We had a great Christmas holiday here with family! God's grace was truly sufficient to be able to allow Kami the strength to be able to enjoy Christmas, our traditions, family gatherings, and even the opportunity to sing with her kids (the first time in over a year!). It was good to see her laughing more than crying (due to the pain) for Christmas!
But this past weekend, it seems that the "mystery" illness is spreading and back in full force. Kami's pain has intensified to the point that I almost took her to the ER one evening. This was after an appointment with her doctor here in Ft. Myers. Her doctor is still baffled and ordered a new round of blood tests and CT scan for this week. They are expressly checking for chickungunya disease with the blood tests. There is a breakout of this mosquito-born disease in the islands where we were. The CT scan will be to verify that the nodules in her lungs are not growing, to check for any tumors/growths in her chest and to verify that there is no deterioration of any bones in her chest, which would be a sign of an active TB bon-infection. A bone infection would still mean that she is non-contagious but that the TB is destroying her bones, is very painful, and can be treated with two additional long-term antibiotics.
We appreciate your continued prayers for Kami. We are hoping to get some answers....and to get her out of constant pain.
Monday, December 30, 2013
Tuesday, December 24, 2013
Our College & Career Christmas Party !
After we knew that Kami was going to be seen locally for the duration of her medical care, I asked our Pastor for some duties to keep me busy. One of his ideas for us was to start a Wednesday night College & Career class. It has been fun and such a blessing to not only keep busy in the ministry, but to be able to work with this great group of young people! (Some of which were in our teen group when I was youth Pastor!)
Here is a glimpse from our Christmas party that we hosted at the church mission's house where we are currently staying!
The Edman family who is working along side of us, helped us to prepare a feast!
(Nacho Bar, Wings, Pizza Rolls, Veggie Tray and plenty of desserts!)
Of course, we had to have a "dirty Santa" gift exchange! The idea was to not get a "girly" gift!
Like Ben's new ladies' scarf....which surprisingly matched the color of his pants!
Is it really an "exchange" if you steal someone's else's Skeet Clay-Pigeons!
(Yes...with this group you have ammunition, Clay-Pigeons and hunting gloves!)
Everyone made sure to know exactly what had been opened!
Then we broke out the "Headbands" game! If you have never tried it, it makes for a great game for young people...
And older ones....His card said, "Lightbulb"...We kidded with him that his light bulb finally "went off!"
There was a Ping-Pong Tournament...
And some billiard games as well...the young man in the back is Zak. He accepted Christ as his Saviour just two weeks ago after our Wednesday night class.
We praise the Lord for these young people. It is my prayer and desire to help these young people to love the Lord our God with all their heart, with all their soul, and with all their might! We look forward to what God is going to do in our hearts and lives for the cause of Christ!
Tuesday, December 17, 2013
Updates & More...
Even though our lives on the mission field seems to have been put "on-hold", things have not slowed down for us. Here are a few updates...
Kami
She has been having improvements since she has started her antibiotic treatments. However, there are days when the pain & chest pressure come back with such ferocity that all she can do is cry. There are days when she is able to laugh, which she hasn't been able to do in over a year and we praise the Lord for these kinds of days! Her last MRI and X-rays came back negative for nodules in the joints in her hand. The swelling and pain that she has been having are now attributed to damage to the collateral ligaments in her joints. To what extent and reason, we do not know. Her doctor wants to refer her to a hand surgeon for further evaluation. (We are thinking that the TB is in her joints and bones which would be called Bone/Joint TB. But getting the doctors to listen to our thoughts can be quite difficult after they have diagnosed her with Latent TB.)
The Kids
Josh was able to pass his driving test and received his license! It has been great having an extra driver in the family! He is working as a "captain" on one of the bus routes at our home church along with Beth and Brenna. They all sing specials and are in the choir. They attend teen visitation and help whereever needed in the church. It is such a blessing to live on church property!
All 3 older children are running behind in school and trying to "catch-up". It has not been an easy year nor easy transition for them. Momma has been pretty sick and they have worked overtime helping out Dad with all of Momma's duties and with lots of baby-sitting of the younger three while we take Kami to the steady stream of doctors' appointments!
We believe that strep throat has been taking a toll on our family as well. I was miserable over the past several days, the little ones were sick, and Beth is now running a 103 degree fever with a sore throat. We are hoping to be all well for Christmas!
Dad
Dad is trying to keep everything together while Momma is working to get back to 100%. I am teaching an adult SS class and have started a Wednesday College & Career Class. After last Wednesday's class, I was able to lead a 23 year-old young man to the Lord! Our situation may not be what we thought it would be at this time in December 2013 and we may not be where we thought we would be, but God has us right where He wants us to be. So we are taking advantage of every ministry and praising God for every trial and every victory He is bringing into our lives.
God is so good...all the time.
Kami
She has been having improvements since she has started her antibiotic treatments. However, there are days when the pain & chest pressure come back with such ferocity that all she can do is cry. There are days when she is able to laugh, which she hasn't been able to do in over a year and we praise the Lord for these kinds of days! Her last MRI and X-rays came back negative for nodules in the joints in her hand. The swelling and pain that she has been having are now attributed to damage to the collateral ligaments in her joints. To what extent and reason, we do not know. Her doctor wants to refer her to a hand surgeon for further evaluation. (We are thinking that the TB is in her joints and bones which would be called Bone/Joint TB. But getting the doctors to listen to our thoughts can be quite difficult after they have diagnosed her with Latent TB.)
The Kids
Josh was able to pass his driving test and received his license! It has been great having an extra driver in the family! He is working as a "captain" on one of the bus routes at our home church along with Beth and Brenna. They all sing specials and are in the choir. They attend teen visitation and help whereever needed in the church. It is such a blessing to live on church property!
All 3 older children are running behind in school and trying to "catch-up". It has not been an easy year nor easy transition for them. Momma has been pretty sick and they have worked overtime helping out Dad with all of Momma's duties and with lots of baby-sitting of the younger three while we take Kami to the steady stream of doctors' appointments!
We believe that strep throat has been taking a toll on our family as well. I was miserable over the past several days, the little ones were sick, and Beth is now running a 103 degree fever with a sore throat. We are hoping to be all well for Christmas!
Dad
Dad is trying to keep everything together while Momma is working to get back to 100%. I am teaching an adult SS class and have started a Wednesday College & Career Class. After last Wednesday's class, I was able to lead a 23 year-old young man to the Lord! Our situation may not be what we thought it would be at this time in December 2013 and we may not be where we thought we would be, but God has us right where He wants us to be. So we are taking advantage of every ministry and praising God for every trial and every victory He is bringing into our lives.
God is so good...all the time.
Saturday, November 30, 2013
Kids That Read...Succeed!
Before I get to the "reading" part of this post, I want to mention a quick prayer request for Kami. This past week, Kami's doctor ordered an x-ray of Kami's finger. We had thought that her joints in her hand were swelling due to her "mystery" illness. It turns out that she has nodules growing in her joints. We received a call from the doctor's office this week asking us to come in to discuss what was revealed on the x-ray. We greatly appreciate your prayers for this matter. Her appointment is on December 24th.
Kids that read...succeed !!!
It has always been our family tradition that each child buy/make something for each member of the family that we put under our tree. It is always exciting to open special gifts from each member of our family!
This past year, we encouraged our children to earn money for Christmas in a very special way...READING!
For each book that they read this year (we kept a chart hanging in the kitchen), they would receive money. Some books were worth $.50, some $1, some even $2. It all depended on the size of the book. The key was that the books had to be "spiritual" books. (ie: Missionary biographies, ministry books, books on biblical dating, books on Prayer, or even how to teach a Sunday school class.)
Although it has been a very difficult year as the older children have had to spend much time taking care of the younger 3, preparing meals, helping move our family back to the States due to Kami's health difficulties (not to mention trying to accomplish school on a daily basis), they have managed to read quite a lot of books! In total, they have read 36 "spiritually-related" books!
Not only did they get to earn some money for Christmas, but they were able to build spiritual strength from their daily Bible reading and from a wealth of wisdom contained on the pages of books written by Godly men and women.
Until next time...
Kids that read...succeed !!!
It has always been our family tradition that each child buy/make something for each member of the family that we put under our tree. It is always exciting to open special gifts from each member of our family!
This past year, we encouraged our children to earn money for Christmas in a very special way...READING!
For each book that they read this year (we kept a chart hanging in the kitchen), they would receive money. Some books were worth $.50, some $1, some even $2. It all depended on the size of the book. The key was that the books had to be "spiritual" books. (ie: Missionary biographies, ministry books, books on biblical dating, books on Prayer, or even how to teach a Sunday school class.)
Although it has been a very difficult year as the older children have had to spend much time taking care of the younger 3, preparing meals, helping move our family back to the States due to Kami's health difficulties (not to mention trying to accomplish school on a daily basis), they have managed to read quite a lot of books! In total, they have read 36 "spiritually-related" books!
Not only did they get to earn some money for Christmas, but they were able to build spiritual strength from their daily Bible reading and from a wealth of wisdom contained on the pages of books written by Godly men and women.
Until next time...
Wednesday, November 20, 2013
Our Temporary Address...
I have received several inquiries as to what address to use when sending cards to our family (for birthdays, holidays, & such).
Please do not send anything to our FIELD ADDRESS in the West Indies...we don't have an address there anymore.
Our temporary address here in Florida while Kami is receiving her medical care is:
The Gimenez Family
17388 Allentown Rd.
Fort Myers, FL 33967
Thank you all for your continued prayer for our family...
Please do not send anything to our FIELD ADDRESS in the West Indies...we don't have an address there anymore.
