Mr. Toad's Wild Ride!

For some reason, I have had trouble logging on to the blog this week. I'm not sure if it is computer related or a google issue. Hopefully, I won't have any more problems with it.

Denny has been doing pretty good this week. He went to Chattanooga for meetings on Wednesday and Thursday. The kids have been gone all week so I'm the only one left holding down the fort. We have 3 dogs, 8 cats, a rabbit and a chicken that need to be taken care of!

Denny doesn't seem to be as tired as he was after the first treatment. He still has fatigue but it doesn't seem as prevalent this time. It makes him happy to be able to keep busy and that is a good thing!

Dan has a school golf fundraiser tomorrow. It is an 18 hole scramble to be held at Pinecreek. Denny plans to play with him along with friends, Kim and Aaron. This should be a fun time for all.

The kids start school on Monday, Aug 2. Denny and I can't believe that summer has come and gone already. It has been like "Mr. Toad's Wild Ride" for the Woodruff4! So hang on because we're not done yet! :)

Love to all,
Deb

"Every day is a good day!"

Denny and I got home about 10pm on Friday. We took our time; stopping at an auction place, and Antique shop and Gander Mountain. To me, the drive seems to be getting longer! Denny and I will both be glad when his treatments are complete and he is well.

It has been so incredibly busy at home that I haven't had a chance to update the blog. Dan and I made another 4 hour trip to Missouri on Saturday morning to meet mom and dad. He is going to stay with them for a week. On Sunday, I took Dana to her friend's house to stay for a week. She is going to be a camp counselor for Vanderbilt's Space Camp through the Dyer Observatory. Since she will be exposed to so many kids, she is staying with her friend until the camp is over. We don't want Denny exposed to any more germs than necessary!

Denny went into work at his usual time today. He is feeling a little more tired but still doing better than last time. I think it is a gift to be able to live life normally while we are home. If you ask him, Denny says, "Every day is a good day!"

Love to all,
Deb

"To get the full value of joy, you must have someone to divide it with." - Mark Twain

Home Sweet Home

We are packing things up and getting ready to head home. Denny gets his last treatment this afternoon and then we are out of here!

Amazingly, he seems to have energy; not the same level of fatigue he had before. I can see the difference in him. He is tolerating this second round much better than the first. That's a good thing!

To Helen and Gene, thanks for the idea for the blog title! To everyone else, thanks for checking in!

Love to all,
Deb

Enjoying the Lull

We got up early today and went to the farm. Denny is doing so much better this time as compared to his first round of chemo. We were only there for a couple of hours but it was time well spent.

We had to get back to the lodge in the early afternoon so that Denny could have the chemo pump unhooked. He ate a good lunch and is currently napping. Tonight, he plans to meet up with some old college pals for dinner.

Many thanks to everyone who fit us into their busy schedules this week. We enjoyed visiting with all of you: my sister, Diane, Denny's cousin, Pat, my cousin, Greg, friends-John, Ron and Lenny, our nephew, Ben, and tomorrow, the brunch bunch from the STL Corps. All of you helped make this week go by quickly.

Tomorrow after Denny's treatment, we will head for home. This is the lull before the storm as our lives will be very busy in the coming weeks.

Thanks for the continued prayers, emails and comments. We are halfway through the treatment plan and everything is looking good.

Love to all,
Deb

An Apple a day...

5:00pm - Dr. Haughey said everything was looking good. He will not need to see Denny until October. When Denny asked about when we would know the results; if the chemo has worked, this was his response: "We will know if it worked if nothing further develops. There is no scan that will tell us if it is gone because it was microscopic to begin with." Denny and I were hoping for something a little more concrete such as "yes, the cancer is gone" but if no more tumors crop up, we will consider it effective. We will be happy with that.

9:30am - Today, Denny sees Dr. Haughey, the ENT doctor. He will be running a scope up into Denny's sinus cavity to check on things.

I've been tied up with pharmacy and insurance billing issues. What a pain in the neck! Hopefully, I have everything resolved now. It seems to be an ongoing battle....

Hope everyone is having a nice day. The rain has passed through where we are and the sun is shining. It's all good!

Love to all,
Deb

Rainy Day

There is not too much going on today. Denny is feeling okay; a little tired with that bloated feeling. He is eating well and drinking lots of fluids like the doctor ordered.

It's raining so we probably won't go to the farm as we had planned. Denny has an appointment today at 4:30pm so we will hang around for that. It looks so gloomy outside but, as I've said before, with the rain, comes the flowers!

Love to all,
Deb

Round Two

6:00pm - We got back to the Lodge about 4pm. Denny (Mr. Haney) got two watermelons for a dollar at a flea market in Paducah that we stopped at on the way in yesterday. He put one on ice and ate it today after his treatment. I can't stand the smell of watermelons (anything in the melon family, actually!) so he gets to eat the whole thing!

Denny is tired but doing well. All of his blood levels were great. The treatment went off without any problems. Dr. Adkins was very pleased with how he is tolerating the chemo cocktail! So far....so good!


6:55am - We got into St. Louis about 7 p.m. last night. Now, we are off and running for round two of Denny's treatment. He will be in the hospital all day for two of the medicines that have to be given onsite through IV's. Then, they will hook up the pump for the third medicine that will go until Thursday.

That's all for now. Everything is good!

Love to all,
Deb