Happy Valentine's Eve...and Other Stuff

Here we are, almost half way through February, and tomorrow is Valentine's Day. The only room where I have Valentine's decorations is the dining room.  I did add a thing or two this year, though. On the table is this little setting:

The hearts on a stick in the vase were a gift from Daniel last year.  He bought them on the day we spent together while Ann took her friend Dayna on a round of doctors and hospitals.  Every time I look at those four hearts, I smile.  And I'm smiling, too, because Dayna's latest MRI showed further shrinkage of her brain tumor and a PET scan showed no active cancer cells!  Her doctor told her she's in uncharted territory and gave her three weeks off of her chemo.  She's enjoying renewed energy and a trip to Mexico with her sisters and mom as I type.  

I liked the leaves I made for the knob of the china hutch last fall so much that I was inspired to stitch out a Mary Engelbreit heart for this season.  Such a simple addition sure adds a lot:

Here's a bigger view of the whole hutch including a candle with a seasonal wrap:

Several years ago I created a banner for the embroidery club I taught at the quilt shop.  There's no mantle over our fireplace to place it under, and I couldn't figure out where else to put the banner, so I'm embarrassed to say I never put it up. This year I had an idea and it worked--under the dining room window:

Here's a longer range view showing the banner, the table, and the ultimate Valentine's decorating essential, a bowl of appropriately colored Peanut M&Ms:

Meanwhile, our hearts have been heavy this week as our friend, Steve, seems to be losing his battle with cancer. Steve, just a few years older than our kids, has been a good buddy of Dan's, is one of the pastors at our church, and with his wife, Tina, has provided us and many others, with an end of the holidays party known as Italian New Year's for a number of years.  As a couple, they have touched many lives near and far. We and hundreds of others are in prayer for this family that includes two young sons.  ♥

Dayna Update

It's been a while since I did an update on our friend Dayna.  My readers will remember that last February our daughter Ann took her friend on a round of hospital and doctor visits one day to find, in the end, that Dayna had a brain tumor.  A stage 4 gioblastoma.  Surgery followed the very next day to save her life and she has been undergoing treatments including chemotherapy since.  

Today Dayna had another MRI (she has them every 3 months) and the wonderful news is that the tumor has shrunk 70 to 80 percent since February.  There was a 40 percent reduction shown in the August MRI with another 40 percent reduction this time.  

Dayna continues to be upbeat and was recently named National Single Mom of the Year after a friend nominated her.  Here is a snippet of what her friend shared about the trip they took to Baton Rouge for the award.

We arrived at the airport but because Dayna had needles and prescriptions with her, she had to be detained so security could make sure she was okay to travel. Throughout this, she was incredibly kind and gracious and of course, made a new friend in the security guard. 

It is hard for Dayna to sleep without help due to the cancer treatment she is taking, so instead of sleeping she drank 5 cups of horrible airplane coffee and made friends with literally everyone in the surrounding area, and continued to do so, in all three airports and two flights. She is a LIGHT wherever she goes. She can’t help but talking about Jesus and what he has done in her life to the many people God puts around her. 

We arrived in Houston, Texas and missed our flight! God went before us though, and we were immediately able to get on another flight on a very tiny plane! This time Dayna and I weren’t sitting near each other but I could hear her happy laugh periodically as she made friends and swapped stories with someone else.

I hope by including this little story you will see something of the very special person Dayna is and feel like you know her just a little bit.  Finally, here is a recent picture of her with her little princess, Maddie.

For those of you who have prayed for her, thank you! There is no end in sight to the treatments as this type of cancer is, well, considered terminal.  But!  ♥

Another Dayna Update

I'm late in writing this, but I do want to share the latest news about our friend, Dayna. She recently had another MRI and the results were amazing as you will see from what she wrote: 

Some very good news today during chemotherapy as we went over the scan results. Shrinkage of the tumor in two places and no growth in others, along with necrosis (cell death) in the center of the tumor!! A Grade IV glioblastoma can double in size every 2-4 weeks, so this is quite amazing. On a scale of 1-10 the doc said these results are an 8. We'll TAKE it.

And then a few days later this amazing woman wrote this:

In light of my recent (incredible) scan results, I often hear people rejoice with me and say that God is good. It is almost an instinctive response, I think, especially for people of faith. It is an answer to prayers, a reflection of both His goodness and my family's perseverance throughout treatment and so many unknowns.

Yes, indeed, God is very good.

I have had a sentiment echoing in my heart this week that I would like to share. God is good, and He has always been and will always be good. If the tumor in my brain had grown, He would still be sovereign and in control. He would still be good! If cancer takes my life tomorrow, God's goodness is unchanging. No matter the results of scans, or tests, or trials in life, our response should be that YES! HE IS GOOD! A resounding truth that honors His plan and our trust in Him.

No matter the circumstance, yes, God is good.

It is natural to praise God when outcomes are favorable, when they reflect our desires and deepest hopes. I appreciate and value every comment that 'God is good,' because I share that belief and conviction! How the tears filled my eyes when the results from my MRI were read to me on Monday. What an incredible thing to hear after a few months of treatment, five days a week, with no assurance that progress was being made. If the results had been different, however, would our reaction be the same? Would we still praise Him for being good? Would we still worship?

