We had a MARVELOUS time on Saturday! I really recommend seeing "Wicked". I didn't know what to expect, especially with that title! It is so good, funny, but with a great message. The costumes and the sets were amazing. It didn't have any foul language or sexual content...very rare for a popular musical these days! It was 3 hours long, so we went straight to dinner afterwards (after taking a wrong turn...oops). We went to Bahama Breeze...if you've never been there, I recommend that, too! We had great food and laughed a lot. I tried to add photos, but am unsuccessful. When I figure out what I did wrong, I'll post them!

Then, as if we didn't have enough to eat, we wanted to continue the fun...so we drove home via Canton and went to Taggert's for ice cream! Jeremy met us there, and we all had more than we needed, but had so much fun. It was so nice to laugh and have a good time with the girls...and cancer wasn't in the conversation! Yea!

Please continue to pray that Carli can relax and enjoy college without thinking of what might lie ahead. We all need to keep trusting that God is in control, no matter what. That is still hard even though her first scan was clear! She is now trying to plan on when to have her port removed...Craig is going to do it for her...she might wait until after Belize so that she won't have to worry about the incision.

The girls are home for their "spring break"...only Thursday through Sunday, but I'll take what I can get! I had parent/teacher conferences on Thursday night, but was so blessed with a snow day on Friday. Yea! Without that I really wouldn't have seen them much. Carli went to lunch with her friend that is going through chemotherapy. She was so impressed that Rachel can be in public without anything on her bald head. She has such confidence. Pray for her as her counts were too low this week to get her chemo.

Kelsie and I went shopping...which is very rare for her since she doesn't like to shop. (I know...where did she come from?). She has a couple of dances coming up and needed dresses. Grove City is a wonderful place...Kelsie wants dresses!! Her sorority is busy with social acitivities as well as fundraising for things like the Leukemia/Lymphoma Society. She also talks about Bible studies...which they call "Jesus Parties". What a hoot. (No pun intended...their mascot is the owl).

Kelsie is concerned about Carli studying too hard and worrying about her health in the future. It is my prayer that God knew what He was doing when he put Kelsie at Grove City, too. I really think that she will be good for Carli and good for Mom's peace of mind. Carli is still trying to figure out her life from here...how to get in all of the courses that she needs and get the grades needed to apply to PT school. Kelsie talked with an engineering prof that Carli knows and he really helped her. She is still planning on staying in engineering..we'll see how that goes!

We are going to see "Wicked" today as a family...Tara is home, too. Can't wait!!

This empty nest thing really has it's ups and downs. On one hand, it it nice not to have any schedule to keep straight except mine and Ted's, on the other hand, I really miss having the girls around...Ted's schedule keeps him away at either work or meetings much of the time. I have not found myself lacking for things to do, however.

I think that Carli and her friends are having a little bit of a rough time transitioning to her being back at school. Many of her good friends graduated last year, and the friends that are still at GCC don't always know how to relate to her. She definitely is NOT the same person that left GCC last April...priorities are so different for her now than most college kids...she finds it hard when girls complain about things that Carli sees as trivial...but isn't that human nature? We are all in different stages of the journey, and some folks have had more uphill battles than others. Most kids her age have not had to face the possibility of dying, and they don't know how to relate to someone who has been in that position. Please pray for Carli to have patience with those who don't quite "get it", and for her friends to be accepting and patient with her, too!

Keep my dad in your prayers as he is being "set free" from the nursing home on Monday. There are many things to consider before he can be at home on his own. My sister, Susan, is going to stay with him a few days until we see if he can do everything that he needs to do. He is still very short of breath with any activity, which is a concern. Medications are still being adjusted and we are hoping for the right combination!

I still am very thankful for our church family who has been visiting my dad and uplifting his spirits. God continues to bless our family, and I pray that He will be real to those who continue to read my ramblings!!

I think that it is just now sinking in! It is so neat to see how many people were praying and thinking of her...the smiles, excitement and joy are so much fun! So many people mentioned dancing for joy...that's so cool!

I haven't talked to her today, I'm sure that she is on cloud nine. I'm sure that all of her friends at school are excited. She called her good friend and roommate last night and exclaimed "I get to stay with you the rest of the year!!". It was so cute.

Pray for her continued health and protection. This being cold and flu season, I have pounded into her head about washing her hands (what is a school nurse mom for, if it isn't to pound handwashing into your head??). Her blood counts are back up into a more normal range, so at least her immune system is improving.

