Rocky day . . . Happy Father's Day

So, today was Father's Day . . . and my parents' anniversary, and my brother's birthday. Big day in our family! We had a wonderful family day planned . . . my brother, SIL and nieces were coming down so we could spend the afternoon at the park together. After our outing, we were supposed to go back to my parents' house to bbq and have a late lunch/early dinner together. I arrived at my parents' house right on time . . . just as my father received a phone call from the assisted living facility where my grandmother lives. Apparently, she wasn't feeling well, and they wanted to call an ambulance to send her to the hospital. We decided to split up - my mom and dad went to the hospital, and DH & I went to meet my brother at the park. We took the girls on the carousel and the swings, and waited for a phone call from my parents.

They called about 1 hour later, and the news wasn't good. Grandma's EKG was irregular, and the doctor did not think grandma would be leaving the hospital. He said she either had a heart attack (which would be the good news in the scenario) or that she was suffering from an aortic dissection (which would mean her valve had finally failed, and it would be fatal). We all joined my parents at the hospital so we could be with Grandma. After a few more tests and a lot of waiting - the news came back that she had a heart attack! Ultimately, the doctor determined that there was nothing we could do for her barring invasive measures that would likely kill her, so he released her for palliative care to return to her current care facility. We do not yet know the extent of the damage of this latest heart attack, so at this point it is a waiting game - we are waiting to see if she will recover from this attack, and we are waiting to see if this is a precursor to subsequent heart attacks. Regardless . . . today she is holding steady. She is one tough lady!

In the end - it turned out to be a Happy Father's Day. My dad returned home with us after my grandmother was released, and we had our dinner and exchanged gifts. I hope Grandma hangs strong for a while longer - we've been told she has been living on borrowed time for 4 years.