Sunday (March 8, 2009)

I have so much to tell you and to be thankful for. I hope you will not feel that I am writing a novel, although, I feel it could be a best seller among Christian cancer patients and families!

In January, Joel did have 3 rounds of the more aggressive chemo IV drug. It did not affect him adversely as much as we thought it would. He did experience fatigue, which was expected, but other than that, he did not lose his hair (it only thinned a little), did not lose his appetite, and did not have any other side effects. He was quarantined for about 2 weeks, only being allowed to go out to the doctor. His platelet counts did get very low, but not low enough that he needed any transfusions.

This past week, he again had the aggressive drug, and started to feel fatigued more quickly than he did for the first round. He will go back to the doctor this week for blood tests to determine where his blood counts are. He is experiencing a loss of taste. But, that has not diminished his appetite!

On the last day of his chemo treatment, we were told he would have to go into a private treatment room. They could not tell us at the time why he would need to be isolated from the other patients, but we soon found out. All of the nurses on the treatment floor came into his room with birthday cupcakes, a black balloon, a potted Jonquil plant for me, and a DVD entitled "Arsenic and Old Lace". (This was because of his 47 arsenic chemo treatments this past Fall.) It was so nice of them and we enjoyed it immensely. We know for sure that he has received the absolute best care any one for ask for. We have made new friends of all the nurses and office staff and will miss them when he is released. He is now in remission and will only have to visit the doctor about once a month, and take chemo by mouth for another year.

We have been so blessed and know that we did not do this alone. God's hand was on Joel the whole time and guiding the doctors and nurses during his treatment.

We went to a restaurant in Archdale the week before he started this last treament and saw a plaque on the wall that said "Every Day Is A Gift". We felt immediately that this is our special saying. I spent several hours last Friday looking for this plaque but could not find one. I did, however, find a beautifully framed version of this and it is now hanging on the wall in our den so we can see it every day.

This past year has been so hard for me, with my father's death last February,my surgery in April, Joel's diagosis in September and his subsequent treatments, my Mom's death this past January, the care of my wonderful stepfather and just our lives in general. I could not have done this alone without the prayers of encouragement, our neighbors and friends and families.

We are looking forward to a wonderful Spring when we can have our grandchildren visit, we can get out more, and feel a great sense of freedom from hospital and doctor visits and chemo.

Please keep praying. Joel will not be considered cured for 5 years. But, we are confident he will remain in remission. He is looking forward to going back to the school around the end of March or first of April. This is a huge milestone for him and one that signals the time for moving forward.

Love to All!

Friday (Jan.16)

So much has happened since my last posted blog on Sunday, Jan. 4. On Monday morning, Jan. 5th, my Mom passed away. Evidently, she had been in quite some pain over the weekend but didn't tell me about it because she knew I would make her go to the hospital. She had told me several weeks ago that she was ready to go and that she did not want to go to her heart doctor or to the hospital. She said she wanted to be at home and in her bed when the time came. She got her wish. My Dad was with her and she went peacefully.

At her request 20 years ago, she had bequeathed her body to Wake Forest Medical School. She had also requested that there be no services. We held a visitation only at her church on Wednesday night. I'm really glad we did that, because I saw and heard how much my Mom was loved and will be missed by so many people.

My Dad is taking this really hard. He and Mom were very close and he is just lost. Joel and I have tried taking him out to eat and to do errands with us just to get him out of the house. He and Mom had been married 42 years. (If you're trying to figure out how they had only been married 42 years and I am 62, he is my stepfather whom I love more than any daughter could love her Dad.)

Please pray for us through this very hard time in our lives. Joel will start the next round of chemo this coming Tuesday, Jan. 20 for 3 days in a row. This drug will knock his platelet counts down and he may lose his hair again. Since he is not in as bad of shape now as he was in September when he first entered the hospital, we are hoping he will not get as low as he did then.

We hope you all had a great Christmas and New Year's. We appreciate so much all the cards, flowers and prayers sent to us. We are blessed to have such good friends and family.

Sunday (January 4)

We have finally reached a milestone in Joel's chemo. He finished up 10 weeks of arsenic chemo on Friday, Jan. 2. We are so happy to finally have this behihd him. He will now have 2 weeks off during which time he will be going to work for a few hours each day. His blood counts should continue to go up while during this 2 week period and prepare him for the next phase. On January 20th, he will return to Baptist as an outpatient for 3 consecutive days of a chemo drug that he received while he was in the hospital in September. It is one of the "bad" ones that may cause his hair to fall out or then again and will lower his blood counts again. After the 3 days of treatment, he will then have to stay home for a few weeks while his blood counts recover and he regains his strength. After 6 weeks of rest and recovery, he will again have 3 days of the same drug. This drug is make sure that all the cancer cells are killed. At the end of the 2nd 3-day treatment, he will have a bone marrow test to determine if all cells are gone. That is a really big prayer for us right now. We want so much for him to be in full remission and for our lives to get back to normal? (Is there such a thing as a normal life anymore?)

Thank you for your continued prayers and support. We will need them again especially during these next 3 months as he finishes the last part of his treatment.

