TGI the WEEKEND!

Ok so getting into the routine is still not easy. I am still feeling a little under the weather, so I basically get up go to work, take care of the kiddos, got to bed, and then start the whole thing over again. I don't know if I have caught a virus, but I just can't knock it. I am resting this weekend so I am praying that next week is better. I am sure some of it is contributed to my stress which I do have a lot of right now. Let me tell you I love my job I truly do however some years are just easier than others and this is one of those years that is not so easy. I have some great kids, but they are ALL different and unique with some very standout personalities! This makes everyday quite interesting! So as I discover all their personalities and they of course figure out mine, everyday is a bit of a challenge. We have been in school for 7 days now and I think after we get one more week under our belt things will begin to fall into step. Just to give you a little insight into my day I have 22 students(full classroom) and I have a full time aide(well from 8-2). Over half my class is boys and I have 5 students that do not speak English. I have one student from Columbia, 2 from Mexico, Korea, and Pakistan. I also have a little boy from Kenya, but he speaks very fluent English. I also have a student with cerebral palsy this year and she is in a wheelchair and she has a full time aide. I am also learning a lot more about autism this year because I have a student with autism and we have quite a few in the other kindergarten classes that have been diagnosed with autism. The parents that I am working with are very open with their child's diagnosis and have assured me I can be as well(so please don't think I am spilling secret information!). I love the fact that they are such advocates for their children and they want me to learn more and the students in our class to learn more as well. That is a big reason why their kiddos are doing so well and transitioning into kindergarten because of their amazing supportive parents. So as you can see I have some sweet babies, but when you throw them all into one classroom it does take some monitoring and adjusting to figure out how to get your day to run smoothly.

Jeremy is doing well. He has worked all this week and we are both gearing up for his 3rd treatment this coming week. The one event he had take place this week was one of his crowns popped off. Keep in mind when you have chemo they do not want you to have any dental work in fact we even had to cancel his teeth cleaning, so we both panicked and just sat there frozen for a couple minutes after it happened. Luckily the next day he had an oncology appt and I had a dentist appt, so we talked to both and he was able to get it glued back on early Friday morning. Thank goodness because it was driving him crazy. He had some blood work done this week and his WBC(white blood cell) and platelet levels had dropped a little nothing to worry about right now, but they are going to keep a close eye on them. So please lift up prayers for Jeremy's levels to maintain in a healthy level through the chemo. We go on Tuesday morning and they will recheck them before they begin his treatment. This coming week he will wear his pump on Tuesday, Wednesday, and have it taken off on Thursday morning. We are hoping that this will help to be able to work on Saturday and then spend Sunday with me and the boys. I think it will be better doing it a little earlier in the week.

Many of you know that Ian has had a tough time the past few months and is dealing with a lot of anger. Please pray for him as we continue to deal with this. We were referred to what is supposed to be a wonderful play therapist and we will be seeing her this Monday. We were kind of on the fence with this decision, but I think in the long run it could be what he needs, someone to talk to besides Jeremy and myself. I don't want him to resent Jeremy for something that cannot be helped and it is very hard for me as a mommy to see him so upset and angry. My dad and stepmom surprised him with a trip to St. Louis in September, so this will be a good getaway for him and he is already counting down the days.

Carter is WILD as ever. I swear this week he kind of went nuts! Now keep in mind he is a perfect angel for nanny(the new babysitter that he loves!), but when we get home he is like a bull in a china closet! I have picked up diapers, Cheerios, cleaned up root beer, piles of dvds, all the contents of my purse, dog food, sour patch kids, cookies, tomatoes, etc. etc.! He is INTO everything! The funny thing is he knows it too because as soon as you catch him in the act he will start saying I sorry I sorry I sorry momma over and over and over. Now is he really sorry........uh NO, but he sure does think that will get him out of the line of fire! The other thing he has discovered is those really swell toddler proof door covers I paid 10 bucks for can be pulled right off the door and he can take off running. He pulls that door cover off the knob and says UHOH I broke it and then takes off into the garage, so needless to say we are having to keep the doors locked and garage door down all the time. Wow the joy of a wild toddler is CRAZY!

