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Bring Back the Joy --- B B t J . O r g
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Wednesday, January 1, 2003, 7:30 pm Due to how large this file has been getting, I will continue my journal
as I've had a lot of rest this weekend so am feeling really well. Mark had been queasy for a couple of days; I left him a bunch of raw vegetables to snack on Friday while I was at my Bible Study. We doubt that has anything to do with us but his stomach has felt funny ever since that moring. He went to bed at 6 pm last night. I stayed up and watched a Nero Wolfe movie. My parents used to watch that show but I missed it during some of my busy years. Mark hasn't gotten up yet. I hope each of you have a blessed day! Until next time!
It's almost time to say Happy New Year. My family just called from Amarillo. Christy and Nick just got in to Amarillo to the O'Dell's house from their trip to Georgia and Tennessee. They wanted to check out a university Nick is considering for graduate school plus visit with Sammy's mother in Chattanooga. For those who don't know all my family, my sister Julia is Mrs. Sammy O'Dell and Christy is her married older daughter with Nick being the son-in-law. We had a lovely day on Wednesday. Ever since Thanksgiving, we've been wondering about deep-fried turkey, a phenomenon we've been hearing about. (My friend Donna wrote that it must have started in Southern Louisiana because she's had it at her mother-in-law's house before it became popular.) The Neeley's decided they'd try it this year. Mark and I were both pleasantly surprised. It sounds strange but is actually pretty good. I do have to say that I enjoyed having a relaxed day and the conversation was the best part. I don't have a lot to say. My blood pressure has been down again since that spiking up last week. I'm continue to monitor it and am naturally still on the medication but I do feel a lot better about it. I took my measurements this morning. I have extra inches in places I wish I didn't. However, the good news is that I found one in a good place. The cancer tumor had been pulling my breast tight; I've almost been flat chested on one side. With the shrinking of the tumor, things are re-arranging and I'm an inch bigger proportionally speaking than I was three months ago. With that word picture, I think I'll sign off for the evening. I
hope all of you have a fabulous weekend. Monday, December 24, 7:36 am Dear Friends...I have written a brief message giving a general summary
of our current life. You can find it at
Christmas Letter 2002
on this web site. Happy reading! Monday, December 24, 5:44 am Is everyone ready for the Holidays? I guess I'm about as ready as a person can get. We're spending tomorrow with Mark's high school friend, Jim Neeley, and his family. I'm looking forward to a day of goofing around with friends. Gretchen is serving turkey for Christmas dinner. I'm supplying appetizers so we have something to nibble on until time to actually eat. Think that's a good idea. I'm taking stuff that's on my diet so I don't have to feel too guilty. Today I'm going to see Uncle Max and Aunt Tee. It's so wonderful they are at the same care facility now. After I called to let me know that I wanted to come over, Aunt Tee invited me to stay for lunch. So I have that to look forward to later this morning. I also hope to visit another friend who had surgery last week during my errand time today. I did do a liver flush Sunday night. I didn't eat much yesterday so was feeling pretty bad by last night. In fact, I had to leave prayer group early because my stomach was reacting. I do feel all right this morning. I lost several pounds. So I'm wondering if that was all water weight or how much was from not eating. I was drinking mostly during the last couple of days. I'm a little concerned if my body is retaining water again. Guess I'll see a little (after tomorrow) but as I try to continue on a better diet without sweets (which cancer patients need to be careful about). I've over indulged during this holiday season. Sunday, December 22, 6:57 am Wouldn't you know it? After being up late, I still woke up early this morning. I was congratulating myself that it was 6:54--but my half-opened eyeballs misread the time, it was only 5:54 am. Mark and I went to a party last night. I consumed more of the things I shouldn't be eating... Today I go back to my diet and exercise program. We went to a combination Christmas, engagement party for Jason and Suzanne who used to work for us. I decided to go ahead and dress up. Having gained weight, I still managed to squeeze into one of my pre-marriage party dresses. No way I can adequately describe this dress. However, the interesting thing is, when I bought it, although I looked okay, something just wasn't right. But now it looks really good on me. I finally figured out that the dress needed maturity. We were to take "white elephant gifts." I took a candle and scented bath soap/salts and then some of our left-over penguin items from our company. One woman was delighted with the penguins but I don't think the man was too happy with the bath stuff. Hopefully he can find some woman to give them to. Mark and I ended up with a box of chocolates and a bottle of Jack Daniels, neither of which I should be eating/drinking. But I won't complain. Since I overindulged yesterday, I'm going to watch my intake today and give myself a liver flush tonight. I don't do that too often and agree one should be careful. But I haven't done that in months and feel like it is time. I'm headed back to bed to do some reading. Have a good day everyone! Saturday, December 21, 6:45 am I had planned to write last night but got busy with other things. For one, Mark and I wasted two hours watching The Mexican with Julia Roberts. Not one of her better movies. Friends are coming over for lunch and Bob's coming back to look at the hot tub again. My first task this morning is to clean the kitchen. I've been so busy that dishes have stacked up in the sink. I wonder if that's why Mark took me to the Pizza Hut buffet yesterday. Just got a letter that my friend Donna's husband, Jeff Tucker, had a heart attack last Sunday. It sounds like he's doing well after having angioplasty. He is back home again. I'm sure the Tuckers will appreciate your prayers for a quick recovery. My blood pressure is still elevated. Yuck. However, I was looking at my breast last night in the mirror. The tumor has been shrinking instead of growing; it's now about the size it was two years ago. I've been taking the drug to keep the estrogen from being made in the adrenal gland. But the body will eventually get to where the drug won't work. I appreciate this encouragement but know that God is the final answer. I believe that cancer is also fed by what's in the inner person. I've been working on getting myself together. But I can only do that with the help of God, Christ and the Holy Spirit. My spiritual life needs to be in order first. Then I believe that the physical will follow. So I appreciate your prayers for my whole body, mind, and soul. Hope you all have a good day. Thursday, December 19, 4:33 pm Another day gone. It was a busy one. I had my blood pressure appointment this morning. It was up somewhat this morning (wouldn't you know it when I was wanting to show how "good" it had been lately). The doctor did believe that it had been down and said I can continue on the reduced medication amount as long as I keep monitoring the situation. She was concerned about my continuing complaint about swelling in my hands. My feet haven't been swelling abnormally. We assume it is because of the combination of medications rather than fluid in the heart sac. Since I had that problem prior to my recent surgery and fluid ws drained, we monitor symptoms that could indicate a return of the problem. However, she said she couldn't hear any funny noises, blood vessels showing up in my hands (rather than disappearing in swelling) and the oxygen content of my blood was 96 which is good. Therefore, right now it does not seem that we should be concerned. She recommended a diuretic for occasions when there is discomfort. I'll have to think about that one. The only other thing was the reminder that I've gained weight since my first visit. Yes, I need to put the brakes on. Especially at this holiday season. Wednesday, December 18, 4:26 pm About thirty minutes ago I received a phone call from a college friend, Janet Nice Davis. She now lives in Cortez, Colorado--bunches of miles away from Denver. We haven't seen each other for several years. A couple of months ago she saw a mutual friend who suggested she call me so I could tell her about my various health trials. We talked then and now Janet was giving a follow up call. I gave Janet a quickie update. She said she never knows exactly what to say. She wants me to know she cares but doesn't really have any advice to give. I told her that just hearing from her and having regular conversation about every day things means a lot. I know she cares. At times we've had years go by between contact but our friendship has endured for 28 years. Which makes me think of several others who have been friends for at least that long. I've been very blessed with friends. Wednesday, December 18, 11:12 am Just a quick note to say hello to everyone. Made it home from exercising. I've been trying to keep doing a 15 minute mile. I don't know how athletes do it faster; must have long legs than I have. This morning I went to do some shopping. I want to take a small gift to my great aunt and uncle next week. I called this morning to learn that Aunt Tee is moving into the same nursing home where Uncle Max is. The move will be Friday. Today is a busy day. I'm still working on accounting (and doing laundry). I let things slide for a long time and now need to catch up since it's the end of the year and all the taxes will be coming due soon. Yesterday I got quite a bit done. If I can get a bunch more done today, then I'll be a happy camper. Tomorrow I have an appointment to followup about blood pressure again. It's been doing really well except for one spike last Sunday. I've been trying to figure out what is going on in my life on the days that it is more elevated. My left thumb has been having a strange thing where it feels out of whack when I wake up. Pops and bends funny. Still having some tingly feelings in the fingers of the right hand but that is better. Some have asked how are Bible Correspondence courses are going. We've just completed the 12 keys to Personal Growth. That is, I need to take the test today; Mark did it yesterday. That's a study of some points out of Philippians. The next one we'll be doing is the second part of The Holy Spirit. I'm really enjoying it. Learning a few things I haven't known before--or if they did go past my brain, they just kept going without stopping. Tuesday, December 17, 2:15 pm I just got up from a nap. I'm catching up on rest after having a couple of nights that weren't as restful as they could have been. This evening is our prayer group so I need to get myself together to run errands before going there. I have split pea soup in the crock pot for dinner. We're having lovely weather in Denver. Mark enjoyed his ski day last
Friday. I'm just enjoying puttering around. This week I've got
to putter through bills to be paying. Those are like housework--never
done. Saturday, December 14, 9:43 pm We just got home from a wonderful play called Scrooge. One of the versions of Dicken's A Christmas Carol. We knew a couple of the actors. Even though I've read the book, it had never struck me the way it did tonight. Certainly well worth seeing. I understand they did re-write the script somewhat to make it more Jesus-centered. I had a good day, as far as the enjoyment factor. The meeting I went to was very good. The guest speaker was a Holly McIntyre. She was dynamic in her presentation, speaking of Mary, the mother of Jesus. She prayed for people afterwards. The pot luck brunch was delicious. Our church activities also went well. We had loads of cookies plus
other goodies like vegetables, cheese and crackers, etc. I think everyone
including our guests had a good time at the Angel Tree party. We
have some members who are professional musicians; they played requested
songs so we could sing along. Several tables were set up for crafts
and games. I had my face painted. I've been running around with
cat whiskers. I got a few funny looks this evening but most people
smiled and said they liked my makeup. It's been a long day. I didn't sleep well last night so I need to
get to bed. But today was a lot of fun. Saturday, December 14, 7:05 am Mark and I are up and at it this morning. We're going off in different direction. Mark is headed to pick up Jason and then to his Men's Ministry meeting. I've been invited to a Women's Breakfast at another church. My friend, Joanne Flores, has organized a craft sale in conjunction with their monthly meeting. Since I'm interested in the idea for our group, she invited me to come--and also I could see some of the other acquaintances I've made through the Bible Study I attended during the autumn. At some point, I'll need to tiptoe away and head over to our church so I won't miss the activities there. I hate to miss the sermon. But also I need to get there with my Angel Tree cookies. I've found that I need practice with the cookie press. They turned out pretty good. I'm sure I'll learn over time as I want to try it another time. Well, I'd better go. Thursday, December 12, 4:29 pm I'm on my last batch of cookies. We've just filled out the form to file an extension for our company federal taxes. We still have our computer consulting company even though we don't do much. This afternoon we took a break from cookie making to go deliver one of our gift bags from the Women's Ministry project. We met a young man, Jason, who is without close family. He works at Gunther Toody's so we went over there for a late lunch. We went by the other day and found his shift had already ended; one of the other employees asked if we were his parents. I had to laugh. I know we're getting older but I didn't think we looked old enough to be parents of a 30 year old. Well, that's a step better than the nurse in the hospital asking if our friend Tom (in his 50s) was my son. Jason took an interest in the reason behind my current culinary enterprise.
To make a long story short, we invited him to go to church and the
Angel Tree party with us this weekend. I pray he will have a good
time. Thursday, December 12, 8:03 am Well, I got the flour ground. We eat a lot of whole grains so buy them in bulk and grind our own. My cousin rolls her own oats but we haven't ever tried that. I'm not an oatmeal person. So this morning, making cookies is my priority after do some Bible reading. I'm behind in my daily reading. I haven't given an update on my health lately. I recovered quickly from the "bug" I was having last Sunday. I'm still having trouble with swollen hands. We're assuming it has to do with the medication. My hands are somewhat stiff, especially in the morning. It isn't as bad as it was; I'm able to get jars opened these days without hassle. Sometimes writing is uncomfortable. I sure sympathize with people who have arthritis. At least I'm not having pain. I think I've said before that the most frustrating part of it is that I can't get my wedding ring on. I have other rings that are loose enough but that's the one I'd rather wear. And I'm not ready to go have it enlarged. My blood pressure has been down for about three weeks except for a couple of days where it spiked up a little. It hasn't been quite as good the last couple of days. Yet overall, I am encouraged that I am being able to get stresses under control. Well, I'd better got on to today's tasks. Have a wonderful day!! It sure seems like it's time to go to bed with it already being dark outside. I just looked at my watch and discovered it's still early. We went out on an errand and ended up eating early. Yesterday evening I got a phone call from Jerry Marston in Thomaston, GA.
