Quote of the Day

FO: Regular Guy Beanie (for dad!)

I knitted dad a hat since he has no hair and his head gets cold :)

Good thing I finished it right before we went to NY last weekend. It was cold and snowy up there and he needed it! 

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving from our family to yours!

EVFD - Fall Clean-up

My brother, Seth, is a member of the Ellington Volunteer Fire Department. When dad had his stroke a few weeks ago, they wanted to do something nice to help him out. So while we were in NY this past weekend, they snuck a group of fire department members over to our house and did a fall clean-up. Dad was very surprised and so thankful for all the help to make the yard look nice! Here's just a few pictures they sent to us. 

New York

This past weekend, we went to NY to visit family and to serve lunch in church on Sunday. 

We got to meet the newest little Virkler, Andrew Joseph, born to my cousin Joe and his wife Bernice. 

They have lots of snow already. But then again, they have snow all winter long. It never goes away. 

Saturday we made and dipped chocolates, which is a family tradition. Here they are ready for dipping. 

Me and dad, sporting the hat I made him (blog post coming soon)!

I'm so glad that Bethany came with me for the weekend! 

Family

Family is the best. 

FO: Swirl Hat (x2!)

I love how these hats turned out! So adorable!

And they looked so cute on the girls! 

Dad (Part 2)

Yesterday afternoon, dad had an echo and EEG. We are still waiting for results from those tests. He had his MRI, and the results did not show a stroke. Based on all his symptoms, he was diagnosed with a seizure and a stroke. 

We are thankful for where God has lead us the past few days. Dad came home this evening, and his back to his normal self. The next few days he needs to rest and regain his strength. He goes to the doctor at the end of the week, and at that appointment we will get more information, such as when he can start driving again, and when he can go back to work. 

Thanks for all the love, support, and prayers. We appreciate it. 

Dad (Part 1)

I thought I would write a post here about what has transpired the past 24 or so hours with my dad. It may be long, so don't feel like you have to read it. It is for my memory. Sunday morning (10/26), mom woke up about 2 AM to dad shaking around in bed and breathing funny. Her first thought was that he was having a seizure. She tried to wake him up, but it took her awhile to get him awake. She realized something was seriously wrong. She had him get out of bed and walk to the couch in the living room. He was very unsteady on his feet. Dad had no idea where he was, and at this point, he did not know who mom was. Mom came downstairs and woke up me and my sister at about 3 AM. She said that something was wrong was dad, she couldn't get him to speak, and she needed help right away. We went upstairs and dad was very confused, unable to speak, and had no idea who we were or where he was. I got really scared when he looked in my eyes, had a completely blank scare, and shook his head no when I asked him if he knew who I was. That's when I realized that something was seriously wrong. 

I quickly went and woke up my brothers, and we asked dad if he knew who they were. Again, he shook his head no. We then asked dad if he thought something was medically wrong, and he shook his head yes. We knew then that we needed to go to the hospital. We called 911 and quickly threw some things together. Rachel rode in the ambulance with dad, and mom and I drove a car. We left about 10 mins after the ambulance. While en route, the ambulance contacted the hospital and the hospital called a stroke alert so when the ambulance arrived, a group of people were waiting and whisked him off right away for a bunch of tests. Mom and I arrived, and we were quickly brought to dad's room to wait. They did a CT scan, but the results showed no stroke. We were concerned at this point, because we knew something was seriously wrong. We thought it was a stroke, especially with his previous history of a stroke and a silent heart attack. 

Yesterday morning consisted of a lot of waiting around. Dad was still very confused and very sleepy. When asked if he knew where he was, he shook his head no. When we asked if he knew who we were, he did nod yes. This was encouraging, although he still couldn't speak. When asked questions, it took him awhile to process them, and when he would try to speak, he would get emotional because he couldn't. We made lots of phone calls so family knew what was going on. We were able to call in to church, and were very encouraged to hear the prayers being offered for us. Dad had lunch, and was able to eat just fine. No problems there. We were all very anxious; we had no idea what had happened or what the next few days would hold. We also noticed that dad was not using the left side of his body. It was very weak and limp. 

Early afternoon, dad started motioning with hands and we understood that he was asking for pen and paper. We quickly found some, and he started writing notes to us! We were so thankful for this little step. He quickly regained his sense of humor, and had all his visitors laughing when they came after church. We appreciated all the family and friends that stopped by to visit. As the afternoon progressed, he started making more sounds with his mouth. Around 4 PM, he said a word. He continued to write notes, with a spoken word here and there. When my grandparents were leaving, he said to grandpa "love you dad." That was the most he had spoken since Saturday night. We were so thankful to hear this. He continued to speak a few words, but wasn't able to form them into sentences. 

He then had his dinner. About 10 minutes after he ate, he got very sick to his stomach. We were unsure about what it was from, but thinking it was just from something he ate. He started feeling better. This was about 8 PM. We got dad settled in and mom and I said our goodbyes. We were going home for the night and Rachel stayed at the hospital overnight. Around 10:30 PM, Rachel called and said that the neurologist had just come in. We had been waiting for him all day, and figured he was coming in on Monday. Dad had a good evaluation, and the doctor said he expected dad to make a full recovery. We were thankful to hear this, but knew we still faced some uncertainty. They officially haven't diagnosed him with having a stroke, but that is what all the doctors think it is. 

We all were able to get a good nights rest. Mom went to work today (Monday), and I came in to the hospital. Dad needs to have a few more tests today, and the MRI will prove if he did have a stroke. He hasn't gone to do those tests yet. However, he seems his normal self today. He is up and walking around, and he has his speech back. He has been on the phone all morning with family and friends. 

We have so very much to be thankful for! Dad wrote to us yesterday how much he appreciates all the thoughts and prayers, and he said he can feel all the prayers. I would agree, the prayers carried us through yesterday. 

Lanz Kids

Last weekend, I babysat the 4 Lanz kids all weekend. Let's just say they keep me on my toes, especially the twins! I didn't have much time to take pictures, so here's the couple I got!

FO: Stethoscope Cozy

I knitted this cute little stethoscope cozy for my sister. She's in her senior year of nursing school, so it was a surprise "great job so far and keep up the good work" gift. 

I think she likes it!

The Big E

I can't believe it's already October! Three weeks ago, Aaron marched with the high school band at the Big E for Connecticut Day. So mom and dad and I went up for the afternoon to watch him march. We walked around for awhile and then came home. Of course, the only pictures I took were of the parade!

FO: Summer Wind

Finally finished my summer wind a couple weeks ago and I love how it turned out!

Today I finally had a chance to grab some pictures!

Pattern: Summer Wind by Irish Girlie Knits

Yarn: Nice and Knit Fingering

Color: Wellfleet