Spring Break-3/31

Hi All,

We had our week off last week. It was perfect because I had my first break from the chemo. I had the whole week off. No poking needles...Hooray!! It was good to feel good while the kids were out. We really didn't do anything too special. Larry didn't have the time off so we did not go anywhere. But it was so nice the have relaxing mornings for a whole week!! I was able to go through all the kids clothes and hand-me-downs and get rid of the stuff they had out grown. What a monumental task. I did one kid a day. So many piles to go through. We really are blessed when it comes to hand-me-downs. And at this point, the kids love it!! Not sure what will happen in the teen years. But, we will get there when we get there.

My Dad and StepMom Dorothy took the kids overnight one night too. That was really a blessing to have a morning to relax and and just have a break from the busyness. The doctor said that I still need to rest even on the weeks I have a break. At least now I don't feel guilty when I rest.

Also, we got our garden planted!! Hooray!! We pulled out all the weeds. Larry moved some of the Strawberries that are now going gangbusters on us. Then he went and rented a rototiller. Then yesterday, He and the girls put in the seeds. I think we will be having some corn, peas, carrots, radishes, sunflowers and maybe even watermelon and cantaloupe if it works. We have not done the last two in the past yet. Later we will plant the Pumpkins since they don't need to go in until June. It is always so fun to watch them grow. The kids love the whole process!! I guess most of our ancestors were farmers at one time or another. It's just in our blood!

I started my 2nd round of chemo today. I'm feeling really good at the moment. I have noticed a pattern and this is typical. My challenging days are Tues and Wed. so far. I'm looking forward to going away this weekend the the Land of Raisens!! Selma California!! My friend Jamie is turning 40 and our friend Ann in flying out from IL on Thurs. and we will journey north for the weekend. It will be a really fun getaway and I am really looking forward to it. Pray for Larry. He is taking the kids camping to Carpentaria with his Sister Lauri and Brother Wally's families and other friends. Hopefully He will do fine with it all. He will just be spending the night Friday night. They will be back later Saturday.

As usual I feel blessed to have so many people praying for us. I know I am doing so well because God's people cared enough to pray for me. I feel so loved!! Thank you!!!!!!!!!

Lots of love, Peggy

Rollercoaster-3/14

Hi All,

It really has felt like a Rollercoaster these past two weeks that I have been doing Chemo. It's been a little hard going through all this again. I went to Church this past Sunday. One of the worship songs really touched me. I started to tear up. Then I start fighting with God about it all. Sitting in the front row with Larry, I just felt like might as well be crying on stage. But the Lord really wasn't bothered by my pride to act like I have it all together. He said it is alright to just be real. So I was weepy all day long it seemed. I'm not really sure how to explain it. Maybe God just wanted me to just get it all out of my system. I really did feel better the next day.

Chemo this past Monday was just as seamless as the last one. Only the two days following I really felt very tired. More tired than I remember. But, maybe it's just that I don't remember. Some stuff is just easier forgotten. Other than that, all seems to be going well.

I had a parent/teacher conference with Trinity's teacher Mrs. Tucker this week. Nothing out of the ordinary just the regular 2nd trimester check-in with the teacher. We talked and she had lots of great things to say about Trin's progress. She is doing great. I have been open with all the kids teachers about what is going on with me in case stuff comes up with the kids in the classroom. So we talked about how all this seems to be effecting her. She only had one thing that stood out to her months back. For a few days she came in real quiet and to herself. She is usually more energetic. Then one morning following her quiet days she came in first thing and raised her arms in the air and shouted "Hooray My Mom's Not Going to Die!" And then she went back to her normal self after that. We are thinking it must have been the time around the Surgery back in November.

It's hard to know how the kids are digesting all this serious stuff. I just keep putting them in God's capable hands. He knows what He is doing. I trust Him!! I know it is helping me to appreciate each and everyone one of these special people God has allowed me time with. Larry, Lexie, Trinity and Joshua are incredible people. Not to mention so many others so very close too. I am such a blessed person! I guess I could go on and on but I risk getting really boring. So I will sign off here.

Lots of love!! Thanks for all the great prayers!!