Our temporary address here in Florida while Kami is receiving her medical care is:
The Gimenez Family
17388 Allentown Rd.
Fort Myers, FL 33967
Thank you all for your continued prayer for our family...
Wednesday, November 13, 2013
Tropical Updates...
Here are a few highlights from the past 2 weeks:
- Josh, my mother, and I traveled to St. Barths for 12 days. We were able to clean out our house and pack up our belongings. A family of 8 reduced to 28 boxes...8 of which are small boxes filled with books! We turned over the house and it was a sad "Goodbye" as we drove away not knowing what the future holds.
- We were able to sell our Suzuki 4x4 on the last day possible! With this money, we were able to purchase a larger vehicle here to fit our family of 8. We were actually able to sell our Suzuki for just slightly more than we purchased our "new-to-us" 2001 Expedition. The Lord is Great!
- While there, we were able to visit with Maria who had attended our Sunday Bible Studies from the very beginning. We had prayed for her 86 year-old mother to be saved for a long time. I tried to witness to her on several occasions but she always turned away our efforts to talk about Christ. Maria asked me one day, "But if you leave, who will witness to my mother?" I replied, "Maria, God has chosen you to accomplish this task. It is you that needs to be a witness to your mother, for she will not listen to me." With a great big smile while there this past week, Maria said to me, "I led my mother to Christ! She accepted Christ as her Saviour!" Amen! We praise the Lord for this!
- Kami had to call 911 this past Friday for our little Callie Grace. While at Grandma's house, Kami heard Callie scream. As Kami ran into the living room, she found Callie unconscious on the floor, eyes rolled back but yet wide open, not breathing, and curled up into a ball. Kami's first thought was that Callie had broken her neck falling and was in the arms of our Saviour. As Callie began to turn blue/grayish around her lips and nose, Kami called 911. After what seemed like eternity, Callie began to breathe again but kept losing consciousness. The doctor said that she had the signs of having a seizure and she will be undergoing several tests in the next week to see if the cause can be identified. We appreciate your prayers for our little Callie. She is doing fine and back to normal but the doctors have said to keep a very close eye on her. She hasn't been out of momma's sight yet!
- Kami has been on her antibiotic treatments for 2 weeks now. Although the doctor doesn't think that the antibiotic treatments for the Latent TB will do any good for the real illness, we have noticed a difference! Kami is now laughing again, has a sparkle in her eye, and is sleeping laying down w/ 1 pillow instead of sleeping sitting up w/ 3! Over the past 10 months, when asked about pain, Kami has said that her pain level has never been under a 6. Last night she said that her pain was a 1! Thank you all for praying so diligently for my sweet wife. We praise the Lord for some positive changes!
Until next time....
- Josh, my mother, and I traveled to St. Barths for 12 days. We were able to clean out our house and pack up our belongings. A family of 8 reduced to 28 boxes...8 of which are small boxes filled with books! We turned over the house and it was a sad "Goodbye" as we drove away not knowing what the future holds.
- We were able to sell our Suzuki 4x4 on the last day possible! With this money, we were able to purchase a larger vehicle here to fit our family of 8. We were actually able to sell our Suzuki for just slightly more than we purchased our "new-to-us" 2001 Expedition. The Lord is Great!
- While there, we were able to visit with Maria who had attended our Sunday Bible Studies from the very beginning. We had prayed for her 86 year-old mother to be saved for a long time. I tried to witness to her on several occasions but she always turned away our efforts to talk about Christ. Maria asked me one day, "But if you leave, who will witness to my mother?" I replied, "Maria, God has chosen you to accomplish this task. It is you that needs to be a witness to your mother, for she will not listen to me." With a great big smile while there this past week, Maria said to me, "I led my mother to Christ! She accepted Christ as her Saviour!" Amen! We praise the Lord for this!
- Kami had to call 911 this past Friday for our little Callie Grace. While at Grandma's house, Kami heard Callie scream. As Kami ran into the living room, she found Callie unconscious on the floor, eyes rolled back but yet wide open, not breathing, and curled up into a ball. Kami's first thought was that Callie had broken her neck falling and was in the arms of our Saviour. As Callie began to turn blue/grayish around her lips and nose, Kami called 911. After what seemed like eternity, Callie began to breathe again but kept losing consciousness. The doctor said that she had the signs of having a seizure and she will be undergoing several tests in the next week to see if the cause can be identified. We appreciate your prayers for our little Callie. She is doing fine and back to normal but the doctors have said to keep a very close eye on her. She hasn't been out of momma's sight yet!
- Kami has been on her antibiotic treatments for 2 weeks now. Although the doctor doesn't think that the antibiotic treatments for the Latent TB will do any good for the real illness, we have noticed a difference! Kami is now laughing again, has a sparkle in her eye, and is sleeping laying down w/ 1 pillow instead of sleeping sitting up w/ 3! Over the past 10 months, when asked about pain, Kami has said that her pain level has never been under a 6. Last night she said that her pain was a 1! Thank you all for praying so diligently for my sweet wife. We praise the Lord for some positive changes!
Until next time....
Monday, October 28, 2013
2 pills-a-day...
Kami's appointment with her "new" doctor went extremely well today...
Here are some things that we learned:
- Kami will be taking 2 pills per day for the next 9 months. He said that many people quit after 6 months due to the side effects but is really adamant that Kami keep up with treatments for the full 9 months.
- Kami will be having regular check-ups and blood work to make sure that there are no harmful side effects from the antibiotics. Her first blood work will be done in 2 weeks. The doctor believes that Kami's side effects will be minimal due to her young age.
- This new doctor was amazed that the Mayo Clinic has closed Kami's case and he feels that they have "given up" and he wants to take up where they left off. He will be reviewing all of Kami's records, CT scans and x-rays and he has scheduled Kami to see one of his associates who is a rheumatologist. Her appointment is for tomorrow (Tuesday). He is concerned about her extreme joint pain.
- If the rheumatologist can't find a diagnosis, he has a plan to continue Kami's care. There are different avenues he wants to search, different natural remedies he wants to explore, and certain medications he will prescribe in the future. He seems to be the first doctor to actually have a back-up plan and a reason for each of his decisions.
- He wants to review the nodules in Kami's lungs. He said that different diseases form nodules in different ways and with different elements in different areas of the lungs. (ie: such as calcium nodules located in the upper or lower lobe, etc.). He wants to further investigate the nodules to see if they give any clue as to the type of disease attacking Kami.
We feel as if we once again have an advocate in a doctor who is deeply concerned for Kami. We praise the Lord for today's news and look forward to what the future holds...
Here are some things that we learned:
- Kami will be taking 2 pills per day for the next 9 months. He said that many people quit after 6 months due to the side effects but is really adamant that Kami keep up with treatments for the full 9 months.
- Kami will be having regular check-ups and blood work to make sure that there are no harmful side effects from the antibiotics. Her first blood work will be done in 2 weeks. The doctor believes that Kami's side effects will be minimal due to her young age.
- This new doctor was amazed that the Mayo Clinic has closed Kami's case and he feels that they have "given up" and he wants to take up where they left off. He will be reviewing all of Kami's records, CT scans and x-rays and he has scheduled Kami to see one of his associates who is a rheumatologist. Her appointment is for tomorrow (Tuesday). He is concerned about her extreme joint pain.
- If the rheumatologist can't find a diagnosis, he has a plan to continue Kami's care. There are different avenues he wants to search, different natural remedies he wants to explore, and certain medications he will prescribe in the future. He seems to be the first doctor to actually have a back-up plan and a reason for each of his decisions.
- He wants to review the nodules in Kami's lungs. He said that different diseases form nodules in different ways and with different elements in different areas of the lungs. (ie: such as calcium nodules located in the upper or lower lobe, etc.). He wants to further investigate the nodules to see if they give any clue as to the type of disease attacking Kami.
We feel as if we once again have an advocate in a doctor who is deeply concerned for Kami. We praise the Lord for today's news and look forward to what the future holds...
Friday, October 25, 2013
Kami's Bloodwork...
Many of you have been praying along with us as we have patiently waited for the results of Kami's TB blood work. Our hope was for a positive result to be able to have a name of Kami's illness. However, the results all came back negative. Kami has been diagnosed with Latent TB...the kind that is in her body, in non-contagious, and not active...thus not the reason for her symptoms.
The good news is that Kami has an appointment with a "new" doctor to discuss the treatment schedule that she must begin to rid her body of the TB bacteria in her blood. This appointment is local here in Ft. Myers so we do not have to leave town to drive to Jacksonville. The antibiotic treatment that she must undergo is pretty rough and we ask that you please pray along with us that there will be no damage to her liver (which must be checked regularly).
We also have another full TB blood work-up that was done about a month ago. These results will be finalized on November 18th. This is a duplicate test of the first but ordered by a second doctor at the Mayo Clinic. We are not sure why the 2nd set of tests was ordered, but we trust that the Lord ordered these tests with Kami's best interest at heart.
Kami had a good week last week. She had some strength back and was even laughing at times. But this week is a different story. She lacks strength, has difficulty catching her breath, and the pain in her chest & throughout her body is stronger. It is to the point that she cannot sleep at night due to the pain in her joints and bones. She wants to do so much, but her body just won't let her.
I will be leaving with Joshua next Tuesday to pack up our rental house on St. Barths. With the recommendation of our Pastor and Field Director, we thought it best to not pay rent for a house we will not be using over the next 9 months as we go through the antibiotic treatments for Kami. Please pray along with us that this "new" doctor will be able to find the root of Kami's illness.
Until next time...
