Happy Holidays!

We would like to wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a Happy NewYear!

December 15th

Hello! Hope everyone is doing well. As I sit typing this today, we have ice on the roads in Georgia so schools are delayed for 2 hours for us. The weather has been very cold this past month or so. Allison says we have bi-polar weather here! I think that pretty much sums it up : )

We have been doing well since I last wrote. We enjoyed a very nice Thanksgiving with family and friends. Becca was blessed to be able to participate in her high school chorus trip to Prague (Czech Republic) and Vienna (Austria) over the Thanksgiving Break! What a life changing experience. She really enjoyed her trip. She was very homesick too!

Becca has a job at a used bookstore and loves it. She stays busy with school, her job, chorus, and all the church activities. Allison is playing volleyball and sings in her school chorus. Both she and Rebecca have boyfriends that they enjoy spending time with.

Steve has been doing well overall. He does have daily pain he lives with and some days are worse than others. He keeps himself busy so he doesn't have time to focus on the headaches, jaw pain, etc. His leg still causes him a lot of discomfort and limping. He always stays upbeat and full of optimism. He is so faithfilled and such a wonderful role model to us all! Steve really enjoys playing his bass guitar in the church praise band and raising fish (his newest hobby). He has over 20 fish tanks of all sizes and many beautiful fish.

Steve and I were able to go to Virginia this past weekend to visit his family and see his mom. We had a wonderful trip! It was like an extended "date night" since it was just the two of us. Steve's mom is not doing very well. She is in a nursing home and has Alzheimers. She is in a wheel chair, is unable to do anything for herself and cannot communicate. It was very hard to see her that way. We are thankful for the 15 seconds of clarity we were able to experience with her as well as the opportunity to see her and visit with Steve's brothers and their families.

Hard to believe it has been two years since Steve's big surgery! Time sure does fly when you get older - ha! We would like to wish you all a very happy holiday. We feel so blessed by all the love, prayers, and friendships we have in you. May God bless you and yours during this glorious season.

November 15th 2010

Sorry for the delay in my post! My goal is to update this blog each month. I am obviously behind...

We have been blessed this month with answers to prayers! On November 2nd Steve had a tooth pulled by his oral surgeon. The tooth was extremely sensitive to any kind of touch. This could be because of a periodontal infection or return of cancer to the bone. After waiting for 10 days to hear back we were told on Friday that there was no cancer found in the biopsy done. Thank you God for answering that prayer!

Steve still has a lot of pain and discomfort from that area and the teeth surrounding it. He will go later this week for a follow-up visit with his oral surgeon and his oncologist. In the meantime, Steve's prosthetic dentist has already created the plate with his bottom teeth and Steve has been wearing it daily. He has decided that he would prefer not to have this permanently attached with implants. This way he will not have to go through another surgery and more painful recovery. He can take this plate in and out as needed and is happy with the results. Sounds like a smart decision to me!

After almost 2 years of paying for Steve's liquid nutrition on our own we have been given the approval f0r insurance to pay for it! This is definitely a God thing. A few weeks ago we were contacted by a cancer specialist nurse who works for our insurance company. She offered to help us in any way that she can. I called her to ask for help with my appeal for syringes that Steve uses to feed himself (I have long since given up on my appeals for the formula.) Long story short, we are eligible for the food, syringes, and anything else we need for his feeding tube! Wow, what a blessing! Last week they delivered a month's supply on our doorstep. We will reapply for this again in January since this works for one year at a time. God is good...All the time!

At church yesterday we had a guest speaker, our District Superintendent. His sermon was a reminder of how we should all be sharing our love for Christ with those we come in contact with. It is my prayer that God will use me each day to reach out to those around me to share His good news. So, go out and use your talents to help God's lost sheep find their way home. We pray that you will all have a very blessed Thanksgiving holiday with your friends and family. God bless you all!

Happy Fall Ya'll

Fall is finally here. And maybe the weather will give in to fall too! After so many 90 degree days it will be a relief to have some cooler temperatures.

