Thanksgiving Gratitude

In the spirit of Thanksgiving, I thought I would recount some of the things I have to be grateful for and to outline for all of those who are not near me, all that is being done for our family so your minds can be at ease that we are being cared for.

Our church has put together a spreadsheet with all of our needs listed. This is sent out to all those who want to do something to help. This sheet includes meals provided to us three times a week (and these meals are always sufficient to provide left overs for the rest of the week), house cleaning every Friday, rides to get my children or me to appointments and lessons, and people sign up and visit me every day. Not only do people visit with me, but they often bring me nice gifts and help me while they are here. Anyone who comes while I am cold sensitive usually gets to help me make some food (it is always nice when they are here around lunch time). Now, let me just note here that that does not mean that everyone who comes to visit needs to bring me gifts and come at lunch time! Should I say that again? That does not mean that everyone who comes to visit needs to bring me gifts and come at lunch time! 

I have a friend who comes every day to help me homeschool my children (and she is usually here at lunch time and also helps me with that, so see, you really don’t need to always come at lunch time).

We have gotten gift cards, cash donations, donations through a website a friend set up, and numerous people have been organizing fund raisers. The generosity is mind blowing.

We have an expert bread maker who regularly brings my family delicious dinner rolls and occasionally cinnamon rolls.

I got a free wheelchair and even people willing to take me for walks to see the beautiful world outdoors.

But, I am also getting stronger and stronger! I just took my kids on a field trip to see the American Indian Festival at the museum and did the whole thing without my wheelchair! Of course I sat down at every opportunity, but I was able to walk around all day carrying my little tank of oxygen set on level 3 while walking and 2 while sitting. That is a big drop from when I came home and was on level 4, which is much more oxygen.

For the past few nights I have slept in my bed propped by pillows and mostly LYING DOWN!! Yes, I have actually been sleeping! It felt so good. I can’t even tell you how happy this makes me. I only cough a little bit now.

I have wonderful family and friends who are willing to spend the time and money to fly out here to visit with me and do what they can to help. (Again, usually making me food.)

I have a chiropractor who has provided me with a juicer and then brings me organic fruits and vegetables once a week so I can juice and have healthy salads every day. He is donating all of this with the help of his other patients. 

I still have hair! But I also have some beautiful scarves and hats for when I no longer have hair and in the meantime, those hats are helping to keep me warm now that it has gotten unseasonably cold for NC and scarves are great accessories whether worn on the head or not.

I am feeling really well. I have had very minor side effects from the chemotherapy and it is clearly working since my lungs are doing so much better. 

Because of Thanksgiving I get an extra week between chemo treatments. I don’t have one this week! Yeah!!! (Can you tell I am really happy about that?)

Friends are letting us stay in their condo in Myrtle Beach during the Thanksgiving Break and a foundation has granted us a vacation that we will take over Christmas Break. (I’ll give more details about that later.)

I learned that they make a little oxygen compressor that I can take with me on these vacations which means I will have unlimited oxygen in a suitcase sized container that I can carry around with me. I was feeling so limited on what I could do because the oxygen tanks don’t last that long and I can’t carry them all with me all of the time. But now that I know about this handy gadget, these vacations will be much more fun.

I have people praying for me in practically every religion and all across the country. This makes me feel really good.

I have friends who have been taking care of my dog for months now. When I was in the hospital, Kevin decided to spend the night there with me and all the kids were off at friends houses and suddenly we remember Sadie! She was home alone and had no way of going outside. We called a friend and asked her to go pick Sadie up and Kevin would be by the next day to get her. Well, she has been there ever since. Of course I miss her terribly and wish she could be home with me, but with a very chewable plastic oxygen cord lying all over the house and people coming in and out every day, I know it is best that she not be here right now. I can’t take her on our usual bike runs and I have no way of getting her the exercise she needs, but what a huge undertaking to take this family member of ours on for such a long time.

We have had people take pictures for us.

People are doing special things for our family for Christmas.

Delicious fruit and gifts and cards arrive in the mail.

People are helping get scrapbooks finished for my children. I did such a lovely job of making a scrapbook for each child every year...until child number four came along. Then no one got a scrapbook any year and Rigel (child number four) didn’t even have one! That will all be remedied soon and he will have documentation that he really was born and did live for the past seven years. Actually, I have done some photo books for the family for the past three years, so I guess we will finally have proof that he lived for those first four years and didn’t just arrive on the planet as a four year old.

When we were denied pharmacy assistance we then applied for the manufacturers assistance for the chemo drugs. We got word from one of them that we have been approved so at least one of my four drugs will be free. Hopefully we will hear from the other companies soon. 

Okay, I know I am leaving something out. There has just been so many things done for our family it is hard to keep track. Thank you to everyone who is helping us, praying for us, encouraging me with cards or posts on Facebook. Every little word or deed you do makes a difference and we can’t thank all of you enough. It is a crazy journey we are on right now, I am just so glad I have all of you to walk beside us as we go.

Happy Thanksgiving

A fun little Kevin creation from last Thanksgiving

The End of Round Three

Round #3 is over. Kevin successfully removed the needle once again and I didn’t even start to pass out this time. It is always such a relief to finish, though. I don’t really like carrying around chemo drugs and having them pumped into my body. But, I can’t really complain about the side effects. I have noticed more tingling in my fingers which is helping me be much more careful about touching cold things. It feels strange to sit and have people serve you when you are otherwise perfectly capable, but you just can’t touch anything cold. Since most everything comes out of the fridge, that means I am not very capable of preparing my own food. Luckily I have people around to help me with that.

