Tuesday 5/31

Dad is being moved to Baptist Acute care in Little Rock. We are soooo happy.... This is what we have been wanting!!!!!


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Sunday 5/29

Dad has been admitted to the hospital in Heber. He has been running fever for the past few days. He has become very agitated over the last few hours. There is swelling in the back of his head.
Please say a prayer for us. We are not sure what is going on.... If he is just agitated or in pain.


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Saturday 5/28

Dad hasn't been very alert since the move. He has been running fever and they are doing some bloodwork to see what is going on. This is harder on us than we thought it would be. It's hard being in the house without Dad being here. He should be here working in the yard, sitting on the porch or on the couch in the den watching politics or listening to his music, not laying in a bed out at a nursing home. Breaks my heart more than anything. I've been without my Daddy for 5 weeks now.... I know I have to be patient, but I just want him back right now more than anything in the world.


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Wednesday 5/25

*1:15 pm
They are planning on discharging Dad from the Hospital tomorrow. He will be going to Southridge in Heber Springs for transitional care until he is ready for Rehab at Baptist in Little Rock. We expect this to take 2-3 weeks.
Thanks again for all of your thoughts and prayers. I will try to keep everyone updated from time to time on Dad's progress.

Monday 5/23

*3:05 pm
Gracie and I came back to Little Rock this morning. We brought Gracie to the room so Dad could see her. He lit up and waved to her when he saw her. You could tell he was soo happy to see her!! =)
Dad is still extremely week, but we hope that Physical Therapy and daily exercises will improve his strength. Our goal is to get him ready for a transitional care facility.
He has been running fever and they are running test and doing blood work to make sure everything looks OK. He has been pretty sleepy the majority of the day.

Saturday 5/21

Dad moved out of ICU about an hour ago!!!! We are hopeful that he can handle it this time!!!
I hope everyone is enjoying this pretty weekend!!!! =)


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Friday 5/20

*12:15 pm
It's been a month ago today, that Dad was brought to UAMS. I just can't believe it has been a month. Definitely does not seem like it. I walked in Dad's room this morning and said "Good Morning" and he mouthed the same back to me!!! =) He has been mouthing several things to us. Some we understand and some we do not. He has puckered his lips at us and mouthed "I love you." =) He looks more like himself and this makes me soo soo happy!!!
Dad is moving out of ICU today. We aren't sure when... they are waiting for an open bed. All the nurses say he is doing really good. I am heading home for the weekend to spend some time with my sweet baby girl and hubby. I will update if anything happens over the weekend, but If you don't see any posts, that probably means all is going well and I don't have anything new to report!!! We are going to be taking baby steps now.

Thursday 5/19

*2:30 pm
They had Dad sitting up from 12:30-2:00 in a cardiac chair. The nurse said he handled it very well. I am here with him now. He was pretty alert just a bit ago. I was talking to him and he was responding with hand squeezes and eye blinks. The DR did remind us we will still have our good and bad days. Today has been a good day.... Hope there are more to follow.

*9:50 am
Dad had a good night. The nurse said he "woke" up around 4:30 this morning and followed her with his eyes as she moved across the room. We are in his room with him now. He's making eye contact and smiling at us more. He is trying to mouth words, but we can't understand what he's trying to say. Once they put a cap on his trach he will be able to talk. We aren't sure when they will do this. Mom, Caroline and I are all fighting for his attention! Lol. We are sooooo happy to see him so alert!!!!

Wednesday 5/18

*10:20 pm
Dad had a pretty good day. He was alert for Bro Tommy's visit again! He slept the majority of the day. They took him down for his Peg tube around 4 and he was back in his room by 4:30!!!!! They gave him some pain meds, so he has been out since he returned from his procedure. He looked peaceful as he was resting.... Hopefully he will have a good night.

*9:45 am
Dad had a good night. We are in his room with him now and he looks great after a bath and a shave! We are getting a lot of smiles..... Especially after Caroline told him she passed all her classes!!! =)
They are putting in his stomach feeding tube sometime today.....we are forsure the time though.

