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Previous Postings (You can scroll all the way to the first postings if desired 12/3/03. Scroll all the way down at the bottom) ____________________________________________________
10/24/08 Good News! Markail is doing much better. She is awake and talking and breathing on her own. We went and saw her yesterday. What a blessing! Continue to pray for them, the recovery will be long but is on the way! God bless you all for praying! More later.... 10/23/08 Greetings Everyone! WOW…For 5 months, we have not been able to get these updates posted. Amazing! It’s fixed now, (thanks Brent, my IT guy) and I can now post again.
Connie is doing great and I’ll give a full update within a week but first, a family needs prayer immediately. Kellie’s boyfriend James and his family need prayer. His little sister had heart surgery yesterday. She’s 13. What was to be a routine 3 hour surgery, turned into a 13 hour ordeal. They repaired a valve but, the procedure needed was far more extensive than first thought. Her name is Markail.
They are having a tough time waking her up and she’s not breathing on her own yet. If you are reading this. Please pray for them!
More from us later…thanks everyone! We're Baaaaack! :o)
5/15/08
Ken is having problems accessing the website for updates. It's a software problem with Adobe. As soon as it is resolved, he will give a full report. Just know that Connie had her bone marrow test earlier this month and she got a 100% clean bill of health from Dr. M. This was her 2 yr anniversary where the leukemia came back last time so, we are thanking God! She's feeling great. Truly a miracle. Wooo Hooo. More later.
1/20/08 Greetings for the New Year !
It’s been a while since I’ve updated the site because things are going so well…I guess. At least that’s my story and I’m sticking to it for now. Really, we are doing great. It’s so hard to write things when you are packing your days with activities. I guess that’s good. We still have a few struggles but, I’ll get to them later.
You know, for a long time I sorta felt like ours was the epic struggle of all time and that we had to carry the torch against insurmountable odds. We were unique and God was uniquely concerned about our struggle. He had compassion on us and answered our prayers. There still is a tremendous sense of God’s compassion on our lives…don’t get me wrong. But the older I get and the more I learn about the condition of our world…I am beginning to see that we all have our “thorns in the flesh”. We all have our struggles. Yes, some are more difficult than others but, when you are in the heat of the battle…it doesn’t matter. You need help and you need the strength of others. We are trying to have hearts that see people who are hurting and touch them.
For some it is depression, some divorce, some it’s the curse of money and for some it’s just worry. On a world scale there is hunger, homelessness, disease and war. The human suffering that is evident all around us should make us all count our blessings. I’m in contact daily with people who are facing family problems, loneliness, fear of surgery or maybe facing a tough diagnosis of cancer. I am hearing from people across the country that are facing possible transplants like we have. Some have lost loved ones this year. My heart aches for them. My prayer is always that they will find peace in the Great Physician who holds all of our remedies in His hand.
For us, we are continuing to walk in blessings after blessings. Connie is doing great and just had a Dr. appt. Her counts were 100% within ranges. They did her blood chemistry and it was PERFECT ! She is coming up on Year 2 (May 5th) of this transplant and that is huge! Remember, last time the disease came back around the second year anniversary. Of course we are a bit apprehensive about that but, we also know that for now…we are cruising ahead and that is good. We don’t have to go back to the docs for another two months. Our leash is getting longer.
Connie IS having some problems. Recently, she noticed a lump in her thigh. Of course, we think of the worst. Turned out to be just a cyst and nothing to worry about. She is having problems (minor) with GVHD. That’s the graft vs. host disease. It tightens her skin a bit and gives her mouth sores sometimes. She is doing yoga to stretch and sees a dermatologist for the mouth problems. Her biggest concern now is with her eye. She’s had a problem for over 6 months now. We thought it was a fiber imbedded in her eyelid but, it has proved more complicated than that. She is in constant discomfort. It’s light sensitive and gets really tired every nite. We now think it’s gvhd of the eye. She is going to a new doctor for it (her fourth) next week. He’s a gvhd specialist. Hopefully, he will be able to give her some relief. She doesn’t complain much but I see it hurting her often.
On the homefront, we all are doing well. I am continuing to help Connie with her business (not that I’m much help – but I have run a few!). Anyway, we had a great year. Connie did about 50% more business this year than last. What a blessing! We have lots of medical bills to pay…ha. Anyway, we’ve added some people, secured a few new customers and have taken on some new projects that stretch us each day. We like that.
Krista, our oldest has now graduated from KU! (Can you hear the angels singing?) She was the one who exhibited extremely poor judgment and started her college career at M.U. (Missouri). Her Dad, who is a KU alum and was paying the bills, was none too happy. But, like most Cardells …we have to learn of our mistakes by experience. She was saved just in time. As of this writing, she is in Hawaii being a nanny for one of her favorite families in KC. They took her on vacation with her. I think they are even paying her. How do I get a “gig” like that? When she gets home, she will live with us for a while (which makes her Mom happy), and she’ll figure out what she wants to be when she grows up. She graduated with a Communications major and is interested in event planning. She’s gonna be a star!
Kellie is still at KU and if all goes well, she will graduate in December of 08’ . This should be about the same time as the 08’ National Champion KU Jayhawks start their new basketball season. She too is a Communications major. She also is holding down two jobs and a boyfriend. Her plate is totally full. We only get to see her if we offer she and boyfriend a good home cooked meal. You know how it is? She's a doll and a delight to be around.
Maddie, is 13 now having had her big birthday in December. She has discovered boys, basketball, and MUSIC! No room for parents anymore but tons of room for friends. She spends most of her day texting her friends and trying to stay clear of any chores. Her mom has been cooking with her and doing homework and taking her shopping. It’s what she fought for. We are truly blessed to have this time.
So, it’s onward and upwards for the Cards. We have a few trips planned this year, mostly for business or to see family. We are looking forward to the new year and what it entails and we are taking one day at a time. Connie and I both finished our walk thru the Bible in one year. She finished by Dec 31, I didn’t. It was about Jan 4th or so. We are both starting a new one this year.
We’re not sure how this year will unfold but, we are excited to be fully engaged again and living normal. Thank you all for checking in on us and being interested enough to email us. We love that! God Bless you all.
____________ 11/19/07 Connie update: O.K. Here’s better news than “boring”. Connie is doing great. She just had her November clinic appointment where they test her blood and look at her counts. All were within “NORMAL” levels. Wooo Hooo! Her good bud, Carla took her again.
Usually, on these days, I keep myself busy making deliveries or buried in Quickbooks or something. Then, I await the call. Are we O.K.? Are we back in the battle? Are we all cleared? My heart gets heavy and I relive some of the feelings of the past. My chest sometimes gets tight. It’s really weird. Connie knows this about me so, when she calls…she starts with, “I’M O.K. ! “ Then, I can just feel the tension leave me for a while. It happens every time there is a blood test. Maybe it will get easier as time goes by..? we’ll see… At least we have time going by..huh?
Some of you, from the Kansas City area, have heard about the passing of Ann Glotzbach. She was an amazing woman. She died at the age of 50 and was a friend of mine since high school. She died of a rare neurological muscular disease. My heart is heavy today as I attend her funeral. I have walked some of the paths that her husband, Bill has walked...although our outcomes are different. God still is on the throne!. Bill is also an amazing man and my prayers are with his family as Ann is ushered into the kingdom of glory!
THIS day, things are good on the Cardell homefront. We are totally busy, totally engaged with the business, and totally swamped during the holiday. Yay!!! Normal. All systems GO.
To all of you out there…please join with us and BE THANKFUL !!! We have a great country, plenty of abundance and a GREAT GOD !!!
God Bless all of you. Happy Thanksgiving
Ken and Connie and the girlz
__________ 11/7/07 Nothing new to report! Woooo Hoooo. The Cardell's are BORING !!! YAY !!! Love you all. Ken _____ PRAYER REQUEST
10/10/07 Hi guys. As you all know by following info on our site, we have been given “new eyes” to see people hurting all around us. Not that they weren’t there before, but…sometimes I believe God gives us life experiences that allow us to have particular sensibilities. For us, our hearts are touched by people who are facing unknown health outcomes. Some are because of cancer, some are fearful of heart problems and some are facing horrible diagnoses. We can relate to those people.
So, would you please take a moment right now to just bow your head and pray for these fellow-sufferers. I know they would appreciate us lifting them to the throne of God and ask for healing. Thank you for being willing to pray for strangers… It works!!!
On the praise side, Connie’s Mom is doing better and is out of the hospital. Our buddies, Craig & Debbie Babb just had a new granddaughter yesterday. wooo hooo. Way to go Amanda! Connie is still doing great and… I may have one daughter graduating from college in December. (more cash flow!) Love you all…and thanks for praying! It works !!! God Bless. -----------
WOOOO HOOOOO !!!!!
9/13/07 Great News Everyone! Connie is disease free AGAIN !!!!
We’re cruizin…she had her normal clinic appointment today (sweet Carla took her again! - She's good luck!) and her counts were PERFECT !!!! White blood counts, red blood counts, neutrophils, platelets, lymphocytes….all NORMAL !!!
As a matter of fact, the docs were so pleased with her progress that they said they didn’t need to do her next bone marrow test in November. As you all know, I hate those tests. But they are the best way to know what’s going on. Anyway, they said that unless they see something weird, they aren’t going to do one. Her two-year bone marrow test would be in May 08’. Think we can hold off til then??? Everyone…SAY YES!!!!!
We are in full swing trying to be “normal” these days. Maddie is in 7th grade and adjusting well to her new surroundings. Krista and Kellie are both at K.U. and both are fully engaged in college activities. Connie’s business is very active and I’ve been taking over all her accounting stuff. I’m also her designated delivery guy (so she let’s me outside every once in a while). I’ve painted almost every room on our main floor this year (and ceilings). In addition, we’ve worked in a couple of pretty nice vacations. All “normal” stuff …huh?
Other than the occasional health flare up…we’ve been able to almost forget our affliction. It’s been an incredible blessing to have some relief in that area. God has placed his hand on our family and we see Him everyday. Everyday! Hope you are doing the same.
We will continue to walk with Him as long as he lets us. God Bless all of you!
KEN (Did I say WOOOOO HOOOO already?????) _________________
Greetings Everyone!
Many people have asked me over the years about donating marrow and stem cells like Connie received. How do you donate? How can I get on the registry? Is there a cost? What is the procedure? Is it painful? How many people are currently on the National Registry?
All GREAT questions!
I thought that I would use this opportunity to give you some information so you can sign up and DONATE!!!
The best way to get information on marrow donations is by going to the National Marrow Donor Program website. You can also call the 1-800 number listed below:
NATIONAL MARROW DONOR PROGRAM 1-800-MARROW2
This website will answer all your questions about getting on the registry. Everyone should get signed up. You really are giving LIFE to someone. Like Jason did for us!!! (see below) It is the most important “gift” you could ever give. Please make the effort. There might be only ONE person who matches with YOU…but, they will never know if you don’t sign up!
NOTE: Another way to sign up for the Registry is to look for Marrow drives in your area. I know here in Kansas City, churches such at COR or Hillcrest Covenant often have marrow drives that are FREE. You need only to make an appointment, let them collect a small amount of blood for typing and then, you are IN. So, watch for that. If you sign up thru the NMDP, there is a small fee…but…IT’S WORTH IT! Whatever the cost is….
Thanks for taking the time! Ken and Connie _________________________ “Greater love hath no one than this, that one lay ones life down for his friends.” John 15:13 “A friend loves at all times , and a brother is born for adversity.” Prov 17:17
Meet our HERO !!!
His name is JASON and HE’S OUR DONOR!!!!
As you can see by the picture, He’s a 32 year old Police Officer for a town just outside of Detroit. He has a wife, a baby girl and one on the way (YAY!). Connie got to meet him when she went to her nephews wedding in July. How amazing is that?!!!
If you have followed our story, you know that Connie was out of options for treating her leukemia. As a matter of fact, there was a day that we both sat on our bed at St. Lukes and heard the news that NONE of her siblings were a match. It was the most hopeless feeling I’ve ever felt. We sat on the bed and cried to God, knowing ONLY HE could save us.
Gods compassion was not far away. The same day our heart was broken, we received news of HOPE. We had three “perfect match” donors. The Doc’s chose the one they thought was our best chance (remember, we called him “Donny the Donor”?). Well, you know the story. His precious gift was enough for Connie to remain in remission for two years…but, sadly…the disease came back on our two year anniversary of the first transplant.
Most people are considered lucky to have ONE SHOT at beating this disease. Connie was incredibly blessed because she had THREE matches. It had been two years now. Would the donor still be willing? Would he be healthy? Would the timing work? Could there possibly be another transplant? Would the donor be ready in time? It was our only chance.
Enter JASON!!!!
Not only was he ready, but he was willing and he stepped up big time! Jason was DONOR #2 (We called him “Don Juan” because her second transplant was on May 5th, Cinco De Mayo, remember?). His wife will love that!!! ha. THIS transplant is working! It’s his cells that are battling with the disease and giving Connie a fighting chance. They share his DNA and his amazing gift is bearing fruit each day. He has given Connie her life back.
You see, Jason is a Policeman. He’s used to giving his life to serve others. He’s also a Believer! He loves the Lord. AMEN!!! He’s a soft-spoken, humble man. Years ago, a fellow officer had a son who needed a transplant. Jason stepped up and donated for him. Who would have known that, years later…God had plans to use this mans blood to heal a woman in Leawood, Kansas?
As you know, Connie’s Brother Bart is a Police Officer in South San Francisco. The National Bone Marrow Registry is replete with Policemen, Firemen, Serviceman and other civil servants. These are the men and women who make this country great. They sacrifice so we all can be safe. They are used to “giving back” and are in careers that serve the people of this country! GOD BLESS ALL OF YOU!
But to OUR JASON, the Cardell’s have a message for you: WE LOVE YOU!!!! THANK YOU!!!! THANK YOU!!!!
There will never be any way we can pay you back for what you have done for us. We know God has orchestrated this for His good will. We know you will not take credit but, suffice it to say, we know what the value of this gift is. Each time Connie gets to go to another school meeting for Maddie, a dance recital for Kellie or have dinner with Krista and friends…we realize it. Each time another birthday passes, or an anniversary or a family gathering…we realize it. Each time we go on a trip to see family…we realize it. Not a day passes that we don’t thank God for you and for your incredible sacrifice for us.
One other thing: As many of you know, there are two ways to donate marrow. One is called “apherisis” (sp) and involves pulling blood from one arm, it goes thru a machine, and the marrow is separated and put back in the other arm. It takes about 3 hours and is less invasive than the other method. Jason chose the second option which is more painful. They put him under anesthesia and took the marrow directly from his hips. Although he was out for the procedure, there is more pain involved in recovery but, the doctors told us that this method is much preferred if you are a recipient! The quality of the cells is more potent. Jason chose to take the tougher road! And it’s working!
God Bless You Jason. Hundreds of people here in KC have prayed for you. Hundreds have asked God to bless your family. Hundreds have given thanks to Him for you being willing to give us this gift!
Here are some more pictures. Connie’s Mom and Sis got to meet him also. It was an amazing day!
__________ 7/7/07 OOOOPS! I stayed in Hawaii too long!
Greetings everyone and ALOHA!
Well, the Cardell’s had a dream trip. For 25 years we had wanted to get back to that place and we DID IT !!! Ya hoo... What a whirlwind we have been on the past few weeks.
Well, as most of you know, we determined that IF we got a good bone marrow report, we would put our plans into effect and go to Hawaii. Our plan was to go to maybe two islands and stay there for about 4 days each. Well, you know Connie…she found an incredible deal on a cruise that we all could take and it was less than our original plan. It took us to several islands and we got to explore on shore at several locations.
We went to Honolulu, then to Hilo on the big Island, then to Maui, then to Kona and finally we ended up on Wailea which was our favorite island. It was absolutely amazing. We sailed back to Honolulu again for our flight out but, we got to spend a day there before we left. Of course, we played on Waikaikee beach. It was a riot. Maddie and I got swept out to the ocean from an unexpected wave. Although somewhat shaken…she had a memory she won’t soon forget! ha.
The cruise itself was wonderful too. Lots of food, great scenery and fun activities every day. Connie and I had pictured in our minds a peaceful, restful and relaxing cruise thru paradise. NOPE! Everyday, we packed some incredible activity in and we were going from the moment we got on the ship. Would you expect anything else?
The girls had a blast too! Krista found a young “cabana boy” on the trip named Josh. They seemed to have a keen interest in each other and he often “stopped by” our table for a chat. Turns out he lives in Denver but visits his father in Independence, Mo. every year or so…so…maybe she’ll see him again. We did take a picture of the strapping young man so we have it on file. Kellie is already “taken” for the moment with James, her boyfriend so…I was under strict instructions to “protect his interest” and I did. She was good the whole trip. Maddie, of course, loved the food and all the activities and also having her Aunt Karen along to play with. We all had an unbelievable time.
Among our activities were…swimming on the beaches, swimming in waterfalls, shopping, shopping, shopping, watching natives surfing, eating, shopping, watching shows, sunbathing, sight seeing, shopping, playing shuffleboard, basketball on the ship, body surfing, swimming with the dolphins and did I mention…shopping? We also went to Sea Life Park. For me, I think, my most frequent activity was hauling around all the luggage for 5 women and myself. I know I’m stronger for it. ha.
Krista also won the talent competition on the ship. She sang, won a trophy and a chance to compete for a NCL entertainment contract. Kellie got into the finals for a dance competition. I got named as the most handsome passenger and won a free glass of water (just kidding), I just felt left out.
We are truly exhausted and feel totally blessed to be able to do this! We made it! Connie did great! Even the gentle rocking of the ship didn’t bother her. We were worried about her getting “shingles” because of Maddie having chicken Pox right before we left but, it all worked out fine. NO SHINGLES !
The biggest highlight for the girls was the big Luau night. They took a shore excursion and spent the night watching hula dancers and fire eaters. It was awesome. I haven’t seen the video yet. I did however, take over 600 pictures. It will probably take me 6 months to get them all downloaded.
Well, better go. I will leave you with these pictures. You can get a picture of how beautiful it was. God spared no creativity when he fashioned Hawaii ! We are truly blessed !
Aloha.
P.S. Connie DID get to meet her donor. His name is Jason and he’s a police officer in Michigan. More on their meeting later this week. I have pictures as well. Will update later this week with all the info. YAY ! ______________________________ 6/20/07 Quick Update:
Connie had a clinic appointment today at 9:00 a.m. A final “once over” before the big trip and SHE’S GOOD TO GO !!! YAY!!!
The better news is that her counts were incredibly good. All within “normal” ranges. That is a miracle in itself. She’s doing great everyone! Wooo Hooo. We decided to load her up on meds for the trip. Not because she needs them but for preventative reasons. If she comes down with something, we’ll have it covered.
Dr. A. saw Connie today. He’s so funny! Last time we went on a trip to Napa, Connie got really sick. I had to call him on a Sunday, find a Walgreens in Napa and have him call in a prescription for her. He always bugs me about vacations because he KNOWS we are going to call him! It’s happened twice now. So, this time, He told Connie – NO CALLS – we are loading her up ahead of time. Ha….
Connie took pictures down to the clinic of our donor. All the nurses and the staff were so excited for Connie. They spent some fun time talking and crying. It’s such and incredible payoff for them to see someone who would sacrifice like this and….IT’S WORKING!!!! What an awesome day.
Well better go…I have places to go and things to see…and kids to kill. LOVE YOU ALL…. ALOHA____________ 6/18/07 Update from the Mansion- Greetings all. So much has happened and I’ve been a slackard as far as blogging. I will try to make it up here.
Since our last good bone marrow report almost a month ago, we’ve been very active and busy. Maddie graduated from 6th grade, both older girls have moved home, Connie’s been to Detroit to our nephews wedding and…and….the really big news!??? CONNIE GOT TO MEET HER DONOR !!!!! (the second one!) WOOO HOOOOOO!!!!!
We haven’t gotten permission to publish his picture yet but, WHAT A HERO! We have been trying for over a year now to see if we could make contact. Our transplant coordinator kept working on it but, no word. Well, right before Connie was to go to Detroit…they called. She had a name. She had a contact number. He told them he’d LOVE TO make contact with her. So, where in the world was this man from????
DETROIT !!!! Another GOD THING !!!!
So, with about three day’s notice, Connie called him and spent several tearful minutes telling him how much she loved him for giving this gift to us. He was humble. He was wonderful. He was gracious. Connie was worried that she would be viewed as a “stalker recipient” because, he had just told us where he was from and BANG!...Connie was going to be in DETROIT the very next weekend. She wanted to meet him. He agreed. What a joyful meeting it was…more later. I’m not going to say much more because I want to post a picture of him at a later date but, suffice it to say…We have another member of our family now!!!!
Now, here’s some more fun family news (NOT)…someone in our family has been very sick…And it’s NOT Connie!!! I guess we should all shout YAY! about that but, we still feel bad. MADDIE has been one sick little girl. About a week ago, Maddie came down with a big fever. 102.3 when I got her to the Doctors. Yep, she had STREP !!! The did a test and she had it. She also had an ear infection so, they gave her antibiotics. We went home and I took care of her. Connie, of course, couldn’t go near her. Isolation for a few days!
Nope! You see…the next day…she woke up with a few…”spots” on her back. What???? We called the docs again and they said it could be a reaction to the strep. Sometimes, a rash occurs with strep but, they better see her again. By the time we saw him, she had more “spots”. YEP….she had the Chicken Pox. And…as he looked her over, he said she had a sinus infection as well. So, Maddie had a fever, strep, an ear infection, a sinus infection and Chicken Pox! How’s that for loading up on the illnesses???
As you can imagine…it put the household into a tizzy. We called Connie’s docs and she couldn’t be anywhere near Maddie. The rest of the family has had Chicken Pox but we still needed to be careful. Maddie, thank God, just learned how to take a pill. She had resisted it for over 12 years. Now, she was taking about 20 each day. She has gotten really good at it now. The good news is that she is now almost over it. Her red dots have crusted over and she can go out in public again. She is past the contagious stage now. Here’s why that is important…..
WE ARE GOING TO HAWAII !!!!