We had a great visit this weekend with Gary and Dawn. This is Jeremy's uncle that lives right outside of Houston that he is just like sometimes! Our visits with them are few and far between however I love it when we see them because Dawn and I are both scrapbook addicts, so we always hit the scrapbook stores together! Unfortunately the visit was short, but we had such a great time! The boys are still wishing Uncle Gary was still here to play with them in the yard. Not to mention Dawn is quite the pitcher! Dawn took some great pics, she is really into photography so I will be posting some pics of our visit soon! Had a great visit and we are so glad you came!

Thank yous:

*Thank you to Melissa for the great fettuccine dinner. It was so yummy!!!

*Thank you to Mags for the adorable prayer bracelet you made me. You are such a sweetie just like your momma!

*Thank you to Ashley for the Mexican dinner, you underestimate yourself in the world of cooking! It was so good and boys ate those cookies up!

*Thank you to Carlena for the delicious dinner! The boys have found a new thing to add to our menu with your beef stroganoff, they loved it!

*Thank you to Linda for the "cookout" dinner you delivered to our door and of course for your swim date you had with Ian while cooking it. He will be ready to come home with you any day of the week!

*Thank you the Mandie for inviting Ian to go to the Naturals game, he had a great time!

*Thank you to Gary and Dawn for the Mexican dinner, donut breakfast, and my adorable Dream necklace!!! I wore it to church this morning and haven't taken it off yet!!

WHEW!!!!!

Ok so what a week! I am exhausted! The best thing that could have happened to me was that school started on Thursday. I mean we had the kiddos 2 days and then we had a little break for the weekend. Not because the kids are wild :), but because I have been home this summer with Jeremy and the kids and we have taken it easy, so getting back into the full swing of things is not easy. I mean we would lounge until 9 or 10 and now I am up at 5:15 and we are walking out the door at 6:45 to make sure we get Carter dropped off and get to school to help my lil kindergarten kiddos get through the breakfast line. So needless to say the last few days have been a whirlwind in our house. One thing you have to realize is that Jeremy has taken Carter to daycare for the past year and he doesn't have to be at work until about 9, so Carter is used to sleeping in or at least lounging until about 8:15. Big change..........I think so! However he does like getting to see his Bubba(Ian :) in the mornings, but his mood is still a little sour! Basically I am the ONLY morning person in our house, makes for a really fun morning! He prefers to be left alone and wants the channel on his channel of choice nobody elses! I will never get to watch the news before work again!

Well many of you I know are wondering if we survived round 2 of chemo???? Yes he did! Dr. B was right the symptoms were very similar especially according to the day they fell on, but luckily they weren't as severe this time. I mean he was tired but instead of sleeping all day he napped all morning and then watched tv from the couch the rest of the day. The great thing is he never got sick at his stomach. Probably the hardest side effect he experiencing is the cold sensitivity in his mouth. So throughout the 3 days of chemo he was able to work a couple half days and then on Saturday he rested a lot. By today though he is feeling much better. We got up this morning and went to church, had lunch at Mazzio's(Jeremy's choice!), and then stopped and the boys and I had snow cones(kind of mean isn't it since Jeremy couldn't have anything cold, but the boys loved them as you will see in some pics below!). Now we are at home vegging the rest of the day.

Jeremy and Ian are downstairs playing Playstation, Carter napping, and I am updating the blog, but should be working on my lesson plans for next week. Nothing too exciting going on this week, Jeremy has a check up scheduled with the surgeon and he also has an appt with the APN nurse at the oncology clinic to see how his treatment went and check his blood counts(which so far have been good!)

One little kink we had in our plan that I haven't mentioned is that Carter's daycare closed about 2 weeks before school started. We have been using this same daycare since Ian was 3, so this was quite a shock. Needless to say I had to find a new daycare for Carter, but we didn't really want to make a big financial commitment to a daycare or preschool since we know this school year is going to be a little crazy and I am going to be taking quite a few days off. So when my friend Kelly offered her Nanny that keeps her baby at her house we decided that was a great idea. Now keep in mind she also kept Ian when he was the exact same age and he loved her, so even though Carter won't have kids to play with we thought we would give it a try. So last week we packed him up and headed to take him to stay with Nanny and Baby Kambree(will have to post a pic of her and Carter because she is precious!). Needless to say Carter did GREAT! I think he loves how relaxed his days are and loves having a baby to be around. Nanny says he does so good during they day. He just plays with Nanny, Kambree, and by himself. He lays himself down for a nap about the same time everyday! He is eating like a little pig and at school he was a little particular! Now one thing you have to know about Carter is that he is NOT a night sleeper and hasn't been since he was born. We have been to different doctors and he has even had a sleep study done, but since he has been staying with Nanny he has slept all night every night! He is ready for bed at 8:30 and I have to wake him up at 6:15 every morning. It is the craziest thing, but it is wonderful! The other nice thing is for now it will cut down on a lot of the germs that would have normally been brought home from daycare. Once again God is GOOD! Not even something we had thought of doing and the situation is better than what we had before.