The good news is that Kami has an appointment with a "new" doctor to discuss the treatment schedule that she must begin to rid her body of the TB bacteria in her blood. This appointment is local here in Ft. Myers so we do not have to leave town to drive to Jacksonville. The antibiotic treatment that she must undergo is pretty rough and we ask that you please pray along with us that there will be no damage to her liver (which must be checked regularly).
We also have another full TB blood work-up that was done about a month ago. These results will be finalized on November 18th. This is a duplicate test of the first but ordered by a second doctor at the Mayo Clinic. We are not sure why the 2nd set of tests was ordered, but we trust that the Lord ordered these tests with Kami's best interest at heart.
Kami had a good week last week. She had some strength back and was even laughing at times. But this week is a different story. She lacks strength, has difficulty catching her breath, and the pain in her chest & throughout her body is stronger. It is to the point that she cannot sleep at night due to the pain in her joints and bones. She wants to do so much, but her body just won't let her.
I will be leaving with Joshua next Tuesday to pack up our rental house on St. Barths. With the recommendation of our Pastor and Field Director, we thought it best to not pay rent for a house we will not be using over the next 9 months as we go through the antibiotic treatments for Kami. Please pray along with us that this "new" doctor will be able to find the root of Kami's illness.
Until next time...
Wednesday, October 9, 2013
Kami update...and our plans for the near future...
Many of you have asked about an update on Kami. So here goes....
We really don't have any new information to share as of right now. We are waiting for the Infectious Disease department's final blood test to be finished by October 21st. This test will show us whether Kami has an active TB infection in her bones which would be the reason for all of her symptoms. If the test comes back negative, then the TB is latent and not the reason for her symptoms. (Our hope is that the test comes back positive for an active TB infection so that we can have a name for her illness and get it treated.)
Either way, she will have to undergo 6-9 months of antibiotic treatments and repeated tests to evaluate the condition of her liver throughout the treatments. The test will also tell us whether or not she needs 4 antibiotics or just 1 during the treatment.
So for now, Kami has good days and bad days, but none without pain. She doesn't ever complain but there are times when I see the tears in her eyes from the pain and discomfort that she has been trying to live with.
I will be going back to St. Barths at the end of the month to pack up our belongings and move out of our rental house. With the advice of our Pastor and our Field Director, we decided that it just didn't make any sense paying $2,000/month in rent for a house that is just sitting empty on the mission field. So we will pack-up our belongings, move out, and then see what the Lord has in store for our family once Kami finishes her antibiotic treatments. So for now, we are taking a medical furlough to be able to get wife & momma back to a place that we can return to the mission field.
Our home church bought a 4-bedroom house about a year ago that needs a lot of fixing-up and tender love. With our Pastor's permission, Josh & I have been remodeling the house and in return, we will be able to live in it for the duration of Kami's treatments. After living in the 1-bedroom prophet's chamber here at the church for the past 2 months, the house will feel like a mansion when we get it finished! This is a win-win situation as the church is getting a renovated house and we will be getting a place to call "home" while we are away from our home in the West Indies.
Thank you for your continued prayers and support for our family!
Until next time...
We really don't have any new information to share as of right now. We are waiting for the Infectious Disease department's final blood test to be finished by October 21st. This test will show us whether Kami has an active TB infection in her bones which would be the reason for all of her symptoms. If the test comes back negative, then the TB is latent and not the reason for her symptoms. (Our hope is that the test comes back positive for an active TB infection so that we can have a name for her illness and get it treated.)
Either way, she will have to undergo 6-9 months of antibiotic treatments and repeated tests to evaluate the condition of her liver throughout the treatments. The test will also tell us whether or not she needs 4 antibiotics or just 1 during the treatment.
So for now, Kami has good days and bad days, but none without pain. She doesn't ever complain but there are times when I see the tears in her eyes from the pain and discomfort that she has been trying to live with.
I will be going back to St. Barths at the end of the month to pack up our belongings and move out of our rental house. With the advice of our Pastor and our Field Director, we decided that it just didn't make any sense paying $2,000/month in rent for a house that is just sitting empty on the mission field. So we will pack-up our belongings, move out, and then see what the Lord has in store for our family once Kami finishes her antibiotic treatments. So for now, we are taking a medical furlough to be able to get wife & momma back to a place that we can return to the mission field.
Our home church bought a 4-bedroom house about a year ago that needs a lot of fixing-up and tender love. With our Pastor's permission, Josh & I have been remodeling the house and in return, we will be able to live in it for the duration of Kami's treatments. After living in the 1-bedroom prophet's chamber here at the church for the past 2 months, the house will feel like a mansion when we get it finished! This is a win-win situation as the church is getting a renovated house and we will be getting a place to call "home" while we are away from our home in the West Indies.
Thank you for your continued prayers and support for our family!
Until next time...
Sunday, September 22, 2013
From the ER to Church on Sunday....
We had made it back from the Mayo Clinic on Wednesday evening and tried to get back to some sense of "normal" family life. The older kids got back to school and the younger ones got to spend some time with mommy after not seeing her for 4 days.
Then Friday started out with a Doctor's appointment for me. I am finally giving-in to the pain in my back and was directed by Kami that I should get to a doctor. When we made it home from the doctor's office, we ate a quick lunch and Kami went to lay down.
After about an hour, she was in so much pain that we needed to take her to the ER. We didn't know if they would be able to figure anything out about her "mystery" illness, but we needed to get her out of pain. The ER staff were great and they treated us with extra-special care when they found out we were missionaries. The ER doctor ran more blood tests and ordered a CT scan of her head but reported that he didn't know what else to do. His exact words were, "I don't know what else to do. The doctors at the Mayo Clinic are a whole lot smarter than I am. But at least we can get you out of pain."
So with that, they gave Kami some pain medication through her IV. The medication worked quickly and it was good to see some of the pain leave her countenance and she even closed her eyes and took a snooze. We spent 6 hours in the ER and made it back 'home' at about 7 p.m., a little bit discouraged, extremely tired, but thankful that Kami was able to have some relief from the pain for a while.
Today:
The kids rode/worked on the bus route this morning for church. Then Josh worked in the Junior Church as well. And the greatest part of church today was that Kami was able to attend the Sunday school and main services! She is officially worn out and in pain, but she was so excited to be in the services today.
Please keep praying for our family, we know that God has our answers just around the corner...
Then Friday started out with a Doctor's appointment for me. I am finally giving-in to the pain in my back and was directed by Kami that I should get to a doctor. When we made it home from the doctor's office, we ate a quick lunch and Kami went to lay down.
After about an hour, she was in so much pain that we needed to take her to the ER. We didn't know if they would be able to figure anything out about her "mystery" illness, but we needed to get her out of pain. The ER staff were great and they treated us with extra-special care when they found out we were missionaries. The ER doctor ran more blood tests and ordered a CT scan of her head but reported that he didn't know what else to do. His exact words were, "I don't know what else to do. The doctors at the Mayo Clinic are a whole lot smarter than I am. But at least we can get you out of pain."
So with that, they gave Kami some pain medication through her IV. The medication worked quickly and it was good to see some of the pain leave her countenance and she even closed her eyes and took a snooze. We spent 6 hours in the ER and made it back 'home' at about 7 p.m., a little bit discouraged, extremely tired, but thankful that Kami was able to have some relief from the pain for a while.
Today:
The kids rode/worked on the bus route this morning for church. Then Josh worked in the Junior Church as well. And the greatest part of church today was that Kami was able to attend the Sunday school and main services! She is officially worn out and in pain, but she was so excited to be in the services today.
Please keep praying for our family, we know that God has our answers just around the corner...
Tuesday, September 17, 2013
The numbers 38 & 164...What do they mean?
Well, we are once again at the Mayo Clinic. I love being with Kami and taking care of her. I wouldn't have it any other way!
We do have one problem...she carries a huge, pink purse/bag thing that looks like alligator skin. She loves it because it is "girly" and it can carry all of her medical records. The problem has been that during a couple of her appointments, I have had to sit out in the waiting room with the big pink hand bag! To make things worse, on two occasions, the nurses had me run over to another part of the hospital to either update paperwork or register Kami for additional appointments....yes, I ended up having to carry that big pink purse through the hospital!!!
One nurse shouted from across the waiting room, "Nice purse! I love the color!" Then another announced that I needed to color coordinate my attire to match the pink. Navy blue doesn't match hot pink?
Here Are The Numbers:
38 - is the amount of vials of blood they took at Kami's lab appointment yesterday. To be more clear, they took 34 vials and 4 bottles of blood for testing! It took over an hour to get it done by two nurses!
164 - is the number of blood tests that they are accomplishing with those 38 vials of blood!
Some people pray not to find anything on their medical tests....we are asking for folks to pray that something will be found!
We do have one problem...she carries a huge, pink purse/bag thing that looks like alligator skin. She loves it because it is "girly" and it can carry all of her medical records. The problem has been that during a couple of her appointments, I have had to sit out in the waiting room with the big pink hand bag! To make things worse, on two occasions, the nurses had me run over to another part of the hospital to either update paperwork or register Kami for additional appointments....yes, I ended up having to carry that big pink purse through the hospital!!!
One nurse shouted from across the waiting room, "Nice purse! I love the color!" Then another announced that I needed to color coordinate my attire to match the pink. Navy blue doesn't match hot pink?
Here Are The Numbers:
38 - is the amount of vials of blood they took at Kami's lab appointment yesterday. To be more clear, they took 34 vials and 4 bottles of blood for testing! It took over an hour to get it done by two nurses!
164 - is the number of blood tests that they are accomplishing with those 38 vials of blood!
