Pat & Claudia’s Blog

I have a lot of items come across my desk and in my email. Occasionally I will get something from a trusted source that I KNOW MUST be shared with each of you.

This is from Marty MacGown, a listener from Maine.

Hello Pat,

I was thinking more about your discussions with Brian, Claudia, and Sandy over

Marty & Lynette MacGown, Maine USA

the past couple of days and had to jot some thoughts down:

I can remember on several occasions kids’ excuses in Sunday School a generation or so ago when a few would attempt to justify listening to music that was of questionable edification. “We only listen to the beat and not the words” was the mantra.  It appears this phenomenon has shifted somewhat in the past couple of decades. The argument is the same, the excuses are the same, except now they are listening to the beat of “Christian” music and not the words.. obvious by the pervasive asymmetry between their spiritual talk and walk.

Ah, but I must endeavor to remember daily to pour out a measure of grace mixed with patient prayer than I feel inclined to do at times. After all, I now understand better how and why the elder generation I experienced in my formative years tended to be critical of friends of my youth, me included, as we merrily and willingly walked in full knowledge of our own blissful ignorance of the need for God’s grace and abiding call upon our lives. Some of my friends of older times still have not responded to that gentle tug; sadly, some never will know His mercy because they have departed this life without knowing Him. Yet a few others, including me, responded to His loving kindness and now by grace walk and work abiding in His light.

That said, I must confess I am a recovering cynic in the healing arms of Christ. Every time I find my mind wandering toward the plethora of injustices in the world, or my eyes recognizing hypocrisy, and acting like the overly critical (but well-meaning, perhaps) generation that went before me; instead, I endeavor to view through God’s eyes the eventual harvest He reaps from the tilled soil and watered garden from my meager attempts at affecting  my sphere of influence for His glory. This is a bumpy road to walk sometimes, as it is hard to till soil when the soil of my heart hardens so easily, and when the water so often seems to leak out of the cup of my soul quicker than God can fill it up.  But thank God for His persevering patience and mercies He makes new every morning!!!

Blessings to you all!

Marty

It has been a very difficult week in many ways, especially for Claudia. Me? My problems as NOTHING next to hers. All I

A meek smile before Claudia heads off to the Operating Room. Claudia told me later that she fully expected to die during the surgery. I knew she was feeling this way. Don't ask me why. I just knew it. I tried comforting her and praying for her.

have to do is remember what times to set the alarm for, so I can get up and give Claudia her medications. In between I may straighten her covers or giver her a back rub, leg rub, arm rub or just hug her for awhile. Always praying. Always praying over her.

Last Wednesday the surgery dragged on for 2 hours. I expected her out in about an hour and a quarter. When the clock kept ticking and I didn’t see anyone, my anxiety started to grow (SEE, I TOLD you I STILL had to practice doing what our Instruction Manual says).

An hour and a half. All kinds of scenarios raced through my mind.

An hour and 45 minutes. I began to settle and send prayers to surround her. After all, isn’t THAT what we practice all the time? How can I do NO LESS?!!!

This is Post Operative on her abdomen. There is a little bleeding through the bandage, but mostly it is clean. There are no red streaks emanating beyond the bandage. We will see tomorrow when we get to her follow up appointment.

Be STILL MY SOUL.

An hour and 50 minutes.

An hour and 55 minutes.

At about the 2 hour mark, in walks Dr. Gilmore. I searched his face for a sign.

He grinned as he approached. “Everything went well. Claudia will be

This is the bandage on her back. It is as clean as the one on her abdomen. If you look just below the bandage you will see the faint outline of the scar left from when the Stem Unit was implanted in her back.

in Recovery shortly.”

He began talking about his concern for Claudia’s welfare. I was really touched as he spoke about getting her to a Plastic Surgeon in order to help cover the scars incurred during surgeries to her abdomen. The place where the Pain Pump was exiting the body had become very hard. A Plastic Surgeon needed to help Claudia with that.

He also talked about, now that the Pain Pump was not in her anymore, he felt her pain could be controlled by the Fentanyl

Little Possum LOVES when Uncle Brian & Auntie Laurel visit. Tonight was "Princess" night. The hat was given to Little Possum by Uncle Brian & Auntie Laurel. They purchased it in Williamsburg, VA when we were up there with them about a year and a half ago.

Patches. I asked him if they were new to Pain Management Doctors, as NONE of the previous doctors had even HINTED at a Fentanyl Patch as a possibility. He said, “NO, they have been around for several years.”

I asked him him, if the Patch has been on the market for such a long time, why on earth didn’t ANY of the other Pain Management Doctors even HINT toward trying the patch? He searched for a word for a good 10 or 15 seconds, then just gave up with, “I don’t know. I really don’t know.”

His demeanor and attitude is one of great care. The doctors who are learning under him (they call them FELLOWS – yep, even the girls )

Wellll... it is called "Princess Soccer". You have to dress like a Princess, then kick the soccer ball. It is so much fun seeing what she will come up with next.

show just as much care and empathy. It is a great change from what we have had previously.

Well, I am writing this on Sunday night / Monday morning, 1:27 am. Claudia has a follow up appointment in Winston – Salem with Dr. Gilmore at 12:30 pm. That means we have to be up, ready and leaving by 11:30 am.

She has had a difficult time since surgery, as you can imagine of one who has had her belly opened AGAIN! The pain was getting the best of her. She was not sleeping well. Her muscles spasmed and ached. She had a horrible migraine headache. I knew she was in no shape to take her own meds, so I made a schedule and kept her on it. We

Well, you didn't think Uncle Brian & Auntie Laurel were Little Possum's ONLY audience, did you? Little Peanut LOVES his sister. He is in a contraption which Little Possum used at his age. He can bounce up and down as he plays with all the moving parts which shine lights and play songs. I feel slighted. I never had anything like that when "I" was his age

did NOT want to miss a single dose. I had gone to the Pharmacy as soon as we got home from the Hospital, and got her Prescriptions filled. I had the Fentanyl Patch on her right away. I wanted her to sleep, which she would for a bit, then wake up in pain, with every muscle aching.

She had stayed in Recovery for about 2 hours. She was OUT of it. She had such a bad headache (Brian and I were concerned it was a Spinal Headache. I continued to watch for the signs.) that she was afraid ANY move to the car would result in throwing up. The nurse assigned to her (Amy) was soooo nice. She was patient, wanting to do anything to help. She didn’t rush Claudia, even turned off the light in the cubicle because of her headache.

Finally about 10 minutes to 7 Amy came in and sweetly told us that the Recovery Room was closing at 7 pm, and she would be glad to arrange a room upstairs for Claudia if she so needed. But, Claudia

From Princess to Stamp Lady. What a transformation. Here Little Possum is looking in Grammy's door mirror in order to inspect her work. Oh, how we hope this is NOT a precursor of tattoos in her future.

wanted to go HOME! I went for the car, and Amy wheeled her out. A short minute and she was in the car, seat back, blanket over her, and we were headed for home.

I can’t say enough GOOD about this hospital and its staff. I have yet to find one nurse or other staff member that didn’t have the patient’s welfare topmost in their minds. Nothing seemed to bother them, as they were always attentive to Claudia’s needs.

Claudia had a rough go of it for a couple days, but by day three, she had gained enough strength to sit out in the Living Room for a short period. Brian & Laurel came to visit, and Claudia really enjoyed having them over. We even coaxed Claudia to get in the car and ride with us to the Yogurt Shop, thinking that might be good on her tummy. Well, the short trip exhausted her, and she headed right for bed when we got home.

Now, Sunday, she is more coherent, but still runs out of energy VERY quickly, which is expected. I have examined the bandage, and there are no red streaks

Auntie Laurel and Uncle Brian's daughter, Lauren, visited, and we made an outing to Krispy Kerme donuts. Here they pose together, ready for hot donuts!

emanating from underneath, which means, I hope, that the antibiotic is working. She was cut on her back and on her abdomen, in an effort to get the Pain Pump and its tube out of her body.

I am up with her every 2 – 4 hours making sure she has her medication. She is showing real signs of progress. The first night or two I was a bit discouraged, as she said she hurt so bad down her leg and in her back… which the Fentanyl Patch is supposed to take care of. I told her to hang in there and let the meds get in to her system. Sure enough, by day three she said she didn’t feel pain down her leg and in her back…. unless she exerted herself too much. Her headaches have subsided as long as she stays down. We will be discussing that with Dr. Gilmore tomorrow.

We got her a little bath in the tub today, careful not to get the bandages wet. I then washed her hair in the kitchen at the sink, as that has the sprayer extension which can easily be used to wet her hair.

Well, that is the update I have for right now. Her eyes are MUCH clearer and she is actually using her computer in bed, for the first time since the operation.

