Saturday at the Beach, and YES, it is all About Lisa

Our entourage arrived at the beach Saturday afternoon, ready for the afternoon. These was a very handy sidewalk clear out to the beach, with an asphalt basketball court. This was perfect for wheelchair traveling. We set up right there, flied kites, played in the waves, sunburned, and then I left and took mom to dialysis. The rest of the crew stayed and played, had ice cream and then watched the sunset. Beautiful weather, beautiful day!

Where in the world is Leslie? She is behind the camera. Ray was helping ward member move so he was not able to go with us. Any one want to plan a family reunion to California? I am offering it up, but then of course, you are always welcome in Arizona as well. We just don't have much of a beach, but I could sprinkle some sand around my pool!

Star Fish on Balboa Pier

Lisa and I were standing on Balboa Pier looking over the sides when all of a sudden Lisa calls me over to the side of the pier she was standing on. She was very excited about what she saw, I figured she was a naked man as there were scuba divers working on the pylons under the pier, and they were just stripping down with a towel around their waist to change clothes.

No, no. no, nothing as mundane as that, but starfish! Right on the pylons! Glued there! What an amazing find, and she was sure that is why the divers were workingon the pier, to rescue the pylons from the ferocious starfish and their wayward destruction!

Well, with all the commotion, one of the divers (dressed in only a small towel and hiding behind the door of his truck) asked Lisa if she liked she starfish. She didn't know how to reply, and after a brief moment, she gushed..."oh yes, I LOVE Starfish! The diver proceeded to tell Lisa that he can get a starfish from under the pier for her. She was ecstatic! She could hardly contain her excitement and then after the diver committed, she told him she would like two starfish for her two children. He told her, that would be great, and then proceeded to talk to his divers in the water and sent a bucket down for them to pry some of the starfish from the pylons.

It took a few minutes to coordinate the effort, during which time Trevor shared some of his fries with the now dressed diver. There was talking between the surface diver and the below surface diver, and the Home Depot bucket was tied to a rope and thrown over the side of the pier. Anticipation grew, all present held their breath, and waited and watched.

Soon a masked head and gloved hands appeared below the pier and the extraction started. One starfish after the other were removed from the pylon and dropped in the bucket.

The diver on the pier told us this was a heck of a way for a company that charges $600 an hour to be working, filling a bucket with starfish, but he was happy to do it. (At least I think he was happy when he first offered, but after the extensive effort involved, he may have been regretting his original offer.

Finally, the bucket starts to appear as the diver on the pier and another deck hand started hoisting the bucket up and over the railing.

The bucket finally surfaced and with a final heave ho, it was laid to rest on the pier.
The contents were emptied out for all to see, and admire.


There they were, a huddle of 6 starfish. One of them had 6 legs, and another was missing most of one leg, he looked a man with a very little head and very long arms and legs. (Bottom left of picture)
The diver explained the anatomy of the starfish to Lydia and Trevor and told them that because the starfish does not have a brain, they can not feel pain. (Really?) The diver told Lisa to take what she wanted, and it was decided that Kib would like a starfish and mom wanted the one with 6 legs, so we bundled all of them up in my jacket and headed off the pier.

The rest of the story will remain untold for those with sensitive feelings, but the starfish are beautiful and a great reminder of the trip we took to the beach with grandma.

Our Day on the Island

We took a stroll around Balboa Island Friday. What should have been a 30 minute walk, became a 2 hour production with our entourage, but we did have a great time. The walk is beautiful and there are amazing houses and beautiful little yards around the island. Thank you Ray and Laureen for being the tour guides as well as the Innkeepers for the "Hotel California"!

Yes, your eyes are not deceiving you. That is mom pushing the wheelchair. The kids both wanted a ride and she decided she would take a break and walk for a bit. I don't know what got into her because she even broke out into a "run" for a minute.

California Here We Come

Are you kidding? Laureen and Lisa were going to come to Arizona on February 23 to visit and to help mom settle in a bit, and due to some medical concerns, they were unable to make it. So what did we decide to do? We will go to them!

That is not always a simple thing anymore with dialysis, but after taking matter into our own hands, (Laureen's hands with my assistance), we had all the arrangements made for dialysis in Anaheim. Yes, you may consider that morning to be a bit of a "manic" morning, but dad would be so proud as we were able to circumvent the usual routine and 30 day advance notice required to arrange dialysis in another city, and had made contact, a chair secured, medical records forwarded, and the car loaded all in the same day. Tuesday afternoon, the 24th we headed off to sunny California!

