Getting to hug Bryce!

This is a pic Lee got of me holding Bryce.  He may grow up and be our little jewelry thief, but I don't think so . . . I'll gladly give him whatever he wants!  He is such a snugly, precious baby darling!  He's happy as can be and his head is healing beautifully!  If you look really closely you can see where they made the incision starting at the top of his ear and going up over his head to the other ear.  What a tremendous surgery and how wonderful that he did so beautifully with it.  We sure thank God for his health!  We also thank God for the opportunity to get to squeeze him lots this weekend.  It's so amazing to me that God gives us the capacity of heart to love so many precious people!

Happy Easter, everyone.  Count all the many blessings; I've lost count!

Collected the van and some hugs!

We stopped at Tricia's house long enough today to pick up the Astro, which they had used to come to Branson.  When we got there Grace and Raynie were in the back yard playing, so we went back to say hello to them.  Raynie went running straight for Lee and nearly knocked him over jumping up into his arms.  It's so sweet how they've all caught onto each other.  Look how Gracie is nearly as tall as me!  I sure love the haircut that Gretta gave her in Branson!  It was great to see them briefly.  I got good pics of Bryce with us, too, so I'll share them on later posts.  He's doing so beautifully!  Praise the Lord!

We had a safe trip and a great weekend of visiting with lots of Lee's family, so we have so much for which to give thanks.  I got home and found a message from the middle school principal asking me to sub Monday and Wednesday in the class I subbed for last week!  What a gift that they don't need me on Tuesday because I have my next treatment on Tuesday.  I pray that I won't be sick and I'll be able to pull off teaching on Wednesday.  If I feel rugged, these kids will cut me some slack; I'm telling you they are great kids!  I'll get good rest on tomorrow and Tuesday; I'll be all ready and prepared for school, so this will work great.  I'm blessed to have the work and I absolutely love the middle school kids.  I love the high school, too.  It makes subbing so much fun because I get to see kids at all levels.  If I had a regular class, I'd only have my kids, but that would have it's blessings, too.  I'm grateful for what God gives me; I know I'm blessed.

Happy Easter everyone!

Lee is a puzzled guy!

Check out the puzzle we did in Branson over spring break!  Notice that Lee is standing right in the middle of the puzzle at the bottom!  Cool, huh?  That's Raynie's sweet hand at the top pointing out the great work we did!  This was one of the more fun puzzles that we've done.  We .love looking for the details, like Lee!

I am still counting my blessings of getting to share spring break with a dozen of us.  It was fantastic times and many memories to treasure.

Lee and I are in OKC tonight for his great niece's wedding reception.  More precious memories.  I am ready to go and can hardly wait to see everyone.  We'll head home tomorrow after some more visiting and grocery shopping.  It's good to come to OKC sometimes to get things we can't get in Hobart, besides the great hugs!

God bless!

Missing my dollies!

This is a precious memory from when Gretta and Elena came early to join us in Branson.  We went to the College of the Ozarks for lunch and Elena did such a great job eating.  She was all about that ice cream that came with her dinner, too.  Lee and I were lucky that they were out of the bread pudding that is so yummy there!  I'm committed to not feeding this cancer (Cancer likes sugar.), so I'm glad I wasn't tempted!  Being diabetic he sure doesn't need any bread pudding, either!  I may have cancer, but I'm not going to feed it!  I'm going to make it's existence a tough row to hoe!

We are missing the kids.  That spring break in Branson was such a treat.  Many times Elena climbed up into Lee's lap to count the pages in his book with him.  I know he thinks of her every time he sits down with a book and nobody in his lap these days.  I look at him sitting there with a book and he looks lonely.  I know it's a special treat to recall going over the numbers to 100 with Elena!  Precious, precious memories!

I taught yesterday and today for the 6th grade English and Reading teacher.  It was a little bit of heaven for me.  I love those kids!  I count it a blessing to get to spend spring with the kids and I hope they'll call me a lot to teach.  I sure hope I continue to feel like doing it!  God is great to give me these blessings!

Sweet baby Bryce!

I swiped this picture off Facebook.  Krissy posted his 9 month old picture and I know many of you have had Bryce in your prayers as we have!  You can't even see where they did his surgery!  He is doing so well; we sure thank God for his health!  We get to see them this weekend, so Lee and I are both looking forward to holding him to see if he hugs the same as ever!