He received the Christmas card that I sent him and Kate so decided to
call to say hello. That was nice; we hadn't been in touch since I visited
the area in July 2001. Time flies. I'm planning to start on cookie making this evening. Our church is having a party for Angel Tree (gifts to children of prisoners); we are expecting approximately 50 people. I've pulled out my cookie press so I can make shaped cookies of different colors and flavors. It will be an experiment since I've never used food coloring before. But I wanted to be more creative this year. Last year I made the Sugar Drop Cookies with Oil out of the Joy of Cooking. Mark is planning to go skiing on Friday. Eventually I'll go (for
another learning experience). A business organization he belongs
to is having an outing. We decided he should go for the first time
in the season with other good skiers. I have more than enough to keep
me busy that day. I'll be at my Friday morning Bible Study and then
I'll barely get home before time to attend the holiday party at the Cancer
Center. I decided I'd put in my appearance this year to cheer people
on. Actually, I'm curious about what kind of refreshments they will
serve people who should be on a special diet. Wednesday, December 11, 8:22 am The week is getting away from me. I'm feeling much better. Sunday was my worst day. I decided I was feeling well enough so probably wasn't contagious so went to the Monday evening prayer group as usual. Since then I've been trying to catch up on various things. Friday evening Mark and I had a fun experience. We went to a play given by a homeschooling group. It was a humorous account of events that might have taken place at the end during the night that Mary and Joseph arrived at the Inn. It was totally fictional and for fun. We had a good time and lots of laughs. My friend Paula's daughter was one of the actresses. She did a good job. Mark and I have been delivering the gift bags from the Women's project. I like being able to give a token of my regard to people. Well, I've got to run. Talk to you later. Sunday, December 8, 6:15 am It appears that I'm trying to catch the "bug" that Mark was wrestling earlier in the week. We thought I had escaped. But I started getting a scratchy throat last night and woke up with it this morning. This is one of those things that doesn't put a person totally in bed but one doesn't feel well, either. I thought I didn't set my alarm last night but it went off anyway at the usual early hour. I got up to do a few things and now I'm headed back to bed for a while. I'll try to rest today. Fortunately there isn't anything I absolutely have to do today. Saturday, December 7, 3:11 pm Another week has gone. I never did make it back to catch you up on what I've been doing since our return last Sunday evening. Mostly I've been trying (unsuccessfully) to shed those pesky pounds I found over the Thanksgiving holidays. And catch up on things like bookkeeping and laundry. Today was the long anticipated Holiday Outreach Project the ladies of our church. I believe I mentioned it when I first proposed the idea. In days of old, our group used to do a "baked goods exchange" in the spring. I resurrected the idea and suggested we make gift bags to give to friends, coworkers, neighbors, or anyone who might need cheer at this time. It was gratifying that our ladies embraced the idea and even brought extra items. In my detailed way, I planned everything out. I tried to go with the flow today with the general outline rather than insisting on the "picky points." Earlier this week, we found out our fellowship hall wouldn't be available for our use. One of the ladies who lives close to the church building offered her home. I personally think it worked better. Although a smaller space, it was also cozier. I appeciated Carolee's hospitality. We could have come to my house but decided it was too far to have everybody driving for this particular activity. Well, Mark fed me at Fazoli's and then brought me home so I could take a nap. One of our ex-coworker friends is coming over later. So I guess I should take advantage of down time and write again later. Love to you all!!!! Thursday, December 5, 9:55 am Hi, everyone! This has been a busy seven days since I last wrote. I kept thinking I'd get another posting done ...too busy with family. But we had a great time in Lubbock. We did so much on Wednesday that we did have indeed have a leisurely morning. Our biggest project was to get the china out and washed. After we put the turkey in the oven, Mark and I went over to the Lopez family Thanksgiving. My niece, Christy, married into their clan and they graciously count all the O'Dells and Lanes as part of their family. After everyone arrived, Nick Sr started a family prayer; others joined in if they wished. It was a blessing to be part of their large family all worshipping and giving thanks to God. My sister and her husband had gone to the airport to pick up my youngest niece, Karen who flew in from California where she attends Azusa Pacific University. Daddy was left at home watching the turkey. Once we all finished our other things, we got home to our family celebration. The meal turned out great--moist turkey with gravy, the ever present green been casserole, cornbread dressing, yams, gelatin salad, rolls and cornbread plus three kinds of pies. Needless to say, we're all now on diets. Mark and I drove home on Sunday morning after a couple of more days of rest. It was so nice just to putter around. We worked on cleaning out some closets and drawers. I'm getting a lot of practice at that since I'm doing my own cleaning out. They say people should get rid of a third of what they own. Well, that's all about Thanksgiving. I'm cooking zucchini bread
so I'd better get back to the kitchen. More later about what's been
happening since our return. Thursday, November 28, 9:45 am (CST) Greetings from Lubbock,Texas. Mark and I are here for Turkey Day. My Tuesday posting and personal email letters to you didn't get done before
we left on this trip because we had a power outage. Mark and I decided
to turn off all the light switches, shut off the computers and vamoose.
Well...that was wishful thinking. By the time I puttered around
with the last minute things, it was still past our original planned estimated
time of departure. But at least we didn't have to turn around and
go back to check that the stove was off and the iron was unplugged (Ha, ha--anybody
besides me ever do that??) We got off early enough to get to my sister's house in Amarillo before
their usual (late) bedtime. It was nice to be that far. Then
we got up when we woke up and drove the rest of the way to Lubbock. We
got here about noon and stopped at the grocery store on the way to my
father's house. It was nice to have the rest of the day yesterday. We prepared various
dishes so there is less to do today. I've enjoyed the leisurely
morning. Last year we had so much to do in one short day, I was jumping
out of my skin with nerves. The GOOD news is that my blood pressure
is so far staying at a normal range even though I decreased the medication
last week. I've been trying to learn how to relax and not take things
personally. I did have a strange thing happen on Sunday. I was lying on the bed
watching a video tape. Suddently I felt a ripping sensation inside under
the breast with the cancer. It felt kind of like if you have tape stuck to
your skin and you have to pull it off. I called for Mark who couldn't
hear me--but I the "pain" subsided after a moment. My breast feels
looser. All we can wonder is if the cancer was detaching from the
rib cage wall. I'll have to describe this to the oncologist. I appreciate your ongoing prayers on both the blood pressure and cancer
issues. In the meantime Sunday, November 24, 9:15 pm It's bedtime. We get up early so we can exercise before the work day starts. I do better with early rising but Mark isn't a morning person. What I forgot to say on Friday is that I've been having tingly fingers in my right hand. My chiropractor friend thinks it is a muscle I've irritated pressing against nerves. He suggested some exercises to do and it does seem to be better. I've evidently also done something to my shoulder. I'd like to be using that as an excuse to skip the BodyMaster machine at the gym. The problems started after getting on that the other day; I didn't lift near as much as I used to be able to do before having surgery. (I'm trying to gradually work my way back up to where I was before the surgery.) I do think I won't try it again until after my return from Thanksgiving. Mark discovered on Saturday morning that the water in our hot tub was "cold." I'll count it as a blessing that he went out there. We don't get in it all that often. I probably would have checked the PH some time this week before our Thanksgiving trip. It was a whole lot easier to deal with without a deadline because of leaving town. Our friend Bob who works on hot tubs for a living graciously gave up part of his Saturday afternoon to come fix it. Getting it fixed quickly was especially a blessing since we're going to
be having frigid temperatures this week. The five day forecast
is that it may be in the teens later this week. We awoke to snow
this morning. It wasn't heavy--I'm glad to have some precipatation. Friday, November 22, 7:49 am This week has passed too quickly. Thanks to everyone who has been praying about my swollen hands. They still are swelling as I cannot wear my wedding ring from tightness; however, I'm no longer waking up at night with my hands feeling like stuffed sausages. My feet evidently are somewhat swollen because the shoes I've chosen to wear today feel somewhat tighter. I'm behind, as usual. This morning I will attend a Bible Study; then I have a telephone appointment with a staff member of Pleasant Valley Church and Ministries. Then about three hours before we go to a pot luck at Fountain of Life Church. I've been attending one of their small groups and they are having a dinner to finish off the season. This weekend our church is involved with the Compa Bood Bank Thanksgiving outreach program where food is delivered to needy families. It will be interesting to see how that works. Mark and I are headed to Lubbock to be with my family for Thanksgiving. I've got a list of things I'm be making at my Father's house. Julia and Christy will bring a couple of dishes each while Daddy and I will be overseeing the Turkey and Dressing. Karen flies in from California after lunchtime so I guess we will be doing a late afternoon meal this year. Somehow Mark and I want to fit in a visit with Christy's inlaws during our time there. Tuesday, November 19, 7:30 pm Hi, friends. We've been working on accounting today. I'm always behind. Maybe I should not procrastinate so much. Our company fiscal year ended in September so I've got to catch up so we can get taxes done next month. It shouldn't be too hard since we don't really do much. I do have a bill to send out for a cabling job Mark did the other day. The good news is that I had a CA 27.29 test for the cancer markers. It
was down to 24 from 48. Info on the web says that presumably means
treatment is working. I didn't really understand the explanation
but apparently cancer cells put off a protein and that's what makes up
the numbers. So apparently the test thinks that I have less cancer
proteins circulating in the blood right now. The tumor does seem to
be shrinking. Please keep praying for complete healing--that God
will show me what is contributing to this ailment and how to overcome it. Tuesday, November 19, 7:54 am Another day...I slept pretty well so I hope I can get a lot done today while I'm still fresh. All the activities of the weekend were tiring. We had some of our church young people over Sunday evening. Mark had a good time playing cards. We also threw in a round of our Bible game called People and Places in the Book. We like it because all the questions are directly from scripture (given with the answer); because of the different types of moves on the boards, one doesn't have to be a graduate from Seminary to be able to play. I fed them chili using Flo McCulloch's chili recipe; it was really good. There are so many different recipes; I'm usually not a happy camper when someone says they are serving chili. So I was thrilled when this came out to my idea of chili. I just realized that Thanksgiving is next week. We're planning to go down to Lubbock to visit my family. Daddy is buying the turkey and we'll fix it at his house. I've got the menu planned and everyone organized as to what they are bringing and what we'll run to the store to buy. Although I'm sure we'll hang around the kitchen all morning, I'd still like us to be somewhat relaxed instead of pressured. Monday, November 18, 4:24 pm This has been a slow day after an all too busy weekend. I went to exercise this morning. Then was working on my studies for the Charis Bible College. Took a nap. (It sure was good to catch up on sleep.) Now I'm procrastinating on paying bills. I have to get ready shortly to head to my Monday evening prayer group. The Molly Brown House tour was real interesting yesterday. It goes
to show that everyone in "the old days" didn't live in a log cabin. Although
the kitchen was primitive by our standards, the rest of the house was
quite fancy. We enjoyed the "tea" as well. The food was delicious
and they poured us repeated cups of tea. Connie and I kept wishing
we had our normal huge mugs instead of the tiny little cups they were
using. The younger generation seemed more skeptical about the choices
of food--they were even passing up the Mock Devenshire Cream. We
older folks must have declining taste buds--or else we are past trying
to have good manners. The only thing I skipped was the lemon curd.
Past experience has shown me that it isn't my preference. Tomorrow I'll have to catch up on everything I didn't do today. My
list is getting longer by the minute. Sunday, November 17, 7:46 pm I just briefly wrote in the wee hours of yesterday morning. Now for a little bit more info. My cousin has been visiting while attending training at Exchanged Life
Ministries. What a blessing it has been. We've actually
enjoyed discussing "religion." The ministry had an additional
seminar this weekend. Since Evelyn had paid for her weeklong training,
they threw in a free ticket to the weekend conference for me.
I just was wanting to go Friday evening (Evelyn was leaving Saturday morning
and I had conflicts) to find out what she was involved with; they told
her I could come with her free if I agreed to come again (free) to take
the whole conference in January. Of course, that's not
a set in stone promise but I would indeed like to do it. The ministry
teaches one some of the basic points of discipleship in order to help others
learn what is it to get rid of the "old man" and become a new person in
Christ. I think it will be a good educational experience. Saturday, November 16, 12:10 am Am I still up? yes.... I've been working on all my projects that have deadlines of tomorrow. This evening I went to a conference with my cousin. When asked if I could come, the ministry said I could free of charge if I would agree to come for the second half at a later date. I thought that was a deal. Tomorrow, I will be presenting the plan for our Holiday outreach project for Women's Ministry. Then in the afternoon, I giving our study for cell group. At least I'll be doing a lot of the talking so shouldn't have any trouble staying awake. I've really enjoyed having my cousin here this week. It is amazing
how much we have in common. (We've spent very little time together
in our 47 years. Evelyn is one month and 8 days younger than I am.) Wednesday, November 14, 1:09 I'm procrastinating--supposed to be cleaning the carpet in the bedroom I've just cleared out. I'm making phone calls and thought I'd post a quick message about two blessings. You know how they always tell us we should drink 8-10 glasses of water a day. I always thought I drank a lot but finally decided to measure to be sure to have adequate water on top of whatever other beverages imbibed. Surprisingly, I have slept the entire night the last couple of nights except for a quick trip to go to the bathroom at some point. Also, we've been able to work out payment plans for the medical bills that
have been coming in. Since we haven't had insurance, it's been quite
interesting. Even though most of the providers aren't under the government
program we got approval for, many have still given us a discount. I
certainly feel that God is looking out for us. Wednesday, November 13, 7:21 am Mark and I signed up with an agency who matches up people who want to rent rooms with people who have rooms. We've been blessed with a large house. "Renting" is pretty slow right now. But maybe God knew that I wasn't up to having people earlier in the year. We suddenly have had several calls and it looks like we may have someone move in later this week and someone else after Thanksgiving. I get to spend the day cleaning out the room I previously used to have
as an office. I still have a few things up there. Mark and
I moved our offices and sleeping quarters into our basement. Tuesday, November 12, 10:00 pm It has been a busy week. Had an appointment with the oncologist today.
Not that there's a lot to say. Just to continue with what we
are doing. Blood got drawn for the cancer marker test. We told
him more about what I've been doing about diet and other things. He,
of course, isn't into the natural medicines but agrees that it certainly
can't hurt. Especially since I'm not willing to go the standard chemo/surgery
route. Sunday, November 10, 8:15 am We presented the skit about ordering Bibles at Church. We didn't get too many comments. Although our elder's wife did say she's like to see more skits advertizing various activities and projects. I just got an email from my friend Paula inviting us to visit their church next week because a mutual friend's daughter will be performing on the harp. I'm regretting that we are tied up and cannot attend. It would be good to see everyone again. I haven't given an update on my jelly making lately. I successfully
made a number of jars; I gave a number away. People have been
telling me how much they like it. We picked the last of the grapes
and got some more out of the freezer. The juice from those has been
settling out. Tomorrow is fairy open so I hope to get started with
more jelly making again. I've made some using the regular recipes
with the regular amount of sugar. But I've also experimented with
the pectin that has the low sugar recipes. With the pectin, they
have included some of the other types of sugars like dextrose and fructose.
I've found I have to be real careful to be stirring and not burn it.
