Happy Sabbath! Learning to Rest..........

Sabbath is here and just wanted to write a quick note to say hello and wish everyone a wonderful, God blessed day.

As Steve wrote two days ago (chemo day), it was a pretty good day.  And the next day was too.  I felt so good in fact that I got a lot done!  Had a lot of church work to do, and I was determined to do it all and get some stuff in the mail before 5 p.m.  Did I ask God if this was what He wanted?  Well, not exactly.  So, I did it, and I over-did it.  Got it done but did I ever pay for it later!  Felt rotten yesterday evening.  Anxious, overwrought, stressed-out, negative outlook.....   Oh, no!!!!!!!!!  I knew I had messed up big time.

But did my wonderful God leave his "self-sufficient" child alone to suffer?  Did He say "that's your problem, you never asked me what to do, you did your own thing and now you need to deal with it."?  No!  Never!  As always, He was there for me.  He provided me with an awesome husband and daughter to help me through it -- rub my feet, legs, back, talk positive thoughts, help  me to relax, and eventually I was able to sleep.

This morning is much better.  Didn't get as much sleep as I would have liked, but oh, what an improvement, and I will definitely try to nap later.  This is Sabbath, and I will not forget to rest!  Not just sleep, but rest in Him.  Put aside all the worries, stresses, and thoughts about what needs to get done around here.  Spend time with family and friends today, as the opportunity comes.  (yes, am expecting some visitors!)

Today we are watching the Oklahoma Family Camp meetings being streamed online at restoration-international.org.  One of our daughters is there!  She was sneaky and didn't tell any of her friends she was going (well, it was kind of a last-minute decision also).  Wish I could have seen their expressions when she showed up!  So glad she could go.  Anyway, tune in and enjoy some wonderful family-oriented messages.

Happy Sabbath!  Rest in Him!

Caroline :-)

A great day!

Caroline had a great day for several reasons:

1) Limited pain

2) No pain meds throughout the entire day, except 8 AM (for preventive maintenance)

3) Nausea was non-existent

4) Had lots of good food - maybe more than me

5) Energy level was very good

6) Good visit with the doctors

7) Everybody we met today was very positive

8) Chemo went well

9) Caroline got a haircut by a special friend

And Steve had a great day for several reasons too:

1) Caroline had a great day

2) Naomi had a great day

3) Caley had a great day

4) My stress level dropped by about 80%

God bless,

Steve

ROUND 2

Hi everyone.

Second round of chemotherapy has begun today.  Hello from the 4th Floor!  I have approximately 2 1/2 hours left here in the Infusion Suite.  Feeling okay -- just drowsy and very warm.  ☹   The heat on this end of the suite is a bit high, so it's not just me.  ッ

Had an appt with the doc before coming here and she adjusted my meds a bit.  Am hoping for less harsh effects on my system this go-around -- we will see!  Please, please pray!

Have an appt next Tuesday to go to the "Look Good, Feel Better" session, where I can play around with makeup, wigs, and scarves, and maybe get some of that stuff for my own for free.  I have 2 knit/crocheted hats to wear over my just-about-absolutely bald head right now.  One hat was made my neighbor, and one by by mom.  But they may be a bit warm soon.  They are definitely nice at night, keep my head warm and my pillow less hairy.  Picked up some wig/scarf brochures here at the Center -- there are some real cute ones!  Scarves are definitely cheaper than wigs.  Hoping I can get one or two soon. ☺

Benadryl has worn off again I think -- am experiencing that "antsy" feeling in my legs again.  Am going to sign off for now.  More later!  Thanks ever so much for your loving prayers.  I love you all!  ♥  ✞Caroline

Friends!

After not writing for a few weeks, Caroline and I wanted to share some news with you. Some of the best news we have to share are our friends, and yes that includes family too :). Friends are blessings and each friend has their own gift, and that gift is a blessing to others. To name a few, those blessings come in the form of taking care of Naomi, picking up Naomi, taking care of Marcus and Risa, getting a car, getting a distiller, phone calls, cards, massage, visits, music, food, emails, driving help, thoughtful advice, and PRAYERS - all with the common theme of LOVE! And not to leave out Jesus, our best friend. Jesus is like all of our wonderful friends wrapped into one, but His friendship is unsurpassable and of course He is without spots or blemishes - unlike the rest of us. :) What better friend can we have? The really amazing consideration is that He is there whenever we reach out to Him. HE is ALWAYS by our side and He is always there with an answer to prayer, which sometimes comes in the form of friends just like you! On the surface a visit from friend may not seem like a miracle or answer to prayer but why not?