Today I subbed for the English and reading teacher for the 6th grade.  I sure love those kids!  It was really good for me to get the boost they give me.  I'll sub in the same class tomorrow, so two fun days for me.  The classroom is where I belong; I can feel it when I'm there.   I thank God for the chance to be there, but I pray for the teacher's son, who broke his leg!  Bless his heart!  I pray that he heals rapidly and never has another problem with that leg!

Tonight the Thunder plays and then I'm going to bed to be ready to teach tomorrow.  Can you believe I have Internet?  Me, either.  I got home from posting last night at Bob's house and my connection was working fine.  I can't even begin to understand it, but I just had to call today (they were closed last night) and cancel the shipment of new equipment.  All that frenzy last night was just an exercise in patience, I guess.

Good news and bad news.

The good news is that Ruthie had her knee replaced yesterday and I talked to her last night and she was doing really well.  I haven't talked to her today because, that's the bad news:  my modem has died.  I was on the cell phone with ATT until it ran down, so it's recharging and I'll hope to get Ruthie and get today's update soon!  I trust God is taking care of her, though!

I put this picture on the blog tonight because it was one that has Bob and Diana in it when they were visiting us in Branson.  I'm sitting in their living room using their Internet connection tonight to explain that I'm going to be offline for 3-5 business days.  If you need to contact me use my cell phone:  405-823-6453 because my home phone is connected to the Internet and is out of commission.  

I hate these technical challenges.  Thank God for Di and Bob who live nearby and are HOME this week!  Otherwise, I'd be calling Trish to get her to post for me and explain my absence.  I'm doing well, so don't worry about me.  I got my next treatment set up for a week from today in Lawton, so I'm in good shape treatment-wise.  I'm on day 10 I think with no head pain, so I'm a happy camper!

Okay, that's the good news and the bad news.  I think the good news is better than the bad news, so we're still giving thanks.  Just take a few days off from the blog, but don't forget me.  Check back around the end of the week; I'm hoping I'll have new equipment by then!  If not, surely the first of next week!  God bless!  I'll bet there's a silver lining in this cloud!  :)

So many thanks!

What a treasure!  Usually, we get together in Gatlinburg after our family reunion.  This year we won't be making the reunion because Lee's granddaughter is getting married on the same day as the reunion.  Granddaughter's weddings always trump family reunions!  So, I was afraid we wouldn't get this little reunion together at all this year.  Gretta made it happen for spring break, though.  Garrett managed to get off work for the week and Gretta managed to join us for the week of her spring break and was able to stay for the week of Garrett's spring break.  She had to jump through some hoops at her own school to make that happen and had lots of support on her end to make it happen.  We're so grateful!  I will treasure the memories.  One especially of Elena crawling up into Lee's lap to count the pages in his novel!  She claimed she only knew the easy numbers to 100, but she knew every single number.  I guess they're all easy, once you know them.  She and Garrett were both a help in finishing the puzzle, too.  Gretta worked for hours with me and we got it DONE, much to Lee's surprise!

It's pitifully quiet around here, but we sure treasure the memories.  Thanks so much to God and all His helpers who made this week happen!

Precious memories!

This was the night that Bob and Diana came to join us for beans and cornbread and then we played hand and foot canasta into the night!  It was a great way to spend a night in Branson!  We are so blessed to have friends that are as close as family and they fit right in with our family.  Bob and Gretta are great friends on Facebook; they share many political beliefs and love a lot of the same folks.  It was great for them to meet in person.  Bob and Di had met Trish and the kids before because they are here fairly often.  Gretta being in Kentucky doesn't get here much, though.  It was good to all get to share some great time!

Today was a full Sunday.  We took Dorothy to church with us this morning and then she came home with us for a chef's salad and sugar free peach cobbler for lunch.  Then she went with me to sing at the nursing home.  I took her home and then came home and fell into bed until it was time to go back to church tonight.  I think if I were one of the 7 dwarfs these days I would be Sleepy!  I wonder if I'll ever catch up on sleep?  I keep telling myself that God gave me the gift of sleep and sleep is a good time of healing, so I should give in to the urge and sleep whenever I can.  I hope to sell myself on the concept soon; I really think it's right!

