October 27, 2009~*~Larry's Houston stay is almost over.....I'm not kidding!!!

Hello everyone,

So sorry for not keeping everyone up to date with Larry but his progress has been e-x-t-r-e-m-el-y slow. His counts would come up then they would go down, he would gain weight then he would lose it, his attitude would be real good then he would get real grouchy and I've never been a fan of roller coaster rides:-) He did call me yesterday and tell me that the doctor said he could come home next week. Wednesday, November 4,2009 will be his last doctor's appointment in Houston until next month. If Larry gets out of his appointment early enough he will head home, if not he will come home the next morning. He has already made an appointment with his doctor in Tyler for Friday, November 6, 2009. He will have to see him three times a week for a while until his platelet counts start coming up but his Houston doctor told him that he guarantees as soon as he comes home they will start rising.

Larry has lost down to 123 lbs. but says he's eating everything he can get his hands on (well almost). The doctor said he could eat raw tomatoes and raw onions as long as he washes them well. Larry said he'd scrub them with a scrub brush if he had to just to finally get to eat them. He hasn't had any raw fruits or veggies since last year because of his counts being so low. At first it wasn't a big deal but the longer he goes without them the more he's been craving them . He said as soon as they give him the all clear on them he's just going to pig out. He said he never realized how much he liked raw fruits and veggies until he couldn't have them. The doctor said Larry should start gaining weight as soon as they finally get him off his steroid pills which shouldn't be much longer. Larry has already placed an order for my home made spaghetti and meatballs with garlic bread. I told him I'd be more than happy to fix it for him. It may take me a while to get back in the cooking mode since I haven't cooked much since he's been gone but I intend to cook almost anything he want's in order for him to GAIN WEIGHT!!!!!!!!! I simply can't stand the fact that he weighs LESS than I do.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank Linda Huff ,his sister for donating the stem cells and helping us out through all of this. Billy Roberts, his dad has put up with Larry's ups and downs and stayed with him 24-7 through this whole ordeal. Ann Houchen, his mother has been so loving and supportive in more ways than I can count. There is no way we will ever be able to repay you for all that you has done. Jason and Yvonne Rentz, our son and daughter in law have been there for us from the very start and helped me with the yard work, pasture work, and household problems, and a shoulder to lean on when I got down. There are so many friends and co-workers at Larry's work that made this all bearable. Thank you Gene Hancock for loaning Larry your camper to live in while in Houston. We really appreciate your generosity and your friendship. Becky Lusk, you are such a wonderful person. You have gone to such great lengths to help us out and we thank you from the bottom of our hearts for all you have done and continue to do. Elmer Birdwell, even though you are Larry's boss you are also his friend and that has meant so much to him. He listened to your advise when he wouldn't listen to anyone else and you kept him going when he was almost ready to give up and we thank you. Jeanetta Stevens, our very thoughtful neighbor has taken care of our critters while I went to Houston and stayed with Larry more times than I care to count. You have also been there for me when I just needed to talk and I thank you so much for all you have done for us. I couldn't ask for a better neighbor or friend. Our church family has been very supportive and so thoughtful and your prayers and words of encouragement have meant so much. We love you all so much. Leslie Holmes, thank you for opening your heart and home to me whenever I need you. Thank you for being my friend, sharing and listening when I just needed to talk and thank you for teaching me more than just horsemanship, thank you for teaching me what it means to be a true friend. I also want to thank you for my very special "Baby Doll" whom I simply adore. To my sister and brother in law Janet and Richard Schmidt, thank you for being there and helping us get the camper to Houston and back to Gene Hancock's house more than once. Thank you also for your love and prayers, we love you, too. Janey and Gary Crawford, thank you for caring, sharing, laughing with me and helping me through this long and bumpy trail ride this year. Your prayers have meant a great deal to us. I thank each and every person that God has placed in our life. This has been a very hard year for us but we have learned so much from this experience and from each one of you. Larry still has a long road ahead but knowing all of you are there for us and praying for us makes it all bearable. Thank you to all of our family and friends for your love, prayers and support. We love you.

