September 22, 2008

Hi Friends,
Joe got chemo today and although his white count was down his Hgb. was 10.4 and his platelets were OK. Dr. still considers him stable. Our time in Phoenix was not great as Joe was pretty much exhausted and depressed the whole time but last week was a much better week. We seem to have to get used to a roller coaster life, celebrating the good days and praying for grace to get through the hard ones. Dr. did switch his antidepressant so maybe that will help. He has lost 10 pounds since last visit and it looks like it is the edema in his feet and the ascites that has gone down so he is decreasing the diuretic a little. He felt really good today. Tomorrow he has his last golf outing with the mens group. He has missed a lot this summer but will play the scramble tomorrow and then go the final luncheon for the year. This past weekend we spent with friends who came in from out of town from Mass. and North Carolina. We have been friends for more than 30 years and it was great to see them again. We had a lot of laughs and enjoyed remembering great times we had together.
I forgot to mention Joe started walking last week again after no exercise for quite awhile. He wants to be strong enought to dive again in late October if possible. Our specific prayer requests are that the diuretic would work during the day so he can sleep and that he can regain some strength. Thanks so much for being on this journey with us. God Bless. Mary Anne