three cycles down...

We're two-thirds of the way through the treatments!

Bryan's fourth chemo treatment was yesterday - things went very smoothly again, and some adjustments to his anti-nausea medications afforded him a more comfortable evening than last cycle. The solution to the nausea problem is essentially to knock him out for hours at a time - but a sleeping Bryan is better than a nauseous one. We're crossing our fingers that we now have a successful strategy for managing the side effects.

The last two weeks of the past cycle were great, we ran almost every day, and for significantly longer than last cycle. Bryan was able to do more things socially and spend more time at the office, and that normalcy has been very beneficial. Although he didn't look forward to getting knocked down again, knowing he'll be back to some of his usual activities soon is helping his mental outlook during the tough days.

Happy Mother's Day

i wanted to take a moment and wish all those special ladies out there a happy mother's day. my mom has always been there for me and from the day i first received that tough bit of news about the tumor she has been unflappable in her focus on the cure. with nothing but faith and determination to support her in the beginning, she was essential in carrying me through the "waiting period". the comfort that my mother has brought to jen and i during these past few months is nothing short of God's grace and i thought i'd share with all of you a quote she sent to me this morning -

"The thing is to rely only on God. The time will come when you will regard all this misery as a small price to pray for having been brought to that dependence. Meanwhile the trouble is that relying on God has to begin all over again every day as if nothing has yet been done."
- C.S. Lewis

for the record, the woman is so selfless she sends me a thank you card every mother's day. seriously mom, i love you infinity but take a load off - it's your day.

i also want to thank another mother who has been a wonderful addition to my life since the day i met jenny. my mother-in-law laurel and i have always shared an unconditional love for jenny and technology but during her recent visit i realized her love goes well beyond any in-law standard i could ever imagine. so once again, although this valley has been tough at times, i have felt more love and inspiration during this battle than at any other point in my life. thanks to all of you for going on this journey with me.

Day 8

well we had another great interim checkpoint yesterday - counts are not critically low and this time the nausea was tempered nicely by medication. the only unfortunate side effect is that the anti-nausea meds leave you even more fatigued. i'll take the trade off from last cycle's first week - and knowing that we are counting down from here gets me real pumped. my mother-in-law laurel was my assistant nurse and she was wonderful - i thank her for looking after jenny while i was down for the count.

i want to take this time to thank my wonderful wife - she grows stronger every day and even though my mood ebbs and flows with each cycle, her unwavering support and general "cuteness" makes me feel like the luckiest man on the face of the earth. I never knew what love was until I began walking through this valley, and I have a sneaking suspicion that when I look back on this experience, I won't want to trade it for the world. So I ask one thing of all of you: find your "jenny" (whoever he or she may be) and hug him or her like you are never letting go.

Two Cycles Down

Yesterday was Bryan's third chemo treatment, and everything went smoothly as expected. Its a nerve-wracking experience, anticipating the nausea and fatigue to follow, especially considering how great he's been feeling lately - we've been running every day for a week. But Dr. Dunder and Sharon (the chemo nurse) did a wonderful job (as usual) renewing Bryan's mental strength to confront it. He had some nausea soon after we got home, but once the anti-nausea medication kicked in he felt much better and slept all night. So far his day has consisted of watching a lot of Monk and Curb Your Enthusiasm on the laptop in bed, while snacking on cheerios. Still no tater tots. We're hoping that this cycle will be more predictable now that we've determined which medications work for the side effects, and so far Bryan is doing very well. (The only thing we haven't been able to manage is his continued aversion to liquid soap.)