Thank you for all your continued prayers for Claudia. If you knew her you would KNOW she is the most precious person on this planet.

More later.

If I had to point to one thing in my life that was the MOST important and precious to me, it would be CLAUDIA, hands

I TOLD you Claudia was very popular while on that electric cart. Here, K-Man and Jakob get THEIR turns riding with Grammy at the Fort Worth Zoo.

down. Although she is not a “thing”, she has made me what I am. She has had patience with me as I have grown up (uhhh… I’m still growing). She has loved me when she should have hated me. She has prayed for me when she KNEW that is what I needed best. She has been my Best Friend, my closest advisor and confident. She has wisdom beyond Solomon. I have heard Jesus say to me, “Pat, Claudia is a Jewess. That makes her one of MY Family. I have given her to you to love, honor and protect. I expect you to do that.” My reply, “Yes, Sir.”

When Claudia is in pain, “I” am in pain. If there were a perfect person in this world, Claudia would be it. The pain she has gone

Here are Grammy & Grampy's Girls In Action: Little Possum & Little Strawberry. The guys don't have a chance with THESE TWO around. There may be 4 boys, but they are no match for these two!

through for the past 12 years should be given to another. She does not deserve this. I have asked God repeatedly to give her pain to me, and make her whole, but we know that is not how things work.

Her recent surgery to correct a previous pain management surgery has not gone well. She has developed a very bad case of cellulitis. When we saw the clinic in Texas, we thought we had it under control, but a couple days later it flared back up. The area around the incisions was very angry red, and it would not dissipate.

We had no choice but to come on home from Texas, but on the way, we gave her Pain Management Doctor a call. We scheduled an appointment the next day when we arrived home.

K-Man & Jakie may THINK they are "in control", and having a good laugh, but they are NO MATCH for Little Possum. She and Little Strawberry where the pants ... uhhhhh, dresses, in this family!

I went in to the room with Claudia. It seemed every move was sheer pain for her, as she “willed” her body up on the table for the exam. I watched as the doctor examined the incision. His face did not give me confidence that all was ok.

When the doctor did the surgery he had to do some things differently because she has the electrical Stem Unit running up her spine. It had

Ericka, Patrick's wife, was given "Stars" tickets at her office, and she passed them on to Patrick, who took three of us to the hockey. Here is Patrick, Jonathan & Mandy. These were... GULP... $125 per seat tickets that Ericka's office GAVE her for us to use.

the possibility of creating a possibility of some problems, and it did just that. Because Claudia is so allergic to many antibiotics, that makes it very difficult to find a strong enough antibiotic to kill the infection before it does kills her.

It has been a full week, and I haven’t been able to write more until now. Since writing the above we have seen Dr. Gilmore, again. He just doesn’t like the way the infection just isn’t going away. As I write this, Claudia is in surgery here in Winston-Salem, NC. The

Other than Patrick's Semi Semi Pro Hockey Team, I had never been to a hockey game. This was in the American Airlines Center in Downtown Dallas: The Dallas Stars vs the Canucks from Canada. I don't even know what a Canuck is But, it was GREAT fun being with Patrick, J & Mandy. Dallas lost, but broke even on the number of fights.... sigh ... these hot headed young men who have nothing better to do but to pound on each other..

doctor is taking out the Implanted Pain Pump, as he is concerned the infection will begin traveling the tube that goes from the Pain Pump to her spine. If the infection hits her spine then we will REALLY have problems. So, today’s surgery is to take the apparatus out which has to do with the Pain Pump, get the infection cleared up, and try to manage Claudia’s pain via some other methods, beginning with a Phentenol Patch (I have no clue how to spell that, so took a stab at it. Hopefully, those of you who know what in the world it is, will have a clue to what I’m writing.).

I have prayed unceasingly for Claudia, and I can only believe this set of circumstances will lead us in a way Jesus knows will be best for Claudia, short of actual healing, which I continually praying for, for her.

In our absence from the Studio we know you will enjoy listening to Brian. For a LONG time I have wanted someone with a heart of passion for Jesus, to be able to take over the broadcast in our absence, in place of just putting on previous programming. Please continue praying for Brian & Laurel, as we KNOW Jesus has brought them to us… and to YOU through PBN.

Well, Claudia has about 30 more minutes to be in surgery. I’ll give an update when I get one.

Thursday night I was at the Stars Hockey Game in Dallas. Friday we headed back to Mom & Dad's to get some things done with them. Here is Mom, Linda (Pat's Sister), Dad & Claudia in Mom and Dad's home in Arlington, TX.

Claudia and I met Linda at the El Fenix Restaurant where we used to eat at least once or twice a week when we lived in Arlington. This is the El Fenix (Tex Mex Food) where we used to meet Sandy every week. He would take pity on us and buy us our dinner. Those times were tough, but it was good to be with our Bud every week. When we began making a little bit of money, WE would take Sandy to eat here. OUR TABLE was inside at the window to the left of Claudia.

On the way down to Mom & Dad's Friday Morning, Claudia mentioned to me how bad she was feeling, and she showed me her incision, which was very red and inflamed. I had her call her doctor back in NC, and Dr. Toy told her to get to a doctor as quickly as possible in order for trained eyes to see what was going on. This "Doc in the Box" is around the corner from where we used to live, and about 5 minutes from Mom and Dad's. Claudia was given an injection and two meds, and was told she had Cellulitis.

Welllll, I'm sure I will be "talked to" about this one. Unfortunately, after about 2 1/2 weeks of antibiotic treatment the redness would not only NOT go away, it increased. Dr. Gilmore urged us to quickly get the Pain Pump OUT, as he was concerned about the infection spreading along the tube to her spine. if it hits her spine then Claudia will REALLY have problems. This is actually Claudia's abdomen. To the left is the implanted Pain Pump which had been repositioned a month before. There is a lot of swelling, as you can see. Just to the right of the pump is the place where the original pump started coming OUT of Claudia's body. The skin was Very Nekrotic Black. Dr. Gilmore did his best to clean it up and get the Nekrotic flesh out. Undoubtedly, the infection has already started to spread.

When you wonder where Claudia is, THIS is part of what she has gone through in order to try to quell the pain so she can be down at the Studio with me and be On The Air for you. This would have stopped any other woman, but not Claudia. This is a good, good woman who has a heart FULL of love.

So, here we are back at the Hospital in Winston-Salem. She is hooked up and ready to go. In two hours the apparatus will be out of her body, and the culture taken of the infection will be headed to the lab. As I write this, I am at the office and it is 2:10 am. Claudia just called. She had been asleep from the anesthesia, but had awakened. She was crying and wanted me to come home to be with her. So, here I go. Thank you for your prayers.

Many of you have been wondering how Claudia has done on this trip, having had her surgery just a week before we took off.

As much as Claudia was in pain, she was NOT going to miss doing as much as possible with our Grand Babies. Here Claudia and Mindy are in the middle seats, and Jake & Annabelle are in the back seat as we travel to the Fort Worth Zoo for an outing with ALL the Grand Babies. We are meeting Ericka and Mandy & Jonathan there with our other four Grand Babies. Claudia and I are in HEAVEN.

It has been a bit difficult for her. As I have previously written, the doctor prescribed a few medications for her that we found out the first day of travel actually knock her out. We could NOT awaken her. So, she decided she would postpone taking all of them so that she could enjoy her grand babies, and be coherent when we met with Greg, Don & Lisa. As a result, her progress has not been what it should have been.

For several days she had been saying she did not feel right, where her stitches had been. She resorted to putting ice on the area at night, but that was a temporary measure. She progressively felt worse and worse. Normally, on trips like this, she would take a day or two, stay in bed and rest while I went out and met with people and did the things that needed to be done. THIS time we were so busy that she could not take the time to get some extra rest, and she

Annabelle, Mindy & Jakob (Little Strawberry, Mamma Strawberry & Jakie) in a rare moment when I could corral them all together. Annabelle is 7 and is tops in her class in School. Jakie is 5 and will start school next year. We are sooooo proud of them.

pushed on through the pain she was suffering. There was just nothing we could do about it. Grand babies were all at the house, and Claudia did not want to miss a moment. She also wanted to go with me to see Don, Lisa & Greg, as well as go to my Mom & Dad’s. She would ultimately pay the price for it.

Finally, as we were headed to Mom & Dad’s place in Arlington, Claudia told me in the car that she felt feverish with hot and cold flashes. She said the redness from the site of the stitches has advanced outward, as well. I immediately had her call her doctor back in Winston-Salem, NC. When she described to Dr. Toy what

This is just before we entered the Zoo in Fort Worth. Jakie & Grammy. Jakie has a very good heart. I can't wait to see what kind of man he becomes... but, we are sure enjoying them at the age they are. Don't grow up too fast.

was happening, the doctor told her to quickly get to an emergency room or Urgent Care Clinic and let some trained eyes see what was going on.