But we think it really allows the flavor of the grapes to come through. We received the video tapes for the first Trimester from Charis Bible College. We figured out how many we have to go through each week to be on target to finish by the end of the school year. My cousin Evelyn arrives today from Longview, Texas. It will be nice to see her again. It's been 16 years since we spent any amount of time together. This afternoon, I'll be attending the Open Doors' Christmas in Cairo.
Open Doors is the organization to support persecuted Christians. So
they are going to have a craft sale of items made by women of other countries.
The USA president of Open Doors will be speaking. It should
be a very moving afternoon. My friends and I decided not to go
out to eat together; to save our dollars to spend at the bazaar. Friday, November 8, 8:00 pm We just returned home from the ParkHill Art Club (PHAC) annual Fall Show
and also the Faculty Show at the Rocky Mountain School of Art and Design.
I belong to the PHaC. Hopefully one of these days I can
get back to painting. Both were good shows. I always enjoy
going to see what is being done, especially since I know some of the
artists. Colorado is gearing up for ski season. Several resorts are opening tomorrow. Mark took the plunge and purchased a season pass, something he's wanted for years. Now, he just has to go enough times to make it worthwhile. He's hoping to be able to take some of the young people from church. Also, a business organization to which he belongs has several ski outings during the season. Last year my friend Connie took me with her one day to Copper Mountain. She was very patient in helping this non-skier. I've got the cards that are free, giving a discount on lift tickets. I seem to be surrounded by people who like skiing. I'd better learn how while I'm still young-ish. I'm trying to live a good life and anticipate doing things instead of saying "I can't." When I was preparing to leave the hospital after my surgery, the surgeon basically said to use wisdom. But if I felt like doing something, go ahead and try it. I'm going on the same premise with the cancer. I may have that health issue, but it is not my identity. Actually, they say that many senior citizens come to the ski resorts. They've finally gotten to retirement and have money to travel. So they fulfill their dreams of learning to ski "someday." I'd better move on. I hope everyone has a beautiful day. Thursday, November 7, 7:14 am It has warmed up again. Temperature possibly up to 70 expected today.
Not quite cold enough for that chili I made last night. The
smells are wafting downstairs past my desk. Actually, I'm planning
to put most of it in the freezer and pull it out at another time. Mark and I have decided to take via correspondence the first year of Charis Bible College. This school is affiliated with Andrew Wommack Ministries International, http://www.awmi.net Many times I've wished I could retake Bible classes I took at age 18 at Ambassador College. Now I'm having that opportunity. My Thursday Bible Study group has finished and is going out to lunch today.
Alas -- another opportunity to take in more calories than needed
to sustain the body. Wednesday, November 6, 7:27 pm This has been a busy week. I apologize for any of you who may have looked at this site and not found anything knew posted since last Saturday. Let me catch you up a little. Sunday we visited Redeemer Community Church. During the previous
week, they had had three days of prayer and fasting. A number
of people with major diseases are on their prayer list. We were
invited to attend services and receive prayer. That was touching
to be included. I first met Pastor Lou Montecalvo when visiting
the Pleasant Valley Church in Thomaston, GA. How interesting to
be 1500 miles from home and meet someone from my same city. I've
been attending a weekly Study at Redeemer. Monday I did a thorough cleaning of the kitchen after finding signs of mice. Ugh! The cold spell we had last week must have driven them in from the park behind us. We've caught one so far. I have several traps set. I hope to catch any this week before my cousin comes to visit next week. I'd hate for her to have any unexpected surprises when she wanders out some morning. Several have asked about my health since I haven't said much lately. I have been taking the drug that prevents the adrenal gland from excreting a chemical or something that changes into a form of estrogen. The cancer is the type that feeds on estrogen. Right now I'm reading a book about natural therapies; there is a natural product that is supposed to have a similar affect as this drug I'm taking. I've heard about this product from several sources and attended a lecture recently by a medical doctor who recommends certain nutritional supplements to augment medical treatment. The tumor does seem to not have grown any more and I believe has receded some. It's hard to tell exactly what is going on inside the body. I'm not going to continually take expensive tests. I will ask about doing the blood test that gives numbers at my appointment next week. In the meantime, I thank God that I am feeling well and can lead a fairly "normal" life. I have every confidence that I will see complete healing. My project for Tuesday was to write a skit to present at church to advertise/encourage people to order one the Bibles for reading the Bible in a year. Our church is doing things "outside the box" these days. Several of us have been reading the Chronological Bible this year. It's more fun when you have people to discuss it with. Mark and I have been doing the Chronological Bible. I plan to go back to the One Year Bible next year; I read that in 2001. The other writing project I had for this week was to write up a study for our cell group. We just finished our Sacred Romance study. While we're trying to figure out what to do next, I suggested that individuals share things that they have learned in personal study. ...so I got elected to present on Nov. 16th. I'll probably post some of the material to this site. My next project is to organize an "outreach" project for our Women's Ministry
group. More about that in another posting. Mark had some errands to do this afternoon on the other side of town. He asked me if I wished to go. (I'd certainly rather go for a drive than pay bills...I said "yes.") We received some Dining Dollars for attending a travel company presentation last week. Mark told me to pick a restaurant. I chose to locate the Buckhorn Exchange. http://www.buckhorn.com I recently learned of its existence. The Buckhorn is the oldest restaurant in Denver, and has Liquor License #1. I wonder what they did during prohibition? We got there before they opened for dinner. However, they told us they have a bar menu. While waiting for the pot roast sandwich we ordered, I got to wander around and look at the artifacts. The original owner road with Buffalo Bill and did all sorts of exploits during his career, including being an acquaintance of Sitting Bull. One of the stories is that in 1938, some indians road their horses into town and presented him with Custer's sword. It was not to be found after the Battle of the Big Horn; that day they found out that the Sioux had had it all those years. Mark and I are both bushed. We get up so early that we feel like
going to bed with the chickens as well. We exercise every morning
before doing other things. I've been getting up before the scheduled
time so I can read my Bible. Mark prefers to read after showering
and before the stock market opens. Saturday, November 2, 7:23 am I am sleeping a little better. Still waking up several times during the night but not having long wakeful periods. My blood pressure is also being a little lower. Thanks for your continued prayers on these issues. Today will be along but fun day. We have church this morning and
a games party with our cell group this afternoon. Time is getting
away from me. I need to get breakfast and get dressed for the
day. Friday, November 1, 5:08 pm They say to praise God for all sorts of things. I had an interesting
experience today. My father is doing genealogy research. He
discovered some distance relatives had lived in Denver and are buried
in Fairmount Cemetary. I was driving past and decided to investigate.
The helpful clerk told me how to find the graves.
Got to the snowcovered lot and wondered how I would ever find them since
the markers were buried under the snow and I only had a general idea
where the plots were. Since I'd come that far, I decided to trudge
across the snow and see if I could somehow find the markers. Here
and there I could see parts of markers where the snow over them had melted.
There was a row that seemed more melted--and there they were!!!!
Bert and Lou Apperson and their daughter, Helen. God must have turned
on the heat for me. Another month has flown by. I hope you and yours had a safe evening yesterday. We were surprised how many trick or treaters were out. Mark and I went out to the bank before 5 o'clock and then stopped by a couple of churches to check out their Harvest Festivals. A lot of imagination was used. I've heard that spiderman was to be the most popular costume this year. I have to say I saw more witches that spiders. Cows seemed to be popular also. We got home just before 7 pm and the doorbell rang three times. That's a record. Our neighborhood is usually very quiet. An example of how quiet it has been in the past. The year we were outside doing work in the years with lights on, we didn't have a single group of treaters. Maybe we've had a turnover in housing and people with younger children are moving in. Surprising that the cold weather we've been having didn't keep people in. It was much warmer the year we were doing yard work. I've got to head off for my Friday morning Bible Study. Talk to
you later. Tuesday, October 29, 1:34 pm Time sure does fly. We did get to see Uncle Max on Sunday. He looked so happy when talking about the day with his family. Last year I managed to paint a picture (mountain scene) in time to take to him. This year I took him a jar of grape jelly. Today we awoke to snow coming down. The forcast is only for small accumulations over the next few days. The roads were okay when I went out to do errands this morning. It was right at freezing so wasn't too bad out there. Tomorrow morning will probably be messy. My cousin Evelyn is coming to visit on the 10th for a week. She
will be doing some training with a ministry which fortunately is located
within a short distance of us. Evelyn hopes that it won't snow. They
don't get much snow in Longview, TX where she lives. I've assured
her that at this time of year, the roads don't get too bad even if
it does snow. And yes, it indeed is scary for someone who isn't
used to it. We'll drive her if necessary. The only part
where she will really need to drive is to and from the airport. Saturday, October 26, 8:28 pm Today is my Uncle Max Kight's 102nd birthday. I pray that he will
have a lovely day. The family is taking him on an outing today.
Mark and I plan to go see him tomorrow morning. Friday, October 25, 7:21 am My hands have been swelling, presumably from the blood pressure medication. I've been having some of this ever since we upped it to a whole pill instead of a half a pill. But the last few days my hands have felt more bloated and stiff. They look okay but I can't get my wedding ring on; I took it off when it first got tight. I'm not a happy camper. My husband commented that I've been coughing a lot lately. Seems like my sinuses have been more messed up which accounts for drainage and gunk being swallowed. Well, have to dash off to my Friday morning Bible Study. More another
time... Tuesday, October 22, 1:21 pm Canning is a hard job. So far I've got 4 quarts of white grape juice and three jars of Concorde grape jelly that didn't jell--tried it without extra pectin. And four jars that I assume will jell since I used SureJell. They're still hot. I still have 2 1/2 gallons of juice. Let me tell you...I sure have a lot more respect for my mother. She made lots of jelly over the years and canned and froze vegetables from the garden she lovingly tended. The Denver area has been in full color these past two weeks. We've had a real Indian Summer with temperatures cool enough to turn the leaves without havinglater today. It was sunny early this morning, clouded over a couple of hours ago. The sun is shining again. I plan to attend a Choir Concert at the high school this evening. When I went to a play there last winter, it looked "okay" when I left the house. We came out several hours later to two inches of snow. My little car was not happy. I managed to get home but it was difficult. I'd need different tires if I we had a lot of snow; fortunately Mark is willing to share his vehicle during bad weather. Monday, October 21, 7:49 am Just got an email from my cousin, Evelyn. She needs to come to Aurora either in November or January for some training. She is concerned about the possibility of having to drive in snow. I'm trying to reassure her that it shouldn't be a big problem--Unless it is. (ha, ha) Snow melts off fairly quickly at this time of year so I hope she can come while it is warmer. Today is the day that I plan to actually start making grape jelly. I've never done this so we shall see how it turns out. Several women have assured me that it isn't hard. I just wish some of them would be in my kitchen this afternoon. Well, I'm off to the gym for more exercise. I've been eating too
much lately so definitely need to work out. I have another
luncheon to attend today. How come so much of our entertainment
revolves around eating? Sunday, October 20, 6:08 pm Another day is getting away from me. I've been out today at a Women's Ministry Luncheon. Our church ladies are trying to get our act together. It will be a growth process for all of us to start an outreach group. Our focus during these beginning months is to find out our strengths and how we can best use our various talents. Although most of us have been acquainted for years, I don't think we've really "known" each other. I suggested a project for the upcoming holiday season; so I guess we'll see how that develops. I've had what the doctor called a skin tag on my bottom for several years. It has gotten bigger from being rubbed. I finally got around to asking about it. The doctor froze it with liquid nitrogen. It seems to be changing in composition and one side seems to be letting go. She said it could take up to 10 days before it comes off. This evening my project is to wash all my jelly jars. I hope I can
finally get the grape jelly made. I have had several people
give me encouragement and words of wisdom. The problem is getting
myself psyched up to do the work. But I can't keep juice in my
fridge forever. Thursday, October 17, 2:47 pm Just returned from an appointment to check the progress of my blood pressure. I was pleased that the "at rest" pressure is being lower in my current state. So apparently the medication is helping. However, I'm still praying that natural means will help and healing will occur. I'm convinced that I let stress and fear continually get to me. When I can totally relax and forget my worries, my pressure drops to a normal range rather than being "high." We did discuss my varous side affect symptoms. Not that there is much that can be done about them. I'm grateful that it isn't worse. The funny thing is that this bp medication causes cold hands and feet. This is quite humourous--to be having a hot flash and still have cold extemities. I just wrap my cold hands around my tummy to warm them up. Pulling my feet up to stick under my knees takes more agility. I've been hearing all the menopause stories since my surgery. I'm feeling blessed that my symptoms are minimal. I still have to carry my sweater because I still get cold at times; but I am sometimes warmer--but not to the point of misery. I seem to notice it more at night than daytime. Maybe it's because I'm busy and don't think about it during the day. We're having company this evening so I need to fix dinner. Mark and
a couple of the young men from church are discussing doing a website together. Tuesday, October 15, 3:24 pm I thank you for your continuing prayers and encouraging cards. I just got a card from a member of Grace Baptist church in Houston saying their prayer group is praying for me as requested by Elnora Hyde. Another friend that I haven't met yet. If you are reading this, Elnora,--thanks. Sunday, October 13, 8:30 am Wouldn't you know it?...Finally a morning when I didn't have to be up and out. But I woke up bright and early around 6:00 a.m. By the time I finished my early morning puttering, Mark came out and asked if I wanted to exercise. Since we hadn't exercised all week (and the scales show it), I said yes. Besides, we have several programs we tapes last week but haven't watched since we weren't home. The conference was great! I'm grateful we were able to go even though I had to squeeze in stuff like bill paying into early morning or very late evening hours. The kitchen is a mess. Guess what I'll be doing today?! The conference topic was more or less divided into two parts. The
first was to encourage people to build relationships, both with God
and others. The answer to many ills is within the Bible, with
going the Way and following the Word. The second part was how our
lack of alignment with the Godhead affects us spiritually, mentally,
and physically. We were enouraged to be disciples and to disciple
others. A number of people I have met in the past were there. I also made some new friends. I'll be looking forward to our ongoing relationships. Yesterday afternoon, we were divided into ministry teams to practice the principles we had been taught. Mark and I volunteered to be team managers which means we had to provide help for the teams when they got stuck. The groups were to be discussing their life experiences, goals and needs, and giving encouragement for the spiritual journey with specific prayer. For me, being a manager was facing a fear; I don't always have self-confidence, especially if I think I've got to provide a perfect answer. In this case, no condemnation was part of the process. My job was mostly to be loving and put into practice what I've learned over the years about prayer, loving people, and encouraging them. I praise God that he gave me words to say. And I didn't cough the entire time (those of you who are around me know that I have coughing attacks when I get anxious). As far as it goes, last week was a good experience. Back to my life
today. But I pray that I don't forget the gold nuggets that
I learned. Wednesday, October 9, 10:47 pm My knees are tired of being cramped up. I don't know how big people sit in some chairs. But we're all different. ...otherwise, the seminar is great! How great God is! Before the evening session, I was in the restroom. The lighting in then restroom is the type where every gray hair and blemish stand out. My hair needs cutting and is not responding as well to the curly "doo" that I am sporting these days. I decided to blow dry it wavy instead of curly but didn't get my hairspray on quickly so it was kind of flat. To make a long story short, I was criticizing myself that my hair didn't look very good this evening. When I returned to the sanctuary, one of the men (senior citizen, married) greeted me with "What happened to your hair? It looks beautiful today." Guess beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Even though it was odd phrasing, I must say it did bolster my confidence. Wednesday, October 9, 7:46 am Yesterday was a long day. When I finally dashed out the door...as I got on I225, someone honked at me. I had been trying to figure out why I was getting more road noise than usual. To make a long story shorter, my tire died. Apparently it had a nail and I drove on it enough to ruin the tire. I called Mark on the cell phone and started pulling out the tire changing equipment. I was glad Mark could come rescue me. Although technically I could have lifted the tire out, I decided it probably wasn't the best for my innards. Other women keep cautioning me to be careful about lifting and straining even though I'm feeling all healed up. I am counting our blessings. Mark traded cars with me so I could get down the road. I still made it to the seminar session on time despite the delay. Also, Mark went to buy another tire. They told him it would take a couple of weeks to get it on order and cost big bucks. They said they thought they had a tire that would work even though it wouldn't match. In the back they found the exact same tire (used) and would sell it for $50. So I still have a matched set!!! Well, I've got to get lunch made, trash put out and get down the road.