Gotta share a few pics from our first days of school and our weekend! Also catching on my Thank yous before I go! In the next couple weeks please know as we get the "hang" of things my posts may not be as frequent(will still update atleast a couple times a week atleast) however I plan to dedicate a post or two to great friends and great neighbors! It is much overdue! First day of school...............................................

*Note their new backpacks they were so proud of!*

I take Ian's picture in this exact same spot every year on the first day of school! He looks so tired and so big!

Ian's new 2nd grade teacher! I know he already loves her because before he went to bed after the first day of school, he said I sure hope tomorrow is as good as today! On Friday he said it definitely was!!!

Let me tell you about these next 2 pics! A friend of mine, Karen made us a very yummy dinner last week and made us a cake with sprinkles for desert. Well I should say she made it because she thought the boys would enjoy it! Well they did! As soon as I opened it Carter was yelling Happy Birthday Happy Birthday and screaming for me to get the candles! So I did and we sang Happy Birthday 4 times and blew out candles 5 times! It looks like Carter is mad in the picture below, but actually he is singing! Good times!!!!!! Ian was so good, he just went along with it! Then every morning after that when you asked Carter what he wanted for breakfast he screamed birthday cake!

The pics above are from before church today and our snow cone stop. Ok so the boys got new outfits from Nana and they are adorable. So I of course wanted to get a picture of them with the outfits on. The picture is not a good one, the funny thing is I get tons of great pictures of them in house with nothing but shorts and a diaper on, but put them in a cute outfit from Gymboree and they won't smile to save my life. Jeremy and I were even begging, threatening, and acting crazy. Nothing was working! Ian DID NOT want his picture made and Carter was too busy watching the sprinkler across the street, so what you see is what you get :)!

Thank yous for last week:

*Sharon and Larry for all the yummy veggies and all the help in my classroom. I appreciate Larry being Handy Manny and doing all my handy work for me!

*A BIG thank you to Elizabeth, Angela, and Luann for all the help in classroom! Also a big thank you to Elizabeth and Joseph for helping me with Carter during open house.

*I don't have enough thank yous for my SUPER friend Brandy who helped me set up my classroom and organized all my stuff for me, it was such a help and helped me to get myself motivated! Thanks for all the Sonic drinks and of course for Jeremy's shirt!!!!(will post a pic for all to see because it is so cute!)

*Thank you to Jim and Lisa next door for EVERYTHING! You have brought us food, let us swim, and kept our yard in tip top shape. We can never thank you enough for all you have done. We are so blessed to have such amazing neighbors.

*Thank you to Linda, Mike, and Melissa for the yummy dinner you made us! It was so good and the coconut pie was delicious!

*Thank you to Chris and Ramona for the wonderful lasagna dinner! It was so sweet of both of you! The boys ate the entire box of cookies you brought!

*Thank you to Karen for the great chicken and veggie dinner and of course the famous birthday cake!

*Thank you to Mrs. Reyes for the pizza dinner! You are a sweetie!

*Thank you to my Aunt Janice for passing along the cookbook that has all the recipes for different side effects of cancer. If it worked for Uncle George I know it will work for Jeremy.

*Thank you to Murphy and Angie for letting Ian and Tyler have a sleepover and play Wii til the wee hours of the night!

*Thank you to Angie for bringing a little bit of Lulu's(restaurant in Gulf Shores that Jeremy and I love!) to me!

Not sure where July went!

