September — 2015
The rest of the week was uneventful. I did MOW with Lizzie on Tuesday and I had two doctors’ appointments on Wednesday. On Thursday I took Connie back in for hydration and if I remember correctly, we stop by a place called Chicken Express for a quick bite. Connie was starting to eat a little more solid food. Connie had a chicken tender and some macaroni and cheese. Even though she was not eating a lot she was able to tolerate solid foods now. She was still getting half of her calories from the TPN. I know I was excited as I remember it was not long ago all she was eating was broth and would only take a zip of two of iced coffee. Now she had gone from broth to pasta with butter to some solid foods. She was also drinking about half of her small iced coffee. Looking back on it the progress was slow but now I can see how much progress she was making. Her energy level while not great was much better than it had been before she went into the hospital for blood clots. The rest of the week was normal, well I mean it was our new normal, which was quite different than it used to be.
On Tuesday, the 8th, of September we return to the oncology center for labs and then met with the doctor. Since the labs were ok Connie then received her chemo and it looked like we were back on schedule after the blood clot ordeal. Now I was able to skip the next two nights of TPN as Connie was wearing the pump to deliver chemo for the next two days. I am enclosing an email that Connie wrote to her cousin Dee who did not know about Connie’s cancer yet. I have omitted the second paragraph as I consider it personal and do not want to share it.
Hi Dee,
It was nice hearing from you! The reason I haven’t been on the computer in months is because I’ve been sick for a while beginning in the spring. Every time I ate anything, within 4 hours just as digestion was starting, I would throw everything up. This went on for a month and a half. I had an appt with my gastroenterologist because I thought it might be my gallbladder. In 2013 I had a colonoscopy that was all good and the dr told me to come back in 5 years. But when I went to see him, he wanted another colonoscopy. To shorten up all this, he sent me to a surgeon and I had an exploratory on May 7th which showed stage 4 colon cancer with an unknown primary source and also a completely blocked bowel which wouldn’t let anything through. Today I just started chemo #7. I go into the oncology center for the infusion and then for tomorrow and the next day I wear a pump that gives me continuous chemo. Then I go back on Thursday to give back the pump and get hydration thru an IV. On Friday I go back for a shot that helps raise my white blood cells. At first, after losing so many of my body’s nutrients from throwing up for such a long time I was completely depleted because of the blocked bowel. They didn’t expect me to last thru the night and I was given last rites. I am still on TPN which hangs on a pole and feeds me intravenously for 12 hours. However, the dr recently cut the amount of TPN in half and wants me to try to eat regular food. It’s really slow going as you don’t feel like eating. This thing came completely out of the blue and took me down with a terrible vengeance. The oncologist today told me my blood counts are those of an 18-year-old which made him very happy and is the best thing going for me at this time. The worst side effect is the tiredness and lack of energy. That’s the thing that I need the most prayers for. The dr told me that this is a very aggressive tumor and I may be on some sort of chemo for the rest of my life, but I’m hoping for a miracle to get my life back.
When I told Buddy, he was shocked and has been calling every few days. I told him the dr told me this is hereditary, and he needs to get Victoria checked out. —- THE REST OF THIS EMAIL HAS BEEN REMOVED BECAUSE I CONSIDER IT PERSONAL –.
Anyway, that’s our news. We hope you guys are all doing well.
Take care,
Connie
On Wednesday, there was an X-Ray scheduled for me. I had problems with kidney stones and was seeing a urologist on Friday. The good thing about this was the X-Ray was scheduled in advance, so I did not need to leave Connie alone for long. On Thursday we went back to have the pump removed. On Friday the 11th, I saw the urologist at 9:30, and then around 1 pm, I took Connie in for her hydration. I was noticing little improvements, not major but minor things. Before we went to hydration though Connie sent the following email to her cousin Dee.
Hi Dee,
I just realized that I forgot to answer your question about how Buddy’s doing. In August he was working in his garage. He went into the kitchen to give himself an insulin shot. Then he went back out to the garage to finish up what he was working on. Julie and Victoria were out for the day. After a couple of hours, he couldn’t remember if he gave himself the shot. So, he went back to the kitchen and gave himself another one. Then he went back to > the garage. Julie and Victoria found him on the garage floor. He said he was there for 6 hours before they found him. He was rushed to the hospital and kept there for several days. He’s always upbeat and I’ve never heard him complain about his diabetes, but I think it’s been very hard on his body. He’s had it since 1991.
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Thank you for doing the novena for me. I’m hoping to get my life back at least to the point that I can get around and not be so tired.
Right now, everything is an effort, but I’m hoping that will change soon. Chemo takes everything out of you. I just ordered a wig, so I’ll be like my mom! My lower eyelashes have all fallen out. It’s so weird.
Hope you guys are all doing well!
Take care,
Connie
Monday the 14th, we went back to the hospital at 8 AM for an outpatient procedure on Connie. They were supposed to take out the filter that they had placed in her to catch blood clots going to the lung and heart. Her oncologist did not want to leave it in there too long. Lizzie, Connie, and I all headed to the hospital that morning and after we got checked in and everything was done, they took us back to wait for the doctor to come and do the procedure. They came around 9:30 and took Connie back and said it would not take long. The doctor came out and told me he that after looking at it under whatever they do, he was not going to take it out as there was a blood clot trapped in the filter and he was afraid if he removed the filter it would float free and would put her in danger. After talking to me about her diagnosis and looking at her chart, he wondered why the oncologist was requesting that it be removed. I could read between the lines of what he was saying, He came across to me as saying why should I remove it based on her diagnosis it does not matter. I knew then he did not think she was going to make it. His perspective was different than our oncologist who thought she was showing great improvement. We were scheduled to go get hydration at 1 pm at the oncology center but I called them, and they let us come over right away so we would not have to make another trip. That was nice of them. Below is the email I sent out about that day.