Yep, you read that right ! Connie and I have been scheming for about a year now about taking ONE LAST FAMILY TRIP. I say ONE LAST because, we reasoned that if we didn’t take it THIS YEAR, we would never have the opportunity again. Not because of health but, because of schedules and life getting in the way. Krista graduates in Dec 07’ and after that, she’ll be working (please God???). Kellie already has a serious boyfriend and won’t want to go with her OLD parents anymore. She’d already rather go with James than us, so….we made the commitment. If we got a good bone marrow report…we would spend all the kids inheritance and take the entire family to HAWAII !!!! Wooo Hooo.. It’s going to be a cruise between islands. We will be gone about 10 days and back the first week of July. Aunt Karen is going with us as well. As you can imagine….when Maddie got sick….we started PANNICKING.! What? Chicken Pox…. NO WAY!!!!? How long til this girl is healthy? We have RESERVATIONS!!! NON-REFUNDABLE ONES!!!! It all worked out. Maddie is fine…good to go.
So, dear friends, as you are reading this…we are packing! Getting ready to do the UNIMAGINABLE!!! Connie is going to Hawaii !!!! A year ago, we were just hoping to get out of the hospital and NOW… this!!! God has unimaginable joy in store for us. We are so Blessed! You all know what this trip means to us as a family. We have walked thru some incredibly dark waters…it will be nice to see right to the bottom for a change. Maybe this trip will be a metaphor for Connie “cruising” to her next life goal !? She’s amazing and I’m delighted God has given us yet another blessing!
I will bring back lots of pictures to post. ha. So, for now….ALOHA….we will be back soon. Thank You all for praying us to this place.
KEN and CONNIE ____________________ 5/30/07 Greetings all.
Another milestone at the Cardell mansion. Just another day for most, but for us…a special one. You see, today is Maddie’s last day as an elementary student. Yep, she graduated from 6th grade! It’s been about 17 years we have been going up to that school! She’s full of life and did her final “talent show” this a.m. It was cheesy, awful, funny and delightful for Connie and I.
She got out at noon and all the parents line up outside the east entrance. They let all the other grades out of school early and they set up a line. Kinda like a gauntlet. Then, the 6th graders all line up. They are given the go ahead and they come out of the school for the last time as a student! They walk, then run the gauntlet giving “high fives” to all the teachers and the younger students. At the end of the gauntlet is the 6th grade parents.
Yep, some of them were crying. Some of the kids were crying. I saw a few tears from Moms who had been lugging their students back and forth for years. It was all over now. It’s on to middle school and then high school. The kids are growing up! Their bodies are changing, these little kindergartners are now as tall as we are! It was fun to watch them grow up.
For us…it wasn’t just another day. It was a GOAL. We had prayed for this day. We sat a year ago in a hospital room wondering if Connie would ever see Maddie graduate? We wondered if we would be lucky enough to make it this far. Last year, at this time, we had just gotten released and Connie was barely well enough to ride with me to pick Maddie up from 5th grade. We took it slow, got Connie in the car and made it to the school. Maddie wasn’t aware how special the day was back then. She probably won’t realize the importance of this one either. But, it IS special. It’s an answered prayer. It’s a precious gold piece put in Connie’s memory. Maddie’s too but she’s too young to realize it now.
So, to all of you who lifted us up, REJOICE !!!! We are truly a blessed family !!!
God Bless, KEN ______________________________ 5/23/07 YOUR PRAYERS HAVE WORKED!!!
100% DONOR CELLS AGAIN…WOOO HOOOO!!!!
It’s been a little over 2 weeks that we had to wait for the news but, boy…was it worth the wait ! Connie’s blood counts were , for the first time since the transplant, ALL within normal ranges. Dr. A. said he was totally encouraged by where we are at this point and that she is exactly where they want her after a second transplant.
Connie cried. I sighed and held her hand and thanked God..
You know, there are probably far too many people these days that are awaiting news like this. It can be a result from a test, maybe a word from a Doctor, a possible diagnosis or even waiting to hear if your loved one was on that plane that went down. Regardless, Connie and I have sat on this precipice many times now. It’s like you are on a cliff and you look over the edge. There is no way down except to climb. It’s way too steep, too many dangers, rocks and boulders and loose gravel. Many people have lost their life going down the mountain this way. It is almost certain peril. You have no other option but to proceed ahead.
Then, someone tells you…”Hey, it’s o.k. You don’t have to step over that cliff… I know a much easier way down the mountain. It’s right over there…your path is going to be easier, just walk…there are lots of twists and turns but, you will find it safe and you can see much farther ahead.” “Oh yeah, and by the way, I’ll carry that 1000 lb. backpack that you have been carrying around for the last two weeks! You just rest…just walk and enjoy every moment!”
That’s us. For now, we are emotionally spent but totally joyous. We know that God has placed a protective hedge around us. We’ve been given another gift. We have renewed hope and joy at the news. Thanks to everyone who has emailed us. Those who exhibited extreme confidence that everything would be o.k. Those that called and said, “You are going to get GREAT NEWS!” It arrived and we are grateful.
Thank you all for sticking with us. Your support is like a glass of cold water on a 100 degree day! Love you all!
Ken and Connie _____________________ 5/22/07 Update: Tuesday No news yet. However, we do have a clinic appointment down at St. Lukes tomorrow (Wed – 23rd) at 9:30 a.m. We will probably be able to get some news then. It will be a tough day for us. We are already having the waves of emotions coming over us. We do not expect anything but good news but, there is always that feeling behind us. Please pray with us tomorrow morning as we receive the news. I will post the results as soon as I can. Love you all for continuing to check on us. It means the world! Ken ____________ 5/9/07 Noon - Connie just got home from her BM test. Sweet friend Carla took her as become their custom. It’s been good luck in the past so, we are continuing with it. Dr. M. did the test.
She’s pretty “out of it” right now as they commonly give her a “cocktail” of pain medicine before they start. She is going to sleep it off. The first thing she did when I poured her into bed was to ask Debbie, her coworker, to update her on what’s happening in her business. So, I guess she wasn’t too out of it.
Her counts came back really good today and perhaps that’s a sign that we will get good news later. We hope so. We will not get the news for a while and I’ll keep you posted. Now…the waiting.
In any event, I wanted to give you the quick update and we thank you again for being in this with us. Most people just don’t realize how much we need the support. You all do!
God Bless you all.
KEN _______________ 5/7/07 Update: Bone Marrow Test, Wednesday – May 9th. a.m.
Greetings all. As you know, Connie celebrated her 1 YR anniversary of the second transplant yesterday and had a blast! She got to see Maddie run in a 5K race in the morning. Then, she got a call from Kellie that she was going to be dancing in an exhibition at the O.P. Market so, we shot up there and got to see her “do her thing”. She’s really good!!!
Then, in the afternoon…I…the good husband, planted all her flower boxes with impatients and dug up some dead trees , etc. Things I don’t like to do but, Connie loves it…so… she’s happy.
We then went to our neighborhood “block party” and ate tons of Mexican food and consumed adult beverages. We got to reconnect with neighbors we hardly ever see and with friends up and down our street! It was wonderful. We love our neighbors.
The final event of the day was when our friends, the McCraves stopped by with a bottle of wine to give to Connie for “Cinco De Connie” day! They remembered! They just wanted to say “congrats”! It was a beautiful end to the day. We sat at the kitchen table for 2 hours just talking. Isn’t it amazing to have friends like that? We are so blessed.
So, that’s the old news…
This week is going to be a bit more worrisome. Connie has her bm test on Wednesday. We, once again, ask you all to pray with us on this day. The test itself is not so bad (easy for me to say…huh?). It’s the waiting for results that is very difficult. These days, the tests can take more than a week for results to get back to us. So, if you could lift us up these days, we’d sure appreciate it. We remain in the hands of our compassionate God and await his good news.
As mentioned before, if we get a good report here…we don’t have to have another one for 6 MONTHS! We so want to hear those good words.
You all have been amazing and we know God hears every prayer…so thanks. Each milestone that Connie wracks up is a major blessing in our lives. We never want to take a one for granted! Thank you for hanging in there with us.
We love you.
Ken and Con ____________________ 4/25/07 Steady as she goes.
Hi All. Greetings from tornado land. So far so good. Connie has seen numerous doc’s the past few weeks about various things and all have said she is doing good. Isn’t that great to be able to report? She has various problems that crop up and need to be analyzed from time to time.
She’s seen a thyroid specialist and is hypothyroid which is controlled with meds. She’s seen her female doc and all checked out well. She had to see a dermatologist for all her itchies. She has been having some pretty bad mouth sores and so she’s getting that checked out. She is also having problems still with her hair coming back in correctly but, all this is to say…YAY for these type of problems.
We would sooooo take these problems over the other kinds we have experienced.
It’s all systems go for us right now and believe me when I say this, “Every day is a blessing” for us. We cannot believe that one year ago, we were in the hospital battling for her life. Today, we are home…we are active… and we are totally blessed by the gifts we have been given. We still have many fellow sufferers that we are in contact with across the country. Some of them are around here. God has given us compassion for these people. We pray and try to help. Hopefully, you are doing the same where you are.
Connie has her one year anniversary of the second transplant on 5/5/07. Cinco de Connie day! A week after that, she will be getting her 6 month bone marrow test again. Those are the scary ones. We will have two weeks to “anticipate” the test and two weeks to wait for the answer. We are praying for “100% donor cells”. Please pray with us.
For now, just know that your prayers have carried us to this point. For that, we are eternally grateful and always will be. Thank you for enlisting in our journey with us. More later… enjoy your Spring everyone!!!
KEN _____________________ 4/12/07 Spring Greetings to everyone from KS
Hi everyone! Connie had another clinic appointment yesterday and she did well. Her counts looked good and she is progressing well. We are always a bit nervous about what the results could show but, we also know that if God has healed her…He has healed her. It is up to Him who holds our future.
She still has some issues mostly dealing with itchy skin and some internal gvhd problems. Her doc’s are saying that these are “manageable” and she is responding well to treatment. Now, here’s the really good news… She got to get off almost all of her meds! That’s huge! She is now only on penicillin . She used to be taking about 20 pills a day. They have weaned her off everything else now. Connie, of course, had to push them a bit and she’s sure not afraid to do that! ha. They agreed that she was at her 6 month time table and agreed. She is so happy about that.
The next big step is her 6 month bone marrow test. It will be next month on the 12th. She will once again be tapped to see what is going on inside the bone. We again, will all pray for 100% donor cells. If we can pass this milestone in good shape, she won’t have to have another one until December. We SOOO want that to happen. It is very hard to plan or shape our lives when you are living month to month. We are trying though and totally grateful that we have been able to do it so far.
We can only continue because we have people like you who encourage us. We know that!
Everyone please, have a great spring and look around you. God is blooming everywhere! We love you. Ken Oh, and I forgot to mention. Connie's pap smear was negative...came back fine! yay! Thanks for prayin!... ____________________________________ 4/4/07 Greetings everyone! Spring is here and we are wracking up milestones. Each new season brings hope to us as we continue with Connie's battle. She loves to see the tulips that she planted last year come up. She is glad to feel the fresh air on her face and watch the girls get another semester under their belts. It's a sign that she is alive and she is still active in their lives. It's a blessing to us. Each day is. Connie has asked for prayer for a couple of things . One, she went to see her "female doctor" and got a general check up. After going thru all the procedures this girl has had to endure, It is always good to get a check up from her female doctor. She also has seen an endochronologist. They deal with her thyroid. So far, things look good. They have adjusted her thyroid meds again. However, on Connie's pap smear, there appeared some abnormal cells. It has happened before but, Connie is a bit concerned this time. We have an appt. on Friday, two days from now, to get a follow up. Would you pray for her? She knows it's problably nothing but, she still would like your support. The other prayer request is for her upcoming Clinic appt. This is next week on Wed. Again, no concerns we can see but, the visits are always scary. Please lift us up again. We have grown to be dependent on your prayers. Much love to all and thanks for checking on us again. We love you and have a great Easter. Ken _________________________________ 3/13/07 RESULTS ARE IN !!!
100% DONOR CELLS….YOOOO HOOOO!!!!
Thanks everyone for lifting us up once again! Phew…we can breathe again for a while.
What does this mean? People often see results like the above and think that our journey is over now and we are safe for good. Unfortunately, that’s not the case. What this means is that our wonderful donor’s cells have fully engrafted in Connie and it is his blood that is calling the shots right now. It is his cells that are fighting Connie’s bad “leuk” cells and are keeping them at bay.
Is it over for good? The sad news is no, it’s not. Connie has been at 100% donor cells three times in the last 3 years and her “leuk” cells came back. The last time, she was at her two year anniversary and they came back. Right now, we are at about 9 months since her second transplant.
When will she be tested again? The good news is that Connie will have her one year anniversary of her second transplant on 5/5/07… “Connie De Mayo Day”. We are estimating that she will have her one-year test around the middle of that month. 60 DAYS FROM NOW.
Does she have to get tested every month? No. If she does well after her one year anniversary, they will not test her again for 6 Months! After two years with a clean report, they go to yearly tests! We totally look forward to getting to that point!
How did her counts look? Once again, they looked pretty good. Almost every category was within range. The Doc’s seemed pretty happy with where she was. Dr. M. tried to extort some of Ken’s Famous chocolate chip cookies out of us. He might just get his wish!
So, where do we go from here? Well, we breathe again for a while. The results this time took two weeks to get (new policy). They are no longer calling patients with “preliminaries” because they have been burned a couple of times. They are now waiting for the full report and then scheduling the patients for their review. So, for now, we celebrate. We rejoice. We thank God for His plan and His compassion on our lives. We do some vacation planning maybe and enjoy some great college basketball (GO JAYHAWKS !!!).
Our next clinic appointment is in April and then on to “Connie De Mayo”! Praise God.
Thanks again everyone for your emails and prayers. We are totally sustained by your love and prayers for this family. It’s amazing…God is pleased.
Love you all, KEN ____________________ 3/13/07 Tuesday - Results Day...hopefully? We have a clinic appt. this a.m. Please Pray for good news. We have been going thru Chinese water torture. May God, once again, have compassion on us !!! ___________________________ 3/8/07 - NO news on her BM test yet. We will post as soon as we know. This waiting is awful. We have no reason to think we will get bad news but, we are never sure. We continue to trust that God has a plan and it's always better than ours. We'll keep you up to date. Thanks for praying for us still. KEN _________________ 2/28/07 Connie Update: Hi all ! Sorry I didn’t jump right in here and update when the time dictated but, I’ve been feeling pretty low from a cold. Must've got it from my Connie girl, I think? I’ve been down for about 4 days and just now coming out of it. If you’ve sent me an email in the last few days…I apologize. Thinking about typing wasn’t on my agenda…trying to stand up for more than 15 minutes at a time was my biggest challenge. Happily, I am feeling better now.
Connie did have her BM test on Tuesday. Her bud Carla took her. I was horizontal at the time. She came home feeling no pain from the pre-meds but she said the actual test went well. Dr. M. is her favorite “tester” and so to make him laugh, Connie and Carla put one of those fake tatoo’s on her back side. It was really sexy…one of those tatoo’s that are right above the “thong line”. So, when Dr. M. rolled back the clothing to prepare for the test…he was greeted with a nice piece of artwork! The nurses were cracking up! Last time, if you remember…Carla drew a heart on her with Dr. M’s initials in it. Now, I don't want you to think that I condone another man laughing at my wife’s backside?... but, I was o.k. with this. It was funny.
We are being told that we won’t hear the results for about 10 days. Well, that won’t sit well with our girl. I bet she is on the phone by the end of the week trying to get someone to speed things up. Anyway, so far…signs are all good. Her counts were almost all within range and the Dr.s seemed happy with them. Connie also has been having some side effects with her hair. Although it’s coming back pretty good, there seems to be a couple areas that are pretty thin. She’s worried about it. She just got on some medicine that should help her thyroid deal with any problems. Hopefully, that will help her feel more confident going out with a short hairstyle. I think she looks great regardless…
On the home front, we are getting back our lives a bit. Connie is very busy with her business and I’ve been helping (some). Mostly, she does all the work. We are finishing long overdue projects and getting our kids thru college. Kellie (our middle child) just relayed to me how she ran out of gas (again!) ugh! Yep, it appears that when that dial gets to the last line on the dashboard… “it sure empties FAST!” At least that is what she told me when she called. I, being the good father with advice at the ready, relayed to her, “Kellie…THAT is exactly why I told you girls that you should fill up every time the meter hits the ¼ mark!” Now, you all know I love my sweet Kellie…she brings life to every room she enters but, I should expect more from all her tuition dollars. Her response to me was, “Dad…I could NEVER afford to fill up every time the car hit the ¼ mark!!!” I gave up. Must be some new kind of math they are teaching at KU these days! This is the same Kellie who was having a deep discussion with her Mom one day about all the “bank notices” that were coming to the house from Kellie's account. After this long discussion about money, finances, balancing, and being responsible…Her Mom exclaimed to her…”Kellie, we have just GOT TO stop these notices!”. Her intentions, of course, were to get Kellie to pay more attention. Our sweet Kellie responded, “It’s O.K. Mom…I’ll take care of this tomorrow. I’ll have them send the notices to my dorm room!” I give up again. Anyway, I will update more when we have the results. Of course, we are scared. Of course, we shouldn’t be. Of course, we know that God has been faithful to us in the past and He will continue to be faithful to us. Regardless of the outcome, He is Good! I do want to thank all of you who have checked in to ask us how we are doing…it warms our hearts. We can’t believe that there are still people out there who are praying for us and watching over us. You all are amazing. And…yes, I will get back to all of you. I guess I just needed some down time for some reason.
Thanks for praying for us. Please continue. I will get back to you soon…God Bless. KEN ____________________ 2/21/07 Update: Hi all. Things are still looking good for us right now. We have had a few bouts with the flu and now a cold. For instance, yesterday…Con started to feel something brewing in her head and chest. She remembered Dr. M. saying that if he got to a problem early, we could fight it. Most of the time, he hears about things after they have progressed and they can’t be fought as easily. So, Connie called the clinic. OF COURSE, they wanted to see her for a nasal swab and CT scan right away. That’s how our life is. Regardless of what we had planned, if we are called in…we go! Anyway, we went to the clinic and got the “all clear” for her. They are going to put her on a Z-pak again but, no CT scan. yay.
We still have her BM test next week (27th). It’s her 9 month check up. We ask you all to pray with us for good news again. All signs point to a good result but, only God knows. We take each day as it comes. I do have to admit that the week leading up to one of these and the week we await results are pretty tortuous. We still have to trust in the ONE who got us here.
A short moment to reflect: Today, I dropped Maddie off to school and she is looking more and more like a teenager each day. She has taken an interest in clothing for the first time, she constantly looks in the mirror now and her hair has to be perfect for school! Sounds like a teenager, huh? Anyway, as I watched her walk to the door of her 6th grade class…I reflected on the many days I was unsure if she’d be one of those kids who had to make it thru grade school without a mom. I grieved for her. I prayed. I asked God to give her a couple more years with her mom. I prayed that God would be gracious to her. Connie is such a big influence on our girls…I could never replace that! I know it. So, I asked (pleaded really) for God to give Maddie a few more years with her mom. He has been compassionate to us. Connie was first diagnosed in Nov 03’ so, we are going past three years now. She’s a walking miracle. Maddie, in the mean time, is growing up. She’s becoming more confident and relies on her mom for just about everything. I am amazed daily at the blessing of time we have been given. We rejoice in that!
We heard some good news about our friend Richard Blanks. He’s had his 2nd transplant and is home now, recovering. He too, is a walking miracle. He had a couple “scares” and spent some time in the ICU down at St. Luke’s but is doing better now. Keep praying that he completes a full recovery.
Now, here’s some not so good news about a little 2 yr old sweetheart named Janelle. They are friends of my cousin in South Carolina. They are a sweet family. Here’s their story.
From my Aunt C: I have a special prayer request for a little girl (Janelle) who will be 3 on March 24. She was just diagnosed with AML. She is presently in Children's Hose in Greenville, SC. Her Grandma belongs to Jeanne's Church. The Mennonites are lovely people. Many of them brought me dinner and they came over with the Pastor and other members on a Sunday afternoon and sang for me and read scripture to me. I met the little girl when she and her Mom and Grandma came over another day when I was out of the hospital with dinner for me and the Grandmother explained they (the little girl’s family) just came back from Mission work in Mexico. They thought she had gotten Malaria and other sicknesses. So now this is the diagnosis. I pray that our Great Physician will heal this beautiful little girl. We know all about this Great Physician. Ken, Maybe you can pass this on.
From Janelle’s Mom: The week before Christmas Janelle started running a fever. We figured it's just a common cold so I gave her Tylenol. As about a week went by and she kept on not feeling well I believed maybe she had something more so I bought some amoxicillin antibiotic, which you can buy over the counter in Mexico. Nothing seemed to help and after 2 weeks all of a sudden her legs hurt so bad that she could not walk very good. We took her to a doctor in Hopelchen and he said she had a sore throat. He gave her 3 kinds of medicine, which didn't do much for her. Her fevers kept going and she was on Tylenol all the time.
In about a week, we took her to another doctor in Hopelchen and he gave her penicillin shots over a period of 3 days. He also gave a suppository that broke her fever very effectively. For 2 days she was better and we were so happy for her. But then she started all over again. Fevers, achy bones, etc. We gave her suppositories for pain and fever whenever she needed it. Whenever her fever broke, she would sweat so much that you could see water run off her. Wherever she was laying down, she was completely soaked.
Finally we took her to a doctor in Merida where they did blood tests and he said that she has a disease that children get from animals. He gave her medicine, which helped completely nothing. Finally we got in contact with Dr. Sealy, a friend of our family’s in South Carolina. He asked me to read off her blood test #'s that showed up on the test they did in Merida. He told us that she is very anemic and also that he thinks maybe she could have leukemia, but it could also be malaria. In a few days Janelle and I left to come to the states in hopes of doing some tests, getting medication and then returning to Mexico.
The day after we got here we had an appointment with the doctor and he said that they believe Janelle has malaria and they will treat her for that. This is a treatment over a period of 3 days. The first two days she felt better and ate good, but then back to fevers and all again. So we ended up in the hospital a week after we got to the states. This threw Janelle into a frenzy of blood tests, CAT scans, bone scan, EKG, and more blood tests. But no answer could be found and so 5 days later we were transferred to another hospital, one for children, about 1 hour away.
