Here's the Scoop...

                                                     Flowers from my mom



The oncologist told me last Friday that my blood cancer marker number had gone up from 52 to 73; it's not high enough to warrant immediate treatment. She recommended waiting three months and running the tests again. She also said that I have multiple fractures in my back. That's probably why they are having me take monthly treatments of Zometa, a drug that is used for osteoporosis and bone mestastasis (just had one yesterday). I have started researching online the different medications I am taking, so I can be more informed and able to talk with my doctors and make decisions. Found a web site called MediGuard.com, which gives information about possible and known drug interactions.

Next subject of research: How to help strengthen and heal bones naturally.   :)

Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.  ~Isa 41:10

Cold and dreary today...

Well, today I go to the oncologist to hear the results of all my tests the past week...I am a little apprehensive, please remember me in your prayers.

What time I am afraid, I will trust in thee. ~Psalm 56:3

A Quiet Sunday...

...sitting here in the comfortable chair in my room, checking email and Facebook, and looking out the door at the gold-and-brown tall grasses being blown by the wind...the National Weather Service says 41 degrees today and 17 for tonight. Ah, December in Oklahoma! Right now I am thankful for cuddly robes and warm blankets. :) If the current temperatures are any indication of what January will be like, I need to find a large cardboard box soon to put on the front porch for the cats to huddle in at night. Brrrrr!

Rachel and I picked Emily up and went to hear the Messiah Concert yesterday evening in Lawton; it was well-done, as usual. We were remembering taking part in it years ago; good times! Afterward, we took pizza to my mother-in-law Iva and had a short visit, then home again, home again.

Have CT and bone scans scheduled for tomorrow, then exercise on Tuesday, Rachel's last test and a tea party on Wednesday, and a visit with the oncologist on Friday. I will also find out the results of my bloodwork done last Friday. Busy week ahead.

We are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Messiah Yeshua our Lord. ~Romans 8:37-39

Day After Thanksgiving

Did you all have a nice Thanksgiving holiday? We went with my mother-in-law Iva, my sister-in-law Sherry and nephew Stace to a cousin's house in Cache for a big family get-together. Everyone brought something: besides the usual turkey, dressing, potatoes and pumpkin pie, we had, among other dishes, cranberry jello salad made by Iva, Israeli Salad made by Rach, and non-spinach dip made by Sherry (it was good, too!). Of course we all ate too much; so much food, so little stomach! Then, while most of the guys sat down to watch football, six of us sat down and played Phase 10. It was the longest and most grueling game of Phase 10 I've ever played, and it was fun! Four of Rachel's cousins played, and Iva and me. Rachel shuffled cards and kept score, until one cousin dropped out, then Rach sat in and ended up winning the game.

Another Update

Went in for my 4th monthly Zometa treatment. I found out Zometa is used to treat osteoporosis, and bones which have been affected by cancer and other diseases. Fortunately, it is a quick treatment, about 30  minutes. On the way home from Duncan, we tried to take pictures (through the windshield) of some of the trees lining the road. Now I either have to find the cord that connects my camera to my computer, or see if the jump drive will accommodate my memory card, so I can download pictures.

When I sit in darkness, the Lord will be a light to me. ~Micah 7:8

Good News

Had a great visit with my friend Sally today! She came by and brought some things for the freezer, and we sat and talked for awhile. The Home Health nurse also came out; she said I am doing well. I called the oncologist's office to ask about the results from my blood test last Friday: my blood cancer marker number is down from 118 to 52! It was over 500 when I first saw the oncologist seven months ago, so praise the Lord! He is merciful!

I delight in the law (Torah) of God, in my inner being.  ~Romans 7:22

Rach and I volunteered at the Republican Party HQ in Duncan today. We also got to see our friends Jan Deeg and the Smiths. I am doing better being up and around, my back still gets tired, but it's so good to see improvements. I was off my oxygen for at least half the day. God is awesome!

Who is like you, O Lord, among the gods? Who is like you, majestic in holiness, awesome in glorious deeds, doing wonders? 
~Exodus 15:11

Warming again!

Summer does not want to let go. Don't know whether to run the A/C or the heater. But I have been tooling around the house in my electric wheelchair and doing some walking with my walker. Washed dishes today, and made pasta with pesto sauce. I tire easily and if I am up too long, my back gets sore. But it is getting better.

