. . . the journey . .

I thought I would post this pic that my friend took a couple of weeks ago. I cut my hair short in anticipation of loosing it but so far its still here. I think I have a few more days... I have been blessed with avoiding the nausea but I suspect not this! I have been warned to expect to be emotional no matter how prepared I think I am. The last few days have been a bit discouraging as I have been more fatiqued than I hoped to be. I have times that I think I am through the worst and then it gets worse. Still, tomorrow it will be a week since the first treatment so surely it will begin to improve soon. I can feel the chemo working on my body. Tell that it is damaging cells. Things like my mouth tingling.... I know that it will damage good cells as it kills the bad... thats the tradeoff. We had a blessed thanksgiving with Mike and Emily. It has been a tradition they have started of including both sides of the family and I have come to look forward to spending time with Emily&#

Well, I got through Friday great! I felt good yesterday just a little more tired. Last night I was afraid my mouth was beginning to tingle like it was going to get sore but its not bad this morning yet, (Thank you Jesus) Today however, although my brain would like to be up and going , my body is weak and shakey. We worked at my new house some yesterday , I think I will just think about working there today. Still , I am so far encouraged that I wasnt immediately horrible ill. Will try to post later....see how the day goes... Love you all... Kathy

After weeks of tests and consults and surgeries ( one to remove the lymph node and lump and a second to put in my port) I finally started CHEMO today. I am really doing fine,,,, they are very proactive about treating symptoms.... I will use three different meds before and during the treatments to prevent nausea. The nurse who gave me treatment today said I was taking the elite drugs!!! I am very hopeful that the nausea will be minimal. Treatment took from 9:30 til 1:00. I did fine... was a little drowsy for a while from the IV benedryl that they gave me ( rashes and itching can be a side effect). But have been out to eat and to Rachel's ball game. I really dont feel bad yet but they say it takes a day or two. I already have cut my hair really short, purchased a really cute wig, several hats and mom has knit me three caps to wear to bed to keep my head warm. I have already been "counseled that I will be emotional when my hair falls out no matter how prepared I am ( th

I am home from my appointment in Kansas City. Dr Carol Connor was tops! She advises that I have chemo before she does more surgery. Her rationale is not to wait to start the chemo incase there are free floating cancer cells in my body. I am going to see the Breast oncology specialist that she has recommended on Friday and will then follow with Dr Mathews here in Pittsburg for the actual treatment. I was staged at a two... (one to four). thats great, I expected a three! God is truely good. She says I have every reason to think I will "beat this" so that's my plan. I will keep you posted..... oh by the way get this.... they say that insurance might even pay for my "crainial prosthesis" (wig) !!!!!! Blessings. Kathy

I have gotten part of my tests back.. some good some iffy.... the tumor is estrogen positive which is good because there are more treatment options and it should respont to treatment better. Still waiting on the HER2 which I hope will be negative. The ct showed a couple of very tiny spots ( one in the lung and one in the abdomen) that the oncologist could likely be nothing... I am having a PET scan next Friday and that should answer that... The bone scan was fine except for showing some aging in some of my joints.... (I didnt need a scan to tell me that!!) I am learning a lot. there is a site www.breastcancer.org and also the american cancer assoc site that has really good information. Dont know when I will post again to the blog... will try to have my sister do it if I have surgery Tuesday, so just check here. Love you, Kathy

It's been a great weekend so far! With no tests and a day off from work Friday, I was able to have lunch with old friends , spend time church friends, reconnect with another via email, Spend quality time with my grandkids... We went on a hay ride together last night!! We also went shopping!!! it was a toy day! We do that about every six weeks. And oh my, that was fun. Anna chose the cutest thing... it is a little plastic cash register. It had a conveyer belt that turned, a price check wand that lit up and beeped, a calculator Iin the keys) that really worked, a little microphone, a scales, money, a key to lock the cash drawer, and a basket of food..... that was all for 9.99! I got it at Alco and recommend it for your 3 yr olds. She and cousin Olivia played with it all evening! I am getting better each day with staying in "today". Letting it be fully filled with God's Blessings. Wishing that for you too. kg