Some people pray not to find anything on their medical tests....we are asking for folks to pray that something will be found!
Thursday, September 12, 2013
Off We Go....
This past Sunday, I was able to teach a Sunday school class at our home church and I enjoyed every minute of it. Josh, Elisabeth & Brenna have been working on a bus route and have also filled-in on several occasions for singing specials in church. They will also be heading out on 'Teen Visitation' this coming Saturday and Josh will also be preaching in the King's Kids program on the 26th.
Having the opportunities to stay busy in the ministry amidst the chaos of medical appointments has been such a blessing to our family...especially the kids. It gives them a chance to get their minds off of Kami's medical issues for just a bit. They love church, love preaching and love serving! Their high-light of each day is actually taking their school up to the church and working in one of the Sunday school classrooms. It gives them a chance to see their Pastor and Youth Pastor through-out the day and they enjoy being up at the church so much!
As for the sick children: Micah has a double ear-infection, Callie is still coughing and sniffling, Silas has a bad cough and sniffles, and Brenna is down with a fever/cold. Josh & Elisabeth on the other hand have gotten over their fevers/colds and were even able to do school today!
As for Kami, she had a rough past two days. Rough enough that we almost took her to the ER. We will be leaving on Sunday to head back up the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville. Her next round of appointments start at 7 a.m. on Monday morning.
They will be checking out her heart again and will undergo another round of blood tests. She has appointments Monday - Wednesday and then we will then come back on Wednesday afternoon after her last morning appointment.
Please keep praying for her...
Having the opportunities to stay busy in the ministry amidst the chaos of medical appointments has been such a blessing to our family...especially the kids. It gives them a chance to get their minds off of Kami's medical issues for just a bit. They love church, love preaching and love serving! Their high-light of each day is actually taking their school up to the church and working in one of the Sunday school classrooms. It gives them a chance to see their Pastor and Youth Pastor through-out the day and they enjoy being up at the church so much!
As for the sick children: Micah has a double ear-infection, Callie is still coughing and sniffling, Silas has a bad cough and sniffles, and Brenna is down with a fever/cold. Josh & Elisabeth on the other hand have gotten over their fevers/colds and were even able to do school today!
As for Kami, she had a rough past two days. Rough enough that we almost took her to the ER. We will be leaving on Sunday to head back up the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville. Her next round of appointments start at 7 a.m. on Monday morning.
They will be checking out her heart again and will undergo another round of blood tests. She has appointments Monday - Wednesday and then we will then come back on Wednesday afternoon after her last morning appointment.
Please keep praying for her...
Monday, September 9, 2013
Sicko's everywhere!
While Kami and I were at the Mayo Clinic (6-hours away), we received a call from Grandma that Micah was running a fever. Then it spread to Callie, then to Silas, and then to Elisabeth.
Kami and I finally made it back in to Ft. Myers on Saturday around 10:30 a.m. We gathered up the kids and came back to the prophet's chamber and put the kids down for a nap (Kami included!).
We went to the pharmacy and bought vitamins C, vitamins, fever reducers, cough medicines and Vick's Chest Rub! Now we have snotty noses, fevers and coughs running around the house and a sick momma trying to take care of it all...but she wouldn't have it any other way. She sure does handle a snotty nose better than I do!!!
Joshua left this morning to attend a preachers' conference and the rest of us are getting laundry done, bills figured out, and are in the process of scheduling another 15 appointments at the Mayo Clinic for Kami....yes, I said another 15.
She will be undergoing some more TB tests and meeting with a TB nurse as well. Her new doctor that we met with last week said that she is not convinced that cancer has been totally ruled out as a possible problem. Especially since something came back "high-lighted" from her PET scan. She seems worried about a possible "occult cancer"...one that is hidden.
This new doctor wants to investigate this new finding from the PET Scan and also wants to do a scope into her lungs to investigate the nodules found in her lungs to see what exactly they are. There will be more heart exams and several more ultrasounds.
We will probably be heading back on Wednesday of this week or the beginning of next week. So please keep praying for Kami.
Until next time...
Kami and I finally made it back in to Ft. Myers on Saturday around 10:30 a.m. We gathered up the kids and came back to the prophet's chamber and put the kids down for a nap (Kami included!).
We went to the pharmacy and bought vitamins C, vitamins, fever reducers, cough medicines and Vick's Chest Rub! Now we have snotty noses, fevers and coughs running around the house and a sick momma trying to take care of it all...but she wouldn't have it any other way. She sure does handle a snotty nose better than I do!!!
Joshua left this morning to attend a preachers' conference and the rest of us are getting laundry done, bills figured out, and are in the process of scheduling another 15 appointments at the Mayo Clinic for Kami....yes, I said another 15.
She will be undergoing some more TB tests and meeting with a TB nurse as well. Her new doctor that we met with last week said that she is not convinced that cancer has been totally ruled out as a possible problem. Especially since something came back "high-lighted" from her PET scan. She seems worried about a possible "occult cancer"...one that is hidden.
This new doctor wants to investigate this new finding from the PET Scan and also wants to do a scope into her lungs to investigate the nodules found in her lungs to see what exactly they are. There will be more heart exams and several more ultrasounds.
We will probably be heading back on Wednesday of this week or the beginning of next week. So please keep praying for Kami.
Until next time...
Friday, August 30, 2013
We May Have An Answer....
As we have seen many doctors at the Cleveland & Mayo Clinics, it seems that they have given us many "possibilities" of things that Kami could have...and we are thankful that the life-threatening ones have been ruled out.
Well, the Mayo Clinic has finally found something that Kami does have. She has been diagnosed with a Non-Contagious Form of Tuberculosis.
This past week, Kami underwent several induced sputum tests to determine if the TB that she has is the contagious Pulmonary TB (in the lungs) kind or the non-contagious Latent TB (dormant) or Extra Pulmonary TB (not in the lungs) kind. The sputum tests all came back negative which means that Kami has the Latent form or the Extra Pulmonary form, both of which are the non-contagious forms.
What is the difference?
Active Pulmonary TB - is the infectious kind that infects the lungs (the kind that makes people cough and is transmitted through coughing/laughing.)
Extra Pulmonary TB - is the kind that infects other parts of the body but is not in the lungs. (ie: it infects areas such as the kidneys, brain, lymph nodes, joints, or bones.)
Latent TB - this is the dormant form that means the bacteria is in your body (you have been exposed) but the bacteria has not actively infected your body as of yet.
What does this mean for us?
- We have to go back next week to the Mayo Clinic to have a PET scan done which will help to diagnose if the TB is in her bones...(Bone TB is a form of Extra Pulmonary TB.)
- Her last blood tests will take 8 weeks for the results to be ready. This is due to the "culture" time and will help to indicate if the TB is Latent or Extra Pulmonary. These tests will also help to determine which kind of antibiotics the TB is resistant to. (The doctor must know which kind of antibiotics will be effective during treatment.)
- If the TB is the latent form, then this is not what is causing her current problems/symptoms. (Latent TB has no symptoms because it is not actively attacking the body.) As her ID doctor said, "This might be just an incidental finding...something we found but has nothing to do with your present illness."
- If the TB is the Extra Pulmonary form, then we have found the "mystery" illness! (This is our hope because it would mean that Kami can begin a treatment to fully recover from her illness!)
-Either way, Kami will have to undergo antibiotic treatments for 6-9 months and then she will be re-tested to make sure the TB has been wiped out of her body. The doctors will also want to monitor her liver during this time as the treatments can adversely affect her liver.
We appreciate your continued prayers for Kami and the upcoming test results...we'll keep you posted!
Well, the Mayo Clinic has finally found something that Kami does have. She has been diagnosed with a Non-Contagious Form of Tuberculosis.
This past week, Kami underwent several induced sputum tests to determine if the TB that she has is the contagious Pulmonary TB (in the lungs) kind or the non-contagious Latent TB (dormant) or Extra Pulmonary TB (not in the lungs) kind. The sputum tests all came back negative which means that Kami has the Latent form or the Extra Pulmonary form, both of which are the non-contagious forms.
What is the difference?
Active Pulmonary TB - is the infectious kind that infects the lungs (the kind that makes people cough and is transmitted through coughing/laughing.)
Extra Pulmonary TB - is the kind that infects other parts of the body but is not in the lungs. (ie: it infects areas such as the kidneys, brain, lymph nodes, joints, or bones.)
Latent TB - this is the dormant form that means the bacteria is in your body (you have been exposed) but the bacteria has not actively infected your body as of yet.
What does this mean for us?
- We have to go back next week to the Mayo Clinic to have a PET scan done which will help to diagnose if the TB is in her bones...(Bone TB is a form of Extra Pulmonary TB.)
- Her last blood tests will take 8 weeks for the results to be ready. This is due to the "culture" time and will help to indicate if the TB is Latent or Extra Pulmonary. These tests will also help to determine which kind of antibiotics the TB is resistant to. (The doctor must know which kind of antibiotics will be effective during treatment.)
- If the TB is the latent form, then this is not what is causing her current problems/symptoms. (Latent TB has no symptoms because it is not actively attacking the body.) As her ID doctor said, "This might be just an incidental finding...something we found but has nothing to do with your present illness."
- If the TB is the Extra Pulmonary form, then we have found the "mystery" illness! (This is our hope because it would mean that Kami can begin a treatment to fully recover from her illness!)
-Either way, Kami will have to undergo antibiotic treatments for 6-9 months and then she will be re-tested to make sure the TB has been wiped out of her body. The doctors will also want to monitor her liver during this time as the treatments can adversely affect her liver.
We appreciate your continued prayers for Kami and the upcoming test results...we'll keep you posted!
