Almost Spring

Bruce and I went to Seaside to celebrate our 20th anniversary last Wed. It poured rain the whole time! Not just rain, but buckets with driving wind and tornado warnings. The good news is we ate lots of sushi, drank some great wine and took lots of naps. We spent a lot of time together which is the point, I suppose. We came back to Bham for the blooming of the the trees and the azaleas which are gorgous.

Dad is doing very well. He will finish the radiation treatments on Thursday and has only experienced a little discomfort and some tiredness. The treatments were a followup to the chemo and very targeted to the area under his left arm where the tumor first appeared. He hopes to be going home soon, but I hope he stays because I will miss him when he goes and I think he likes being around us. I don't want him to get home and be alone.

Doug is doing well and got high marks on his ACT practice test so we are encouraged that he will do well on the real test in June.

Dad's Journey

Dad is doing so well these days it is hard to remember the bad ones, thank God. He is getting stronger every day. Eating so well and wanting to do projects! There for a while I wondered if he would ever be himself again, but he is. I cannot express my gratitude enough!

Dad's Progress

Dad is finished with his second round of chemo. In some ways it was easier, but in others much harder. He didn't experience the awful reaction to the first set of chemicals but the accumulation of chemo in his body has created significantly low white blood cell counts and incredible mouth sores. Imagine your mouth is one huge raw sore. This has been going on since Monday. The Dr. said that his white count is coming up and that will help his mouth begin to heal. But he can't sleep or eat because his mouth hurts so much.

The most amazing thing is his spirit which keeps him trying to make jokes in the midst of much pain and discomfort. He wanted me to take this picture since he has no hair. He is including it in his Christmas cards to his buddies. Bruce keeps teasing him that it will come back in as a fro.

I am getting use to being the care giver and wish so much that I was better at it. He is very patient with me and teases me about being "Nurse Goodbody"( I wish). Every day brings something new and we cannot count on anything to go as planned. Planning is actually overated, I've concluded. Going with the flow is not that hard once you get use to the idea that you have no control over anything anyway. The doctors say he will get out of the hospital on Monday. I'm not planning on it, but if it happens it would be great to have him home again. He has been in the hospital for nine days this time.

Dad

I have not been able to post anything about Dad's illness til now. It has been 50 days since he called and said there is a huge lump under my left arm. It seems like several years have passed and yet it is only 50 days. These two pictures show Dad at his best, goofing around with Doug and Bruce and setting the table at his house last Thanksgiving.

He has always had such a great attitude about life, he says, "it isn't a day, if there isn't a happening of some sort". He loves to talk to people. He never meets a stranger. He has made many new friends in the hospital which makes it easier.

It is so hard to believe that he is fighting for his life. I watch the other patients and their families and know that most of them will not win the struggle. Yesterday, I sat with him in the "infusion" room where people get their out-patient chemo, something that he has only done once. There were six women, most with breast cancer, most younger than 50. One woman looked about 65, she was very thin and told the nurse that she had cancer 5 years ago and thought she was cured, but here she is again. I want to reach out to them and let them know that someone sees what they are going through, but it seems to personal to mention. Isn't that bizarre?

Dad tries very hard to keep his spirits up and be cheerful. I tell him silly jokes and we read the funnies together each day. I wish he liked the computer because he could tell his story so much better than I can. He has received many, many cards and had a great birthday party last weekend. Friends came that he has partied with before and it made him feel normal for a couple of hours. He had a great time but tired out very fast. He is doing better now, eating more and walking around more. Tomorrow he may start the second round of chemo. I pray that it will not be as hard for him to bear.

SPHS Dinner and a Date 2008

These are a couple of photos from the first theatre production this year at Doug's school. The parents and students serve dinner and then a play is performed. Here is Doug with his co-star Allie. They were one of the vinettes in the play "Almost Maine". It was a great night and we raised a lot of money for the theatre program. Spain Park High School was also awarded two National Blue Ribbon Awards last week. One from the Dept. of Education for excellence in Education and one from the Lighthouse Blue Ribbon org. Everyone is very proud.

Doug in Northern Ireland

Here are some pictures of Doug's trip to Northern Ireland. He is giving his new friend McD a hug before they leave. They had a great time together playing "football" and learning about each other's lives. The other picture is of Becca and the kids who came to the VBS. They all had a wonderful time.

Fish or Cut Bait

Here you see the results of our lastest fishing trip to Destin, Fl. We invited Doug's friend John and Dad's friend Sharon to join us. You will notice the HUGE black fish in the middle of the catch. That is the king marlin that I caught at the end of the trip. It was a beautiful day and we all had a great time. John won the bet for catching the most fish. The two men kneeling in front are Captain Mike (on the right) and Groovey the first mate. Doug and John came home to the third day of Junior Year at Spain Park High School. Doug is doing well and is already learning lines for the first play of the year.