If you’ve been reading either of my blogs, you know we’ve been working to raise funds for our friends, Aaron and Nancy Irby. Aaron’s in the fight of his life right now with Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma. He’s had a very rough go of it lately and could most definitely use your prayers, as could Nancy who is so brave and calm in the midst of this horrific storm. To stay up to date with their story and all that is going on, be sure to join the Praying for Aaron Irby Group on Facebook. Below is the latest update….please help to spread the word, but most of all, continue to pray for this family.

12/27/10 Update:

As you know, Aaron had his transplant on Thursday, Dec. 23. Everything went smoothly with that. However, he’s still suffering from side effects from the radiation he had beforehand and the chemo.

His esophagus is in pretty bad shape right now. He’s unable to swallow even liquids. He’s on IV nutrition again. He’s retaining a LOT of fluids. When I saw him today, it didn’t even look like him, he was so swollen, especially in his face and around his eyes. He’s been very nauseous, and even though he can’t eat, he’s been throwing up. This morning it was so violent that he burst blood vessels in his eyes as well. They are swollen and now blotchy, like a rash, and blood shot. His platelets are so low that that causes its own issues with that as well.

He’s been on so many medications for anti rejection of the new stem cells, suppressing his own cells, antibiotics, fluids, nutrition, pain meds, etc…that he’s been quite out of it for these last couple of days. But with the fluid retention, they had to put him on Lasiks to flush the fluids out. One prayer request is that he would be careful when getting up to go to the bathroom. Someone is usually always in the room with him, and tonight they are putting his bed alarm on so they know if he gets out of bed. He’s so sedated and his platelets are so low that a fall could be very dangerous.

A praise is that Aaron’s dad is here this week and has been such a blessing and very willing to help wherever he can. He did some shopping for me this morning and spends time with Aaron.

Rebekah was a little taken back to see Aaron today. Like I said, it didn’t even look like him. Please continue to pray for healing for his body, and strength for me.

On the plus side, his liver and kidneys are still looking good at this point. OH! And they did a CT scan this morning. The vein to his heart that the tumor was squeezing is fully open now!! Praise the Lord!! The tumor is still the same size, but the dr. said that it could be more “spongy” now allowing the vein to open back up.

I can’t thank you enough for your continued prayers. Your prayers have become my strength through Jesus. THANK YOU!!

12/30/10 Update:

Aaron is doing a little better! He was able to sit up in a chair for about an hour today and we got him to walk a lap around the nurses station as well. He is awake more and the best part is that he tried drinking some today and was able to keep it all down!! That’s the first time this week he didn’t throw up!

His eyes are looking better as well. I don’t remember if I told you or not, but his eyes have been in pretty bad shape. His platelets were very low and he was throwing up a lot, and sometimes violently. It broke blood vessels in his eyes. The white parts are all bright red and both eyes were swollen and purple. He retained so much fluid that he didn’t even look like himself for a while. His eyes are healing, although they are still red and purple, but the swelling has gone down quite a bit and he looks better.

We met with the dr. today after he had an u/s on his liver. Everything is still looking ok at this point. He has a few viruses and bacteria, but is being treated for those and seems to be responding well. There are still some concerns with his liver, but the dr. said it’s too premature to be worried about it at this point, it’s just something they are watching for to see if things get worse.

There are some early indicators that something could be wrong with his liver, but nothing to the point where they have anything to treat. It’s just in the watch and observe stage as it could fix itself or turn out to be nothing serious.

We appreciate your prayers as there is so much still going on. Aaron’s dad is leaving tomorrow, so we will be back on our own.

This has definitely not been the year I expected, but God has taught us so much this year and I have much to be thankful for. It’s been a year of trials, but also of many blessings. Praying that we can start the new year with healing!

1/1/11 Update:

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!

As we look for healing in this new year, we appreciate all your prayers and encouragement along the way!

Aaron is still having a lot of swelling and puffiness from retaining fluids. They took him off his nutrition IV and reduced some fluids to see if that might help. His biliruben counts have been going up every day since the transplant. He is looking jaundiced as well. He had an u/s of his liver yesterday and things look at at this point. The dr. isn’t panicking at this point, but concerned.

Please pray that he can lose this fluid retention and that the biliruben numbers come back down. Because of the swelling and liver issues, his skin is stinging a lot too. Right now, these seem to be the biggest complications at this point.

Also, please pray that Aaron will be able to eat some food and keep it down since he is off the IV nutrition for now.

We are praising the Lord that everything else seems to be going ok at this point. We still have a long wait ahead of us before we know how the engrafting is going.

1/2/11 Update:

I haven’t been over to see Aaron this morning, but I did talk a little with them. I don’t feel so good this morning, so I am hoping to lay low today and feel better so I can see him again.

