Friday, July 4, 2008
Happy 4th of July
Dearest friends, Our hearts are full of praise as we celebrate Independence Day. Not just America's but Erin's. She has felt good today and we just had a lovely family get together. Bill grilled out and we played cards and joker. And did I mention Mom's apple pie? Fun. Our Lord is so awesome in His timing. We have a clinic appt tomorrow morning. Erin may need platelets, we have noticed a few bruises. Then her next appt is wed. She is really hoping to get her central line out soon so she can go swimming. Right now we are just listening to Amanda play guitar and sing. Wow! All is well in the Blonshine house. Hope your holiday was fun as well. Hallelujah!! Thanks for checking in. Your support has been a tremendous boost to us all. Love , janet
Thursday, July 3, 2008
All Is Well
Hi Guys.....it's Bill,
Thanks for all the positive posts....it feels great to be home with the chemo behind us! Erin has been doing really well! She got a good night's sleep and has had a good appetite today. There have been no significant side affects thus far which is a huge praise!! We are on day 10 of this round and based on the previous rounds, the low point usually occurs somewhere around day 12 to 14. We go to the clinic Saturday to get labwork. With her counts headed down, it's possible she may need platelets while we are there. She also received 2 units of blood yesterday before we left the hospital.
Erin has been busy planning our family gathering for the 4th. I think somehow this Independence Day has greater significance for her than in the past!!
While we will be counting all our blessings tomorrow we certainly will be counting all of you among them! Thanks as always and God Bless You.... Bill
Thanks for all the positive posts....it feels great to be home with the chemo behind us! Erin has been doing really well! She got a good night's sleep and has had a good appetite today. There have been no significant side affects thus far which is a huge praise!! We are on day 10 of this round and based on the previous rounds, the low point usually occurs somewhere around day 12 to 14. We go to the clinic Saturday to get labwork. With her counts headed down, it's possible she may need platelets while we are there. She also received 2 units of blood yesterday before we left the hospital.
Erin has been busy planning our family gathering for the 4th. I think somehow this Independence Day has greater significance for her than in the past!!
While we will be counting all our blessings tomorrow we certainly will be counting all of you among them! Thanks as always and God Bless You.... Bill
Wednesday, July 2, 2008
HOME AT LAST!!
Dear Friends, We are done! Erin had her last chemo this afternoon and we are now home Praising God for His faithfulness!! All the nurses hugged her and cried with her as she left today. They said she was their favorite patient. They may say that to all the patients, but I don't think so. They said they had been talking about her and said even when she was at her low points and crying, she was also smiling and being very sweet to all the staff. Oh what a long journey. Erin says she is not over it until she feels better. Blessings on you all for walking this long journey with us. We love you and are grateful for all of you and all the prayers you sent up for Erin. Have a happy 4th of July! Love, janet
Tuesday, July 1, 2008
Halfway Home
Hey Ya'll.....Bill again,
Well, we got started on the chemo about 9:45 pm last night. It was a looonnnnggggg night! Initially, Erin had a severe headache which I think subsided about 11:00 pm after some pain med. The chemo is administered over 3 hours during which they must periodically come in and check her vital signs. Then when the chemo finished at 1:00 am, they started her on two units of blood because her H&H (red cells) were low. So, that was another four hours to complete with periodic checks to make sure she was okay. When the transfusion was complete around 5:00 am, they had to stick her arm to draw blood for labs which she hates. After that things quieted down for a while and she slept pretty much until 8:30 when she had some breakfast before starting the next round of chemo at 9:00 am. As I am writing this she is sleeping soundly which is a good thing. All-in-all, other than constant interruptions through the night, she did pretty well. No nausea and no stomach pain so far! When she completes this morning's round, she will have two more to go spaced 12 hours apart followed by the triple shot L-Asparaginase on Wednesday afternoon. If all goes well, hopefully, we will be headed home around dinner time on Wednesday to recover!
