Praying for healthy hands and feet (5/21)

Just got back from my appointment with Dr. Curley. My blood work is looking pretty good. I'm still a little anemic, but everything else is barely within the acceptable range. He cleared me to travel this summer as long as I'm feeling well enough. The biggest concern I'm having is blisters on my feet. The past several days of walking have been quite painful. Dr. Curley said this is because of the Xeloda and I may need to back off of walking and try some other forms of exercise. He also recommended some new, cushioned shoes.

We would be grateful if you would specifically pray with us that my hands and feet will stay healthy enough for me to be mobile and to be able to care for our family. I will see Dr. Curley again at the end of my next cycle on June 18th.

Love,
Di

I got COVID...for a day! (5/20)

What???

Well, the past couple of days have been full of lots of highs and lows! Last Wednesday, Glen became sick with cold-like symptoms and by the weekend I also began to feel a sore throat, cough, congestion, and stuffy head. My symptoms followed his almost exactly, just about 3-4 days behind. 

On Monday, when we still were not well, I felt like we should get a COVID test, even though we are both fully vaccinated. I had several doctors appointments scheduled during the week and I knew if I had any symptoms, they would require a test before coming into the office. So both of us drove through a COVID testing site and got a nasal swab done. 24 hours later when we got the results, we could not believe it! Glen was negative and I was positive. We saw the results just as the kids were getting ready to head out the door to school so we caught them and started making calls and sending emails to the teachers and staff. The kids were very upset since the older ones were all doing their final reviews this week, and Hannah was so sad to miss the recording of her music concert with the Bumble bee song 😢. "We were going to get to stand on the risers," she said sadly. After some time, we were able to get Kate and Ryan on Zoom calls with their classes, but unfortunately for Daniel no Zoom links were provided for the middle school classes, so he just had to wait to get missed work. 

Meanwhile, the kids began to realize all that they would miss while they had to be in quarantine for the next week. Ryan's senior prank day and senior dinner ... Daniel's sports award ceremony, mutual activities ... Kates's soccer workouts, receptions, Sunday dinner ... not to mention that Hannah was not going to be able to pop the balloon for her special end-of-year activity and summer birthday celebration! It was easy to see all we were losing, so we cried and punched some pillows and then we talked about what we could and could not control and how all of these disappointments played into a bigger perspective. One blessing that came is that Ryan was able to talk with the temple workers to schedule his appointment to receive his endowment on June 19. They had missed each other several times because they had always called when he was at school.

I talked with my oncology nurse and he encouraged me to get another test done before we made any decisions with my treatment. I continued to take my oral chemo, and the next day Glen and I went to a different clinic and got a deep nasal PCR test done. We explained our situation to the physician assistant who tested us, and she said it was more likely that in the first test Glen was a false negative and that I was a false positive. Another day passed with the kids homeschooling, when we got the second set of results. Glen and I were both negative!

I never saw so much jumping up and down, hoops and hollers, and excitement as when we told the kids they could go back to school! We were so happy to spread the good news!! Everyone was ready in uniforms and lunches packed before we got off the phone with the school administrators! We got the kids dropped off and as I laid down to rest, I thought to myself about what had happened. I got down on my knees to thank Heavenly Father that we did not have COVID. The joy of Wednesday would not have been so sweet without the disappointment of Tuesday. I know the same will be true of my life after I crush this cancer! I will see Dr. Curley tomorrow to get blood tests done and discuss my first round of oral chemo.

Oral chemo and radiation follow-up (5/12)

Me and all of my pills

On May 10, I started my first round of oral chemo, Xeloda. I take 1300 mgs (4 tablets) in the morning with a full meal and then 12 hours later I take another 1300 mgs with a meal. It's been a little difficult finding the best time to eat so that I can take my medication. I feel like I'm force-feeding myself a bit even when I'm not hungry, so that I can get my pills in. Right now, I take my first dose around 7 or 7:30am so that I can have my evening dose at about 7pm before it gets too late. The doctors encourage me to eat at least 300 calories with each dose so that it will help with absorption and not upset my stomach. They also want me to be as consistent with the times I take it so it is most effective. If I forget a dose by more than 2 hours, I am supposed to skip it and just take the next dose so that there is not too much chemo in my system at one time. My stomach has felt a bit sour since starting the Xeloda but it seems to help if I have a little bit of food on it at all times. So I am just planning to eat my way through the next six months. :) I take the oral chemo for 14 consecutive days and the 7 days off before I start a new cycle.

