True Love

I felt this overwhelming rush of peace today.

I didn’t know love could feel this way.

I’ve been in love, maybe once, maybe twice.

But what I’m feeling now, I’ve never felt in my life.

I’ve been dreaming of love since I was a little girl.

Romantic notions of a prince charming, a Cinderella story, if you will.

But emptiness, disappointment, and countless broken hearts,

Couldn’t open my eyes to what was here from the start.

The hole just got bigger as I looked for true love;

I wanted that perfect relationship that fit like a glove.

You waited so patiently year after year,

 The feeling of loss sometimes too much to bare.

You rushed to my side when I cried out your name.

 Never fast to anger when I laid out the blame.

I played hard to get and mindless games.

I ran away like a filly; that was too hard to tame.

I took you for granted and pushed you away,

Never truly appreciating the sacrifice you made.

You died on the cross to take away my sin.

You rose three days later so the healing could begin.

My life is now complete with your unwavering grace.

Unconditional love now fills the empty space.

I felt this overwhelming peace today.

I finally found true love and it’s here to stay.

I wrote this poem as a love letter to our savior.  I want to give praise and thanks where it belongs.  I have believed and continue to believe that his spirit is touching Dave and giving him strength. Much Love, Jeana

Dave Update, April 26, 2011

Hello family and friends:  I just received a text from Dave that they completed harvesting again in ONE day!  Yeah!  They are already on their way home.  Dave has still been suffering from some intestinal issues and is going to visit his oncologist when he gets home to see what they can do about it.  It is affecting his appetite and is just plainly a pain "in the butt" if you know what I mean.  Sorry, it is the crass side of me that escapes every once in awhile.  Finally, Dave will get a short break to gather stength, and hopefully put on some weight before the transplant in May.  Thank you for your continued love and support.

Dave-2   Cancer- 0

Dave Update-April 25, 2011

Hello family and friends, Dave and my mom left at 3:00 a.m. this morning to Stanford after receiving word that his white blood cells counts were good.  They headed straight to the hospital where they have to do some initial testing to see if they can start the harvesting process.  I spoke with my mom at noon and they just hooked Dave up for harvesting.  Remember, it can take 1-4 days for harvesting.  We are hoping for one day. 

I know this can be complicated to understand the process.  Below is a short explanation of the harvesting process. 

In the stem cell harvesting process blood is removed from the patient's body through the apheresis catheter (that was previously inserted into Dave's chest), circulated through an aspheresis machine and returned to the patient's body. The aspheresis machine separates out the stem cells and retains them in plastic bags. Although all of the patient's blood goes through the aspheresis machine several times in each session. only about one-half cup is inside the machine at one time.  Again, they will freeze Dave's stem cells for the transplant that will occur in May.

I woke up on Easter Sunday feeling pretty blue. The kids were at their dads, I didn't make any plans (other than to go to church) with family, and I knew mom and Dave would be going to Stanford.  Easter is my favorite holiday next to Christmas so I was feeling pretty sorry for myself.  Things turned around after my mom called and said that Dave wanted the kids to come over in the afternoon after they returned from their dads.  He wanted to do a special easter egg hunt for them.  At this point they knew they had to be in Stanford at 7 a.m. on Monday morning, but Dave wanted to wait until 3 a.m. to leave so we could get together.  I'm happy we did because we had the best time!  For all of you that know Dave, you understand that he never does anything "simple" so he planned the best easter egg hunt ever.  I'm going to explain in the pictures below:

This is Dave reading a long list of Easter Egg hunt rules.  Along with candy, eggs had a variety of questions in them that the kids had to answer before getting the prize that belonged to the egg.  He explained to the kids, as they patiently listened in awe of the amount of rules, that they had to bring the question to him and that he would determine if the answer was correct.  He also explained to them that they could not "solicit" answers from others.  I just laughed as I watched their faces knowing that they didn't even know what "solicit" means.  He even had a map drawn out with exactly where he placed each egg so he wouldn't forget.  Mom said he spend a long time out in the yard getting everything perfect for when the kids arrived. 

This is Mason as he listened very carefully to the list of instructions and rules for the easter egg hunt.

Mason reading his question to Granpa Dave.  One of his questions was, "What do you want to be when you grow up?"  His response, "A cop".

