Marc's count was low again yesterday. It had come up from 1.0 to 1.4, but needs to be 1.5. He's fighting a bit of a cold. It seemed to be better yesterday, but this morning he it is back.
The new stove was delivered. We love it.
Betsy
Thursday, November 29, 2007
Saturday, November 24, 2007
Round 8 Take 1
We are growing accustomed to Marc's counts being low the first time he goes in for chemo. It seems that his body isn't ready in two weeks. We are hoping his count will be up next week.
When he was there on Wednesday there was a student nurse who needed to interview someone so she could practice planning treatment for patients. They felt she should talk to Marc since he is "interesting." He said he'd met lots of interesting people there. What it came down to is Marc is MEDICALLY interesting.
Because he was unable to have chemo, our Thanksgiving was easier. I know it was far more pleasant for Marc. Steph, Mike, and Masen came over. They actually cooked the turkey and brought it over. We made everything else. We weren't sure we'd be able to bake anything as our gas range is temperamental these days. Sometimes - ok most of the time - the ignition won't light the burners or oven. We can light the burners with a match, but no one wants to risk hair and eyebrows to light the oven. We went Wednesday and purchased a new one, but they can't deliver it till Tuesday. Hence, Mike and Steph cooked the turkey. Fortunately, the ignition decided to work on Thanksgiving so we were able to bake the stuffing, green bean casserole and some cranberry bread in the regular oven rather than in the toaster oven.
Steph was so disappointed that she had to work Friday and we wouldn't be able to shop the Day-After-Thanksgiving sales. I had heard on the radio that the outlet mall south of Portland was going to be open Thanksgiving night so I asked her if she wanted to go. She did, so we headed out. I was sure I'd heard the stores opened 10:30 so we arrived about 9:50. The parking lot was mostly empty except for a couple news crews. The stores didn't open till midnight... We decided to stick around and see if anything opened early. Sure enough about every half hour a couple stores would open. Up till midnight it was really fun. After that - not so much. Marc heard on the news the next day that the 2000 car parking lot was full by 11:30. It was a zoo. People are crazy. I know I was there. We finally headed for home about 1:30 (that's a.m.). As we crossed over I-5, the cars lined up in either direction to exit and come to the outlets stretched as far as the eye could see. We checked. The one coming from the north was THREE MILES long. We will not be doing that again next year.
Brett and I went to the Billy Joel concert tonight. Brett wasn't sure he'd like it. We BOTH loved it. Billy Joel is an amazing performer. On the way in, I made some comment about the crowd being older. Brett said he wondered how many other parents "dragged" their kids to it. When it was over, he was glad his had.
We have so much to be Thankful for this year. That sounds strange in light of cancer, mom dying, and a range that wasn't reliable enough to cook the turkey. More important than those things, we have fabulous friends, great colleagues, and amazing family members that have shown us how God works in obvious and not so obvious ways.
Thank you all for being part of this crazy, scary, frustrating, wonderful journey.
When he was there on Wednesday there was a student nurse who needed to interview someone so she could practice planning treatment for patients. They felt she should talk to Marc since he is "interesting." He said he'd met lots of interesting people there. What it came down to is Marc is MEDICALLY interesting.
Because he was unable to have chemo, our Thanksgiving was easier. I know it was far more pleasant for Marc. Steph, Mike, and Masen came over. They actually cooked the turkey and brought it over. We made everything else. We weren't sure we'd be able to bake anything as our gas range is temperamental these days. Sometimes - ok most of the time - the ignition won't light the burners or oven. We can light the burners with a match, but no one wants to risk hair and eyebrows to light the oven. We went Wednesday and purchased a new one, but they can't deliver it till Tuesday. Hence, Mike and Steph cooked the turkey. Fortunately, the ignition decided to work on Thanksgiving so we were able to bake the stuffing, green bean casserole and some cranberry bread in the regular oven rather than in the toaster oven.
Steph was so disappointed that she had to work Friday and we wouldn't be able to shop the Day-After-Thanksgiving sales. I had heard on the radio that the outlet mall south of Portland was going to be open Thanksgiving night so I asked her if she wanted to go. She did, so we headed out. I was sure I'd heard the stores opened 10:30 so we arrived about 9:50. The parking lot was mostly empty except for a couple news crews. The stores didn't open till midnight... We decided to stick around and see if anything opened early. Sure enough about every half hour a couple stores would open. Up till midnight it was really fun. After that - not so much. Marc heard on the news the next day that the 2000 car parking lot was full by 11:30. It was a zoo. People are crazy. I know I was there. We finally headed for home about 1:30 (that's a.m.). As we crossed over I-5, the cars lined up in either direction to exit and come to the outlets stretched as far as the eye could see. We checked. The one coming from the north was THREE MILES long. We will not be doing that again next year.