For those of you keeping score, her WBC was .5 yesterday, HGB ws 7.6, and her HCT 22.0. Her plateletes were 82. This is essentially day 8 of 9 for this round. We believe her counts are heading towards the bottom and then it will be a matter of waiting for them to come back up. Since it is a split round, we're not sure what to expect as far as how quickly her numbers will start to bounce back. The doctor told us yesterday that it may take longer this round just because her system has been hit so hard by all the prior rounds. Our prayer is that her counts will recover quickly with minimal side affects during the low cycle so she will have a few relatively good weeks before starting back to work in August. She will also have to be careful not to overdo (which I think will be very hard for her) for several months to really let her system recover from the chemical warfare that has been waged against it for the past 7 months.
As always we thank the Lord that he has blessed us with such an awesome group of prayer warriors to help us make this journey! We have truly felt His presence and yours throughout this process.
Our heartfelt thanks and appreciation go out to all of you.....blessings, Bill
"In that day you will no longer ask me anything. I tell you the truth, my Father will give you whatever you ask in my name. Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, and your joy will be complete. Though I have been speaking figuratively, a time is coming when I will no longer use this kind of language but will tell you plainly about my Father. In that day you will ask in my name. I am not saying that I will ask the Father on your behalf. No, the Father himself loves you because you have loved me and have believed that I came from God. " - John 16:23-27
Well, we got started on the chemo about 9:45 pm last night. It was a looonnnnggggg night! Initially, Erin had a severe headache which I think subsided about 11:00 pm after some pain med. The chemo is administered over 3 hours during which they must periodically come in and check her vital signs. Then when the chemo finished at 1:00 am, they started her on two units of blood because her H&H (red cells) were low. So, that was another four hours to complete with periodic checks to make sure she was okay. When the transfusion was complete around 5:00 am, they had to stick her arm to draw blood for labs which she hates. After that things quieted down for a while and she slept pretty much until 8:30 when she had some breakfast before starting the next round of chemo at 9:00 am. As I am writing this she is sleeping soundly which is a good thing. All-in-all, other than constant interruptions through the night, she did pretty well. No nausea and no stomach pain so far! When she completes this morning's round, she will have two more to go spaced 12 hours apart followed by the triple shot L-Asparaginase on Wednesday afternoon. If all goes well, hopefully, we will be headed home around dinner time on Wednesday to recover!
For those of you keeping score, her WBC was .5 yesterday, HGB ws 7.6, and her HCT 22.0. Her plateletes were 82. This is essentially day 8 of 9 for this round. We believe her counts are heading towards the bottom and then it will be a matter of waiting for them to come back up. Since it is a split round, we're not sure what to expect as far as how quickly her numbers will start to bounce back. The doctor told us yesterday that it may take longer this round just because her system has been hit so hard by all the prior rounds. Our prayer is that her counts will recover quickly with minimal side affects during the low cycle so she will have a few relatively good weeks before starting back to work in August. She will also have to be careful not to overdo (which I think will be very hard for her) for several months to really let her system recover from the chemical warfare that has been waged against it for the past 7 months.
As always we thank the Lord that he has blessed us with such an awesome group of prayer warriors to help us make this journey! We have truly felt His presence and yours throughout this process.
Our heartfelt thanks and appreciation go out to all of you.....blessings, Bill
"In that day you will no longer ask me anything. I tell you the truth, my Father will give you whatever you ask in my name. Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, and your joy will be complete. Though I have been speaking figuratively, a time is coming when I will no longer use this kind of language but will tell you plainly about my Father. In that day you will ask in my name. I am not saying that I will ask the Father on your behalf. No, the Father himself loves you because you have loved me and have believed that I came from God. " - John 16:23-27
Monday, June 30, 2008
Mon 6/30
Hello all, We just got settled in our last room, 604! Yeah! They called about 1:00 and asked us to come in by 3:00. Then, in admissions, they told us how to fast-track the admissions process. We just laughed, only 6 months too late! Oh well, gotta giggle. Erin had a migraine last night at bedtime, but felt a lot better this morning. Now that we are back at Emory, she doesn't feel too good. Anticipation of chemo is no fun. Erin has about 42 more hours of chemo and a few weeks of recovery for her blood counts. Then they said it may be 6 months or more before her energy is back up to normal. Blessings on all you prayer warriors out there keeping the pager buzzing and helping keep Erin's name before the Lord. We are on the final lap, the home stretch, and we are ready to be done. Every step of this journey has been a challenge and a blessing. It may take me years to process all the lessons we have been taught. I sometimes have to chew on things awhile, ya know? I am sure we will draw on this experience for the rest of our lives as we continue to walk in faith. Thank you is such a small way to express ourselves for all you all have done for us! We love you! janet
"I said to the Lord, "You are my Lord; apart from you I have no good thing." As for the saints who are in the land, they are the glorious ones in whom is all my delight." Psalm 16:2-3
"I said to the Lord, "You are my Lord; apart from you I have no good thing." As for the saints who are in the land, they are the glorious ones in whom is all my delight." Psalm 16:2-3
Sunday, June 29, 2008
Sunday 6/29
Greetings Friends.....it's Bill,
Erin continued to feel pretty well yesterday evening and today. She is done with her antibiotics and her stomach has not been hurting. Coincidence?....I think not. Betsy, one of Laura's new roommates visited and the girls played cards and watched movies in the afternoon. With Janet working, I'm getting to brush up on my cooking skills. So far, so good...no nausea that I am aware of! The girls asked me to make porcupine meatballs for dinner, which we had not made since they were little. They said that they were just like they remembered and they loved them. Amanda and Kyle stopped by just as we were finishing dinner and they had some as well. It was fun to just hang out and talk for a while.
