Nutrition On The Way!

The last couple of days have been eventful. Mom spent Monday morning on the phone getting COH moving. After dad was sent home from the hospital on Saturday, he was sent home for the second time with his prescriptions wrong. Mom has been so kind with the staff at COH, and she still was; but she had to say something. If my dad had been in pain that first night, he would've been in trouble. The only pharmacy that my dad is allowed to go to would not fill the prescription, due to an error on the paper from COH. But God was watching over him, and he was able to make it through the night without the dilotin. COH apologized; they are just way understaffed and overwhelmed I think. We are praying that there will be no more mistakes like that, with dad in such a crucial state. Mom got them moving though, and they were able to get the new prescription over to the pharmacy. She also worked hard on getting food bags for my dad. Good news is, dad will have the food bags delivered tomorrow and a home health nurse will be coming to the house daily to administer the food going through dad's hickman catheter. This is great! He will now be getting the nutrition that he was getting while at the hospital, since he is not holding down his food.

Another great thing to get some more nutrition in dad, is my friend Joanna was able to get some new protein drinks for him. They have tried all kinds, and they are now trying her company. Joanna went to my parents to hand deliver it. My mom said that she walked in the front door and just wrapped her arms around mom, while they cried together. Joanna prayed over my mom, and mom was completely blessed. It means so much to me when my friends and family love on my parents like that, since I can't physically. Mom was even in tears as she told me on the phone, and yes so was I. Thanks Joanna.

Dad's been getting his white blood cell shot everyday at Dr. Nanda's office in Victorville. Today, he went on a walk and kept his food down all day. When I talked to them in the evening, dad was really focusing hard and fighting to keep his food in. Even as mom talked about what they ate that day and such, she had to stop because it was making it harder on dad. It breaks my heart to watch him struggle so much with having to focus on not vomiting. He so badly wants to keep in that nutrition.

Dad had a nice visit from his friends Buzzard, Lindel, and Dick Holly. Mom said that she left the men to have their time together and went in the bedroom. Dad joked with a smirking smile, "We had male bonding time." I'm glad he had some time with his friends.

Family Day

Dad and Mom got to spend the day with Travis and Samantha. It was a great time to be with their son and their precious only grand-daughter. They had a little Thanksgiving dinner that my sis-in-law Janelle prepared for them. Unfortunately, Jaxon got sick and so Janelle stayed home with him (since he can't be around dad with germs). Mom said that they had a relaxed day together; Sam helped prepare the food with mom in the kitchen; Trav offered to rub his Daddy's back and feet. But Dad spent the day focused; as mom says, "he's like a strong warrior on the battlefield. Though we sit and play games and Barbies with Sammie, watch football, eat; he is in focus mode. He is at war to keep in every piece of food that he can get in." "He's a stud," mom says. And he is. She said he wakes up and gets out of bed by himself and into the shower; next he gets on the tredmill for 20 minutes, no matter how much he really doesn't feel up to it. He's a strong warrior- the strongest I've ever met. I told him today that he didn't have to go to the Middle East to prove to me that he's a warrior. It's evident here and now. He's determined and he WILL keep fighting for his life. We're so proud of his determination, drive and strength and reliance on the Lord.

After Sammie and Travis left, Dad did lose his food for the day. Its a lot of nutrition that is not staying in his body, and so we ask that you plead on behalf of my dad for that food to stay in his body and give him the nutrition that it needs.

Thank you for your continual love and support.

A Beautiful Surprise To Come Home To

Dad and Mom were released from the hospital this afternoon. As they pulled into the driveway, they saw my grandparents (mom's parents) getting ready to leave. Mom drove faster than they had expected, as they were trying to make their get-away. My grandparents and my mom's brother Steve and wife Diane, mom's sister Vicky and husband Donny went in together on buying mom and dad this tree with lights already built into it (which they had wanted, before they hadn't felt up to getting one themselves). They filled it with some family ornaments and some ornaments bought. The photo is blurry, but it is beautiful. My mom was moved to tears! And mom said that dad sat on the couch starring at it for half an hour while she made him lunch. What a blessing this will be for my parents to feel the warmth of the holidays now! Thanks for blessing my parents. What an amazing family we have!