We spent the night at Laureen's then headed south to meet Lisa and her two kids between Anaheim and San Diego. What a beautiful drive, and mom was so excited to see the kids. We met at a Subway, had lunch, transferred Lisa's luggage and boxes of scrapbook supplies (because we were going to "create" while we were there, and headed back to Anaheim.

We timed this very conveniently even though it was all last minute as Dave and Leslie were going to be in Las Vegas for a shoot the following weekend and they were able to make arrangements to meet us at Laureen's and play with us for a few days! He was going to meet us on Friday!

Pall Bearers and the Cemetary

Pictures from the church and cemetary.

Pall Bearers – Grandsons

Brittain Holt
Dayton Holt

Scott Peterson
Michael Peterson

William Peterson
Keith Martin

Brandon Denboer
Stetson West

Funeral on Friday February 13th 2009

The funeral plans were made on the drive to Utah. There were many phone calls made while on the road, and by the time we made it to Utah Thursday, the plans were made. Loralee drove while Laureen and Lisa spent time on the phone with Lynette, Leslee, Grant and Bonnie and the boys.

We weren't sure if we would be able to have an open casket viewing, nor did we know how many people to expect. We planned to have a brief closed casket viewing in the Relief Society room followed by a family prayer then the funeral, all in the Relief Society room. The viewing was going to start at 12:00 with the prayer at 12:30 and funeral at 1:00. We felt we had plenty of time for everyone to visit for a few minutes before the funeral, and that there would be plenty of room in the Relief Society room.

Family members and friends were at the church to greet mom and the family by 11:30. We were hustling to get things pulled together, and trying to decide if we could have an open casket viewing. Not sure of how well dad traveled, we called mom and the siblings together to take a peek and determine if we could open for viewing. Dan and David made sure Lisa and Laureen were there, and then proceeded to discuss whether they got the right casket in Arizona or not. David insisted the casket was the one on the right, while Dan insisted it was the casket on the left. After a bit of discussion, and looks of horror on Lisa and Laureen's faces, the boys took a peek, and sure enough, they had the right casket. And, dad looked great after his trek through the back country, four wheeling through the snow, and a stop for a memorable target practice on the way.

The decision was made to open the casket, and we were all so glad we were able to do that. Dad looked so peaceful, so happy, so releived. He was indeed beautiful. He was dressed in his own temple clothes, the same clothes he spent many trips to the temple in, and yes, it was his jumpsuit rather than his shirt and tie. We all remember him attending the temple with us in his jumpsuit, and he was more comfortable in it too. We did put on a tie, as well as the rest of his temple clothes, what a moment for all of us!

There was quite a gathering for the viewing, many more family members and friends than were expected. We ended up moving the funeral into the chapel as the Relief Society room was full with just family for the prayer. What a tribute to dad!

Everything went as planned, and the services were very nice. Because dad was in the National Guard for a number of years, he was eligible to have a flag on his casket. This was a great representation of one of the three things he holds most dear...God, Family and Country. There was snow in the forecast, it snowed the day before the funeral, and for several days after, but the day of the funeral was a bit overcast, and even beautifully sunny when we made the trip to the cemetary. The dedication of the grave was done with moderate temperatures, sunshine, and loved ones gathered. Everyone gathered aftere the cemetary at the church for a meal prepared by the Relief Society of Grant and Bonnie's ward. Their ward was indeed in full service mode for our family, with the bishop conducting, the High Priests setting up the chairs, and the Relief Society there to help with a meal, as well as someone to clean up. I honestly didn't see that happen, but at some time, the cultural hall was clean. It was like the shoemaker and the elves. The work was done, but no one saw it happen. Many thanks to the American Fork 8th Ward for their service that day.

Everyone was very exhausted and amazed that dad had passed away on the 11th in Arizona and we were able to transport everyone and plan a funeral and make arrangements and hold a funeral on the 13th. We were indeed blessed to make it all happen. We all retired back to Dave and Leslee's house to re-group after the funeral, and figure out where do we go now. Thank you to Dave and Leslee for their willingness to let the entire gang call their home "home". Now it is time to start picking up the pieces, get mom to dailysis on Saturday and plan the trip home. What a beautiful, amazing day; a day to celebrate the life of an amazing man, his accomplishments, his testimony, his love for his family, his love for God, and especially to have the opportunity to recognize God's hand in all we have and in all we do. We are indeed a very blessed family.