The morning after we were transferred they did a spinal tap, more blood tests, and a bone marrow test. Through this they found out that she has Acute Myelogenous Leukemia. Words cannot express how this makes a person feel to know that your child has cancer. She has started her chemo treatments and they figure this will take from 9-12 months. So far she has not been nauseated, which is a huge blessing. Please pray for us as a family.
And let’s keep another dear soul in our prayers. His name is Ashley Cyre. He lives in North Carolina. Our email friend Karen S. knows him. He was also just diagnosed with Leukemia. He is a youth pastor at Maple Springs United Methodist Church. He has a 3 week only baby! We must stand with him and his family.
You know, many of these people don’t know that we pray for them. That’s O.K. God knows! He’s happy when we bear one another’s burdens. So, if you have time…just stop right now and lift them up. They are in a battle of darkness right now. They need to see the light break forth. Please, pray for them. There is not one of these dear souls that God doesn’t deem “precious”!
Thank you everyone for your continued love for us! Ken and Connie __________________________
2/12/07 Update: All is well on the Mid Western front.
Connie is back from all her travels and is feeling good despite the icy cold grip winter has on us here in Kansas. We can’t seem to get a break. All the snow was just melting and then I heard today…4-5 more inches likely tonight! Ugh!!! Well, at least it’s the WEATHER that I am concerned about, right????
We had an interesting January with a business (fun) trip planned the end of the month. Connie and I got to go to the bay area and see her brother Bart and his new wife (Josie) and new baby! It was such a treat. We also got to see her Mom and her other sister (Kathy) for a short while. Connie called on a few clients and then we headed off to Napa for the day. Napa is one of those places that seem to renew Connie’s soul! She just loves it there. Maybe it’s the air, or the mountains or the grapes…but regardless…she just feels so comfortable when she’s driving thru wine country.
We had an uneventful trip until the day we were supposed to leave (Superbowl Sunday) and then, it happened. She got a bug or something and we had to delay our return trip. We spent most of the night and much of the next day with Connie in the bathroom. I’ll spare you the details but, it wasn’t pretty. Anyway, we called Dr. A. back in KC and he prescribed some anti-nausea pills and I had to get to Vallejo, CA to get them. Another Ken adventure so, off I went. I was able to find the Walgreens on a Sunday and get her pills (miracle!). She did pretty good after that but, we had to delay our flight.
When we got home, it was time for her to pack for N.Y. Another business trip (fun too!) and she got all ready. We were about to load up her suitcases in the car when Krista (her traveling partner) came down with a sad look on her face. Yep!!! She had caught the bug too! She was sick for two days and we had to cancel the N.Y. trip!!! UGH….
Such is the life. Oh well. Everyone is doing fine now and we are all back to work and our routines. Connie is sad she missed a great trip with our oldest but, there will be another day.
Not much to report on the health front for now (yay!) but we will let you know after our next appointment. It will include the dreaded bone marrow test. Our appt. is in a couple of weeks.
On a personal note, we have decided that this year will be a year of re-connecting with folks. We are going to try and rendezvous with dear friends and supporters to say thank you for all they have done. We are working our way thru our list. If you want to be included for a “Connie dinner” , email me. I’ll add you to the list. By the end of 2007…we will reach you all.
Love ya tons…thanks everyone.
KEN ______________ 1/29/06 Hello World- from chilly Leawood, KS.
Today, we have a wind chill of about 1 degrees sweeping across the Kansas plains. It’s cooooold !!! Anyway, we are all doing fine. As a matter of fact, I’ve been updating less because we are getting back our lives again. It’s so sweet to say that. When health tragedies hit, you have to hunker down and just go into “survival” mode. You aren’t sure where you will come out but, you do your best and then you see light on the other side. Today, we see light and …it’s refreshing.
Connie had her clinic appointment on the 26th and ALL IS WELL. Yay. Her counts looked good and her complaints were manageable. She still has to deal with some mild gvhd problems (itchies) but so far, they have been successfully treated with topical creams and ointments. She has some facial issues, some on her back and sometimes on her arms. The best description for them is a rash-like skin irritation similar to prickly heat. She has been staying on top of it. Having a mild case of gvhd is SOOOO preferable to the alternative. The gvhd is what is keeping her old leuk cells at bay.
The next appointment will be end of February and she will have to have a dreaded BM test. That’s where they go into the hip and check her marrow. These are always emotionally tough but, when we get a clear report…we celebrate. That is our prayer…that they see no recurring leukemia cells in her blood. So far so good.
On the home front, we’ve been busy beavers. Krista just got back from Dallas where she traveled and met up with all her Focus on the Family roommates. She had a blast. Krista and Kellie are both moved back to college now and are fully engaged in classwork. It looks like now they both will graduate at the same time. Maybe December of 08’. We’ll see…things change on a daily basis around here. Maddie is busy with school, basketball, Youth in action and seeing friends. We have one of her buddies over almost every other day. Ken has been busy with one of his real estate projects. Just got done renovating a rental house and one of our dear friends were the first to rent it. That’s why these updates have been so sparce…my hands have been cramping up because of all the painting! ha.
As you know, both Connie and I had birthdays this month. They were both celebrated. Connie is having a “birthday MONTH” because she has so many this time around. She counts three in January now. There is January 3rd…her normal birthday that she celebrated for 50 years. But, she found out that social security had her down as a January 1 birth date. So, she called the state of Pennsylvania where she was born and they said, “Yep, you were born on January 1 ! “ Ha…you’d think they would have told Connie’s Mother. Anyway, Con sent away for a birth certificate and it came with January 1 date on it. Then…we found her old birth certificate and it says ….January 3rd. Oh well…who knows…anyway…that’s two birthdates for our gal. Then…of course, there is January 30th. That’s the date of her first transplant. Remember Donny the Donor? He’s the one that gave us two blessed years before Connie relapsed. We still celebrate the day because he gave her this precious gift. So…it’s Connie’s birthday Month and I am pleased to be a part of it.
As for the near future…Connie and I are going out to S.F. later this week. She is calling on a few clients and then we are going to Napa for a day. When we return home, I will be staying with Maddie and Connie and Krista are heading to New York. One of her clients run the St. Judes Childrens benefit and they are attending. She also is seeing family and a few sweet friends from our past who now live in New Jersey. It will be a whirlwind for her but, she is so excited. It’s amazing that she can travel and IT’S ABOUT TIME !!! huh????
Anyway, we are doing well. We have nothing to complain about (except the weather) and that’s wonderful.
Thanks for checking in again and loving on us. We remain indebted to all of you. Kenneth
P.S. Two good things: 1) We got to see Chris Strait (in person) last week. He was in Kansas City on business and Connie and I got to hug him for real. It was great. He’s been thru a ton. He endured grueling surgeries and now is taking some chemo again. In any event, he looked great and told me to tell all you thank you for praying. You can see his story if you go back a few months. We’ve been praying for him for a long time. He’s the “bionic man”!!! Way to go Chris!!!
Secondly, I heard that Richard Blanks had a successful 2nd transplant (like Connie) and is already recouping at home! YAY. He was up on E-5 and I kept track of him thru the nurses. He did great and went home in about 16 days or so. That’s amazing. We are praying for a full recovery man!!! Let’s keep him lifted up. ______________________________________ 1/14/07 Update on the Cardell Household
Hi All. Seems like all is well on the western front. We are all doing well. Connie is resuming normal life and she is having relatively few problems. There are still the gvhd issues (itchies) from time to time but, we are glad for these type of problems. It’s the other problems that we would like to avoid. Our next appointment is on Jan 26th. at the clinic. We should have a bone marrow test sometime in Feb. For now, all is well. Isn’t that great to say?
Right now, it is sleeting outside and has been for a couple days. KC is socked in with horrible weather. It’s supposed to be freezing rain and snow for the next two days. Didn’t stop us from going out though. Today, we went to church, Costco, a department store and the grocery store. Slipped and slid all the way. It was fun though…I like driving in the snow.
The last update was on Connie’s 50th B-day. Since then, we have done a ton of stuff. We are busy in Connie’s business, have been celebrating birthdays and anniversaries with friends and have done a ton of shopping. It’s all normal stuff. There are days now that go by and we don’t think about our illness. There are constant reminders however. Recently, a friend of ours passed from ovarian cancer at 51. We lost another acquaintance from a brain tumor. Another friend is in for a second transplant right now (Richard Blanks) pray for him.. There are reminders all around. We see them often.
We are constantly thanking God that He has given us this time.
Here’s an update on our friend Mandy Webb (14) from CA: Hi everyone, This is Mandy I have to use my Dads computer since he tried to fix my email and now it doesn't work. Thank you all for your prayers and thoughts and I hope everyone had great Holidays. I'm going home.:) Love you, Mandy P.S. Dad will take it from here!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Hello All, Life is getting better in Webbville! Mandy is being released from the Hospital tomorrow after her morning rehab and a graduation/going away party put on by the staff from the rehab unit. Thirty days and Mandy is ready to go home and Davelynn as well. Davelynn has spent every night at the hospital except for 2 when her mom was there. Mandy is walking much better but half the time they want her to use a crutch until she builds up more strength in her left leg. When she is walking with the crutch this old guy has problems keeping up with her. Mandy has had 2 field trips since the last update to a nearby Walgreen's Drug store. Her mission was to find items in the store as directed by the therapists.
Her first trip was not all that good due to Mandy not looking outside of her field of vision. She basically had tunnel vision. After going back to the rehab and several trips through the hospital having to find different things such as exits and the gift shop (that wasn't fair since she can smell a store) they took another trip today and she found the items she was asked to look for quickly and most important safely. Last weekend Mandy was home for day trips (Saturday Sunday) and did well in the home environment. She was able to shower on her own and serve her own dinner. Now we move on to the outpatient rehab. The rehab facility has yet to be determined but we are looking for a sports rehab facility since she mostly needs strength conditioning. We will as well keep working with the occupational therapist on some other issues that may arise.
Mandy's school has the home schooling set up for her and her Spanish teacher just called and will be monitoring the process. This will be the last update on Mandy since she is back.
As a family we will never be able to express our appreciation for all the support we have received through this ordeal. I would like to say this, anyone ever facing a situation like this look at the glass half full. Yes, Mandy had a tumor but it could have been worse and Mandy is aware of that but she has such a zest for life that some possible loss of vision, loss of function with her left side and any other issues that can be overcome are really not issues in her mind. We are not sure what the final outcome will be but it is a gift nonetheless. So as tomorrow comes, our family is looking to getting back to normal and all of that is possible due Mandy's strength throughout this whole ordeal.
Thanks again to everyone,
The Webb's
I post this email because I know all too well that this is a miracle. It’s a blessing. They will never look at life the same again. As for the Cardell’s , we won’t either. God has shown compassion to this family and we hope to be worthy of His calling on our life. Please pray with us as we seek His direction this year for our lives.
Thanks for hanging in there with us. We love you all. God Bless. KEN
P.S. Krista had all 4 of her wisdom teeth out on Friday. She looks like a chipmunk. She is doing well however. Krista and Kellie are both getting ready to head for KU ( Kansas University) for the Spring Semester. They leave on Thursday. Maddie will stay behind to keep her aging parents young! :o) ___________________________
Connie and Carla Christmas 06' 1/3/07 – CONNIE GIRL IS HAVING A BIRTHDAY!!! YAY!!! # 50!!!
Much to be thankful for today. Connie is reaching another milestone along our journey and she is feeling good! We don’t have another clinic appt. until Jan 26th and we are anticipating no problems then either. Her next bone marrow test will be in Feb. Let’s keep praying for full engraftment and a path to 100% health. Praise God for what He has already done for this family.
We dropped Maddie off at school today to start her last semester as a 6th grader. On most days, I pause and watch her walk in and pray for her. I see her little frame take those steps into the building and I ask God to give her peace. I ask Him to give her good friends and people around her who will encourage. I thank God that He has given her compassion and has let Connie remain here to be her Mom. I thank Him for keeping her little life “normal” for now and that she still has her Mom in her life. It is quite a reminder to us what God has done.
Today will be a day of “fussing” over Connie. We already opened two of her presents but will wait for Maddie to be home for the rest. Connie is going out to lunch with her buddy Carla today. It will be special for her. Tonight, I will make her dinner and open the rest of her goodies. I might even try to formulate a cake of some sort! ha. It will be a day to rejoice because she is 50! We will pray that she reaches the next decade of birthdays!
On the prayer list, we have to keep lifting up our friends.
Richard Blanks was finally admitted. Here is his email to me:
Ken and Connie, appreciated VERY much your card and notes. It was great uplift not only to me, but my family. They forwarded it from the Hospital, and due to insurance difficulties and a virus, by admitting was delayed until the very last day it could be for my insurance change, Jan 31. Everything is going well so far, with Citoxin yesterday and today, and Radiology, tuesday, wednesday and thursday, with stem infusion this Friday. What a new year. But as the Lord related to me - Rich, Count it a blessing, for MOST don't get one transplant opportunity, much less two. I am truly a far more blessed man than every in my life today, in spite of what is before. I trust all is going well with Connie, and I am continuing to lift her (and you) up to Lord during the recovery. Ken, as you already know all to well, please lift up my Wife and family for her perseverance through this time of "care giving", probably harder on them than on us. If you get a chance come by and say Hi, I am in 5433. Thanks again and look forward to meeting you. Rich
Richard is in the throws of it right now. If you want to send him a card and tell him you are praying, you can send it to St. Luke’s Hospital, 4401 Wornall Rd, E-5, Ste 5433, KC, MO. 64110. We must remain vigilant and pray him thru this! Thanks all.
A PRAISE UPDATE on Mandy. This came from my California connections:
This is the latest on Mandy's progress.
First the pathology report came back with great news, NOT cancerous and benign. Next Mandy is getting in and out of bed (with help) but she is helping more and more every time. She was really dizzy the first couple of times but that is subsiding as well. Her appetite is picking up more and more as time goes by. As far as her pain Mandy hasn't ask for any pain medication today and the swelling on the right side of her head has gone down considerable and now she can see out of her right eye as well. The doctor ordered the drain tube from her fluid canal clamped of today at 10:15 AM. He will be doing his test tomorrow to see if the drain can be removed. If it can't he wants to unclamp it for a couple of more days then check it again before making a decision on the shunt. The sooner the Doctor can determine this the sooner Mandy can start he aggressive rehab of her left arm, leg and we can get her back home.
Mandy asked me to tell everyone she feels so loved! The thoughts and prayers for her are wonderful.
Keep praying for our buddy Chris Strait as he starts the new year recovering from surgery. Kristen perhaps has the biggest burden right now trying to keep the family working like it should during recovery. No one knows the load that she is carrying better than I. Pray for them to receive grace and compassion and for their strength to return to them as a family.
So, dear ones, as you prepare for the year and it’s resolution…let’s make this an incredible year of giving. Give of your time, your prayers, your resources to help others who are hurting. Take time to bring them before the throne of God. He is the Great Physcian! My resolution will be to draw nearer to Him this year and to walk in a manner worthy of Him. In all aspects.
May people feel the touch of God in their lives!
Thank you all for touching US! We love you. Happy New Year everyone.
KEN ________________ 12/31/06 Final Update of the Year. HAPPY NEW YEAR !!!
Greetings all. Today was a notable day for us. Not so much because it’s New Year’s Eve, but rather because it ends a pretty tumultuous year for us. Today, Connie was up early, as she often is, (around 4:00 a.m.) and she was reading her Bible. That’s kinda normal. What made it so special was that she was reading the last day in her “Walk Thru the Bible” in one year. Earlier in the year, when her life was threatened by this illness, she wrote some notes in the margin to the girls. She also kept track of what she was reading by checking off each day as she read. The heading on the page was “Days that I was alive to read!”
Today, she finished the entire Bible from start to finish. She cried! It was a personal milestone for her.
We are totally looking forward to a happy and healthy 2007 !!!
To celebrate, we are going to our annual Bunko Bash where we roll dice all night and act silly! We love it and have been doing it for over a decade on New Years eve. We will gather with friends (about 15 couples) and we will go until the New Year rings in. We, no doubt, will have tears again in our eyes. We know what it means. YOU know what it means.
Our next clinic appointment is not until Jan 26th! yay. The doc’s gave Connie a great report last visit. She’s doing great and they are moving us to once a month. We used to be every day…now, they are giving us some rope. It comforts us to know they don’t need to see us for a while. Another Bone Marrow test will be coming in Feb.
We end the year knowing what an incredible blessing we are currently living in. We are happy, healthy and are looking forward. It’s been a long time since I’ve said that! We know each day will be a new challenge but, we are ready and equipped to handle it.
We also want to thank all of you for praying for these dear souls mentioned on this site. We know some of you have been inquiring so, let me update a bit”
Here’s the latest from Kristen Strait. Chris her husband is battling his own leukemia and now other complications have arisen. Here’s her latest update to me:
It's been a rough December. The margins on the stomach came back positive, so they had to do a second surgery. The night before his surgery, our daughter caught the stomach flu and was throwing up all night. I was up with her and then brought Chris is for his surgery. It was an 8 hour surgery. They had to do a muscle flap to close the stomach area (his skin is tight from GVHD). That involved cutting one side of his stomach muscle and tunneling it under the belly button and re-attaching it to the side the surgery was on. When he came out of surgery, he was doing great. They brought him up to his room and attached the IV incorrectly, so he wasn't receiving any pain medication. It took them several hours to correct the IV. Once that was fixed, he was doing really well. Oh, they weren't able to intubate him while he was asleep because of his neck surgery, so they had to do it while he was awake. Then, my daughter was still recovering from her stomach bug, but seemed to be doing OK. So I put her in the car to take my son to his Odyssey group for school. She ended up throwing up all over me and the car. I tried to clean everything up as best as I could, but it was night so I left it for the next day. But, then I caught the bug and was sick. Then, Chris caught the bug, which was the worst, because of his surgery. We healed up pretty well, and tried to make the best of it. But, (isn't there always a but...) my daughter ended up with a UTI on Christmas Eve. We couldn't get her into the doctors until after Christmas. That was rough for her- she's only 4 and it was really painful for her. So now she got a virus on top of it (they think) because she is still running a fever. When it rains it pours here!
All and all, we ended up having a good Christmas and had lots of time to spend together which was a great gift. Chris is going to get chemo for 4 cycles. He'll be admitted for 3 days and then off for 2. It requires the port and all that stuff again. Apparently, there is a lifetime limit of chemo that you can receive before it starts damaging your heart. He has to heal up from these surgeries and then we'll begin the chemo stuff. It shouldn't be as tough of chemo as before. I'm sure Chris will do great and push through it all as always! He's already planned to go in on a Friday and stay until Sunday so that he will be home for work on Monday. Nothing stops this guy.
Richard Blanks – He’s a friend of a friend who needs a second transplant (like Connie) at St. Lukes. Apparently, he never did go in for the transplant. He was scheduled…but, his insurance carrier (Coventry) denied him the transplant. After some intense wrangling, they now say he can have it but, he has to undergo radiation therapy first! Can you imagine??? I KNOW what it’s like to have people say you aren’t “covered”! We just got a bill for over $ 300,000 last week saying we were “not covered”! We are but, that’s the point. During your most scary time in life, a computer spits out a form that devastates you. It has happened many times to us. Richard will now go in for treatment in late Jan or Feb. It HAS to be troubling for Richard and his family. Please lift him up.
Haven’t heard from CA regarding little Mandy Webb or Terry Lynn but, keep them on your lists.
Jeannie’s Mom has her new doctor and she likes him. Yay! She’s holding off on some surgery until her heart gets stronger. Knowing Jeannie, she has a big enough heart for the both of them.
Sorry we’ve been so quiet towards the end of the year but, that’s O.K. I figure. It means that all of you don’t have to worry as much about us and we are acting like “normal” human beings. That’s what we all prayed for. Our family is strong, our faith is strong and our hopes for health this year are also strong. We continue to place our faith in the ONE who created us for HIS good works. We will seek to live a life that is a blessing to others…a sweet fragrance of His compassion.
Let us all be mindful of people who are hurting and in crisis. Step in, help them…do the unexpected. YOU ARE ABLE! We all are!
Love you all.
KEN
_________________________________
MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL
FROM THE CARDELL’S
12/24/06 Greetings Everyone.
Thanks for checking in again. Sorry for the lack of postings but, on the one hand, that’s good. It shows that we are engaging life fully and trying to put our busy lives back on track. First, Connie is doing great! Praise God for that. She had a small scare with some chest cold problems. God a Z-pack and it’s still lingering but, her Cat scan and nasal swab was negative for problems so, we are being careful. She doesn’t have to go back to the clinic until the end of the month. It has been a great respite.
On the home front, all the little “chickies” are back in the nest. We have been crazy the last two weeks with Connie’s business, shopping, wrapping, eating, etc. You all are doing the same we trust. We are totally enjoying the gift of friends and family this year. Even though my Mom won’t be here…she will be spending the most marvelous Christmas with the ONE for whom the season is named. What could be better? It sure beats opening presents with us! ha… My Dad is doing fine but misses her greatly this time of year, I am sure. We all do.
Today is Christmas Eve. Aunt Karen’s birthday – way to go Karen!!! 50 !!!! YAY !!!!. It’s also a time to slow down (for some) and take in the meaning of Christmas. We are done with our shopping and all the gifts are wrapped. We here, at the mansion, are getting ready for a big celebration tomorrow. It starts with Santa’s visit and opening gifts from under the tree. We then move on to treats and coffee. It’s football at midday and then, we have a big crowd over for dinner. We usually have around 20-30 people over and we stuff ourselves. The night usually ends by having the girls and their friends over giving all the “more aged among us” a talent show. They make it up that night and perform it. We usually crank up the music and get it all on tape. It’s an amazing time of fellowship and bonding. It’s what the season is about…loving people.
It was back in 2003, when Connie was first diagnosed that we had a pretty sad Christmas. Connie got to go home from the hospital but had to wear her mask all night. People gathered around her with love and care and made the night as special as we could. Pain was evident in everyone’s eyes and many pictures were taken. Without saying a word, Connie knew why she was the center of everyone’s attention that year. Although some of my favorite pictures, they also remind us of the pain (see below).
