WOW!

It's hard to believe the last time I was on a computer was October 9th. My how time flies when you're crazy!!!!!
We have just survived the Christmas season and looking for a wonderful New Year to come. When I reflect back on the past year, all I can think of to say is..."Thank you God for all the challenges, victories and blessings You have allowed us to experience."
I've really dropped the ball on keeping everyone up to date on Savannah's progress but now that "I'm back" (online) hopefully I'll do better from this point on.
The Epi treatment in Little Rock at UAMS did not seem to affect the little tumor on her adrenal gland. The good news however is that no other tumors appeared anywhere else so it's just the one place we're battling right now. UAMS has released her as a patient so it's back to NIH in Bethesda. She was never released from NIH just allowed to participate in the Epi clinical study at UAMS. She will always be a patient at NIH due to the on going studies of the Til Cell Treatment etc.....
Anyway, we are waiting to hear when her appointment is. We're guessing sometime very soon after the 5th of January. At that point they will do more tests and scans to see what is happening and then determine whether she needs the Til Cell treatment again or a different form of treatment. We are just praying that when they do the scans, they won't find the tumor anywhere! If she has to have the Til Treatment again we will deal with it...just as before, but of course it breaks our hearts to see her so sick and suffering.....not to mention loss of work for us and almost a month away from home etc... but that is all of little concern when we think of her health. SO....please pray for NO TUMOR!!!!

It amazes me how blessed we are. Not just my family but all of us. Just to have our families with us, a warm place to sleep, enough food to keep us going and the freedom to live and worship as we please. God is SO good and still in CONTROL !
Hope Everyone has an AWESOME 2011 !!!!!!!!!!!!

Forgot to mention

Just a reminder to those coming to the Centennial Celebration.....
Bring blankets and/or lawn chairs.

Savannah has had 2 treatments so far and as of this moment is tolerating them very well. No side effects! We are praying that continues. We won't know how well it's working til they do testing and we don't know when that will be....maybe at the end of the treatment which will be several more weeks.

I guess I'm tired so I can't even think of anything else to say except.....about the Greenland Centennial Celebration.......first of all....just let me say that at one of Danny's City Council meetings he thought it would be a good idea to volunteer me to help organize it. .... :0
SO......this is the easiest way to plug it..

Saturday, October 9th......THIS Saturday....Parade starts at 10am and goes up Wilson St. to the Community Center. Festivities to follow are...Bluegrass/country/gospel Music, Food, Square dancing, Martial Arts demo, Blacksmithing, Antique Car Show, Historical memorabilia exhibit, Bouncy house, games for kids of all ages a costume contest and much more. Come join us It'll be FUN

If you would like to be in the parade -call me @ 871-0749

Savannah

Savannah had her post-op appointment at NIH August 4th & 5th. They ran the scans and did all the testing and found that she has a small tumor on her existing adrenal gland. They recommend that she has a treatment called Ipilimumad.
It is an infusion that she will get every 3 weeks. It is considered experimental medicine since it has not yet been FDA approved. There are only certain places that administer the drug. Fortunately, there are 2 in Arkansas....Little Rock and Hot Springs. Her first appointment to discuss the treatment will be next Tuesday, August 24th in Little Rock. After that, they will schedule the start date. Once she starts, she will have one treatment every 3 weeks for 4 or 5 months........I think! We don't really know much about it til we have the appointment. They did tell Savannah at NIH that it has some pretty major side effects but we believe God can take care of all the details.
From what NIH told us, the other 2 options they were discussing were not good options at all....(unless the Ipi doesn't work). One was to do the Til cell therapy again but they said that was like taking a bazooka to kill a fly. The other was removing her other adrenal gland which would put her on hormone replacement therapy for the rest of her life....so....that would be the last choice!
Apparently, this is a tumor that had been the size of an apricot and then disappeared and is now back the size of an acorn. That doesn't sound too bad til you realize how aggressive this form of cancer is.
Please pray that the treatment will work and that the side effects are minimal.
She will be trying to go to school and work during all of this. Please also pray for her spirit and attitude. So far she has been a real trooper!

