Sunday, June 9, 2013

Behind Every Man is a Great Woman, and an Awesome Man Purse....

Tomorrow will mark 3 weeks since Daddy started his new treatment, it will also be the second round of treatment. Here is how he has been doing so far.
Day of Treatment:
Daddy goes in about 7:30 in the morning and treatment begins. Typically this is a 5 hour process, this being his first time however it ended up being a 7 hour process. Then he came home with his pump still attached to stay with him over the next 48 hours in an awesome "Fancy Little Looking Fanny Pack."
He did well with the Fanny Pack, in fact it received many compliments, our favorite however came from his 3 year old Granddaughter at 2 o'clock in the morning, the story goes something like this. Daddy had gotten up to use the bathroom and just as anyone would at 2 am he left the door unlocked. As he sat there on the his ivory post the door swung open and in walked Abby who through sleepy eyes smiled and said..."Hi Grandpa, I like your bag....I need to go potty!" this story of course has brought a lot of laughter to our family over the past few weeks and has led us to the conclusion that Daddy's Bag deserves some Décor, nothing specific has been planned yet but if he is going to have to carry it around like a "Man Purse" it is going to look as though it deserves the title...

The biggest change in side effects has been vomiting, extreme nausea, exhaustion, loss of appetite, and severe reactions to cold. While watering the garden Daddy put his hand over the nozzle of the hose to create a spray and immediately dropped the hose saying it felt as though he had been electrocuted. He is not able to drink cold liquids or step in the shower even before the floor has been warmed or he feels like he has been "Zapped" by the  "Bug Zapper", funny this use to be a favorite past time in our Family to run around and see who we could "Zap" but now I guess under these circumstances it's just not as fun.

Daddy has still been able to get out and accomplish all of the things he would normally have been doing. Exercise, Church Duties, Working outside, even a little bit of Fishing on his REEL Retreat. You are never sure what to expect when you start something new like this treatment but even DR. Difiore has been quite amazed at how well Daddy has done. At his 2 week check up the Dr.commented on his weight and how he hadn't lost as much as he thought he may have, also his platelets were up and he is not anemic, all Great Signs. Now we understand that as this treatment continues, and they will for several months, side effect may increase, change or somehow new ones may feel like somehow they received a formal invitation to just show on up, however Our Family believes in Daddy's ability to battle, and also in the Faith offered up by so many through Prayers, Fasting and many other personal and appreciated ways. Thank You to all who think of him and wish him well often and Thank You to all who also think of our Dear Mother and Wish her well just as often. We can't imagine how she to must feel in this dark chaotic situation, I am sure her emotions defy description or explanation, yet there She is, as always, right by his side. She does absolutely everything she can to make sure he has what he needs. We are talking daily agendas typed up and placed where Daddy can follow his schedule of times to eat, exercise and take his medications, Charts of each Dr. Visit and results from all his blood tests to track trends and improvements, (this is real by the way, and she presented it to the Dr. once who was very impressed by it)
She also encourages him, Loves him, and gives him a reason to fight the BEST he can. I am certain, in fact I have heard from his own lips, he "Couldn't Make It Without Her." He knows it and our Family Knows it. As much as We all Love our Father, we know and understand that it is our Mother who makes him the Man he is, and we love Her just as much as we love him. We hope and pray for her daily, She is as solid as a ROCK, our Families Foundation. She may tell you otherwise, but she has the Greatest Strength and the Greatest Faith we have ever seen exercised, and Daddy needs that, even more our Family needs it. So into Round Two on the Folfirinox we go and I guess all we can do is walk into tomorrow and hope that at the end of the day there was something that made us laugh and somehow, just as Mom does every day, we were able to make a difference for someone else....

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