Wednesday, April 29, 2009

April 29, 2009

Today was a very sleepy day for Anne. She spent most of the day napping. I think it's a side effect of the chemo, and should get better over the next few days. She was disconnected from the chemo pump today and really did well with the stuff overall. I called Dr. Balcueva's office and set up her first appointment with him and also made arrangements for the 2nd dose of chemo. I have no idea how long she'll need it in all, but we're willing to do whatever it takes.

We found a new restaurant tonight for dinner that was quite nice. One of the things that Rochester has (beside the Mayo Clinic) is restaurants. So far every one we've been to has been very nice. Of course, Saginaw is not the go-to location that Rochester is, but I'm hoping that can change in the future. It is awefully nice to be able to eat out some very good-tasing food, and not at a chain!

Otherwise, things were pretty slow today. It's a bit hard to find things to do for me when Anne's napping. I spend a lot of time reading and responding to emails, reading, checking out cancer-related websites, reading, looking at other blogs, reading, and working on my Centurion stuff. Did I mention that I'm doing a lot of reading?

Thankfully, the prayers keep coming. It really fills us up with joy, and gives us hope.

Hal Shilling, my friend from Saginaw, sent me the words to one of Josh Groban's songs (Groban is one of my family's favorites--we went to see him live in Cincinnati a few years ago as a Christmas present):

On Eagles Wings

You who dwell in the shelter of the Lord,
Who abide in His shadow for life,
Say to the Lord,
"My Refuge,My Rock in Whom I trust."
And He will raise you up on eagle's wings,
Bear you on the breath of dawn,
Make you to shine like the sun,
And hold you in the palm of His Hand.
The snare of the fowler will never capture you,
And famine will bring you no fear;
Under His Wings your refuge,
His faithfulness your shield.

And He will raise you up on eagle's wings,
Bear you on the breath of dawn,
Make you to shine like the sun,
And hold you in the palm of His Hand.
You need not fear the terror of the night,
Nor the arrow that flies by day,
Though thousands fall about you,
Near you it shall not come.

And He will raise you up on eagle's wings,
Bear you on the breath of dawn,
Make you to shine like the sun,
And hold you in the palm of His Hand.
For to His angels He's given a command,
To guard you in all of your ways,
Upon their hands they will bear you up,
Lest you dash your foot against a stone.
And He will raise you up on eagle's wings,
Bear you on the breath of dawn,
Make you to shine like the sun,
And hold you in the palm of His Hand.
And hold you in the palm of His Hand.

Wow! God Bless, everyone.
Tony

7 comments:

  1. Tony, I am so glad Anne is feeling better today. I have two friends who have gone through chemo in the last year and I pray all goes well for her for the duration of the chemo.

    I'm sorry to hear you can't do much reading. :)
    It is hard to find things to do without either disturbing the patient or leaving them alone. Just be patient, my friend. Things will work out and you will be home before you know it. Enjoy the quiet time while you can. I am so glad your friend sent you the words to On Eagle's Wings. They are so right on!

    Take care,
    Pauline Fox

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  2. In Eagles Wing's is one of my most favorite songs to sing in church.
    Today at Bible study we wanted to call and say Hi to Ann as a surprise but none of us had your cell phone #'s
    Ann you were in our thoughts and we prayed for you today
    Waiting for you to get home so we can get together again
    I have a SS friend who has stage 4 pancreatic cancer and after many weeks of treatments her # is down from 5000 something to 353 so you'll be getting this next friend.
    Be safe and know you both are in your thoughts.
    Linda Kalenaj

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  3. Hi you guys, this is Kristine Schaeffer reading your cool blog. I am so glad to be kept updated on Anne. I can't believe that you have to go through all of this. I am praying daily for you and I know God will come through for you. I'm on my way to Bible Study at Holy Spirit Parish and you're going onto our prayer request sheet so you'll have an additional 16 faith-filled ladies praying for you! God's Blessings to you! May the Holy Spirit guide all the doctors to make the very best moves and decisions for you. I'll pray about that!!

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  4. Hello Anne, Tony and Family,
    Well, it has been 3 short months since you performed my moms total knee surgery Tony. I remember talking with you at that time just before surgery and telling you that we had quit a team praying for you and your team as they performed this surgery. Then when I heard the news about dear Anne, I called up my prayer circle and they were on it before I could hang up the phone. 3 months ago you told us that someone said to you Tony, how can you perform surgery so quickly and efficiently? and you told us you replied by saying, " because with every surgery you perform there are two of you there, God and You". Well, today I would just like to remind you that we are praying for Anne, You and Your Family and Anne's medical team. God is there right with you all I know and we, all of your prayer warriors look like the Verizon Team walking right with you all and praying all the way.
    Deborah LaBeff - and the family of SyAnn Burt

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  5. Hello Anne,Tony, Michelle and Heather,
    I have been praying for you since I heard the news from Celeste. Anne has been added to the top of our prayer board in our kitchen and her name has been added to my mothers daily prayer list.I truly believe she has a strong connection to God.Thank you for unselfishly keeping this blog updated so that all of your friends and family can be connected to your journey. Have a safe travel back to Michigan and please give Anne a big hug from me.I have always thought of Anne as an Angel sent from heaven. She is so sweet. I look forward to seeing the both of you in the near future and I will bring dinner over when your family is ready. With the network of friends that you have I am sure I will have to get in line to make my delivery reservations. In Friendship and Prayer,
    Suzette Ludka

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  6. Hello Tony,
    Tim and I want to add our prayers and best wishes. You are such warm and caring people and are in the thoughts and prayers of so many. We appreciate the good care you have given Tim over the past several years.
    My father has lung cancer, and he slept alot during the first round of chemo also. Let Anne know that the first round took the greatest toll on him, and consecutive rounds seemed to get easier. Hopefully it will be the same for Anne. The good news is that after 3 months he was in partial remission. He just finished his 6th round, and we are praying for more good news May 7th. Prayers and contact from friends is so important. Your blog is wonderful, and has touched me deeply.
    ~Lynette Drumhiller
    (P.S. I too am an avid reader, and received a Kindle for my birthday. I love it, and think you might too. It holds several thousand books, and packs easier!)Give Anne a hug from us.

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  7. Tony, looks like we may miss having the opportunity to catch up here in Rochester, but I am glad it sounds like you will soon be able to return home. We will continue to pray for you and Anne here at our church and will welcome you whenever you need to return to Mayo--maybe next time with good news of a remission!!

    (Glad you were able to enjoy some of our restaurants--there are some nice ones.)

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