After a day of seeing Doctors, talking with the kids and investigating the options, I have settled on an initial plan that is different than I thought but obviously God directed. I will have ct and bone scans on Thursday. On Monday, the 22nd, I have an appointment with Dr Carol Connor at KU. Her specialty is breast cancer and breast surgery. I have spoken at length with her nurse Ruth and believe that this is the right direction. My appointment is monday at 1:30. Tuesday is a surgery day for her. Ruth has scheduled me on the 31st, however should there be a cancelation in her schedule for the 23rd I will be able to just stay in KC when I go and have the recommended surgery then. Please pray that would happen. I am still waiting on other tests that will have some bearing on the kinds of chemo I will need. Thank you again for your many prayers, calls , cards and concerns. I love you all. Kathy

Today's daily devotion from Adrian Rogers (Love worth finding) October 16 BIBLE MEDITATION: “Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself.” Matthew 6:34 DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT: In the crucible of His wisdom and in the ecology of His grace, God has ordered some trouble for you today and everyday of your life. We’ve been blessed with difficulties. Yes, you read right, blessed! The worst thing that could happen to us, would be not to have any difficulties. If that were the case, we’d never know our need of the Lord. So God, in essence, says, “I’m going to give you sufficient difficulty for the day.” God gives you enough difficulty to draw you close to Him, but then God gives you enough grace to meet those difficulties every day. ACTION POINT: Is there a difficult circumstance in your life? If so, thank God for sending it your way to make you more like Jesus. Now, ask for His grace to be victorious through it! share devotional with

To my dear dear family, brothers and sisters in Christ, cherished friends. I have so been blessed by your prayers these past few days and know that God is very very near. What an awesome God we serve!! His ways are not ours but even that is such a testimony to His Perfection. I have been given the news today, by my surgeon, that the nodule and lymph node he removed from my breast on Friday are indeed malignant. So just when I thought I was ready to serve, I find I am once again in a position to learn to be served. It is humbling to be once again asking for your attention and prayers but I have learned not to question God’s will, purpose or direction in my life and so do that now as I face decisions about the next step. I will see the surgeon in the morning (Tuesday) and talk with Dr Matthews our oncologist hopefully tomorrow afternoon or Wednesday morning. My plans at this stage include a trip to Dr Kahn at the Rena Tarbett Cancer Center in Dallas for a second opinion on treatm

Your greatest gift Some men spend there time on earth building great wealth, fame, knowledgeand degrees or other such trinkets. Not so was the man I married when I was really to young to even know the true gift that God had chosen for me. It was in fact to be many years before I would have the wisdom to truly understand. Orin was a man who took care of his home. Who did what needed done. The filters got changed and the eaves troughs cleaned. He always remembered. He was faithful. Orin took care of his children. Their needs were met, They were loved. His children were the center of his world. Little league and pigeon shows were always more important that golfing or such. No need to buy a "batting pole"daddy made one. When his sons brought him new "daughters" they were as his own helping them with whatever was needed. It was always the same " the boys are busy and it needed done". Orin loved his grandchildren, every one of them were precious to him. He ins

Orin is home with Jesus. Having had what I am certain was a rather massive heart attack yesterday morning his condition declined steadily throughout the day and evening and he slipped peacefully from this world to glory at 11:34 last night with his family, his pastor and his hospice nurse at his side. I will write another entry later but wanted to give you arrangement details at this point. Services will be on Friday at 11 am at Crossroads Baptist Church south of Girard ( hwy 7 is closed so ask or call if you are coming from out of town for how exactly to get to the church) . Visitation will be on Thursday evening from 6-8 pm. There will be a dinner following the services on Friday for family and out of town guests at the home of Mike Gronau, east of Girard. Blessings to all. More info to follow.. Kathy

At 2 am this morning Orin awoke me in pain and having nausea. As the day progressed his symptoms have led us to believe that he may have had a rather major heart attack. While this is a turn in events we believe it is the Lords hand in bringing Orin home to him more certainly, swiftly and kindly. I believe his condition to be very critical at this time and have called family to be here with me. Again thank you for your prayers as we walk these last steps of the journey.