Wednesday, August 28, 2013
A Day In The Life Of A Sick Missionary Wife...
Many of you read my wife's blog site, www.adayinthelifeofamissionarywife.blogspot.com
Well, to "play" on the title of her blog, I titled this post, "A day in the life of a sick missionary wife!"
Over the past 6 months, our family life has turned upside down, topsy-turvy. So I thought I would give you a glimpse at what life is like right now for our family with a sick Momma & wife.
My wife has always been active...loves to hike, exercise, take walks and loves to eat healthy. Many of you have seen my previous posts of horrible things my wife has made us eat: salads, spinach brownies, healthy cereals full of whole grains and dried fruits, chick pea cookie dough... need I say more?
This is the young lady who 6 months ago would go out in the evenings and walk up & down our driveway pushing a stroller for exercise and wash the dishes while doing leg-lifts and marching in place.
After 6 months, here is one of the typical days for Kami :
-Kami must sleep sitting up in bed or in a recliner...she cannot lay flat because the pain/pressure is just too intense. If she does manage to get some sleep, she wakes up with some energy and the pain/pressure is not as intense as in the afternoons.
- She normally gets up in the early morning and has her Bible study/prayer time. As she greets the children in the morning, she puts on her smile but you can see the pain in her eyes and she bends over to hug them and love on them. She begins to breathe heavily and moves very slow trying to save-up her energy so it can last throughout the day.
- By 11 a.m., her skin color begins to change to 'white'. As she loses her energy, she becomes very pale and weak. She then begins her daily ritual of having an ice pack on her chest trying to get some relief. Her eyes become glossy and she often has tears in her eyes that she tries to hide.
- By afternoon time, she is speaking is whispers and taking deep breathes to be able to "breathe" through the pain/pressure. Her joints begin to swell and the pain starts in her legs. This is about the time that she cannot last any longer and must take some sort of pain/prescription medication. At this point, we tell her to rest and she will close her eyes for awhile.
- When someone comes by to visit, she puts on her missionary smile and tries to act like nothing is wrong. She will talk, try to laugh and keep conversations going but as soon as they leave, she grabs an ice-pack and has tears in her eyes as she has over exerted herself.
- By evening, she is quiet, totally exhausted and crying because she can't even seem to manage to give the 3 little ones a bath or even cook dinner. Her pain is beyond tolerable and even the medications are not working. She wants to play with the kids but bending over to play with them is totally out of the question. She shivers with chills and keeps wrapped in a blanket or sweater for most of the day. By 8:30 p.m. she has her eyes closed and is on the couch, wanting to be with her family but not able to do much.
Even though her physical state is hurting, her love for the Lord hasn't changed. She longs to be back "home" and longs to be able to sing with her girls while doing dishes or in church. She talks about all the things that she wants to do in the ministry when she gets well and longs for the day when she can once again serve the Lord with all her strength & might.
Please continue to pray for her and for healing.... Until next time...
Well, to "play" on the title of her blog, I titled this post, "A day in the life of a sick missionary wife!"
Over the past 6 months, our family life has turned upside down, topsy-turvy. So I thought I would give you a glimpse at what life is like right now for our family with a sick Momma & wife.
My wife has always been active...loves to hike, exercise, take walks and loves to eat healthy. Many of you have seen my previous posts of horrible things my wife has made us eat: salads, spinach brownies, healthy cereals full of whole grains and dried fruits, chick pea cookie dough... need I say more?
This is the young lady who 6 months ago would go out in the evenings and walk up & down our driveway pushing a stroller for exercise and wash the dishes while doing leg-lifts and marching in place.
After 6 months, here is one of the typical days for Kami :
-Kami must sleep sitting up in bed or in a recliner...she cannot lay flat because the pain/pressure is just too intense. If she does manage to get some sleep, she wakes up with some energy and the pain/pressure is not as intense as in the afternoons.
- She normally gets up in the early morning and has her Bible study/prayer time. As she greets the children in the morning, she puts on her smile but you can see the pain in her eyes and she bends over to hug them and love on them. She begins to breathe heavily and moves very slow trying to save-up her energy so it can last throughout the day.
- By 11 a.m., her skin color begins to change to 'white'. As she loses her energy, she becomes very pale and weak. She then begins her daily ritual of having an ice pack on her chest trying to get some relief. Her eyes become glossy and she often has tears in her eyes that she tries to hide.
- By afternoon time, she is speaking is whispers and taking deep breathes to be able to "breathe" through the pain/pressure. Her joints begin to swell and the pain starts in her legs. This is about the time that she cannot last any longer and must take some sort of pain/prescription medication. At this point, we tell her to rest and she will close her eyes for awhile.
- When someone comes by to visit, she puts on her missionary smile and tries to act like nothing is wrong. She will talk, try to laugh and keep conversations going but as soon as they leave, she grabs an ice-pack and has tears in her eyes as she has over exerted herself.
- By evening, she is quiet, totally exhausted and crying because she can't even seem to manage to give the 3 little ones a bath or even cook dinner. Her pain is beyond tolerable and even the medications are not working. She wants to play with the kids but bending over to play with them is totally out of the question. She shivers with chills and keeps wrapped in a blanket or sweater for most of the day. By 8:30 p.m. she has her eyes closed and is on the couch, wanting to be with her family but not able to do much.
Even though her physical state is hurting, her love for the Lord hasn't changed. She longs to be back "home" and longs to be able to sing with her girls while doing dishes or in church. She talks about all the things that she wants to do in the ministry when she gets well and longs for the day when she can once again serve the Lord with all her strength & might.
Please continue to pray for her and for healing.... Until next time...
Saturday, August 24, 2013
Tropical Update...
Being back together again has been such a blessing to our family. I never want to be apart from my wife for that long again!
After spending some time at my mom's house and then at Kami's parents (and at the Mayo Clinic!) we have "temporarily" moved into our home church's Prophet's Chamber. It is good to have a place to call 'home' for a while.
Kami has several appointments at the Mayo Clinic over a period of 3 days. Her first appointment is at 9 a.m. on Monday. We are going to leave the 3 younger children with grandparents while the older 3 take a "road trip" with Mom & Dad.
Our goal is to try to spend some extra time with our older 3 kids. They have worked, helped, and taken care of so many tasks and responsibilities over the past few months. Even though Kami is still in much discomfort and she has several appointments, we are hoping to be able to have some good quality time with them. They are excited about our trip and we hope to make some more great memories!
We will let you know more about Kami's results from her last blood tests and these upcoming appointments as soon as we can.
Until next time...
After spending some time at my mom's house and then at Kami's parents (and at the Mayo Clinic!) we have "temporarily" moved into our home church's Prophet's Chamber. It is good to have a place to call 'home' for a while.
Kami has several appointments at the Mayo Clinic over a period of 3 days. Her first appointment is at 9 a.m. on Monday. We are going to leave the 3 younger children with grandparents while the older 3 take a "road trip" with Mom & Dad.
Our goal is to try to spend some extra time with our older 3 kids. They have worked, helped, and taken care of so many tasks and responsibilities over the past few months. Even though Kami is still in much discomfort and she has several appointments, we are hoping to be able to have some good quality time with them. They are excited about our trip and we hope to make some more great memories!
We will let you know more about Kami's results from her last blood tests and these upcoming appointments as soon as we can.
Until next time...
Thursday, August 15, 2013
I would love to give you a name/diagnosis for Kami...but we still don't have an answer yet.
On Tuesday, Kami and I drove up to Jacksonville, FL for her Mayo appointment. It is normally about a 6 hour drive...but we turned it into 9! Yes, we are from Florida but somehow we got lost and ended up on some back roads with a lot of stop lights in little towns. We finally made it at around 7 p.m.
We went to the Mayo Clinic on Wednesday to meet with the Infectious Disease doctor. We were told that even though Kami has the anti-bodies for "Valley Fever", she does not have an active infection for this disease. So, the ID doctor ordered another slew of blood tests. She is checking for parasites/diseases that would be prevalent in the West Indies. Kami filled up another 12 vials of blood at the blood lab! (Does she have any blood left?) I kidded with her that if "blood letting" really was a cure for disease, she should be healed by now after so many blood tests!
So, for now, we are waiting for the results from this next round of blood tests and we have another appointment to come back to the Mayo Clinic on Monday, August 26th.
Our anniversary...
Since Kami and I missed our 19-year anniversary back on July 2nd, we decided to take advantage of our time together here in Jacksonville....especially after being apart for nearly 2 months!
We are staying at a great prophet's chamber/manufactured home here in Jacksonville...What a blessing! So this evening, before we leave tomorrow morning to return to Ft. Myers, we bought some crab legs and some pasta salad to bring back to the prophet's chamber. We also stopped at a restaurant called Copeland's and ordered two cheesecake slices "to go".
We just finished a nice romantic dinner together and reminisced about the past 19 years. We are truly blessed beyond measure with such a wonderful marriage!
Until next time...
On Tuesday, Kami and I drove up to Jacksonville, FL for her Mayo appointment. It is normally about a 6 hour drive...but we turned it into 9! Yes, we are from Florida but somehow we got lost and ended up on some back roads with a lot of stop lights in little towns. We finally made it at around 7 p.m.
We went to the Mayo Clinic on Wednesday to meet with the Infectious Disease doctor. We were told that even though Kami has the anti-bodies for "Valley Fever", she does not have an active infection for this disease. So, the ID doctor ordered another slew of blood tests. She is checking for parasites/diseases that would be prevalent in the West Indies. Kami filled up another 12 vials of blood at the blood lab! (Does she have any blood left?) I kidded with her that if "blood letting" really was a cure for disease, she should be healed by now after so many blood tests!