We are just finishing up our first Fall Break from school. This is the first year we have had a week off of school in September. We had to start sooo early in August, which none of us was happy about, but we sure did enjoy our week off. We were fortunate enough to use a neighbor's timeshare for a cabin at Big Canoe up by Ellijay, Georgia. What a welcome and much needed retreat from the "real world"! We were able to hide away in the mountains and enjoy each other's company. Such a blessing!

We spent the week relaxing, walking, canoeing, visiting a pumpkin farm and apple orchard, watching lots of movies and playing games. Each of the girls brought a friend so that helped them enjoy the week too.

So, now its back to the grindstone of schedules, homework, work, extracurriculars, etc, etc etc! Steve has a couple of appointments coming up. He has a check-up with the dermatologist, an appointment with a pain specialist and one with the reconstructive dental doctor to get that started. Life goes on : ) Thank goodness for the little breaks that help us rejuvenate. As you go through the week remember what Paul said in Phillipians (4:13) - "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me". Have a good one!!

Happy Labor Day

Hope you have all been able to enjoy some relaxing during this long weekend. We have had some beautiful weather. I feel Fall coming right around the corner!

Steve and I spent part of our weekend in the emergency room. Saturday afternoon he came in from the garden to gently tell me that his feeding tube had come out and we needed to head to the ER. So, we headed out. Since we were on a bit of a time rush we did not have to wait long in the waiting room. However, they could not find a feeding tube in the hospital! It took them at least an hour to finally track one down! Then they finally put it in. We had to wait so they could do x-rays to make sure it was in correctly. Then we were finally on our way home again. The good news is Steve now has a brand new, squeaky clean tube that works perfectly! Now we do not have to go in to the hospital on Thursday to have a new one put in. Of course, a trip to the emergency room is never inexpensive, but we are so glad it was an easy fix : )

Today, we went to the funeral of someone who has come to be an important part of our lives. Otto Hall lost his 12 year fight against brain cancer on Friday night. He was a special man who brought joy and happiness to many lives. He will be sorely missed here on earth. We look forward to the day we will see him again in heaven. Please keep his wife, Karen, and their kids, Daniel and Lynsey, in your prayers.

The funeral hit so close to home for all of us. We are working to keep our focus on appreciating each day that God gives us. As always, I pray that you are able to spend time being thankful too. God bless you all.

Sundays

Have you ever had one of those weeks? You finally get to the weekend feeling exhausted, overwhelmed, basically "down and out"? This was one of those weeks for me. I just didn't want to do anything this weekend. I just wanted to sleep in and be lazy, so going to church was not very appealing today. But, this was my week to sing in the praise band, so I made myself get up and go....

Have you ever thought about how blessed we are to have Sundays? A chance to rest, refresh, replenish, refocus, and reconnect. All those "re's". Today at church God definitely spoke to me in the songs we were singing. We each have our own way of worshipping - through the sermon, prayer, music, etc. Mine is music. The words just speak to me. I can remember when Steve and I started on this journey of dealing with cancer 12 years ago, that is when I truly started hearing, feeling the praise songs we were singing. This week's songs were all about praise to God for all he is to us. What a blessing to be reminded of how to get through the drudgery of all the daily stuff. Just give it over to God and He will take care of it all.

My favorite song from today says "I don't understand Your ways. Oh, but I will give You my song. I'll give You all of my praise. You hold on to all my pain, and with it You are pulling me closer, and pulling me into Your ways. It's gonna be worth it, It's gonna be worth it, It's gonna be worth it all. I believe this." Boy, am I glad I went to church today!

Seeing Steve up on stage this morning playing his bass guitar despite all the pain and suffering he has endured this week was another reminder of the blessings God has given us. Steve had his nose procedure done this week and had to endure the pain of that along with the healing from his tongue surgery. Yet, he never misses his chance to work for the Lord, to play that bass with all his heart. What an amazing soul he is. (Please continue to keep his healing in your prayers.)

Have you had a chance to reconnect this weekend? With your family, friends, your God? Do you feel refreshed and ready to face the world and all its demands? Did your weekend include time to worship with the One who loves you more than anyone else? I pray that you did. If not, make time for yourself. Replenish, refocus, rest, refresh, reconnect. You will be so glad you did! God bless you all.

