Dr. T says not to worry

My friend, Debbie King, took me to my appointment at the Cancer Center where I had the PTT blood test that determines how much heparin they put in my shots. I asked the very nice nurse if she could find out about the biopsy I had last Tuesday. She checked on the computer and told me that she couldn't get all the information and she told me she would talk to Dr. Tezcan. When I got home she called me and said that Dr. Tezcan told her to tell me to have fun and enjoy my vacation at the Oregon Coast next week. (He knows I plan to go to Oregon this weekend with Carolyn and Rob.) He said for me not to be concerned and we'll talk about it at my Sept. 14 appointment. So I've decided once again not to worry! Worrying puts a little dark cloud over things and I want to enjoy each day.

Greg, Jake, Emily, Hannah and Matthew are traveling back from Tacoma now. Nick, Adam and I came back last night. We helped Betsy and Cam move into their very old but charming house in Tacoma. It was so fun to see the little boys playing and to watch Hannah working so hard right along side the grown-ups. My favorite memory of the weekend was listening to Emily and Betsy work cleaning and organizing Betsy's kitchen. They were such a good team and I loved hearing them laugh. I was in the living room with little boys who were having the time of their lives playing in boxes.

Carolyn and Rob plan to be here Friday night and I will leave with them Saturday morning and we'll travel to Oregon. They will drop me off at Mom and Dad's and go directly to the beach. Mom and Dad and I will join them at the house they've rented at Yachats on Monday. I'm very excited! The house is right on the ocean.

"Don't worry about anything; instead pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank Him for what He has done. Then you will experience God's peace which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus." Phil. 4:6-7

Thank you for your love and prayers. Love, Julie

Still don't know...

I still haven't heard about the results of Tuesday's biopsy. I'm choosing not to worry about it.

Today was a very busy day! I had an appointment at the CDA School District Office this morning to sign some retirement papers. I got to see some familiar faces and that was good. And when I got home my friend, Nancy Ison, came to visit me. She's a dear.

This afternoon I was busy getting things ready to take to Kent this weekend. Lots of laundry. Then there were errands to run with the Russells this evening. Whew.

Tomorrow morning Greg and I and the Russells are driving to Kent to help Betsy and Cam move to their home in Tacoma. Jake, the amazing driver, is driving a moving van with a bed and some other furniture for them as I'm writing this. I'm praying he'll arrive safely. I guess he can't go too fast in that old truck he's driving.

I love you all and am thankful for your prayers and encouraging words. Love, Julie

Greg's Birthday!

Yesterday was Greg's birthday and we had a little surprise party for him. The Russells came over and parked their van in a sneaky place while Greg was gone on a walk with Boris. It was so fun to see the kids be so excited about surprising Grandpa. He really was surprised! And we had chocolate cake that Emily made and Janice and Abbie and Zoë made it in time to celebrate with us. It was a fun party!
Thank you for your love and prayers. Love, Julie

A Little Get Away

Greg and I went for a little get away yesterday and came home late this afternoon. It's so great to feel good enough to enjoy a little walking and shopping. I never seem to get tired or run out of breath when I'm shopping. Hmmm. Maybe I should suggest to Dr. T that shopping could be part of my treatment plan.

Tomorrow morning I will have a biopsy on a nodule they found on my thyroid in my latest CAT scan. The doctor said not to worry about it and I'm not. But we will breathe an extra sigh of relief when we find out the little bump isn't cancer.

I'm looking forward to Janice, Abbie and Zoe coming this Wednesday and Thursday. They will be returning to Billings and I feel so lucky that I live on the way so it's easy for them to come to visit me!

I love knowing I am not alone when thoughts of doubt and fear try to creep into my mind. I am so grateful for all of you and I can be at peace because I know my life is in God's Hands.
Love, Julie

"The joy of the Lord is my strength". Nehemiah 8:10b

HAPPY BIRTHDAY SEBASTIAN!

Sebastian is four years old today! Hurray! I wish we could be there to celebrate with him and watch him blow out his candles. But we are planning to be there next weekend to help Betsy and Cam move to the house they are buying in Tacoma. They are so excited to move out of their little apartment and to have a backyard the boys can run and play in. Our plan is to have a birthday party for Sebastian next weekend when we are there.