Hi Guys,
First, let me thank you all so much for your prayers.
Connie has been feeling better the last couple of weeks. Today we went in for an outpatient procedure to remove the filter they had placed in about 3 weeks ago to catch blood clots traveling from her leg to her lungs. They saw some blood clots still trapped in the filter and thought it would be more dangerous to remove it at this time and it would be better if they left the filter in till a later date. We were disappointed but we know the doctor made the right decision.
Next Monday, September 21st she will have her 8th chemo treatment. She is eating a little better but not as much as the doctors would like. She is still getting half her calories through TPN and I am still giving her shots every 12 hours (twice a day).
The doctor says she has to be very careful this flu season because even with the flu shot, she will get they do not know how effective it will be with her chemo. I will be getting my flu shot in the next couple of days.
Her spirits are good as we keep praying that the chemo is working.
Your prayers for Connie are deeply appreciated. We believe they have made a huge difference and have given us some small miracles.
We ask that you continue to pray for the long and difficult road ahead of us.
Connie’s battle continues but with your prayers and God’s grace, we will continue the fight.
Just know we appreciate your prayers very much as they provide us peace and comfort. We are praying that the chemo is working and that the next CAT scan will show improvement.
Again, thank you so much for your prayers.
Connie and Joel (Sparkie)
I made be wrong about the date of this, but I think it happening this week on Wednesday. Connie and I went to “Outback” and she ordered a small steak, bake potato a salad, and an iced tea to drink, I ordered the same. It was an amazing day as Connie ate about three-fourths of her steak and about half of her baked potato and salad. She also drinks all her iced tea. She had not eaten that much in over 6 months at one time. She had gone weeks without eating before and it always bothered me as we always love to go out to eat. That was a happy day for me and her. She would not eat that much often but in the future, there were times she did. I cannot tell you how happy it made me to know she could eat again like that. She did not have any problems with it either. Thursday, we went back in for hydration.
On Thursday the 17th, we went back to the cancer center for hydration. Connie, I thought was doing better and feeling better and so did she. On Friday I schedule the following masses for Connie.
September 23 at 8:30 am
October 14 at 8:30 am
October 21 at 8:30 am
October 28 at 8:30 am
Monday, the 21st, was chemo day and like all the other times, first, it was the labs and once they were ready you got to see the doctor and then if everything was ok you got the chemo. Today was a good day as Connie was able to get her chemo. The next day, I went to see a back doctor here in town. I was having trouble with my ankle and feet going numb on me and my RA doctor told me to get myself checked out for spinal stenosis. I should have known then that this was not the doctor for me as I waited almost two hours after my appointment time to see him. He took some X-Rays and confirmed it was spinal stenosis. He said I need to get an MRI and he would be able to do minimally invasive back surgery on me and I would be in and out of the hospital in a few hours. So, we scheduled an MRI.
On Wednesday we went back to the cancer center to have Connie’s chemo pump removed. It was two nights that I did not have to hook the TPN to her port for nutrition as she would stay connected to the chemo for 48 hours. I was still giving her a shot every 12 hours.
Thursday, we had to go back in for a shot as they were worried about Connie’s blood count and want to give her a shot to build them up. While we were there, we got her hydration. Friday, I had an appointment with my family doctor, Dr. Graham. Even though it was Saturday, I had scheduled my MRI for 11 AM that morning. I had only had one MRI and that was back in the early nineties when I went in during the middle of the night so my insurance would cover most of it. This time it was a big difference as I was only able to stay in the machine for about 2 minutes and then I hit the panic button. They offered me a valium, but I did not have anyone to drive me home. So, I ended up rescheduling it to a place in North Dallas that had an open MRI.
October — 2015
The next week on Monday the 28th, of September, and Thursday, October the 1st we went into the cancer center for hydration for Connie.
On October 2nd, I attended a funeral for Linda Church’s father. Linda is the wife of our priest Fr. Tim. Yes, we had a married priest.
On October 5th, Connie, and I went to Dr. Connor for her chemo treatment that was scheduled for today. After meeting with the doctor, we found out that her labs show her white blood counts low, so she was not able to get the chemo. We were extremely disappointed as this was the second time this happened. Instead, she got a shot to boss her white blood count and I am not sure if we stayed around to get hydration or not. Here is the email that I sent after that visit.
Hi Guys,
First, let me thank you all so much for your prayers.
Connie went in for chemo number 9 today but was unable to take it because her white blood count was so low, so it has been rescheduled to next Monday, October 12th. After meeting with the doctor today the plan is for her to have chemo on October 12th, October 26th, and November 9th which will give her 11 treatments. We will then wait for 4 weeks and they will do a PET scan to see how the chemo is doing on her cancer. The type of cancer she has only shown up on a PET scan so we must wait at least 4 weeks to get the chemo out of her systems so they can get a good test.
She has been feeling better the last couple of weeks. She still has days that are hard but is having some good days. She is eating a little bit more but still losing a little bit of weight. We are hoping she will continue to have more good days and if things work out as planned, we are hoping she will be able to enjoy Thanksgiving.
I am still giving her a shot twice a day and feeding her through the TPN at night. But she has improved in the amount she eats.
She needs to be careful for the next few days until the shot they gave her today builds up her white blood count.
Your prayer for Connie is deeply appreciated. We believe they have made a huge difference and have given us some small miracles. We do not know for sure if the chemo is working but we see improvements in the ways she has been feeling.
Her spirits are good as we keep praying that the chemo is working.
We ask that you continue to pray for the long and difficult road ahead of us.
Connie’s battle continues but with your prayers and God’s grace, we will continue the fight.
Just know we appreciate your prayers very much as they provide us peace and comfort. We are praying that the chemo is working and that the next PET scan will show improvement.
Again, thank you so much for your prayers.