I'm headed to bed early tonight.  I got to watch the OKC Thunder beat the Trailblazers, so it's a good time to go to bed!  ZZZZZZZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

The rest of the group and the puzzle!

Lee laughed when Gretta and I started this puzzle and he said, "You'll never get this done in a week."  Maybe he has learned, now, that he nailed the final nail in the coffin of getting that puzzle done when he said we couldn't do it.  That's all Gretta and I needed to hear to make it certain that we'd finish it.  I even sat out of a day of Nertz games to be sure we finished it.  It was way fun.  Even Raynie and Elena were helpful in putting in some 'matches.'  In this picture is Sadie, Megan, Trish, holding Raynie, me and Garrett.

It's funny.  People ask what we do when we go to Branson.  We sometimes see a show or two, but mostly we have some standard things we do.  Swim.  Puzzles. Card games.  Cheese ball.  Chex.  Those are STANDARD and we always do them.  Of course there is always shopping and hiking, too.  We like staying up late and sleeping in, too.  Oh, there are the hot tubs and jet baths, too.  The most important thing is that we do it all together and the company is what makes it work so well.  Fun, fun, fun!  I treasure the memories of all the fun trips we've shared and I thank God for making it all possible and safe for us every year.

Home, home, home!!!

Home is always so sweet!  But, on our way home we stopped in Tulsa and met Bob and Diana at a mutual friend's house for a great visit.  This is Bob and Diana, (who surprised us by coming to Branson this week) and Debbie Shushkewitch, who welcomed us with hugs, and then me and Lee.  Debbie is one of my strongest support people in the whole world, so it meant so much to get to visit with her.  We are usually racing through Tulsa, so we miss her, but it was fun to get to stop today.  Debbie and Bob and I were in Japan at the same time, so we go back a long, long way!

We stopped in OKC and saw that Trish and the kids made it home fine.  Gretta had written last night that she and Elena had made it all the way home, safely.  I praise God for our safe travels and for terrific, fun times!

Some of us.

We got this pic today when Trish, Nate, Megan and Sadie were out somewhere.  We got them in another pic which I'll post soon.  This was around the puzzle we worked on this week and finally finished today.  I'll post the completed puzzle soon, too.  We've had a grand week!  Gretta and Elena left for home this afternoon.  The rest of us will leave in the morning if we aren't snowed in!  It looks like about 3 inches out there right now.  I sure hope they sand and salt the roads good because we're down in a hole!

Pictured above are Garrett, Gretta, holding Raynie, Mason, holding Elena, me and then Lee, holding Gracie.  Gretta gave Gracie a great new haircut yesterday!

I sure thank God for this wonderful time to share with family and friends.  It's been awesome!  I pray that we all make it home safely.  What a wild spring to have a winter wonderland out there!

Nertz!

 This is a picture I took the other night when we were playing Nertz.  Nertz is a way fun game that the whole family can play.  The more who play, the wilder it gets!  We do wild really well!  I sure thank God for this great spring break.

The weather folks are telling us to look for a winter storm tomorrow with an accumulation of 2-6 inches!  Holy cow!  This is the end of March!  We're hoping they've got the forecast wrong.  Whatever happens we'll deal with it.  Gretta is planning to leave for home tomorrow, but the weather going her direction is supposed to be dry.  I'm thinking whatever we get tomorrow will melt by the time we leave on Friday.  Well, I'm hoping for that.  I trust it all to God; we'll deal with it.

Oh!  I must tell you that I had absolutely NO ill effects from the injections I got yesterday!  Woo hoo!  I sure thank God for that!  Also this is day 5 of no pain in my head.  Yes!

Surprise!

These are our friends, Bob and Diana, who live in Hobart with us.  Bob and I went to school together in Japan, so we've known  each other since we were 13.  He brought Diana to a reunion back in the early 90's, and we've all been close ever since.  Then they moved to Hobart a dozen or so years ago.  They are wonderful friends and feel just like family.  Last night we were having a rowdy game of Nertz and there was a loud knock at the door.  I said, "Uh oh, it's probably security telling us to be quiet!"  We opened the door and there stood Bob holding one of my granddaughters in each arm and Diana all smiles!  We were all thrilled to death to see them!  They visited a bit last night, but they had just arrived in town and needed to go eat and get to bed.  They came back tonight and ate beans and cornbread and salad with us for dinner and stayed to play a great game of hand and foot canasta.  We all loved it!  I know I have got to be one of the most blessed people in the world because I have such dear friends and family!

