Wow, it's been a month since I've updated my blog....

and so much has happened! Christmas has come and gone, another year is almost finished. I can't wait for 2010, I am hoping it is sooooo much better than 2009 was!


We had a snow storm on the 18th-19th of December and unfortunately no one but the Foster's made it to our family Christmas party. My brother Buddy and Daniall flew in from LA but were stuck in at Mom & Dad's house as the snow was drifting. You know it's bad when you get stuck in the street in front of your own house!




If you don't recognize the two snowbirds on the right, that's Hillary and Dani mooning in the snow......it was too cold to pull the snow suits down but you get the idea.....LOL


The Foster's showed up for the family party the 19th, they didn't let a few snowflakes stop the party! Of course it helps if you live next door and can walk over!




BJ and Burt spent a Friday night/Saturday afternoon in December making meat pies. They taste delicious!




Christmas morning we all got to sleep in, we didn't get up until around 8:30. No little ones here.
Lots of gifts to open. Burt got a new Dallas Cowboy's jacket. Dani got her UGG boots. Adrian got the Blackberry she'd been asking for. Anna got a new KitchenAid mixer. And I got a new camera! All in all it was a very nice Christmas.





I got some scrappy supplies for Christmas from Anna and got a chance to sit down and scrap last night. Got another 2 page layout being made and hope to get it finished sometime today!



We did get a chance to catch up with some family members from New Jersey and New York when they stopped by on their way home from Longwood Gardens. It is nice to see everyone and catch up with them.

Here's hoping that you all have a Happy New Year this weekend! Jeff's birthday is Friday so we're starting the New Year off with a party! Stay safe everyone!

Vote for Kari!!

I entered Anna's husky in the Hallmark Christmas Dog contest! Please visit the website and vote for her!

http://www.hhofdogcontest.com/

Scroll down to Cast your Vote and click on that link. Do a search for Sakara and then please vote for her! You can enter a vote every day until 12/15/09! The grand prize is $1,000 which we'd like to give to the local dog park!!

Here's the picture I entered, taken by Anna two years ago.....

Ain't she a beauty? We love her and Alleyah! Thanks for your votes! Don't forget to watch the Hallmark movie Sunday night 11/29 "A Dog Named Christmas"......

It's a struggle to get this under control

Burt's sugar dropped suddenly last Friday while he was driving, he hit a tree and totalled the pickup. Luckily he was not hurt badly. He does not remember what happened. Last thing he remembers he was at McDonald's eating lunch. At today's doctor's visit they discovered a blood clot in his right arm. Whether it's from the chemo, the accident, or what they don't know. We go back Monday to see if it's still there, he may have to have the chemo port removed.

Here's hoping everything goes ok and it's gone by Monday.

Back to the chemo chair again....

Today is Burt's first day back in the chemo chair after three weeks off. The drug Gemzar, one hour once a week for 4 months. Three weeks on, one week off. Hopefully it'll all be done by mid-February. He needs to take it easy and not tire himself out. Especially with all the germs going around now. Why won't that man get a flu shot like everyone else???

Visit with the oncologist....

Visit went well! CT scan looks good, does not look like cancer has spread! Now Burt starts chemo again, the Gemzar, for four months. One day a week for one hour. Three weeks on, one week off. If all goes well he should be done by mid-February. Something to look forward to!

Radiation is done and over with!

Burt had his last radiation treatment this morning! The infusion pump with the chemo bag was removed yesterday. I think he had his first really good sleep last night! No more wearing the pump and carrying it everywhere. Whew!

Now we have three weeks off before starting the next round of chemo. He has to get a CT scan and a complete blood workup before that will start. Mean while, we will savor the freedom of no doctor's visits, no treatments......time to celebrate!

A cause for celebration!

Burt celebrated his 62nd birthday Saturday! We all went down to the SkipJack Cove for dinner. We were supposed to eat outside on the porch but of course, the weather would not cooperate, gave us a little rain showers. The old man looks good, huh? He's now officially a Senior Citizen! We forgot to ask for a 10% (senior citizen) discount on the meal.....

The kids all went together and got their father a CD collection of Oldies but Goodies, so when we got back to the house it was dance time!

A great day for everyone, wish those days happened more often, but when they do happen, we cherish them!

On a more serious note, tomorrow (Wednesday) Burt get's the last bag of chemo for the infusion pump! He has to wear it until next Wednesday and then no more pump! Radiation will end October 8th so we will have a real cause for celebration next week! He has two weeks off and then starts another round of chemotherapy, one hour once a week for three weeks and off a week. We repeat that one more time and hopefully....hopefully we will be finished with all this!!

An unwanted change....

Well, I guess it was bound to happen sooner rather than later. Taking the radiation and chemo, Burt's sugar is now sorta out of control again. Dr. S today told him he needs to take shots of insulin to keep his sugar under control. So depressing. We have all the stuff.... pen, needles, vials of insulin, but haven't used it yet. I wish he had to do the first one at the doctor's office. They just told him how to do it and how much to use and sent him home. I am not much help, don't like needles any more than he does but I guess I'm going to have to learn how to give the shots in case he can't do it himself at some time....

He's supposed to give himself the shots in the stomach, but there's not much fat there so he may have to use the thigh. Can't use the arm because of too many veins. The needles are not long, maybe 1/2 an inch.

