On A Bad Roll

Well the last days have been pretty bad. Not sure what concoction the Dr. brewed up for Harriet, but it is really doing a trip on her, No sleep and all the side effects I have mentioned in the past. We keep waiting for the negative side effects to subside. Long wait when these negative side effects are going on  7/24.

I thought I would give you some more info. The audience for this blog is listed below. My cousin and their adult children live in Belgium. They are very special friends. We are very blessed to have so many great lovely friends.

United States	422
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United Kingdom	5
France	1
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Ukraine                1 Maranatha, Frank and Harriet

Not So Good (150th Post)

Yesterday was a bad day. They are fewer than before, but they are reminder that "All is not well in Mudville."  I'm hoping that today will go better.  Harriet is dealing with medication problems.  When you take some of these medications for long period of time, your body gets used to it and it rebels when you start to decrease dosage.

Please continue to pray for Harriet's healing.

Maranatha,
Frank and Harriet

Boy Am I in Trouble!

Sorry, I got to working on different things and I forgot to do the blog this morning.  Harriet is still recovering from her chemotherapy, but overall she's doing good.  We are thankful for any progress and Lord willing we will get through all this.

Thank you so much for your prayers and loving support!

Maranatha,
Frank and Harriet

Slow Recovery

This last chemotherapy was probably a higher dosage.  So the recovery time is more difficult and going slow.  Overall I can see that we are making progress from compared to where we were a month ago.  We always need to look forward and not back.  When we do look back we are thankful that things are going better than they were previously.

Today is Wednesday which means that Harriet will have her predisone today, Thursday and Friday and then she's done with that.  Onward and upward.  I'm looking forward to a month from now when Harriet is completed her eight courses of chemotherapy and is on the road to recovery from the devastation that this "Cure" is caused.

Maranatha,
Frank and Harriet

The Day after the Seventh Chemotherapy

Yesterday was a long day.  Harriet went in for her 10:30 AM appointment and she didn't get taken into start the chemotherapy until an hour later.  It's hard to sit there and wait.

I don't know if this is true or not, but I think they might've amped up the concoction that they pump into her.  She said that she could tell that it was more intense.  The way I figure is that they have these last two chemotherapies to get rid of the cancer.  So they're going to bring in the "big guns" so to speak.

We really appreciate your faithfulness and praying for her.  I will keep you updated.  Harriet starts her prednisone treatments this morning and they will go through Friday night.

Maranatha,
Frank and Harriet

Seventh Chemotherapy Today

Harriet had her blood test done yesterday.  Yesterday morning was not a good day and then as the day progressed she was doing better and better.  I don't know if it's all these shots that she was getting or what?  Unfortunately we have not received the test results from the blood test that was taken yesterday.  Actually received the results from some of the test but not the key ones which tell us the white blood cell count.  Hopefully with all the shots that she's received, she's going to be able to have her chemotherapy today.

I will let you know tomorrow how it went.  Ron in Virginia are picking up Harriet this morning at 10 AM and taking her down to Kaiser.  I will pick her up sometime around 3:30 PM give or take.

I really appreciate your prayers for her healing and that this cancer would be completely gone after the eight treatments.

Thank you, Maranatha,
Frank and Harriet

Blood Test Today

Harriet gets her blood test in preparation for her chemotherapy for tomorrow morning. With all the shots that she's been getting the white blood cell count should be good.

Yesterday was pretty good. I guess it's all relative. She still has side effects from taking the medications, but overall she's doing much better than she was a month ago and we are thankful.

Thank you so much for your prayers and loving support.

Maranatha,
Frank and Harriet

The Saturday before the Seven Chemo Treatment

Harriet had a pretty good day yesterday.  She got her shot.  She said that she can taste the medication.  Kind of weird.  She said it had a metallic taste.   The nurse administering the shot said that a number of people of said the same thing.

I hope you have a great weekend and thank you so much for the cards, emails and letters of support for Harriet.

Maranatha,
Frank and Harriet

Last Shot Of the Week Today

Harriet gets her last shot before her chemotherapy on Monday.  Yesterday was a pretty good day overall.  It's interesting how you gauge things.  Things may not be 100%, but when their better then some bad days you've just had, I guess you can count it as a good day.

So we're heading for chemo treatment number seven on Monday.  Please continue to pray for Harriet during this last few rounds.  Hopefully in another month should be done with all this.

Thank you, Maranatha,
Frank and Harriet

A Little Better Day

Yesterday Harriet went down and got another shot to help build up her white blood cell count.  Overall the day went a little bit better than the previous couple of days.  We're still in a holding pattern, preparing for next Monday's chemotherapy.

Thank you for your cards, emails of support in your prayers.