Orin has rested quietly the past 24 hours, probably in part due to medication, but praise God without pain. My sister Rita and her husband Dick were here this afternoon from Olathe and he was awake some to visit with them. Our grandchildren were here and we were all enjoyed watching them play as we visited. Rita and Dick have a granddaughter that is the same age as Olivia and Anna so we share that common " grandparent bond". It was good to watch Orin enjoy the visit even though I could tell he was getting tired. It was just good for me to have them here. Again God provides.

I could not have guessed how confusing that this illness could be as it progressed . I am finding that being a nurse isnt helping much at all. . My heart cries as I hear the man I love so much speak rationally in one sentence and be completely "off the wall" in the next. It is hard to know if it is the cancer... or the medication that it takes to control the pain it causes, that speaks to me. Sometimes the words I hear are innocent and playful, almost like those that come from my granddaughters.. sometimes they are harsh and demanding and very very unlike the loving man I have known, ALWAYS they take me off guard, because just minutes before they were rational. He has pain often now in the back of his head , in addition to the right side and his neck and shoulders. He also has begun to complain of pain in his left side and back. There just seem to be more obvious signs that the cancer is gaining control of his body. I have never been a one to worry, but I have had to really w

The last couple of weeks have been a time of special visits with brothers and sisters. ( This pic was taken when we were at Ray's graduation party in June ). Cline and wife Judy and June and husband Clyde were here the Saturday before July 4th. We had a great visit and they had an eventful trip home traveling the flood ridden plains of southeast Kansas. Last week June returned and spent several days with us, visiting and caring for Orin while I worked. She of course spoiled him a bit with an old family favorite and we all enjoyed warm bread pudding with raisins topped with vanilla icecream! We have had to increase both the decadron and the morphine... Orin does still get out side occasionally. We have a lift that helps him transfer from bed to his scooter or chair. He doesnt have the strength to be up for much more than an hour but uses the time he has to good advantage helping me know how to care for our yard and plants. I am trying to be a good student but wonder ho

Scott holding up an eight pound bass for his dad to see through the front window of the house. One of Scott's responsibilities with Touchton Electric is seeing that all the electric power connections are laid and ready to go for the annual Farm Show. (For those of you away from here, its held outside of Pittsburg in the middle of a pasture ) Now its a big job and they DO have a lot to do to get it all ready...... but there's a pond on the place.... Scott's a fisherman..... it was inevitable!!!!

PUBLISHED: Tuesday, June 26, 2007 in the Kansan Ray Church, 19, of Newton rides his horse C.D. at the Extreme Cowboy Race Sunday in Kansas City. He competed against 30 other amateur riders and placed 10th during his first time at the event. Church, a Newton High School graduate, wants to become a horse trainer. Courtesy Photo Photos The Kansan owns are for sale at our Spotted! galleries. We are very proud of Ray! It was quite an accomplishment to even qualifiy to compete in this event and to place 10th as one of the youngest contestants says a lot about his dedication and training! Ray is the son of Debbie and Larry Church and the grandson of June and Clyde Young. June is Orin's sister.

On a recent trip to Joplin Mike and Emily brought Orin his favorite ribs. Anna just couldnt wait for grandpa to open his RIBBONS and they delightfully enjoyed a meal!

We have come to view each day now as a special gift! Orin continues to weaken physically and there are signs that his disease is progressing. We refuse to allow it to possess us. It seems likely that Orin will have more days when he chooses to remain in bed, so I have moved at least some of the flowers that he loves to the front yard so he can see them out the window! We have had some good weeks since he chose to discontinue treatment. With the absence of the negative effects of the chemo he has felt better. Until this week he has been outside almost every day. He is having numbness and weakness in his left arm and hand now ( in addition to his leg) He has frequent pain at the back of his neck and upper shoulders, sometimes severe, other times not. He continues also to have what he calls "fullness" in his head above his temples, especially on the right. We can only speculate that a tumor somewhere is pressing on something. We are able to control the pain successfully

Taken at Ray Church's Graduation Party. We were blessed with a great day!