God Bless you all,

Jean Roberts

August 9, 2009 - Long overdue update

I apologize for not updating everyone on Larry's condition but......well, you know how it is.

Larry was put in the hospital a week before the 4th of July and didn't get out til July 15th. He was hit with the graft versus host disease and it threw him for a loop. It hit him in his stomach, gut and also had a skin rash all over his body. Larry has lost a great deal of weight because of the stomach being sooooo upset. They put him on steroids, high blood pressure meds and insulin shots. The steroids cause short term high blood pressure and diabetes. Larry was finally able to eat solid food and things were looking better so they let him out of the hospital. The steroids he is on do just the opposite to his muscles that the steroids the athletes use so he has lost soooooo much muscle mass that he can hardly get up the stairs.

On the 18th his dad came back to Houston and let me come back home to take care of all our animals and so I could go back to work. Larry has continually assured me that he is getting stronger and his legs and feet are going down (swelling of feet and legs are a diabetic side effect). He came in last Saturday Aug, 1 2009 and he weighs 152 lbs. The steroids and other meds are slowly being removed and as soon as he gets off all of them his personality and side effects should return to normal.

I know this is an awful lot of news to digest and once again I apologize for not keeping in touch. Yes he is out of the hospital but he has to go to the hospital every day for transfusions (magnesium and other stuff and occasionally platelets) so they are keeping a close watch on him and as I said earlier he assures me that he is improving daily.

The last few days that I have talked to him he has sounded more like himself and he’s even cracked a few jokes which makes me feel like he is finally on the road to recovery. I know this has been a very trying time for him but as long as he continues to fight and keep his positive attitude and most of all his faith in God then I feel sure his release from the doctor can’t be too far away. He told me last night that he had lost more weight and he is now down to 146 lbs. but continues to assure me that it is only fluid from his legs and feet and that his doctors are keeping up with what he eats and said this is normal and as soon as he gets off his meds that his appetite will return and he will start gaining he weight back. I hope this happens soon because I can’t see how they could let him lose any more weight.

Please continue to pray for Larry and his dad as I know they still have to deal with this each and every day. I do have some good news; all of Larry's Bone Marrow tests have been MDS free. I pray he can keep his strong attitude and continue to climb because he's almost to the top. He can't give up now; he has too much going for him.

Oour love to all of you,

Jean

A SPECIAL GIFT FROM LINDA

Larry's first impression of his Pink Wig from Linda.

He doesn't look too excited, does he. Don't let that look fool you, he had the biggest grin on his face when he opened the gift bag.

He's all dressed up to greet the nurse......or scare her!!!!!!

Just wait til he comes to Tyler, I'm sure the Oncology office will have a field day with this one.

Seriously, you gotta love his sense of humor and not many men would feel secure enough to wear P-I-N-K!!!!!

MAY 26, 2009-LARRY GOT A WEEKEND PASS :-)

Larry is doing GREAT. They took a bone marrow test on Wednesday May 20, 2009 and gave him the results on Friday May 22, 2009. The doctor came in the room dancing and waving Larry's test results around and said "your test results show no diagnostic evidence of myelodysplastic syndrome." It is truely a miracle. Without our faith in God and the power of prayer this would not have been possible.


Larry asked the doctor if it would be possible to go home for the memorial weekend and he said since he's doing so well he thought it would be OK. They decided to give Larry a platelet transfusion just to make sure he would be ok over the holiday. The assistant at the hospital couldn't believe they were letting him go home for the weekend. She said it was just unheard of and that they don't even consider letting a stem cell patient go home for the weekend until their 70th day from the transplant and this is only his 32nd day. Larry told her that he was special and the doctor pretty much let him do what he wanted. She looked at him kinda funny and left the room. She came back about an hour later and said she paged the doctor to see if he really told Larry that he could go home for the holiday and he said yes because he's doing so good and he has been doing everything they have asked him to do. He finally got out of the hospital and left Houston at 4:30 pm. He got home at 8:15pm Friday night and let me tell you he was a sight for sore eyes. I was so glad to see him and he was so glad to be back home.

