Gifts of Love

Today we laid my hero to rest. He was so sweet. I didn't know it, but he had left little gems of loving comments with special friends who shared them at his funeral today. It was a long hard day, but a joyous one that was uplifting to me and our family. We know the hero is in the arms of his Heavenly Father, and is rolling up his sleeves to work hard on the other side of the veil.
I hope that our posts have been a uplifting source to those who have come by to visit. The calls, letters, hand shakes, hugs, visits were, through out our ordeal, rays of sunshine that brightened our days.
May God bless you all as you have blessed us.
Thank you again,
the Hummer

Endings are the Doors to New Beginnings

My heart is heavy as I post this last post. The hero, after a long and valiant fight with colon cancer, passed on Tuesday the 23nd from this life to the next. Words I would use to describe his heart was kind, gentle, loving, uplifting, caring. He loved Heavenly Father, was thankful to Christ for the atonement. His was a very peaceful passing. Our oldest son and his wife were in attendance. While it was painful to know that the last breath was taken, the spirit told me it was for his benefit. He had gradually gotten weaker until he wasn't able to lift a spoon. He couldn't swallow. I had spent a day encouraging him to sip fluids to prevent him from having dehydration. I didn't want him to have severe cramping that goes with the dehydration. When he began to live in the world of angels more than this life, you could tell that it was harder and harder to come back to to this world to answer questions. My pain was that I could not hold him in my arms because every part of his body was extremely sensitive to touch.

God was good to us. We had 38 years of wonderful times and experiences together. Six children that have been awesome blessing to our lives. Then there was the 13 grandchildren that brightened the hero's days as he watched them grow, that brought smiles to his face even in the last two days of his life. His little granddaughter of 1 year would stand at his bedside and peer up to him looking for recoginition and both would smile at the other, if it happened.

I stand at the beginning of another phase of my life, as I accept the loss of my sweetheart. I do not dispair for I know that my Heavenly Father is mindful of my needs and will continue to hold me up as I step forth into my future.

Thank you for all your prayers and loving concern during the last year and a half, they were all greatly appreciated.

Have to Share My Funny

If I had a Santa HO HO HO, I would play it with this.

I have to share with you my funny. I say my funny. because it was a funny thing I did.

On Sunday, I wanted to wish my oldest granddaughter a "Happy Birthday". She was turning 15 an almost age, so I wanted to let her know I thought it was important.

Well...I started calling both of her parents phones at 1pm well after church to talk with her. No answer.

I emailed.

I yahoo IM'd, told my granddaughter I would have text messaged her if I had her phone number . I text messaged her mom's phone. No answers. Finally, in a moments desperation, I left a message on my son-in-law's phone saying, 'If you look out your window, you will see a little old lady with a picket sign walking up and down in front of your house. The sign says "Unfair treatment of a grandmother when she can't call her granddaughter." ' Still no response.

About 2 hours later, I received a call from...my granddaughter, my red head. I was so excited. I began telling her about my delima. She laughed and said "Grandma, my birthday is not until Wednesday." LOL. I had three more days before I was late. I told her that in that case, she needed to tell her dad to disregard the message I left. We both had a laugh about that. It was just wonderful getting to talk with her.

I am a blessed woman. I have wonderful, loving, caring, and kind children and grandchildren. That includes the wonderful ones who married my children.

Christmas Comes in a Car

This was our Monday Family Home Evening. Christmas in a car. Our youngest son went to a friends house for a Christmas party that we all usually go to. It was promising to be a quiet, possibly lonely evening. Our home and visiting teacher came by to drop off and pick up some things the hero needed. (They are wonderful people that serve with their whole hearts.) As they were preparing to leave a car drove up. We were baffled because no one had called and said they were coming. When you live at least 8 miles from civilization(although to those of you in the mountains that is not much, in the city minded folk that is a distance), most people call first to make sure you are going to be there or are able to take visitors. In seconds, the house was filled with Christmas. My sweet daughters had pooled together and had brought their families up. No easy feat, both live 2 hours away. The older boys made hot chocolate. Our girls had brought cinnamon rolls to go with it. The babies were busy giggling and seeking what they could get into. After a prayer, the family sang Christmas songs with the hero. He had the energy for a verse. Then he just leaned back and enjoyed all. Little Red's giggles brought a huge smile on his lips. I was gratified to see that. Miss Smiles melted his heart with her smile and thrown kisses. May my girls and their husbands be blessed for their efforts to bring joy to the hero. God has been good to us.

Feeling Our Way

When we came home, no one thought the Hero would make it out of the hospice. Now that we are at home the nurses are constantly second guessing the Lord as to when the Hero's time has come. He is weak and the morphine really hurts him mentally...ie: depression. Our biggest problem has been the urine catheter. Most of the time we spend reading or watching up lifting videos. The Hero can not stand violence or hateful things, not even in the form of humor ie: "Home Alone". He loves hymns and prayer.

The last two days have been cold for here. We have to use electric heaters because of his oxygen. He did like it when I opened the door for him to see snow in Montgomery TX. Not a usual happening. Of course the snow was not like the picture, but the flakes were huge like the snowflakes up north. We were amused by the phone calls from our son and daughters. It is funny for years one can long for snow, then after living in it for a short time, the enjoyment dwindles with the knowledge of what comes with snow.

The other morning I had been really tired from up and down all night. My oldest son called just to say "Hi, how are you?" It was an encouragement I needed. The hardest thing about cancer is the pain that takes away the ability of loved ones to hold or cuddle the person hurting. Since I am a huggy type person, you have to understand that my inner self is in great pain. It is not my desire to complain, it is merely my desire to express my pain to let some of it go. I know that one day, we will greet each other with wonderful hugs and kisses on the other side. I just miss them so very much with him right next to me. We exchange kisses and smiles as our manner of loving one another.

Right now, the hope is that he will make it through the Christmas holidays, in order that the children can make it to see him and spend some time with him. I just don't know what the Lord has in mind. I do what I can. Don't mistake this post as one of discouragement, rather one of bewilderment. Between the nurses and the fatigue, it is hard to keep in tune with the spirit and understand what is happening.