A Record of Rose

I have shared on here before how my mom's younger sister, my aunt Karen, is suffering from terminal cancer. She has been going to Mexico to recuperate after treatments and just enjoy the warm air and relax. My mom has been planning a trip to spend time with her ever since her last visit. She left on the 4th and was going to stay for 10 days and she was looking forward to it very much- probably the only time she has traveled by herself.

She was supposed to come home on the 14th and I was looking forward to seeing her and talking to her again and couldn't wait to hear about her trip (and of course tell her about all the things we need to tell our moms about in our lives- you know what I mean!). Then I got a phone call from my dad on the way to school yesterday. Keep in mind, I go to school very early so he was calling around 6:30 a.m.....not usually when he calls just to see how things are going or to chit chat. My dad is a farmer and anytime I get a call at an odd hour my first thought is that something has happened to him- an accident. However, since it said Dad on the phone I didn't really think it could be anything bad. Dad's calling, he's the one I'm usually worried about, things are probably fine. 

Well...he calls to tell me that my mom fell down a flight of stairs in Mexico on Monday. She had to be transported to a hospital in Puerto Vallarta and had emergency surgery to reduce the swelling and bleeding in her brain. She was in a medically induced coma for four days and was unresponsive.

My aunts were able to get to Mexico ASAP to be with my mom. They were there with her the whole time trying to formulate a plan of action. Lots of phone calls, insurance dealings, and money talks were made but we finally got mom on a medical ambulance flight back to Iowa on Monday night. 

My mom is now talking and walking and is a miracle. Lots of prayers were said and her guardian angel was watching out for her. 

I feel like I should have updated sooner but to tell you the truth- I have been in a very dark place ever since getting the phone call. It is hard to be caught in the place between life and death and not knowing what to do. I tried to pray but was also angry with God. I wanted to jump on a plane to Mexico to be with her but my passport was expired which I didn't realize so I could deal with it before the weekend. I could have gotten it renewed in Chicago but by the time I would have flown to Mexico, Mom would have been already to leave on her medical flight. To say things moved 100 mph is an understatement. 

I am so thankful my mom is here in Iowa and is on the mend. It is a miracle and quite frankly, I was ready for a miracle to happen in our family. We are so happy to have her back.

I've been with her at the hospital this week and it is nice to be near her and spend time with her. I will give updates as we know more- I think it will be a long recovery until she is back to 100% but she is a hard worker and I know she can do it. 

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I've had this post as a draft for a week so I thought I'd share my instagram photos since they were already uploaded into the post, hopefully they will bring a smile to some worried (and now relieved) family members faces.