Ken Is In The Hospital Again!!

Ken is in the hospital again in Muskogee Regional with a blood clot in his left lung!! Thursday evening he began coughing and having severe pain in his chest. My son-in-law, Mark, was here when this all happened and he & Jeffrey helped me get Ken in the car to take to the hospital. He seemed to be having problems in his lung and we thought he might have pneumonia. I started driving toward Muskogee and got almost to Eufaula and the pain in Ken's chest was so severe that he was screaming in pain and I thought he was having a heart attack. I put on my flashers and drove through Eufaula extremely fast passing everyone in the way and got him to the Eufaula Hospital. They determined he was not having a heart attack but knew something was definitely going on. The nitro they gave him did no good so they said they needed to send him to Muskogee if they had a bed in ICU. I am a member of Air Evac and told them that I wanted Ken lift-flighted by helicopter (which Mark had already alerted Air Evac). Ken had his first ride in a helicopter ambulance. The paramedics were wonderful and Ken said that ride was so much better than the ones he had had to take by ground ambulance.

Ken is still in ICU and will remain there through the weekend. We didn't find out until last night at 6:30 what was wrong with him. They pain has subsided somewhat, but he is still in pain when he takes a deep breath or coughs. They have him on blood thinners to dissolve the clot. He had all kinds of test taken all night Thursday night and all day yesterday. I will find out the results of the cat scans, etc. today I hope.

After being up all night Thursday night (except for sleeping about three hours in my car and many times dozing off in a straight-backed chair in his hospital room) I was exhausted and came home last night to get some sleep. I slept for about 4 hours and then become wide awake so thought I would update everyone on Ken's condition. Please keep him in your prayers and he desperately needs them. Thank you so much. God bless you all.

Mary Ellen

P.S. I received a wonderful praise report yesterday on my voice mail from my friend, Barbara, that I had requested prayer for concerning cervical cancer. Praise God that her test came back negative for cancer. Thank you, Lord for answered prayer!

Also, I received a call from my granddaughter, Andrea, yesterday morning with the announcement that Ken and I were going to become great grandparents for the first time in about 7-1/2 months! That means Karen will be a grandmother. Oh my goodness, are we old enough to be great grandparents?!? Probably not, but we're going to be and are excited!

He's Looking Good!

This photo was taken last Wednesday night after church. We celebrated a surprise birthday party for a member of our church, Al, who turned 77 years old on 07/17/07.

Ken really looks good doesn't he? He has gained back about 8 pounds and the color in his face is good. God is so faithful to our prayers!!

Friday Ken had his 9th Poly-MVA treatment. This morning Ken and Jeffrey went to a men's prayer breakfast at our church. They had a good time and then came home and started working on the hot water line to our bathroom sink that needs fixed. Ken is teaching Jeffrey how to do some plumbing!

Tomorrow we will be going to church for Sunday morning service and then for another Poly treatment on Monday. More later . . .

He's Getting Better & Better

What a miracle! Ken is doing so very well. Sunday he went to church and after church he had Jeffrey drive him over to see H.R. (a man from our church) that had just gotten out of the hospital. Then they went to the Muskogee VA. No, not to be admitted, but to see Dale (another man from our church) who is in the VA Hospital. Ken & Jeffrey prayed for the men and Ken was so excited when he got home that he was able to go visit them and pray for them.

On Monday & Wednesday Ken had his 7th and 8th Poly-MVA treatments. Instead of going home to take a nap after his treatment on Wednesday, he had Jeffrey bring him straight up to the church (early) for Wednesday night service. It is still amazing what God is doing! I praise Him every day for his goodness.

We want to thank everyone for all of the emails of encouragement and well-wishes. Also, thank you again for your prayers for Ken and Rhonda (my niece).

Here is two emails from Retha about Rhonda:

July 16th
Praise the Lord; Rhonda was able to come home from the hospital today. She can once again take in liquids without them coming back up, so I guess the cancer was shrunk by the chemo. She is scheduled for surgery to extract the cancer on Tuesday of next week.
Thanks for your prayers,
Retha

July 17th
Rhonda just called me and told me she ate some tuna with mayo on it and kept it down. WOW!
Retha

Please keep Rhonda and Ken in your prayers--YOUR PRAYERS ARE WORKING!!!

Also, please prayer for a beautiful young friend of mine and my "adopted" daughter, Barbara Williams, who I just had some tests done regarding cervical cancer. We're believing God for a good report for Barbara!!

Special Prayer Request

This is not an update about Ken, but about my niece, Rhonda. Rhonda is in her 40's and has a small child. She desperately needs our prayers and we know God is able to touch Rhonda. This is the email I received from my sister, Retha, Rhonda's mother:

Rhonda has been on a liquid diet for a while now; she can't swallow food. Last night she couldn't keep liquids down and this morning nothing stayed down. I took her to her doctor's office and he put her in the hospital. She will start radiation and/or chemo today to shrink the cancer so she can eat. Her doctor said it may or may not shrink the cancer; please pray it does. The doctor said every cancer is unique and he can't say if that cancer will react to it or not. If it doesn't, they will have to put a tube into her stomach to feed her. They want to shrink the cancer as much as possible before they extract it.