Maranatha,
Frank and Harriet

It Is Bound to Happen

Well, I guess it was bound to happen that things are deteriorating.  Harriet had so any good days that the odds are that she would have some more bad days.  Please pray for healing.  These shots are just devastating.

Maranatha,
Frank and Harriet

Sleepless in Santee

One of the side effects of these shots that Harriet is getting is that she's not getting enough sleep.  From the way she describes it it's like drinking a bunch of Red Bulls.  It makes you wired.  Still, all in all she's doing better than she was a month ago.  And for this I'm thankful.

Maranatha,
Frank and Harriet

One More Week Before The Next Chemo

Overall yesterday was a pretty good day. The last few days have been pretty good and we are very thankful. We have one more week before the next chemotherapy. Harriet will get her shots today, Wednesday and Friday and then the blood test next Sunday.

That's the schedule and hopefully all these blog posts will be short because she's doing really good. I think back and it seems as not so long ago that we're spending a lot of time at the emergency ward.

Thank you so much for your continuing to pray for Harriet and her healing.

Maranatha,
Frank and Harriet

Another Pretty Good Day

Well, I'm thankful for these good days that Harriet's having. Thank you for your prayers! To be perfectly frank with you, in the past whenever Harriet has had the shots, the days have been really bad. So, this might mean that she's doing better. I really don't know, because it's hard to tell.

Today is Sunday morning and it is time to prepare to go to the House the Lord. I hope that you will be there, to praise the Lord!

Maranatha,
Frank and Harriet

Good Day, Sunshine!

I can't remember who sang that, was at the Beatles?  Harriet had a good day yesterday.  She went down and got a shot and this is the first time that she still had a good day.  This is a big deal and I'm very thankful.  It's tough to watch when someone that you love and care for, that has to go through these trials and there's not a whole lot you can do except support them.

I hope you have a great weekend.  Thank you for your prayers and love and support.

Maranatha,
Frank and Harriet

The Day after the Day before

I know it's kind of corny, but I told you it's hard to think of a new title each morning.  I've done over 130 posts so far.  The beat goes on.  For clarification, Harriet gets a shot every other business day, no shots on the weekend.  We emailed Dr. Chen and asked him if that's really necessary without having a blood test to determine the exact level of the white blood cell count?  He said that the medication that is helping to build up the white blood cell count has a 48 hour fall off time limit.  So for example if she takes two shots this week and no shots next week, it's kind of counterproductive.  That's why they want you to continue taking the shots all the way through until just before the chemotherapy.

That's pretty much it.  We are sure learning a lot more than we ever thought we're going to learn about this type of stuff.  We really do want to thank everybody for the cards and emails of support.  Thank you for your continued prayers.

Maranatha,
Frank and Harriet

CT Scan Report Results

This is going to be a long one.  We went to the doctor's office and he was very nice and compassionate.  He said unfortunately that the CT results still shows that there are some things that have not completely disappeared.  Now here's the deal, he is not 100% sure it's the cancer, but it's in the same area and as he said, "This area should be completely clear, and it may be a shadow".  Of course were not experts and we need to rely upon his conclusions along with the radiologist report.

He has scheduled two more chemotherapies for Harriet.  It was a tough blow to receive even though we are prepared for it.  Dr. Chen also said that Harriet needs to have those shots to build up her white blood cell count.  One shot every other day.  Dr. Chen said that the more chemo you have the harder it is on your white blood cell count to reproduce.  That is why she needs to have shots all the way through until the last chemotherapy.

Neupogen (filgrastim) is used to treat neutropenia, a lack of certain white blood cells caused by cancer, bone marrow transplant, receiving chemotherapy, or by other conditions. It is a man-made form of a protein that stimulates the growth of white blood cells in your body. Common side effects include aching in the bones and muscles. Nosebleeds or injection site reactions such as redness, swelling, itching, lumps or bruising may also occur.

Getting the shots makes you feel like you have the flu.  You have achy joints and muscles.  Harriet will have this for the next five weeks.

After the eighth chemotherapy, then we wait about three weeks and she will have a PET scan which will be more conclusive.  Hopefully by then everything will have been killed off and Harriet still live.

So that's it for now.  Please continue to pray for her that she can maintain eating food to sustain her strength and that she survives the next five weeks.

Maranatha,
Frank and Harriet

D-Day

Today's the day, hopefully we get the results for the CAT scan which was performed a week ago.  Harriet and I were talking about it yesterday evening.  There's only two ways this can go, either she's completely clear or she needs more chemo's.  We both concluded that we need to eradicate the cancer.  If it requires more treatment, let's do it now and not lose ground.  So, it will be interesting to see what the doctor says.

Originally Dr. Chen said between 6 to 8 chemotherapies.  As my friend said we always take the number that we want and dismiss the other number.  If we need to have eight chemotherapies to completely eradicate this from her system then that's what we have to do.