Shelby is home from Germany! She had a fantastic time and was a little sad to have to leave. Only a week after she got home, we encountered the "German Invasion" (just kidding). Corinna and her family came to America to visit us and see where Corinna had spent a year of her life. Her Dad's name is Berthold, her Mom is Kordula and her sister is Saskia. All very sweet people!
We thoroughly enjoyed their visit. They were gracious and charming, spoke English very well.....(probably better than us!) and had great personalities. We enjoyed a cook out while they were here so that some of Corinna's school friends could stop by and see her. The next night at Dinner, Saskia, who is a wonderful pianist, entertained us with some classical pieces and Kordula, who is a former Opera singer sang a beautiful song in Italian...of coarse!
They were interested in the American Indians so the next day while the girls did "girl things" the adults went to Talaquah to the Indian Village. It was a nice day although it must have been at least 110 in Oklahoma! :(

The day the Fischer's left to go to Las Vegas and San Fransico, Shelby started back to school.....she is a JUNIOR this year.....oh my!
The day after that , Bo arrived home with my nieces, Rose and Lilly.....
they had been here before for only 2 days when their great-grandmother Dot passed away....so....Donna and Jeff asked Bo if he would accompany them back to VA for the service and then back to AR to finish their visit. As it happened....Savannah was finishing up her appointment in Bethesda at the same time Bo was checking out the sights in DC. Her airport is in DC and she just happened to miss her flight...so that made it very convenient to meet up with Bo, do a little sight seeing, stay in a nice hotel, have a nice dinner and sight see some more the next day. She finally made it home....two days later. :)

I am looking for a job! If anyone knows of anything please let me know.
Of coarse, I would love to do something creative in art, music, something with kids or adults but at this point.....I would probably consider anything that I'm physically able to do. :)

Thanks to all of you out there that have never stopped praying for Savannah.
We have received so many notes and cards from individuals and churches that have been praying every single week since her diagnosis. God hears those prayers.
We still hold to the belief that God is in control.....not the cancer.
Thanks again and love to all!

Home again

Mom, Melanie and I got back last night from our jaunt to Minnesota and the Mayo Clinic. My elbow surgery was a little more uncomfortable than I had hoped but I'm doing great besides being a little sore, black and blue. I had to bring a therapy machine home with me that is the size of a small fork lift. We really had to do some tricky packing to get it in the car with all of our other luggage. It's now in the middle of our Living room because it doesn't fit anywhere else.
All in all we had a great trip. God answered those prayers to keep us safe, healthy and out of trouble.......although........for a really interesting story.....ask Melanie about driving at night near Des Moines, the Exit, the Atlas, her cell phone in the median and the scary twist of fate that put me in the drivers seat for a while!!!! :0

While we were gone we had some news that Dot (my sister-in-laws Grandmother that lives with Jeff & Donna) had a really bad fall out their back door and broke her hip and her upper femur bone. At some point...before or after....she had a heart attack. She now has had surgery and is in serious condition. We would appreciate prayers for her. She is very special to her whole family as well as ours.
She is such a precious person.

Bo is taking off a few days from job hunting and going with some friends to Albuquerque, NM to go hiking.
Shelby is looking forward to their trip to Bavaria on Sunday to see the castle that Disney fashioned Cinderella's castle after. I believe they will will see another castle or two while there. I'm SO jealous!
Savannah is....just......being Savannah! :)
Thanks for the prayers! Hope all is well with y'all love!

It's mid July and Savannah is doing GREAT!....aside from getting robbed 2 times in one week! First- her IPhone then- her purse......both were found THANK GOODNESS!
NIH just scheduled her for her next visit the 4th & 5th of August. They will do all the normal scans etc... and we expect to hear that she is totally cancer free.

