Updates and Baptism

We have received some more good news. Cedars called and it looks like Dave's cousin is actually the best match of the group. I guess his results got stuck in immunology, because Dave has this high rejection factor that they will have to work around. He would reject pretty much everyone without strong anti-rejection medicine. I am now #3 on the list.

So we are proceeding forward with the second battery of tests. These are a bit more invasive, but they are actually for the benefit of the donor; making sure that they are not physically putting themselves in jeapordy.

Now for some awesome news! My son David was Baptized this Sunday at church!! As a mom, to know that your child has personally accepted Christ, and has made this important decision on their own....wow! What a blessing! Pastor Steve Baptized David, and then the entire church held hands, sung and welcomed him into the family! It was so beautiful. Needless to say, we are so very proud of David.

A busy time

I apologize for not posting in a few weeks. Things around the Strnad household have been very busy. Knowing what Dave does for a living, you can imagine. I have been trying to pray through my worry during these tricky economical times. I am mostly concerned with the level of stress in his life and not wanting that Wegener's disease to come out of remission. We are both constantly reminded that God is in control and to give it back to Him, daily....sometimes many times in a day!

We had a vacation week planned for the last week in June, but it fell through due to the market instability, and Dave needing to be around to get his clients through this weird time. We are hoping to take a few days off during the upcoming weeks, and take the kids to some fun places around Southern California.

VBS starts this coming week, and follows into the remainder of July. I usually work at least one of those weeks, and this year is no different. We have a lot of great churches out here, so the kids go to three different VBS programs every year. This year, Davey will even get to work at one. He's a big kid of 10, now! Joey just completed two weeks of church camp at the Church of Christ. He had a great time during the past two weeks!

The kids are also keeping busy with music lessons, fencing lessons, and swimming. Busy, busy!

I just finished my first block of classes, and am proud to say that I was able to pull off two A's for the first two courses. I am now taking two more classes, so I hope I can maintain that average. Not bad for an old lady! :)

Nothing new on the transplant front. Unfortunately, we lost a family member last week, so most of our attention has been helping the immediate family get through their loss. We are hoping to hear about my testing within the next three weeks, sometime.

That's about all for now.....I hope all of you are doing well and enjoying your summer break.

Update on Dave

My brother heard back from Cedars Sinai and he is the front runner in the transplant race. While we are happy there is a front runner, we were surprised a blood relative (Dave's cousin) wasn't more compatible. Ric has said all along that he will be there for us, God bless him. But he wants to be last resort. Understandable, since he has his life over in Atlanta and is thinking of getting married next year. So, after contacting Cedars again, they are going to let me test for cross matching to Dave. I will be sent all the testing stuff hopefully next week. Ric tested well in 3 out of 6 cross matches, which for a non-sibling is really good! If I test as good or better than him, then I will be Dave's donor. A sibling has a 50% chance of testing well for 5 out of 6 cross matches, and only a twin can be expected to test 6 out of 6. But, since none of Dave's siblings have come forward, we will work with what we have. He still has a high rejection factor that will have to also be worked with prior to the transplant. Please continue the prayers. I am considered a high risk because of some medical history, compounded by the fact I had kidney stones when I was pregnant.

Ahhh...summer

Summer! I am so jazzed that it is finally here. This school year has been so busy for all of us. Both kids need a break, and so does mom! I just love summer…the warm weather, the mornings at the beach, the afternoons in the pool and the endless barbecuing, which has become my favorite way of cooking.

I love being outside, able to enjoy my morning cup of coffee in the crisp morning air; the smell of grass and jasmine still lingering in the air. I enjoy the mocking birds and the occasional blue birds that fly by, singing their morning songs. The wind chimes that so softly make their music in the background with each gentle breeze. The world is clean and new and fresh and pretty. I enjoy all of this before anyone else in the family gets up. It’s my summer-morning ritual. It’s a great way to begin the day. Ahhhh…..summer!

