Positive Picture Post

Hello Everyone,

Here I am as promised bringing you good news and good pictures. I know some of you were a bit anxious for the good news to arrive earlier, but I do lead a busy, exciting life on Buchanan St. and my blogging time is limited.

To review, last week on Tuesday Mom became quite ill after her new dose of chemo. Tuesday evening new anti-nausea drugs were prescribed. Wednesday Mom continued to stay in her bed and was still very noxious. The three anti-nausea medications together were only able to make her less ill and did not hold it back entirely. Thursday, upon advice from a local nurse friend, my Dad petitioned the doctor for another anti-nausea medication called "magic 4". This medication is made by the compounding pharmacy and is applied topically. Dad brought it home Thursday around dinner time and Mom added it to her regime. Around this same time Mom was able to rise up from her bed and take to the chair for the first time since chemo. Thursday evening Steve and Dad went to a special choir practice where a choir director candidate was to work with the choir as part of his hiring process. I brought the kids in to see Mom before they went to bed and offered them a creamsicle as an evening snack. As I was pulling the creamsicles out of the freezer Mom called out that she would like to try one too. I passed out the snack and was happy to see Mom actually take a few calories in. I left her there as I helped the kids with their shower and jammies and bedtime story. As I was reading to the kids in a different room I heard Mom up and about. Soon she came to find us and was eating a piece of toast. It seemed truly miraculous to have her up and about and interacting with us again. I call it the miracle of the creamsicle.

Mom continued to improve that night. The next morning she got herself up and eating a bit. She was determined to go downtown to the annual summer shoe sale at the local Birkenstock store. This is now called the miracle of the shoe sale. After the shoe sale Dad took her through the drive-thru at Burger King to get an ice cream cone as she was suddenly hungry again after several days of not eating and then the energy expenditure of shopping. In the drive-thru she made the sudden decision that a whopper jr. was what was needed instead of an ice cream cone. This, of course, is now documented as the miracle of the whopper jr.

I might be a little exuberant with my miracle classification, but Mom's resurrection was miraculous to me. Since she has gotten up and about she has struggled with heart burn, shakiness, dizziness, and fatigue. She wants to have more energy. But, she also recognizes that once again she is doing pretty good. She does not look forward to the next round of this chemo, which will be July 29.

Before July 29 we have more exciting times to come. Steve's birthday is July 20 and he will be turning 35 years old. Maya's birthday is July 30, but we will celebrate it early so that Mom can be a happy participant instead of a sick one. Maya will be 8 years old.

On a completely different note, I feel like I need to say a word about a dear friend of my brother. My brother's long time friend and neighbor was found on Tuesday morning in his hotel room in a coma. He also had a broken wrist and they suspect the coma is caused by some trauma to the head. This friend is currently up at OHSU where they will soon try to bring him back to consciousness. The friend is the father of two young children. Jeremiah and the friend's wife have been with him in the hospital since he arrived. I would ask that all your prayers and good thoughts be turned to this man, his family, and my brother as he deals with another trauma in his life.

Love, Emily