Tuesday 5/17

I sure am missing my daddy tonight. =*(









I've been lying here trying to go to sleep, but I can't. I keep scanning through the pics on my phone to look at all my pics of him. One thing is forsure..... He LOVES his granddaughter!!!!! I just can't even explain how much he does! I laugh when I think about all the times he's lectured me about not letting her get outta my sight and I need to do this for her and do this. I would have to remind him that I AM her momma! Lol. Gracie lights up when she sees her Pop. We keep telling her to blow Pop kisses! She will say "Poppppp" then blow a kiss!!!! =)
It has been 25 days since I've talked to my Dad. Ive never gone like 2-3 days without talking to him. I just keep waiting to wake up from this dream and my Daddy be perfectly fine.

*9:15 pm
Dad's eyes have been open more today. Our Preacher, Tommy Toombs, came to see us and when he was praying, Dad reached up and grabbed his hand....Gave Brother Tommy goosebumps! CT scan from yesterday has shown improvement. All the bleeding from the initial bleed has absorbed.

*9:10 am

Dad looks rough this morning. The nurses think he is a lil confused. He didn't respond to them much, but it's normal that he sleeps a lot in the mornings.
He will get a peg tube tomorrow. (Feeding tube in his stomach)


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*10:45 pm
Dad has been sleeping the majority of the afternoon. He did squeeze Moms hand really tight and winked at her. Hopefully tomorrow he is more alert. The medicine they have him on knocks him out, so he sleeps the majority of the day.

*2:30 pm
Trach is in!!!!!!

*6:15 am
Sorry I didn't post yesterday. I wasn't feeling the greatest and there wasn't really anything to report, as dad is still the same. He sleeps all morning usually and is awake more in the afternoon for a bit. He was pretty alert yesterday around 3:30. He smiled when he saw "his girls". We have been keeping the TV on CNN so he cam stay up to date on everything that is going on! Those of you that know Dad know how he loves him some CNN!!! Lol
Also, his wonderful girls at his office (that are just like family to us) bought him a CD player. I found some CDs he had asked me to make a couple years ago. I remember how frustrated I got with him cause I had trouble finding all the songs he wanted! I had never even heard of some! Lol. Soooo thankful I made those for him now! Sooo.... We've been letting him listen to his tunes some. I had a good laugh listening to his CD the other day while I was driving. The very last song is Ole Miss' Dixie! Those of you that know Dad, know how much he loves Ole Miss! I forgot I even put that song on there! HA!!!!
I will update again when we get up to the hospital. Mom called to check on him around 5:45 this morning and his O2 levels were better. (They had gotten low last night) Thanks again for each and every thought and prayer. Dad is a pretty loved man and I keep telling him how proud I am to be his daughter! I know he hears me, cause he shows me some sort of movement. (blinking eyes, squeezing my hand, thumbs up, wiggling toes, etc)

Saturday 5/14

*10:15 am
Dads night was uneventful. His condition is unchanged. He will have a CT scan today and a trach is still scheduled for Monday.



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Something is going on with blogger and some of my posts have disappeared. Hopefully they will show back up soon.
Today is not one of our good days. Dads oxygen levels got down to 45 this morning. They want it to be between 90-100. We are waiting on the results from his CT scan this morning. They are planning on putting in a trach on Monday. I keep reminding myself bad days are followed by good days. We just can't get too discouraged, although it sure is hard.

Thursday 5/12

9:15 am
We moved back to the ICU around 9 last night. Dad was having trouble breathing and he slept under a BiPap machine. His color looks good this morning. His eyes are open and he is responding well. We haven't talked to the DRs yet, so we don't have anything else to report right now.


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My sweet Gracie

Since this blog was orginally created to share information about Gracie for family and friends, I figured I should update everyone about her!! =)I have to share how lucky I am to have such supportive family and friends. My sweet Gracie has been passed around so much over the past 3 weeks. She is so easy going and has just gone with the flow.
She enjoyed some one on one time with her Daddy. (and the dogs!)