I am leaving in the morning after church to head back to Mayo for my elbow surgery.
Mom (Daisy) and Melanie (my cousin) will be going with me. Your prayers would be appreciated since I have never even seen the doctor that will be performing the surgery. The only thing he has seen of me is an xray of my arm. I see him Tuesday and will have the surgery on Wednesday. It's "probable" that I will be without pain and have full range of motion when fully recovered. :)

Shelby is living it up in Germany with Corinna (our former exchange student) and her family. She loves it there and says the architecture and history is just amazing. She has already visited a castle or two and seen the Catholic Cathedral in Paderborn. I'M SO JEALOUS!!!! She has been attending school with Corinna for the last 2 weeks but now that their school is out, I think they have some big plans......not sure what they are......it's probably best that I don't know! :)
She will be returning the last day of July. We miss her a bunch......as well as Kim, Megan & Laura and all of our other girls that don't come around unless Shelby's here!
She is trying to post pictures on facebook if anyone is interested.

Bo and Savannah are looking for jobs (again). They will also still be going to school in the Fall so if you hear of anything - please let us know!

Again we would appreciate your prayers for safe travel, good weather,successful surgery, pain-free recovery OR really good drugs and wisdom for the doctors and staff.
Thanks so much! love you ALL!

BTW - SALE at Fayetteville Trading Post - Look at their Face Book page and mention it at the register for 20% off anything in our Sassy Salvage booth.
We have new items weekly so check them out......they're Fun, Funky and perfect for putting the finishing touch in your decor.

We're also running a 20% off sale at Daisie's and Olive's in Prairie Grove and at The Treasure Chest in Lincoln.

IT'S AFFORDABLE CHIC !!!!!

Savannah has been home a little over a week and a half and is doing great! Of course she still has some pain due to surgery but otherwise she is getting around like usual only a bit slower. She says the only time she has to take her pain pills is when she is around Shelby or me. She says we make her laugh too much and it hurts her. ??? It's not like we're trying to make her laugh...... is she saying we're stupid or something????? surely not :)
While she was in Bethesda, Savannah got a cute, sassy little haircut that looks adorable. She could have gotten the same "do" here but of course it's much more trendy if you pay triple the price while you're out of town......right???
For the moment, all is well with the fam...Bo found a job, Shelby is getting ready for her trip to Germany, I'm preparing for VBS Crafts (june 21-25) and Danny is staying busy working and trying to keep up with yard work etc.....plus a little fishing here and there. And as always - Savannah lives in Savannah-land where everything is always wonderful. love!

Surgery Update

Savannah was supposed to be in surgery around 10am this morning but they were running late in O R... so... in true "Savannah Land" style, she was taking it easy, basking in the glow of "Hot Doctors" morning visit. I know she wasn't looking forward to surgery but hey.....a girl does what she has to do to get near the man of her dreams!!! She wasn't exactly dreading it.
After several phone calls back and forth, Danny finally called me at 1:15pm and said she was on her way down and it would take 2 1/2 to 3 hours. 4 hours later she was just coming out. Wheeeewwwww! rough day waiting around.
They were able to make 3 or 4 smaller incisions instead of the really big one they first thought.
Everything went well except that when they removed her spleen, they found many more tumors in it than they had suspected. Thank God it is out of there!!! AND there were no more surprises.
Danny said she probably will be too drugged up to talk to me tonight so I'm trying to be patient :)
Tomorrow they will start her on jello and drinks so maybe she can get some of her strength back.

I would like to Thank everyone who has been praying for her all along. It's so comforting knowing there are so many others talking to God on her behalf.

A year ago tomorrow Danny and I celebrated our 25th Anniversary in Bethesda because Savannah was in treatment. This year we'll be celebrating separately but I will be here for Daddy's birthday (which is tomorrow) so.....party either way!!!!!! :)

SURPRISE!!! Savannah just called. She sounded good - but drugged up!
She said she is hurting right now and is not as loopy as she'd like to be but they have given her a button to press to release pain meds into her IV so she is in control of the drugs.....uhooooh!!! :)......look out "hot doctor"!!!
We would appreciate the continued prayers for a quick recovery without infections etc.... Thanks love!