Sugery went well.... AND Had a bad scare!

Dave had his minor surgery yesterday, and everything went well. We were able to talk the anesthesiologist into using twilight sleep instead of general, so the recovery was pretty quick.

OK, now for the big scare! It doesn't involve Dave...no, this time it involves my son Joe. Joe's philosophy in life, at the tender age of almost-6, is that it's easier to get forgiveness than permission.

Yesterday while he was playing outside in the back, he climbed up on the slide /platform that we have against the back wall. (note: this location was bad, and I knew it....). We have a nice, elderly lady who is our next door neighbor, who Joey has taken to calling "grandma". Everyday she tends to her roses, and most days Joe sits on the platform and talks to her....non-stop, until she goes back inside. (Picture Denis the Menace and Mr. Wilson). Well, yesterday while I was in the kitchen and watching Joe and making dinner (multi-tasking like most moms), I look out and he's gone. Gone! Within seconds of my last glancing at him, I couldn't find him outside.

I then heard a whimpering coming from...yes, you guessed it..."grandma's" yard. He scaled our 10 foot fence and fell or jumped into her yard. I couldn't climb the slide quickly enough before my mind imagined him with two broken legs or a bleeding head wound! Thank God she doesn't have a dog! I got up to the platform and looked over to find him standing up, no blood, with a little tear in his eye, saying, "Mom, can I come home?"

The way our yards are situated, her yard is about two feet lower than ours, and ALL concrete: hence the fear of a gaping head wound! But there he stood, totally (Thank you God ) unscathed, and bare foot!! I couldn't reach him, so I told him to go to the back door and knock. He did, and scared poor "grandma" almost to death! "What are you doing there!?!" was all she could say!

Joey did get home. He is fine. This has renewed my belief in guardian angles! I'm sure Joe has a few, who work around the clock! All I know is that I am going to need to start talking to my hairstylist about color, very soon!!

No News

We have received so many emails this week from people asking for updates. Thanks for the concern! Sadly, there is nothing new this week. I talked to the people heading up the organ donation department at Cedars, and they are still waiting to hear back from the immunology department. I guess there was some mild rejection noted between Dave and his cousin, so they have passed the results onto Immunology to see if the anti-rejection therapy could solve the rejection factor. Still waiting....

Thanks for the encouragement! I'll update as soon as we have a direction.

What a week!

I honestly can’t remember a time when I felt so much anger toward another person. I hate that feeling! When you are a happy person, anger tends to take its toll on you in ways that are somewhat unfamiliar. Depression is an aftermath that I am currently dealing with. And I keep thinking, if I have depression, what must Dave be feeling? It’s been a tough week.

Thank you to so many of our friends who have called and let me vent (once again) over the phone. I bet you never knew just how fast I could talk?? It’s a West Coast thing. We tend to talk exceptionally fast! :) I really needed you guys this week. Kim…you are my life saver, my sister! Let me know how much I need to chip in for your phone bill! Todd will probably want to kill both of us! Why did God put such good friends so many miles apart???

The one lesson I think I have learned this week, is that God will use even the bad stuff for His purposes. If you-know-who had not come into our lives when he did, we might still be at UCLA, waiting on “whatever we thought we were waiting on” to get Dave on the national transplant list. When we thought we could expedite the surgery at another hospital we got on it, immediately. Cedars ended up having an even more successful transplant program. Now we have things moving ahead with two other possible donors and we are at a place that can handle Dave’s rejection factor. So, all in all, we still owe what’s- his- name a debt of gratitude. (OK, so I’m not there yet….)But I do have faith that God will help us find a way.

We are still waiting to hear about the other’s results. They don’t want to test me unless they have to, which I understand, but am not happy about.

To my other (local) girlfriends….Chinese food time! PF Changs, in either Newport Beach or Mission Viejo. Let’s make plans, soon.

Again...thanks for all the prayers. They keep us going, really!