opening our eyes and our bellies...

Hello again!  Well let us just start off with news about Neil and the beast that lies within.  He underwent 2 rounds of chemo and actually did well, but his lymphnode still grows as of today unfortunately.  Before getting his 3rd and final round before radiation, the Dr. called for a ct scan to check things out, and proceeded to let us know that it had grown and then proceeded to cancel the 3rd round of chemo and opt for a biopsy to check progress.  Off to the hospital we went for another biopsy, hoping for the best but fearing the worst naturally.  I could have very well ended up in the emergency room while he was getting his biopsy, let me tell ya that I am just as clumsy as ever and concrete steps hurt really bad when you fall going up them.  After him getting stuck and me almost killing myself we were done and waiting...again.  The results were in 2 days later, and the Dr. delivered our worst fear...the cancer was not affected at all by chemo.  After discussing options for further treatment, Neil suggested surgery to get that thing outta him, so his other Dr. agrees that is the best option right now.  Neil and I are excited, we have both wanted surgery from the beginning, but it has been a fight since Neil has an unknown primary at this point.  The surgery is set for June 1st and radiation is postponed for now.  As Neil told his ENT, this is the best news we have got so far during all this mess and the Dr. is confident they can get it all out, he still has to endure radiation at some point, but we are staying super positive and hopeful.

Now, what are some things we do to make this process easier, well we are educating ourselves, relying on each other as well as family come to mind along with spending as much family time together as you possibly can...oh and I mentioned the all important keeping a positive attitude which is hard but doable!

We have been educating ourselves about ways to keep this sucker from growing and the one thing that keeps coming up in literature is diet.  You could call it turning over a new leaf, it is a wonderful thing when that little voice says to you....what you put in your body is important, and unfortunately like alot of others we never thought about what all the fast food and processed food was doing to us and our children.  I am not one of those people that judge others and try to tell them about everything they are doing wrong, I will just say this...if you have any doubts, read and read some more, use the internet and even try reading cancer diet books...it will honestly scare the hell out of you and some sense into you about what you put in your body.

I am willing to do anything in the world to keep the love of my life and father of my child with us for as long as I possibly can, so let the doctors do they're thing and we will do ours...cause its worth it!  Some things that we are doing...cut out fast food,  processed food and try not to buy anything with ingredients we can't pronounce and we even go to a farm for fresh eggs now and they are fantastic. Trust me people, it takes you like a whirlwind when you try to change a diet that you have had since birth basically and it is a big undertaking.  Some friends of ours are really helping us out because this is how they live and I have been told by all of them to take baby steps to keep from feeling overwhelmed.  I think that the transition for all of us has been tough, but its so worth it.  We shop organic, and yes it is a little more expensive, we feel blessed to be able to do it, but it is also that great time of year when people are setting up their produce stands and that is a really good thing for what we are trying to do.  Grace is having so much fun going to the farm to get eggs and going shopping for new stuff for our bellys is a real treat for her as well.  We all are trying so many new things and it makes me happy!  Remember, baby steps...if we fall and treat ourselves to crap food, which is very rare right now, we get up the next day right back into the swing of things.  Our energy levels are good, attitudes are good and our bodies feel good...it just feels right!

For now....we fight with everything we got!!! We are gonna win this fight together!

chemo, tornadoes, lack of internet and cable...oh my

Wow, that was a long break from blogging!  We are now in the 3rd week of  Neil's second round of chemo and the tumour is not shrinking this time.  From what the Dr. is telling us, they will probably switch his chemo meds.  We go to see the radiologist tomorrow, that should be interesting indeed.  Neil informed me today, that he is going to ask the radiologist about getting a second opinion.  His last appointment with his oncologist didn't leave me with a good easy feeling, on the contrary it left me a little worried.  From diagnosis to the treatment plan from the doctors you have the spells of waiting and they suck alot, but that last appointment ended with the doctor telling us to go ahead with treatment that day and wait and see.  Well, prematurely I am saying I will not wait and see again.  Hopefully the radiologist will have some idea of what to do tomorrow...fingers crossed.  Neil has responded to this treatment even better than the time before, seems like a lot less nausea and fatigue.  It could just be that he is totally focused on not letting these things happen.  His appetite has been better and he is intaking water pretty well.  In the beginning I was totally focused on the big C, but now not so much.  We are living like nothing is even happening, it does seem strange, but while he is feeling up to it...why not?!

Subject change for a moment please.  I don't know how much you watch the weather, but it has been absolutely crazy the past couple of weeks in the South.  Let me just say "Ringgold, Georgia" is where we reside and  I have lived in Tennessee all my life besides Canada for a couple of years and now Georgia.  I have never ever ever seen anything like the storms we had 2 weeks ago.  We feel so very fortunate and lucky to be alive and still have our home.  Poor little Ringgold is just torn to bits, people died and families are homeless.  This is not a big city by no means and the whole commercial district is pretty much gone.  We had our bottled water, flashlights and cats all down in the basement just waiting for tragedy, and luckily for us it dropped from the sky about 5 miles away.  Grace was just so torn up over the fact she didn't get to see a tornado, it's funny how the mind of a 5 yr. old works...or doesn't,lol.  Some friends of ours were not so lucky, they lost their home, but survived with their family.  We stayed up very late just to find out if they were safe, and they were...Yay!  Our thoughts are with all the victims of these violent storms.

 >Side note< It seems petty with everything that happened in this little town to be just so very happy to get cable and internet again, I mean we watched all the movies we had, so to be petty...I am so freaking happy Grace went back to school today, finally, and I am happy to be on the net again and watch some cable....there I said it!

Back on subject!  I am thankful that Neil is doing well with this second round, but concerned the medicine just isn't doing what needs to be done but alas I am no Dr., just a very concerned wife and that counts too!  He just amazes me..he is my "Amazing Chemo Man".  Gracie told him yesterday its just garbage bunched up in there and then proceeded to tell him how the doctors need to get it out...yeah, it was not pretty. 

For now, we live normal and I will happily blog about any abnormalities that may occur!