Larry has been getting magnesium transfusions every day since his transplant and about a week ago they started him on magnesium pills as well. They are trying to get him off the transfusions and only taking the pills but they said it would take awhile. Last Monday they also set him up to take part of his transfusions at the camper. They sent someone from Home Health Care to the camper to bring the portable machine and bags of magnesium and show Larry how to transfuse himself so he wouldn't have to go to the hospital as often. Wednesday he received enough bags of magnesium for the long weekend and he kinda felt like that was an indication that the doctor would let him go home til Monday.

May 23, 2009 <>OUR 18TH ANNIVERSARY<>
Larry and I received the most wonderful and loving early anniversary present from our Heavenly Father when the doctor read the bone marrow report to Larry on Friday. There is nothing to compare with his gift and it is a treasure only found through Jesus Christ.


Larry got up early and started his transfusion. He made some coffee and noticed that suddenly we didn't have any water??? I came in the kitchen and he wanted me to call the neighbor to see if they had water because if they did that ment we had a water leak. Just as he got that sentence out of his mouth he looked in the living room and guess what..............it was flooded!!! Yep, we had sprung quite a leak. Larry jumped up out of the dining chair, ran outside and turned off the water at the meter. I got on the phone and called Yvonne and Jason to see if they could help us and bless their hearts as usual they came a running, well Jason was at work and said he'd be there as soon as he got off and Yvonne and Joseph came right over to help me mop up the water and move furniture. Larry Jr. came over and crawled under the house to find the problem so he could call his dad and tell him what parts to pick up at Lowe's. Larry Jr. had to leave shortly after that to take Schyanne to her softball game. After the game he and his family came back over to help fix the leak. As soon as the leak was fixed Jason mowed and weed eated the yard for us. As soon as things cooled down we went to the pasture for Larry to see his baby (Sadie, his horse). He put his mask and gloves on so he could feed and pet her. Yes folks, for once Larry didn't get to see his BABY first, he had to settle for my ugly mug and suffer for 8 hours before he was able to lay eyes on his Sweet Sadie. We went to a Mexican restaurant with Jason, Yvonne and Joseph that evening and Larry really enjoyed the food....and the company.


Sunday May 24, 2009

Larry and I went to church and everyone there were shocked and excited to see him. Of course he wore his mask so at first they didn't know who he was but upon second glance they saw the sparkle in his eye and knew it was Larry. I think he missed our church family as much as they missed him.


After church we went to his Mom's for lunch.....yyuuuuummmmm was the food gggoooooodddd!!!! She is such a good cook. We stuffed ourselves as usual and enjoyed our visit with her and Linda. Getting Larry together with his mom and sister is always fun. The sense of humor Larry has runs in the family. His sister made him a present while he was still in the hospital that you will just have to see to believe. I will post the pictures but I'm not sure anyone will understand them except those who know about his first chemo treatment at the Texas Oncology Clinic. The staff have a wonderful sense of humor and we love them all:-)

May 4, 2009--Larry's counts are rising, Praise God!

Do You Remember Larry Roberts?

Yes, it's his little spokesperson.....ME! Sorry I haven't kept everyone informed about Larry but he's been driving me CRAZY and I can't imagine why since he's had it so easy just laying there in the hospital with nurses waiting on him hand and foot 24 hours a day. What more could a man ask for, right? Seriously he's had his ups and downs and last Wednesday (4.29.09) the effects of the chemo finally HIT HIM HARD. He was hit from head to toe and it caused depression which concerned me a great deal. By Saturday he started to show signes of improvement. He was told in the beginning that when his white blood count rose to a 2.0 and he was able to take his medication on his own he would be able to leave the hospital. Sunday his white blood count was a 1.8 which was awsome and today his white blood count was 3.3 and the doctor said that he could get out of the hospital tomorrow if he continues to improve and doesn't get a fever.

