Thankful!!

Since last post, God has been faithful to answer prayer. Aaron began to feel better last Thursday evening and Friday was able to swallow a Nexium caspsule, which has helped tremendously! Apparently, he does have something going on (maybe an ulcer?) in his stomach. Hopefully, we will find out this week after drs. visit on Thursay. We are very grateful for this turn around. He has not thrown up since Thursday and has had much less nausea. He is swallowing more and more little bits of food. Throat pain continues to be about the same, but hopefully that will improve now that he is not vomiting all the time.

Please pray for my Dad. He is not doing very well. He went toTulsa for a chemo treatment, but was unable to because his counts are so low. He is in the hospital and has pnuemonia. Please pray that his body will have strength to fight and also, for my Mother.

I was encouraged by a card we received recently with excerpts from the following devotional.

"In the shadow of His hand He hid me; He made me into a polished arrow and concealed me in His quiver." Is 49:2

In the "shadow"___ each of us must go there sometimes. It maybe the shadow of the sickroom, the shadowed house of grief, or the shadowed life where the sunlight has departed.
But fear not! It is the shadow of God's hand. He is leading you, and there are lessons that can be learned only where He leads. The photograph of His face can only be developed in the dark room. But do not assume that He has pushed you aside. You are still "in His quiver." He has not thrown you away as something worthless. He is only keeping you nearby till the moment comes when He can send you quickly and confidently on some mission what will bring Him glory. O shadowed, isolated, one remember how closely the quiver is tied to the warrior. It is always within easy reach of His hand and jealously protected. F.B. Meyer

New Developement

Aaron continues to struggle with nausea and vomiting. In fact, it has gotten much worse. Today he has had trouble keeping anything, including meds, down. This is having a very adverse affect on his throat which is still raw and healing. After speaking with the medical oncologist, she agreed that further tests need to be done to try to figure out why this is going on. She said this was not where he should be at this point. We have an appointment on next Thursday with her, but hopefully there will be something scheduled before then to try to pinpoint this problem. Please pray that they can find the cause and deal with it. This is a real setback for him and he is very discouraged. We need wisdom and answers! Please pray.

HOT OF THE PRESS!!!

After a blitzkrieg of fact gathering concerning the recommended surgery, Aaron and his surgeon have decided to put off removal of lymph nodes until after CT scan on June 30th. Surgery has been re-scheduled for July 9th. Hopefully by this time the side effects of treatment will have tapered off a good deal. It is obvious that the radiation is still at work, as he continues to throw up bloody tissue and is still in a lot of pain. Also, the lymph node may continue to shrink in size which "may" remove the need for surgery.

We are grateful to our drs.(Nabell, Meredith, Monagan, Free, and Magnuson) for their time, expertise, and personal care and involvement in helping us make good decisions. We are blessed.

more good news/bad news

Well, we saw several drs. on Tuesday. They did not scope or do any kind of scan, but by just looking with the naked eye at Aaron's throat Dr. said he SAW no sign of tumor and it APPEARS to be gone. A CT scan is scheduled for June 30 to give a more detailed and complete picture. We are so thankful and are anxious for the CT scan to confirm that the cancer is gone. However, we were surprised and disheartened when Dr. Magnasun recommended surgery for the removal of several lymph nodes! (We have been so excited as the swollen node has continued to disappear.) Although we have scheduled surgery for Friday, we continue to gather info on this recommendation and are speaking with our other drs. to ascertain the most appropriate and prudent course of action. Please pray for wisdom on this front.

Otherwise, Aaron is continuing to swallow more and more FOOD!! He has actually eaten a few bites of pizza, eggs, ice cream, watermelon, and salad. While he is still getting most nutrition through the tube, he is definitely improving. The plan is to remove the feeding tube during surgery on Friday, so he will be transitioning this week to be able to take in more by mouth. He is still dealing with nausea and vomitting although it has improved some.

My Dad is at home and dealing with effects of chemo. He will go back on the 21st for another treatment.

We are thankful for many things, not the least of which is the love and support of so many. To our precious family of Grace Fellowship: we love you and couldn't make it without you!!!