Waiting

It's so awesome how faithful you all are in checking in to see how my Dad's battle is progressing, and we felt it was time for an update. He is mostly in a period of waiting between appointments these days. The next MRI to check on the tumor behind his eye has not been scheduled yet as they are still waiting to give the radiation time to do its job. Unfortunately he continues to need the prednisone to help keep the swelling around his eye down. He has made several attempts to wean off of it, but within a day, the swelling flares back up. So for now, he continues to take daily doses of prednisone. The struggle to keep his blood sugar levels in balance continues and this is frustrating for both my dad and my mom.
In the meantime, we all continue on with a variety of activities. My parents will take a trip to Hilton Head in a week to enjoy a vacation at the timeshare they had to cancel this summer. Sandi's family stays busy with the many sport and school events they are involved in. Jon continues to assist my parents with their business and provide helpful errands that come with the territory of living the closest to my mom and dad! Jacquie's 3-day breast cancer walk is right around the corner, and the girls and I are gearing up for another Canadian winter - hopefully one with less snow this year!
We say it a lot, but we really do appreciate the many, many prayers over the past several months. During this wait and see period, please continue to intercede on my Dad's behalf by praying that the swelling will reduce, the diabetes would stabilize and most importantly, that the cancer stays away.
Always grateful ~ Tami and family

Back from vacation

What a great vacation! On 9/28, we embarked on to the Caribbean Princess out of Brooklyn, and sailed leisurely up towards New England and Canada. We were with our dear friends, Don and Mary Nelle Cummins, who made this vacation extra special. I noticed in the last post Tami did that she referred to a statement Jack had made about the 4 of us being quite a foursome with our individual health issues! Well, I'll have you know, we all did just fine, thank you! A special highlight was visiting in Boston with Jack's cousin, Becky (nee Floyd). The ship stopped in Newport, RI, Boston, Bar Harbor, ME, and then on to Saint John in New Brunswick, and finally ending up in Halifax, Nova Scotia. At Bar Harbor we went whale watching, on a catamaran, which did sway a bit as we went out about 25 miles to find these whales! There were these cute blue envelopes that held motion sickness bags, and I thought I might have to use one! However, all was well, and I brought that blue envelope home for our cruise scrapbook! We have lots of memories to cherish, and already miss being with our friends.

Jack is doing quite well. He had some increased swelling in the left eye area before we left, so the Prednisone dosage was upped a bit, and that took care of that problem. He really did okay with his diabetes, when I was watching. But, he'd get up around midnight, and stroll around the ship & would find his way to the 24-hour buffet. We won't show his blood glucose log we keep to the doctor! He had a 6-week post op visit with the kidney surgeon and all is well there. So, we just kind of wait for the tumor to decrease in size.

We are so grateful for the many blessings we have, and we cherish each one of you. Please continue to pray that the tumor will decrease in size that will thrill us all (that's 80%) and that the cancer will not come back. Thank you so much for your faithfulness in praying with us. God is awesome, and He shows us that each and every day.

Love, Karen