Easter - new beginnings

Happy Easter! 

We are enjoying Easter in Medicine Hat this year. As time goes by and families grow we have had to be flexible and creative. This year our family Easter meal was a brunch. Our nephew Chris and his family graciously offered their home for the family get together. We brought some wifesaver brunch casserole and Erika brought some fruit. Along with toast and juice we were well fed! The weather is beautiful - blue sky, sunshine and warm enough to not need socks! I love it! The deer in the picture was just outside Vanessa's patio door this morning. Maybe not unusual in the country, but a real treat in the middle of the city!

It has been a good news week. We met with Dr Ahmad and had some preliminary results from the CT scan - nothing of interest showing, it has basically stayed the same. Callum's blood work was very good, with the exception of those nasty liver enzymes. Two pretty much stayed the same and one was up again. Callum also still has some of the numbness and tingling in his hands and feet. So, no Oxaliplatin for at least 4 weeks. Dr. Ahmad still wants to go ahead with the 5-FU (Fluororacil) chemo and he increased the dose a bit while there is no Oxaliplatin. The neat part of it is that the 5 FU is that it can be pumped through the IV in about 20 minutes. This means that Callum is at the hospital for only about 1 hour on chemo day. The side effects have been minimal again so that has been really nice. We are hoping there is no more increase in the liver enzymes. While Callum will say he is nearly ready for a break from chemo he really wants to keep on with it as long so he can to be sure to keep those cancer cells at bay! 

"Learn to enjoy every minute of your life. Be happy now. Don’t wait for something outside of yourself to make you happy in the future. Think how really precious is the time you have to spend, whether it’s at work or with your family." Earl Nightingale

 

Happy Birthday to me!

Happy Birthday to me! For those who know me pretty well, you likely know that I am not one of those people who tends to be humble about my birthday. I am usually always ready for cake and presents! And this year I am not disappointed.  No, the car isn't my present. But it is similar to the one Callum will  soon be looking at - if we ever get rid of the snow in Toon Town! Hopefully Jamie was able to get out and start the scouting trip in Calgary today.  Today is a wonderful day. I have to admit that I think I had a few moments before Christmas when I was fearful that Callum would not be here to wish me happy birthday. We are so fortunate and grateful that he is. And he is feeling great! We are joining some Saskatoon friends for dinner tonight so it is an extra special day.

Things have been quite normal and stable these days. I am able to put in fairly regular working hours and Callum is having fun driving the hottest car in Saskatoon.  He had his regular 3 month CT scan yesterday and we should have some preliminary results on Monday when we meet with Dr. Ahmad. I know I am a bit nervous about this one - he has had 2 really good scans, and no change since July.  We know each month increases the chance that there will be a change, but I just don't think it will be this one.  We both believe that the rising liver enzymes are due to the chemo and  he may be looking at taking a cycle off to give his liver a break. And perhaps without the Oxaliplatin in his last treatment the enzymes may be down now! He is still feeling some numbness from the Oxaliplatin so we suspect he won't have it this cycle, if he does have chemo. The sciatica he had been experiencing is pretty much gone and nearly now only a bad memory. Many people have been telling me how much better he looks than he did before Christmas. We are now convinced the side effects of the whole brain radiation were much worse than we first thought. 

We are excited to be heading to the Hat Easter weekend. We haven't seen Vanessa, Stuart and baby bump since February. I am sure bump has grown quite a bit. Jamie is coming out to Saskatoon the middle of April so it will be wonderful to see him since we haven't seen him since we got back from Scotland. 

I am starting something new and exciting.  A couple of months ago I came across an opportunity to start a LIVESTRONG Community Group in Saskatoon. www.livestrong.org/global   This opportunity was offered by the Lance Armstrong Foundation as part of their Global Campaign on Cancer. It will be a grassroots group that will work on fulfilling the mission and vision of the Lance Armstrong Foundation while addressing specific community needs for cancer survivors and their families.  Specifically it will focus on ending the stigma of cancer; help increase awareness and access to resources, services, prevention, treatment and care; and work with governments to make cancer a national priority. We are just in our infancy and will have our first open house and meeting on Wednesday, May 6. I have found some very good people who are interested in helping me with this exciting challenge and have already found some great community support!  It has only just begun but I am finding it very energizing and easy. It is a path I must follow.

"Individual commitment to a group effort -- that is what makes a team work, a company work, a society work, a civilization work."   Vince Lombardi

TTFN