I also talked with his nurse this morning. He is having a reaction to one of his medications. He gets this medication every day to help prevent rejection of the new cells. But it is monitored throughout the week to make sure it is not too high or low. If it gets too high, he has this reaction. He gets shaky and right now he is also having some trouble breathing. They have reduced the dose so things should be improving soon.

It’s a scary thing to go through and I feel bad that I am not there with him, but I want to make sure I’m feeling better before I go over.

I also asked his nurse about his biliruben numbers today. She said that they stayed the same as yesterday, so at least they didn’t go up.

Also, Aaron’s dr. is back from vacation and came to the hospital and saw him this morning. It’s so nice to have him back here and he can see what’s going on firsthand.

Again, thank you for your continued prayers. It seems like we will keep you all busy praying for a while.

(Disclosure: Posts used with permission from Nancy Irby)

It’s so easy in all the hustle and bustle of the holiday season to get so busy that we lose true perspective on this most wondrous of holidays. Christmas just wouldn’t be without the most amazing Gift given to us by our Heavenly Father on that cold, lonely night in a stable so many years ago. Christmas also wouldn’t be the same without the friends, family, and acquaintances that God has given us.When I went to Toyota, I had the opportunity to meet Beth, from The Plus Size Mommy. Let me tell you, she was like a breath of fresh air and just so much fun to be around. You know how there are people you try to avoid (sad, but true)….but then there are others who you instantly just love to be around because they have that friendly personality with a sense of humor to top it all off? The latter describes Beth….or at least, that was my impression of her.:)

The reason I’m telling you about Beth is that right now, she could really use some encouragement, and I thought what better way to truly shine your light this holiday season than to shine some light in Beth’s life right now? Just head over, read Beth’s post, Humbled By the TRUE Miracles of Christmas, Angels in Social Media….then leave her a comment. We bloggers/mamas need to support each other; we’re a family, a community.

Merry Christmas to you and yours!

When I read that approximately 96 billion pounds of food go to waste every single year, it was hard for me to comprehend that figure. Feeding America works hard every year to provide food to more than 37 million people, putting a damper on all that waste. Millions of these people include children and the elderly.

This holiday season, you can give back to help feed Americans. A fellow blogger friend, Kim (aka, Crafty Mama of 4), has started her own virtual canned food drive with Feeding America. Every $5 she raises will provide 35 meals. That is a LOT of people who will go to bed with a full stomach, rather than the empty, gnawing pangs of hunger. This is America….hunger just shouldn’t be; my personal thoughts are that we should be able to help each other. This country is so large, and we have so much….That’s not all, though. Every dollar Kim raises, Libby’s will match, up to $40,000! Her goal is to reach $300. Let’s make it happen. As she suggests, dig out those old gift cards with only a few dollars remaining; you know the ones….they’ve sat in your wallet because they only have a couple dollars on them. Even just give $1.

Not only can you give, but you can start your own virtual food drive. To see how your dollars will be put into action for hungry Americans, be sure to check out this page.  Also, be sure to Like Feeding America on Facebook, and follow @FeedingAmerica on Twitter.

Together, let’s help Kim, Feeding America, and Libby’s fight hunger! Shine Your Light!

San Diego….an international gateway city for sex trafficking. Did you know that at the very least, 1,000,000 children are involved in prostitution on a yearly basis? Look at that number again….that is a lot of zeros. Did you know that out of that 1,000,000 children, all of them are American? It’s true. Did you know that it only takes 72 hours of a child being on the street before he/she is approached regarding sex? No child is exempt….any child can be at risk. Did you know (according to the movie Call + Response and GenerateHope), that in 2007, Slave Traders made more money than Google, Nike and Starbucks combined? That is just astounding.

GenerateHope is fighting sex trafficking, in the city of San Diego, by providing hope to its victims….7 years of hope and help. They provide a long-term recovery program for these young women who have been sexually exploited. The women receive support, housing, education, job training, life-skills training, etc. Not only that, but if the women have children, they can receive help with child care too. The goal is to help these women recover, rehabilitate, and reintegrate back into society. Dan and I have so often talked about wanting to either start an organization like this or work with one. GenerateHope is doing exactly what needs to be done for women who have been exploited and enslaved.

How can we help? We can pray….volunteer….or donate. Get educated, and help stop the insanity of human trafficking….you may think there is no way that one person can make a difference….all it takes is one tweet, one FB status, one prayer, one day of your time….but I guarantee that once involved, you won’t be able to stop….that’s where to start. Join GenerateHope on Facebook, or follow @generatehope on Twitter. Spread the word, and shine your light!