The Journey Continues at Home

Gary was paroled yesterday evening and is now resting pseudo comfortably at home. He is moderately uncomfortable. Somehow he got pseudo gout in his left elbow which is causing most of his discomfort. If I understand correctly it was probably caused from his kidney failure. So he is on pain medicines to help him control that pain. He really doesn't have much use of that left arm right now. So getting up from the bed, couch, or chair is difficult. He has a wound in his right butt cheek about the size of a lemon. It is healing nicely but is still very sore. We have a home health company coming in every day to dress the wound. I am actually getting pretty good at cleaning it up and changing the dressing. He is able to climb stairs and walk with the help of a walker. He loved sleeping in his own bed last night.

We have had many angels watching over us. Both here on earth and in heaven. Thanks to my family for their love and support. Dave has answered my every question and helped me make difficult decisions. Melissa has listened to my concerns and frustrations. Jim and Lisa have fed us multiple times and made many visits. Richard, Mom, and Dad we feel your love and prayers as well. Gary's family thanks for your love and support. We know you all have been concerned about Gary and wanting him to recover wholly. A few other angels are Joel Dall, Steve Crandall, Our Bishop, ward members, the Buds, and all the skilled medical staff at the hospital. We couldn't have made it without our strong children. They have been my rock through this whole thing. They make me proud. They each have their own way of dealing with the situation and helping with his recovery.

He will probably be working on recovering for the next 6 weeks. He is determined to get better and heal fully. It has been an interesting couple of weeks. I think we have all done some reflecting on what is really important in life.

The Journey Continues

Hello all,
First let me thank all of you for your love, prayers, and support. We had no idea Gary was so sick. We are so grateful that he is still alive. We could have very easily lost him this weekend. One more day and who knows what the outcome might have been.

He was in ICU from Sunday thru Wednesday. He was then moved to a surgical floor for a day. He has since been moved to PCU (Progressive Care Unit). He had a really good day today. His spirits were up and he was quite positive. He had a few setbacks today but overall things are improving. He isn't mobile yet. He needs lots of support to do anything that requires body movement. But he is able to wiggle his feet, slightly bend his legs, raise his hands over his head, and raise his head.

The best part of his day was taking a shower. I am sure that felt most awesome to him. It took several of us to help him but we were successful. He is eating now and drinks a lot. He is showing a lot of courage and suffering through great amounts of pain to fulfill his PT requirements. He wants to go home! It looks like he may be going to a rehab center before he can come home just because of the stairs in our house. His friend Joel Dall told him he now has an A hole and a B hole. LOL

Please keep praying for him. He feels all of your love. It is going to be months before he is healed fully. I will update you all again in a couple days. You can call him at the hospital if you want to give him some support. Love to all. Mary Ann

The Beginning of the Journey

This is long so only read if you want the details.

I just want to update you all on Gary. He was a pretty sick guy. Good news is he is on the mend. Here is the scoop on his illness.