Ok so I know many of you are checking in and so I am going to have a quick post for tonight to give an update, but I have to get in bed early because tomorrow is our 1st day of school and I have 22 little kindergarten kiddos that are counting on me to be well rested and ready to go! The school I teach at is on a balanced calendar, so we go back a few weeks earlier, but get some weeks off throughout the year that are wonderful!
Jeremy had his start of round 2 of chemo today. We got there about 8:15 and they gave him meds until about 11:45. Went good and he even was able to go back to work afterwards. He has his pump on and is planning to work again tomorrow. He has it taken off on Friday morning and is going to see how he feels Friday and Saturday before deciding if he will work or not. Dr. B said that symptoms and sickness tend to hit at the same time with this type of chemo, so this means that Friday and Saturday would be his rough days, so we are just going to play it by ear and see how it goes.
I got my classroom set up and ready thanks to MANY different people who I promise I will thank this weekend when I get caught up on everything :). Never realized how hard it was to be wife, mom, teacher, and nurse! Going to be a wild 6 months, but we are going to get through. I know this post is short, but I have to get to school bright and early and be ready for my new babies! Will post more this weekend! Hope you all are having a great week! Sending lots of love and hugs!
Oh and by the way my oldest baby starts 2nd grade tomorrow, I can't believe it! Pics to come this weekend!

World Are You Out There?

Well we have been in this house ALOT pretty much since we received Jeremy's diagnosis on June 19. Tomorrow is the BIG day when we return to work. Obviously my nerves have gotten the best of me because I am updating the blog at 11:30 at night when I should be sleeping because I have to be at work tomorrow at 8am. However I have always been one of those people that doesn't sleep good on Sunday nights and then us both returning to work tomorrow on top of it being a Sunday doesn't mix well. The nice thing is both boys are with Papaw and Tata, so it has just been a nice relaxing evening. Jeremy and I ate sushi and watched Big Brother. One thing we do a lot when the boys are gone at the same time :) is sit on the couch and eat California Rolls until we can pop! I love nights like that and of course the boys don't like sushi so they could care less that they are missing out on this!
So tomorrow I return to my WONDERFUL job with my AMAZING friends at Asbell and Jeremy will return to the job he LOVES at the Hyundai dealership. We will both be off on Wednesday morning for his 2nd round of chemo and from there we will see how our work schedules go. This will definitely be an adventurous school year for us all. Since I am a teacher we live August to August on a school year calendar rather than January to December! Juggling work, school, kiddos, many dr appts, chemo, and of course the regular activities of everyday life is not always going to be easy. Please pray for us as we get back into the routine of our somewhat normal life. We know that the next 6 months will not be easy for us, but through prayer and amazing friends and family we are going to make it.
I know that I need to make myself go to sleep so I am going to catch up on my Thank You's and a few pics I took this weekend later in the week.
Sending love and hugs to you all and hoping you have a great week!

Perking Up

Well thank goodness by Tuesday it was obvious that Jeremy was perking up. His coloring came back and he didn't have to lay down to take a nap. He rested a lot, but didn't have to lay down and sleep. Tuesday was a great day because Jeremy's aunt and uncle brought his Grandma Dean for a visit. We had a great visit. Carter was a little under the weather, but other than that we had a great time. We laughed, cried, played with the boys, and visited until about 3:30. Then it started getting a little late for Grandma because it is a 4 hour trip back home and she had a little baby calf that had to be fed before dark! Just tickles me every time I think about her having to get home to feed this little baby calf that she is not going to name, however anytime she talks about it she calls it Baby. In my book she has named it, but don't tell her that! :) After they left we hung out around the house and had a lazy evening.

