We are sitting here on the couch, watching the ball drop...
We are celebrating on the couch because Ben is still pretty sick from his chemo on Friday. We thought he was better today, but as I was in the shower getting ready for church, he came in and told me he was sick again. Poor guy. So, we've just hung out, paid bills, did nine loads of laundry, etc., today.
Hopefully, he will wake up in 2007 and feel much better.
We think we may have diagnosed all that I've been dealing with since April. I didn't have an episode yesterday or today. Then, this afternoon I was hurrying to get some laundry switched and started to have one. I went to the store and came home and started making dinner and started to have another one. So, we decided that it must have something to do with my activity level since we've been able to just relax for the last two days. Then, Ben reminded me that when I went back to the doctor this last week (doctor #10), he said that I have RBC (red blood cell) Rouleau which means that my red blood cells stack on each other. So, my body isn't getting adequate oxygen, etc. Thus, many explanations began to pour forth. I start my treatments next week and so I'm hoping we'll see some changes soon.
Praise the Lord!! Granny is home now! The doc released her today and so she gets to sleep in her own bed tonight. She was worried that her bird, Danny, was going to be mad at her for being gone for so long.
Thank you all for your prayers...Happy 2007!!!!! May it bring you health, joy, & a realization of how awesome our Savior is!!!
Sunday, December 31, 2006
Saturday, December 30, 2006
Craziness
Well, yesterday didn't go as I would have planned it. ; )
They decided to keep Granny longer in the hospital which is good. They were just going to keep her in ICU overnight Thursday and send her home Friday. However, they decided to move her to a regular room on Friday so that she could get more PT, etc. After Ben's chemo, we all (Ben's parents, brother, & the two of us) went to the hospital to see Granny. She really enjoyed the company. She told us that she really didn't think she was going to survive the surgery and that she thought God smiling at her was Him saying, "come home!" Glad I didn't know that prior to her surgery. Oh, the wreck I would have been...She did ask the surgeon during the procedure if she was in Heaven. He said that's the last thing a surgeon wants to hear. She also asked us while she was in recovery if she was in Heaven. I told her the nurse was pretty, but I had a feeling the surroundings of Heaven was much more beautiful than the gurney she was on...!!
After we went to see Granny yesterday, we went to dinner at PF Changs with Ben's family. Ben was feeling a bit yucky at this point. However, we had an enjoyable dinner and then came home. When we were almost home, Ben was feeling super terrible. Within a few minutes of being in the door, we had a repeat of last time. He got so sick. Again, vomiting blood (and dinner). I know, Too Much Information. So, instead of calling EMS, we called the doc. The doc told us that if it happened again we needed to go to the ER. The doc wrote a script for Ben that he was supposed to get prior to chemo, but he wrote orders wrong and so Ben didn't get it...thanks! So, I had to race out last night and get his script filled before he got sick again and we had to go to the ER. Amazingly, CVS said that every other patient there was on their way to the ER if their script wasn't filled. Anyway, he's taking the meds now.
Ben's parents and brother left this morning. We heard from Granny this morning and she's not feeling very well & her face has started to swell a little bit. The doc should be in later today and we'll get an update...
Thank you all so much for your prayers!
They decided to keep Granny longer in the hospital which is good. They were just going to keep her in ICU overnight Thursday and send her home Friday. However, they decided to move her to a regular room on Friday so that she could get more PT, etc. After Ben's chemo, we all (Ben's parents, brother, & the two of us) went to the hospital to see Granny. She really enjoyed the company. She told us that she really didn't think she was going to survive the surgery and that she thought God smiling at her was Him saying, "come home!" Glad I didn't know that prior to her surgery. Oh, the wreck I would have been...She did ask the surgeon during the procedure if she was in Heaven. He said that's the last thing a surgeon wants to hear. She also asked us while she was in recovery if she was in Heaven. I told her the nurse was pretty, but I had a feeling the surroundings of Heaven was much more beautiful than the gurney she was on...!!