Orin asked to go to church yesterday. It was Father's day and it was my Birthday! It took a bit of effort but Praise God for His never failing Grace. I told Mike that I believed that he and Orin were just about ready for Arthur Murray! They have gotten so good at transfering Orin from one place to the other that it looks like a fine tuned "dance"! I think often about Psalm 37:23 that says "The steps of a good man are ordered by the LORD " over and over I see how he has prepared each of us for the role we were to play in Orin's care. I had never noticed how stout and muscular Mike had become in the last year or two......then it dawned on me that since they built their new house, which they heat entirely with an outside woodburning furnace, that he has spent many hours getting physically fit!! just what God needed him to do so that he could help his dad who would spend months without the use of his legs. I stand in awe at how he orchestrates our lives an

The boys worked Friday night and Saturday and we now have a new front deck and ramp! NO MORE LIFTING up the steps! The rascal will go from lift chair to front yard and back! What a blessing! Most days Orin and I are still able to manage that transfer so we feel like a bird let out of a cage! We had the added blessing of two evenings of watching all three little girls play while the guys worked. We have river rock around the back deck and they had a little wheel barrow and some buckets. I think they moved every rock back there... sooooo busy..!!!! Orin is doing fairly well. We have increased the decadron to deal with the pain in his neck. After several weeks of trial and error we have decided that is what helps it the most. It may make his legs a little weaker but it keeps him from having to take so much morphine. Otherwise I think the decision to stop the chemo was the right one. His quality of life, though not good, is really better than it was when we were trying to do treatmen

I have not posted for a while. Sometimes it seems like things just seem to stand still and I do too!. It seemed like we did that for a while. Hospice helped us get Orin a lift chair which helps him stand to transfer to the wheel chair. This has been a tremendous help. I dont think he would have been able to get out of his regular recliner any longer. We were able also to purchase a used "rascal" scooter for him to use out side and it has been wonderful as he can get around the yard and be out with us. We even took a day trip to Debbie's for Ray's graduation party a couple weeks ago... the boys loaded us here and of course there were lots of guys there to unload us. We had a great time. Orin was tired when we got home but made the trip ok. The kids decided to camp at Roaring River this weekend and we decided to go down Friday night (we got a room ) but unfortunately this didnt go as well. Orin had a bad night, we came home Saturday morning. I realized we

We are both relieved I think to be back in the loving care of the hospice staff. That probably sounds like an odd statement. If you will recall however, there was a time two years ago when we believed that God was preparing to take Orin home quite soon and we chose to involve hospice at that time. We were relieved to discover that, Michelle, the same wonderful nurse who had cared for us before would again be providing and overseeing Orin's care this time. Hospice is a wonderful relief when "things" get overwhelming. They come, and almost as if by magic the things that are needed appear! They will provide all of Orin's medications, monitor his need for changes and contact the Doctor. Within hours of their first visit the medical supply truck was at the door with an oxygen concentrator, and a wheel chair, things that Orin had asked for earlier in the afternoon. For now, Michelle will come once a week. When needed, additional help, more frequent visits as well as other e

May 2nd we celebrated Orin's 62'nd birthday. A joyous though small celebration that none of us thought two years ago we would have the privledge to enjoy. God is truely good! In the picture above are all but Sheila ( working) and me ( photographer). Beginning with the guy in front with his eyes closed! is grandson Andrew, Olivia , our son Scott, Rachel, Orin, Kinsie, Anna, our son Mike ( almost hidden) and his wife Emily. DO NOT MISS one year old LILY CLAIRE who pricelessly responded to " everybody look at grandma" ! ! ! Orin continues to rest at home with few major events occuring. He is able to get around the house, using the walker when he feels like his legs are weak. He is careful and has not had more falls. He is easily winded however with almost no exertion and says he can tell that he is getting slowly weaker. I have had several people ask about visiting and would give this advice. We dont want you to stay away. However, Orin does do b

