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Please forgive me for a late update. I actually typed everything in an email the day he came home and went to spell check it. When I did, it froze and all that I wrote was completely gone. It took a long time to write it and the thought of having to do it all over again was killing me. So, I'm going to give it another go...

Wade came home from the hospital Thursday afternoon. He was ready to get home and the kids were even happier to see their daddy. Kaden ran to him and Wade picked him up. Kaden kept saying, "Daddy" over and over and then said, "You went to the doctor? You got better?" So cute. Reagan of course gave her daddy a huge "Reagan smile".

This round of chemo seemed to be much easier on Wade. They were constantly there to make sure he was okay. The only big problem was that starting the 3rd day of him doing his chemo drugs, his blood sugar became "critically high" which means it was above 500. Because of this they were constantly giving him insulin to bring it back down. They said the cause was probably from one of the steroid drugs they give him. It is the best drug to keep him from getting nauseous. It apparently does this to a lot of people. It was a struggle to get this under control. Now in the past, on the last day, Wade's heart rate would beat close to 125 and he felt this caused him to be extremely uncomfortable and exhausted. He said he thought he felt better this time and maybe it was because they were able to get it under control.

They sent him home with a glucose monitor and he is having to keep a close eye on his sugar. He has seen a endocrinologist once and will go back Wednesday to see her again. She said a lot of times taking these drugs can push you over the edge and you could become Diabetic. I'm sure Wade is borderline with it running in his family, but this does not help. The doctor said we had to wait several days for the steroid to get completely out of his system in order for his sugar to get regulated. So, we will see. Because of his sugar being out of control this time, they will probably admit him the next two times. Of course I hate him being away and he misses the kids tremendously, but if it means he will feel better, then it is all worth it.

And strangely, this time he did not get bone pain. He usually gets this on Sunday. It is from the neulasta shot. He said he felt weird not having it, but I reassured him that it is a good thing, not to doubt it, and that his prayers are being answered. More to come in the next few weeks!

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You know, there is nothing that hurts me more than sitting in the hospital room with Wade and watching him have to struggle to overcome all the pain that comes with chemo. But then as I am walking to the parking garage across the street from MDA, I see a man in a wheelchair hooked up to the machines with many chemo bags. Then, he coughs as he blows out the smoke from the cigarette he's smoking. Ugh...it was like a slap in the face. Here Wade is upstairs exhausted with cancer in his lungs and has NEVER smoked a cigarette a day of his life and this man is smoking his cigarettes. My first question is why even do chemo? Why try to fix one thing when it could cause more damage in the long run? As I tell this to Wade, he tells me I don't know his story. Maybe he has no chance of surviving and why not have one last smoke? I don't really know. But I do know that it is not my place to judge. Though I cringe when I see people smoking and many times get very angry, it still not place to judge and I have to realize that. I'm working on it.

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One day Wade and I walked out of the room to go for a walk and this man in his room down the hall yells to Wade, "Hey, what happened to all of your hair?" Of course Wade laughs knowing the same has happened to this man and walks closer to his room. He's sitting on his bed and his wife is standing next to him. It looked as if maybe he was about to be discharged. The question you may hear around MDA is, "So, what are you in for?" It sounds like something you'd say in prison I know. So his story is he has bone cancer and has been fighting it for 30 years. It has come back 8 times. He was telling Wade MDA is the best place to be and it is where he has been from the start. He said his cancer has come back 8 times now. His wife tells us that every time the time in between gets shorter. This last time he was cancer free for 18 months. But they were both so optimistic and full of faith. She said, "You know, I tell him, you must be needed here on earth to do great things and when the time comes, He just needs you more than we do down here." Sad I know, but they both were smiling ear to ear. You can't help but feel relief when you hear stories like theirs. I mean 30 years. That's amazing! That's one thing you will find there...people there to lift you up. And the most amazing part, it seems as though every person we have talked to has had an incredible amount of faith.