After we went to see Granny yesterday, we went to dinner at PF Changs with Ben's family. Ben was feeling a bit yucky at this point. However, we had an enjoyable dinner and then came home. When we were almost home, Ben was feeling super terrible. Within a few minutes of being in the door, we had a repeat of last time. He got so sick. Again, vomiting blood (and dinner). I know, Too Much Information. So, instead of calling EMS, we called the doc. The doc told us that if it happened again we needed to go to the ER. The doc wrote a script for Ben that he was supposed to get prior to chemo, but he wrote orders wrong and so Ben didn't get it...thanks! So, I had to race out last night and get his script filled before he got sick again and we had to go to the ER. Amazingly, CVS said that every other patient there was on their way to the ER if their script wasn't filled. Anyway, he's taking the meds now.
Ben's parents and brother left this morning. We heard from Granny this morning and she's not feeling very well & her face has started to swell a little bit. The doc should be in later today and we'll get an update...
Thank you all so much for your prayers!
Thursday, December 28, 2006
God smiled at her...
Well, today was an absolutely crazy day.
I had my follow up appt. with my doc to figure out these episodes that I've been having since April (they have been getting worse and more frequent). My grandmother had surgery today to clean out her Left Carotid that was 90-95% occluded.
The Nurse Practitioner didn't give me a real answer, but apparently my red blood cells are stacked which is a sign of an immune deficiency, etc. There are also some signs of liver stress. They have prescribed weekly IV therapy and some other stuff in hopes that we will see some good results. However, there is not an actual diagnosis. So, we'll see...
Granny's surgery was crazy to say the least. She was going in for a quick clean out of the carotid. She was only going to have IV sedation. The doc said he wouldn't do the surgery if she had to do general anesthesia because he didn't believe she would survive. Anyway, he went in to start the clean up and her artery was really hard. So, once he found a soft spot to cut into he tried to fold the artery back. The inside of the artery wall should be smooth. He said hers looked like shag carpet. If he left it like that, she would have a dramatically increased risk of clots, etc. So, he took a piece of Teflon tubing to create a bypass. In his words, one surgery turned into three. The suspected two hour surgery took four hours and 45 minutes. All of this was under IV sedation! Wow! The doc and anesthesiologist are amazing!!!
Granny has a direct line to the Lord...it's unbelivable. When she prays, she knows he is going to answer her prayer if she sees the Lord smile. When Ben was first diagnosed, she said she saw the Lord's back. Then, one day as she was praying for his healing, she saw Him smile. Well, I was a wreck this morning worried sick about her surgery. I kept trying to pray and just kept bawling. I finally reached my Mom and she told me that Granny saw God smile when she prayed about her surgery. Thank you, Lord! So, she's healing well in the ICU.
Thank you all for your prayers!
Please be in prayer for Ben's chemo Friday! Remember he got super sick last time and we had to call EMS. So, we are praying that he does better this time!
Thank you for all of your prayers! We love you and your prayers!
because of HIM,
Meredith
I had my follow up appt. with my doc to figure out these episodes that I've been having since April (they have been getting worse and more frequent). My grandmother had surgery today to clean out her Left Carotid that was 90-95% occluded.
The Nurse Practitioner didn't give me a real answer, but apparently my red blood cells are stacked which is a sign of an immune deficiency, etc. There are also some signs of liver stress. They have prescribed weekly IV therapy and some other stuff in hopes that we will see some good results. However, there is not an actual diagnosis. So, we'll see...
Granny's surgery was crazy to say the least. She was going in for a quick clean out of the carotid. She was only going to have IV sedation. The doc said he wouldn't do the surgery if she had to do general anesthesia because he didn't believe she would survive. Anyway, he went in to start the clean up and her artery was really hard. So, once he found a soft spot to cut into he tried to fold the artery back. The inside of the artery wall should be smooth. He said hers looked like shag carpet. If he left it like that, she would have a dramatically increased risk of clots, etc. So, he took a piece of Teflon tubing to create a bypass. In his words, one surgery turned into three. The suspected two hour surgery took four hours and 45 minutes. All of this was under IV sedation! Wow! The doc and anesthesiologist are amazing!!!
