Hi dear friends and family,
Well Joe had a banner day yesterday. It was his 67th birthday and calls started pouring in about 8 A.M. from friends and family wishing him well. He got calls all through his treatment and last night we celebrated and went to Baci's (which was originally in Plainfield but moved out here 6 years ago) for a free dinner. That is what we call it when we go off raw vegan rather than cheating. Frank the owner has always treated Joe as a friend and he fussed over Joe so well last night. He made a special appetizer for us, gave us a bottle of wine,and then a sample of a pasta. We were almost full before our entrees. Karen and her boyfriend Mike joined us for the evening and we were probably there for two hours. Mike is way too polite for our family as was our daughter- in-law Tracy. He never interrupted so he didn't get to talk much. We even had dessert and Joe had his favorite, carrot cake. Yesterday was officially 9 months of fighting this disease even though Joe had it for a year before that. He continues to do well. He is a trooper about taking his heparin, his supplements and his treatments. The P.E.T. scan is Monday and results next Wednesday. His blood counts drop each week but they give him shots to bring it back up and his body is responding well. His cancer markers continue to stay the same or drop being about 50 now for the CA19-9. His spirits are good which makes it easier for me.
He is excited about helping Karen get her new condo in shape. This week he went and installed shelves in her outside closet on her patio and picked out a picture at Kohls for her living room.
We have cell group tonight with friends from Karen's church (I guess it is our church away from home) and then tomorrow Karen moves to her new condo. I have taken the week off swimming and just been working on new recipes to use my new dehydrator. The first thing I made was onion bread and the whole condo smelled of onions for two days as it takes 36 hours to dehydrate. We are enjoying the nice warm weather here and it will be 99 today. Our prayer requests for now are that the pet scan will show much reduction in the tumors and that we can keep our eyes focused on the Lord and his plan for our lives. We know we still have work to do and we are trying to be patient and wait on his word. Thanks to you all for making yesterday special. God Bless Mary Anne
Friday, April 27, 2007
Tuesday, April 24, 2007
Tuesday April 24,2007
Hi Friends,
Well, it has been awhile. I flew to Chicago for my state swimmming meet last Wednesday and came back last night. Joe couldn't remember how to sign in so he didn't post. He is still feeling well except for a little neausea on IPT days which are twice a week. Overall he is doing well. His red and white blood cell count drop sometimes but they give him shots to bring them back up. When they are low, he has no stamina. Today we moved from one condo to the other. I have a few things still to do but I am almost done. We are now on the first floor which is easier and the view is spectacular of the mountains.
karen closes on her condo tomorrow and Joe will be going over after treatment to put up shelves in her owners closet on her patio. They had fun shopping this weekend for little things. The condo is awesome and she is so excited.
I had a great time in my swimmming meet breaking some long standing records,. It was good to think about something besides treatment. Thanks to family and firends who had me for meals while I wa home so I didn't have to cook or prepare. It went way too fast but it was good to be back with Joe. We haven't been apart that long for several years.
As I said before, the PET scan is next Monday and then the news on Wednesday. We will let you know. I didi b ring the DVD of the one last July from Chicago this weekend so we will have that to compare also as well as the one in March of this year. That is about it for now. take care and God Bless Mary Anne
Well, it has been awhile. I flew to Chicago for my state swimmming meet last Wednesday and came back last night. Joe couldn't remember how to sign in so he didn't post. He is still feeling well except for a little neausea on IPT days which are twice a week. Overall he is doing well. His red and white blood cell count drop sometimes but they give him shots to bring them back up. When they are low, he has no stamina. Today we moved from one condo to the other. I have a few things still to do but I am almost done. We are now on the first floor which is easier and the view is spectacular of the mountains.
karen closes on her condo tomorrow and Joe will be going over after treatment to put up shelves in her owners closet on her patio. They had fun shopping this weekend for little things. The condo is awesome and she is so excited.
I had a great time in my swimmming meet breaking some long standing records,. It was good to think about something besides treatment. Thanks to family and firends who had me for meals while I wa home so I didn't have to cook or prepare. It went way too fast but it was good to be back with Joe. We haven't been apart that long for several years.
