He's Home!

Rick was released from the hospital just before lunch yesterday. Hallelujah!

And to celebrate the fact that this heart attack did not damage his heart one bit, nor do his arteries show any sign of blockage, we ate TexMex for lunch.

As the two of us ate that artery-clogging meal, we stared at each other and smiled through happy tears, because we realize that God could have chosen a completely different outcome.

My husband could be in heaven right now. That would be unequivocally wonderful for him but heart breaking for the boys and me. As a result, we praise the Lord for choosing to spare Rick's life, and we've learned to be grateful for each new day, because we're never guaranteed another.

The night before he was released, I took the boys and the camera to see Daddy. We laughed over America's Funniest Videos, because it felt so good to laugh as a family of five.
Just before saying good night, each boy climbed into bed to get some lovin'. Naturally, I had them each pose for a photo. What's a major life event without some pictures?

Gig 'em, Daddy and G.

Jack was just a wee bit tempted to push all the buttons on the bed. "I'm just looking, Daddy. I'm not gonna' push anyfing." Yea, right.

The Nut had to make a goofy face, of course.

Now that this post is completely out of order anyway, I have to tell you about our first night after bringing Daddy home. Rick couldn't climb the stairs last night, so I got each boy ready for bed and then sent them back downstairs to tell Daddy good night. By the time I tucked each boy into bed, Liam was emotional. I asked him what was bothering him, and he sputtered, "I don't want Daddy to die."

Me either.

I loved on my boy and reminded him that Daddy was okay. It took him quite a while to calm down, because a bit of his innocence was lost as a result of Rick's heart attack. He's old enough to know that Daddy won't live forever and that God determines our number of days. But he's too young to understand that should God choose to take Daddy home tomorrow, we would be okay. Yes, it would hurt, but we would make it with our Father's help.

My mind must still be caught in a hospital haze, because my thoughts are all jumbled and so is this post. As I mentioned in the beginning of this post, Rick's heart shows no damage, and his arteries are clear. The cardiologist said, "Rick, it's as if you never had a heart attack, but you did have a heart attack." Elevated enzymes proved that fact.

The doctor said that we may never know the cause of this heart attack. One of the possibilities is that his gardening just minutes before the attack could have triggered an allergic reaction that caused a spasm in his heart. We'll never know for certain.

But what we do know is that he's alive and well today.