Peggy

My First Chemo-3/3

Hello Friends and Family,

Today began so very windy. Major East Winds blowing everything around. And of course it had to be a trash day. When I parked at the Doctors office I prayed that no big branches would fall off and hurt the car. Why not, God cares about the small stuff too...right?

I go in and the first chemo was virtually painless. The nurse got my vein the first time and the drugs did not make me nauseous at all. It took all of an hour and a half. I'm happy to report that there was nothing exciting happening here. However, when I got out to my car I was happy to see that God did answer my prayer with a YES! No big branches fell on the car! But, a flock of pooping seagulls did happen along. Yuck!!! My car and the one next to me were covered. Oh well!!

After this I went to LaQuisha's to get Josh. Here she reported that he ate a complete second breakfast...eggs, waffles, bacon, oranges and apple juice. I think the boy might be part hobbit. He was thrilled to come home and put on his swim suit and sponge bob flip flops and help me wash the car. No more bird poop!! I couldn't handle it one minute longer.

I will be going in Wed. Thurs. Fri. and Sat. to get a nupigen shot (not sure how it is spelled yet). This drug helps keep the white cell count up where it needs to be...hopefully. Still not sure how much these phramaceuticals are going to cost. We will continue to just trust the Lord!! Next Chemo will be next Monday morning.

Thanks ever so much for all the prayers!! Priceless I tell ya!!

Love to all, Peggy

2/26-The Battle Continues

Hello Loved Ones,

Hope this finds everyone doing very well. It is Trinity's "6th" birthday today!! Woo-hoo!! She is having a great day so far! She brought cookie bars to share at school. Also she's been playing with the one gift I let her open, so far, all afternoon. We will do the others when Daddy gets home from work. And she gets to pick her favorite restaurant for dinner. So far it's a toss up between Red Robin and IHOP. Personally I hope she picks the Red Robin. I love their Whiskey River Chicken Sandwich. And not just because of the Whiskey-;)

Larry and I went to the Dr. appointment this afternoon to go over the results of the PET scan I did last week. The test show that there seems to be a few small areas of re-occurrence once again. Thankfully it is all still isolated to the chest area. Dr. Rigberg said he wished we could have started the chemo earlier yet he understood our circumstances. They are what they are. The chemo regimen is still the same as it was. I will be doing an ovarian cancer drug called Hycamtin. I will be treated one day a week for 3 weeks and have the 4th week off for 4 months. The Doctors concerns are my bone marrow-white blood cell count. It went real low last time and if it goes too low they have to delay treatment until it gets higher. They have drugs that help this and they tend to be costly. He also said that the success rate is 30%. Not the best news...BUT we have God in our camp and lots of people praying!! I have had a lot of peace the last few days. I know God is by my side and walking us all through this valley. I have been totally dwelling on the 23rd Psalm lately!! Thank you all for all the prayer and support you have blessed us with. It means so very much! We will let you know in days to come of more practical ways to help as the needs arise.

Thanks again we can count on our friends and loved ones!! We love you all!!

Peggy and Larry

Round 2

Hi All,

Thanks for all the prayers during this waiting period. Some days I would forget about it all together. Others were not that easy. But, all in all here we are! We have successfully changed from Blue Cross to Health Net PPO. We haven't really used it all that much yet. I'm hopeful that all will go smoothly on the insurance end of all this now. I got my numbers last week and with that was able to give them to the Dr.'s office manager to start setting me up with getting approvals and appointments. Today I heard that Health Net approved my PET Scan. I am set to go next Wed. the 20th. Then we will meet the following Tues. the 26th to go over the results of the scan with Dr. Rigburg. I am assuming I will get going on Chemo the following Monday. I will update that info. once I have that information.

Meanwhile, just keep up all that praying you are so faithfully doing. It is helping this family get through this crisis without too much drama. We really want the Lord to carry the burden and to direct us and for us to clearly know what He wants us to do. Pray for good news on the PET Scan. Pray for peace, as we have been waiting extra time to get to things with the insurance change over. Pray for finances to work out and all doctor bills to be handled with ease. He is our Peace, our Provider, our Healer and our Salvation and so much more.