Dad began losing his food again today. Mom was in tears today as she told me, and the frustration of wanting to keep dad healthy yet the food not staying, can become overwhelming. Please pray that the food will stay as it did the couple of days in the hospital. Also pray that dad and mom will have a restful week at home with no complications as they wait for the next chemo. My brother didn't come up to visit since the day would've been cut short; he will come up tomorrow to have a full day with dad and mom.

Thanks again to our amazing family and to all of you who love, support and pray for my family. We are forever grateful!

Headed Home Tomorrow

After two days of no vomiting, dad will be sent home tomorrow (Saturday- America). They switched him to the dilotin pill today instead of the drip through his hickman; they want to see how the pain is tonight on the pill, before he goes home tomorrow. He seems to be doing okay during the day now, and was looking good today on skype. The x-rays didn't show any immediate problems and the doctors believe that the chemo is shrinking the mass because of dad holding food in and his body seeming to function on a normal level again. He will go home and two weeks from this last chemo, come back again for the next round. They should then be able to do another PET SCAN to see what the mass is looking like.

Please continue to pray that dad will hold his food in and his body will function normally and that would be a direct result of the mass shrinking.

My brother will be going to visit my parents tomorrow and they're looking forward to some time together since its been a couple of weeks. Please pray that dad is feeling well enough for company and that he can enjoy his day with his son.

Thank you for all of your love, prayers and support.

Happy Thanksgiving

My dad and mom enjoyed their day being together. Dad was able to be dilotin free for the entire day, as the pain was not so bad. At night when he was lying down, he had to be on it. But when he is sitting up, its much better. He was able to walk around a bit, and enjoyed his Thanksgiving meal. His favorite part was the mashed potatoes and gravy and the best part is that he kept it all in!!!!! YAY! He looked much better today, which brought a smile to my face. He was able to skype his mom today and talked to my brother for a little bit. Thank you for all of the prayers. We will find out the results from the x-rays today (Friday- America). Praying that mass is shrinking and off the intestines.

" Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus". - 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

Thanking God for every day..........

Pain Being Managed

Yesterday (Wednesday) was a little better; the dilotin was beginning to work and dad was getting more calloused to the pain. He still can feel it; its just not as bad. They took an x-ray of his body again today to see what has happened since these last two chemo treatments. They will have the results back on Friday. Dad and Mom will spend their Thanksgiving today at City of Hope. The staff said that they will make up a yummy Thanksgiving dinner for them both, and dad will also be going back on his food IV. He will continue to eat as much as he can, but with the consistent vomiting after meals, they have to get some nutrition into his body that will stay there.

I spoke to my dad and mom on the phone today, as skype was not working since we have now entered rainy season, aka stormy season. It was so good to talk to my dad, though I couldn't do a lot of talking as I was mostly crying. Today for me is such a hard day, not only because of the tremendous pain and battle I know my dad is fighting; it's also hard with being away on the holidays, especially at a time like this. Today also stands out for me in a real, more vivid way than ever before. It was today, two years ago, that my grandpa (my dad's dad) died of cancer. He said all of his good-byes to each one of us on Thanksgiving night, then passed away that night.

Please keep my dad in your prayers as I know today is a hard day for him with losing his dad, and even now as he is going through the same battle with cancer. Please also pray for his mom (my grandma) as I can't imagine how it feels to have just lost your husband to cancer and now watch your youngest son battle it also for his life. Please also pray for my family today, as we are all separated. Please pray for my mom and dad in the hospital to just have a day of loving on each other and being thankful for every moment they have together.

Thanks to all of you for taking time out of your lives and families, to stay updated on mine and to pray for the healing of my dad. Today, I am completely thankful to each of you that stays up on this blog and lifts my family up.

Happy Thanksgiving~ From our family to yours~

Like my dad said today, "He promised to never give me more than I could handle." He's continuing to stand on THE word and I am thankful for my dad, who sets such an amazing example for me to follow. Still Thanking God, whether we're in storms or smooth sailing.