Larry had been such a trooper about this whole hospital thing and staying in Houston for 100 days and I'm so proud of the way he has done everything they have asked him to do. There have been times while he walked the floor (during his daily walks around the pods) that he has been so tempted as he walks by the elevators he has actually pushed the button....but when the doors open he realizes that it's really not a good idea to get on.

I'm sure Larry is having a hard time sleeping tonight just thinking about getting out tomorrow. I pray he doesn't work himself into a fever tonight. If he doesn't get to leave the hospital tomorrow you will probably hear a loud scream heard all over Texas. I'm sure he's just counting the hours til the doctor comes in the morning to tell him he can go to camp. When I left the hospital tonight Larry had one of his suite cases and several bags for me to bring back with me. He said he didn't want "a bunch of stuff" in his room that would keep him from getting out as soon as possible.

Larry's dad will be coming to Houston on Wednesday to stay with him for a couple of weeks. I wish it were possible for me to stay with Larry the whole time but I know his dad will help him and take good care of him until I return. Please pray that Larry doesn't drive his dad up the walls during that time. I am grateful for all the support from his family and feel very fortunate for all their help.

I've got to get some sleep and get to the hospital early so I can peel Larry off the walls while he waits for the doctor. I will try to keep you all updated with he progress.

Later,

Jean

4-20-09 (-: Bone Marrow Transplant Today:-)

The nurse came in this morning at 8:00 am and said they had scheduled Larry's stem cell transplant (transfusion) for 11:30 am and he would be getting 3 bags. Two nurses came in the room at 11:00 and gave him a bag of benadryl through his IV to keep him from having an allergic reaction to the transfusion. They started the stem cell transplant (transfusion) at 11:45 am. Another nurse that was assigned to him yesterday came and sang Happy Birthday to him and Larry said "It's not my birthday" and she said "yes is is, it's the first day of your new life"!!! We were both very moved at her thoughtfulness. Each bag took about 30 minutes to complete and they were through at 1:00 pm. Larry was very groggy and would periodically fall asleep only to be suddenly awakened by his LOUD SNORING. The nurses stayed in his room the whole time monitoring his vital signs to make sure his body was accepting the transfusion. When the transfusion was over they left the room but would return every 30 minutes to make sure he was still doing OK.

At 2:15 pm Larry ordered his lunch and received it at 3:00 and ate everything on his plate. He laid back in bed and with the remote in hand would flip through a couple of channels then fall asleep and wake himself up with his LOUD SNORING which went on til 5:30 when he looked over at me and I was snoozing too. He woke me up and said he felt like walking and wanted me to go back to camp so I gathered up all of my "stuff" and he walked me to the elevator. He called me at 8:00 pm and said he had been snoozing off and on all evening but all in all he was feeling OK. He said he was going to turn early tonight and would see me in the morning.

We have felt the presence of the Lord all day today.......and I can't imagine anyone going through this without him.

Larry has been enjoying all of your replies to our emails and we thank you all for your love, prayers and support.

4/18/09 - Two days till transplant!!!

Well, it's almost here and we are praying for the best. Larry's still got his sense of humor. The nurse came in a couple of times yesterday only to find Larry gone, when he finally came back to his room the nurse asked where he had been and he told her he had a hankering for hot chicken wings so he went down the street and picked some up......they tasted so good that he had them all eaten up before he got back to the hospital! The nurse said "you mean you went down to the cafeteria" and he said "no I went down the street to the corner of Main and Fannin, they have the best hot wings in Houston". The nurses eyes got real big and she said "Mr. Roberts, you're not suppose to leave the 11th floor much less the hospital"? Larry looked at her and just laughed and said "I'm just kidding, I've been walking around in the halls and went to the break room and got some coffee". I told the nurse that she needed to watch out for Larry because he likes to kid people alot and to be on the safe side if she saw his lips moving then he's probably telling a story. After she got a little color back in her face she looked at Larry and laughed and said "Mr. Roberts, I'm going to have to keep an eye on you, aren't I"?

