Wednesday, November 29, 2006

Update for 11-29-06

Well, Joe has been busy going to the doctor with me the last two days. I need to have my thyoid removed due to Herthle cells in a nodule and there are multiple nodules. They say it is very fixable whether it is malignant or not so I will have the surgery the 19th of December, as soon as we return from Palm Desert. (We are going there for two weeks beginning the 4th of December.) Dr. Schubert, our internist, was happy to see Joe yesterday and see that he was doing well. He had a minor pain (it is always minor when it isn't yours), on the weekend near his sternum but it left on Monday. Sometimes he will be nauseated after a meal but it leaves in several hours. I am trying to get him to look at it as a bunch of tumor or toxins breaking off and getting out of his system. We have modified our diet to truly vegan but not truly raw. We're having more cooked foods but all organic and vegan. Found a great sloppy joe recipe that is all soy. You can't tell the difference. Panera Bread is a great place for us to eat with salads and vegetarian soups.
Joe's TV bulb burned out and will be fixed tomorrow, but I have graciously allowed him to watch mine in the bedroom the last two days. I, of course, don't tape the same shows he likes but any TV is better than no TV. Since I have given this nasty cold to our neighbors Ed and Jayne and Pastor Earl and his wife Pat are afraid of getting it, we haven't played hand and foot for weeks. We are having withdrawal. Hopefully we will get some cards in tonight.
It looks so nice coming down our street seeing all the Christmas lights. I love this time of year with the music and the hustle and bustle. Hope you all get your shopping done early and can enjoy the Christmas season. I opted out of most of the shopping and gave the kids checks to do a Christmas memory with their family or whatever they wanted. Since 7 of the 11 of our family that will be in for Christmas are now doing vegetarian ,we probably won't have our traditional beef tenderloin on Christmas Eve. We will have to talk about options. I have really rambled but wanted to keep in touch. Thank you for your prayers and we thank you for all being there for us. God Bless Mary Anne

Sunday, November 26, 2006

Update for 11-26-06

Well, Thanksgiving is over and we can rest up a little and I think that we need it. It was a few days of on-the-go all the time. All the family was in and it was just super. Dinner was at Kevin and Tracy's and she did a great job. The meal was great and we have so much to thankful for.

On Saturday, the "ladies" had their annual mother/daughter lunch and while thay were doing that, all the "men" went and shot sporting clays. All the little boys got to shoot also (of course with dad's help). It was a fun activity and then we came back home and napped. Priceless!

Today the out of towners all headed home. A bit sad but so happy that we had that time to spend together.

Joe

Tuesday, November 21, 2006

Update for 11-21-06

Thanksgiving will be fast upon us and as Mary Anne said, all the children will be in town. There are 17 of us and it is so great when we all get together. The "boys" have decided that when the "girls" are having the mother/daughter lunch on Saturday, we are going to go to a sporting clays course and do a little shooting. A little different than trap or skeet as it will represent more hunting-type shots of all kinds

Tomorrow is going to be in the 60's and I will put up the Christmas lights....a chore I hate doing but love the results! It would seem that each year I test all the lights and then string them all around only to discover after they are all up that a number of them no longer work...*#&##**#@. They are traditionally turned on at the Coburn's on Thanksgiving evening (at least those that still work will be turned on).

I have so much to be thankful for. God has been so good to me and our family. He has cared for us through all the highs and the lows. I do not see this time as a low as I am feeling very close to God and as I have said before, I know all this is in His plan. Among the many things for which I am thankful are all of you who read this and pull for me and pray for me. Knowing that I have so many praying for me is such a great comfort and blessing. May each of you, regardless of your current situation, realize how blessed you are and thank God for all the blessings you have received. Have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Joe

Monday, November 20, 2006

Update for 11-20-06

I still have no voice, but I started on an antibiotic today so hopefully I will be able to talk when everyone comes in for Thanksgiving. Heard of a neat idea on WMBI midday connection of something to do with old pictures you never got around to putting in albums. Don't we all have those? They suggested making a photo montage and pasting them together. So that is our family project for Friday daytime. Our whole family will be in for Thanksgiving so there will be 17 of us at Kevin and Tracy's house on Thursday. Friday we will do the picture pasting during the day and Friday night we have a huge pizza party with our extended family at my niece Carrie's house. I can't guess how many will be there but probably over 60. Saturday we have our traditional Mother-daughter lunch with all the women and girls over 7. The boys are on their own and their plans are not set yet. Saturday night will find the 17 of us back at Kev's for the evening and then everyone heads home on Sunday. Michael , Heidi and kids will be driving from Ohio and Karen will be flying in from Az. We don't get everyone together that easy so this will be a special time with lots of laughs. Joe continues to do well. Today was a hard day saying goodbye to Rick Mlady and hoping we won't be in that situation for a long time. We know God still has a lot for us to do. Have a wonderful Thanksgiving everyone and thanks so much for the prayer support. We love you all and remember all you who are praying for us. Mary Anne