A Day Almost Unbearable To Be Away

Throughout these last 6 months, every curve of this roller coaster has been hard. But the hardest drops that come are when I am told that my dad endured pain. I hate knowing that he hurts and I just want to take it away. My mom called this morning with one hand on the phone, my brother on the other line and one hand holding her laptop calling me. She was letting us both know that my dad had been in excruciating pain the entire day, from the moment the chemo drip began. The tears immediately rolled down my face, as I so badly want to do something to take it all away. And yet, there's nothing I can do but pray and encourage my dad. Whether dad was standing, sitting; no matter what position, he was in absolute pain- the worst yet for 10 hours. They put my dad on a dilotin drip, which is heavier pain narcotics than morphine. The dilotin still didn't work. My mom said that his pain was in his pancreas and down to his lower back. When the chemo was over, the nurses told them that they could go home if they wanted since it was a holiday. My dad immediately said "no, please let me stay." Both mom and dad said, "we don't care about the holiday... we just got to get better." He knew with the excruciating pain that he was in, he was not in any condition to go home and needed to be in a doctor's care. As soon as my dad said that, the nurse knew that his pain was serious and though he was trying to stay so calm on the outside and strong.... she now knew how bad it really was. My mom said that he did stay strong all day and didn't even moan in agony though that's how he felt, and all he could say out loud was "God please help me."

My mom called us when dad had finally been able to feel the dilotin working and easing the pain. He was close to falling asleep when she called and she was in complete relief. We don't know what the pain was caused from. My mom heard one person walk by (she couldn't remember if it was a nurse or who); but they said that maybe the pain was caused by the chemo breaking down the mass. We are praying that is what it was. We are also asking that you pray that pain subsides and never resumes. My dad's weight has dropped the lowest yet and broke my heart today to hear the number. Dad is fragile and frail and even struggling to walk, my mom says. Please pray that they can figure out this food issue and getting him strengthened and weight back on him.

Thank you for the continued love, support and prayers. We are so grateful to our good family friend Curtis Powell, who works at a hospital down the road from COH. He stopped by last night to see my dad and rubbed his lower back where that pain was and just prayed over my dad. My dad was very grateful for the love and support that Curtis showed him. I didn't get to talk to him today, as he was not feeling up to talking..... but my heart was breaking and I sent love, hugs and kisses for my mom to give to him.

Next Round of Chemo Today

Dad, we're gonna get you golfing again!

The last two days have been pretty low key for my mom and dad at home. They stayed inside mostly relaxing by the fire together. Dad has been pretty sick, so mom is helping him out with every detail that comes with that. He continues to get more and more sick losing weight and gagging. We are asking that you please pray that as dad has his next chemo treatment appointment this morning, that his levels will be ready for him to receive the treatment. Also, we are asking that you would please pray that this chemo will work and shrink that mass from pressing on the small intestine. One of my mom's least favorite things is fog, and she said that the High Desert was covered with it. Please pray that it will be cleared so that they can travel down to City of Hope this morning.

I would love to ask that you pray for my mom to have a renewal of strength this week, as it is so difficult to watch your most precious loved one battle for their life. Dad just wraps his arms around her and encourages her, even as her tears flow down when she has to leave him to go to the store. She says "he's the one going through this, yet he is so strong and has to hold me and encourage me." But I know that she is also encouraging him, and that he would not be where he is if it weren't for her non-stop love, faithfulness, encouragement and strength. I'm reading a book called "Created To Be His Help Meet" right now, and I can't think of a better fitting woman than my mom.

As I looked my dad in the eyes today, while he admits to feeling so weak and exhausted, and tell him I miss him; he tells me back "stay strong Tiff." Wow dad, you are so strong..... not a strength that comes from pumping iron as I always watched you do all my life, but an inner strength that I know only comes from God. I love you Dad. You CAN DO THIS!