Once again it is Saturday. This week seems to be one of those weeks when things have seemed to change somewhat. Orin fell again going into the Dr office Thursday, this time he was unclear afterward as to whether it was his legs that just gave out or whether he blacked out. The why is unclear. It has convinced him to not walk without the walker for safety. He has continued to be weak and rests a lot. He has finally agreed to allow someone to come in at noon to help him with lunch while I am at work. Most days our daughter in law Sheila (Scott's wife) will be able to do this. She is an RN and because she works 12 hr shifts and some weekends she is off a lot during the week. Of course this means Olivia will also brighten his lunch hour ( and likely serve him plastic french fries and carrots from the play kitchen we have for the girls) We have otherwise been able to have a quiet week, enjoying the spring weather, each other and our children. Blessings , Kathy

God has blessed me with a grandson who is wonderfully receptive to the teachings of the Lord. He is also absolutely enthralled with swords and sword fighting ( at six his life goal is to be a ninja turtle I think!!) The other day we were discussing how God's word is a sword that we can use to fight the devil's attack... for him that is "telling stories" that aren't quite true. He has a vivid imagination that gets him in trouble sometimes! I taught him part of the verse from James 4:7 " ..Resist the devil, and he will flee from you." I was thinking about that as I was driving to work the other day, dwelling on my troubles when I realized that I might need a dose of my own medicine. I have learned to carry a Bible Promise Book with me so I pulled over and pulled it out, finding this verse from Isaiah that lifted me from my funk and wrapped me in the peace and joy that God intended for me. Perhaps it will be a verse that will bless one of you today to

Despite another fall last night (no injury) Orin decided to go ahead with the chemo treatment this morning. We have both agreed however that we think this is the last one that we will do. So pray for us as we move toward the decision to end this phase and begin hospice care. We believe that we are both ready for this and though it comes with sadness it also comes with joy and relief as we allow God to take us totally into His loving care and direct our path. As if by way of affirmation that we have chosen correctly God has blessed us! Mike and Emily have told us that we are to expect our eighth grandchild the first of November. They are such wonderful parents to Anna and Lily and we are truely excited as we await this child.

Thursday brought an increase in Orin's symptoms of dizziness and memory problems, indicating that the swelling in his brain was not resolved enough to allow us to decrease the decadron further and it had to be increased back up to the previous level. This causes weakness especially in the large muscles of his legs. He finds walking difficult and fell this evening when his legs just gave out on him. Fortunately he was not injured. My mother has been here with us since last Sunday and will be here until Thursday. She has been a blessing to both of us, sharing her cheer, confort, chicken noodle soup and cinnamon rolls! Orin has enjoyed her company and I have been able to work without worry of Orin being home alone. We will talk with Dr Mathews tomorrow about whether to continue with chemo as planned. Please pray with us for wisdom and grace as we face the challenges of what lies ahead. Kathy

A short note to keep you up to date. Orin is continuing to recover from the infection that landed him in the hospital a few weeks ago.. and is on a decreasing dose of the decadron for the swelling that was causing problems at the tumor sites in his brain. The headaches are gone but he is having lots of weakness , especially in his leg muscles ( a direct side effect of the steroids) as well as the fatigue that is normal for this stage of cancer. We saw Dr Mathews today and have decided to try another chemo treatment next week. Dr always encourages us to just decide on this one at a time so we will see how it goes. The biggest concern of course is whether or not the brain tumors are under control. The chemo does not reach them. Your prayers sustain us. Thank you always, we love each of you. Kathy

When you have considered the miracle of eternal life offered by the Savior.... the glorious resurrection we celebrate each year at Easter.. how can you dare to ask for more, yet our precious Lord just gives and gives! We were so very blessed this year as God touched Orin with His grace and strength allowing him to be able to not only attend the egg coloring party on Saturday but church services and dinner at Mike and Emily's on Sunday. We were blessed with a special visit from June and Clyde for the weekend. And the pictures of course show our special blessings! (thats June holding Lily for those of you who dont know her) Orin is still on decadron, though we are attempting to taper that down. Some days are good and some days are not. We just Praise God for each day that is a good day and thank Him for holding us close on the days that are not. The end of this month we will celebrate Lily Claire's first birthday. Orin's very first goal after his diagnosis was to see Anna

