The Allen 6th Ward Beehives Rock!

Just another way that God has blessed our family through the amazing people around us--Today the 12-13 year-old young women (Beehive class) of our church congregation surprised us with an afternoon of heavy yard work! They raked and bagged A LOT of leaves, swept the walks, weeded the beds, and planted hearty pansies! Who doesn't love pansies?! (If you are that person, do not leave a comment. You make me sad.) There were 7 young ladies and 2 adult leaders and they worked from late afternoon into the dark.

Thank you for your help! With everything going on we know the yard was going to be on the back burner and now we have a lovely yard that we and our neighbors can enjoy! We love you!

Rhys and Sophie Quirks

Rhys' new joys are banging things with his hands and shaking the heck out of his toys. He also giggles at just about anything. He is so big and strong that he is able to skooch his exersaucer around as if it were some unpersuasive walker, just by throwing his weight around in it. He loves his baby food. He is starting to form his own opinions and expresses that he is mad about his toys or bottle being taken away. He puts himself to sleep by throwing his blanket over his head, which we reposition later. He still has a small bald spot on the back of his head. He is teething again and is the king of drool. He has not yet caught on that one's bum must be up in the air to achieve crawling position.

Sophie likes to run around in circles and dance and be noisy. Whenever she is in Daddy's arms she feels the need to point out that he has a logo on his shirt. She loves collecting and exploring goodies on her walks like pine cones, dried-up, dead worms, and such. She wakes up between 2-7 times a night to make our lives difficult. She likes taking her brother's toys. She starts all her prayers with "Heavenly Father, thank you for [to]day. Thank you for Kenzie, Kari, and Carter (our family friends) and if ever she runs out of things to talk to God about, she will repeat her gratitude for them again and again. When she is having it rough, she will try to be nice by screaming, "Go Away Please!!!" The "please" is the only mildly nice thing in that statement. She has the best fake laugh ever--"hehehe, hehehe."

An Outpouring of Support

So the night before my first cancer treatment I am lounging at home in my designer duds: wintry knit sweater, cherry pattern jammy pants, red socks with green polka dots, and fluffy purple slippers, without a bra because of my very recent surgery and Rudy and Becky show up as expected. Well, they know I am too comfortable with them to dress well for them.

Well, not a few minutes later, Kari (who just had her own surgery-the trooper!), Carter, and Kenzie show up but they are good friends and drop in from time to time anyway and probably wanted to wish me well.

But not a minute later, Carly, John, Ben, and Ella stop in with a plate of brownies. No, a mountain of brownies! And behind them, Chris, Karen, and their daughters, Elsa and Aila who live about an hour or so away!

So I got that everyone showed up to offer their support and well wishes and it really made me happy, despite the way I was dressed, to see so many of my friends and feel of their love.

But that's not all! Apparently, Carly headed up a little good works and involved a network of friends to wish me well. They surprised me with a booklet of well wishes, inspirational quotes, and loving thoughts all sent in by friends and family all over the States. I got all teary once I saw what it was and did NOT attempt to read one while the group was there for fear I would not be able to turn off the water works.

Then I was presented with a quilt to surround me with love during my treatments and inevitable yuckiness. For each comment sent in to Carly and Neal, Carly included another mini support ribbon on the quilt. And there were a lot! That felt so great!

At the risk of sounding like an infomercial, "But wait, that's not all!" All those who worthily held the priesthood, Neal, Carter, John, and Chris, placed their hands on my head and pronounced a blessing of healing, strength, and a continued understanding of my Heavenly Father's love for me. It was so great to be surrounded by these men who I love very much.

It was a great night and it really got me set for starting my treatments. Thanks to all who had the opportunity to send in their prayers and well wishes. I love reading them when I'm alone. Thanks for everyone who took time out to show up and share their love. Thanks especially to Carly who put the special gifts together. Thank you to Rudy and Becky for taking photos of this unexpected and very special moment. I love all of you very much and I really do know God is taking care of me through my friends and family as well as through the power of many prayers said in my behalf. My heartfelt thanks!

And yes, we shared the brownies with everyone!

I Don't Mean to Sound Insensitive or Crass BUT...

Cancer sure has it's perks! Treatment starts Monday.

Watching the Weather

Keri got her port surgically placed yesterday and is fine just sore.

With Grandma here to care for the kids, Neal went to a workshop provided by (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to learn how to better read the skies to predict certain types of weather. Keri and Neal were going to have Opa and Oma babysit and spend the day together learning but then all the medical stuff got in the way. No reason Neal should lose out though.

Thanks to Keri's visiting teachers from church for the yummy dinner and dessert. We loved it. And Dave, we absolutely love your cookies, but we love you even more for baking them and bringing them over to help heal Keri.

Yippee Stage III

Happiness is being free of Stage IV cancer and getting a Wendy's Frosty.

As soon as they escorted Neal and I to the exam room, we grabbed that chart hanging on the door and started to skim the 5 reports from the 6 scans I had done last week, while we waited for the doctor to visit our room. We were pleased to see that they were all negative for additional spread.

