An Inspiration to us All

This is Michelle... we got to come home for a few weeks while I was on maternity leave and I was able to go to the Dr and treatments with my mom; thought I'd give an update!

It never ceases to amaze me how she continues to do anything and everything for her family; if you ask her how she's feeling she will tell you she's doing good or she's just fine. However for the last several weeks... maybe even months that hasn't really been the case.  She came out and stayed with us the end of April and watching her move and interact with the kids was so hard for me... I could tell that she was in a lot of pain and very uncomfortable with every movement she made.  Her oncologist was feeling like this was her bone marrow regenerating, being that some of her chemo medications were finished at the end of March; however, the pain was worsening rather than getting better as time progressed.  She has been taking some pain medications, with minimal relief; she does not like to take any medications that she does not need, so I think it was frustrating for her to have to take this regularly and continue to be in pain. She had another appointment with the doctor on May 29, so my dad and I went with her. (Cari was nice enough to let me step in and take over her job :) ) Dr Haslem spent a lot of time with us and we were able to switch a few of her medications in hope of getting her some relief; he also felt like Physical Therapy would be a good option for her.  He went over our long term management and was very hopeful that we would never have to fight this battle again!! With Moms type of cancer he said the recurrence rate is about 15% after her surgery, chemo and radiation... 15% is unfortunately not 0, but prior to her treatment it is 40%, so we'll take it  and leave it in the Lords hands.

She has one week left of radiation and has tolerated that well, her skin looks sunburned over her chest, but so far she hasn't had any blistering and the discomfort has been minimal... at least that she tells me!!  The radiation definitely causes some fatigue, but she fights through it and never complains.  Her pain has been much better with the new medications and I think she's enjoying the Physical Therapy... she and all of us are very hopeful that she can be medication free in the near future. Her hair is starting to grow back in, she looks gorgeous, it's a pretty gray color, Danielle's making her wait to color it to see if she likes the color it comes in!

Lexi trying on Grandmas wig... After we got home Lexi informed us that she had shaved her head and was wearing a wig!!

Mom will probably hate that I put this picture up... but I love it, Danielle took this one and it's just another example of my moms strength.  We have however put a stop to her doing the yard work, thanks to Wayne and Danielle who have stepped in!

We all go through different trials and tribulations and sometimes we may not understand why. I wish more than anything that Mom didn't have to go through this, but what a blessing it is to have such an amazing family and such an amazing Heavenly Father who loves us, supports us and strengthens us during our trials.  I'm so grateful that we have each other and it's so important to overlook the flaws that we have and stand by each other.  Ray and I will be moving back to St George the beginning of August and can't wait to be closer!!  We will be running... maybe walking, the Breast Cancer 5k in St George in October and would love anybody and everybody who would like to do this with us in support of Mom and all those who are fighting this battle!!