Perseverance

First, I have to say Happy Birthday to my husband, Joel. You are an amazing man. You keep me laughing and you stand by my side to help keep me strong. You are an incredible father and your walk with God is inspiring. You are an excellent provider for your family and your positive attitude is contagious. I am so blessed to have you in my life. I love you!

Ella and I made our TV debut this morning on "Live with Lucas." We had a blast. It was great to meet Lucas and so many other wonderful people associated with Relay for Life. Of course, we met more inspiring cancer survivors. I feel honored to be a part of this elite group. I hope you all will join me in the Relay for Life this year. If your not local, there should be a Relay for Life event in your area. It is a great way to not only raise money for the American Cancer Society, but also to raise awareness about cancer.

We were able to celebrate Joel's birthday a little early this past weekend. We visited our friends, the Guthrie's, in Murrel's Inlet. It is always so wonderful to be around their family. Ella had a blast being with the girls. It was just nice to decompress. We needed it before we headed into this last big week!

My last chemo treatment is tomorrow. After this week, my visits to SCOA will not have to be as frequent. It is bittersweet going into this last treatment. I'm so excited I'll be done but I'm not looking forward to the bad days after treatment. Although, this is the last time I have to go through it. My mom will be coming to stay with Ella and I on Thursday and my Dad will be joining us on Friday. I can't tell you how wonderful it is to know that Ella is in such good hands while I rest.

This past week Joel and I were inspired by the bird feeders at my oncologist office and we decided to put up a few of our own. We now have 3 bird feeders in different locations in our back yard. I was worried the birds wouldn't find the food but they have. We have seen cardinals, blue jays, finches, and a few pigeons (and a squirrels too). It is so nice to walk outside in the mornings and hear all the birds singing. The dogs love it and the true hound has come out in them. We are also trying to get the yard ready for spring. I'll be planting a few more bulbs and getting the soil ready for my organic garden. I can't wait to have all those wonderful tomatoes like I had 2 summers ago!

The last thing today is I want to say CONGRATULATIONS to my sister-in-law Katie. She got engaged last week and we are so happy for them. We are so excited to make a trip to Washington in August to see everyone!

Please keep my in your prayers this week as we finish up with chemo. I was dwelling on these scriptures today and thought I would share:

James 1:2-6, 12

2 Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, 3 because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. 4 Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. 5 If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. 6 But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind.

12 Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him.

The Light at the End of the Tunnel

Yes...I am almost done with my chemo! I apologize to those who check frequently for updates. My last big chemo on Feb. 2nd really got me good and I was down for about a week. I got some help this week when I went for my weekly infusion. Medicine and IV fluids are amazing!! This last big chemo was a little rough on my body and my hemoglobin (iron level) dropped significantly. (It was 7.7 for all my nurse friends)!!!! That is pretty low. No wonder I felt so drained! The nurses gave me a great shot of some hemoglobin boosting medicine and this week it was back up to 11.1. (Still a little low but much, much better).

I have one more to go on February 27th and the bad chemo will be done. Believe me when I say, I AM READY TO BE FINISHED!!!!! I will then start a medicine called Tamoxifen and continue to recieve Herceptin until November. I'd love some suggestions from anyone who has taken Tamoxifen. I'm a little nervous about taking it. The Tamoxifen is taken for 5 years and greatly reduces the chance of a recurrence of cancer. Of course, there will continue to be frequent visits with the oncologist, scans and blood work, but NO MORE CHEMO!!!!!

All is well with Ella and Joel. Ella's battling a cold this week and teething. She hasn't skipped a beat though. She has started climbing on everything which is interesting because she isn't walking yet. I found her sitting in the rocking chair last night. I guess she was ready for bed! We had a wonderful Valentine's Day. Joel had the past few days off and we just relaxed. It was great. Next weekend we are headed off to the beach for a little R&R and to celebrate Joel's birthday.

For all the local Columbia people, Ella and I are going to be on TV! We have been invited by the American Cancer Society to help promote Relay for Life on a local morning show "Live with Lucas." I am very honored they would ask me to share my story and bring Ella. We will be on the show Tuesday, February 26th on the 6:15 AM segment. I know....it's early!!

By the way, I loved hear from some you. I'm going a little stir crazy. You can only vaccum the floor so many times!!!

Rejoice!!!!

I want to begin this post by saying....ELLA IS SLEEPING THROUGH THE NIGHT!!!!!!! Joel and I have dreamed of this day and it is finally here!!! She just started sleeping in her crib, in her nursery and all night long last Saturday. I don't even know what to do. She is so much happier and rested. It is amazing! She is also taking great naps. I've been able to get so much done and even exercise everyday! YEAH!!!!!

