Rest in peace

Pearl Bragg Tureman passed away this evening at 7:15 pm. Sherry and Shelley were by her side and she is in a much better place.

Here is a tribute that Sherry's nephew and I put together in her honor...

Amazingly Strong Women

Pearl is the strongest woman I know (no offense Mom). She continues to fight. I have taken up the first part of the night shift for the last two night, cause Shelley (Sherry's sister) had been silently baring the load all by herself, and it was taking it's toll.

Pearl is on Lorazepam, Oxydose (liquid form of Oxycodone), and Atropine (when needed). She has not had anything to eat or drink in 6 days.

Cabin fever has set in and tensions are a little high among the family, but everyone has Pearl's best interests at heart, and when it comes down to it, that is all that matters.

Sherry and I will be moving our flight back and most likely returning to Jacksonville next week.

Pearl Update

Pearl is hanging in there. She seems very peaceful, and many people have gotten to say their "good byes" ... a gift that will hopefully help many of us with some closure on this traumatic event.

Sherry is holding up well, thanks to the large amount of family support.

Both Noah and Sherry's belly provide a much needed and beautiful reminder of the yáng of life while we all dwell in the yīn as we make preparations (physically, mentally and emotionally) for Pearl's passing.

We have read all the comments and emails and have listened to your kind voice mails, even if we have not responded. And thank you very much for them.

I will keep you updated.

Update on Pearl

Sherry's mother, Pearl, has been fighting colon cancer for the last few years. Last month she made the decision to stop all treatments and begin Hospice care. On Wednesday we got a call that things had deteriorated and that if Sherry wanted to spend time with her while she was still able to communicate she should get up there now, so we changed our previously planned trip to head up to Norfolk that evening.

We arrived into town and put Noah to sleep at Regina's house and Sherry and I headed over to see Pearl. She was awake and happy to see Sherry. We spent two hours with her until midnight and then left her with Shawn so they could get some rest (on Tuesday the nurse suggested that she not be left alone).

On Thursday we moved her over to Shelley's house (Sherry's sister) which was the plan once Pearl couldn't provide for herself any more. The move took a lot out of her, and she slept for the majority of the next two days.

On Friday we had a family meeting (or family party as Pearl called it), with the extended family and the Hospice nurses, and everyone got to ask questions directly from the nurses as anyone who has played the game of telephone knows, the quality of information breaks down the number of times it is relayed. Sherry spent the night to help out Shelley.

Saturday was quiet and she slept most of the day, which was needed from the family party activities, which wore her out. Sherry once again spent the night. Sunday was also quiet, with friends and family stopping by to check in on our precious Pearl. Shawn spent the night.

So here we are on Monday, and all of us are battling with what is right to do, but we all know that it doesn't matter what we do, because this is one of the times in life when there is no right way to act. Your jobs seems so unimportant, but you realize that you cannot neglect your team mates, even though they all understand. Caring for the needs of your children seems to be the easiest and only right thing to do, so we do.

18 Month Check Up

Noah turned 18 months yesterday and this morning we went to the doctor for his check up. He measured in at 36 inches (above 100%) and 28 pounds (75%). The doctor seemed pleased with his development, especially his ever growing vocabulary. Noah did not enjoy the visit though, mainly because it involved strangers poking at him. At one point, I had to pin him down to the table while he screamed so that the doctor could check his ears and throat!
I asked the doctor how to best go about introducing Noah to his baby brother in a few weeks. He recommended that we just be relaxed about it and not worry too much about Noah's reaction. Obviously we are going to have a few bad days here and there, but if we don't make a big deal about the new addition, then Noah will be quicker to adjust and accept his new brother. I guess we will just have to wait and see!

Only 10 more weeks!

Can you believe it? Baby No Name will be here in 10 short weeks. Noah and I went shopping for the first time today for his baby brother. We bought an new outfit for him to come home from the hospital in, although I think Noah thinks the outfit is for him. Earlier this week, we unpacked all of Noah's infant clothing and did inventory to determine what, if anything, we need for Baby No Name. It was funny to watch Noah try to put on the baby socks and shoes- he was very confused about why they were so small! I think he is probably going to be very shocked when we bring the baby home. I keep trying to talk to him about the baby, but he always ends up pointing to himself and saying "baby". Noah's vocabulary is growing everyday and it is amazing to watch how quickly he learns new things.