Follow-up Drs. visit

We went for Steve's post-op doctor visit today. He has been in unusual pain this time so we were anxious to see the doctor. The good news is that there was no cancer found in the bone that was removed during surgery : )

The other thing we found out is that Steve's mouth has not healed at all so far. In fact, it is worse than it was immediately after surgery. Dr. Grist had left a small opening in Steve's mouth rather than sewing it up because it would tether the tongue too much causing his speech to be much worse. Because the tissue has been affected by radiation it is taking it a very long time to heal and in fact it has opened up even more.

Dr. Grist gave Steve an antibiotic and pain medicine to try to take the edge off the pain in the meantime. Rather than go back in to surgery to try to put a graft of skin on it, we will wait to see if it will heal on its own.

In the meantime there is some concern about the healing causing other problems. During the surgery, the muscle that allows Steve to open and close his mouth was affected. As the healing occurs the muscle may tighten causing Steve to have a hard time opening his mouth. Steve has already felt the stiffness. Dr. Grist said there is a metal apparatis that can be used to help him exercise his jaw muscle. Steve has chosen to work on this himself because of the pain that would be involved in placing it in his mouth in the first place.

So, to recap, we would truly appreciate your prayers for healing for Steve. He is having a tough time this go round. And to top it off, he goes tomorrow to have the Mohs procedure done on his nose to remove the skin cancer that was found there. Poor guy. At least we were able to get him some more effective pain medicine. Thanks for everything! God bless you all.

Tuesday, August 10th

Hey everybody!! Hope you are all doing well. School has started and we are all working to get used to having schedules, homework, less sleep, etc : )

Steve is taking a little longer to recover this time than he usually does. I know he is frustrated about it. His pain level has remained pretty high so Steve is still on pain medicine. He prefers not to have to use it, but right now he just can't do without. He is having lots of headaches too - probably from the medicine. Steve's pain runs along his right jaw all the way up into the ear. The doctor says that is to be expected because of the surgery. Right now he is just taking it one day at a time. He tries to push himself (you know his mantra - "If you lay down you stay down") a little each day. He's getting some rest too.

We are just glad to be on the healing end and are looking forward to being able to start the implant process soon. May God bless you all.

Home...

Steve got through his surgery okay today. They took him back at about 9:45 am. He was in the recovery room by 11:30 am. Dr. Grist had to take a piece of tissue a little larger than anticipated as well as some of the bone from Steve's mandible (jaw bone) in order to make sure he got clear margins. He is sending the bone off to be analyzed to make sure there was no cancer in it.

Steve is in a good bit of pain. The bone being cut caused major nerve pain on the outside of his jaw up to his ear. He insisted he come home and not stay a night in the hospital : ) . So, we are home. Now starts the pain control and the healing process.

Thank you for all your prayers! I'll update more this weekend.

Pre-Op

Just a quick note:

Steve had his pre-op appointment yesterday at Emory. We will have to be there on Tuesday, August 3rd (for his surgery) at 6:30 am. He is 3rd or 4th in the line-up for surgery. We are planning for an outpatient procedure. As long as we can keep the pain under control that sounds great to us. Since Steve is on a feeding tube and doesn't swallow we do not have to worry about the swelling so that is why they can send us home after the surgery.

On a good note, we found out that our insurance company has decided to pay for Steve's implants! So as soon as Steve recovers from this surgery we can start the process of implants. This is really good news. We have been waiting a long time for them to make this decision.

God is good! Enjoy your weekend.

Surgery Scheduled

Enjoy this family picture we just had taken! It's a good one if I do say so myself. Then check out the one one of just Steve and I and you will see Steve's personality coming through despite his lack of lower teeth. Ever the jokester, he is!

Steve's surgery is scheduled for Tuesday, August 3rd. This will be an outpatient procedure at Emory. I was really hoping they would do the surgery sooner than that but that is the first available spot Dr. Grist has. I will be returning to work on July 29th and school starts on August 5th. I know that there is a reason for the timing that only God is privy too... but sometimes that just adds to the stress right?

Recently our life insurance agent changed. The man we have used for years is retiring and has turned his accounts over to a young man just out of college. Such a nice looking, well-rounded man with a good head on his shoulders. (I told the girls I pray that they will find someone like him - ha!) He wrote us a letter just the other day that really touched us. He shared part of his testimony and his outlook on like. I'd like to share part of it with you here. Very wise and inspirational!

