News from Haiti

Photo via {GAIN (Global Aid Network) Canada}

Remember those little notebook and crayon sets that the kids and I made and sent to Haiti with my uncle about a month ago? Well I just got an email letting me know that he had posted this photo on the GAIN facebook page of some of the children enjoying them while waiting to see a member of his medic team :) I can't wait to share this with the kids in the morning!! They will be so excited to see pictures :)

We have been following along in the news with updates on Haiti. Hurricane Tomas struck Haiti causing flash flooding and evacuation in areas just before the GAIN team landed and tonight my aunt told me that they were rocked by a fairly strong earthquake and rioting as well. All this on top of the cholera outbreak that is spreading. I know that any prayers for the safety of the volunteers and for the people of Haiti would be greatly appreciated :)

Hugs,
Rosina

Blind Sided

Life has thrown our family another curve ball. My younger sister was told only days ago that she has some very abnormal cell growth around her cervix and that she would have to have an immediate biopsy to determine exactly what is going on and a possible surgical procedure to stave off any cancerous growth.

She and her husband were just starting the journey of expanding their family and she is very understandably worried. Tomorrow I take her to a nearby hospital for the procedure and I'm keeping a positive outlook for her no matter what because I truly can't bring myself to think of the worst. I feel like a child with her fingers in her ears singing "la la la la la la la" at the top of her lungs so that they can't hear anything else.

I think what terrifies me the most is that if my dad has had cancer and my sister may have it to that I'm next... I know I'm getting way ahead of myself but sometimes those ugly little thoughts sneak up on you :(

If you could keep my sister in your prayers tomorrow as we find out just what is going on that would be so lovely.

Hugs,
Rosina

Kicking Cancer in the Butt

♥♥ Thank you everyone for all of your prayers ♥♥

My dad had his surgery Tuesday afternoon and he did fabulous! The operating room was running behind schedule so we ended up waiting until just before 3pm before the doctor finally came out to talk with us and get Dad all prepped for surgery. Originally we had been told that they were going to go in laparoscopically to remove the cancerous section of his sigmoid colon but just before they took him the doctor informed us that he would be opening him right up.

Of course this is scary news when you have mentally prepared yourself for little teeny tiny incisions with minimal damage and all of a sudden there's much more involved. In the end it turned out to be a good thing though as the doctor was able to have a really good look at the colon, surrounding tissues and the liver. All of it looked great and the cancerous growth was only 1 centimeter in size!!! Can you believe it?! Praise the Lord ♥♥

I swear sometimes I think my dad has lucky horse shoes up his behind LOL. We were anticipating to find him in recovery with a feed tube up through his nose and the possibility that he would have to have a temporary or permanent colostomy bag and there we found him smiling. I'm tearing up as I type this because I was so scared to see what he was going to look like and there he was actually smiling when we went to sit with him and wait to be moved upstairs the the med surg floor. With the minimal destruction to his colon they were able to reconnect the two sections nice and neatly so there was no need for a bag or feed tube. Again praise be to Him as this is just such fantastic news :)

We finally got moved to the ward he will be staying on by 8pm and then we hugged him goodbye. Yesterday we spent the day with him and he was a little dehydrated from all of the colon flushing that he had done previous to the surgery and from not being able to take much liquid by mouth as they were afraid if he took in to much it might cause vomiting but by evening he was feeling much better. He was sitting in a chair and even took a little walk around the floor so he is truly doing great :)

He will be in the hospital for a few more days to recover a bit more before going home and the results from the section of colon they removed should be available within the week. They will tell us if there is any cancer in the lymph nodes and then define what sort of treatment such as chemo he may need at that time. I am being completely optimistic at this point that it has not spread!!

Thank you again for all of the prayers you are sending up for him. I know they are helping immensely and words cannot express how thankful I am to all of you ♥♥

Big (((HUGS))),
Rosina