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NEW ADDRESS
Spencer/Cathy Barr
Target House II
1811 Poplar Avenue
Room 522
Memphis, TN 38104
PETITION
PHOTO GALLERY
(New 7/15)
MARYVILLE DAILY FORUM ARTICLE #1
MARYVILLE DAILY FORUM ARTICLE #2
March 31 - 12:30 pm
After the late night, Spencer
is now resting in the Grizzly House. We are awaiting a call to go back over
to the clinic for him to receive platelets. The spinal fluid pulled
yesterday showed no evidence of white cells or blasts which is what we were
believing for. We are still waiting on the results from the bone marrow.
Orientation at the Target House is set for 3:00 pm. Due to the fact that
there may not be Internet service there, this may be the last update for the
day. Continue to pray for Spencer as he is experiencing some back discomfort
due to the procedures that were completed yesterday.
March 31 - 8:30 am
We made it!!!! Chayse and I
rolled into Memphis at 1:09 am, exactly 9 hours after leaving Maryville.
Actually, it did not seem that long since we played name that rock group
all the way to Memphis. It's amazing that we both like classic rock and I
gave Chayse a hard time about that quite often. We drove in rain nearly all
the way to St. Louis and our prayers are with those in Northwest Missouri
that sustained storm damage last night. What a great sight it was when we
got to the Grizzly House!!! Cathy welcomed us at the door and we were trying
to be quiet when Spencer yelled from the other room "Hey, don't forget about
me!" The Barr family is back together for a few days and we are so grateful
for that. A lot of smiles, laughs and a few tears helped to get everybody
caught up on what has been happening. Big brother had to make sure that
little brother got all of his stuff from everyone last night. Again, we
continue to say thank you for your generous support of Spencer and our
family. Before calling it a morning, since it was 2:30 am, we read the
article online that will appear in today's edition of the Maryville Daily
Forum. One of the last things Spencer said before going to sleep was, "I am
ready to go to the Target House." Praise God, we just received the call that
we will be relocating to the Target House today at 3:00 pm. I can't wait to
tell Spencer when he wakes up. Just another sign that God's timing is
perfect. We will be going over to clinics here shortly and looking forward to
a great day!
March 30 - 6:00 pm
Spencer got some well
deserved rest this afternoon, and I even laid down for about an hour! We
seem to have our sleeping pattern turned upside down. Both of us are staying
up later than usual, which would be okay if we didn't have to get up at
6am!! It's so nice being here at the Grizzly House and not having nurses
come in and out all night long. Talk about a huge blessing!! I hope and pray
Spencer never has to be inpatient again! Our prayers have been answered as
Spencer has hardly complained about his backing hurting. Of course, it is
stiff and little sore, but nothing like it was the last two times he had
this procedure done! Hallelujah! Praise the Lord! Oh, and the bottom "issue"
is healing quickly too thanks to prayer and a new medicine.
Earlier I was responding to
an email and found myself writing about being Spencer being out of his
comfort zone by being the center of attention. Ever since then I've been
thinking about how God likes us to be out of our comfort zones because
that's when we really have to rely on Him for everything. Even though it's
not always a fun process, It's during this stretching that God uses us for
His purposes and we are able to grow more in Him. Many of you are familiar
with the prayer of Jabez where he actually prays for God to enlarge his
tent! He was a wise man because he knew even though the process of enlarging
his tent would be painful at times, it would be well worth achieving the
prize to be more like God! That is our hearts desire and we pray it is yours
as well!
March 30 - 12:15 pm
Our day started bright and
early with appointments starting at 7am. The big thing today was the IT
therapy and bone marrow testing. Not sure when we will have the results
back, but probably tomorrow when we have clinic. Right now Spencer is
resting peacefully. We stayed up a little too late last night talking! You
just have to take advantage of those times when your kid wants to talk! No
matter what time it is! Tomorrow our appointments won't start until 9:15am
and should end around 11:30am. Rod and Chayse are driving down tonight after
school, so please say extra prayers for their safety. Spencer and I are
really looking forward to having them here. Spencer misses his Daddy and
brother, as do I!
I talked to a father today in
the waiting area whose son was having a procedure done too. They are from
Orlando and three years ago they received a brain tumor as the diagnosis for
their then three year old. The doctors at his home hospital gave the boy
twelve months to live and didn't offer to get him a second opinion The boy
was in ICU about to die when his father started making calls to friends in
the medical field. To make a long story short, he made connections with St.
Jude's and persuaded them to take his son without a referral! Three years
later his son is alive and well and is as cute as a button. All because of
the love and perseverance of his father. It reminds me of the verse in
Ephesians that talks about pressing on to take hold of that for which Christ
Jesus took hold of for me. All of us must press on to know Christ on a more
personal intimate level. The key is pressing on and not being satisfied with
where we're at.
It' s time for the Ready
Meds, but I will try to write more later this afternoon or early evening.
Thank you for your continued prayers, love, support and kindness. Blessings
to all of you!
March 29 - 7:15 pm
Wow! What a long day! We had appointments most
of the afternoon from 12:45pm-3:45pm. Afterwards, we went to Wal-Mart and
bought some needed supplies--small bottles of water, juice, milk, etc., not
to mention a new PS2 basketball game! That birthday money was burning a hole
in Spencer's pocket! He hasn't played it yet as he has not been feeling the
best and is now laying down. Just a bit sick to his stomach and I surmise it
is from wearing the mask and getting too hot. It was a beautiful 74 degrees
here today! I will let him rest until about 8pm when it will be time for his
Ready Meds and soak in the tub.