This year, it’s a different picture. Connie has had a second chance at life (transplant). Her second donor has given her an incredible gift. A chance to keep on being “Mom” to our little ones. He has given her something that is priceless in it’s essence. Every breath she now takes is because of the kindness of a stranger and the compassion of her Lord. It’s an amazing way to see the world, but…it is true! We are a blessed family because of the kindness of people who don’t even know us.
There are many many people out there that could use the kindness of strangers. They are lonely, they are lost. They are all around us and need someone to touch them. Reach out to them this year. See them! Do something that means Christmas to someone. And don’t forget to pray. People are hurting all around us.
At the top of our prayer list are the following people. Please join us in lifting them up this season:
Chris Strait – For recovery of his cancer surgery and strength in dealing with his leukemia. ( N.Y.) Richard Blanks- Who is in the hospital right now for his 2nd transplant (like Connie) for AML leukemia. Mandy Webb- A little 12 Yr old girl with cancer (CA). She is in the hospital this season with a tumor and is hoping to be out by the end of the month. Pray for her doctors and for her little heart. Terry Lynn- A friend of a friend from CA who is going thru chemo for breast cancer. What a time to do that?! Pray for my friend Jeannie’s Mom – she is having heart problems and her Doctor just moved away. She is older and really liked him. Now, she has to venture into the unknown with a new doc. Pray for the Doctors and Nurses at the clinic. They are amazing people doing God’s work. Keep them encouraged Lord! Pray for my Father and the loss of his companion (my Mom) this year. May he be encouraged and filled. Finally, pray for all the people who are hurting from disease, sickness or general brokenness. It seems that pain is all around us. JOY is too!
Remember that all the darkness in the entire world cannot extinguish the light of a single candle!
You be that candle to someone this season! Love you all and MERRY CHRISTMAS!
The Cardell’s
_________________________________ 12/11/06 - Life is so hard...but we are NOT without HOPE! Here is the latest from our friend Chris in N.Y. UGH.... Chris is scheduled for another 8 hour surgery either this Tuesday or next Tuesday. There were positive margins on the tumor in his stomach. This surgery will require them to take some muscle and go deeper in the stomach. Graphs will be used to close the wound (his skin is very tight from the GVHD). They think that this may be related to the GVHD (the tumor), but nobody really knows because there are very few of these cases. Anyways, we ask for your prayers once again! He did so well with the first surgery. We are certain that he will be fine and able to be home for Christmas. WE MUST CONTINUE TO PRAY FOR THIS FAMILY !!!! Kristen...we are WITH YOU!!!!!! Ken P.S. Connie had a great appt. at the clinic. Doesn't need to go back til after Christmas. Ahhhh...another Christmas!!!! Oh how God has blessed this family! _____________________________ Update: 12/5/06 - Rounding the corner for the year Hey all. Sorry I haven’t updated for a while. I forget sometimes how many people look at this site. I am so overwhelmed with people who just continue to care about us. You all are teaching me how to be a person who cares back!!! Thanks for that.
Maddie’s 12th B-Day was wonderful. We went to T-Rex restaurant and then she had a sleepover with friends. They stayed up til about 4:00 a.m. UGH! And, Mother nature cooperated by giving Maddie TWO SNOW DAYS off school right before her birthday. Every milestone that Connie gets to attend is a bonus for us! Here are some pics around the mansion. Thought you’d enjoy them!
Two little Angels...right?
Next, Connie had her clinic appt. today and all is WELL with her! YAY…What a nice thing to report. She has her normal complaints about “itchies”, dry skin, tight mouth, and some lingering gvhd problems but…We’ll take them! These are the “good” problems. Her counts looked great and she’s been feeling full of life! She’s actually been working 12 hour days. They keep asking her if she’s “being active?” I kinda laugh. Last night I had to pry her out of her office at 9:15 p.m. That’s what you get when you work out of your house. ha. She’s doing great everyone! Thanks so much for your prayers.
Next, we’ve heard that our friend Chris, from NY, is doing great! He’s recovering fast and we appreciate you sending your love to him as well. Thanks for praying for him.
We are mindful of others who are suffering during this season. We have a friend named Joy who has ovarian cancer and the treatment is not keeping up with the spread of the disease. We were high school buddies. Hospice has been called. Their family has to be in great pain and loss this season. We heard of another dear soul named Richard who is being admitted into St. Luke’s next week for a second transplant. Similar to Connie, we know what he will be going thru. It hurts our heart. Please pray for Richard and his family too.
While at the clinic today, a dear older woman appeared to have just given up! She was lying back in a reclining chair. Couldn’t remember when she took her meds last. Had a stubborn streak in her and wouldn’t let her husband manage her prescriptions…she wasn’t eating and wasn’t walking much. Just wanted to go home and lie in bed. I know how this disease can make you want to quit. Connie and I just sat silently and prayed for her. The doc’s surrounded her and tried their best to give her the will to fight. They are awesome people. Again, our hearts hurt for her and her husband!
So, as we continue to count our blessings here at the mansion, it’s with a tremendous sense of gratefulness for what God has granted us. Peace, good will and health for now. We appreciate every heavenly blessing. Connie will now look forward to another Christmas…once…that looked like quite an impossibility. But all things are possible with God!
Thank you all for checking on us again. We love you.
KEN _________________________________ 11/30/06 Quick Update from Chilly KC
Hi all. No big news to report. Connie had her breathing treatment yesterday and it went great. She doesn’t have to go back to the clinic until next week. We are so appreciative of these long “in-betweens”. It means that she is doing well and they see no reason to see her so often. We like that. We kinda feel like we can get back into a rhythm of life a bit. It feels “normal”.
The big news around here is Maddie’s 12th B-Day on Dec 2nd. She got on my Outlook account and put a reminder on each day…so I wouldn’t forget! ha. She also printed up big numbers that count down to her birthday and she has been tearing them off each day…5, 4, 3, 2… 1 days until Maddie’s Birthday. She posts them prominently throughout the house. It’s very funny.
We are very busy this time of year with Connie’s business. As a matter of fact, we have boxes all over our living room as we speak. Her gals are hurriedly working each day to get orders out. I have settled in to my role as “Cabana Boy” which means that I do whatever is needed. Connie just points and I do it. Wouldn’t all you gals like a husband like that? It has it’s perks!!! ha.
Well, stay warm everyone. It is icy, sleeting and tons of snow is coming. It’s a snow day for the Madster. We send our warmest regards to you this day. Hopefully, it will make your day brighter. Love you all.
Kenneth
Oh, and here is the latest from Kristen on our buddy Chris’ progress:
Chris is doing fantastic with his healing from the surgery. He's working, taking walks, and generally acting as if a 12 hour surgery was no big deal. I don't know how he does it! We meet with the doctors again this week. This time we have 3 surgeons to make appointments for and 2 cancer doctors. It keeps us busy. But, as Chris has shown me, his illness is not his life.
WOOO HOOOO…. ________________________ 11/20/06 -A Quick Update from Kristen, Chris' wife Let's keep prayin Y'All !!!
Chris is surprising the doctors again- he has one strong will to live. They have him unhooked from everything except one machine that monitors the blood vessel function from the vessel that was taken from his leg and attached to his neck. It is so amazing what the doctors can do. He will probably be discharged on Mon. or Tues. which is great news, but lots more work for me. I know he will be so glad to be home though. Right in the recovery room he told them he was ready to go home and that he was hungry! He is a powerful human being and I am so proud of him for the way he has continually handled himself. It blows my mind. I have a strong belief that this is last "really big" issue we will face. I think we'll be alright from now on- just the usual stuff (well, usual in the manageable sense... I don't think we will ever be free and clear from medical issues, but we'll tackle any of those too). I just have a sense that this is it for the cancer part of our life (Just by the law of averages, right?). It's a strange feeling, because I'm so used to being anxious about preparing myself for something else. Let's hope I'm right! Keep crankin Chris! _________________________ 11/17/06 Musings again from the Homefront
Shock and Awe
You know…I’m sitting here at my computer only six days away from Thanksgiving and I feel like my body has been through “shock and awe!” That’s our government term for what happened in Iraq but, it aptly describes what we’ve been thru of late.
The shock part was the sudden loss of my Mother and all the associated “arrangements” that had to be made in such a short time. I was in awe at my family and friends and how they responded. I am so proud of them and how they loved my Mom as she passed over. Also, I am in awe at how my Father showed his love for her in the final days. What an example he was to us all. I’m also shocked that this coming holiday season will have a big hole in it that we all haven’t quite realized yet. I am in awe at how God showed His hand through the process. I am in awe at the thought of Mom holding hands with Jesus in paradise.
As many of you know, My Mom was also diagnosed with small cell lung cancer. One of the most difficult to treat of all cancers. I was shocked to hear how painful this can be and how difficult it is to beat. She faced several months (or maybe a year or so) of chemo, radiation, surgery and ultimately a painful recovery. If she wasn’t going to beat it, I have come to learn how awful her death could have been. I am in awe that God took her so quickly and so painlessly. She had a stroke. She was surrounded by family and there was no pain. She was mercifully taken. We are in AWE of you God!
I was shocked in the midst of our grieving… that Tori the cat also died suddenly. What a horrible time to tell your 11 year old daughter that she needs to get down to the Vet. Her cat was going to die. My hurt was for the pain in that little girl’s heart…she loved her kitty. I’m in awe that she handled it so well…she’s a tough kid.
If Tahoe (our dog) were to contract a deadly disease, there would be about 100 people who would mourn. I was equally shocked to find out that TAHOE has her own Facebook account?! What? And… she has her own Facebook Group established called “Tahoe Is My Favorite Cardell Group”. It has 27 members in it. I’m in awe that Tahoe has been sneaking on my laptop and signing up her friends! It actually was set up by Teddy Woulfe, one of my kid’s lifelong buddies. (Hey Ted, you’ve pretty much offended ALL the rest of us!)
Moving on from there, Connie had to have another bone marrow test. You all were aware of that if you visited the site lately. It was her six month check up. We used to get results in a couple of days so, when it went on and on, we began to think the worst. We had to maneuver each day not knowing if our world would come to a crashing halt! We envisioned bad news and Dr. M. having to call all over the country…MD Anderson, Seattle, maybe even his friends at the Mayo Clinic? We know we can’t have another transplant so, what then? We just knew that they were scrambling down there because they had “bad news”. It took them 10 DAYS to get us this life changing information. We were totally frazzled. We were shocked when they said, 100% Engraftment, 100% Donor Cells…you are CLEAN !”. We are in awe of our God and that He has moved His hand again for us. Some people have suggested that my Mom was up there having a chat with Jesus about letting Connie stay down here! How could He refuse her? Ha. That makes me smile! We can breathe again, work again and plan again. It means everything! Thank You Lord.
To be totally honest, we were shocked at our lack of faith and the strength of our fear during those 10 days. We didn’t realize until the good news came how much weight we carried on our shoulders. We both wept when we heard. We know the verses about “casting our cares on Him” or “be anxious for nothing, but in everything give thanks”…we tried. I guess we just didn’t know how to do it correctly! I couldn’t sleep. Connie couldn’t sleep. Connie and I both were almost crippled as we awaited the news at each passing day. After what we have seen God do for us, we were shocked that we didn’t trust. Shocked… that we allowed our thoughts to get the best of us. You however… picked us up. We were in awe at all the encouragement we got from all of you. When our faith is not quite enough…yours is! You believed for us. We are in awe at your compassion for this family.
Finally, we are shocked at how many people are hurting this Thanksgiving season. Our friend Chris, who had massive surgery is in recovery. His wife said the docs were successful in creating “margins” when taking out his tumors. He has tubes coming out of him all over. He was in surgery for 10 hours with 3 different teams of surgeons working on him. He told his wife he was hungry and wanted to go home. A good sign. We are in awe that all of you will hit your knees for him…a total stranger. Keep praying for him.
We were shocked when one of our best friends called because he was “let go” from his job suddenly. What? His life is now in an uproar…totally unplanned…no warning! We pray for this family that has undergone their share of difficulties and disappointments this past year…now this! We are in awe at their faith and refusal to find bitterness amidst their circumstances.
We have another friend who had shoulder surgery, another has ovarian cancer, another… has a father with lymphoma, another with breast cancer (recently diagnosed). We are shocked at how many people around us are suffering. They are all around you too…you just need to see them. We are in awe at how broken this world is.
I’m shocked that all of you read this site each day and that you continue to keep us in your hearts. I’m in awe of all of you and how much you love us. Let’s take this Thanksgiving Season to thank God for all He has done for us and be sure and hug your loved ones. The true riches of the season are all around you. Take time to notice them. Remember, “when you have done this for the least of these…you have done them for me!”. Jesus said that!
Shock someone with your kindness this season and be in awe of what you have been given! Have a great holiday!
KEN ________________________ 11/15/06 9:15 a.m. 100% Engraftment 100% Donor Cells 100% Relief at the Mansion! Thank You all for your prayers for this family! ____________________ 11/14/06 - 11:00 a.m. Still No News from the clinic on Connie's Bone Marrow test. Ugh... Please continue to pray for her and for Chris from Schenectady, NY. Love you all...Ken ____________ 11/13/06 Update: Monday
Greetings Everyone. No news yet on the bone marrow test. They did call and said that there was no evidence of “blasts” in Connie’s blood and that’s great but, it’s not the full story. If you remember, it’s the percentage of cells in the blood that counts. Last time, her blood was clean but there still was 3% of her old cells. We don’t want that. We want her to be 100% donor cells. Of course, we still have to wait on THAT news. Connie and I are wrecks as you can imagine. The clinic is SO busy these days. It just takes a while to get results anymore. We will update as soon as we know. If she is clean, we won’t have to do another BM test for 6 more months. Please Lord….
Also, sorry if any of you got scared this a.m. when the website went black. I guess it was renewal time and I didn’t know about it. It’s all up and running now…but I guess you know that if you are reading this. Ha.
I do have a PRAYER REQUEST for a friend and fellow sufferer. His name is Chris and he lives in Schenectady, New York. He’s about 1 year ahead of Connie with his journey. He is having some pretty radical surgery tomorrow (TUESDAY) in his neck and stomach. He has a cancerous mass in both areas and they are going to remove it. I can’t help but feel their pain. They were cruising to health and then this. We lift them to Your Mercy Seat Oh GOD! May he be restored to 100% . Thanks for praying for Chris.
Final note: I continue to be amazed at the kindness of friends. We are still being supported and loved with cards and letters and kind remembrances of my Mom. Cousin Lyn went back to NY and had a service there for her. My Mom grew up in NY and has family and friends there that also will miss that sweet lady! Thanks Lyn for all you do for our family.
_______________________________________ 11/9/06 Greetings Everyone.
Still no word on Connie’s bone marrow results. We expect them any time. We do know that on her last clinic visit, she had great counts. We are still trusting God. We know that we continue to be in His hands regardless of the outcome.
Mom’s ceremony was amazing. Brother Bill did a scripture reading. Jim’s son Matthew read a poem and Mary and Karen set up the memory table. Connie…YES CONNIE…did the eulogy. She did so well. She talked about Mom’s legacy. About what she has left behind in all of us. About the funny things she did and the great stories we all had. She did a great job. Pictures of MOM were posted up on big screens and we played some of Krista’s songs. Grandma loved Krista’s songs. We were also amazed at the number of people who came. From all walks of life. My Mom seemed to have a ton of little “groups” that she was involved in. There were her Picadilly Ladies, her Bible Study friends, her neighborhood friends and her golfing friends. There were her church friends and her Bridge club friends. They just kept coming. Many of my old friends came to pay respects. It was a joyful reunion. It was a testament to who she was. It was a celebration of this lady’s life. She poured herself into others. That is what Jesus would have her do.
It was a beautiful sunny day here in KC. It was about 70 degrees. The sun was shining and the entire family was together all day. It was a great reunion. My testament to you all is that there also was a great reunion at the gates of heaven. Ruth was coming. The angels rejoiced!
Thanks for loving us thru this time. You all have once again, touched our souls with your love and compassion. Unbelievable!...
Love you all
KEN  WE LOVE YOU MOM! _____________________ 11/6/06 - It’s been a tough day. Started out with Krista sleeping too late at the house she was babysitting at. She had to rush like crazy to get all the kids to school on time. She did but she was frazzled. Then, she realized that she had locked herself out of the house and she had to get a locksmith to let her back in. How embarrassing huh? Ken, Dad and Bill met with the Reverend Lehleitner regarding Mom’s service on Wednesday. So many details and so little time. The family is rallying around Dad and handling all the arrangements. It appears there are many. Connie’s bone marrow test went fine. Sweet Carla took her and they were there for about two hours. The actual procedure went well and Connie came home fairly alert. Usually, she’s in la la land for about three hours afterwards. She did really good today. Her counts also looked real good. As you know, if you are a fan of this site, I am usually not worried about the actual test. What I fear is the results! I know…I know…I should have faith…just sometimes…It’s hard. With her counts looking good…we don’t expect bad news but, you know…we’ve been here before. And then there’s this…. At noon, Krista took Maddie’s little kitty (Tori) to the Vet. She appeared lethargic as of late. She was. The Vet assessed her and she was very ill. Despite everything else…the Vet said that we had to put her down. Krista was in tears and we left Tori there. It appears that she had a feline stomache disease that didn't allow her to eat or take fluids anymore. Connie and I had to get Maddie out of school early if she was going to say goodbye. Maddie was sobbing. We rushed her to the Vets to see her best buddy one last time! They were using oxygen on her to keep her alert…but she was in bad shape. She didn’t even lift her head when we got there. It was horrible. She was only two years old but she slept with Maddie every night. It hurts me that she hurts. Please pray for her as the reality of Grandma’s passing hits her on Wednesday. What more does this kid have to go thru? An finally, I had my first…”Oh, I need to call Mom” moment. It was awful. I know those of you who have lost a loved one…it’s inevitable. I just wanted to call Mom and tell her to do something special for Maddie. I caught myself before I dialed. We are emotionally exhausted today. Tomorrow is a new day. We will get some rest. Thanks so much for the calls and the food and for just loving our family. We will keep walking. Love you all. KEN ____________________ 11/4/06
Well, my Pastor buddies have all kicked in to help heal our pain. I got a call from Pastor Tom and Sue Brawner from Heartland Community Church. Pastor Craig Babb, whose wife Debbie works with Connie, was able to stop by the hospital and pray over Mom the day before she passed. My other Pastor buddy Bob Lehlietner stopped by. He has been a friend for over 34 years and actually married Connie and I. He will be doing the funeral at Colonial Presbyterian Church. He’s known Mom since about 1973.
Long time friends have been stopping by and we are being cradled by their love for us.
For those interested, Mom’s funeral info is below: Visitation : Wednesday, November 8, 2006 at 12:30 P.M. Funeral Service: Wednesday, November 8, 2006 at 1:00 P.M. Location: Colonial Presbyterian Church, 135th and Quivera, O.P. We will have a short gravesite service for all directly after the funeral at the cemetery located at College and Metcalf. Friends and family are invited to our home for a short reception after the funeral.
Thanks everyone…the family is doing well but we have a hole in our hearts.
_______________ 11/3/06 MOM'S AT REST NOW
SHE PASSED AT 5:00 P.M. cst
She quietly went to sleep. The family spent most of the day down there with her. We will see her again in the air. Thank You all for praying for us thru this and for supporting our family. God Bless You MOM!!! _______________________________ 11/3/06 Friday- Mom update
Mom rested peacefully thru the night. Her breathing is calm but limited. Only about 9 breaths per minute. She is peaceful. She is not in pain. Bill and Karen stayed with her overnight. We stroked her hair, kissed her forehead, wiped her eyes and told her we loved her a million more times. Krista visited and laid next to her in bed for a while. Krista so loved her Grandma.
The room is dim and it’s quiet and peaceful. The nurses are taking good care to turn her every two hours. The sounds of the pumps are heard quietly in the room. Her medicines hang on a pole next to her bed. She is crossing over.
I told her cousin Lyn loved her and her heart hurts for her. Lyn’s girls love their Aunt Ruth. Cousin Carol emailed and sends her love to her Aunt Ruth. Her best friend Katherine loves her. I whispered to her that it was o.k. to go. We would take care of Dad now. She finished the race strong. “Walk to Jesus Mom”. When it’s time, “walk to Jesus”. Don’t know if she can hear us but the “I love you’s” filled the room. The doctors tell us it won’t be long.
As she makes this final journey, there are no regrets. Mom knows how much we love her.
Connie has a bone marrow test on Monday. Her 6 month check up. We are still praying for full remission and total engraftment. She is feeling good and working quite a bit. It’s great to see her back in action despite all the other pain swirling around. She amazes me! Thanks for praying us thru this tough time everyone. ____________________ 11/2/06 Quiet Resignation First, let me thank you all for the well-wishes, the prayers, the cards and the food. People have once again rallied around the Cardell’s to help ease our pain. It has been a long tough week for our family. At my last report on this site, my Mom was alert and stable and although impaired, still had her wits about her. On Monday, things looked O.K. and we visited her in the stroke unit. She was talking and felt the love of her family. On Tuesday morning, we got a call that she had taken a turn for the worse. The family rushed to her side but she was non-responsive. After talking to the doctors, there was still a hope of her recovering. They administered antibiotics and her chest x-ray showed she was battling pneumonia as well. After additional tests were performed on Wednesday, we received the news that she had suffered another stroke and a mild heart attack during the night. She is an incredible lady and is hanging on but her breathing is shallow and we are convinced the end is near. The doctor told us the second stroke was massive and there is virtually no brain function now. As I wrote when Connie was in the throws of her battle, God will not waste even one of our tears. We hurt so deeply now because we have loved so deeply during her 73 years. There are three things I know about Ruth Cardell. One) She was the most incredible Wife, Mother, Aunt, Grandmother and friend anyone ever had and... Two) She is a tough old lady and full of spunk and... Three) She will be walking to Jesus’ waiting arms when the time is right. Her faith will carry her to the other side. Thank you for your prayers for my Dad (Bruce), My Brother Dave, Sister Karen, Brother Jim and Brother Bill. We continue to await God’s mercy. Pray for the Grandkids… they sure loved their Grandma Ruth. _______________________ 10/30/06 Monday - Update
Connie had a breathing appointment today and all went well. She’s feeling strong and is even feeling some of her jaw these days. She likes that. Her face seems to be getting thinner and she likes that as well. Our next clinic appointment is Wednesday. Sweet Carla Jo is taking her.