Elena and Raynie agreed that Bob and Lee look alike!  We thought that was so funny, but from their perspective, they are both tall and  bald with big smiles and strong arms!  All I know is that I thank God for precious grand people in my life as well as the best friends in the whole world.

I went for my 2nd treatment today and they didn't have the meds I needed!  They got me all set up, though, and worked it out to have the meds sent down from Springfield, so I went back at 3 and got my injections.  So far I'm not having any ill effects.  I only had one drug and the last time I had two, so I'm thinking the one that made me sick was the other one.  I only have to have it once a month, so I can deal with that.  I just pray that this combination will work.  This is my 4th day with no head pain, so I'm taking that as a good sign.

Sorry this is so late, but I was in a heavy duty canasta game until just a few minutes ago.  God bless!

This is a picture of Megan and I.  Megan is Nate's girlfriend and she's a real part of our family.  We all feel so blessed to have Megan in our lives, and we give thanks for her.

We're getting ready to play more Nertz and work more on the puzzle.  Trish and her bunch hiked today.  Gretta and her crew hung out at the condo while Gretta worked online.  Lee and I did some errands around town, so I missed the hike.   I hated to miss that, but Lee wasn't keen on me hiking, so it worked out fine.  He's probably right.  I need to be using my energy to heal and the cold is not a great time for me to be outside because it makes me cough.  (He worries that I'm going to cough up a lung.  Sometimes I have such a coughing fit and it really scares him.  Bless his heart, he doesn't know that I've ALWAYS done this, so it's scary to him.)

This was day 3 of no soreness on my head.  What a relief and gift!  I thank God for this blessing, and especially for the blessing of this time with so much of the family!

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

This is Megan (Nate's girlfriend) and Nate with me in the kitchen of Tricia's unit.  We  are always trading dishes, food, etc.  Nate was 21 yesterday.  How well I remember 21 years ago when he was born.  He's been a delight every day since that birth.  He brings Megan into our world and she's another delight!

This is my second day in a row with absolutely no sore head!  I'm so thrilled.  It's way more comfortable and sure makes pulling shirts over my head easier!  I sure hope and pray that it means this treatment is working.

We spent the afternoon playing Nertz (a way fun card game) and working on the puzzle.  I am so grateful for this time with Trish, Gretta and their kids.  We're having a wonderful time!

At the overlook.

I think it was Thursday that we stopped at the overlook to look back over part of Branson.  The days are starting to run together, so I'm having a hard time keeping one day separated from the next.  The kids are being so good.  It's amazing how well they interact!  Today was Nate's 21st birthday, so we celebrated him all day.  I'd better get a picture of him tomorrow!  Sadie and Grace have birthdays coming up soon, so we're celebrating them this week, too.  We're celebrating life in general and so grateful for this time to share!

Today we got started on a 1000 piece puzzle.  We also played hand and foot canasta and Nertz.  It was way rowdy and way fun!  I even had time for a nap this afternoon.  Good thing, since I'm up so late tonight.

This is the first day that my head hasn't hurt at all.  I'm so tempted to think that means this treatment is working.  What an exciting thought!  I know lots of us are praying for that to be the case, so I should not be surprised.  What a gift if we could find the first treatment that we do works and can give me some more time to enjoy life and be a part of God's plan.  At the very worst it's great that my head isn't hurting today!  Praise God!

More puzzling!

Trish arrived with 7 more kids!  The littlest one, Raynie, helped Elena and I put the puzzle together, again.  We're getting really good at this puzzle.  I think we have another couple in their van that we'll start working, soon.  This one is really fun, though!  Right now everyone is settling in and making plans for this next week.  Lots of fun on the calendar!

Elena was 6 in February and Raynie will be 6 in July.  They are great buddies!  It is always so much fun when we get all these cousins in one place.  I thank God for them and for the times we get to share.  I'm hoping we can get everyone in one place for a picture this week.  That's a big order, but we'll work on it.

