Home sweet Home

Surgery has come and gone. Hard to believe it was a week ago today. And now...I'm home!

I was released from the hospital Sunday afternoon, sooner than anticipated. The doctor said that since I was able to hold down liquids, keep my temperature under control, and manage the pain, I could go home. What a happy feeling! No more IV machines. No more tubes. No more 4-hour vital checks. No more needles. No more hospital food! I was free to go home!

Previously to the good news about going home, we had more good news from the doctor. The report from the surgery--30 lymph nodes removed and ALL were cancer free! Praise the Lord! We'll take this report as more of God's kindness to us. It appears that with the successful surgery and this positive report, I may have come to the end of the line as far as further cancer treatment.

Thank you to all who have been praying for us. It is humbling to know that there have been many. And prayer works! We are especially grateful to a loving church body, through whom we have experienced and are experiencing God's love and care toward us.

Currently, I'm here on the couch taking it easy. For the next 6 weeks, the doctor says to stay away from strenuous activity (according to Pastor Kirk, that also includes dusting, vacuuming, and sweeping). And no lifting anything heavier than a gallon of milk. Ah....It's good to be home.

You pick like a girl

She did it again. She beat me.

For the past few years, my friend Mikey has hosted an online tournament for March Madness as well as the college football bowl games. And each year I've carefully analyzed the matchups, agonized over my picks, and delivered a sheet that has fared...decently. Rather than having Kristen help me with my bracket this year, Kristen and I each made our own picks. And this year...my wife, who knows no other college team than Michigan State, has beaten me twice!

Last night as our brackets came to a grinding halt with victories from Memphis and Kansas (we both had UCLA winning it all), our final scores reflect 259 for her...248 for me. And while she'll finish around 37th and me around 41st (out of 72), that's still four places in front of me. But let's back up to the college bowl pick tournament a couple of months ago. After all was said and done I finished a respectable 14th. Not bad. Where did she finish? Number ONE!!! Yeah, not only did she beat me, she also beat out every other football enthusiast to win the tournament (and Mikey, we're still waiting on that dinner you promised).

But I'm really proud of my Cutie for doing well. It's fun to see her get so excited about games she would otherwise care less about.

So, maybe next year we'll go back to one bracket. And I'll be the one helping her fill it out.


(Yeah Michigan State.)

The Big Day

APRIL 9th.

The big day is scheduled. Early morning surgery starts at 7:30.

Surfing forward

Oh, those people at despair.com...they absolutely crack me up. The stuff they come up with.

Sometimes life feels like this. Can't say that we haven't wrestled through trying to make sense of things at times. However, it'd be a tragedy to view our circumstances as bad luck. I'll be honest, it's not always easy to hold on to a right perspective of things. When difficulty comes, I can only stare at the wave...my eyes can't see God's perspective. But if God truly reigns over His creation, then life's trying times simply can't be a misfortune. God rules! We're thankful that He has a plan and purpose for it all.

On Tuesday, our oncologist sat us down in the office and told us the news: tumor markings came back in normal range. (Yes!) Because it was an aggressive mixed tumor type and at stage two, there's still about a 40% chance that undetectable levels of cancer cells may have escaped into the lymph nodes. His recommendation: Retroperitoneal Lymph Node Dissection (RPLND). This means that Tim gets to look into short term disability from work because he'll be needing some serious recovery time after this surgery.

Looks like it'll be next month some time. We'll continue to keep you updated. Thanks for praying!

Random Happenings

There have been a couple little things that have been fun additions to our home. Tim won a gift card at work for JC Penny. We were looking for some curtains for our living room, but the ones we were looking at were a little out of our price range. We checked the price of the curtains every time we went to the store. After winning this gift card, we went online to look at all of their curtains and actually liked these curtains better! We finally bought the curtains! We were so excited to order them, but then disappointed when they didn't have any in stock and had to wait a few weeks before getting them! Here's a picture of our new addition. We are so pleased with the new look! It's amazing how much curtains can add to a room!


The other fun addition was a surprise from Tim! I came home last week from school to see these happy flowers on the table! He had told me earlier that morning that he was going to throw away my roses from Valentine's Day. I definitely kept the roses much longer than I should have, and I kept asking Tim not to throw them away. He decided that since the old ones had to go, he would get me new flowers! He's so sweet! What a happy surprise!!

More labs

Ok, quick update. Had to go back to the hospital yesterday (Feb 28th) for yet another blood test. Sounds like the hospital didn't get the correct tumor marking last time (and it's not the first time I've had to go back for a redo). Will keep you posted on the results.

A Bend in the Road

January 26^th. That was the Saturday that Kristen told me that we needed to go to the doctor. Only three days earlier I had noticed a lump—the source of my discomfort from earlier in the week. So after I got home from work we went to Patient First. After an examination, the doctor told me I should have an ultrasound done at the hospital. So we went. After a long day, the doctor at the hospital told us that it looked like testicular cancer.

Wow. That was a blow. I had tried to prepare myself mentally for that diagnosis. But when the reality of what he told me was setting in—well, imagining it is one thing; actually hearing the doctor use that c-word while talking about me—that was quite another.

Kristen and I are being taught through this. Faith and trust take on new meaning when God brings you through something like this. And He has been good. Very good.

Today is February 24^th—almost a month later. I have since had outpatient surgery to remove the cancer. It was at stage 2. Praise the Lord that the doctor said that it was all contained inside, so it looks like they got all the cancer. Unfortunately, the majority of the tumor was an aggressive form of cancer and could have sent out its little cancery cells to other parts of the body. Presently, though, there is no sign that that has happened.

We still anticipate more treatment. We’ve heard results from 1 of the 3 blood tests. The hCG levels are now within normal range—a praise! That’s one sign of no-spread. Soon we’ll hear the results of the others, and we’ll keep you posted. If levels are good, then I may not need chemo. I would, however, most likely need an RPLND surgery (to remove lymph nodes).

So, that's pretty much where things are at. Did I say that God has been good? First of all, God's wisdom is evidenced through the timing of things. Having Kristen here with me has been absolutely wonderful! She is a blessing beyond blessings. I couldn't imagine going through this without her. We've been able to lean on each other and encourage one another. God is good. Also, as of January first, I bumped up my insurance coverage. I did it for Kristen; she's the "sicky." I thought the extra I was paying for me would kind of be a waste. Hmm...looks like I was wrong. We got the bill for the surgery last week—$12,069.22! Yikes. How much did the insurance cover? $12,069.22. Whew. And we've had a loving, caring church body that has been praying for us, preparing meals for us, encouraging us, and willing to do practically anything to help us.

Remember that first Saturday when we first got the news of cancer? Well, the next day, Sunday morning, our pastor started off the service by sharing a recent visit he made to a couple of elderly ladies in an assisted living center. One of them was paralyzed. He said, "What do you tell someone who asks the question...why...why would God allow something like this to happen?" He had the congregation turn to the Gospels, and he walked us through Scripture passages that highlight God's personal love. As he’s talking, I’m sitting in the choir loft behind him—listening, reading, and trying to keep myself composed. He was talking right to me. I felt like I could have been the only person in the audience that morning. It was incredible to experience God’s personal reminder that He was right there with us. And we can rest in knowing that this trial is His will for us. We’re learning that His grace will be sufficient for us.

He will continue to see us through.