We met with Dr Mathews , our oncologist today. I wouldn't by the way recommend having cancer to anyone but if you do and you live in this area I wouldnt recommend that you go through it without Dr Mathews and his team. I just cannot say enough about their knowledge, care and availability. They are just amazing. Orin had a CT scan of his brain while hospitalized at Girard last week because of the confusion and headaches. Dr Mathews discussed those results with us. There has been increase in the size of the tumor at the left temporal and possibly at the right temporal. The third appears stable. There is some question because the tests were done on equipment that scan at different intervals and therefore are not 100% comparable. What was for sure was a significant increase in the swelling around the left temporal tumor site. Dr Mathews says it is possible(although I guessed by his tone of voice not terribly likely) for this to have been because of the radiation he received

Son 2:11 For, lo, the winter is past, the rain is over and gone; Son 2:12 The flowers appear on the earth; the time of the singing of birds is come, and the voice of the turtle is heard in our land;

Tuesday morning was ESCAPE DAY!! We finally made it home and back to our favorite recliners! Those hospital beds and chairs as necessary as they are just arent home!!! Orin is still on IV antibiotics every 12 hours here at home and will be through tomorrow and then will switch to oral meds. The Decadron has been increased because of the CT scan results. There is more swelling than they want to see around those tumor sites. Orin had a bad day Wednesday with severe headache and nausea and generally feeling bad, but has felt pretty good since. Hopefully with this recent decadron increase the headaches will decrease. We will see our Oncologist on Tuesday. That may be a difficult day and we ask your prayers. We will need to again make treatment decisions. We continue to praise God for his goodness. For two wonderful and caring Doctors, For our Kids and family, especially Mike who has been here daily, sometimes twice or three times just to check or do, for our wonderful friends who love an

It is Saturday and I realize that I have not written here since early Tuesday afternoon. It's been a bit of a busy few days. Shortly after my last entry Dr Mathews (oncologist) asked Dr Edwards (our internist) to admit Orin to Girard Hospital and treat the infection. So at about 4 pm tuesday in one of those rain "showers" where you expect to see frogs falling and where the worms were already crawling on the sidewalk gasping for air we splashed our way to the hospital. They of course did lab, started IV fluids and by two antibiotics, both IV also. Orin was tired, weak and still having difficulty coming up with words for what he wanted to say. Wednesday Morning I arrived to find out from the nurse that his sodium had been low, they had switched his IV to normal saline and when I got to his room he was much more alert. Thursday The drainage from the fistula had decreased significantly, the antibiotics are beginning to working. He slept well last night but isnt feeling

After a turnaround and a good weekend we saw Dr yesterday and decided to try another chemo treatment. However Orin woke up this morning with a headache and nausea and the treatment had to be postponed. I had gone in to work as Mike our son was going to take him to this chemo treatment. When I got home Orin seemed not only ill but and complaining of the problems with his head but having difficulty thinking and communicating exactly how he felt. Each time that these "spells" happen I see him getting a little weaker and am reminded that his time to go home is getting nearer. While the Doctor will not say so, I just feel that the tumor on the right temple has not been successfully eliminated. He continues to complain of pressure there. Still, God is in absolute control and we will trust him to care for Orin and for all of us in the coming days and weeks. I was reading in the Psalms a few days ago that God has names for every star.... EVERY STAR!!!! if he has done that h

Hebrews 11:1 says Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. We've studied that recently in a class I am leading and I have challenged our ladies to make that verse personal to them. For me it is this " Faith is the solid ground on which I can place my trust no matter what the circumstances and because God said it I know it is absolute truth. How blessed that I just recently was challenged to do that because today I must lean on that definition. Things aren't going so well. The chemo that should have by now been well in to the third or forth round has yet to start the second. In fact Orin has had only one chemo treatment since the tumors were discovered in his brain. I was warned that sometimes it is difficult to recover from the radiation and steroid treatment enough to resume chemo. That was complicated I think by the fact that I became ill with pneumonia and a couple of other bacterial infections that I may have passed to him ( or

Grandpa and Lily Claire enjoy a game of Patty Cake. Lily is our youngest granddaughter. We will celebrate her first birthday the end of April. She is Mike and Emily's daughter and Anna's sister. We are thinking she may be the athlete of the family as she already likes to throw a ball! As you can see, she kind of likes games with grandpa too!