Thanks you all so very VERY much for all the prayers and support!! I keep praying back that the Lord will bless you much more that you have been a blessing to all of us!! We love you all very much!! Until next time!! Pray for good news!!

Love you, Peggy

A Time to Wait-1/11

Hello,

We have ended up deciding to wait for the insurance situation to be resolved before we continue with further treatments. Right now Blue Cross wouldn't even approve a necessary PET scan I need to get started anyways. Since my cancer is A-typical it doesn't fit into the typical cancer mold. So they think stuff the Doctor requests is not necessary when in fact it really is. So we just continue to pray that this switch over happens soon and works out much better for everyone.

Thanks for all the prayers and concern. Just continue to pray for peace in this in the between time. The doctors are really not too keen on waiting. But, it looks like that is what needs to happen and we will just trust God is in control as He always is.

Lots of love to all!! Peggy

Happy 2008!!

Hello All,

I hope everyone has had a very merry Christmas and a wonderful New Year so far! We headed out to AZ after Christmas, as usual, to see Larry's family for the holiday. We had a great time and rang in the New Year with the Wolf's and several of their AZ friends! Even the little one made it to midnight! Uncle Danny was crankin' all kinds of popular tunes on the loud sound system and Joshua and Trinity were impressing the masses with their talented feet. They danced the night away. It was really cute!

Back home again and I was off to see Dr. Rigburg the day after I got home. He is the Chemo doctor. He said my Ct-scan and x-ray I took on Christmas Eve just showed more scarring and stuff from the new surgery. No evidence of new disease growth. I guess it's difficult to track the disease without the growth's. They like to watch them shrink and disappear. Dr. Kerr was the one who recommended the surgery and just get the bad stuff out of there. So now the best way to track things is to just keep taking periodic scans and make sure nothing new shows up. Just like what we had to do before.

Dr. Rigburg would like me to do a PET scan before I get started. We are having a few hang up's because we have not changed from Blue Cross yet. This may not happen for another month. The Doctor recommended that we did not wait that long to get started. Now is the time to treat when the cells are dividing more actively and are more receptive to the chemo drug. The problem is Dr. Rigburg went out of network with Blue Cross the end of October and now all my visits and treatments are at an out of network expense. Three other of my doctors did the same the end of 2007. We are too far into the process to be changing doctors now. We are trying to get the insurance changed, meanwhile the cost of chemo and scans could be substantial. No one would give us exact figures when we were researching this earlier on. I guess it's all the upside and down side of insurance.

So basically we feel it is important to get going on treatment but we are completely in the dark with how much this is going to cost us. So we are going to have to proceed with faith that God will provide and it will all work out. It always does. He is our provider!!

Dr. Rigburg wants to start me on a drug called Hycamtin. It is used to treat relapsed ovarian cancer patients. It has alot of the same side effects as the last chemo I did. Yes, including hair loss. Boo-h00, I just was almost at the point of needing an actual haircut. The treatments would be every Monday for 3 weeks and the 4th Monday off. That would be considered one treatment. He wants to do 4 treatments. So that would be 4 months. Not too much different than the time frame I was on last year at this time. I completed my treatments last April. We will see what happens.

Prayer Requests:
That this will once and for all get the cancer-kill it and it will never come back!
That my blood stays good with WBC's and RBC's-I need healthy counts to stay on course.
That the family stays strong through it all.
That I am able to tolerate the treatments well.
That all the insurance and the expenses work out.

Thanks for all the love and support. It really is priceless!! Thank you Jesus that you are bigger than any of this!

Lots of love, Peggy

12/14 - December is Flying

Hey everyone, remember us? Yea, sorry about that, it has be a long time since we last posted anything. Peg is doing good, recovering well. Last Friday we had her 3 week follow-up with Dr. Cameron at UCLA. It was a good meeting, he said that she was healing up well, that everything looked good, they got all that they needed to get with good margin. One of the 3 spots was nothing, just benign, but the other two showed more aggressive tumor cells than the first tumor removed.

