Family

My whole family congregated at our house this weekend. It usually happens just at the holidays so this mid-summer reunion was a sweet treat! We just hung out and enjoyed each other's company in SD.

10 days unplugged

The lack of posts are for one fabulous reason...we were at The Cabin for 10 days.

No cell reception, no wifi, no television. It's funny because I have always considered myself a "city" girl. And back when Jason and I first met, I know he would definitely have agreed:). But then I met Hume. Like I have said before, it's always been a favorite of Jason and his family. Honestly, the first time I met the camp I wasn't super impressed. But, as we spent more time up there, his parents purchasing a cabin and our kids attending camps there, it grew into a familiar, important, loved place. God is definitely moving there through out the different camps they run, but beyond that, it's a refuge of sorts, being able to unplug completely and soak up God's creation with family & friends.

This year our trip was extra special for several reasons! Meran attended the jr high camp with a very special friend and much of our family and several dear friends were able to be with us over the week. It was a sweet time.

I was reflecting how last year on our Hume Trip I was preparing to share my testimony at our church's women's retreat a few weeks later. This year, my testimony has been enriched by what God is doing in our lives...taking what the enemy meant for evil and using it for His good! I'm truly feeling so thankful and blessed by God these days. And what a wonder, considering I have cancer.

It's so God, isn't it? Love that! It's complete proof that He is bigger than our circumstances and we were created to bring glory to His name. I am nothing outside of Him. And I don't want it any other way. It's a restful place to be. Kind of like being at Hume Lake.

If my heart could choose an anthem this week, it would be...

We Give You Thanks by All Sons & Daughters (listen immediately;)

Thoracentesis #2

A liter and a half drained from this pleural effusion...1/2 a liter more than last time (May 30th). Pretty sure I weigh less now!;) I can't believe I didn't think it was back! It is so gradual that you just get use to it. The doctor said since I'm otherwise healthy and young it doesn't effect me as much as it would an older, less physically fit person. I'm also starting to think going through childbirth 4 times has made me have a high pain tolerance:). The procedure gave me some relief from some discomfort I was feeling -so I'm super thankful for that!

Pre-procedure ultrasound:

The dark shadow (from middle to right side) is the fluid build up. The small white space in the middle is my lung kind of crunched up, because it couldn't expand due to the fluid.

(I took a picture of the fluid too, to show the kids, but didn't want to gross you out;)

I was thinking tonight~

My journey seems like a trip to Disneyland compared to the journey of so many, 

especially children with cancer. I have said from my first fight with breast cancer that I was so thankful it was me and not my children walking through this! Please keep baby Kylie in your prayers, she is currently NED but still has many hills to climb. God is using this 2 year old in mighty ways!

https://www.facebook.com/prayersforkylie1

Post Onc Visit

After hbot, Jason & I met with my oncologist today. We finally went over the scan in person, talked about how treatment was going and how I was feeling. While looking at the petscan, taken mid-June, she showed me that some pleural fluid had accumulated in that space again. She listened to my breathing to see if she could hear it and it didn't disappoint! I went for a X-ray stat and it was confirmed , once again, I have a large pleural effusion on the left side. It's just my body's reaction to the cancer that is in that place...trying to flush out what shouldn't be there. God thought of everything:). 

I'm going to have another thoracentesis tomorrow (thursday) at 1pm. Been there, done that, so I'm not worried about it. Actually, I'm excited to see how I feel after the fluid is removed because I thought the pain I was feeling was a result of the tamoxifen. Guess I have a high pain tolerance;). Plus, my Pulmonologist is expecting so it'll be fun to see how she's grown and hear how she is doing:). 

Coveting your prayers daily. 

Left by a dear family friend on the fundraising sight...

"Ah Sovereign Lord, you have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and outstretched arm. Nothing is too hard for you.

Jeremiah 32:17

Boom.

Remembering that today. And tomorrow. And then each day after that!

I'm a little forgetful....

So I thought my oncologist follow up appt was today, then I thought it was tomorrow....until today when I got my reminder call that infact, my appt is Wednesday! I am ready to go...so I can talk to my doc about the constant (newer) discomfort I'm feeling. Hoping & assuming it's the tamoxifen at work. Time will tell-or rather, the Petscan that I will have in a few months to check on my progress. 

A praise is that I feel very energizer by the HBOT! If it weren't for the bone pain I'd feel totally great! 

I'm feeling so thankful as I see God woven throughout every bit of this journey. He has paved this road with blessings along the way, that keep me encouraged and focused on His plan...From the financial outpouring of love of dear friends & family, making my HBOT treatments possible, to the prayers and words of encouragement. I fear I sound like a broken record, but I can't stop it's repetition! I'm just so darn grateful! I told my sister-in-law today that if love healed, I'd be healed ten-fold.

Meran went with me one day last week to treatment and took this picture of me in the hyperbaric chamber. Now you will have a visual of what in the world HBOT is. :)

HBOT

Hello Squad! You don't mind if I call you that, do you?

You know, "squad", as in "cheerleading squad" (haha:)

That's what you all are to me, after all! 

I finished my second hbot (hyperbaric oxygen therapy) today. I spend an hour & 45 minutes in a sealed   clear chamber, with 100% oxygen exposure. Because of the risk of flammability, nothing can come into the chamber with you....except the really "cool" long turqouise gown they supply;), a few pillows and a sheet. So you have 2 choices in passing time 1) sleep 2) watch a movie (there are speakers in the chamber). I rarely rarely sit down to watch a movie so I guess I'll be catching up on 40 movies this summer!

Before the treatment Monday, I met with a doctor. He checked my ears to be sure the pressure of the experience wouldn't affect them (your ears pop as you begin & end the session).  I'll be doing 40 treatments, the recommended dosage for most people using hbot. And I'll be doing this approximately 4x/week. It's kind of like having a part time job that doesn't pay you, but rather you pay to go to:)! Insurance doesn't cover it and it's not recognized by most western doctors as a treatment for cancer.... But I've read some studies with promising outcomes and have heard people say that it has shrunk their tumor and made them feel energized. Hbot is used by athletes to heal their injuries quicker, burn victims, lime disease, and many more conditions. It's very exciting to me to have this opportunity and I am looking forward to seeing the outcome!

Thank you again to all of you who are helping to make my treatments possible. And for all the prayers for my complete healing! To God be the glory!