He had a colonoscopy this summer. He continued to leak fluids from his behind for several weeks. He put up with it for awhile and then decided it was more than colonoscopy residue. We called the doctor to see what was going on. He sent Gary to a colorectal surgeon. There was a fistula (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fistula) found near his colon. So on October 11th he went in for a fistulotomy. The surgery went well and he was on the road to recovery. He was feeling really great. He even did some home repairs around the house on Saturday October 20th. He really was doing well. Then on Friday the 26th he started having body aches, fever, chills, and overall feeling crappy. He thought he had the flu. So he rested, drank liquids, and just took it easy. By Monday he was feeling pretty miserable so he called the doctor and went in for a blood test. His blood work came back with high white blood cell count. She told him if he was still feeling awful that they could go back in to look for infection in the previous surgery. She was going to take him in on Thursday if he wanted the surgery. Well by Tuesday he couldn't take it anymore and called for a surgical appointment. She could take him on Tuesday the 30th. So he had surgery that night and spent the night in the hospital. The stitches had come out of the wound and it was pretty messy. So she fixed it up, restitched it and kept him there for the night. I took him home on Halloween so he could rest at home. On Thursday morning I took him in for another blood draw to see what his blood count was. Somehow this report never made it to the doctor, still not sure where it is. Anyway he continued to decline. He couldn't sit, lay, stand or generally move without pain. I called for stronger pain meds on Friday because he was fighting what we thought was post surgery pain. So he got on stronger meds and seemed to feel a bit better. Saturday went pretty well except he had no appetite and wasn't able to pee. He also wasn't sleeping well. Just couldn't get comfortable, had difficulty rolling in bed, and just not himself. So Sunday he layed on the couch and McKay stayed home with him. When I got home from church he said he was light headed and wanted to take his blood pressure. So we took it and it was very low. Had I looked at his buttocks I would have seen how red, swollen, and tight his right cheek was. But he just didn't think he was that sick. So I called my brother Dave to get his opinion and he told us to go to the ER. Once we got to the ER we were surrounded by medical personnel. They put a pic line in his shoulder and began to pump him with fluids. They tested his blood and ran several tests. His white cell count was extremely high and his blood pressure was extremely low. The blood work also showed that his kidneys had shut down. So they knew something was wrong. They did and EKG to check his heart and a CT scan to see where the infection was. There was an abscess in his bottom running parallel to his rectum. It was banana shape and filled with puss. We had to wait a little while for an operating room. Once we got the room they took him right away. The surgery took about an hour. Dr. Wouldron said it was full of puss. The quantity was about the size of a grapefruit. She isn't sure where the abscess started but is hopeful they got all of the infection and he will recover well. He has an opening on his back side that is about the size of a lime. It will remain open and heal from the inside out. He did have a minor heart attack during the night due to his low blood pressure. He was taken of intubation at about 2:30 and the stomach tube came out about 5:00. When I left him tonight he was sitting up, watching tv, off of almost all the meds except one blood pressure med. We have turned the corner and things are looking good. He will be in recovery for about 6 weeks. I am sure he will be tired of it by then. The good news is he isn't in as much pain and they found the abscess. We are thankful for all your love, prayers, and concern. Family is amazing. My children have been rocks through this whole thing. I have leaned on them a lot the past few weeks. I am sure it will continue in the weeks to come. We are blessed. It could have turned out a lot worse.

Two Years

Two years can seem to be such a long time and yet it can go by so quickly. Two years ago we were in Hawaii picking up Zach, Annie was pregnant with our first grandchild, McKay was in Junior High School, and Maddie was in Graduate School. The past two years seem to have flown by. Zach has been home two years now and is in school working on a business degree. Annie is working as a nurse at the hospital and has our only grandchild, Tommy. McKay is now in High School trying out for the basketball team and learning to drive. Maddie has graduated and is now working at the hosiptal as a pharmacist. I am still a school teacher and Gary is still employed as a safety director. Some things in life seem to change while others remain the same. But I can't believe how quickly the past two years have gone by. Life just seems to pick up speed with age. It makes me curious what the next two years might have in store for our family. We could possibly have more grandchildren, more college degrees, more in laws, preparing to send McKay on his mission, and more stories to tell. I look forward to the next two years and hope they bring me as much happiness as the last two have.

Mrs. Hatch's New Groove

This is a school year with a lot of firsts. I am teaching a new grade, in a new classroom, for a new principal, collaborating with a new group of teachers and trying new technology. At first I was a bit overwhelmed. So much to do and remember from several years ago. I knew I could do it and life would settle down eventually. After four weeks of teaching I have finally found my groove. It feels natural again and things run smoothly. I am really enjoying teaching. The children that I teach are incredible and are so anxious to learn. I have been very blessed to have small class sizes and lots of support help. I wasn't sure I had made the right decision to move to Kindergarten but after four weeks of teaching, it is was the right move.

I have also posted two projects on Donors Choose and both of them have been funded. Through Donors Choose I have been able to purchase student mailboxes and a CD player for my listening center. Such generosity for education in commendable. I really appreciated family, friends, and total strangers who donated to my projects. If any of my readers want to donate to education you can go to Donorschoose.org and pick a project to donate to. It is that simple.

So here's to another year of silly songs, color poems, birthday crowns, food graphs, sight words, alphabet and zero hero. So glad I found my groove.

Not as it Appears.

We are Utah football season ticket holders. Each year we look forward with great anticipation to the upcoming season. It is great fun sharing dinner, lunch, or brunch with family and friends before the game. Then once at the games we share in celebrating first downs, touchdowns, and great plays. I even have learned some things about football. I know when there is going to be a first down, can recognize some of the call signals, understand when the ball is  in field goal range, and I even enjoy a great tackle. With the new techological capabilities what you see in the stadium may not be the same game that is seen on TV.