Puzzling.

I bought this puzzle yesterday at the thrift store and when we worked it last night we learned that it was missing a piece along the edge of the top. (You can tell where it is; it's darker green than the rest of the puzzle, but it's better than an empty space!d)  We didn't have any brown markers, but we had black and green, so we made a replacement piece.  It works and it was fun to do.  Elena and I worked this puzzle twice this afternoon.  She's really good at puzzles!

Earlier today we went to the fish hatchery and had lots of fun feeding the fish.  Then we went out to the lookout and then to the College of the Ozarks for lunch.  Needless to say we stuffed ourselves and supper will be very light!

It was warm enough to not wear a jacket, so that was a nice break. I thank God for a warm day!  Tomorrow is supposed to be warm, too; we're planning to go out to adventure around Big Cedar.

Remembering with joy.

We had a fun day today, but I didn't take any pics.  In fact, I think I've left the camera in the truck.  So, I went back to pick out a picture from the good times in Hawaii.  This one is Sissy and I sitting on a swing down in Pololu Valley.  This was the day that Lee fell three times as we climbed down.  Bless his heart, he made it out just fine and when you ask what was his favorite thing in Hawaii, he often says going down into Pololu Valley.  He was really the sport to do it!  I wouldn't take anything for the memories we made with Sissy, either!

We are having another memorable trip with Gretta and Elena.  Elena is so much fun and we are delighted to get to spend this time with her.  Friday Trish will be here with more kids, so we'll be in heaven for sure!  I thank God for these opportunities to spend with precious family.  We are so blessed!

Last Sunday at home.

I think we got home from Hawaii on Friday and left for OKC on Sunday after church.  This was the picture I got the timer on the camera to get of us.  We barely had any time at home.  We rushed to OKC after church so we could be there for Bryce's surgery early Monday morning and then we raced to Houston that afternoon so we could be there for my appointment on Tuesday morning.   We met with the doctor on Tuesday morning and he set up my first treatment for that afternoon.  Then we headed out for Branson and arrived on Wednesday night.  Good grief; no wonder I'm so tired!

Lee ordered me to nap this afternoon.  I was happy to oblige him.  I am the world's best sleeper.  It's a gift that God has given to me, so I need to thank Him for it and rest all I can.  I believe that rest will help with my healing.  Lee is such a dear.  I woke up once when the phone rang and he was in the bathroom so he couldn't get to it.  It was somebody selling something.  Lee ordered me (lovingly) back to bed; he said, "You didn't get your nap out; go right back to bed!"  I had started doing some laundry and he insisted he could finish it.  He did!  I might could get used to this pampering!

Gretta and Elena have their own unit, right down the porch from us.  We see them often, but we all have plenty of privacy and we each have a jet tub!  It's great.  Gretta went to run some errands today and left Elena with us.  She's  amazing;  she plays great by herself; she carries on conversations for all the kids she's imagining are playing with her.  She keeps Lee and I amazed and entertained!

Moved and tired but content!

Our time was up at the last condo, so we moved to the one where we'll be for the next 9 days; we'll stay 11 if they can arrange it.  If they can't then we'll move to another condo for the last couple of nights.  Right now it feels good to know that we're here for a while.

We're all exhausted after moving today, not to mention all the fun we've had since we've been here.  It's so great to have Gretta and Elena with us.  Lee asked Elena tonight if she could count to a hundred and she said, "Well, just the easy numbers."  Then she sat down with him and the novel he's reading and pointed out all the numbers to 100 to him.  He was amazed and she never realized what she did!  She thought she just got the easy ones!

We have our own units, so we've got privacy, but we hang out together for meals and lots of other times.  We've gotten to keep Elena while Gretta runs errands and it's been great!  Tonight I think we're all going to bed early!  We're hoping that when Trish gets here with the rest of the kids on Friday that they'll give them the unit between us.  The fun times will really begin then!  I thank God for safety when we all travel.  These times together are so special!

Fun, fun, fun, nap!

This is a picture the camera on timer got of us today.  Fun times!  We lost an hour of sleep last night, so that justified a 2 hour nap this afternoon.  I love those kinds of deals!

It's rained and been pretty cool in Branson today.  That made napping even better!  Gretta and Elena went out exploring a bit while I took a nap and Lee read.  It was relaxing and a great day.