Gracie stayed the first week and a half with my mother in law. She sure loves her GiGi and had such a good time! (of course there was no spoiling involved!)


I brought Gracie back to Arkansas with me last weekend. My Aunt and Cousin have been wonderful! Gracie has been enjoying lots of sleepovers. Their house has become her second home. Gracie and Molly have become good buds!!!!


Of course you know you can always rely on family during hard times. I'm so lucky to have great friends that have been here for us too!!!! Gracie has enjoyed her time at the Leases' as well! She and Taylor have become good buds!!!!



I miss my little girl and our daily routines soo much. I am soo thankful for all the help we've had with her. It makes it soo much easier for me to be with Dad and here for Mom during all of this.

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Wednesday 5/11

We had a rough afternoon yesterday. We were all so down. Dad wasn't looking good and having some breathing issues. We left for dinner in tears and scared. We came back for the 8 pm visitation and Dad looked wonderful!!!! The nurse suctioned him real well, gave him a bath, washed his hair and gave him some meds to help him rest. This was a wonderful way for us to end our night
When we got here this morning the nurse greeted us and told us Dad was moving out of ICU today!!!!!! Praise the lord!!!!!!! They said he is doing really well!!!!! Soo glad for an "up" day!!!! I hope we have many more to follow!

Tuesday 5/10

9:30 am
The Neurosurgeon was just here. CT scan was good this morning, which means drainage tube from the brain can be pulled today! (YAY)
They are looking at moving him out of ICU tomorrow! (Double YAY)
She said not to worry about the blood clots in his legs.... They will disolve over time. The filter they inserted last night will prevent any clots from traveling.


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Monday 5/9

*10:30 pm
We had a setback today......The Drs discovered Dad had blood clots in both legs this afternoon. He had a simple procedure to insert a screen in the large vein that returns blood to the heart. This will trap any clot that tries to move. This could extend his stay in ICU.
We still need all your prayers. Thanks for all your love and support.


Dad had a good night last night. The Intracranial drain has been clamped since 6:30 am and he is tolerating it well. Once the drain is removed, he will move out of ICU. (we are hoping this will be in the next few days)
He is resting now, so we haven't been able to visit with him yet this morning.
Thanks again for ALL of your thoughts and prayers. The prayers are definitely working! =)


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Sunday 5/8

*10:00 am
First, I have to say Happy Mother's Day to my wonderful Mother!!!! This isn't the way we had orginally planned to spend today, but God had other plans and I just keep reminding myself that there is a reason we are going through all of this.
Dad is looking good this morning. The nurse said he got about 4 hours sleep last night. He still isn't talking, but he is recognizing us. Last night I put my phone in his face to take a picture to send to Caroline and he smiled so big! Mom and I got the biggest kick out of it!!!! The nurse said she asked him how he was feeling this morning and he shook his hand like ahhh, so so!!

Saturday 5/7

*2:30 pm
Still not much to report. Dad has been sleeping and getting much needed rest. He is still extremely weak. He is clean shaven and Mom is so happy that he looks like his old self! =)

Friday 5/6

*10:15 pm
Dad is doing well. He has slept pretty much all day. They say this is normal and he will be groggy for a few days. Not much else to report on. It's been a good, quiet day!!! =)

*12:20 pm
Tube is OUT!! I will update more when I get to the hospital!!

*6:30 pm
The vent is coming out tomorrow!!!!!!!! Hurray!!!! We are soooo excited!
I am in Memphis for the night, but Gracie and I are heading back to LR bright and early tomorrow. Not looking forward to the detours and delays we are going to encounter on our way, but oh well!!!!
Looking forward to seeing Dad without the vent tomorrow!!!! =)

*7:45 am
CT scan was normal! Dad had a rough night, but he is resting now. One of the DRs just came in and he wiggled his feet and squeezed his hand.

