Fun With "Dick and Jane"!

Here we are 2 weeks out of the hospital from 2nd round of maintenance chemo.  Several things come to mind that are drug related....1-Drugs are a good thing...2-Sometimes patients (my man in this case) need drug advocates (me, generally in every incidence involving drugs)...3-I wish I had listened to a couple of friends when they told me about the Sancuso Patch, it's a good thing!  We may be a test subject for Trevor's oncologist because he didn't have a lot of experience with this drug.  Just FYI, if you or a loved one is battling cancer and the chemo is causing violent retching (this was the case for Trevor) the Sancuso Patch is a "Miracle"!!!!  It also goes by the name of Kitrel.  I had mentioned to Trevor's doctor that we were interested in trying it.  Trevor told me not to push the issue if Dr. Kaufman didn't want to use it.  I told Trevor, I would push until he was able to muzzle me, I would push it as far as I could to get the best possible result/treatment for him. 

Anyway, after a week in the hospital taking as much IV chemo his veins could carry and twice blowing veins at the end of the week, we got the prescription for the patch.  Dr. Kaufman proceeded to tell me that our pharmacy didn't subscribe to this drug and it would have to be ordered...Sure would like to have known that bit of information before being admitted...So it's a Friday, our pharmacy doesn't carry it, no pharmacy carries it, this drug patch has to be ordered.  Trevor is discharged on Friday morning really medicated, I mean really medicated...and I'm ordering a patch that is supposed to decrease/eliminate the nausea.  My man was so medicated last weekend he was texting me asking when he ate last or when he could take his next round of meds or if he I had medicated him.  I got the patch the Monday and slapped it on him after he awoke from a phenegran/adivan sleep stupor.  He slept another few hours and as of now his nausea has been dramatically reduced.  This time 4 weeks ago after his first round of chemo, he was still nauseous and violently sick.  Nope, not this week!  He is up talking, walking down the street, able to carry on a conversation without gagging in his mouth...This is a good thing!  We are now awaiting the arrival of the nasty mouth sores, although we may avoid this side effect altogether and that would be superbulous!  When he goes back for the 3rd and FINAL maintenance round of chemo, I'll follow the directions for the patch and apply it 24 hours before chemo begins, who know maybe he won't be nauseous every day and vomit at all. 

But while Trevor's life stopped over the past 2 weeks, my babies and I have been doing our elementary life, projects and all.  Eli had a Black History project on Martin Luther King, Jr.  He was so bummed he got "stuck" with MLK, he wanted Bill Cosby.  I tried to explain Cosby wouldn't have had the chance if Martin Luther King, Jr. didn't have a dream.  This project was very informational for me, did you know that Martin Luther King, Jr's real name was Michael.  His father changed his and his son's name after a trip to Germany where they learned more of Martin Luther and the Protestant Reformation.  The tidbit of juicy history my boy took away from this Civil Right Leader was..."he was a lefty".  Eli wanted to do his project on the basis that Martin Luther King, Jr. was left handed.  MLK's dream didn't mean a whole lot but then again, Eli hasn't been raised the way I was or my parents so he doesn't see the impact this national figure has had on history.  Or maybe, he isn't old enough to appreciate how far society has come OR maybe I'm naive about our racial cultures, I don't really know.  I almost wish I had my son's mindset to see the simple things like MLK being left handed, not that he was killed for his beliefs in equality. 

Eli's project was due last Friday, the day Trevor was discharged.  We had all the info for the project but didn't actually do it until Thursday night after leaving the hospital visiting his daddy.  Whereas Neely's project wasn't due until Thursday, Valentine's Day and she started last week.  She had to make a shoe box into a Willy Wonka Valentine box.  Give the girl some glue dots, a glue gun and candy and she will decorate until she runs out of something.  You can see this project on my fb page.  I remember Eli's box, it was Twizzlers and stuff just glued on.  Neely had her Skittles and Valentine Heart candies in a pattern.  OMGOODNESS, Neely and her patterns could do me in.  I'm not really artsy fartsy, my daughter makes up enough for the both of us.  She LOVES JoAnn's Fabrics!