Granny has a direct line to the Lord...it's unbelivable. When she prays, she knows he is going to answer her prayer if she sees the Lord smile. When Ben was first diagnosed, she said she saw the Lord's back. Then, one day as she was praying for his healing, she saw Him smile. Well, I was a wreck this morning worried sick about her surgery. I kept trying to pray and just kept bawling. I finally reached my Mom and she told me that Granny saw God smile when she prayed about her surgery. Thank you, Lord! So, she's healing well in the ICU.
Thank you all for your prayers!
Please be in prayer for Ben's chemo Friday! Remember he got super sick last time and we had to call EMS. So, we are praying that he does better this time!
Thank you for all of your prayers! We love you and your prayers!
because of HIM,
Meredith
Monday, December 25, 2006
Long Overdue...
Well, Merry Christmas and forgive me for this being so long overdue...
All is well in the Fox household now. Ben is much better. You would never know that he had been ill. He looks healthy and wonderful. I feel so privileged to have been given the opportunity by the Lord to see the power of prayer! Each of your prayers for Ben's health have been heard...he is so much better.
We had my entire family over today and Ben's parents were here, as well. We had over 20 people here and it was a blast! Hank had so much fun with the little ones. He gave out lots of kisses today. He is already fast asleep. He's usually awake and wanting to play at this time of the night, but he has been fast asleep. Such a cutie...
All is well in the Fox household now. Ben is much better. You would never know that he had been ill. He looks healthy and wonderful. I feel so privileged to have been given the opportunity by the Lord to see the power of prayer! Each of your prayers for Ben's health have been heard...he is so much better.
We had my entire family over today and Ben's parents were here, as well. We had over 20 people here and it was a blast! Hank had so much fun with the little ones. He gave out lots of kisses today. He is already fast asleep. He's usually awake and wanting to play at this time of the night, but he has been fast asleep. Such a cutie...
Sleeping the night away...
Ben's parents made the trip from Philly this morning and will be here all week. We're looking forward to spending some good time with them.
A few prayer requests & praises:
Praises...
Our friends David & Kim that are adopting from Russia got the 10 days waived and are home with baby Abbey! Praise Jesus as there was no earthly way for this to occur...she said it was so obvious that it was supernatural. Thank you, Lord.
Prayers...
*Ben's continued health. He has chemo again this Friday and we want him to be healthy like he has been with every other treatment except this last one.
*Ben's hand is in a considerable amount of pain. We don't know if he has an infection or if it is a result of the chemo from last time. Please pray with us that it heals quickly.
*My Granny is going in for surgery on Thursday. Her carotid artery is over 85% occluded and so they need to go in and clean it...She is a bit nervous about the surgery. It's important for her to be calm through the surgery as she will be aware through the entire procedure (apparently a new type of surgery).
*I go back to the doctor (doc #10) on Thursday to see if they can find an explanation for these episodes I've been having since April.
*Decisions on the part of the oncologist about how many more treatments Ben should have...his prayer and hope are that he only has four total vs. six total. We have yet to get a straight answer from anyone. Obviously, if he can have less chemo with great results, that is what we would prefer.
Thank you all for your faithful prayers! None of us can doubt the power of prayer after the miraculous healing we've seen in Ben. Thank you, Jesus, and thank you prayer warriors!
Friday, December 15, 2006
Send up the Prayers!
Hey guys!
We need to ask for your prayers tonight. Ben started Round #3 of his chemo today. He wasn't feeling very well during chemo. On the way home, he felt awful. We were commenting on how he wasn't behaving at all the way he usually does after chemo and he was quite pale! We had reservations for dinner at about 7p. So, about 6:30p he was brushing his teeth and I heard a terrible noise. When I got to him, he was vomiting excessively and there was blood in it. He continued to vomit for about 10 min. and the blood continued. So, we called 911. The Rockwall EMS guys are awesome! They came over, made sure he was okay, and offered to transport Ben to the hospital if he needed it. We chose not to since he was feeling better. They also loved on Hank, our Sheltie. One of the guys asked Hank if he was "kissing cousins with Reveile!" Here's a pic of my boys!!
