THE POWER OF PRAYER!!!

I have always known and believed in the power of prayer and have known that God is in control of our lives! This week I have officially moved back home to Hot Springs...not being home since April 8th, except for a couple of day visits. Many prayers were answered and I have the miraculous news that my CT and bone scan showed NO CANCER!!! This means that I will not to have chemo or radiation. I will continue to have the monthly harmone shots. I am so blessed to serve such an awesome God and to have had so many wonderful prayer warriors....for the love of my husband, sister, family and friends....thank you for not giving up on me....I will be eternally grateful! Life is short...handle it with prayer and gratitude!

I'M B-A-A-A-CK!

Where do I begin? These past five months have been the roller coaster ride of my life! After my first thorencentis, my lungs filled up with fluid again. What I thought was going to be an overnight hospital stay, turned into a four month stay! During this time, I found out that my breast cancer is now metastatic in both lungs. As a respriatory therapist, I had cared for many trached ventilator dependent children, but never dreamed that I would wake up with a trach and on a ventilator. I came close to death a few times. The chemo that I was given was really hard on me and caused me to have to back to intensive care and be given blood. Instead of chemo, I am now being given hormone injections which seem to be keeping the cancer from spreading or filling my lungs again.

When I left the hospital about five weeks ago, I was on 8 liters of oxygen and on the ventilator 24 hours a day. I came home to my wonderful sister, Kimberly's, home so that I would be close to my doctors. Thanks to her excellent care of me and the love, help, prayers and encouragement from friends and family and the love and grace of our awesome God, I am feeling better and stronger everyday. Since coming home from the hospital, I have lost 135 pounds of fluid, am on no oxygen and am only on the ventilator at night Last week, I got the foley catheter and feeding tube out. This week, I will begin testing to see about getting the trach out and being off the ventilator. Saturday, I was able to go home to Hot Springs for the day...the first time I had been home in five months...I plan on going home a couple of days a week.

I sure didn't plan on this latest battle with the cancer...my PET scan in November was clear. I do know that I have faith and trust in God and I know that He is in control and that He has the plan for all of us...He is good and He is good all the time! I will keep my pink gloves on and "Fight Like a Girl"!!!

WE MADE IT THROUGH THE WEEK!!!!

I had my thoracentesis on Friday....they drained 2 liters off my lung....feels wonderful to be able to breathe. Hubby says he has not felt this good in about fifteen years after his injection...he said his foot doesn't even hurt...did find out that the MRI showed an aneursym in his pelvic area...will see another doctor for that tomorrow and I will go for chemo on Tuesday...hoping and praying this week will also bring good results for both of us!!

WHAT A WEEK!!!!

With Dr. Sneed's approval, I was able to skip my scheduled chemo this past Monday. I had just gotten over my infection in my leg and was still feeling pretty weak, so I wanted to give my body a rest before getting zapped again!! Monday was also Jennifer's birthday and I wanted to be able to take her flowers to the cemetery along with some balloons...and go to Bible Study Monday night!

Pete is scheduled for a transepidural injection in his back on Friday..hoping and praying this will give him some relief of the pain he is having. He had back surgery about 40 years ago, right after we were married. The MRI showed this area to now be bone one bone...also has a herniated disc in his neck. Hoping to avoid surgery
by going to physical therapy and having the injections! He has so many plans for our yard and garden this year....I pray that he gets the relief he needs!

Last week, I started getting really short of breath....couldn't walk very far at all without becoming pretty winded! This got worse and I almost fell after church, with Joanna helping me to my car...so grateful that I didn't fall and take her down with me.
Monday morning, I called Dr. Sneed's office and told him what was going on. I had a chest x-ray yesterday morning that revealed a large pleural effusion (fluid built up in the lining of the lung). Another diuretic was added to the Lassix that I am already taking...hoping to get rid of the fluid. I am scheduled to have a thoraccentesis (this is a procedure where a needle is inserted to drain the fluid). I will have this done on
Friday morning, if the diuretics don't get rid of all the fluid...I have to wait until Friday for it because I have to be off the blood thinner medication.

I am still at Kimberly's since all this happened...she is such a good nurse and sister...don't know what I would do without her. She will take me to the hospital for the thoracentesis and our wonderful nephew, Tommy, will take Pete to the hospital for his injection...we will both be sedated, so we have to have drivers! Thank goodness for our family.

We did get to go to the cemetery and put the flowers out yesterday after I had the x-ray..they look very pretty...thanks again to my wonderful sister!

I am asking all my wonderful prayer warriors to pray for Pete..that his injection relieves his pain and that I get rid of all this fluid....hopefully by the diuretics but if not, by the thoracentesis...and I will be able to breathe well again!!

I get by with a little help from my friends and the love and grace of God...I will keep my pink gloves on and keep on "Fighting Like a Girl!" Thank you everyone for your love, prayers and encouragement..Love you all bunches!!!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, JENNIFER SUZANNE!!!

33 years ago today, God gave me my greatest gift ever...the birth of Jennifer Suzanne Nelson!! All of my dreams had come true. It is so hard to believe that she would have been 33 today, but even harder to believe that she has now been gone for almost five years...how could this be? Sometimes, I miss her so much, that I can hardly stand it! I just have to be grateful for the promise that I will see her again one day, and untl that day comes, I will do all that I can to keep her memory alive and cherish all the wonderrful memories that I have of her...she truly was the light of my life!

My Little Geyser Has Returned!!!

I was walking past the vacuum cleaner...it tipped over and the handle hit my leg..small cut, but now I have another leak! I have already started on antibiotics and hopefully, this time it will stop soon. I know that everything happens for a reason and that God is always in control...He is good and He is good all the time! Maybe I will get rid of some of this fluid in my leg. Praying that it won't drag on like it did last time! I will keep my pink gloves on "Fighting Like a Girl"!

ROUND #26 DOWN!!!

Finished Round #26 of chemo yesterday! I am already getting pretty cold. I was told that I needed to get more sleep...I was told to take Ambien every night for 21 days...I will do my best to try and do this. Alot of times, I feel like I am so tired, that I know that I don't need it...and then I can't go to sleep and feel like it is too late in the night to take it...so I will give this a try and see if it works. I just hate the thought of taking another pill everyday...I guess I can be pretty stubborn at times.

It felt so good looking around the chemo room yesterday and seeing the patients all covered up with the colorful blankets we made and donated them..thank you again for all the wonderful friends who helped with this project...hopefully, next time we can take some pictures of them....can't beieve that Kimberly didn't have her camera.

We met a man that was there for his first treatment....in anticipation of losing his hair, he had cut his hair in a mohawk...Kimberly did get a picture of him with the camera on his phone...she just loved his hair! I sat next to a sweet lady that was receiving her last treatment...it was a happy day for her...she had on a beautiful turquoise outfit and was covered up with one of the turquoise blankets we had made..we told her to take the blanket home with her to help celbrate. Also need to thank nurse Linda..for taking all the blankets we made home to wash and bring back....how sweet is that!

Had a great weekend...church and ya ya time on Sunday...chemo, Bble Study and a good dinner with Mica and Kimberly on Monday night..spent good time with Kimberly..Had a good time, but it is always good to be back home. I still have my pink gloves on and "Fighting Like a Girl"!