Nov. 25, 2008

Jake woke from a restless night even though we got the new gel pad for his bed (more on that later). His back and neck were hurting again but, he doesn't really complain. He just lets you know in the hopes that you can help him do something about it. Johnny and I got him ready and took him for his last radiation treatment on the tumors in his brain. He got to keep his mask that he wore during the treatments. It is pretty cool. He saw Dr. Freeman, the radiation oncologist, and was released from his care. All the nurses and other workers who got close to Jake during his chemotherapy and radiation treatments came by to wish him well as he is now under the care of his Home Health doctor. Johnny and I can't say enough to thank the doctors and staff at this Texas Oncology. For those of you that don't know, when Jake was diagnosed with Stage IV cancer in April 2007, his first doctor at a Texas Oncology in Lewisville gave him 3-6 months to live. Because of the care of Dr. Crim in Fort Worth and the clinical trials he got Jake into at START in San Antonio, Jake is still with us a year and a half later. More importantly, Dr. Crim became Jake's friend and confidant. Jake could tell him things that he couldn't tell Johnny or me. Even though he was unable to cure Jake of the cancer, Dr. Crim will forever hold a special place in our hearts for the extra time he gave us with Jake.
Back to the events of the day. After radiation, we took another trip to Wal-Mart. It's amazing how hard it is to find electric carts when you need them, but finally one became available and Johnny got Jake into it. It's also amazing how different carts are from store to store. This cart's power and steering mechanism we pretty far away from Jake and he had trouble at times, but again, he doesn't complain. He just keeps going and going like the Energizer Bunny. After shopping, when Johnny was putting Jake in the front seat of the Cavalier, he tripped over Jake's big feet and slammed into the side of the car. Jake didn't get hurt so I didn't think anything of it (sorry Johnny), but if you see a dent in the back passenger side door in the Cavalier, know that Johnny's the one who put it there. After stopping at Barbara Marvin's office to have her notarize some paperwork for us (Thank you, Barbara!) we headed home. Jake was exhausted and we put him on the couch where he slept all afternoon.
While Jake was asleep, I decided to check out Jake's hospital bed. I lay/laid (I can never remember which is correct) down in the bed and immediately my butt sank. I couldn't imagine sleeping in that bed all night. With Mayme's help, we turned the mattress over and it still sank in the middle. We called the Home Health people and they said it shouldn't do that, but later someone who called said it should. Well we knew it shouldn't so we asked for another gel pad. After they brought it and switched it out, I again lay/laid on the mattress and new pad, and my butt still sank down and my feet were still raised slightly. Johnny looked under the bed and we determined that the springs of the bed in the butt area were wearing out so we cut a piece of particle board we had in the garage and put it under mattress on top of the springs. The bed felt better to me, but we will have to see how Jake feels in the morning.
When Jake woke up, Blake and her friend, Valerie, brought dinner over. What can I say about sweet Blake? Not only did she help organize both last year's softball tournament and this year's, now she brings us food. We love you, Blake and "thank you" isn't enough for all you have done for Jake, Johnny, and me. Dinner was brisket, macaroni casserole, beans, and brownies for dessert. DELICIOUS! Lisa, Susie, and Kevin joined us for dinner and Jake ate more than he has in a long time. Lisa and Susie spent the night again (Jake sleeps better when they are here) and hopefully he will wake with his back feeling better.

Keep praying!
Carolyn/Mom

P.S. I was brought up by my mother to write thank-you notes for everything given to me, but it would take hours to write the hundreds that would be required to thank all of you for your prayers, friendship, food, and financial support. As it is, Johnny and Mayme spend hours doing tickets for the quilt raffle. THANK YOU to all of you who have bought tickets for the Texas Quilt. Remember, Jake will draw the winning ticket on Dec. 13th.