Christmas Greetings Stateside!

Finally…Christmas and New Year greetings to all of you from Stateside! I pray that you all had an enjoyable Christmas with family and friends. I spent two weeks in VA with my mom, two sisters and a brother-in-law and it truly was a lovely time to be together, to have some fun and get plenty of rest.

I am now back in PA at Linda’s and have a car thanks to Andy Ford (it’s a Honda!). Unbelievably, a month has already passed. I realize now that this time here is to recupe, rest, re-charge and to re-assess, not to mention travel to meet with some of you folks.

First of all, please excuse my lag in communication – even though I felt well for travel home, I am recuping from some persistent, colitis-like symptoms from the massive antibiotics I took for the pneumonia in November. Please pray that the medicines work and that it clears up soon. Thanks!

To re-charge for the time ahead, continuing education is important since I am working in Romania as a professional. I am currently in the application process for my professional doctorate – done in 6-week courses on the web. After 2007, I would not be able to “grandfather” in, so I need to start the process now. I would have 2 years to finish it. A credentialing exam will let me know how many courses I would have to take – I pray only 10-12. Total cost would be around $6000. It would make for a busy schedule in Romania but it would also allow me to stay abreast in the field of audiology and be ready to teach and train others.

Now, with two years behind me, I need to re-assess my financial support that I went out with two years ago – prices have gone up from my first budget estimates and the professional costs, such as conferences were never accounted for. In April I will be attending the annual international convention and in September I hope to go to a European conference. Attending a European conference would let others know about this dynamic project the Lord has embarked upon and sent little ol’ me to do it! The World Health Organization is very interested in the status of pediatric hearing testing around the world and I am sure they would love to know about this pioneer project. Please let me know if you would like to partner with me in any of these needs.

Looking forward to meeting with many of you to tell you of what the Lord is doing in Romania.

Where did November go? Preparing for home leave!

October was terrific with Mike’s 10-day visit here, as well as Pastor Tom’s visit and my trip to Spain. Where has November gone? Happy Thanksgiving, by the way! During this month I have been unable to write because of illness and feeling extremely tired because of it. It turns out that I had a double-whammy of a sinus infection that started 3 weeks ago, and then pneumonia. The pneumonia was not going away, so yesterday they started me on my 3rd antibiotic – this time by IV complete with an IV port – I have had to go to the hospital twice a day as an outpatient. The doctor said it was his birthday gift to me! Yes, 52nd birthday yesterday. Thanks a lot, buddy!

Somehow, with the Lord’s power, I will get everything done before leaving December 14th for home leave/furlough. 2+ weeks is not a long time. I will be staying at Linda Bonsall’s house (number at the bottom of this email). Christmas and New Year’s will be spent in Virginia with my mom and sisters. Email address will remain the same. I will keep you informed as things progress.

So what is the purpose of my trip home?? Besides recovering my health, seeing your faces and going to doctors to get some answers regarding my thyroid nodules and thyroid condition, I believe the Lord wants me to use the time for continuing education. Please pray along with me that I am being sensible – I will need strength and energy to do this. So, health permitting I hope to not only travel to my annual audiology convention in April but also start the first course of my professional doctorate. The professional doctorate in my field is obtained by completing approximately 10 web-based, six-week courses. Yes, everything is on the web. Only until 2007 can we, as audiologists, have the opportunity to “grandfather” into this doctorate. After 2007 I would have to go to the university. In my two years here, I needed to assess whether this was a necessary step. I can now say that the caliber of the program at the hospital that we want to maintain requires me to be up-to-date with diagnostic skills and abilities to teach and pass on knowledge to others. Freshening up my skills can only help.

So, asking you to pray along with me for rapid health recovery and decisions regarding time spent over furlough.

More as things progress.

Moving forward into the hospital!

I am now writing to ALL of you the events of this past month. First, after advice from Dr. Bob Snyder from my church in PA, it was recommended that I get a biopsy done of my thyroid nodules. So, on the 19th of Sept., I headed for Budapest, a 7 hour train ride, to get it done. PTL – just received the results back this week and everything is fine. I am still feeling well and energetic even after being off thyroid medicine for 6 weeks. Go figure! Still on the heart and sleep med, though.

