Happy Birthday, Mom!

TODAY is Mom's birthday, and she had a great day! She was up early and not able to go back to sleep so she headed over to Salisbury earlier than planned. She was at Kohls by 7:30am...a true shopper! A friend planned to meet her for breakfast at 9:30am, and Mom got lots of shopping done before they even met! She had fun using her gift cards to Kohls, Michaels, and Cold Stone Creamery!

Last night, Mom and Dad went to Outback for dinner to celebrate Mom's birthday a little early. Food has lost its flavor again, but as before, she does feel like eating and is doing well with maintaining her weight so way to go, Mom!

Tomorrow night, a neighbor is having them over for dinner, and this weekend, Dad plans to fix....can you guess....Shepherd's Pie!

Marching on....

Last week, Mom had more energy near the beginning of the week, so she took advantage of it by doing some shopping with a friend in Salisbury. While she was waiting at a seating area for her friend to finish shopping, Mom had one person tell her she looked like a model in her jeans and denim hat.....another person said she looked so relaxed! :-) Mom got some new summer clothes that fit her better just in time for these warmer temps we've had lately!

I had the chance to visit Mom and Dad today while Mom was receiving her treatment at Hopkins. It's not always easy for the nurses to get the IV in place and find the port, but Mom is a trooper and was patient with the nurses (it's also tricky since Mom has small veins).

Dad continues to take excellent care of Mom...they are monitoring her blood pressure closely with a cuff they're borrowing from a neighbor.

I ask that you continue to pray that God and the chemo would remove any cancer cells from Mom's body during her treatments. It's hard to believe it's been 4 months since Mom's surgery, and I continue to remember what a blessing it has been to have God on our side as well as all of you on this journey. At the Kimmel Cancer Center at Hopkins, when you leave the parking garage, "HAVE A SAFE JOURNEY" is painted across the wall...that struck me one day that it said "journey"....

I went to a concert on Saturday night that featured Meredith Andrews ("You're Not Alone" from my playlist), Chris Sligh, and Natalie Grant. Below are the lyrics and link to "Our Hope Endures" by Natalie Grant.

Our Hope Endures http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xg6b5T7I6VE

You would think only so much can go wrong
Calamity only strikes once
And you assume that this one has suffered her share
Life will be kinder from here

Sometimes the sun stays hidden for years
Sometimes the sky rains night after night
When will it clear
But our hope endures the worst of conditions
It's more than our optimism
Let the earth quake
Our hope is unchanged

How do we comprehend peace within pain
Our joy at a good man's wake
Walk a mile with a woman whose body is torn
With illness but she marches on

Emanuel, God is with us
El Shaddai, all sufficient
Emanuel, God is with us
El Shaddai, all sufficient
Emanuel, God is with us
El Shaddai, all sufficient

We never walk alone
This is our hope
Our hope endures,
the worst of conditions
It's more than our optimism
let the earth quake
let the earth quake
let the earth quake
Our hope is unchanged

Welcome back, Taste Buds!

So yeah, Mom has been loving being able to taste more foods lately! While in OC this past week, she enjoyed a yummy BLT. On Friday, Mom and Dad had dinner at a friend's house and on Saturday, met some friends for dinner at Outback. Today, with her lunch, Mom ate an entire container of potato salad herself and later made some Taco Soup for dinner. She has gained 3 pounds so that's a pretty clear indication that she's enjoying food again!

Also....Mom went to church today for the first time since early December! She felt very encouraged by all the hugs and words of love....thanks, all of you at Mariners who are reading!!! The next time Mom goes to church, she will most likely be at my old elementary school (Lord Baltimore in Ocean View) since Mariners needs to close the building due to mold that was found :-(.

Mom's birthday is coming up (April 29) so I asked what she'd like for her birthday. She mentioned a Michael's gift card since she interested in starting some type of stitching perhaps like what my mom-mom does (embroidery on pillowcases and tea towels). So we'll see what Mom ends up deciding to do!

It seems each time I talk to Mom she tells me about another person who is following this blog, and I want to thank all of you who are visiting since I know it means you care about my mom and are praying for her! Mom and Dad truly appreciate all the cards, phone calls, etc. that they have received. She was just saying a little earlier that it means so much to know SO MANY people are praying for her!

Tomorrow is the beginning of the first treatment of Cycle 5, and they will be meeting with Dr. Giuntoli as they have been every three weeks. Click HERE for a bio of Dr. Giuntoli. We are very thankful for this man and his excellent team!

Dr. Giuntoli

HERE you will find a few stories from women who have been treated at Hopkins for ovarian cancer.

Praying for:
~a pain Mom has had in her side for a few weeks...praying that the doctors will keep this at the forefront of their minds and address it accordingly
~safe traveling and smooth day of treatment at Hopkins tomorrow

Praising God for:
~the simple pleasure of enjoying food again :-)
~so many high energy days
~the encouragement He's providing through so many of YOU

Open for Comments!

Feel free to leave a comment, word of encouragement, scripture, etc. (since now you do NOT need a Google account to leave a comment)!