So, for now, we are waiting for the results from this next round of blood tests and we have another appointment to come back to the Mayo Clinic on Monday, August 26th.
Our anniversary...
Since Kami and I missed our 19-year anniversary back on July 2nd, we decided to take advantage of our time together here in Jacksonville....especially after being apart for nearly 2 months!
We are staying at a great prophet's chamber/manufactured home here in Jacksonville...What a blessing! So this evening, before we leave tomorrow morning to return to Ft. Myers, we bought some crab legs and some pasta salad to bring back to the prophet's chamber. We also stopped at a restaurant called Copeland's and ordered two cheesecake slices "to go".
We just finished a nice romantic dinner together and reminisced about the past 19 years. We are truly blessed beyond measure with such a wonderful marriage!
Until next time...
Monday, August 5, 2013
A little bit of reverse culture shock...
Before I write a little about our "reverse culture shock", I wanted to give just another quick update on Kami.
We praise the Lord that the pulmonologist has adamantly ruled-out lung cancer! He had studied Kami's x-ray and CT Scans before our arrival and was very familiar with her case. He reassured us that cancer was not the case. So we count it as an answer to your (our our) prayers! However, one of her blood tests came back positive for having the antibodies of Coccidioides...otherwise known as "Valley Fever". We do not know if this is an active infection or one from the past. So more blood cultures are being done and we will know more is 7-10 days. (We do know that Valley Fever causes all of the symptoms that Kami is having.)
When the kids and I arrived to Florida on Tuesday evening, we were immediately hit with a little reverse culture shock. Here is a couple of things that we have to get used to!
- driving in a car for more than 15 minutes!
- smooth roads!
- so many fast food selections! (we have none on our island!)
- Being overwhelmed by the low prices at the stores! We keep exclaiming, "Look at the price for this!!! Unbelievable!" Of course people are thinking we are talking about prices being too high...but we are talking about being so "cheap"!
- Being overwhelmed by all of the choices of items at the store! We keep finding ourselves stopping and pointing at things in the store saying, "Look! Remember these?!...Look they have these!"
- Stop lights...and so many of them! We have none on our island....only an occasional portable stop-light a construction crew may put up!
- Brenna was amazed that you could just turn on a stove top/oven with just the turn of a switch and not have to use a match to get it lit!
- Cold...we are freezing! Everything is air-conditioned and we are just so cold! The girls run around in sweaters!
- Cold bugs...we are not used to the strains of cold/flu bugs here. So, we now have 3 kids with stuffy/runny noses.
Of course there are and will be so many "new" things that we will get to experience while here in the States.... we will enjoy them as we can and yet still look forward to getting back to our home on our island.
We praise the Lord that the pulmonologist has adamantly ruled-out lung cancer! He had studied Kami's x-ray and CT Scans before our arrival and was very familiar with her case. He reassured us that cancer was not the case. So we count it as an answer to your (our our) prayers! However, one of her blood tests came back positive for having the antibodies of Coccidioides...otherwise known as "Valley Fever". We do not know if this is an active infection or one from the past. So more blood cultures are being done and we will know more is 7-10 days. (We do know that Valley Fever causes all of the symptoms that Kami is having.)
When the kids and I arrived to Florida on Tuesday evening, we were immediately hit with a little reverse culture shock. Here is a couple of things that we have to get used to!
- driving in a car for more than 15 minutes!
- smooth roads!
- so many fast food selections! (we have none on our island!)
- Being overwhelmed by the low prices at the stores! We keep exclaiming, "Look at the price for this!!! Unbelievable!" Of course people are thinking we are talking about prices being too high...but we are talking about being so "cheap"!
- Being overwhelmed by all of the choices of items at the store! We keep finding ourselves stopping and pointing at things in the store saying, "Look! Remember these?!...Look they have these!"
- Stop lights...and so many of them! We have none on our island....only an occasional portable stop-light a construction crew may put up!
- Brenna was amazed that you could just turn on a stove top/oven with just the turn of a switch and not have to use a match to get it lit!
- Cold...we are freezing! Everything is air-conditioned and we are just so cold! The girls run around in sweaters!
- Cold bugs...we are not used to the strains of cold/flu bugs here. So, we now have 3 kids with stuffy/runny noses.
Of course there are and will be so many "new" things that we will get to experience while here in the States.... we will enjoy them as we can and yet still look forward to getting back to our home on our island.
Thursday, August 1, 2013
Praise the Lord....No lung cancer!
Thank you all for praying with our family. I first want to say that the pulmonologist has ruled out any form of lung cancer. We are not "out-of-the-woods" yet, but at least we had a huge sigh of relief today.
He admitted that her blood work is "out-of-whack" and there is something wrong, but assured us that her problems are not her lungs. The nodules that were found in her lungs and lymph nodes were there on previous CT Scans. He said that there are just a few of them and their shape, size and long-term presence makes them a non-factor. He said he wouldn't have even noted them in a regular CT Scan reading.
We are waiting for the results from another blood test and Kami is scheduled for a head CT Scan tomorrow morning. The doctor is now looking for any masses or "infection pockets" in her head. (I did joke with her that they won't find anything on the brain scan!)
We praise the Lord for all of your love, concern, and prayers for our family!
We'll keep you updated...
Monday, July 29, 2013
The Next Step...
First, I want to thank you all for your prayers for our family. God is working and we know that His ways are far above our ways.
I am writing this update from a hotel room on the island of St. Martin. The kids and I took the ferry boat last night over here to try to beat any rough waters that are expected tomorrow. We will leave on JetBlue Tuesday at lunch time and arrive in Fort Lauderdale around 7:20 p.m. I have rented an SUV that would fit all of us and arrive in Ft. Myers around 11 -12 p.m.
Then, the very next morning, we will return the SUV and rent a smaller car for Kami & I to drive to Jacksonville, FL for her appointment at 8:30 Thursday morning. She has an appointment with the Pulmonologist (lung doctor) at the Mayo Clinic. He is going to review the images from the CT scan from several weeks ago and the images from last week's CT scan of her lungs. He is going to determine if the nodules in her lungs and lymph nodes were there before or are aggressively growing now. Then we will discuss the next step to determine if these nodules are indeed cancerous.
We want to personally thank each and everyone of you who have helped us financially in our emergency travel expenses. You have been gracious and it is much easier to concentrate on Kami's health concerns without having the extra stresses of many doctor's bills and travel expenses hanging on my shoulders. Many of you have have helped to shoulder some of our burdens as said in Galatians 6:2, and we thank you for it.
We praise the Lord for you and will keep you updated...
I am writing this update from a hotel room on the island of St. Martin. The kids and I took the ferry boat last night over here to try to beat any rough waters that are expected tomorrow. We will leave on JetBlue Tuesday at lunch time and arrive in Fort Lauderdale around 7:20 p.m. I have rented an SUV that would fit all of us and arrive in Ft. Myers around 11 -12 p.m.
Then, the very next morning, we will return the SUV and rent a smaller car for Kami & I to drive to Jacksonville, FL for her appointment at 8:30 Thursday morning. She has an appointment with the Pulmonologist (lung doctor) at the Mayo Clinic. He is going to review the images from the CT scan from several weeks ago and the images from last week's CT scan of her lungs. He is going to determine if the nodules in her lungs and lymph nodes were there before or are aggressively growing now. Then we will discuss the next step to determine if these nodules are indeed cancerous.
We want to personally thank each and everyone of you who have helped us financially in our emergency travel expenses. You have been gracious and it is much easier to concentrate on Kami's health concerns without having the extra stresses of many doctor's bills and travel expenses hanging on my shoulders. Many of you have have helped to shoulder some of our burdens as said in Galatians 6:2, and we thank you for it.
We praise the Lord for you and will keep you updated...
Friday, July 26, 2013
Jumping out of 1 fire and into another...
Thank you for your prayers. We feel so loved...
Our update is with mixed emotions. We praise the Lord that Kami does not have any blood clots (that can be found) and the doctor has ruled out Myeloma. However, 4-6 mm nodules were found in her lungs on this week's CTA scan. The doctor is very concerned that these are now present. This is the reason for Kami's dry cough, shortness of breath, and extreme fatigue.
He told Kami that these nodules were not noticed on her last CTA scan done a few weeks ago. With this finding and the elevated blood markers that show cancer, his thoughts are now leaning towards lung cancer. Do you ever feel like you are jumping out of 1 fire and into another?
He also mentioned to Kami that these could be a result of a yeast infection in her lungs (our hope). So the next step is reviewing Kami's last CTA scan to see if these nodules are indeed "new" and to talk about a biopsy. She has an appointment next Thursday at the Mayo Clinic. The 6 of us here on the mission field are going to try to make a return trip to the States to be with Momma & wife. Please pray along with us for finances, safety, wisdom and good weather.
Our update is with mixed emotions. We praise the Lord that Kami does not have any blood clots (that can be found) and the doctor has ruled out Myeloma. However, 4-6 mm nodules were found in her lungs on this week's CTA scan. The doctor is very concerned that these are now present. This is the reason for Kami's dry cough, shortness of breath, and extreme fatigue.
He told Kami that these nodules were not noticed on her last CTA scan done a few weeks ago. With this finding and the elevated blood markers that show cancer, his thoughts are now leaning towards lung cancer. Do you ever feel like you are jumping out of 1 fire and into another?