Moving forward now.... when it is the Lord’s timing, it is the Lord’s timing. Transferred all the equipment to the hospital 2 weeks ago and in the last 2 weeks, we have been busy arranging, organizing and setting things up in the room. Have even tested some patients already! The testing is so new for everyone that I have a roomful every time we do it!


The specialized ABR equipment for testing children

October is full of happenings – first of all, it has been two years this month since coming here! I am also expecting my missions pastor, Tom Walsh, this week from the 13-15th. Looking forward to that. Then, on the 17th-22nd, I will be heading to Spain for a little holiday, meeting my good friend, Gail Smith, in Pamplona where her daughter lives and the first grandson just arrived! Then at the end of October, Mike Webb will be arriving with his daughter, Rebekah, for a 2-week visit here in Romania. He had news this week that he is bringing two fantastic pieces of equipment with him. My cup overfloweth!

Also, a little techie advance. I now have a American phone line in Virginia (where my mom lives). If you would like to make a phone call to Romania…all it would cost you is the cost to Virginia. The number is (703) 879-4893 and comes through my computer. Pretty neat, huh?

Plans are still in place for furlough starting in December, sometime before Christmas.

A conference in Holland!

Well, as usual, much has happened since I wrote you last at the beginning of July. In July, I had a nice weekend away to Sighisoara, an old German town 3 hours away from here. Definitely worth a visit! At the beginning of August, I went to Holland for an IT conference with 12 other people in a van and 2 cars. We drove for 24 hours straight across Europe! An adventure, to say the least. Holland is very beautiful and the conference was very beneficial – was able to meet with my American and European IT leadership, which was very nice. A relaxing and refreshing time. I was also able to pick up my replacement laptop in Holland as well, brought over by my IT advisor (Thanks, Jim!). And, have still been seeing patients in my apartment.

The saga regarding the thyroid is definitely not over! Just after returning from Holland, I went through a week of palpitations and increased heart rate. I was able to get in to see another endocrinologist and she performed an EKG (my heart is fine, PTL!) and an echogram/sonogram of the thyroid as well. The echogram showed a slight enlargement of the left side of the thyroid with some nodules. Not what I wanted to hear. So, for right now she has me off my thyroid medication and she has put me on heart medication to calm the heart down. She also said that 80% of ladies in my “season of life” get nodules on their thyroids. This aging process ain’t for sissies! We are now in a “wait and see” hold pattern and I am due to see her again in a month. It is one day at a time right now with the Lord’s grace and power and your prayers.

So, health and energy withstanding, I still hope to move forward gradually with things at the hospital in September. We will see how that goes. The Lord knows! Also, in December, I have plans for a 3-month furlough in the States. I will keep you informed.

No more yo-yo please!

21 months already in Romania!! Over the past year, regarding the regulation of my thyroid, I say, “Enough with the yo-yo already!!” That is what it has felt like! Since I last wrote, I NEVER believed that I could get worse!! But, yes, I did! I went down on the medication, as advised, and I was unable to do anything! Finally, I had enough of going up and down on the medicine and I decided to take charge. I did my own research on the web and found out that when a thyroid condition like mine combines with my season of life, things go whacko! Well, they sure did! I decided to switch my brand of medication and, amazingly, started feeling better in 6 days! Some sleep medication helped as well! I am continuing to get my energy back every day, with symptoms decreasing, and am now catching up and organizing things here at home to get ready for the hospital. There’s nothing like being able to THINK! I hope you don’t hear anything further on this subject of my thyroid!

While I was unable to do much of anything, the Lord was working miracles for me! In this period of time I received two (2!) terrific pieces of fantastic, top-of-the-line, state-of-the-art equipment AT COST – one from a company in the States and the other from England. The rep in England even contributed some of his own money for the purchase! I now have a hearing aid programming box, which I needed, and a pediatric visual conditioning unit to use in the booth at the hospital! I am overwhelmed at His goodness! And, there was money there to cover them!

So, we will see what the month of July brings as I continue to feel strong and am sleeping better. Stay tuned…..!!!

The month of August has an IT conference in the Netherlands planned. I will be traveling by car with the Timisoara team. The trip there and back will encompass a week or so. Never been to Holland before, so I’m looking forward to it!

I will most likely be replacing my laptop soon. Portability will be key, as well as being able to program hearing aids with it. Will continue to seek what the Lord has in mind as things unfold!

I will keep you informed.