I called my Mom first and she immediately jumped in the car and ran to get Chicken Noodle Soup, knowing that's what he would need when it was all said and done. The main concern is a GI bleed. So, we will monitor him tonight. The hope is that it was just a blood vessel that burst while he was vomiting. The good thing is that his Platelet count and Hemoglobin were high or normal meaning that anemia and blood clotting ability are not concerns.
So, he has eaten his chicken noodle soup and had about a quart of Gatorade. Now he is laying on the couch resting and watching a little TV.
We need to ask for your prayers tonight. Ben started Round #3 of his chemo today. He wasn't feeling very well during chemo. On the way home, he felt awful. We were commenting on how he wasn't behaving at all the way he usually does after chemo and he was quite pale! We had reservations for dinner at about 7p. So, about 6:30p he was brushing his teeth and I heard a terrible noise. When I got to him, he was vomiting excessively and there was blood in it. He continued to vomit for about 10 min. and the blood continued. So, we called 911. The Rockwall EMS guys are awesome! They came over, made sure he was okay, and offered to transport Ben to the hospital if he needed it. We chose not to since he was feeling better. They also loved on Hank, our Sheltie. One of the guys asked Hank if he was "kissing cousins with Reveile!" Here's a pic of my boys!!
I called my Mom first and she immediately jumped in the car and ran to get Chicken Noodle Soup, knowing that's what he would need when it was all said and done. The main concern is a GI bleed. So, we will monitor him tonight. The hope is that it was just a blood vessel that burst while he was vomiting. The good thing is that his Platelet count and Hemoglobin were high or normal meaning that anemia and blood clotting ability are not concerns.
So, he has eaten his chicken noodle soup and had about a quart of Gatorade. Now he is laying on the couch resting and watching a little TV.
Please be in prayer for his quick healing as he does not like being sick (duh!!)!! He's just not used to it and so it's a little harder to handle.
Thank you all for your prayers! We know they are powerful as he is Cancer FREE!!!!
Monday, December 11, 2006
White Rock Marathon!
This is so cool! Haley Birkelbach, one of Ben's friends from T Bar M, did the White Rock 1/2 Marathon. She walked it in his honor (super pregnant, too)!! Isn't this the coolest thing ever...she walked this two days after we found out that Ben is Cancer FREE!!!
Here is a copy of the letter that she sent to everyone:
Here is a copy of the letter that she sent to everyone:
I want to thank each of you, so much, for contributing to the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society on my behalf for yesterday’s ½ Marathon . My team raised over $25,000 to find a cure for Leukemia and Lymphoma, and thanks to all of you, I contributed to $1,600 of that! THANK YOU!!!
Most of you know that I was walking on behalf of Ben Fox, who was diagnosed with Hodgkins Lymphoma not long after I signed up for the ½ Marathon to train with Team in Training. While we trained each week for the race, Ben was undergoing
chemotherapy and treating his cancer. His faith and commitment to our Lord during this time was unbelievable and as God would have it, Ben found out this past Friday that he is CANCER FREE!!! What an amazing God we serve!Thanks to all of you who committed to praying for him and his wife and I ask that you continue to do so. Please check out their blog at http://psalm112-survivor.blogspot.com/ to stay posted and to be challenged by Ben and Meredith’s faith and commitment to our amazing Savior.
This has been quite an amazing experience and one I will never forget. It felt amazing to cross the finish line and I could not have done it without your support and contribution, so THANK YOU so much for your generosity. You are helping find a cure for all who are affected by these diseases, and for that I am grateful.
Thanks again!
Haley
What a stud she is!!
We are so honored and humbled by this!
Everytime I look at this picture of her shirt, I bawl my eyes out! Such a precious friend!!
More pics...
With her hubby, Zack!
Look at that awesome pregnant belly and she did a half marathon! Holy Wow!!
That's her in the purple, this is like Mile 8 or 9 (I would have called for a taxi by now)!
Wow, Haley!!
Haley with her friend Marcy who ran the thing...Wow, again!
Thank you all for sharing in our joy of Ben's healing! He still needs prayers as he has a lot more chemo to go...next one is this Friday.
I haven't really stopped crying as the joy is just welling up inside of me and it's got to go somewhere! Praise the Lord, great things He has done!!
Friday, December 08, 2006
HE'S CANCER FREE!!