We were on our way to meet my sister, Linda, for lunch at El Fenix in South Arlington, OHHHHHH…. TEX MEX!!! We had MISSSSSSSSED eating Tex Mex enchiladas, beans, rice and quesadilla. There REALLY IS a difference… a HUGE difference. We explained to Linda what was going on, and she was very concerned, as well. After lunch we headed to the Urgent Care Clinic on South

Although already GREATLY loved by all her Grand Babies, Claudia is ESPECIALLY popular when she has an electric cart at the Zoo. EVERYONE wants to ride with GRAMMY! Here, it is Little Strawberry's turn.

Cooper Street in the Tom Thumb shopping center. 2 ½ hours later, including an extensive exam and a vial of blood taken from her for a complete blood count (This is ALWAYS a problem with Claudia, as her veins are small and buried deep. They usually have to put the needle in her arm and move it around to find the vein. This is done with several tries, and causes her a LOT of pain.) Claudia came out with the results. Claudia has contracted cellulitis, an inflammation of the cells surrounding the area of the stitches, and the infection was spreading out from that point, causing streaks of redness coursing out. It had to be stopped before any further problem erupted. They gave her an injection and TWO MORE medications (antibiotics) to take.

Saturday found us up early, as we had to pack and leave for North Arkansas to see Jonathan’s Granny. Claudia said she was feeling better, and even the redness seemed to have receded a bit, for which we were thankful.

I am writing this on Sunday, sitting in bed, having had a GREAT country

They are small, and if you are not looking for them you just might miss them, yet off all the WILD ANIMALS at the zoo the Merkats still remain Claudia and my favorite. It was almost as if these little Dudes and Dudettes wanted to pose for my picture taking.

breakfast fixed by Jonathan’s Granny. We had an 8 hour ride here, and Claudia got a bit uncomfortable. About 6 hours in to the trip we stopped at a McDonalds, where she got a baggie full of ice to put on the incision. She was in pain last night. This morning things seem to be a bit better. We had an 8 hour ride ahead of us today, as we are headed back to North Carolina. Your prayers mean so much to us.

UPDATE:

It is 3:00 am. We just got to the hotel in Hopkinsville, Kentucky. The redness radiating out from her stitches has increased, and we are concerned. She will call her doctor from the car tomorrow. We should be back home tomorrow evening. Please continue to keep Claudia in your prayers.

No Mindy, you are too big to ride with your Mamma on her electric cart. She LOVES cotton candy just like Claudia used to.

Welllllll... ok, ok, ok. I'm caught. The Merkats are Claudia's 2nd favorite "WILD ANIMAL" at the zoo. Here is Claudia's FAVORITE Wild Animal. This thing was on a rock clear across the little pond at the Zoo. The camera did a GREAT job of zooming in and capturing it.

We finally caught up with everyone, though, not everyone is in the picture. We are just up from the Hippo Pool, across from the Elephants. Pictured from the left: Jonathan, Joanie (Mindy's friend), Jakie, Little Peanut (Andrew), Kaleb, Mindy, Little Strawberry (Annabelle), Little Possum (Natalie), Grampy & Grammy.

What is Texas without its Beautiful BLUEBONNETS in the Spring. We were sooooo excited to be back in Texas in time to see the Bluebonnets.

And... what is Dallas / Fort Worth without its TRAFFIC! Actually, this was pretty good here in the Fort Worth area. As we got closer to Dallas the traffic REALLY increased. We saw more cars in a quarter mile than we see all year in Asheboro GET US OUT OF HERE!!!!!!

At the end of a busy day meeting with our business associates (Don, Lisa, Greg), or going to the Zoo, we got to retire to Patrick & Ericka's home where Claudia and I got to hold the little ones, and play with our other Grand Babies. Here I am holding Wee Beeb (Oliver), and Little Beeb (Kaleb) is sleeping by Grampy in the background. I treasured each and every moment.

Our trip to Texas was to take on three specific things:

It is a Tradition. When Claudia and I get in to town, we meet Pat, Ericka & boys, and Greg at "Red, Hot & Blues" in Lewisville. Here I am with Patrick & Greg. Oh, "Red, Hot & Blues" is a GREAT BBQ place with Blues music playing. I hate potato salad, BUT ALWAYS ask for a double helping of theirs. I don't know what they do to it, but I crave their potato salad.

1. For me to gain some much needed weight

2. To see our Webmasters, PBN Systems Programmer and our Tech Advisor

3. To see our kids, Grand Kids and my Mom & Dad

Now, if you REALLY believe #1, you haven’t been listening to the program very long, if at all, or you are just gullible. I need to gain weight like I need a hole in my head. WAIT. I probably should restate that, as there are people who think I might be a little better On The Air with a hole in my head. I have gained soooooo much weight this trip. I am miserable. There is NO time for exercise. When people meet with us, they want to do it over a meal. No matter what we eat (and I WON’T eat salads unless they accompany something substantial) I gain wait on a trip, due to lack of exercise. I already was tipping the scale a bit much, as my Dermatologist had exempted me from strenuous exercise after my surgery. Then this trip

Can you tell I am in Heaven here? Little Peanut (Andrew) on the left, and Wee Beeb (Oliver) on the right. Little Peanut is 8 months old, and Wee Beeb is 2 months old. Claudia and I had never held Wee Beeb. This was our first time back to Texas since he was born. Pat & Ericka almost had to tear him out of our arms. Little Peanut lives with us, along with Little Possum, and they bring soooo much joy to our lives.

came up out of the blue, so there was no going back to exercising. I have to begin again when I return, and get some of this weight trimmed down. I’m MISERABLE toting this much extra weight. I need to get down about 25 pounds, to 225. I will be happy there.

Our first night in town, we headed, where else… a restaurant, where we met with Pat & Ericka & Grand Babies, along with Greg. It is kind of a tradition when we come in to town, we meet that first night at Red, Hot & Blues (a BBQ place near Flower Mound, north of Dallas: Pat, Ericka, Little Beeb (Kaleb), Greg, and now the newest Grand Baby, Wee Beeb (Oliver). We spent about an hour and a half together before we had to break it up and head back to Pat & Ericka’s, where a bed awaited us.

Monday early afternoon had us going to Mom and Dad’s house in South Arlington. My Sister & My Brother were meeting us there. They had been taking care of Mom & Dad, taking them to their Dr

Here are Little Beeb (Kaleb) and Little Possum (Natalie). They are the BIGGEST buddies. They were born two weeks apart, Little Beeb being the oldest, BUT Little Possum rules the roost. Pat & Ericka were visiting Claudia and me for Christmas. On Christmas Day we were told by Pat & Ericka in the morning that Ericka was pregnant. That evening Mandy & J told us that Mandy was pregnant. You would think Little Beeb & Little Possum were twins, the way they stick with each other.

visits and their medication, and I wanted to see what had been done. Honestly, I knew Kirk & Linda had done a great job. I just needed to see how Mom & Dad were doing. Mom will be 82 this year, and Dad will be 85. Physically they are slowing down, but that is to be expected. We had a GREAT time talking and reminiscing. Claudia, Mandy, Jonathan, Little Possum & Little Peanut were there, too, and they brought their own perspective to the reminiscing. It was fun. My nephew, his wife and their 5 year old baby boy were going to come over until my nephew heard his mother (Linda) was going to be there. Cary seems to forget that we ALL have pasts that daunt us. Cary’s is about as checkered as any of us, having been in jail/prison at least twice, but he just can’t seem to forgive nor forget the mistakes his mother made in raising him and his brother & sister. It was just as well he didn’t show up, for it could have turned ugly real quick, and Cary would have been escorted to his car and asked to leave. As it was, we all had a WONDERFUL time.

One of my main goals was to spend some time with Mom & Dad, take some pictures off the walls in Dad’s bedroom, sit at the kitchen

Our Daughter in Law, Ericka, with her boy, Wee Beeb. Beside them is our youngest daughter, Mindy, with Little Peanut. As you can see, Little Peanut makes about three of Wee Beeb.

table and, one by one, film them and get their thoughts on each. They told of family of which I was not aware, and a Family Tree started forming in my mind. I had done this previously, about a year ago, but when I tried to upload the information off the memory chip, the chip failed and lost ALL the data. Lost forever was some of the main information regarding regarding our family, information that I had never heard, and I was chomping at the bits, anxious to come see Mom & Dad again, and restore that information. I was able to spend about an hour that first day, and about a half hour the next day, just long enough to get some of the most important information. This time when I uploaded it to my computer, it was perfect. I’m anxious to start that family tree.