As I said before, the PET scan is next Monday and then the news on Wednesday. We will let you know. I didi b ring the DVD of the one last July from Chicago this weekend so we will have that to compare also as well as the one in March of this year. That is about it for now. take care and God Bless Mary Anne
Sunday, April 15, 2007
sunday April 15, 2007
Hi Friends,
We had a great weekend. We started with the news that Joe's Ca 19-9 which is the cancer marker for Cholangiocarcinoma was 54. Normal is below 37. The people on the cc website have levels in the 2000's so you can see Joe's is very low for this kind of cancer. Friday night we went to cell group which is like small group with some people from Karen's church. It is so nice to have somewhere to go to talk about what God is doing in your life and share your walk with other Christians. We would be so lonesome without having that outlet here. We miss our own small group in Plainfield but we are happy to be included out here. Then Saturday we went to Surprise and played golf with Bill and Karen Sulllivan. Joe shot an 89 and I shot a 101. We were both happy with our scores, especially me. That is my second best score ever. We came home and had a quiet evening at home. Today we went to church and the message was all about waiting on the Lord - being patient and being Spirit led. How timely! We are waiting on the Lord for a miracle. Healing is not just about healing the cancer but letting God do a mightly work in us as a couple and individually to bring us closer to Him. We feel his grace and care every day. We had some great news today. Our friends who let us rent the condo so reasonably for this 6 weeks have agreed to let us stay on in their condo, one building over, at virtually no charge for as long as we need it. We were looking for more reasonable housing but God had a better plan. He always has a better plan! This will depend on the outcome of the PET scan on the 30th but the fact that Joe has had two good weeks, better than he has had in a year and a half, tells us something is working. His stomach was a little quezzy today but not bad he said.
We couldn't be in a better place weather wise. We have ordered a dehydrator to be able to add some variety to our meals so we are anxiously awaiting its arrival.
Tomorrow starts week 5 of treatment. We also are going to see the radiologist about possibly doing radio frequency oblation on the lung tumors. This means they go in like a lung biopsy and zap them( or burn them) and then they are gone. They may not all be accessible but even to get rid of some of them would be good. It is almost an out patient procedure. We will let you know after the meeting on Tuesday. That's it for now. Got to go home and do dinner. Love to you all. God Bless Mary Anne
We had a great weekend. We started with the news that Joe's Ca 19-9 which is the cancer marker for Cholangiocarcinoma was 54. Normal is below 37. The people on the cc website have levels in the 2000's so you can see Joe's is very low for this kind of cancer. Friday night we went to cell group which is like small group with some people from Karen's church. It is so nice to have somewhere to go to talk about what God is doing in your life and share your walk with other Christians. We would be so lonesome without having that outlet here. We miss our own small group in Plainfield but we are happy to be included out here. Then Saturday we went to Surprise and played golf with Bill and Karen Sulllivan. Joe shot an 89 and I shot a 101. We were both happy with our scores, especially me. That is my second best score ever. We came home and had a quiet evening at home. Today we went to church and the message was all about waiting on the Lord - being patient and being Spirit led. How timely! We are waiting on the Lord for a miracle. Healing is not just about healing the cancer but letting God do a mightly work in us as a couple and individually to bring us closer to Him. We feel his grace and care every day. We had some great news today. Our friends who let us rent the condo so reasonably for this 6 weeks have agreed to let us stay on in their condo, one building over, at virtually no charge for as long as we need it. We were looking for more reasonable housing but God had a better plan. He always has a better plan! This will depend on the outcome of the PET scan on the 30th but the fact that Joe has had two good weeks, better than he has had in a year and a half, tells us something is working. His stomach was a little quezzy today but not bad he said.
We couldn't be in a better place weather wise. We have ordered a dehydrator to be able to add some variety to our meals so we are anxiously awaiting its arrival.
Tomorrow starts week 5 of treatment. We also are going to see the radiologist about possibly doing radio frequency oblation on the lung tumors. This means they go in like a lung biopsy and zap them( or burn them) and then they are gone. They may not all be accessible but even to get rid of some of them would be good. It is almost an out patient procedure. We will let you know after the meeting on Tuesday. That's it for now. Got to go home and do dinner. Love to you all. God Bless Mary Anne
Thursday, April 12, 2007
April 12,2007
Hi Friends,