Thank you so much for your continued support and prayers.  "By this shall all men know that you are my disciples, by your love toward one another" Jesus

Maranatha,
Frank and Harriet

Time Waits for No Man

I'm running out of time sayings.  I'm glad we only have one more day before our appointment with the oncologist Dr. Chen.  Every day is a new day for challenges.  I know that Harriet is finding out what she can eat and what she can't eat.  It looks like this is going to be a long road of recovery.  I'm all for going out and getting a hamburger, French fries and a nice chocolate shake.  But, I don't think she can handle that yet.

You know, I was just thinking, (as my my friend Paul says, "that can be dangerous") it sure would be nice if I could eat that hamburger, French fries and chocolate shake and it will be applied to Harriet's weight.

Well I guess I'm just rambling, again.  So please make sure you check in on Thursday morning for the results of the test which will hopefully be revealed to us on our Wednesday morning appointment.

Thank you so much for your prayerful support and love.

Maranatha,
Frank and Harriet

The Ox Moves Slow, But the Earth Is Patient

The earth may be patient, but I'm not.  Don't we all want what we want, when we wanted?  Anyway, yesterday was a pretty good day.  We had a great time at church and Harriet was able to watch the service on our live upstream video link.  Very cool!  The praise and worship team are just fantastic!

So, overall everything went pretty well yesterday.  I'm hoping that pretty soon Harriet can start gaining weight.  I know that there are issues that need to be addressed due to the chemotherapy and all the drugs that she's taken that have devastated her body, but it sure would be nice if she could sit down for a nice hamburger.

I hope you'll have a great week and thanks for your prayers.

Maranatha,
Frank and Harriet

Time

I guess the theme for the subject line is going to be "Time" until we get the results back from the CT scan. I don't know if anybody out there remembers the song by that title sung by the Chambers Brothers? They had a short version in a long version, which went on for about 10 minutes I can't remember exactly.

Now the days are divided into partially good days and partially bad. But, and it's a big but, things keep progressing better than they were a month before. We must continue to look on the positive and not the negative.

A friend of mine whose name is Greg, He's just learned in last month that he has cancer. He starts his chemotherapy this next week and I talked to him about it at the beach. Greg is one of the early risers the gets out there at zero dark 30. Harriet had a chemo therapy once every 21 days. Greg is going to have one every day this next week and then the following week and so on. I'm sure that each type of cancer receives a modified treatment of chemotherapy as to how often the chemotherapy is done and the amount of drugs given. I had the opportunity pray with Greg for his healing and told them that our church will be praying for him also. So please keep my friend Greg in your prayers. He's a good guy.

Okay, do you know what day this is? Yes, this is the day the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it. That is a quote directly from the book of Psalms. I quoted it last Sunday in this blog. Then when I was at church my friend Eric came in along with his little daughter Peyton. She quoted the same 1st back to me unknowingly! Very cool. So when I started our church service you know what I did? I asked Peyton to come up onto the platform and to tell everybody what she told me.  She quoted the verse perfectly. She did a great job!

I'm encouraging you all to go to the house the Lord and worship Him, because he is worthy of all glory, honor and praise!

Maranatha,
Frank and Harriet

Tick Tock, Tick Tock

Marking time, waiting for the results from the CAT scan.  Harriet had a pretty good day yesterday.  Overall things are going pretty good.  It's just hard to wait for the results and of course hoping for the good news that there is no more cancer.

So, tick tock, tick tock, time marches on and slowly when you have expectations.  I know I say this a lot, but I really do mean it.  Thank you for your continued loving support and prayers.  We are truly blessed!  I hope you have a great weekend.

Maranatha,
Frank and Harriet

The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

It seems that's the way it goes.  You have good days, then a bad day and then a worser day.  (Misspelled on purpose).  Had a really rough day yesterday.  Lord willing after we get this cancer beat then things will calm down and the healing will start.

I really don't have a whole lot for you today.  But, I will thank you again for your loving prayers and support.

Maranatha,
Frank and Harriet

Doing Better

The good news is that Harriet is doing better.  She had her CAT scan done yesterday.  If you recall how her feet swollen up and it was a really big concern, well they've returned almost to normal size.  It's really nice to see.  The numbness is still there, but that should dissipate after the chemotherapy stops and her body gets a chance to assimilate all the negative influence of the chemo.

Thanks again for praying for Harriet and myself.  I hope you have a great day!

Maranatha,
Frank and Harriet

CAT Scan Today

So far so good.  Harriet's taking her daily doses of predisone.  Today she goes in for her CAT scan appointment.  Of course were hoping that when the results come back next week that everything will be okay.

That's all for today.  I hope you have a great week.