While all this was taking place, I checked the broadcasts coming from our studio, and I answered some e-mail from listeners. I also contacted Brian & Laurel, making sure they were ok, and that things were progressing nicely. They reassured me that everything was going smoothly. Each night I get a report straight from my Production Computer in the On Air Room, telling me that the transfer of programming either was a Success or a Failure. There is a THIRD option, but that means I won’t hear anything at all. That is the worst of options,

Little Beeb & Little Possum are inseparable. It was funny watching them reverse roles as they played. Little Possum wanted to be the Pirate, wearing Little Beeb's pirate hat and using his pirate sword. Little Beeb wore a hooded jacket on his head and down his back, as if he had long hair like Repunsal. My son, Patrick, as horrified that his BOY was playing the part of a GIRL! He forgets that at Little Beeb's age HE was playing with the girls' dolls.

but last week this is exactly what was happening, and I spent time with Greg to fix the problem before I took off. It is now running smoothly, giving me no problems whatsoever.

Tuesday found us back at Mom & Dad’s, but without Mandy, J and Grand Babies. Both Linda and Kirk had returned, and we got some sibling talk done, matching notes on Mom & Dad, trying to plan out the best way to help them physically & financially. Kirk & Linda were to handle the medical end, as they are right here in this area, and can help them quickly if something should need to be addressed. i will continue taking care of their financial needs, paying their bills and making any investments I can to increase their retirement income. In this economy, that is an almost impossibility, and I am doing what I can to maintain a comfortable lifestyle for them, for as long as possible, should they live longer. Before Claudia and I left,

When we get in to town, Claudia and I ALWAYS go to church with Pat & Ericka to their church (and OUR adopted church) "The Village" in Lewisville. This particular day Claudia stayed home to rest while the rest of us went out to eat after church. We went to a GREAT Tex Mex place called "The Gray Goose" or "The Blue Duck" or "The Gray Bird"... well, something like that. Pictured are Wee Beeb (in baby carrier), Ericka, Little Possum, Patrick, Little Beeb, Jonathan, Little Peanut (in baby carrier) and Mandy.

Mom & Dad wanted to sit down with me to discuss their funds, and to ask how & where they can cut out unnecessary spending.

One of the highlights of our trip on Tuesday was that I was able to once again do some recording of pictures and their descriptions. It is fun to see a family tree start to take shape, and to see people in our history, who were young and vivacious, and yet who would never know I would exist in the future. Kirk has done some genealogy, and we are going to compare notes.

We left Mom & Dad’s house about 5:30 pm, as we were to meet the kids back at Pat & Ericka’s. When we got there (it was an extended trip back “home”, as there is MAJOR construction in the north 360 / north 121, just north of DFW airport. You would have to know that WITHOUT construction there is already a myriad of cars on the convening highways. The construction only made it more difficult.

Normally, we have a hard time getting Little Possum to wear ANY hat. Now, since it was Little Beeb's, she wanted to wear it. This hat would soon come off, and the Pirate's hat would be in its place, as she engaged in a pirate sword fight with her daddy.

What met us at Pat & Ericka’s, by the time we got there, was humbling. A whole crown of family & friends were there, and they had come to go have dinner with us. You have no idea how much this touched our hearts… people actually cared for Claudia and me: Patrick, Ericka, Linda, Mandy, J, Cam & Linda (Ericka’s parents, and two of the sweetest people you will EVER meet here on this earth), Mindy (our youngest daughter), Amber (Linda’s Daughter in Law), and all the Grand Babies. Claudia and I were in HEAVEN.

Today we took a day off and took the Grand Babies to the Fort Worth Zoo. Mindy had to get Annabelle out of school a bit early, so Mandy & J, Little Possum & Little Peanut took off about 10 am for the Zoo. Ericka worked a half day, and ended up going about 1 pm with Little Beeb and Wee Beeb (Kaleb & Oliver). Claudia and I waited and waited for Mindy to return from the school, where the administration took their time releasing her. We got off about 2:15, putting us at the zoo about 3:30. The kids had the biggest time taking turns riding with Grammy on her electric cart… and oh, yeah… seeing the animals. The Zebras, Hippoes and Meerkats were the favorites. We didn’t have time to get to the Lions & Tigers & Bears… OH MY!!!

Here it is. I told you it was coming: a full blown sword fight in Patrick & Ericka's living room. Guess who wins?!

BBQ was on the menu for dinner, as we ate at one of our FAVORITE restaurants here in the Metroplex: Spring Creek. THIS is where I finally have decided I look like a blimp. I pigged out. It was my only meal today, and I made up for it. This is TEXAS BBQ. They don’t have this in North Carolina. The good citizens of NC think their BBQ is the best in the nation. Theirs is mostly PORK BBQ with some kind of vinegar sauce. These poor people ACTUALLY THINK this is BBQ to go brag about. YUKKKKK!!!! When we hit Texas, we HAVE to eat at Spring Creek. As I write this at 3:25 am, Claudia sleeping by my side, I’m STILL FULL from all I ate. I should be ashamed of myself… but, I’m not. Claudia gathered some hand wipes given out to the patrons. She gave one to each of the kids, Little Strawberry (Annabelle) was quick to point out that GRAMPY did have one, and that I needed one. I told her I wasn’t going to use a hand wipe, as I was just going to lick my fingers all night and think of the WONDERFUL meal of BBQ beef we had this evening.

Tomorrow the plans are to meet Don & Lisa at Mamma’s Pizza Parlor, a place we used to eat with them and Greg when we lived here. We can’t wait to be with them, as there is so much to talk about after we give them BIG hugs. Thursday night will find Patrick and I, and J & Mandy at a Stars Hockey Game. Ericka was given 4 tickets where she works, in excellent seats 5 rows from the front. If it is televised, look for Claudia and me )

I am once again, ready to fall asleep. I’m going to go ahead and post this. I will add pictures later. I hope everything is spelled correctly, as I just am too tired to spell check it right now.

It was a VERY LONG trip out to Texas. You just can’t appreciate the length of the trip from 38,000 feet in the air (which is

Little Possum was the first in the car, watching us pack the car. "Hurry up, Grampy. Let's go!". She is in HER seat, and NO ONE better try to move her from it. She is READY!

how we usually view it). When you drive it, you get a different perspective, a VERY different perspective.

Our first day, a Friday, we didn’t get away until about 2:30 pm. Claudia and I had to be in Winston-Salem to her Pain Management appointment at 9:00 in the morning. By the time we got the green light to go from the doctors and made the drive home it was past 12 Noon. Claudia and I had some last minute packing to do. Mandy & J had all the baby stuff still to pack. It just takes longer when you have a family with kids. We did well to get off by 2:30.

I had about 3 hours sleep the night before, as Claudia and I were packing. I intended letting J and Mandy drive more so that I could turn on my computer and get some work done, but Mandy and I were

How on Earth can we get ANYTHING else in the car? We are packed to the top: 2 babies (don't tell Little Possum I called her a baby) and 4 adults. Little Possum is sitting in her seat, and Mamma Possum is sitting in her seat. We are on the way to Texas to see Little Possum's Aunties and Uncles, AND her cousins.

sooo tired I just figured I would drive as far as I could. We planned on spending the night in Meridian, MS… UNTIL I searched for hotels in Meridian. Something was going on in town, and there was not a hotel room to be had. The next big city would be Jackson… made famous by the song by Johnny Cash. It was about an 11 hour ride, but we finally pulled in to Jackson at 3:30 am Central time, and fell in to bed after getting the grand babies situated. We were finally asleep by 5 am.

11 am just came too fast, but we forced ourselves up, in to the car and on to Highway 20. 9 hours later we pulled in to Lewisville. We went straight to dinner at Red, Hot & Blues, a Bar B Que Restaurent. It is more of a tradition when we get in to town that we meet Pat & Ericka (with Kids) and Greg at this Restaurant. We were EXHAUSTED, but it was so good to see them all.

Little Peanut sits in his car seat, right behind Grammy. He is a Good Traveler UNTIL he gets hungry, then you BETTER have his bottle and food ready! The helmet is for the shape of his head. The back of his head was a bit flattened from laying so much on his back. The helmet helps shape the head, as long as he is young. It IS getting better. Grampy would reach over while driving, and touch him and talk to him. Little Peanut would turn toward Grampy as far as he could, and just smile and smile!!!