Jeremy and his Grandma Dean

The boys and Jeremy with Uncle Larry and Aunt Carolyn

Yesterday Jeremy went in to see Dr. Bradford for a follow up appointment. The appointment went well however the waiting you have to endure for these appointments is terrible. We had to wait about an hour and a half before getting called back and then after we got called back we had to wait about 45 minutes. Now please don't think I am complaining because I am definitely not complaining because the Dr. is very good and spends as much time with each patient as necessary. However my husband is not the best "waiter' in the world. I pray for the poor man's patience everyday! He reminds me so much of my dad in that manner because he is not the best "waiter" in the world either(I know that my stepmom is smiling as she reads this!). If Jeremy learns to do nothing else through this he will become more patient because honestly he has no choice in the matter. Dr. Bradford really hated that the chemo was so tough on Jeremy, but he said that this will be pretty consistent all the way through. He said that with this type of chemo your same symptoms seem to follow like clockwork each time you have treatment. Now many of you know that I am a planner and a list maker, so in my planner I wrote down EVERY symptom he had everyday, neurotic I know, but I want to know what to expect each time. Jeremy's blood test to check his therapeutic levels did not get finished because the blood they drew and sent off apparently was not packaged cool enough and by the time the blood got to the lab it was too warm. They are going to run this test again next week before they take his pump off. However his blood counts yesterday were all good. He is scheduled for his next chemo next Wednesday and will wear his pump until Friday morning. Eventually he is going to get his chemo on Tuesdays that way by the weekend hopefully he will be through what seems to be the worst of it. Then he will be able to work on Saturdays, go to church on Sundays and spend time with the family on Sunday afternoons. I hope this schedule works out because I know he has really missed this weekend time.

After the dr appointment we came back to pick up Ian and Carter because they stayed with Pa and Ma. We got home and about an hour later their Aunt Lori picked them up to spend the night at their house! The boys were so excited! All Carter wanted to do was see Ozzy(their bulldog) and Uncle Bo's motorcycle. Ian was so excited about getting to stay the night with his cousin Carli. They had a great time and were so excited because they didn't even have to brush their teeth! Gotta love it!

Well today was their day. They got to choose anything they wanted to do. Their first pick was Fun City. We got there when the doors opened and stayed until about noon. From there we went home so Carter could catch a nap. After naptime we went to Target where Ian got to buy whatever YuGiOh and Pokemon cards he wanted, he had earned money at our annual garage sale a few months ago and had saved it for our vacation, since we didn't get to go anywhere he begged to go to Target. After that we went to Hibbett Sports and bought back to school shoes and I got a cute Southern Belle t-shirt(thanks to Kelly for telling me they had them!). After that we just walked around what we call "the outdoor mall" a.k.a. Promenade. Now remember this was there day so went to the Candy Craze and The Cookie Factory and yes they both got stuff at each place.....their day remember :). Then we went to ride the carousel which is new to the mall. Ok so had a little taste of how big Ian is getting because we got up in line to buy our ticket and it was only Carter and myself, I look over to where Jeremy is sitting and there was Ian and I mouthed to Jeremy is he not riding and Ian looked at him and said no I am NOT riding. My heart broke! My baby, my first born did not want to ride the carousel and not only did he not want to ride, but he did not care at all that my heart was broken. Sure it saved me 2 bucks, but I would have paid 10 for him to ride with Carter and I. Oh so many more times like this in the road ahead. Makes me think of the day that Jeremy called and him and Ian were eating at McDonald's and Ian decided he didn't want a Happy Meal he wanted a value meal. Of course Jeremy was so excited and I was on the phone practically bawling.........what no Happy Meal...........he's only 7 I want him to order Happy Meals at least until he moves out for college. Ok so I have just had some pretty clear pictures that Ian is growing up and getting too big for things I never thought he would be too big for. The joy of your children growing up, but the heartbreak of learning that you can't keep them little forever.


Ok so a few years ago.........let me rephrase that to 7 years ago, felt like a few...I went to what is called the ESL(English as a Second Language) Academy. It was grueling and rewarding at the same time. It was 2 weeks long even weekends, 12 hours a day, and meals all provided there. So basically it was hard core, but from it you walked away with an endorsement to teach ESL, 12 graduate hours, many new strategies, a wealth of information, and new friends. Well I can remember how nervous I was the first few days of the Academy. I really didn't know anyone that was going and a lot of the teachers were from Springdale. Well who knew I would meet a very good friend of mine, Reba. We spent ALOT of time together those 2 weeks. I forgot to mention I had just had a baby 2 months before so I was struggling being away from Ian.......yes he REALLY was a baby then :). So Reba was my support she knew it was hard leaving him with him being so bitty. We ate all our meals together, ran to her house to check on her kids, ran to Sonic, sat outside to get warm, and really just developed a great friendship. Well over the years Reba and I of course lost touch, but I knew where she taught and she knew where I taught, but then when we both discovered the wonderful world of Facebook we found one another and from there we found each others blog and have reconnected. Well Reba and her kiddos brought us dinner the other night and it was so GREAT to see her. I told her when she came I would probably hug and hug her and not let go. Reba has a faith that amazes me and spirit that you can only pray to have. She has 4 kids and they are so very blessed to have her as a mom. She is so calm and never appears to be frazzled. I know she is at times, but she handles herself with such grace. Jeremy knew how excited I was to see Reba so he took our picture! Then I had to take a picture of the meal she brought us, I had never had it before but it was so yummy. She brought mostaccioli, which is penne pasta with an alfredo sauce on bottom and a marinara sauce with hamburger meat and cheese, delicious! For desert there was a chocolate eclair desert in a pan and it is heavenly. I enjoyed your visit Reba and meeting Maria and Joshua and seeing Hunter and Lauren all grown up. I look forward to our next visit...........we just can't let it be so long next time!