The last 10 seconds of the rivalry game was such an instance. Those at home saw a more technical version or what we saw live. Hence the reason for writing this post. While in the stadium emotions were running high. At one point in the game my son leaned over to me and said, "I feel pretty safe we are up 24 to 7," to which I responded, "You never count BYU out until the game is over. They are notorious for coming back in the last few minutes." So it is the big instate rivalry game and we are down to the last 10 seconds with BYU having the opportunity to win or at least tie the game. The Utah fans are on edge hoping for another win. The stadium is full of exhuberant fans who are anxious and nervous. So when the first attempt at winning the game was an incomplete pass the stadium showed no time on the clock. The coaches began walking to the center of the field and the exstatic fans rushed the field. It was the rivalry game after all. It appeared from inside the stadium that the games was over. However those of you at home watching saw that the clock hadn't run out and that there was possibly a second or two left on the clock. The field was cleared and BYU attempted a field goal which was blocked. Sensing that the game was once again over as time ran out and the ball couldn't be advanced the fans onced again celebrated and rushed the field. Now those of us in the stadium were watching the play not the fans so we didn't see the fans rushing the field too early as you were able to watch. So once again the perspective of the game was very different depending on your point of view. Finally the 15 yard penalty and BYU had one last chance to tie the game. I wouldn't want to be the kicker for anything. My nerves were shot and I wasn't even playing the game. I can't imagine the huge burden he was carrying. Well we all know how it ended. The poor kid hit the post and by the way that post swayed he really meant that kick. The irony of it was the game ended by my watch at 11:58pm. I just think it was time for the game to end. Just something to think about.

So I am not upset at the fans for rushing the field. From where they were the games was over three times. It was just interesting to have conversations with those that watched it on TV. It was if we were watching two seperate games. Perspective it is an interesting thing.

Some Good Reads

I began reading more about a year ago and have stumbled onto several new authors that I truly love. I thought I would share them with you.

• Ben Behunin: The Isaac books are some of my favorites. These books are very thought provoking, feel good, self reflecting, entwined with a love story. There are 3 books in the series and I couldn't wait for the third one to come out. I actually went to the author's pottery studio to get it and to see his pottery shop. It was just as I had imagined it. Beautifully written.

• Charles Martin: He is also a christian author and writes a great story. I have read several of his books and have never been disappointed. He also makes you think about your own life and your relationship with others. The one I read most recently and truly loved is "Wrapped in Rain." I think since I teach school it really touched my heart about being the one person to throw the ball.

• Gary Schmidt: My sister introduced me to this auther. He writes for young adults but it is a good read for any age. I don't know if the books reminded me of my childhood or if I could just relate to them. These books give you a renewed faith in humanity and how you can make a difference in anyones life by just listening and being positive. I particularly enjoyed "Okay for Now."

• Garth Stein: I have only read his book, "The Art of Racing in the Rain." I love dogs so this book was a hit with me. It is amazing how the author uses the dog to tell the story. Warning, there is profanity in the book which I wasn't too fond of but other than that a great read. Wherever your focus is that's where you will end up.

• Sandra Dallas: She writes mostly about women and their hardships. I have only read "Prayers for Sale," but it was exceptional. I really liked her style of writing and the feelings she shares. The strength of women and the bonds that hold them together are underlying current in her books.

These are just a few new authors I have been introduced to. There are others I have read  but these really are some of my favorites. If you have a favorite please leave a message for me. Our book club is always looking for a good read.

The Big Day

Tomorrow is the big day for me. It has been about 10 years since I have taught kindergarten and my memory isn't what it use to be. I keep finding things I need to get ready for my classroom. Tomorrow is coming quickly. I am not ashamed to say I have butterflies tonight. I have met most of my students and I am very excited to teach them. I am just a bit nervous about putting the whole package together one more time. My room is ready, my lesson plans are ready, homework folders are ready, but it is the element of the unknown that I'm not ready for. So here's to another year of teaching and getting the class of 2025 on their way to success. I can't seem to upload pictures of my classroom but I will try again tomorrow.

Great Day at the Lake

Before the summer ends our family wanted to play. So my brother and his wife brought their boat to town and provided us with an afternoon of fun. Having adult children makes it difficult to get all of our schedules coordinated. The stars aligned on Thursday afternoon. We found a sandy cove at East Canyon to park our supplies and relax in the sand. Tommy wasn't too excited about the whole thing. The boat and water scared him to death. He didn't want any of us to leave his sight. We slowly got him climatized by skipping rocks and building sand castles. He finally relented and began to play. We also found out that bees love soda as much as humans do. Unfortunately I got my first bee sting since I was a little girl. I forgot how badly they hurt even hours after. I will remember that next time one someone gets stung. We had a great time and made some fun memories. We were all sore the next day but it was well worth it. Thanks Rich and Tam for a great day.