Greg and I went to Lou and Carol Quiring's for dinner last night. Oh my goodness...it's like another world at their house. They live in a log house nestled in a wooded area close to Worley. They have a lovely covered front porch and that's where we spent the evening. Carol is a great cook and she made my favorite cuisine--Chinese! We had such a great visit with our friends. We are so blessed to know such wonderful people.

I'm feeling a little tired today. I got home past my bedtime last night! Thank you for caring about us and praying for us. Love, Julie

Feeling Good!

Wow! They took Miss Fanny Pack off and I feel so free! That little pack is actually kind of heavy and a bit cumbersome. Glad to leave her at the Cancer Center this morning. Another free feeling was that I drove myself to my appointment. My family is so kind and generous and they think they have to drive me everywhere. But I did just fine and stopped at Great Harvest for some nummy cinnamon chip bread on the way home.

The past few days I've been a little wimpy. So I sure appreciate feeling better today. And it's a beautiful sunny day.

I'm looking forward to spending the evening with Janice and her three daughters; Abbie, Bethany, and Mary. And with Janice's granddaughter, Zoë. They are traveling from Billings to Newberg, Oregon where Bethany and Mary will start another school year at George Fox University. They will spend the night and have breakfast then take off in the morning. But we'll have fun visiting tonight.

Emily and Hannah cleaned my house today. Ahh. I love having a house that is clean and smells fresh. Not like my dog, Boris. During that cleaning time Jake took Adam and Matthew on an adventure. It's a blessing to have Jake here. Not just because he's good with kids, he's just a fun-loving great person and I enjoy him. I love when he plays the piano or guitar and I love hearing him practice the bass. He plans to do some symphony work--and he needs to get in shape!

Thank you for praying for me. I feel so supported and loved by you. Love, Julie

Happy But Duddy Day

It was a happy day because I got to continue with the same chemo BECAUSE IT'S WORKING! And it was a duddy day because I started chemo again this morning and I spent most of the day sitting in my favorite place on my favorite couch. But we are so grateful that Dr. T let me try some chemo drugs that are kind of experimental for my kind of cancer. I'm so thankful for your prayers because I haven't experienced any of the extreme side effects that are possible with these drugs.

This evening the Russells came over and we played Cranium with Jake. It was really fun and the hightlight was Hannah spelling BAZOOKA backwards. But inspite of her valiant effort, the girls still lost to the very inspired boys.

I'm looking forward to a great weekend with my little chemo fanny pack friend. Such a delight. I am so thankful for your love and prayers. Love, Julie

Good CAT Scan news!

The tumors are smaller! Hurray! Thank you Lord.

My doctor is gone this week so he has a substitute and I was a little worried about meeting with someone new today. But she was a great doctor and I really liked her. And she had good news for us! My tumors are smaller than they were before I started this round of chemo in June. So I will continue with this chemo starting tomorrow! I will meet with Dr. Tezcan next week and I'm hoping he'll be able to give me more details.

I am having a busy week and it's been so amazing to be able to breathe without wheezing and to be able to walk without running out of air. Tuesday my friend, Teri, came to pick me up and I met with several of my friends from Fernan for lunch at Azteca. It was Sherma's birthday. After lunch Sherma, Teri and I went to see the movie "Julie and Julia" and we laughed through the whole thing. I heard it hasn't gotten the greatest reviews, but it sure was a fun movie to watch with my friends. Meryl Streep was hilarious as Julia Child. After the movie Teri took me to the Cancer Center to pick up my heparin shots. Thank you, Teri!

Abbie, Paul, Zoë and Maddie came and we ate dinner at "Tomato Street". Emily and her kids came over and we player Scattergories and we laughed and laughed. Peach Trees and Pickles were some of my favorite answers. They took off for Billings Wednesday morning.

Emily is a good Mom and my grandchildren are wonderful kids...but Emily felt like she needed a vacation from them yesterday. So good old Uncle Jake took Hannah, Adam and Matthew to Triple Play and they played miniature golf and some video games together. The kids were great for Jake. While Jake entertained the children, Emily and I went shopping and then had a delicious coffee drink. Mmm.

Thank you for your continued prayers. We are so thankful that the chemo is working and...guess what, Janice? They only had to poke me one time for my I-V for the CAT scan yesterday! Another answer to prayer! Love, Julie

Greg and MMA and me and Skype!