Connie and Joel (Sparkie)
Tuesday the sixth, I did MOW with Lizzie and nothing major happen the rest of the week as I took Connie for hydration on Thursday. Sometime during that week, we got a shot to boost her blood counts and I am not sure if we got in on Monday or Thursday or maybe we even got it both days, I am just not sure.
Finally, on the 12th, Connie was able to resume her chemo. I just remember how amazing it was how they had things organized as I am sure all the places that do chemo do. First, they call you back for blood work and it does not take long for them to get the results to the doctor and then you see the doctor and either get the ok to have chemo or not. It is amazing how efficient they are. On Tuesday I went to the dentist to pick up some mouthwash for Connie as it seems to help her. It seems to remove some of the taste that the chemo was causing. Then on Wednesday, we went back into the chemo office to have the pump removed. There was also a healing mass for Connie that morning. We went back in for hydration on Thursday and then on Friday, I took the MRI CD back to the back doctor and he said it confirmed it was spinal stenosis and his staff would call me for a surgery date. It was going to be a minimally invasive surgery and would be in and out of the hospital in 5 or 6 hours. I am not sure when I went to get the MRI done but I know I had to go into North Dallas to have an open MRI. I do remember it being around 4 pm on a Wednesday, as I had forgotten how bad the traffic was when I started home.
This was a busy week for me. Monday the 19th, Connie and I went into the cancer center for hydration. Tuesday, I had a 9 Am appointment with my periodontist for deep teeth cleaning. Wednesday morning the 8:30 Am mass was for Connie and then I went at met with our financial advisor Todd at 10 AM. Connie usually went with me to these appointments but she had not made the last one nor this one. It is funny how I missed her at those appointments. Since I was the one that took care of all the finances and Connie was not well versed in investments, etc., she was a big help. Just her lack of understanding, or maybe because I did think I understood, she would come up with a very basic question. She always amazed me because her questions always reminded me sometimes, I thought I knew what we were talking about, but her basics question would remind me, I sometimes did not. Looking back on it those questions she asked were helpful and kept me on track. I sure do miss them now. Thursday, I went in for an eye appointment in Plano, just to have my eye pressure checked rather than go all the way to my eye doctor in North Dallas. That afternoon it was back to the chemo center to get more hydration for Connie. Friday was memorable in one aspect, and that is Mike from Tempo came to check our furnace for the winter. Over the last several years, when Connie made an appointment with Tempo she always asked for Mike. She always felt he was honest, and they got along great.
On Saturday, the 24th, Connie sent this email to her cousin Dee.
Hi Dee,
I’m doing okay. Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday I will have chemo # 10. I
think Nov. 9th is my last chemo for this round. The Dr. said he will then take me off chemo for 4 weeks so that I can have a PET scan in early December. We can’t wait to see what that scan says and how much
of the cancer is still there or eradicated. I don’t allow anything negative to come near me and practice positive affirmations many times during the day like “the chemo is killing the cancer” and “God is restoring my health. Whatever you think and verbalize becomes your reality, so I keep going for
the positive. I just want so badly to get my life back. Sparkie needs surgery for spinal stenosis due to his rheumatoid arthritis so I want to be able to help him. We are hoping to get that scheduled for when I’m off chemo.
We hope you guys are doing well!!
Take care,
Connie
On the 26th, we started another chemo week as you had your chem on Monday, and things went well. The good thing about it now was we got a break for two nights from hooking you up to your TPN. One of the things, I have forgotten to mention was that Lizzie went with us most of the time but during this week she was off with Fr. Tim and other members of the parish for a Holy Land trip. But since you had started eating a little bit back in August we would usually stop and get a bite on the way home with Lizzie. I remember we went to Jason, Pallio, a taco place, and many others. On Wednesday we return to the chemo place to have the pump removed and then returned on Thursday for hydration.
On Friday, the 30th, of October I sent the following email.
Hi Guys,
Thank you all so much for your prayers. Connie is doing better so they must be working.
Connie had chemo number 10 on Monday 10/26 and as usual, is very tired after her chemo treatment. We are now scheduled for one more round of chemo on 11/10. After meeting with the doctor on Monday the plan is for her to have chemo on November 10th which will give her 11 treatments. We will then wait for 4 weeks and they will do a PET scan to see how the chemo is doing on her cancer. The type of cancer she has only shows up on a PET scan so we must wait at least 4 weeks to get the chemo out of her systems so they can get a good test.
I will continue to give her shots every 12 hours through the first few days of December and then we hope she can start taking a pill. The doctor also talked about running some other tests and he still needs to decide when to remove the filter for blood clots. As she is starting to eat better, he is going to consider weaning her off the TPN (food she gets through her port every night). She has gained a couple of pounds over the last few weeks, which is minimal, but it is moving in the right direction.
We are hoping she will continue to have more good days and if things work out as planned, we are hoping she will be able to enjoy Thanksgiving.
The results of the PET scan will dictate what the doctor does next.
Your prayers for Connie are deeply appreciated. We believe they have made a huge difference and have given us some small miracles. We do not know for sure if the chemo is working but we see improvements in the ways she has been feeling.
Her spirits are good as we keep praying that the chemo is working.
We ask that you continue to pray for the long and difficult road ahead of us.
Connie’s battle continues but with your prayers and God’s grace, we will continue the fight.
Just know we appreciate your prayers very much as they provide us peace and comfort. We are praying that the chemo is working and that the next PET scan will show improvement.
Again, thank you so much for your prayers.
Connie and Joel (Sparkie)
November — 2015
The first week of November was a very bad week for Connie and I. Connie never complained about the cancer card she had been dealt but at the end of this week, she did say why is all of this happening to us Sparkie.
It started on the night of October 31st, as I was having pain. On Sunday morning, it was pretty bad and instead of going to mass, I drove myself to the emergency room getting there a little after 7. They diagnosed me with a kidney stone, which is what I thought since I had them before. They gave me a shot of morphine and I was ready to leave the hospital about 10:30 but could not drive myself home. Luckily, Mike and Brenda good friends of ours came over to the hospital to check on me after mass and Mike drove me home, while Brenda followed in their car. The rest of the day I felt ok and was able to take care of Connie with no problems.