Not to mention finishing hair and putting my shoes on. I
hope everyone has a wonderful day. Monday, October 7, 6:47 am Hello--it was a long, fulfilling weekend. My sister arrived Friday afternoon in time for dinner. It was neat to catch up. I'm grateful that she chose to spend her three day weekend coming to see me. Especially since most of the time was spent in the car driving to and from Amarillo. Julia was willing to tag along with me on my various activities. Our church service was a special music worship. Our pastor was honored as part of Pastor Appreciation month. The elder's wife had prepared a listing of members who volunteered to pray for our pastor during the year. We received a list giving the week when we will be praying. Pastor Tim was touched by our devotion and willingness to support him in prayer. Julia also attended our Small Group Bible Study with me. Since I missed our last meeting to attend the Injoy Team Ministry seminar, I hated to miss another one. We only have one more chapter to go before we finish the Sacred Romance book and workbook. We need to decide on our next story which we will start in January. In the meantime, we have decided to devote our remaining four meetings to individuals sharing topics that have been close to their hearts. I plan to share some things that I've learned about God and His Way and our participation. Several others have also volunteered. We took a long drive around town to see the fall colors. We're having
Indian Summer. The trees are just turning in the city and look
so pretty. It was the perfect time for my family to be here. In
the evening we stopped for a short visit with a friend, Evelyn Allen,
who had offered me some home-grown sage. I'll have to dry it.
Evelyn said she could give me a "start" in the spring so I can
start growing my own. I enjoy mixing it into ground meat to make
sausage. I'm dashing out the door (well, in about an hour I will dash after dressing,
fixing lunch and etc. I'm attending a week-long seminar at Redeemer
Community Church. Pastor Henry Wright of Pleasant Valley Church
and Ministries (http://www.pleasantvalleychurch.net) is the presenter. Thursday, October 3, 7:30 am I've been busy with my father's visit. We had a lot of laughs. Our trip to Lower Down Denver went well. I was exhausted yesterday but I slept fairly well last night so feel a little perkier today. Daddy left yesterday morning and then I spent the rest of the day (at slow speed) picking grapes and extracting juice. I've got a new steamer which somehow extracts the juice. We've pretty much wasted the grapes over the years because we didn't have a good method of juicing them. Conventional juicers don't work on grapes. I'm hoping to make some grape jelly as well as juice. If anyone is a grape jelly whiz, please let me know so I can ask you some questions. This morning I have a couple of Bible Studies to attend. I consented
to go with friends to one across town today. However, I don't
think I will sign up to do it every week. After that is over,
I'll rush back to Aurora to a study I am a registered for each week. Monday, September 30, 1:38 pm I'm enjoying spending time with my father. He cut down the little trees that have been growing up from the roots. A section of our yard is xeroscaped. I told him that we don't water so anything that was growing there was a great example of plants that grow well with little to no water. Tomorrow we plan to go see Uncle Max and then downtown for some sightseeing.
Hopefully I will sleep well tonight. I'm no long having
the vivid dreams I mentioned several weeks ago. However I still
wake up numerous times during the night. That's usually not too
bad but I've had a few nights with difficulty falling back asleep. It
especially seems the last part of the night is kind of dozy. However,
I'm not awake enough to actually feel like getting out of bed. My
friends may have noticed that I'm no longer sending e-mail messages at
2 a.m. Before my surgery, my body was having such a hard time
that I would get up and roam around the house in the middle of the night. Another weekend...It has been busy. I went Friday evening to the Anne Graham Lotz "Just Call Me Jesus" conference. She inspiringly told the story of Jesus's last days, emphasizing what he did for us. do we really appreciate His sacrifice?! I chose to not go the second day. From what my friends have told me, I missed a great message. My father arrived during the afternoon. We also had scheduled to have company yesterday evening. One of our guests brought a new (at least new to me) game called Cranium. It was similar to Trivial Pursuit in that it had categories and one moved about the board. I did all right on the word category. I was pleased with myself when I was able to spell the word asparagus backward. Mark and I were in a group with a college student who fortunately wasn't any more adept than we were at answering the questions. I have to say that I haven't had so many laughs in a long time; too bad we can't have fun all the time. This morning, my father trimmed branches off our huge pine tree. It had grown so large that it has been blocking our front porch. That was a big job. Now the branches start about head high. Eventually we'll probably take the tree down; however, it looks much better for now. We have a lot more yard work that needs to be done. This afternoon we visited my great-aunt Tee. We hope to visit Uncle
Max either tomorrow morning or Tuesday. As I've said before,
he'll be 102 on October 26. Friday, September 27, 3:15 pm Another day is almost over. I'm picking up the house. My father, Kight Lane, is coming to visit for a few days. He'll arrive tomorrow. One thing that I haven't remembered to tell you is that I got the results
of the blood test back that the hemocrit reading was 48. Normal
is 40 so that's doing good. I've quit taking the iron and will
consult the doctor as to if and when I should take any more. I
understand that cancer patients need to be careful not to have too
much iron. Friday, September 27, 7:23 am I'm still not sleeping well. I thought I would zonk out last night since I wake very wakeful on Wednesday night. It didn't happen; I woke up a number of times. People will diseases need to focus on positive things which uplift the immune system rather than having negative thoughts which cause the body to circulate bad chemicals. I keep working on "taking every thought captive." A lesson was made clear this morning about how easy it is to think "negative" things and how the mind needs to be rerouted. It has been six weeks today since my surgery. I no longer have to worry about menstrual cycles, birth control and etc. However, my mind is so accustomed to thinking about those things after umpteen years that it still flicks over those topics even though it no longer applies. This is a good example of why we need to put good things (The Word) into
our heart instead of trash. It is hard to stop my brain from
thinking about female issues. It is equally hard to eradicate
swear words, negativity, and other things we shouldn't be saying and
thinking. We get used to these things and are surrounded by
it in our lives. Therefore, we must really work to keep our
minds pure so that good things come out of our mouths.
A friend asked me to share one thing from each of the speakers from the
conference I attended last Saturday. Here's what I came up
with. John Maxwell -- The first person you should start leading is yourself.
if you wouldn't follow yourself, then why would anyone else? Wednesday, September 25, 1:15 pm I went to a water aerobics class this morning. It had been quite a while since I'd done that. My exercise partner wanted to go to the Rep Reebok class. So I let her do that and opted for water. I'm not big on exercise classes; most have loud music and I can't understand the instructions. At least with the water aerobics, most of the action is under water. I could tell it had been a long time since I'd gone sporting in water. I wasn't able to make much progress through the water in the little bit of swimming we did. But otherwise, I thought the exercises weren't too difficult. The thing I like about this pool at the gym is that it's only 4 ft deep. I can "save" myself by putting my feet down and standing up. I'm trying to get started with stomach exercises. That's the part of me that hasn't totally lost weight. I have several pants and skirts from my skinnier days that I still can't button. My weight is the same from those days but I'm not as thin in the waistline. At this point, I'm not ready to accept that the difference is that I'm "getting older." Even though I'm not mentioning my diseases in every posting, please continue praying for me. Nothing much will have changed if I don't say anything. The doctor increased my dosage of blood pressure medication. It's down some with this higher dosage but still not as consistently low as it needs to go. I'm still waking up several times during the night. It doesn't seem to make any difference if I have napped during the day or not. I'm trying to work on my diet. Alternative medicine always suggests
vegetarian diets--or at least limited meat. Ugh! I'm
from Texas, you know. So I've been experimenting with soups.
Had beef stock and a little meat left over from pot roast so
made a beef and barley soup which we just ate for lunch. The other
day I made potato soup with other vegetables in it. I'm encouraged
that I've made some things that were mostly vegetables (okay, I know that
potato isn't a vegetable) that tasted good. The other challenge is
to have more raw vegetables. My father is coming to visit at the end of the week for a few days. I'm sure he'll feel comforted to see me looking healthier. He told Mark that it was so hard to see me ill and in the hospital because I looked so much like my mother. It was reliving what he went through during her long illness and eventual death. My sister, Julia O'Dell, is also coming to visit at the end of next week. They'll miss each other by a couple of days. Daddy asked me if it would be too much for me to have them so close together. But I said I'd just as soon have them both in the same general time period while I'm in the company mode. I'm not making any big plans except hopefully to see our Kight relatives (Grandmother's brother and family). Sunday, September 22, 4:30 pm Yesterday I was able to attend the Team Ministry seminar by Injoy (http://www.injoy.com) A friend who volunteers at the church where I attend a Bible Study offered a spare ticket she had for this event. We both felt like God brought us together. It was a fun day, with worship, lecture, and lunch. This conference was a simulcast offered to groups around the country; the actual conference was in San Antonio at Max Lucado's church. The featured speakers were John Maxwell, Bill Hybels and max Lucado. They also had a video clip of Bruce Wilkinson talking about his new book, A Life God Rewards. The premise of the seminar was to inspire people to use their spiritual gifts to encourage others with the side affect of promoting church growth. John Maxwell said that we should all say "I want to make a difference with people who want to make a difference by doing something that makes a difference." After discovering our spiritual gifts, then we can use them to further God's work. I felt blessed to be able to attend the seminar. It was inspiring to hear the different ways one can use their gifts for God's glory. Friday, September 20, 3:15 pm Mark and I were rehearsing our blessings this morning. We have so much food in our refrigerator that I let some pinto beans spoil. I already mentioned the meat Jason and Suzanne gave us. Today's the mail brought us a "Feast" gift. An acquaintance invited me to use an extra ticket she had for the Come Alive Team Ministry Simulcast tomorrow. The glasses store let me pick out a better quality/more expensive frame at no extra charge. The grocery store near us has begun selling Cream on Top milk at a cheaper rate than what we've been paying (we don't buy homogenized milk). The blood test I needed to check my iron levels was included in the low fee I paid at the clinic yesterday. I was able to pet a cat yesterday. These are only the blessings that have occurred within the past few days;
I've probably forgotten a few, as well. You've already heard
about many other blessings from past weeks. I'm feeling overwhelmed
with this generosity. Even though these blessings came via human
beings, I know Our Father had his hand in it. I lift up my praises
and thanks. Friday, September 20, 6:45 am The week has gone too fast. I'm still trying to catch up, get appropriate rest, exercise, and etc. We really enjoyed the dinner with our friends. They blessed us with some steaks and other cuts from Jason's parents' farm. We hope they'll be over to pick Concorde grapes; we generally waste several gallons of grapes each year by not getting them picked and used. I had two doctor visits this week. The oncologist is encouraging me to take a newer drug that turns off the production of some hormone in that adrenal gland that turns into estrogen on which the cancer feeds. A nutritionist has told me about a natural product that also does something with the estrogens. So I'm checking into these two different items. I finally got an appointment to talk about blood pressure. The doctor was very nice; someone I think I will like, presuming I get to see the same one next time. She answered all my questions. I'll continue taking the bp medication but sure hope it will come down through other means. I really think it is higher than normal because of all the stresses we are enduring. Brenda Peterson has suggested that celery helps lower pressure. Garlic is another idea. I've eaten some of both but really need to start chowing down. Let me know when the garlic fumes reach your place. (ha, ha) I'd better go get ready to leave for my Friday morning Bible Study. I'll
plan to munch on celery during the drive. Hopefully that
won't be as dangerous as putting on makeup or pantyhose. They
say women often do that. I've never tried that while driving--however,
I do other things that are probably equally dangerous. I need to go back to the eye doctor this afternoon. The response from the lab was that the frame has been discontinued so I need to decide on another. Tuesday, September 17, 5:06 pm We stopped by America's Best to hopefully pick up my second pair of glasses. They're going to be calling the lab in the morning to find out why they haven't arrived yet. Tonight we have a dinner invitation from one of our ex-coworkers, Suzanne Pierce. They recently moved so wanted us to see their new place plus give me a break. Everyone has been so wonderful--trying to keep me from overdoing. I finally took a sleeping pill last night. I have still been waking
up a lot at night. I did heavily zonk out from some
time after 10 pm when I went to bed until approx. 3 am. After
that I woke up a couple of times before time to get up. So I
have felt more rested today. So rested that I cranked the treadmill
up to 3.5 mph which tired me out so much I had to come home to take
a nap. On Sunday, I wrote that I would give you a copy of the "speech" I prepared to give at my church. I just realized that I did save a copy on my computer. How nice that I don't have to re-type it! I have to say that I spoke from brief notes so this wasn't exactly what came out of my mouth. An interesting aspect was that I thought what I did say tied in well with the sermon. 9/14/02 Church Life Testimony: Monday, September 16, 3:30 pm I appreciate that I'm still getting cards and phone calls. Marcia Fisher called me a few minutes ago from Pleasant Valley. I had been intending to call her after all the caring she's shown me. I also have appreciated my contact with Brenda in Washington State. They are burying her mother-in-law today. Another era is passing. I wish Brenda, Dennis and the rest of the family to have a peaceful day. Donna Tucker sent me a book called Meeting Jesus by Bruce Marchiano. I'm
just starting to read it and look forward to learning about Jesus
from a new believer's perspective. I've grown up around Christianity.
