Between the launch of the new business, the sudden decline in my Pappy's health and the mysterious stomach flu that Sophia has had since Thursday it has been a "roller coaster" weekend.
We decided to make a real go at the business expansion into Virginia Beach, VA. There used to be 2 dairies servicing the Hampton Roads area but in recent years both have gone out of business...one due to family issues and the other due to unwise business decisions that lead to recent closing in December 2008 leaving all of the staff and drivers that had worked for them for at least a decade without work and the customers without milk! When the first article went out on the 11th of March showing our initial interest in expansion we got about 50 sign-ups and some of the former employees contacted us saying they wanted to help us make this work, so then we heard that BIG TIME dairy out of Chicago; Oberweiss came in and bought the customer list and trucks we were at first a bit deterred but then after speaking to Yoder's former General Manager and actually having her drive the 4 hour drive to MD to meet with us we decided we wanted the routes more so now that Oberweiss thinks that they are going to ship milk 900 miles to deliver to these customers who are used to a more natural product straight off the farm. Well once Oberweiss got wind of our decision they called up Tony and told him that they had never head of us and that we should "back out" because there is not enough business in VA Beach for 2 dairies...well as you know it it is "game on" and we hired the former General Manager and we are hoping to be delivering to VA Beach by the first of May! In the midst of all of this we have our festival on April 25th and 26th...Tony and I are traveling to SLC for a conference at the end of April and we are also going to have the Veggie business delivering by the first of June...talk about STRESS!!!
My Pappy Sowers, was taken to the ER on Friday by my Grandma because he wasn't eating and he was having pain in his groin area, so he was admitted...found out he has a urinary track infection and he only has one kidney because he had cancer in the other one which was removed in 2002 and the cancer is back where that kidney once was, he has cancer on his liver and in growths on his neck. He is currently on a 10 day treatment on antibiotics and will be in the hospital for at least that length of time and then it will be decided if he is going to undergo chemo. Tony and I were into visit with him last night and he looks good in spite of all that is going on with him, he has had lots of visitors and his spirits are good so at least he is not suffering (besides for the horrible hospital food :))
Sophia has been complaining of stomach pain on and off for 6 months or more, there is no rhyme or reason to when she complains about the pain...I give her tums and most times the pain seems to disappear...I just figured she has my acid reflux issues...as of last Thursday she was complaining for hours at a time and I decided we should go and get her checked out...so we saw the dr Friday afternoon and they decided to start her on a round of Zantac to see if it would help...I was told to call the office if she started running a fever or vomiting...well I gave her the 1st dose in the parking lot of the dr office and by the time we got home she threw-up (I looked up the side effects of the drug online and vomiting was a side effect) on top of that I was thinking maybe she just has a stomach bug...plus she started feeling better after that and actually wanted to eat some dinner. I tried to give her a 2nd dose at bed time we did not even get it in and it was back up. Saturday she laid around on the couch all day complaining of pain but by early afternoon she had energy and wanted to go outside to play. We left the kids with Nana and Poppy so we could visit Pappy in the hospital and while we were gone she had diarrhea and she vomited in the Bronco. We bought her some fruit juice Popsicles to try to keep fluids in her and she slept all night and woke up this morning fine. By mid-morning the pain started again and we went out to run errands and we went to lunch, she ate some plain rice and drank some spite...we went to the grocery store we were hardly in the door and she started crying out in pain and said she was going to throw up I took her outside and she threw up in the parking lot. We got home and she rested for a bit and then felt better again and came outside to play at the farm...I just don't know what to make of it all...when her belly is hurting you can see it in her eyes, but she does seem to be eating and drinking, and she doesn't throw up all the time...I would think if it truely was a stomach flu it would be more constant...the only good thing about going to the doctors now is that we reached our deductible already so the rest of the year we will only owe the co-pays!
Dreams ...
8 years ago