Please pray for my family this week, as we are all separated during the holidays; please pray for a comfort and peace in all of our hearts. As I talked to my parents about the holidays, and even their lack of desire to even decorate this year for Christmas. My mom stated, "All we want for Christmas is to get Dad better." She's so right...... so we continue the fight.

Still Fighting

I don't even know how to title this, as dad had been having a good few days, then out of no where the gagging/choking thing came back. And its not fun. Please pray for him as it is so uncomfortable and everything in him wants to vomit to feel better, but he knows that the way he can continue to fight is to fight to keep everything in as much as possible. He has been losing weight again and will continue to fight to keep that nutrition as much as possible. Please pray as this roller coaster continues to get harder. Mom and I both had a day of a lot of crying. I know its good for us to emotionally process, breathe and get refocused. Its just hard.

Although dad wasn't feeling good at all, his side of the family was having a Thanksgiving celebration today, and he wanted to go. My mom was wanting things to feel normal like every year preparing something to bring. So she called my Aunt Diane for a recipe to make a cranberry salad. My Aunt Diane, instead of giving her the recipe, showed up this morning to surprise my mom with the cranberry salad already made, some rolls and a Fall candle. My mom was not the only one balling her eyes out when she told me this story. I can't even tell you how the things that people probably think are so small of help, come as a tremendous blessing to our family. Thank you Aunt Diane for blessing my parents today. Mom said, "I got to spend the morning with dad while he was sick, instead of in the kitchen." It really meant a lot to them.

Dad really enjoyed being in the company of his family today even though he felt so sick. He was able to eat a spoonful of each yummy dish, as mom did the same with him.

Please please pray that Tuesday's chemo will attack that mass!!! And please pray that during these next couple of days, that gagging feeling will go away and dad will be able to sleep at night.

Thank you for all of your love, support and prayers

Still No Chemo

My mom took Dad down to City of Hope on Friday to have his next round of chemo. His platelets were too low for chemo, yet not low enough for a transfusion and so they went home. They will try again on Tuesday to see if his levels are normal for chemo. Please pray for him because he is again having that uncomfortable feeling of food coming up and gagging. He was nervous that he wouldn't be able to sleep tonight with that uncomfortable feeling. He knows if he vomits, that feeling will go away, but he also is aware of that much needed substance to stay in his body thus giving him nutrition. Please pray that chemo can happen on Tuesday and they can continue to try and eliminate this mass.

After their day at COH, doing blood tests and meeting with the doctors, mom and dad made a few stops on the way home. Dad went and picked out a new Quicksilver beanie at Macy's, so he can have a couple to choose from. He also got his favorite "Black Angus" for dinner. He was stoked; just hoping it would feel like it went down. Mom also stopped to get gas and dad wanted so badly to be the one to get out and pump since it was so cold. But mom insisted that he stay in the car and she did it. They are doing everything they can to keep dad healthy and to not get any germs or sickness so he can be strong for chemo. We are praising God for his health in that area. Other than a small cold and low levels, he has been able to stay strong enough to keep getting treatments.

Keep praying! Prayer makes a difference!

Thanks for your love and support!

Called for Chemo; Canceled; Connecting With Friends

Dad was called at the last moment from the doctor to come down for chemo (Wednesday). They got a call that morning before coming down, that they were canceling it due to the last minute scheduling and things not being processed.

It came as a blessing in disguise. Dad and Mom got to go to a barbecue that the Apple Valley Sheriff's Department had invited them to. They were so excited that they could go now, since chemo was postponed. Dad got to see a ton of his friends/co-workers. What a blessing it was for them to be surrounded by so much love and encouragement from dad's A.V. station.

Dad was also stoked to tell me that he drove today. I loved watching his face light up telling me that. Because he's been off of morphine now, due to NO more pain, he was able to drive. I hadn't thought about the fact that he wasn't driving at all anymore. When I was there, he drove sometimes. When I asked about it, mom said "he stopped driving after you left." Then with a lil cute sass, Dad said something like "well your mom chose that I stopped driving." We all laughed about it. I joked with him that he was like the senior citizen that gets their keys taken away from them. But now he's got them back!!!