Well I have babbled long enough, I knew I had some catching up to do, since I hadn't posted since earlier in the week. I will be consumed in my classroom the next 2 or 3 days trying to prepare for my precious little kindergartners that come next week. Some of you have asked "Are you ready?" and my answer to that is honest and true, no I am not ready not emotionally or physically, but I will be by the time they come through that door, I am praying for strength and motivation everyday.

Thank yous:
*Thank you to Reba for a WONDERFUL dinner and a SUPER visit
*Thank you to LaDonna for a DELICIOUS dinner, I can only wish I was half the cook you are! I also enjoyed our visit and your wonderful pep talk, you are an inspiration to me.
*Thank you to Melissa, Sharon, and Angela for helping me in my classroom. You have no idea how much I appreciate it. This has definitely been the most stressful year in getting my room ready and the 3 of you have helped make the process much smoother.
*Thank you to Bubba and JoAnn for the sweet card and gift. Jeremy was so touched when we got it in the mail.
*Thank you to Pa and Ma for keeping the boys while we went to Jeremy's dr. appt.
*Thank you to Carolyn and Larry for bringing Grandma up, we appreciate it so much and enjoyed seeing all 3 of you.
*Thank you to Linda, Melissa, and Mike for the YUMMY dinner tonight. It was so good and I had plenty of the coconut pie(I won't tell you how much :)
*A big thank you to Aunt Lori for taking the boys for the afternoon and overnight, so I could work in my classroom. They enjoyed it so much. It mean a lot especially since Uncle Bo had to work and you wanted to keep them anyway. They are SO lucky to have you as an Aunt!

2 year olds miss nothing

Through this process who really knows how much Carter realizes and how much he doesn't. I mean I have told you how he is fascinated with daddy's owies and medicine, but beyond that I have been wondering how different life really is to him. Well this morning it all became a little more clear to me. He was laying in bed with Jeremy and I this morning, well actually he got in bed with us about 5am:), but luckily went back to sleep! Then we all slept until 8, so we were laying there cuddling with him and listening to him sing and talk. All of a sudden he gets up on his knees and turns to Jeremy and says, "I miss you" and he said it with the most honest and sincere voice. First it of course broke my heart and I had tears, but then as I thought about it as the day went on I realized even though he doesn't realize the details and the actual illness itself, he realizes daddy is sick and that things are not normal in his life right now. Of course as a mom that is hard because you want your children's lives to be perfect even though you know that life is not perfect, but on the flip side I am so glad that we have been open and honest and that a small part of his young little vulnerable mind does understand.
The last couple days have been difficult and I can honestly say we are all very tired and getting by on strong faith and prayer. Unfortunately Jeremy has continued to be very uncomfortable and sick the past few days. However the good news is he has been able to rest, so sleep has definitely been his best medicine. Today the sick stomach hit, but he was a trooper and made it through. His energy level was up a little today, but it is still going to be a rough week for him. I think the most stressful part for the both of us is knowing that his body has to do it again next week. We go see his oncologist on Wednesday for a follow up for his first treatment. Hopefully after going over the side effects that he had maybe there are some meds that would be an option for him. I mean there is nothing that you can do about the tired lethargic feeling, but hopefully knowing how he did as far as being very achy and sick there is something that can make him a little more comfortable.
Please direct your prayer towards this because we both had planned on returning to work next week and now are both questioning this decision and how it will work for either of us. We know it will work out and we know that God has a plan for us, so as we have stated before we are taking it one day at a time and each day is different and has different answers for us.
We are very excited about our special visitor tomorrow! Jeremy's Grandma Dean is coming tomorrow and if it gives you any idea the equivalence of how excited Jeremy is about her visit it would compare to Barney showing up at the front door to see Carter or Pujols showing up to see Ian! Jeremy and his Grandma are very close and have been since he was little, so he is very excited that his Uncle Larry and Aunt Carolyn are coming and bringing her for a visit. It will just be a day visit, but could be some of the best medicine for Jeremy.