So....Danny and Savannah left this morning at around 6am for NIH. Their flight was delayed a few minutes due to severe fog in NWA. When they were approaching the runway in Chicago, they were headed down but all of a sudden the pilot pulled the plane back up. It seems the plane in front of them hit some birds and it made a big mess. They had to circle the airport til the runway was cleaned and cleared.
Both of these delays ( plus the mile trek to her gate at the other end of the airport) should have made Savannah miss her flight, but once again, God had everything under control. As she was walking up they were just shutting the door and let her sneak in. Danny had a flight one hour later so he was there just in time.
Once in DC, Savannah made the shuttle to NIH but of course since Danny's flight was later, he had to catch the metro into Bethesda.
Savannah went straight to NIH and got admitted and prepped etc....
Danny got checked into SAFRA House. They were both going to turn in early.
Savannah is 2nd on the surgery schedule so they estimate she will go in about 10am or so. Danny has strict orders to call me as soon as she wakes up!
I thought I would be ok with not being there but it's killing me! What was I thinking? Although, Danny has it all under control and he is wonderful with her so I just need to give it up and pray!!! :)
We would appreciate all your prayers! Love and Thanks to all!!

Update on Savannah

SORRY! I would have updated much sooner if Melanie or I had taken a laptop with us on the trip. It's not fun being without technology....even if you don't know how to use it most of the time. :)
Once again, God is so good and kind and gracious and merciful.......
Savannah is going to require surgery on May 18th. They will be removing her spleen and one of her adrenal glands. They said that those two spots were different than all the other cells and didn't respond to the TIL Therapy. The good news is that after they remove the organs, she will be cancer free! They said they combed the scans over and over and there was no trace of anything else. We are SO thankful for this good news! The surgery is not really major....they said if she was at home she would only be in the hospital for 3 or 4 days. Since she has to travel home they will keep her a few days longer so they told us to plan on 5 - 7 days or so.
I think Danny will be going with her this time due to the fact that 1 plane ticket is cheaper than two- AND- I still haven't recovered from my 2 week jaunt from Minnesota to Maryland back to Arkansas and all places in between. It was SOOOO much fun hanging out with Melanie again (just like old times) but we are both worn out from all the traveling. I feel like I will never get caught up again with the mail, paper work, flea market stuff and sleep!
Mel and I kept a journal of our travels so as soon as I can get time I'm going to put a few stories on the blog.
Please keep Savannah and ALL of us in your prayers!
Thanks so much! Love y'all! OXOXOXOXOXOXOX

Road tripping AGAIN!

Getting ready to leave town is always crazy but when you don't know how long you'll be gone it's even more NUTS! Tuesday morning, My cousin Melanie and I will be heading out for Rochester Minnesota for my appointment at the Mayo Clinic. I haven't been there for a few years and need to check out my "condition" to see if it has progressed and if I'm on enough medication etc....I think I'll only be there through Friday, unless they hold me over the weekend for more tests on Monday.
THEN...we'll drive from MN to Bethesda, MD to meet Savannah for her NIH appointment. She will flying out from XNA on Sunday the 25th. Hopefully we will all arrive around the same time....SAFE and HEALTHY! Savannah will have her tests on Monday 26th and clinic on Tuesday. That's when they will tell us if she needs her spleen removed or not. If not, we will be on our way back home on Wednesday. If she does require surgery, we will be there for at least 5 to 7 more days. Please pray that there will be no trace of cancer in her body.
One good thing about all of this is that Melanie and I are going to get a lot of quality time together....( melanie, I apologize ahead of time ) We haven't been on a long road trip since the last time she and Carla took me to Mayo. I'm thinking that was in 2001 or 02. Anyway, as sick as I was, I still remember how much fun we all had together. There's nothing like time spent with the cousin's.
It makes for new material for family story times. LOL! Kidddd!
Besides praying for Savannah's health....we would appreciate your prayers for safe travel, good diagnosis for me, continued health for Melanie( since she will be the one driving the most) and NO CAR TROUBLE! :)
Thanks to everyone! We love and appreciate all of you!

