Not goodbye, rather, We'll see you later

Daddy went home to be with Jesus today. He had a restless night and refused to take his pain meds. Mom and Mari were able to get some in him early this morning and he appeared to be relatively pain free for the remainder of the time. Kate and Paul had to go back to Missouri for Kate, but otherwise we were all here. Just before Dad passed we were all in the room with him eating, talking, and listening to some of Dad's favorite music and Dad quietly stepped out of this life and went home to be with Jesus. We are so thankful for all of your prayers. Daddy is no longer suffering and is resting in the arms of his wonderful Savior. Please continue to pray for our family as we grieve.

This is Lisa writing for Mom :) Dad had his doctor's appointment yesterday and we got the results back from the CT scan. The cancer is growing and the lump in his liver is now baseball sized. This is probably what is causing the pain in Dad's abdomen. Because of the progression of cancer we have decided to place him on hospice. A nurse came out today to explain everything to us and to let us know how they can help. They do not think Dad will make it much longer and we would like him comfortable and at home with family. They will be bringing over a hospital bed for him to make him more comfortable and allow him to sit up more easily. He is still in a lot of pain. We are blessed to have all our immediate family here and to have had some visits with two of Dad's brothers. Please be in prayer for us these last few days with Dad.

Valley still

Today I was finally able to reach our oncologist about Allan's terrible pain...their answering service was not on this weekend so I made sure that I had a back up to call if this happens again. Dr. prescribed oxycontin (generic morphine). I spent the morning just trying to find a pharmacy that had the drug with all the doses that the dr. prescribed. Praise God for LOTS of different pharmacies!!!! I had to hold off Allan starting on it till 7pm tonight as he has to take it every 12 hours whether he is in pain or not and can take the hydros in between if the pain gets too much for him to handle. We had to be bullies today and it made me cry. We had to force Allan to drink his concoction and drink water, get out of bed and walk a little in the bit, just down the to the end of the house and back inside of course to try and get his insides moving. He was in so much pain that it was very hard but if we don't get him to do these things he will end up in the cancer ward at the hospital and we do NOT want that! He ate a few bites of dinner, sat in his recliner and now that he has taken his dose of oxy. he is off to bed for another nap. He did sit up for 2 hours today and watched a movie before he took his 3rd nap of the day so that is good! He watched "Field of Dreams". Allan only ate one egg salad sandwich and that was the sum total of his food intake for Sunday. His appetite is really bad now as the pain makes it so he feels he can't eat. y
Kate has been in the hospital all weekend in L & D. Baby Brooklyn is doing wonderfully, praise God! She weighs in about 2.6lbs. Kate had contractions all weekend, from 3 minutes apart for the first couple days to finally 4 or a bit more. The drs kept a close watch on her and released her finally this late afternoon. Brooklyn isSo far, the dr has given the all clear for her to come so we are all hoping and praying that she is able to come. Mari and Cody made it safely to Springfield and went to the hospital to help bring Kate home. Paul was able to stay with her the whole time and their girls were well taken care of. God has blessed us with such wonderful sons in law! I text Paul every little while to check on Kate and he never minded a bit! Molly and Pete came over yesterday and mowed and edged for us. We have such great kids!!! Tomorrow is CT Scan and labs. I am going to ask Dr to please not make us wait till next Tues for the results. So we will see.Yeah!!! Allan decided to watch the Rangers instead of napping for now!!! It is good for him to be out of bed and sitting up! What a blessing!!!
I had a wonderful call from Diane yesterday! I did not realize how much I needed that call!! Thank you thank you!!!!! Yeah I have not been doing so hot but we will get through this with love and prayer and God's help. Thank you all for your prayers and love!!!!

