Celebrations

Life here on Buchanan street has been punctuated by celebrations and it is time I shared a few of them with you. 

Saturday May 24 Mom and Dad accepted an offer on their house on Division street. We were all very timid to become excited about this piece of news because we had experienced one deal falling though and this one initially seemed a bit shaky. But, the potential buyers persevered through their own issues and Mom and Dad did their best to deal with the repair issues that arose during the inspection process. The end result is that yesterday Mom and Dad officially sold their house and received the money from the sale. We all went out to dinner and gelato to celebrate the conclusion of the final house deal in this three house process! We are all so pleased and proud that we were able to sell two houses and buy a new one in just about three months. We had lots of contingency plans if this process were to have taken longer, but we are happy that we never had to use them.  

Wednesday June 18 Mom had an appointment with her oncologist Dr. Kenyon. At this appointment Mom, Dad, and Dr. Kenyon decided on the path forward for Mom's treatment. First Dr. Kenyon examined Mom and told her that he can no longer feel the cancer in her breast. What a wonderful thing to hear! He then told them that this is the point in treatment where the decisions become a bit experimental. He said that some doctors would proceed right to surgery at this point. But, there is data coming out of research in Texas where if one does another round of a different chemotherapy before going to surgery, then the survival statistics are even better. Dr. Kenyon gave Mom the choice of being done with chemo (for now) and doing the surgery, or having four more doses of chemo, three weeks apart, and then moving on to surgery. Mom decided to do the additional round of chemo in pursuit of those better numbers. 

Tuesday June 24 Mom had her last chemotherapy session of this first round of 12 weekly doses. This was a reason to celebrate too! Even though Mom will be continuing with chemo, coming to the end of the 12 felt like a big deal. At this final chemo the nurse took the time to explain the new chemo regime to Mom. One of the best things that Mom heard is that because her blood count numbers have stayed so high during this first round, she is going into the second round in very good shape. The new chemo is an unknown and thus causes Mom anxiety, but there is no reason to believe that it will necessarily be worse or harder. We will all just have to wait and see. 

Here are a few other reasons to celebrate:

Mom gets a week off chemo  before she starts the new stuff!

Jeremiah, Nan, and Sam are coming for the Fourth of July! Baby Sam has been to our house once already on June 9 and this was his very first long distance outing.

It is summer vacation! Steve and the kids are home and that makes for a much fuller, activity filled household.

Once again thank you to everyone who reads this and follows our family's story. We appreciate all your interest, support, and good vibes.

Love, Emily

 

All Together Now

This blog will be mostly a listing of events with a few details here and there. From reading the list I think that you will understand that we have all been very busy this past week. Great events have taken place.

Last Thursday at around 6:00 pm we entered our new house on Buchanan Ave. for the first time as new residents. Paul and Dave Boling and Bill Meier were there ushering in the first of many moving van and truck loads of stuff.

Friday night we all slept in the house for the first time. It was a very hot night in Corvallis. The Evans's slept on their newly filled water bed and the Herbs slept in the cool, cool basement.

Saturday morning was moving day. We were overwhelmed with the amazing turn out for our moving party. Snacks and lunch were provided by church folks. Moving and cleaning help was provided by a great gathering of church community from near and far, family from various branches, and friends of all sorts. A HUGE amount of work was accomplished. Most everything was moved from both houses. A stunning accomplishment. It was also about the hottest day we have had all spring. What a sweat bath.

Sunday after church more moving took place. There were a few big items that needed to come over while we still had the moving van and utility dolly. The Boling brothers were there with us again helping us with these last big items. This was also the day that I took an initial try at organizing the kitchen. I started at 10:30 am and finished at 5:30 pm. I had cleared enough away that I was able to wipe the counters!

Monday was another big day of slowly chipping away at the mountains of boxes and furniture surrounding us. It seemed insurmountable. Jeremiah and Nan also had a visit to the doctor this day. He decided that they should go into the hospital at midnight to begin induction.

Tuesday was yet ANOTHER huge day of unpacking, box organizing and furniture moving. It was also chemo day for Mom. Jeremiah and Nan gave us regular reports from the hospital where different induction methods were being used. By dinner time it was obvious that baby Sam would be entering the world soon. Mom and Dad took off to Portland to lend their support to Jeremiah and Nan and to welcome their new grandson into the world.

Wednesday morning at around 2:15 am Sam Tanner Evans was born. He weighed 8 pounds 8 ounces and was 21 & 1/4 inches long. Nan had to have a c-section after quite a few complications arose. Mom and Dad were able to greet Sam at around 4:00 am and made it back home at 5:45 am.