While I've learned a lot over the years, I do enjoy seeing
Jesus through the eyes of others. Monday, September 16, 2:26 pm Finally got an appointment for early Thursday morning to see a doctor who deals with CICP patients. The clinic is across town; I hadn't wanted to go so far. Guess I'll find out what people who commute endure every day. I did exercise 30 minutes on the gym treadmill today. I was able to walk at 3 mph on a 1% incline. At that speed I'm not getting the heart rate up to the suggested speeds. But that still is giving me a workout at my current abilities. Mark and I are still working out at home when we first get up. My abdominal muscles recognized that they had to do something again this morning after having a weekend rest. I'm still not up to my normal pace on the CardioFit machine. Sunday, September 15, 6:32 pm Time is getting away from me. Mark and I spent the day visiting with across town. I'm pretty bushed. We were outside in the heat for several hours watching a soccer game. The players were the "over 30" group with the average age being 44. Mark and I felt right at home. I used our large umbrella as a parasol and drank a lot of water. However, I plan to spend the rest of the day relaxing. I still find that I tire after being in public "on good behavior" for a number of hours. At our church services this weekend, I gave an update about my health. Most of it you have already seen. I will post what I wrote to say so you can have the general idea of what was on my mind. Unfortunately, I didn't save it on the computer so have to locate my hard copy. After church I had three ladies over for lunch. They helped me fix the lunch and clean up. As you can guess, it has been a fun but tiring weekend. Every day, I feel like I'm having improvements in my health. At least as far as little things that seem to be better after all the hardships my body has been through. My fingernails seem stronger. I last cut them while in the hospital. I've had some minor chips that I've had to smooth off. I told Mark I do plan to cut them (long nails aren't my preference); however, it's such a novelty to not have them breaking that I'm going to let them grow to see when they start breaking. I was questioning if my hair is having more body. Possibly... It could also be that we have had rain showers lately causing more humidity which my hair likes. I'm planning to pursue getting an appointment at a clinic this week about
my blood pressure. Also have an appointment with the oncologist
on Tuesday. However, I don't think that is going to change
my mind about anything. Friday, September 13, 9:49 pm Mark has gone to Promise Keepers this evening. I had planned on a leisurely evening making spaghetti sauce. However, I received a surprise invitation to attend a Caberet performance by members of the Smoky Hill High School Choir. One of my friends from my church, Cara Armstrong, sang a song from Phantom of the Opera. She did a good job. It made me cry because I remember her being three years old when we moved here; now she's so grown up. I can tell I've begun (slowly and carefully) exercising my abdominal muscles. When I suck in my stomach, it is tender. But not uncomfortably so. My foray to the clinic didn't accomplish much. I found out more on how government medical agencies work by visiting three different clinics in search of information. They wouldn't take a walk-in unless I was homeless and slots for the program I am in are filled until November. (Unless I luck out and phone when they have a cancellation.) I have made a request for a nurse to call me. Friday, September 13, 7:08 pm Once again Friday is here. Yesterday I went to the beginning of a Bible Study series on Psalm 23. We discussed the first verse "The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want." I have to admit that I haven't always looked to Him as a shepherd. These last few months have really been teaching me what that means. This morning I will attend a Bible Study that meets across town. The current topic is regarding things that block ones relationship with God. Should be interesting and hopefully enlightening. Afterwards I plan to go to a clinic to hopefully see someone about my blood pressure. We got approval for a program for low income people. Seems like medical facilities often have answering machines with humans who call back. Unfortunately, I haven't gotten a call back since I started calling on Wednesday. So I plan to go over there and see if I can get an appointment. My bp keeps jumping around at high levels. Seems to go down to an acceptable pressure when I manage to disassociate myself from all my normal worries. I'm still behind on answering email and cards I've received from people.
I have certainly appreciated hearing from you. I hope
this webpage has helped fill the gap as a way to communicate with
you. Wednesday, September 11, 2:06 pm This is a sad day around the world. I feel for people who lost family members in the World Trade Center/Pentagon/Pennsylvania tragedies. My mother died on Sept. 11, 1997. Then last year, this was the day we received word that Mark's mother had passed away. So this day is marked for our families on both sides. I talked to my father and Mark's brother and sister-in-law. I hope they can be cheered and think of the positive aspects of our lives. Monday, September 9, 4:35 pm It's been a busy weekend. We had a special service at church. Apparently a number of different churchs (not confined to specific denomination) are introducing the subject of Advent earlier in the year instead of preaching about Christ's second coming only a few weeks prior to the Celebration of His birth. I like this new concept. Yesterday, Mark and I belatedly celebrated our birthdays. You may remember that we had our birthday meals at a steakhouse after I got out of the hospital. However, I wanted to do something special for him. He's been so sweet and patient. I was able to make arrangements to borrow an activities room to which a friend has access. I wanted to go somewhere different with no distractions such as TV or computers. Gail really pampered us. I arrived with my dinner to find she had bought us roses and carnations (my two favorites) to add to the previously discussed Hawaiian theme decorations. Plus a bottle of Spumante and chocolate covered strawberries. It was beautiful. I had a flowery outfit and had resurrected Mark's Hawaiian shirt he'd bought in Hawaii in 1976. We had a relaxing evening--every bit as romantic as those enjoyed on the soap opera I used to watch. I'm experimenting with a manual blood pressure monitor. The other monitor we bought still was erratic. It had an automatic pump. But the default setting to start de-pressuring was 170 which can be low for high blood pressure. Then I'd have to sometimes punch a button which defeated the idea of simplicity. I took that monitor back and bought the manual one. Now I'm trying to figure out when the gurgling turns into beating. It will take some figuring out but I think I will like this manual monito I've had a good day. Went to exercise this morning. Made my first attempt at a few "arm" weight machines that I didn't think would stretch my abdomen too much. I was surprised how "heavy" 10-15 lbs was after a couple of months of not doing any of that type of exercise. I should say, it wasn't really heavy but by the time I lifted 12-15 times, I was tired. Then had lunch with my Great-Aunt Tee Kight and Cousin Ila. I love it that I am getting better aquainted with them. Our paths didn't used to seem to cross. But death and illness has a way of drawing people together. I found out at the Beck Family reunion that I have a relative on my mother's side of the family who lives in Littleton. I hope I can contact her soon. Saturday, September 7, 6:21 am I'm up early this morning. Needed to check my blood pressure. We also bought a new monitor. Unfortunately it appears that my blood pressure must be erratic. The new monitor has similar results to the old one. I did try cutting down the dosage for a couple of days. Yesterday my pressure was higher again, especially the bottom number that is usually lower (all you people with high blood pressure know what I mean). So I went back to the originally recommended dosage last night. Mark and I are under much stress as we figure out where our life needs to go. Please pray that I can just relax about it and really be able to put my faith and trust in God to lead us. That if we do that, the arrangements for our physical needs will follow. Thursday, September 5, 8:18 am Hi, Friends! We made the trip to the surgeon's office yesterday for a followup visit. He said things appear to be healing well. The vaginal wall is nice and pink like it is supposed to be. He said I can go back to doing normal exercise--the only prohibition is bungee jumping. (Aw, Shucks!) Guess I don't have any excuses not to clean house any more. He approved hot tubs and abdominal exercises as well. Obviously I'm supposed to be aware and stop if I get too tired. As we were leaving, I asked if sex was normal exercise. He responded "No, you can't do that for a year." Then he laughed and said that it is considered normal exercise. Dr. Kirschman said I will continue to be tender with swelling for up to three months. After that, "what I see is what I get." One side of my tummy is more swollen than the other and I was wondering if it will always be like that. Actually, I'm just grateful that my tummy isn't as big as it used to be. The scar should gradually lighten to a white line. My menopausal friends have been curious how their experiences will compare to my surgical menopause. Especially since we know the body has other hormones in addition to the sex hormones. The answer was that the other hormones do have certain cycles but aren't noticeable. Dr. Kirschman said that at this point (tomorrow is 4 weeks after the surgery) I should have experienced most of the menopausal symptoms. I've had minor anxiety a couple of times and one crying spell. More sweating than my usual (hardly any) sweating and what I've called "warm waves." In other words, what I've had hasn't been near to inferno heat as descriptions of hot flashes that I've heard. Hopefully the vivid dreams will ease up soon; I've noticed I don't need as much cover as I used to require at night. I was encouraged that according to the doc, "this is as bad as it should get." We did get the pathology report yesterday. I'm still trying to figure
out what it says. Nothing down there was cancerous which
is good. Mark and I got up at 6 a.m. this morning to work out on our home exercise
equipment. He uses a Nordik Trak and I have a CardioFit.
I did take it easy but I can already tell that I gave my abs
a workout. I've got housework slated for the rest of the day
as we're having a real estate guy come by this afternoon. At
least, mopping the kitchen floor and cleaning the toilets need to get
done if I don't do much else. Wedneday, September 4, 7:47 am I had planned to post a message last night. I was having a frustration with the computer so decided to go to bed. It's hard to be a "user" sometimes. This afternoon we have a followup appointment with the surgeon. He'll do a pelvic exam to make sure things appear to be healing inside. If I'm very active, my insides still feel jostled. Usually by evening, they feel somewhat tired. I'm also noticing that I am more aware of what is going on in my intestines and colon. Methinks that we need to look for another blood pressure monitor. The
one we have with a digital readout indicates blood pressure that
bounces around. Sometimes my two arms have very different
readings. Yesterday, when at the gym (I went two miles on
the treadmill at 2.2 mph), Connie and I were discussing this apparent
blood pressure problem. She suggested we ask the chiropractor
whose office is at the gym (he's also a friend from church) if he had
a monitor we could try. Richard tested it as 136/100. While
not good, that isn't near as bad as the readings I've been getting. He
also explained that the "top" reading relates to environmental or outside
pressures and the other reading as being internal. I've never read
or heard that relationship. And it does made sense. I certainly
need to consider how I respond internally to various stresses. I
have to say that I often overeact. If not on the outside, I'm seething
on the inside. I want to analyze what has been going on around
me or inside prior to testing my pressure. The result of having
my blood pressure tested by a professional is that I think we need to check
into other monitors that might be more accurate. Tuesday, September 3, 10:00 am It's was a beautiful holiday. We enjoyed the 84.3 mile drive up to Aldo's on Sunday evening. We missed the turn into his driveway (you can't see the house from the road) and drove about five miles too far before we decided we had missed it. On the way 5.3 miles back to Aldo's driveway, Mark kept testing his van to see how it wheeled around mountain corners. Mostly I clutched my stomach and squealed for him to slow down. (He really wasn't torturing me.) The movie of the night was We were Soldiers with Mel Gibson. It was an excellent movie about one battle at the beginning of the Vietnam War For lack of a better description, I will describe it by saying that the blood and guts kept it from being a tear jerker. Aldo invited us to stay the night but after all the emotional upheaval, I felt I would sleep better in my own bed. In case you wonder about the evening temperatures in the mountains. It
turned out to be in the 60s. With a jacket on it was just
perfect to be outside. I enjoyed seeing the stars.
Aldo thought he saw a shooting star. On Monday morning I had a lovely breakfast at the Original Pancake House with Connie and her daughters. They kept me laughing with their observations on life. I must say I hadn't giggled so much in years. I also put away enough food that I will need to watch the calories all week. Because of the holiday, we started our Prayer Group early on Monday evening.
I came home early and asked Mark if he wished to go for
a walk before bedtime. We walked down to Mission Viejo park
in the next subdivision. To vary the stroll back, we decided
to cut through the neighborhood. We found out that the streets
don't go through. To get back to the main road, we walked a lot
further than planned. I did enjoy identifying the aromas of the
late suppers people were having: Italian, roast beef, etc. It
is was definitely bedtime by the time we arrived home. My legs
still feel like they had a workout but fortunately my insides don't feel
stressed. Sunday, September 1, 3:45 pm Labor Day weekend. We enjoyed our small group Bible Study yesterday. The group offered that we could sit in the den so I could doze in the recliner again. But I felt well enough to sit at the regular table. I did get tired toward the end and was zoning out on the conversation. But it wasn't too difficult to sit. We are getting close to the end of our current study. I suggested that before we move on to a different workbook, that we take a few meetings to share personal studies we have done. So guess who got volunteered to do the first one!?! We are probably going to be driving north to Masonville this evening. Our friend, Aldo, is showing a movie (outdoors) at his house in the country. That should be a different experience. I question how cold it will be in the mountains at 10 p.m. I took a nap this afternoon so hopefully I can stay awake. Mark and I have been going to be between 9:00 and 10:00. I've been trying to do some house cleaning today. I'm never a meticulous housekeeper.My clutter has added up, especially while I've been "ill." Things look a little straighter now. Dusting is the next thing on the list; vacuuming will wait for another day or when Mark has time to help me since that's one of the no-nos. Saturday, August 31, 8:36 am Hi, Friends. It's a lovely Saturday morning. The sun is shining brightly in Aurora, Colorado. Haven't heard the forecast. I usually don't pay attention unless something monumentous is happening; it's going to happen if I worry about it or not. We did have some tornadoes on Thursday afternoon. I was surprised when Brenda in Washington State reported that she heard/saw Aurora mentioned on the news. Fortunately there was minimal damage. The construction site that was torn up is approximately five miles from us; what a blessing that no one was seriously injured! I'm still wrestling with not sleeping well. I awoke numerous times last night. They suggested sleeping pills during this healing process. I have taken some but don't want to be relying on them. I'm certainly experiencing the vivid dreams Donna mentioned. Last night I was dressing to get married and my head was feeling burdened from the heavy veil/headdress. I assume that was the development of the sinus headache I'm having this morning. We'll be going to our cell group (small group Bible Study) this afternoon.