Praise Jesus!
Well, we have just left the doctor's office and Ben is CANCER FREE! All praise be to Jesus. There is no detectable cancer anywhere on any of the scans. Yippee!! God is so good! If you don't believe in God and His healing...rethink that because He is so powerful and HE ALONE has healed my husband!!
Here is a picture of my cancer FREE husband right after we got the news. Tears still flowing down my face!
Well, we have just left the doctor's office and Ben is CANCER FREE! All praise be to Jesus. There is no detectable cancer anywhere on any of the scans. Yippee!! God is so good! If you don't believe in God and His healing...rethink that because He is so powerful and HE ALONE has healed my husband!!
Here is a picture of my cancer FREE husband right after we got the news. Tears still flowing down my face!
Thank you all for your prayers through this crazy time.
This is the doc that gave us the great news, Dr. Neelapu.
We will continue chemo...four more rounds (which is eight treatments, every other week). The doctor here said that studies continue to show the importance of finishing the treatment to see lasting results. He did tell us that this is quite rare for it to disappear so quickly!! We know that rare means GOD can heal!!! Praise Him!
Now, for some celebration lunch & back home!!!
Thursday, December 07, 2006
M.D. Anderson
Wow! What an amazing time we've had. Yesterday we arrived around 1pm and started with blood work. Then, Ben went to have his PET Scan. Basically, they inject radioactive glucose. Tumors like glucose (it's their #1 fuel) and so they soak it up and become visible on the scan. Then, we went to have the CAT Scan. He had to drink 3 cups of Barium for that...Yummy!! So, we finally left last night around 8pm and went straight to Ninfa's where we ate more than we should have. So good, though. A lot better than the barium.
Our sweet friends, Sarah & Nick, who are staying at our house right now, allowed us to stay at their house out here. So, we went to their house & fell asleep almost immediately.
Our morning started fairly early as Ben was supposed to come have accupuncture! Pretty cool that MD Anderson recommends accupuncture & does it on site. However, they called us on our way here to tell us that his white count was too low to do the accupuncture. It was 2.5 & needed to be 3+. So, we came back to do labs again, praying that it increased. It did, but only to 2.6. So, we've missed the opportunity to do accupuncture here, but hope to find a way to get it done once we get home.
Tomorrow at 9:30a is Ben's appt. to find out if the cancer is, in fact, GONE!! So, please be in prayer that there is nothing left! We will give you all an update as soon as we know something! Please continue to pray for him!!
Our sweet friends, Sarah & Nick, who are staying at our house right now, allowed us to stay at their house out here. So, we went to their house & fell asleep almost immediately.
Our morning started fairly early as Ben was supposed to come have accupuncture! Pretty cool that MD Anderson recommends accupuncture & does it on site. However, they called us on our way here to tell us that his white count was too low to do the accupuncture. It was 2.5 & needed to be 3+. So, we came back to do labs again, praying that it increased. It did, but only to 2.6. So, we've missed the opportunity to do accupuncture here, but hope to find a way to get it done once we get home.
Tomorrow at 9:30a is Ben's appt. to find out if the cancer is, in fact, GONE!! So, please be in prayer that there is nothing left! We will give you all an update as soon as we know something! Please continue to pray for him!!
Tuesday, December 05, 2006
The lessons we can learn....
...in the silence!!
Wow! There are times that a talkative girl like me goes crazy sitting in a quiet car during the day (I have a lot of drive time to parts of my territory). However, the Lord used that time today to speak to me in a truly special way.
As most of you know, Ben has felt that he has been healed for a while now. So, it keeps getting harder and harder for him to go to chemo. It's kind of like, why do I have to take this medicine for a condition I don't have? Every time we mention chemo around him, his stomach starts to hurt.
So, today the Lord shared with me that Ben isn't going through chemo to cure the cancer, he's going through chemo for GOD'S GLORY! Then, the Lord began revealing truths to me about so many other parts of our lives. For instance, our friends, Nick & Sarah (& their 7 wk old baby girl, Claire), that are staying with us. The Lord laid it on my heart that they didn't have a child because they wanted to, but for HIS GLORY!! Same with our baby in S. Korea. We are not adopting that baby because we want to, but for His glory! I don't go to work each day because my boss requires me to, but I go for His glory. So, I shared this with Ben today & he said he definitely needed to hear that!