In the valley

Wow...it just starts small you know? Allan was dressing this passed week and fell twice on the bed cuz he couldn't seem to stand up and draw up his drawers. He is a little slower doing things. It takes longer to do normal things and his breathing is almost gasps for breath at times. Has to lean against a counter to catch his breath. Walking is different too. Allan went to bed one night this passed week cold. I piled lots of blankets on him before he said he was warm. I woke up at 0515 that morning to Allan shivering with cold but hot to the touch. They told us over and over...if Allan gets a fever of 100.5 call the dr immediately. Our Dr. Dalal even takes all the evening and weekend calls personally. In the span of 15 minutes Allan's temp went from 99 to 100.7. I called the dr and after lots of questions, he called in two prescriptions for heavy duty antibiotics for infection for Allan. He is back to sleeping more. He gets confused now about things that we have gone over and over but still can't remember. This is not my Allan. I hate seeing him change before my eyes. I try to be positive and strong but find myself constantly asking him if he is ok. It was so very hard to let him go to work this afternoon but he wanted to so he went. He came home tonight agitated because he got his medications confused. We had talked about it for two days, when to take which pill and which pills to take. I will write him out two copies of his med list so he can read them and remember.
Tonight I sent a text to our daughter, Kate, in Springfield, MO, who is due on Thanksgiving with their 4th daughter. Kate is in Labor and Delivery with very close contractions, in real labor, as the test showed, and the meds were not working on stopping the labor. Baby Brooklyn is fine but the contractions still went on. Finally a few hours ago, the doctor gave Kate blood pressure meds and sleeping meds so she could sleep and the contractions started coming not quite so fast and on top of each other. We are all praying hard for her and little Brooklyn. Next weekend is when we are all to be together for a camping trip. The kids are to be coming in from Tues to Saturday for a week of camping together with all of us together for the first time in awhile, never having camped with the all kids since they have been married and had kids of their own. The Lord knows best and we know that all will work according to His Word.
Thank you for keeping our family uplifted in prayer during this valley time. Lord willing, soon we will be able to look out from the tops of the mountains!

Pain amd sleep

Allan had a good weekend but has been having more and more pain in his abdomen. Last night at 330am he woke me up and he was in excrutiating pain. The pain seems to get worse and worse. He asked for two of his hydrocodones and after about 30-45 minutes after taking the meds he finally was able to go back to sleep but had a rough night being in pain even though asleep. Allan went in for his labs and bone enhancer this morning. We were so sleep deprived and concerned about his pain that we forgot to ask what his counts were today. Dr. Dalal is not sure what is causing the pain...it could be that the cancer in his lymph node in his abdomen has grown. We wont' know for sure for two weeks as he gets his ct scan next Tuesday and then the following Tues we will find out. Thankfully, Lord willing, ALL the kids will be here for that visit. Allan slept all afternoon and we woke him up just before 6pm. He took two of his hydros at dinner time and will continue to take them. He can take up to 6 in 24 hours. If that does not do the trick then Dr. Dalal will set him up on round the clock meds, much stronger meds to help knock out this pain he is experiencing. He was able to get off for Labor Day Weekend when the kids will all be here, praise the Lord!!! We are all so looking forward to camping together! It has been since the early 90s since we have been camping as a family!!
Have a wonderful day!

Working and pain

We all decided to have our family reunion next month here as it would be so much cheaper and hey! we are in the country so why not? 5 tents and 2 RVs and all of us here...what more do we need? Allan is so excited about it that he was anxious to start getting the property where our RV is ready for tenters but Molly and Pete came and started the work last night for him so it will be easier on Allan. Sweet! Allan made it through the watches and his arm is fine. He has been struggling with moderate to intense pain in his abdomen for about a week now. We are trying different diet changes to see if that works and OTC meds that the dr and nurse recommended. He is asleep right now to get ready for work. Allan still loves his job and can't wait to work on the weekends. This coming week he has his bone enhanser, which is about an hour or so, usually a bit more, at the cancer center, through an IV. This last time of his vein blowing out was the first time that has ever happened to him so he does not need a port at this point. His veins have been really good to this point, no problems at all unlike mine so he is good. We were able to spend some time yesterday with Brit and Aiden so that was very special. Aiden sure loves his Gpa! When he sees his Gma he cries and then falls asleep in my arms and when he wakes up we are friends! Have a wonderful weekend everyone!!!

Blow-out and Numbers

Well, today we went in for Allan's second round on this chemo (alimita??). Poor guy was stuck 4 times today as the first stick (IV) was going good for awhile until Allan started feeling a burning sensation in his arm. The vein had blown. So she had to stick him two more time on his other arm till she found the right vein to use. Allan is now on a watch: every 4 hours he has to put ice on the arm that had the blown out vein for 2 days. We have to keep an eye on it for any adnormalities that could pop up but we are trusting that the Lord will have no complications whatsoever from the blow out and chemo. Allan's counts were excellent today!! Whoo hoo!!! According to the cancer center scale he weighed in at 166.6 lbs!! He was 175 lbs when all of this started so this is great. Next week he goes in for his bone enhancer, Zomita, and the following week (Sept 1st) Allan has his next ct scan and the following week he will have his next chemo/lab/dr visit. Allan told me that if he does as well on this chemo as he did the last time he wants to put in for more hours at work. Whatever he can handle or wants to do...go for it!! As long has he does not over do it great! He wants to start getting in the wood for the winter this week too. He is just amazing!! Thank you again...I can never say enough how very much your prayers and emails/comments mean to us!!! We can feel all the love and thoughts and prayers daily and it is soooo uplifting. WE love you all!!! All the kids and grandkids, Lord willing, will be here next month and we hope to go camping for at least a few day while they are all here. Havea wonderful week y'all!!!!