Tomorrow is day 14 of the radiation so he's half way through. Only 14 more days to go if everything goes ok. Once he's done radiation, he'll have two weeks off, no bag, no pump, no chemo, no nothing. I really think he's looking forward to that!

First week is almost over

Burt is tolerating the radiation and chemo well. Since the insurance company didn't approve the pill form of chemo he's using an infusion pack for 6 weeks. It's a little pump he carries around in a fanny pack that feeds a continuous stream of the chemo drug to his chest port (like a mini IV). It's a hassle to have it on all the time, I was not sure how we were going to get him comfortable for bed last night. At the last moment, I brought a chair upstairs and we hung the pack on the back of the chair so he would not have to have it on the bed all night. The tubing is quite long and I did not want to get tangled up in that during the night! Or pull it out accidently!

The doctor's office decided that he will wear this 24/7 for the whole 6 weeks, no weekends off. The radiation he has during the week, none on the weekends.

So he's got 4 days of radiation under his belt, only 24 more to go!

Warning, tough times ahead....

Burt has now finished the second round of his chemo treatments and is getting ready to use the "big guns" for the next 6 weeks......chemo and radiation at the same time. The radiation itself will only take a few minutes every day (Monday through Friday) but the chemo is going to have some risks and side effects. Right now we are waiting for the insurance company to call us, they do not want to pay for the chemo in pill form (Xeloda), they want him to use 5FU through a personal IV through his port 24/hours/day 5 days a week. He will carry the pump in a little pouch around his waist that will contain the liquid chemo, which will move through a flexible tube to a catheter in his chest port. He can remove that for the weekend but has to have it put back in every Monday when he goes in for radiation. The insurance company wants him to use that instead of paying for the pills, which are probably a lot more expensive....

They told us of the side effects of this type of chemo, blisters and cracking skin on the bottom of your feet and hands, nausea, diarrhea, fatigue, hair loss, mouth sores.....the list goes on and on. It almost makes you want to say STOP! But Burt tolerated the first chemo drug, Gemzar, quite well, he did not have many of the side effects associated with that, so hopefully he will tolerate this as well. Only time will tell. He was sick last night just thinking about all this, I have to say I admire the man. He's tough. If it were me I'd be curled up in a ball somewhere bawling my eyes out and feeling sorry for myself. I gotta give him a lot of credit, he picks himself back up and keeps going no matter what. That's why I love this guy!

Thanks to all of your who have included Burt and our family in your daily prayers, keep 'em coming! They are working and we just have to get through this rough patch (the next 6 weeks). After this round of treatment is over, he will have a two week break before resuming the last two rounds of Gemzar treatment. By Christmas hopefully this will all be a distant memory.

Scrapping is therapeutic...

At least I think so. I have held onto this ultrasound that we got the 1st of May, this is the actual picture of that tumor that's caused all this trouble for the last 4 months. It's hard to believe that such a little thing can cause so much pain and suffering.

I am scrapping again! Sure feels good!

After months of not scrapping I finally started again! They are having a crop over at ScrapAttack Scrapbooking website and I did a couple of their challenges! What do ya think?

Here's one I scraplifted from Peggy (Favorite Grandma)

Here's one of my Dad, he was honored earlier this year for having 50 years of service to our local Fire Company in Chesapeake City.

And here's one of my cousin's daughter Kayla and her bridal shower held this past May. Hopefully I can keep this scrapping fever going and get some more layouts done this weekend. It's supposed to rain so what a better thing to do than stay upstairs and scrap?

More wedding photos!!

Mr & Mrs Jeff Tichnell!


Mr & Mrs Robert Fauvelle


Brad & Danielle


Sisters!


Heather & Dani

Photos Courtesy of Heather Estep and Chris....

Photo of Burt and Anna sent to me by cousin Patty....

What a wedding!

I can't believe it's all over.....what a wonderful day! After a week of rain with thunderstorms Friday night just before the rehearsal, the sun decided to shine for us on Saturday. It was warm, not too hot. Anna was a beautiful bride and Jeff was so handsome in his tuxedo. I am sorry I do not have too many pictures, being the mother of the bride I was too busy and the time just flew by. Friends have taken many photos and as soon as I can get my hands on them I will be posting them here!

The reception was held at the Kitty Knight House and after that the party really started at our house. We went on until the sun went down and then some.
They are now on their honeymoon and I hope they are relaxing because they certainly deserve it!

What a weekend!

This past weekend was very busy for us, as friends and family took time to share fun times with us. On Friday, Mike took Burt, BJ and neighbor Terry to an Ironbirds game in Aberdeen at the Cal Ripkin ball park. Although it rained they still had a good time. BJ was called down on the field to participate in some games, and came in second! I think Burt really had a good time because he was exhausted when he got home!

Saturday afternoon friends we haven't seen for a long time stopped in to visit, Sam and Sammy Keenan from Florida and Grace Keenan from Wilmington. I did not know this but she is a fellow colleague at UD! She works for the Physical Therapy department in McKinley Hall. We've been friends with the Keenan's since the kids were little and are sorry that they moved so far away.

Saturday was spent getting ready for Anna's bachelorette party, the girls all converged on the house and set up the pool for a luau. When Anna arrived they took her out to the Melting Pot for dinner in Wilmington, they loved it! Especially the cheese and the desserts! Here's a photo I took of all the girls before they left....