Home Sweet Home

Dad was released yesterday (the normal five hour process). "We'll discharge you at 11:00 am." 4:00 pm rolls around.... "ah, headed home!" It was so nice for them to come home to their nice cozy house and get the fire started together. They also had the blessing of soup being prepared for them by their good friends the Buzzards. What a blessing! On skype tonight, "grandma" was showing Koda the fireplace, and Koda said "Mommy I want to go to grandma and grandpa's house and lay on their couch by the fire, it looks cozy." Too cute! But not the part after where I have to explain how we have to fly for 2 to 3 days to get there and that it costs 5 arms and 5 legs to pay for the plane tickets ;) "Grandma and Grandpa" quickly reminded Koda that they were going to be coming out to Sri Lanka to see them just as soon as grandpa gets all better. She started naming off all of the places they've heard about from us and seen pictures. Koda reminded them that we were gonna take them to see elephants and of course the monkeys in our front yard, oh and crocodiles too. My parents had tickets booked to come see us September and October. They were able to get a refund; thankful they purchased the insurance. But I dream and continue to pray that my dad will be able to come see the place that I now call "home," the place where God has brought us, and the place that captivates our hearts. I remember the first time we found out my dad had cancer after his MRI. I remember one of the first things my mom told me was that my dad was crying saying, "I just want to go to Sri Lanka and see my little girl thriving."

Please make this your prayer, as it is our prayer.

Bringing Back Whole Foods

My dad had a good day again today. He walked three times with mom, 20 minutes each time. Its so good for him when he's feeling able to get up and get out to breathe in fresh, crisp air and get those muscles working.

He also enjoyed holding down all three meals again today. Not only did he enjoy keeping them inside, but they tasted great! He was able to start having more solid foods today, such as pasta and salad, eggs and bacon, hashbrowns. He was stoked on food today!

They will be finding more details out today on what lies ahead of them. Based on dad's good condition at this point, they might send him home. Will let you know :)

Praying that mass is shrinking!!!!

Let's Play Pretend :)

I played "pretend" today like when I was a little girl. I put myself in between mom and dad in the photo today on skype; pretending like I was right there with my arms around them both.

But since I wasn't, dad had a nice day with some visitors. He got to laugh with family and had a good day. Since he's been "vomit free" for three days now, he felt much more like having company. Dad and Mom also got spoiled with many gifts; when my Uncle Steve and Aunt Diane asked if they could get mom and dad anything, their one or two requests turned into bags full of nice goodies. Grandma and Grandpa Mortimore and Uncle Donny and Aunt Vicky also blessed them with a visit and some goodies. They most of all brought a bunch of laughter that uplifted mom and dad's spirits and left smiles on their faces. Thanks for love and support. Its such a blessing to have such supportive family.

Unsure what tomorrow holds. They should want to do the next round of chemo on Wednesday, since that will be a week. We're not quite sure if they will keep him there until then or have him go home a few days since he's doing well holding things down and seems that the "pinch" or "blockage" has let up.

Thanks for your continual support and precious comments and notes to mom and dad. They feel completely blessed and so do Travis and I.

Going On 2 Days!!!!

Well dad has officially had two days now vomit free. He can feel the prayers! He had another good day and was able to get caught up on all his sleep that he lost the night of chemo.

Tonight he got some steak and eggs (bag on the right) and milk (bag on the left), or so the nurse joked with him about it. Cody said, "Dad you better get some A-1 sauce to go with that; it doesn't look that great." They all got a kick out of that. They sent the food straight through his hick-man to make sure he's getting that nutrition he needs. He was also able to eat broth, mashed potatoes and jello today. Mom wanted to make sure his mashed potatoes were thinned enough and went to grab his spoon to mash them, when out of no where dad grabbed that spoon so fast with a look that said "don't touch my mashed potatoes" and gobbled them down. She said it was so funny. He was stoked to have some "normal" food again today.
One of the precautions of the chemo that dad is on, is staying away from cold things. Because of the chemo that he got, anything cold on or in his body could cause nerve damage. He cannot drink or eat anything cold (which is hard for him to get used to), and thus the beanie! Thanks Aunt Vicky and Uncle Donny.... he's staying warm with his beanie and blankets in his hospital room.

