Yes, I Said 5000

      This has been a difficult day.  Nick and I left for Vanderbilt about 6:00 a.m.  We went through the usual drill of labs and chemo infusion.  However, even though this is his 7th or 8th time to receive this particular drug, it was particularly hard on him today.  We have been told that he is very blessed (something that we know, but that it's good to hear) that he hasn't had any pain from this drug so far.  Many people, we are told, are so sensitive and have so much pain that they can not bear to be touched after this infusion.  He is certainly not in that kind of pain, but he is in pain.  He has been experiencing numbness in his fingers for some time, but now he is experiencing neuropathy pain in his feet.  This is in addition to other pain and discomforts that have arisen over the last several weeks, and his just generally feeling yucky. 
    
Up until today he has eaten well, but pain and nausea have put a cramp in his appetite.  We have been told that in order to maintain his weight he needs to eat about 5000 calories a day. (Not a typo...five thousand.)  That is more difficult to do than one might imagine.  Even though he has been giving the 5000 a run for it's proverbial money, he has lost about 12 pounds since he first went to Vanderbilt.

There are many more details with which he is having to deal, but that should give y'all an idea of some of the specific prayer concerns.  I really do realize that everyone who reads this has his or her own things to pray about.  So, I just want to verbalize one more time that I am so thankful that you are taking the time to lift us up in prayer.  Before this began I could not even have imagined how difficult a situation like this could be.  How in the world do people go through the marathon trials in life without knowing Jesus?

Right this minute I am sitting in Nick's room.  The only light in the room is from my computer screen and a sliver of light peeking through his slightly open door.   The only sounds are the tapping of my fingers on the keyboard and his breathing heavily as he sleeps.  I had checked on him several times since we got home about 3:00 p.m.  He appeared to be asleep each time.  So, I did not bother him.   When Glenn got home I checked on him again and ran some errands with Megan.  When I came up to give him his night time medicine I asked him if he had slept well.  I found out then that he had been in more pain than I knew, and had had understandable anxiety about the pain.  I asked him why he had not called me, or told me about it when I came to check on him.  He said that he was trying to give me some time off.  He was trying to take care of me. 

After the meds and some plain noodles, I told him that I would stay until he fell sound asleep.  There is just something comforting about not being alone.  So, here I sit, and joyfully so.  It is well.