Today Sunday has been a day of rest, cleaning up after everything. Dani and Brad are lounging in the pool while Burt is napping in the garage. Me, I'm keeping busy doing all the stuff that has to be done around here, don't forget the wedding is two weeks away! Hopefully the weather will co-operate and we'll have some awesome weather like we've been having this summer so far!

Tuesday, July 14th

Last chemo treatment for the first round today! He has two weeks off until we start the second round. We were in and out in an hour. I picked up Anna's wedding dress and Dani's maid of honor dress and have them safely home. The weather is absolutely beautiful for July, cool in the mornings (60's) and just warm enough in the afternoon that we don't have to have the AC on!

By the way, I did find a dress for the wedding, so that's one more thing to cross off my list. I wonder if Anna will let me bring my camera to the wedding?

Sunday, July 11th

Well, my baby is now officially 21 years of age! Burt took Danielle and Anna Renee to the Tap Room for their birthdays, as Anna will be on her honeymoon when her birthday rolls around August 15th. The waitress was kind enough to take a picture.....My how time flies!

Burt has one more chemo treatment and then he's off for two weeks in preparation for the wedding. He has been having trouble falling asleep and then staying asleep. His next round of chemo starts right after the wedding, August 3rd. We are all looking forward to this wedding, it will be fun to see all our family and friends for a fun and exciting event!

Here's a photo of them with the waitress.....

Wednesday, July 8

Wow, today is 07-08-09! I didn't realize that until I saw it on the news tonight. Just after lunch the time was
12:34:56/7-8-09! LOL

Today Dani went with her Dad to see Dr. K, who is going to supervise his radiation treatments. They decided to give him two weeks off after his next chemo treatment so he will be feeling good for Anna's wedding on the 1st. He has one more treatment Tuesday, then the two weeks off and resumes chemo on August 3rd. Three treatments in August and then a week off. He will start radiation August 28th, every day for 28 treatments (weekdays). They are not going to give him the oral chemo, they will keep doing the port chemo once a week. So he will have that while undergoing the radiation. He may be done with it all by Thanksgiving.....

The doctor also said that Burt's chances are really good, most people who have pancreatic cancer and do the surgery and follow up are given a five year prognosis. But because his tumor was encapsulated (even though the margins were not clear) and it looks like it had not spread to the liver or gall bladder, he may be one of those few survivors whose cancer does not come back. That's why it's important that he do the chemo and radiation, to kill any of those cancer cells that might be floating around somewhere.

On a much lighter note, my BABY will be turning 21 Friday! Can you believe it??

Tuesday, July 7th

Round 2 of the chemo treatment. Seems to go well, he's in and out in an hour and a half. We will see if this round hits him on Thursday and makes him tired again. Tomorrow we go see the radiation doctor, he will explain what we are going to do after these two months of chemo are over. I am learning so much about the treatment of cancer. It's never ceases to amaze me how many people around here have cancer. The disease does not discriminate, it's can hit anyone. No one is safe from it.

Anna's wedding is fast approaching! Only 25 more days! I really, REALLY need to go find a dress to wear! I was going to go shopping today after Burt's chemo treatment, but ended up cleaning the pool. With all the rain we've had lately we have some algae growing on the sides.....so I shocked the heck out of it and got in with the vacuum. Sure did get my exercise today.....

I have to go to work tomorrow so I can rest a little......:-)

I think the chemo kicked in today.....

as Burt could hardly get out of bed. He had a doctor's appointment with the surgeon this morning at 9:30 and it took forever for him to get up and get ready. After we went to the doctor we were going to stop at the store and get him some new T-shirts, but he was too tired. So we came back home and he fell asleep on the couch. Slept there all morning, had a small lunch and then went upstairs to lay down. Slept all afternoon!! I finally managed to get him up around 5:30 to eat some dinner. Told him not to go back to sleep for fear he won't be able to sleep tonight.

The doctor had told us that fatigue might be one of the side effects of the chemo. I guess it's one we can live with. It's a whole lot better than some of the others!

Tuesday, June 30th, first chemo treatment....

It went well today, Burt was nervous but really hasn't had a reaction to the treatment. He is tired, but that seems to be the norm for him nowadays. He winced when they used the port for the first time, so we got a prescription for a cream to put on his skin an hour before the next treatment. It will numb the skin so he doesn't feel the needle going in....

Tomorrow it's one month until Anna and Jeff's wedding! Yikes! I better start looking for a dress to wear soon!

Thursday June 25th

The CT scan results came back pretty positive, there is no sign of cancer anywhere else in the chest or abdomen! He is feeling better now, bandages are off the port. We went to talk to a chemo nurse practitioner yesterday and she explained the side effects and what might happen. He probably won't lose his hair but will most likely be fatigued. First chemo treatment is Tuesday June 30th. He will take Gemzar for one hour. We are not looking forward to it but know that it's necessary. He is moving around a lot better now and doing things around the house. Here's hoping for a quiet weekend coming up.

I can't believe Michael Jackson died today! Burt met him the one time when they set the Falling Star ride up on his Neverland Ranch. Always thought he was "different", but 50 is awful young to die! I expected the news about Farrah Fawcett, after watching her cancer documentary I am surprised that she held on as long as she did. I hope both rest in peace.

Tuesday, June 23rd

I hope everyone had a Happy Father's Day Sunday. BJ barbecued some sausage that Anna bought from Joppa Saturday and it was delish! Burt sold his Mustang convertible so he went out and bought himself a gas grill, he says it takes too long to barbecue now with the charcoal. We had a nice weekend with family and friends.