One of the great things that we are believing and standing in faith in, is that things seem to be flushing and that gagging and choking feeling is gone. Because the doctors x-rays did verify the mass pinching off the intestine, we are believing that this chemo is already working to minimize that mass.

Please continue to pray that the mass will shrink and disappear with this chemo, so that dad will not have to endure any more poisonous chemo going into his body.

First Day- No Sickness

Thanks to prayers (yet again.... they never cease to amaze us), my dad had one entire day of no vomiting. PTL!!!!! It had been over two weeks that not a day had passed without being sick.

He had a rough night through the chemo though. Him and mom stayed up the entire night because the benadryl that they gave him did the complete opposite then its supposed to do. Instead of knocking him out, he was wide awake and his body had jitters and convulsions most of the night. They monitored him the entire night and mom stayed awake with him the whole time. He got a little sleep today and mom had a couple hours also.

The doctors did confirm the blockage of the intestine and decided to weekly treat my dad with this chemo to break down that mass so dad's intestines will begin to work properly. He ate broth today and drank gatorades and kept them down. They will begin tomorrow most likely on the food going through the hick-man catheter.

Thanks for praying! He was stoked to have a "vomit-free" day!

Pray that they can get caught up on sleep, as that can begin wearing down both of their bodies and they need high immunities right now!

Blessings!

Come On Chemo!!!!!

Please pray as my dad is enduring yet another chemo treatment at this moment. This is crucial to get this mass to shrink! They have tried many types of different chemo's and they are trying yet another. We are praying that this is the one. The cruciality in getting this cancer down has now come to the point that it is now pinching/blocking the small intestine, thus causing my dad to never hold down food. Along with not being able to hold the food down, the bile gasses are now coming up. My dad is to the point of gagging and choking, with that feeling of something rising up in your throat. I can't imagine living with that feeling, but he is. We've got to get that mass down!

Today they kept him on ice chips and by late afternoon tried the first broth with a gatorade. As he was okay with that, they gave him jello to add a little substance. Well that didn't take long, and it all came up. Later on they tried the broth again, with no jello this time and with the gagging it was causing my dad, it too came up.

Tomorrow they will start him on liquid food through his hick-man catheter. He's got to have some nutrition. He's lost over 10 pounds this last week and we've got to keep him strong to fight off this cancer.

My mom can't stop bragging on how strong and brave he is. Though he looks at his body and selflessly apologizes to mom for what he looks like now, she continually builds him up. He IS still her knight in shining armor and will always be. "Through sickness and health" they vowed on their wedding day 32 years ago, and are a living example of just that to so many out there. Mom says that he maintains such a good attitude and still has that "fighter mentality." If I've ever seen anyone with "the eye of the tiger," its my dad. He's my hero! Today my mom said "I don't have in me what he has in him." There's something about the way he has made it through all he's been through thus far with the attitude and composure that he has had. A man of Courage.

Yet with all that's going on, he's kept his wit. Yesterday he saw pizza on TV and asked the nurse "does that count as a liquid?" You see, he wants to eat; he's hungry. But's its miserable, and he feels better after vomiting. Some of the nurses have been so sweet to them. One of the nurses came in to dad's room to invite my mom into the staff lounge to enjoy a veggie tray and some home-made chocolate chip cookies that she had brought in. She was grateful for the offer, but stated "if he can't have chocolate chip cookies, then I won't have them." Those are dad's favorite, and so I love that mom even supports him in ways like that. Thanks mom for taking such good care of my daddin'. I'll never be able to thank you enough.

It was a rough morning and dad wasn't stoked to get out of bed. His only sadness was coming from wanting to eat and feeling hungry. But after some time relaxing in the room and turning on the TV, mom got him convinced to get out and they took a nice 20 minute walk outside all bundled up. They came back to the room and mom had dad doing some easy exercises. Dad with his lil' wit was joking around with her and moving his arms funny to make her laugh. Love them!!! They got in one more evening walk before they began the prep for the chemo.