Monday, the 2nd started terribly. Early in the morning around 9 AM, the phone was ringing and in trying to get to it, I fell. We had to call a neighbor to help me up and I was hurting fairly bad. I had an appointment at 11 with my urologist to talk to him about my kidney stone. Connie also had hydration scheduled for 1:30 that afternoon. My neighbor took me to my urologist appointment and left as I was going to walk from his office to the ER as it was in the same building. Connie was able to get her hydration appointment moved up and one of our good neighbors was able to take her to it. At the ER, they X-rayed my hips, knees, elbow, and other parts. They were worried about the hips since they had been replaced, the knee had a big bruise and some blood on it, and the elbow had already been bothering me and it was hurting. They could not find any major damage, so they sent me home with pain medication. Things worked out great as I had only been finished in the ER when Connie and our neighbor came by to pick me up. The rest of the day I was just dealing with the pain and soreness.
Tuesday the third, was even worst for both of us. It started ok as that morning I went through the McDonald’s drive-thru and got breakfast for both of us. I remember trying to pay for the breakfast and how much my elbow hurt. Later, I started feeling the pain of the kidney stone again. Our friend Lizzie, came over as she had just returned from a church trip to the Holy Land the day before. She had brought us a little gift that she had picked up for us. The pain was getting worse and shortly after lunch, Lizzie took me back to the ER, and they were getting to know me well as the lady that checked me in, was the same one that had to check me in, the previous two today. I had not been there that long when they gave me a shot of morphine. It did not seem to help, so they gave me another shot of morphine but decided that they were not going to let me go home and admit me to the hospital. They planned on doing a procedure the next day that would relieve the pain until I either passed the kidney stone, or they were able to take it out. Then things turned worse, as Lizzie return to our house and found Connie in bad shape, as he had fallen and there was blood over the place, even though Connie had tried to clean it up. Now Connie hated going to the doctor and hospital but when Lizzie took one look at her and said you got to go to the ER, she did not fight her. I was resting comfortably thanks to the morphing shot when Lizzie, show you to my room to tell me Connie was in the ER. She said she was going to be ok but was having stitches put in her head where she had fallen. Around 9:30 Lizzie came back to my room with Connie. They had placed several stitches in her head and she had it bandaged but I could tell she had a major fall and she had hurt herself badly. Luckily the X-rays were negative for any major brain inures as she only needed stitches. She was hurting and was bruised badly. I also remember one of my good friends Wayne had stopped by to see me.
After leaving the hospital that night Connie and Lizzie stopped at Whataburger and got themselves something to eat. I remember Lizzie and Connie telling me about parking there facing Stacey road and eating hamburgers and french fries after 10 pm that night. Lizzie was so good to both of us that day. She even spent the night sleeping in a chair because she was worried about Connie because of her head injury and wanted to make sure she was ok.
What a Wednesday, they came by around 9:30 and told me they were taking me into the OR to put a tube up my penis to relieve the pain of the kidney stone. Luckily, I had time for a shower before they came to get me. The procedure did not take long and by noon I was back in my room awake. I was ready to go home, but they want me to stay for a while and I thought they would let me leave around dinner time. At four in the afternoon, the nurse said she was not going to let me leave as my blood pressure was too high. I was worried as Connie had been by herself all day and she had not had her TPN the night before. The oncologist doctor’s nurse had called earlier and told me they were going to cut back on the TPN, and they would deliver a new batch that evening. Even though they were cutting the amount back that she was going to get, it would still be delivered over 12 hours. So, with all that on my mind, I told the nurse, I was leaving, and she said no you are not and my blood pressure went even higher. Finally, after talking to the doctor, they agreed to let me go as he felt maybe all this anxiety of me having to stay at the hospital was the cause for my blood pressure rising and I think he was right. Lizzie had gone home as she was worn out after her trip to the Holy Lands and taking care of Connie the day and night before. At about six-thirty they let me leave the hospital, Sonja asked me if I wanted to stop and get something to eat before we went home and I said no, I just want to get home.
After arriving home, they deliver the new TPN for Connie a little after seven. I went to hook the TPN up and found they had not sent a new pump which regulates how much TPN should be delivered every hour. So, I was on the phone with them several times until late evening. They finally got the new pump to me around midnight and I woke Connie up and we set up the TPN. It meant that it would not be finished until a little afternoon on Thursday. I was completely exhausted.
What made things even worse was Connie’s bruising. It had not been bad the night before when I had seen her at the hospital night after her visit to the Emergency Room, but now her face was almost totally black and blue. I felt so bad for her as I now knew how bad that fall had been and much pain she must have been in and was still in.
On Friday, the 6th, we were already scheduled to go in for hydration and Dr. Connor’s office called and he wanted to see her when she came in. After getting hydration we saw Dr. Connor and he looked at the stitches that they had put in Connie’s scalp and head and want us to see a plastic surgeon to have them look at it and make sure there would be no permeant scarring or something she would need surgery on after the wounds healed. I am not sure exactly how many stitches they used but I believe it was in the low to high teens. He gave us some names to try. After arriving home, we made an appointment with Dr. Stiles for Monday at one-thirty in the afternoon.
The bruising of Connie’s face was very worrisome. The swelling had gone down quite a bit, but it was still so black and blue. On the afternoon of Monday the 9th, we went to see Dr. Stiles (a plastic surgeon) and she was wonderful. She was concerned about one spot where they had done stitches so she redid that spot and gave Connie a prescription for something to help with the bruising and ask us to come back on Thursday so she could see how the bruising was doing. She thought Connie would be left with no visible scar, and if there was one it would be covered up by her hair.
