You can reach Sue at (314) 452-3685 or (314) 726-2032. You can write to her c/o Rose Holt, 905 Barnard College Lane, St. Louis, MO 63130.

Den had his battery of tests on Wednesday, too numerous to mention. He started at 9:00 am and got back to the facility some time after 5:00 pm. Aaron picked him up and took him to the St. Louis University Hospital. Rose and I joined them so Aaron could go on to work, then Aaron came back in the late afternoon to ferry Den back to the facility. We learned a lot about liver transplants but still have much more to go.

Den's biopsy of the week before showed that he does indeed have a small (1.5 cm) liver cancer. In some ways this is good news because it means when the cancer grows to 2.0 cm he will be moved much higher on the transplant list. His current MELD number is 13. When the tumor grows to 2.0 cm, his number will go to 24. If he has to wait longer than 90 days for a liver at that point, his number will increase by 3. The higher the number the more pressing is the need for a liver transplant.

So far in all the testing Den has shown some deficiency in kidney function and may have to see a nephrologist. He has some suspicious spots on his lungs that, we are told, are old calcifications and are harmless. His heart and lungs both function well.

We did get good news in that the x-ray showed he did NOT have a broken bone in his hand. However, he does have a broken toe, possibly TWO broken toes on his bad foot that are causing him a good deal of discomfort.

Scott and sons arrived last night around 1:45 am. They immediately sacked out in the third floor guest room. We've had a wonderful day with the young boys. Scott, too. Brayden will be two next Saturday so we had big plans for a birthday celebration over our dinner. Brayden got so tuckered out that he feel asleep at 6:00 pm and slept through dinner and is still asleep. We tried waking him but could not. He is really zonked. He and Jalen played outside a lot today in the balmy weather. Shirley baked a special cake. Jalen made cards and wrote a poem for us to read at dinner. Didn't matter. Brayden slept through it all. We are saving the cake for tomorrow.

Truth be told, we are ALL tuckered out. Scott went off this afternoon with some friends to go to the Big Fight--Spinks vs. Judah. We are soon to go to bed.

Joe Felin called this morning. He had heard from Pete. They were having a wonderful time in Mexico. There was a pretty funny exchange between Joe and Shirley who answered the phone when he called. Joe, thinking he was talking to me, said, "I woke in the middle of the night and thought nobody loved me." A startled Shirley, said, "What???!!!!" Soon communications were clarified and Shirley realized she wasn't getting an obscene phone call.

A message from Jalen: "I am taking guitar lessons. I have learned G chord, C chord, G7 chord, and up/down stroke. I can tell all my strings, EADGBE, those are my strings. And there are seven kids in my guitar class, including me. The teacher is a man, and I have learned "Brother John," "Row, Row Your Boat," and a lot of other songs. I take guitar lessons every Wednesday. Now I am 7. Brayden will be 2 on February 12, 2005. His birthday is the same day as Abraham Lincoln's. One day in the truck when my Grandma, named Mary, picked me up from school, on the way to her house or getting something to eat, when she told me Braydon's bithday was the same as Abraham Lincoln's birthday, I called Brayden 'Abraham Lincoln, Jr.' Tomorrow on Sunday I have to leave on a journey back to Louisville. It will take me a long ride. Brayden will stay until Thursday, maybe. Today we tried to celebrate his birthday, but he fell asleep and so we can't have the cake, or open presents, or light the candles on the cake. So now we plan to have a sit-down breakfast in the morning (Sunday) when Dad will also be here and before Dad and I have to leave. That way we can celebrate Abraham Lincoln Jr's birthday.

I made Papa Denny a get-well card and Brayden two cards for his birthday. Today in the afternoon or morning Aunt Rose put paper on her head to rest her eyes then put her glasses over the paper. I tricked her with the paper. I took the paper and drew a mad or sad mouth on it, and put traded her back. And I put the glasses over my drawing, and it looked like she was a paperman. It was a good trick.

Another trick I played on Granny, Aunt Rose, and Aunt Shirley and me, of course, and Dad. I pretended that a foot pump that you use for an air sleeping bag was a whoopee cushion. I let them close their eyes and sit down. When they sat down it made a funny noise, like a whoopee cushion. It was a good trick.

On third floor today Brayden threw his cup down to second floor, and I rolled the foot pump down to second floor. I sort of pushed-threw it with the tippy-top of my foot. And then I threw a one dollar bill and it landed on second floor. I tried again and it landed on first floor. Today was a good day except for the part when Brayden fell asleep and we couldn't celebrate his birthday."