I believe that my God heals. That He works miracles. I have been a beneficiary of some incredible miracles in my life, miracles of rescue and redemption and yes, of physical healing as well. It was one such miracle of rescue that led me back to walking with God, after years of disobedience.

The truth of the matter, however, is that not everyone is healed. All of us, every single one of us, is 'terminal.' We all have an expiration date on our lives here on earth. I may not be healed of cancer in my lifetime. Or, He may choose to heal me! (That would be incredibly in accordance with MY plan, in case God wants some input.) Both outcomes would mean that He is good. That He has always been good. That His plans are not my plans, and His ways are not my ways.

We can't see the biggest picture of all, the one where all of our lives are threads in a tapestry, and are interwoven and connected in ways that only the Creator could see. Every slight change brings about a different ending. God is good. He will always be good, regardless of what tomorrow brings. His plan is FOR us. His grace is for us… and my heart is for Him.

Enjoy the rest of your weekend. With love and immense gratitude!

Dayna

This dear girl is an amazing gift to us all and continues to awe me with her attitude. I know many of my readers join me in praying for her and her little Maddie. ♥

Dayna Update

I have wondered if my readers have wondered how Dayna is doing since I posted a month or so ago, so I decided to do a little update.

When I last wrote about her, she was Seattle where she saw a number of specialists and then took time (due to a number of different treatment options to consider) to decide on her course of action. She came back here over a long weekend to pack up and stock up on love and prayers, and is now back in Seattle where she had her first chemo yesterday.  She has named her tumor Cleatus, and part of her action plan is a strict diet because this type of tumor feeds on certain fats.  She had a port inserted and that enables her to have infusions of vitamins as well as the chemo.  

Already there is good news:  an MRI last week showed that there was minimal growth in the tumor since her surgery, and this is amazing because it is such a fast growing type.  Dayna's, shall we say motto, is Pray. Believe. Fight! and I thought you might enjoy reading part of an update she sent over the weekend:

"Spiritually, I am doing pretty well. I always appreciate prayers, and especially prayers for my healing, specifically. I encourage you to keep praying!

The biggest lesson I have learned from the past six weeks: we are all terminal. We all have an expiration date on our bodies. A few times lately, people I know have come up to me with teary eyes to give me an embrace. An important thing to remember, sweet friends of mine, is that I feel blessed. I appreciate the empathy so deeply, but I feel blessed to have the time that is given to me, regardless of whether God chooses to heal me or not. I don't sit around feeling sad or sorry for myself… life is waiting! I have things to do, appointments to attend, people to see, air to breathe.

Yes, this is 'rocking our world,' so to speak. It is throwing my family and friends and me for a loop. Not one of us expected this, or saw it coming. We have all, in my corner of friends and family, chosen to embrace the trials, as it develops our perseverance (James 1), knowing that perseverance will have its result, that we may be lacking in nothing. We have chosen to love nonetheless, to live nonetheless, knowing that our attitudes and mentality DO make differences."

In addition to her motto, they have come up with this little visual:

And here is a picture of Dayna with her sweet little sprite, Madeleine.

♥

Life Moves On

Life is interesting.  Most of the time, things are good and we meander along, paying scant attention to our own well-being and happiness.  But then, sometimes, we are abruptly reminded of how precious it is to be loved and healthy.  Our daughter, Ann, has been mentoring (or as we call it at our church, discipling) a young mom for the last year or so.  Dayna was living in Europe with her husband and baby when her marriage went horribly bad and she, through an amazing series of events, was able to get back to the states and settle back in our little town.  

Over the past few months, she's felt increasingly unwell, plagued with headaches.  After seeing several doctors she was diagnosed with first, a sinus infection, and second, migraines.  But still, even with antibiotics and migraine drugs, she was feeling worse and worse. Finally, two weeks ago today, she called Ann and said she couldn't take it any more and would Ann come and take her to the ER.  I was called in to watch the D-man and so the day began.  There was frustration at every stop.  From a dentist office (Wisdom teeth impacted? No.), to the local ER, to the local quick care, to, finally, the ER in an neighboring town.  Where they performed a CT scan to find a brain tumor.  So desperate was the situation that they wouldn't release her but made arrangements for her to be admitted to a regional hospital that night.  Ann and Eric drove her to a town in-between where she was transferred to the car of her brother and by noon the following day she was in surgery.  They said if she hadn't had that surgery she would have been brain dead in two weeks.  That's today, folks.

The rest of the news is that it's bad news.  A stage 4 malignant tumor.  This is a twenty-eight-year-old mama of a little blond two-year-old.  They are headed to Seattle to see about treatment options, which appear to be limited.  We are praying for peace and for healing. Sometimes it's difficult to understand why things happen, but we, like Dayna, know that God is with her.  

And so, for the rest of us, it's a reminder that life is precious, not to be taken for granted.  Health, the love of family, and home are gifts that we need to be thankful for.  Every. Single. Day.