Connie and I also came up with a list of questions, we wanted to ask Dr. Connor the next day. I emailed them to Lizzie as she went to almost all our appointments and helped us with remembering the questions we wanted to ask. They are listed below.
- Should I get a pneumonia shot?
- With being off chemo for 4 weeks will give the cancer a chance to come roaring back.
- Should I get hydration while I’m off chemo?
- Will I get the Neupogen shot every week despite being off chemo?
- Will I stay on the generic for Lovenox?
- What medicine will you put me on when you take me off Lovenox?
- When will the filter come out?
- What other tests will you run besides the PET scan? What happens if the results aren’t good?
- When can I get off TPN for good?
- Is yogurt good to eat? Is milk okay for cereals? Salads/
- Should I be taking probiotics?
On Tuesday the 10th, Connie was scheduled for chemo with Dr. Connor but after the labs, he decided not to give her chemo. When we had first started, he said that he may stop after 10 to see how the chemo was working. So, when the labs came back to show her white blood count low, he decided this was a good time to stop and see if the chemo was working. He had thought about keeping the chemo go for another time or two but went back to his original plan of stopping and testing after 10 chemo treatments. She would have to be off the chemo for several weeks before they could run the test to see how it was working.
That afternoon, even though I was still struggling with the kidney stone, I went to the AT&T store and purchase two new iPhones for Connie and me. They were iPhone 6s. What I remember is trying to get it done as quickly as possible as I was hurting.
Lizzie was with her that afternoon when I went to get the phones. I cannot tell you have many times Lizzie came to visit her and how much it lifted her spirit. Later that day she responded to an email from Brain and Bev about going out for lunch. Here is her response.
Hi Bev and Brian,
Thank you for your sweet card!! I would love to go to lunch and run wild thru the streets of Allen!! It will probably be in December though because last Tuesday I passed out and hit my head on the leg of a metal bench in our hallway. I had to get 18 stitches at the ER. My oncologist saw me the next day and insisted that I see a plastic surgeon which I saw yesterday. We go back again on Thursday to get the stitches removed. She wanted to wait a few extra days till they healed more as the gash was deep. You could see my brain – proof that I have one!! Anyway, right now I can’t go out in public as the swelling and black and blue marks are all over my entire face and neck. I’ll have to wait till the body re-absorbs the blood. It was hard going into the oncology center because everyone was staring. But I sure will look forward to going out to lunch with you soon!
Hope you guys are doing well and feeling good! Thank you for your prayers. God is being really good to me because He has put the most wonderful doctors and nurses in my path.
Take care,
Connie
The next morning Wednesday, I had X-Rays done around noon and saw Dr. Graham at one-thirty about my kidney stone. He told me the best thing was do was to do a lithotripsy which is a shock wave to break up the stone. I was lucky as they had an opening the following Monday and the next one after that was in December. I took it right away as I wanted to get this over with. It was scheduled for Monday the 16th, at seven am. Later that day, I sent the following email about Connie.
Hi Guys,
Wow! A lot has gone on in the past couple of weeks
Connie did not get chemo number 11 on Tuesday 11//10 as her blood work (white blood count was low). The Doctor decided this was a good time to stop and runs some tests to see if the chemo is working. At one time he said we would do 10 and then run a PET Scan but then thought she might be able to do 11 but that did not work out.
As of right now Connie TPN has been cut back to 8 hours a night and reduced to 390ml. We started in June at 1500ml and that was cut back to about 800 ml and now to 390ml. He has cut it back because her liver enzymes are elevated.
I will continue to give her shots every 12 hours through the first few days of December and then we hope she can start taking a pill. The doctor also talked about running some other tests and he still needs to decide when to remove the filter for blood clots.
She will still visit the oncology center weekly for blood work and to have her port changed. The week of Thanksgiving they will do a PET Scan and we will see the doctor on Tuesday, December 1st for the results. Hopefully, with good results, she can come off the TPN and twice-a-day a shot.
We asked for your continued prayers for Connie and that the PET scan will show good results as we are both nervous and anxious about the results.
For some other news, some of you are aware of and I just wanted to give you an update.
On Sunday, November 1st I went to the ER with kidney stone pain, the next day I fell in the house so back to the ER, on Tuesday I went back to the ER with kidney stone pain. They admitted me to the hospital. While I was in the hospital Connie fell and had to go to the ER where she had 18 stitches put on her forehead. Monday I will be going in to have the kidney stone blasted and hopefully, that will work and I will be kidney stone-free, then I will schedule my back surgery and after that have my elbow looked at.
Connie will be having a plastic surgeon look at her head tomorrow to make sure it going to heal correctly.
We are hoping to have a wonderful Thanksgiving as Connie will have been off Chemo for about 4 weeks, but I know we will be nervous about the test results.
The results of the PET scan will dictate what the doctor does next.
Your prayers for Connie are deeply appreciated. Connie continues to improve, and we believe your prayers have made a huge difference and have given us some small miracles. We do not know for sure if the chemo is working but we see improvements in the ways she has been feeling.
Her spirits are good as we keep praying that the chemo is working.
We ask that you continue to pray for the long and difficult road ahead of us.
Connie’s battle continues but with your prayers and God’s grace, we will continue the fight.
Just know we appreciate your prayers very much as they provide us peace and comfort. We are praying that the chemo is working and that the next PET scan will show improvement.
Again, thank you so much for your prayers.
Connie and Joel (Sparkie)
On Thursday the 12th, Connie and I returned to Dr. Stile’s office to see how the healing was going. She did a few touch-up stitches and then told us that the bruising could take a month to go away. The bruising was still bad, and Connie did not like having to go out to the doctors and be in public. Saturday, around lunchtime, Connie and I took off to find the places where they would be blasting the kidney stone. We were familiar with the general area, as it was around Presbyterian Hospital on Walnut Hill, but wanted to make sure that I knew exactly where. Lizzie would be taking me that day. We found the place and it was a good thing we went and found it before Monday as it was a little hard to find. I remember Connie and I stopped on the way back home at a little market and we each got a diet coke, and I got a small pack of peanuts. I am not why I remember some of these little details, but Connie had a medical term for what it was called.