Brett and I went to the Billy Joel concert tonight. Brett wasn't sure he'd like it. We BOTH loved it. Billy Joel is an amazing performer. On the way in, I made some comment about the crowd being older. Brett said he wondered how many other parents "dragged" their kids to it. When it was over, he was glad his had.
We have so much to be Thankful for this year. That sounds strange in light of cancer, mom dying, and a range that wasn't reliable enough to cook the turkey. More important than those things, we have fabulous friends, great colleagues, and amazing family members that have shown us how God works in obvious and not so obvious ways.
Thank you all for being part of this crazy, scary, frustrating, wonderful journey.
Saturday, November 17, 2007
My Mom
I haven't mentioned mom in my updates because this blog has been about our journey with Marc's cancer. However the events of this last week bring her to the forefront.
The following paragraphs were written by my sister in her travel journal.
"When we sent out our last update, my mother was not mentioned because I didn't know what to say - she's continuing to decline? she's back on Hospice care? the right words just wouldn't come.
So instead, she gets her own place in our updates. At 2:35 am on November 15, Mary Vixie peacefully passed away at Eagle Springs in College Place, WA. My sister, Betsy and one of mom's best friends, Mary Ellen, along with the wonderful caregivers were with her. We are all honored that she is part of a University of Washington research study (8 siblings, 7 have been affected with Alzheimer's.) They now have mom's brain tissue along with 3 of her siblings.
A memorial service will be held on December 15. Dick and I had already been planning to be at my sisters in Vancouver for Christmas and this will allow us and my brother/sister-in-law in Colorado to make just one trip north.
Sadness has been a big part of our lives especially for the past two years. I feel overwhelming relief that the long battle (16 years) mom fought so valiantly is finished."
My mom was an amazing woman. She was my model for how to get through difficult situations. When we lived in North Dakota she had an aneurism and had brain surgery. A few years later, we moved back west so my dad could work with my Uncle Alden. Dad was in a construction accident that left him paralyzed from the rib cage down. Mom was his constant companion, cheerleader, and caregiver for 25 years. They inspired many people with their strength, courage, and positive outlook on life.
Mom began her long battle with Alzheimer's about the time Brett was born. She took every herb she read about that might help. She worked puzzles, read books, made quilts and exercised regularly to keep the brain connections growing to replace the ones that were being damaged by the disease. She lived on her own until April of 2006. At that time she required a bit more help so she moved from her independent retirement apartment to an assisted living apartment in the same building. In July of that year she required surgery for a major bladder repair. She was never the same after surgery and was moved from the hospital to a Memory Care Facility.
Her care in the last year and a half was incredible. The people who worked at Eagle Springs loved mom as if she were their own. We couldn't have asked for anything better for her.
One of the nurses called me last Tuesday with the news that mom probably wouldn't make it more than 48 hours. My friend Debora and I wrote quick lesson plans and I left. I was able to spend Wednesday sitting with my mom. My Aunt Hilda sat with us in the morning. After we went to lunch, I went back and then returned again after running some errands and having dinner.
When I arrived in the evening, Mom's eyes were open and she was gasping for air. I was able to talk to her and calm her by stroking her arms and telling her that she had cared for us all those years and now I was there to care for her and she could just relax. I told her about Brett and Rose and what good kids they had become. She relaxed and I went to find the nurse. She was at dinner, but one of the caregivers came and raised the head of Mom's bed. He breathing eased. When the nurse returned 15 minutes later, she gave Mom some morphine and she relaxed and went back to sleep.
They said I could spend the night, but I decided to return to Mary Ellen's house. She was one of Mom's very dear friends. About midnight my phone rang. Mary Ellen and I joined Bea (the administrative assistant who had taken Mom on as her special patient. Bea went to high school with my brother and sister) at Mom's bedside.
She quietly, peacefully stopped breathing at 2:36 a.m.
Mary Ellen and Martha (another of mom's dear faithful friends) helped me clean out Mom's room Thursday. I stayed on in Walla Walla to finish up a few last details and returned home last night.
We are planning a memorial service. However, because of Mom's love of life and fun, we are also planning a celebratory popcorn party afterwards. We will play games and laugh ourselves silly. It's what mom would have wanted.
The following paragraphs were written by my sister in her travel journal.
"When we sent out our last update, my mother was not mentioned because I didn't know what to say - she's continuing to decline? she's back on Hospice care? the right words just wouldn't come.
So instead, she gets her own place in our updates. At 2:35 am on November 15, Mary Vixie peacefully passed away at Eagle Springs in College Place, WA. My sister, Betsy and one of mom's best friends, Mary Ellen, along with the wonderful caregivers were with her. We are all honored that she is part of a University of Washington research study (8 siblings, 7 have been affected with Alzheimer's.) They now have mom's brain tissue along with 3 of her siblings.
