God News - day 38...

God has been so present since Tyler was discharged on last Sunday. He came home and things went pretty much as they had the last 2 times, he ended up with a little pain and minimal sores and we were able to take care of it all at home and NOT have to be readmitted. The way I see it, we will have it all figured out by round 4 which is next Thursday and then this Interim Maintenance round will be over. 

We have a church about a block away that we pass almost anytime we leave the house and it has a sign out in front and this week it read "Experience is what you get when you don't get what you want" which pretty much says it all.

Here are his numbers from this Thursday:

WBC:1.8

RBC: 2.85

Hemoglobin: 10

Platelets: 157

I was reading a devotional this week and meant so much to this mom and I realized this is how Tyler is living and fighting. With the childlike faith...

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Uncertain of the Next Step, but Certain of God
by Jon Walker

"I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven." Matthew 18:3 (NIV)

Oswald Chambers says we can be uncertain of the next step, but we can be certain of God.

When my son first started playing baseball, he was still relatively young and not used to a life lived around clocks and calendars. So it wasn't uncommon for him to ask, "Is my game today?" "How many days until Saturday?"

Jesus says this childlike nature is necessary to enter the kingdom of heaven. My son wasn't questioning if something would happen; in fact, he was confident that it would. But he was dependent upon my wife or me to tell him when it would happen. ?

Oswald Chambers, in My Utmost for His Highest, says, "The nature of the spiritual life is that we are certain in our uncertainty." He says we can be certain of God, even if we are uncertain of the next step he wants us to take. We can be certain of God's plan for us, even if we are uncertain of the specific details. Even though we're uncertain, we can be confident God will not disappoint us (Romans 5:5).

This also means we can release the things we have no responsibility for and stop worrying about them. For instance, my son could be certain I would get him to the ball game, but he didn't have to be concerned with how much gas it would require or how to get to the baseball field. He could just enjoy being a child and live in each moment, trusting that I was handling the details and that I would let him know when was time to go.

This is the childlike faith Jesus wants us to develop, where we grow confident each day that he will come through at just the right time and in just the right way.

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Thank you, from this mom, for continuing to pray for my family as we travel this journey...

day 29 of IM...

Glad to be back and to update you on all that happened while my mom was enjoying her Mother's Day gift.

This is so funny, I asked my "big sister, Alyson" (she was filling in while mom was gone) to send an email re-capping the last week and here is what she sent:

You came home from the hospital on Monday, May 9th.  (After chemo)  You were extremely tired, had fever & chills, pain, mouth sores again, and difficulty swallowing. Went back to COH Wed., May 11th around 6 p.m.  Were admitted and placed on antibiotics. Friday, was much, much better.  (That was after your mom told the doc which drug to put you on.)  You slept for a lot of Saturday.  Came home again on Monday, May 16th.  Is that what you wanted?  I tried to make it short and sweet for you.  :)  You have all the labs I believe.

This is an email project after my own heart. Direct and straight to the point. She deserves much more credit for all that she did than just this short email. She did a great job and I am so thankful for all that she did do. I didn't have one request that wasn't answered by her and she kept really good track of me. It's really nice to have a big sister. Mom thinks so too.

I want to say, Thank you to my brothers and to UP & AL (Aunt Lynette & Uncle Phil) for checking in with me. Your visits & texts kept mom happy and we all know that when mom is happy everyone is happy.

So, now for what's going on today. After having just 2 days of freedom and feeling normal, my labs were high enough and I was admitted on Thursday, May 19th at about 4pm for my 3rd round of the 4, 24 hour high dose chemos and this time the extra dose into my Omaya Port. I didn't get sick and have been doing better I think than the last round. The chemo runs for 24 hours straight and then they run fluids for 24 hours along with an antidote to the chemo, to protect what good cells I have. We are getting this 56 day, IM round under control and getting better at being pro-active with medications each time to prevent or deal with the side effects/affects. I'm hoping to get discharged on Sunday and not have to return for 2 weeks. Anyway, some time at home and feeling normal is truly a gift.

Well, that is about it for this update. Here are my numbers:

WBC: 3.5

RBC: 3.31

ANC: 2.1

Hemoglobin: 11

Platelets: 145

until next time...God bless!

(note: if you have left a comment on a past blog and haven't seen it posted, please email me and let me know. We might have a problem that needs to be fixed, thanks!)

Day 20 of IM...Happy Mother's Day

Dear Tyler,

Today being Mother’s Day, I wanted to say thank you and to let you know how hard it is to be away from you during this week and most of all, to thank you for giving me a gift of time, to recharge.

It is so hard to believe that you have been fighting for 4 months and how this new journey has changed your life. You have been through many surgeries, procedures, infusions or transfusion, x-rays, had blood drawn, doctors, nurses, valet attendants and hospital food and you have never complained. This is a journey that you never knew you would be taking and has changed your life so abruptly. It has taught you and you have taught me, so much about how to be Fully Reliant On God and His plan.

I just wanted this to be forever posted here on your blog so all of the mothers who are follow your journey know that your children can lead you through your toughest days. Your children can teach you things you never thought possible. Your children can keep you from giving up and encourage you to fight for what is right. Your children can make you laugh at just the right time. Your children are willing to listen to you when you need someone to talk to. Your children can make you so proud to be their mom that, you fight back tears trying to type the words to tell them how proud of them you are.

I love you Tyler and there is nothing more important in life to me today than being your Mom and being able tell our village of followers how proud of you I am.

I look forward to hearing about all of the things that have happened since I left. I will be calling you on soon. (make sure you have a copy of your labs ready for me, so I can add them to this post)

Happy Mother’s Day & a thank you from the bottom of my heart, to all of you that are at home filling in for me until I return.

ilym

His numbers for today…(to be posted at a later date)