12-31-12

Happy new years to all. May the new year bring you more blessings.

Barbara and I have had many opportunities but we look at the year as one that God provided for our needs

We look forward to the new year with anticipation knowing that will take care of us. -- if we just ask.

Thanks for all the prayers this year

Tomorrow we travel to baylor medical center We have and MRI and doctors appointment early Wednesday morning.

We hope to find out about these head shakes. Barbara continues to be pain free but is just tired from the head shakes.

12-30-12

Barbara got up at 2 this morning. Her head shakes were really bothering her. They don't hurt it is just that she couldn't sleep. So we took some medicine to calm the shakes down without knocking her out. We did not make it to church but we did read from the proverbs.
In proverbs the bible says that God will take care of those that love Him.

So barbara just rested today. This evening we ate supper then brian played the piano and Leanna sang hymns. Barbara didn't sing but I did see her toes tapping to the music. She rested in the living room until 9. That is late for her. Maybe she will sleep good tonight.

Many of you told me that you and your church are praying for Barbara. Thanks for the prayers. Barbara told
Me today that we just need to lean on Him and He will get us through each day. So we depend on your prayers to help us.

12-29-12

We got up at 3 and ate a snack. Then at 4:30 the neighbors dog began barking. It made Barbara and I think of uncle Lloyd. After breakfast barbara took a nap until it was time to go to david and Sarah's for thompson Christmas. We had a great time

Barbara did pretty good. She was tired but enjoyed family. Below are pictures of the thompson clan that was there.

Barbara still has the head shakes. We hope to find out more about them on Wednesday She is not in pain. She is thankful for that.

Barbara told me that God promised to take care of us each day. To provide for us not before and not after but right when we need His provision.

Remember Sunday is coming

12-27-12

Barbara got up an ate at 3:00 then again at 9:00. She still has a good appetite. Her head had the shakes today so I gave her medicine to calm down the shaking. Of course that causes her to loose the use of her neck muscles. We did get to go out for lunch.

This evening david came over and sang songs with Barbara. Leanna has contacted a recording studio and we have put together some girl scout songs that barbara Leanna and david are going to record.

It should be fun. Pray that Barbara will have the needed strength and the voice to finish the recording.

Barbara said that God has blessed her more than she asked for. He is taking care of her each day. Her faith in God has not waived during this year of "opportunities" dealing with cancer She amazes me sometimes

12-26-12

Barbara got up and had a good breakfast. She rested most of the day. For lunch we had left overs from Christmas. She still has her head shakes. They don't hurt her they just make her tired

It was cold most of the day. We stayed inside. Not very venturesome Barbara wanted to go out in the afternoon After I explained about the cold she opted not to go out

12-25-12

Woke up this morning with ice on the ground. Barbara got up and leanna and brian fixed her breakfast. Then it started to snow. OKC did not get as much as predicted but enough to say that we had a white Christmas

Barbara rested until 2 and then we went to david and sarah's for Christmas. We had a gift exchange and then we had dinner. It was really good and fun to spend time with family

Barbara is very tired. Her head still has the shakes. I am sure that her shaking helps to keep her tired

But this is her favorite holiday. So she was up most of the afternoon. She can rest tomorrow

Notice the cat head gear. One of Barbara's gifts

12-24-12

'twas the night before Christmas and I must get this done so I can get to sleep in hope of a big and long Christmas day

Ok it may be long because of the pending ice and snow coming

Barbara got up this morning and requested pork chops for breakfast. I talked her into roast beef and baked potatoes and gravy. I think that is a Midwestern breakfast. After breakfast we had blood drawn then we drove to Oklahoma city. After looking at the forecast of pending weather I wanted to get here before the winter weather arrived. So we are at Leanna and Brian's we will be here for Christmas and then some appointments next week

Barbara did good on the drive down here. she did get tired and wanted to go to bed as soon as we arrived.

She still has head tremors. The doctors are not too worried about this but state it is just the result of trauma to the brain ( cancer, two surgeries, chemo, radiation and avastin).

Tomorrow we celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior.

12-23-12

Barbara did not go to church today. She rested while I went
She continues to have a great appetite. Her head tremors continue. She says that they do not hurt just make it hard to eat and drink
Barbara enjoys sitting in the living room watching the cats as they watch the birds eat at the bird feeders outside.

