July Th message

 Thank you all for your prayers and good wishes.  Thanks to those who have done extraordinary things for us.  I have started another 12 day treatment of Asparaginase yesterday, starting to see hair flying now.  Marty was here for two days and I slept most of the time, but I am starting to get better night sleep,  TV is fun all repeats except when the cable channels put new shows on all at the same time.  I won't bore you with the details but I am better than I have been, numbers wise but only half of what it should be.  I have attached a picture of a card my friend from Wales made and sent.  Five days is all it took to get here.

Sunday at St Joe's

      Early Sunday morning and having trouble sleeping, so might as well write something.  I finally looked up ACUTE LYMPHOBLASTIC LEUKEMIA (ALL) and read enough to know that I just need to follow the Doctors  numbers game and things should have a good chance of remission down the road.  How far the road and such will be the unknown. Thank god ...Trust God.

      With all my allergies it will become a challenge for them to keep me awake. Every thing I take to counter act allergies puts me to sleep. I am learning to sleep better with my mask and am able to get deep enough to dream.

        As those of you with any hospital experience will know it become a litany of bodily functions.  Just as in infancy, all you do is eat and eliminate and somebody has to keep track.  Been here since June 9Th and it is hard to realize the passage of time.  God has protected me from any major brain loss, as far as I would know.(Some might even call it a gain) I have lost some passwords and pronunciation  skills. I have a hard time saying brain bleed.  It keeps coming out blain breed. 

    I have been reading a free library from Baen Books go to  http://www.baen.com/  it is a great service and I am reading new  and old stuff.  Send photos to me of and summer things you do, I find I am missing the pool and my roses,besides Marty and the dogs. Photo taken on the 17Th when i got my chest port. Cute right?

    God has been good to me and I thank Him, prayers are always welcome, as are good thoughts  and wishes. I am a long ways from even starting this battle and it is a long ways from Yuma.  If you are coming up this way stop in, just remember your masks and gowns at the door.  Wake me if I'm sleeping.

June 9 Crash and burn

 This will be a long ramble and don't confuse it with what everyone else may have said.  I am not so sure I remember any of this accurately. Thank God Marty was able to take care of me this day. As many of you know I had been fighting a headache and diarrhea for about 2-3 weeks and just going to Urgent care and not getting better.

      I had been using my cane to get around in the mornings so didn't think to much about going to the VA with it, by the time I was checked in I was having to use a wheel chair to balance myself.  Between Marty and the VA ladies they put me in the Ambulance and took me to YRMC. Don't remember much about the ER but did know they had to get me to Phoenix because I had a brain bleed and there is no neurosurgery   in Yuma.  I remember leaving in daylight and landing in darkness.  I prayed to God that I would become to understand what was going on. 

     When I arrived in Phoenix they started on my brain bleed and I suddenly had this really nice Doctor gently explaining that I also had a really bad type of leukemia and I really got quite upset because of what happened to Rosanne. I kept asking how this could be and what we could do about it. They decided to operate on the brain bleed and drain it.  Then simultaneously start to replace proper blood volume.  Not sure how it all worked but I kept thinking I knew what was going on.  I had a very good group of nurses in the neuro ICU and was very well taken care of.  They had a lot to deal with  and did a very caring job.  Never had such a great bath and felt really clean. 

      They kept giving me blood products and building up my proper blood supply while waiting for tests to see what needed to be done and for the drains to be removed from my brain.  They started some chemotherapy in the ICU while waiting for a room in oncology. So far I have been tolerating treatment well, but don't know much about prognosis except that remission is about in the 85% range. So far I am tolerating the disease  better that Marty is. She is just lost and I speak with her 4-5 times a day but her world has turned upside down.  I will need to figure out something and implement it from here. I just can't be let loose in the world right now. My treatment depends on me getting sicker in a controlled manner. I guess! More as it becomes available and daily progress reports. 

catching up

  Sorry I didn't write last night or this morning.  Marty finally drug me to the urgent care Sunday night! I had been fighting diarrhea and headaches so she tried everything but finally made me go.  Found out that there has been a stomach virus around town and I had a sinus infection. Still having trouble with my balance  and am closing up nicely though. 

      Earlier in the week we were out fishing and some one set up some excitement.While we were in the area when it was going on, we were not involved in the shootings here. A 73 yr old man killed his ex wife her lawyer and most of those who testified against him. He was from a small town east of here and had to drive 30 miles to shoot the lawyer. He then drove 25 miles outside of town and killed himself. seems like he got the order wrong.  This is as much of a cowboy town as where we lived in Nebraska. When we first moved to Kearney there was a gunfight at a saloon and our neighbor killed his wife. Now of course the town is much more civilized. As it is here only certain people create crime.