To the chief Musician upon Gittith, A Psalm of David. Psa 8:1 O LORD our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth! who hast set thy glory above the heavens. Psa 8:2 Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings hast thou ordained strength because of thine enemies, that thou mightest still the enemy and the avenger. Psa 8:3 When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained; Psa 8:4 What is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him? Psa 8:5 For thou hast made him a little lower than the angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honour. Psa 8:6 Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of thy hands; thou hast put all things under his feet: Psa 8:7 All sheep and oxen, yea, and the beasts of the field; Psa 8:8 The fowl of the air, and the fish of the sea, and whatsoever passeth through the paths of the seas. Psa 8:9 O LORD our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth!

We are so proud of Granddaughter Rachel who recently graduated from the DARE program at Haderlien Grade School! This Drug awareness program has been a real success in our school system and the kids participation is not mandatory. Rachel is our oldest grandaughter ,loves history, horses and paint ball! Rachel has two sisters Kinsie and Olivia ( in picture) and two brothers , Blake and Andrew . Her Mom and step dad are Sheila and Scott Gronau.

Orin started treatment yesterday with this new regimen. So far so good. Its' main side affects is diarrea and so far so good. He goes on the first day and is at the center for about 3 hours. They do blood work, and infuse the camptasar and a couple of other drugs that minimize side affects etc and then hook him to a portable "pump in a bag" that he carries with him the next 48 hours. That infuses the 5fu. He will go back tomorrow and they will remove the pump. This regimen will be repeated every two weeks as long as he tolerates it and as long as it appears that it is treating the cancer effectively. The ct scans will probably be repeated in 6-8 weeks. At that time they will also repeat the ct scans of the brain. At this point however the Dr's are pleased that he is not having symptoms that would indicate a problem. Thank you for your continued love and prayers. Kathy

We saw Dr Mathew today for results of the scans done last week. We found out that God has had his hand on Orin in a very special way in the past month. Orin had a ct scan and a bone scan this time. The ct scan showed that there were no new lesions anywhere which was great although most of the ones that are there have grown in size ( not so great). The bone scan was done to be sure that there was no metastasis to the bone, which there wasnt ( good news). Now the miracle. The scan showed that when Orin fell on the ice on Jan 15th , he in fact had a hip fracture. It looked as if it might have been a crack at the end of the bone that wraps around the ball. Orin refused to have it xrayed (anybody recognize any family traits there???) looking back I believe God just gave us all that cold icy weather so that Orin would just stay in , sit in his chair and heal. The Dr told him that if it would have broken further he would have needed a complete hip replacement. So we are praisi

Olivia ( Scott and Sheila's -she was 2 in Jan ) and Anna ( Mike and Emily's -she was 2 in Oct) and Lily ( also Mike and Emily's - 9 mo ) try on their dresses for the family picture... Thought you'd enjoy the preview!

A rare event in the last few weeks. Grandpa felt well enough to go with us to Sunday School last week!

Orin will have a CT Scan and Bone Scan on monday to reevaluate the cancer and then will begin chemo on the 20th. The chemo he will be getting will be a different kind than he has had before but Dr Mathews assures him that he will stop it and change it if it makes him sick. This one goes on on Tues morning and is continuously infused through a pump that he carries with him for 48 hours. This is repeated every two weeks. Orin is still on the decadron but down to a fairly low dose. This drug causes some weakness in his leg muscles so the Dr has him doing exercises to help strengthen them. And Yea! we are beginning to see new hair growth already. Can't tell yet if if its going to be blond red or curly !!!