After the treatment today (which was also at St. Luke’s), we went to visit my Mom. She’s doing O.K. (we think?) and she has been moved out of the ICU department. She is now in the stroke recovery floor and is being evaluated. While we were there, they tried to administer the “swallow test”. She didn’t do well so, they are going to test her again later today. We need prayers for this because Mom has not had any food or water for a few days. If she can’t swallow, it means a feeding tube or another measure. We would love to avoid that.
She still has feeling in her legs but not her left arm and left torso. I will let everyone know if there are any updates on her condition. We are praying that she recovers and she battles this. She still has her sense of humor and recognizes us when we visit. That’s a major blessing!
Love you all. KEN
P.S. Another Note: Connie and I got to go up to visit the staff on E-5 today as well. It was hard for us but, we forced ourselves to walk thru those glass doors again. We visited with the nurses, the pcts and some of the doc’s as well. It was a great reunion! We even got to see our amazing nurses. What a blessing. We both realize that seeing Connie “out and about” is the reason they all do what they do. It totally blesses them when they know she’s doing well. We had to show them. Although hard for us, we pray that it was a shot in the arm for them! God Bless you people up on E-5…you are doing God’s work!
______________________________
PRAYERS NEEDED AT 10:30 a.m. yesterday (Saturday) Ken’s Mom Ruth had a stroke. She was reaching for her coat on a little tree near her recliner and she fell over. My Dad who was downstairs heard the thump and called upstairs and Mom was unresponsive. Within minutes he had called 911 and my sister Karen and both arrived at the house. The EMT’s got to Mom within 10 minutes of her fall which was good and they rushed her to the hospital.
Connie and I headed to Dad’s house immediately. We are only about 7 minutes from them so I know they got there fast! By the time they had Mom ready for transport, she was awake and joking a bit about falling. She couldn’t talk very well but was understandable. We were rerouted to St. Luke’s hospital and we headed there. By the time we got to St. Luke’s South…they had rerouted her again and we went to Overland Park Regional. It was scary thinking that my Mom was in an ambulance rushing to an emergency room.
Once we got to see her, it was obvious what has occurred. The left side of her face was drooping and she has no feeling in her left arm or torso. She does however have the use of her legs which may be a huge blessing. During her fall, Mom banged her elbow hard on something (a table or the bookcase?). Anyway, they x-rayed it and she did not break it. After her initial ER evaluation, they took her to yet another hospital. Now she is in the ICU unit down at St. Luke’s. The same hospital Connie was in. So, once again, I will become a permanent fixture down there.
Here’s what we know. It appears as though some calcium broke loose and blocked one of the arteries of her brain. They located it and were able to reestablish some blood flow in that artery but, they didn’t get it all. They also were able to administer that TPA drug that is so critical in stroke cases. It hasn’t shown immediate results but, it’s promising that they gave it to her so fast. The next 24 to 48 hours will be critical. If she does well, they will transport her to the stroke recovery floor in a couple days. She will spend a few days there and then to the physical therapy floor. In an event, she will have a long recovery.
Our first question was if it was related to the diagnosis of the lung cancer. The answer was that this appears to be an independent event. Not related to the cancer. If she does well with the stroke, she still will have decisions to make regarding the cancer treatment. It is a difficult time for our family as you can imagine.
I’m sure all of you are feel the same way as we do that, this family doesn’t need any more crisis on our plates. At least that was MY feelings but, God is still good and He’s still on the throne. Here’s a few places we saw Him yesterday and today.
First, it was evident that Mom was getting ready to go out to her daily lunch with her “gray haired ladies”. She goes every day to lunch with a gang of her friends. If Mom had the stroke 5 minutes later, she could have been driving, walking outside, or even at lunch at Picadilly’s…nowhere near the help she had. God’s angels were watching over her.
Secondly, she fell on her recliner which is soft and rocks a bit. She bounced off that and landed on the padded carpet floor. Mom could have fallen down steps or on concrete or even off the back deck or something. She was cushioned all the way down.
Third, we were lucky that Dad was close by and heard her. He called up when he heard the noise. He was there by her side within seconds. He reacted fast and got help fast.
Fourth, the EMT’s are real close to Dad’s house. They got there quickly and had emergency measures going immediately. They were off to the hospital in no time.
Finally, God was with the doctors. She was in the hospital well within the timeframe needed to administer the TPA. That was critical. What it does for her will be seen later but…at least we have hope for her recovery.
A final note to all who are reading this. The family is very positive and all the siblings have been down to see her. She recognized all of us and was even joking about various things in the ER room. She is cognizant and alert when she’s awake. She’s not uncomfortable and knows what happened to her.
At one point, I asked her…”Mom, do you know what happened to you?” She said, “Yes…I fell !” I said, “No Mom, do you know you had a stroke?” She said, “Yes”. She joked about the commercial that shows the old lady saying, “I’ve fallen….and can’t get up!” Another time, they took some tape off her forehead and the nurse joked about pulling some of her hair out. She told the nurse to stop it because she’d end up looking like “her husband”…meaning she’d be bald! It was a funny moment. She’s got a great sense of humor…still.
So please pray for her. I’ll update more in a few days. Just PRAY for her ..O.K ????
Love you all. Ken
___________________________________ 10/26/06 Clinic Update – Thursday
Had a great appointment yesterday. Although the clinic was totally busy (people in every chair), we got in and out in about an hour and a half. That’s pretty good these days. Connie’s counts looked good and they have her totally off the steroids (yay!). Connie even said she could “feel her cheekbones”. The steroids make you have a fat face and Connie always joked that she looked like a chipmunk. She didn’t but she’s glad she’s starting to feel her jawbone again.
We ended up in the emergency room on Sunday morning. Connie was having continued eye trouble. She would wake up with swollen eyes and they were very blurry. She was sensitive to light and had to hot pack them before she could function. On Sunday, she felt her bad eye swell a little. She called Dr. A. and he recommended that she go down to the ER. They said that eyes are nothing to mess with so, we were off. The ER doc said there is nothing that appears damaging from and emergency situation. He gave her eye drops for conjunctivitis but the rest checked out fine. She already had an appointment next Tues. with a real eye doctor so we got to go home.
The real eye doc examined her as well on Tuesday and determined that she had an eye infection. That is what was causing all the problems (not her fall and black eye). Her vision was changing because the infection was causing swelling and changing the contour of her eye. She asked about getting a pair of temporary glasses because her eyesight has been so bad. He said…NOPE. Wouldn’t help! He wants to wait until she moves away from all these meds. They are playing havoc with her eyes and will continue to. The doc said her prescription would change from week to week. Can you imagine? How do you function with your eyes changing each week? She does it! At least I haven’t been looking as ugly to her lately….she can’t really see me!
So… Here’s where we are! We are almost at our 6 Month point past the transplant. It occurred on Cinco De Mayo remember? May 5, 2006. It also means we will be having another bone marrow test soon and that always scares me. The good news is that Connie has packed more in these last 6 months than most people do in a year! She’s amazing.
Following that statement, I have to tell you what she is doing the next two days. She’s been praying for this day for a while. Connie is taking Maddie up to Excelsior Springs Spa for...“THE TALK”. Maddie is almost 12 now and has been going thru some changes. Connie wanted to take her away for a Mother/Daughter weekend and spend some “alone time” with her. They are going to listen to tapes, do some educational workbooks and of course, have a spa treatment or two. They are going to the ELMS Hotel which is a famous destination spot here in the midwest. They will have a blast together. When you have gone thru something like Connie has, every opportunity to notch a milestone on your belt becomes….PRICELESS! Connie has had to reschedule this trip twice now because she fell and couldn’t go. Today is the day. They will be back this weekend but, suffice it to say…Ken is glad he did not have to handle this one alone.
Thank you all for the emails about my Mom. Thank you for praying for her as well. She is doing o.k. and meets with her Oncologist on Friday. We love you all and thank you for your interest in our family.
Have a great week. Our next appt. at the clinic is next Thursday. God Bless. We keep looking to the heavens….KEN
____________________ Update 10/23/06 - Afternoon- Monday
Greetings everyone. So far so good. We are slowly reclaiming our lives again and praying for the best. We cannot believe how blessed we are.
Most days, when the weather cooperates, we drop Maddie off at her school and Connie and I “hit the trails”. We’ve been walking each morning and it’s been crisp and fresh. Walking helps Connie fend off the effects of the steroids on her muscles. She pushes herself up hills and around corners and tries to get her heart rate up.
Today, it was especially beautiful. Frost had scattered across some of the grassy areas and the sun shone brightly thru the red/green and orange trees. We could see our breath as we walked the pathway strewn with falling leaves. We would look ahead and see the path bend ahead knowing that today was a major blessing and we were both happy not to be walking the halls of E-5 at St. Luke’s. Vivid is the memory of Connie and I pushing that IV pole struggling to make it down and back to her bed. We pray for the people who are on E-5 now getting treatment for the worst of diseases. They are doing God’s work up there.
Today, as we walked, God was close. We both felt blessed to have great kids, to have wonderful parents and to have close friends that continue to bless our lives. We wouldn’t trade our situation with others who perhaps have not had the health concerns we have. We have much to be thankful for. For a full life, a loving life, a life full of true riches. We have been blessed.
Two times now, Connie and I have rounded a bend and God had something special for us. Today, three little doe’s were coming up from the creek. They stood on the path in front of us and appeared equally excited to see us. They just froze, so did we. We could see their breath in the crisp air. They held rigid for a moment and then…gone! We walked to where they were but there was no sign of them. We marveled at how God hides His sweet deer as they blended perfectly into their surroundings. We heard the sounds of a few mallards swimming in the creek below.
Connie and I walk for about 40 minutes and we traversed up a hill which always challenges us. Somewhere near the top, we heard a very distinctive clicking sound in the woods. We didn’t know what it was but we knew to approach slowly. There, down about 20 yards away was two young bucks “scraping” their antlers on the trees. They often do this during the rut but, today…it appeared they were content to do it for us. We watched in our stillness until they bounded down the hill again. A few more steps along the way we were stopped again in our tracks because we heard a sound to the left of the trail. We peered in and again, only about 10 yards away were about 10 more deer…all of them on alert…but standing totally still…looking at us. It was as if we were the the “main event” …not them. There were babies with their mothers surrounded with brothers and sisters, all eating their morning meal. They just looked at us. No fear, no movement…just curiosity.
For Connie and I, it was as if God was saying…”Walk you two.” “I have a special blessing for you today”. “Walk”. Sounds of His creation filled the air as we started again. A bright red cardinal lit on the tree ahead. Sun drenched the path. Sounds of acorns dropping all around us added to the moment. We could see the rippling of the creek next to us and our hearts were filled with peace. We held each others hand as we walked. Connie was barely visible beneath all the hats, gloves and scarf’s but, we knew our job was to finish strong. As I got winded and my legs began to tire a bit, I imagined how hard it was for her after all she has been thru. Yet, there we were…October 23, 2006…walking in the clean cold air.
It was nice meeting God on the path.
We were finishing up our walk with our car in sight and we passed a young gal jogging the other way. We had walked for almost 40 minutes and saw …no one! It was like our private sanctuary until we saw this young soul. As she ran by, she didn’t even look up to say “Hello”…she was just focused on her running. I prayed for her in my mind and wondered if God was going to meet her on the same path or if she would be too “focused” to see Him? I wondered if she would be too intent on her jogging to hear the acorns drop? I wondered if she would be moving too fast to hear the sounds of the creek flowing over the rocks below? Would she be too intent on her running to realize that God was all along the path waiting to reveal himself…but was she flying by too fast? I wondered?....
We still have a long way to go before we can claim Connie is back to full health. We know that. She is still having problems with her eye. We went to the emergency room yesterday because her right eye (the one that got smacked) has been bothering her. It’s sensitive to light and gets crusty and blurry. She even thought it might be swelling a bit. The good news is that the emergency doc thought there was no immediate danger. She also is getting some of her “itchies” back. She thinks it’s because she’s tapered off the steroids and the gvhd is showing itself again. We don’t know if it’s a long term problem we will deal with from now on or just temporary. In addition, her CMV virus is being treated with another medicine that will create havoc with her counts. All these are “bumps in the road”. We’ve been here before. These are the “good problems”. We have faced much worse.
For today though, October 23, 2006…we keep walking and we rejoice that our God is merciful and that we are ABLE.
Thanks for WALKING with us! Ken
Many of you who check in to the website have met Ken’s MOM. Well, we heard last week that she was diagnosed with lung cancer. Her name is Ruth and there are pictures of her on this site. She is a dear sweet kind-hearted woman who has tried to quit smoking for 50 years but, to no avail. She will be meeting with an Oncologist this coming Friday to determine a treatment. We know it’s inoperable. We know it’s probably a stage III tumor. Right now, it looks like chemo is in her future. She’s taking it well but, please pray for her as she begins her long journey. My Father (Bruce) is also taking it well but, as a family, we are obviously concerned. We know that prayer works…so let’s lift Ruth up as well as Connie. Thank you all for loving us.
_________________________________ 10/20/06 Update: Friday
Hey All. Everything went well at our clinic visit this week-Wednesday. Connie’s counts were looking pretty good although they determined that she has contracted that virus CMV again. She’s had this before and it was controlled so, they have changed her meds again. They have upped her dose of penicillin and have her on another drug to control it.
The not so good news is that her counts will now go down quite a bit. This medicine has this as a side effect. Her platelet count is still pretty good so she can still go to restaurants. For now I guess. We are still on guard and have to be vigilant. So far so good.
On the home front, Maddie is at Wildwood which is a camp for all the six graders at her school. She’s there for 3 days and probably is having a blast. Kellie is still dancing her way thru school at KU and Krista has been babysitting up a storm and hanging close to Mom. It’s been great. We are so blessed. Oh, and her black eye is almost gone. Her hair is coming back slowly but we aren't complaining. We view every day as a bonus and take what God has for us in it. Hope you are doing the same.
Thank you all for checking in again and I’ll keep you posted.
Love you all. KEN _____________________________ 10/17/06 Doin O.K. Next Dr. appt. is on Wed 10/18 in the afternoon. I'll let you all know how it goes... thanks for checking. KEN _______ 10/10/06 Hi All. Remember back a few weeks ago when Connie's buddies came to town for a visit? Well, it was like a breath of fresh air for Connie. They shopped and shopped and just had a riot! Aren't they all beautiful??? Thought I'd post a picture of the happy trio..... enjoy!
Cindy K. (Chicago) Connie (Leawood in her kitchen) Dory F. (Newport Beach ,CA) ______________________________ Update: 10/9/06 Monday
Well, we had our appt. today at the clinic and Con’s platelets rose a bit…Yay! That’s good news because it means that her counts have been lowered because of the meds and not something more ominous. Again, another answer to prayer.
It’s so weird being on this journey. One minute you feel like you are beating it and things are cruising and the next…they are not. We have a hard time planning anything around our house as you can imagine.
But, this is good news and we will take it where we can get it. Connie is feeling better and she’s on her last few doses of steroids. She’s going to be totally off them this Friday. We have another clinic appt. this Thursday to check things again. We do know that we have another BM test in our near future and you all know how I feel about them but, God is still gracious and I know He will walk with us.
For now, (at least until the next clinic appt.) we can rest a bit.
Thank you all.
God Bless, KEN
P.S. Con’s eye is getting better too. It’s now a nice shade of reddish plum. I can even see some flesh color coming back. Also, Connie is convinced that her chubby cheeks are starting to recede again. It’s the steroid thing…hopefully, she will sail thru this chapter in her life like she has done all the others. We are being carried by the prayers of many and we feel it! __________________________________ Update: 10/6/06
Clinic Appt today- Connie went down and had her breathing treatment and all went well. The clinic appointment was a bit different.
Although there is not anything immediate to worry about, they were concerned that her platelet count has been dropping. They think that it might be caused by this one particular medicine so, they took her off of it for now. They do want to see us on Monday however. That kinda stinks because we were only going in once a week. They will put us on a Monday/Thursday schedule again.
Although it’s not a major deal, you could see that they were a bit concerned by it. They just want to watch. If her platelet counts come up again, no problem. If not, we may be in for another bone marrow test. Again, not what we expected but Connie said she is not going to worry about it for now. So I’ll try not to worry as well.
I know I’ve said this often but, keep praying for us. It just seems that this disease will not allow us to rest for long. We are grateful we have such good doctors and that they are on top of things….always! What a blessing.
Everyday is a blessing. Hope you feel that too!
More on Monday…Have a great weekend. We love you all.
KEN A friend sent this to me...isn't it great??? Being a Christian is like being a pumpkin. God lifts you up, takes you in, and washes all the dirt off of you. He opens you up, touches you deep inside and scoops out all the yucky stuff-- including the seeds of doubt, hate, greed, etc. Then He carves you a new smiling face and puts His light inside you to shine for all the world to see. Happy Fall all you Godly Jack-O-Lanterns! ______________________________
OUCH!!!!! O.K. Read below on how she got the shiner! P.S. It looks worse today but the swelling is getting better. It's kinda a plum color now.... ________________________________________
10/2/06 Greetings Everyone - Monday
Boy, do I get in trouble if I don’t update. Ha…I love it.
We are doing pretty well over here at the mansion. As you can imagine, we are working on all those fall things that get the house spruced up and winterized. It is such a blessing to be able to do some of that. When we were in the hospital, some friends came over and did it all for us. We can never thank them enough.
O.K. We DID have one “event” that I have to tell you about.
Our gal, who desperately wants to be normal again, decided that she was going to put up some decorations up for Halloween. She was working with Maddie (in the dark) to put these little dancing ghosts around our front tree. Everything was going well until Connie decided to stand back and get a better look. She was walking backwards looking towards the house and BAMB!!!! She fell! She put her hands down but it didn’t help her much. She crashed her face on the concrete curb out in front of our house.
Maddie came running in and yelled, “DAD! MOM FELL!!! COME QUICK!!!” So, I ran out there and Connie was sitting up in the street. I picked her up and got her back in the house and she had a knot the size of a golf ball on her eyelid. It was swollen pretty good and we immediately got her in bed and got ice on it. She was pretty shaken up. Well, she’s doing really good and the swelling has gone down but, she has one fine “SHINER” on her eye. Actually, it’s black and red all around her eye.
Of course, we called the doc’s right away and they said she could take some pain pills but weren’t so concerned since she didn’t break the skin and no broken bones. Our next appt. down there isn’t until Friday. Her eye was swollen almost shut but is now showing signs of coming back. It’s kinda a “plum” color.
Of course, everyone has been blaming me for the trauma. I told Connie she should take a picture and put it in the file in case she ever needs leverage against me for anything. Ha. We did take a picture but it’s on Kellie’s camera. If I can ever get her to slow down long enough…I’ll post it. It’s rough. Anyway, we are all well and Con is getting better.
She did however have a few days of pity coming her way. She feels she looks “hideous” now. Puffy cheeks from the steroids, no hair, rashes on her skin, a mouth that won’t open all the way and NOW THIS!!! She is just getting pounded in the “beauty” department right now. Her best buds continue to remind her that this is only temporary. On the long term front…things are going good.
Her appt. went well last Friday and they said she is doing pretty good with her meds. They are still weaning her off the steroids and her counts were where they should be. We now have to go down there once a week which is also a blessing. She has a dermatology appt. this week and a breathing treatment on Friday as well.
That’s it from here. We continue to be lifted up by friends and family. We are sooo blessed by you all.
Have a great week and I promise NOT TO let Connie out in the yard at night in her fuzzy slippers again!!!! Love you all.. KEN ________________________ 9/22/06 Clinic Update – Friday
All’s well on the Connie watch! She’s doing great. She had a great clinic appointment with no major revelations. It’s SOOO nice to say that. What it means for us is a week of being normal for a while. Her counts looked good and her mouth is improving. She has lost some of her taste buds because of the “thrush” she has had in her mouth. It turns her tissues white and her tongue gets real pasty. It’s getting better but Con thinks that she is about 75% in “tasting things”. Because she’s a master cook…she wants to be able to taste again soon. They also gave her 7 days until she has to go back to the clinic….next Friday…Yay.
Her itchies are doing better as well except her feet are giving her a few problems. They just hurt a bit when she walks a lot. She is still tapering off the steroids but it will take a while. Those of you that have seen her lately might notice a slight “puffiness” in her face. It’s the steroids. That too should abate sometime soon.
We’ll gladly take these kind of problems over the ones we’ve dealt with in the past.
Many of you have asked me about how her hair is doing? It coming back but she still looks like GI Jane a bit. It’s coming back but, slowly. She still wears her wig out in public and it looks great.
What a whirlwind month we have had? First, her Mom was here for two weeks. (That was wonderful). Then Dory and Cindy were here (Had a blast) and yesterday, Connie got to go to the American Royal Rodeo luncheon with some old girlfriends. She’s been so busy…isn’t that a huge blessing? She’s been doing so good y’all….
Blessings all around for the Cardells. We cannot thank you all enough.
If you are reading this, it means you care about us and we could have NEVER made it here without you. We will never forget.
Love you all.
KEN _____________________________________ 9/20/06 Clinic Update-Wed
Connie’s appointment went well yesterday. They are pleased with her progress getting rid of the itchies (gvhd) and are continuing with the taper-off of these drugs (steroids). It will take about 6 weeks before she can stop fully. Her counts were fine and they appear to be happy with them for now. She’s had a few minor complaints but, for the most part, she’s doing great.
It’s so nice to be going into the clinic without having to look an immediate crisis in the face. Julie, her nurse practitioner, said that “we got what we hoped for” and she just needs to stay the course. She’s been feeling good and has been doing many “normal” things lately. To her that means, shopping, taking long baths, going on day-trips with friends, going out to eat and doing some business. Also, she’s dreaming a little about the future. It has been a long time since we got to do that.
Today is a great day and she’s making the most of it. Her “Wednesday buddies”, Cindy and Susie came and got her and they are going to some “foo foo restaurant”. See?….normal stuff! Yay…
Thanks for praying for us continually. We totally are blessed by you people!