I'm Ba-ack!

So much has happened since my last post! I've been in the hospital and home again, spent 2 weeks in the ICU in an induced coma and another 2-3 weeks in a regular room before being released. I have had to learn how to feed my self and stand up, and am learning how to walk again.

Still spending much of my time in my bed, but I am starting to get around either with my walker or electric wheelchair, and doing a little cooking in the kitchen. Rachel and I went to the OKC Zoo this week with our friend Jan Deeg and had a great time.

O taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the man that trusteth in him.  ~Psalm 34:8

I'm Blessed!

Blessing for today: no chemo treatment - hooray! It's actually next week.

Oh, give thanks to Yahweh, for He is good, and his mercy endures forever!
I Chron. 16:34, 2 Chron. 20:21, Ps. 106:1, Ps. 107:1, et. al.

A quick update: I've had 14 radiation treatments and two chemotherapy treatments so far; my third treatment is scheduled for Tuesday, June 8. For a long time, I slept all day, which was such a blessing! Now I can hardly sleep at all due to a dry cough that has been with me for several weeks, and has gotten progressively worse.Am going for a blood transfusion this morning

Counting to Pentecost...

I am counting. Counting the days to Pentecost, written about in Acts Chapter 2, in which the believers were all gathered in one place, there were tongues of fire seen, the sound of a rushing wind was heard, and men were confused about hearing others talking miraculously in their own languages.

Pentecost is also a Biblical Holiday, or Feast Day, a festival given by God ("...these are My appointed times,..." says the Lord in Leviticus 23:2). In Hebrew it is called Shavuot, or "Weeks".

Leviticus 23:15    And you shall count to you from the next day after the sabbath, from the day that you brought the sheaf of the wave offering; seven sabbaths shall be complete.   :16  To the next day after the seventh sabbath you shall number fifty days.

The sabbath mentioned here is during the week of Passover, or the feast of Unleavened Bread. The counting of the fifty days to Pentecost / Shavuot starts there.

This year I am using a special calendar for counting to Pentecost (Shavuot):

It's from a great resource book for families by Sue Mortimer, A Complete Guide to Celebrating Our Messiah in the Festivals. 

The book is loaded with information, craft ideas, songs, games, family discussions, and in this section, a fun recipe for cheese blintzes - yum! Available from Eagle's Wings Educational Materials.

http://www.eagleswingsed.com/





Yesterday, April 17th, was my birthday, and I want to thank everyone for their birthday wishes and special gifts of love. I had a very special day!


Wow, the colors, fragrances and busyness of spring! Rachel says the pear trees have lots of fruit; the lilacs have bloomed, we had some in the house (the fragrance was wonderful!); the irises are starting to open and the peonies are coming up. Indian Paintbrush is everywhere, the spirea bush in front of my house looks like a bride's train, friends have planted raspberries, blueberries, strawberries and flowers in the front garden box; Rachel is planning vegetables in the boxes out back. We have had a gentle rain over the weekend, and the plants are all taking on a fresh vitality. I feel so blessed, to be able to experience it all. Thank you, Heavenly Father!

(Hos 6:3)  And let us know, eagerly strive to know the LORD, His going forth is sure as the morning; and He shall come unto us as the rain, as the latter rain that watereth the earth.'

I am scheduled for a heart test this Friday the 23rd; chemotherapy is tentatively scheduled to begin the 27th.

Papaya

A friend sent me an article about Papaya fighting cancer. A University of Florida researcher and colleagues in Japan, in a report published in the Journal of Ethnopharmacology, documented papaya's anticancer effect against tumors of the cervix, breast, liver, lung, and pancreas. They are using an extract and a tea made from the dried leaves of the plant.

I enjoy having fresh papaya for breakfast. Fresh fruit, given by God.  And God said: 'Behold, I have given you every herb yielding seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed - to you it shall be for food; Gen 1:29 

"Don't Waste Your Cancer" by John Piper

A dear friend sent me this article, and it was an encouragement to me to keep my focus on what God is doing through and with cancer, and not on the odds; on seeing it as something that He has allowed for a purpose in my life. On facing and thinking about death, but also praying for healing and making a a decision to live each day; on treating sin casually. A link to the article online is here:

http://www.crosswalk.com/1383847/

Pink dianthus. I love flowers, herbs and plants, and a wonderful friend has given me some awesome ones for the garden.







