August started with Haylee and Kaitlyn's birthdays. I took the girls shopping on Saturday for clothes and to get a cake for the girls. It was fun to be with the cute girls!
Then we had birthday presents!! {of course!} Haylee got a bike and clothes, Kaitlyn got a long board and clothes.
And then it was Sunday again. We took a few pictures right before church. Sure do love these girls!
After church we had the bishopric come over and Skylar was ordained to the office of an Elder and given the Melchizedek priesthood. He is preparing to leave on his mission on October 7th and we thought it would be nice to do the ordination before Ryan and I left to go home. After the ordination we had some time for the boys to share their testimonies and then we had cake for the girls birthdays!
After cake and visiting, the kids went out and drew with chalk on the driveway, I think it turned out pretty cool!
Before we knew it, it was Monday again and time for chemo. It comes around WAY too fast each week. This was the first week we had to take her from home and it was a little more challenging {especially because it was raining}. She did great again, but her numbers were way down this week. They had to cute her chemo in half and she had to go back the next day for a blood transfusion. It's all very normal for chemo patients, but it's hard to deal with all the different medical things that come along with fighting cancer.
We finally got the pathology report today. Mom has epithelial mucinous carcinoma, it's not the typical kind of ovarian cancer and it's NOT hereditary, which means that Amber and I don't have to worry about ever getting it because we have the gene.
todThat night, the doorbell rang and we found a whole porch full of groceries! THANK YOU!!!
This is mom at the transfusion....she loved the warm blankets! Since she started chemo she is always cold {she used to always be hot} and she is always asking for another blanket! Below is the spreadsheet we use to keep track of all her medicine at home. It's a lot to keep track of and we need to update it already!
When we came home from the transfusion, mom sat in the living room on the couch for the first time since I've been in Utah {3 weeks}. The RS came over to visit and brought her this beautiful quilt and she sat and visited on the couch for several hours, it was wonderful to see her up and alert!
She was feeling much better finally. They drained the fluid, gave her a transfusion and the worst effects of the chemo haven't hit yet, Finally, we have a good day. I'm so thankful!!
The next morning {Wednesday}. I woke up and went to the Jordan River temple to see Laura and Jeremy sealed together for all eternity. It was wonderful to be able to be there!
After the sealing and lunch I came home and Ryan and Jeff came to help me clean the garage. Evan also helped us, and he was a pretty good little helper!
Thursday night dad and I got to attend a session in the Payson temple. We went for a sealing and because of a misunderstanding with the temple workers we missed getting into the 7pm session, so we had to wait for the 7:45 session, and it was in spanish. It was a great night. The temple is AMAZING, it is one of the most beautiful temples I've ever seen, I loved the dark wood and the marble work. I'm so glad I had the opportunity to go do a session there. I felt very grateful for my temple blessings and the peace they bring to me.
Friday I got to see MaryRuth and her three adorable kids. She had Mary-Katherine on July 21st and came to Utah to have her gallbladder out {which didn't end up happening, long story}, but I am so grateful that I got to see her.
What we didn't know was that Liz was also going to be in town the next night, so we all got together again for one more visit, it was so nice to see them both!
I also happened to be there on the weekend of the Salmon Dinner in Payson. {if you are ever in Utah the first Friday of August, I highly recommend going!}. It was the BEST salmon I've ever had, thanks Ryan and Amber for going to get it for us!!
The next day was day 19 of mom's chemo. The doctor told her that her hair would start falling out on day 18 and it did. That morning she woke up to hair all over her bed, it was falling out in clumps. I rubbed my hand through it and got a whole handful of hair. I told her that I thought we should shave it off so that it didn't have to just fall out all over her for the next couple of days. It took a little convincing, but in the end we shaved it all off. It was emotional and hard for her. She hates being bald, but I think she looks like a cancer warrior, because she is!! I Love you Mamma!!
Another friend of mom's brought over a beautiful quilt, it has little jars of encouragement on it. It's amazing!!
Saturday evening I got to go see some of my friends from Chicago who have moved to Utah. Our bishop from Chicago happened to be in Utah for a wedding and he made the arrangements for us all to get together, it was fun to see everyone! Here are all the girls {I still need to get the picture of all of us}
And then, once again, we are back to Monday....and chemo....this week her numbers were good and she got her whole dose of both kinds of chemo. She did great. She even asked me to go get her some food and she ate some chicken and part of an egg roll. {first time she's eaten in weeks}.
After the chemo, we went and had an ultrasound and they did the paracentesis again. She came home feeling much better....again! I sure wish the fluid would stop building up. {it's part of the kind of cancer she has, the mucinous part}
The next day was the day I had to go home. I was so sad to have to leave mom so sick. I hated that I couldn't just stay and take care of her. We decided for lunch we wanted Mi Ranchito so we ordered it as take out so that mom could have some with us. She even came downstairs and had some with us at the kitchen table, it was so nice to see her awake and eating!
We got our "TEAM CINDY" shirts last night. I LOVE THEM!! We took a few pictures before I left.
And just like that, it's time to go home!! I LOVE YOU MOM! We are gonna beat this!! I can't even imagine how hard this must be for you!
I'm grateful for all the tender mercies I recognized while I was in Utah. I'm confident that the Lord was with me the entire time. I had to do things I hated and deal with things I didn't want to deal with...and I did it!! I did things that I would never want to do because I was strengthened by the prayers and fasting of so many people.
I have recognized so many blessings in my life in the last 5 weeks. I have seen the Lord provide answers to prayers, help and strength. I had so many opportunities to see friends, to recognize the Lord's hand in all things. This is one of the hardest things our family has ever been through. I will never think of Cancer the same way again. I will not ever see teal and not think of ovarian cancer awareness!! I am grateful for everything I have learned so far. I know we have just started on this journey. Our doctor told us to plan on a year of treatment. It's only been 5 weeks, it's going to be a very long year!!
One of the best parts of being in Utah was spending time with my siblings and my cute nieces and nephews. I love them all so much and it makes me sad that I live so far away from all of them. I'm so grateful that I got to see them while I was there!!
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