Saturday, November 18, 2006

Update for 11-18-06

Since I have no voice due to a bad cold and can't talk to anyone I thought I would write in the blog and tell you all about Wellness House. We went for a self hypnosis class this morning for two hours. There were about 22 of us there and we went around the room and talked about why we were there and what kind of cancer and how long etc. We also talke about what we did when we were down. The facilitator was excellent. He has run a medically based hynosis program for 16 years at U of I Chicago. Then we put on earphones and he led us through. When we took off the earphones he told us we had been doing it for 25 minutes but it felt like 10. It was very relaxing. He leads these sessions for Wellness House once a month. He also gave us a CD to use at home. Several of the people came up afterwards to talk. I, of course, just stood there smiling. All I have is a whisper. It was very supporting to see almost all these people who are vegetarian or vegan since their diagnosis. They really see the value of getting rid of sugar, meat, salt and dairy. One of the guys said QiGong was a great class. Wellness House is closed over Thanksgiving, but Joe said he would give that class a try. It was a great group of people and I sure see the value of sharing your stories. There were 4 other caregivers there.
Yesterday Joe had is pulmonary function test and he didn't pass with flying colors but he did OK. The Dr. put him on an inhaler for 4 weeks and he will be retested then. The doctor said if he passed it with using the inhaler he would OK him to dive but he had to use the inhaler til we got back from Bonaire. That would be fine with him. We are having dinner with Ed and Jayne our neighbors who went to Utah with us and she is fixing something she learned to make in Italy where she went with her sister a few weeks ago. She was a great cook before. I can't wait to see what she'll prepare vegan. We stopped at Wild Oats grocery store after the trip to Wellness House this morning and found some new products that were vegan. We had homemade (well, fresh-made) vegan lentil soup for lunch. Joe has watched football all afternoon and I have been in the bedroom watching TV and sleeping. I'm not much company with my whispering and Joo being hearing-impaired somewhat. I am really the silent partner this weekend.
Our small group was studying the last part of the Our Father with the subject of "deliver us from evil" or the evil one. It was interesting to hear Max Lucado say that God controls what he allows the devil to do and he does it for three reasons: To refine us, to awaken the sleeping, and to strengthen the church. He said that each time the Satan tempts us and we turn to God instead, it is like scoring a basket at the wrong end of the court from your team. Satan loses. Joe feels like God is using this cancer to refine him and it definitely has brought him closer to God. Joe is trying to make each day count. We feel so much more connected to God and each other. We are closer than we have been. Times of trial always have something good in them. Our friend Rick Mlady passed away this week. He was diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer about 10 days before Joe found out about his. Joe will be a pall bearer on Monday so please remember the Mlady family in your prayers as they grieve for a wonderful husband and father. God bless you all and keep on praying. It was wonderful to see the strength of the faith of the people at the meeting this morning. I don't think there was one who didn't mention prayer as a sustaining force in their lives. By the way, the Doctor is a Dr. of ministry with a practice of hynosis for the medically ill. Bye for now. Mary Anne

Tuesday, November 14, 2006

Update for 11-14-06

Tonight, Mary Anne and I went for a tour of the Wellness House in Hinsdale. They have lots of courses on stress management, support groups for folks with Cancer and for the care-givers. Nutrition classes, yoga and much, much more. Very impressive! All of this is without cost as the entire Wellness House is supported by grants. I am sure there are stresses in my body now and those stresses do inhibit the immune system so maybe the yoga can help in that area. Our children believe that I have been dealing with stress for so long that I don't even realize that I have it.......could be! We will probably try some of the classes. I think we signed up this Saturday for a class on self hypnosis. I let you know.

Joe

Thursday, November 09, 2006

Update for 11-9-06

Things are pretty relaxed here right now. We are just kind of kicking back after the trips to Utah and North Carolina. Yesterday and today are beautiful here with temps in the high 60's low 70's. I played golf yesterday and except for my back which always bothers me a bit when I golf, it was all great! We will be heading for Palm Desert on December 4th and will return on December 17. All the children will be in town for Thanksgiving and that is always a wonderful time.

I have had a large number of responses to my decision not to have chemo and all have been supportive regarding that decision. We are still doing the vegetables, fruit, nuts, seeds and grains diet (Oops! life style change). It's OK but I still get a great yearning for "real" food. I feel fine on this regimine and as a side benefit have lost 30 lbs. I am not drinking a bottle a day of Mangosteen any longer. I think I did that for about four weeks. I do drink a glass each day now along with Barley Max and Carrot Max and some carrot juice.
Thanks again for all your support and prayers.

Joe

Wednesday, November 01, 2006

Update for 11-1-06

Mary Anne and I went to see the Oncologist, Mary Mulcahy, at Northwestern in downtown Chicago this morning. It's always so much fun to drive to the loop...almost 2 hours of stop and go on the expressway....hmmmm, a misnomer there. Regardless, we had an excellent visit with her and I explained that I was not going to take any chemo or other treatment at this time. She agreed and said that the decision was "well thought out, intelligent and courageous". It was very affirming to have her say that. She said that if some treatment would be able to give me a chance at a cure then she would be pushing for it but under the circumstances any treatment was only palliative and inasmuch as I was feeling well there was not much sense in doing it. I left with an even increased sense that I have made the right decision.
The next trip will be to Palm Desert for two weeks the first part of December. Our love and thanks to all out there who follow the blog and support and pray for me. I am so humbled, bouyed and thankful for your prayer and encouragement.

Joe