Allan is out fishing with Tom on the lake today while Brit and Aiden visit with Brit's family on shore. Today Tom and Brit got married. Allan is doing great! He worked on my Dad 's truck today trying to figure out what its problem is. He was really looking forward to fishing with Tom today. Hopefully it won't be another catch-and-release session! Allan has his next chemo and labs on Tues. His counts are good! Mine are 40 so will have another blood draw tomorrow. We both go to bed early now and get up early so we can beat the Texas heat and get some much needed chores done. Good ol' farmers! : ) Allan is just looking so great now and most of the time I even forget he has cancer!!!

ANOTHER GOOD COUNT!!!! PTL!!!!!

Allan had another week of good counts!! Wow are we blessed!! He is exhausted as he woke up early yesterday to deal with some medical bills so is catching up on sleep today after his blood draw. He is anxious to get working on getting in the firewood for the winter as we don't have a heater and use a insert in the fireplace to heat the house. He weighed in at 166 lbs!! Allan is just doing so well. Aunt Carol and Uncle Bill did not show up so not sure what happened there. Hope they are ok. Thank you all for your continued prayers for us, especially Allan!!! : )

MARRIAGE LICENSE AND A GREAT WEEKEND!!!!

I swear that I want to marry and that the stuff on the paper is true! Tom and his BritBrit, Molly , Allan waiting for the license to be printed

Ok, how much longer will it be??

We had a very good Sunday...Allan slept in (after his morning wake up for concoction and pills) for about 15 extra minutes today before getting up for work. Aunt Carol and Uncle Bill are supposed to be here tomorrow and part of Tuesday so hope that Allan can get a visit in and still get his sleep time before he has to go to work. Allan's appetite is still great!! He is happy as a clam and has energy to spare. He shared with me this morning that he had the best day yet at work: he wa able to fix a belt at work (took 2 1/2 hours, normal stuff) and then continue on with his walk-throughs! He also said he could have kept on working past the 8 hour limit that the doctor gave him but he also realized that he needed to see how the next few days go and how he feels before asking the doctor for a new order for work. He is pacing himself too in all his work...keeps an eye on me too and makes sure I don't over do it. We were able to meet Tom and Brit at the courthouse as they applied for their marriage license! That was special! Tom and Brit then took us out for Chinese (one of our favorite foods!) and then to Tom and Brit's for fishing and movies. Still working on the garden...the cows are sure enjoying the corn...hopefully next year we will get it in earlier so we can enjoy it!

Have a wonderful week! This week just has Allan going for lab work and next week is the same thing. I go in for lab work too. So a much easier week doctor wise!!

Maybe a misunderstanding? corrected

Hello Everyone. This is Molly. It was brought to our attention that the last post regarding no cancer in Dad/Allan's brain sounds like he no longer has any cancer. I wanted to make sure everyone knew what was going on. There is still approximately 10% of the original larger mass and the smaller one have either shrunk small enough not to show on the MRI or is beign, in his brain. The cancer in his liver/kidneys/adrenal glads have grown 25% or more and have spread to his right hip; it is in his bone. There are more seeds/masses in his liver/kidneys/adrena glands. The masses in his lungs are smaller (we did not remember to ask how much it shrunk.) So currently he still has malignent cancer but the masses in his brain and lungs are smaller and the liver/kidneys are larger.

He started the new chemo yesterday and so far no side effects except some diarrhea, poor thing. He is looking awesome. He worked on the John Deer lawn mower today and we went out to Oakwood to have his friend Pete weld an idler pulley stud. He had a blast hanging out with his friend. When we were done we put the lawn mower back together. He is now really hungry and waiting on dinner to be ready. He is so energetic right now and looking so good!!! He is currently talking to Gma in the kitchen.

Here is Mom. Love you all!!!

Well I am really sorry to have maybe given those of you who have not had a chance to follow Allan's blog site for very long the wrong impression. I guess when we get good news, especially after the sooo bad news last week, I just wanted to celebrate! Just did not realize I may have given some of you the wrong information. And Allan is indeed just running around with a new kick in his step, having a ball being "normal" which I know for sure you understand, Kim. It is like a whole new lease on life. I hope and pray that Allan can be this way for a very long long time.

WHAT A BLESSED DAY!!!!