Maranatha,
Frank and Harriet

The Day after the Sixth Chemo

The sixth chemotherapy went pretty well.  Got a late start and it was so slow.  Didn't get home till about five p.m.   Harriet Mentioned that quite a few people that were already being chemo -sized were in much more of a dire predicament than her situation.  The lady to her right was in stage IV bone cancer.

After the chemotherapy, Harriet made the comment that she could feel the medication all the way from the top of her head down to her toes.  Since I've never had this type of medication I have no idea but it is truly amazing that it makes such a huge impression/sensation in a person's body.  Lord willing, this will be her last chemo.

Harriet gets a CAT scan on Wednesday and we should get the results back sometime the following week.  Thank you so much for your prayers and support.

Maranatha,
Frank and Harriet

6th Chemo Today

Harriet had her blood test done yesterday and we got the results.  These 3 shots that she received last week did the trick.  Harriet will have her sixth chemotherapy this morning at about 11:30 AM.  Unfortunately the shots also have very bad side effects (it seems like just about every medication has side effects).  So she's having to deal with that.

I'm asking you to pray that, Lord willing, this is the last chemotherapy she will need.  Then later on this week we will have the CAT scan.

I hope you have a great week, Maranatha,
Frank and Harriet

1st Sunday 2015

Today Harriet gets her blood test and hopefully the white blood cell count will be high enough for her to have her chemotherapy tomorrow morning.

 This is the day the Lord has made;
We will rejoice and be glad in it. Psalms 118:24

I hope that you'll be giving thanks today in the house the Lord! God bless you and thank you for your continued prayerful support.

Maranatha,
Frank and Harriet

1st Saturday in 2015

The good news is that Harriet got the call and she has a chemo appointment scheduled for Monday at 11:30 AM. They had scheduled her for 9 AM, but bumped her for an emergency. This means that she won't be getting out of there till late afternoon.

Thank you so much for your prayers and support. Harriet will have her blood test on Sunday and hopefully the white blood cell count will high enough so that she can have her chemotherapy on Monday. Again hopefully, it will be the last one. Then later on in the week she's going to have a CAT scan. It takes 5 business days to get the results from the CAT scan.

God bless you and Maranatha!

Frank and Harriet

1st Friday 2015

Harriet gets her 3rd shot this week at Kaiser. They said it's going to be busy down there because of the holidays. Here's the thing, she's not received the scheduled appointment for this coming Monday and they said if she has not received the call by noon today to call an 800 number. Of course we are hoping for an appointment Monday morning so she can have her 6th chemotherapy. I appreciate you praying to this end.

I was thinking about it this morning and reflecting over the past 4 months. We really didn't have any idea how close Harriet was to death back in August. I know a lot of our friends suggested alternative holistic methods of treating cancer. I must tell you that I'm all for it. Unfortunately when you're in the 9th inning and there isn't a whole lot of time to use the trial and error method for healing. It's time to bring out the big guns, which is chemotherapy. I don't like it, but I'm glad we went this route. Chemotherapy kills. Chemotherapy is a poison that kills the good, the bad and the ugly. Unfortunately there's a lot of side effects, but it seems to get the job done. We have a lot of friends, (a lot more than I realized) that have gone through chemotherapy over the past 20 years and have survived to live a productive life.

So our prayer is that the shots raise Harriet's white blood cell count to an appropriate level and that she's able to get that 6th appointment this coming Monday.

God bless you and thank you for sticking with us through this trial.

Maranatha,
Frank and Harriet

11,114

Happy New Year everybody! 11,114 views of Harriet's blog posts which have been 120 blog posts. I told you it was difficult to find a new title each day for these blog posts. So now they're going to get really weird.

Harriet got her 2nd shot yesterday and is resting. Lord willing she will get her 3rd shot on Friday. They said it's can be extremely busy at Kaiser due to the holidays.

So, let's talk about you. What are your New Year's resolutions? You know I preached on this last Sunday and I've received a good response by people who have decided to make a change in their life for this year 2015. Speaking of 2015, you know I remember when I was going to high school and they said by the year 2000 we're supposed to have cars that would drive themselves and we were supposed to have colonies on the moon, whatever happened to that?

Anyway, back to New Year's resolutions. Have you made any commitments? Let me know or if you want to share it on the blog with everybody else that's cool. My New Year's resolution is to not drink anymore Mountain Dew. I realize that this does not carry a huge spiritual impact on my life, but hopefully it will make it impact on my waistline. I was going to cut back on roll tacos with guacamole, but my friend talk me out of it. Paul said let's not go overboard. Actually I don't eat it that often. But, Mountain Dew is a real thorn in the flesh if you get my drift?

Discipline is the bedrock of good character! I think if we look at an area of our lives that we are undisciplined in, I think that is the area that we need to work on. To bring it under control so to speak as Paul the apostle would say.

Well that's it for today, I hope you have a wonderful new year and God bless you!

Maranatha,
Frank and Harriet