Of course more unpacking occurred on Wednesday too.

Also on Wednesday Mom had a doctor's appointment that went very well. The chemotherapy seems to be working and the inflammation in her breast is down even more from last month's check-in.

Thursday, yes, more unpacking. Thursday night Steve had his Spring music concert at school. He is always quite relieved when his programs are done. Soon the school year will be done too!

Friday was a busy fun day. Steve took the day off work to split all the wood from the huge tree we had to have taken down. This was at our house we are selling on Dixon St. because it came up negatively in the inspection as it was cracking the foundation! The tree was removed last week Thursday and the gigantic rounds of wood have been on our front lawn ever since. We have to clear out of the house next weekend, so it was time to get the wood split. Steve and Dad rented a splitter and the whole family took turns running the machine, hauling wood, and stacking wood. It was a pin oak tree and we will use the wood at our new house in the wood stove and fireplace.

Saturday (today) Steve and I woke up at 4:30 am to get ready for our garage sale. We also had to take care of this project this weekend in order to be out of our house on time. We had a great time practically giving away all sorts of stuff. It was a great relief to see other people carting away our junk.

Tomorrow we will all travel up to Portland after church to see Jeremiah and Nan and new baby Sam. Mom is in the kitchen cooking right now so we can take some dinner to them.

Here we sit in our new house. We are all together in this place and that feels so good. The house is still a wreck with boxes needing to be unpacked, furniture needing to be placed, and all the regular chores of life like laundry and meal prep hardly being adequately taken care of. But, we are doing our best and this is our life!

It is 8:00 pm and I am very ready for bed.

Hope you enjoy the pictures.

Love, Emily

Let's Move!

Yes, I have been avoiding the blog. I have been avoiding it because my real estate life has been so painful that I did not want to commit it to written words. Actually, I still don't feel like chronicling it, so I might start elsewhere.

How about here...Mom lost her hair this last week. It was starting to fall out last time I wrote and it continued at a pretty steady pace. Mom and Dad spent some time online and found great hats and scarfs, many of them free trade. On Wednesday last week my Dad cut Mom's hair really short for her. It looked good that way, quite butch. Also, it made less of a mess coming out. Then on Thursday her hats arrived in the mail. Friday Dad shaved her head and she has been seen styling her cool hats and scarfs ever since. I doubt that we will ever see her in a wig.

On Saturday we all went up to Portland to see my brother Jeremiah and sister in-law Nan and deliver them a truck load of hand me down toys. Nan is due TODAY and we all eagerly await the arrival of baby Sam. We were happy to see them and happy to pass along all these baby and toddler toys that were hanging out in our attics, but now need a new home since we are leaving our attics. It is nice when people accept your stuff!

Today was a big day in our real estate life. The first big thing is that Steve and I decided to give the people buying our house everything they wanted from us just so that we could have peace of mind and get on with our deal. Some people might think this stupid of us, but really we did not have the heart or the energy for the real estate game. We just want to move on and little bits of money are not worth our energy! We will have more than enough money to do what we want to do and we are lucky to be able to say that. The second big thing is that Mom, Dad, Steve, Maya, Elias, and I all spent an hour and a half down at the title company making our ownership of the Buchanan St. house official. We did it!

So. let's talk about moving. We will have a pre moving party this Thursday afternoon in order to get some of the large items onto a truck and get a head start on moving day. If you are strong and able to help us lift some of our largest items on this day please let someone in the family know. Then this Saturday May 17 we will do our very best to move two households into one. Everyone that wants to help out is invited. The moving will start at 9:00 am and continue into the afternoon. Show up at 1555 NW Buchanan Ave or 1415 NW Dixon St or 1835 NW Division Pl and there will be something you can do. Like I said before, some light cleaning of Division Pl would be very helpful in order to get it ready for an open house that Sunday.

That is all for now. Real estate has worn me out for today and it is time for me to go to bed. Thank you again to all the people who are helping us at this time in our lives. Thank you for all the food and boxes and offers of help. Thank you in advance to all the people who are going to help us move.

Good Night,
Emily

A Week's Worth of News

It has been a little more than a week since my last blog posting. What has happened this past week? What in our crazy life are people interested in? What do we have to share?

Last week on Tuesday April 22 Mom had another round of chemo. This was her third treatment and the first one without other health issues bogging her down. We are able to notice a pattern now in her week. We are starting to be able to predict what days will be harder and easier. There is some comfort in a routine.