Tomorrow we check out of this condo and check into another one.  We check out at 10 and don't get to check in until 4, so we've got some time to explore between 10 and 4.  I expect we'll be plenty tired after tomorrow, but I also expect it will be a fun, fun day.  God is great to us and I love getting to share this time.

Gretta and Elena are here!

Let the fun times begin!  Gretta and Elena got here shortly after noon today, so we've had lots of fun, already.  I'm so grateful for their safe trip.

We are staying at a Bluegreen resort.  When I told the front desk that Gretta and Elena had joined us,  and  asked for a parking pass for her, they said I'd have to come up and get it.  When I did they told me she had to park up the hill at another building where there is additional parking because this unit only supports one parking place.  I tell you this so that you will know better than to ever buy from Bluegreen.  (We have been premier owners for 5 years!)  Instead of treating owners special they treat us with no respect.  I walked over to the cabinet in the kitchen awhile ago and slipped and nearly fell!  I looked and the floor was totally wet.   We looked all around and the ceiling was leaking.  I called maintenance and the guy came and discovered that the ice maker above us was leaking.  He couldn't fix our ceiling tonight but he could move us to another unit.  Right, like I want to move to another unit for just one more day.  We check out of here on Monday.  So, I'm nice to them about not moving and about a pan sitting in the middle of my kitchen floor and I go to get a parking pass for Gretta and they want her to park up the hill.  She's not moving.  I'm done being  nice.  Like Gretta said, "You paid how much for this place?"  I paid enough that they can let her park here and that's final.  I didn't even have to tell them that she was here!  I understand there are rules, but I also understand that there is such a thing as sensitivity and compassion.  Just don't ever expect to get any if you ever become a Bluegreen owner.

Other than dealing with the timeshare people we're having a great time!  We are so thrilled to have Gretta and Elena here!.  Monday we'll leave and go to another timeshare, who also treats owners pretty badly.  Always remember that; the sales people are really nice and they talk a pretty story, but once you are owners you are on their NOBODY list.  Listen to the voice of experience.

A mostly 'normal' day.

Today was red shirt Friday, but Lee's red shirt hangs dry and it wasn't dry yet.  I'm calling this shirt red; it has some red stripes and a red bow; that's good enough for me.  This pic we got by putting the camera on top of the TV and setting the timer; thus you get a good shot of the ceiling.  :)

We ran a few errands today and ate 3 meals.  That's a good start on a normal day.  I read an article on FB last night about how good lemons are for you, so I'm putting them on everything.  They said that lemon peel has 10 times more cancer killing power than chemo, so I'm all over these lemons.  That was one of our errands; to go buy a bag of lemons.

Gretta is coming with Elena either tomorrow or Sunday.  We're so excited to have them join us!  Then Trish and her kids will come and bring Garrett on Friday.  This is going to be a great reunion for us.and Lee and I are thrilled.

Lee talked to Bryce's mommy today and she said he's doing just like he's supposed to be doing.  Both his eyes were swollen shut and they're both open today, so the swelling is going down.  While he was talking to her a huge smile came to his face when he heard Bryce in the background talking and laughing!  God is awesome.  He's taking care of Bryce; He'll take care of us, too.  Thanks for your prayers for Bryce and for us!

Took a day of rest.

Bob and Diana came over Saturday bringing Subway sandwiches and a ton of pics Bob has been transferring from old negatives to his computer.  It was fun to go through these with him.  You can see that he and I are totally involved; Diana is glad to see us getting such a kick out of her Christmas present to Bob, but I think she still has trouble understanding the bond between all of us.  Bob and Judy and I went to school together in Japan.  Bob Dwyer, the guy we house sit for in Hawaii was part of that school in Japan, too.  We are all so tight and they are wonderful support for me.