I look forward to being with my friends again. I was
able to go across town to my other study yesterday. It was nice
to be driving again. I tried not to roar around corners and held
my stomach when the road mades turns. Mark was looking at webpage statistics. 535 people have visited our
site this month. I appreciate all of you who have visited it to keep
up with my illness and recovery. I'll be additionally adding some other
things I've been thinking about as the days continue. I've had a lot
of time to consider my situation, pray and study. I'm going to be doing
some research about cancer and will add some links of interest as they turn
up. Thursday, August 29, 7:48 pm Just returned home from the Banks in Harmony Concert in the Park. We live close to Meadowood Park. I walked down there with my lawn chair, book and water bottle. I could sure tell I haven't been working out for the last couple of months. Walking wasn't a problem but my "equipment" got heavy even though I doubt they weigh more than the 5 lbs to which I'm restricted to carry. I did enjoy the concert. My ear has been hurting occasionally, kind of like the beginning of an earache. I finally mentioned it to Mark. His guess is that that there must be a nerve or something that was affected by the IV tube in my neck. Somehow is is connected with my ear. Hopefully eventually that will go away. That's the only thing I have to say this evening. I hope you all have a good night. Thursday, August 29, 7:23 am As I've said before, I've not been sleeping well, including having some vivid dreams. One of my friends wrote. "I had ovaries removed several years ago and remember having a variety of strange things go on after the surgery including some of the wildest dreams... Anyway, the dreams came from the "hormone dump" in my system from surgery and they stopped after I had a massage." Has anyone else had similar experiences? I've noticed my mind is undergoing some changes. My aunt had written
about her grandchildren. I've never had much experience
with little people. I'm finding as I get older that I've
been enjoying listening to my friends talk about their families.
I'm even finding the teenage experience interesting. (Of
course, I'm only hearing about it--not having to cope with it.) Since
now I definitely won't have any biological children or grandchildren,
I really appreciate that others are willing to share their children
with us. I'll know I've really gone off the deep end when I start
carrying pictures of my friends' children. Ha, Ha. Tuesday, August 27, 10:00 am Mark and I took a long walk yesterday evening; my guess is that it was at least 2 1/2 miles. I didn't quite make it down to Albertsons which is a 3 mile round trip but then we went around the park before returning home. I feel blessed to be able to walk so far. So different from when I tottered down to the end of the street last Monday morning. I'm used to daily exercise; it's good I like to walk since that's the only form of exercise that is allowed right now. The doctor said he'd do a pelvic exam next week and then maybe he'd clear me for other exercises. I'm wondering if my leg skin will go back to normal. Apparently it was stretched during all the water retention. Nobody else would probably notice but I can tell my skin is more saggy than it was. There are more tiny wrinkles at the knees and ankles. I had what felt like bruising above my knees. I assumed from the "stockings" that were used to massage my legs to keep the circulation going after surgery. The good news is that the soreness has been lessening. This morning I noticed only one leg seems to be hurting and that is minimal. I have lost another couple of pounds so am actually lighter than under ordinary conditions would be my ideal weight. We pray that this is normal rather than caused by other health concerns. I am eating fairly well and only occasionally throw up from nerves. I'm still not sleeping real well. I wake up several times during
the night; although I don't necessarily get out of bed and usually
go back to sleep quickly. Such a blessing not to spend
so much time in the bathroom. I look forward to being able
to sleep through the entire night. Monday, August 26, 8:54 am It was a long weekend. I felt so well that I took the plunge to attend the Women of Faith conference Friday night and Saturday. I'm glad I did. The young women who were arrested in Afghanistan for sharing the gospel were the guest speakers. That set the tone for the whole conference. Many testimonials about what Christ has done in lives. We also had a meeting to attend in Colorado Springs yesterday. I'm finding that riding in cars makes me a little woozy in the head while not hurting my abdomen. I hope that will pass since I've never had trouble with car sickness. The incision is continuing to heal. It was itchy on Saturday. Yesterday it felt tighter; I assume the scabbing was being less flexible. I rubbed Neosporin on it as recommended by the doctor. We've also been putting vitamin E on it. So it was a long weekend. I'm a little tired. But not extremely tired considering all the hours I was up having to be alert. Plus having to forgo the two hour afternoon nap I've become accustomed to taking. I plan to catch up on napping today. Overall, I'm doing well. Still praying about the blood pressure situation. I'm having some tightness in the chest. Haven't figured out if that is because of the cancer or if my muscles are tight. My back and neck both feel like they need to be popped. They put the IV tube for the surgery into my neck and then left it. That was very awkward. The bruising is finally about gone. Some of you may have also had the Voldyne experience after surgery. The
morning after surgery, a Respiratory worker came in and handed
me this apparatus into which I am supposed to breath out and then
take a deep breath. To increase lung power. It also made
me cough out the junk in whichever breathing tubes. I wish I'd
been more awake to ask intelligent questions. The man told me that
the average women my age should be able to make the machine go to the
1950 number (I was barely making it to 600 that morning). Although
it goes up and down and I still cough some, I reached 2500 last night.
So I'm just thrilled. Mark may have broken his fourth toe on Friday. He bashed into something and he says it hurts far worse than normal toe stubbing. Instead of exercising on the Nordik Trak this morning, he walked with me. I've been doing that every morning and evening. After the long weekend, I've opted to stay home instead of going to Prayer group this evening. Hopefully we can walk and get to bed early. I didn't sleep too well last night. I hope all of you have a wonderful week. More later. Friday, August 23, 4:00 pm Greetings, Friends. I'm continuing to improve, bit by bit. So much so that I'm going to go out to the Women of Faith conference this evening. I told the other church ladies that I probably will doze off some time during the weekend. I do get tired after I've been moving around a lot. Yesterday evening, what I assumed were the first signs of this forced menopause
hit me. Mark and I were watching a movie on TV. I couldn't sit
still, was very anxious and wanted to cry. I finally quit trying to
take in the movie (I watched the rest of it on the VCR this morning.) and
started answering email. Then we took a long (that is long for my current
abilities) walk. I did feel better and was able to sleep. One
friend says walking gets the endorphins flowing. Vitamin E has been
suggested. I have to watch my intake of soy (natural estrogens) because
of the cancer. Wednesday, August 21, 4:08 pm Another day is passing. We had a trip out to the gynecologist/surgeon for a post-operative visit. He said I'm doing well. Most of the incision area is healing nicely. The part around the naval where they had to dig out the staples is healing slowly. He took the bandage off and said to apply peroxide and Neosporin twice a day. There doesn't seem to be any infection; it's just a difficult area. He answered all our questions. One always wonders if the various aches and pains are normal. He laughed when I asked if my libido will return and said most people aren't worried about that a week after surgery. I didn't explain I am hoping it will come out of hibernation. He did say I can start driving next week and anticipates that I can go back to the gym after my next appointment in two weeks. The hot tub will be a no-no for at least that long. I'm continuing to need a long nap each day. That's supposed to be good for healing. But I can be up as much as I feel able. The good news is that my blood pressure is down somewhat today. Not back to normal but as low as it has been since the surgery. Thanks for continuing to pray about this. If anybody needs a recommendation for a good gynecologist, we really like
this doctor. He came in on his day off to do the original
surgery, is very friendly, and has done a wonderful job. His
name is Edward Kirschman. Tuesday, August 20, 6:45 pm It has been a nice day. My friend Connie came over with some muffins for our breakfast; she made some plain ones for me since I'm not adventurous with added ingredients. I didn't sleep real well last night so it was nice to feel pampered. We were able to talk to Mark's brother Ron and wife Noelle in England
today. Nice to know that people around the world are praying for me.
They sent me a yummy gift basket: I'm enjoying the variety of goodies. I took a nap today. I slept heavily and woke feeling like I'd had my stomach muscles clinched the whole time. Maybe I had. I slid down a couple of steps on our staircase about noon. It didn't feel like I did any damage as I was holding on and didn't actually fall. I will tune into my body to make sure everything seems to be okay in the morning. My blood pressure has remained elevated. We pray that will return to normal soon. The good news is that my temperature is running closer to normal than it had been. Mark and I both had birthdays this month. I was in the hospital for mine. A friend brought cake over--much appreciated, especially since she hunted for pound cake which is my favorite. Yesterday was Mark's birthday. I got "dressed up" in the loose-fitting dress my aunt brought me, put on my high heels and sashayed out to celebrate. We decided to collect our birthday meals instead of cooking this evening. One of the local steakhouses takes the percentage (your age) off the entre. The service was great; they make a person feel special. We have leftovers for another meal. And they surprised us with fancy chocolate brownie/ice cream dessert. We will take a walk around the block when it cools a little. It
gets easier every time I walk so that's gradual improvement. Then I'll be
ready to hit the hay. Hope I can sleep well tonight. We have
an after-surgery checkup early tomorrow morning. I'll post an update
tomorrow. Monday, August 19, 7:30 am Hi, Friends. Just got back from my first walk outside the house. The surgeon said I should walk as much as I could. So I donned my sweatsuit and went out to enjoy the cool of the morning. Went to the house at the end of our long block so I could see their pretty flowers. The roses are having an August comeback. I was breathing a little heavily by the time I made it back (our end of the street is on the uphill end). However, when I last walked before the surgery, we knew something was wrong because I couldn't make it down the block without resting. I normally knock off a couple of miles on the gym treadmill several times a week. My aunt and uncle from New Braunsfels, TX came to visit yesterday. They're taking a vacation and had to come through Denver when they found out that I was under the weather. It was nice to see them again. They brought some beautiful flowers which I shall enjoy. I'm looking forward to a slow week. My followup appointment with the surgeon is on Wednesday. We made a quick run to the grocery store yesterday. So I can relax and spend my time catching up on my "religious" books from the library as well as reading in the Chronological Bible. Several people have said they want to drop by for a visit. That'll be fun to do some catching up. I hope all of you have a good day. Saturday, August 17, 5:25 pm It has been a nice day. Wonderful to be able to rest and forget about things that sometimes intrude during the business week. Plus I wasn't having to deal with doctors or the like today. We went out to the church cell group (small group Bible Study). Our host usually fixes lunch; hamburgers off the grill was a treat. At meeting time they tucked me into the recliner in the family room with everyone else perched on the couches and chairs. (We normally meet in the dining room.) I have to admit that I dozed off and missed several pages of our study. Glad to say that the discussion continued without my scintillating input. I'm just thrilled that I was feeling perky enough to attend the meeting. My aunt and uncle are driving through Denver tomorrow on a vacation to
Wyoming. They originally hadn't planning to drive this
route. However, when they heard I had been through surgery,
they wanted to visit. I really appreciate that. Aunt
Colleen is my mother's only sibling still alive so she means a lot
to me. Friday, August 16, 6:00 pm Made it home. Staples all out--feeling stiff. Glad we thought
to have the eyes rechecked. Evidently my condition did
put extra pressure on the eyes. The prescription did change;
wouldn't have been comfortable with these new glasses. One
eye actually a little worse but the other eye a lot better. Friday, August 16, 1:00 pm Hi, Friends. I had a good rest last night. They had recommended a sleeping pill since I'd been having so much broken, unrestful sleep. Being skeptical and guarded as I'm not used to medication, I took half a pill. I surfaced a couple of times; I remember turning to the other side but I never came awake enough to hear my bladder calling. So that was a good night. We had a long, day yesterday so I'm glad I was able to sleep. At 2:30 I'm supposed to get the rest of my staples removed. Originally they'd said two weeks but it's healing well enough, the doc said let's get them out. Praise God! Then we're stopping by the eye doctor. I'd ordered glasses some time ago which are waiting to be picked up; they took time arriving. I've noticed my eyes don't seem to be giving me much problems even though yesterday I sat at the computer and paid bills. Anyway, they agreed to give me another eye exam so we can make sure I need this prescription. It's possible that these health issues were affecting my eyes. I'll let you know the outcome. Thursday, August 15, 8:10amMark just told me he didn't add anything else after coming to get me at the hospital. We ate lunch there so we wouldn't have to think "food" upon arrival home. After puttering around a little, I slept for 2 hrs, 20 minutes. Then was able to be up in the evening. We were able to pick up the blood pressure medication. It was a little better yesterday but has shot up this morning. I appreciate your continued prayers. I'm still having trouble sleeping through the night. But it was so nice to be home among my own things last night. Especially not being hooked up to IVs. The IV tube has been in my neck which has been uncomfortable. The good news is that I'm enjoying a more svelte figure. I wonder how long this water weight has been building up. I got on the scale last night. I know the hospital scales weighed more than mine does... allowing for that, it appears I've lost almost 20 lbs. My ankle bones are almost obvious again. When I finish healing, I look forward to being able to get my stomach muscles tones up (they really need it). I was finally given the pregnancy comparison; approximately the size of a 24 week pregnancy. The incision was vertical which didn't cut the muscles. I understand many of these operations and c-sections cut horizontally across the muscles. I feel very grateful and believe that is partly why the pain hasn't been so bad. I still hurt in odd places; my legs feel like the tissues were traumatized. God has been Good. I know He helped me through this, especially with the fears involved. This is the first time I've been hospitalized since birth. There's more I should say about some of what Mark has written plus specific prayer requests. But I'll have to do it another time. I need to get back to resting. Love you all!!!!
