Saturday the 29th of May

Sadly our visit to GA comes to an end tomorrow. We will leave around noon and travel about 8 hours to a Hampton in VA. Rest of trip will be easy from there, and at a leisurely pace.

We have had such a wonderful time here, Ruby is so big and growing. She loves sitting and reading or playing tea party, even with Uncle Scooter. Eric and I went to Greenville SC yesterday to get Julie's Mini serviced and some problems fixed. That 4 1/2 hours drive and 3 hours at the dealership, were too much for me. I was head achy and so tired the rest of the day, Friday afternoon was spent in bed trying to sleep, which never came to me. Oh well, for my kids, anything is what I will do.

Today is a PARTY with all of Julie and Eric's friends, here around their pool. Chris is brings the meat, sounds like he expects tons to be eaten. Adele is making brownies, and I am helping clean pool and other places as much as I can. Should be fun - I am sure there will be tons of beer here.

Now to help with Ruby and making of the party..

Bye - Rick

Wed May 26th early morning

Adele and I are having a great time in Georgia! Ruby is growing up to be a doll and she loves to be held by her Pop Pop. Of course I am crazy about her and do anything to gt her to enjoy our visit. She mimics so much now, I laid on the floor, on my back and she came over and laid down next to me, on her back. She dances to music, and "Peanut Butter Jelly Time" that Eric and Julie say to her. She 'reads' books and loves being able to go to her bookshelf and bring book after book to me as we sit and read them on the floor. She sits down for the book, and then when finished, she goes and gets another. Soon she will be taking them back also. She eats almost everything we do, no baby food for her! We had subs the other day and some had banana peppers in them, and I found out she loves banana peppers. You should have seen the look on Julie's face - 'You gave her a pepper?'

Anyway, you all get the picture, we are having a blast. Monday Julie and Ruby took Adele shopping at Target, out to lunch at McDonald's and the playground there. Then they dropped off Ruby for me and went food shopping. Tuesday Julie took the dog for a trim and had a doctor appointment. Seems Julie has some scarring on the lungs - Pray for a resolution there. Then Julie and Adele left me with Ruby and went to Patty's hair salon. They both had cuts - look wonderful - and had a ball there. I'll see more of Patty and Chris Saturday at the party Eric and Julie are hosting. Oh - Ruby was tired and ended up sleeping 2 hours for me, so I got in some CSI oldies and PC time.

Eric is busy every day with work, but pops in to get things in his office or check on Ruby and I. Friday we are driving the Mini to a dealer to have some problems straightened out, still under warranty so the 2 hour drive is worth it. Tonight I make Filet Mignon cooked in butter for Eric and I, Julie and Adele are going out to supper and a movie like they always do when we are here. They both love the together time so much, I would never take that away or complain about it. I just tease and get filet mignon for Eric and I. Ruby is staying with the guys.

Oh almost forgot, last night after a chicken dinner - we had homemade shortcakes and strawberries. Fantastic once more! Adele uses the recipe on the Bisquick box and they are great. Uncle Scott came over - he provided the box of strawberries and joked he needed a double size shortcake. He left filled and I think enjoyed it.

More later - Prayers for safe travel all week.

And we are enjoying it

Got to Ga Sat afternoon around 5 PM - left our house at 6 AM - not bad traffic, especially the first 2 - 4 hours. Julie was at work until midnight, so Eric and Ruby were our greeters. Funny thing is Ruby was so excited to see us, she ran right pasty Adele and stretched her arms out to me. She has not stopped that yet - except for 3 am this morning, she just wanted her Mommy.

We had a small pool party last night, with Mike, Erica and kids, with a stellar performance by Uncle Scottie. He dropped in because we stole his beer - oh,
Uncle Scottie is and has been Julie's best friend the past 5 years or so. Now he lives right in back of Eric and Julie so he is here many times, and Ruby is like Uncle Scottie is here!

Putting chairs together today, new table went up yesterday. New tiki torches, plants and other items went to the pool and deck are also. Big party on Saturday, and much to do before it starts.

Adele is smiling more than I remember for the past 2 1/2 years. She is really enjoying this visit.

More later - Thanks for all the prayers! Love you guys tons.

And the Doctor Said...

Go enjoy your vacation girl!

The Pet scan from last week, was NEGATIVE! That is the 2nd Pet scan that was negative, and the Dr B is saying, maybe January's readings were false / positive and not really cancer! Whooo Hooo, I'll take that news any day and run with it. He said Adele is now 16 months in remission, which is dated from her 2nd birthday, the infusion of stem cells after all the chemo last year - Jan 21, 2009.

She was excited - relieved - talk about a stress reliever, I think I saw that stress leave her in 10 seconds. She smiles again! Thank You Lord.

We have 2 days before leaving for GA and that beautiful family down South - "The Barnas" - Ruby, Julie and Eric Can hardly wait, I want to start early (sometimes I wake at 1 and am ready to drive 12 hours) Adele will be more for a 7 AM start. We shall see.

Pray for Jack - a friend, who will need to have part or all of his lung removed followed by chemo. He will have things done in Hershey, so I feel great about his chances.

Pray for safe travel for us, as we do the 750 miles to GA and back.

Pray for all of the college kids coming back home from school. From Millersville, Illinois, Wisconsin, etc, and pray that they all have a safe and awesome summer. Any of them are welcome to stay a few days in our guest room anytime.

Thank you all for all of the support you have given us. Next doc visit is now 3 months away, and then January 2011.

Tomorrow the wait ends again

Tomorrow is PET Scan results day with Dr Balepur. Adele is very nervous about the results and has been trying to keep busy with anything to keep from thinking about it.

Yesterday she asked if we will still go to GA, if the doctor wants to start some treatment. Today it was a question about something on the same wave length. I will be happy once the results are known, then we can get back with our almost normal lives.

A trip to GA and Ruby, and of course Eric and Julie, is to start early Saturday the 22nd, with us getting there the same day. Back for Memorial Day, although late that day. Julie has managed to finagle a few days off, and Eric works out of the house, so we should see them a lot. He has the pool ready and warmed up for us, and Ruby loves the water. Ninety and wet at the pool with our granddaughter, is there any other way to enjoy the next week?

Pray for good results and no "Hot Spots"
Thanks - Rick

PET Scan in 1 week

The closer we get to Adele's PET scan, the more worried she is. Hopefully she can recover each morning as she has to, and get into doing something to keep her mind off the tests and possible results. Pray for good results again!

We are traveling to GA for a week coming soon. Ruby has been on our hearts, and the desire to see her growing up is always present. We miss her so when we leave, but Eric and Julie are doing so great in Augusta, our hearts are comforted by that. Expect a ton of pictures on picasa and videos on youtube during and after our trip.

Well, I am off to work again - early, to help move PCs and get them connected at MH/MR. Thanks to all that have been following.

Pray for strength and Peace. The possibility of a PET scan showing spots of cancer is always high, and is on Adele's mind constantly. Laughter class last night, seemed to help a bit.