For some reason, Eden got all the hard questions like, "What is Christianity?" and "What is the meaning of life?"  I was a proud moma as she answered these questions with confidence.

Dave, Mom, Mason, and Eden (Easter 2011)  I think Mason summed it up best when he said, "This is the best day ever!"

Thank you Dave and mom for making my family have a very special Easter.  I know you weren't feeling well and you both had a lot to do before you left for Stanford, but you still thought about us and making our Easter special.  Another special memory I will file away.  I love you both.  Jeana

Dave Update: April 21, 2011

Hello family and friends, a short update on Dave since returning from Stanford last week.   He has done better this time, but not without some difficulty.  After returning last Friday, Dave started to feel pretty crummy on Sunday:  fatigue, diarrhea, nauseous, no appetite.  Not getting any better on Monday, they decided to drop by his oncologist where they discovered his blood pressure was a bit low and he was again in need of some fluids.  They gave him some meds to help with the stomach issues and hooked him up to an IV for several hours.  He was asked to return on Tuesday.  By Tuesday, he was feeling a bit better and only had to have a little fluids.  On Wednesday, they started daily blood draws.  Dave said he was feeling some bone pain, which is common when doing the daily shots that stimulate stem cell growth.  If you recall from round one, the blood draws determine if enough stem cells have been generated for harvesting.  Another words, it could be any day now, and like before, they will have a moments notice to head back to Stanford for the harvesting.  As of now though, they have him scheduled for Monday for harvesting.  But that might change.   We are just waiting for his white cell count to rise. 

Harvesting can take 1-4 days in the hospital.  The first round, Dave and his super stem cells only took a record 1 day so lets hope we get the same results this time.  We should have a 2-3 week break before the actual transplant. 

The actual scheduled date for the transplant itself is May 20, but Dave will report to Stanford on the 16 for an overnight stay, where he will have tests, blood drawn, a round of chemo, etc.    He will also have one last round of chemo the day before the transplant on the 19.  I will go in more depth about the transplant itself when we cross that bridge.  What I can tell you from all that I've read, it's pretty anti-climatic compared to what Dave has gone through.  The healthy stem cells (that have been frozen) are basically put back into his body through a blood transfusion that takes approximately 30 minutes.    The most sensitive time is the days immediately proceeding the transplant as his body slowly accepts the stem cells.  My mom and Dave will be staying in Stanford at this point at an apartment or hotel for the remainder of his recovery which could take anywhere between 4-6 weeks depending on his super powers

This is my dedication to Dave and a reminder to all of us the importance of praising God in good times and bad.  Please listen by clicking on the image below with the arrow:




Sunday, April 24- Our Lord Jesus Christ rose from the grave.     Jesus Christ rose from the dead for you and me. He made the one and only sacrifice for our sins. Jesus says in the Bible, "I am the resurrection and the life; he that believes in me, though he were dead in sin, yet shall he live." John 11:25

Jesus truly is alive. He stands at the door of our hearts, and he is knocking. He wants a personal relationship with each one of us. We need the Lord. "He is an ever present help in time of need." Psalm 46:1.

Only through him can we have eternal life. "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." John 14:6

Jesus promises, "Because I live, you shall live also." John 14:19.


Exciting news:   CEO and Founder of the Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation, Kathy Giusti, was named one of TIME Magazine's 100 must influential people in the world!  Kathy earned this recognition for the incredible progress she has made transforming the way medical research and drug development are conducted and, ultimately, dramatically improving the outlook for patients with multiple myeloma and other cancers.

Dave Update- April 15, 2011

Hello family and friends, just a short Dave update.  Mom and Dave are currently in Stanford getting his second round of chemo before his last stem cell collection.  They arrived on Wednesday morning and immediately spent most of the day getting blood drawn, visiting with his doctor, and all the other fun testing that he has to endure.  My mom and Dave spent the night at Pam's house and returned to the hospital on Thursday. 

Dave and my mom had the opportunity to meet with another doctor whom I'm gathering from my mom's description was very well liked and popular among the patients and nurses.  I'm imagining a MacDreamy synopsis, but this has not been confirmed.  Wink, wink.

