Hi everybody,

We have a return date. We go back to Little Rock for testing on Thursday, Jan 31 and see Dr. B on Monday, Feb 4th.

Frank is in the middle of the VTD cycle. He takes 3 of 4 in the morning. He's doing great.

I'm mad at him right now.... He decided he's not happy with his extra holiday weight. So, he's been walking on the treadmill 3 times a day. He announced last night that he'd lost 3 pounds already. I could do the same thing and I would've gained!

So not fair..... and I'm dealing with my anger..... women: can I get a hand raised??

We'll keep you updated when we know something. Love, Peggy

Well..... we FINALLY have an answer from Little Rock....... and I won't keep you waiting any longer. It was great news! Praise the Lord for His constant mercy our family.

Now that you've exhaled ~ I'll fill you in on the details. As many of you know, we've been waiting on test results that have been conflicting. They probed some more, and then those results were conflicting. The final word from Dr. Barlogie's PA was that the new lesion seems to be pre-cancerous. The fact that is was there cannot be ignored, but it was caught early. All the digging around in the new lesion didn't result in anything abnormal (although still waiting on the gene array).

So, she said Dr. Barlogie wants him to continue the next cycle of VTD (Velcade, Thalidimide, Decadron) and come back when that's done.

They'll do a limited scan of tests to "just make sure" and maybe mix up the way he's getting the chemo or change drugs.

I'm not a doctor (although I like to watch them on TV ), but I don't think he'll get off chemo in March like they had told him he would in November. I expect they keep on something for the next 6 months at least.

We were in Little Rock the week after Thanksgiving. This is the longest we've ever had to wait on news. We've often said that it's easier to be "in the ring with your gloves on" than in the waiting room. We still agree with that!!

I'm reading a new book by Carol Kent called A New Kind of Normal. It's been good so far. I like it because it's relevant to the subject of redefining "normal" in your life without the topic being about cancer. I find myself reading her thoughts and thinking ~ "oh my gosh, I could have said that, that how I feel". As we were still waiting on news last week, I underlined these words that I could so easily identify with ....

"Some days I feel anxious, wishing God would hurry and let me see the whole picture for my life (our life), but I realize that patience and waiting and trusting Him are the characteristics that God is still working on in my life. My husband and I are practicing walking in faith, secure in knowing that God's plans are bigger, wider, and higher than we could ever imagine. He holds us in the palm of His hand, shelters us from the storms, calms our souls and brings peace to our hearts. We are living a new kind of normal, but we have found that "Jesus is enough" is not just a cliche' for us. His character, rather than our own hopes and dreams, is the bedrock of our lives."

Please pray with us that the next round of VTD will be uneventful, and that Frank'll be protected from all the crud going around town.

Thank you for keeping Frank and all of us lifted up before our heavenly Father.

Love to each of you........ Peggy

I figured that I would make an entry since its January 3rd and it is possible that a few folks are wondering what I know about the biopsies and the plan for my treatment.

Well we still don’t have any firm answers from the UAMS team that calls the shots on ol Frankie.
They have told me they would like me to return in about a month, once my current cycle of chemo is complete. (I started today)

If you took the time to log in I can’t let you leave without some reward, so I am posting these quotes.

I will keep everyone updated......enjoy!

• A lie can travel half way around the world while the truth is putting on its shoes.
• A round man cannot be expected to fit in a square hole right away. He must have time to modify his shape.
• All you need in this life is ignorance and confidence, and then success is sure.
• Always do right. This will gratify some people and astonish the rest.
• Cauliflower is nothing but cabbage with a college education.
• Clothes make the man. Naked people have little or no influence on society.
• I can live for two months on a good compliment.
• I was gratified to be able to answer promptly, and I did. I said I didn't know.
• It is better to deserve honors and not have them than to have them and not to deserve them.
• It's no wonder that truth is stranger than fiction. Fiction has to make sense.
• Kindness is the language which the deaf can hear and the blind can see.
• Let us make a special effort to stop communicating with each other, so we can have some conversation.
• Humor is mankind's greatest blessing.
• Grief can take care if itself, but to get the full value of a joy you must have somebody to divide it with.”
  
  Mark Twain