Claudia did pretty good on the trip. The car is very comfortable. Claudia passed the time away sleeping… a drug induced sleep. Her pain management doctor had given her three new prescriptions to help the healing of her surgery… ALL of them had the warning that it will make you drowsy. THAT was an understatement. She was sooooo out of it, she fell asleep in the middle of eating chicken nuggets in the car. I had to keep calling out, “Claudia, wake up. You are about to spill your dipping sauce.” Sometimes she would hold the nugget halfway to her mouth and fall asleep. It was sooooo funny. She would get a little irritated that I keep waking her… “I’m awake, I’m awake,” she would say. YEAH, RIGHT!!! That is why the Sweet & Sour Sauce has dumped over on your tray in your lap, with your hand on the nugget in the midst of it all, and your eyes were closed. Yep. NOT ASLEEP!!! Yeah, Right!!! She slept practically from the time we got on Highway 85 to the time we pulled in to the hotel in Jackson. That was good though. She NEEDED the rest. I’ll see if I have a picture I sneaked and took. I will NOT be popular with her, but you HAVE to see this

This gives a little perspective of how we were packed in the car. Jonathan sat right behind Pat, and Mandy is seated right behind him. Little Peanut is behind Claudia, and Little Possum is behind him. J is addicted to "Angry Birds", and played it incessantly. I don't get it, but of course, I just am not a game player.

We have been “going” non stop since we arrived at Pat & Ericka’s. We got in Saturday evening. I went to church with Pat & Ericka, Mandy, J & Grand Babies Sunday morning. Claudia stayed home and recuperated. I had a few equipment related things to pick up at Fry’s, so Pat and I headed to the store before it closed in order to make the purchases. The evening was spent putting the equipment together.

The next morning Claudia, myself, Mandy, J and grand babies had to hurry & get to Mom & Dad’s house in Arlington. That was quite the fete, as construction was STILL taking place in Grapevine on the MAJOR roads and intersections there. It wouldn’t be so bad, EXCEPT that the men have been playing in the dirt theer for YEARS, and roads are STILL torn up after years of work. I RARELY get lost, as I usually have a keen “driving sense”. I was sooooo lost and finally realized things didn’t look right. At that time I resorted to turning on Karen (our GPS unit), and she guided us safely through the maze and on to Mom & Dad’s. We were only about an hour and a half late.

I’m going to end here for the night, and I will post this as a beginning. I’m about to fall asleep. It is 2:41 am here in the Dallas area. I’ll write more later, and add some pics.

Claudia snapped this picture. I LOVE driving and seeing the countryside. We took what we call the "Southern Route": through Charlotte on 85, down to Atlanta, then on to Texas on Highway 20. I made sure on Day 1 to wear my "World's Greatest Grampa" shirt, for Claudia and I were going to see our babies & Grand babies!

OK, I'm going to get in trouble for including this picture. This is one of the more flattering "sleep" pictures of Claudia. She would go from this pose to where her head was tipped back, mouth open, deeply asleep. If there were ANY flies in the car (which thankfully there weren't), they would have a grand time flying in and out of her open mouth. NOTICE the cup of soda in her hands that is about to spill. "Claudia, wake up. You are about to spill your drink." "I'm not asleep, Pat." YEAH, RIGHT!!!! You just enjoy sitting in that seat watching the road with your head tipped back and mouth open.

We were going to spend the night in Meridian, Mississippi, but all the hotels were filled. Don't know why. So we drove on into the early morning hours, on to Jackson, MS. About 3:30 am we pulled into our hotel, unloaded 3/4 of the car for a 7 hour rest before we would be back on the road, again. Little Possum & Little Peanut slept on the floor between our beds, because the hotel could not find a rollaway or a crib. They slept on the comforter from one of the beds, and were very comfortable.

Little Possum was up early and ready to go. Here she is posing for me. Our room was half way down the hall on the left. We were on kind of a bridge overlooking the lobby of the hotel.

Here, we were leaving Vicksburg, MS on Highway 20. The bridge crosses the Mighty Mississippi River, where Louisiana waits for us on the other side. About 6 more hours and we will be with Pat, Ericka and our Grand Babies in Lewisville, TX.Are we THERE, yet? Little Possum is getting tired, although she is a GREAT traveler. She often goes places with Grammy & Grampy. J has traded places with Mandy, who now sits right behind me (Pat).

Oh, I have had Lunch, and I am HAPPY. What else do I need. I have had Lunch, and I have my pet giraffe with me. I am content. Little Peanut really is a good traveller.

Well, the drone of the road as we passed the miles away, was a bit much for Little Possum. Overwhelmed by the hours in her seat, she succumbs to sleepiness and drifts off to dream of her cousins.

Well, I am REALLY going to be in trouble here. Grammy still feels the effects of the road, and she takes her natural pose on this trip: SLEEP! They are ALL startled when I give a BIG yawn and sigh, and say, "I needed that nap!" I'm the only one supposed to be awake, as we make progress toward Texas.

As I write this, it is 1:15 am. I’m sitting in a, well, comfortable is NOT the word, but at least it isn’t a folding, chair here in

This was Friday not long after the surgery. Little did we know we were going to have a long, long, LONG night ahead of us, as cramping would set in to her legs, arms and back. I stayed the night in the hospital room, and I rubbed and I rubbed and I rubbed, as she would BEG me, "Please, my legs. Please my arms. Please my back."

Claudia’s hospital room. I was too lonesome for her, so I traveled the hour to the hospital after taking Sandy to his apartment after our Wally World trip. I am soooooo tired. I have been up since 4 am. Claudia is resting well over in her hospital bed, well, as good as one can rest in a hospital bed.

Well, we just seem to be the “Dynamic Surgery Duo”. First, I have surprise Cancer surgery on my face (The Scar probably improves my looks ). Then, we are surprised by the Emergency nature of Claudia’s surgery.

We had known for awhile that Claudia was having problems with her implanted Pain Reservoir. It has been very painful, and it seemed to be pushing out of her body. Claudia finally made and appointment with her new Pain Management clinic, and we got in on Tuesday.

There we were, two grand kids in tow, heading an hour away to Winston-Salem, to Carolina Pain Institute. When we got there Claudia headed up to the third floor, and I stayed behind with Little Possum and Little Peanut. Claudia no more than got in the elevator than Little Peanut started crying. He really is a very GOOD baby, but when he is ready for a bottle, he will readily let you know… in NO uncertain circumstances. Thank goodness Mandy & Jonathan had done a good job packing the diaper bag. There were two bottles of water, and two pouches of formula. I mixed one pouch of formula with one bottle (really hard to figure out… sigh), shook it well, and PLUGGED THE HOLE!!! Oh come on… Don’t sit there and act like you don’t know what on earth I am talking about. Funny, when the bottle was inserted, he magically stopped crying, and the world was a

OK. Don't have a cow. I got Claudia's permission. High? Like on Percocet? You mean when I asked her if I could post this? Uhhhh... She said YES. Well she mumbled it. Well, maybe it was about the question, "Do you want me to rub your legs.." Actually, the scar looks very good. There are two layers below that have stitches. The upper layer you see, was glued. The other area just above it to the right is where the skin was necrotic, and he snipped it and stitched it.

happy place, again.

Everything was GRAND, all were happy…. for the first 5 minutes until Little Possum said, “I’m Bored”. I HATE THOSE WORDS. I don’t know where on earth she learned them. She doesn’t even know the MEANING of BORED. HEY KIDDOE… I USED TO WALK UPHILL BOTH WAYS TO SCHOOL IN HIP DEEP SNOW WITH FLIP FLOPS ON. MY PARENTS WERE TOO POOR TO AFFORD SHOES. THE SHOES WE HAD, HAD HOLES IN THE BOTTOM, AND WE WOULD STICK IN CARDBOARD TO FILL IN THE SOLE. OUR SCHOOL LUNCH CONSISTED OF A MAYONNAISE SANDWICH BECAUSE WE COULDN’T AFFORD MEAT OR CHEESE. WE DIDN’T HAVE TOYS, SO WE MADE GAMES OUT OF THE ROCKS IN OUR YARD. WE USED TO HAVE TO CARRY WATER IN FROM THE WELL, AND WHEN WE HAD TO GO TO THE BATHROOM, WE HAD TO BUNDLE UP AND TRUDGE THROUGH THE SHOULDER HIGH SNOW TO THE OUTHOUSE OUT BY THE BARN.

Ok… maybe that was just an episode of “Little House On The Prairie”, but that is what I WANTED to tell her.

BORED… INDEED!!!

These kids these days don’t know the meaning of the word.

So, I did what ANY Grand Parent would do when Boredom was the word being used by an ungrateful child, “Hey Little Possum, you want a snack?”

OK, so I am a softee. Little Possum melts my heart, as do ALL our grand babies.

She readily accepted the snack… after saying THREE TIMES, “I don’t like that.”

“YOU WANT TO KNOW WHAT ‘DON’T LIKE’ IS LIKE? WE USED TO HAVE TO GO HUNT OUR FOOD AND SKIN IT

This is my little area here in the hospital room. I'm laying my computer on the chair in front of me, or on my legs, as I rest my feet on the chair. Claudia is just to my left. I jerked awake all night listening for her to move.