Monday the 16th, Lizzie arrived at the house early morning around 5:15 as I had to be at the place where they were going to blast the kidney stone by 6:15. We had no problem getting there and were there a little after 6:00. After all the initial testing and getting me situated it was a little after 7. My doctor, Dr. Graham arrived around 7 also. The problem was the doctor that ran the machine to break up the kidney stone, had not arrived. I cannot remember why she was running late but I could tell my doctor was upset that she was not there. He was an earlier riser and tried to stay on schedule, even when he was seeing patients in his office. A funny thing happened as I was getting ready for the procedure. Lizzie and I discovered that I had on Connie’s pants. We both had some very loose pants with no pockets that were great for traveling in and I think they were called running pants. The women had two stripes down the legs while the men had three stripes down the legs. They were very soft and stretchable. I was running late and just grab one from the closet. As I was getting ready for the procedure, Lizzie said “Sparkie, those pants are short and tight on you” and that was when I realized that I had on Connie’s pants. Thank goodness I did not put on her underwear (just kidding). The procedure probably took only about twenty to thirty minutes and I was heading back home around ten-thirty. I do know that I was home before noon.
I had not been home long when the doctor’s office I had seen about my back surgery called and said my back surgery was scheduled for Wednesday morning. It was all I could do to be pleasant to them. I told them there was no way I would be there for back surgery as I had called several times to try to get information and to come in and see the doctor to talk about the surgery. None of my calls had ever been returned. So, I told them to forget it as I was going to be seeing a different doctor. I had already made an appointment with a new back surgeon and was seeing him the next day.
The next day, I met with the new back doctor, Dr. Burg at nine am. I am so glad, that the other guy did not work out, because I like Dr. Burg. The other doctor had told me I would go home a few hours after surgery and would be back to my normal activities the next day. Dr. Burg informed me that I would go home a few hours after surgery but would need to wear a back brace for 4 to 6 weeks and would not be able to lift anything over 5 lbs. for the first 4 weeks and maybe 6. He said even though it is minimally invasive there is still a recovery process to go through. He took a lot more time with me and explained things in much more detail, so I decided to have him do my surgery. The problem was with Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays coming up he did not have an opening until January, and I was willing to wait. That afternoon at one Connie and I went to Dr. Conor’s office for lab work. Even though she was taking a month off from chemo, she still had to get lab work done every week. She would have to be off the chemo for 4 weeks before they could run the scan that they needed to run. One of the things, I will always be grateful to Connie for is picking good doctors. The first one I went to see was based on a friend from church recommendation. After that, Connie did all the research and came up with Dr. Burg. Thank you, Connie.
The rest of that week was normal, it was such a slow process for Connie’s bruising to heal. Even after two weeks, there was still quite a bit of bruising and I know it bothered Connie a lot.
Also, on Tuesday the 17th, Connie was feeling well enough to send out a couple of emails. To Pat and Don Hill, she wrote the following.
Hi Pat and Don,
Just want to thank you for the cross you sent me. I believe it is a healing cross and will look that up later on so I can read about its history. It was so nice of you to think of me.
We are doing okay and seem to be back on track after the falls we had. My bruising is going away slowly. The thing I need most is strength as I feel wobbly and rickety.
Hope to see you at church in a few weeks. Again, thank you for thinking of me!
Sparkie and I hope you guys are doing well.
Mucho hugs,
Connie
Patty, response
Yes, Connie, that is a healing cross. My sister gave one to my Mom and when she passed away Mary got the cross back. She used it all during her cancer treatments and when Mary passed away, they asked me if there was anything of Mary’s that I would like to have and I asked for thehealing cross. I find it comforting when things are not going well to take it to bed with me and hope it will give you the same peace.
I will be so thrilled to see you at church when the day comes to think we should have a celebration.
Much love and prayers,
Patty
To Bev and Brian Vespucci, she wrote the following.
Hi Bev and Brian,
Just want to thank you for the holy water you sent me. Sparkie told me it was from the Jordan River. He blesses my IV food bag every night and now he will have this special holy water!!
We are doing okay and seem to be back on track after the falls we had. My bruising is going away slowly. The thing I need most is strength as I feel wobbly and rickety.
Hope to see you at church in a few weeks. Again, thank you for thinking of me!
Sparkie and I hope you are doing well.
Mucho hugs,
Connie
Bev response.
Hi you guys,
Glad to hear you are both on the mend and very happy to hear you are returning to church soon. You get used to seeing the same people at Mass, and it is been off without you. Will be very happy to see you and we will get together soon.
I just believe every prayer, holy card, rosary, Mass, Communion and Holy Water helps, so we thought of you, of course.
Love,
Bev
Thursday, the 19th, I went to Best Buy and bought a wireless printer. It was the first wireless printer that I had bought. So, on Friday the 20th, our good friend Mike Steffens came over and helped me set it up.
While Connie was still very black and blue and was still having some pain from her fall, she was able to write to her cousin Dee on Saturday night. I was always encouraged when she would get on the computer and write to someone as I knew she was feeling somewhat better. But we were still doing the TPN every night and since this was a Saturday, I would start it a little earlier so I could disconnect before I left for the eight am mass on Sunday. Anyway, this is what she wrote to Dee that night.