       Marty's birthday was Sunday and we got a early morning visit from the police at 6:45AM.  Somehow one of our land lines decided to call 911.  I sure admire those men, I don't know how I would feel about doing a home check that early and of course we leave our patio doors open because I get tired of having to get up to let the dog out.  I was extremely groggy and barely understood them at first.  I did thank them and went back to bed.  Sure I wished Marty a Happy Birthday, and bought her a Nook.  Today she got good news and the Doctor allowed her to start work part time.  She will also get her treatments for awhile to help her transition.  I know she will be happier at work than dealing with me all day.  We will have our 36th anniversary  tomorrow, today was the 39th anniversary of my Grandfather's death. The picture of my Grandfather and my Great Aunt Mary is attached. Love to all.

Mother's Day

Sun shine in the big city, Yuma made last weeks Parade as the city with the most sunshine in the country.  Yeah!  Marty is doing better this week, we have gotten her medicines correct and had the cardiologist  change one and she is making more sense and making better decisions.  We have noticed that when she gets regular exercise she feels better and gets stronger. I went to the VA and they checked out my leg wound and it has healed up really well. I go back to see my VA Doctor about my medication and my heart.  So far it appears that reducing some of my medications have helped also. I can now feel my pulse and tell when I am having a PVC but still doesn't make any difference to me. 

       Pat is here this week, and it is fun to have him. see attached photo.  We went to a Mother's day brunch and have been driving around town showing him the sights.  Marty and Pat are going fishing tomorrow.  Pat went to a dirt drag with a friend of ours and they will also go golfing on Tuesday.  Nothing big planned just family time.  Went to see the newer parks and just had fun one night chasing the sun around town.

        It has been hot enough but my roses are still doing OK. We have taken a bunch to friends and I have also put a trellis behind two of them.  Pat helped me set up the TV in our outdoor Arizona room and we did some other two person chores. 

May Day

 Marty is having problems this week, it is hard for her to remain in the real world.  I don't know whats going on but it is a challenge. I have had to take over her medications because she has been over taking some and under taking others. I have taken away her pill boxes and just allowed her access to the one day at a time. Hopefully that will help her regain some semblance of reality. Patrick is coming late on the 5th for a week and that should  help.  

          Took Brass to the Vet to check on her liver,because of some medication I have been giving her. First time it was a $30 test then a $51 test, how much do the pills cost at Wal-Mart? A 60 day supply $4.00.  Somehow the cure seems better than the tests. Sammy was very hurt when I took Brass by herself to the Vet and mopped around til we get back.

          Tried to find " Julia and Juliet" on Demand and at the DVD  store , finally had to buy it just to see it.  Did find "The Kings Speech" really enjoyed it, you really had to know what was going on to really understand it. I understand more about Elizabeth now, and really see how the public misunderstands her relationship with/about Diana.  Her father raised her to value duty above all else.

          Went to the Lowe's store to pick up paint samples and try to decide what color Marty wants to repaint the kitchen.  I had thought I would repaint the cupboard doors this summer, now we are going to repaint the trim also.  Just waiting for the winds to die down and the temperature to heat up.  

           This morning after reading the paper I went through my Nickels and Quarters. Found several 1940's Nickels and several 1960's Quarters.  I also rolled one of each so I have $12.00 to take to the bank.  Next week dimes and pennies, plus I have to get back on my dollar collection. Wait for the report on those rolls!  

this week

  Greetings, Nice weather for an Easter and Praise God no earthquake.  As  you know last Easter the earth opened up and shook the region. So far so good!  I have been cooking up a storm this week and I must say I have done very well. I have attached a picture of a pot roast that I did, when we had a bunch of appointments and no time.  Marty's rehab is going well as we know, she still misses days and dates , can't remember somethings and forgets what she says sometimes.  We have been taking rides, going around places she should remember.  It helps it reconnect the brain.  

     We went to Lowe's to get our free tree also spent $48.00 on things we needed.  Our trees needed to be planted in a pot so Marty did that.  I bought another rose bush but cherry color this time and some trellises for the older bushes.  It has been so windy that I have been waiting to set them up.  Looking at the yard we will need to get someone to fix our east wall.  The cracks are getting worse and  the gaps are getting bigger.  

      Today we took  the dogs to the dog park.  Poor Brass is getting so old she had a hard time climbing up the sides of the hills.  But they enjoyed being off the leash and it was nice .  By the time we got home it was way above 90F so we turned on the air to cool the dogs and Marty down.  This week it is supposed to be warm above 100F some days, but the nights have been cool, in the 60's.  

     My leg has finally healed , it just seemed it  wanted to take it's time.  I am watching it though because the skin is thin and if I bump something too hard it might open again. Now to fix supper and get ready to clean house this week.