Christmas Hiatus: 7.2 - 8.4

Welcome back! Sorry it has been a little while. We were so very blessed to have my parents and my brother Thom, his wife Brittany and their two kids Jackson and Graham in town for Christmas. My seventh treatment went fairly smoothly, and the best part was how it aligned with the holiday. My eighth treatment was two days after Christmas, which meant that I was feeling good for the Christmas celebrations, and most importantly, food! Having my family in town really helped us to forget about cancer for a while and just enjoy some time together for a normal Christmas. We had so much fun and ate so much good food (see our family blog for details on Christmas and Alec's birthday!)

Sadly, we had to come back to reality eventually, which meant for us that my parents had to return home, and I had to have chemo treatment number 8. Thom and Brittany were kind enough to watch our kids so that Brittney could accompany me to the treatment. My strategy of late has been to sleep/pretend to sleep for as much of the treatment as possible. This time was no different. It took the nurses 3 tries to get the IV in again, not sure why my veins are so troubling, but it is a bit annoying.

Upon returning home I spent most of the next few days in bed, sleeping a ton. The main effects that chemo seems to have on my is that it makes me feel gross and not want to eat, and it also makes me very tired. In the three or four days after treatment I am able to sleep pretty easily for 12 hours a day. I was able to enjoy some fun evening time with our guests, and even was able to eat some yummy Indian food that we made for our pre-New Years festivities.

Today is more of the same. Feeling not terrible, but food isn't looking the most appetizing yet. I already have my burger place lined up for next week when I feel good. Next up cancer-wise is the CT-scan on the 5th to see how things are progressing. Also, my treatments will be moving to Mondays now, due to scheduling needs.

Happy New Year's!

Hall of Baldness: Thom & Jackson

Thom is my younger brother, and Jackson is his eldest son. Thom is one of the best people I know. He is kind, thoughtful, and conscientious. He is one of my best friends. He is a talented musician and athlete. We have had some epic times together. We invented the F.A.T.M.A.N. matches (which stands for: "For All The Marbles And Noodles") and every time we played golf or ping-pong together it was a fun competition. This gradually led to the revitalization of the AGA tour, where Thom has had many epic victories, and is the only player to have won each of the four major championships on tour.

Thom is a loving husband and father, and a great example to me in many ways. We are really excited that Thom and his family get to come spend Christmas at our house in just over a week. It has been far too long since we have seen Jackson, and we haven't met his younger brother Graham. I can't wait for the chance to spend more time with my beloved brother over this holiday season. Thom and Jackson, welcome to the Hall of Baldness!

Hall of Baldness: Aaron

Aaron is Brittney's cousin. We had a chance to be at BYU during the same time as him and his wife, Cera, which was lots of fun. Aaron is a very friendly guy and very athletic. He is really enjoyable to talk to and has a great way of making people feel happy and at ease around him. I have really enjoyed seeing him interact with his kids and nephews. He is a great dad and plays constantly with children.

Besides being a great basketball player, Aaron (and Cera) are top notch wallyball players. For those of you that are unfamiliar with this sport, it is basically volleyball, played in a racquetball court, and the ball is allowed to bounce off the side walls once per shot. Brittney, Cera, Aaron and I played intramural wallyball at BYU once. After a few games we figured out some awesome strategies and started doing ok. We were placed in the second division for the tournament and somehow didn't find out about our first game. Luckily the tournament was double elimination, and we proceeded to win all the rest of our games, beating the other top team twice in a row at the end to win the championship. That ended up being my only intramural championship at BYU, and I couldn't have shared it with a more fun group.

Now that Aaron and his family are living in Brittney's hometown (in fact in her parent's basement apartment, LUCKY), I am glad that we will get to see him on our future trips home. Aaron, welcome to the Hall of Baldness!

(with son Jaylen)

7.1

Today has been ok. I didn't throw up this time around (yet, knock on wood!) and so far have been resting a lot today. Just feeling pretty gross. Brittney and the kids have made me some signs for each of my treatments, and it keeps me company. I was able to eat a little something for lunch and dinner, but I am taking it pretty easy on that front. So far so good, I guess.

Chemo today: 7.0

Today I had my seventh chemo treatment. It seemed to go pretty well. My nurse was aware of the troubles with my iv in the past and was careful and got it right the first time smooth as a whistle. So here goes the next round .

Yesterday at my drs appt I learned that they have scheduled a CT scan for me for Jan 5 2012. At that point we will be able to see how the treatment is working and solidify the plan for the remaining treatments . Should be exciting.

Hall of Baldness: Jordan

Jordan is Brittney's younger brother. He is a skilled wrestler, soccer player, and all around athlete, and we have had a lot of fun playing sports together. Jordan has felt just like a brother from the first that I met him and has always made me feel like part of the family. He is one of those people that just is good at everything they do, and a pleasure to be around. He is a super-fun uncle and really has a way of connecting with kids and others around him. One fun memory I have with Jordan is from a few summers ago when we ran the Hood-to-Coast relay together, with some other extended family members and friends. Jordan and I tried to get some sleep during the middle of the night. The two of us took a tarp and our sleeping bags and plopped down in a field along with many other competitors. It was a beautiful night, near the town of Mist, Oregon, and appropriately enough, there was a wonderful wet mist in the air the whole night. We managed to sneak a few hours of sleep and then had to go back and take our turns running in the relay.

Jordan has been active translating material for the Church into Kosraean. He served his mission largely on the tiny island of Kosrae, in Micronesia. One of our family dreams is to have him take us back there, as we fell in love with the beautiful pictures that he shared with us. Simply put, Jordan is awesome in every way, and I am proud to be his brother-in-law. Jordan, welcome to the Hall of Baldness!

6.0 - 6.10

Sorry about the belated update. I have been put in charge of creating a slideshow for our ward Christmas party tomorrow, and that has been taking up my evening computer time this week. I know, I know, my top priority should be adding people from the growing list of applicants to the Hall of Baldness, and I am sorry, that is true. I will try to get a number of people added in the next few days, so keep your eyes peeled.

This treatment was really a tale of two weeks. The chemo treatment went ok. I had the same nurse again, and again she had to call another nurse over after two tries to get my IV in. that was annoying, but the rest went ok. The best part was that Brittney was able to be there with me, since Tiffany was in town.

For the rest of last week, I felt like I was hit harder by the chemo than before. I threw up Tuesday evening for the first time, and just felt pretty yucky the rest of the week. But this week has been a different story. Usually going back to work on Monday I still don't feel on top of things, but this week I actually felt fine, about how I usually do on Wednesday or Thursday of my good week. And I have continued to feel good the rest of this week. The crazy thing is that we did my first Neupogen injection this morning and this means that the next treatment is around the corner. How time flies. The good part is that I am pretty quick to forget. This goes both ways, as when I feel yucky I feel like I will never feel good again, and I can't remember what it feels like to feel like eating food. But, after only a day or two of feeling back to normal I have forgotten about the yuckiness and am ready for life. Just sometimes I have ridiculous cravings for meat. But I have always enjoyed a good burger or steak, so maybe that isn't too new.

Assuming that the treatments go as planned, this marks the halfway point. Six treatments down, six to go. Hopefully they continue to go smoothly. I feel so blessed by all the support that we have received. I know that most of my blessings are not due to me, but to the many wonderful people out there who pray for me and my family. Thanks for your prayers and love, they truly make all the difference.