Hope you all had a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
'

Sunday (December 28)

Well, Christmas is now over, and we are preparing for the next phase of our life. We had a wonderful Christmas. We were able to travel to Brevard to spend Christmas Eve and Chrismas morning with Jodi, Matt, Chloe and Ethan. And, yes, we still believe in Santa. We are so blessed to have children, grandchildren, family and friends.

We are now starting the final week of Joel's 10 week regimen of chemo IV's at Baptist Hospital. His final one will be this coming Friday, January 2. He will then have a 2 week break and start the next phase on January 20th. That drug is one of the "bad" ones, as we call it, that he received in the hospital in September. He will go to Baptist for 3 days in a row for this treatment. He may lose his hair again and his counts will go down which will result in fatigue and some other side effects. He will then get about 6 weeks of rest before starting the final 3 day treatment in March. If his bone marrow test is clear at that time, he will only have to take chemo drugs by mouth. He should finish that phase in April 2010. It has been a really tough 4 months, but, we are grateful that he is alive and is doing well. This was the best Christmas present I could ever have.

Joel actually had to get a hair cut yesterday. Joel's personal barber, aka brother-in-law Tony, came over and buzzed him.

God has been so good to us. He has allowed us to celebrate our 37th wedding anniversay on December 18th and to spend another Christmas with our grandchildren. We know his hand in on us at all times.

Jodi and Matt are in Costa Rica this week and next on a much needed vacation. They went last year and enjoyed a week of beautiful warm weather learning to surf while I was here babysitting 2 kids, 2 dogs, 1 cat and snow! This year, Matt will not be able to surf since he broke his leg in Septmber and consequently had to have surgery. He is doing better and is using a cane now instead of crutches. Matt's mother and father are babysitting this time.

We would still appreciate your prayers for us and we continue on this journey.

Monday (December 15)

Well, here we go again. Joel has now finished 2 weeks of the 2nd 5-week phase of chemo. He is feeling good and we have started going back to church. We missed 3 months and really missed our friends. Joel's white counts are still up and his doctor says he can go back to work. He will be going in every morning and work until I come pick him up to go to Baptist for treatment. He is able to drive himself and has several times when I have not been able to go. He likes me to be with him if my schedule allows it. I am still working and still trying to take care of my Mom, too.

As Christmas nears, we are so blessed that Joel is still with us. When he was first diagnosed, I honestly did not know if he would be here at Christmas. We are so grateful for the wonderful doctors and nurses as they take care of him. And, for the Lord's gift of Joel's life.

We now have more appreciation for our lives and the things that we used to take for granted. We are blessed beyond measure with the best family and friends anyone could ask for. Joel and I have learned not to sweat the small stuff. We try not to let problems bother us and just appreciate the fact that we can be together.

This coming Saturday, December 20th is our granddaugher Chloe's 7th birthday. She is such a miracle child herself, and we love her and our grandson Ethan so much. We will have a chemo treatment early Christmas Eve morning and then travel to Brevard for our tradition of being with the kids on Christmas morning. After brunch, we will come home to spend Christmas evening with Joel's family. A lot of traveling, but so worth it.

Thank you again for all your prayers, cards, phone calls and concern for us. We love you all.

Thursday (Thanksgiving Day)

I am sitting here at the beach, watching our daughter and son-in-law prepare our Thanksgiving meal. What a joy to be able to see them and our grandchildren. In September, we did not know if we would ever have this opportunity again. But, by God's Love and Grace, He has made this precious time possible. We decided to rent a condo at the beach so Joel and I could just get away from hospitals, doctors and my job. The kids arrived last night and from that moment on, the tranquil vacation ended. There are the sounds of kids having fun, the sounds of dinner being prepared, the TV is showing the parades and we are feeling so blessed.

At the end of the first 5 week treatments, Joel started experiencing some minor side effects, such as tingling in his hands and white lines on his fingernails. His doctor says this is indeed minor and can be taken care of by reducing the strength of the chemo drug. He will start the 2nd 5 week phase on December 1.

Yesterday was my birthday and the kids gave me a beautiful pair of reading glasses. What does that tell you? I am getting older, but so thankful that I can get older.

The best birthday present of all was from the Lord, giving me the gift of life for Joel. I could not ask for a better present, just to have him here with me.

We wish for you a wonderful Thanksgiving. Please continue to pray for Joel as he starts this next phase.

Love to all.

Nov. 11 (Tuesday)

Thursday of this week will mark the end of the first 5 weeks of chemo at Baptist. We have been going every day, Monday thru Friday, and, quite frankly, we are glad to see this part end. We will have 2 weeks off, then return on December 1 to begin the 2nd phase of another 5 weeks. We have several doctors appointments scheduled for the week of Nov. 17th. Then, we are going to the beach to spend some time alone and get away from Judi's work and the hospital. Jodi and her family are coming the Wednesday before Thanksgiving and staying through Sunday. We cannot wait to see Chloe and Ethan. The last time we saw them was the first weekend after Joel was admitted to the hospital in early September.

Thank you again for your prayers, cards and concern. We are very blessed to be in as good a situation as we are in. God has blessed Joel with good health during these treatments, He has watched over us as we drive back and forth every day and we still pray that this hard time for us will be a ministry to someone else.

Love to all!