*10:00 pm
Dad got back to his room around 9:30. The Neurosurgeon on duty (he was not involved in the procedure) said everything went well. He is sedated now!!! They will do a CT scan in am and we will know more then.
Thanks again for all the prayers!!

*5:00
They are taking Dad down now for his procedure. We were told to expect it to take 4-6 hours.

*3:30
Well...... It's 3:30 and Dad is still in his room!!!!!!! They just gave him some meds, cause he was getting agitated. He was pointing his index finger and I told Mon to look at him. He them quickly put his index finger down and raised his middle finger! Lol. I told him he better stop shooting us the bird!!!! Ha! He gave us a lil smirk!!!!!
We are waiting...... Trying to be patient, but we are getting frustrated. We are hoping and praying they do this procedure today.

*11:00 am
Dad has been resting this morning. They are doing his procedure today at 3 (we hope!). It's been a quiet morning, so I don't have much to report on. I will update when they take him down.

Tuesday 5/3

*8:15 pm
Dad still hasn't gone down for his procedure. We are assuming they are going to wait till tomorrow, but we haven't heard for sure yet. Mom and I are sitting with him right now. He is very fidgety and just raised his neck and shoulders up off the bed!!! I can't say it enough.....we are ready to get this tube out!!!!!!!

*4:20 pm
They have not taken Dad down for his procedure yet. We are hoping they do today. He was alert when we went in for the 2pm visitation. He smiled, wiggled his ears and pointed his finger at us!!! =)
We will keep everyone updated on the procedure.

*10:30 am
Dad is resting this morning! We have been back 3 times and he was asleep each time! They changed his pain meds. We think the other pain med he was on was doing the reverse and keeping him awake! We are soooo happy to see him resting! We talked to him, but he only opened his eyes for a brief time. Rest his the most important thing he needs right now!
His procedure is still scheduled for today as well as an angiogram. He has 2 patients in front of him, so we are not 100% for sure of the time. They are saying around 3ish. This procedure takes 4-6 hours.
We will keep you all updated throughout the day! Thanks again for all the prayers! They are definitely working! We love you all!!!! =)

*3:45
We just spoke to the Physician Extender (she has been so sweet to us and has come looking for us several times since we've been here!) They are going to do Dads procedure tomorrow afternoon. He has to stop his tube feedings 8 hours prior to the procedure and he is still receiving feedings. She said there are 2 people scheduled before him but they are saying tentatively 3 pm.

*11:00
Dad is having a procedure today to prevent future bleeding from abnormal blood vessels in the brain. The procedure will be around 4 or 5. I went in to see him this morning and got the biggest smile!!! Mom is down in the lobby enjoying some time with Gracie before she and Josh head back.

Sunday 5/1

*6:30 pm
Dad smiled at us several times during the 2:00 visitation. He raised his arm and grabbed Caroline's arm. He shook his head yes and no when we asked him questions!!!!! Today started out rough, but has gotten much better throughout the day!!!! =)

*11:45 am
Mom said dad is showing out!!!!! He is wiggling his ears, smiling and moving his fingers like he's playing the piano! The nurse said he has made a fool out of them!!! Lol. Praise the lord for some good news. I was really down this morning. I'm heading up to see him in a bit!!!

*8:45 AM
I just spoke to Mom. I left the hospital for the night since Josh and Gracie are in town. She said Dad was sleeping when she went in this morning. The nurses said he has not been responding to anyone. Hopefully this is just because he is tired and getting some rest. They are taking him for a CT scan shortly.

*9:45 AM
Just talked to Mom. She told the DR she wanted results ASAP and he pulled them up and they looked together. Everything looks good.... no new bleeding!!!! We are restricting visitors to immediate family only. We think he really just needs rest right now. Thanks again for ALL the prayers. I feel soo honored to be Jack Rhodes' daughter. This past week has made me realize just how many people love and care for my dad.
I am going to spend some time with my sweet Gracie (and Josh) today! I am soo excited that they are here! We are planning to go see Dad this afternoon. Last night when I told him Gracie was downstairs, he gave me a smirk!!!