Thank you Aunt Lauren

For my DARLING new dress!!

It's funny to us!

Personalize funny videos and birthday eCards at JibJab!

Happy Halloween Weekend!

This is how we have been enjoying the Halloween season.

Our annual trip to the pumpkin patch with Josie and kids.
(feeding the nasty goats)

I only got a few of pictures before my battery died. It's fun to see Emma getting big enough to take part in the fun.

Our church Halloween party. Jacob and Jackson racing to finish their doughnut.

Our crazy bunch.
(In case you're not sure, Jamie and I are dressed from the movie Dodgeball, Jacob is Jango Fett, I made Parker's Angry Bird costume before I started treatment again, and Emma is our darling ladybug.)

Our Potato Head pumpkins, so much easier than all the carving and scraping. We'll save that for when they are older.

We've had fun so far and look forward to the big day on Monday ...now if you'll excuse me, I need to go pilfer through my children's candy.

When you're tired ... you're tired. Even if you might run the risk of wooden beads falling on your head, you sometimes just don't care.

"Best Buds"

I feel truly blessed that Jacob has such good friends that are good kids. They get along really well, if you couldn't tell, and can't seem to get enough of each other. Even when he'll play with one or the other for HOURS, he is always so sad when it's time to go.

*and what are the odds they would both have glasses?

You think my kids play too many video games? So much so that even my one year old knows how to play with her brothers?

... that's weird, why would you think that?

He's a Big Deal

Last month we celebrated Jacob's 8th birthday. This is a birthday that has extra meaning. In our faith, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, children are not baptized until they are 8 because we believe that is when you are old enough to understand right from wrong and be held accountable for your actions. We were very pleased with Jacob and his decision to be baptized. It was such a great day!

Jamie and Jacob just before the big event took place.

The friends that were there to help celebrate and congratulate him.

Emma, always being so easy going.

My parents, Jamie's mom (we missed Jamie's dad, but the Ambassador was needed elsewhere), and Jamie's younger brother and his family all came to make the day even better!

The cousins had too much fun and could not be bothered for a photo.

The family was in town the whole weekend and we had such a good time. We played, did a little swimming, played some more, made it to the beach, I started more chemo ... all in all, it was really fun. I was totally wiped and slept until about 10am the next few days, but I would do it all over again.

Jacob is amazing. He is such a sweet boy with a big heart. He is very aware of others and is truly thoughtful. He's especially amazing with little ones. He LOVES being a big brother. He could always get Parker to laugh more than anyone else and he loves that Emma is getting big enough to actually play with him now. I have told Jacob often that I'm pretty sure Parker and Emma chose to come to our family just so that they could have him as a big brother.
He has always had a great laugh that I just can't get enough of. Jacob is kind, tries really hard to do what is right, and is such an important part of our family.

We love him dearly and are so proud of him!!

I got a pill for that!

Ever wonder what your bathroom is going to look like when you're 80?

About like this.

I just continue to collect lotions, potions, and tonics as we move along. I have a pill for just about everything, so drop me a line if you need anything from my pharmacy.

Time Warp

Charlie and Jacob, 2 years old

Jacob's little sister and Charlie's little sister, not quite 2 years old.

(Gotta love a good set of Costco chairs. 8 years and still going strong.)

Is there anything this man can't do?

If there is, it's not much. Glad I married him 12 years ago.

Happy Anniversary Jamie!

The help that has come and gone...so far

As we have traveled on this long journey called cancer, we have thankfully not had to do it alone. We've had a revolving door at our house with all the family that has come to help and we love it!

My niece Shadow.

My sister Cynth.

My sister-in-law Stacey.

My sister Lauren.

My mom and dad.

My mother-in-law.

We so greatly appreciate every load of laundry you washed, every meal you made (even had some left in the freezer for later), every floor you swept, every dish you washed, every bath you gave, every rough night you endured with Emma, every morning you got up with the kids so Jamie could sleep a little longer, every outing you took the kids on, every ride to school you gave, every medication you administered, every errand you ran, every book you read, every game you played, every hug you gave.

Thank you.

