Good Morning from Deb!

I spoke to Randy and Christine tonight as they were at home preparing Liz's room, for her to come home. They want to be ready for when the Drs. say she she can go home....they can GO! The Drs. suggested taking up the carpet in Liz's room, and putting in hard wood. This will make her room easier to keep extra, extra clean and germ free. Of course, there is new paint, bedspread....etc....so fun! Randy and Christine seemed to be having fun...laughing and cutting up. : ) They have put in a few really long days in preparation for when Liz can come home!

Randy and Christine just celebrated their 21st wedding anniversary. They went out to dinner while Catherine stayed with Lizzy. I popped down real quick to see them, but they were out. I told them not to worry, they were just my cover to see Liz anyway!

Christine mentioned in her blog...The battle cry is "ZERO, EL ZIPPO, NADA!" The hope, and prayer for this Tuesday, November 25th, is for there to be ZERO blasts. Christine noted that if we have never been nudged to get on our knees and cry out to God, this would be a good time to start! I might add to consider fasting. There is just something amazing about fasting. It is this unseen experience of petitioning our Lord, and praying without ceasing (At least for me...b/c when you are hungry it helps you to remember to pray...and I tend to be very hungry the whole time I am fasting!) I encourage you to fast and pray on Liz's behalf - a meal or two, a day, 2 days...you will know what will work for you, but I want to encourage you to challenge yourself. Don't sell yourself short just b/c you feel hungry. I can only speak from experience. When I fast, I experience God as very close and real, and I end up having this bond with Him that is in-and-of-itself nothing short of amazing. For me, sometimes it is not until after I fast that I look back and get a glimpse of just how close God really is...but without exception, I always walk away from fasting in awe. In a nut shell - fasting helps us keep our focus on God, and on praying and on listening to Him...His still, small voice...his promptings...He will even acutally lead us in how to pray...GO FOR IT!!

As Mr.Locke mentioned in their note on Liz's blog:
"Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him and he will make your paths straight." ( Proverbs 3:5-6 )

Regarding Thanksgiving...(How's that for a follow-up after a prompt to fast?!) Mr. and Mrs. Lothrop have told Randy and Christine... "Have Turkey will travel!" I love that! Liz should be about ready to come home, but she may still be in the hospital. The determining factor is her "counts." Her white blood cells need to be up enough to be able to resonably protect her from infection, and her platelets need to be up enough to protect her from bleeding (nose bleeds, gums bleeding). Her counts are going in the right direction, but she will be hit with more chemo on Tuesday, so we need to wait and see. So, if on Thanksgiving they are at Childrens...or if they are at home...Thanksgiving abounds...in more ways than just turkey!

On Tuesday, the 25th, Liz will get a bone marrow aspiration, and a spinal. They are checking for blasts in her bone marrow, and spinal fluid...(Can you say/pray "ZERO, EL ZIPPO, NADA!" ) She will also get chemo IV & IT (intrathecally = via her spinal tap). Christine said that each week the preliminary results of blasts has been accurate, so she is thinking this week will be no exception. The results will be posted on the blog asap...promise!

Please continue to pray:
Thank God in faith for zero blasts and for minimal side effects for Lizzy. Thank Him for 21 years of marriage for Randy and Christine! Thank Him for all the ways He is revealing himself to the Lothrops and Co. Randy has mentioned that aquantainces, friends - old and new, and even people who do not even know the Lothrops are sharing how the Lothrops journey is bringing them closer to God...

Mr. Lothrop, Randy's dad has said ....
" And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to his purpose." (Romans 8:28)

Pray for: ZERO, EL ZIPPO, NADA blasts on Tuesday!

******Wear orange on Tuesday, get a flu shot, wear a mask & wash your hands when you visit, consider fasting for Lizzy's total and complete healing - as evidenced by NO blasts on Tuesday!******

Deb