During Trevor's drug induced week siesta, Eli decided not to play baseball this spring.  Those of you that know me know that this is a big pill for me to swallow.  He has played baseball since he was 4, that sounds like a really long time, in the scheme of life it's 7 years.  I know the game of baseball, I love the sport.  He has decided to play spring soccer.  He told Trevor while he was in the hospital and Trevor didn't know if he heard him correctly so we discussed it again once he got home after his sedation wore off.  Eli said he loves soccer and he understood he couldn't play baseball and spring soccer, he chose soccer.  I don't understand soccer.  I know the point is to score at the opposite end of the field.  To my knowledge, I don't think there are any chants for soccer.  For baseball you've got, "hey batter, batter, batter-SWWWING!", or "2 away", or "let's hit around!" or "rally on 3", or even the infamous "throw down your walker and RUN, old man!"  In soccer, which Eli has also played since he was 4, there is nothing to chant but maybe, "score!"  But this is the point in life he gets to choose what he wants to play...I almost think he's doing it so he doesn't have to listen to me holler.  But as I explained to him before, every kid on the field deserves to have a cheerleader rooting for him.  I guess I'm rooting for all 11 on the soccer field this spring...

And in the idea of trying to keep my kids life "normal", I will be entered to win coolest (or dumbest) Mom Of The Year...my babies "got" to bring home the elementary school science pets, Thunder and Lightening (hamsters) over the extended weekend, thanks Mrs. G!  Conversation on the way home from school on Thursday when our weekend started went something like this:  "MOM, you're going too fast!", this is going around the curve pulling out of the parking lot.  "Mom, we can't put their cages close together because they don't get along and we don't want them to fight".  So should I put my kids in cages apart from each other so they don't fight?  "Mom, we have to clean their cages on Saturday."  If you spy on my house, you will notice the hamster's cages are clean, are my kid's rooms?  That would be a "NO"!  My babies don't realize rodents live in filth and squall-er...kinda makes my kids look like rodents with the messes in their rooms.  My babies rooms may not be clean but the hamster's cages are clean.

Thank you for your continued prayers and encouragement.  We are blessed and have had to have several discussions this week about our blessings.  My children think bad things don't happen if you're rich or famous.  I had to point out Lindsey Lohan, to which Eli replied "she made bad choices".  He commented this week he only wanted to see his dad smile.  The fact of the matter is, the muscles in Trevor's mouth are sore.  The lining in his mouth is thickening and sloughing out so his mouth is sore and raw, it hurt's for him to smile, talk and especially laugh.  But as my children were twinkle toes-ing across the living room, Eli tripped over our thread bare carpet while saying "watch-me!"  Trevor laughed out loud and Eli was so excited.  Eli has thanked God several times for his dad's ability to smile and laugh, especially at him.  God has been so good to us through all of this, from the Deer Stand Altercation to this Cancer Ordeal.  It seems that I forget that when Trevor is gagging in the sink or when he gets up too fast and I have to catch him before he passes out.  Then God will send me a love note, maybe in a friend's encouragement or even my man saying "Thank You", or my babies remaining germ free.  God has continued to keep the nasty bugs out of our house, no strep, no flu, no nasty stomach bug...blessed I tell ya blessed! 

 angi

Numbers 6:24-26  "The Lord bless you and keep you, the Lord make His face shine upon you and be gracious to you;  the Lord turn His face toward you and give you peace."

Flashing Light at the End of the Tunnel

Here I am sitting here listening to the Grammy's.  I never really got or get into all of these award shows, but I'm sitting in my bedroom with my husband as he is medicating his nausea trying to decide if he is going to throw up or not.  I'm literally praying with each peck of the keyboard that he is going to ride this bout of nausea out.  I'm praying that the phenregan I just gave him takes affect...asap, pronto, in an unimaginable amount of time.  His body cannot afford to throw up anymore.  His throat was damaged with the first round of maintenance chemo so "we" are trying to avoid violent vomiting at all costs.  So far his vomiting hasn't been nearly as violent, but he still has had occasion to throw up. 