Yesterday it was back to the hospital out patient surgery to get the chemo port put in. It's just like his pacemaker, under the skin. He has been sleeping much better lately but last night was tough cause he can't sleep on that side for two days. I had to wake him up a couple times to get him to turn over, the port is in the upper right chest and he usually sleeps on his right side. He's getting tired of all the needle pricks and IV's and the waiting, waiting, waiting that comes with hospitals and doctors visits. It's a part of our lives now, no getting around it.

They weighed him at the hospital. In his birthday suit he weighs all of 132 pounds. He's never been that thin in the 27 years we've been married. (Well, you can't blame it on my cooking skills...)

Today it was back to the MRI place to get a CT scan of the chest and abdomen to see if the cancer has spread. More IV's and yucky stuff to drink. After it was over, we went home to let the dog out and then over to the Tap Room for lunch. That was nice! Now he's beat and is sleeping on the couch with the dog....

The oncologist visit....

Today we went to see Dr. V, he removed the feeding tube, so now he's "tube-free", nothing hooked up to the abdomen anymore. He's happy, maybe now he can sleep comfortably at nighttime (and me too). Dr. V is happy with his progress, he hasn't lost anymore weight and wants to see him again in two weeks.

Then we went downstairs to see the oncologist for the first time. It seems that the margins of the tumor were not clear, they showed signs of dysplasia. Dysplasia is pre-cancerous cells. The cancer cells in the tumor itself were very aggressive cancer cells. There is a 70-90% chance that they will come back. So we are going to treat it with chemotherapy and radiation.

Monday he is going to have a "port" put in his chest, that will allow them to do the chemotherapy without using an IV and looking for a viable vein every week. Then Tuesday he will have a CT scan of the abdomen and chest just to verify that the cancer was removed and has not migrated anywhere else. Wednesday we meet with the nurse practioner to go over his chemo protocols. He will be receiving chemo 1 day a week for three hours. He will do that for two months, three weeks with chemo and then a week off. Three weeks with chemo and then a week off. After that session is done, he will start radiation and chemo. Radiation will be every day and the chemo will be by pill. Two months of that and then we repeat the first month of chemo only.

It makes me tired just to think of it.

The oncologist told Burt he has to stay active, he has to try to eat more and gain some weight. The pain from the surgery is diminishing and hopefully if this new prescription we got today for insomnia works he will be more rested when he wakes in the morning. His sugar levels have been great, he is pretty much eating what he wants, three meals a day. I try to get him to snack and he won't, says he isn't hungry. I am hoping his appetite returns soon.

Dr. Oncologist says he has a good chance to survive this. With the grace of God he will.

Sunday, June 14th

Happy Flag Day!

Things are starting to get a little more normal around here, Burt is up and doing things (but no lifting) around the house. The only pain he's having right now is his neck, he wakes up during the night complaining his neck hurts. So I rub it with Ben Gay or get the heating pad out. He seems to be sleeping a little better, not getting a full 8 hour stretch of sleep but maybe 4 hours at a time.

We go back to Dr. V. Thursday morning, he may take the feeding tube out, we don't know. He will also check to see that his staph infection is going away. Then we go meet an oncologist, who will let us know what we have to expect next (chemotherapy, radiation, whatever). I think once we get that squared away we will feel better knowing what to expect in the upcoming weeks.

BJ and Adrian spent the weekend in Ocean City, it's the annual Volunteer Fireman's convention and Miss Fire Prevention pageant. Anna and Jeff just bought a new car! Another Ford Explorer, my favorite color, Candy Apple Red! Dani is hanging out with Brad's family this weekend as his sister just had a new baby Wednesday and his Dad flew in from Dallas for a few days. So it's just been the two of us here (and the pup) today and what a restful day it's been.

Thursday, June 11th

Burt says he had a good night's sleep last night. I know he was up several times but he doesn't remember! So he felt rested this morning, but not me! LOL This Ambien evidently makes your mind think you're sleeping when you're actually sleepwalking around!

Back to Dr. V. today, he removed the second drain. Now he only has the feeeding tube in the abdomen. Not using it but it's there just in case. He did not say when they would remove that. His blood work came back that he has a staph (MSRA) infection. Dr. V. thinks it is in the nose from the stomach pump. So have a cream to put on that. The pharmacy is making a ton of money off us this year.....:-)

Biopsy report back from Johns Hopkins, there were cancer cells near the margin of the tumor but just a few (from what I understand). Will know more when we visit the oncologist next Thursday.

Off to the airport to pick up Mom and Dad!

Wednesday, June 10

A good day today, Burt seemed to feel quite a bit better. He's still not sleeping at night so we went to the family doctor to see what he said. He gave us a prescription for sleeping aid, so we will try it tonite, see if we can't get a good night's sleep. I need it just as much as he does!

Anna went home today after spending three days with us. I most certainly will miss her, she helped so much with her Dad. Mom and Dad come home tomorrow, I hope they had a good time visiting my brother and his family.

Monday, June 8th

Took Burt back to the surgeon today, over the weekend he was running a slight fever and the drainage tube sites seemed to be getting red and warm. His blood pressure was low, due to the pain meds he's taking. Dr. V. said he was doing very well, medical-wise. They removed half of the staples and one of the drainage tubes, which Burt said really hurt. Sent Burt across the hall to get a couple blood tests, he's awful pale. We go back to see Dr. V. Thursday and then meet with the oncologist to see if follow up cancer care is needed. Hopefully by Thursday we'll have the pathology report.