In 8th grade this young man was given the number 19 to wear for the season. He was a little disappointed because that number just wasn't "cool". Then on Sunday his pastor spoke his sermon on the bible verse Joshua 1:9. It reads, "Be strong and courageous, do not be afraid, do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go." That really spoke to him and he chose to wear the number 19 throughout high school too. He is named after Joshua! He has made that his life verse!

What a blessing. To have this young man whom we barely know share his story with us to encourage us through our times of hardship. God touches us and blesses us in so many ways. I know he uses what we go through for the good of his kingdom and I just pray each and every day that we can make a difference. Cancer has been touching our lives in so many ways this summer. We have lost a lot of people around us. I pray for God's will in all I do and I beg for a cure for this life altering disease. I thank God for our many blessings of family and friends. We love you all and appreciate your prayers more than you know.

Wednesday, July 14th

Hi everybody!

It's been quite a busy time for us. Last Friday we met with the Dermatologist about the spot on Steve's nose. Turns out it is a common type of skin cancer (squamous cell) that was caught very early. Really nothing to worry about. We can treat with outpatient "Mohs" surgery or try creams. Steve opted for surgery if insurance will allow it - we are waiting to hear about that.

Steve had his CT Scan on Friday afternoon. We heard from Dr. Grist on Tuesday. He will need surgery to remove the spot on the back of his tongue. They will go in through his mouth. They expect it to be outpatient. We are waiting to hear from the scheduling person to set the date but next Tuesday was mentioned.

Yesterday we went to see the gastroenterologist that put Steve's feeding tube in. He has been having enormous internal pain and some bleeding. They sent us to the ER to get a CT Scan. Several hours later the ER doc said the bulb part of the tube that is on the inside of the stomach has worked it way up under Steve's stomach muscle - OUCH! He tried pulling the tube from the outside to make Steve more comfortable. Talk about painful!!!! It helped release some of the pressure, and 8 hours later we returned home .

Today we are waiting for the gastric office to tell us when to go back so they can replace Steve's tube or reinsert it through a new site. They want to try to do it today. Looks like another long day : ) .

I will let you know when the surgery is scheduled and any more details we learn. As always, we thank you from the bottom of our hearts for your love and support. Please keep those prayers coming! Bless you all.

More Info...

We received the results for Steve's biopsy last night. Dr. Grist called to tell us that the results came back positive for cancer. The next step is to have a new CT Scan done and then meet with the doctor to see what needs to be done. This spot is pretty far back on the tongue so it will be hard to get to.

Today we heard from the dermatologist that Steve saw recently. She had removed a few spots he had. It turns out that the spot she found on his nose is squamous cell carcinoma (which happens to be the same cancer Steve deals with on his tongue). We will meet with her on July 9th to see what needs to be done. Since this is new to us I looked online and found that most patients are sent to a specialist and have the cancer removed through a process called Mohs surgery.

Meantime I am working with bureaucracy to see if I can get Steve's implants approved by insurance. They consider it cosmetic and so it is an automatic "NO".

I will keep you updated when we know more. God bless.

Latest Dr. Visit

Hello everybody! Hope you are all enjoying your summer and this HOT, humid weather! Hard to believe it is almost the 4th of July! Steve's birthday is the 3rd, so we always have double celebrations this time of year.

Steve went to see his oncologist, Dr. Grist, on Monday. The doc took a biopsy of the spot that is still on the very back of his tongue (in the throat area). It has been there for quite a few months but has not changed. When they did the CT Scan early in the year there was no unusual need for alarm so this is more precaution than anything else. Dr. Grist does not think it is anything to worry about. We hope to get the results next week.

Meanwhile, we are just continuing to enjoy our summer time together. Both of the girls are staying busy working and spending time with friends. Becca now has her driver's license which gives her a little more independence. She loves it! She and Alli have even spent some time going places together - without any parental units - HA!

I'll keep you updated on the news from the biopsy. Thanks for your continued thoughts and prayers. We feel so blessed everyday by all of you!