Thanks for all the prayers

12-22-12

Barbara still had head tremors. She does still have an appetite. She has no pain She rested most of the day

This afternoon she had a headache but after eating she felt much better.

We have received so many Christmas cards telling Barbara that you are praying for her. She appreciates each of your prayers. Thanks

Remember Sunday is coming

12-21-12

Oh no the world is coming to the end. Oops didn't happen

Barbara did not have a good day. She has had head shakes all day I have tried many things to keep her shakes at a minimum. I do have medicine that will stop the shakes but it will also cause her to be delusional. So I have tried to use that medicine sparingly.

Today was Judy's birthday so we had lunch here so I wouldn't have to get Barbara out. Barbara did eat a little but then went back to bed

Notice that the two new cats have taken over my chair. Barbara wanted to get a yellow. Well you will notice that we have two. Barbara is enjoying them.

The deer are back. I think they read the hunting schedule and know that there is no hunting until jan 1

It is amazing how God is in control and provides for us all the time. Thanks God

12-20-12

Barbara has had a good appetite today. She has also had tremors all day. Therefore she has been very tired. It is understandable that she would be tired if her body is shaking all the time
The home health care nurse advised that she take some medicine to limit the tremors. That has helped and leanna and I have heard her snoring. That is a good sign. Her body needs rest.

Barbara has wanted a calico cat for a couple of months. Well leanna had a friend that needs to get rid of their cats for medical reasons. So barbara now has two cars. They are getting used to the house. One of them has been on the bed with barbara. It would only stay there as long as Barbara was petting it.

It snowed this morning. Only a trace.

12-19-12

Barbara got up at 4:00 and had breakfast. She took a nap got up and had another breakfast. She rested until lunch and said she was hungry. Leanna was amazed at how quickly she ate lunch. Then the therapist came and had her work her arms and legs

She has had muscle shakes most of the day. The nurse said that often times after brain surgery the brain will tell a body part that it hurts or that it should shake. The nurse said it is just like the leg pain that Barbara had earlier. There was nothing wrong with her leg just the brain telling her it hurt. Well now it is telling the muscles to shake. So Barbara has a slight shake

Well tonight the Awana young people (about 60) from church came to carol at our house. The pastor had told me they were going to come here. I put a heater on the porch and wrapped Barbara up with blankets Barbara really enjoyed the songs Many of the children yelled "merry Christmas miss Barbara". It sure made Barbara's evening.

In fact Barbara was singing with the young people and smiling a lot. She never complained about the cold until they drove away

12-18-12

Barbara got up at 4:30 and ate breakfast. Then she slept until 8:30. She ate again. She was tired after the second breakfast so she slept until lunch

After lunch leanna arrived with two cats. She opened the two cages and the cats went under the bed. They have come out from under the bed but are still searching the house. It may take a couple of days before they accept this as home

Barbara is still tired. I don't know if it is the white blood count or the high liver count but it is making barbara very tired.

Just pray for increased energy.

12-17-12

Barbara had a good breakfast She took a nap then she went to give blood. We then had lunch with my brother and sister in law. We came home to take a nap. Then the therapist came and he made Barbara work her arms and legs

Then the oncologist called. Barbara's blood platelets went down to 141,000. Not bad since she had chemo and avastin last week. Also her white blood cells were down. Indicating a possible infection.

Then our primary doctor called and said that Barbara's liver counts were way up She is changing some of Barbara's medicine.

Barbara feels good but is just tired.

The hoot owl came and serinaded Barbara last night She just thanks God for allowing us to enjoy living in rural Kansas

12-16-12

Barbara did not make it to church. She rested while I was gone to church
She has better use of her left leg today. After lunch she wanted to sit in the chair. She was up until after supper then she went to bed

She is just tired.

12-15-12

Barbara felt good all day. She still has her appetite.

Her left leg still does not obey commands. So she is working getting it stronger she Is also using squeeze ball to strengthen her hands and arms. I am sure the therapist will have exercises for her on Monday.

She is looking forward to going to church so she can sing tomorrow

Sunday is coming

12-14-12

Barbara got up and had a protein breakfast. Then she took a nap. We went to Parsons to get stuff at Walmart and then went to my brothers to eat lunch and visit. Barbara rested a little while there. She is still very tired from the travels to Baylor and back

When we got home she took a nap. We had a good supper and now Barbara is sleeping

It was a good day. Her left leg is still not working great but better that last week.