I really have to thank everyone for their support, their words of comfort and caring. I never realized exactly how hard it is to be a caregiver for someone you love who is ill. Just knowing you all care helps me make it through another day. I have not been getting any sleep as Burt is up almost every hour during the night. It's hard for him to get comfortable but we try. The kids have been a big help, doing whatever they can to get us through this.

Such is life.

Saturday, June 6th

He's home! Very happy to be home but still weak and feeling the effects of all the meds and the incision. I am a nervous wreck, you know that I am not a nurse and really don't want to see anyone suffer. My daughter-in-law, Adrian, bless her heart, is studying to be a nurse and came over last night to stay with Burt so I could run to the pharmacy and get his prescriptions filled and get some liquid foods for him. He's on a liquid diet until Monday, then he can eat soft foods. They told us we did not need to use the navel feeding line. I have all the stuff and the pump and will not be using it unless he cannot tolerate food. So far he's been keeping everything down, soup, Glucerna, tea, coffee.....

A visiting nurse is coming this morning to check him out, that makes me feel better. You know how hard it is to get ahold of doctors on the weekends! The two drains are starting to hurt and he would like them to come out. We will see what she says. He still has all the staples in and the navel feeding tube. They took out the central line in his chest right before sending him home.

The dog has not left his side since he came home, she was all over him last night. Very touching.......the bond between them.

Thursday

Another day in the hospital. Burt got to drink some coffee this morning and he was really happy about that! He is now on a liquid diet to see if he can keep it down. They removed one feeding tube today, he still has the one in his abdomen. His sugar was below 100 both times they tested today so he's doing well sugar-wise too. He might, emphasize "might", come home tomorrow. We just have to be patient and wait and see.....

Wednesday June 3rd

I am sorry I haven't updated the blog for a few days, I've been so tired after long days of working and visiting Burt in the hospital. He continues to do well, they removed the stomach pump yesterday. So far he has managed to keep the stomach fluids down. Tomorrow they are going to try some food, liquid food, and see if he can handle it. He is up and walking around more and is bored, tired of watching TV......LOL. We have heavy rain and thunderstorms so I did not go back up tonight. I will visit tomorrow morning and through out the day. They are going to start taking the staples out soon, a few at a time until all 33 are out.

Monday was my birthday and my wonderful family and friends had a BBQ for me. It was nice to have an evening of catching up with everyone and relaxing. Only glitch was that Burt was not there. He knew about it and told me to go home and relax, he would see me Tuesday. The kids did all the cooking and cleaning up, what a surprise! I have a wonderful family!

Tonight my nephew Ryan graduates from high school in Wildomar, CA. Congratulations to Ryan for a job well done! Mom and Dad are out there visiting and will get to congratulate him in person.

I have to thank everyone who reads my blog for the kind comments and encouragement. We still have a ways to go with this and your continued support means a lot. With God's help we will prevail.....

Sunday

Well, he was supposed to come home tomorrow but now it might be Friday before they release him. Dr. V wants to run some tests. None of the nurses knew why, all they know is that he's having a CT scan. They took the stomach line off the pump and are using the gravity method now. Still feeding him through the central line in the chest and the navel. He did walk around the whole floor three times today, which is good. The more he is upright the sooner everything in the abdomen will move back in place. He is not in any pain, the incision is healing very well.

I spent all weekend between visits to the hospital cleaning the house and fixing it up so when he came home he'd be comfortable. I asked if he wanted a hospital bed and he said no. Dr. V said he'll be able to go up and down the stairs so he won't have to stay in the bedroom all the time, as both of our bathrooms are upstairs. A nurse will be here to teach us how to use the feeding pump and how to keep the abdominal site clean. He can't wait to be able to eat food and drink again, but it has to wait until the insides are healed. We need to put some weight on this guy, he's all skin and bones!

Friday

A little set back today. Burt vomited once or twice so they had to put the stomach tube back in. He had it in for 15 minutes and it pumped half a liter of bile and stomach acids out. That stuff was making him throw up. He's not happy about it, but it's necessary. It will have to be removed again before he can come home.

I arrived home after work to find a Medical Supply truck in my driveway. They delivered a food pump for Burt to use after he is released. They showed me how it works, hope I can remember what to do when it's actually time to use it! He will be fed through a tube in his abdomen until he can eat solid food. The pump is just like the IV machines they use in the hospital.

It rained tonite and on the way home I saw a rainbow. Another sign that God is watching over us!

Thursday, May 28th

Surprise! The doctor said we could take Alleyah up to see Burt! He was soooo happy to see the dog! And she was just as happy to see him!

All the nurses came in to see her and just loved her! I have to say it made Burt's day so see her, it's been over a week since he's seen his "baby".

He is getting better every day. They are going to wean him off the central line and take it out. They are feeding him a little bit through the feeding tube in his abdomen. He can sip water but no food in the mouth yet.

Dani visited him during her lunch break and they walked around the floor. He's walking slowly but he's walking! Every day we are more encouraged that he's going to be ok. Keep those prayers and good wishes coming!

Wednesday...