Wow yesterday was LONG!!! But it was all GOOD!!! Praise the Lord!!! We started off with Allan's new chemo yesterday and that went well but a lot longer than we were told...there were sooo many people in for chemo. Last time Allan was the only one there for a long time and then 2 other people came in...yesterday I think all the chairs were filled with chemo patients. The back xray showed NO CANCER!!! but scoliosis of the upper back and the beginnings of arthritis in his lower back...we did not previously know about either one. Allan's counts are up too! He will be getting the bone enhancer, to keep the bones from getting brittle as the cancer weakens the bones, every 3 weeks I believe and chemo every 4 weeks. I may have gotten that backwards...it could be chemo every 3 weeks and bone enhancer every 4...I know the vit B12 shots are every 9 weeks for sure. Then we did a little running around as Molly had to make a car payment etc and then off to Tyler. The MRI went fine and then to the neurosurgeons. The MRI showed no visible cancer! Molly heard that the existing one was 90% smaller. So that was GREAT news!!!! Dr said to come back in 3 months and they will have another MRI done so that IF a tumor/lesion shows up they will immediately plan on doing the cyber knife on him to get it out...doc says we need to catch them as early as possible so that is ok with us but Lord willing there won't be anymore tumors/lesions. I have not figured out why they call tumors 'lesions' anyway? Anybody know the answer to that one? How about our favorite nurse in WA? Do you know why???
We went shopping for my folk's at Sam's Club afterwards and had to pick up some things at WalMart and Kroger's so we got home late and Allan was still going strong! We did go to bed early but we had such a great day. Allan hopes to fix the John Deere today so he has a plan! Thank you thank you all for your continuing prayers for Allan and I! They were sure felt yesterday big time!! We love you all!!!

Wonderful pattern

Allan has gotten into a wonderful pattern: he comes home from work about 2 a.m. showers then goes to bed. He wakes up about 9am, sits in front of the TV and drinks his shake (2 big glasses of the stuff!), then watches TV till he nods off and then goes back to be till 3pm. He eats his normal (which was the way he USED to eat before all this hit) meal and then goes to work. On the week days we get up, have our quiet time together and then we start our day. Allan is back to doing chores and puttering around. I love it!! Thank You Lord! Tomorro is going to be a very full day for Allan. We go to get his new chemo at 9am. It is supposed to take like one and a half hours and then we come home for a little bit, then go to Tyler to have his MRI on his brain at 1:15pm and then to his neurosurgeons' at 3pm to find out the results of the MRI. A VERY LONG day for Allan. Please keep him in your prayers tomorrow. Will let you know what all of the drs and test results are tomorrow hopefully. Have a wonderful day!!!!

WONDERFUL SUNDAY MORINING REST

Allan got up early this morning about 9am and wanted his shake! He drank all of that AND two banana split muffins! He watched National Geographic channel till he started getting tired and took numerous short naps before he decided it was time to go back to bed. When he got up I fixed him a huge plate of bbq beans and bbq brisket on a whole wheat roll and boy! did he go though that!! He had fun watching NASCAR and the Rangers beating the Royals. He left for work a very happy camper!! What a wonderful Sunday!! : ) Thank You, Lord!!!!

'THE BEST I HAVE FELT IN MONTHS'

Hi, All!
Hope you are all having a good weekend. Allan was busy with puttering most of this week. Mowing, errands, fixing stuff, keeping busy. He took naps too off and on. He had a short nap today before he dressed, ate, and went to work. He was very excited about going after missing last weekend. Allan started eating the concoction that his older brother Charles has been recommending for him to try: 2/3 cup of organic cottage cheese, 6 Tablespoons of flax seed oil, a few nuts, strawberries, blueberries and mix it in a blender. I added a bottle of Ensure Plus to help him put on more weight too. He actually liked it! So that will be his breakfast from now on. We are trying to feed him good stuff. Last night was fresh squash from the garden stir fried, bbq salmon, and corn on the cob. We had fresh fruit for dessert and Allan cleaned his plate and bowl! His appetite sure is getting better and he is feeling so much better too! He is talking about the things he needs to get done 'when he gets well'. He said the quote up top to me yesterday. It is such a blessing to see the Lord's Hand at work and so very comforting to know so very many people are praying for us! Talked to a very nice lady in England who has been praying for Allan. She is a dear friend of our Brit Sis. It is just incredible to me how very many people...people we probably will never know until we all meet in Heaven with Jesus, are praying for us! What a HUGE blessing!!! God bless all of you!!!!
Allan has his new chemo on Tues morning and then in the afternoon we travel to Tyler for his MRI on his brain and then a follow up appt with his neurosurgeon. Will let you all know how all that goes. Congratulations Brit on the new Strong baby due!!! January right?
Love you all!!!