Thanks again for all of your prayers and support. It will be fun now to keep you all informed of her healthy progress!! God is good.

GREAT NEWS!!!!!!!

I KNOW THAT WHEN YOU USE CAPS TO COMMUNICATE THAT IT MEANS THAT YOU ARE SHOUTING...WELL I AM....CARLI'S SCAN DID NOT SHOW ANY SIGNS OF LYMPHOMA!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I don't think that I have ever been so relieved...and thankful...and I can't even describe it...

Carli was so calm. She had emailed me that she had plans for whatever news we got, and that she knew that whatever the outcome that she would be all right. She had such peace...that can only come from God! I wish that I would have had that kind of peace...but when you are facing that kind of news with a child it is undescribable how you feel. I don't think that it has truly sunk in yet...

Dr. STallings gave her the OK to go to Belize over spring break. A few months ago I wouldn't have believed that this would be possible. She is excited! She is co-leading the group, and the plans were all working out well, so she figured that if God was taking care of those details, that He meant for her to go!! Such faith!!

Now for the only tricky part...she has another CT scan in 3 months. If that is OK, then she can wait for 6 months until the next one. She will do this for a few years and then considered free from lymphoma. So, the praying does NOT STOP now!! Cancer has a funny way of creeping up in your thoughts...

So, Dr. S. said that she can have her port removed. Yippee!! They accessed it today and it hurt, but she didn't vomit this time when they flushed it. Another reason to be thankful! I feel like shouting (like they do on Extreme Home Makeover...move that bus!)...remove that port!!

Thanks again for all of the prayers and thoughts, food (thanks Diann!) and all of the things that I am forgetting. She is excited to continue on at Grove City College and be a normal college student!! PTL!!!!!

I opened my Bible expecting to turn to another scripture, and this is where it opened...Psalm 57.

"Have mercy on me , O God, have mercy on me, for in you my soul takes refuge.
I will take refuge in the shadow of your wings until the disaster has passed.

I cry out to God Most High, to God,
who fulfills his purpose for me.
He sends from heaven and saves me, rebuking those who hotly pursue me;
God sends His LOVE and His FAITHFULNESS...

For great is Your love, reaching to the heavens;
Your faithfulness reaches to the skies.

Be exalted, O God, above the heavens;
let your glory be over all the earth.

Enough said! (my words!!)

I feel like we're on a countdown...only 46 more hours until the results.

A remarkable woman of faith, whose daughter was Carli's friend and killed in a car accident 5 years ago, brought me a book that helped her to focus on God after their tragedy. I highly recommend it for anyone going through trials (and which one of us isn't?? that is what life on this earth is about...). It is titled When God is Silent by Charles Swindoll. It is about Job and how he endured heartbreak, pain and rejection. He felt that God was silent. Yet through it all he stayed faithful and kept his focus on God. Wow. What a lesson!

A couple of things really stood out for me:
He has 3 practical statements that help us identify with Job's struggle-
1-There are days too dark for the sufferer to see the light
2-there are experiences too extreme for the hurting to have hope
3-there are valleys too deep for the anguished to find relief.

There were times when I could really relate to the above. I would have rather taken Carli's pain and nausea upon myself, but knew that wasn't an option. I learned so much from her when her faith was unwavering...

So, knowing that God is mysterious and appears to be silent, we DO know that He is trustworthy. In the book, he lists 3 lessons that we can learn from the Bible:
1-resist the temptation to explain everything. GOD KNOWS. The people that didn't try to explain her illness or how it might impact her were the most comforting.
2-focus on the future benefits, not the present pain. GOD LEADS. Carli said that
not one person that had experienced treatment for lymphoma said that they would
like to change their circumstances.
3-embrace the sovereignty of the Almighty; GOD CONTROLS.

We can ask God for healing, we can tell Him the desires of our hearts. But He ultimately decides our future, and I am so thankful that I don't have to be the one in control! When I think of past situations, God certainly worked things out better than I ever could have!

We learn by our trials. We are "refined by fire". We are not without hope! No matter what results we get on Tuesday, we are in God's hands. I am trusting in God to have worked through the chemo-we know that she is so much better than a year ago! But no matter what the results, we will get through this with the help of our family and friends.

This journey is by no means over after results on Tuesday. Even a good report means lots of testing for at least the next 5 years, surgery for the removal of the port, and having "cancer" in the back of your mind whenever any symptoms of any kind come up. That is the hard part-and where faith REALLY comes in.

Another thanks to all of you who keep us in your thoughts and your prayers. You have helped us so much!