Another tube out! The nose drain popped out this morning and they decided to leave it out for a while. He may have to have it put back in tomorrow, we'll see. As it has been, he's been in good spirits, but he's a little worn out. Got up out of the bed several times today to sit in the chair. His blood pressure has been a little low so they hooked up another bag of fluid to his central line. Right now he's nothing but skin and bones, we need to fatten this guy up some when he can eat again! Dr. V told him they sent the tumor to Johns Hopkins for diagnosis, seems the lab here can't figure out what it is.....

Thanks for all your comments and good wishes, prayers. I tell him you're all asking about him. I went back to work today so didn't get to see him until around 3:30. Working tomorrow and Friday. Taking Mom and Dad to the airport Saturday morning, they are going to California to see Ryan (Buddy's oldest) graduate from high school. Way to go Ryan! Wish we could be there. And congrats to Kayla and Noah who are getting married Saturday, wish we could be with you all too. Say hi to Michael and wife for us.

Tuesday

A good day for Burt. They are starting to slowly feed him a liquid diet through a feeding tube in his abdomen. They are still feeding him through the central line in his chest also. He got out of bed today and did a little bit of walking around the room. Can't go too far as he is hooked up to the stomach drain. Incision is healing well, have no idea when the staples will come out. Still haven't gotten the pathology report yet. Maybe tomorrow.

He's out of intensive care (ICU)

He's in a regular room (247A) now and feels much better. They've removed all the tubings and lines and whatnot, now he only has two drains in the abdomen, the central line in his chest, and the nose drain. Dr. V stopped in today and said he's progressing very well. No news from the pathology department, tomorrow we should hear from them. I'm starting to think he's amazing!

Sunday

Well, he is doing good but mentally he's struggling. It's tiring to watch TV all day in bed. Every time he falls asleep a nurse or doctor or technician comes in to check something. The tube in his nose that goes to the stomach slipped out an inch today and had to be put back in. That was not pleasant. Yesterday they took out the two IV's in his arms so that helps. The swelling in his hands and arms has gone done. He still has several IV lines going into the central line in his chest. Two drains in the lower abdomen. 33 staples! The incision is healing well, no redness or streaking.

I hope everyone had a good Memorial Day weekend. This is the first time in 9 years we haven't thrown our Memorial Day party for our family and neighbors. Oh well, there's always next year.....

An uncomfortable day...

for Burt today. He just can't seem to get comfortable for long. He did get out of bed and sit in the chair for two hours today, that's an improvement. His hands and arms are swollen from all the fluids they're putting in him. He has tubes and drains and whatnot running everywhere. I saw his incision today and it runs from one side of the stomach to the other. He must have like 50 staples in there! The doctor's are impressed with his progress so far, he may move to the PCU tomorrow sometime. We have not gotten the pathology report back on the tumor yet. Probably won't get it until Tuesday now, as Monday is a holiday.

He's resting comfortably

Just got back from the ICU, Burt is resting comfortably. They started to feed him through the central line in his chest, they are managing his pain okay. He will be in the ICU for a couple more days before they move him to the step down unit. He is awake on and off, cannot talk too well because his throat is sore from the ventilator. He was happy the hospital carries the channel that televises the hockey playoffs.....LOL. He will be able to watch the game tonight.

Short visit to the ICU at 11

Burt is off the ventilator and breathing on his own! He can't speak, throat is sore but is awake for short periods of time and was happy to see Dani and I, gave us a "thumbs up". He said all five doctors came to see him this morning and let him know what was going on. He's very happy they got it all out, tomorrow we get the pathology report and will know if it was cancerous or not.

Anna and I will be going back sometime after lunch to check in on him again.

Doing good

Got a phone call from the ICU nurse this morning at 6:30, Burt did good last night and was awake for a short time this morning. They are going to try to reduce the pain meds so they can wean him off the ventilator. Hopefully it will be out this afternoon and he'll be able to talk.

Final surgery update

Well, Dad is out of surgery. Dr. V said it went well. He's going to be on the ventilator until tomorrow morning at least, and he'll be in the ICU through the weekend. They were able to take out the entire mass. They did find a small nodule on his small intestines, they removed it and the pathology came back negative. So they do not think it spread. Dad does have a pretty bad case of Pancreatitis, which is swelling and infection in the pancreas. So they are going to give him antibiotics for that. He has a feeding tube in, and he will have it for a few weeks. But Dr. V was very optimistic, so that made us feel a lot better. We're going to ask that if you guys want to visit, to wait until next week. Once we get him out of ICU we'd be more comfortable with people coming up. Keep the prayers coming. We're not quite out of the woods yet and we know it's helping. :)

Update #5

We heard about 40 minutes ago that Dad was doing really well. They are putting him back together and it would be another hour or two before they'd be done.

update #4

We just got a call from the OR Nurse, they said everything is still going really well. They estimate the surgery will take another 2 hours.

Update #3

Just received a call from the nurse in the OR, Dr. V was able to get the whole tumor out. They are still in there, and it looks like it will be another few hours before we actually see him, but we're feeling pretty good right now.

Update #2

Everything is going according to schedule for the surgery. We still have a long way to go, but so far so good. They told us earlier this morning the surgery would take about 5-6 hours on average and the recovery will take about 1-2 hours and we'd be able to see him after he comes out of recovery. So we'll be able to see him sometime between 5-7 pm tonight.