Don't forget to shop our Sassy Salvage booths at Fayetteville Trading Post in Fayetteville, Daisie's & Olive's in Prairie Grove and The Treasure Chest in Lincoln. We will do custom and specialty pieces. We also offer Home Staging and complete Interior Design services....(on ANY budget)
New home phone # 445-6171
cell # 871-0749
Linda # 409-3874

Recent visit to NIH

We are asking for your prayers again.
It seems the doctors were a little too optimistic last time Savannah visited NIH. As I reported in earlier posts, they thought the cancer was completely gone but this trip they realized that what they thought was "scar tissue" in her spleen was in fact cancer. It had grown ever so slightly and they detected a pea size tumor on the outside of her spleen as well. She goes back in 3 to 4 weeks for more extensive testing. If it has stayed the same or grown they will remove her spleen. They assured her this was not really a big deal.....you can live just fine with out it. Of course, we'd rather her not have to have any kind of surgery but.......whatever makes her well! SO.....please remember her in your prayers again and please pass it on to all those prayer warriors!
We have had a few weeks of non-stop activity around here. In mid February, Mom and Daddy left for Virginia to visit Jeff (my brother) and his family. Donna had to go to Africa on business and Jeffrey needed help with the girls so they stayed about a month or so. While they were gone, I had the bright idea to redecorate their master bedroom. I wanted them to have a nice relaxing space to come home to after being away from home so long. Too bad I was so thoughtful and selfless!!!! :) I almost killed myself trying to get everything done! Bo and Savannah proved to be....some.....help. They helped prime and paint the old, dark 70's paneling and trim (when their schedules allowed :) and Danny was useful in getting the old closet doors off and cutting out the headboard so I could upholster it. All in all it turned out to be a lovely, bright, peaceful room. They were extremely surprised and both seemed to love it.
OH!, did I mention in the middle of all of that.....Shelby had her 16th birthday party at their house? I thought it would be a good idea to get movies and pizza for the 9 girls and let them PARTY in the basement while I worked upstairs finishing their room. HA! Needless to say......no work got done that night!
When Mom and Daddy got home they had my two precious nieces (Lilly, 13 and Rose, 7) with them. They stayed for their whole 2 week Spring Break. We had so much fun with them. The first week Shelby was still in school but everyday as soon as 2:18 hit we picked up 4 to 6 LOUD girls as well as Rose & Lilly and off we went.....we looked (and sounded) like a caravan of wild gypsies traveling down 71B in Grandma's suburban. People could hear us coming for blocks and heaven help the single or cute guys at the stop lights! Grandma might never be the same!
We also celebrated Shelby's actual Birthday too. We ate at JD China....Shelby's favorite place and then came home for cake, ice cream and gifts. Yes, she got a car. My Aunt Wanda got a new car and she was getting rid of her old one so Shelby got it. It's really nice and well taken care of. I hope Shelby keeps up the tradition. :)
In the midst of all this....Savannah decided since it was Spring Break, she and one of her friends would just "road trip" to Maryland to her appointment at NIH. So she left all the madness of home and was off driving....who knows where..... hopefully to Bethesda.
Anyway, have you ever been to a 9 day sleepover with 4 girls that shower constantly? It's exhausting but totally fun. The laundry however is NOT!
I say 4 girls because we invited Kim, Shelby's friend, to spend Spring Break with us. Rose and Lilly love all of Shelby's friends and consider them to be their friends too but all except Kim were on a mission trip. We had big plans to do all sorts of cool things but those 12 inches of snow on Sunday dampened a few of those. Although... we did make it bowling, to the movies, shopping, a sleep over with Bella and Gabby (cousin Wes & Melody's girls) and to Branson on Friday. We had a blast! Mom, Daddy, Rose and Lilly were up very early Saturday morning in order to get the girls to their plane by 10am. We all need to sleep for a week before life resumes. I WISH! But....Life goes on whether your tired or not....so......
This weekend Linda and I opened our booth in Lincoln at the Treasure Chest. I would never have considered such a location but other vendors say it is very profitable there. So...NOW....Sassy Salvage has 3 locations for your shopping pleasure. Fayetteville, Prairie Grove and Lincoln. Wohoo! we've hit the big time!
LOL! Thanks for your prayers for Savannah GOD is Good! love y'all