He was admitted to the hospital Monday morning after our daily morning car pool.  Kids said their goodbyes and love yous and we went to check in for his 2nd "jail term" of maintenance chemo.  He had the sweetest nurse and I was nervous because I hated to a haint to some sweet thing.  Lucky for her his chemo didn't get started until 2:30 that afternoon so there was no call for me to be hateful.  The babies and I went to see him that afternoon after school and he was just dandy.  Tuesday was a different story, he got sick before 6 am but no cause for worry because on of our favs was going to be his nurse and so there is no reason my haint persona should come out of her closet.  She got his meds timed and charted so the Wednesday nurse had no worries.  And Wednesday was a great day too, well as great as it can be when poison is being dripped into your body for 5 days and is killing your body off one cell at a time...Thursday I was a little apprehensive because she was a new nurse for us, but she did a great job tending to my man.  I went to see him that morning before I went to work and when I left I was concerned because he isn't one to call for drugs, but I'm not above it.  My philosophy is "sleep through it and you'll never know how bad you feel".  She did a great job keeping him medicated and comfortable.  We have been so fortunate in his nursing care, except for that one unfortunate weekend. 

Trevor got discharged Friday morning soooo medicated I don't know if he remembers getting in the van.  My friend MMY, the oncology pharmacist had recommended the Sancuso patch.  I had told Trevor's doctor about my friend what she does and her experience with this medication.  He wasn't familiar but was willing to try it.  He knew 2 weeks ago we wanted to try it so he gives us the prescription for it Friday as Trevor is being discharged and says we can't get it at our hospital pharmacy.  It has to be ordered...it's Friday...we won't get it until tomorrow.  I can't wait to slap it on him and let his doctor know it works miracles.  That's y prayer anyway is that this patch will alleviate his nausea at least by 100%.  Trevor could be a trend setter here in Madison County. 

We have 3 weeks to recover then go back for our LAST round of maintenance.  We can see the light, we can see our summer on the lake kayaking.  We can see turkey season, maybe. We see a spring and summer filled with ballfields, soccer or baseball Eli hasn't decided.  I hope baseball because I understand that sport.  But he wants to play soccer instead, which is fine I just don't know how to cheer or understand enough about soccer to cheer.  That's probably one reason he wants to play so he doesn't have to listen to me saying "6 you got this, 6 you're good, 6 good effort, etc..."  You get the gist, in soccer I just say "Go 6, Go!"  I'm just glad he wants to play anything.  He's good at soccer and he's fast, he doesn't have to wait in the middle of outfield waiting for a ball.  I don't have to get aggravated if an umpire makes a dumb call if the ball gets past my boy catching and it rolls under the fence and the ump sends the runner on to 1st...I just don't know where to look in the rule book for that one...

 I was talking to Eli earlier that I pray whatever God has been trying to teach me, I've learned it and shared it.  I can't exactly pinpoint what I've learned, there isn't one particular thing.  You know the song by Laura Story "Maybe Your Blessings Come Through Raindrops"?  It seems that my blessings have come in torrential floods.  I've learned that I have heard Jesus in the prayers of my children.  They pray for their daddy daily, but they are also sensitive to their friends that are going through a trial.  I've learned that there is always someone else that is going through a trial that needs just as much prayer and God's blessings as my family.  I've learned that I can hold my tongue if it isn't glorifying and uplifting to the heart that needs to hear it.  And I've learned that my children are so wise.  That they are ministers of God's faithfulness, He hasn't forgotten us and He has blessed us through the past 14 months. 

I humbly again say thank you for your prayers.  Thank you for your encouraging words, comments, text messages, visits.  Thank you for your accountability.

angi

p.s.  Happy Valentines...but don't wait for a special day to TELL the ones that matter that they do matter.  You are a better person to be loved and to love, just don't do it anonymously or inactively.  Love is and action word!