an adventure out west

As I type we are on our way to San Antonio to The Alamo. We went early this morning for blood work and Dave doesn't have any other appointments until Wednesday. We are studying American History this year, so this will be a great field trip.

Dave had a bad skin reaction on his hands and face to the chemo, so they started him on a steroid. It has helped the itching but it still looks pretty red. It looks like a bad sunburn. He is feeling really good right now. We were able to go on a date Saturday night for Valentines Day. We went downtown and had a nice dinner, walked around for a bit and then had coffee at a little coffee shop. It was a really nice night out.

Dave starts his 6th round of chemo on Thursday. Depending on what the scan shows on the 28th, this could be the last of the chemotherapy for now at least. If there is any change in the tumor (meaning is has shrunk) he will continue with the chemotherapy. If there is no change or it has grown, he will begin radiation.

The kids have been attending AWANA at Bethel Church on Sunday nights. They love it. They are memorizing alot of verses. They all got their books last night and Samuel got his vest. He was so excited....who would have thought a red vest could excite that boy so much.

I'll post lots of pictures of our Western Adventure later!

a quick update

Dave has had a pretty good week. His counts are on the low side but not low enough to need a transfusion. He did experience some back pain on Wednesday that was related to the Neulasta injection. The worst thing he has had to deal with this round is the redness on his face and hands. He looks like he has a bad sunburn and he says it feels like that too. It has even peeled like a sunburn. A friend gave him some lotion when they were here for a visit and that has helped alot.

All in all its been a pretty uneventful week around here. It has been very cold here....like in the 30's and 40's. Brrrr. Erin and Samuel got hair cuts.....Erin got 5 inches cut. She didn't like it at first, but she has been playing around with it, flat ironing it and pulling it up.....I think she likes it now. I personally think it is adorable. It is always an ordeal to get Samuels hair cut. He argues about why he doesn't need one until the deed is finally done. School is going really well. We have lots of time, and we are trying making the most of it. I usually do Math, Spelling, and English in the mornings and Dave does Science, History, and Latin in the afternoons. We have a great Children's Museum nearby that Dave has really utilized in teaching the kids Science. He also downloaded a really cool geography app. I love that he is able to teach these subjects. He is enjoying it and I know the kids are really learning alot. He is planning to do a Unit Study on China soon. Then we can go visit Chinatown. There are so many neat things to do here. So many great places to take field trips. Hopefully we will get to do alot of them before we come home. I'm not sure how educational this is....but the Rodeo is coming up in March. I would really like to go....Dave, not so much! We'll see. :) Well, Dave and I have been watching the 2nd season of the show 24 on Netflix. We are about to watch episode 4....goodnight!

Samuel's Super Bowl Party

All week we have been planning our big super bowl party. Samuel decided we would cheer for the Steelers. This was fine with me since I do not know anything about either team anyway. So the main thing we had to plan was of course...the menu. We had pizza, hot wings, little smokies, and cheese dip. The food was yummy and the game has been very good. I have to say, the half time show was...ummmm...interesting, and Christina leaving out a line to the Star Spangled Banner had to be the highlight of the evening.

Dave has had a couple of bad days. He has been so tired.... and quiet. He has blood work in the morning and I will be interested to see what his numbers are. I will be glad when he is DONE with this chemo. It has really taken a toll on him.


Erin is our little writer. She loves writing stories and journaling. I'm always finding things she has written. I can tell alot about how she is feeling by reading her writings. If she is not getting along with her brother or sister, it comes out in her stories or journal entries. If she is excited about about something or sad about something, she writes it down. This week she has been writing a play. She has been typing away on her computer. She always wants to include Abby when she is playing anything. So she has been planning for Abby to be in her play. She has planned practice times for them and she even made a contract. I had to get a picture of this because it was just too cute. You may have to click on the picture to read the contract.

First Friday in February

Ok....Let me start by saying....I am so over SNOW. It is obvious it is just not meant for us to have snow this year. There was alot of snow in Texas...just not here. Houston was slammed with ice today and a little sleet. Lots of wrecks for the people who ventured out onto the highways. We were safe and sound and warm in our apartment. So...no more talk of snow...I promise :)

Dave is feeling ok. He had the neulasta injection tonight, so we hope he will not experience the pain that he had last time. This time he will have pain medicine on hand. He has been having a bit of nausea today. He is trying to stay on top of that with all the nausea meds. He is very fatigued too. He will start the next round of chemo on the 17th. His next scan is February 28th.

I know Dave is missing home alot this week. In particular this week he is missing his students at Donoho. He has always loved this time of year as a band director. Concert Season. He has several students going to the county honor band and one student going to All State. He is so proud of them. I wish he was there to see them. He is such a good music teacher.....(yes, I may be partial)...but he really is a good teacher. I know he would love to get home before all those sweet seniors graduate too. Maybe he will get to.

Tonight when I dropped Dave out at the hospital, I had to run to Target (of course) and this Chris Tomlin song came on the radio as I drove. These particular verses stood out tonight.

The Lord has promised good to me
His word my hope secures
He will my shield and portion be
As long as life endures

My chains are gone, I've been set free
My God, my Savior has ransomed me
And like a flood His mercy reigns
Unending love, amazing grace

The earth shall soon dissolve like snow
The sun forbear to shine
But God who called me here below
Will be forever mine, will be forever mine
You are forever mine




For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

Jeremiah 29.11

Look what is on James Spann's weather blog. He is my favorite weather man and I have missed him so much since I've been in Houston. He always makes storms so exciting. Don't judge me....I love weather stuff! :) So I was excited when my mama showed me what they are saying about Houston. I know..I know...I am a little obsessed with the thought of snow. So here it is......

What Others Are Saying
J.B. Elliott 7:52 pm February 2, 2011 Comments (0) HOUSTON AND HARRIS COUNTY
* Hard Freeze Warning tonight, low 22
* Winter Storm Watch Thursday afternoon through Friday morning
* Mix of rain, sleet and snow Thursday afternoon
* Snow, sleet and Freezing rain Thursday night. (1 to 2 inch snow/sleet accumulation
* Additional one inch snow/sleet/freezing rain Friday

Yippee!!!!!!!

Dave's MRI results were good. There was no sign of metastatic disease. This is what we had hoped it would show. So thanks for praying with us about those results. Mama arrived safely this afternoon and we are snuggling up in our apartment cause it is COLD ! Still hoping for some snow Friday :)

Insomnia Ramblings

Insomnia...maybe. But since I'm up I thought I'd write some thoughts about the day. It was cold today and will be cold for the rest of the week. We may even get a little white stuff on Friday. We had a good day at school. The kids had Science and History tests today. The first Tuesday of every month is free at the Houston Zoo so we went to the zoo after school. We got there about 3:45 and stayed til 5:00.The kids have been studying about the different groups of animals, so it was good to hear them talking about some of what they have learned. Dave had a good day. We are still waiting to hear results from the MRI. I don't really like to wait. I start to get nervous when we have to wait a long time. My Mama is flying in tomorrow. We are excited about seeing her. Dave has chemo Thursday. We hope to throw a snowball or two on Friday.

I must tell you about this great website I have discovered. It is www.khanacademy.org . It is an educational site where this man walks you through any math lesson you can think of. It is WONDERFUL. I am planning to use it in the morning with the girls.

Dave had a really good day. We laughed alot and he even danced at the zoo with the kids. This silly song came in in front of the lion exhibit and they broke out with a dance. Wish I had gotten that on video :) If you are waiting with us on results from the MRI...I'll update when we find out. It is probably just the degenerative spine (which is not good) but better than it being something related to the cancer. Goodnight.