He also mentioned to Kami that these could be a result of a yeast infection in her lungs (our hope). So the next step is reviewing Kami's last CTA scan to see if these nodules are indeed "new" and to talk about a biopsy. She has an appointment next Thursday at the Mayo Clinic. The 6 of us here on the mission field are going to try to make a return trip to the States to be with Momma & wife. Please pray along with us for finances, safety, wisdom and good weather.
Looking towards our Heavenly Father...
Wednesday, July 24, 2013
Kami update...
Kami and I have talked so many times today and this week has provided a whirlwind of emotions, today was no exception. Kami is exhausted and as we spoke on the phone she asked me to write a quick update for all of you who have been praying for our family.
Here is the doctor's diagnosis in a nutshell: "We do not know what is wrong, but we are concerned."
Kami's blood work has returned with several things "out-of-whack" as usual.
- One marker in her blood that came back elevated is a marker for a blood clot. The doctor said that he wanted her to have one more CT scan to make sure that there is not a blood clot hiding somewhere in her body that has been overlooked... so Kami had this done at 2:30 this afternoon. (Results will be discussed on Friday.)
- Then there were 3 markers that came back elevated and this is what really concerned the doctor. These 3 markers are indicators for cancer. The doctor specifically named Myeloma as a possible cause due to the symptoms that she is having as well as the results of the blood test. (Myeloma is a bone marrow/blood plasma cancer.) The doctor ordered more blood tests to be done to try to diagnose the cause of the elevation of these markers in her blood and this was done this afternoon. (Results will be discussed on Friday.)
Needless to say, my beautiful wife is exhausted. It has been a long week indeed for all of us. We covet your prayers...
Oh, by the way, I want to tell my mother-in-law that she is indeed a wonderful lady and we love her so much! She has been nurse, chauffeur, and babysitter through all of this. Sometimes she even answers her cell phone, "Kami's answering service...How may I help you?"
Here is the doctor's diagnosis in a nutshell: "We do not know what is wrong, but we are concerned."
Kami's blood work has returned with several things "out-of-whack" as usual.
- One marker in her blood that came back elevated is a marker for a blood clot. The doctor said that he wanted her to have one more CT scan to make sure that there is not a blood clot hiding somewhere in her body that has been overlooked... so Kami had this done at 2:30 this afternoon. (Results will be discussed on Friday.)
- Then there were 3 markers that came back elevated and this is what really concerned the doctor. These 3 markers are indicators for cancer. The doctor specifically named Myeloma as a possible cause due to the symptoms that she is having as well as the results of the blood test. (Myeloma is a bone marrow/blood plasma cancer.) The doctor ordered more blood tests to be done to try to diagnose the cause of the elevation of these markers in her blood and this was done this afternoon. (Results will be discussed on Friday.)
Needless to say, my beautiful wife is exhausted. It has been a long week indeed for all of us. We covet your prayers...
Oh, by the way, I want to tell my mother-in-law that she is indeed a wonderful lady and we love her so much! She has been nurse, chauffeur, and babysitter through all of this. Sometimes she even answers her cell phone, "Kami's answering service...How may I help you?"
Sunday, July 21, 2013
Huge breakdown moment...
I have mentioned in earlier posts that Kami has been able to Skype with us quite a bit. She has been able to "tuck" the two little ones in bed & sing to them, she has been able to be a part of missed birthday celebrations and also has been able to have some 'face-to-face' alone time with me.
Well, we were "Skyping" when the big breakdown happened. Kami was singing to Callie her goodnight song when Callie turned and buried her face in her hands... so I brought the computer screen around so Kami could see her. Kami asked her, "What's wrong Callie?" Then it broke loose. Callie screamed and the body-shaking tears just poured out. Through her crying screams we heard her cry, "I want my Mommy!" It was heart wrenching and needless to say, Momma began to cry. Callie climbed up into her big sister's arms and just sobbed. We all had a good cry....oh how we miss Momma.
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Well, we were "Skyping" when the big breakdown happened. Kami was singing to Callie her goodnight song when Callie turned and buried her face in her hands... so I brought the computer screen around so Kami could see her. Kami asked her, "What's wrong Callie?" Then it broke loose. Callie screamed and the body-shaking tears just poured out. Through her crying screams we heard her cry, "I want my Mommy!" It was heart wrenching and needless to say, Momma began to cry. Callie climbed up into her big sister's arms and just sobbed. We all had a good cry....oh how we miss Momma.
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Here is Kami (& Grandma) playing Domino's with Callie and Silas. We line up the Domino's for Kami to see via the Skype camera and she tells Josh what Domino she wants to play and he puts it down for her. It's not the same as having the "real" Mommy but Skype sure is a blessing!
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Our "distribution" is going well. This is where we pass out a packet containing a French Gospel Tract, a French John & Romans, and a French invitation to our Sunday Bible Study in mailboxes around the island. We keep track of where we have been via this map. The black represents where we have been. The parts that we have left are probably the most difficult and also the most populated areas so we still have quite a bit of work left to do.
This last pic is of my x-ray of my vertebrae in my lower back. For several days now, I have been literally, "on my back". I went to the ER on Friday and had this x-ray done. The ER visit is actually cheaper than having a doctor's office visit. I paid 27 euros ($36) for the ER visit versus having to pay 60 euros ($80) if I had went to a doctor's office.
The x-ray was the most expensive part but I couldn't get the doctor to give me any medicine until I had it done! As you can see, the vertebrae above my finger in the picture all have spaces between them. However, my finger is pointing to the place where two vertebrae are pressed together and this is where all the pain is coming from. I am on some "strong" medication to help with pain and inflammation. The doctor is hoping that after a week of medication and laying flat, that I will be much better...if not, he wants me to come in for stronger meds.
Thanks for your prayers for our family! Please remember Kami as she has several appointments at the Mayo Clinic tomorrow (Monday) and Tuesday. Until next time...
Thursday, July 18, 2013
Tropical Updates...
Do you ever feel like things get worse before they get better? It has been difficult to say the least, not having Kami here as Momma & Wife. We are going on 6 weeks now that she has been in Florida and we still don't have any answer to this "mystery" illness. To make matters worse, I have had a pinched nerve in my hip that has been getting progressively worse over the past 3 weeks. I went to the doctor yesterday and he said that I have a compressed disk. He did an adjustment and let's just say that I screamed out in pain when he "adjusted" the disk. Needless to say, I have been side-lined to resting on my back for the past 3 days and I seem to be doing worse...but enough about me. Here are some more important updates:
-Kami now has appointments at the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, FL, next Monday & Tuesday. South Point Baptist has graciously opened their Mission's Home to Kami, her mom and Micah during their stay there for the appointments. Our hope is to get in to see the infectious disease specialists and get to the root of the problem. Kami's pain now includes the left side of her chest and her joints are swelling and causing her a lot of pain. There are times when she seems so weak and can barely keep a conversation when we talk with her. The separation is indeed difficult.
- With me down on my back and Momma not here, the older 3 kids have really pitched in and are keeping the house running. They take care of laundry, keeping Silas & Callie occupied, doing the dishes, housekeeping and most importantly...helping to prepare the meals of the day. One of the most difficult things about the day is that all meals must be made from scratch. There are no McDonalds here to be able to pick up some Value Menu hamburgers! Josh, Beth, & Brenna have done wonders in the kitchen and their Momma has taught them well. We try to take lots of pictures to send to Kami so that she can see how we are doing...here are a few of the pics we have taken:
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-Kami now has appointments at the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, FL, next Monday & Tuesday. South Point Baptist has graciously opened their Mission's Home to Kami, her mom and Micah during their stay there for the appointments. Our hope is to get in to see the infectious disease specialists and get to the root of the problem. Kami's pain now includes the left side of her chest and her joints are swelling and causing her a lot of pain. There are times when she seems so weak and can barely keep a conversation when we talk with her. The separation is indeed difficult.
- With me down on my back and Momma not here, the older 3 kids have really pitched in and are keeping the house running. They take care of laundry, keeping Silas & Callie occupied, doing the dishes, housekeeping and most importantly...helping to prepare the meals of the day. One of the most difficult things about the day is that all meals must be made from scratch. There are no McDonalds here to be able to pick up some Value Menu hamburgers! Josh, Beth, & Brenna have done wonders in the kitchen and their Momma has taught them well. We try to take lots of pictures to send to Kami so that she can see how we are doing...here are a few of the pics we have taken:
Beth taking care of the sweeping duties...
Josh hanging laundry to dry in the bedroom...if it is raining outside, we have to hang everything around the house to dry!
Taking care of the nightly dishes chore....although Beth seems to be fanning herself while watching the other two work! They always sing together when doing the nightly dishes and it's fun to hear them sing their parts with such joy!
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One of the things we miss from the States is Chinese Take-Out. So we have tried some cheap-to-make Chinese recipes lately...This is Chicken Yakisoba.
This is Terriyaki Meatballs over white rice...we used some chopsticks that Josh had bought. He uses them to make some miniature St. Barth's-House Jewelry Boxes that he plans to try to sell.
Callie...not exactly using her chopstick correctly! She just kinda "stabs" the meatball.
This is Brenna's Chicken Enchilada mixture. She rolled this mixture into some tortillas, covered them with cream and baked them in the oven. Wow! They were amazing!
Here are some quotes from Silas:
"Daddy, can we go pick up Momma now?"
While talking to Momma on the phone, "Momma, can you please tell the doctor to please give you the right medicine this time so you can come home?"
Callie: "Can we Skype Momma so she can sing to us?"
