I was with Dad a good part of the day today and he is doing great. With my son Nick, Dad and I, drove up Provo Canyon and had breakfast in Heber. He did not bring his walker and with very little assistance was able to walk most of the day by himself. Last night we were able to go see his grandson Jake play basketball for Orem High. We got back from Heber and watched the BYU-Utah game while Grandma took Nick to the movies. I then drove Dad to the theatre to meet Mom for a movie. So they are getting around and both seem to be in very good spirits. I would guess by the end of the month he will not need his walker, but some assistance as he uses stairs, hills, etc.

We met with Dr. Whisenant today, our oncologist, and Gary is scheduled to begin another round of chemo beginning on Feb. 1. He will go once a week for a couple of months for the intravenous 1 & 1/2 hour Gemcitabin. It is not planned to eradicate the tumor, but to control it and to minimize the effects of the cancer, hopefully with minimal side effects from the chemo - except for nausea, etc. Gary is doing better and better with his mobility. He still will go to therapy every other day through the first week of Feb. He is able to walk a bit on his own around the house which is a big step.

(These are some excerpts from Mom's journal. Although every phone call, meal, and person talked to is explained in detail in her actual journal, most have been left out of this blog. Words cannot describe how much each note, call, words of encouragement mean to both our mom and dad)

Sunday, January 13, 2008
After our children attended their own Ward Sacrament Meetings today,
they then gathered in our home later in the afternoon as a family to have a little home Sacrament Meeting with Gary and I. We sang “I Am a Child of God” and then Aubrey gave the opening prayer. We had some announcements followed by the Sacrament. Pete blessed the bread and Dave blessed the water and Kaden passed the Sacrament to Gary and I. It was tender and teary for me as I had not had a chance to take the Sacrament since Nate’s mission farewell on December 9th five weeks ago in St. George. Courtney gave a spiritual thought on the first lesson in the RS/Priesthood Manual on Joseph Smith. I followed with some thoughts from our daily scripture reading. Jodi read some scriptural and hymn quotes and Dave gave the closing prayer. Cherisa and her girls and also Britton joined us after their Sunday meetings and then our family enjoyed dinner with the various soups, salad and breads that people had brought during the week. We have received constant phone calls from each of our dear children throughout the week. Our children and their mates and our grandchildren are our life! What would we ever do without them? We love them so!!! They are our strength and our reason to live and move forward. So we end this week and begin another. What will it bring?...........

Saturday, January 12, 2008
Gary and I went to another movie this afternoon, “National Treasure.” We met Pete and Courtney afterwards for dinner at Mi Ranchitos. We had a nice visit with Pete and Nick earlier today. I have, again, felt tired today and let’s face it - a little bit irritable. Maybe I’m just worn out. My quote today said, “A smile is a crooked line that sets everything straight.” I need to try and practice that. I know that this time in our eternal lives is but a “twinkling of an eye.” I cannot fall victim to ignoring the lessons from it! We have many people caring for us.

Friday, January 11, 2008
Gary and I went to a movie today! We went to the Provo Towne Center and saw “The Great Debaters.” Afterwards, we went to the Red Robin for a hamburger and a chocolate malt. It was fun to do some “normal” things. I have felt very tired tonight.

Thursday, January 10, 2008
Gary did very well in therapy today walking alone for about 10 steps. We were very hungry and tired when we got home and found at our doorstop some delicious hot soup, bread, salad and cake from Cherisa! It was so timely! We scarfed it right up!

Tuesday, January 8, 2008
Today has been very busy! We started out going to a 9:00 occupational therapy session at Utah Valley. We will continue going there for OT and PT three times a week. After the session Gary had a blood test done. By the time we got home, it was about 3:30 and we were both very tired. Hopefully, tonight we might be able to relax and watch a DVD movie. As Gary came into the bedroom tonight where I was working on altering some pajama bottoms for him, he lay on the bed and I asked if him everything was alright and he told me that he had started to experience tinges of sharp pain in his back on the right side last night. They continued somewhat today. Is this the beginning of his pain and discomfort with his cancer?

Sunday, January 6, 2008
Today is our beautiful daughter, Cherisa’s birthday - she is 39 years old. She is such a blessing in our lives - always so thoughtful and caring and loving. We love her so!!! Today went quite well with Gary’s shower and all. Things work out nicely in our little condo. We slept pretty good and have had just an easy day.