Ok, I know you didn't read the blog to get Steve's perspective on friendship so to fill you in on Caroline's health, in short I can say that the chemo has started out a bit rough. Her energy level is pretty low most all the time and if she has good energy she spends it on a well focused project. She gets localized pains for no apparent reason and they don't want to go away without medical help. Yesterday was rough but today is a great day. The pain is under control which often means that the frustration and the heavy duty anxiety evils are down. Yesterday with the help of a friend, via answers to prayers, Caroline was able to calm and get some much needed rest. Human weakness united with God's power is pretty awesome to observe! We have seen this more than once on this journey so far. Psalm 18:28 tells us that God will enlighten our darkness! That statement can mean different things at different times but when Caroline is sliding down into the pit of despair (largely due to unquenchable pain) that light can be pretty powerful. Last night God gave the wisdom to help get back up and it was amazing to watch. Last night was one of those times when there was light on our pathway. Caroline thinks that some of our friends actually have wings tucked under their clothes. :)

Well, Caroline's hair has started to give itself up to the chemo. She has been a good sport about it and is recognizing that it's just a fact and one of the hurdles we need to jump over. She is looking for scarves and one of our neighbor friends has already crocheted a fancy cap for her. It's quite cute!

This Thursday is the 2nd of six rounds of chemo. We ask that you all will pray for Caroline. And actually the day of chemo isn't that bad. It takes, 7-14 days to reach the Nadir, or low point. But that's a relative term. Again, please lift up Caroline to the Throne of Grace in your prayers.

So on that note we leave you with Proverbs 3:6: In ALL your ways acknowledge Him and He shall direct your paths. That's ALL your paths, no matter where you are now or where you are going. Pretty neat isn't it, and tying that with 18:28 (above) he will shine the light on the path and direct us!

God bless!

Let There Be Light! and internet, and phones, etc......

Praise the Lord!  Our electricity came on last night right before midnight, after approximately 12 hours without it.  Thankfully, we had an old-fashioned dial-up phone hanging out in the back room, and flashlights and an electric camping lantern, battery-powered laptop to watch a movie on, and a little charge left on our cell phones.  And, best of all, wonderful neighbors who took our frozen and other foods into their own refrigerator/freezer.  Seems like all our neighbors on our cul-de-sac, except the one directly east, had electricity.  We were apparently on the edge of a major outage east of us. 

But all is good now.  Didn't get cold, or run out of hot water, or anything serious.  God is taking care of us.  Am going moment by moment here, trying to find something to eat now and then that doesn't nauseate me.  Tortilla chips, home-cooked beans, tomatoes, and avocadoes has been a major success, but only at certain times of the day.  Nibbling on thinly sliced apples right now.  So far so good with them.  Just can't do very much at once.

This is hard, but I have to say, God is Good.  I feel like such a wimp sometimes, because I know many have gone through so much worse than I am going through.  But my sweet friend, who's going through her own trials, responded to my text with, "I don't see a wimp in you at all!  You're strong and an inspiration to me."  Thank you, sweet friend, you made me smile.

There really is a lot to smile about.  The skies are blue today, instead of gray with dust and high winds.  (thought a tornado was blowing through here yesterday; wonder about the stories behind all the power outages).  Got a little bit of moisture from the snow last night, and it is already mostly soaked into the thirsty ground.  My beautiful daughter is taking excellent care of me.  And my other beautiful daughter is doing God's work, and having fun, on her mission trip.  Keep Steve in prayer as he is traveling this week.  He needs to focus on his work right now -- I am in good hands here. 

Time to go for now.  Trying to keep these posts shorter rather than longer.  :)

My heartfelt love and thanks to you all for your love and prayers.  You know I pray for you too, and thank my God for you always.

Caroline  ♥