A Happy Birthday

Yesterday we celebrated Jerry's Birthday. He had a great day with phone calls from family and friends, cards,  and all the Happy Birthday posts on Facebook. Neal and his family were able to come over for a little while. That really lifted his spirits. Our apartment was full of a lot of life.

Jerry still has to be so careful being around a lot of people. The clinic said Neal and his family could be here, but Jerry had to wear a mask while they were here. And he wasn't able to hold little Brylee or give hugs and kisses to Kyla and Hayden.

We are still just taking each day as it comes, watching blood counts and waiting. The clinic said Jerry is still in a dangerous stage with the transplant. That is why we have to live so close to the clinic and the hospital. But we thank God everyday for His love and grace to us - the way God has kept us safe and Jerry doing as well as he is.

We know it's all the prayers. 

We love you!!!

Happy Valentine's Day

Today we are celebrating our 47th Valentine Day.
Happy Valentine's Day to my husband.

I Love You!!!

A Good Report

As we went to the clinic today, both of us were feeling extra anxious. Jerry's counts had been going down and both of us had felt a little discouraged.

Our life consists of clinic visits, keeping track of blood counts, and 30 different pills each day that they keep adding to or adjusting the dosage.

Today we received a good report. They said Jerry was right on target. They had increased the dosage on one of his pills and it was causing his counts go down. Both of us were so relieved and thankful.

We have a good God who loves us and answers prayers. Thank you for your faithfulness in praying for us. We are getting anxious to get back home to Greenville.

We love you!! 

Our First Valentine

In a couple of days will be Valentine's Day. A day we renew our love to one another with jewelry, flowers, candy, a romantic dinner, and cards. It's a day that accentuates love more than any other day unless it's your wedding anniversary.

I still have every Valentine Card that I received from Jerry. And that's a lot of cards. I still remember our first Valentine. He bought me a heart shaped box of chocolates. As a teenager infatuated with just the feeling of being in love, it was the best Valentine ever.

Through the years there's been more boxes of candy, flowers, and gifts, but what I always wanted most on that day was to know that the romance and love was still there.

“Our First Valentine”

It was many years ago

We shared that first Valentine.

With a heart box full of candy

And a card that read “Be Mine.”

We held each other’s hands

And each said “I Love You”!

And with each passing day

The stronger our love grew.

We shared many Valentines

Throughout the many years

Through all the good and bad

With laughter and with tears.

And though that first Valentine

Is a memory from the past.

Every Valentine Day and card

Shows a love that will always last.

-Patricia Rice

Ephesians 5:33

Nevertheless let every one of you in particular
so love his wife even as himself;

and the wife see that she reverence her husband.

Happy Valentine's Day!!!

One More Day

Things have been pretty quiet the last couple of days. We are off from the clinic today. They are trying to arrange it so we just have to go on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. That would be great. Jerry's white blood count was up to 4.4 and then it dropped back to 4.1. We want it to keep going up. That can be a little discouraging, even though they tell us that is normal.

All this free time, we get a little lonely and nostalgic. We miss family and friends. We are going to be so excited when we are able to be around people again.

Our neighbor that lives above us came down and introduced himself. We kept hearing a lot of thumps and noise from upstairs and he said they have two small children. He told us if they got too loud, to please let him know. I told him the sound didn't bother us. We raised four boys. How I miss that sound of thumping, fighting, and excitement.

We miss our boys being little sometimes. But our hearts are full of  so many memories. From the first time I felt that little flutter of movement inside my body from that new little life until now. Our boys have given  us so much happiness and fulfillment. I think about that  bouquet of dandelions they gave me. It was  more beautiful than any bouquet of roses I would ever receive and those little arms around my neck were more precious than any necklace I would ever wear.

I wish I had  never said the words "Now now, I don't have time" to them. No matter what they needed or wanted me to see, I would take the time. That time will never come again.

They are grown now and we love watching them raise their own children. But still sometimes it would be great if we could go back and just have one more to enjoy  them being little.

“One More Day”

The years have passed so swiftly

   And our children have all grown.

They’ve all become young men

   Planning families of their own.

As I look upon them

   I wish there was a way

That I could go back

   And have just one more day.

One more day to hear their laughter

   And listen to their dreams.

To play their many games

   And hear of all their schemes.

I’d love them and I’d hold them

   As only a parent could.

I’d cherish every moment

   And weigh my every word.

And when the day was ended

   In my heart they’d always stay.

If only I could go back

   And have just one more day.

-by Patricia Rice

The best thing about them being grown  is being blessed with 11 wonderful grand children to love.

The Battle Is Still Raging

"Victory is won not in miles but in inches. Win a little now,

hold your ground, and later, win a little more."

Louis L'Amour

My Dad loved war movies. Growing up in the late 40's and 50's, I probably watched every war movie produced. Some of my heroes were  John Wayne and Audie Murphy. I remember watching all the battles between the good guys and the bad guys.

Jerry's body in still in a battle - between the good cells and the bad cells.  We received the report of his peripheral blood smear today. One part of the test showed that Jerry's cells were 98% of his brother's cells. The other part of the test showed that 62% were his brothers cells and 38% were still Jerry's. They are wanting 100% of his cells to be his brother's cells.

We were not discouraged, but we know the battle isn't won yet. The good guys have not destroyed the bad guys yet. This was day 39 of the transplant. On day 60 they will do another peripheral blood smear to see how the cells have progressed.  So please continue to pray that the good guys will win.

The greatest news they gave us today is that there is no sign of leukemia.

 It is so amazing how God made our bodies and how He had a purpose for each part. Listening to the nurse practioner explain it all made us think of this verse from Psalms.

Psalm 139:14

I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made:
marvellous are thy works;  and that my soul knoweth right well.

Communication

What a marvelous world of technology we live in.  When I was born, there were still people who didn't even have telephones. If you wanted to get hold of somebody you went over to their house or you wrote letters. I know writing letters is a lost art. I still have letters my Grandma and Great Grandma wrote to me. They are part of my treasures.
                                            

Also when we were growing up we had party lines. Now that was fun. If you didn't have anything to do, you could always pick up the phone line and listen in on your neighbor's conversations. We found out some pretty interesting stuff.

The phones were rotary phones. Then they went to push buttons and cordless phones. We called them walk around phones, because you could walk all around your house while you were talking to someone.

Now we have so many different ways of communicating. We can text, email, skye, and facetime where you can actually see the people you are talking to. Also you  can just tell the phone who you want to talk to and the phone dials them for you. And we love it. We can call our sons and grandkids anytime and actually see them while we are talking to them.

I think about all this technology, but isn't it great that we can still communicate with God the old fashion way called PRAYER. I don't have to have WiFi, or enough bars on my phone or micro cells, or phone towers. All I need is a humble heart.

And the best thing is that my prayers are never forwarded to His voice mail. They go straight through to Him and I don't have to worry about my call to Him being dropped.

I'm so thankful for prayer and for a God that listens.

We are very anxious about Monday. We'll hear the results of the peripheral blood smear. We feel that it's going to be good results. It will tell us how well the transplant is grafting and if there are any leukemia cells. Please be praying with us about Monday.

We love you!

Psalm 66:20

Blessed be God, which hath not turned away my prayer,
 nor his mercy from me.