Rainy Days in Maryland

Danica and I drove to Va last Friday night and half-way there it started raining like crazy! If it weren't from the car's blinkers infront of me and the occasional lightning, I could never see the road. Driving with a teenager who has a cell phone, in the rain, is not a good idea. Her phone started ringing and it was from this cute guy. She couldn't believed that "this cute guy" was calling her and of course she was cut off. She was more concerned with her lost call than the predicament that we were in.

Saturday morning, we went driving, (with her behind the wheel, in Dave's truck!) to show me that she knows how to drive since it's always her dad letting her drive. She was arguing with me on the way to Va why I don't let her drive my truck, "I had driven your truck before with my dad!" It was a nerve wracking experience---"Stay on the road! You are going to hit all these mailboxes! Start breaking! Slow down! No, you're not going the speed limit, 65! Change lanes. Don't look on my side, there's no more lane here! "Danica, turn right at the intersection". She drove pass it. And she is determined to get her drivers license this summer whether she drove the 60 hrs. requirement or not! Driving the country roads with a teenager is more frightening than in the city. You have to share the roads with lawn mowers. Ahhh.... STOP!!!! BREAK NOW!!!! And I have one more teenager!

Well, I didn't have to go fishing with Dave last weekend since he had fished all week. BUMMER! I don't really like fishing but it was a nice, "just the two of us" for the last few Saturdays. I spent most of the time sleeping while he was fishing since we don't get in until midnight. Then we have to get up at 4:30 am to be at the lake around 5:30.

Hannah celebrated her 5th birthday last Saturday ( had a pool party) so we were in Martinsville until 9 pm and Dave went to play cards. He started having pain on his side but he still insisted on going instead of going with us to Delta's. John went to check on him since we were an hour away. He didn't sleep at all Saturday night, either too much morphine in his system or too excited for the next day. He had another fishing tournament with John last Sunday. He was so exhausted that he slept through the last 2 hrs. of our drive home in the rain. I told him that I am so traumatized driving in the freeway, with too much rain that I had to take the back road on the way home from picking him up at the Annapolis Clinic.

He went for an appointment to see his oncologist yesterday. It's been almost 9 months since his stent placement but his bilirubin count was okey. He has been really tired and sleepy today. I hope that it's just from doing so much last week in Va. Melissa had a great time with her cousins. Angie and Barbie had been taking them swimming. Angie put hightlights on her hair which she had been wanting for a while. She spent a day with Sissy and Brandon. She didn't mention anything about riding the 4 wheeler with Brandon which I hope she didn't. It was very nice of Sissy to invite Dave for dinner on Father's Day!

Driving to Va every weekend is exhausting but I enjoy being there. Robert and Barbie with their boys, Angie with her kids and sometimes when Scott is off, Granny, the girls and I made it a habit to go out to lunch after church on Sundays. We go to Napolis, a small Italian restaurant, and I always look forward to it. Their Seafood combination is just $9.95, half the price of the one me and Ruth goes to once in a while here in MD.

They are calling for more rain here in Md so we have to stay indoors for the next few days with 5 three year old boys. I hope I could make it through the weekend. We will be driving back to Va but we have to come home on Sunday. He will be having his next chemo treatment, Monday.

Your support, thoughts and prayers are deeply appreciated. Please pray that Dave's tumors will continue on shrinking.

Love,
The Hoskins

JUNE 12, 2006. CHEMO # 8 / DANICA TURNED 17 YEARS OLD!

The ice cream cake with 17 lit up candles that Barbie and Angie gave Danica as a surprise was beautiful! No pictures to go in her photo album since I didn't bring my camera with me to Va. that weekend but the look on her face while blowing those 17 candles would stay with me forever. Thank you so much and I really appreciate you for giving Danica something to remember all her life.

Dave went for his chemo #8. His oncologist decided against giving him meds for water retention because the side effects would be worse than what is being treated. He was told to put up his legs as much as possible and no salt in his diet which had helped a lot. I could feel the bones on his legs again before he went to Va last Friday night but he fished all day Saturday and his legs started swelling.

He and Melissa is spending the whole week together in Va. They left Friday night with Brandon but he was ready to go home last night. He was feeling lousy, panicky and his anxiety was on the roof which are the side effects of drug withdrawal. I forgot to put a new patch on before he left Friday. I kept on reminding him to put one on but he said that he was fine until yesterday. He felt all alone that he couldn't even remember going to Va. by himself and did okey. I talked to him this morning while he was at Leesville Lake ( on the boat) with Melissa and he said that he is feeling better. He didn't want to go home and they will just wait for me and Danica to join them next weekend. He said that his mom is making him dinner tonight and he will have dinner at Mike's house tomorrow. I just talked to Angie and she said that they made plans together to go swimming tomorrow morning with all the kids. He is getting ready for another fishing tournament on Sunday which means more leg swelling and driving back home late. I think it is safe for me to say that he is on alternative treatment, FISHING! He said that when he is fishing he is just another guy--- with no CANCER.

To our Friends and Family: We thank you so much for your continued support, love and prayers.

CHEMO # 7

Dave started another cycle of chemo treatment last Monday. He was really wiped out because he had a back to back appointment. When he was done with chemo, he had to go for his Physical Exam since it's required for retirement. He came back last Sunday night from catfishing at James River in Hopewell, Va. with fat legs. (Barbie said that he has the same fat legs as his sisters.) One of the many side effects of these chemo drugs is water retention which is very scary. Being on his feet fishing for 2 nights, eating fast food and stopping at Quantico, Va on the way home for more fishing didn't help at all. His oncologist didn't want to give him any meds yet until Monday when he goes back for another chemo.

He hasn't been feeling good all day today. He slept almost all morning and took an afternoon nap. We went to Taco night at Broadneck Grill last night and he decided to have a glass of Margarita and ordered a piece of raspberry cheesecake to take home which he ate in the car. It didn't agree with his system that he had to throw up at 2 am which he hasn't done for a while. He is complaining of a back pain but he said that it's not related to a cancer pain. He fell while he was fishing with the girls on Memorial Day weekend and he thinks that he might have broken ribs. I was going to change his patch tonight but it wasn't on his back anymore. He didn't have any idea on when it had come off. That's one reason why he is feeling bad that he couldn't explain on how he feels. He took one of those powerful pain meds and he is now in Lala land.

I have to sign out for now and get ready for another day. We thank you all for your thoughts and prayers.

Love,
The Hoskins Family

CT SCAN FINAL RESULTS

On Friday, May 26, Dave went to see his oncologist and to pick up his meds for a new cycle of chemo. We were not expecting to hear anymore about his scan. We were thankful and happy of having the disease stabilized so we just went on living a normal life as much as we could, doing the things he loves most, FISHING! We were ready for another cycle of Gemzar, Taxotere and Xeloda and start a new fight.

GOD IS GOOD! He gives us blessings when least expected. More findings, "Within the lungs, there is significant improvement in previously noted air space consolidations. There is no focal infiltrate, mass, or effusion on today's exam. There are tiny posterior pleural nodes which is likely represent residual inflammation/scar. Biliary stent in place and unchanged".

We thank you so much for all your prayers and please continue praying that Dave will have the strength, physically and mentally, for another cycle of chemo.