Larry had chemo on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday and they started the anti-rejection medication today. He's had platelets every day and had to have blood twice this week. He said he's ready to take a leave of absence so he can go home for a day or two so he can see all his furry animals, especially his "baby" but I don't think the doctors are going to go for that......do you????? He hasn't been sleeping well since he's been in the hospital and he just now figured out why-----he's been drinkin coffee in the evenings......duh!!!!!!!!

The doctors come in every day and check him out and they told him he was responding well to the treatments and they were pleased with his reports, Larry looked at them and said "I haven't written any reports"! They looked at him kinda funny and ........once again I had to step in and tell them that he was just messin' with them. I'm sure in a day or week or so they will realize that he's just a kidder.....or not:-)

Your continued thoughs and prayers are so much appreciated.
We love you all!!!

April 15, 2009 <><><> Preparing for Transplant

We arrived in Houston Sunday, April 12, 2009 at 5:oo PM. We unpacked the truck and ate supper. Larry is tired from the busy week end. He went fishing with Linda on Saturday morning and visited his mom again. We finally got our riding mower fixed an Larry came back from his moms and mowed the yard. I was at a friends house helping with some crafts for the Cowboy gathering that will be held this Saturday at our church. It will be an all day affair with all kinds of events going on, there will also be vendor booths and cook offs and.............so much more and I wish Larry and I could be there but may be we can make it to the one next year.

Monday morning Larry had a blood test and saw the transplant nurse. She told us to go to the admitting office and they would call us when a room was ready for him. They called at 7:00 pm and said for us to come to the hospital because a room was available. We got to the room at 8:30 pm and they started taking blood tests and told him they would start chemo at 4:30 am Tuesday morning. I came back to the camper because I knew they would be very busy with Larry most all night and sure enough they were. He got a platelet transfusion and also received 2 bags of blood. They started his first round of chemo as scheduled Tuesday morning. Larry says they come in every morning and give him a cup full of pills at 4:00 am and get a blood test, then at 4:30 am is another round of chemo. By the time that is finished they have the results of the blood test and they start pumping him full of platelets and blood. He's had two days of chemo and I think he will get two more by Friday then he will get a rest until Monday or Tuesday and they will give him he transplant.

As of right now Larry doesn't feel any effects of the chemo but he says they keep him so busy that he doesn't even get much rest during the night and he can't even take naps during the day because of all the visits they make in his room. He's also upset because he can't find anything good to watch on TV (oh brother, here we go again). I feel an attitude adjustment coming on......I just hope I'm prepared!!!!!! I brought the EMERGENCY KIT but it's here at camp, I just hope I remember to take it with me tomorrow when I go to the hospital. Larry and I have to take some kind of class tomorrow at 2:00 pm and I've got this funny feeling that he's not going to set quietly during the class. Please pray that he will remain cool, calm and collected during that time.

You're prayers are much needed during his stay here in the hospital.

More updates later......................

April 10, 2009--Transplant Schedule???? Maybe:-)

Larry had an appointment yesterday (4/9/09) and his doctor said he wanted him to come back Monday morning and they would put him in the hospital that afternoon. Larry asked if he could come home for the week end and the doctor said it would be fine but he wanted Larry to have a platelet transfusion before he left Houston.

I got home at 5:45 pm and Larry wasn't home so I called him to make sure he was coming home. He said he was about 30 minutes away from the house and he would meet me at the pasture so he could see his "baby" first thing. For those of you who don't know who that is, it's his paint horse "Sadie". We met at the pasture and he just loved on his "baby" and then an hour later....as we were leaving he remembered that he'd forgotten "what's her name" and decided to lean over and give me a hug and pat on the head (he luuuves me!)