It is raining so hopefully that will help the crops.

12-13-12

Barbara had the best night of sleep. She slept 8 hours without getting up. We got up and after breakfast headed to Kansas we got here about 3. Barbara went to bed but then she got up and wanted to sit in the living room. I started a fire in the fireplace it sure felt good.

We had a good trip and got some positive info from the doctors. Pray that the muscle spasms stop. Barbara said at supper tonight that she wanted to be able to outside and walk around the property. That is a good sign

12-12-12

Barbara got up and had breakfast and then we headed to Dallas for her avastin treatment. There were 4 or 5 others in the avastin room. It amazes us that cancer affects people differently. Some people loose use of a side some loose mental capacity. Barbara has been blessed that she has only had 3 seizures and that she has temporary loss of her left side.

After the avastin treatment we headed back to OKC

Tomorrow we will drive back to Kansas

Barbara did not have any pain today. Her left leg does not obey the command to move so we have to manually move the left foot. It makes going to the bathroom a tricky effort.
But we make it.

Thank you God for a wife that is so appreciative of my feeble efforts to help her

12-11-12

Barbara got early and we ate breakfast then later leanna got up and fixed us another breakfast. Barbara then rested the rest of the morning. She went to the doctor. The doctor said that the tremors were muscle spasms. She said to apply heat to Barbara's arm and hand.
All of her blood work looked great except those pertaining to the liver. Most of the cancer drugs are hard on the liver. About 2 years ago Barbara's liver count went way up. So the doctor is changing the cholesterol medicine. Her blood platelet is 196,000. That is highest it has been since we started this chemo.

Tonight was the last night of chemo for this cycle

In the morning we go to Baylor for the avastin drip

Pray that it will allow the left leg to respond to Barbara's brain commands.

12-10-12

Got up and had a good breakfast at 5. It was 22 degrees. Barbara took a nap then she ate again. Then we went to give blood. After that's we had lunch with Sonny and Judy. Then we headed to OKC where we have a doctors spot in Tuesday. We need to talk to the doctor about the tremors Barbara is having

Leanna had a great meal to celebrate that one year ago a doctor said that a normal person would only live 22 weeks if they had surgery chemo and radiation. Barbara is not normal and here she is one year later

It was good to be able to celebrate with leanna brian david and sarah

Survivor one year one day

We got up early and had a great breakfast then napped until breakfast time. After the second breakfast barbara had a slight headache and some small tremors. So she rested and did not go to church

After church we sat up and watched the chiefs attempt to play football. Then we rested.

Barbara had some small tremors as we got ready for bed
Yes we did take chemo number 3 of 5

Survivor one year

I had the days wrong on all my previous posts. Today is one year from the time Barbara found that she had a mass in her brain. So today she is a one year survivor

Barbara has had some good days and some bad days. She has progress and then had some set backs but the thing that keeps her going is that the Bible says that God will take care of her each day. So even though she recently had 2 seizures in 4 days and she lost use of her left side again, she is gaining strength and is mentally preparing herself to walk again. Even when she is confused she realizes that God is going to be with her at all times

Today she rested most of the day. Then at 3 she said that she wanted to go for a drive. She needs windshield time so we drove toward Joplin. Didn't make it there but had a nice drive.

Today she received a call from England. Girl guide friends called to find out how she is doing. The husband has medical problems but he wanted to make sure Barbara was ok

Barbara is so amazed that people would call her and wish her well. Thanks to all that called, wrote notes, prepared food and visited this last year

Remember Sunday is coming

Survivor week 51 day 7

Barbara got up today and was still confused. She thought I had moved her to Arkansas. (we had been talking about going on a road trip to Eureka Springs last night)

She still likes to eat the therapist came and had her work out. He had her get up and stand at the sink (maybe she will help me with the dishes. Nope)

We then took a trip to help my brother and sister in law since he still has 5 pound lift limit from his surgery

It was good to help them. Barbara rested. We came home and had supper

Tonight Barbara starts chemo for 5 nights

The first thing that Barbara said this morning was that this is Pearl Harbor Day she still think good but is sometimes confused (probably comes from living with me for 43 years)

Pray that the chemo will continue to do the job.