Another Good Day

Today, Ken had his 7th Poly-MVA treatment. Tresha and Emily took him to Edmond today so I could get some rest. I worked all day yesterday and up into the night creating a Video Tribute for a funeral this morning for a friend's Dad. He was 89 years old. It was raining again today, so I went to bed about 11:30 a.m. and slept until about 3:30!! I guess I needed the sleep. They seemed to have a good time and I was thankful for the help.

Thanks again for your prayers. They're working!!

Ken Is Doing AMAZINGLY WELL!!

God is so good! It's amazing and a miracle how much better he feels. The home health nurses who come to see Ken say that they can't believe how good he looks. When they read his thick chart they are expecting to see a very sick man (which he was two weeks ago) and they are just amazed at how good he looks. His blood chemistry test that was taken two days ago was perfect! Now how amazing is that!! God truly has answered our prayers!!

I apologize for not writing in the last few days, but it has certainly been a very busy time. Ken went to church on Sunday and really enjoyed it. Monday I took him to the clinic in Edmond for his 5th Poly-MVA treatment. He had his 6th treatment on Wednesday and tomorrow he will have his 7th treatment. After each treatment he feels even better than he did before. This is just amazing to me because I can see the difference and he can feel the difference. The Physical Therapist worked with him on Tuesday and today and gave him new exercises to do to get him walking again. He has been doing a lot more things for himself. He is getting around quite well in his wheel chair and soon he will be using the walker. I don't believe it will be much longer before he is walking again on his own. Praise the Lord!!

These lyrics from the song "God Is Truly Amazing" describe how I feel:


He is a friend when you're in need
He is a problem solver
He is the strength that never lets you fall
He'll be your peace, faith is the key.

My God amazing is He
Giving you peace if you only believe.
Faith is the key
In time of need
My God, amazing is He!

God is truly amazing!
God is truly amazing!
God is truly amazing!
Our God is truly amazing!

Fourth Poly-MVA Treatment

Ken received his fourth Poly-MVA treatment today. We were on our own today and did very well. Normally, Jeffrey is with us and helps me with the wheel chair, but he is in Nashville with the youth from his church at a youth rally and a 12 hours of prayer vigil. Rowena is at home nursing her sick car.

It is amazing how much better Ken looks and feels. His eyes were looking sickly just a few days ago and now they are brightened up and the color in his face is good. He has been doing his exercises and I know he will be up and walking again soon.

Ken Is Doing Well

God is so good! Ken is really doing well. He received is third Poly-MVA treatment on Monday. They gave him a full dose this time. We didn't realize he had been getting partial doses, but they said they started out gradually. He didn't have a treatment on Wednesday due to the holiday. The physical therapist came out on Tuesday and evaluated Ken. He came back today and began with some exercises for Ken to practice each day. These exercises will strengthen his legs and help him to begin to walk again.

We were so very blessed to be visited by two more of our grandchildren over the 4th of July holiday. Derek drove in from San Antonio about 2:00 a.m. on Sunday morning. He had planned to be here sooner, but had car trouble. It was so very good to see him. He is a chemistry student at Trinity University and is working on research at the college this summer. He is now 21 years old and has one more year to get his Bachelor's Degree. He plans to continue in school until he receives his doctorate. Wow!!

Derek and I picked Justin up at the Tulsa Airport Monday evening. Justin seems taller every time I see him. He works in New Hampshire for Westinghouse in the Nuclear Division and puts together nuclear reactors. What a responsibility! It was great to see Justin again after 1-1/2 years. He said he would be back to Oklahoma for Christmas.

Ken and I were so glad to see our grandkids and it was so nice of them to come to see their Grandpa and Grandma. We are so blessed. It was especially nice to have Karen's three sons here with at all at the same time. Jeffrey was so glad to see his two brothers.

We especially want to thank my precious sister, Rowena, for being here with us for over a week. She has been such a big help. We missed her today as she went back to Oklahoma City to take Justin to see his Dad and other Grandmother. Jeffrey went with them as he is going to Nashville with his church group for the weekend.

We will be going to Edmond tomorrow for another treatment. Thanks for your prayers for Ken. They're working!!

RAIN! RAIN!! RAIN!!!

It's hard to believe that it is the 4th of July week and we are covered with water--literally!! Our daughter, Tresha, lives on the lake and yesterday the lake began to creep into her house. She said it was about 10-12 inches deep this afternoon. If more rain comes down from Oklahoma City it will get even deeper unless they open the gates up higher at the dam. Thank God they have their main living area on the upper floor. They had time to get everything out of the downstairs before the flood waters came in. Eufaula Lake is 8.0 feet above normal. They are letting the water out at 40,000 cubic feet per second through the gates and turbines. All Oklahoma lakes and rivers are overflowing.

Ken was able to go to church this morning and really enjoyed it. Everyone was so glad to see him. It was nice to have Derek, Jeffrey, and Rowena attending church with us. Derek came in from San Antonio about 2:00 a.m. Sunday morning. He had some battery problems with his car or he would have been here earlier. We will be picking Justin up at the Tulsa airport tomorrow afternoon.

Rowena and Jeff will be taking Ken for his third Poly-MVA treatment tomorrow morning and Derek and I will head for Tulsa to get Justin. Tresha, Mark, and the kids will be coming over tomorrow night to see the boys. We're looking forward to a great time.

I really appreciate my sister and my grandkids. They have all been such a big help with Ken.