Well we are on day 11 of Joe feeling good, no quezziness. His blood work came back yesterday and his liver enzymes are back in normal range and his white count is also normal. We didn't get the CA19-9 back but that will probably be done tomorrow. He has added about 7-8 oral supplements to his regime and I had to make out a nurses medication sheet for him to be able to know what to take when, but he is a trooper and is handling it on his own. His spirits are good and we plan to play golf this weekend with the Sullivans. There is no sense in mentioning the weather here because it is like Hawaii. It is always sunny and always warm. Unlike Ohio ,where some of our kids are, who got snow and did an Easter egg hunt in the snow and Chicago where is is cold and blustery. We have decided to have our mail held til I go home next weekend because the forwarding is so slow. We still aren't sure when we are coming home but we know we are doing the right thing and I am being successful in some of my recipes so that's a good thing. We found out today that Medicare doesn't cover any of this and therefore neither will our supplement but if this cures Joe's cancer it will be worth it. We're trusting in God that we are doing the right things to heal Joe's body. Thanks for your continued prayers and support. We miss our friends and family and I am glad at least I will see some of you next week when I come to Chicago for the state meet. I will be 65 next week and have been celebrating being on Medicare since the first of this month. Take care and God Bless you all. Mary Anne
Well we are on day 11 of Joe feeling good, no quezziness. His blood work came back yesterday and his liver enzymes are back in normal range and his white count is also normal. We didn't get the CA19-9 back but that will probably be done tomorrow. He has added about 7-8 oral supplements to his regime and I had to make out a nurses medication sheet for him to be able to know what to take when, but he is a trooper and is handling it on his own. His spirits are good and we plan to play golf this weekend with the Sullivans. There is no sense in mentioning the weather here because it is like Hawaii. It is always sunny and always warm. Unlike Ohio ,where some of our kids are, who got snow and did an Easter egg hunt in the snow and Chicago where is is cold and blustery. We have decided to have our mail held til I go home next weekend because the forwarding is so slow. We still aren't sure when we are coming home but we know we are doing the right thing and I am being successful in some of my recipes so that's a good thing. We found out today that Medicare doesn't cover any of this and therefore neither will our supplement but if this cures Joe's cancer it will be worth it. We're trusting in God that we are doing the right things to heal Joe's body. Thanks for your continued prayers and support. We miss our friends and family and I am glad at least I will see some of you next week when I come to Chicago for the state meet. I will be 65 next week and have been celebrating being on Medicare since the first of this month. Take care and God Bless you all. Mary Anne
Monday, April 09, 2007
Monday April 9,2007
Hi Friends,
We had a wonderful Easter weekend. Our son Michael arrived Friday morning and went to the center with us and got to see what the program looked like and spent some time with Dr. Lodi.
Friday night we ate at Karen's and visited for awhile and then Joe and Michael went back to our condo and I stayed with Karen. Saturday, Joe and Michael went golfing at the Boulders for Joe's birthday which is this month and Karen and I did Pat's run. We all had a great day and met back up in the late afternoon. Satuday night we took Michael out to eat and then to the airport to catch a red eye back to Ohio to spend Easter with his family. It was a wonderful visit and we don't often get just adult time with our kids so that was wonderful. Easter service was great and it is so nice to have a good church to go to when you are away from your home church. Karen's church has done a great job of adopting us. We feel so welcome and it is a small church like our own so we are getting to know people.
Joe is on his 8th day of feeling normal. We praise God for that and leading us to this healthy treatment. He has no side effects so far and his blood count is monitored twoce a week and his CA 9-19 once a week. He is giving himself his own heparin shots and doing well with that. I am researching dehydrators now to add to my kitchen equipment. We are half way through the planned time here but may extend it.
Again we thank all of your for your prayers, phone calls, cards. You can't imagine how they bouy us up and give us grace to just live today and thank God for it. Please know that we love you guys and hope we can return the favor in your time of need. God Bless Mary Anne
We had a wonderful Easter weekend. Our son Michael arrived Friday morning and went to the center with us and got to see what the program looked like and spent some time with Dr. Lodi.
Friday night we ate at Karen's and visited for awhile and then Joe and Michael went back to our condo and I stayed with Karen. Saturday, Joe and Michael went golfing at the Boulders for Joe's birthday which is this month and Karen and I did Pat's run. We all had a great day and met back up in the late afternoon. Satuday night we took Michael out to eat and then to the airport to catch a red eye back to Ohio to spend Easter with his family. It was a wonderful visit and we don't often get just adult time with our kids so that was wonderful. Easter service was great and it is so nice to have a good church to go to when you are away from your home church. Karen's church has done a great job of adopting us. We feel so welcome and it is a small church like our own so we are getting to know people.
Joe is on his 8th day of feeling normal. We praise God for that and leading us to this healthy treatment. He has no side effects so far and his blood count is monitored twoce a week and his CA 9-19 once a week. He is giving himself his own heparin shots and doing well with that. I am researching dehydrators now to add to my kitchen equipment. We are half way through the planned time here but may extend it.