Yesterday, I had a visit from one of my very good friends from college Kathy (Ross) Garvin. We had such an awesome visit. Her little boy, Luke, is precious. We caught up on the last 10 years. We had a lot to talk about!! Thanks for coming Kathy!

I also wanted to share a really neat opportunity I had this week. My chemo nurse, Dusty, asked me a few weeks ago if I would be willing to go with her to a Relay for Life meeting and share my story. The Relay for Life is sponsored by the American Cancer Society. They wanted to have someone who was going through treatment now share their experience. I was honored that out of all the patients she sees on a weekly basis, she asked me. I shared briefly what it's like to have cancer and recieve chemo. It was wonderful and the group responded so well. I also had the privelage of meeting several amazing cancer survivors. After the meeting, I met one of the VP's from the hospital where I work and he asked if I would be willing to share my story with employees of Palmetto Health. Of course I responded, "Yes!!!!" After he spoke with me, a regional employee for the ACS asked me if I would be willing to share at other Relay for Life meetings in the area! I'm so honored that people would want to hear my story and that I truly could make a difference in the fight of cancer. Oprah here I come!!!!!!

Ella's Big Day

We successfully celebrated Ella's first birthday last Saturday. She was a little apprehensive about the birthday cake but as you can see she got the hang of it. She of course had to go straight to the tub! While we were all eating our taco's, Ella decided it was time to open her presents and took it upon herself to start without us. We looked over and she was pulling a gift out of a bag. She didn't want to wait! She has had so much fun playing with her new toys and books. Thank you to all of you who celebrated with us. Check out our flickr site for more pictures of the FIESTA!

I made it through one more treatment on Wednesday. Two more treatments to go!!! I'm so ready to be done. Some good news is my hair stopped falling out and is actually growing back. I guess that chemo couldn't get the best of me!!!

All else is well. Ella is still not trying to walk. She is content to crawl where she needs to go and that's fine with me. We have her 1 year check-up on Thursday and I can't wait to see how much she's grown. Joel's job is continuing to go well. He has actually gotten a chance to work in the garage on some projects. Both my grandparents have had to be in the hospital in the past two weeks. They are both doing better and home now. We are heading down to Augusta on Saturday to celebrate my Papa's 90th birthday. It will be great to see some family we haven't seen in a while.

We got word this past week that the insurance company has some issues paying for some of my treatment. Please help us pray this all works out. I'm not worried but it doesn't hurt rally the troops. Also, please continue to pray that God will give me strength to finish these treatments with a good attitude. I'm ready to feel like myself again! Thanks for the prayers!!!

A New Year

Happy New Year to you all!!! I hope you all had a wonderful holiday. We had a wonderful Christmas, Birthday, and New Year! Ella had a very exciting first Christmas! My extremely talented friend Candice took this picture of Ella on Christmas Eve. I know I'm a little partial but she really is a beautiful little girl! She had fun at all the parties and family activities. She was a trooper through all the craziness of Christmas. We had a wonderful time in Augusta with my family. We were able to see many of our friends and family and Ella had a great time with Nanna and Grandaddy! Ella had so many gifts to open Christmas morning that she got tired and had to take a nap. I think we had more fun then she did.

We are officially halfway done with my big chemo. This last chemo was a little easier because I just rested. I didn't try to keep going like I've done in the past. I also found that sitting in my parents jet-tub helped tremendously with the joint pain. I will be returning to Augusta for a few days after my next treatment not just for the tub but help with Ella too.

This last round of chemo will probably release the last little bit of hair I have. My eyelashes and eyebrows are hanging on (thank goodness)! I've gotten used to wearing hats although sometimes I just get to hot and have to take them off. I get some strange looks but oh well. I meet with my oncologist next Wednesday to discuss how all my treatment is going. It feels good to be halfway through all this. My last big treatment will be February 27th if all continues to go so well. My plan then is to hopefully have my second reconstructive surgery and then return to work. I will continue to receive Herceptin until November and then we will really be done!!!

We are preparing for Ella's big first birthday next Saturday. We are having a FIESTA!! We've invited some of her friends from church and family. We can't believe it's already been a year. What a blessing Ella is to our lives.

As Joel and I prepare for the year ahead, we don't make resolutions. We look at the past year and give ourselves a life/spiritual/relationship check-up. There is always room for improvement so we decide what goals we set for ourselves in the upcoming year. As we say good-bye to the Year 2007, what a life changing year it has been. We've become parents, lost a lot of sleep, changed jobs, and fought cancer. We are stronger for it and forever our lives will be changed. We are excited to see the adventure God takes us on in 2008!