Survivor week 51 day 6

Barbara got up today at 3:30 and wanted a steak burrito. Then at 8 she ate again. The bath lady came and barbara was confused. She thought I had moved her to an apartment.

After the shower she seemed to regain her memory She felt better. After a nap she wanted to go for a drive. Sow we drove to Oswego to pay our property taxes

We had lunch Znd then came home. She is still tired but feels she is getting better.

Continue to pray that the side affects of the drugs will stop.

Survivor week 51 day 5

Oops. I did this last night and I got distracted (old age) and forgot to publish this. Thanks to Alice who called and wanted to know what was going on.

Barbara got up and we had our first breakfast at 2 second breakfast at 5:30. Third breakfast at 8:30. Yes she still has a good appetite. Donna from church brought a casserole for lunch. It was good for barbara just to talk to someone other than me

Then the therapist came and he said that she was much stronger than on Monday. We rested the rest of the day

Barbara has so much chemicals in her that she is very confused. She thought that I moved all the furniture to an apartment in Oklahoma city. she now knows that we are in Altamont Kansas

Pray that the chemicals from the hospital will leave her body

Survivor week 51 day 4

Barbara got up late and ate then the bath lady came to help give her a bath. She said she was too tired to take a shower but leanna and I convinced her that a shower would make her feel better. After the shower she said she was glad that she took a shower. She is still feeling tired from the stay in the hospital.

Leanna left this afternoon. Something about going home to see her husband and some of his family that drove in from Tennessee when I woke barbara up for supper she said that she wanted to walk to the door unassisted. She tried but realized she needed help. So I helped her and she walked to the doorway then rode the rest of the way to supper. After supper she watched a little television and then she went to bed

She said she wanted everyone to know that she is trying to get stronger. She still loves to pray. Tonight when I was reading the bible to her she said it was easier to understand if she knows the context of the scripture I guess that means that I need to make sure she understands the background of what I am reading to her.

Pray that I will be more aware of what I am reading to her. So that she will understand.

Survivor week 51 day 3

Barbara got up hungry again. Since she taking steroids I am sure she will continue to eat lots. She slept a lot today

The therapist came and Barbara wanted to get up and excercise She was not able to stand but did leg and arm stretches. He said she was still full of drugs from the stay in the hospital. Each day she will get stronger as she gets rid of those drugs

She rested but did not sleep this afternoon. Hope that means she sleeps good tonight.

She really has had zero pain today. She is just tired and has a lack of energy

Please pray for energy.

Survivor week 51 day 2

Barbara rested most of the day. She was hungry and wanted food. She glad that the let her come home from the emergency room and not be admitted to the hospital.
No shaking today. Barbara did get up for a few minutes as sonny and judy came to check on us and david and Suzzann came to visit before they leave on their trip.

It is always fun to get together with family who are also good friends.

Again barbara wanted me to thank you all for the prayers. She said she would not be able to make it without them.

Thanks

Update on week.51 day 1

Barbara had her second seizure in 4 days We were released from the emergency room at midnight 30. Barbara was like a rag doll but we got her home and put her to bed (all they were going to do in the hospital was to monitor her to see if she had a reaction to the adivan So she slept from the time we got home until now.). Nobody checking blood or blood sugar or waking you up to see if you are ok.
The doctor thinks that by taking her off steroids she started having siezure s. so the doctor has put her back on steroids.

Barbara has talked to both leanna and I this morning.

Thank you for the prayers

I usually say Sunday is coming but this morning I will say Sunday has arrived spend time with your lord and savior. He will provide all your needs

Survivor week 51 day 1

Barbara is still weak from the medicine given to stop the seizure she lost control of her bladder but control is coming back. Today was the funeral of uncle Kenny.

Rich and alice came by before the funeral to see his sister. Then we went to the funeral. After the funeral Barbara's other brother john an his wife Rosey came by to visit. Then ain't Lucretia and cousin Diane came by. Barbara enjoyed visiting but is very tired.

She is still having tremors in her arms that bothers her because she is fearful that it will develop into a siezure

Ok the shakes have continued for 30 minutes. We are now at emergency room in parsons Dr is aware of our last visit. Shakes only on left arm. Not whole left side like last Wednesday

Will be here for a few hours so will let you know how everything is tomorrow or I may do an update when we leave here. But I am sure it will be early morning.

Please pray for relief for Barbara. Pray for clarity of thought for the attending doctors and nurses
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