Last week Saturday April 26 Steve and I accepted an offer on our house. There was much relief and rejoicing. We went to Maya and Elias' soccer games with big smiles on our faces. Packing felt more exciting. We had a celebration dinner.

Last week Sunday April 27 my Grandma was out alone on her evening walk and fell. My Dad and Granddaddy took her to the emergency room. She was admitted to the hospital and stayed the night. The next day she learned that her pelvis cracked in two places. She is home now and using a wheelchair and walker to get around. She is doing really well. She is such a strong woman.

Today April 29 Mom had her fourth dose of chemo. She thinks her hair might be beginning to come out. She had an appointment with her oncologist after completing her chemo. He said that he can see and feel that the chemo is working!

Today we had our home inspection. I nervously wait for the results. When the inspection results are negotiated then we are another big step forward in completing this sale.

We are still following the schedule of closing on our Buchanan St house Thursday May 15 and moving Saturday May 17. Thank you to everyone who is writing me to let me know that we can use their pick-ups and their person power on this big day. I really believe that we can use everyone who can come. For just a short list of big items we have to move consider these things: 3 water beds, 2 freezers, a greenhouse, a kiln, 2 pottery wheels, over 20 outdoor whisky barrel planters, couches, loves seats, 6 chests of drawers, a loft bed, desks, hutches, and boxes and boxes of toys, books, and dishes. We are getting rid of lots of stuff, but there is a ton to move and we can use all of your help.

We have added another event into the agenda and that is an open house at my parent's place on Sunday May 18. Yes, this is the day after we move. Unfortunately it is really the best day to do it. So, in addition to moving on May 17 we also need to clean house! Please help!

Then the next weekend May 24 we will be having a garage sale.

Our house on Dixon st. is scheduled at this point to close on May 30.

Yes, we are involved in many stressful things. Possibly some of you think we are completely out of our minds. Sometimes we are! But, we continue to believe that Mom's cancer has provided us with an awakening and opportunity to live our lives in a way that strongly supports our beliefs and values. Thank you for all of you who are loving and supporting us on this journey.

Love, Emily

Snowy Sunday

Yesterday morning I woke up at 5:00 am to see the snow falling and accumulating around my house here on the valley floor of Corvallis. What a strange spring with plenty of surreal experiences and the snow outside my window yesterday was one more.

Yesterday after dinner Mom, Dad, Steve, and I did some calendering. Here is a schedule of events for the moving process:

Thursday May 15 we close on the house on Buchanan St.

Saturday May 17 we will have a moving party and move into the Buchanan St. house.

Saturday May 24 we will have a garage sale. It will probably be a two day garage sale.

I will contact those of you who have offered to help me pack up these houses. I may not be ready for help until next week. When I do ask for help it will probably be Tuesday and Thursday mornings from 9:00 - 11:30 am. That is a time I have available when both kids are in school and I could actually get a good bit of packing done. Feel free to contact me if you read this and would like to help me out during one of those times.

We will need as many people as would like to help out on moving day. We will try our best to move everything on that one day. Pick-ups and other cars that can take our stuff the few blocks from Dixon St. or Division St. to Buchanan St. would be very helpful. We are two household moving into one. Because of this we know we have a lot of stuff to get rid of and we rejoice in the massive unburdening of STUFF that is about to take place. On the other hand, we still have plenty of STUFF to move and will need as much help as we can get.

We hope that this week Mom will just be able to deal with her next dose of chemo and not have to struggle with other health issues. She will go into the Neville Building on Tuesday morning to receive her next round of Taxol and Herceptin. So far, she is not loosing any hair or even noticing any thinning. She does experience different kinds of flu like feelings on different days and certainly tiredness.

Time for me to start my day.

Love, Emily

Thursday Update

Today I got an email from my good friend Rose in Hawaii who is keeping a close watch on our family situation. The beginning of her email went something like this:

"How are things going? I keep checking the blog site - does it look like the lung will heal? Is the breathing easier? Is your Mom in lots of pain? Does she still look more pink and less ashen?"

Rose continues with more questions from there. I love her questions. They transmit her love and concern for me and my family across the ocean and into my heart. Her recent round of questions has prompted me to give you this Thursday update. I need to remember that even though the story goes on in real time for Mom and my family, many of you are still stuck at where I last left you in the story. I need to catch you up!

Tuesday after Mom was done with chemo she spent the rest of the day at various medical facilities dealing with her lung tube. A big part of this was more chest x-rays to look at her lung. After looking at the most recent x-rays the doctors decided that Mom could have the lung tube removed. Mom said that as soon as the tube was removed the pain went away. Then she had to wait another hour and have another x-ray to make sure that the lung stayed inflated. This last x-ray showed that her lung was doing just fine and she could go home.