Love ya, KEN
P.S. I, yes I, got to go play golf with my buddy Joe Williams yesterday. The weather was perfect, we had a wonderful round and I only lost about 3 balls. It was nice to do some “guy-stuff” for me but, even better was spending time with Joe. He just knew that I needed some time away from the ranch. Joe and his wife Pam, have been so faithful to us! We love you guys. _________________________________ 9/18/06 Quick Update: Monday
Had a fabulous weekend with Connie’s buds…Dory and Cindy. They left Sunday night after a whirlwind weekend of shopping, eating and just general Kansas City activities. Connie got to entertain them at our home, go shopping with them in Parkville ( a quaint little antique shopping town) and they all went to the city market on Saturday. They even got to meet Carla and Bob who came over to our house for Connie’s famous fajita’s and margarita’s. Connie and the gals got all caught up and had an amazing few days. Connie cried when they left but wouldn’t trade that time for anything. Thanks Dory and Cindy for loving us enough to come all that way! Dory lives in Orange County, CA and Cindy is from Chicago. I’ll have some pictures later hopefully to post.
Connie is doing well and has an appt. tomorrow again. She can report that her mouth feels better than it has in weeks. Her itchies on her hands are even getting better. We have a few issues to discuss with the doc’s but, nothing major that we can tell. Con begins her “taper” off the steroids today but it will take about 6 weeks. Hopefully, she won’t have any complications to change that.
For the first time in many many months…Connie said she felt somewhat “normal” this weekend. She even got to fully immerse in her bathtub for the first time since March 3rd. Now that her central line is out…she can soak soak soak…she loves that.
So, onwards and upwards. A hint that she is feeling herself again…she’s even beginning to plan things for her business and next year. It’s a major blessing just to look forward a bit for this family.
Still one day at a time…but these are great days! Love you all.
KEN ______________________________ 9/15/06 Clinic Update: Friday afternoon
Greetings all. How bout this picture? It was taken in June in front of our house. I love it.
O.K. Here’s the scoop from today’s appointment. Connie’s itchies looked so much better that they are already going to begin weaning her off the steroids. Yay. It will take about a month or so to lower her doses but, they said they are going to treat her like she has the “acute” form of gvhd and not the “chronic” type. Chronic just means that it will be with her for a long long time. Hopefully, they are right and this is the type that will come up fast and go away fast. We’ll see.
She still however, will have to stay on other oral meds (like penicillin) for about 6 months. She’s not real happy with that but, it’s necessary. Her other counts were pretty high but, they said that’s probably caused by the steroids and so they will give a false reading for a while. She did have her breathing treatment today and that went well.
Connie’s friends Dory and Cindy are coming in tonight from California & Chicago! What a treat! She is so excited. Already, she’s been down to their hotel room and left them a welcome goodie basket. She’s got the whole weekend planned and is looking forward to some fun and fellowship. Both these gals are friends from Connie's college years and when we were newly married (25 years ago) and it’s been several years since we’ve seen them. They are part of our “long distance" prayer team.
Many people have asked me, “What’s next for Connie?” Answer is: I don’t know. This disease is horrible and as Dr. A. put it when we first met with him, “We are trying to reverse and “trick” Mother Nature into making Connie healthy again.” Is it working? Are we out of the woods? Can we rest and relax now? My answer to that is ….NO. I wish it were so but, I’ve just seen this disease first hand and its horrible consequences. I’m not sure we can ever rest. But, I’m O.K. with that.
God has given us a unique perspective (new glasses I call it) from which to view our world. His word says, “I came that you might have LIFE and have it ABUNDANTLY”. So many people seem to miss life… and what it is supposed to mean. They take for granted that hug given without asking from your 6th grader. They miss the fun of hearing their college students “download” after a week of activities. They can’t sit still long enough to enjoy a cool breeze in their face. They hurry past all the “treasures” in life. I know…I was there. I get that.
Now, however, when my feet hit the floor in the morning and I hear Connie stirring in the kitchen getting Maddie ready for school…I thank God for another day. I notice moments where she gives advice to Kellie about her school and about her ambitions. I relish every visit from a friend. Even a walk thru the grocery store with Connie is an amazing event for us. We actually enjoy it! There was a time when a walk thru the grocery store would have been impossible. Seeing Krista getting excited about her job or a class at school. It’s all amazing to us now. We have truly been given a gift.
Hopefully, we can share it. Thanks for checking in. We are going to have an awesome weekend!
Love you all. KEN ________________________ 9/12/06 Update: Clinic Appt.
Greetings Everyone. We had our clinic appointment yesterday, Man…were they busy! We were down there for 3 and ½ hours. Ugh… We try to make our appts. On Tuesdays instead because Monday’s are always nuts. We don’t have to go back until Friday…yay.
Well, Connie’s itchies were getting pretty bad on the palms of her hands and the bottom of her feet. They looked like little corpustles of pain, all red and sore. Looks like a very bad case of poison ivy. Anyway, they were sore to touch and even when she bumped them on something…they hurt. The good news was that the rest of her body showed great improvement. The topical steroids were working and it’s almost gone on her trunk and legs and arms.
Still, Dr. M. and Julie felt like it was time to put Connie on the oral meds. Crud. But, they said that they are going to put her on half dose and try to keep it under control that way. She takes pediatric doses of everything So we are hoping that this works. Her mouth has been very tight and somewhat sore also so…this will help that as well. Although Connie didn’t want to do this…she was ready. The discomfort of the blisters and itchies caused her to want relief…in any form.
We did have good news on her counts. Many of her blood markers were within range and her platelets and neutrofils were up. She’s doing really well except for the gvhd. So, we press on. More meds, more lotions, more doctor appts. But, we are happy. She’s doing really well otherwise.
Connie’s Mom left yesterday back to her home in Reno. She was wonderful. We have about 2 months worth of frozen food in the fridge. We had a great time with her and I think she had fun with Connie and the girls too! Other good news is that 2 of Connie’s good buddies from California are coming in this weekend to see her. They are flying in on Friday to spend the weekend playing with her. Yay! It will be such a shot in the arm for our gal. Both these women were in our wedding. It should be a fun weekend.
Hope all is well with you all. We have a pentamadine breating treatment for Connie on Friday and then a clinic appointment. If all goes well, she can be free to play all weekend unencumbered!
Thanks for hanging with us. Keep praying…we need it so much.
Love you all.
KEN _____________________________________________ 9/8/06 Update : Friday
Greetings Everyone! Connie had her clinic appt. yesterday.
The good news is that they took her central line out! Yay! She is so happy to have that gone. It has been in her chest since March 3 or something? Can you imagine? Each night, our routine included drawing three heparin syringes and flushing her line. It was a pain, but our goal was to keep it free of infection and flowing smoothly. It’s a surgical procedure to remove it and all went well. She IS sore from the procedure but, glad it is out. She can once again, fully immerse in the tub. She has to wait until next Thursday but, she loves her baths so…it will be a welcomed change.
Her GVHD is still evident but, they DIDN’T put her on oral steroids yet. Yay again! She was pretty concerned because her face and mouth are showing some signs of the disease. She has a tightening of her lips and throat and her skin is really dry. The good news was that the rashes on the rest of her body look better and is responding to the topical creams. IF…they can control it… then she will be moving ahead full steam to recovery.
Here’s the scary part. This GVHD also affects some of the soft tissue organs inside your body. Although it’s tough to handle the outside changes, the doc’s have to watch closely what is going on with her insides. It’s her liver that is usually affected first. Dr. M. evidently was concerned last visit by elevated liver counts. This visit, however…she returned back to normal. Yay again. They will monitor that every visit. They also have to watch kidney functions, intestines, etc. So, although things appear to be going well… Connie wants all of you to PRAY for her liver and organs. Pray that they remain normal and the GVHD is controlled.
Another note: One of the fears after transplant is something they call “thriving”. Sounds innocent enough but, some patients fail in this area. Their bodies have just been beaten up so badly that they can’t get back to what they used to be. They continually feel bad, lose their “zest” for life and begin losing weight. They can be depressed all the time and just can’t seem to respond to meds or other procedures. Connie had lost another few pounds and Dr. M. was watching it. Well, with the aid of her Mother’s great cooking…Connie gained 2 and ½ pounds this visit. Dr. M. was pleased. He wants to see her active, exercising, and “thriving”! She appears to be doing that.
Right now, she is “thriving” up at a place called Nell Hills in Atchison, KS. This is a major destination shopping site in the Midwest for home furnishings and antiques. It’s in a quaint little town with a restaurant and other shops, etc. Anyway, Susie H. and her Mom invited Connie and her Mom to take a trip there. They were off immediately. (wonder what that’s gonna cost me?). It was a once in a lifetime opportunity so they took it! It’s a beautiful day here in Kansas, the sun is shining and it’s about 70 degrees out. Perfect. Every day that Connie can spend like this is just money in her memory bank! I’m excited for her. Just as long as it’s not too much “money” out of our REAL bank account. Ha.
We are looking forward to a quiet weekend. Next appointment is Monday. More then…. Thanks for all of your prayers and emails still. We are held up by your love!
KEN _____________________________________ 9/5/06 Good News – Not so Good News
Connie got back from the clinic today and all her counts were doing wonderfully. She has tons of platelets, tons of neutrofils and her blood counts were almost within range. That’s the good news.
The “not so” good news was about her GVHD. It’s beginning to become a bigger problem. Connie has asked for your prayers for her. It is now on her face, around under her arms and all over her legs. It’s even showing itself on her ears, scalp and palms. We’ve been putting a steroid cream on the affected areas but, it doesn’t seem to be doing much. Dr. M. did a full analysis today and they are reviewing her.
What they are looking for is a “thickening” of her skin in places. They found some. Also, her mouth is tightening and her throat is still showing signs of problems. Since we can’t put the steroid cream on her face…they might put her on the “oral” steroids at our next appointment. Connie doesn’t want that. But, if it’s the path to a long life…We’re in!!!! So, please pray for her that we can control this stuff…it’s nasty!
One good thing came out of her visit though. She gets to have her central line pulled on THURSDAY. Yay. It’s the “three pronged appendage” that has been in Connie’s chest since May. She’s soooo happy about that. Mainly because she can take full immersion baths again. She loves her baths. We go into the hospital on Thursday for that procedure and another meeting with Dr. M. It will be a busy week but a fruitful one we hope.
Love you all. Keep prayin… Ken
P.S. As many of you know, we correspond with fellow-sufferers all over the country. One of our buddies from North Carolina was in town visiting her sister Debbie (another sweet friend we met along the way). Well...we got to meet them. Yay! We spent a couple hours with sweet Debbie, Karen and her husband. They got to meet Connie face to face. It was a huge time of fellowship and fun for all of us. It’s so amazing how God knit our hearts together. We truly know that we have friends that love us in N.C. and we are so grateful. We feel the same way about them!
________________________________ 8/31/06 Update - Clinic Appt. Today
From a month ago in Estes Short one today. ALL is well. Connie’s counts looked great today. Her platelets (infection fighters) were up over last week. Her absolute neutrofils were also way up. That means a lot to Connie because it opens up her chances to go SHOPPING and also more eating possibilities. It was all good today! What a blessing huh?
Connie’s Mom got into town on Tuesday and they have been getting caught up. Her Mom got to take her to the clinic this a.m. She got to meet our Nurse Practicioner Julie and some of the nurses. It was good that she got to go on a “not so scary” day. It can be pretty heavy down there. Today was a good day.
Connie also feels like her itchies are even doing a bit better. Everyone must be praying. She still has to cover her body in cream two times a day. The idea now is to control it! If they can control it…then we won’t have to go to oral steroids. Afterall, we don’t want her hitting any monster home runs or winning French bike races…do we? ( a little sports humor there…)
As you can imagine, we are rejoicing in the cool weather, the good reports and friends and family. We feel as though the black cloud has lifted a bit. We are being refreshed in our blessings.
Thanks for your prayers. Ken __________________________________________ 8/29/06 We received this song from our sweet little friend, Melissa who herself is battling another form of cancer. She gave it to Connie and said it gave her "strength". I can see why....
We hope that we have learned to Praise Him in THIS Storm!
Praise You In This Storm Casting Crowns I was sure by now That You would have reached down And wiped our tears away Stepped in and saved the day But once again, I say “Amen” and …..it’s still raining! As the thunder rolls I barely hear you whisper through the rain I’m with you And as Your mercy falls I raise my hands and praise the God who gives And takes away Chorus: I’ll praise You in this storm And I will lift my hands For You are who You are No matter where I am Every tear I’ve cried You hold in your hand You never left my side And though my heart is torn I will praise You in this storm I remember when I stumbled in the wind You heard my cry You raised me up again My strength is almost gone How can I carry on If I can’t find You? I lift my eyes unto the hills Where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord The Maker of Heaven and Earth
_______________________________________ 8/28/06 Monday - Greetings Everyone!
Well, after the euphoria of Friday’s news has settled in a bit, we wanted to update everyone on how the road is looking from where we sit now. We had a clinic appointment and a million questions as you could imagine.
Connie and I are both noticing that our response to the latest news, although joyous, has not been one of shouting it from the rooftops. You know, like if the Chief’s had won the Super Bowl or something? We both have the sense that something wonderful has happened and God has given us His mercy but, we both feel He would be merciful even if the news was bad. Does that make sense?
We both are wondering why we aren’t jumping all over the living room and bouncing off the walls. We feel like we should be.
As we left the clinic today, we were thankful that our God was still in control. We both were happy that we were walking out of the clinic instead of heading over to the hospital. We both felt our steps were quite a bit “lighter” today than last week. We did feel like our drive down to the clinic was easier today…we usually are pretty quiet when we drive down there. I told Connie it was easier today because we weren’t expecting any catastrophic news after a blood report! I found myself praying to the Lord today by saying, “Dear Lord, thanks for the good news of Friday. Let there be no surprises today to take away our joy today!” There weren’t any.
Despite our good news last week, we both have had a tempered response and feel a bit guilty because of it. Maybe it’s because we’ve been at 100% before. Maybe it’s because we’ve sat in those exam rooms expecting good news and instead got the opposite. Maybe it’s because we’ve had “routine” clinic visits that kept us down there for five hours before. Maybe because this disease has a way of “kicking you in the gut….often.” I don’t know?!
We ARE grateful that God has heard the prayers of many and has given us a break. We are joyous that the doc’s are happy and are seeing the results they want to see for now. We are enjoying every moment of “breathing room” that has been granted us. We realize that for now, we are beating the odds. God has heard us.
So, why aren’t we calling out the ticker tape parades?
Connie warned me yesterday that she was going to be complaining a lot about her “itchies”. I loved that. It’s like saying to your kids…”Hey, on Friday, I’m going to be in a bad mood. Just get ready for it!” Ha. She is however, thankful for the hope that Friday’s report gave her and the weight that it lifted off this family. But, the battle rages on in her body and we are by no means out of danger.
Connie’s GVHD (itchies) have moved all over her body now. It’s on her back, her shins, behind her knees, on her thighs and now it’s moving to her hands and her face. They look like poison ivy blotches only all over her body. She knows that this is necessary for her to live but, they are unpleasant to say the least. The Doc’s have given her steroid creams and are trying to treat it topically for now. If it gets worse, she will have to go to oral meds. They want to avoid that if possible because it comes with major baggage (side effects). So, for now, we treat it with creams and ointments two or three times a day. Connie feels like she is ugly and hard to look at. I joked with her today that hers will someday go away. When I look into the mirror, I have no excuse…my ugly mug will always be the same. I have no excuse!
Our battle now is to control the GVHD and keep a close eye on it. This time, we are 100% donor cells WITH GVHD…that’s good! It’s different. That’s what they tell us. We have to stay close to the clinic for any significant changes in her skin or internal organs. They still are watching her counts closely. She still is susceptible to infections and bacteria. We have to be vigilant.
The good news is that they are considering taking out her central line. She has had the “three pronged appendage” hanging out of her chest for 5 months now. She is ready to have it removed. It will give her a feeling of freedom she hasn’t felt in a while. Plus, it’s easier to take baths and she LOVES them!
Over the past few days, we have been covered in emails, gifts and joyous cheers from all of you who have endured with us. We cannot thank all of you enough. Hundred upon hundreds have sacrificed to make our journey a bit easier. We cannot thank all of you individually for every kindness but please KNOW…we feel each one of your prayers. We are touched each day by remembrance of your love for us! Know that we are comforted way down deep in our souls. You picked us up when we couldn’t walk on our own. Please don’t stop.
Our journey has rounded a bend. Hopefully, an important one! We would like to think that the suffering is over but, I guess, experience has taught us it might not be. None the less, we are going to give God the praise and keep walking. Each day is a gift and we know we won’t ever lose sight of that.
Understandably, we have received calls from people who think we are out of the woods and won’t have any more difficulties now. We know that is not the case but, we sure rejoice with them about our news. Our hope now is that Connie can beat this GVHD and there won’t be any long lasting effects. That will take a while, sometimes a LONG while. But, we are up for the challenge. We will continue to battle.
Stay with us. We need you all. God Bless You KEN ___________________________________________________
100 % DONOR CELLS
WE ARE REJOICING AT THE CARDELL MANSION TONIGHT!
The challenges are not over but, we can finally say that Connie is
IN REMISSION!!!!
GOD BLESS ALL YOU SWEET PEOPLE!
Ken
ALL HAIL TO THE KING!!!
______________________________________________ 8/25/06 Quick Update today - I’M GOING FISHING!!!
Hey, we got some good news (we think?) today from the clinic. Connie’s counts were up, her platelets Have risen a bit and….she has Neutrofils now. Yay. That means that she can eat a few leftovers again and maybe take in a restaurant or two. Yay again.
The REALLY GOOD NEWS however was that Dr. M. was “pleased” about her BM test! He was smiling and joking this a.m. It was like a cold drink of water for us on a 102 degree day. Man, we’ve waited so long for some good news in this battle. He said he reviewed the cells and her “blast” level is contained and the blood looked good. He said “for sure” the rashes she has is GVHD and he even discovered some in her mouth and GI track. As long as it’s under control…that is a good thing!
The only thing he doesn’t know right now is what percentage her cells are to the donors. That call will come later today. But, we are totally relieved right now because of the demeanor of our wonderful doc. Hopefully, The news later today will also be good.
I’ve got lots more to tell you but, I have to go…sorry. I’m going to try and get in some R&R…it will be good for my soul. My best bud, Larry is taking me out to a lake. Yay.
Love you all. Can’t thank everyone enough for carrying us in this fight!
More later … KEN
_________________________________ 8/24/06 Thursday. Musings along the way
Connie and I took our walk today thru a secluded jogging trail in south Leawood. The sun was making it’s appearance and the air was still cool from the dew of the morning. As we walked, it occurred to me how BLESSED we were.
The path was shaded and smooth and it appeared to go on for miles. We knew we couldn’t walk that far but, at least we were walking. We could look up ahead and see a few hundred yards but, the path soon turned and we could only see to the next bend. It appeared safe. It appeared beautiful, but we couldn’t see all of it. Just what was up in front of us. As we walked, new vistas became apparent and beautiful sights were opening up. We didn’t know they existed until we walked up to them.
We both rejoiced that we were out in God’s creation walking instead of in the halls of E-5 pushing an I.V. pole. It was August 24, 2006. Not November 8, 2003…we praised God for that. As we ventured along the path, some sadness crept in when we passed a small memorial for Allie Kemp…the girl who was brutally murdered at a Leawood Pool several years ago. She was only 17. We have friends that know the Kemps. We prayed for Mr. and Mrs. Kemp and tried to feel their particular pain. We asked God to bless them as they will live with their grief forever. We thought about Allie’s friends who were all out of college now and how some of them were starting their first jobs. We prayed for the Kemps as they never would experience the joys of seeing their daughter graduate or of having a future grandson or granddaughter. They are familiar with sorrow and have been touched by evil. God, may you cover them with your grace and mercy!
As we walked we considered how lucky (blessed) we are to have 3 healthy children who all love their parents. How blessed we are to have friends that would move heaven and earth for us. We considered how blessed we were to have another day to walk this path and smile at people coming the other way.
Connie didn’t “put her hair” on for today’s walk. That’s unusual. Instead she just had a bandana. I’m sure people walking the other way were grateful their journey was not the same as ours. It struck me that if we were to look into their lives…they too…would have stories to tell about their own paths. Each of us has a journey.
Oftentimes, we compare our journey to others and if you look in from the outside, it can look pretty good. We might even consider a trade. Once inside however, we would probably choose our own paths. In reality, there is no smooth sailing in this broken world. We all have our burdens that we are carrying. Some people just hide it better than others.
At one point, the path disappeared from sight at the top of a hill. Could we make it up the hill? We think so…let’s go for it. Let’s keep walking and see if we can get up there. We did. We got to the top and had to assess again. It was beautiful from up there. We could see more. We decided for today…that was as far as we could walk. As we headed back, we traversed the path again that we had been on already. It was familiar but still beautiful. The shade was cool and the path was smooth. More people slid by us as we walked.
Although we were out in public, with people active all around, we enjoyed the solitude of being with each other. As I held her small warm hand, I was touched by how fortunate we were. Twenty five years of marriage with someone I adore. A life full of love and enjoyment, not strife and dysfunction. A family full of life and dreams, instead of division and pain. Parents who love us dearly. Friends who hurt when we hurt. Doctors who would do anything in their power to ease our pain. Kids who have grown up to find their own path to God.
We ARE blessed.
It’s hard waiting on bone marrow test results. We’ve waited so often before. It’s an uneasy place to be but, we have a choice. We can wrap ourselves around the sorrow of our circumstance or we can “walk” in faith. We have chosen the latter. It’s a decision. A conscious one. We could put our faith in a blood report or we can put our faith in the ONE who knit our bodies together. We can put our faith in a procedure, or we can trust in the GREAT PHYSCIAN. We can pray that a medicine does its job or we can place our future in the ONE who holds the world in the palm of His hand. We have chosen the latter. If you are burdened along your journey today and your path seems too long to walk…turn to the One who’s burdens are light and He will carry you for today. It’s a choice. His mercies are new each morning.
I’ll post the news when we get it. For today, we trust. We walk. We look for more ways to notice how blessed we really are.