*Chelsea lived with us for 3 months, but do i have any pictures of her? No. She was usually the one taking them. Don't think that means we love you any less though, Chels!

Emma's One!

Okay she's been one for over a month now, but we were thrilled nonetheless. Emma is such a fun addition to our family. She has a sweet personality that is getting bigger all the time. She loves her brothers. Parker can always get her to laugh and often makes her cry. She has two teeth on the bottom and four on top. She is a mess when she has teeth coming in, more so than either of the boys were. She's a pretty good eater and is getting better at trying new things.

She is very much a daddy's girl. Emma can't get enough of Jamie. She is often grabbing at his legs to be picked up and her favorite place is in his arms.

Emma did a pretty good job with the cake.

I went pretty simple on the smash cake, but I thought is was cute.

Turns out, Emma loves bubbles.

Her butterfly cake that Jamie made. Designing girl cakes will add a new element of challenge in his cake making career. So far so good.

It was fun to celebrate her and we were happy that despite Parker's best efforts, she survived the first year.

My Story

It was four months ago today that I first heard the words "concerning for cancer".

I had been having some pains on my right side over Halloween weekend and after seeing my doctor and being sent for an ultrasound because of suspected gallstones, they saw my gallbladder was clear but that I had lesions on my liver. That started the flurry of tests and procedures that would lead to my surgery in November where about a foot of my sigmoid colon, my right ovary, and 14 lymph nodes were removed. It was not longer after being home from the hospital that I got the phone call confirming that I had Stage 4 colon cancer.

This is a picture of my first round of chemo on December 14.

I had round #7 this week. My treatment is FOLFOX (an acronym for my 3 chemo cocktail) plus Erbitux. I go in every week for Erbitux, which is a growth inhibitor (stops new cancer cells from growing) and every other week for my actual chemotherapy. On chemo days, I'm in the chair about 5 or 6 hours. By the end I've had up to 7 IV bags infused into my port-a-catheter -- the awesome device surgically implanted under my skin on my chest, it saves my veins from getting stuck every week.

I'm expecting to have a CT Scan done next month to see where things stand. My blood work shows that it is going in the right direction and we are cautiously optimistic. I have no idea how many rounds I have left. When we first met with my oncologist, she said we just treat it until it's gone. I thought that sounded like a pretty good plan. She said it would be at least 10 treatments, maybe 20.

At this point, I live pretty day to day. I try to enjoy my kids on the days I feel good, and sleep on the days I don't. I have so many pulling for me and that means the world. I know I have many, many prayers going out on my behalf and on behalf of my family and I am so grateful.

Thank you. Thank you to the many that love me, love my kids, love my husband, bring us food, send notes, emails, texts messages, flowers...the list goes on. I am humbled by your support and love, it makes me stronger and fight harder.

Thank you to my army. I love you.

Emma

This picture was taken about a month ago to document her standing. Now she is practically running, or at least she thinks she is. She started walking about 3 weeks ago and her speed and stability continue to increase. We think she figured she needed to be able to move quicker to stay out of Parker's reach. So far it hasn't really helped, he still gets her.

Parker is Finally 4!

How cute is this 4 year old?

Parker has been asking several times a day since before Christmas if he is 4 yet. His Birthday couldn’t have come soon enough. He has been “3 and ½” for so long. To celebrate, he wanted an “Angry Birds” party to represent his favorite game on the iPad. We had a fun time despite trying to keep it fairly low key. Parker was in heaven.

Angry Bird Toss in the Backyard




A raucous game of “Stomp the Pig”




A wild game of “Bird, Bird, Pig”




A fun King Pig cake with Angry Bird Cupcakes



Happy Birthday Parker!

De-evolution of a Goat

Jamie was really bored around Christmas, so he decided to grow a goatee for 2 weeks. When it was time to say goodbye to his new found friend, he shaved it off in stages resulting in various looks that will never again be repeated. Warning: Viewing these pictures will cause nightmares.

The Goat / Evil Jamie

The Dodgeball
80’s Metal Band

Molestache / 70’s Bike Cop

The Westley (from “The Princess Bride”)

This just emphasizes why you always need to keep your husband busy doing something constructive, although I will miss Evil Jamie a little.