Saturday, January 5, 2008
We brought Gary home today! - Yea! Pete helped me. There was a snow storm everywhere, but the roads were clear and only wet - not iced over. Gary told Andy that he has fit back into our home “like a glove.” Our home accommodates his needs very well beings that he relies heavily on a walker to get around. We have borrowed the one that Dad used and it works very nicely for him. He can move around the furniture and with a little assistance can even get in and out of the shower with a stool to sit on while showering. We are grateful for our present home for the convenience that it gives us. We feel peaceful and content here. My scriptures this morning were directive to me: Paraphrased - We must not murmur in challenges and trials that we find ourselves in as we lack the details to perceive the quiet and often mysterious workings of the Lord. God does not call upon us to act in blind obedience, for dynamic discipleship demonstrates intelligent obedience. “When difficult moments come to us, one thing alone will stand the test of time, of all tribulation, all trouble, and all transgression. One thing only never faileth–and that is the pure love of Christ.” Jeffrey R. Holland “If God brings you to it, he will bring you through it.”

Gary will be coming home today and will continue with out-patient therapy. He is getting stronger and more coordinated each day, but he is not able to walk on his own yet - hopefully soon. We're grateful for his progress since he couldn't do anything at first!
Lots of love, Glenda

Dear Family and Friends,
Again, I am home for some rest. I have been staying at the hospital in Gary's room since Dec. 24. He is progressing steadily and surely, getting some strength and coordination a bit more each day.
I am so grateful for our choice children, our three sons, Andy, Dave, and Pete and our three daughters, Christina, Cherisa, and Melissa. I am so grateful for each of their loving mates and for our beautiful grandchildren. Along with Gary's siblings, and my siblings, and the support of our family - and each of you - Christmas has been a most sacred experience. It has been somewhat sad, but overwhelmingly tender and spiritual. It has been an experience beyond explanation witnessing the ministering and serving that our children have performed for their father and father-in-law. The hugs and kisses and tender words of care from our grandchildren have been priceless. Each of them have always been supportive, loving and respectful of Gary's patriarchal position, but the opportunity of this latest circumstance has enabled them to serve to an even higher level of Christ-like love.
We have felt surrounded by the love and concern and faith and support of all of you. Your expressions of this through messages, calls, gifts, prayers, and contacts have been enormously felt. Gary and I had a quiet never-to-be-forgotten Christmas Eve together. The hospital was so still it felt as if we were about the only ones there. As I dimmed the lights in his room and listened to soft Christmas music, I watched the pure white snow falling outside the large hospital window. Gary was not feeling so great - he was very nauseated and had intense pain in his legs from his nerve rejuvenation. However, all was well and we felt of the the true representation of Christmas - the birth and atonement of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. I read a story to Gary and we opened a few gifts given to us my some friends. Gary and I were together in the hospital and our children and their families were having fun together at Cherisa and Darren's home and that was what brought us joy and peace.
On the Sabbath before Christmas, each member of our family - all thirty (except for me and Gary), in addition to Gary's siblings, gathered at the hospital in a special room provided for us by the hospital staff. Each family unit came up to visit Gary for fifteen minutes at a time as he was very subject to exhaustion. We had a special one-on-one time with each of our children and their mates and their children as we gave each of them a DVD copy of a fireside that Gary had spoken at in a Ward Youth Fireside in November entitled, "What is really important in life." During this time Gary was able to give one more father's blessings to another one of our children, our youngest son, Pete. The father's blessings that Gary has given thus far to our children have been one of the most memorable things that we have experienced during this challenging time.
Our daughter-in-law, Christine, Andy's wife, had arranged for a special "Make a Wish" for Gary - a round of golf with his sons at Pebble Beach in California. It was an emotional surprise to Gary as the video taped presentation took place in his hospital room. Everyone is rooting that Gary will regain his strength and mobility to be able to play a round of golf as this next year progresses. Gary has a wish to be able to "perfect" his golf swing - he knows he can do it! What a choice gift! Again, we are so blessed with such dear family.
Christmas Day was again spent with visits from our children and their families.
Well, to get back to the beginning, I have come home for a day. Gary has been moved to the 12th floor in the hospital for five days of intense rehab - Room 1202. He didn't physically qualify (it was the doctor's call at Utah's Valley's Hospital - even without seeing him) to come down to Utah Valley Hospital as we had expected. We are grateful that the medical staff at Intermountain Health Care in Murray knew that he needed quite a bit more therapy before he was ready to come home. He will still need several weeks of out-patient therapy once he does return home. We are indebted to the extremely caring medical personnel at this hospital that have looked after Gary. It is the best facility in the state for dealing with this disorder.
Gary's episode last night proved that he was not ready to be sent home. Soon after I left last night, he was brushing his teeth at the sink by his bed and lost his balance and fell down. It took four hospital staff - one male therapist and three nurses - to help him get back up since he is so weak. He is so slight of frame right now. I'm sure that he has lost more weight in the hospital not feeling like eating very much. He has to be shadowed all of the time because of just such an unexpected loss of balance. We are anxious to get him strong enough and well enough as soon as possible so that he will be able to continue with some new chemo that hopefully will extend his life. (Quite a happy incentive, huh?)
Gary has been strong and has exhibited a positive "upbeat" attitude. I've only witnessed him say two negative things through this whole ordeal: once when he was prostrate on our living room floor on Dec. 18th when he couldn't move and I couldn't move him - he said, "I'm such an invalid." The other time was to his cancer doctor last week when he was lying on his bed not able to move at all and he said to the doctor, "I'm a little down." But when the doctor said, "It's obvious why you should feel that way, but you're going to get better!" Gary perked right up after that and has forged ahead ever since.
Again, our future is unknown, but we do know for absolute that our Father in Heaven's hand is intervening in all aspects of this trial and that the strength of our Savior is felt continually and the peace and comfort of the Holy Ghost is ever present. These are the "gifts" of the season. We love you all and are grateful that you are all a part of our lives. My sister, LaDeane, gave me a Lenox snowflake for Christmas symbolically meaning that a "real" snowflake is fragile and can melt away quickly, but when they are all put together, look what can be done! We feel the strength of each of you - I know that I couldn't "make this alone."
I hope you don't mind me sharing part of my journal with you with this update. (Actually, it is only a hundredth part of what I really write in my journal.) We have hope for a New Year - for you and for us. We have much to be grateful for..............our oldest grandson, Nate, is flying out on January 1st to Brazil to begin his mission; our youngest son and his wife are expecting their third child, a boy, the middle of February; Gary is responding to the treatments and therapy well (there is a 45-year-old man in the same rehab with Gary that also has Guillain-Barre ["geann"] Syndrome that has been staying in the hospital receiving therapy for 9 & 1/2 months!); our children and grandchildren are loving and obedient and kind and respectful to each other and to us and to all with whom they come in contact. Through the kindness of our High Priest Group Leader, Paul Welker, our family will be staying together at a hotel in Salt Lake City this weekend for some "together time." Even though they have been together for the most part, I haven't been able to be with them as much as I would like. Some of our children from out of state will be returning to their homes this next week as the holidays come to an end. Then I will need to take all of our Christmas decorations down and begin with life as surreal as it seems to be at this time. There's a song that I relate to every year from Michael McLean's Forgotten Carols, "I Cry the Day I Take the Tree Down." It will be especially so this year..........
Forever with love - Glenda .......and Gary