Right now my Uncle Ivo is in town which is very nice and he has been able to help me out during the day while Kevin is gone or when I come home early from church...But other than my cold sensitivity and tingly fingers, feeling a bit more tired and a general icky feeling, I really have nothing to complain about. I have been handling these treatments quite well and hopefully will be able to continue to do so.

I will get a bit of a reprieve for Thanksgiving. My next treatment is suppose to be on Thanksgiving but nobody wants to work then so I get to wait until the following week for my next treatment. That will be three whole weeks between treatments. I ought to be feeling pretty well that week.

Then, on Dec. 18, the day I have round #5 I will also get a CT scan so we can see how these treatments have affected the cancer. It has clearly done something to the cancer in my lungs since I am coughing a lot less. I feel pretty confident that the day is not too far away when I might actually be able to sleep lying down.

I have switched to smaller oxygen tanks. They don’t last as long as the bigger ones, which is a little sad, but they are so much more convenient since they are small enough that I can carry them in a little bag on my shoulder. Rather than give out a continual stream of oxygen, these only put out oxygen when you inhale, therefor you don’t use as much and can have a smaller canister. The fact that I can use this kind is also good news because it means my oxygen needs are not so high that I have to have the continual stream. So all in all, I think things are going well. My immediate goal was to get the cancer out of my lungs so I could live a more normal life, it seems that we are moving in that direction. I thank you all for your continued prayers and well wishes. I know I have been blessed and I am incredibly grateful.

It has been a fun couple of days with my two friends, Carma and Stephanie, visiting from Utah. We have been the closest of friends since Jr. High. We took the kids for a walk at Lake Johnson, my favorite place in the Raleigh area. Wendy, who has been providing my dog Sadie with a vacation home since I went into the hospital, agreed to bring her along. Lake Johnson is a beautiful lake with a 3 mile paved trail and some REALLY BIG hills.  I thought we might only be able to walk the flat part, but then we decided to give Sadie a chance to show just how tough she really is. Sure enough, with her help (and a lot of pushing from the humans) we made it around all three miles and up all of the hills!

 Like the luscious lips?

Go Sadie! Pull!

Back at home we dressed in PJs and made our favorite oatmeal raisin chocolate chip cookie dough to eat while watching a movie and having a sleepover. Just a little reliving of our younger days. (I promise, that one bite of dough is all I had. But I don’t think sugar affects you when it is eaten with good friends.)

Cookie Dough!!

Now we are at the hospital getting treatment #3. They will have to fly home to their own families in a few hours but for now I have Stephanie to entertain me by dancing to the music coming from my neighbor chemo patient’s TV. (Last time I had a private little room, this time we have a private little curtain.)

Tonight I look forward to my Uncle Ivo making it into town. This is going to be the month of Utah visitors. I will update you later on how the treatment goes this round.

At 8:30 pm last night the little beeper went off on my pump signaling the end of round 2. And yet, it was only the beginning...of the removal process. Yes, I had had those little needles that are stuck in my chest removed before. I was nervous then, too. But that was when I was in the hospital...with a nurse. All went well then and I was very relieved that it didn't hurt. But this time I was at home...with Kevin...who is NOT a nurse. How would this turn out? Can I trust him to pull needles out of my chest? I knew I was feeling quite a bit of anxiety about this moment but I didn't realize just how much until it was all over and suddenly I felt very dizzy and my ears were buzzing and I realized I was about to pass out. I lay down and it went away, I never actually passed out. The fact is, Kevin did a great job. Once again, there was no pain and he did everything just splendidly. And yet, I am still not looking forward to doing it again in round 3.

Round 2 went well. Once again, no real bad side affects. I felt a little out of sorts last night, but nothing major. However, this morning I noticed quite a bit of extra hair in my bath tub. And then when I combed my hair, definite loss. So those of you who have promised to keep me beautiful when bald, it may be time for you to get cracking on those scarves and hats and such.

Today I went to church. It was my first big public outing. It was also the first time I have been to church in MONTHS. Even before going to the hospital I was coughing so much I couldn't go. Since I was going to such a public place I had to wear a mask. Here is a picture of me sporting my little mask with a smiley face. Then I thought I would include one without the mask, just because I think I look better without it. How vain is that?

  Yes, there is a smiley face on that mask. I wouldn't want people thinking I was frowning under there.

It was nice to get out and see people and actually be there at church. I am grateful that things have gone as well as they have. I have gotten much stronger since I have been home. I was able to walk into church and had no problems. I will still need my wheelchair for longer journeys, which I still would like to take, but the fact I was able to walk as far as I did makes me very happy. I know it is because of all the prayers you have offered in my behalf that I have been so greatly blessed. Thank you. When I went to the hospital to begin round 2 and said that I hadn't experienced any side affects from the first round, everyone was amazed. Apparently many people do. And now having done so well with round 2, I know I have been blessed. God does hear and answer your prayers and I know you have been praying for me so I just want you to know that it has been working. I know I am not going to just breeze through all of this. There are going to be tough days ahead, I have no doubt, but I will take each good day I am given and be thankful.