That was a little disheartening, to say the least! However, I am glad that they are staying in front of this, and maybe this could mean that they really got all of it. However, the surgeon is suggesting we discuss follow-up treatments with the possible chemo and radiation. We are trying to stay positive, but I know Peg is feeling frustrated that this thing is not ending.

We meet next week with these doctors, plus our family doctor to discuss what steps would be next.

And of course to make things more complicated, all three doctors are dropping our insurance provider in January 2008! It is going to be another interesting year!

She is feeling good, moving around, driving the car, and off pain medications. We were very blessed to have Mom Wolf out last week to help with the kids and stuff around the house...and friends have been bringing food for the last 10 days or so!!! We are eating high on the hog!

Anyways, please continue to pray for Peg, for encouragement, and supernatural wisdom for us, going into this next year. Also, for complete restoration to her body and strength for this next year.

Blessings, Larry

12/02 - Woman Thou Art Blessed

Well, ladies and gentlemen, she made it to church today! Peggy was up and cruising to church with Grandma and the kids. Thanks to Aunt Lauri, and me a little bit, she was able to arrive at church without much incident. A lot of you may not know this, but I guess she is kind of a celebrity, since she was worn out with hugs and love, before she even got inside the church.

Next time, we're using a secret entrance to whisk her in and out, with dark sunglasses to avoid the publicity. We're going to have body double all over the place to try and decoy people. But seriously, she enjoyed seeing all her church family, and was well worn out by the end of the morning. I told her to remain seated during the greeting time, because she was already tired. But all in all, she loved getting all the prayer, love, support and encouragement from everyone!

Thanks to all you who have been praying for her. She is recovering well! We are supposed to meet with the surgeon this Friday, down in Santa Monica, as a follow up to the surgery. We are praying for continued good result and feedback from all the doctors involved.

Also, be praying for us, if you think about it. A number of our local doctors are dropping our insurance plan, Blue Cross, come January 1st, 2008. This could be a challenge because it puts our local doctors "out of network" making it more expensive for appointments. Since she has a "pre-existing condition", it could be difficult for to switch to a different health insurance provider.

God has it all in control...I'm not going to loose any hair worrying about it (partly because I don't have any to loose!.) Anyways, thanks again for all the prayers for us! Blessings, Larry

11/29 - It's Still November

Ok, ok, sorry, sorry...wow, there are alot of angry people out there starving for information on PEG! :-) She is doing good, recovering everyday, feeling a little stronger, she is bench pressing about 390 right now, which is way lower than before the surgery, but we are taking it slow and easy right now.

Seriously though, she is feeling better, the 3 iron pills a day routine, is tough for her, mostly the morning one, gets her a bit queasy. She has been walking around, helping where she can and doing too much around the house. All in all, we have watched a lot of Christmas movies and been enjoying the time to slow down a bit as a family. Friends have been bring the meals, which has been sooo awesome. Thanks everyone, please no liver or sardines. :-) (PICTURE IS OF JOSHUA - 3yrs old)

She went to her first family Doctor visit today and all was looking good. They said the pathology report came back great, and that all the spots removed had full and clean margins. They took about 6 lympnodes around those areas and 4 were affected, 2 were clean. All in all Dr. Kerr seemed quite pleased with the results. We have a copy of the report, so I will have more to share on that in another post.

On a family note, Lexie has started her first organized sports team, at her School, girls basketball and her first game is this weekend. She is ready to go and doing quite well. She's doing single handed dunks right now, but we are working on the reverse dunk and the Jordon dunk. I was supposed to coach the team, with another father, but our wonderful city league put all the games on Sunday mornings. Don't get me started...I am a bit steamed.

Thanks for all the pray, love and support. Peg has been reading your comments, now that she is feeling better, so keep those remarks, comments, attitudes, and general love, coming!

Blessings, Larry

11/22 - Happy Thanksgivemas

It seems that Christmas is quickly overtaking Thanksgiving, so I am proposing that we change the name of Thanksgiving to Thanksgivemas. Oh and happy Festivus to everyone too!

