About Our Family

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Tuscaloosa,, Alabama, United States
"For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God. The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by him we cry, 'Abba, Father.' The Spirit testifies with our spirit that we are God's children. Now if we are children, then we are heirs - heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory." Romans 8:14-17

Saturday, December 29, 2012

Christmas 2012 and Update

It seems like forever since I updated and alot has happened since I last posted.  First off...we had a very Merry Christmas!!!  This was Ashlyn's 3rd year to go see Santa.  This year we all got our picture made with Santa.  Last year she wasn't happy about sitting in Santa's lap but she wasn't mobile enough to do much about it.  This year, the second I sat her on his lap she started crying and slipped immediately off his lap...but we still wanted a Santa picture so...next year I'll prepare and wear more Christmassy colors just in case. LOL!
 
 
Ashlyn REALLY enjoyed opening her presents this year!  All she wanted Christmas morning was her breakfast until we reminded her that Santa brought her presents over the night.  She didn't really believe us and went around the couch to look under the tree.  Her expression was priceless!!!!  She looked over at us with huge eyes and whispered, "Oh, WOW!".  We got to see so many family members and Ashlyn thoroughly enjoyed playing with the cousins and aunts and uncles that she got to see!!!  Christmas dinner was delicious!  I was really glad my appetite was back by Christmas!
 

 
 
The Saturday before Christmas, we got to spend our evening in the St. Vincent's ER because I blacked out for a very short time.  I was very disappointed because my sister and her husband had taken the day to come visit me.  I believe God has perfect timing though because she was literally walking in the door as I was passing out.  David called the Oncology doctors while Bonnie stayed with me.  They told him to take me to the ER, he packed a bag in case we had to stay and Bonnie was able to stay with Ashlyn while she finished her nap until Mary could get there and we didn't have to wait any extra time.  We had a really good experience, as far as ER visits go.  We didn't have to wait long at all.  I had a great nurse named Sam.  We got to talking a little and turns out, not only does he live in Tuscaloosa, but he attends our church!  The only thing we really discovered from the visit was that I have an overactive thyroid.  Other than that, all my other levels were in normal (at least for a person taking chemo).  I will have to follow up with a primary care doctor to see what I need to do about my thyroid and I'm praying for miraculous healing for whatever the problem is.  I checked with the oncologist and he said it's not a side effect of chemotherapy.  I felt pretty good after they pumped me full of lots of anti-nausea drugs at the hospital.  My step-mom and step-sister were at our house when we got home and they agreed to "babysit" me and Ashlyn on Sunday so David could spend the day hunting.  I was so glad they stayed because I had a pretty bad episode on Sunday.  In a time span of about 10 minutes I went from feeling pretty good to aching so bad I was having a hard time standing up.  Jacque took the reigns, told me to get in bed and put Ashlyn down for her nap.  I am so incredibly grateful for all her help!  After about 2 hours, it passed, but I was so drained physically.  I got to meet a fellow Breast Cancer survivor on Sunday afternoon.  She was so encouraging and talked with me a lot about her surgery and reconstruction.  I really appreciated her taking the time to come visit!  Monday I started going on the upswing.  I had pretty bad mouth sores, but nothing a little Tylenol wouldn't help.  I did call the dentist and got the prescription toothpaste that a friend told me about.  Hopefully they will keep the mouth sores at bay in the future.


 
I've spent the last few days since Christmas taking all the decorations down, cleaning up and preparing for the next go around.  We left the tree up because it's surviving pretty well and Ashlyn and I REALLY like the lights. :)  While we were cleaning up, I let Ashlyn try on my "princess hair" (that's what she calls my wig).  It looks pretty natural on her too!  This wasn't the way that I envisioned my Christmas break this year, but I am so grateful that the timing of the treatments allowed me to feel pretty good for the holiday!  I go for my 3rd treatment on January 2nd.  This time around was pretty rough for me so I'm much more nervous, but I also learned some things from the last 2 treatments, so hopefully I'll be able to be more proactive about getting on top of the side effects.  I also spent a lot of days dealing with the emotional aspects of losing my hair.  Since I won't have to deal with that this go around, I can be more level headed.  I'm really getting used to my wig and it doesn't feel as unnatural as it did at first.  This whole journey really is teaching me quite a bit about myself...but that's for another post.  Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night!!!

2 comments:

  1. I love Ashlyn! She's like a little walking beam of sunshine! Love you, too, sweet girl. I hope y'all have an amazing New Year!!

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  2. Praying for you today, Heather, as you go through your treatment. I know this is a challenging time, and your faith is a great inspiration. I pray that the Lord would give you strength today; emotional and physical strength, and bring you the rest and rejuvenation your body and spirit need right now!

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