Surgery update

This is Anna Renee. We got Dad to the hospital this morning and they took him into surgery around 10am. We just had a nurse come out and tell us that the laproscopy looked good, it doesn't appear the mass is attached to any blood vessels and it doesn't appear it has spread. So they are begining the actual surgery now. I'll update this throughout the day to keep everyone up to date.

Question asked by Dani this morning:

"Dad, are you ready for tomorrow?"

Burt answered, "No, but I'm ready for Thursday."

:-)

Two days to go

Dr. V called this morning, all systems are a go for the surgery Wednesday. So now we wait. He did not get the results from the second biopsy back yet, but because the CA 19-9 test came back so high he's sure it's cancerous. So it has to come out. Burt started a clear liquid diet today. Tomorrow we go to the hospital to get his blood typed so they have some on hand for the surgery. We are ready for Wednesday.






Yesterday was a good day. My Dad made a sign for the front yard of our church and yesterday was the dedication. Family came from everywhere and I am so proud of my Dad! He did a great job building the sign and it is a wonderful memorial to his parents and two sisters.

Then after lunch Dani and the girls in Anna's wedding surprised her with a bridal shower! They had been planning this for several months now, and did not want to postpone it. We just moved it from the house to the firehouse, so Burt would not come into contact with anyone, just in case someone was sick. AND we managed to keep it a complete surprise!!


A good time was had by all, and Anna and Jeff are thankful for all the love they received today. We are so looking forward to this wedding August 1st!

Things seem normal around here

Burt is doing well, not losing any more weight but still thin. We are watching what he eats so his sugar doesn't go up too high. It's almost impossible to control with the meds anymore, in the hospital they brought it down with insulin shots. Why they didn't give him insulin for home is beyond me. He starts a liquid diet on Monday for the two days before the surgery. I think the closer we get to Wednesday the more nervous we get. Today was a quiet day, everyone has something to do so only a few visitors.

The kids are at the wedding of one of Robert's friends. We would have liked to go but don't want to chance Burt catching something. Adrian promised to take pictures for us and so did Dani. Tomorrow I hope to go to church, they are going to dedicate the sign my Dad made in memory of his parents and two sisters. I will post pictures tomorrow. Almost all of our family is coming so it will be a nice occasion. Time to do something 'normal' for a change.

Burt is back home!

And enjoying being able to watch his precious hockey on TV. He looks much better and is not so weak as he was on Monday. His color is better and there's not much yellow in his eyes and skin. Only six more days until surgery to get this nasty thing outta there. We are gonna take great care of this guy so he can beat it and bounce back!

Thanks to everyone for the prayers, cards, phone calls, visits. We can't face this with out y'all!

We are all so tired

Burt had a stent put in his bile duct this morning. Hopefully in a few days he won't be so "yellow" anymore. They have him on a liquid diet until they see how the stent does. He may be coming home tomorrow, we seem to have him stabilized for now. He is controlling his sugar with insulin shots as the meds aren't working. The liver being unblocked now, maybe he will be able to get some nutrition from food now. It has been an exhausting three days, who ever said you can get your rest in a hospital has not been in one recently.....

Once he comes home, the problem will be keeping him strong and healthy until the surgery next Wednesday. The doctor's are going to do a Whipple procedure on him and take out the tumor, the gall bladder, part of the small intestine and part of his stomach. The surgery may take between 5 & 7 hours so it will be stressful on all of us. Please keep those prayers coming.

Today...

This is Anna Renee, Sherrie's daughter. She wanted me to update the blog so everyone knows what's going on. Over the weekend, Dad wasn't feeling too good. He started to look yellow and he was very fatigued. Dani called Dr. D early this morning and he wanted us to get Dad into Union Hospital so they could monitor him and get him some fluids. We ended up getting him into Christiana after some discussion with his doctors. They advised us there that they would check his liver and kidney functions, give him fluids and run some tests. They also gave us a surgical consult and their surgeon said it would be about 3 or 4 weeks for them to assemble the team and run the tests they needed to do the surgery right. This is major surgery, and not something that should be rushed. They explained that if a matter of a day or two would make a difference in whether the tumor/cancer had spread or not, then the surgery would not be effective and they would be doing more harm than good. So we feel a little better having that explained to us.

So that leaves us with him in the hospital now. They are going to keep him for a few days at most to ensure he is stable. They have told us he is malnurished, since his body is not absorbing the nutrients from what he eats, he is also dehydrated. They are running tests to see how his liver and kidney functions are. We have a meeting with a Pancreatic surgeon in the morning, and a dietician. The dietician is to make sure we are getting him foods that will make him stronger for the surgery next week. As of tonight, it looks like we are going to stay the course and have the surgery with Dr. V next Wednesday. Dad is still in good spirits and hanging in there. Please keep the prayers coming, we know they are helping.

May 20th

That's the day Burt's surgery is scheduled. There are still more tests to run and results to wait for. Right now we're waiting for the results for the CA-19-9 blood test. This is turning out to be quite a complicated mess. I have to get it all straight in my head before I can share any with you. Please keep us all in your prayers.

The Lord works in mysterious ways....

Good news! The biopsy results..... not cancer, just a tumor. We feel like we're on a roller coaster ride. The news is good, but the tumor still needs to come out. Burt had some more tests done today, and may need another endoscopic ultrasound, we're waiting to hear about that. We go to the surgeon tomorrow to find out when the surgery is scheduled and all we need to do for that.

