Wednesday, January 25,2012

Hello Family and Friends.
I know many of you have been wondering what has happened to my daily posts and I hope you haven't been too concerned that there has been a problem of some kind.  No problems, just not much change and I've been recovering from my own surgery. On the 12th I had arthroscopic surgery on my knee to clean up some of the irregularities and arthritis caused by the fracture last year and he also took out the hardware.

In the meantime, Chris has completed his 25 treatments of radiation therapy and after he takes his last bunch of pills tonight he will have completed the initial 42 day course of chemotherapy.  While his hair has gotten quite thin, he still is by no means bald.  He has done well with keeping food and drink down but complains that nothing really tastes good, (actually doesn't taste at all) or tastes bad.  So we just keep trying to find something that works, oh except for Cinnamon Toast Crunch cereal which he does seem to like and he sometimes has for breakfast, lunch and dinner!  Currently he is trying to get rid of a cold and nasty cough that has had him feeling really extra cruddy the last week or so.  He is scheduled for another MRI on Feb 7 and a follow up with oncology on Feb 8. 

Over the last couple of weeks we have been blessed with meals from our sweet neighbor Sue and more from Karen.  My brother Mike and sister-in-law, Wendy came down for the weekend the day I had surgery so my mom and dad were able to get away to see Arlo's brother and sister-in-law, Chet and Kathy in San Marcos.  The visit with Mike and Wendy was really nice and we really appreciate all the help they gave while they were here.  It was good for Chris to be able to ask Wendy some medical questions and to get her opinion on things related to his treatment.  Chris's brother Greg calls to check in every day without fail unless he is here checking on us in person.  The love those two share is an awesome thing.  He has been a steady support for me and the boys from the start and I don't know what we would do without him here with us.   

On Sunday, Arlo and Norma packed up the 5th wheel and headed out to Indio for the week to attend a Bible conference with Chet and Kathy as well as Bernie and Jane and a few other friends who are down for their annual winter stay from Idaho.  This is the time that Arlo and Norma should/would have been in Indio themselves for the annual winter stay but chose to stay with us instead.  Today, Ryan drove out to Ontario to pick up his Auntie, Colleen and she and I just returned to the house from a trip back out to pick up Randy.  I guess we'll be going back out there again tomorrow since Randy's luggage didn't make it with him to Ontario and is somewhere between Denver and here.  :-(  Lois is on the calendar to make a visit tomorrow and Lisa is on for Friday.  All in all should turn out to be a great week.

We are coming up on 3 months since we learned that we were dealing with cancer.  In some ways the time has gone by quickly, in others it seems to be dragging on forever.  There have been so many ups and downs from the beginning and it still truly feels like a roller coaster ride that just won't stop.  It's good to know that we have family and friends on the ride with us, holding our hands, wiping our tears and waiting along side us.  Thank you all for that love and support that gives us the courage to stay on the ride - whether it is going up, up, up or down.
Love, Chris, Janet, Sam, Ryan and Jonathan