Greg loves to watch MMA on television. Mixed Martial Arts is not my favorite thing--I prefer the Food Channel which is equally disgusting to Greg. But last night Greg was invited to watch some very special MMA matches with some of his friends and I was happy for him to go as long as I didn't have to. Well...as I was sitting in my favorite place on my favorite couch--I got a text from Abbie (she's still at my Mom and Dad's) and she was setting up my parent's computer with Skype. She already had put Skype on mine. Anyway, my little technical wizard niece managed to get my parent's and me connected with our very first conversation on Skype. It was so fun! And Robert and Easton were there so I got to visit with Robert for a long time. It's so amazing to be able to see someone while you're talking! Thank you, Abbie! I think I ended up having more excitement than MMA! Sorry, Greg.

In the past two weeks I haven't been to the Cancer Center once! I love the people who work there--I consider them my friends--but it has been so great to not have to structure my life around appointments. Well, this week will make up for all that wonderful time off. The only day I don't have an appointment is Tuesday. Monday is just a blood test for the heparin level, Tues. is my day off, Wed. is a cat scan, Thurs. is a doctor's appt. to talk about the cat scan, and Fri. is chemo and I'll get my little fanny pack again. Hey Mom, I'll have someplace to wear the new clothes I got in Oregon, right?

I'm sorry I sound so redundant--but thank you, once again, for your love and prayers. I would appreciate your prayers concerning Wed. cat scan. We're praying for good news--tumors shrinking, chemo working... I'm not worried about it. It's all in God's hands. He can do anything! Love, Julie
Wed.

A Great Reminder

I just wanted to share a verse from Jeremiah that Mom wrote in a letter to me this week. It's so powerful and such a great reminder of just who is in control.

"I am the Lord the God of all mankind. Is anything too hard for me?" Jer. 32:27

I get discouraged sometimes as I think of all the things I would like to do but am limited because of running out of breath so easily. Like I would love to go to the mall and help Emily with school-shopping. But it just involves too much walking. Believe it or not, I would like to clean my own house! But I just can't right now. Every little thing I do makes me so tired.

So thank you, Mom, for sending me that verse that reminds me that nothing is too hard for God. I need to remember to ask Him for strength every day.

Thank you for your prayers. Love, Julie

It's Thursday Already!

My friend, Teri Burch, has taught kindergarten and 1st grade for years and this coming year she is accepting the challenge of moving to 5th grade at Fernan. I know she will be a wonderful 5th grade teacher but she has so much work to do to get ready. Starting with changing to a new classroom with differet materials and a whole new curriculum to learn. She picked me up this morning and I helped her sort through boxes and move some things around in her room. I was only able to put in about an hour, but it was so fun. I got to see several other teacher friends who were working in their rooms. After about an hour, we got some coffee and came back to my house to visit. It was a great morning.

My friend, Lana, is going to bring dinner for us tonight. I'm excited to see what she will bring!

This week is sure quiet around here. I guess it seems extra quiet after being in Oregon last week and having Jake around for several days. Now he's visiting Betsy and Cam in Seattle. Quiet is good too.

I feel like I don't have much exciting news to share today. I just want you to know how exciting it is to find out who is reading this humble blog of mine. Thank you for your love and prayers. Love, Julie

Home Again

We were greeted last night when we came home by Jake and the Russells. Emily and Nick took care of Boris while we were gone and they returned him last night. It's nice to be home--but we sure had a wonderful time in Oregon the past week. We came home to HOT weather, but we have air-conditioning so it's not bad at all.

Abbie, Paul, and Zoë are on their way to our house and Maddie Hunter is with them. They will spend the night and then head off to Oregon tomorrow for a visit at Mom and Dad's. Mom and Dad are busy with company this month and they love it. They love sharing their home and beautiful yard and flowers and garden veggies with everyone. They amaze me. They work so hard.

I'm a little tired today so I'm taking it easy. I'm getting really good at taking it easy. It's a developed skill I think.

Thank you for your prayers this past week. Jake made it to our house safely. And I felt pretty good all week. I think I even gained weight with Mom's wonderful cooking. My pants sure feel tighter! I am so thankful for my wonderful family and friends. God has really blessed me. Love, Julie