SO WE COULD USE THE HYDE FOR WARMTH, THEN WE WOULD COOK THE MEAT OVER A FIRE WE STARTED BY RUBBING TWO STICKS TOGETHER……..

Honestly, they really were good babies. Honest. They had the most fun when we got out the stroller and went walking and riding… round and round and ROUND the building. We went up to the 3rd floor waiting room where Claudia was back with the doctor.

I found out later that Claudia was the object of “Show and Tell” back in the clinic offices. No one had EVER seen one of these reservoirs being rejected by the body, and actually pushing it out. Part of the silver of the Titanium reservoir was showing, and the skin was black and necrotized. It was unknown what was causing this, but the need for surgery was immediate… the sooner, the better.

Pre-op was scheduled for Thursday, and the actual surgery was scheduled for Friday morning.

Luckily, Pre-op was scheduled for 12 Noon, giving us a little bit of rest the night before. There we were with two grand babies in tow, again. We tried taking them up to the Pre-op room, but that proved to be an unwise choice. Little Possum started her ballet in the middle of the floor, and Little Peanut was quickly ramping up to “Bottle Pitch”. Thank goodness for a diaper bag with the bottle of water and pouches of formula… which I quickly put together. WHEW… one disaster averted.

A different look at my little work area where I answered e-mail and posted this blog with pics. Claudia is situated just to the right of the picture. They have a wireless internet connection her that is very, very fast. Makes me jealous we don't have something THIS fast at the office and studio, as well as home.

But, as young kids do, they got restless.

WHAT WAS THAT I HEARD???

WAS THAT THE “B” WORD???

BORED?

I’LL TELL YOU WHAT BORED IS… Oh, give it up. Hey, would you two like to go for a ride in the stroller around the parking lot?

THREE HOURS.

That is how long the Pre-op lasted.

THREE H-O-U-R-S!!!!!

The SURGERY didn’t take THAT long…

Oh, well. We had fun walking the parking lot, which put Little Peanut to sleep. Little Possum and I looked for cars with Christian Fish on the back. It was a fun time to teach her about the Christian Fish, and let her know that the people who are in those cars love Jesus. She got wise to what I was doing after the third time seeing the SAME Christian Fish on the same car. OK, time to alter the route.

WOW… were we HAPPY to see Grammy come out through those double doors. Like ANY good Grampy, I saved the poopy diaper for her to tend to… BUT, I DID make a good level place in the car for her to complete the Mission!!!

We were up at 4 am and on the road by about 5 am. We go to the hospital a few minutes after 6 am, and they took Claudia

This is Claudia deep into the early morning hours, @ 1 am. The Percocet has lulled her to sleep for awhile, but she would soon awaken with severe cramping.

right away to Pre-Op…. WAIT, WHERE HAVE I HEARD THOSE WORDS. I could see her going through ANOTHER three hour ordeal… but, no, they actually prepped her for surgery, putting on her one of those cute gowns that fit ANYONE, accompanied by plenty of fresh air in the rear.

About 7:30 they rolled her in and Dr. Gilmore came out to me to explain the procedure. We LOVE this man, who has a WONDERFUL bedside manner, and friendly disposition. He said the surgery should take about an hour.

Sure enough, about an hour later he showed up to talk to me. He said the surgery went really well. He moved the reservoir down and slightly toward the center of her abdomen, imbedding it deeper, and he cut away the necrotic skin and stitched it up nicely. He said Claudia was resting in Post Op, and he wanted to keep her overnight, as he wanted her to continue the IV fluids.

It was about an hour, and Claudia was taken to her room on the second floor of Forsythe Medical Park in Winston-Salem. She was still groggy from the anesthesia, and she was restless. As the anesthesia wore off, the PAIN set in, and she was in EXTREME pain. Claudia has used to nurses asking her to give a Pain Number between 1 and 10. I have marveled as she ALWAYS gave a number that was below the threshold of what she exhibited to me. When I heard her tell THIS nurse the number was a 9, I KNEW she was in EXTREME PAIN!!! A pain pill could not come too soon.

As the clock reads, 12:37 am. It was actually dark in the room. Only the flash illumined the area. Vicki was her nurse, and the desired outcome for the surgery, "Pain Control". That wasn't happening Friday Night.

It seemed like an ETERNITY, yet it was probably only a few minutes. The little cup with that Elixir of Relief contained therein… that Precious Little White Object that would make her forget her PAIN!!! Claudia cannot take pills with liquid. She has to have a piece of bread or a cracker, so her vegeburger, which she was served for lunch, gave the vehicle which would guide that HAPPY PILL to its destination.

About 30 minutes later she laid her head down and slept. I was so glad she was now somewhere beyond some of the pain. I stayed until about 2:30 pm, gave her a kiss on the head and slipped out the door. I knew she would be sleeping, and I needed to get to the studio, and after the program, I needed to take Sandy for his weekly jaunt to Wally World. About 10:30 I headed back to Winston-Salem, arriving at the hospital at 11:30. I quietly entered her room, kissed her on her cheek, whispered “I Love You” in her ear, and prepared MY little nest there in the room.

It is NOW, 3:00 am. The Nurse has been in a couple times to help Claudia to the bathroom. She seems much better than this afternoon, but still in extreme pain. I imagine they gave her something to help her sleep. I’m in the chair beside her, listening to her breathe, as the machines “click, click click” around her. I better get some sleep, as the doctor will be in, in the morning to evaluate her progress. I am hoping they keep her another day, as she needs the rest and care a nursing staff can give her. Regardless, I’ll be here by her side, where I need to be. She is sooooooo precious to me, and the love of my life!!!

I hear movement over in her direction. She is getting restless and has asked me for some water. I asked her if she needed another “Happy Pill”. I went to the nurses station and made the request. Relief is just a swallow away…

I’ll post this now, and get some pictures (yes a took a few when she wasn’t looking) up in the morning.

I thought we had more blogs than this after the first of the year. Perhaps I am thinking of the Monthly Letters I have written

You can see the area of concern and the little spots that Claudia and I thought were Age Spots. The red spot in the center is where Todd took the biopsy. GREAT call on his part.

for PBN, or the other blog with which I’m half way finished. Sandy was working on the pages, and I just KNEW we lost one, but probably not.

Anyway….

I wanted to get this up here quickly, as the bandage is still on my face. The wound was left open in case Todd needed to do a little more cleaning up around the edges. I’ll find out this Thursday, when he cleans it up and closes it. I’m REALLY ready to get this bandage off my face. You should see the people trying NOT to look at it

After the surgery, the bandage was to stay on my face for 48 hours, then for the next week it was to be changed every day. Mandy did that for me. She was GREAT.

On the left is Janice, the Medical Assistant, and on the right is Dr. Todd Williams, the Dermatologist. Janice was very good at preparing the area for Todd to do the Surgery. I felt NOTHING, except the needle going in to numb it. Some of the pics I will display were actually taken by Todd, who stopped the surgery to help you see better what was taking place. Todd is a BELIEVER IN YESHUA, and lives it around his patients. He puts us all at ease with his great patient care.

The melanoma was almost found by “accident”, although WE know Jesus was really the one pointing it out. Todd (The Dermatologist) had checked me over and used liquid nitrogen on some little trouble spots, and he was about to leave the room. Just as an after thought I pointed between my left eye and left ear and said, “What is this… and DON’T tell me it is Age Spots.” Really, they looked like age spots, but I thought I would ask him, KNOWING he would say… “Oh, those are just age spots.” BUT, he didn’t. He stopped and said, “How did I miss that? I think we need to take a biopsy of that.” Sure enough, the lab confirmed it was Melanoma which was spreading.

Tell me THAT wasn’t Jesus that prompted that???!!!

Well, the pictures will tell the story.

Here Janice continues numbing the area. You can see the numbing agent building up in the area. Janice was very good, trying hard not to cause pain.

Here you can see Janice's finished product. She had nicely prepared the area for the surgery, making sure I would feel NOTHING!

Todd begins the process of cutting around the edges of the melanoma. Believe it or not, I am taking these pictures.

Two sides and the bottom have now been cut, and Todd is carefully pulling up the flap, as Janice catches any blood that tries to escape. I am feeling nothing but a little pulling.

Todd has just about finished removing the Melanoma. He asked me if I wanted a better picture of it, and of course I handed him the camera. He asked another nurse to come hold the flap of skin for him, and as Janice kept the blood at bay, he snapped this picture.

The flap of skin is gone. Janice keeps the blood from running down my face as Todd snaps the picture. Quite a large area, but he thinks he got it all. We will see on Thursday.