Posterity:
Loralee West (Kib Holt)
Jessica Holt (Keith Martin)
Brittain Holt
Laira Holt
Bailey Holt
Amberly Holt
Lana Holt (Mike Johnson)
Dayton Holt
Erica Holt
Lynette West (Kevin Peterson, Marty Jensen)
Brein Jensen (Doug Beazer)
Jameson Beazer
London Beazer
Ben Jensen (Li Johansen)
Evan Jensen
Asher Jensen
Scott Peterson
Rileigh Jensen (Chris Uken)
Tyller Uken
Amy Peterson
Michael Peterson (Olivia West)
Madison Jensen (Nick Elgan)
Roman Elgan
Aariel Jensen (Kris Monsen)
William Peterson
Joseph Jensen
David Farrin West (Leslie)
Nichole West (Brandon Denboer)
Haylee West
Laureen West (Raymond Grosso)
Anthony Grosso (Carolina Areans)
Christina Grosso (Jason Varini)
Jeremy Varini
Vincent Grosso
Nicole Grosso
Daniel Lynn West (Janiece Walker)
Kayzia Tanner
Ori Tanner
Darrin John West (Nikol Sorensen)
Stetson West
Hunter West
Magnum West
Bridger West
Jaxson West
Granger West
LisaGlee West (Darwin Fielding)
Trevor Fielding
Lydia Fielding
Leslee West (Steve Martin)

The Trip Home

The question had come up...how do we get dad back home (Utah) for burial. This had been discussed with the mortuary in Utah as well as a mortuary in Arizona. Friday, the 7th the boys decided they would like to "take dad home". David, Daniel, and Darrin made the arrangements to all drive down to Arizona together, Daniel coming from Washington state, Darrin and David from Utah, and take one final trip. David called dad and told him his boys would be there to take him home, dad was coherent, but unable speak. He was very touched, and emotional. His jaws shook with emotion, and his eyes teared up. We knew he understood the plan, and was grateful for this final road trip.

Dad and his boys have had many, many road trips, many of them hunting related, many of them through the Highway 89 area. The plan was to take dad through the same areas they had spent so much time, this time with dad as the passenger.

Daniel made the drive to Utah and then they loaded up with Darrin and David. They headed to Arizona as I was headed to Utah. I had mom, Laureen, Lisa, Erica, and Amy with me. We passed close to the Hoover Dam about 11:00 pm. We headed on to Mesquite where we spent the night, the boys headed on into Mesa and my house where they spent the night, or rather the hours until daylight.

First on the agenda was a stop at Lana's salon where they all had haircuts. Next stop, the mortuary. When they arrived at the mortuary, they had their own private viewing, given with much respect and privacy by the mortuary. They were amazing! The boys then carefully loaded their precious cargo, their dad's coffin and headed back to Utah. They took the Highway 89 through Flagstaff, Page, Kanab, and then over the mountains and up the 15. Very familiar territory for all of them, and a very special tribute to their dad. I am so very proud of them! They are all so grateful to have been able to make this final trip, and it is one of many fond memories, reminiscing, stories, and tales to tell.

The boys arrived in Provo late Thursday night and prepared for the funeral Friday, February 13, 2009.

The Sun has Set

February 11, 2009 at 4:44 am Farrin West passed away. He was known by many titles; son, brother, husband, dad, uncle, grandpa, great-grandpa, and more. He was with three of his daughters as he drew his last breath, and was greeted and embraced by his family members in heaven. I testify to you that God lives and that life is eternal, that families are forever! I was able to witness my father testify these things to me the last couple of days of his life, and I am so grateful for that final testimony and gift he shared with me.

Below you will find the life sketch Lynette prepared for his funeral. I wanted to share this!