Praying now as the chemo goes all night until morning (Thursday). Then we'll see what's next.... hopefully a test with results showing the mass is GONE!!!

Still praying for a miracle......

With So Much Sickness, Doctors Admit My Dad At COH

After over a week of consistent vomiting, and a daily increase at that, the doctors are worried with these symptoms and have admitted him yesterday (Tuesday). They have completely taken him off of food to give his stomach a break from so much unrest. He went from vomiting once a day for a week to the last few days vomiting at least 3 to 4 times a day. The doctors say this is not caused by chemo. He has been off of the chemo for a while now. They say that the only thing they can think is causing this, is the large mass that may be pressing on the stomach now and causing this discomfort.

They have decided to attack that mass starting today (Wednesday) with a new chemo. Please, please pray that this mass will begin shrinking from this chemo. Though it is the last cancer in his body, it is the largest mass he has had and it is a rare B-cell Lymphatic pancreatic cancer. Dad is very uncomfortable with so much vomiting, nausea and weakness. Please pray that this works!!!!

GREAT NEWS!!!!!!

We are thanking God today that my dad was given the good news results that his bone marrow test came back completely clear of cancer!!! That is..... there is NO cancer in his bone marrow like before. The only cancer that remains in his body is the mass on his pancreas; when this began, the cancer was in his lymph nodes around his chest/heart, in his spleen, lymph nodes in his upper leg, bone marrow, inside and outside of the pancreas.

Can we just say that we are SO tremendously grateful to have family and friends surrounding our family and praying for my dad. We continue to pray that all cancer will be completely gone from his body.

The doctors have decided to still do the steps of the bone marrow transplant and they feel this will attack the mass. At this point, that sounds confusing to us and we are trying to get more details. What we do know is the next step; that is getting him scheduled for a one day chemo treatment that they have never used on him and will now try to use to see if it can get rid of this mass. They will then begin pulling the "good" cells out of his bone marrow through which a process will be done to recreate more of those "good" cells. They will then put those back into his bone marrow, which should then attack the cancer itself. If this fails to work, they will begin the process of looking for a bone marrow match to do a transplant.

Please pray with us that one of these next steps WILL WORK and that my dad will be completely healed from what was once STAGE 4 cancer.

It sure has been a roller coaster and we know that this fight is not over, but we sure love getting good news these days and watching God answer prayer..... one cancer cell at a time.

When dad heard the news today, he reached his hands to the sky to thank his Papa above. Though his face was down as he had a rough day getting sick three times, his heart was thankfully rejoicing. The doctors had given him Regalin to take before eating meals; this was supposed to help the food stay down. Though it is not working, the positive side is that he will begin eating a little bit, have to vomit, then will be able to eat again holding down the rest of that food. We are thankful that he is getting that nutrition. He has been gagging on fluids also, so he's been drinking gatorade and eating pedialyte icicles to stay hydrated.

My dad enjoyed having his mom over to have lunch with them and played dominoes. He also has had hard times sleeping at nights, so he enjoyed a cozy nap by the fireplace today. He's had some company visit; some of our family, Wendy and Mario, Denise and Larry, and Vicky and Donny. They blessed mom and dad with some yummy foods and Aunt Vicky gave him a new beanie to keep his head warm during this cold season.

Dad and Mom are so thankful for the amount of love and blessings of support that continue to be showered over them. Thanks for loving on my parents! It sure means a lot to Trav and I.

Check Up At COH

After some worries with my dad's symptoms this last week, the doctors asked my dad to come down to COH. They gave him some potassium through his port and also his normal medications. It has been hard for him to keep his medicines in, because taking pills causes him to vomit. So it was good that they gave him his medicines through his port to make sure they stayed down. The potassium will help him to have energy a bit again. He's been different this week, with not wanting to walk or talk much. His energy levels have been so low with so much energy spent vomiting and losing so many nutrients. Please pray that the vomiting will cease and he will be able to keep everything in. He actually had a desire for a certain food tonight on the way home from the hospital..... Del Taco crunchy taco! Ahhhhh..... that sounds so good! Wish there was a Del Taco down the village road here in Sri Lanka! Eat one for me dad! I love you Dad!

