time to start changing...

As some of you may already know my dad had a serious heart attack Tuesday morning. This is a phone call that I wasn't prepared for. My dad is super dad! He never gets sick, never goes to the doctor, eats fairly well, excersizes most every day, and well...he's my dad! Over 10 years ago my mom had Hodgekins Lymphoma and underwent chemo, radiation and ultimatly a bone marrow transplant, so if I was to ever get a scary phone call I have always been prepared for it to be about my mom!

I received a call from my mom about 8:10am telling me that she was racing over to my dad's school, that he was having chest pain, and that they had called an ambulance. I grabbed my cell and called my sisters to let them know what was going on...Wow...those were hard calls to make! A few minutes later my mom calls again to say that she arrived at the school and they were wheeling him out, she saw him and that he was gray, clammy, and sweating...not good! She was told they were taking him to AF hospital so she was heading there in front of the ambulance. I begin to cry and tell the boys I'm okay and that they need to keep getting ready for school. I start changing Max's yucky diaper when I get another call from my mom she was starting to feel hysterical and asked me if I could help calm her down so that she can drive. She said that she just had to pull over as the ambulance sped past her with lights and sirens blasting. I think just knowing that my dad was the one in that ambulance was really hard for her. So in the midst of wiping a poopy bum, holding the phone with my shoulder, I try to say a prayer with her over the phone to help calm her (and quite frankly me too) down! He was at AF hospital for only 10 minutes or so and they determined that he needed to be transported to Utah Valley Regional. So after getting the boys off to the bus stop and dropping Max and Bailey off at a neighbors house I headed out the door to join my mom at the hospital. When he arrived at the hospital they immediately took him straight into the the cath lab where they performed a balloon and stint proceedure to clear, open, and hold open his blocked left corinary artery and they also discovered a smaller branch that was blocked as well. I am so grateful for modern medicine and capable doctors that were able to asses the situation and make quick correct decisions. It was strange to see my dad groggy, pale, and on an operating table...my strong Dad!

It was interesting to hear my dad's side of the story...that morning he had swam laps at the pool, practiced piano, rode his bike to school and he was sitting in his classroom waiting for the kids to arrive and school to start when he started feeling heart pain. He said that he has experienced this kind of pain 2-3 times in the last 3 years or so and that it usually lasted no more than a minute and then it goes away. This time it didn't...so he GOOGLED "symptoms of a heart attack" on his computer...yep I said googled... and it said that if the pain lasts more than 5 minutes to seek medical help. It also said that it is better to arrive at the hospital by ambulance rather than driving yourself because you receive faster care, and that checking your pulse really does no good because your heart doesn't race while having a heart attack...(he said he kept checking his pulse to see if it was racing which it wasn't) Anyhoo...so he walks down to the main office and has the secretary call 911! He said the pain was unlike anything that he has ever experienced! Very very painful! He said that he was never scared, or really worried that he would die, just very ready for them to make the pain stop! He said that the ride to AF hospital was a blur because of the pain but the ride to UVRMC was quite pleasant and that he would lift his head up and watch them whizz past the cars. "I figure I might as well get my money's worth!" he said. He was chatting with the EMT and paramedic asking questions...only my dad...; )

Tuesday was a very very long day, but yesterday night he was released from the hopsital and he is feeling great. He still has to be careful of the place in his femeral artery where they cut and acessed for the proceedure, but other than that he is up and going again! Amazing if you ask me!

I am so thankful, blessed and happy that my dad is still with us. Thankful for the knowledge that I have that we are an eternal family. Grateful for the power of the priesthood and the peace of the Spirit that can be called upon at any moment. Thankful for the prayers of many family and friends. For the thoughfulness of my neighbors who brought a meal to MY family that night! It seriously was a blessing! And lastly I am just...well...blessed!!!