Valentines Day

Mom and Dad received some yummy Valentines treats! One was a heart-shaped chocolate chip cookie with a big chocolate W on it (from a student who rides Dad's bus) and another was a yummy heart-shaped Red Velvet Cake (from a good friend of theirs)!

This Wednesday (Feb. 18) Mom goes back to Hopkins for the 2nd part of her 2nd treatment. After that, she goes back Monday, March 9. Originally, it was understood that there would be 3 weeks in between treatments, but it seems a little different now.

Mom's appetite is the same as it was after her first treatment, and Dad is trying different sources of protein for Mom to try since the dietician emphasized protein intake. Milkshakes seem good so Dad is thinking maybe some protein powder would work in those. I'm not sure how much flavor Mom actually tastes since she's said so much "just tastes the same", but the milkshakes seem to go down easier than anything else.

Mom is experiencing a great deal of fatigue and some nausea. I can't even begin to imagine how it feels, but she has expressed how "awful" it is. I know it's discouraging when all you can do is lay down all day and you can barely keep your eyes open. I pray that she would feel a sense of hope and truly know that "this too shall pass" and she will not always feel this way.

Your prayers for Mom and Dad are appreciated more than you know. I ask that you would continue to pray for Mom's health (physical, mental, and emotional) and for Dad as well. Dad has truly been amazing with keeping everything organized with appointments, medications, maintaining the house, etc. I pray that they would both be encouraged and that God would protect them from negative thoughts that the enemy would try to place in their minds.

For I know the plans I have for you,' declares the Lord, 'plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. - Jeremiah 29:11

Back Home

Tuesday -arrival at Hopkins at 6:30am/implanting of port
Wednesday - 2nd chemo treatment/oxygen level is low
Thursday -CAT scan shows fluid/one liter of fluid is drained/leave around 3:30pm

So, the low oxygen level was caused by the fluid in/or around the lungs that caused slight collapsing of the lung. After the fluid was drained, her oxygen level went from 80 to 93 to 96. Since her levels were back up, she was able to be discharged. It's possible this fluid was what caused the cough Mom has had since her surgery back in December (though she did have it checked out by her primary care doc....wish it could have been detected earlier but it's taken care of now.)

Though no time at the hospital is fun, it was nice for Mom and Dad to see some of the nurses who were with us back in December....Amy, Emily, Shamaica, and Aby....very special people! Shamaica discharged Mom back in December and discharged her today as well!

Implanting of Port & 2nd Treatment

Yesterday Mom's port was successfully implanted in her abdomen. A tool with a camera and/or light was used, and it appeared a repair was needed for a spot where the colon had attached to the stomach. So the surgery was a little more involved than we thought, and Mom had to have the dreaded breathing tube again which we hadn't anticipated. She made out fine though and remembers little of it, but she is pretty sore from this surgery unlike her previous one. She's on some good meds though that work pretty quickly. Today, she received her 2nd chemo treatment through the port. That went well, and they hoped to go home today but Mom's breathing levels dropped significantly. The last I heard from Dad was that they plan to do a CAT scan to see if they can find out why that happened. So that's a little "snag" but those were experienced back in December too and we just have to be as patient as we can. Fortunately, Dad has someone who has been substituting for him on the bus and a neighbor taking care of Missy, and they both would be able to help an extra day if needed.

Shopping

Today was a higher energy day for Mom...she felt like doing a bit of shopping! :-) This morning, she said, "I have an idea....let's go to Rehoboth to get that gift card for the Outlets." So we ran some errands in Rehoboth, and it was such a perfect day to be outdoors with it being so warm outside. We stopped at the Customer Service at the Outlets to get the gift card and right down from it was Dress Barn (a store Mom really likes), and she said she wanted to browse in there for a bit...shopping always makes a gal feel better, right? Chocolate too! Anyway, she only got a couple pair of socks, but it was definitely good for her to be doing something else besides sitting around home.

Mom's cough has subsided some. Her first inhale on her breathing tool today got her to 2000! It varies whether she is able to get a good night's sleep or not. Dad moved one of the living room recliners to the bedroom since in the middle of the night, Mom was often ending up out there.

Dad has a new favorite meal...Shepherd's Pie! A friend made some for them a few weeks ago, and Dad loved it...even ate it for breakfast one morning! So Dad decided he wanted to try to make some himself. It turned out pretty well which excited Dad, but Mom didn't quite share Dad's excitement for it. She preferred some Chic-Fil-A nuggets and PizzaBoli pizza.

Dad discovered on Friday that there is another Tibetan Spaniel (like their dog) ALSO named Missy at the Georgetown SPCA (where they got their 1st Tibetan Spaniel, Molly). He heard this on the radio and jokingly thought to himself, "did Mom get rid of Missy without me knowing today?" So today we were able to get online and see this photo of the "other Missy". Dad had been talking about how it would be nice to have 2 dogs and was tempted to go get Missy #2, but Mom was not in agreement. :-)

Mom never really wore hats before, but the ones she picked out from her friend's catalog look really cute on her! She has them in blue, black, and denim.

Tuesday is the next trip to Hopkins, and Mom and Dad have to be there at 6:45am. The port will be inserted, they'll stay overnight, and the treatment will be given on Wednesday. Please pray for peace as this next procedure and treatment are given. On Thursday, she will receive her first shot (the one given 24 hrs. after each treatment), and they plan to have a nurse friend give Mom the shot. We've heard that the response to the 1st chemo treatment is an indication of how the other treatments will go, so we're hoping this is true for Mom since she's done pretty well for the most part. She's quite tired but had only mild nausea and loss of appetite right in the few days following the treatment.