Hi Dee,
Sparkie told me he added you to our update list, so you know that they didn’t give me chemo #11. The oncologist wanted to give me a break and also my white blood cell count was low. Both of us are trying to recover from our falls. We see the plastic surgeon again on Tuesday. She will treat me for scar management. The black and blue are going away but I’ve got 3 bumps on my forehead that don’t seem to be going down They are very prominent, and ice doesn’t seem to be affecting them. There’s a lot of trauma to my face so I have to stay home. Sparkie had to have a stent put in on Monday and the urologist busted his kidney stone. He is miserable with the stent, so I hope they take it out soon. We just hit a bad patch these past two weeks and need a little sunshine on us now. I go in on Tuesday for the PET scan and will get the results on December 1st. We are so hopeful for good news. That’s it for us. How are you doing? Any snow yet? I saw on the tv news before that Chicago is getting a ton of snow. You could almost feel the cold thru the tv.
We wish you all a wonderful and safe Thanksgiving!!
Take care,
Connie
On Monday, the 23rd, I met with Dr. Graham (Chester) my urologist about one and went and had an X-Ray done before I met with him and everything was ok. I am not sure I ever mentioned it before, but I had two Dr. Grahams who were not related to each other. Chester my urologist and Robert my family doctor.
I sent the following email out that afternoon to 85 people who were wanting to keep up with Connie’s progress.
Hi Guys,
Connie has a PET scan scheduled for tomorrow at 3:30. Please pray that it will show that the chemo is working and that we will get good results. We are not scheduled to see the Dr. till December 1st so I am not sure when we will know anything. As you can know we are anxious and nervous about the results but praying God will bless us with good results.
Also, Connie has caught a bad cold please add prayers that she will be able to enjoy Thanksgiving.
We are both are improving from our falls. Connie will be seeing a plastic surgeon tomorrow, to start some scar management process on her forehead.
Your prayers for Connie are deeply appreciated. She continues to improve, and we believe your prayers have made a huge difference and have given us some small miracles.
Just know we appreciate your prayers very much as they provide us peace and comfort.
Again, thank you so much for your prayers.
Connie and Joel (Sparkie)
That Tuesday the 26th, Connie had an appointment with Dr. Stiles at 11:30. She was keeping a close eye on her as she wanted to make sure there was no permeant scarring or anything that would require plastic surgery later on. Connie and I loved her as she was a very compassionate doctor who cared about her patients. We also found out she devoted some of her time to doing plastic surgery on children, who could not afford it.
Afterward, we grab a quick bite to eat and headed into the oncology center for labs and to get the PET scan done.
Thursday was Thanksgiving and I went to mass at nine am. As soon as I get home, I had a problem. Since there were going to be 11 of us there this year and we had been having an annual Thanksgiving Trivia contest for several years now. We even gave the winning team trophies to take home and bring back the following year. Lindsey and always came up with the rules and they were a little different each year. Lindsey and I came up with the rules each year and we referred to ourselves as the Board of Directors. With the odd number, we changed it around a little bit this year. All of us came up with questions but they would be submitted to me so I could put them all together for the Trivia Contest on Thanksgiving Day. Instead of all of us coming up with questions. It was decided I would come up with all the questions. After I got home to print the question, I could not get my new printer to print. I am not sure what the problem was, so I went to my neighbor Andy and he printed them for me. The following are the rules we played by. I think the only exception was that we played 3 rounds and redrew teams after each round. Since each person had to provide three questions that gave us a total of 30 questions, so we changed teams after every 10 questions.
The following are the rules for that day’s Thanksgiving Trivia game.
Welcome to Thanksgiving Trivia,
All questions must be received by me before November 23rd. If you snail mail them, please keep that in mind.
The questions may be submitted by email, text, or snail mail.
Email – sparkie46b@yahoo.com
Text – 469-667-2877
Snail Mail — Joel Buntley
Attn: Trivia
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Fairview Texas, 75069
Or
Lizzie Brier
Attn: Trivia
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
If anyone has any other suggestions, please let me know!!! Lizzie will not open the envelopes but deliver them to me!!!!!
Important ::::: Do not share your questions with anyone as you will not know who your teammate is until the drawing on Thanksgiving Day.
A quick review of the rules:
Determining the Teams
First Teams will be chosen randomly on Thanksgiving Day by a method yet to be determined. The only exception to this is that Lawrence and Beanie will be a team.
An Example — While the method of drawing for teams is still to be determined (maybe you will have to pick a balloon with a slip of paper in it), you will have to use your knowledge to figure out which team you are on. Failure to correctly identify your partner may result in a loss of 5 points.
For example.
If the following 6 pieces of paper had been drawn — salt, Romeo, pepper, Penny, Leonard, Juliet then
Salt and Pepper would be a team
Romeo and Juliet would be a team
Penny and Leonard would be a team
You must figure out who your partner is!!!
In the above case, we would have a Seasoning team, a Love team, and a Comedy team….
Your Questions
Second, each person will come up with three trivia questions.
The first two questions will be multiple choice and you must provide 4 possible answers to your question. There will be no restriction on categories for these two questions.
The third question will be a free-response question, which is just like last year — you ask a question and the other have to come up with the answer. This question must fit into one of these 5 categories. Music, Movies, History, Famous People, and Geography. The question can have only one possible answer.
Matching Sheets
After those two are completed the Board of Directors will give each team 4 or 5 matching sheets to be completed. An example would be to list 5 Presidents and 5 Vice presidents, and you would have to put them together or match 5 different bones to 5 parts of the body.
Scoring
As for scorings, each section will be worth 120 points. The multiple-choice questions will be worth 5 points each, the free-response questions will be worth 10 points each. The value of the matching questions will be determined by the number of matching sheets used but the total will be 120 points.
In case of a tie, the Board of Directors will have some tie-breaking questions.
Other Games After Trivia
The following two games will also be available for those who would like to play.
Back by popular demand the “Eiffel Tower Game”, I have forgotten the real name of the game but will never forget someone’s drawing of the Eiffel Tower.
Also available for the first time at Thanksgiving is the “I Never Game”.
Lolli, please provide this information to Matt, Jacob, and Maddie, and Matthew please pass this on to Stef. Matt & Maddie, please bring your trophies.