Hope you feel that way too. Love ya, KEN __________________________________ Tuesday Update: 1:00 P.M.
Connie just got back from the clinic with her hip hurting (as usual with a BM test). She said that this is her 15th. I remember the very first one and how we stood over the slides with our hands above them praying. It was as if we wanted God to take the “bad news” enclosed in the blood and “change it” before they started looking at it. We SOOOOO wanted to have the right outcome from those first few slides.
Now we are here, almost three years later (praise God for that!)…still fighting…still praying over those little slides. It can drive you crazy waiting on results.
So, Connie and I have a new prayer now. Instead of trying to pray for platelets to go up or for her neutrofils to increase at each visit…we now pray like this:
“LORD, we know that you KNOW! We know that you created every little cell in our bodies. We know that we are fearfully and wonderfully made. We know that we have incredible doctors and health care. So, Lord, we pray that Connie’s blood is doing what it is supposed to do.”
That’s it! That’s what we pray.
We can’t know if up is good or if down is bad. So, we just give the whole thing to God. It should be like that in most things that we worry about. “Lord, I don’t know why “X” is happening to us right now, but…we pray that Your Plan is doing what it is supposed to be doing. We are trusting in YOU.”
Then, we walk.
Some details from the visit. Dr. M. is pretty convinced that her rashes are GVHD. They still have her on topical ointments to treat it but, if it gets really bad, they might put her on steroids. She has had a low grade fever most days and that also could be a sign of it. Con’s platelets are UP and Dr. M. likes to see that. Her Neutrofils were down and he actually gave her a growth hormone shot today. I guess it was just a boost. She still cannot go to restaurants or have leftovers because the counts are too low for now.
He also gave her the “go ahead” for our little walks each day. What we have been doing is dropping Maddie off at school in the a.m. (We watch her walk to the door and we pray for her). Then, we take our coffee and head to the walking trails and take a walk. It’s good exercise and she gets some good fresh air. We don’t go far, just far enough that Connie gets a bit of walking in. It lifts her spirits. It’s precious time.
The BM news won’t come in for a couple days…I’ll post what we know then. For now, we are trying to be normal and trying to be a point of grace to those we meet along the way.
God Bless you all. KEN ________________________ 8/22/06 11:00 a.m. Not many details yet but, Connie met with Dr. M. today and they decided to do a surprise Bone Marrow test . Not sure if that is good or bad?! Keep prayin and I'll post more later today. Ken ______________________ 8/22/06 Meeting with Dr. M. at the Clinic this a.m. Hoping for good news. More later.... ____________________________ 8/17/06 Afternoon Update: Clinic Appt. Today "You hem me in - Behind and before; You have laid Your hand upon me." Psalm 139:5 First, let me just say that we got “steady-as-she-goes” news. Nothing bad…nothing really good. But, these days it’s hard to tell. Sometimes what is up is down and what is down is up. That’s what this disease does. Sometimes high counts are good and sometimes high counts mean bad things. Who knows huh? Hopefully, Connie’s doctors know.
To be brutally honest with all of you, we have been feeling a bit down lately. We have not been getting very good news from our Docs and certain circumstances indicated things weren’t working. First, there was the drop in her counts at our last visit. Her persistent low grade fever. Her increasing “itchies” which have gotten worse the last two days. We also got a call from the clinic to discontinue the “growth factor” shots because Connie had hit a plateau on her white blood counts. They just weren’t rising any further as was hoped. Add to that the previous report that the 3% of cells remaining still had the same abnormal indicators as her original leuk cells did and…all was not well.
It’s just that sometimes with this disease, you feel like you can’t get a break. Connie has been more tired than normal and has been a bit uncomfortable. In addition, we operate better when we have Plan A and Plan B articulated. We haven’t had a plan B for a while. Also, she hasn’t gotten to talk to Dr. M. for a while and he is always the man with the plan! Fortunately, we meet with him next week.
At the clinic today we learned that Connie’s platelet count had risen…that’s good news. Her other counts were lowered a bit. They said it’s because we stopped the growth factor shots. She also had a 100.1 fever today when she went in. She also lost 3 lbs. In addition, her absolute neutrofils were down to 800. They want them to be above 1000 for her to be able to enjoy restaurants or leftover food items. So, that cramps her style a bit.
Her biggest complaint has been her rashes and that they have increased in intensity of late. There was some discussion that this could be the GVHD that we spoke of earlier. This “could be”? good news because it means donor cells are on the move. It also could be nothing! See what I mean? Good is bad…bad is good? This is so tough. Connie’s rashes have gotten to the point of making her whole body uncomfortable. It’s like being pricked by 1000 small needles sometimes. She just wants to use sandpaper on her body but can’t. If it IS GVHD…that could be good overall but miserable in the short run. Who knows….?
What we DO know is that we are here and, we are still battling.
My good friend Richard Beach, who recently traveled to MD Anderson said it well. He has determined that he wanted to be a “light of Christ’s love” to all he encounters along the way. I think that is what Connie has been. Throughout this whole ordeal…I’ve seen nothing but grace and love in her. She hates to be called an “inspiration” but, I know she is to many! She told me today that all these “counts” and “procedures” are just too complicated to know if they are “good” or “bad” at any particular time. So her prayer is…”Lord, YOU know what should be happening in my blood. YOU know me intimately. YOU are the Great Physician. It is in YOU that I trust. So, Lord…I trust that my blood is doing what it should be doing right now!” That was a great comfort to me in my constant state of worry.
Our next appointment is Tuesday and there is some discussion of another bone marrow test. We’ll see. For now, we rest knowing that we can have a few days of breathing room. With all the kids scattering to all their respective schools…we need the break.
Thank you all for the increased emails this week. We were low and you picked us up! They are all awesome. Connie reads every one!
Let’s keep praying for God to do his work in her and that her “blood is doing what it is supposed to be doing!”
Agreed?
Love you all.
KEN ______________________________________ 8/14/06 Update: Clinic appt. today
Connie is home now after having her appointment (11:30 A.M.) I wanted to hold off updating until she got home.
Our last visit to the clinic (last Thursday) proved to be eventful. It’s kinda nerve-wracking because what Connie and I worry about is often far from their minds. We have been concerned about her blood counts because they have been lowering and there was no apparent reason. Especially, since she has been receiving the growth-factor shots once a day. The hope was to get her white blood cells stimulated so they would “fight” with her old cells and wipe them out. Also, I previously discussed the “graft vs. host” dilemma we are trying to manage. So far, no real signs of it.
Anyway, we got to the clinic and Connie had a low grade fever. In addition, her blood pressure which is low anyway, was really low. They began to be consumed with that. They took her blood pressure from a lying down position, then sitting up and then standing. It seemed to register different numbers at all positions. Connie had mentioned to the Nurse that she didn’t drink much water the day before and they felt like that could be the cause. So….they kept us for 2 additional hours doing an I.V. of fluids and her blood pressure got back to normal. It was just weird. Of course, it scared me because of all it could mean.
Fast forward to today. Her blood pressure was normal today and she still has a low grade fever working (100.5). Not sure why but, no one was too concerned. Her platelet count was lower still and that is concerning. We don’t know why they aren’t coming up but she will ask McGuirk on Thursday. What they are considering now is to go back to the second donor and ask for some more white blood cells. Evidently, this will give Connie a “push” to fight off her previous cells. We don’t know if he will commit but, they are making plans to contact him now.
For today, we are safe. We are home. We are enjoying Krista, Kellie and Maddie. Our next appointment is Thursday. It appears we are having very brief periods of breathing room. At least we aren’t having to go into the clinic every day. We rejoice at that. Also, we are mindful of being in the hospital and how difficult that was…so being home is a real blessing each day. Every visit from a friend, every phone call from the girls, every moment Connie is at home with the girls is a bonus. We are living moment to moment, blessing to blessing. We see our blessings now. I guess that is a good thing.
Specific Prayer Requests for Connie:
I will post again on Thursday after her appointment.
Our next adventure involves getting the kids started in their respective schools. A couple of Connie’s college buddies from S.F. might come and see her? (still working on it). Her Mom is scheduled to come visit for three weeks later this month. And…we still haven’t finished our taxes for 05’. We are working on them all this week. Fun huh?
Thanks for being with us again.
One favor: If you haven’t written in a while…please check in. Connie wants to feel like her army is still out there and hasn’t forgotten her. She knows it’s hard to check everyday but, if you could drop her a line…she’d appreciate it. Much love to you all.
KEN
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GOOD BYE JAN !!!!
8/8/06 Had to say good bye to Jan today, our big blonde German dude. He headed back home and we already miss him. It was such a "GIFT" to Connie and our family. As we left him at the airport this a.m., His Kansas Mom had many tears in her eyes. As she was hugging him, she suddenly imagined what he must be thinking and she cried more. She didn't want to let him go. He is a very big part of our family. WE LOVE YOU JAN! MAY GOD GO WITH YOU SON....
Ken and Connie
Update: 8/7/06 Weeee’rrrrreeee Baaaacccckkk!
Had an awesome time in the Rockies! Wow. Actually, we got back on Saturday nite really late. I just wanted to wait until our appointment before I did the update.
First, let me tell you that Connie did amazing! Her cold symptoms cleared up in the first couple of days and her coughing stopped shortly after. She actually was having trouble breathing before we left KC because she would cough and her larynx would “seize up” and she’d have a spasm. Then, it was really hard for her to get air. She has an inhaler and used it but, it was a bit scary for a while. She is now way past that and she’s doing really well.
Connie actually went on a 2 mile hike (moderate in difficulty) and got to see Arapahoe Falls. She sat by a lake and had lunch with the girls and Jan and did really well walking. She had to push herself a bit but, it was good for her. She also went go-carting, shopping, to restaurants, and even hit some golf balls off the practice tee. She loved her time there. The nights were cool and the days were only about 75 degrees most days. The good thing for Connie was that most days there were clouds that made the sun less intense. She usually had to run for cover but, not up in the mountains. It was wonderful.
As for all of us…we played poker in the evenings, ate macaroni and cheese and just had fun together. Krista sang and made it into the semi-finals (final 11 out of 300) so, that was good. We saw elk all over the place and deer as well. We went for a drive in the National Park and took some great pictures. All in all it was a wonderful time for all of us.
On the health front, our clinic appointment was uneventful (yay). Now, we are happy if nothing major is discussed and no disaster is eminent. Connie’s counts were where they wanted for this stage and they took her off some more meds. They are trying to get the donors cells to activate and take out the 3% of her cells. I have to give her an injection of growth hormone each day to stimulate his cells. It’s working but we have a way to go. Also, they want to activate some graft vs. host activity so we are on the lookout for that as well.
Jan leaves tomorrow for Germany again. I am sure that his “Kansas Mom” will have many tears but, his real Mom misses him I’m sure. We are grateful that they gave him to us for so long. Man, two weeks fly by…don’t they?
Well, better go. Just wanted everyone to know we are home and we are safe. It was hard to get back into the clinic routine again today. All the fears, all the medicines, all the worries flood back in an instant. In the mountains, we kinda forgot about the ordeal that we are engaged in. We put it somewhere back in our minds. Now, it’s back in the forefront. We still have to celebrate every day that we have.
More later…. Love you all.
KEN _________________________________ 7/31/06 Hey Guys! 3:00 p.m. Connie got cleared to go to Colorado...and we are doing it! Yaaa Hoooo.... This will be so great for her!
I'll keep her safe. Be back a week from today with an update. Thanks for praying us thru this. We will be together on our 25th Anniversary, which is tomorrow. Unbelievable huh???
Love you all... ZZZZZOOOOOOOOMMMMMMMM....we are off!!!!! Ken 7/29/06 Update – We are home again ( 2:30 p.m.)
Connie got an I.V. antibiotic at the hospital this a.m. and is resting comfortably. She had a 102 fever when we got there but is feeling much better now. She still sounds raspy but she got to take some Tylenol so, we are hoping her fever leaves soon. She ate some peach sorbet and has asked for a ham sandwich. I went to the kitchen to fix it and when I got back to her….ZZZZZZZZZZZ. That’s good I think? She needs to rest.
Once again, it will probably be a minor miracle if they clear her for Colorado. What is it about that word Colorado that makes her system go bizarro???? Anyway, we are still packing and the kids are scheduled to leave on Sunday a.m. Of course, Krista doesn’t want to leave now because of her Mom but, I will make them.
You know, Connie and I were talking the last couple of days about how much we hurt when we get bad news. I told her that we “hurt” because we “love”. The deeper the hurt, the deeper the love. I told her that she was a very blessed woman because so many people “hurt” for her. They care so deeply. For that, she is one blessed woman!
We will hang in there…I’m still looking for that miracle so she can make the trip.
Love you all. Thanks for being with us. KEN
__________________________________ 7/29/06 11:30 a.m. Need prayer again. Connie woke up with a killer sore throat. Need to go down to the hospital and get some IV antibiotics. Prease keep lifting us up. thanks.
7/28/06 Update News – Clinic Appointment 4:00 p.m.
Let me first start, as did Dr. M., by saying we have “news”. Not “good news” but not “devastating” news. I will explain that in a minute. I don’t know about those who check in daily with us, but…for us, we don’t like beating around the bush and prefer our news to come at us fast and true.
Thus it was today.
Let me warn you that today might be a long posting. One, because there is much to report and Two, because I need to do it. Some of it will be technical and you can pass over that if you wish but, for those interested I wanted to give all the details.
Dr. M. is very skilled and very compassionate. We have grown to love him dearly as we have traversed this path with him. Although he was going to be gone all next week, he chose to call us in today so that he personally could deliver this news rather than having one of the other Doc’s talk to us about it. He was tactful, truthful and direct but we felt the love in his eyes for us. He will move heaven and earth if it’s in his power to do it. We know that.
We sat in a small dictation room about 8x10 and he began to tell us what is happening. Apparently, when the DNA tests were done the other day, they found the 97% / 3% ratio deal. 97 percent were the new donor cells and 3% were still “Connie” cells. He would have been delighted if we saw 100% donor cells. Further tests were done on the 3% and instead of them being “leukemia free”, they weren’t. They were the abnormal cells.
What this means is that for now, the donor cells have not fully wiped out the leukemia. Left untreated, they soon would enter the blood stream again and the disease would overtake her. Right now, that’s not happening because her BM test showed no blasts in the blood or marrow. If they found blasts in her blood and marrow now, her time would be very short.
If there is good news, it is that there is a plan. With some people, and some forms of this disease…there are no plans. Fortunately for us, there is still a course we can take.
Dr. M. is going to immediately change course with her meds. He’s stopping her anti-rejection meds now and giving Connie a growth hormone. The idea is to stimulate donor cells (the white blood counts) to attack the 3% cells in the hopes that they are wiped out. She will have a shot every day that I will administer.
Two paths will soon emerge. One, the most likely will be that Connie begins to develop GVHD. This is graft vs. host disease. It is where the donor cells battle with the host cells for control. Her symptoms can be rashes, tightness of skin, splotches of itchies, vomiting, diareah, fever, etc. Any and all of these could be signs of GVHD. Once they see that, they have to “control” it very quickly. Dr. M. actually wants to see some of this.
The danger is that GVHD is totally unpredictable in different people. It could be a situation where it takes over Connie’s body and it cannot be stopped. It can lead to organ failure and death. It is treated with steroids which have their own ugly side effects. Steroids can stop the disease and many people have recovered from GVHD and go on to live long lives. Although not optimal, this is the path that we now “hope” will happen.
If we do nothing, Dr. M. said there is 100% chance that we will lose this battle.
He did go on to say that he thought Connie SHOULD go on the trip to Colorado. He will check her right before we leave and right when we get back. If she were to get in trouble out there, he has people in Denver that would do “anything” for him or his patients, so he felt fine with her going. He wanted to imply, without scaring us, that this was going to be important for Connie and she should Not pass this up.
As you all know, I think in word pictures. As Dr. M. visited with us, I began to see a very distinct picture in my head. Connie and I were in our hiking gear and we had walking sticks (a little Colorado analogy here). We were in the high country and the pine trees were thick and fragrant. It was a sunny day and the birds were out in full force. We both had heavy backpacks on our shoulders. We were happy being in the moment, with each other, but apprehensive about what lay ahead. Our backpacks had been particularly heavy lately. We still were able to bear them.
As we looked up the mountain, there were two very distinct paths ahead. Neither of them looked very good. We wished we could have dropped our backpacks right there and go back but, it was not an option. Both paths were full of rocks and crevasses and even disappeared beneath the darkness of the overhanging limbs. It wasn’t clear where either path lead but we knew we had to get up that hill to reach the summit. We knew that some of the path would be straight up, some of it would be almost impossible to pass and some of it would happily be on flat level ground. No matter. We had to walk. There wasn’t a choice…we quickly decided to suck it up and prepare for the rest of the journey.
We couldn’t see the end of the road but, we could tell that if we made it over the summit…we would be rewarded with an incredible blessing of lush pastures and heavenly views. We knew whatever lies ahead, it was worthy of our efforts and our devotion to the goal. However difficult it would be, we were together working on it. We were not out here, on this path, all by ourselves. Our goal was to keep walking until it was clear and where there was daylight. We knew the path would eventually “open up”. We dreamed of walking together with smooth sailing ahead and resting streamside in God’s beauty.
The path on the left, without us knowing it, apparently was easier. It seemed smooth and didn’t require any work but ultimately, it ended in disaster. There was no way of knowing it from where we stood but, the path led to sure destruction.
The road on the right was also perilous and looked like a rocky roller coaster with twists and turns and steep descents. If the correct steps were taken on that path however, there was a way that lead to the summit. We were not given a map. That would have been nice. We just knew that this path also could lead to destruction but it was ours to choose.
Fortunate for us. We chose the path on the right and prepared to make our climb. The path on the left had no chance of survival. The path on the right had a chance. As we gazed into each others eyes, we considered all the possible outcomes. Tears filled our eyes. Even before we knew what God had planned for us, we considered our own fearful conclusions. They were all scary and terrible. Just when we were being overcome with arrows of fearful thoughts…a still small voice broke thru and we both heard it.
“Clear the way for the Lord in the wilderness; Make smooth in the desert a highway for our God. Let every valley be lifted up, and every mountain and hill be made low. And let the rough ground become a plain and the rugged terrain a broad valley; Then, the glory of the Lord will be revealed, and all flesh will see it together. For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.”
And off we went….
Today, we heard news that has shaken our world again. We know that we have tough times ahead and that there are no guarantees that we will make it. So, as a popular talk show host does…let me put it this way.
Here is what we know:
Here is what we don’t know:
So, that’s the story.
One last note: I am sure after reading this that you are hurting as we hurt. But, please don’t feel sorry for us. This is the path that God has chosen for us and we are totally in a faith position. We can do nothing else but continue to walk where He sends us. He never promised it would be without heartache and pain. He did promise to walk with us…and HE IS! Although we don’t know why, we know WHO. The last thing we want is for people to pity us for where we are in life. This is not an accident and God is using this for His purposes.
Whatever the outcome, now or in the future, we will trust God and know He is still in control. Even if we don’t understand it or if we have another plan. We must keep walking…. We will….
Love you all. KEN
FRIDAY 7/28/06 PRAYER ALERT 9:15 a.m.
Dr. M. just called and wants to see us. It can’t be good news. They took several tests yesterday and He just called us down to the clinic for a visit. We know this can’t be good.
PLEASE lift us up in prayer when you read this…thank you. KEN
7/27/06 Connie Update : Clinic Appt. day
Well, it’s Thursday and we had her clinic appointment. Her counts have not risen any but, they aren’t overly concerned yet. They have adjusted her meds and it takes some time to show any results.
The “not so good news” is that Connie developed some cold symptoms last night and woke up with a scratchy throat and a gravely voice. Not good for the prospects of heading to Colorado on Monday. Dr. M. examined her and thought that she just caught a small cold virus or something and it would probably take it’s course in a couple of days. He said that the chances of her getting to go to Colorado are “dicey” at this point.
She has another clinic appointment on Monday at 9:30 a.m. They will probably make their final determination on her suitability for travel at that point. I will be picking Maddie up that morning from Branson and will be heading back when the news comes in.
So, will I pick her up and head to Estes Park or will she be spending the week alone? I think she is really disappointed but, she kinda prepared for this. She kept saying, “What is it about Colorado that causes my body to do weird things?” She has had two Colorado trips pulled out from under her this year already. If she gets better in the next day or so…they might let her go. We will see. You can pray for her…she needs a break!
The other news was that they aren’t taking her central line out tomorrow. She had an appointment but Dr. M. decided he wants to wait. Another disappointment for Connie. She understands the reasons why…it’s just another sign that she’s not quite well enough.
As with any long term battle, we have to be committed to staying the course. Steady plodding gets the prize…it’s in the Bible somewhere. Anyway, we take this day again as a blessing. Kellie is done with finals. Our big blonde German dude is here. Maddie is frolicking in paradise down at Kanakuk. Krista is in and out all day and I’m doing laundry for the trip. All in all…it’s a good day. We rejoice we have this day together.
Hope you all are well and have a great weekend. We will be busy at the mansion.
Love you all.
KEN
Here’s a note from regarding Dan Dickinson and Terry:
Thanks for being on the prayer team for us. Terry is doing great! The tumor was not cancerous, it was larger than the sonogram and CT scan indicated. Once they took the tumor out of her right ovary, they found a tennis-ball sized cyst behind it. Everything is out now, even her gallbladder. She looked great this morning (Wed). They will have her up and around today. She should be out Thursday if all goes as planned. Dan
EDITORS COMMENT: yaaaa hoooooo!!!! ____________________________________________________ Update: 7/26/06 Connie DNA report
Today is Wednesday and we got results from Connie’s bone marrow test. Although there are no blasts, which is the best news…her DNA count wasn’t as perfect. She is currently at 97% donor cells and the Doc’s were hoping to see her at 100% donor cells.
In layman's terms, it means that the second transplant is doing its thing but hasn’t totally taken out all Connie’s old cells. It still could happen and the Doc’s are adjusting her meds again. They are hoping that the donor cells will fight against Connie’s cells and take out the remaining 3%. This can only be measured by a bone marrow test again. We are not sure when the next one will be. In the meantime, Dr. M. said that he will be monitoring Connie’s counts very closely and will be watching for problems. In other words, his antenna will be up…with Dr. M. however, his antenna are always UP!
