If Neal's posts have not clued you in, the transplant is in 3 days. The guys are checking in on Monday afternoon and the surgery is scheduled for Tuesday morning. Monday morning will be Neal's last dialysis treatment. We are very excited and nervous. Neal and I have barely slept all week and are trying to keep ourselves busy. Ryan and Les should be pretty busy playing the Wii my Mom and Mike bought them.

My Uncle Jim is flying in from North Carolina and Ryan's brother Sean is coming in from Arizona for a couple of days. With them, our parents, siblings and friends, it will be a packed house. It will be nice to have everyone here for support. If you are looking for us we will be the big group sporting the Donate Life paraphernalia. I am sure Tuesday will be the longest day for those that are not under anesthesia. I will be looking forward to the McHenry hug the guys will have hopefully on Wednesday when they are up and moving around. The hospital stay for Ryan is 2-4 days and for Neal 5-7 days. I will post frequently throughout the week. We just bought a new camera, so I hope to post some pictures as well. There is nothing like 2 men in those hospital gowns/dresses.

We want to thank everyone for their support and gifts throughout this year. We also want to thank Ryan and Leslie for giving us this amazing gift given the year they have had. There is nothing we can say to them that will ever explain how thankful we are and how completely selfless they are. We are lucky to have friends that would literally do anything for us. We also want to thank their families for being so supportive of their decision. The final thank you to Neal's regular drivers Leslie and Stacy. We do not know how we would have made it through the last two months without you.

Just a note that the hospital does not allow flowers on the floor the guys will be staying in. I will post when visitors are allowed.

Today is also Michele's Birthday. Only 29 years old. To be so young. But if you ask Austin michele is 2 years away from her golden buckeye card.

The Dash Poem

Today we went to Grandpa Cecil's funeral. It was a celebration of his life. The number of people in attendance show how great of a man he is and how wonderfully caring his family is. Ryan, our donor, said some words that lightened the spirit and helped to explain why Cecil was taken from his family so soon after his own son Scott was taken. The day was inspirational and reflected the spirit I now know Cecil had. Cecil's wife, Marsha was the strongest one in attendance and even addressed the congregation. You could tell how proud she was of her husband, her marriage and her family. A poem was included in the program discussing the dash between the birth and death year on an individual's tombstone. The poem was beautiful. I had never heard it before. "What matters is how we live and love and how we spend our dash." It is so true.

New Year

Neal and I were talking the other day and determined the year actually went by fast. I would never believe that I would say this. Of course it was fast for Neal, he missed a couple of months! So here is a list of what we have learned in 2007:

1) Patience - As Neal always says nothing changes overnight

2) Appreciate the good days

3) Never take for granted drinking multiple glasses of water in a day!

4) We are so lucky to have great jobs and great health coverage

5) Good friends and family are priceless, we would be lost without them

6) It is amazing what people will do for you if you ask!

7) We are lucky to know all of the above at such a young age


This year, as miserable as it was, has shaped who we will be for the rest of our lives.


We are excited to have a New Year to look forward too. We have the transplant, weddings, parents moving, birthdays, a possible camper purchase, vacations and the growth of our Company. I am sure it will be one to remember. Ryan, Les, Connor, Matt, Jen, Raegan, Patty and Ed are spending New Year's with us. I am hoping to cook a great dinner for them, but that cannot be promised. We still have some Christmas gifts and some transplant stuff to exchange. The rest of the evening will be filled with Wii most likely.


Unfortunately, we have some bad news. Leslie's Grandpa passed away. The viewing hours are on January 2nd between 4 to 8 at the Schoedinger Funeral Home Worthington Chapel. The chapel is on North High Street just north of Rt 161 but south of the 270 Outerbelt.
The church funeral service will be on January 3rd at 10:00 AM at Maize Manor Church on Maize Rd. For some reason, both of our families strength has been challenged. Luckily for all of us, we are surrounded by family and friends.