Today is March 9th

In the past, March 9th has not held any special significance for me....that I can remember anyway...BUT today is different!!!!! One year ago today, I got that terrifying phone call from the Breast cancer doctor telling me to find Savannah and get to his office immediately. He spoke with such urgency that I knew it was bad news. I kept telling myself on the drive to his office that -even if she does have breast cancer...people survive it all the time and surely we've caught it in time. Still, I knew whatever it was... was serious. Savannah knew it too. I could hear the fear in her voice when I spoke to her on the phone and told her to meet me there. Sensing we were going to need all the strength we could muster I called Danny and he met us there too. I was pretty much prepared for whatever bad news the doctor had (or so I thought) so when he circled a big ugly place on her back shoulder and said it was melanoma and that was what was causing all the problems, I was wondering why he had made such a big deal over something that could be removed so easily. I had always heard that melanoma is one of the worst kinds of cancers anyone could have but at least it was just on her skin. Then horror flooded my mind.....It wasn't just on her skin, it had spread to make that huge lump under her arm and if it had spread that much where else in her body was it? It was the most terrifying feeling I've EVER had. I can't even imagine what Savannah must have been thinking. The doctor was so good with her....he hugged her and said he had a daughter her age and told her they were going to fight this with everything they had. He had tears in his eyes and kept looking at us as if to say - I'm so sorry but you're going to lose your daughter. We made it outside to the front steps of the office before we burst in to tears.
I don't know why I want to remember the events of that day....maybe to just reflect on how far God has brought us and all the true miracles He has performed since that day. I will never forget the fear of that day. I will also never forget the peace that God gave me shortly after that...within hours really....and it stayed with me til we got the news that she is cancer FREE!! So, March 9th will never be taken lightly around our house again. It will be a day of Thanksgiving for our "Sweet Savannah" and her precious life.

Some new DRAMA
Bo is doing well after 2 trips to the emergency room a couple of weeks ago.
He thought he was dying......We thought he was having an appendicitis attack.
The doctors found a kidney stone! He was miserable and extremely sick. It was awful seeing him in that much pain but as I said, I think he's back to normal again.
Shelby is going to be 16 years old on the 15th of this month and she is expecting to drive!!! Who made that rule up?????? I'm all for changing the driving age to at least 18!!!! I'm not having an easy time picturing her out in this crazy world driving everywhere with all those nuts on the road.
Maybe I'm getting nervous in my old age......whatever it is......it's not a good feeling.
Kids driving.....Oh Lord, hear our prayers! :)

Linda and I have expanded our Sassy Salvage business. Now you can find us at our first location - Fayetteville Trading Post on N. College right across the hwy from Acumbaro Mexican Restaurant AND in Prairie Grove at Daisie and Olive's Flea Market. We are having so much fun and really have some funky, unique and fun home decor and fashion items. We add new things weekly so drop by on a regular basis so you won't miss anything. Many items are -one of a kind- since they are hand painted or crafted. Sometime soon we hope to have a Sassy Salvage blog or website.

It was March 9th when I started typing this but it has taken me so long to write it that it is now March 10th. I'm so slow! Good Night!

p.s. I still don't know when the FOX News story will be coming on but I'll send an email as soon as we know something. Love to ALL!