(4/10/09) Larry got up this morning and had breakfast with his mom. He said he really enjoyed visiting with her. After leaving her house he went to the Tyler Oncology office and visited with the staff, he has become very fond of the people there and can't wait to see them. He get's the biggest kick out of messing with them and they love to pick at him as well. He had several errands to run and also went to his work to check on everyone there and catch up on the latest scoop. By the time he finished running around Tyler he was a little tired so he headed home and took a nap. When I got home from work he just had to tell me about his day and how much fun he had visiting with everyone and how good it felt to be back home. We went to the pasture and fed and messed with the horses and he brushed and talked to his "baby". He said he has been so blessed and thanks God every day for all he has done for him.

Still waiting on a SCHEDULE!!!!!

April 1, 2009
It's me again,
Larry made it back to Houston on Sunday just fine. He was hoping that they would start his chemo before now but when he got back to the hospital on Monday they said his insurance wanted another test run before they would ok his transplant. I'm sure you know what happened next..........yes he lost his cool and called the insurance supervisor and gave her a piece of his mind free of charge (he is so generous) and told them they should have gotten all the tests that they needed a month ago. Later that day he had the opportunity to do the same with the hospital business office because they forgot to send the test results to the insurance company. I know it's hard for Larry to understand that everything the hospital does has to go through certain procedures especially when he has to hurry to this appointment and wait then hurry to that appointment then wait. I'm real proud of the way he has such a positive attitude and he hasn't lost his sense of humor.

For those of you that are new to my updates on Larry I will try to bring you up to speed on his sister Linda Huff. Shortly after Larry was diagnosed with MDS in 2006 the doctors told him that a bone marrow transplant was the only way of having a chance to be cured. They said if he had a sibling with a match it would be better than trying to find someone on the donor list. Linda was tested and was matched 100% which was such a blessing.

On Monday,March 23rd Linda went to Houston to have preliminary tests run and they started giving her neupogen shots, two shots in the stomach a day which were on the 27th, 28th and 29th . She got one last shot before they started extracting the stem cells ( bone marrow) on the 30th. The goal was to extract 4 million stem cells which usually takes two days which is 4 hour sessions a day but they collected 4.5 million in just one session and everyone was just amazed.

Linda called me yesterday afternoon and said she just got home and she was so glad that her part was over with. She had been stuck so many times since the 23rd that she felt like a pin cushion and she couldn't even imagine what Larry has had to go through all this time. Larry and I are so very thankful for her love and selfless generosity. This past week has been very chaotic and unconfortable for her to put it mildly but she has stayed strong and her determination to help her brother is undescribeable. I just want to say "Linda, thank you so much for your gift and we love you dearly".

I just talked to Larry and he said he just got through getting a platelet transfusion and leaving the hospital to get something to eat. He is scheduled to have an echocardiogram at 1:00pm. His next appointment is on Friday which consists of an EKG and complete pulmonary function test and he will probably need a blood transfusion as well. The hospital will wait for the test results before they schedule the transplant so as of now he is still waiting. I am waiting too because as soon as he finds out when he goes in the hospital I will be heading to Houston to be with him. I've got my bags pack and my emergency first aid kit almost packed, you know like...........uh, where is my list-_-_-_-_-_I'VE LOST MY LIST!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! OK, I'll just make a new one:
1. DUCT TAPE
2. SUPER GLUE
3. BUNGEE STRAPS
4. BALING WIRE
5. MAGIC MARKER
6. WD-40
7. METAL BED PAN- scratch that cuz the hospital provides those (did you know that they make great helmets??)

8. _________________
9. _________________
10. _________________
Please I need your help, I know there are 10 very important things I always carry with me when we go to Houston (to keep Larry in line) but I forgot what they are. If any of you can think of what they are or have any suggestions please fill in and return this to me. Someone has to keep their witts about them and fortunately thats me:-)

I will try to keep everyone informed as soon I hear more from Larry. Your prayers and support for Larry mean so much to us.
Thank you and we love you:-)