Anyways, just wanted to update you all while you are writhing in pain from too much Pumpkin Pie...Peg is doing good. The nights have been tough, since she is supposed to be taking pills every 3-4 hours, and well, you have to sleep too! She is staying on the Oxycodin until the pain subsides. She is still having a fair amount of pain between dosages, but generally speaking she is not having the nausea she encountered after the last surgery. She has to take iron, and sometimes, even the SLOW FE type are hard to keep down. She is on Protonix which helps to reduce the nausea. Don't you love all this talk of Meds!? (Picture is of two love birds...sounds sappy, eh?)

I have had to scold her a few times about bending down to pick-up toys or laundry or whatever...but for the most part she is laying low. We got a walk in this morning which was really nice. The kids are with Nana for a few nights, so that will make things easier around the house. I'll try to post some fresh pics tonight after the Thanksgiving festivities.

We have been praying for her hospital roommate at UCLA Medical Center, Ashley, so we called her mom on her cell phone. She was very blessed to hear from us and we were able to encourage them again. We figured out something amazing about God's timing. Ashley got moved from the ICU floor to the 4th floor prior to Peggy arriving. She was there for 7 days and then when we left, she got moved to the 7th floor, the Orthopedic floor. I think God wanted to encourage and strengthen Donna (her mom) and Ashley and let them know of his love for them! I think the 4th floor, that she was on, was more for heart and lung patients (like Peg).

The number 7 in the bible, refers to God's completion. God is doing a work in their hearts and lives and we feel privileged to be there to pray and encourage where we can.

Blessings to all of you, have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Larry

11/20 - Jack Frost Roasting On An Open Fire

I always like to sing that song backwards..."...chestnuts nipping at your nose..."

Well the first night home was very enjoyable for all. We had TWO meals brought over by friends last night! Is that insane or what? God is so incredible, he wants to do exceedingly, abundantly above all that we can ask or think.

We enjoyed a great family dinner and time around the fire (man it was cold last night...for California!). Peg slept pretty good, a lot of pain in trying to get comfortable. It didn't help that the local pharmacy was 4 1/2 hours behind in filling prescriptions...and then couldn't make out the doctor's name on the note. Anyways, we got settled in and it was nice to be all back together as a family. Little Josh got to sleep in the sleeping bag on the floor in sister's room, which he had fun with, while Nana is here staying with us.

Peg told me this morning she might just stay in pajamas all day...I told her, go for it!!! (PICTURE IS FROM LABOR DAY WEEKEND.) Patsy had everything under control when we arrived and it was a blessing to have her at the house. Thanks again to Nana, Cara, Dad & Dorothy, Lauri & Dennis, Mike & Candice for all their help with the kids during this time. And to our neighbors Grace & Larry for watching our house, paper, trash cans, mail, etc! We feel richly blessed and touched!

Have a great day...Don't forget to make God's Word first place in your life today...Blessing, Lar

11/19 - 8:34pm - Red Shoes

There's no place like home, there's no place like home (click, click)...yep we are home. The kids were very excited to see us and it was fun to see them. We had two people bring meals tonight, wow, that was crazy. So many have been willing to help it has been truly amazing!

Here are some photos from the hospital. The top photo is Peg's roommate Ashley and her mom Donna! They were so sweet, and have been through a lot. Ashley works for Universal and has been getting "production" credits on a few projects lately. We have been praying God's blessing and speedy recover for her from the terrible motorcycle accident.

Also pictured is one of the many nurses who we made friends with and we felt like they became part of our "family". Maria was a lot of fun and a blessing to Peggy!

Thanks again for all the cards, letters, flowers, meals, and help with it all. The next couple of weeks will be a bit of a challenge as Peg works through the recovery. Peg's mom Patsy will be with us for a few days this week to help around the house and with the kids!

Blessings to all!! Lar

11/19 - 2:00pm - Elvis Has Left the Building

We are departing UCLA! All things are green light...should be home around 4pm... Blessings! Larry

11/19 - 12:30pm - Departure

Here's Peg resting in the room, after a good meal and everything has happened according to schedule. She is doing great and ready to be discharged from UCLA. It looks like we will be out of here in the next hour or so. Thanks for all the prayers, love and support. You all, through God's guidance have made all the difference in our lives. THanks so much, I will provide another update once we are home and settled in!

