You Can't Have Too Many Friends

I did meet with the doctor on Friday but I didn't have any chemotherapy. After getting more blood testing done he said the latest chemotherapy isn't working and he would like to try something else next week. As you can see from the most recent cancer count it has gone up (up, up, up). We asked the doctor about a liver transplant and he said that wouldn't be possible because of the 2 - 3 month recovery time after surgery, no chemotherapy would be able to be given during that time and it might cause the cancer which is in other parts of my body to continue to spread.

Since several of you have commented on Daniel coming to town I realize I didn't clarify that very well, they won't be living with me, they will be finding their own place. How grateful I am to have them around for the next few months. He starts his job with the Air Force in January and not knowing yet where he'll be stationed it will be nice to have them close for awhile, since he may be stationed far away.

Speaking of several of you commenting, I need to tell you how much I appreciate all of you. All of your emails and comments have meant a lot to me. I'm sorry I don't reply very well but I appreciate your kind words. I have always thought a person can never have too many friends. Each of you have brought so much joy into my life. My life would not have been the same without having you in it. You have each treated me like I was your favorite, thank you for showing so much love and kindness to me. I remember having a luncheon once and my husband asked me who was coming, I said, "All my friends." He said, "Darla, there isn't a room big enough to hold all your friends." How blessed I have been to have such wonderful friendships. Thank you!

A Hope and A Prayer

Tomorrow I'll get another update on the cancer count. I'm just hoping this new treatment is working and the count has gone down. My last treatment was two weeks ago and my energy and appetite have returned somewhat. A little trepidation in the fact that if the doctor thinks this treatment is working he'll give me another treatment tomorrow and I'll start the lack of energy and lack of appetite routine all over again. But if it works!

I had a CT Scan a week ago Tuesday revealing the cancer is now in 50% of my liver. It's not concentrated in one spot which would probably make it easy to remove that portion, but it's scattered all throughout the liver. Also last Tuesday my son Daniel, daughter Jenna (and her son), and my mom came to town. It's always nice to have family support at the doctor's office when the doctor talks about the results of the CT Scan and the updated prognosis. He knows me pretty well and appreciates my attitude and zest for life, but if you pin him down he'll give the worst case scenario, that is if we can't find the right treatment, I have 2 - 3 months. His best case scenario is 2 - 3 years. As for me, I'm going with the 20 - 30 year plan.

Maybe I'll get a port, I am tired of being a human pin cushion. I just want to be better.

But the good news is my son Daniel, my daughter-in-law Holly, and their kids will be moving to Utah for 3 - 4 months. It will be great having them around along with my daughter Mauri and her family who already lives here. And how fortunate for Daniel to have found a job for those few months as well. Somebody's living right. Of course, that cougar fan will be getting here just in time for football season.

I'm still dancing and enjoying it. We'll be dancing at Tuacahn in October, along with several basketball games this season, one being the New Jersey Nets. I'm just hoping the Nets game doesn't conflict with graduation, which are both in April.

Not Recommended

It's been two weeks since I started my new chemotherapy. Not the best two weeks of my life and I certainly wouldn't suggest it as your next weight loss plan. Let's see, how am I feeling? Absolutely NO energy, definitely NO appetite, and when I do eat... I lose it, plus a constant pain in my liver. I received my third dose of Gemcitabine (the new chemotherapy treatment) yesterday, they cut back on the dosage because my liver is being negatively effected, as for now they aren't sure if it's the Gemcitabine that is causing a negative effect or if it's because the tumors in the liver are growing. I'll schedule another CT scan in a week or two and that will show more. But for now that's my situation.

Mauri, her kids, and I made a quick trip to Arizona to visit my daughter Jenna and surprise her for her birthday.

It was a fun trip and the kids had a great time together.


We brought Abbie home with us for about a week so Jenna could focus on the ice plant with one less stress factor.

I am so proud of Jenna and the hard work she and Jared are doing with the ice plant. They are extremely hard workers and selling ice in Arizona in the summer is a 24 hour a day job. They are an example to us all. I sure love my family.