Farrin W West was born July 6, 1938, in Pleasant Grove, Utah to parents Wilma Hebertson West Wootton and Sherwood W West. He was the youngest of five children. His older brothers are Jack, Leonard and Everett. His sister is Valerie West Bussio.
In high school he participated in track until it became necessary for him to work. He worked full time while finishing high school. He graduated from high school with honors having received straight A’s.
On July 18, 1956, he married LaVee McKinney whom he first met at a basketball game; she was part of the pep club. She was in the Pep Club and he sat behind her; when he asked another girl who “that blonde girl was” he happened to choose her cousin. They met after the game. Farrin attended Brigham Young University on a full books & tuition scholarship. He graduated Magna Cum Laude with a Bachelor’s Degree in Mechanical Engineering. He went on to earn a Master’s Degree in Mathematics, also from BYU, and an all-but-dissertation PHD from University of Utah in Computer Programming. He was on the leading edge of computer development and worked with high-tech companies on many innovative projects. He was a member of the Utah Army National Guard, becoming a Master Sergeant in the Engineering Corps.
His first child, Loralee, was born in 1959, followed closely by three more - Lynette, David, and Laureen- before finishing school. Farrin & LaVee moved to their home in Provo after Laureen was born in 1963 where two more boys – Daniel and Darrin – joined the family. Except for a couple years in California and American Fork, they lived in that home for over 40 years. His last two daughters – Lisa & Leslee – rounded out the family of 10.
An inventor at heart, he designed and built an early-design Ultra-glider in the 1960s, an off-road vehicle called a Trailmobile in the late 60s, a child-resistant gun safe, and several software programs for newspapers and budgeting. He loved to go hunting with his sons, the procurement of meat being secondary in importance to the experience. Some of his passions included home defense, personal rights and freedoms, preparedness, and raisin-filled cookies. However, his greatest loves were his God, his Family, and his Country.
Dad loved the Lord and strived to be obedient. He had a firm testimony of the Savior and the atonement. Always willing to respond to a call for help, he and his family seldom missed an opportunity to work at the church welfare farms, where his pruning skills became legendary. He magnified his callings and loved to attend the temple. In the last couple of years he became very involved in the church’s online indexing project.
Dad answered many a need for help from family, friends, and even strangers. He would be quick to assist with leaking pipes, broken down cars, or anything else. I recall a time when he came to our rescue at 4:00 in the morning. With temperatures well below freezing, he was out on the ground trying to get the car started for us. When we weren’t successful, he got us to our home safely before returning to his own home, only to have to leave right away for work. This type of service was not unusual for Farrin and he was willing to give whenever and in whatever way was needed.
In the last couple of years, Dad has set an amazing example of love and dedication as he served his wife. Even as the symptoms of Parkinson worsened, he was determined to do whatever he could to show her that he loved her. We will always remember and appreciate that great example of love. We will miss you, Dad; we are happy for you in your new life. We will see you later. In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

Just One More Hug

This was taken by Jess on Saturday Feb 7th, 2009. I think words can't say enough for this photo! We love you grandpa and Mom!

Mom and her Mission

Mom has been struggling with the decision about continuing dialysis fors quite some time now. I posted information below about her final decision, but she still goes back and forth wondering if she made the right decision. Last night after dad received a blessing from our dear family friend Gary Jensen, mom asked him if he would help Kib give her a blessing as well.

It was a beautiful blessing, but most notable was the fact she was told very specifically three times she was continue with her medical treatments, hemodialysis, for the time being. She was told she has work to do her still, and that her grandchildren and children need her. She was promised the strength and endurance to continue on for as long as the Lord wants her to stay here. She was encouraged to take quiet time and contemplate all she has been blessed with, and to study the scriptures, and earnestly pray and grow closer to her Savior. She was told that her dear, sweet companion needs her at his side right now, and that is the role she is to fill for the time being.
What a beautiful blessing and answer to mom's prayers. You couldn't ask for anything more plain than that.

The most memorable part of this blessing is the fact that she was reminded she can be of great comfort to her children and grandchildren as we assist dad from this life to the next. What a blessing for her grandchildren to have her here as their grandmother and be able to feel her love and testimony, and use her strength as an example for them and for us to know we can endure anything. Mom has had so many challenges, what an example she is to all of us.

This picture pretty much sums it all up, she has so much to offer her children and grandchildren, and she so much enjoys thinking about them, and checking in on them, she will be a very busy mom and grandma for as long as she is blessed to be here to do so.

