Red Feet

My dad's legs can no longer move at all by themselves.  If he wants to move them he has to grab them with his hands and move them.  Brian and I took him for a ride last week.  He had not been outside of his house in nearly 2 months.  I was stir crazy for him!  Jeff was in Russia and Diana was at work so just Brian and I took him.  I had all of Brian's kids over and we invited Darren's kids down as well and they ate ice cream sundae's while we took my dad out.  Brian and I literally had to pick dad up out of his wheelchair and lift him into my Expedition.  It was difficult but totally fine at the same time.  We went through Barry's Drive In and he ordered a kid's hamburger and only ate half of it.  He is losing his sense of taste.  Foods that used to be his most very favorite foods no longer appeal to him.  Last time he was able to stand, he did so on a scale.  He was down 27 pounds at that time and now I would guess that he is down somewhere like 35+ pounds.  Listening to him try to cough is heartbreaking.  He puffs and puffs air out just trying with all his might to clear his throat.

Since his feet and legs are useless, they just kind of sit there all day long and there is zero circulation in them.  The blood pools in his feet and they are so dark red that they look dark purplish brown.  I went and gave him a pedicure the other day.  I put his feet in a foot bath and I scrubbed them with a lufa and brushed them with a pedicure brush.  Then I lotioned them and massaged them.  They looked so much better!  The dead skin was off and his toenails looked much better too.  His toenails are white.  Like the color of paper, white.  They are flaky and gross because the blood does not circulate.  I brushed them real good and then he elevated his feet.  When I went back to his house 2 hours later, he still had them elevated and they were just light red.  They looked so good!  Jeff and I took him to the doctor last Tuesday.  Brian is stronger than Jeff is so we had a slightly harder time getting my dad in my car.  He basically told the doctor that that was the last time he would be seeing him.  That is was an inconvenience for him to come and it wasn't like he was going to get better......  The doctor agreed.  

At this point I really don't think that he will be around for much longer.  My guess is about 2 months.  I hate to see him go but at the same time I know he is miserable so I almost hope that its no longer than the two months.