mouth and probably out the other side of his head, had he not fought her off. Oh yes, and for those of you who have seen dad in the last week, you know he can barely move his arms. He was awaken from a dead sleep, now panicking, flailing his arms in front of him AND ALL THE WHILE SHE IS STILL TRYING TO GET THIS MEDICINE IN HIS MOUTH. Of course we are all right there frozen in shock and disbelief, when I speak up and say something like, you have to be gentle and quiet. And mom jumped right in and said this is not going to work... and she went on to help him and the nurse get the meds taken. When the nurse barged out, we were all kind of standing there shocked now, and dad is all shaken up. Anger!! You have no idea. So mom goes out and speaks with the nurse about how that just completely upset her whole family and especially the patient. And how that is unnacceptable, and how she has read the Hospice manual and you are supposed to enter and come at a patient with gentleness and concern. Not boisterous hollering. And as mom was coming back to the room, I was walking out and they did not know, and as I walked by they were all kind of mocking us. Basically giving a major attitude like they had done nothing wrong.
Soooo Mom got on the phone for about half an hour to 45 minutes and got like the head of Hospice on the phone after about 7 phone calls, and completely told all of them about ALL of the unpleasant people we have dealt with....
OH YEAH and the other big thing is while mom is on the phone complaining, Dad is in the room asking to GO HOME!! :(..
And we are all like we were doing better at home with a 24 hour care person than here with this crap! So finally the head person asked mom, what can we do to make you happy, and she said move us out of this wing and into another room in another hall without having to move him from his bed. AND THAT IS WHAT HAPPENED.
We are now in a new hall with very pleasant gentle nurses and aids. (who I am sure have been warned about us) but that's fine, cause they have been like a million percent better.
And now Dad, Mom, and Doug are all sleeping in beds, and recliners, and I am about to go to sleep in my recliner. :)
UPDATE ON TIME: We do not expect Dad to make it through the week. We know nothing for sure. The social worker today said that he was fighting it tooth and nail. And asked if we had talked to him about it being ok to go. We haven't really but we may do that tomorrow. His beautiful plot is waiting for him to rest.
Going to do funeral plans tomorrow. (Thats where I was when I got the call to come help with all of this) :)
Love yall! Thanks for your love and support. Feel Free to leave comments on this!
Good night!
Father's Day!
Well Fathers Day was a doozy. All the kids came over for a nice BBQ lunch around 12:30-1:00. We had a nice visit, watched some home movies, and ate! After lunch everyone was pooped and most left to nap and visit other fathers. We had or 24 hour care aid there so dad was never alone. Usually with more than one person at all times. After about 4:30 dad got a visit from the Baker clan. It was about 45 minutes into this that Dad woke up gasping for breath and in fear because he could not breath. He asked mom to call an ambulance; this is an emergency. None of us knew what to do. Mom caledd Hospice and they said that if he asked to call 911 then do it! So we did. Robert jumped on the phone and directed the EMT and Paramedics with the situation. We threw all the furniture out the way, and less than 5 minutes we had at least 10 EMT/Paramedic people in the room. I guess they took dad's vitals, I am not sure I was helping to fill out paperwork amongst tears. Then they loaded dad up and off we went to Plant City Hospital. Mom got to ride with them in the ambulance, and when we all got there it was about 10-15 minutes before they called Anna and I back to his room.
When we got back therem Dad had just about fully woken up from his usual drowsy cloudiness and was prepared to talk to his family. He gave me a list of things to tell people, and then he wanted to see everyone one by one or 2 by 2. But he was definitely alert and cognitive.
It was a very difficult night because first I had to sign this long list of the Hospital DNR papers. Basically telling them not to treat with anything life prolonging or invasive, but then when the doctor spoke with him he got the impression that dad wanted more treatment with Xrays and Cat scans and the whole 9 yards. So after a long conversation about all the options with Trudy, me, the doc, and the nurse in the hallway we then had to discuss with dad what was going on. That his breathing was not really going to get much better either way, and that we thought the best thing was to get the breathing and anxiety under control and go back home. SO he agreed with us, and that was that. He thought that he was going to pass away last night. He told us anyhow.
So we went back home for the evening, which Hospice had already cancelled our 24 hour care for thr night, so Mom and I stayed over and mom slept in the living room (we were supposed to take shifts, but she never came to get me, and neither of us can really sleep much over there wherever we are) and so she watched him through sleeping till early this morning when she came to get me to go home for a few hours. I slept in the LR till later in the morning when she came back, I had to leave to get an MRI a few hours later. No worries, routine physical thing because of my headaches. Everything was fine...
Ryan and I then went to purchase Dad's New Resting Place. And it is so beautiful, I was very excited to see it. Here are some pics of Dad's Plot.
When we got back therem Dad had just about fully woken up from his usual drowsy cloudiness and was prepared to talk to his family. He gave me a list of things to tell people, and then he wanted to see everyone one by one or 2 by 2. But he was definitely alert and cognitive.