For us, this means that we are again in a faith position. I guess, in reality, all of us are…it’s just that some of us think(?) we are in control. We currently have to live from one clinic appointment to another. It’s better than the alternative but, it is a hard way to live. We are constantly on the edge of bad news- it feels. Again, I know my faith should be stronger but, sometimes…sadly…it’s not. It’s just that we have had so many disappointments and difficult appointments…it wears on you. We have not however, lost sight of the fact that God has been merciful to us and has blessed us with 2 1/2 incredible years since we first heard the news.
So, we live day to day again for a while. We walk to the next appointment and pray for good news. We pray that harm is not in our future and that we can accept the news if it is not favorable. Once again, we are in God’s hands. It’s not a bad place to be.
Thanks for staying faithful with us.
FAMILY NOTES: Maddie is now safely at Kanakuk Camps in Branson. She’s sleeping in a Tee Pee and having a riot. Jan (our big blonde German dude), our exchange student from a few years back, is visiting us from Germany. He’s been sleeping since he got here. He’s doing great and Connie is so happy he is here. Krista is still being a nanny and babysitter making gobs of money and Kellie is having her finals from summer school. Busy times, but good times. We all wish for brighter days ahead. ________________________________________
Mark Twain Quote “I am an old man and have known a great many troubles but most of them never happened.” Connie Update: Monday 7/24/06 Noon It’s hard to know what to say after the weekend we have had. First, let me tell you that we have “good news” from the clinic. All of her counts rose a bit although her platelets are still low. Dr. McGuirk happened to be on the floor and he was “amazing”. For some reason, just seeing him provides comfort to our gal. Anyway, he appeared to be in a great mood and was pleased to see us. He was delighted that the bone marrow test was “negative” for leukemia. Although the DNA results won’t be back until this afternoon or tomorrow. He was confident that it would be good news. He went on to explain to us how some of Connie’s meds could attack her counts and could linger for a while. The full story will be in the DNA which is where we want to see 100% donor cells but, for now...we can breathe easier. Now, having said all that… I am personally filled with many emotions right now. I am sometimes ashamed at my lack of faith. Expecting the worse, we spent an entire weekend crippled with “what if” scenarios. We cried to God asking Him why we can’t have a “normal” life and why He would consider giving us bad news. My personal pleas to Him will remain personal but, suffice it to say…I was like Job bargaining for a good result. The little word “why” was used way too often. As I was digging in the dirt on Sunday, I cried to God for Connie, for good news. I contemplated the bad. My heart was heavy with burden. I couldn’t imagine why such a good person, Connie, would have to undergo this situation in her life. She is a great mom, a wonderful wife and a good friend. Why couldn’t this happen to someone else? Why would God take someone like this? I’m ashamed of the thoughts that go thru my head. But how do you prepare for hearing news that could alter your entire existence here on this earth? How do you get yourself ready for news that would forever alter your kids lives. On the eve of what should be one of Maddie’s happiest moments (getting to leave for Kanakuk camps)…We were dealing with possibly devastating news coming our way. We watched as the girls frolicked thru our house with seemingly little to concern them. But, still we carried the burden. Our ride down to the clinic today was solemn. Quiet. Nervous. We walked in the clinic, having gone thru all the unspoken scenarios in our minds. We both were ready for the worst. We saw other fellow sufferers looking much worse than Connie. I prayed silently for “good news”. For a “break” for our family. Honestly, I wasn’t expecting to hear it. When you are in the clinic, news doesn’t come to you all at once. It kinda trickles in. You sometimes have to “mine for it”. They, of course, can’t read your mind and they don’t know you have spent 3 days in “fantasy hell” but, they do know you were concerned. So, they give you what they have. First, was Dr. M. being excited about the “negative” bone marrow test. Then, a meeting with Wendy…Connie’s nurse buddy. She was in a good mood too. Another good sign. She seemed positive and in good spirits. Then, another meeting with Dr. M. and he explained the lingering effect of some of her meds and it could be causing the problems. He was confident that her counts were going to be fine. He saw her neutrofils rise to 1.2 from only 700 last week. He was happy that all the others have risen a bit. More good info. He took her off another med. He spoke hope to us and said he fully expected her counts to rise by the end of the week. Although no DNA results yet, he was pretty happy with what he has seen so far. The final “trickle” of info will come today with the DNA info. Both Connie and I walked out of the clinic with a lightened load. Although the full weight has not been lifted, I think that 400 of the 500 lbs. we carry around with usseem to be gone. Although delighted and optimistic, we were not jumping thru the ceiling. I guess we have been down this road before and disaster can strike anytime…but, for now…we have good news. We are able to relax again and see life thru different eyes again. Our battle scars are showing I guess, and we are quietly joyful right now. We know you all have been with us in this. The cards, the emails, the balloons and the flowers. You all feel the same thing we are feeling. You have learned to hurt when we hurt. Worry when we worry. Feel when we feel. It’s the body of Christ doing it’s thing. You have picked us up as best you know how. That’s what it should be like for all of us! Thank you for being in this fight with us. We absolutely could NOT do this alone. We don’t have the strength. But, you all do. Thank you for being our friends. We love you, Ken P.S. – I’m leaving now for Kanakuk and a wild week for Maddie. Will be back home on Tuesday nite. Feel free to call Connie or email her with well wishes. She’d love that. God Bless you all. ______________________________________________________________ Monday 7/24/06 We are at the Clinic. 9:30. a.m. PLEASE PRAY FOR US!!! Thank YOU...KEN ____________________________________ 7/21/06 Connie Update Late Evening Friday Well, we are feeling like 300 of the 500 lbs. of weight are off our shoulders. As mentioned earlier, Connie had a unscheduled bone marrow test because her counts had fallen significantly. It was her choice. They could have waited until next week but, Dr. A. admitted to Connie that he was “worried”. This afternoon, we got a call from Dr. A. with preliminary results…no blasts! His biggest concern was that the leukemia was coming back causing her counts to lower. There could be other reasons like illness in the family (both Kellie and Maddie had colds last week). It could also be her meds hanging around causing her counts to lower. In any event, he seemed relieved that the news was good. The final test results will be in on Monday or Tuesday. We have a clinic appt. on Monday and they will check her again. What they are looking for is now DNA. They want to examine the relationship of her cells to the donor cells to make sure she still is O.K. They will know more then. So, our weekend will be an uneasy one. We are thankful that Dr. A. called with the news he had. Once again, we find ourselves on this cruel, horrible roller coaster that appears to be one Clinic visit away from disaster. It continues to highlight to us how tenuous our situation continues to be. For now, we are “taking the good news where we can get it” as my buddy Bob says. Thanks for praying for us today…we needed it. More on Monday. We love you, Ken and Con __________________________________________ 7/21/06 PRAYER ALERT FRIDAY 11:00 A.M.
Once again we face another scare along this horrible road we are on. Connie’s counts were down quite a bit today and it caused concerns at her clinic appointment. Carla is with her but, they decided to do a immediate bone marrow test to try and determine if it is being caused by medicines or something worse.
As you can imagine, we are devastated again and ask for your immediate prayers.
We will not know the results of the bone marrow test until Monday so, we know this will be a difficult weekend for us. Please pray that wisdom falls upon our doctors and that our fears are washed away. Pray that Connie’s blood is being washed as you read this and that a good report comes soon.
Thank You again for hanging in there with us.
Ken UPDATE ON THE DICKINSONS First thing we found out is that it is a tumor, not a cyst, but it is not an ovarian tumor. It seems to be a mass in her abdomen that is self-contained. That is good. Tumors of this type are typically not cancerous - but she quickly reminds you that it could be just to make sure you don't completely think you are in the clear. As we understand it, this surgeon is one of the most sought after women's surgeon in KC and we sat and talked to her for over an hour. What do you talk about for over an hour? Horses - of course. The Surgeon is also a horse women, so they each had to tell war stories and past horseback riding injuries. So we get down to the question of when? She says, "As soon as possible." We walk with her to the scheduler and the nurse informs her that she is booked and it would be three weeks. The surgeon says that is unacceptable and starts flipping through her schedule. She had a conference scheduled for this Monday that she decides to canceled and we will be on the table at 10:00 am this Monday. I say "we" but it will be Terry, but it feels like we. The cat scan also revealed that Terry has gall stones. We knew that because she has attacks every so often, so the surgeon coordinated with a general surgeon and that will come out first and then the major surgery. We will not know if the tumor is cancerous until they take it out and send it to the lab. She said they do not biopsy tumors of this type for fear of spreading the cancer cells if they are present, but she reminds us again that these type of tumors are slow growers and if there are cancerous cells present in the tumor but nowhere else, the patient typically does not need cemo or radiation. We will be on the fifth floor where I am sure you can point us to a few of your friends. We'll check in at 8:00 Monday morning and do all of the prep. Sounds like she will be out Wednesday afternoon or Thursday. Terry of course wants to watch Western movies while she is in the hospital so she can see horses. TIME TO PRAY EVERYONE!!!! ________________________________________ 7/20/06 PRAYER REQUEST
Many of you know our buddy RICHARD BEACH. He's one of my former youth leaders and was intstrumental in bringing Christ to hundreds in the KC area. He's battling a recurrence of prostate cancer. It looks like he is headed to MD ANDERSON on August 8th for treatment. He is asking for our prayers. Here's some of his words from his Blog:
I received word that I am scheduled for a 1 PM appointment at MCACC on August 8. Marsha and I will fly into Houston on August 7 and plan to spend a week there. Pray for wisdom, the people I will engage with while there and Marsha and her heart as she goes through this battle with me. She is awesome but I know sometimes it is harder on the spouse than the patient. http://web.mac.com/rbeach/iWeb/Site/Welcome.html If you want to send him a note, I'm sure he'd be encouraged. You can do it from his blog. If you can't access it from here, just cut and paste the address above in your browser and hit "GO". Let's lift Rich and Marsha and their family up thru this challenge! Love You Brother.
Still haven't rec'd word on the Dickinson's yet. Will post when I know something. ____________________________________________ 7/17/06 PRAYER REQUEST - Man, it just seems like there are too many of these nowadays….
One of our best buddies of 30 plus years, Dan and Terry Dickinson just found out they need our collective prayers. Dr’s have found a large “cyst” on one of Terry’s ovaries. They, of course, are running tests and examining reports and can’t really tell anything to them yet. But, they are scared! Terry is a Registered Nurse and knows way too much about this stuff.
They had a scare a while back and it turned out to be nothing. We ALL will pray that this too…vanishes in the air like the last scare.
Please lift them up for the next few days…they are on the rollercoaster ride of NOT KNOWING ANYTHING until Thursday (20th). It’s horrible to wait for news like this…and it comes in waves. Let's pray they get "good news" that day! Pray for them PLEASE!!!! Thank all of you for caring.… Ken
P.S. Their daughter, Ann has grown up with Krista and Kellie for 20 plus years and they still are best buds…
________________________________________ 7/14/06- More Good News for Connie. Had her clinic appt. today and she’s making great progress. They are weaning her off her pills at a pretty fast rate. They even talked about taking out her central line. A central line is a tube that is implanted in a major vein in her chest. She’s had one in since we were in the hospital. We have to flush it daily as part of our routine. Anyway, they might be taking that out in a couple of weeks too. Wow.
Other good news was that they are moving her appointments to only once a week. Now, she goes twice and has to wait for a couple hours getting magnesium infusions. They make you hot but aren’t painful. So, they are moving her to oral meds and we’ll see how she does. But each bit of good news is something that makes our hearts glad.
She also thinks that her eyebrows are coming back in. That’s the first sign that her hair might be coming back soon. She’s been complaining that all my hair is growing back and hers is not. But, for now…she’s happy. She just wears her wig out and it looks great.
So…it’s onward and upward. Thanks for checking in.
Prayer Request: Many of you who check in know our friend Richard Beach who has been battling prostate cancer for years. He’s had a recurrence and it looks like he’s headed to MD Anderson in Houston. We need to pray for him and lift him up. He’s been single handedly responsible for hundreds of people finding the Lord here in Kansas City. Now, he heads a ministry called Dulos in Colorado. Pray for Rich and his family. We love you Bro. You can check out Rich’s Blog at :
http://web.mac.com/rbeach/iWeb/Site/Health%20Blog/Health%20Blog.html
P.S. Also, they are having a Praise Worship Service for little Libby Paul because she’s been doing so well with her recovery. If you are in the KC area, please feel free to stop in and give God the glory. It is HE who is doing a great work in that little girl. LIBBY PAULU PRAISE SERVICE The service will be held at Covenant Chapel NEXT FRIDAY NIGHT, JULY 21st at 7:00 p.m. We will spend time worshiping and sharing together as the body of Christ. It will be such a joy to be in one room after this long journey these past few weeks! Covenant Chapel is located at 13300 Kenneth Road in Leawood, KS. From I-435, exit on State Line and head south to 133rd Street. Turn right on 133rd. Their website is www.covenantchapel.com for further information and map, or you can call the church at (913) 663-3095. This service will be casual and family friendly, although childcare is available BY RSVP ONLY for children under 4 if you wish. Please email Amber at amber@covenantchapel.com or call her at (913) 663-3095 x286 and tell her the names and ages of your children who will need childcare so we can be adequately prepared for you. (No RSVP needed for families attending. Come if you can, stay as long as you wish!) Plan to stay for treats afterwards on the playground.
____________________________________________________ 7/11/06 Update: Tuesday
Hi All! Sorry I haven’t updated for a while. It sure is nice to resume to a form of normal busyness, Isn’t it?
Connie just got back from the Clinic and it’s good news again. They are pleased with her counts and are happy with her progress. Although her counts have all dropped a tiny bit, no one seems worried and they are encouraged with her progress. She is healthy and eating right. The CMV virus is not showing any signs of creating problems. Yay. Her Hemoglobin level is also up so, she’s not in danger of needing transfusions. Even her platelets are cooperating! So it was all smiles today.
It’s so nice to have days of “breathing room”. It’s always a bit apprehensive around clinic visits. It’s always scary because the sunny reports could turn on you any time. For now, we are rejoicing in the many blessings we have around here. We both feel we are the luckiest people on the planet with more time to enjoy our girls, our home and our Lord.
Now, HERE’S the REALLY GOOD NEWS….Dr. M. told Connie that she COULD come with us to Estes Park in late July. WOW!!! Connie is not getting too excited yet because she says that each time they give her a bit of freedom…they soon “snatch it away” from her again. But, the fact that he said she could go is amazing. The whole family (plus Jan, our big blonde German Dude exchange student) will all be going out there. Krista is singing in a Christian Singing Competition for the week. We have rented a condo.
So, the plan is for Krista, Kellie and Jan to drive out there in late July. Ken will head to Branson to pick up Maddie from Kanakuk Camp and begin the trek to Colorado. I’ll probably swing by and pick up Connie on the way and we will all rendezvous there at the condo. It should be glorious!!! Jan is coming in all the way from Berlin to be with Connie. It’s a huge gift to us from his family!
Other news, if you’ve been praying for the little girl Libby…way to go! She’s making huge strides and is doing wonderfully. A friend’s Dad thought he had stage IV myleoma…it wasn’t as serious as they anticipated. He’s had his surgery and it went well. Another friend is struggling with a pre-leukemic situation in his blood. We are covering that with prayer as well. He’s seeing Dr. M. as well and no treatment is needed at this time. We thank God for that. Other friends are struggling with alchohol problems in their family…it’s painful but, God is bigger than that problem. We have people on our prayer list from all parts of the country. Don’t forget to get involved with them. They need people who care. People who have eyes to see suffering. Thanks for being ABLE to touch someone.
Love you all…more later. KEN ____________________________________________________ 7/06/06 Update: Good news all around at the clinic. Her counts were all where they should be. Connie is doing really well for now. Yay. I don't have much to report other than Connie is doing some of the fun things that Mothers do during the summer months. I've been like "Mr. Taxicab" and am driving all over town all day long. Some business, but mostly "girl" activities. Only one more month with them and then they go off to school again. Connie will miss them. For now, we are cranking along. All is well...isn't that great to be able to report??? It's nice to be able to breath a little bit. Her next appointment is on Monday. Thanks for checking in on us again. Keep praying for our fellow sufferers. They walk amongst us! Love you all... __________________________________________________________ 7/2/06 Quick Update: From the Homefront
Things are going well. Connie is doing great. She gets tired fast and has to take frequent “rests” but, she’s doing great everyone!
Let’s see…here’s some of the things she’s been doing. She went to Maddie’s swim meet the other nite. We sat in the shade away from all the people but, she got to go! Yay. She’s been shopping with the girls. To the library (where she is right now) and has even been out with girlfriends to eating establishments. Yay again. She wears her wig when in public but it makes her head hot! She doesn’t care. People don’t seem to stare when she has her wig on.
We have another appt. at the clinic on Monday but, things are progressing as planned right now. Her counts were down a bit at the last visit but the doc’s said they expect that because of the CMV virus meds she’s taking. Dr. M. said to expect her counts to go down for a while before they go up. They still are weaning her off some of her meds.
She’s even getting bolder with her docs and asking them for more freedoms. We are going to have an absolutely crazy July! At the end of July, Maddie goes to Kanakuk Sports camp. It’s a one week, furious activity, fun time…where she will be sleeping in a TeePee. The camp is in Branson and she’s totally excited to be going. At the same time, Krista will be heading to Estes Park for a singing competition in the mountains. She and Kellie will be there for a week. Dad and Maddie will be leaving Branson and heading to Colo. and meeting them there. We all will be home the first week in August. It will be wild.
Well, Connie has decided she’s going to try and see if they will let her go with us?! Think they will? We are staying in a condo and it will be safe. The big question is whether she can be away from the doc’s for a week? She’s going to try. AND…AND….we just found out that our sweet exchange student “JAN” ( pronounced YAN) will be coming in from Germany that week as well. He’s going WITH US! Woah…what a riot.
Anyway…much to be thankful for and to be excited about. It’s a typical Cardell summer!!!!
I know this doesn’t sound real crazy to a lot of you. We have friends that pack this much stuff in one week! But for us…it’s amazing. Connie is excited about every day that she has!
Yesterday, all three girls were at home with no immediate plans…it was glorious! We woke up, made breakfast and then just sat and had fun together for about 4 hours. It’s the moments Connie has been fighting for. Just being a MOM around her girls. It was such a sweet time for her. We could have jumped up…ran some errands, and did some normal Saturday stuff…but we didn’t. We stored up some treasure yesterday…in heaven. For all of us!!! It was great!
Thanks for hanging in there with us and for praying us thru our “moments” of fear, crisis and yes, JOY!!! We love you all.
Have a great 4th of July. For us…it will be more time with the girls and friends. Hope the same is true for you all. God Bless America…and all of YOU!
KEN P.S. I told you all Connie would not like the picture I posted last time...she has ordered me to take it down. Since I never listen to her anyway...I'm leaving it up. Is that O.K.? Hopefully, I won't get struck by lightening or anything! ha.... Love you. ME. ;o) _________________________________________________ 6/27/06 Tuesday – NOON Breathing a bit easier today. Busy in activities around the mansion. Connie is doing well and we are planning a couple weeks in advance now. It’s amazing how different each day can look depending on your circumstances, isn’t it??? Anyway, this is just a short one today to say we are doing good. Here’s a picture of Connie taken just a few days ago. She won’t like the picture but, she still looks great to me! She’s on “hair watch” now and is anxious for some of it to begin it’s maiden voyage back on top of her head.
Thanks for hanging in there with us! Ken and Con _______________________________________________ 6/26/06 Monday Update: Good News to report (sort of...)
I never thought I’d be thankful that Connie got a virus…but I am!
Hey all! Well, as you can imagine, we had a tough few days (emotionally). It’s been hard to sleep and we’ve been worried about her sudden drop in counts. Thoughts raced thru our minds about engraftment failure, about organ problems and about the transplant not working.
Well, it appears that there is this virus called CMV that can reek havoc with your counts and Dr. M. thinks that Connie has it. He prescribed this very expensive medicine on Friday and we went and got it. Connie took it over the weekend and Dr. M. wants her to continue. They caught it early and they feel they can control it pretty well and that’s the good news! Not that she has the virus, but that it’s controllable.
Connie and Carla did the clinic visitation today while I was home chewing my nails. They called and gave me the report. Last visit, Connie detected some concerned looks amongst the medical staff. Today, there didn’t seem to be a huge fuss. They did get her results and are convinced that’s what’s causing her counts to drop. Dr. M. said that they probably will do that for a couple weeks and then they bring them back up.
Con mentioned to him that she had voluntarily scaled back on her visitations with friends and hasn’t gone out much. He kinda looked at her and said, “I don’t think you need to do that. Go enjoy yourself!” That’s huge from the always vigilant Dr. M.
I was thinking about God’s Grace and Mercy today as I sat wondering if our lives were going to change again. God has given us “Grace” to make it thru this ordeal and it appears He gives it freely as the crisis arises. People ask me often, “How can you make it thru something like this?” My answer is always the same…"God pulled us thru and carried us when we needed it. It has nothing to do with us.” Mercy is a different thing. Mercy is God showing compassion on us when we deserve far worse.
I’ve often wondered why God’s chosen people suffer as well as the non believers. I currently have about 20 people on my prayer list (all Christians) that are struggling with various forms of disease or illness. Why wouldn’t affliction attach to the wicked people and not the righteous? Have you ever wondered that? ( I know...I'm being bad!) And I have read in scripture that the “rain falls on the just and unjust alike!” I also ask, “Why not us?” Because the scripture also tells us that “All have sinned and fallen short of the Glory of God”. Romans 3:23. How many people do you think are included in ALL??? We are all broken and we don’t deserve favor. Gracefully God gives it however.
As we walk on the precipice of danger…we also trust. It’s not easy but, God is not thru with us yet it appears. We are grateful to God for his compassion (mercy) on us. We are also grateful to you all for petitioning Him on our behalf. We can always feel it!
Looks like we can breathe again for another few days. Thanks for hanging in there with us. Be sure and look around today…there are people hurting all around you. You are ABLE!
Love you. KEN _______________________________________________ 6/23/06 Clinic Update:
Well, we need PRAYER again. |