Doctor update

Steve had a doctor's appointment with his oncologist today. The good news is that the spot on the back of his tongue/throat has not changed or grown. The concern is that it is still there. Dr. Grist said again that he could biopsy it but it would be hard to get to and painful. It would also take a while to heal. So, they decided to wait and check it again in 2 months.

In the meantime Steve continues to push himself by working on projects and yard work to build up his strength and endurance. He gets winded and needs to rest some, but we can see an improvement!

Hope you are all doing well and enjoying the spring weather. We are getting excited about summer - only 5 weeks away! Take care.

March 26th, 2010

Steve had an appointment with his oncologist this week. Dr. Grist looked at the spot on the very back of his tongue (the one that had concerned his oral surgeon) and studied the new CT Scan. He did not see anything alarming. The CT Scan was inconclusive because of all the scar tissue involved. Dr. Grist wants to see Steve back in a month to check on the spot again. He might take a biopsy then if it is still a concern.

Steve went for 2 job interviews yesterday! Unfortunately, he was not able to perform the duties at either of the jobs. One required heavy lifting - which was not an issue but the bending over to pick the items up caused his equilibrium to make him very dizzy. He has had this issue since his surgery last January. The doctors are not sure what this is from - his blood pressure drops really low when he bends over.

The second job was taking book orders over the phone. Steve did okay, but the people on the phone really had trouble understanding him so that would cause a problem. He came home feeling very useless. Please pray for him to find the right job for him and for him to be reminded of his importance. He is still trying to keep his roofing business going (he has partnered up with another guy), but right now it is not showing enough success.

With all the budget cuts in education and the rise in health care, cost of living, etc, I am looking for a summer job too. And now that Becca is 16 she would like to find a part time job. She has the opportunity of a lifetime to go to Prague and Vienna with her chorus group next year. So, she will have to help raise the money need for the trip. She is discouraged already because jobs are so hard to come by right now - especially when you are only 16!

Hope all is well with each of you. Spring is right around the corner! Only one more week until Spring Break for us - yeah! May God bless you all.

Good News

Steve had his CT Scan yesterday and met with his oral surgeon. He was able to review the scan quickly and said he did not see anything alarming. The "tumor board" will look over it too just to make sure. When he examined Steve's mouth he found that the infection is clearing up and the spot in the back of the tongue is clearing up too - it seems it is an infection from sutures (stitches) too : )

Dr. Roser told Steve that he should see the dentist that is making his teeth and start the process for teeth implants. He is optimistic that the implants will go well! So, we had some really good news overall yesterday! What a relief. We thank you for your prayers and thank God for hearing and answering them!

Take care!

February appointment

Hello everyone! Just wanted to let you know that Steve had a check-up appointment with his oral surgeon yesterday. Dr. Roser found a spot on the back of Steve's tongue that concerns him. He took x-rays but could not tell anything from them. He has scheduled a CT Scan for Steve on March 9th to see if anything shows up on it. In the meantime, he put Steve on an antibiotic. There is a chance that the spot is just the result of a low-grade infection due to all the surgery and metal in his mouth.

Please keep us in your prayers as we await this next step and the results. We are praying that this spot is nothing to worry about. Thank you for all your support!

Anniversary

This past weekend was a busy one for us. We spent it camping with Alli and Becca's Girl Scout troops in Mableton, Georgia. While we were there Steve realized that Saturday was the one year anniversary of his surgery. He was reflecting that it has been a year since he has eaten an solid food! It is hard to believe.

Steve is doing pretty good. He does get tired and takes naps daily (but then again, I do too when possible!). He is in good spirits. He says bacon is the main food that makes him wish he could eat again. His pain level goes up and down, but then he is used to living with some pain everyday. He has an appointment with Dr. Grist this week I believe.

The young man Steve met at Dr. Grist's office had his surgery and we were able to visit him last week. He looked good for what he had been through. He was able to go home on Friday so that was good news. He is able to talk a little bit. Amazingly enough, they used a muscle in his stomach to try to reconstruct his tongue. Time will tell if it worked! Please keep him in your prayers (his name is Justin Clark).

With Valentine's day coming soon and Becca's 16th birthday around the corner, this month holds many fun-filled activities. I look forward to being done with January - my least favorite month. It is always a let down after Christmas! Take care. God bless you all!