. . . the journey . .

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;