First post:
Aug 30, 2018 Latest post:
Jul 22, 2019
July 1st, 2019
This morning when we all woke up, Elsa did not. She has been surrounded by family, love and well wishes. We will greatly miss her - as we know you will as well. A memorial will follow at a later date and details will be shared here. Be well, Dodi
December 21st, 2018
Greetings from our new home at Havenwood.
This has been a memorable fall for us. Life in a wheelchair is a new experience for Elsa and Reine has moved to a walker to get around. Elsa has moved on to hospice care (staying in her same room) and completed all treatment programs. People are wonderfully helpful here at Havenwood taking great care of the two of us. Our daughters have set up a tabletop Christmas tree in Reine’s room that is decorated with so many favorite ornaments. They bring back wonderful memories of people and of trips we have taken. We still get a chuckle over the “Peas on Earth” that Anna created as a teen. Elsa’s room displays an ever growing string of holiday cards. The daughters hung a collection of angel figurines on the wall that watch over Elsa when she sleeps.
The end of the summer and fall brought a multitude of visitors from around the country. We so love seeing our friends and family and getting to visit. Keep coming! We have been especially blessed by the visitors from the Church of the Covenant in Boston who regularly send up pairs to visit with us. Our daughters (Susan, Dodi, and Anna) along with Elsa’s sister Susan come to visit and support us on a regular basis.
This holiday season we have enjoyed trips out and about Havenwood with friends and neighbors to special events like the recent Christmas programs of bells and songs.
We are grateful for all of your messages of friendship and hope.
Merry Christmas to you and your family and Happy New Year. Love, Reine and Elsa
December 20th Elsa is now in room 148.
October 14th Elsa continues to do well in skilled nursing at Havenwood. The mysterious fever turned out to be pneumonia that Elsa has fully recovered from. Elsa is currently experimenting with a new infusion treatment. She's a bit tired, but otherwise feels pretty good. Reine has also moved to Havenwood into his own apartment (phone number is still the same). You should see how the kids have decorated with what he likes to live with. Elsa and Reine share meals daily - noontime meal at Reine's digs and supper at Elsa's. The kids are currently cleaning out the apartment and hearing all of the family stories. Note - Elsa's new address is Havenwood Heritage Heights 33 Christian Ave. Room 152 Concord, NH 03301 Reine's new address is Havenwood Heritage Heights 33 Christian Ave. F-6 Concord, NH 03301
At the end of August, Elsa moved to skilled nursing care at Havenwood Health Center (the second campus of Heritage Heights where she and Reine were living). She has been here for a little over 4 weeks. The radiation / steroid treatment went well with few side effects. Reine comes over to share meals and spends part of each day with Elsa. Elsa receives regular physical therapy and loves all of her visits with family and friends. Elsa's strength had a bit of a set back when she developed a fever. Her medical team continues to look for the cause - trying antibiotics, blood work, and oxygen. Her energy has slumped a bit with the fever, but she is still her cheery self.
After a questionable CT scan, Elsa needed further assessment of her lung cancer clinical trial results. In a brief 72 hours with hospitalization and tests, it was determined that the cancer had metastasized to both sides of her brain. Doctors were pleased that it had not metastasized to her spine. The course of treatment was mega steroids and ten days of radiation to her brain. The treatment plan is to kill cancer filaments in both hemispheres and suppress the growth of more cancer filaments. The prognosis is fatal. The treatment plan is to give Elsa as much quality time with family and friends as possible. The task for Reine and Elsa is to plan for hospice.