Christmas Dinner

Yes, we had Christmas dinner yesterday which is definite indication that Mom is feeling fairly well since she was in the kitchen getting the turkey, mac n' cheese, and dressing ready. We also had mashed potatoes, peas, and rolls. Gotta love those leftovers! No strawberry pretzel salad, but we'll have that next weekend since it's Dave's favorite, and he'll be going over with me then.

I'm happy to report that Mom is up to 1000 on her breathing tool, and the numbers from her blood tests dropped significantly since her chemo treatment (which is a good thing)!

On Sat. night, we rented "Fireproof" from Redbox...it's a must-see so go rent it if you haven't seen it yet! Mom and Dad really enjoyed it as I knew they would.

Today, we listened to Pastor Danny Tice's sermon on TV (Bay Shore Community Church) which has become the routine on Sunday mornings. The sermon series is entitled "Heavyweights", and today he was talking about the burden we have for the loved ones in our life. Pastor Danny was referring to Moses in the Bible and how Moses's mom had to release him to the Lord and trust God to take care of him. If his mom had kept him, he probably wouldn't have been taken in by Pharoah's daughter and would have been killed by Pharoah who had decreed that all baby boys must be killed. Only after Moses's mom let him go was God able to carry out His plan and protect Moses from Pharoah's decree through special favor with Pharoah's daughter. What hit home for me was the message that we have to let go, and let God....

Also, today we started to listen to past sermons from my parents' church, Mariner's Bethel. Mom and Dad have been soooooo blessed by their friends at Mariner's and Pastor Al. Before the surgery, Pastor Al came to visit Mom at home, and he came up to Hopkins after her surgery as well. Once she was home, he came again. At every visit, Pastor Al sang, and at the hospital, all the patients and nurses in 4B were able to hear Pastor Al as well since the door to Mom's room was open. The nurses out at the desk said to Dad, "wow, Mr. Wingate, you have a beautiful voice!" Dad was honest and admitted that his was not the voice they'd heard! :-)

Lastly, Mom hit 100.....that is 100 cards...and they're still coming...WOW!!!! What a blessing to receive so much love and support and know that so many people care about you!

The Heart, Mind, and Soul of a Cancer Survivor

The Heart, Mind and Soul of a Cancer Survivor

Dear friend,
I wish you well on your-or your loved one's-journey with cancer.
I wish you a heart that has found the right attitude-a positive, realistic attitude.
I wish you a mind that has found peace-by replacing worries with better thoughts and by focusing on the present and not on the "what-ifs" of the future.
And I wish you a soul that has found hope-a hope based on the God of all Creation, who gives life true meaning.

God can make blessing come from cancer when God and cancer meet, but we have to let Him choose the blessing.

On the fifth anniversary of my cancer surgery, I wrote the following poem summing up what my journey with cancer has taught me:

When your world is crashing down around you, trust Him.
When what is unfolding doesn't make sense, trust Him.
When you see no light at the end of the tunnel, trust Him.
When your silent tears spill down, trust Him.
When the pain refuses to subside, trust Him.
When your heart screams, "Why?" trust Him.
When you have more questions than answers, trust Him.
When the devil tells you otherwise, trust Him.
When it's the last thing you feel like doing, trust Him.
When there's simply nothing else to do, trust Him.B
e encouraged: God can be trusted in all things . . . even cancer.

Lynn Eib 2002. Excerpted from When God & Cancer Meet: True stories of hope & healing.
Living Free-of-Cancer


I really enjoy listening to the Dave Ramsey radio talk show on financial advice. Ramsey preaches a message of living debt-free, and when people reach that coveted pinnacle he urges them to call in to the show and scream at the top of their lungs on air: "I'm debt free!!!"

I'd love to see a similar show for those cancer survivors who've gotten good test results or had successful surgery to call in and holler: "I'm cancer-free!!!" But my hope and my prayer is that all of us cancer survivors and our loved ones could call up and proclaim: "I'm free-of-cancer!!!"

To me, living in the shadow of the Almighty is the secret to finding the light in cancer's shadow. It means trusting the Almighty to keep our minds, our hearts, and our souls, free-of-cancer-whether or not our bodies are.
Cancer does not occupy my mind. It is seized with God's perfect peace.
Cancer has no place in my heart. It is filled with God's awesome love.
Cancer cannot touch my soul. It is saved by God's amazing grace.
I am free-of-cancer.

Copyright Lynn Eib 2006. Excerpted from Finding the Light in Cancer's Shadow: Hope, humor & healing after treatment.

Jan. 25 Update

Mom seemed to be doing better this weekend. The cough is still there which continues to affect her sleep at night, but otherwise she's doing pretty well....still no nausea. It was so wonderful to walk in on Fri. night and see her looking so much more like herself...with jeans and a fleece top on (instead of the nightgowns that she's been wearing since her surgery) and makeup on too!

She's moving around more, especially in the kitchen....she was fixing her own eggs and scrapple Sat. morning and made rice pudding on Sunday! She was in the mood for pizza so it seems her appetite was better this weekend. On Tues., the scales showed she had lost 9 lbs. where she got her bloodwork done, but today it appeared she has gained 2 lbs. on the home scales.

She was getting to 750 on her breathing tool today so that's progress as well. It will be nice when we finally have some warmer days, and Mom can walk around outside and have some time out of the house. If it wasn't cold and flu season, she could at least walk around the grocery store as a change of scenery. Mom and Dad went to a friend's house for dinner tonight so I'm sure Mom enjoyed being able to get out of the house for a while.

Please continue to lift Mom and Dad up in prayer and praise God for her progress. I pray for strength for both of them, and I'm thankful that they are not on this journey alone. This all comes as no surprise to God, and He will give strength for each new day.