thank you for all the well wishes & positive energy for my dad.
after visiting with a neuro-oncologist, an MRI of my dad's complete spin was completed to see if there were metastatic droppings in his spine. unfortunately, my dad also has cancer cells in his spine.
the disease is moving so quickly and is absolutely devastating. he started whole brain radiation on thursday and will undergo 10 total treatments. my dad no longer can walk on his own, he can only mutter single words (he can say daughter, love & son in korean & says emme) & has difficulty swallowing. he is currently using a wheelchair as he is almost a total assist.
on the positive, we are seeing some improvement with my dad during his radiation. he is smiling, more alert and responds to us...this is very encouraging as there is swelling in his brain.
before my father underwent whole brain radiation, we planned a surprise vow renewal ceremony for them. they will be celebrating their 37th wedding anniversary in august but considering my dad's diagnosis, we celebrated a little early.
my dad wanted to see the ocean so their vow renewal was on the beach. we laid out a heart in rose petals. there was an officiant, a violin player who sang & my parents also exchanged rings. My dad could barely stand but with my support and very shaky legs, he managed to stand up for my mom & be the strong man that he is. it was absolutely heart breaking but such a beautiful moment.
my dad needed some help getting down to the ocean.
emme & coco were the flower girs.
a family snap shot.
we had a sugar free vanilla cake made with sugar free buttercream frosting as well as some champagne to celebrate. we used the beautiful lobby of one ocean in atlantic beach to celebrate.
being silly with emme.
it was an absolutely beautiful day & it was full of joy. my dad is getting world class care & he is continuing to fight. we are hoping with whole brain radiation that he will have a better quality of life.
my sister started a go fund me account for my parents to send them on a honeymoon. i thought i would share the link here (again...since it didn't work). there is no pressure to donate but my sister keeps the page updated for friends and family.
to find the page, go to: go fund me dot com
search: christy lee
it will be: Honeymoon, 37 years in the making!
again, thank you everyone for all your prayers, well wishes and positive energy. we will never give up hope. as long as my dad is smiling and willing to fight, we will never give up...ever.
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in may, i took my parents to cape may. my dad wasn't feeling well but was able to walk with a little bit of help. he had no issues swallowing and was talking normally. my mom loves seafood and crab legs so cape may was a definite must do for us.
emme loves her grandparents!
despite having "personal triumph" listed on the ADR, there was nothing extra done for my dad which was disappointing. also, our server was pretty terrible. she didn't clear our tables so we had buckets of crab legs and clams all over the table. our drinks were always empty which also was disappointing.
the food wasn't the best i had but i can that the crab legs were always replenished. they weren't overly salty. the clams were very small. i was grossed out by the mussels in the tomato sauce (that was just WRONG in every way). however, the cheese section was really really good. emme loved the cod nuggets...they were exceptionally good. big chunks of fish in a light batter...plus tartar sauce!
i probably won't be returning for dinner and will stick to breakfast there. cape may does accept TIW and i used the free valet as well that comes with TIW.
i had 4 plates of these. (i have no shame)
and emme's favorite part of the meal:
the flan/custard with the blueberries was excellent. mmmmmm!
these strawberry shortcakes weren't very impressive.
after dinner, we took a walk along the boardwalk!
i love this picture.
the sun was starting to set over the boardwalk.
thank you again everyone for the well wishes. some of my favorite disney moments with my dad:
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on the positive, during the korean anthem during the world cup, i blasted the music for the anthem and my dad mouthed the words. it was pretty awesome!