Virginia just called me. Dr. Pearson said they see no reason to hold her any longer. She will be released to come home in a few hours, with a prescription for blood pressure, pain, and sleeping pills along with telling her to take iron. Praise God, That is the good news. The bad news is that the cancer is indeed spotting on her lungs. He thinks Virginia has at least 6 months to live and perhaps a little more....... I pray to God, and command her body that he is wrong, and that the cancer will be reversed or removed. I also appreciate everyone following this saga, and caring enough to take it before God on our behalf. I must say I am sorely tempted to sell or get rid of everything we have. That might give us enough resources to last 6 months to a year while enjoying the time she has left, doing some of the things we've dreamed of. I would then have to start over from scratch when I am on my own again. But that would be embracing the curse, and accepting death. If it is God's will for her to die, then I accept that while praying for a change of mind. Daddy knows best, so I trust God has something better for Virginia, than I and this world could possibly offer. But she is in no hurry to pass on, and I sure don't want to be alone again. So we are going to fight in every way we know how, while also maximizing her quality of life the best we can, until there is no choice but to say like Paul did, "I have run the course, I have fought the good fight" and embrace God's future. I still have faith that this will be 20 to 40 more years at least. As the song goes (sort of), "I want us to see each other to our rocking chairs". So, doctors have been known to be wrong before, and I have heard of and even seen personally one case of complete cancer healing even more dramatic than it would be if Virginia were to be healed at this point. I even know personally someone who's son came back to life (documented) after being toe tagged and having rigormortis set in, with God's intervention Elija/Elisha style (Andrew Wommack's son). And another person (Don Krow) who's daughter came back to life after being confirmed brain dead when she was being commanded to wake up in Jesus name. Compared to that, and many other healings I am aware of through Pastor Henry's ministry (Young girl with Krohns and a week to live) this is nothing. Even compared to Virginia's own earlier progressive (over 3 years in the making) complete healing of MCS/EI ...... Enough of this, I am leaving for the hospital to bring her home now. At
least here she should be able to get a quiet night's sleep. Tuesday, August 13, 6:35pm Hi, Friends, This is Virginia. I appreciate the cards, flowers,
stuffed animals, etc. that I have received. It's wonderful
to know that prayers are going up on my behalf. I know it
has been sort of a shock to everyone, including us, to have me go
into the hospital so suddenly. Now that I'm sleeping better
(the first few nights here were pretty rough) I'm getting to feel
better by leaps and bounds. I haven't needed any pain medication
since about 6 a.m. yesterday which amazes everyone. My 3rd roommate
checked out this afternoon. I'm hoping not to have a roomate tonight,
or stay long enough to wear out another. They seem to have a lot of
empty beds but that doesn't mean anything. I still wake up,
go to the bathroom, have blood pressure checked, cough and make noise
several times during the night. It's nice not to have to worry
about disturbing another person. However, I have been blessed
with friendly roommates. More later. Tuesday, August 13, 4:55pm We've returned from taking Virginia for another walk, twice around the "block" (the inside loop of this floor of the hospital ward), Dr Duane Pearson just came in, he thinks potassium was low due to restricted nutritional intake pre and post surgery. They will test for potassium again in the morning. Virginia has also been iron deficient so she should be taking Iron Sulfate, or Nifurex. She may also continue having low blood counts, (Hemtacrit is now up to to 31). The chest X-Ray on the 10th had clear lung fields, and the one from yesterday was done because of the fever Virginia developed to make sure she had not developed Pneumonia. There was no growth in the blood culture, so we cannot be sure where the fever was coming from. Apparently having spiking fevers in the hospital post op is not unusual. Possible causes are infections, bladder infection, reaction to medications, antibiotics, bacteria, diet, and other things. At the moment there does not seem to be a problem to cause concern in Virginia's case along these lines. Fluid from around heart came back without evidence of malignant cells, which does not rule out malignancy, but in most cases, if there were malignancy there, it would show. There is no further information regarding any metastasizing of cancer to her lungs, or fluid in the lungs. If there is no fever overnight, and her oxygen levels are ok tomorrow during a walking test, then they plan to release her tomorrow, otherwise it could be a few more days. Virginia needs to exercise on the Voldyne, at least 3 sets of 3 reps per hour is what she needs to do to strengthen her lungs. We also need to keep walking her, about 2 loops of the ward per hour or so. Unfortunately we forgot to ask the doctor about Virginia's elevated blood pressure before he got away. Tuesday, August 13, 3:50pm Tuesday, August 13, 3:30pm Hello, this is Connie Armstrong again. Virginia and I spent the late morning and early afternoon together. She is doing incredibly well for coming out of a hysterectomy. Her doctor shared that it is quite unusual to be having as little pain as she is having. Of course, we recognize that prayer support and God's incredible mercies are a vital part of her recovery. She is just a trooper. Mark arrived and we took Virginia for a walk. The nurses who have been great are at this time taking out half of her staples. Virginia isn't making any complaint. It's the rest of us!!! Tuesday, August 13, 10:30am Speaking with Virginia on the phone. The Cardiologist, Dr Crowley came by and said the EKG looked good, no further fluid build up on the heart since the catheter was pulled on Saturday. He said she has a clean bill of health from his perspective of the heart. This would indicate that that the fluid came from the urinary backup, rather than from cancer. That is a good thing! While her fluid retention is not back to normal, she has excreted about 10 pounds of fluid since the surgery. What a way to lose weight! She weighed in at 125 lbs this morning as opposed to 136 lbs just a few days ago.It seems it's always good news, bad news, but the good news has been consistently better than the bad news is bad. Thank God. Virginia's potassium levels were down to 2.8, normal is 3.5 to 5.5. So they added potassium to her IV drip system. The nurses expect to remove the IV completely after potassium levels normalize, unless there are further balance problems. They want her to start moving around more, and minus the IV she will be better able to shower, something she really wants to do. Her latest breathing on the Voldyne has been about 1000, and 1500 on rare occasions. When she first came out of surgery she had trouble with doing 500... they say normal is about 2000 for her age. She says the big thing is breathing out enough to suck in the measured volume. Dr Kirschman's assistant said that it takes 7 to 10 days to get the pathology reports on the surgery. Dr Kirschman has been absolutely wonderful. They hope to move her from the liquid food diet to a soft food diet in the near future. Virginia is really looking forward to this. I just played the answering machine while Virginia listened on the phone... 20 messages, wow. I have not checked it in nearly a week. Brenda Peterson, Corrine Allen, Aldo Ramos, Meg Nesbitt, Tee Kight, Bill Brandt, Insurance Agent, Sarah Grobe, June Hale, A mortgage solicitor, Carol Harris, A recording trying to sell us a sattelite TV system, A timeshare solicitor, Connie Armstrong, Maxine Prindle. The rest of the messages in between were Virginia calling for me. Rose Marie Perman made two casseroles for me, and passed them to Connie at the Prayer Group. Thank you so much Rose Marie, Connie brought them and left them on my porch late last night so I could take them in to the fridge. It was cool enough last night that they would not spoil. Tuesday, August 13, 9:30am Good morning all, Bill Brandt just called me on the phone and then faxed a copy of the brochure Pastor Lou, and his staff at Redeemer Community Church put together for the "More Excellent Way" seminar here in Denver later this year. It is subtitled "Teaching on the origins of sickness and disease", and will be presented by Pastor Henry Wright. The dates are going to be October 7-12, 2002, and it will be at Redeemer Community Church, 3241 Lowell Blvd, Denver CO. Virginia and I are planning to be there, if she is up to it. I have told Pastor Lou that I will post a web page for them, so as I get to it, keep an eye out for it. I will provide the link in this journal when the web page is ready. But I'll give the most essential details here now. Virginia first came across Pastor Wright, of Pleasant Valley Church & Ministries several years ago. As Virginia applied these teachings to her life, and improved her relationship with the Lord, her MCS/EI fell away, and she was healed. I don't know how many of you are aware of MCS/EI (Multiple Chemical Sensitivity / Environmental Illness), but this is when you are allergic to everything, and effectively become a "Bubble Dweller". The primary thing behind it is that the immune system stops working, as a result of spiritual roots a person is allowing in their life. This is why the medical community has had no success with treating MCS/EI. If one goes through Merck's manual and looks up the etiology of diseases, there are many where they list "etiology unknown" or "psychosomatic", which means they don't know what causes it. Pastor Henry has identified spiritual roots for many of these diseases, and in most cases when the individual starts to address these roots, which they are allowing to stand between themselves and their relationship with God, others, or even themselves .. the diseases improve, and often drop away completely. Virginia and I personally know many many people who have been healed through application of this teaching, from other MCS/EI victims to Allergies, Irritable Bowel, Breast Cancer, Krohns, Fybromyalgia, Arthritis, Migraines, Lupis, Diabetes, Multiple Sclerosis, Chronic Fatigue, even actual DNA changes and many other chronic diseases. Many of these cases are formally documented by the treating doctors of the particular patients, both before and after healing. If you have a disease or know someone who does, come attend the seminar. This knowledge is also an incredible tool for ministry, as it allows specific help by the minister to an individual undergoing trials in their health. Virginia had an immune system test about a year and a half ago, just after we discovered the cancer. Her immune system tested "Normal" which is apparently very odd for a cancer patient, and even more odd for someone who has had MCS/EI, itself an incurable disease. Praise the Lord... this is why we believe strongly that Virginia will be healed of the Cancer as well, and why it has been progressing slower than the doctors expected. Anyway, if you can possibly attend this seminar, I urge strongly that you do so. Monday, August 12, 9:15pm I didn't make it to the hospital till about 2:30pm, because I fell asleep shortly after my last log entry. I bought Virginia a magnetic mattress pad, and zoned out when I tried laying on it. Anyway, I am at the hospital now, and Virginia is running a temperature of over 101.4, so the nurses rushed in and drew blood..... and we laugh at the dark ages doctors for bloodletting...... they could not draw it through her IV tube because it was for a culture. Both of Virginia's arms are so needle tracked, it's a good thing we don't have to go anywhere where they are screening for drug addicts. I told the nurse that if anyone asked me how Virginia is, I'll tell them "Stuck Up". They had not heard that one before.... Virginia has this lung power thing called a Voldyne. She is supposed to suck on it about 10 times per hour. It makes her go into coughing fits nearly every time, but has not been doing it as often as she should. The nurse just told us that using it will help her body regulate it's temperature by increasing lung power, and moving more air as a result.. They took a chest X-Ray saturday morning, and now they want another. They are not saying why yet. Kight called from Lubbock, he made it home without incident. Connie just came by on her way to the monday night prayer group at Carolee's that Connie and Virginia participate in. Virginia's friend Brenda Peterson called several times over the last week, Brenda has been an email buddy since early 1999 when they met on the womens ministry email forum. Donna Tucker posted my message to the forum, and we appreciate the messages of love and caring that several other participants from this forum have already sent. Virginia's mother Harriet was about the same age as Virginia when she
also had a hysterectomy. Several years later Harriet died of breast cancer.
There are still times when Virginia mentions that she wishes she could talk
with her mother about something. Monday, August 12, 11:30am I'm at home trying to take care of some things that have to be done. Kight and I left the hospital last night just after visiting hours ended (8:30) for the first time since this ordeal began. Kight got up early and dropped in on Virginia before driving for home. I pray for a safe drive back to Lubbock for him. I was able to wake up about 8:15 this morning, the best sleep I've had in a long time. I am starting to focus on taking care of myself too, because I am of no use to Virginia if I'm not healthy. I just spoke to Virginia on the phone, she is doing pretty well. They have now moved her to a liquid diet instead of the clear diet. They had been waiting for some natural gas first. She finally got it this morning, so she can now have Orange Juice, and Cream of Chicken soup, things she actually likes. On the clear diet, Water, Apple Juice and Cranberry Juice had been about all she cared for of the available choices. They might or might not allow her to come home later today. They did a chest X-Ray yesterday, and an EKG this morning as they do further diagnostics. We should also get further details on the surgery and what was done later today. Frank Neeley just called me on my cell phone. It was good to hear from
him, as he went through losing his first wife to breast cancer
even before I originally met him. He and his second wife Bev
(a very neat lady) are headed down to the Kenai river to go salmon
fishing later today. Many good catches Frank! Also Sam Butler called
and spoke with Virginia at the hospital earlier this morning. He
had been our co-pastor many years ago in Alaska, shortly after we
were married, and before we moved to Aurora. Virginia was thrilled to
hear from him. Sunday, August 11, 5:35pm Hi, this is Connie (Virginia's exercise partner and friend). It is so good
to see Virginia on the other side of the surgery she so victoriously went
through. I know the God of All has been standing beside her, caring
for her, and helping her precious family support her. Looking
forward to our long tea parties of girl talk once again!!!!!
With me came Susan Provencio, a BSF (Bible Study Fellowship) friend
and summer Bible study buddy. She brought some beautiful yellow
mums to cheer up Virginia. It was added to the many other
floral arrangements already around the room. Sunday, August 11, 4pm We got Virginia disconnected from all her tubes, and took her to the bathroom for a shower... she walked there! Now we've put her back to bed again with the leg massagers, the IV and the Oxygen reconnected. Blood pressure is still a bit high, but not anything like it was. Praise the Lord! I also forgot to mention earlier that Marcia Fisher, and Diane Kelly called
from Pleasant Valley in Georgia several times since Virginia
hit the hospital, ministering to her and praying for her. If
you are not familiar with Pleasant Valley Ministries, you might
seek to rectify that. Sunday, August 11, 2pm Praise God, Virginia is now sitting in the chair next to me, with Kight on the other side. They just took the massagers off her legs, they took the urine catheter out, and left only the IV on. She may be allowed to take a shower shortly in the little bathroom attached to her room. Last night, Virginia did not have a roommate, so she had her room to herself last night, and this was a nice change of pace. This morning they have brought in a new, very quiet roommate. Kight plans on driving back to Lubbock tomorrow morning. We are hoping Virginia can go home tomorrow. Earlier today, Carolee Wise came in with flowers from our church congregation. There are several people that came by yesterday whom I have not mentioned so far. Virginia's cousin, Ila Wiese, Steve and Joanne Flores, Jerry and Mona Olson. Jim Neeley came back with some of his wife Gretchen's superb peach preserves and banana bread. Frank and Bev Neeley called from Alaska a day or two ago as did Pat and Mary Rockel. Also over the last several days Virginia has gotten calls from Allene
Richardson, another Cousin, Tee Kight, Virginia's Great Aunt. Also Corrine
Allen from Lubbock, Colleen Willard Virginia's mother's sister and her husband
Fred. Also on Monday afternoon, Welton and Sandy Tucker whom we have known
for years stopped by, it turns out they volunteer here at the hospital. Sunday, August 11, 1:50pm Hello from Paula Moldenhauer! After almost of year of being a weekly email
buddy with Virginia, we finally met face to face. I did
the unthinkable -- subjected her to pictures of the
children I've been writing her about -- my own as well as niece
and nephews. Virginia looks good. Thanks for all the prayers.