Blessings! Lar

11/19 - 11:30am - Monday

Well things are progressing along very well. Peg continue to get better, she has already walked about 3 times, been taken for a full X-ray. She is eating well and had the last chest tube removed this morning. So she is cableless, or I guess you can call her wireless. She still have vital monitors but they are wireless so, she is fully mobile. (Picture is Mom & Peggy, yesterday)

There is talk of going home today, she just needs one more thing to happen...I can't get into details, just to say, Raisin Bran cereal is beneficial. :-)

I suspect by the time all the paperwork is done, it will be this afternoon before she is released. She is feeling better today, coughing is understandably difficult because of the incision. Got to see the incision and well let's just say, it's no paper cut! But as always, they do an incredibly great job here and just like the last one, I am sure it will heal up really nice.

More to come, in about 1-2 hours...

Your Blue Gown reporter, Larry

11/18 - 5:30pm - Sunday

Hey all! Well Peg is doing great. We have taken 2 walks so far, the last one she did, was just a few minutes ago, and we walked the entire length of the floor in 3 directions! It was also just Peggy & I this last time, so she is definitely feeling more stable. They have her on a new pain medication, Oxycodone, which is some strong stuff, hopefully only for 24 hours or less. Remember Rush Limbaugh? Yea, that stuff.

Peg's good friend Molly stopped by to say hey and hang out, which was a blessing! Also, her mom stopped by again to check-up on her baby! This day has been an excellent day and a great turning point in Peg's recovery.

Please continue to pray for her roommate Ashley, who is a sweet girl and still dealing with alot of broken bones pain. I pray God would give us another opportunity to share and prayer with her and her mom, before we leave here.

Blessings, Larry

11/18 - 12:00pm - Sunday

Ok, sorry for the delay. Yes we are still here and Peg is doing great. She walked twice yesterday. A couple of praise reports...

* No need for blood transfusion
* Heart rate & blood pressure have normalized
* Pain is subsiding
* no more nausea

She got two of the three chest tubes out and they have been starting to give her pills, instead of injections for her medications. They have cut off the epidural, partly because it came out and partly because she doesn't need it any more. Here goals today include, 3 walks, pain control with pills, and regular, well, um, just being regular, you know. :-)

I personally was feeling wiped out last night and actually sleep alot this morning. That's why I got delayed in updates.

The doctor says that maybe the other chest tube will come out later today, which is a major step towards going home. Two friends stopped by yesterday, Julie and Amy. It was fun for Peg to spend some time with them. They have been praying and encouraging Peg along the way.

Thanks for all the love, support and prayers!

Blessings, Larry

11/17 - 5:30pm - Video Post

Ok, never done this before, and the audio is bad, but hey, modern technology still needs some work! Anyways, this is an attempt for Peg to greet everyone via video to thank you for all the calls, cards, letters, friendship, thousands of dollars (ok maybe not that one :-), love and visits, everyone has been giving.

We are working on a few things to make sure the kids are covered on Sunday & Monday, since we didn't expect to stay that long. According to the doctors, she might be here until Monday, so we will see.

They gave her some medicine to help with her heart rate and it seems to be working well. She is hoping to get a walk in, tonight! Thanks for all the prayers and comments...

Blessings, Larry

11/17 - Noon - Update

Hey all, just sitting around on a foggy Saturday and hanging at UCLA Hospital! This is definitely not a 5 star resort hotel, and at about $10,000 a night, I think it is probably a little expensive for even the fanciest hotel room. But all in all, Peggy is getting good care!

She is still feeling a fair amount of pain and discomfort but was able to sit in a chair and get repositioned. We have been able to talk more with Peg's roommate and her mom. I got the great opportunity to pray for them and with them and just provide a lot of comfort. The daughter is out here in Los Angeles, but all the family is back east, so her mom is here by herself. It is amazing how God puts people in our lives and in our paths to be Jesus to them! (PICTURE is Peg with her childhood friend, Donna, who stopped by to visit!)

I am working on a possible video clip, I think I can take and upload, we'll see how that goes, but give me the next update, in about 1 hour to be able to give it a go. Lar