Then when he got in there he told us what we already knew, that we remain at a "really nice Stage III", and then we grilled him about melanoma treatment and the numbers for approximately 45 minutes with up to date articles in hand. He held up pretty well. The outcome: we will be doing the same treatment he recommended over a week ago but at least we feel better having answers to all our questions!

I get a port surgically placed at the end of this week and we start immunotherapy (which we will just call chemo, even though it isn't, because it is given like chemo and has many of the same side effects of chemo but works in a different way) on Monday of next week.

So I take Interferon A in high dose M-F for four weeks. That will suck. It's going to be yucky but at least I get to keep my hair this time (still a breast cancer survivor, you know!). Then when that is over (thank goodness!) I will give myself shots of a lower dose on M, W, and F for 11 months. The doc says we can lower the dose or stop if the side effects are really bad for me. He says that they think people will only have to take the shots for 1-2 months for the same effect but the research just isn't there yet. They'll probably know in 2 years if that works or not and by then I will already be done with this treatment and hopefully living life to the fullest.

My mom is coming into town tonight and will be staying for a while. We will probably reconsider if we still need that kind of assistance after 6 weeks.

Thanks for all the prayers and help we've received. We really feel and appreciate it. Just keep it coming as this treatment whoops my butt.

Things One Should Not Eat

One should not eat one's own self. But Rhys is loving sucking on and mouthing his toes! Such a great find!

And Neal went to game night with the guys (played Risk) and partook of "a coronary waiting to happen", also known as a Bacon Explosion. It's sausage and bacon wrapped in a lattice work of more bacon with BBQ sauce. I have no doubt that this has been featured on http://thisiswhyyourefat.com/ at some point. Thank you to Carter who prepared the poison.

It's The Little Things That Matter

Please leave a comment telling us something simple that brings you pleasure. Don't put friends or family because we already know that's the most important. Tell us what else brings a smile to your face.

If you don't usually leave us comments, now would be a great time to start. With all the yucky stress entering our lives right now, we are trying to concentrate on the positive and we need your help. Share what makes you happy.

We'll start. Keri - being tucked in at night, even being in my 30s. Also colorful autumn leaves. Neal - a good scalp scratch. Sophie - our cat, no doubt. Rhys - being naked.

Medical Update

I'd rather be posting something than cancer info but this seems to be a good way to keep everyone posted. I'm going to have to get more pictures of my kids or something to balance out all this unpleasant medical stuff.

Anyway, I have Stage III cancer and we will be doing 3 body scans next week to see if there is any noticeable spread. If there is, that's Stage IV and we will take another look at our plan of attack. For now, if things remain at Stage III, we will start on a chemical IV drug that is NOT chemo but like chemo in a week or two. I'll get a port surgically placed so they don't have to keep sticking me with IVs. I'll take the drug on M, T, W, Th, and F with the weekend off. It's side effects are suppose to knock me on my rump physically with fever, chills, shakes, nausea, and fatigue. The challenge will be more so psychologically, they say. Yippee me! Yippee for the family!

Anyway, I do the above regimen for 1 month. Then the port comes out and I get to give myself shots of the same drug on M, W, and F only! The side effects should lessen with the decreased dosage. This regimen will last 11 months.

I think my mom, a God-loving woman, said it right, when all I heard was a "Shit!!!" on the other end of the phone. She will be coming out to help us with the kids, medical crap, and life in general within a week or so. She will be staying for several weeks as of now. Good-bye office, hello make-shift guest bedroom.

They will continue to give me body scans every 3 months or so for a while to keep an eye on me. After being overwhelmed with all the info presented at the cancer center Neal and I have been forming more questions in our heads that we will be grilling our lucky doctor with at the end of next week. We want to make sure we are making the best decision for our family.

Bummer

Would you rather have the intestinal flu or get the news that your cancer has spread. Well, today, I got both. Neal and I went to the doc and he told us he was able to remove all the cancer from the primary site on my arm but that the lymph node biopsy showed it had spread to one lymph node. Needless to say, we are bummed. Really bummed.

Now we get to meet with an oncologist and discuss what tests need to be run and what treatment options we may have to consider.

A big thank you for those who have prayed, fasted, called, and dropped of goodies in our behalf this past week. We really appreciate the support. Just keep those prayers coming for me and my little family.

Happy New Year!

New Year's Eve was busy! Keri went in for surgery to remove the tumor on her arm and one lymph node to check for spread or containment. Meanwhile, Neal's sister and brother-in-law, Kira and David arrived from Colorado to spend a few days with the family. The surgery went fine and we will know the results this Wednesday. Healing was made much faster by every one's prayers and all the good laughs and fun that came with hanging out with Opa, Oma, Kira, and David.

Here are some pictures from this week.

Sophie rants every time we try to wash her hair so now we let her rant while she shampoos her own hair. And yes, it's tear free formula.Our sleeping beauty...Uncle David and Aunt Kira arrive.Aunt Kira taught Sophie how to navigate an iPhone and she was entertained for several long moments.Rhys has been sitting up like a champ for a few weeks now. Not exactly centered, but love Sophie's stretch to get in the frame and her cheesy "cheese" smile!The whole group together. Hooray!Kira and David, we miss you already!

Previous Quote of the Blog

Times change; years speed by; but Christmas continues sacred.-Thomas S. Monson, "The Best Christmas Ever"