Wednesday Mom spent the day trying to recover from the previous 24 hours of taking big doses of pain medication. Of course this was also the day after chemo and she had all those drugs in her body too. It was a very sleepy day for her. Other than sleepiness, she did not have many negative chemotherapy side effects. Last time Mom was given a steroid with her chemotherapy. This caused her to have a rather negative reaction of feeling like she was going to crawl out of her skin with antsiness and anxiety. She could not relax. This time they did not give her any steroid and it has been much better. She has been able to sleep and relax.

Today Mom has continued to recover from the events of earlier this week. She is walking and eating and watching TV with the grand kids. Her cheeks are pink. She is not in pain. I think I am right to say that at this moment she is doing better with all of of this than any of us dared hope.

Now an update on our real estate life!

We have decided to go ahead with the purchase of the house at 1555 NW Buchanan Ave., despite the fact that we have not sold either of our houses! We have spent a good deal of time today getting our financial ducks in a row and we are ready to go. We will close on the new house May 14th. We still hopefully anticipate the sale of one or both of our houses this Spring or Summer. Spread the word, two great houses for sale!

I will let you all know when we are ready for the big pack. Thank you to everyone who has brought us boxes and food and support.

Love, Emily

Collapsed Lung

Dear Everyone,

We have had another turn of events. Mom had to be treated in the Emergency Room yesterday for a collapsed lung. She has had trouble getting a deep breath ever since the surgery where they put the port in 2 weeks ago Thursday. When she was in the hospital last Tuesday for her first chemo the hospital nurses were a bit dissatisfied that she could not get her oxygen level above 94% or so. But, they chalked it up to stress. Then after the chemo she got congested in her breathing and antsy and feeling like her skin was crawling and they believed all those symptoms, including the congestion, were a reaction to the steroids they gave her with the chemo.

Yesterday while Mom and I were out shopping I encouraged her to call the nurse about her breathing issues so that there could be some resolution before this next round of chemo. We both thought it would be bad news for her breathing and congestion to get any worse. The doctor had her come in at 3 pm and they walked her around and measured her oxygen and listened to her and were generally unimpressed with the congestion. But, while she was there Dr. Kenyon searched for a chest x-ray that should have been taken after the port surgery to make sure everything was okay and could not find that particular x-ray. Because of this he sent her over to get a chest x-ray at the hospital.

An hour or so later when we were all eating dinner at American Dream Pizza, because doctor's appointments and work schedules had once again limited our ability to cook dinner, Dad got a call from the hospital. They were calling to say that Mom had a collapsed lung and that she needed to go to the ER fast. She was met there by Dr. Kenyon, the cancer doctor, (who held her hand) and the partner of the doctor who did the port surgery. There she had to undergo a very painful procedure where they re inflated her lung by placing a tube in it through her chest. This tube drained the air that was trapped between the lung and the lining of the lung and thus allowed the lung to re inflate. There was a possibility that she would have to have surgery and be admitted to the hospital, but no one wanted this to happen since it would mean added recovery time and a delay in her chemo treatment. Instead she suffered great pains in the ER and was sent home with the tube still inside her and a bunch of pain pills.

Today the tube is still in and draining any last air that is stuck between the lung and the lining of the lung. She is still in pain and needing frequent pain meds. Dr. Kenyon did not know if she would feel like doing the chemo today, but she has decided to do it anyway. It is very important to her to keep on the chemo schedule. I am here in the chemo room with her right now as she is hooked up to the chemo and is sleeping. When this is over she will go get another chest x-ray to make sure that her lung is still inflated and if everything looks good she will be able to get the tube out later today.

Oh, the cause of this is that they punctured the lining of her lung when they put the port in. I guess it happens sometimes, not often, but it does happen.

On another note, I believe that last night after Mom got home from the ER her cheeks and lips finally looked pink and healthy again. I had thought that her grayness had to do with cancer, chemo, etc, but I now believe it was because she wasn't getting enough oxygen. She has been doing the morning walk, watching the kids, going to soccer games, doing chemo all on one lung.

After reading this some of you might feel angry with the Doctors and the medical establishment. I think that our family really cannot afford to be angry. We need these doctors and their expertise. We know they are human and we know that things happen that they cannot control. All the doctors have done everything they can to help Mom through this next hard situation. For this we are thankful.

Love, Emily