Again we thank all of your for your prayers, phone calls, cards. You can't imagine how they bouy us up and give us grace to just live today and thank God for it. Please know that we love you guys and hope we can return the favor in your time of need. God Bless Mary Anne
Wednesday, April 04, 2007
Wednesday April 4, 2007
Just a short post to say that Joe has had 3 days with his sotmach feeling normal - I mean really normal. His attitude is much better partly because he feels better. When you have chronic pain or discomfort for such a long time it gets wearing and to have a few days off is a real treat. We hope to get out and play 9 holes of golf today if treatment finishes in time. His white blood count dropped this week for the first time so they are watching that. Take care and God Bless. I can't believe it is almost Easter and we will celebrate with Karen and cook at home at her house so we can eat healthy. Happy Easter everyone if I don't get back on. Great time to think about what Jesus did for us just so we have something to look forward to after this life. As I drive Joe back and forth and drop Jake at Karen's, I listen to worship songs in the car which really fills me up and lifts me up. It's good to keep my eyes forward and up. God Bless Mary Anne
Monday, April 02, 2007
Monday April1,2007
Hi Friends,
Well Maybe it is April 2nd but anyway it is Monday, that I know. We had a good weekend. Joe got to play golf with Karen's pastor on Friday and he shot a 90. Of course you always think you could have done better but he really enjoyed bieng out in the sunshine and spending time with Mike Niva. I went on the ASU tour with Cassie our daughter and Marianne our granddaughter which was also very nice. Friday night we went to cell group which is like small group back in Carillon. It was with members of Karen's church and we really enjoyed it and are glad to have the support while we are here.
Saturday Joe got his car detailed for the first time and he loves having it look so fresh. Then we drove out to Surprise Az to see Karen and Bill Sullivan. We spent a few hours there and then headed home. Sunday we did church and lunch with the kids and then headed back to Fountain Hills for a relaxing evening. It was nice to have three days off.
Today Joe only has to have treatment in the morning so he left me at home for that time. I walked to Starbucks with the computer (1/2 mi) and the weather is about 80 so it was great. The computer gets heavy but it is worth it. I have been trying to catch up on everything. Heard there was a recall of dogfood so had to make sure it wasn't Jake's kind - but he is OK. It is possible our son Michael is going to stop by this weekend on his way home from CA to see Dad and play some golf. Karen and I are goin to do a 4.2 mi. run on Saturday although it may be mostly walk. Neither of us are quite in shape for that but it will be fun to spend time together. Joe is still struggling with the nutrition program and we are probably going to go back to the H.acres program which is a little more liberal. He has to do what he can handle emotionally and raw vegan is just not making it. His spirits seemed to lift just making that decision. The days out here are just one sunny day after another which is really good for him.
Thanks for all your calls and emails. It really helps to hear from you.
We are having trouble with the mail being forwarded. So far we haven't received one piece so we are working on it. By the way, April first ,I was officially elegible for Medicare as I will be 65 this month so no more high insurance premiums. Whooppeee!!!! It is like getting 600 raise per month. Also by the way my voice is almost completely back to normal after the hoarseness so I can talk on the phone - and people can hear me. You forget how good things are til you lose them. We thank God for all the blessings he has given us and we ask for grace to continue this journey for the next 4 weeks with hope and encouragement. Bye for now God Bless Mary Anne
Well Maybe it is April 2nd but anyway it is Monday, that I know. We had a good weekend. Joe got to play golf with Karen's pastor on Friday and he shot a 90. Of course you always think you could have done better but he really enjoyed bieng out in the sunshine and spending time with Mike Niva. I went on the ASU tour with Cassie our daughter and Marianne our granddaughter which was also very nice. Friday night we went to cell group which is like small group back in Carillon. It was with members of Karen's church and we really enjoyed it and are glad to have the support while we are here.
Saturday Joe got his car detailed for the first time and he loves having it look so fresh. Then we drove out to Surprise Az to see Karen and Bill Sullivan. We spent a few hours there and then headed home. Sunday we did church and lunch with the kids and then headed back to Fountain Hills for a relaxing evening. It was nice to have three days off.
Today Joe only has to have treatment in the morning so he left me at home for that time. I walked to Starbucks with the computer (1/2 mi) and the weather is about 80 so it was great. The computer gets heavy but it is worth it. I have been trying to catch up on everything. Heard there was a recall of dogfood so had to make sure it wasn't Jake's kind - but he is OK. It is possible our son Michael is going to stop by this weekend on his way home from CA to see Dad and play some golf. Karen and I are goin to do a 4.2 mi. run on Saturday although it may be mostly walk. Neither of us are quite in shape for that but it will be fun to spend time together. Joe is still struggling with the nutrition program and we are probably going to go back to the H.acres program which is a little more liberal. He has to do what he can handle emotionally and raw vegan is just not making it. His spirits seemed to lift just making that decision. The days out here are just one sunny day after another which is really good for him.
Thanks for all your calls and emails. It really helps to hear from you.
We are having trouble with the mail being forwarded. So far we haven't received one piece so we are working on it. By the way, April first ,I was officially elegible for Medicare as I will be 65 this month so no more high insurance premiums. Whooppeee!!!! It is like getting 600 raise per month. Also by the way my voice is almost completely back to normal after the hoarseness so I can talk on the phone - and people can hear me. You forget how good things are til you lose them. We thank God for all the blessings he has given us and we ask for grace to continue this journey for the next 4 weeks with hope and encouragement. Bye for now God Bless Mary Anne
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