Erin walked on the treadmill for a little while today. I think she gets tired pretty quickly these days. The doctor's told us that it will be six months after she completes chemo before she will have her normal energy levels back.
Please pray that we can get back in the hospital tomorrow and get on with finishing up the chemo. We checked today and they said they have five people waiting to get in and it is possible that Erin could get out-prioritized for a room. If we get in tomorrow, we should be finished by Wednesday and hopefully back home!
Well, you guys know the drill....please keep the prayers rolling as we know God hears and responds!
Blessings......Bill
"Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective. " - James 5:16
Erin continued to feel pretty well yesterday evening and today. She is done with her antibiotics and her stomach has not been hurting. Coincidence?....I think not. Betsy, one of Laura's new roommates visited and the girls played cards and watched movies in the afternoon. With Janet working, I'm getting to brush up on my cooking skills. So far, so good...no nausea that I am aware of! The girls asked me to make porcupine meatballs for dinner, which we had not made since they were little. They said that they were just like they remembered and they loved them. Amanda and Kyle stopped by just as we were finishing dinner and they had some as well. It was fun to just hang out and talk for a while.
Erin walked on the treadmill for a little while today. I think she gets tired pretty quickly these days. The doctor's told us that it will be six months after she completes chemo before she will have her normal energy levels back.
Please pray that we can get back in the hospital tomorrow and get on with finishing up the chemo. We checked today and they said they have five people waiting to get in and it is possible that Erin could get out-prioritized for a room. If we get in tomorrow, we should be finished by Wednesday and hopefully back home!
Well, you guys know the drill....please keep the prayers rolling as we know God hears and responds!
Blessings......Bill
"Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective. " - James 5:16
Saturday, June 28, 2008
A Good Day
Hey Y'all.....Bill again,
Erin felt pretty good today....slept in, had a good appetite and was able to hang out and play games. I can tell when she's feeling better 'cause she gets her feistiness back. Janet is working this weekend and we gave the "committee for wellness" (Janet's mom and sister) the day off. So, Laura and I were in charge for the day and I am happy to report that I think we did a respectable job....and Janet only called three times to check on us :))
Not much else to report today. Thanks for checking in with us and for all the prayer support. Hopefully, Erin will continue to feel well until we go back to the hospital on Monday and the second part of this round will not be as harsh as the first.
Blessings.... Bill
"Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness. " - Matthew 9:35
Erin felt pretty good today....slept in, had a good appetite and was able to hang out and play games. I can tell when she's feeling better 'cause she gets her feistiness back. Janet is working this weekend and we gave the "committee for wellness" (Janet's mom and sister) the day off. So, Laura and I were in charge for the day and I am happy to report that I think we did a respectable job....and Janet only called three times to check on us :))
Not much else to report today. Thanks for checking in with us and for all the prayer support. Hopefully, Erin will continue to feel well until we go back to the hospital on Monday and the second part of this round will not be as harsh as the first.
Blessings.... Bill
"Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness. " - Matthew 9:35