Merry Christmas

Thank you for your overwhelming love and support this year!

On behalf of my family I wish you the very best and Merry Christmas!

All our Love,

Abby

A Few More

Becky just sent me her copies of her pictures and I am so glad she did! They turned out pretty great!

I realize now that I didn't get one of the four of us together... again... glad Becky did!

So glad these ladies were able to make it!

This picture is popping up all over the web... We're FAMOUS!

All my Love,

A

Homeward Bound!

Mom’s headed home after a day of poking and prodding.
They found NO NEW CANCER GROWTH in neither her lung nor her lung fluid; which they drained the other day.
She’s on a strong antibiotic as they’re certain she has Pneumonia, which requires a lot of rest, and antibiotics.
She figures she has an Iron lung and that her right lung must be pretty strong to be dragging her left lung along for the ride.
The doctor (Cardiologist) will follow up with her in Sioux Falls on Friday to see how the fluid around her heart is doing, they feel it will dissolve itself.
So, Shannon is taking her back to Watertown, Nurse Shannon says after she eats they’ll start the discharge because she’s still a little groggy from the anesthesia, She’ll eat at 5:45pm and Mom says she’ll be running out the door and on the road by 6:05pm.
Glad to hear the pneumonia isn’t taking the spunk out of her! Great to end the week on a happy note; Thanks for all your prayers!
-a

One Step Forward...

Two steps back...Mom's visit at the doctor didn't exactly excite us, and it did, in a word, disappoint.

We got the PET scan test results back which were as inconclusive as you can get. Not only do her doctors not have a diagnosis for her, but they can't even really pinpoint the problem.

It might be an infection, it might be cancer, it might be damage from the radiation. They called it "activity".

My immediate reaction was (and is to most things) "So, what are we going to do about it?". The answer is, she is going in to Sioux Falls for a Bronchoscopy.

What is a Bronchoscopy? Good thing you asked, because I really didn't have much of a clue. Directly from Wikipedia here it is...

"Bronchoscopy is a technique of visualizing the inside of the airways for diagnostic and therapeutic purposes. An instrument (bronchoscope) is inserted into the airways, usually through the nose or mouth, or occasionally through a tracheostomy. This allows the practitioner to examine the patients airways for abnormalities such as foreign bodies, bleeding, tumors or inflammation. Specimens bay be taken from inside the lungs. The construction of bronsoscopes ranges from rigid metal tubes with attached lighting devices to flexible optical fiber instruments with realtime video equipment."

So, needless to say we're a little discouraged... one step forward... two steps back. We're sad, frustrated, discouraged, and scared. Your prayers while Mom pre pairs and goes through with this process would be appreciated!

As always, we'll keep you posted.

All my Love,

-A

Round Two

Mom went in for her PET scan yesterday and after some blood work found out that her hemoglobin level was at an 8. Nurse Shannon could tell me what that means, but I'd get lost half way through. Any ways, Mom is in the chair currently this morning recieving another blood transfusion. Hopefully it will rejuvinate her and make her feel less tired and lethargic.

We will find out the results of her PET scan on the 27th and for now we've all got our fingers, toes and limbs crossed that it comes back clean!

Please send your prayers and love to Mom as she's trucking along!
all my Love,
-a

In the Pit

Mom's feeling like poop the past few days. We both think the Chemo is finally kicking in from Friday - the doctor thinks she has a touch of the flu. Either way, she can't hold much down and is feeling pretty bummy.

Keep her in your thoughts and prayers as she heals and if you get a moment send her some love!

-a

Electron Boy Saves Seattle

I've talked about how wonderful the Make-a-Wish foundation is, and how it grants kids with cancer (and other life threatening diseases) wishes.

This is beyond anything I could ever imagine the Make-a-Wish foundation could do. I am absolutley blown away by this story - and completeley touched.

Please click on the picture (of Electron Boy above) and read the story about how a young man named Erik turned into a superhero and saved Seattle all with the help of the Make-a-Wish foundation.

A little love goes a long way.

Meet Angie...

This is Angie... (On the right) She's my cousin (My Mom's Niece). Angie and I spent endless hours together in our teen years and have a special bond - we refer to each other's mothers as "Mom" and no one could convince us otherwise, we're sisters in every sense of the word.

When Angie heard her second Mom was diagnosed with cancer she joined the battle and agreed to cut her hair in honor of Mom to donate to Locks of Love. She decided on March / April as the goal to do it so there would be plenty to donate.

Tonight was the night... Here's Angie outside of JC Penny's before the "Big Chop".

That's a whole lotta hair!

Meet Amber... this is our cousin Pete Boyle's wife! She was totally game to cut all 15 inches of Angies hair off.

There it Goes!

And the best picture of the bunch... I can't imagine what the people on the bus must have thought when I literally burst into a fit of laughter when I saw this picture. My Mom is a riot!

You're getting there Mom... just a few more inches :)

Here's Amber & Angie showing off their finished product

This one also made me laugh... you girls are having way too much fun!

And she looks stunning...

What a HUGE difference!

I really can't even begin to explain how my heart swells with love and pride of my family looking at these pictures.

To Amber, thank you for taking the time to make a difference, pose for pictures and make my Mom Smile.

To Mom, you take things with such great humor. I am so proud of you and every step you've made, and every smile you've brought with you.

To Angie, I'm overwhelmed with tears when I see what you've done to support my Mom. I can't imagine a better way. This is so huge and I thank you for bringing that smile to my Mom's face from the bottom of my heart.

These are the ways we fight cancer... together... because, Bald is beautiful and Dianne's battle is our battle!

The More Things Change...

… The more they stay the same.
Mom got the results of her PET scan today, and though the “all clear” wasn’t given, we’re not disappointed by the results we heard.

There are still two spots in her lung. The radiologist won’t say definitively if they’re cancer or if they’re just scar tissue (he’d lose his job if he took a stand on one side or the other). Dr. McHale seems to think since they haven’t changed at all, they’re scar tissue likely from the radiation treatment Mom received right after her diagnosis.

So, to take a cautious measure Mom is on maintenance. There will be a very low level of chemotherapy treatments she will continue for the next three months and then another PET scan to see if the spots have changed at all. However, the chemo will not knock her out for a week like the last stuff did.

Not bad… Not GREAT … But over all… Pretty good news!
Thank you for your prayers,
Abby

Who's Tuning In?

I think I've given this blog address out over 100 times!

So many people talk to Mom about it, and how much they love knowing what's going on.

I am so thankful that this has become a great place for people to check in, and be able to support her in this journey - it has worked better than I could have ever imagined.

It's so weird to look back to the first posts and the uncertainty that was written and learning what life was like with Cancer, for Mom and her loved ones. We're much stronger for this journey, and it's great to have supportive people like you checking in on us!

We thank you. It's people like you who care, and love that show us how loved and supported we are - you inspire us.

Here's my plea, Comment on this post... I want to know WHO's reading out there! Leave Mom some Love... Let us know who we're talking to!

It's pretty easy, when you get to the bottom of this post it says L♥ve Comments ... and all you do is click on it, and walk yourself through it.... I will "approve them" and you will see them shortly after .... Let's see the Love :)

Abby

A Heartfelt Poem...

Erica had a class assignment to write a poem about a young girl. So She wrote this poem for Mom. She said it is a very heartfelt poem. If it brings tears to your eyes, no worries, you're in good company.

Dianne

In the morning

Sip the coffee

Things can be boring

But she is happy

Happier than a butterfly

That would flutter by

In a field of flowers

With the golden sun

She is strong

As strong as ever could be

With softest of heart

And she will always be happy

And she will always be loved

And I will always love her

- Erica Dorsett