Last Week With Tommy

This was the last week before I have to go back to work. It has been so much fun to spend time with my family. I can hardly wait until I can stay home even more. I have so enjoyed watching my grandson this summer. We have had some good times. This week he spent several days with me because his mom had appointments, work, and was sleep deprived. We had a great week. We went to Wheeler Farm which was so hot we almost melted. He loved all the animals and made all the approprate animal sounds. Uncle Zach went with us as well. I also had a pass to Jungle Jim that I bought for him. So I took him thinking he would have a great time. Boy was I wrong. He hated every minute of it. He cried and clung to me like I was torturing him. I had him ride 4 or 5 of the rides. I rode the merry go round with him so he could hold on to me. Then we called it quits after about 30 minutes. I must be the meanest grandma around. We will try again next summer.

Loving the Animals

Hangin with Uncle Zig

Please take me home!

Can't you see I am NOT happy.

If I pretend to smile will you take me home?

Girl's Retreat in Midway

We had our annual "Girl's Retreat" this past weekend. We went back to Midway for a great get away. We stayed near Zermatt and the Homestead in a VRBO condo. We enjoyed some delicious gelato from the Zermatt bakery. This year my sister talked us into running/walking a 5K. So we all participated in the "Run Like a Girl" 5K. It was a great time. Unfortunately it started at 7:00a.m. so we had to wake Tommy up really early to go with us. He was not happy about the early hour. My niece Josie took 8th overall and finished first in her age group. Too bad she wasn't really trying or she could have made the top 3. My mother also medaled in her age division. Way to go mom! We ate, played cards, had manicures, made jewelry, laughed, shopped, designed shirts for our run, and watched the Olympics. It was a great weekend with the girls.

  Melissa, Mary, Mary Ann

Meghan and Madison

Annie and Tommy

Part of the Group

Lisa and her Girls

August 5, 2012

Today was Gary's mother's 88th birthday. We moved her up to Salt Lake in April to be closer to us so we could help out more. She lives just a few miles from us. We have been able to be more involved in her care. She had a wonderful party this afternoon. All 6 of her living children were here to celebrate with her. She was really touched and loved having all of them there. She told them how much she appreciated all of them and their love and support. I snapped a few photos of the event.

It was also Annie and Steve's 4th anniversary today. I can't believe it has been that long since they were married. It has been a great 4 years. I have really seen both of them grow together over that time. They bought their own house, Steve got a great job working on motorcycles, Tommy was born, and continues to be an exceptional nurse. We are so blessed to have them live close by. On another note Gary was asked to serve in our ward's bishopric. He will do a great job and learn much from the other men. Today was a fairly busy day for our family. It was great to have so much family around and spend some time with those we don't see very often. We are in for a fun week with Tommy. His mommy is going to girl's camp with her ward this week so he gets to stay with us while daddy works. It is going to be a great week. I will post pictures of our adventures next Sunday.

July 2012

This summer has been very full. In June we took the family to Yellowstone for the first time. It was beautiful with all the trees, rivers, lakes, and wildlife. We took some super pictures and spent many hours in the car. We stayed in a cabin in Island Park just outside of Yellowstone. The last morning we woke up to snow. Crazy weather. The final day was forever long. If felt like we drove thousands of miles. But it was the last day in the park and we hit Jackson Hole on the way home as well. We were glad to finally make it back to our own house. The kids have been on several hikes this summer. They have hiked Grandeur Peak, Subway, and Mount Olympus. Way to go guys. McKay spent a week in St. George for a basketball camp. He seemed to enjoy himself and got to know some of the other players as well. He also spent a week at EFY with Josie, Kate, and Andy. They went to Weber State this year. They seemed to have a great time. They have met some new friends and hope to stay in touch with them. I was called as Stake Camp Director and spent a week up at girl's camp. It was a fun time. Joy in the Journey was the theme. There were many spiritual moments mixed in with good food and fun. The favorite was the "Faith Walk" followed by crafts and skits. The girls were most delightful this year and made it a lot of fun. We moved Gary's mother up to Salt Lake in April. She lives close by us so we visit with her ofthen. It is good to be able to help out with her care. When I go back to school I won't be able to help as much but will still try to visit several times a week. Tommy is now 18 months old and very cute. He has a great personality and loves to come visit. I am lucky enough to spend a lot of time with him and have a wonderful relationship with him. He still struggles to say Nana but we are still working on it. I will post a few of his 18 month pictures.

Madison graduated from the University of Utah in May. She is now a registered Pharmacist. She is working at McKay Dee Hospital for a year and then she will see what life brings her after that.

Here are the boys at Subway.