Praying So Hard!!

I thought of this gem of a picture when I was thinking of what to do for this blog!  This is the most handsome little ring bearer ever - it was from 2013, Brian was in our niece Courtney and Ryan's wedding.  He did a great job, and took it all very seriously, as you can tell by his super concentrated face at the ceremony during the prayer.

Well that's where we're at now again - praying so hard.  Wayne had his second chemo treatment yesterday, doing ok so far, but praying hard for an uneventful next few days and weeks [for a change!].

We want to thank you all again for your continued support, love and prayers.  I feel like I'm repeating myself, but we really have felt 'held up' by you all.  When we stop and think of the last two months and everything we've been dealing with we wonder how we still function, how we're not a blubbering mess - but it is through the strength from you all, and our Loving Father in Heaven.  We recently had a prayer service in our church, there are so many struggling with various issues, and we personally see now more than ever how important the power of prayer is.  So thank you all for that, for being here for us, for everything!

Also, as some of you may know, I am taking a leave from work.  This was a very hard decision for me to come to.  I like to think of myself as being strong, being able to handle it all, but repeatedly I've been shown over the last while that I need to step back and just be here for Wayne and our family.  Hoping this is the right decision at this time, but also thankful that we have this option.  We'd also like to thank all of our co-workers and friends at this time who have so generously helped support us - it has helped us out so much!

So here we are, doing life together.  Thankful for each moment, keenly aware in our minds of the reality of this disease, but also fervently hopeful in our hearts of the opportunity for miracles and the power of prayer!

Time for an update again! 
First we'd like to thank Candra for these beautiful pictures, we are loving going through them!  We usually do portraits every 5 years to coincide with our milestone anniversaries - but thought we'd make an exception this year!  These were taken at our home, the Saturday before Wayne started chemo [hard to believe that was just a week and a half ago - seems like forever]

So time to fill you in on the last week and a half!  Monday Feb 6th Wayne went for his first chemo infusion.  Needless to say, we were nervous about it all.  Our fears were quickly eased when we walked in the chemo lounge to be greeted by our nurses - two dear 'hockey moms'!  Go figure, our hockey family can impact this reality - what a blessing!  We had a great 'visit' together,  and Wayne did great!

We got home, and settled in with no significant side effects, just tired out.  But that was not going to be so simple.  By Thursday Wayne was starting to feel some effects from this nasty cold that has been going around.  I was out to Brian's hockey game Thurs evening, when Vanessa called [Dad's stand in nurse!]  to say he had spiked a fever.  Once again our hockey family stepped up and took care of Brian for me, so I could rush home and get Wayne in to the hospital.  [High fevers, and chemo are not a good thing].  We were once again greeted by many familiar faces in ER, blessed again!  A quick IV start,  lots of IV fluids, blood work, and IV antibiotics and then to wait for the fever to break.  It was the wee hours of the morning before Wayne started feeling a little better, and broke his fever.  His blood work was quite concerning to our oncologist though, she was not expecting such a sudden drop in his white blood cells and neutrophils.  They admitted him so they could keep up the IV antibiotics and keep a close eye on his blood work.  The blood work did not improve, but he was feeling a little better each day - getting his strength back, and being fever free.  We were allowed to go home Monday afternoon, after being sure he could tolerate oral antibiotics and starting an injection to try and increase his white count.

So here we are, home again.  There are still good days [times] and not so good days [times].  It is still a constant roller coaster of  feelings and symptoms - as some of you know, we are not the biggest fans of rides, ready for a little smoother path for a bit!!  But we continue on . . .

The end of February he is still scheduled to meet with the oncologist before doing another chemo treatment [Feb 27th].  She will see how is blood work is, and then decide how to proceed.  She is still concerned about the drop in his blood work, but not wanting to investigate too much further til he is more stable.

We continue to be thankful for all the blessings in our lives - we remain in awe of such love and support.