Living a Blessed Life

This past week was Fall Break for our kids, allowing our family the opportunity to take a much needed vacation. This trip was cancelled too many times for various reasons which all revolve around health related issues. Finally, we boarded a plane and flew to Orlando, Florida. It was a sweet trip with my parents joining us, as well as Darek’s mom and his sister and her family. One of the most memorable moments was the when our kids were surprised by the arrival of their cousins! Next to our relationship with God, there really is nothing more important than family. I would also include in this description of family - close friends: the family we choose ! We rode as many rides as possible during our days at the parks. There were a lot of firsts for our family on this trip, and if you have ever been to Disney World you already know that dozens of trips would continue to offer many firsts. Our first day was spent at Epcot exploring the many new rides and the villa...

Yesterday was HARD! Round 8 began infusing yesterday morning, and the nausea kicked in almost instantly. I have not had this response in such a strong way up to this point but here we are. Prior to the infusion I met with a Nurse Practitioner to go over blood work and discuss any symptoms, etc. He is pretty candid in his approach and he explained that the chemo compounds in the body with each infusion, so I should expect the side effects to get worse with each infusion. I guess I did know this from the beginning, but was hopeful I would be the exception and have minimal side effects despite the norm. That being said, here we are. I took anti-nausea meds for the first time at home during the day yesterday, and again last night. I noticed a few weeks ago that my hair has started thinning . Initially I thought it was post-surgery hair loss, as I had that happen the first time I had surgery. He explained that it is from the chemo, even though the regimen I am on typically doesn’t ca...

You read that right! It still feels like a lot, and it is a bit daunting, however I am down to 5 more infusions. WooHoo! The end is in sight and I will press on toward this finish line. I know and trust that where God guides, he will provide. That promise has never returned void in my life and I know that He has great plans in store for each of us. Full transparency - this was a tough round for me. I am incredibly grateful that I no longer need the Oxaliplatin with the myriad of side effect that come with it, however I have been more nauseous this time around. Yes, I do have plenty of anti-nausea meds but I am desperately trying to avoid taking them because they also have unpleasant side effects. Funny, right? That is the nature of medicine. One prescription leads to another and another and another to counteract the side effects. So, here I am working through the nausea with ginger tea, Mo Better Belly, and a lot of small meals throughout each day. “ Gi...

You read that right. We are halfway through the chemotherapy treatments and I am relieved to see an end in sight. I started chemo at the end of May (took a break for surgery) and will complete a course of 12 treatments near the beginning of December. What a Christmas gift it will be to our entire family!! In the meantime, we continue to trust God through this process, and do everything we can to bring glory and honor to Him. I do feel pretty nauseous and fatigued during these treatments, but I find that as long as I eat I feel better. Fruit seems to be the thing that satisfies my appetite best, and I have been making ginger tea in the mornings to help with the nausea. School is in full swing for us and we are entering our Fourth week! That seems pretty crazy!! If I failed to mention in previous posts, Toby signed up for Orchestra this year and is playing the Upright String Bass. We were able to find a 3/4 size for him and so far so good. He is building his core and upper body stre...

Yesterday should have been a day filled with Joy, praise, and a sense of great relief. I had my first post-op follow up appointment with my oncologist which went better than expected in many ways, however, I still spent the bulk of the day with feelings of guilt and frustration. I will dive right in here because I feel the need to get it all out in the open. There are a lot of numbers and statistics that are tossed around when it comes to medical diagnoses and it is sometimes difficult to set them on the shelf. I am not suggesting that we completely ignore important information, but I believe the statistics and numbers should simply be used as a guide, not a hard truth. Statistics have SO many variables that it is impossible to apply numbers in such a general way to an entire population of people. There is merit in scientific studies, but equally important to the end result is that very specific population with as many likenesses as possible, which cannot possibly apply to all peop...

“ And we know [with great confidence] that God [who is deeply concerned about us] causes all things to work together [as a plan] for good for those who love God, to those who are called according to His plan and purpose. ” — Romans 8:28 (I know I have posted this verse more than once recently, but I really love the Amplified version with the literal expanded translation. It is my hope that it will speak to you in a way that brings comfort to your soul the way it does mine.) Sitting in my living room with a cuddly puppy at my side and a cool breeze gently entering my home reminds me that Autumn is quickly approaching. The leaves are beginning to change on our neighborhood trees and there is dew on the grass signaling the end of summer. The change of seasons always meets me with mixed emotions. I honestly love the transition from one season to the next but I am never quite sure I am ready to say goodbye to the season we are in. Especially Summer!...

Twelve days ago the post surgical healing process began. This process has taken longer than I expected this time around. Honestly, I was expecting things to move along a little faster simply because I have been through a similar process before. I spent two days in the hospital, in a shared room! This surprised me especially because HIPAA seemed to go right out the window. I now know a great deal more than I should about my roommate, her life story, and her family, and I’m sure she feels the same about me. Her daughter and husband were there both days from 8:00 AM - just after dinner. They were incredibly kind people and I have no complaints about them, I just found it very strange that her care team didn’t bother to move to a private space to discuss her very personal health situation. On the other hand, she was experience intense pain the first night we were there and I had an incredible opportunity to pray for her. She was crying out for hours and I kept wanting to ask her if I ...