I thought it might have been too long since I wrote a blog post and you lovely people might be wondering where the heck we are! Not only that, but what the heck has been going on! I'll do my best to be brief and detailed, if that is even possible, but here we go.
Last you heard from us, we were in Kentucky at Derby time. It was a lot of fun, but that blog has already been written. Nearing the end of the last post, I told you about an opportunity that had presented itself. We have some friends in Ohio who we had just visited between West Virginia and Kentucky who texted us and asked if we were interested in coming back for a couple of weeks so that Marc could work with a mutual friend doing contractor type work. Usually we take opportunities that are dropped in our lap so we prayed about it and didn't hear the Lord say no, so back to Ohio we went. Here is the last paragraph of my last post:
[This] still leaves us in the same boat as the beginning of this post-39 states down, 9 to go, which, hopefully, will put us home in July still. However, like I tell most people that I talk to, our original plan had us coming home in January 2013 and obviously that hasn't happened, so we'll see what God wants us to do between now and then.
That was a month ago. Am I in Missouri, state #41 yet, you ask? Nope. Two days shy of our two weeks in Ohio, we got a call from Marc's mom at 8 am. Considering the time difference, it was 5 am her time so instantly we knew that something was wrong. She told us that in the night, his Nana (great-grandma) had passed away. She was almost 92 and went in her sleep, which helped give us some peace of mind. She had lived a good, long life and we were happy that she went peacefully. At the same time, Marc immediately started trying to figure out a way to get home for her funeral. She was his oldest living relative on either side, and he really wanted to be there for her. Day after day passed by and we just didn't have the money to fly or drive home. I searched for hours looking for something cheap enough that would at least get Marc home for a week, but to no avail. A couple different people offered to help, but the tickets we found were at least $700 per person. We couldn't ask anyone to pay that, so we said thank you anyways and looked at it as a closed door. Marc was pretty bummed, until Wednesday, the night before the funeral, one of his family members back home said that he would fly us out. To get a cheaper price, we were going to book one way tickets each way and a different airport each time. We bought our tickets to fly from Columbus to Long Beach, then once we got to Cali, we were going to buy our tickets to go back, from LAX to Dayton. Four different airports, but it was the cheapest option. And we were off!
We landed at 11:45am on May 23rd and the funeral started at 2:00. Marc's uncle (on the other side of the family) was kind enough to pick us up from the airport, take us to lunch, then back to his house to be picked up by the parents on their way to the funeral. I was so happy that Marc was able to be there with his family, knowing how much it meant to him.
Later that day at the reception, I got a call from my dad. He told me that my great-grandma wasn't doing good and that they didn't think she would make it through the night. Geez man. We only had one way tickets and hadn't bought our return flight yet so we decided that we would push it back and stay what we assumed would be an extra week for her funeral. At 89 years old, my grandma had always been a fighter. I honestly thought she'd live to be one of those people who was 110 by the time they died because there was never anything wrong with her. She was always so great and seemingly healthy.
Life at home went on normally, but it was weird to be back. Marc and I always talk about how things are going to be when we get back and what life will be like, so now that we're home, but not permanently, it's very strange. We feel like we're in limbo-we're not making any progress in the trip, but we're also not beginning our life. The more time that has gone by, the easier it has gotten, but still, it's weird.
Time passed with no news. My grandma had said that she wanted to die at home rather than in a hospital, so for the first few days nothing happened. Later, some news came to light that required that my grandma to be taken to the hospital. I won't get into all of the details, but we are currently in the process of getting my grandma's caretaker charged with abuse and neglect. Please, if you can, keep that in prayer. I went to the hospital on Thursday to see my Grandma and to make sure she heard the gospel. She was unconscious so she couldn't respond to me, but the doctor said that she could most likely hear me. I talked to her for a little bit then sat there for about an hour. One of my very best friends, Heidi, was kind enough to go and sit with me. It helped to have her there.
That weekend, with still no news, I went up to the Ladies Retreat with my church. On Saturday evening, I received the call-she had passed. All I can do is hope and pray that she received what I said to her just a few days before. With my grandma gone, my dad and uncle began making arrangements. Due to circumstances with her caregiver, they weren't able to solidify any plans until some court proceedings had passed. Finally, they were able to make arrangements and planned on hopefully having it on Friday the 7th or Monday the 10th. Because we had all seen her before she passed, they weren't going to do a viewing or a service, just a burial with a quick 5 minute service. My dad asked me if I could get a pastor to just say a quick 5 minute message before they buried her. Because it was only going to be more of a "send off" then a service and it was far away, I offered for Marc or I to just say a couple of words. I mean, we could talk for five minutes, that's no big deal right? He accepted, and it was a plan. Until it wasn't. The next day after another court hearing and another meeting with the funeral home, the funeral was pushed back yet again. I can't specifically say when it is, but by the time we leave, we'll have been here for almost a month. And what's more, now we are actually having a service...that I am giving. Holy moley am I nervous already. I have been to maybe 5 funerals in my life and now I have to perform one!? In front of my family?! Please pray for me because I know there are some things that the Lord wants me to say that my family probably won't receive, but He lines things up the way He does for a reason, so I guess we'll just have to see what happens.
And that is the update of where we are (California) and why we have been here for so long.
One more thing-the guy that Marc was working for in Ohio wants to buy Marc's Blazer, so we're driving it out there after the funeral. That is definitely a prayer request! Thanks!
