Hello, All!

So much has been accomplished in the past few days, but we are not going to make the 12/27 move date as planned. It does appear now that Sunday, January 2, 2011 will be when we move dad home.

If you scroll down to my last posting, you can see where there were only posts in the ground to create the walkway from the new drive to the deck. Yesterday the walkway was completed. Here you can see the men working. The pond is just beyond the deck. Using the site level, Sgt. Fieck learned that there was only a 2 foot difference in height from the drive to the deck, so there doesn't hardly seem to be any grade(slant) at all with the walk way. You can see the cement pad that was poured where dad will have a flat area to get out of a car and into his wheelchair. The walkway has rails up on the sides now as well; I just didn't get a picture of that.

This is a picture of the walkway from the deck. On the bottom left of the picture is another walkway that will be put back in place that comes off the stairs for other visitors.

We got the living room painted a nice green color. Those ceilings are 12 feet tall, I think. I was on an extension ladder for an entire day to do the trim. The bathroom and bedroom are both a tan color. I have a couple of places to touch up, but for the most part, I think it turned out quite nicely. There is also carpet now. The carpet layer came on Tuesday; I expected him on Thursday, so I had to do a little juggling with work, but it all was fine.

This is a picture of Joe working on the driveway. It has turned out quite nicely as well.

All of the medical equipment was delivered yesterday. We have a hospital bed, air mattress (helps prevent bed sores) two lifts -- one for him to use if he has to, and one to use in case he gets too weak or if he falls and isn't hurt and just needs help getting up. We also have a shower bench. Grab bars are all over in the bathroom where needed.

His caregiver had to give two weeks notice, and so she won't be ready until 1/2/11. It's probably best this way as we (okay I) was really pushing to get him in by 12/27 anyway. A few more days will be a good thing for those of us getting everything ready. It will all work out, and we have a date. There is still work to be done, but mostly inside. We have to move some clothes around to make room for the caregivers' things in her room. There is still some furniture to put in place, and someone has to figure out how to get the TV, VCR, DVD, and etc all hooked up so it works. :) Maybe I can have my 15- and 10-yr-old daughters do that. They are usually better at that kind of thing than I.

Stay tuned... there will be more updates as we finish everything and get dad moved home.

December 15, 2010

Hello, All!! I have changed e-mail lists, and I fear some have been left off. In case you didn't get an e-mail recently, this is what was sent out yesterday:

Well, the soldiers, and Alan and I have worked for every weekend for the past 2 ½ months. (Sgt. Joe Fieck made this happen. He did most of the work and was faithful to be there when no one else came with him. Also, Alan has shouldered a LOT of this; I could not have done this without him!) We’re exhausted! (and SO ready for this to be finished) J It has been quite a project, and (sadly) we are not quite finished yet, and now I need your help!

With Christmas being so close, Sgt. Fieck has holiday plans this weekend and cannot work. He said there are 2 others who might be able to come; he wasn’t sure. Sgt. Fieck said he would plan to be there again on 12/23, 23, and 26. BUT I told Bogey I thought we could move the day (or so) after Christmas. So we are going to try to get it finished for a move-in date of (I HOPE) Monday, December 27. I would like to move him on a day the soldiers can be there, so possibly on the 26th if I can make it happen. The soldiers have done so much!!

I have just hired someone last minute to finish the drywall this week. He said he can have it finished by Friday – or at the latest Saturday morning. I just talked with the carpet layer, and he thinks he can be there on Tuesday 12/21; he might push it to the 22nd.

I have ordered the medical equipment and will finalize what we need this week. I have hired caregivers who are just waiting for me to tell them a start date.

What we need done this weekend:
· We need people outside building the walkway. The posts are set, and plans are made.
· We need people to help get furniture all out of the way (to the deck or to the garage) so we can finish ripping out carpet in the kitchen, and so we can be ready for the new carpet next week.
· We need to paint. Dad has picked out paint colors. We need to paint the bathroom (including the ceiling in this room), bedroom, and living room.
· We need to lay tile in the bathroom and finish the plumbing in there.
· We need to clean well and prepare the upstairs room for a caregiver. (Though, I might not be able to do this until the carpet is in.)