Throughout the day and at night I'm supposed to use heavy moisturizer on my hands and feet to prevent hand/foot syndrome (cracking and peeling of the skin on the palms of my hands and souls of my feet). Every time I sit down, I try to moisturize and at night I slather Aquaphor on my feet and hands and cover them with socks and gloves. Glen says I look like Michael Jackson with my white cotton gloves at night. :) I am going to see if I can moonwalk any better with my Aquaphor on.

Today, I met with my radiation oncologist, Dr. Quiet, to see how my skin was healing after a month post-radiation. She gave me an A+ for keeping Vitamin E oil on it as much as I could. She was very pleased with how the skin was looking and with all the work I had done with the physical therapist to regain my range of motion. I will have one last PT appointment and then I can discontinue that for now. She said I will always need to be careful about trauma to my left arm and side of my chest that could bring on lymphedema but for now things are looking good! 

Thank you for your prayers of healing and strength.

Bittersweet change (5/2)

Glen and his two counselors on the day they were called as a bishopric four years ago.

After faithfully serving for four years as the bishop of our church congregation (the Pinnacle Peak ward), Glen and his two counselors were released from their callings. It is difficult to express the bittersweet feelings we have felt about this change. We love our ward family so much and they have been such a blessing to us! 

Although Glen would spend many hours each week away from home as bishop, he always came home a better man, and perhaps more tired. :) His church service has always felt like more of a blessing than a sacrifice. I am so grateful for the inspiration that guides this church. When our stake president told us, after praying and fasting, that it was time for Glen to be released, we felt peace in knowing this was the Lord's will and timing. Our dear friend was called as the new bishop and we are so excited to support and sustain him, his counselors, and their families. As part of the sacrament meeting, I was asked to share my feelings along with Glen, his counselors, and the new Bishopric. This is some of what I said:

"I have been thinking a little bit about plans. The plans that we make for our lives and our families and the plan of happiness our Heavenly Father has for us collectively and individually. So many times, our own plans are not what God’s plans entail. Sometimes the events are different or the timing is different. One thing that my cancer has taught me is that we can trust in our loving Father Heaven and the plan that he has for each of us. On some of my hardest days I have thought about the image of the monkey trap that is used where a box or container of some kind is placed over a type of bait (fruit). An opening is cut on top of the box just big enough for the monkey's paw to reach in and grab the fruit but not large enough to pull it out once its paw is full. Sometimes that bait inside the box is a bad habit, an addiction, a sin or temptation that we must learn to let go of in order to be free from Satan's captivity. But other times it can represent wonderful things that we cherish, things we have worked for, or wished for... like our physical or mental health, our business, our husband, our father, or child. When God's plan for us requires we let go of those things to follow His plan for us, we must learn to follow our Savior's example of submission, surrendering, yielding, trusting, and having our will swallowed up in the Fathers. Jesus Christ used his agency to take upon Him the pain and suffering that would result from my sins and my afflictions so that I would never have to be alone. So that he could succor and heal me in exactly the ways I would need. He is the restorer of all things, he is my life giver, my perfect oncologist, and the hope I feel in each new day. I have found that the Lord is much more concerned about the condition of my heart than he is about my cancer.

After all that Christ endured, he also commands us to lift up our heads and be of good cheer, let not your heart be troubled or afraid because He knows and He sees that even if everything around us seems to be crumbling, His plan will always bring us eventual and eternal joy. So, this life becomes a test of our faith and patience. Do I trust Him enough to believe in his plan? I do. I believe. Do we trust Him enough to repent and obey? As we do, He gives us beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, and the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness (Isaiah 61:3)"