Mark and Virginia seem to be in good spirits after all the stress.
God is good -- even when life is not -- but in this case we are
rejoicing in a surgery that went better and more quickly than expected.
Blessing to all. Sunday August 11, 1:45pm Thanks Sarah..... uhh what regular job? She's being modest, they actually came from further than Colorado Springs, nearly Pueblo. It looks like they might try to let Virginia try to stand up, and maybe even shower & walk if she can today. I'm going to start giving people who come visit the opportunity to make an entry in this journal, as I bet you readers are tired of my writing, I know I am. Virginia has had a tube into her neck for some time now, they had poked her arms so many times with so many needles, that just before her operation on Friday they "went for the juglar", they put a large needle with three IV entries in. It is also ok to draw blood from... so there has been no more needles since Friday afternoon. Virginia is still sore from all the other poking, so that has been nice. Sunday August 11, 1:26pm Greetings from Sarah Grobe. My husband Gregg and I drove up from Colorado Springs this afternoon to see Virgina. Mark has asked that someone else make an entry... I must say that he is a little goofy, no really, I think he is so happy to have Virginia getting back to her normal wonderful self. But, I'm just going to say I think he will need to stick to his regular job :) although we did grace him with some laughter. We are all so happy that Virginia has come through this so well. We keep her and Mark and family in our prayers and keep thanking God for his grace and mercy. God is so good to us all. Saturday August 10th, 9:36pm I just arrived home, much earlier than usual and am about to post what was written earlier today. Before I go get some sleep, I also thought I'd add a couple comments. Tim Snyder made it by and annointed Virginia, as well as prayed with us on his way to services. Later Connie came by with a card that all the church members had written messages in and signed. The Cardiologist came by mid afternoon finally, and only got about 30 milliliters of fluid from Virginia's heart, so he removed the catheter. Later several other people dropped by and Virginia continued to look and act more like herself. After almost 46 hours without food or water, they finally let Virginia drink water and eat "clear foods" such as broth & jello (she did have an IV in). Nurses Chauntel, and Li have been great the last couple of days. Both Virginia and I have gotten quite a number of phone calls, cards, and
visits, as well as many prayers. Thank you all for your support in this difficult
time. I hope to reply to most in the coming weeks as does Virginia, but she
couldn't manage any today, and I am too tired to be coherent, as this log
entry probably shows. Best wishes everyone! Our prayers are with each
and every one of you too! Saturday August 10th, 11:16 am At the hospital, Virginia is sleeping, and I've brought the notebook computer with me. God answers prayer, Virginia is still alive and starting to act much more like herself. When she is ready to look at email, I have it fetched on this computer (I do this every morning before I leave the house, and transmit when I get home), she may or may not be able to respond yet, even if she gets to the point of wanting to read. We are still awaiting the Cardiologist to come and check out the catheter into her heart region regarding any further accumulation of fluid, and perhaps remove it. They won't allow me to plug into the power here, and frown on the use of the computer, but haven't said outright that I cannot use it. So I'll do what I can on this log until the battery low light blinks and then post it when/if I get home again. Virginia just said she's not asleep, but then zoned out again. Virginia's father and I are both very tired too. Virginia's blood pressure now seems to be under control, but during the first few days her blood pressure and vitals reached a little over 200 Systolic and 107 Distolic, her heartbeat rate was over 120, and her blood oxygen got down under 75% of what it should be. On the initial Sunday when I brought Virginia to the emergency room, she first got to sleep at about 3am, and I didn't make it home till 3:30, and we had to be back at about 7am Monday. Not a lotta time, and Virginia got less sleep than I did. The nurses were overworked, and a couple were downright rude. Tuesday was a little better, a night nurse named Susan, and then a day nurse named Steve came on, and they were wonderful. I left shortly after midnight, and came back the following afternoon, as there were many things that had to be taken care of. Virginia had my cell phone number, as did her nurse so I could come on a moment's notice if needed. Monday and Tuesday, Virginia had had a roommate (Glenda, we called her the "good witch") very nice, but she was nearly deaf, and could not survive without the TV going 24 hours a day. Glenda also talked loud on the telephone all her waking hours, and it became clear why she'd had a heart attack from what she was dealing with at home. Virginia's earplugs didn't do the trick. I also took a few minutes on Tuesday to look at the stock market, and made a fortunate option trade netting us a little over $2000 in 20 minutes. A blessing from God, as I had not intended to do it, and had for some unknown reason pulled completely out of the market and into cash on Friday. Now I know that God had me do it... because Monday or any day but Tuesday, I'd never have been able to pay enough attention while focusing on Virginia. If my timing were only consistently this good! Since then it has been going home between 10 and midnight, and back between 7 and 10am (mostly earlier and later) depending on what the next day's constantly fluid plans were. Monday morning we had called Kight Lane, Virginia's father to let him know Virginia's situation, and by Wednesday afternoon he had driven here to Denver from Lubbock. Wednesday evening we finally decided we had to sedate Virginia and put her to sleep so she would be rested for the operation. The fear and anxiety were getting extreme, and Virginia wanted constant attention and to be ignored at the same time. It was weird. When the nurse gave her the sedative through her IV tube, Virginia did something that really touched and concerned me. But for it to mean anything to the reader, I have to tell another story first. When Virginia and I were married, I had a cat named "Cat", or "Purrball" and sometimes "Spagetti", but that's another story. Virginia's family had had several siamese cats as she grew up, and Virginia really liked them. In any case, we moved Cat to Denver with us, and several years ago, the neighbor's new young tomcat attacked our elderly spayed female, and she started to have kidney problems. After a few bouts, she started to smell and we had to take Cat to the vet, and after a few treatments that did no good, to put her to sleep. After the vet gave her the shot, Cat crawled across the table and into my arms to die. It was clear she knew what was happening. This story comes up every now and then, and I get sentimental each time. I never knew how much I cared for that cat until she died. In her fear and stupor, Virginia thought we were putting her to "sleep" just like Cat, wanted me to come over, and as best she could nestled into my arms, thinking she was about to die. I couldn't help but cry. Fortunately the next morning Virginia didn't remember, and thought it was funny. For Virginia's birthday (August 8) she got a heart tap, and found out her uncle Herschel died, (father's sister Maxine's husband) instead of the romantic steak dinner we had been planning at the Aurora Summit. We had known that Herschel's death was a possibility, and had wanted to attend his funeral when it happened. So now the family is split going two directions, with Julia, Virginia's sister and Julia's daughter Christy & Christy's husband Nick, and other daughter Karen headed to Dublin Texas for the funeral. Quite the day. But it wasn't a total loss, Connie brought over a pound cake (one of Virginia's favorites), in a cute paper sack with a cool tsuffed racoon in it (we call him Bandit), and three helium balloons tied to it by ribbons. My lifetime friend Jim Neeley also came and brought Palisade Peaches he'd gone to get a few days earlier. She also got a very cute stuffed dog brought by Bonnie Greene, who missed us earlyer while Virgina was getting her heart tap. So we had a little party muffled by the fact that Virginia couldn't eat the cake, was strapped into the bed looking like she was in training to go undercover with the Borg, and had what will be her last period start (as women and husbands know, it always schedules itself for the most inconvenient possible time). I'm guessing she'll never forget this birthday. I think that catches us up to date... It's now 1:30 pm, Tim Snyder
came by, and the cardiologist still has not arrived.
But Kight and I did make it to the cafeteria for a quick lunch.
The food at this hospital is pretty good, and not expensive. That
has sure been a blessing! I also found a place I can plug in for
recharge. Sat Aug 10, 2002, 8:17 am Virginia just called from the hospital, so I am going to have to write quickly, and add more later. The short story is that they did take her to surgery at 2:30 pm as expected. Apparently God answered prayer, the surgery took less time than they figured it would. First they put her to sleep under a general anesthetic via a tap they put into her jugular vein. Then they put stents into her ureters so that the surgeon could feel them as he was working to be sure not to cut them. Then the surgery. It was called "An Exploratory Lapirotomy, with Complete Hysterectomy". I was not allowed to watch, so I am passing on what I was told before and after surgery. They made an incision from just above her pelvic bone to about 3 inches above her belly button. The surgeon made the comment that he had no idea how she was still walking around with a fibroid that they initially described from the cat scans as "larger than a basketball". But he also said that it was an easier than expected surgery. Mercifully the fibroid/uterus it was not intertwined with or attached to any other organs. They also said they had not found any obvious cancer in her lower abdomen (below the diaphragm), but that the lab tests would tell for sure later. After they brought her back back to the room she had been in before (unexpected, they told us they were going to move her) around 5:30pm, she would wake up for seconds at a time to recognize who was there, and then doze right back off. Connie Armstrong, Meg Nesbitt, Kight Lane and myself were there most of that time. She is still not allowed to eat and drink, and the doctors are still concerned about the fluid on her lungs and heart. We don't yet know if that will clear up or if it is cancer related. They had to take her ovaries too, because the breast cancer is "estrogen receptive". Fortunately the spirit of fear that seemed to be working on Virginia for the last several weeks has been removed. I'm sure a contributing factor was the fact that she had not been able to sleep for more than about 2-4 hours a night for about the last month before going to the hospital. Now we know why, and I wish I'd taken her to the hospital earlier. Many thanks for all of you who are following this saga and praying for us. We know that many of you have your own issues that you are dealing with, and those we know about, we are praying for as well. Even groggy, Virginia has occasionally thought of a trial someone else is having and asked me to pray with her on that topic. God made us in a wonderful way, it helps us *and* others when we consider the needs and pray for the trials of others. More later, for now she is needing for me to run to her......... I already
sent Kight (her father). Our pastor, Tim Snyder is due
to come by to see her about 9am, and she wants me there.
Friday August 9, 2002, Following is the original message I sent
out today: Subject: Virginia in Hospital There is no need to reply to this message. Indeed I could not respond if everyone replied. I apologize that I cannot communicate with each of you individually as I'd prefer. If I don't have your email, and you received this through a third party, my sincere apologies. In my rush I sent this to my complete address book, so people who may not care will get it. Under the circumstances I hope you understand. Some of you may be here more than once, as I manually added addresses from Virginia's address book too. Thanks for your understanding. -- Sunday morning we discovered Virginia couldn't urinate. We thought it would pass and so went to visit Eastern Hills Community Church ... she couldn't pee or sit through the session so we went back home. By early Sunday after a lot of praying, and devil rebuking/deliverance, it was clear that this was serious and not going to change. So I took her to the emergency room at Medical Center of Aurora, South Plaza. After an hour or so they had put in a catheter, over a liter later, Virginia felt a lot better. As I write, Virginia is still in the hospital (room 433, 303-873-4793, under her maiden name of LANE, they may move her today), and scheduled for surgery on Friday at 2pm. It was originally scheduled for Thursday, but the doctors rescheduled after they found they had to drain over a pint of fluid off Virginia's heart first. They hope to let her come home by Monday morning, but she will probably not be up and around again for 6 weeks or so. Also, they fear they'll find cancer inside, as Virginia has breast cancer as well. The cat scan indicated that her breast cancer has already metastasized to her lung. Everyone at the hospital has been wonderful, and many thanks to all our friends who have visited, called or written. We feel bad that we have not replied individually to everyone. The outpouring has really lifted Virginia's spirits. I've already given everything I have, including Virginia to God, I am simply the steward entrusted with these blessings. While I grieve for what Virginia is going through, and my potential loss, I also appreciate all the years I've been allowed to share with her. God's will be done. I pray his will is complete healing, and a lot more years with the woman I love and my best friend..... and I am not giving up yet. I'm reminded of David praying for Bathsheba's first son... and anticipate a different outcome. Also of the book of Job. What I've told Virginia is to trust God, accept death, and then fight with all she is for life. I think she fears leaving me alone, and her friends behind more than the actual potential of death itself... but I try to tell her that God is good, and big enough to see to the needs of all who trust him to do so. I never thought of unemployment as a blessing before, but it's giving me time to care for Virginia. And since we have no medical insurance, and unemployment checks are running out... the low income and assets may actually qualify us for assistance programs in paying the hospital bills. It is humbling to someone (me) who has always prided himself in making his own way. We fortunately had saved enough from my/our salary from our prior business success to make it this far (and a little further yet) with cutbacks already made in our lifestyle. God is good, and what is taken away he can also give back if that is the right thing for us. God has met our needs thus far, and I have faith that he will continue to do so. Some will ask what do I want? Prayers would be appreciated, that's it. I wish you all well, Thanks for caring. BTW: Feel free to pass this message or information on to people I may have forgotten or missed, but please don't turn this into one of those chain letters that circulates on the internet for years. Note the date 8/9/2002! Follow up postings * will not * be emailed to the list. They (and this message) will be posted at http://www.Bolzern.Org/vhealth.html shortly, so please look there for updates! Thank you! Virginia will be reachable Click Here to Email Virginia as soon as she is able to manage doing email again. If you wish to send a message to her, please send it there. I wish you all well, Thanks for caring, I'm headed back to the hospital now. Mark PS: Yesterday was Virginia's Birthday, and thanks to Connie for the little party. -- Mark Bolzern
Click Here to Email Mark
http://www.Bolzern.Org Phone: 303-690-2806 Fax: 303-693-6064 Put me to work for you! http://Bolzern.Org/MarkResume.html This is the beginning of Virginia's online Journals |
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