February 26, 2008

Hey Everyone,

Joe had his third and final chemo treatment today. He sat up in the chair and let me take a picture of him to put on the blog. He has not been feeling very well this past week. The last report that I gave was on 2/21 and he had felt better for a couple of days. He has been sleeping more which is normal - but in asking the doctor the cancer would also make him sleep more. She set up an appointment for a CT scan on March 10th (the day after the "Passing on the Blessing" run) to see if the chemo has had any affect on the cancer. Joe is having a skin reaction to one of the chemo drugs they are giving him right now but he is at his limit on that drug anyway (along with the other chemo drug the are giving him) so they will have to change the drugs if they proceed with any further treatments.

He is still getting confused and forgetting things, he has lost more of his hearing, the ringing in his ears is awful, he has sores in his mouth that make it uncomfortable to eat, etc. With that being said the doctor hopes with all the side effects Joe is experiencing the chemo is working or is it really beneficial to put him through this. He is sleeping the majority of the day now so we need to PRAY-PRAY-PRAY-the chemo is doing what is suppose to do.

If you have not heard about the event "Passing on the Blessings" in honor of Joe - here is the information:Here is a link to the registration form (thanks Paul!) http://www.40dayblog.com/5k-run/5k-run.pdfThe forms are also located at Bob's Bikes, Trak Shak, Mountaintop Community Church, and Kids Closet. The 5K/1mile fun Run/Walk will be on Sunday, March 9th at 2:00 @Veteran's Park (in front of Spain Park High School).

Dr. Bill Elder interviewed him for the service this past Sunday. If you did not get a chance to see it you can view the service March 3rd - March 8th at http://www.mountaintopchurch.com/ - click the top right corner to be able to view on the Internet.

God Bless,

Crystal

"We can do all things through Christ who gives us strength" Philippians 4:13

February 21, 2008

Hey Everyone,

Just a quick update on Joe - He is finally feeling better from the last treatment. He still takes the increased medicine but the nausea has went away for now. He will have his last treatment for chemo on Tuesday 2/26. He still has a few hairs in his mustache but they are getting really thin. He did a tape today for church - Bill interviewed him for the service this Sunday. If your not in town you can view the service at http://www.mountaintopchurch.com/ - click the top right corner to be able to view on the Internet.

If you have not heard about the event "Passing on the Blessings" in honor of Joe - here is the information:

Here is a link to the registration form (thanks Paul!) http://www.40dayblog.com/5k-run/5k-run.pdf The forms are also located at Bob's Bikes, Trak Shak, Mountaintop Community Church, and Kids Closet. The 5K/1mile fun Run/Walk will be on Sunday, March 9th at 2:00 @Veteran's Park (in front of Spain Park High School).

God is just working overtime for this event - it is going to be awesome and you don't want to miss it. For everyone that did not attend the bonfire on New Years Eve you missed such an awesome time. People are still taking about that night so you don't want to miss this one!

God Bless,
Crystal

"I tell you the truth, when you refused to help the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were refusing to help me." Matthew 25:45

February 12, 2008

Hey Everyone,

I wanted to give you an update since Joe's last chemo treatment on February 6th. He has not been feeling very well the last couple of days and went to bed tonight at 7:00pm. He was up at 3:00am this morning walking around and woke the kids up for school. I told the kids to go back to bed because it wasn't time to get up yet. His throat and chest hurt tonight along with a headache. He started vomiting today and has slept quite a bit. Since January 22nd his pain medicine has trippled in dosage and the anti nausea medicine was working.

We are entering another phase that we will have to work through and I know that we can do it! He is strong and they have not wiped the smile off his face yet. God is GOOD!

The event I told you about a couple of weeks ago has been finalized. I have not been able to attach a copy of the form to this blog but if you send an email to me at crystallent@peoplepc.com I will send you a registration form back. The forms are also located at Bob's Bikes, Trak Shak, Mountaintop Community Church, and Kids Closet.

The 5K/1mile fun Run/Walk will be on Sunday, March 9th at 2:00 @Veteran's Park (in front of Spain Park High School). The event is called "Passing on the Blessings" in honor of Joe. When I told Joe many years ago that time is something we can all give that does not cost us anything, he took it to heart. Joe has such a heart for helping others that you just can't wait to pass your blessing on to the next person. We hope to see you there!

Please let me know if you have any questions.

God Bless,
Crystal