Smoke Rising. Flesh burning. Todd begins the job of cutting off the bleeding by cauterizing the area. Yes, I'm actually taking the picture.

It resembles, and actually is the size, of a pepperoni. Todd has done a great job of cauterizing the area, and Janice cleaned it up quite nicely.

This is about 4 days later. Janice's bandages have made way for Mandy's. Mandy has done a great job of keeping the area clean, dry and covered.

I write this while I am on my back in bed. I have been here a good 2 days. I’m not (oops, Little Possum just opened the

A few days before Christmas Claudia and I, Mandy, Little Possum & Little Peanut were doing a little quick shopping at Asheboro's attempt at a mall. We entered through Sears, and we had to walk by the little girl's dresses. They were targeted at Grandparents, as they were marked down over 60%. It wasn't fair. How could a Grandparent pass by such cute dresses, especially with our Granddaughter in tow. It was so cute watching Little Possum twirl around and around in this Christmas Dress.

bedroom door to show Grammy her headband in her hair. STAY AWAY!!!) sure what hit me. It wasn’t something that Little Possum give us this time, as she is feeling good. I don’t know if it is sheer EXHAUSTION, or if the Flu is in the mix. I DO know that Claudia and I were getting very little sleep right before Christmas, and that extended right through Christmas. To tell you why I think it might be something else mixed in, I need to back up a bit.

Christmas Eve we did our traditional items: went to Target for last minute shopping, eat out at a fast food place, then go to a movie. This Christmas Eve it was the new Muppet Movie. All of us went, including Mandy, Jonathan, Little Possum & Little Peanut. I was sitting next to Claudia, nodding off to sleep, when all of a sudden I hear, “WAKE UP, GRAMPY. YOU CAN’T GO TO SLEEP!” Yep, I had been caught by the head of the Sleep Police, Little Possum. How DARE I fall asleep in HER movie. I tried to be more discrete after that.

It was a cute movie, but I couldn’t quit thinking about all the wrapping Claudia and I still had to do at the office. Claudia had purchased many things off ebay, and we were going to wrap each one. Little Possum LOVES to open gifts. Well, I knew it was getting late, and I was concerned Claudia and I would be at the office all night.

The movie was finally over about 9:15pm and we got back to Asheboro about 9:45 and headed straight to the Office. We wrapped gifts all night, and we finally got home about 7am. Every little book. Every little soap. Wrap, wrap, wrap… whew! All night long….

At about 10:30 the Sleep Police made her entrance. “Get up Grammy & Grampy. I want to open my presents, and Mommy & Daddy won’t let me open them until you

Little Peanut LOVES wearing Grampy's hats. Here he is happy to be with mamma. Christmas? What is Christmas. He is oblivious. He just wants his bottle, and he wants it NOW!!!

get in there.” What is that VOICE??? I have heard it before. Out of the haze and fog of my dreams I heard this pleading little voice… “Grammmmmmmmmy. Grammmmmmmpy…” The HEAD of the Sleep Police, Little Possum.

I was positioned to defy the Sleep Police and take the results, but I was NOT ready to take on Grammy. OK, I’m getting out of bed. I’m doing it…. “NO, Grammmmmpy. Come on. Don’t put the covers over you. Get out of BED!!!”

“OK, OK… I”m coming”, as I try and rub the sleep our of my eyes, say goodbye to my dreams (they weren’t any good, anyway), then try and “feel” for my glasses by my bed.

I stumble out of bed, grab my camera and head cautiously for the living room… OH WAIT… I still have my Breathe Rite Nose Stip on

We have a tradition which goes back to the first year we moved to North Carolina: We go see the lights in Tanglewood, on the west side of Winston-Salem on Hwy 40. It is a little over an hour from home, but well worth the drive. This is at the entrance gate, and you can see the cars lined up. Some years we have had to wait up to 2 hours to get in, but we turn on the radio, listen to Christmas Music, leave the heater on and just enjoy watching the lights in the distance. Little Possum LOVES the lights, and has been coming ever since she was 3 months old.

(Can’t go to sleep without that!)… snort, sniff, cough… OUCH… off it comes… RIPPPPPPPPP!

I don’t know how I was able to do it, but I kept my eyes open long enough to snap a few Christmas pictures, as Little Possum tore into her gifts. After about an hour and a half, things slowed down a bit. We decided to have lunch in a couple hours, so Jonathan went in to preheat the oven before cooking the Turkey Roast roll we got at Walmart. Before it was all cooked I would need to go pick up Sandy, who was going to have lunch with us.

DING… the bell on the oven was letting us know the oven was ready for the Turkey Roll. Claudia and I headed for a nap, knowing when we got up, the Turkey would be done, and we could all sit down to a nice dinner. Jonathan went in to reset the timer and set the temp to cook the Turkey. Ahhhhh, can’t wait to smell that Turkey cooking. Off to bed we go…

About an hour and a half later Claudia and I struggle out of bed once again to watch Little Possum open a few more gifts before we get ready to eat. As I passed the oven, I noticed I felt no heat coming

You think THAT is cold? A couple years ago Patrick & Ericka visited and they were able to go to Tanglewood with us. They were in one car with Little Beeb, Mandy & J were in another car with Little Possum and Claudia and I were in our car. It was COLD as we waited 2 hours to get in the entrance. A heavy snowfall was on the ground. We got bored, got out in the dark and had a snowball fight... cars ahead of us and cars behind us. The snow was a bit icy. Patrick shot a couple snowball shots at me but missed, as I ducked behind my car. I scooped some snow and formed a ball. As Patrick stuck his head up above the hood of his car, I let go with a missile that caught him right behind his right ear. My heart went into my throat, as I saw Patrick fall. He waited a second, then popped back up. It is NOT NICE to give your Dad a Heart Attack.

from it. I even opened it, with the Turkey inside, and felt inside. It had as much heat as a warm summer day. “Strange” I thought, but as much as I know about cooking, I surmized this was some new type of cooking for this Turkey. I WAS READY FOR LUNCH!!! I settled in to the living room, watching Little Possum, taking some pictures and talking with Grammy & Mandy.

Jonathan slowly made his way in to the room. He was not happy, as a matter of fact, he not only was not smiling, he was apologizing. FOR WHAT???

“I’m sooooo sorry. It didn’t cook.”

“WHAT? WHAT ARE YOU SAYING???”

“I reset the timer on the oven, but I didn’t reset the heat,” Jonathan offered up.

“What??? What does this mean? Why didn’t I smell the luscious odor of Turkey wafting through from the Kitchen?”

“I didn’t turn on the oven when I reset the timer. I’m sooooo sorry.” Jonathan was about in tears.

Here Little Possum is sitting on "her seat" for viewing Christmas Lights, right between Grammy & Grampy. She graduated from there to hanging her head out Grammy's window, to driving while sitting on Grampy's lap. She was having a GREAT Time!!!

WAIT… that Turkey has been sitting in a lukewarm oven for 2 1/2 hours? In my mind I could see Ralphie, in the Christmas Classic “A Christmas Story”, “shooting his eye out” with that Red Rider BB gun. I saw the dogs running through the house, grabbing the turkey and heading out the back door. I heard the mother crying and the father barking, “^&%#%^ ^&&*& (*&^& $#@!* $#@**”. In the next scene, as thoughts flashed through my mind at the speed of light, I saw Ralphie & his family seated at the table of that Chinese Restaurant on that Christmas afternoon, as the Chinese waiters lined up singing, “Jinger Berrs. Jinger Berrs. Jinger Arr the wayyyyyy.”

NO, THIS WAS NOT HAPPENING TO US. YOU ARE KIDDING,

As always, the lights were spectacular, and everyone enjoyed them. Little Possum kept excitedly saying, "I remember that from last year." We were listening to Christmas Music on the radio all the way through. The light trip took about 30 - 45 minutes.

RIGHT, JONATHAN?

But, the look on his face said it was all TRUE….

Claudia tried to help by saying, “I think it will be alright. It started out frozen. It has only been in there 2 1/2 hours.”

WHAT???? It was in a LUKEWARM oven, as if it had been out in the warm sunlight of a summer afternoon day… FOR 2 1/2 HOURS!!!!

I wasn’t about to TOUCH that Turkey. I have had bad Turkey. I threw up so much, my stomach started cramping. I couldn’t stop the cramping, and I ended up in the Emergency Room. I was injected with some WONDERFUL miracle drug that finally ended all the misery. I could have died and felt better. NOPE, I WAS NOT ABOUT

About 80% the way through we stopped at the little barn where there were locally made gifts, a concession stand and a fire pit for roasting marshmallows. Here J & Claudia are roasting some marshmallows. Jonathan can roast a marshmallow, but he can't cook a turkey... sigh ... He is a good son in law, though.