A memorial service will be held on December 15. Dick and I had already been planning to be at my sisters in Vancouver for Christmas and this will allow us and my brother/sister-in-law in Colorado to make just one trip north.
Sadness has been a big part of our lives especially for the past two years. I feel overwhelming relief that the long battle (16 years) mom fought so valiantly is finished."
My mom was an amazing woman. She was my model for how to get through difficult situations. When we lived in North Dakota she had an aneurism and had brain surgery. A few years later, we moved back west so my dad could work with my Uncle Alden. Dad was in a construction accident that left him paralyzed from the rib cage down. Mom was his constant companion, cheerleader, and caregiver for 25 years. They inspired many people with their strength, courage, and positive outlook on life.
Mom began her long battle with Alzheimer's about the time Brett was born. She took every herb she read about that might help. She worked puzzles, read books, made quilts and exercised regularly to keep the brain connections growing to replace the ones that were being damaged by the disease. She lived on her own until April of 2006. At that time she required a bit more help so she moved from her independent retirement apartment to an assisted living apartment in the same building. In July of that year she required surgery for a major bladder repair. She was never the same after surgery and was moved from the hospital to a Memory Care Facility.
Her care in the last year and a half was incredible. The people who worked at Eagle Springs loved mom as if she were their own. We couldn't have asked for anything better for her.
One of the nurses called me last Tuesday with the news that mom probably wouldn't make it more than 48 hours. My friend Debora and I wrote quick lesson plans and I left. I was able to spend Wednesday sitting with my mom. My Aunt Hilda sat with us in the morning. After we went to lunch, I went back and then returned again after running some errands and having dinner.
When I arrived in the evening, Mom's eyes were open and she was gasping for air. I was able to talk to her and calm her by stroking her arms and telling her that she had cared for us all those years and now I was there to care for her and she could just relax. I told her about Brett and Rose and what good kids they had become. She relaxed and I went to find the nurse. She was at dinner, but one of the caregivers came and raised the head of Mom's bed. He breathing eased. When the nurse returned 15 minutes later, she gave Mom some morphine and she relaxed and went back to sleep.
They said I could spend the night, but I decided to return to Mary Ellen's house. She was one of Mom's very dear friends. About midnight my phone rang. Mary Ellen and I joined Bea (the administrative assistant who had taken Mom on as her special patient. Bea went to high school with my brother and sister) at Mom's bedside.
She quietly, peacefully stopped breathing at 2:36 a.m.
Mary Ellen and Martha (another of mom's dear faithful friends) helped me clean out Mom's room Thursday. I stayed on in Walla Walla to finish up a few last details and returned home last night.
We are planning a memorial service. However, because of Mom's love of life and fun, we are also planning a celebratory popcorn party afterwards. We will play games and laugh ourselves silly. It's what mom would have wanted.
Thursday, November 8, 2007
Round 7 take 2
Marc's white count was high enough this week for chemo!!! He has never been this happy to be this sick. His doctors ok'd the herbal supplement and he feels it made a difference for him. However, they also want him to continue taking the injections of what I refer to as the "wonder" drug. That part he was not so thrilled about.
He has also re-figured his time-line and should still be finished by the end of January - if all goes according to the new schedule. He is currently scheduled for his next treatment the day before Thanksgiving. This schedule means he will get treatment on the 19th of Dec. and not until the 2nd of January. That would be great for the holiday festivities.
Rose moves from Novice 1 to Novice 2 next week. The challenge will be good for her. We may also have a carpool worked out for at least one day a week. It's amazing what swimming does for her stress level. She's a different person when she gets out of the pool than when she gets in when she's stressed out and having a bad day.
The guitars are hung up in the living room and look fabulous. Even better they are easy to access when anyone wants to play.
Tomorrow is Friday. There's no school Monday. Marc had his 7th treatment. Things are looking up.
He has also re-figured his time-line and should still be finished by the end of January - if all goes according to the new schedule. He is currently scheduled for his next treatment the day before Thanksgiving. This schedule means he will get treatment on the 19th of Dec. and not until the 2nd of January. That would be great for the holiday festivities.
Rose moves from Novice 1 to Novice 2 next week. The challenge will be good for her. We may also have a carpool worked out for at least one day a week. It's amazing what swimming does for her stress level. She's a different person when she gets out of the pool than when she gets in when she's stressed out and having a bad day.
The guitars are hung up in the living room and look fabulous. Even better they are easy to access when anyone wants to play.
Tomorrow is Friday. There's no school Monday. Marc had his 7th treatment. Things are looking up.
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