Today Lee and I have totally rested.  We didn't even ever get out of our pajamas.  I think we were both exhausted from the activity, travel and stress pf the last few weeks.  A side effect of the fusion I got Tuesday is flu symptoms for 24 hours.  I sure felt that.  i was so thrilled when those symptoms disappeared, but I still feel weak, like I'm recovering from the flu.  I am just so grateful that we have something to use to fight this cancer.  Mostly I am grateful for Lee who has been absolutely awesome.  When we checked in last night and into the hotel the night before he wouldn't let me touch a thing,  He loaded and unloaded it all.  I know that was hard on him, but I felt too bad to fight him.  I won't be that sick, again, I sure hope!  i don't want to wear him out!  Besides all the work he is like a doting grandpa.  He's all over me to be sure I'm okay.  I've never been so pampered, and I love it!  But, I'm not going to let him do it all ever again

Speaking of Mr. Wonder guy he is nowt starching and ironing his jeans.  What a guy.  I did wash them, but he's doing the hard part!  I never could understand why his jeans had to be starched and ironed, but I'm reading the book "Men are from Mars and Women are from Venus," and it's all perfectly clear to me, now.  That a great book.  It should be required reading for any married couple

Made it to Branson; rest is at hand!

I thought I had several pictures from yesterday, but this is the only one I had.  I guess the rest are on Judy's phone.  Lee took this one when we were waiting to go in for my treatment.  This wonderful Judy has been through this whole journey with me.  She took us to MD Anderson for my first appointment back in 2007.  If she wasn't in Japan, then she's been with me for every appointment or treatment.  She represents to me all our friends from school in Japan and what a comfort she is!  We have so much fun.  We giggle just like we did in 7th and 8th grade!

The doc told me I'd feel like I had the flu for the first 24 hours, and, man, was he right!  I was so sick last night.  I chilled all night.  When we got up this morning I could hardly hold up my head.  I was a limp as a wet rag.  Lee loaded the truck and we set off for Branson and I slept until about 3.  I woke up feeling good, again!  I'm tired, but not a bit sick.  I'm not supposed to get sick after the first treatment.  I sure hope that is true and I sure hope these treatments work.

We are moved into our condo and we did the grocery run, so we can rest!  We're going to sleep until we wake up in the morning.  No alarms; no agenda.  I thank God for rest!  I thank God for the bag of tricks that the doc has to help me beat this cancer!  I thank God for all the tremendous support I have in every direction.  Lee has been absolutely wonderful.  I thought today, without him I would be doing this all by myself and all by myself is no fun at all!

Bryce continues to heal.  His swelling should have peaked today and we expect him to start looking like himself soon.  We sure thank God for him and for his doc's back of tricks, too!

The scoop.

So sorry, there is no picture tonight.  We've just finished at MD Anderson and will head to Branson asap.  We'll get as far as we can and then stop for the night, but I wanted to write this now so those of you who are waiting for results won't have such a long wait.  I am on the 6th floor at MD Anderson at some very slow computers they provide; I'm grateful for them!

The cancer has spread to my liver and bones.  It is in my skull (because that is bone) but it is NOT in my brain.  It may be in my lungs, but they are not sure of that.  They will watch it closely.  They started me today on an infusion to strengthen my bones and prevent it from getting worse.  They also started me on a hormone which was a shot in each hip.  It took until now to get all that done.  We're heading out of here asap so we can get to Branson and check in tomorrow, only 2 days late.  :)  I'm just thrilled that we get to go!

I will have another treatment in Springfield or Branson, wherever I can find an oncologist.  Then in a month I will have another treatment in Lawton with the doctor who did much of my chemo treatments in 2007.  In 2 months I will return to MD Anderson for my oncologist to repeat all these tests and determine if these treatments have stabilized the cancer.  If they have, then he says I can live for year after year with these treatments.  If my cancer does not respond to these treatments, then we will do chemo, again.  We'll keep working until we find something to which my body responds well.  If we are unable to find anything that will stabilize the cancer then it will kill me within 2 years.  I'm so glad to be at MD Anderson where I feel very comfortable with their care and direction.  God has me right where He wants me.  I trust Him to give me direction and I will do my best to follow His lead.  Thank you all for your love and prayers.   What we pray for is strength and courage for Lee and I to get through this and for a treatment plan that will arrest the cancer growth.  I feel good and confident.   I'll be on tomorrow with pics we got today.  I just don't have access to pictures on this computer.  God bless!

Guys of the day.