TO TOUCH THAT TURKEY.

We swung by and picked up Sandy. We had decided to spend our Christmas lunch with Shelley & Robin, the cook and waitress at the local Waffle House in Asheboro. Scenes from “The Santa Clause” hung in the air as Scott Calvin sits with his son at the local Denneys, giving their order to Judy, because their Turkey had burnt in the oven.

But, we were making the best of it. We were surprised several people were there, people that looked as if they were passing through, or were just getting off their Christmas evening shift at work. We brought our gifts in, played some Christmas tunes on the Juke Box as we celebrated Christmas together at the Waffle House counter.

This is our little dining room. Claudia decorated the table so pretty. Of course we have the menorah, a reminder of Chanukah.

THIS is where I am SURE I picked up the other half of my upset tummy on December 26. I was sick for the next 3 days, not daring nor having the strength to get out of bed.

Merry Christmas…. sigh ….

We will NEVER forget THIS one.

Little Possum, who was wearing the Princess Costume complete with tiara Grammy and Grampy had given her, opened Uncle Sandy’s gift, and as the Christmas Tunes floated in the air of the Little Waffle House On The Corner, she danced and twirled around the checkered floor. She had never had soooo much fun.

Another Menorah on a little shelf in our Living Room, giving honor to Claudia's, the kids and the grandkids ancestors, and to their (and our) God!

Our fireplace and mantel at Christmas. WAIT... what on earth is that plastic bag doing hanging there???

This is our entryway, seen as you come in our front door, sitting on the little bookcase. Claudia did a beautiful job decorating with the little we had.

Here is Little Possum in one of the little Princess costumes Grammy & Grampy got her, complete with Tiara.

Here is Jonathan playing with Little Peanut, as the Turkey Roast sits in a Lukewarm oven. In 2 hours we will find out Jonathan didn't turn on the oven. He was NOT my favorite person that day...

Here we are a few hours later at Waffle House... FOR CHRISTMAS DINNER!!! ... sigh ... Notice, Sandy is there with us. We brought our gifts and opened them with Sandy.

Eating at Waffle House for Christmas Dinner? SO WHAT!!! This is Little Possum's FAVORITE Restaurant, and she sees NO problems at all. She danced around the floor the the Christmas Tunes played on the Juke Box. Here she is in another little Princess Costume Grammy & Grampy got her. I think I was here STILL letting Jonathan know how much I REALLY would rather be eating Turkey at my own home... sigh ...

Here, Little Possum is talking with "Miss Shelley", our cook. They are buddies, as LP comes to Waffle House quite often, and has a GREAT time each time she comes. Behind them is Robin, our waitress. I think I was here STILL talking with J about how much I would have rather eaten MY Turkey at MY Home...

Shells & El (Shelly & Elmer) live on Vancouver Island in British Columbia,

Shelly with friend, on Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada

Canada. They are long time listeners of PBN, and always have an encouraging word to say to Claudia and me.

Shells wrote the following. It touched my heart, and I wanted to share it with you. I got their permission, and therefore I have included it below for your encouragement. I rarely include someone else’s words or thoughts, but thought you would see something in this that touch YOU, as well:

Elmer, Shelly's husband and her biggest cheerleader, other than Claudia and Pat.

Okay just bear with me for a bit…. the following goes with what you were taking about on the air one day… at least 1 yr ago or so.

And we were emailing back & forth about it:

~Flying the Flag of the King… over our hearts~

I said like having a T-shirt with a flag over the heart and underneath it saying: “THE KING IS IN RESIDENCE”

Remember anything about that?

Well, anyway, as I was sitting down to have a devotional time today…. to

Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada. Some people have to "suffer" for the Gospel

begin with, I had an issue on my heart… something bugging me.

It came to me what the Lord has been SOOO putting on my heart… instructing me in….. That if I’m fretting or down about something then I’m not receiving & focusing on His LOVE. … not consciously living in His LOVE for me….  who He really is.

The Royal Standard used in Scotland flying above the Palace of Holyroodhouse. The flag ONLY flies when the sovereign is in Residence.

Well, First of all, one morning a few weeks ago… I got the following word from the Lord…. the very second I woke up.  I had not had time to think even one thought myself yet:

“Receive My LOVE, receive My conquering power.  Most people don’t receive My LOVE, so they don’t receive My conquering power.  Receive My LOVE, and you will receive My conquering power.”

Then that night when unable to sleep at all… and not wanting to start to get upset or to start to worry about coping the next day with possibly no sleep (& being unwell also), I said to Him, “Holy Spirit please help me.”  Immediately this came from Him:

“We are more than conquerors through Him Who LOVED us.”

He’s been ministering to my heart so much lately… that fact that He IS LOVE.   To Rest in His love, Live in His love….. for He IS Love & He is perfect Love.  There is no fear in love…. perfect love casts out all fear.

Also that love is an action, love does…  He who IS LOVE continually works on our behalf… is always active on our behalf.  His love does for us…. & does it perfectly.

Then a couple weeks ago I got this too… again the very second I woke up: “Faithful is He who is calling you & He will do it.”  (1 Thes 5:24)

So now today….. with how I was sort of fretting & down about a circumstance…. He brought it all to my remembrance again: In receiving & focusing on His love & Him being LOVE – we conquer…. We conquer in that we no longer fear, worry, fret, strive….. Because we gain His peace, joy & rest – knowing HE – Then One Who is LOVE is taking care of all our needs.  We then can go about our day in peace, joy & rest & love… living in the moment with Him… living in His Love.

Now to Flying The King’s Flag…
Here is the devotional that I just read in my devotions today:

The flag at Windsor Castle flown half mast following the attacks on the U.S. September 11, 2001.

“Fly The Flag

In your life and on your home you have unfurled the flag of My Kingship.  Keep that flag flying.

Depression, disobedience, and want of faith, these are the half-masts of My Kingdom’s flag.

Full and free, above earth’s fogs and smokes, keep My flag flying high.

“The King is there, they serve the King,” should be upon the lips and in the hearts of all who see it.  Those who know you must, too, join those who fly My Flag.”

My kids LOVED this song as they were growing up. I think it is a GREAT song for us adults, too.

My next thoughts were: okay what’s His flag?  It’s in SOS 2:4  “HIS BANNER (FLAG) OVER ME IS LOVE”

His Flag in our lives:  “JESUS IS LOVE”   Lets not fly His flag at half-mast in our day, in our home, in our life. …by being down, depressed, disobedient, lacking faith…..  worrying….   The opposite from receiving & resting, living in His love (which is flying His flag HIGH up in our lives!)

…..Then in my next devotional today was the scripture Luke 10: 38-42  Mary & Martha story.  I was like WOW…. this totally goes:  Mary was flying Jesus’ Flag high… by focusing on Him, His love & loving Him.   But Martha right then was not… by her fretting, busyness…. concerns… distractions….

From doing a wee bit of studying on, “His banner over me is love.”  (SOS 2:4)…

I found out that a banner also leads.  So in light of that:His leadership over us is love.  He leads us with & in His love.  His love is a leading love.  He leads us on our life journey with His love.  He leads us to know Him & His love (God islove) more & more, greater, deeper…. And to love Him with all our heart, mind & strength… And to love our neighbor as ourself (which is with His love – in knowing His love for us).

This is really how we fly His banner (flag) high, full & free in our life. – By

Jesus returning to get His Bride!!!

truly living in His LOVE for us – more & more, day by day, year by year.  It will affect all areas of our life, making us more & more like Jesus.   Slowly transforms us into who He created us to be.  He is, & always will be, faithful to lead us in this way.

“Faithful is He Who is calling you & He will do it.” (1 Thes 5:24);  “I am certain that God, Who began the good work within you, will continue His work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.”  (Phil 1:6 NLT)

From studying & meditating on the spiritual interpretations of Song of Solomon, and Hosea, etc… I’m understanding more & more about being Jesus’ Bride… And that we are Jesus’ inheritance.  A gift given to Him from Abba Daddy.  And Jesus is our inheritance.  He wants His Bride & His Bride wants Him.  He is so jealous over His Bride… to have all of her (every part of our life & who we are)  We (Jesus & us) desire a very close love-relationship.  Intimacy… for eternity.  And we shall have it!  That flag – BANNER OF LOVE – will be flying high & free for all eternity!  :o)  Hallelujah!!!

Anyway…. That’s about it…. I hope I’ve made sense.

I’ll close with this quote:  “When you can’t see His hand, trust His heart.”  …… and I’ll add this to it:  “and fly Jesus’ flag high in your life.”

 Just practicing, practicing, practicing… like you 2 are! 

Love & prayers & blessings,

~Shells~