The chemo oncologist says I have to begin some treatment by the end of this week. She wants to do a heart test first. My back is feeling stronger, although I'm still wearing the brace and using a walker. I can stand and walk some without the walker, though, just a little wobbly.   :-)

It is good for me that I have been afflicted, in order that I might learn Thy statutes.
The law (instruction) of Thy mouth is better unto me than thousands of gold and silver.

Psalm 119: 71-72

A Special Blessing: My Sister and Niece come to Visit!

My sister Karen and niece Danielle came from Ohio for a visit several weeks ago; I had not seen them in 15 years, so it was great to spend time "catching up." We talked with the girls about our growing up, and things we remembered about our grandparents' place in Ohio, which was a special place for both of us when we were young. Karen and Danielle found interesting things about this strange land called Oklahoma: cactus plantings in peoples' front yards, cricket-shaped oil wells in peoples' backyards, herds of long-horned cattle pasturing along Highway 81, and the scary trees at night that line the road I live on (they are scrub oak and were heavily damaged in the January ice storm, so they do look pretty grisly at night). They all had fun trying new recipes in the kitchen, and Adrienne and Rachel made several kinds of home made pizza for them. All too soon it was time for them to go home, but I will keep the memory of their visit for a long time.

Psa 34:8  O taste and see that the LORD is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him.

Radiation treatments are finished...

...I had 14 treatments on my back in the past 3 weeks in Duncan. I'm currently wearing a back brace and getting around with a walker because of the compression fracture, but my back is feeling stronger, Praise the Lord! My appointment with the chemo doctor is tomorrow.

To the chief Musician, A Psalm of David. I waited patiently for the LORD; and he inclined unto me, and heard my cry. He brought me up also out of an horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and established my goings. And he hath put a new song in my mouth, even praise unto our God: many shall see it, and fear, and shall trust in the LORD.   Psa 40:1-3

A dear friend sent me  the first two verses of this Psalm in a card. Waiting on the Lord has been a recurring theme in my life, so I wrote the passage on a memory card, and am so thankful that God gives us songs of praise! He is the One who works in us to will and to do what pleases Him.

Romans 8:9 - 11

Alive by the Spirit

But you are not in the flesh, but in the spirit, if the Spirit of God dwells in you.But if anyone has not the Spirit of Messiah, he is none of His. And if Messiah is in you, indeed the body is dead because of sin, but the Spirit is life because of righteousness. But if the Spirit of the One who raised up Yeshua from the dead dwells in you, the One who raised up Messiah from the dead shall also make your mortal bodies alive by His Spirit who dwells in you.

*******************

I am enjoying a quiet weekend, had a wonderful time yesterday at fellowship singing, reading, praying and having a meal together. Today is sunny and warmer; my daughter Adrienne left this morning to drive home to Colorado. Radiation treatments, on hold for a couple of days, resume tomorrow. They are short, and praise the Lord, I've noticed no ill effects other than some fatigue.

Today, I've been contemplating reckoning my self dead to sin, but alive to the Messiah...purposing  anew to put to death the deeds of the flesh, all the while choosing life through the Creator of all life...I confess, it's an enigma to me, this life/death balance, but it is time for me to confront it, and learn what God has for me to learn from it, hopefully taking something that will be an encouragement to others around me.

First

On February 25th, 2010, I was sent to a surgeon for a biopsy and a couple of days later was given a diagnosis of aggressive and invasive advanced breast cancer; by the end of the following week I was told it had also spread to some of the bones in my back. Today, March 23, I went for my 6th of 13 planned radiation treatments. I've been fitted with a back brace and am currently using a walker to get around because of the weakness right now in my spine (I love walkers with wheels! - they've been calling me "Speed Racer" at the radiation treatment center).

I don't want this blog to be all about cancer; nor do I want it to be all about my battle with cancer; but I do want it to be about what God is doing in the midst of my situation.

This blog is networked to Facebook, and they had me add a widget for that purpose. Apparently, Facebook needs 9 people to verify that they know I am the author of this blog, and after that, I can remove the widget and make my site a little neater.