Due to the technology of today, Kami has been able to Skype with the little ones at bedtime. We take the computer into the bedroom and Silas & Callie climb into bed. Then she sings to them and tells them goodnight while their see their Momma's video picture on the computer screen. Callie has gotten teary-eyed and points to the screen and says with a quivering lip, "I want Mommy to come home." Micah has twice been with Kami as she has Skyped during this bedtime ritual with the younger ones. Both times he starts to cry as he sees his bed, his bedroom, and Silas & Callie... He points and cries as he shows us that he wants to come home.
Until next time...
Thursday, July 11, 2013
I wanted to write a quick post about Brenna's birthday...She turned 14 last Saturday! (I know I am a little late posting about it, but better late than never!)
Brenna is our third child...the second one that I had to deliver after saying, 'I never want to deliver another baby again!' You see, she came so quickly (Kami was in labor for about 1 1/2 hours) that our midwife couldn't make it to our home on time....the same thing happened with Elisabeth as well! It just so happened that when we called our midwife when Kami's labor started, she said to me, "I am 2 hours away, I will come as fast as I can!" She made it 5 minutes late in both cases!
Brenna is our third child...the second one that I had to deliver after saying, 'I never want to deliver another baby again!' You see, she came so quickly (Kami was in labor for about 1 1/2 hours) that our midwife couldn't make it to our home on time....the same thing happened with Elisabeth as well! It just so happened that when we called our midwife when Kami's labor started, she said to me, "I am 2 hours away, I will come as fast as I can!" She made it 5 minutes late in both cases!
Brenna is our 'spunky' girl who loves to rough & tumble! As a little girl, she loved shooting, play fighting, and virtually anything outdoors. She stills wants to go hunting and to kill her first deer! (There isn't any here so I may have to let her future husband take her hunting!) All I have to say is, "No sissy boys need apply for her hand in marriage...he needs to know how to handle guns and act like a man! She won't put up with a wimp and just might beat him up when their first fight arises!"
Momma, Micah and Grammy were all able to Skype for her birthday!
Brenna asked for a home-made apple pie for her birthday...
So Elisabeth called her Momma for some directions with the recipe and did a fantastic job! It was awesome! (Even had a 'B' for Brenna baked right on the top!)
At 14, we told our girls that we would purchase them a purity ring if they so desired. This ring is a token of a promise made to God and to parents to remain pure until the day of their marriage. Both of our girls (and Josh) have made this promise. We gave a budget to Brenna and she began to search all the jewelry shops online. She knew that she wanted a Peridot (her favorite color is green) and this is the ring that she chose. I took her out to breakfast and we talked about this promise she was making. We have talked about how many a young lady doesn't deserve to put on a white wedding dress which is supposed to be the symbol of her purity. She understands that her purity is the best gift that she can give her future husband!
We love you Brenna!
Friday, July 5, 2013
Tropical Updates...
It is hot...as in tropical-heat hot outside! It is only supposed to get hotter as summer rages on. Our A/C in our car has a leak and hasn't worked since this past December. It wasn't bad during the Winter & Spring months, but we sure are feeling it right now!
Our updates have been mostly about Kami for the past few months and it does seem as if our lives have been put 'on-hold' since Kami became sick back in February. We miss her so much! It has not been easy for Daddy to make sure that all the chores are done each day, that all made-from-scratch meals are ready to go each day, that the grocery shopping is done each week, that bills are paid, that the little ones get their showers, and that my messages are prepared for Sunday Bible studies. No wonder God said that it is not good for man to be alone!
Well, here are a few updates...
School
- The kids have all finished school and mailed in their grades to Lighthouse Christian Academy. They have successfully completed last year! Yeah! We now have 3 high-schoolers in our home!
We have ordered their schooling for next year and they will arrive at my mom's address in Florida. Our hopes is to pay for an extra suitcase to fill with the school materials that Kami can bring back with her when she comes back home. (This way we wouldn't have to pay for a large shipping cost to get them here.)
Gospel Distribution
- We have passed out 1,241 of our Gospel packets directly into mailboxes on our island. We load up a couple kids into the car, armed with a shopping bag filled with packets that contain a copy of John & Romans, a Gospel Tract, and an invitation to our Sunday Bible studies. Then we drive up & down our mountain roads and let a kid jump out to put a packet into a mailbox. Finding mailboxes can be a chore in itself. There are no addresses here and an assortment of mailboxes can be attached to fences, rock walls, trees, posts, telephone poles, gates, or even just set on the ground. They could be in a driveway or on the side of the road. It can be a chore just to find them! It wasn't too bad today except for the heat. You see, the best time to get out and do this is between 1:30-3:00 p.m. in the afternoon. Not that we love riding in a hot car...but because the roads are safer to do this at this time because people are at home taking their afternoon "sieste". At other times it is just to dangerous with all the cars zipping by on the mountains.
Kami
- At Kami's last visit with the doctor, the vascular doctor told her that all 3 of the last tests came back fine. So Kami mentioned that we have had several missionaries tell us about checking for Lyme Disease. (We had mentioned this to the doctor here on our island and he just laughed it off.) The vascular doctor was shocked that Kami had not been checked for this yet. She told Kami that all of her symptoms are those associated with Lyme Disease. So we were able to get Kami to the Blood Lab at closing time on Wednesday for a Lyme Disease test. We will not know the results until next Monday or Tuesday.
Please keep praying for our family during this trial of having Momma away. We are all ready to get back to a sense of "normal"...what ever that may be!
Until next time...
Our updates have been mostly about Kami for the past few months and it does seem as if our lives have been put 'on-hold' since Kami became sick back in February. We miss her so much! It has not been easy for Daddy to make sure that all the chores are done each day, that all made-from-scratch meals are ready to go each day, that the grocery shopping is done each week, that bills are paid, that the little ones get their showers, and that my messages are prepared for Sunday Bible studies. No wonder God said that it is not good for man to be alone!
Well, here are a few updates...
School
- The kids have all finished school and mailed in their grades to Lighthouse Christian Academy. They have successfully completed last year! Yeah! We now have 3 high-schoolers in our home!
We have ordered their schooling for next year and they will arrive at my mom's address in Florida. Our hopes is to pay for an extra suitcase to fill with the school materials that Kami can bring back with her when she comes back home. (This way we wouldn't have to pay for a large shipping cost to get them here.)
Gospel Distribution
- We have passed out 1,241 of our Gospel packets directly into mailboxes on our island. We load up a couple kids into the car, armed with a shopping bag filled with packets that contain a copy of John & Romans, a Gospel Tract, and an invitation to our Sunday Bible studies. Then we drive up & down our mountain roads and let a kid jump out to put a packet into a mailbox. Finding mailboxes can be a chore in itself. There are no addresses here and an assortment of mailboxes can be attached to fences, rock walls, trees, posts, telephone poles, gates, or even just set on the ground. They could be in a driveway or on the side of the road. It can be a chore just to find them! It wasn't too bad today except for the heat. You see, the best time to get out and do this is between 1:30-3:00 p.m. in the afternoon. Not that we love riding in a hot car...but because the roads are safer to do this at this time because people are at home taking their afternoon "sieste". At other times it is just to dangerous with all the cars zipping by on the mountains.
Kami
- At Kami's last visit with the doctor, the vascular doctor told her that all 3 of the last tests came back fine. So Kami mentioned that we have had several missionaries tell us about checking for Lyme Disease. (We had mentioned this to the doctor here on our island and he just laughed it off.) The vascular doctor was shocked that Kami had not been checked for this yet. She told Kami that all of her symptoms are those associated with Lyme Disease. So we were able to get Kami to the Blood Lab at closing time on Wednesday for a Lyme Disease test. We will not know the results until next Monday or Tuesday.
Please keep praying for our family during this trial of having Momma away. We are all ready to get back to a sense of "normal"...what ever that may be!
Until next time...
Tuesday, July 2, 2013
Happy Anniversary to my Sweetheart!
19 years ago, I said, "I do!" to the love of my life. It has been a wonderful 19 years!
We have grown up together, grown closer to the Lord together, laughed together, cried together, hurt together, and served the Lord together. And Lord willing, we'll grow old together!
Our marriage has been fun, exciting and filled with adventures! Here are a few reasons that our marriage is so special:
Kami has become an awesome cook! Her apple pie is to die for!
When we first got married, she really didn't know how to cook...one of our first meals was "split-pea lasagna". Uughhh! Not only had I never heard of such a thing, she used dried split peas in this recipe...not even bothering to soak the peas to get them soft. What a crunchy meal!!! When I asked her why she made it, she replied, "The picture looked pretty!"
Some may feel like marriage is a prison...but for me, I don't mind being locked-up with this amazing woman!
Although there were times in our marriage where I thought about having her arrested : like when she made spinach brownies! or cut up the new ATM/Debit cards instead of the old ones! Or forgot her purse at a McDonalds in Montreal, Canada while we drove 8 hours away to a Mission's Conference!
We love kissing. She's an amazing kisser!
Our kids are known for asking, "Do you guys have to keep doing that all the time?"
Life with Kami is an adventure. Especially when it comes to hairdo's. My hair is always the same. (Except when Kami forgot to put the guard on the hair trimmer and accidentally gave me a shaved "corn row" up the side of my head!)
Kami has come home with striped hair, jet black hair, orange/yellow hair (not on purpose mind you), straight hair, permed hair, etc. The kids and I always cringe when we hear the words, "I think its time I get my hair trimmed."
(Here we are picking apples.)
We love enjoying God's creation! We love the outdoors and have always made time to go for walks, hikes, sightseeing, camping, fruit picking, picnicking, tubing down rivers, etc. Our theme has always been to make marriage fun!
Did I mention she's a good kisser?
When we have taken the kids to Disney World, it is our tradition to take our picture in front of the Castle while having a good smooch!
Happy Anniversary Kami!
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