Remember no one should know your questions but you since you do not know what team you will be on.
Thanks – Connie and I are looking forward to seeing all of you guys!!!!!!!!!!!
Sparkie
The game was great as usual, and the switching of partners was different and fun. Since a team did not stay together through all the questions the trophies would be awarded to the two people with the highest score. Lizzie surprises us and had the highest score. For second place there was a tie between Connie and Matt. I asked the only two tie-breaker questions and they both got them right. I then had to come up with one off the top of my head. I did and Connie missed it. Deep down I wanted her to win and I thought she would know the question that I asked. But it was a lot of fun. So, for the 2nd year in a row, one of the trophies was going back to New Mexico and to the same house. The previous year Maddie and Matthew won them and this year it is Lizzie and Matt.
Your 2015 Thanksgiving Trivia Winners!!!!!
Liz and Uncle Matt!!!! They replace last year’s champions of Matthew and Maddie.
Thursday was Thanksgiving and as usual, we spent it with Connie’s best friend Lizzie, and her family. Normally we had at least 10 people, Connie and I, Lizzie, Dave, Matthew, Lindsey, Lolli, Matt, Jacob, and Maddie. That year Matthew’s finance Stef also came. Lizzie was a great cook, and the meal was always delicious. Connie always made cornbread stuffing. Since we all teased Connie about her cooking, she would refer to it as a coyote casserole. That year it was a struggle to make her casserole, but she did, and then we did something special with it to get a laugh. We print off 10 or 15 small coyotes and taped them onto a toothpick and placed them all around the casserole. Connie and I were so well matched in that way (wanting people to laugh) that it was unbelievable. Sure enough, we got a big laugh.
As always, Lizzie outdid herself and the meal was wonderful. I was so glad that Connie and I got to meet Stef. Connie was thrilled for Matthew as she thought Stef was a wonderful young lady.
Later in the evening, we played “The Eifel Tower Game” (not sure what the real name of it was but for those of us that played on Thanksgiving we knew the reason it was called that. Maybe someday I or someone will tell you why we called it that. Afterward, we played ‘I Have Never Ever”. One of the most wonderful things about Thanksgiving at Lizzie was all the games, fun, and laughter we had. I will be forever grateful for that Thanksgiving because, for a few hours, Connie was able to have some fun.
She was a little self-conscious when we first got there because she still had at least one bandage on her head and the bruising was still obvious. Because she had eaten a decent amount of food, nothing as she used to but better than normal, and because we got home so late, I did not hook her up to the TPN that night.
On Friday, Connie sent the following email to Lizzie.
Hi Lizzie,
Show this email to Lolli and Stef cause they’ll appreciate what the pooch is doing for his pal. It’s such a heartwarming picture.
Thank you for yesterday – I don’t know when I felt so happy to be somewhere. Sparkie and I love all of you guys.
Mucho hugs,
Connie
The following is the picture and wording that was attached to the email.
Picture a soldier sleeping during an airport layover with his canine partner.
There is no measure of loyalty greater than that shown here. Sleep soundly, soldier. A worthy goal in life is to be as good a person as your dog thinks you are! God bless our Military men and women and God Bless America!
She followed up that afternoon with this email.
Hi Lizzie and Dave,
We want to thank you again for yesterday We had a super great time!! Lizzie, I got a little of each food yesterday and I’ve been able to keep it down without any stomach problems. It’s a big success!!! I hope we can get rid of the IV pole!!
Say hi to everyone for us We really loved seeing them all. We hope the V’s don’t have travel problems WE wish them safe travels.
Thank you for your sweet heart and Senor Dave’s too. It is the very best day of the year!!! We love you all very much.
Mucho hugs,
Connie & Sparkie
I sent the following email to everyone who was at the Thanksgiving dinner on Sunday afternoon.
Hi Guys,
I want to thank each and every one of you for making this Thanksgiving special. Connie has had a tough year and on Thanksgiving, she was able to just relax and have a good time and for that, I thank each of you.
The cheese balls, fruits, etc. were so delicious. The table was set up so beautifully and was very impressive. I cannot tell you how much fun it was watching all the different teams play Trivia. Most of you may not know it but Lolli forgot the answer to her free-response question, and it was so funny to see her try to recall the answer. Eventually, she got it and you could see the relief on her face that she did not miss her own question.
Wow-what can you not say about the dinner!!!! There are not enough words to describe how delicious and wonderful it was. Thank you, Liz and Lolli, who also helped, out quite a bit. And special thanks to Dave who is always jumping in to help clean up.
The matching part of the Trivia game was much harder than I thought it would be (sorry about that). But the good news is next year Lindsey has agreed to join me so now we no longer have a Board of Directors but a Board of Directors. Lindsey’s contribution will make the game more fun and exciting next year. Thanks in advance Lindsey for agreeing to help. But remember you also get to share in the criticism that comes our way.
This year’s Trivia game was very close. Liz won with 235 points. Uncle Matt and Connie tied with 225 points for second place. Matt won the tiebreaker to take second place. Everyone else was around 200 or better.
Liz made a special German Chocolate Cheesecake as we celebrated Dave and Stef’s birthdays. Happy birthday to both of you.
Dave, thank you so much for sharing your and Lizzie’s picture from the Holy Land. We all enjoyed them so much. Next, we played a game of “I never” in which we found out that Matt has worn a negligee (cannot wait to see that picture). Hurry up and send it Lolli!!!
We especially enjoyed the segment about the puppet Cheeto!!! What a scary face.
It was great to have Stef with us this year and hope she will be able to join us for many more years!!!
Thanks again to all of you for making Thanksgiving so much fun!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Sparkie & Connie
PS: I heard the “Eiffel Tower Game” was a lot of fun (ha-ha).
On Monday, the 30th, I had an appointment with DR. Robert Graham my primary care physician.