If you don’t already have plans and can help, please come! We will be there Saturday morning (usually around 8:30-ish) and then we’ll be back on Sunday as well, I’m sure. I know a lot of you likely have Christmas plans already in place, though. It is very close to the holidays, I know, so if you can’t make it, that’s all okay, too.

Thank you so much for your support through this crazy project. I know I have seen a difference in Dad’s demeanor over the past months. I can’t wait to get him home and see his moods and outlook on life improve even more.

Thank you!
~Rhonda

December 12

It has been awhile since I have posted; honestly, because I have been discouraged about this whole project. Every once in awhile, I have moments when I wonder what in the WORLD am I doing?! This is CRAZY, and it has been a LONG time and many weekends that we have been working at dad's house.



Tonight when I called Alan at 9:30 pm, he and the Sgt. were hanging sheet rock. He has been there all day today.



The progress noted in this posting was accomplished last weekend, but Alan left early this past Monday morning for off-site meetings in St. Louis for work. It has been a crazy week without him home, or I would have posted earlier. He got home just last night about 11:30 pm, and took today off work to be at Dad's working again. He left this morning about 8:30 am after checking in with his teams at the office who are working on a new release of the company's software. Sgt. Feick joined him around 4:30 pm this evening. It has been an incredibly busy week without him home. (Yes, I already mentioned that, but it warrants repeating :) ). Today I stayed at work and was here to get Malerie from school and then take her to her basketball game in Springfield. She has another one tomorrow afternoon, and Allison has a choir concert Sunday afternoon. I'm being the taxi-mom this weekend; plus I'm working on a final project for the class I'm taking.


Progress made last week was wonderful! This picture is of the posts set that will support the walk way for dad to get to the deck from the parking place we have created. In the picture, Alan is working with the post-hole digger. All of the posts were set last weekend. Tomorrow (Saturday 12/11) they plan to pour the cement pad where dad will get out of a car on a flat surface. The walkway will take him up onto the deck. Sgt. Feick (most often these days known as just Joe now), has done research to know at what slope to make the walkway so it is safe for a wheelchair. We have rented a site level to measure the lay of the land. He is being very careful about how he does his work and to make things safe.




The deck has been finished. They need to fasten in several of the boards, but they have been cut and laid, and the deck looks great. It has been secured back to the house and they are building a cement wall to support it as well.

This is a picture (below) of the inside. The piece of plastic is where stairs go to the 2nd floor. To the right if the new bathroom door, and to the left is the new bedroom door. Both doors will accommodate dad's wheelchair.

There is still much to do, but sheetrock is being hung this weekend. I do not know if any taping and mudding will get done to that. We need to finish the plumbing in the bathroom, but the shower floor has been installed. The rest of the bathroom needs to be finished, and once the sheetrock is hung and finished, I can paint. Once I know when we are going to be able to paint, I will be able to schedule the carpet laying, which will also drive when our moving date is. Once the carpet is laid, we will be able to schedule the equipment pick up and furniture re-moving. I still have a couple of things to order, but we have made good progress with equipment preparations. I have stayed in touch with the care-giver organization where we have hired two care-givers. We are all set with them.

There are still so many things that need to happen, in the right order and at the right time. However, everything continues to fall into place at the right time, and in the right way. I believe it's a God-thing for so many things to try for the label of "coincidence." I do not believe in them. My God is Big.

Tonight I am praying for Alan and Joe who are staying the night at Dad's house. They will start again early in the morning, but Joe has to leave by noon, as tomorrow is his wife's birthday. I have not met her yet, but I thank her as well. Joe has been at dad's every weekend but one since we began this. If it weren't for him, this would never have taken off and would have never happened. How do you thank someone for something like that? I'm trying to figure that out.

More later.... Thank you for your support. :)