Ok so before I go I have to share one funny story, ok funny now, but wasn't funny about 4 hours ago. Tonight I was picking the house up and cleaning up after dinner and Jeremy was in our bedroom(yes the one he did not want me to move :) all kicked back and we both heard this giggling coming from the bathroom.....Carter.......Jeremy said what do you think he is doing I of course had no idea so we tiptoed to the door and the giggling turned to full out belly laughing. When I peeped through the door I didn't know if I should laugh or cry! Carter had our dog Bella's favorite giraffe(which Carter calls a cow!) that is a stuffed animal and he was slinging it into the toilet and then slinging water EVERYWHERE! I ran into the bathroom and said HOLY (not sure what I was going to finish with could have been cow, crap, moley, I was pretty mad so use your imagine if you wish) and Carter starts going HOLY COW HOLY COW HOLY COW. So I look back because Jeremy WAS behind me and I am thinking ok daddy step in I know you don't feel good but honest to goodness I was about to bust a gut from laughing. Well my backup was GONE and I am sure you can guess why........he was doubled over in the recliner because he was laughing so hard. Much help......I think not! So I realize I am going to have to pull myself together and send Carter to time out, I mean I do not want him to think he can just take anyone's things and play in the toilet water. Well believe you me I pulled myself together real fast because I looked down and realized that Ian had just gone to the bathroom and yes you already know the rest of the story.................he did NOT flush. Ok so my laughter stopped I was mad and disgusted because all that supposed water everywhere.......... The story ended with Carter in time out saying I sorry I sorry I sorry, Ian helping me clean the entire mess up(bet he will flush from now on!), and all 3 of us taking showers. Needless to say everyone was showered and quickly put to bed! What a day!

Thank yous:
*Thank you to Kasi for the yummy dinner that she surprised us with on Sunday. We were planning on eating leftovers and Sunday was such a rough day so it was such a nice surprise.
*Thank you to Pat for the great dinner tonight and to Linda for delivering it.

Thank you for the continued prayers we are so appreciative of you all. Sending lots of love and hugs to you all.

Chemo #1 Complete but Recovery is Hard

Just a quick check in with everyone to let you know that Jeremy did get his pump off this morning about 10. They were able to do the blood work and get it sent off, but we won't get his results until next Friday. This afternoon and evening has been really rough on Jeremy. Even though you know it's coming it just doesn't make it any easier once it gets here. We knew there would be some sickness, discomfort, etc. but seeing him uncomfortable and hurting is very hard. His stomach is bothering him, but it is more of a queasy feeling. He is having lots of body aches and is very flushed. Beginning to get sores in his mouth. All normal, but all make for a very uncomfortable situation. He is in our bedroom with all doors shut and lights off. He has taken some meds, so I pray that they help him relax and rest. I don't have much new today just wanted to post and update and ask for prayers for his healing and comfort. I know tomorrow is going to be hard and he is going to be tired, so I pray that he cab rest and relax until his body is ready to be back up and running again. I know the hardest thing is going to be with his treatments only 2 weeks apart, he is never going to feel like he completely recovers.
The boys have been SO wonderful tonight and have played downstairs so daddy could rest and I could take care of him. They are so sweet! Hope you are all having a good weekend. We are hoping to have a special visit from Jeremy's Grandma Dean this Tuesday and he is SO excited and the kids and I are too! I hope and pray everyone stays healthy so Larry and Carolyn are able to bring her up.
*Thank you to Pa, Ma, and Carol for watching the boys today while we went to have Jeremy's blood draw done and get his pump disconnected.