Transportation

When I first took my new wheels out for a spin I got some very curious looks, then some smiles and then some comments of - "Cool car!" =) It gets pretty good mileage and I don't need a huge parking space! Feeling very blessed and my back and arms are definitely thanking me! =)

Horses, Plows and Mobiles

I have been getting my backyard ready to seed with grass. It has been a lot of work but when I imagine what it could look like it gives me a bursts of energy to keep working at it. Last Tuesday morning at 5:40 am, a man with a horse and plow came and worked up the ground. It's great!! Saved me a tonne of work!!!!!!!! Very thankful for that. It was amusing though while he was here. I really do enjoy talking with people and getting to know them even if it is just a little bit so I opened up the subject of family. He in turn asked if I had a family. I think I need to come up with a better response than what I gave him today - mention more about my family back in America! Instead he zeroed in on that I was not married and that it was not good for someone my age to be alone. =) He asked me why I didn't have a husband and I said "God knows." Kids? No. Age? 36. Well that was all the information he needed and he immediately took out his phone and called this guy in Kiev. It was 6:30 am!!!! A few thoughts crossed my mind - tackle the man to the ground and take his mobile away (he is bigger than me though so that wouldn't have worked) or just stand back, wave my arms wildly and yell "WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING??!!!", or just let it play out. I ended up saying, "Don't do that." with the intonation of "WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING??!!!" =) After the call he preceded to tell me that this guy is 32, doesn't drink and keeps his house clean. I said, thank you but no thank you and that if I were to get married some day, the man would definitely have to love Jesus!! The point was taken but as he left he said, "Think about it. Really think about it. When he has time he will come and meet you." Oh great!! I told him that if he wanted to come down, he was more than welcome to come to church on Sunday at 5:00 pm! Before I could do anything, he gave me a big wet one on the cheek and hopped up into his wagon and went on his way. I really liked the horse though - very nice. =)

Kids' Festival

Last week I had the privilege of helping out with a kids' festival in town that was sponsored by a Baptist Church from Tennessee. Throughout the week there was on average about 65 children who attended every day. It was great fun making new "little friends" and seeing God work in some of their hearts. Please pray that we would be able to continue to share the gospel with some of these children through our Sunday School program.

Radiation

This past Wednesday we found out that Trevor's blood count is very low. This is not a good thing because his body won't be able to fight any infections. Please pray that his counts would go up. He also started his radiation treatments on June 25th. These will continue 5 days a week for the next month. Thank you for your continued prayers for safety as they travel and for continued healing for Trevor.

Trevor has had two blood counts since starting chemo and, thank you Lord, they have been high enough to continue treatments. Next week they will have an overnight stay at the hospital for his 2nd large dose of chemo. At this time, Kathy, my sister-in-law, will be meeting with a nutritionist to get some ideas on what food to prepare for Trevor. He continues to lose weight but as of now, the doctors aren't concerned. My dad will be flying down to Maryland on Wednesday to be with Daryl and his family for a few weeks. Please pray for this time. Praising God for His greatness!

Update

In my last e-mail I mentioned that Trevor went for a second CAT scan last
Wednesday. When the results came in, the "spot" was gone!! Praise God!

Since the tests for both the bone marrow and CAT scan came back negative,
Trevor was able to start his first chemo treatment this past Friday. He had
three separate injections through the port in his chest. On Sunday morning
he felt a little nauseous but his medicine got it under control. Apparently
after 5 - 7 days after the treatment is when he'll start feeling really
sick. His treatments are scheduled for every three weeks. After the fourth
chemo treatment Trevor will begin radiation treatments. They will drive into
Baltimore every day for a month for this.

As long as his blood count stays up, these treatments will be able to
continue. If they fall, then the treatments will have to stop until they can
be brought up again. Please continue to pray that the counts stay up. He
will have his first count done on Thursday, April 10th.

One of the important things during this time is that Trevor does not get
sick. As a precaution he will have to wear a mask for the next year until he
has finished his treatments. Daryl said that Trevor is a real trooper and
puts the mask on by himself. He has seen a lot of that during his stay in
the hospital. He must also not lose weight so the doctors have put him on a
strict high calorie diet.

The Lord works in ways that sometimes we don't always understand. Daryl and
Kathy have been to share with the other families in the hospital why they
can still have a smile on their face during this time. The Lord is their
strength!

For awhile there was question whether or not they would be covered with
insurance as Daryl started a new job this past Monday. Praise the Lord that
in the state of Maryland, your insurance can't be dropped. As it turns out
Daryl's new job has better coverage than his old one. Just another way that
the Lord has supplied!

In three weeks or so, my Dad will fly down to spend a couple of weeks with
Daryl and his family.

Please also remember Siglinda as her world has also been turned upside down.
Thank you for your continued prayers!

Trevor

Trevor has had more tests done and on Monday they found another spot on the back of his abdomen close to his spine. It does not appear to be attached to the spine but it is large enough that they need to go back in and remove it. He was scheduled to have an operation this morning but the doctors have decided to perform another CT scan to have another look. Thank you for your continued prayers!