Tiffany and Gayle left a short while ago and
before they left they laid hands on Spencer and prayed. Gayle was wonderful
the way she reminded Spencer about the story in the Bible where Jesus cursed
the fig tree, and even though it didn't look dead, it was. But, it
wasn't until a day or so later when Jesus and the disciples walked past the
fig tree again that it was dead. The point of this story is that it was dead
from the very moment Jesus cursed it. He cursed it at its root and
didn't show on the outside until later. This is what is happening with
Spencer. The leukemia is cursed and dead in his body and soon we will see
evidence of such on the outside. Praise God!
We will have an early morning tomorrow as we
have to be back at the hospital by 7am for a 9am procedure. They will be
doing the IT therapy again as well as drawing bone marrow. Spencer is
apprehensive and nervous about doing this again because the last couple of
times he's had it done his back hurts for days afterwards. This was another
thing Tif, Gayle, and I prayed about and would ask for your prayers as well.
We are believing for no pain after the procedures. Also, please continue
praying for the mucusitis that manifested in his mouth a few days ago. From
what we understand, mucusitis can start in the mouth and work its way all
the way down to the bottom, which is what we are seeing. The doctor gave us
a new treatment for that and we are praying the meds will work quickly.
I think that's about it for today! I apologize
for not having more updates through out the day, but now that he's
outpatient, we don't have access to the computer like we did when he was
inpatient. I'm not complaining because so far outpatient is the way to be!
Keep in mind that Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forever! Have a
great evening! God Bless!
March 29 - 9:45 am
Good Morning! Yes, it is a very good morning! We
spent our first night out of the hospital and all went very well! Praise God
from whom ALL blessings flow! Spencer was not released until after 8pm last
night and then we had to rush over here to the Grizzly House to give him his
Ready Meds, which is where I administer antibiotics via his line. That went
unbelievably smooth this time! No freaking out on my part! I, of course,
attribute it to lots of prayer and also Tiffany being here. Something about
knowing you have a nurse tech available if you need it! The next 70 minutes
were spent sorting through his meds and getting them ready for both evening
and this morning. I think I'm getting the hang of this! :o) Spencer had a
pretty good night with only having to get up once for the bathroom. That
"issue" is getting better but still continue to pray for a complete healing
there. We've already done his Ready Meds this morning and he is all dressed
and ready to go when us girls get ready. We'll have some breakfast and hang
out until our afternoon appointments at 12:45pm and 1:45pm. Not sure what
they will consist of yet. Something new to learn! I apologize for not
updating last night, but I couldn't obtain access to the server to get
online. I will try very hard to update as much as possible while Rod
is gone as well as answer as many emails as I can. Your support has been
unbelievable and amazing! Tif and Gayle will leave late this afternoon and
Rod and Chayse will be here late tomorrow night, so please pray for
traveling mercies for all of them. Have a wonderful day full of blessings!
March 28 - 4:30 pm
The nurse finally brought the blood in about a
half hour ago and since he needs two units it will be at least 8pm before
we're released tonight. I checked with patient services and they said we
should be able to move to the Target House in a week or two. I also asked
Dr. Razzouk how much time it will be between chemo treatments and he said it
all depends on Spencer's blood counts, but usually it's between 4-6 weeks.
However, if they find leukemia cells in his bone marrow on Thursday they
will start them back up as soon as Friday. So now we know how to pray! I was
encouraged when Dr. Razzouk said he doubted there would be because Spencer
looks so good. That's always nice to hear coming from his doctor! AML
patients are really prone to bacterial infections, so please be praying
against that as well. We will be here at least 6 months without being able
to come home. I guess we will really know Memphis like the back of our hand
before it's all said and done! I'll give you another update sometime later
this evening after we get settled in the Grizzly House. It may be another
late one!
March 28 - 1:15 pm
Hello all! Our day is going great! We are really
enjoying having Tif and Gayle here with us. Gayle is sorting Spencer's
football cards he received from Grandpa Larry so he can put them in his
book. He was pretty pumped when two more packages came in the mail with more
cards! Thank you, Grandpa Larry! We also received several more cards and
even a brain teaser puzzle. That ought to keep him busy for awhile! Thank
you! Spencer just finished eating cheese quesadillas and is watching TV
while he patiently waits for the blood to come. After he receives the blood,
they say he will be released to outpatient! By the way, something I find
inspiring is Spencer's blood type is B-Positive. That's what we're doing!
Being Positive! :o) We'll check in later with you all! God bless and
keep praying!
March 28 - 7:00 am
This is the day the Lord has made, we will
rejoice and be glad in it! Spencer stayed in bed all night long! He didn't
go to bed until quite late but that was because he slept in so late
yesterday morning! I think he really is a teenager now! As I type this two
of our favorite songs played, "God is in Control" and "Miracle". I believe
God speaks to us in subtle ways and that was directly from God! The doctor
will be in later this morning and we'll find out if Spencer gets released to
outpatient today or not. Even though Spencer is responding so well to the
treatments, please do not let up on your prayers. From what we know there
are a lot of ups and downs in this journey and we simply cannot allow the
devil to get the upper hand! Ah, the first nurse has arrived with the blood
pressure machine! That door will open and close more times than you can
imagine now! :o) I will let you know what we find out from the doctor as
soon as I know! Until then, be blessed and have an awesome day!
March 27
March 26
March 25
March 24
March 23
March 22
March 21
March 20
March 19
March 18
March 17
March 16 |
Thank you to everyone who helped make the
benefit a huge success! To everyone who have supported us spiritually,
emotionally and financially, we say thanks! We have been so blessed by each
and every one of you. It has been overwhelming but very much appreciated by
our family.
Rod, Cathy,
Chayse & Spencer
eMail Spencer at
spencer@bearcatslam.com
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