Dr. B explained that even though the sample was not cancerous, it was hard. Usually cancers are hard like that. They will do a complete biopsy on the tumor when it's removed and then we'll know for sure.

How quickly our life has changed. I am going to work for a couple hours tomorrow to do something normal for a while. It's tough spending all day at the doctor's or the lab or the hospital, or just being home. I have to thank you all for all your prayers and good thoughts for Burt. Keep 'em coming! We're going to beat this!

Conflicts....

Went to the GI doctor early this morning who told us we caught this in time. Said if we'd waited two or three more weeks before coming in Burt would have a 6 month survival rate. Dr. D said he could send Burt to a surgeon at Johns Hopkins or UM but we have the best surgeon right here for this type of surgery. We want to wait until we get the biopsy results tomorrow before scheduling surgery but we need to have it done right away. Don't want to give this mass anytime to spread or get larger. Burt is still losing weight and I want him to stay strong for the surgery.

So later this morning we went to see the surgeon, Dr. V, who comes highly recommended by everyone we've talked to. He explained what he'd have to do to remove the mass, and will also be removing his gall bladder and part of the small intestine. It's a long all day surgery and Burt will be hospitalized for 10-12 days afterwards for recovery. Then he dropped the bombshell, he can't do it for two weeks. He is off next week and needs time to gather his team for the surgery. He wants to have the best people around him when he's doing the surgery. I'm like, I wanted this done yesterday!!!

So now we're waiting to hear from the GI doctor, we called him after visiting the surgeon, not sure if we should wait the two or more weeks. I hate this waiting, I want to get this done and over with, now.

It's cancer

Burt had the endoscopic ultrasound done yesterday at Christiana Hospital and it revealed that he has a 2 cm mass in the pancreas. Dr. is certain it is malignant. We find out for sure on Tuesday. Either way, it has to come out. The duct from the pancreas to the small intestine is blocked by the mass, that's why he hasn't been getting any nutrition from the foods he eats. That's why he's been losing so much weight. The good thing is that the margins around this mass are clear and there are no veins feeding it.

At least now we know what's going on and can deal with it. We meet with a surgeon Monday. Please keep Burt in your prayers.

The hits just seem to keep coming

Burt has been having trouble getting his sugar under control for about a month now and has been losing weight. He went back to the doctor who told him to increase one of his diabetes medicines. Within days his skin turned a gray color and he had pains in his back. We went back to the doctor, who ordered a blood test and sent him to see an endocrinologist. The endocrinologist took one look at the blood work and said his liver enzymes were off the charts and to discontinue that particular diabetes meds. He recommended an ultrasound of the liver and to see a GI doctor who would find out why the liver enzymes were so high.

We went to see the GI doctor, who is very worried about the weight loss and the pain in his back. He ordered a CT scan, which showed no discernable mass on the liver but the ducts between the liver and small intestine and the pancreas are swollen. The gall bladder and liver are both enlarged. He ordered a endoscopy procedure to go in and look at the ducts to see if they were blocked (possible gallstone).

Today, he called to cancel that procedure and ordered another procedure at Christiana Hospital, a larger hospital a little further away. This procedure, an endoscopic ultrasound, will allow them to see if there's a blockage and to take several biopsies of the pancreas and liver. That worries me. Anytime they say "biopsy" I think cancer. It's been a really tough day today.

We got socked with snow! Hurry up Spring!

March 1st and 2nd a snowstorm blew through here, leaving us with 8 inches of that fluffy white stuff! Living across the street from a farm means that it's going to blow and end up in my front yard! The county didn't plow our road until late Monday and even then only one lane could get through. Going to work Tuesday was scary, but as soon as I got to the main road, they were amazingly clear!!

Being off work Monday, I got a chance to scrap some for the SAS Monthlong Challenge!

Starting February 15th and running through March 15th Scrap Attack Scrapbooking will be having a {SAS}sy Fun Month! So if you like challenges, chatting and prizes you won’t want to miss out on all the fun! Carnivals are always a {fun} place with so much going on. So keeping along those lines, we’ve put together a small “midway” of activities for you to complete during our {SAS}sy Fun Month. For each activity you complete, you will receive a ticket! The tickets will be entered into a drawing for some fun prizes courtesy of SAS! At the end of the {SAS}sy Fun Month, we’ll total the tickets, enter them into a drawing and pull 7 random winners! The more you play, the better your chances are to win some fun stuff courtesy of Scrap Attack Scrapbooking!

If someone would like more information just post a comment on here! This will be fun!
--Sherrie

Peek-a-boo!

Can you see Alleyah in the photo? As soon as Burt gets the blanket out she's up on the couch and under the covers!

Been a long cold winter but today it's quite warm out, up to 62 degrees. I can't wait for spring to get here! It's going to be a busy year what with planning Anna's wedding and all. Hurry up, Spring!

Christmas 2008

A time to remember......We celebrated family at the Reynolds family party Dec. 20th at John and Jan's house. It was good to "catch up" with everyone and sing songs like we always do.

Christmas Eve, Anna came up to spend the night and brought me a cassette player so we could watch old home movies! We stayed up until almost 2 am watching videos of the kids when they were young. And all day Christmas Day we had them playing. When someone stopped in they were mesmerized by the good old days.....LOL

Dad trying on his new sports jacket to wear to church. I was lucky I bought the right size! It fit perfectly! And Dani loved her Vera Bradley purse!