May 27th, 2008

What a wonderful life!
Well friends, we are back from Phoenix and our trip was uneventful medically which is a great thing. Our river raft trip in the canyon was cancelled due to high winds and the day turned out to be pretty poor weather wise, but we still had a good time and spent a lot of the week with our daughter Karen and her boyfriend Mark. We played lots of cards, ate too much food and laughed a lot. Joe walked everyday and is much stronger for it. We left Phoenix on Saturday and got home Saturday night about 10. All our in-town kids and the Michael Coburns from Ohio were there. We knew they were coming in for a short weekend with us. What we didn't know was what they were bringing. As some of you know Heidi was diagnosed with Carcinoid cancer last November and so Mike decided to buy her the sports car she has wanted for awhile. It is a red Honda L2000 which may mean something to some of you. Well, the surprise was, they gave it to Joe to drive for the summer. Those of you who know Joe, know that he has always loved sports cars but never had one. They had spotlights on it in the garage and a big blue bow when they opened the garage doors. Joe was almost speechless - not quite! He had the biggest smile on his face this weekend that we have seen in a long time. Of course, everyone had to have a ride in it and the weather cooperated beautifully for plenty of rides (at $4.00 a gallon). Joe played golf with our two sons and grandson on Sunday (9 holes) and he wasn't exhausted when he came home like he was 10 days ago. I think the walking is really helping strengthen him.
Today he went for an ERCP to replace the biliary catheter with a metal stent (which should last 6-8 months). He no longer has a tube sticking out of his abdomen. The procedure went very well. They did find a small ulcer which they biopsied so he will start on a med to reduce the acid in his stomach. He is resting today but is pretty comfortable except for a bit of a sore throat which is how they gained access to the area. We went back to Dr. Parsons at Northwest Community on the recommendation of our oncologist. Everyone seems to know he is the best in the area but he is a very humble man. That's it for now. Hopefully we can post a picture of Heidi and Joe in front of the car when we get it. We know it was a sacrifice for Heidi to give it up after just getting it but she was very gracious about it and we are so thankful for the thoughtfulness of all our kids. We feel blessed that we can keep building memories with the kids and our friends. We did have lunch with our old friends the Presleys in Phoenix. They drove 4 hours one way just to see us and we surely appreciated the effort.
Joe will have his IV chemo again on Thursday. He has had two weeks of the oral with no side effects - another answer to prayer. Take care and God bless. Mary Anne