Dave says the doctor, Miguel Cerejo, M.D., was wonderful to talk with and went in great detail about how Multiple Myeloma has changed since his internship at the University of Chicago over 14 years earlier.  At that time, the doctor said he was always sorry to see someone come in with MM.  Now, he says when someone comes in with MM, they are always like "Yes" we got this one!  He went in great detail about cell structure, the most recent medications, velcade and revlimid and two new ones that have just made their way onto the market.  He was really able to ease Dave and my mom's anxiety about what to expect with this round of chemo and the future.  The doctor felt that Dave should respond better to this round than he did the first and that we'd have a good idea within 24 hours after chemo how he would respond. 

The doctor also acknowledged that Dave had an aggressive abnormal chromosome, but also noted how great Dave has been responding to treatment and expressed a bright outlook for his future.  Many MM patients go into stem cell transplant with only a partial response, so Dave's chances of getting a good remission result is great since he is already in complete response!  At one point the doctor looked at Dave and said,  "God only put a few perfect heads on this earth and the rest he put hair on them".  He went on to compliment Dave's shaped head.  Dave got a laugh out of this because he has used that quote on and off since first hearing it over 30 years ago.

Dave started his chemo drip about 7 p.m.  on Thursday.  It takes 3-4 hour and he is required to stay over night.  Before that he had lots of pre-meds infused: anti-nausea meds, steroids, pain meds.  Dave emailed me Friday morning to let me know that he was feeling pretty good overall.  He probably will be released at some point today.  I'm not sure if they will stay overnight or rush back to their babies (Dexter and Shelby).

I am so thankful to our family for all the help they give my mom and Dave.  Grandma, Grandpa, Aunt Wana and Cliff, Allan and family for watching over the cats and making sure they are well taken care of while my parents are gone.  I try not to take this personally, but it says a lot that they chose all of you before her one and only daughter to watch over their precious babies, tee, hee...

I also can't thank Pam enough for her generosity.  I can't express enough how much stress it takes off my parents to be able to stay with family.  Your support in unmeasurable.  You make them feel so welcomed and comfortable.  What a blessing.

I feel so full of hope and peace that Dave is going to get through this with the best possible diagnosis-  NO CANCER.   We will meet again someday until there is a cure, but here is praying for a long remission, continued advances in research, and ultimately, a cure. 

April 11, 2011-Dave Update

Hi family and friends, it's been almost three weeks since Dave's return from stem cell collection and he's gearing up for round two.  My mom and Dave will be leaving Wednesday back to Stanford for chemo.  Dave has been doing pretty good since returning, except for a lot of fatigue.  The neuropathy has lessened a bit and thus the need for constant pain medication has decreased.  He went into the doctor's last week and his blood work is still looking good.  It's impossible to imagine his journey and what purpose he will gleem from it, but I have no doubt that purpose will be had, life's precious moments will be appreciated, and God's grace will prevail.  When things seem impossibly unfair, there is someone out there that "out unfairs" you.  What I've learned from reading, researching, and following other bloggers is that "will to live" is key to outcome.  Hope.  Love.  Faith.  And most importantly, Believing- is the ingredient for success.  If you don't believe me, check out this link from a young family that has been hit with a double whammy.  What do you see? 
http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/42452205/ns/today-today_health/

Hope.  Love.  Faith.   Believe

We had a great weekend with a visit from my Uncle Ron (my mom's baby brother) and Aunt Judy.  They are on a road trip from Arkansas and we got an opportunity to spend some time with them.  They are such sweet and wonderful people.  We all got together, along with my Uncle Steve (Dave's brother) and had dinner at Rosa's Saturday night.  The owners of Rosa's have been like family to us and that is exactly how they made us feel.  They really spoiled us with appetizers, wine, and great service!  Dave is loved everywhere and the care and concern from Rosa's staff was a sweet reminder. 

Please say a special prayer for Dave.  Pray that his spirit and soul is filled with Hope, Love, Faith, and Belief.  Also pray that Dave has an easy time with the chemo this round and that his fighting spirit prevails over any discomfort he may experience.  I will update you later in the week after he arrives in Standord.  Keep that positive flow of energy coming Dave's way by emailing him words of encouragement this week before he leaves.  Much love and appreciation-  Jeana