It was a very difficult night because first I had to sign this long list of the Hospital DNR papers. Basically telling them not to treat with anything life prolonging or invasive, but then when the doctor spoke with him he got the impression that dad wanted more treatment with Xrays and Cat scans and the whole 9 yards. So after a long conversation about all the options with Trudy, me, the doc, and the nurse in the hallway we then had to discuss with dad what was going on. That his breathing was not really going to get much better either way, and that we thought the best thing was to get the breathing and anxiety under control and go back home. SO he agreed with us, and that was that. He thought that he was going to pass away last night. He told us anyhow.
So we went back home for the evening, which Hospice had already cancelled our 24 hour care for thr night, so Mom and I stayed over and mom slept in the living room (we were supposed to take shifts, but she never came to get me, and neither of us can really sleep much over there wherever we are) and so she watched him through sleeping till early this morning when she came to get me to go home for a few hours. I slept in the LR till later in the morning when she came back, I had to leave to get an MRI a few hours later. No worries, routine physical thing because of my headaches. Everything was fine...
Ryan and I then went to purchase Dad's New Resting Place. And it is so beautiful, I was very excited to see it. Here are some pics of Dad's Plot.
Friday, June 19, 2009
TGIF
Today dad got moved onto a morphine infusion. (through the port in his chest) Liquid morphine basically. Mom has been just completely awesome. Taking care of dad whatever he needs whenever. She really is an amazing woman of God, and my true inspiration. I love her to pieces. Anywho, there about 100 people at dads today. :) (sarcasm) But really like 5-7. Several nurses, prescription people, meals on wheels, brothers and sisters, etc.
Hospice decided that it was time for us to have some larger help. We now have 24 hour care from nurses, meaning someone will be at the house 24 hours everyday from now on. This is such a huge relief. Now we can spend our final days talking to him and visiting with him. And also they know what is going on better than we do and are just a wonderful help.
Anna, Jeff, Tiffany, Me (Jennie), mom, a nurse, and dad all watched the video Doug made for us to watch. It was really sweet, dad liked it a lot. He kept saying who's that, who's that... and some of them we were like that's YOU dad! :)
And then he would pipe up and say that was fifth grade, or that was oklahoma. :)
Anyhow, I am going to beddy-by to start again tomorrow.
Love yall!
Goodnight.
-Jennie
Hospice decided that it was time for us to have some larger help. We now have 24 hour care from nurses, meaning someone will be at the house 24 hours everyday from now on. This is such a huge relief. Now we can spend our final days talking to him and visiting with him. And also they know what is going on better than we do and are just a wonderful help.
Anna, Jeff, Tiffany, Me (Jennie), mom, a nurse, and dad all watched the video Doug made for us to watch. It was really sweet, dad liked it a lot. He kept saying who's that, who's that... and some of them we were like that's YOU dad! :)
And then he would pipe up and say that was fifth grade, or that was oklahoma. :)
Anyhow, I am going to beddy-by to start again tomorrow.
Love yall!
Goodnight.
-Jennie
Thursday, June 18, 2009
And Caregiver Gone...
Caregiver started today, much to dad's dismay I think. Basic personality clash, I don't think she was gentle enough. So we will begin the search again. Tonight mom and I were here most of the night and Anna and Jeff stopped by for a visit also.
They think dad has a urinary tract infection, so they came out and changed out his catheter, because he was having pain. It gets clogged with particles because of the infection, and the changing did it! It released his pain.
Tomorrow Trudy, Doug & Timmy will be coming by during the daytime for a visit. I am sure dad is looking forward to that. and then I will be staying here tomorrow night and part of the morning and day on Saturday. We are planning a BBQ for Sunday Father's Day around 12:30. All the kids are bringing things to contribute, and we are grilling burgers on the grill. It should be a nice time. We will probably watch the DVD Doug made for us all.
One update on other things, Ben fell down tonight at work tonight and broke his arm, so he is in the Sarasota Hospital right now with Jennifer and mom and I might be driving down there... not sure...but he is ok so don't worry. I will update you on that as well.
I think that is all for now.Good night
They think dad has a urinary tract infection, so they came out and changed out his catheter, because he was having pain. It gets clogged with particles because of the infection, and the changing did it! It released his pain.
Tomorrow Trudy, Doug & Timmy will be coming by during the daytime for a visit. I am sure dad is looking forward to that. and then I will be staying here tomorrow night and part of the morning and day on Saturday. We are planning a BBQ for Sunday Father's Day around 12:30. All the kids are bringing things to contribute, and we are grilling burgers on the grill. It should be a nice time. We will probably watch the DVD Doug made for us all.
One update on other things, Ben fell down tonight at work tonight and broke his arm, so he is in the Sarasota Hospital right now with Jennifer and mom and I might be driving down there... not sure...but he is ok so don't worry. I will update you on that as well.
I think that is all for now.Good night
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