Newest Dad/Allan Update

Hello Everyone!! Today I took Mom/Colleen and Dad/Allan to dad's chemo appointment. We got his newest blood count ... everything is once again normal and high so dad can go back to work. We also received the results of his CAT/MRI (sorry don't remember which it was) and some is good but most of it not so much. The good news is that the masses in dad's lungs have reduced in size some ... the doctor was not specific on how much. The other news is that the masses in his kidneys and liver have increased 25% or more and he has new masses in both the liver and the kidneys, as well as, one in a lymph node. The scan also showed some new masses in his bones, his pelvic area, basically, where the joint in his right hip is. Dr. Dalal is taking dad off of the chemo treatment he has been on for the last 2 months, because when the cancer grows 25% or more and spreads then it is not working properly. He is starting dad on a new treatment called Alimta. It only takes approximately 25 minutes to do and he will also be taking a bone strengthener, which takes about 40 minutes or so ... total taking about an hour to an hour and 15 minutes. Which is 6 hours less then the old treatment. He will also be getting a B12 shot every 9 weeks to help with the possible side effect of being worn out and tired. Dad will also be taking 3 days of steroids before each of the new treatments instead of the 2 he was taking with the old one. The doctor is also putting dad on folic acid pills to assist with possible side effects. Dad currently weighs 155.8 lbs ... he has lost 6 pounds in 3 weeks, a total of 20 lbs since he was diagnosed with the cancer. Mom asked Dr. Dalal about something to improve dad's appetite, sorry I do not recall the name of most of the drugs dad is not on, but he did prescribe something to help rebuild his appetite. Dad got his first shot of B12 today and wont need another for 9 weeks. After the appointment we went to the hospital to get an X-Ray, we should have the results next Tuesday when he goes in for the new chemo treatment. Next Tuesday he also has an appointment with Dr. Ledley to check one the masses in his brain. I will be trying to go with them to it so that I can provide support and help update the blog more so that mom doesn't have to as much.

All in all, dad had a pretty good day, considering the news he got. I showed up at their house this morning and surprised them, we went to the appt and then to get the X-Ray, went out to eat and then to Wal-Mart to pick up there meds. He was able to go see Tommy at work (Tommy and I needed to trade vehicles for the day.) Once we got home dad and I messed with the pool (in the process of cleaning it from the weeks of neglect from when we were in Cali last month.)

Please continue to pray for both mom and dad. I know that both of them love it when they are able to see the responses you guys post and they can feel your love and support, so do I. I love you all. Molly J. Connell

A Wonderful Restful Weekend

It is so nice to have a weekend with Allan home and just rest and putter around. Thank You Lord!! The kids are coming by today so we are looking forward to that. Rangers are on tonight so we are looking forward to watching them play. Thank you, Steph, for your encouraging email! We love hearing from you! Yes, we are staying indoors, Uncle Allan at least! Tomorrow is a gardening day/mow day/with Allan and Dad indoors, resting. Sundays are such a wonderful day of rest to get ready for the week ahead. Hope you all have a great weekend and can rest and relax! Love you all and thank you for your encouragement and prayers!!!

Tinkering around

Wow! thank you Kim for your encouraging words!! No, they did not tell us that if his counts are down that means the chemo is working and I will definitely check on his hemoglobin counts! Praise God that you can help us with info! Thank you so much! We are doing our best to find odd jobs for Allan to do around the house to relieve his boredom. He fixed a lamp yesterday and will fix the sprayer on the kitchen sink today. Molly is bringing over electrical stuff that needs fixed from their place so that helps too! He played crib with my Mom yesterday while my Dad and I did the running around town that needed done. I wish I had been here cuz Mom said Allan got a 24 hand and gave the biggest grin that she has seen in a long time!!! He got another one the next game too so his day was much brighter being able to skunk Mom!! He does love to win!! We can never say enough how much your emails/blog comments/prayers mean to us! And we LOVE nurses advise!! :) We love you all so very much!!!!

Counts WAY down

Allan's ANC counts today were 400 so he could not get his xray but was able to have his CT Scan. Unfortunately, Allan's veins are starting to collapse due to the chemo so they had to stick him 6 times today, poor thing!!!! :( He has to stay home, no fresh fruit or veggies, stay away from crowds or sick people or anything dirty. He has to wear gloves, hat, scarf, mask and wear long sleeves and long pants if he goes outside. Of course here in Texas were at 612pm it is currently 108 outside he needs to stay inside anyway!! :) He can't go back to work till his counts go back up so he will be here with me!!! Good thing right?? ;) God has Allan in His Hands!