Tonight is Christmas Eve and Mom is spending the night in the hospital with Dad. I just got off the phone with her and she said they had all the lights dimmed listening to Christmas music and reading a story given to them in an email from Jim Smart. They have got quite a decorated room there as well with all the flowers, poinsettias and other Christmas decorations people have sent. They did have one visitor today (after yesterdays full day of vistors) from Dad's sister Jill and her husband Jim as they were making their way back to Redondo Beach, CA. I don't remember the exact number but Dad did take some steps today that the therapists were very encouraged about. He finished his last interveneous treatment last night, but they want him to be walking on his own before he leaves the hospital. They are hoping to get Dad into the physical therapy down in Utah County so he can return to home (or at least close to home). We had our annual Christmas Eve morning breakfast this morning up in Midway and all the grandkids opened up their presents from each other as well as our presents to each other. We missed having Mom and Dad there, but we took plenty of video of the action that we will show to them tomorrow on Christmas.

Exciting New Developments

Hello everyone,

This is Andy, Gary's oldest son writing with some amazing updates that have just occured. I have had first hand witness of the progression of my dad's situation. The physical therepist was just here and to see what was a struggle two days ago with moving his arms and legs, and seeing little or no strength to the progression today is awesome. Things are progressing right on schedule and we are so pleased with how the staff of nurses and doctors have been right there with their helping hand. ....(to be continued)