Happy 35th Anniversary!!!!!!

(Mom and Dad shortly after they got Missy in March '08)

Yes, today Mom and Dad celebrate 35 years of marriage!!!! They celebrated a little early and went to the House of Welsh in Fenwick on Saturday. Tonight, some friends are joining them for the ribs special at Bethany Blues.

EASTER

Last week, I shared that Mom had little side effects right after treatment and has so much more energy than she normally does that week of treatment.....and this past week was the SAME!!!! This week is her week off from chemo so it should be another high-energy week....WOW...3 weeks in a row!

On Thursday, Mom prepared an early Easter dinner since I was there on my Spring Break Wed. night-Fri. night. She fixed ham, baked pineapple, mac n' cheese, seasoned green beans, baked potatoes, cornbread, and cherry pie. Mom needed little help from me...all I did was shred and slice some sharp cheese for the macaroni and do the dishes. She had to get a different ham, and she made the mac n' cheese a little differently so she wasn't sure how they would turn out. Everything tasted fabulous as it always does! And the company was great as well since Mom had invited over a sweet couple who they've been friends with for a long time.

On Friday, I was in the kitchen when I saw an Edible Arrangements van pull up in front of the house so I said, "Mom, I think you're getting an Edible Arrangement!" If you're not familiar with them, they are so pretty, and the fruit always tastes so fresh! It turns out they were from some friends of theirs who they would be seeing that night for a surprise birthday party for the wife. This party is the biggest social gathering she's been to since before her surgery so it's such a blessing that she feels the energy to go and is comfortable being out and about.

Mom sported both of her wigs while I was there. The first wig (more curl) she got was from a store in Rehoboth and the second one (more straight) is from the Amercian Cancer Society catalog where she's gotten her cute hats. They both look great on her...the first one has highlights in it, and the 2nd one is more the color her hair was before.

On Sunday, Mom and Dad are planning to go to their favorite place for breakfast in Bethany, The Froghouse, and they're invited to a friend's home for Easter dinner. Mom continues to eat pretty well, but everything still tastes the same so she looks forward to being able to taste again when the treatments are over.

Dad is busier now that lawn mowing season has started. It seems to be good timing though since Mom's energy levels have been higher recently.

Mom's CA-125 levels have been dropping significantly after each treatment cycle, but this past time, they only dropped a little. She is at 160 right now, I believe, and they need to be at 30 or below. She has completed 4 cycles of treatment and has 2 more to go to complete the minimum of 6 cycles. She may need to receive more depending on the CA-125 levels. Click here to find out more about CA-125.

April 20 - Treatment 5a
April 27 - Treatment 5b
May 11 - Treatment 6a
May 18 - Treatment 6b

I ask prayer that despite the CA-125 level report received yesterday, Mom and Dad would continue to be encouraged and reminded of God's faithfulness in the past. Our God who loves us so much that He sent His only Son to die for us knows our needs and will continue to provide!

FORGIVEN

A little boy had just been tucked into bed by his mother, who was waiting to hear his prayers. But he had been naughty that day, and now it was bothering him. So he said, "Mama, I wish you'd go now and leave me alone. I want to pray by myself."

Sensing that something was wrong, she asked, "Bobby, is there anything you ought to tell me?" "No, Mommy," he replied. "You would just scold me, but God will forgive me and forget about it."

That little boy understood one of the greatest salvation benefits of all—the reality of sins forgiven. The Bible indicates that in Christ "we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins" (Col. 1:14). We who have received the Lord Jesus as Savior enjoy freedom from sin's eternal condemnation (Rom. 8:1), and we can also have daily forgiveness and cleansing (1 John 1:9).

The apostle Paul said that salvation provides these added benefits: we are justified (Rom. 3:24), and we are at peace with God (5:1).

We should never get the idea that our sins are taken lightly by the Lord. But when we acknowledge our guilt with true repentance, God is ready to forgive because of what Jesus did on the cross. It's up to us to accept it. — Richard De Haan

Were the whole realm of nature mine,
That were a present far too small:
Love so amazing, so divine
Demands my soul, my life, my all. —Watts

When God forgives a sin, He never brings it up again.

Pleasant surprise

A little synopsis of Mom's week:

Monday - chemo at Hopkins
Tuesday - drove for the first time since early December
Wednesday - lunch with co-workers
Thursday - dinner with friends in OC

Normally, she doesn't feel like being out and about the days right after chemo so it was a pleasant surprise for her to have so much energy. We wonder if the increase in energy was related to the decrease in her blood pressure medicine...who knows, all we know is it was a very nice change!

On Friday, she started to feel tired again, and she's also feeling tired today. She enjoyed feeling enough energy to be able to eat out this past week, but food is still tasting pretty much the same. It's good that she feels like eating though since it's important that she's getting enough calories and fluids.

Thank you for your continued prayer and support! Mom continues to get encouraging cards from thoughtful friends and family, and it is such a blessing to know so many people are praying and thinking of her!