I just realized today that this is what each step we take is all about (maybe I'm slower than the rest of you intellectuals)...So many things in our lives seem to have a reason that makes sense & so we go with it. However, it's when you're in a situation like this, with chemo despite the belief that there is no cancer, that you have to truly consider WHY you are doing something? In the end, if you are a believer in Christ, you are doing it for Him!!
We leave in a few hours for M.D. Anderson....say LOTS of prayers!!
Wow! There are times that a talkative girl like me goes crazy sitting in a quiet car during the day (I have a lot of drive time to parts of my territory). However, the Lord used that time today to speak to me in a truly special way.
As most of you know, Ben has felt that he has been healed for a while now. So, it keeps getting harder and harder for him to go to chemo. It's kind of like, why do I have to take this medicine for a condition I don't have? Every time we mention chemo around him, his stomach starts to hurt.
So, today the Lord shared with me that Ben isn't going through chemo to cure the cancer, he's going through chemo for GOD'S GLORY! Then, the Lord began revealing truths to me about so many other parts of our lives. For instance, our friends, Nick & Sarah (& their 7 wk old baby girl, Claire), that are staying with us. The Lord laid it on my heart that they didn't have a child because they wanted to, but for HIS GLORY!! Same with our baby in S. Korea. We are not adopting that baby because we want to, but for His glory! I don't go to work each day because my boss requires me to, but I go for His glory. So, I shared this with Ben today & he said he definitely needed to hear that!
I just realized today that this is what each step we take is all about (maybe I'm slower than the rest of you intellectuals)...So many things in our lives seem to have a reason that makes sense & so we go with it. However, it's when you're in a situation like this, with chemo despite the belief that there is no cancer, that you have to truly consider WHY you are doing something? In the end, if you are a believer in Christ, you are doing it for Him!!
We leave in a few hours for M.D. Anderson....say LOTS of prayers!!
Sunday, December 03, 2006
Round 2 complete...ding ding ding!!
Yippee!! Praise the Lord! We have completed Round #2 of chemo! Thank you, Jesus!
Only four rounds to go, which is eight more treatments. He's already had four. So, we're a third of the way complete! Yeah!! His left hand is doing a little better. Last time (Treatment #3), the nurse ran the DTIC (one of his chemo drugs) too quickly. That caused the vein to be burnt which is apparently a permanent thing. So, his hand was swollen for about two weeks with a reddish/purple streak running up his arm. His hand was so sensitive to any type of contact. It's a little bit better and he can put his hands in his pockets without wincing! So, thank you, Lord, for healing.
Also, his white counts and Absolute Neutrophil Count (ANC) were actually higher this last time than they've ever been. Praise the Lord! Ben has been taking a bunch of supplements which we know are helping him. He is also taking a product called Cantron that a physician in Rockwall and a friend of ours both took and were cured of their cancer, one never did chemo or radiation, only Cantron. Ben hasn't been very consistent with the Cantron throughout his treatment. However, over the last two weeks he has been very consistent. He firmly believes that is what made the dramatic impact on his lab values!! We are so grateful to our friend, Sheri, that gave us the rest of her bottle of Cantron (it's very expensive) to get Ben started! She's blessed us by saving us money and offering healing for my husband!!
The exciting news for us is that we leave on Wednesday to go to MD Anderson! This is big because this is when they will do the CAT Scan & the PET Scan to determine if there are any more detectable cancer cells. We firmly believe that Ben is healed. However, the medical field still has to do their stuff to comfort themselves. Our sweet friends Sarah, Nick, & Claire are moving to Dallas, but their house is on the market in Houston. So, we will be staying at their house while we are there. It is such a blessing to not have to worry about expenses at hotels.