Tomorrow we meet with Dr Matthews to discuss the next treatment step. This will likely be the the treatment planned a month ago ( somehow it seems like much longer). We have not actually seen Dr Matthews since the brain tumors were diagnosed as they have been treated by the radiologist. It has been good to have a break, though small, between the radiation and chemo. Orin has been able to be up and about a little more and enjoy a bit of woodworking. He and Mike even made a short day trip to Springfield. He was tired but had a good time and thought it was worth having to rest the next day! Pray for our treatment team that they might have wisdom as they choose the drugs and doses for the next round of chemo. And of course that Orin will be able to tolerate the drugs without too much difficulty. As always, we cherish your prayers and thoughts of us. Kathy

Some days are just for sitting in your big chair watching the birds and the squirrels decide who is going to eat first and today has been one of them. With snow still covering everything but the snowbladed streets the birds are quite happy to share with whoever happens to come along and at our house its at least a squirrel or two.. so they take turns. Our day is interrupted by Mike and Anna and later Scott and Olivia... the boys are so good to come by and do things there day can't get done any longer and the girls... well they make sure to entertain us usually cooking us up a huge "plastic" meal of all kinds of goodies in their little kitchen in the playroom. We do ask your prayers for 6 yr old Blake. This last round of events with Orin with the radiation and the steriod treatment has left him "looking" a little different and Blake has been having some difficulty... he is our worrier... told his momma "we have to find a way to keep grandpa from dyi

Anna ( mike's 2 yr old ) called me at 7 am yesterday morning wanting to know Grandma? Yes,Anna Grandma, Does God wear sunglasses? Mike had the best answer for her, he said he thought so because there were no clouds in heaven. I told her I thought not only did he have sun glasses but that I thought they were the pretty kind like grandma's green reading glasses with the pink flowers on them The pastor, who uses esword ( online bible study program) said he didnt remember seeing sunglasses as a search word but that he would look again. We are still soliciting opinions on this theological debate. click COMMENTS to add yours

Please read the comment on Almost Done... thanks Love you all Kathy

Radiation is almost over! Yea! One more hurdle! It ended up being 14 treatments instead of 10 and there was the ice !!!! so things stretched out... But tomorrow is the last day and we are glad!. Aside from feeling like he was flying at high altitude or had water in his ears and the fatigue that radiation causes the symptoms havent been awful.. the headaches have lessened and the other problems... dizziness, arm weakness etc have pretty much gone away. We are praising God for that! Orin is being slowly tapered off of the steroids that he was placed on initially to prevent seizures from the brain tumors. We see Dr Matthews, our oncologist a week from tomorrow and will talk with him then about what to do next. Most likely Orin will choose to try the next chemo combination. Much will depend on how he feels by then I think. He has had a lot of fatique and weakness but it is difficult to know how much is from the radiation and how much is from the cancer itself. One benefit of the s

Repeating Psalms 56:3 " What time I am afraid I will trust in thee" I waited today while they radiated Orin's brain entirely from all directions. We understand that the tumors will cause problems we don't even want to think about if they dont do the treatments , still, the radiation is frightening to us after the problems we experienced in the past. But we got through it and then I treated Orin to a surprise... we got a new Puppy! Our little Maltese got killed several months ago and Orin has been missing her more than I realized. I found a six month old shih zhu yorkie mix and she is just right for us. She has been on Orins lap ever since we got home. We really are doing ok. We decided it was time to have a family portrait. We had been kind of waiting until Lily got a little older. But she is eight months now even though she is still pretty bald Orin is going to be that way soon so we decided it might be time! We'll post it on the web when we get it

We've had a wonderful few months of just enjoying life and the kids. Orin has been taking chemo but as promised is hasnt been so bad. We had a great Christmas and rejoice that we were able to celebrate together the birth of our blessed Savior. Just recently however Orin had begun experiencing some symptoms that lead the Dr to do a CT scan of his head and they have discovered three brain tumors. This was in addition to the news we received just days ago that the chemo drugs that they have been using have apparently stopped working ( this happens when the cancer finally builds up an immunity to them) so that there was tumor growth in the lung as well as metastasis to the adrenal gland during the last round of treatment. The brain tumors were discovered in a scan done at 2:30 pm on Friday Jan 5th and by 4:00 pm the Dr had already called us saying they had ordered a steroid drug he was to start immediately because they feared he would start having seizures. He is to start Radia