Pray for mom and dad as they try to figure out how to keep his body temp regualated. His chest is burning hot (this is from the chemo) and the rest of his body is cold. Mom's trying to construct some kind of blanket/sheet system for him for sleeping at night.

Thanks for your continual support and prayers!

Sore After The Last Few Days

Dad has been feeling some discomfort after the pain in his back from the bone marrow biopsy Wednesday, the pain in his chest from the hick-man catheter being put in his chest Thursday, and the daily discomfort from vomiting and nausea. Please pray for him as he adjusts to the new tubes sticking out of his chests and as he faces the daily sickness battle. They now await the phone call to come down and begin the bone marrow transplant. Some of the details that go with that are confusing and tricky, but I will keep you updated each step of the way.

Thanks to my Aunt Vicky and Uncle Donny for bringing dinner over and running errands for my mom.

Thank you for all of love, support and continued prayers!

Bone Marrow Biopsy Finished

The bone marrow biopsy is done now. It was a couple hour process and dad was done by morning time. They were able to head through the wind storm home and rest by their cozy fireplace for the afternoon. When I talked to them dad had finished dinner and was holding it down. Dad is a little sore from the procedure, but very thankful for being put under. This morning (Thursday) they will be doing the hick-man catheter surgery.

My dad and Cody talked a little bit more today about the movie "Courageous" that they had seen the day before. My parents were saying that every father should see that movie. I loved hearing my mom telling us that she felt so special to be sitting by the man in that movie theatre, that this movie encourages every man to be. How special is that to have "that kind of a man," a man of courage and so many more amazing attributes. I haven't seen it yet, but I hope that it will come on dvd to Sri Lanka.

Dad..... You are THAT man!!!!! A man of courage, strength, faith, and endurance!!!! I love you

Bone Marrow Biopsy

Today (Wednesday), my dad will have the bone marrow biopsy done. They will put him completely out so he will not feel the pain of it. It should be done by morning time and be able to leave after that. Mom and dad will probably stay in a hotel or the hospital hotel for the night since he will need to be there early Thursday morning for surgery to have the hick-man catheter put in.

His weight went up today 3 pounds and because he is keeping down some of his foods, they decided to not admit him today. They want him to get one more nights rest at home and then come down Wednesday morning. They want to do a different kind of chemo now this round and should begin that this week sometime. They will also start preparing for whatever the bone marrow biopsy results show.

Dad was hoping to use his golfing gift cards this week to enjoy some golf before being put back into the hospital, but with not feeling well and vomiting so much, he ended up not feeling up to it. He did want to go see a movie with my mom though. They went and saw the movie "Courageous" and laughed and cried together the entire time. They were laughing and joking that my dad bought out the entire movie theatre to take my mom out, but he really hadn't. They went to a matinee and had the place to themselves. That worked out so nicely; they probably would've scared so many people with their masks on :)

Please pray for my dad and mom as they have some hard days ahead. Dad will be put under for both procedures this week, so that's good. Pray that they keep their spirits up and continue to have strength to keep fighting this battle.

Thanks for your love and support

Probably Being Admitted Today

After five days in a row of my dad vomiting and no longer on chemo, my parents are starting to be concerned. With all of the paperwork they have read on side effects and red flags, they have definitely seen two red flags. My dad has lost 6 pounds in five days, which extremely exceeds what the documentation states. He should also not be vomiting so much, especially with being off of chemo for so long now. Although he was going to be admitted on Wednesday for the bone marrow biopsy, they are packed and ready to most likely be admitted tomorrow. Please pray that the doctors can figure out what is going on.

Thank you to the Huffs and Savages for bringing meals the last few nights and bringing some smiling faces and encouragement to my parents home. It really means a lot to them (to all of our family).

Thank you all for your consistent love, support and prayers~

The Gwaltneys and Carothers