Ben is feeling a little yucky right now. I think he tries to be tough, but feels like crud. His stomach is driving him crazy. It feels incredibly full even when he's many hours post meal. His stomach is sensitive to the touch. So, I have to be careful with cuddles!! ; )
Praise: Over the last two months I have felt the Lord give me a new passion and determination at work. Despite all the craziness going on, I have had more focus while working and feel like I'm working smarter. We got our numbers in and it's paid off...in October, we had the greatest growth we've had since I joined the team! Thank you, Jesus! So, that was very exciting to see!! That will also be a blessing when bonuses are paid out.
Also, please pray for our friends, The Johnson's. They are adopting baby Abbey Elena from Russia. They leave on the 15th to go get her. They are praying that the judge will waive the 10-day waiting period that Russia has. Most judges waive this as it's not required & there is no real reason for it. However, they got the tough judge that rarely waives it. God has been so faithful to reveal scripture to Kim about how to approach the judge & how to pray. So, we are all praying in Faith that the 10-days are waived. If it wasn't waived, they would have to leave Abbey there for another month as Russia has a lot of holidays that cause the government to shut down until early January. So, the prayer is that the 10-days will be waived and they will bring Abbey home on Christmas Eve!! Please pray with us that the judges heart will be softened and the 10-days will be waived.
We are so overwhelmed by your precious support and prayers. Thank you for loving us!!
Only four rounds to go, which is eight more treatments. He's already had four. So, we're a third of the way complete! Yeah!! His left hand is doing a little better. Last time (Treatment #3), the nurse ran the DTIC (one of his chemo drugs) too quickly. That caused the vein to be burnt which is apparently a permanent thing. So, his hand was swollen for about two weeks with a reddish/purple streak running up his arm. His hand was so sensitive to any type of contact. It's a little bit better and he can put his hands in his pockets without wincing! So, thank you, Lord, for healing.
Also, his white counts and Absolute Neutrophil Count (ANC) were actually higher this last time than they've ever been. Praise the Lord! Ben has been taking a bunch of supplements which we know are helping him. He is also taking a product called Cantron that a physician in Rockwall and a friend of ours both took and were cured of their cancer, one never did chemo or radiation, only Cantron. Ben hasn't been very consistent with the Cantron throughout his treatment. However, over the last two weeks he has been very consistent. He firmly believes that is what made the dramatic impact on his lab values!! We are so grateful to our friend, Sheri, that gave us the rest of her bottle of Cantron (it's very expensive) to get Ben started! She's blessed us by saving us money and offering healing for my husband!!
The exciting news for us is that we leave on Wednesday to go to MD Anderson! This is big because this is when they will do the CAT Scan & the PET Scan to determine if there are any more detectable cancer cells. We firmly believe that Ben is healed. However, the medical field still has to do their stuff to comfort themselves. Our sweet friends Sarah, Nick, & Claire are moving to Dallas, but their house is on the market in Houston. So, we will be staying at their house while we are there. It is such a blessing to not have to worry about expenses at hotels.
Ben is feeling a little yucky right now. I think he tries to be tough, but feels like crud. His stomach is driving him crazy. It feels incredibly full even when he's many hours post meal. His stomach is sensitive to the touch. So, I have to be careful with cuddles!! ; )
Praise: Over the last two months I have felt the Lord give me a new passion and determination at work. Despite all the craziness going on, I have had more focus while working and feel like I'm working smarter. We got our numbers in and it's paid off...in October, we had the greatest growth we've had since I joined the team! Thank you, Jesus! So, that was very exciting to see!! That will also be a blessing when bonuses are paid out.
Also, please pray for our friends, The Johnson's. They are adopting baby Abbey Elena from Russia. They leave on the 15th to go get her. They are praying that the judge will waive the 10-day waiting period that Russia has. Most judges waive this as it's not required & there is no real reason for it. However, they got the tough judge that rarely waives it. God has been so faithful to reveal scripture to Kim about how to approach the judge & how to pray. So, we are all praying in Faith that the 10-days are waived. If it wasn't waived, they would have to leave Abbey there for another month as Russia has a lot of holidays that cause the government to shut down until early January. So, the prayer is that the 10-days will be waived and they will bring Abbey home on Christmas Eve!! Please pray with us that the judges heart will be softened and the 10-days will be waived.
We are so overwhelmed by your precious support and prayers. Thank you for loving us!!
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