More "Dutton Drama"

Well,.....it all started last month when we decided to let Shelby go with Savannah to her NIH appointment. They were excited about taking a "sister" trip together, you know, bonding and that sort of thing.... :).....? Things heated up when"hot doctor" called Savannah, personally, on her cell phone and asked if she would mind being the NIH Diva in a piece that FOX Network is doing on cancer. She very reluctantly agreed so they rescheduled her appointment from the first week in January to the second.
Then the DRAMA started.....
Oh my word!!! FOX news! It's seen by millions of people! What would she say? How would she say it? Would they do a personal interview or a group thing? Would "hot doctor" be there?
But more importantly......WHAT WOULD SHE WEAR???? !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
(These are not actually her comments but I know how her mind works :) jk No, really she was so stressed about it she wouldn't even let us talk about it.
So then we had the daunting task of changing Shelby's flight to match Savannah's. Several minutes and $150 later.....done!
So, at 5:45 Sunday morning Danny was off to take the girls to XNA.
Upon arrival they found out there was something wrong with the plane. They were put on a flight through Dallas instead of Chicago. Somewhere over the friendly skies, Savannah got sick....the stomach bug type. Fortunately, we didn't hear about this until they were safe on the ground in DC. They got checked in at the hotel and stayed there the rest of the night.
Monday Savannah was feeling better so they spent most of the day at NIH doing Savannah's tests and scans. I thought all was calm for a while til I got a frantic call from Savannah saying that the Financial aid guy from school called and needed all her school information by 4:30 that afternoon or she would be kicked out of the system and not be able to attend this semester. Information that,by the way, I had been strongly encouraging her to get turned in for at least 3 weeks or more. When I mentioned that I wanted to inflict bodily harm on her for putting me thru this she almost giddily replied that she was in Maryland and I was in Arkansas and I would be over it by the time she got back. :@ Luckily she had her laptop with her so she found all the info, emailed it to us and we printed it out. By the time I had it in hand to take, I looked at the clock...It was 4:10. Hmmmm 20 minutes to get from my house to the Mall area?...not unheard of......even in traffic it shouldn't be that big a deal.....unless....of course...my gas tank is on empty...???......Anyway, after a few stressful minutes of crazy driving and praying......I MADE IT! With 30 seconds to spare.
So for a while....all was well....
Shelby says the FOX story thing went really well and that Savannah did a great job. We didn't really know what to expect. They hadn't told her much other than she would be in it. They filmed it as if Savannah were having an appointment with "hot doctor" and Dr. Rosenburg (THE cancer doctor at NIH over EVERYTHING). Savannah still doesn't want to talk about it but I'm sure she did a great job. I did find out that it is not just a story on NIH. Fox is doing a whole story on cancer so they will be in other big cancer hospitals as well. It will not air for a month or two so we will definitely let everyone know when it will be on.
OH!!!!! and in all the madness of her TV debut....we all totally forgot about the results of her tests. duhhhhh!
GOD is so unbelievably good and kind......
There were no visible tumors left in her body!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
The only thing they saw was some dense tissue in her spleen. They think it is scar tissue but they said that IT is even shrinking! I think they are amazed at how fast she has recovered from such a severe case. I want to go on and on about God's greatness but I just keep repeating myself. I think it suffices to say that God is GOD, He sees our trials, He hears our prayers, He has compassion for us, He is gracious and merciful and JUST and He answers our prayers as He sees fit. Thank You GOD!
So....on to the next drama.....
I called this morning (Wed.) to make sure the girls were up and getting ready to get on their way to the airport. Shelby answered and said they were getting ready to leave the hotel but she didn't sound too good....although she said she was "fine". Savannah called shortly after that and said Shelby was sick....with the stomach thing. She said there was no way they could get on a shuttle or metro into DC with Shelby getting sick every few minutes and they needed to get there asap to catch the plane. Danny and I thought maybe they should stay another night and take the same flight home tomorrow to give Shelby time to recoup. That would have been a good idea if we wanted to pay about $350 extra for the flight change, hotel etc......
SO, after Danny was on the phone for....a long time......with the airlines, they will be taking a later flight today at 4:45pm getting in around 8:30.........barring any other drama!

Hope I didn't bore y'all with the trivial little dramas of our family life. It's really not all that dramatic but we've gotta spice up life somehow right?????
Again, as I've said in so many posts before.....
Thank you all so much for the support, the prayers, the encouraging words and everything else you all have done to make our trials bearable .
We love you all!