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December 29, 2003
Mad Cow
AP: Dean Blasts Bush Over Mad Cow Scare
1st of all, Dean is a moron.
Secondly, more steak for me...I say!
Posted by Marc at 11:14 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
December 24, 2003
Merry Christmas
I wish you all a very merry Christmas and a happy new year. This past year has definitely had its ups and downs for us. We still have very difficult days ahead, but we know that we are going through this for a reason.
God has continued to show us and give us what we need in his timing. We don't know the final outcome of all this, but believe us when Kristina and I say that we are blessed to have you as our friends and family. Some of you we have not met in person or seen in several years, but we can feel your prayers and warmth. You will never know how much that means to us.
While this is a very difficult Christmas for us, we are coming to have a better understanding of that special Gift that God gave to the world over 2,000 years ago. In the hustle, bustle and commercialism of this season, please remember that CHRIST is the reason for the season. Enjoy those close to you and take advantage of your time together.
Posted by Marc at 12:34 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
December 23, 2003
New Prayer Request for Strength and Comfort
Family and Friends,
I have some very sad news.
Thank you for all the thoughts and prayers for my mom. She is doing ok and will be going forward with her surgery in January. I'm sorry that I haven't responded personally to each one of you that replied, but shortly after I sent the original email we were hit with some other bad news. Needless to say, last week was an awful week. Also to address some concerns, we did feel the earthquake yesterday but are alright. There was no damage near Los Angeles. Please pray for the families of those that were killed during the quake.
As you all know from previous emails, Kristina and I have tried to get pregnant for five years. We were successful, without the help of doctors shortly after we moved to Los Angeles. God has decided that it is not yet in his time for us to have a child. We first found a problem last Friday while going for a routine ultrasound and genetic counseling session. Because Kristina just turned 35 this year, they consider this a high-risk pregnancy. In a high-risk pregnancy, you have more frequent ultrasounds and tests that check for heart defects and possible Down's Syndrome. We were prepared that if something came back positive for one of these problems we would accept it and move ahead.
When the doctor tried to do an ultrasound, she had difficulty getting an image. This is caused because of a lack of amniotic fluid surrounding the baby. This meant that either there was a leak or that the baby was not producing any of the fluid. As the exam progressed, the doctor was able to locate the organs from the abdominal cavity and above (brain, heart, diaphragm, stomach), but was not able to locate the kidneys. The doctor explained the situation and discussed some details, but we had a very poor experience with this doctor. That is part of what made Friday so difficult.
Last night, Monday, we sought out a second opinion. Unfortunately, we have come to the same conclusion. This doctor was amazing though. He was very supportive and did everything possible to find some ray of hope. Ultimately, there is no chance that the baby will survive to term. About 1 in 5,000 pregnancies result in RENAL AGENESIS which is an absence of kidneys. We were assured that it was nothing we did. Kristina has carried this baby very well and her health has been in excellent control.
On the positive side, there are no documented cases of multiple renal agenesis pregnancies. We have been encouraged to try again very soon and that the odds are very good that we will get pregnant soon. Also, because we have had a problem with this pregnancy there is a very LOW chance that we will have problems in the future.
HERE IS WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW. Friday and Saturday were extremely rough. Yesterday was not easy, but we were prepared and had a few people praying for us. We took time last night to call our family and a very few others who were aware of this situation. We do believe that God has a greater plan and purpose for this happening. At the very least, he let us know that we could get pregnant and gave us much needed encouragement. We had become very discouraged before this summer. We are doing alright, but know we are grieving and will be for an undetermined period of time. This is probably one of the most difficult things I've ever had to do or write, but I felt it was important for my process and to let all of you know what happened. Also know that we love you all hope you understand that we will not want to discuss this with everyone. It is extremely emotionally draining on Kristina. I want to be honest and tell you that it is very rough for us to see our friends and family have successful pregnancies, but this is something that we know God is working through with us. We encourage all of you who are pregnant or may become pregnant to enjoy every single minute of it because it is a blessing and a miracle from God. Just know that we covet your prayers and understanding.
Love and peace,
Marc
Posted by Marc at 9:26 AM | Comments (7) | TrackBack
December 22, 2003
My First Earthquake
Well, it finally happened. I've been to Cambria and I hope everything is ok up there. I know it was 6.5 and I don't know exactly what that means, but it was big. I felt the building I'm working in sway back and forth. We are several hours from the center of it. It felt like I was hopped up on NyQuil.
Big blog day for me, I guess.
Posted by Marc at 11:19 AM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
Naughty List
I saw "ELF" over the weekend. I liked it.
It appears that the Democrats are on the naughty list.
Posted by Marc at 10:41 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Another request
Please keep Kristina and I in your prayers today at 4:15pm PST. Details to follow.
Posted by Marc at 10:16 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
December 19, 2003
If you feel like it...
If you would like to send an email of encouragement to my mom, you can send it to me and I will forward it to her.
I will also be keeping a list of Prayer Chains that she in on. If you have one to add, leave a comment below. So far we have:
Shepherd of the Hills, Porter Ranch, CA
East Side Church of God, Anderson, IN (internet and phone)
1st Church of God, Miamisburg, OH
Church of God, Millington, MI
1st Church of God, St. James, MO
Mounds Baptist Church, Anderson, IN
Church of God, Akron, IN
Posted by Marc at 8:22 AM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
December 18, 2003
Details on my Mom
I sent out a "Family & Friends" email with the following information tonight, but for those of you that aren't on my list or lost the email, here it is. Also, if you want to subscribe, email me.