We were able to get to the hospital this morning and see Bryce before he had his surgery.  Here is the world's best Pappa getting a snuggle from his youngest grandson.  Bryce came through the surgery just fine.  We were able to leave OKC at 12:30 and got here around 7:30 tonight.  Man, we're putting a lot of miles on Lee's truck and our bodies.  We thank God for our safe trips and for His care in Bryce's surgery and recovery.  These are two of the sweetest people anywhere!

Tomorrow we see the doc at 10. He may get me started on something immediately and make tomorrow a really full day.  Or, he may let us go to Branson as we had planned.  We're just eager to see what all he has in his bag of tricks.  I'm ready to start the battle.  Lee is diabetic and he lives with that.  Surely I can live with cancer.  By this age most of us have some health issue; if we don't we'd better get braced because something is around the corner.  Thank you for your love and prayers on my behalf.  I will report on this blog just as soon as I possibly can.  Always remember that your love is a precious treasure to me and I love you, too/.

On our way, again!

This is a picture that Mary got of Lee, Sissy, and I the day we were climbing around down on Kiholo Bay.  Sissy is holding up a piece of coral that she was real happy to find.  It looks like she was threatening to throttle Lee with it, but I think she was just showing it.  It was a fun, fun hike!    We are staying at Steve and Mary's house tonight, so I'm borrowing her computer and even her picture for the blog.  We are richly blessed with friends and family and Steve and Mary are friends for sure and nearly family!   We are so grateful for them in our lives!

Tomorrow is Bryce's surgery on his head.  Bryce is Lee's 7 month old grandson who needs to have his skull opened because he was born with no 'expansion joint' to give his brain room to grow.  It's serious surgery, but they tell us they do this a lot.  His surgery starts at 7 in the morning, so we're getting up at 5 to have time to get ready and get over there.  That means we'd better get to bed pretty quickly.  As soon as Bryce is stable we'll leave for Houston.  We're hoping we can leave by noon, so that maybe we'll get there by eight.  I thank God that they have solutions to problems like his!

Speaking of God, I thank Him for keeping us safe as we do all this traveling.  I'm trusting Him to guide us through decisions that we will make regarding my treatment.  I'm ready for some answers.  I will report to you anything we learn on Tuesday and what decisions we make.

Saturday afternoon at the picture show.

Diana gave Bob a scanner for Christmas so he could scan all his old pictures from Itazuke onto his computer.  So, he's been moving tons of pictures over to a thumb drive.  They brought over lunch from Subway and 650 pictures for me to see today.  It was fun!  We set the camera to get a shot of all of us looking at the pics.  It was a great Saturday afternoon.

We'll get everything loaded today to head to Oklahoma City tomorrow.  I'm driving one of my vans so that Trish can bring it when she comes to Branson.  I'm hoping we'll still get to go to Branson.  I really have no idea what treatment they will have in store for me in Houston, so we'll have to be ready to either stay in Houston, go to Branson, or come back home.  I guess I can be that flexible.

I'm really glad that we got to come home on Thursday instead of yesterday because we got to sleep in until nearly 10 this morning.  That's a good thing.  I don't suspect we'll be able to do that, again, for a while.  Lee is starching and ironing his jeans; what a neat guy!  I'd better get busy with the things I've got to pack.  I thank God for the awesome support I always get from far and near.  My neighbor, Hazel, stopped by today for another warm visit.  I love it!

Hehe is an example to me.

Hehe the cat is one of the reasons Bob and Mimi need a house sitter.  Hehe has been a part of the family for many years and he has diabetes.  He gets an insulin shot twice a day.  He is the absolute best cat in the world, though.  He is still all cat.  The top picture shows him chowing down on a gecko.  The bottom picture is of him up on his box waiting for me to give him his shot.  He never ran from me or tried to avoid his shot.  He never skipped a purr with a shot or anything else. He still loves to be rubbed, combed and eve raked.  Hehe's still a great hunter.  He does have diabetes, but his life is still good.  He has lots of people who love him and he loves all of them.

I take Hehe as an example to me.  If he can live on and keep on purring, so can I.  He's a wonderful example to me.  He doesn't move quite as quickly or as much as he used to do, but he can still catch a gecko and he purrs through everything.  I'm going to do my best to keep on purring even if I can't move as fast as I used to move.  I thank God for good examples in my life and for my life; I hope to live every day giving Him the glory as long as He sees fit for me to do so.