A Western Sunset from Dad's Room

What an incredibly beautiful sunset we had tonight! This picture was taken just outside dad's room at the inpatient unit, after a very long, emotional day. Dad had a bad morning with a lot of anxiety and fear about being in the inpatient unit. He is quite confused about a lot of things and thinks he is in a psychiatric unit. We have assured him repeatedly that is not the case and have reminded him of the pain in his foot just to help him understand he is being treated for a medical condition. When Laureen was talking to him about his foot, she asked him if he remembered his foot hurt. He said yes, he did. She asked him if he remembered what happened, and he said yes, he did. A bug bit him. We couldn't figure out where that was coming from except mom was talking to Laureen Monday night while we were in dad's room and she told Laureen dad got bit by a scorpion. Yes, that's right, she said a scorpion. She proceeded to tell Laureen they had them all over their apartment, that Kib knew about them but didn't want to say anything to me about them because I would be so upset. Laureen looked at me for confirmation and after seeing the look on my face knew mom was telling stories. Dad, however, must have heard the conversation through his fog, and now believes he was "bit by a bug". Thanks mom!
Dad has not eaten anything today, nor has he had anything to drink. He is very weak, and quite out of it. He doesn't recognize anyone, and is unable to talk to anyone. He is pretty much in a deep sleep most of the day, with some agitation coming through his sleep. He is so anxious about being in the unit, we are going to bring him home tomorrow, Friday morning, and see how he does at home. I have been trained on how to administer the meds they are sending him home with, and we will see how that goes. We are hoping we will be able to get him home, and he will be able to be less anxious and more coherent. Time will tell. We will know in the next couple of days where we are headed at this time.
Dad had a beautiful blessing tonight from Kib and a man in our ward. He has been asked to help with blessings with mom and dad ever since they moved in with me. He was the High Priest Group Leader while Kib was in the presidency, and a great bond and mutual respect grew from serving together. Gary gave mom blessings through her hospitalizations two and a half years ago, gave dad a beautiful blessing this past September, and was again available to serve mom and dad tonight. Mom also asked him for a blessing, and Kib and Gary gave her a beautiful blessing as well. Dad and mom should both sleep very peacefully tonight as they have been blessed to be at peace and to know the Lord's will is to be done. We had a spiritual feast tonight, and one that gave everyone present the opportunity to be touched by the spirit, as well as to feel the presence of family members there that were not seen. What a blessing it is to have the Priesthood in our lives, and to be able to call on our faith through these blessings to continue on in our callings throughout our lives.
We will see what tomorrow brings, and how things go when we get dad home. The social workers and nurses have been awesome, and very sensitive and supportive today of everything that was going on. I am praying for a good night, and better day tomorrow.

IPU or Inpatient Unit

Dad woke up Saturday morning with pain in his left foot. He thought he had a muscle cramp, and we tried to work it out, no success. The pain got worse throughout the day, and he was unable to stand on his foot. The pain kept increasing, and the nurse came out to see him and ordered Percoset for pain. This did not help and by Sunday night he was in even more pain, and it seemed to be spreading through his foot. The nurse thought it might be gout, something I was not really familiar with, but it made sense as she described the pain and symptoms.

Sunday night was very miserable and dad didn't sleep much at all. He groaned, moaned, and was in and out of sleep, trying to get out of bed as well. Mom rang the doorbell for me to come help her at 3:00. I walked in their room and there was mom with her back against dad's bed, trying to hold him in the bed. He had again tried to sit up, and couldn't, and was falling out of bed. I got him back in bed and slept in the chair next to his bed, hoping to keep this from happening again. Several times through the night he woke up and asked for me to take his hand, not to help him out of bed, but just to take his hand. He tried to sit up but fell back into his bed again, and would then let go of my hand and tell me that was all he wanted.

Monday morning his hospice nurse called me and told me they had a bed for him at the Inpatient Unit and would be able to manage his pain from there, and see what they could do to eliminate the problem. They sent out a stretcher to pick dad up, and off he went. He was quite nervous being in the stretcher, afraid they would drop him, but they were two big guys, both very capable of taking care of him.

Dad has been in the IPU now on his third day. They still believe he may have some gout in his foot and have been treating him with morphine for the pain. This has helped immensely. His foot is still red, tender, and slightly swollen, but they will be giving him steroids to try to bring the inflamation down.

Dad has not been able to swallow his pills and they have ordered some of them as liquid and the others they give him with pudding to get them down. That seems to be helping. He is having difficulty swallowing water as well, but they are taking good care of him.

The doctor said they will be able to make him comfortable with the pain, but will most likely not be able to get him back to where he was before the pain started. The doctor suggested we look at options other than taking him home. I was not too sure about that, and thankfully Laureen is here so we bounced some ideas around. We went to tour one patient care center and knew that was not the place for dad. I talked to the hospice social worker and she knows dad, mom and me well enough now that she thinks dad will be fine at home. The decision was made to bring dad back home not to a care center. We will be able to have some help during the week to give me a break, and will be able to let him be comfortable in his own home, bed, tv, and with mom.

This has been a challenging decision as I know how hard it is going to be, and there will be challenges. Sadly, the biggest challenge for me is going to be the bed pan. I am not sure if he will be able to stand up when he comes home, or if I will need to help him use a bed pan, but I am sure either way I can do it. He does have a permanent catheter now and that will make a huge difference in the trips to the commode, but I am afraid it might be bed pan time for part of the toileting experience.

Dad was very relieved when Laureen told him he was going to be coming home. We did not suggest there were any other options, but he had to wonder being taken to a place like that if he were going to get to come home. He has quite a bit of confusion, but seemed to understand going home. I know that is the right decision, at least for now, who knows what the future will bring.