I come to you with a heavy heart. On Tuesday, my mother had a MRI and they
have found a tumor on her brain. They are 95% certain that it is
MENINGIOMA. This is a benign or non-cancerous tumor. That is the good
news. The bad news is that it is in a deep location on the back upper left
part of her brain near the brain stem. It has been blocking spinal fluid
and has been the cause of her short term memory loss and speech problems.
She will have surgery, tentatively, on January 14th of 2004.
The difficulty lies in the position and the how the tumor has attached itself to her brain. Because meningioma is a very slow growing type of tumor, she has had this for a while and it has had time to merge itself into her blood vessels. There is a very high chance of vascular blood loss.
We had just made plans for my mom to fly out to Los Angeles for Christmas
with us. She was supposed to fly here on Monday the 22nd and return on
January 1st. The surgeon has made the determination that it is unsafe for
her to fly. She cannot now come to visit and mom, Kristina and I are all
very disappointed. However, I will be making arrangements to travel back to
Indiana for her surgery.
I covet and appreciate all your prayers for my mom and the entire family's
schedule and finances. As you know, I still do not have a full-time job and
will not have any sick days to fall back on. Kristina's job is providing us
with our insurance and she will not be able to travel with me due to her
pregnancy. For those who don't know, my mom's name is Joy Bowyer and she is
54.
For those with weak stomachs, you probably won't want to read on from this
point as I share some specifics of the procedure.
Mom will check into the hospital 1 day before the operation. They will prep
her with medication and will shave her head. The actual operation on
January 14th will last approximately 5 - 6 hours. The surgeon will make a
L-shaped incision on my mom's scalp and they will remove a portion of her
skull. They will hopefully remove the entire tumor, but if her brain tissue
does not respond well in the procedure or if they cannot safely remove all
of the meningioma they may leave a portion to reduce the chance of greater
damage. When they have finished the removal of tissue, they will replace
the portion of bone they removed and suture her scalp. She will be in ICU
for 1 - 2 days and stay in the hospital for 5 - 7 days. Someone will also
have to be with her for at least 10 days after she is released.
Worst case scenario during surgery would be hemorrhaging or intracranial
bleeding. Worst case after would be 20% chance of stroke, and possibility
of a vegetative state. Other possible side effects are personality
changes, severe headaches, nausea or vomiting, transient seizures, some
increased weakness and speech difficulty.
She has been prescribed the following medicines: Dilantin, Pepcid and
Decadrone. She had been ordered to stop taking Aspirin and Daypro, but she
can continue taking Welbutrin SR and Ultram.
They estimate the percentage of fatality at 5%. That is a very low
percentage, but 0 is much better. Thanks again for any prayer and support
you can offer. If you need any additional details, please email me.
Posted by Marc at 11:45 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Not a good day
My mom has a tumor on her brain. Just typing that sentence hurts.
I'm not sure of any other details yet. She has an appointment with the surgeon today, but will most likely need surgery this weekend or next week.
For more info on Meningioma: http://www.emedicine.com/neuro/topic209.htm
Posted by Marc at 10:59 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
December 14, 2003
Saddam is Captured
This is a great day. I heard the news this morning on the way to church. I normally listen to worship CDs to put me in the mood, but decided to listen to the radio.
If this doesn't silence the critics, I don't know what will. The Iraqis are dancing in the streets. It is obvious now that we have succeeded and did the right thing.
Posted by Marc at 8:44 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
December 12, 2003
Yeah...yeah
I'm still here and kicking. I haven't forgot this page, just been busy reading some other blogs and trying to catch up with some work.
Another year is almost gone and quite an eventful year it's been for me. Moving across the country and taking the chance for some good things to happen. So far, not so bad.
Did I mention that I'm gonna be a dad?
Posted by Marc at 3:37 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
December 6, 2003
I should be sleeping
WARNING: THIS WILL BE A LAME ENTRY!
I used to be such a night person. Since I've been working my "corporate" gig...my schedule is so screwed up. Anyway, today was full and tomorrow will be just as busy.
I went to a birthday party today at a park. That may not sound wierd, but for me it was. It is December after all. I guess now that I'm living out here in California, instead of the midwest, I'm gonna have to get used to the "no snow" thing.
I warned you about this post. The title should have given it away.
Posted by Marc at 10:42 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
December 5, 2003
reality hits home
Heard our baby's heartbeat yesterday. Those who think that miracles aren't real, need to get a clue.
I also thought that a heart beat meant life. So, in my opinion, which hasn't changed and probably gotten stronger, abortion is murder.
Did I mention I'm gonna be a dad?
Posted by Marc at 11:03 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
December 4, 2003
NBA, I love this game!
The Staples Center is a very cool arena. I'm glad we didn't have to pay for our tickets, because the food was EXPENSIVE. It was good...especially the garlic fries. The peanuts were good too.
Our tickets got us in the VIP Entrance to a very small crowd. There were semi-private bathrooms. The area was shared with the box seats, so it was catered to serve the needs of the financially well-off and celebrities, etc. The seats were comforatable and pretty decent too.
There were a few celebrities on hand. One of the Williams sisters was there, not sure which one.
I felt my first trip there was success. Overall, a very good evening.
Posted by Marc at 8:16 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
December 3, 2003
If I got to pick...
Those who know me understand how much I LOVE SPORTS...not. I don't hate them, just never been that much into them. I do enjoy watching when I have the chance.
I will be taking my first trip to the Staples Center tonight. Unfortunately, it won't be to see the Lakers. It will be L.A.'s red-headed step child, the Clippers, vs. Cleveland Cavs. You can't turn away FREE tickets with FREE parking, especially when they are 9 rows off the floor.
I'll let you know how it goes.
Posted by Marc at 4:28 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
December 2, 2003
new day, new test
server clock time test
Posted by Marc at 10:01 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack