Updates

It took me about 2 minutes to type "update" because I think it's quite possible my fingers may be frozen. Wade likes the hospital room cold. When I say it's cold, I mean I am shaking if I don't have a blanket. And my blanket is not nearly as warm as his. Man!!!

Anyway, as you can see, he's back in the hospital for round 2. He did great recovering this last time at home. He finally started feeling more like himself Thursday after he got out. We went to Creed last week. It was awesome. We had great seats! We tried for the pit (which was where we were last time they came), but we were happy with what he had. The weather was nice and it was great to just be out together.

Okay, so now back to the present. Wade was admitted to the hospital Friday (after he took the kids to Pump-it-Up). They have decided to double the dose on the chemo. Their reasoning is because he bounced back so quickly this last time and he handled it so well, they wanted to attack the tumors more aggressively. So during one day, he does 2 treatments. Each treatment lasts about 2 hours. The doses are stronger. I believe he will be getting 7 treatments. The first one started Friday evening and his last one should be Monday night. After this round, they will do some tests to see if there's been a change in the tumors. If it looks like the tumors have not been affected, then they will add adriamycin to the ifosfamide. This is the medicine they did the very first time Wade did chemo. It is a lot more aggressive and harder on him. It had a lot of side effects. So we will just have to wait and see. As of right now, he's doing pretty good. He's on his 4th treatment as I type.

Other GREAT news...my brother went in for his last surgery. They determined that the blood in his eyes (from vomiting after surgery) was the reason why he was not getting his eye sight back. They went in and vacuumed the blood out and after a few days he was able to see! The last few days have been cloudy, but today he said he woke up and it was clear! Praise God!!! I'm so very happy for him. I know he is relieved. He's been so worried, as we all have been. Goes to show you how powerful prayer is.

Well, I'm going to cover up and enjoy this rainy day with the love of my life (even though football is on). I'm preparing for a long week with a field trip on a Monday. CRAZY I know! But at least we have off next Monday! Have a wonderful, blessed week!

Wade's Home

Wade came home Friday morning. He's been pretty groggy and a little out of it. Today though he's doing great. The kids were super excited to see him. That night, Reagan layed down with him and fell asleep. Kaden played with him and fell asleep next to him on the couch. I took the kids to my parent's house yesterday just to get out. They had a blast. I thought I'd give Wade (and the in-laws) some quiet time . We ended up staying home last night. The kids love home and I love my bed. But I missed Wade too much and we came back today. So we're at Wade's parent's again. We will probably stay here for a few days and then maybe head back home for about a week. We're going to see Creed on Friday! I'm pumped. Plus it will give me and Wade some alone time that I am dying for. Anyways, bottom line, Wade's doing great and he's very happy to be "home". Nothing like a real bed and real food! He's going for bloodwork tomorrow so that will be his first real day out. More to come in the next few days! For now, it's time to get things ready for the most dreaded day of all...Monday! Happy New Week!

A Good Wonderful Day

Oh what a great day it has been. My kids at school were on a roll today. I was so proud of them. Today was the first day that I felt a little less stressed out. It's been a crazy start to the year. We still don't even have a break for lunch if that says anything. I'm ready for a lunch break (even though it will be at 10:00 this year!!!).

But the best news of all is that WADE IS COMING HOME TOMORROW!!! His mom is with him right now. I just got off the phone with him and he added yet another restaurant to the list. He said he wanted Red Lobster because they have all you can eat shrimp. Yum! He said he still felt rough but he sounds really good to me. The kids are so ready for him to come home. I am too...I get so lonely without him here.

My parents took JR to the doctor today in Dallas. There wasn't much they could do for him today because he had a lot of blood behind his eye (???) and they were unable to get in a see anything. They said it was caused from him vomiting after his surgery. They want him to come back in a week and they are going to try again. The pressure in his eye is 11 (it's supposed to be between 10 and 20 if I remember correctly). They said he really shouldn't be having a whole lot of pain. So, we'll find out more soon.

More good news...TOMORROW IS FRIDAY!!!! YAY!!! I LOVE Fridays! And Wade coming home makes it even better! Here's to a wonderful, relaxing weekend!

100th Post and Wonderings...

This is my 100th post! Wow...it took me a little while, but I made it. As I was in my car today, I had so many thoughts running through my head. I've had a lot of "me time" in the car since I drove to the hospital and then back to Spring. So...

I wonder...

- why my daughter always has to eat her ice cream cone from the bottom to the top. She always goes for the cone first and then it gets EVERYWHERE!

- why the people who beg for money at street lights have to do tricks with a hat to get some attention. It always makes me giggle.

- why the hospital parking garage must charge people so much to park. Shouldn't the garages be paid for in full by now? I don't mind paying if it's somewhere I want to be (like a concert).

- if anybody read the above comment and wondered why the garage charges you and not a person. (it's late!)

- if I scared the girl that was driving in front me tonight. We were on the freeway and she was driving a very dark blue SUV and she did not have her lights on. I was driving next to her and behind her to get her attention. I was flashing my lights at her and trying to wave her down. I was so concerned that I even ended up having to go a different way home. She braked a couple of times. She eventually turned them on. Scary! I'm pretty sure I freaked her out!

- what it is about having your windows down while you're driving that seems so relaxing. Add the smell of burning leaves and I'm almost in a coma!

- is it strange to like the smell of skunks?

- why some parents don't realize how much their kids learn from them and why they aren't better role models.

- why as adults we lose our ability to feel free like kids!

- why people are afraid to look at you when you're hooked to an IV pole with A LOT of meds attached. I wonder what they're thinking. Are they curious why you're in the hospital and are they wondering if what you're doing is working?

- why even though something seems to turn your world upside down you realize how great you really have it and how wonderful your life is.

- why you feel a connection with complete strangers in a place that you never thought you'd be.

- how it could be possible to love your kids anymore than you do? Is there such thing as more because the love you have for your kids is off the charts?!?!

- what it must have been like for Jesus to die for our sins.

- how I could ever explain to Wade how truly grateful I am to him for being such an amazing fighter and a wonderful dad. How blessed I am to have my kids look up to an unbelievable man!
(this song reminds me of Wade -

Here's an update on Wade and J.R.

- Wade finished his last treatment this morning. They are still running Mesna (a drug used to protect the bladder and kidney from side effects of chemo) through the IV and then all he has are the regular fluids. One doctor came in and said he would go home Saturday and one of the nurses said possibly tomorrow or Friday. They're mainly trying to regulate his blood sugar. He looked good tonight and said he felt better than he did yesterday so that is good news. We're all VERY ready for him to come home. For some reason, all he talks about is food. We have a HUGE list of places we have to go when he gets home. I think next time he needs to leave the TV off so he can avoid all of those commercials.

- I just saw J.R. today for the first time. I'm not going to lie and say I'm not worried because I am. I just pray that his eye heals and he comes out of this stronger than ever. Currently he cannot see. He told me all he can see are blurs of movement. They're going back up to Dallas tomorrow to see his doctor because he's been having a lot of pain in his eye. Please continue to keep him in your prayers.

**Side Note**
Open House was a success! The kids did great! My students loved my kids! Reagan was the calm one of course. She would sit down and color and read books. Kaden on the other hand...at one point all you could see was his legs hanging out of the block container. He dumped out a bunch of buttons (and Reagan cleaned up after him) and played with a lot of my math manipulatives, but he had a blast. They both did! Plus, I enjoyed showing them off because of course they're the cutest kids EVER!!!!

So, here's to another 100 posts...hopefully 100 more full of good news!!!

September 14th Update

I just got home from visiting with Wade at the hospital. If you ask him how he feels, he says he feels like "poo poo". Nice huh? He has completed 3 days of chemo and will begin another at 5:00 in the morning. He's beginning to get dizzy and he has the shakes. However, he has taken his guitar and he continues to play as much as he can. At one point he stopped playing and the nurse came in to make sure he was okay!!!! :) I always try to get him out of the room as much as possible. Tonight we went to the cyber room to get a few movies. We weren't out very long and he was ready to get back to the room.

His blood sugar was so high this afternoon that it didn't register on the machine. This means it was above 500. They just started a long lasting insulin tonight. The endocrinologist came in and talked to him for a bit. Of course it didn't help that Wade had Oreo cookies sitting next to him and a few cokes (which really weren't all his). The doctor kept eyeing the cookies and told him to leave those for the visitors! I took home all the goodies I bought for him a couple of days ago. I bought mostly candy and sweet snacks. We kind of figured this would happen since it happened last time too. They call what he has steroid induced diabetes. When he was home, he wasn't taking anything at all.

Other than that, things are moving along. He moved to room 1014 today. Apparently he was in a high tech room that had a lot of monitors. Another patient came in today who was in bad shape and they needed that room so they moved Wade (then they saw the stash of candy we had hidden in the drawers!!!!!).

I've been staying at Wade's parents house. It's always so hard to be away from Wade and then so hard to be away from the kids. We try to get the kids to talk to Wade on the webcam as much as possible. When Wade was on it the other day, he made his face look like a werewolf. It freaked Reagan out! She kept calling it a tiger and she backed far away from the screen. Then both of them thought there was a werewolf at the hospital with Daddy. Crazy kids! In the next few days, I know Wade won't feel like getting on much. Kaden is always asking, "Why is daddy in the hospital? To get better?" It breaks my heart. I know they both miss him, but it's definitely been hard on him.

I have Open House tomorrow night and I am being adventurous and taking the kids with me. This should be interesting! Kaden's not one for staying in one place long so we'll see!

Thank you so much to everybody who is thinking of us and praying for us! It means so much to us. More updates to come!

Timeline

This is our life in the last 12 years or so. I really did this for me. Many people ask when certain things have happened. This helps me remember.

1997 - Wade has a back injury after lifting incorrectly when working at UPS.

1998- He has another back injury in the same spot.

August 1999 - Wade and Katie meet for the first time but are only friends; Katie begins college at Sam Houston.

2000 - Wade began working at AVR.

September 2001 - Wade and Katie begin dating.

December 2002 - Wade had been complaining for a couple of years that his back hurt. After many doctor appointments he is finally referred to get an MRI. The MRI indicated a football sized tumor in his back.

January 2003 - Wade went to MD Anderson for the first time where they begin all the tests. We find out he has synovial sarcoma; Wade begins chemotherapy.

May 2003 - Wade completes chemo.

June 2003 - He begins radiation. He goes everyday at 5:30 in the morning for a month.

July 2003 - Wade completes radiation. The doctors want to try an experimental trial where he is required to do a little radiation and a little chemo. He stops after one round.

September 17, 2003 - First surgery to remove the tumor in his back.

December 3, 2003 - Katie graduates from SHSU.

December 24, 2003- Wade proposes to Katie!!!!!!!

December 18, 2004 - Wade and Katie get married!

February 2005 - Pregnant with Kaden.

November 3, 2005 - Kaden is born!

May 31, 2006 - Wade starts working at his current job - Freeman

September 2006 - Pregnant with Reagan!

January 20, 2007 - After his first yearly checkup (they previously were either 3 month or 6 month check-ups), tests show the cancer moved to his lungs. He begins to think of what to do next.

February 28, 2007 - Second surgery to remove the tumors in his both lungs. They go in through his chest (Sternotomy).

May 26, 2007 - Reagan is born!!!

???? - Tumors are back! Time to prepare for another surgery.

October 2007 - Wade has a third surgery. This time they go in through his back on the right side. They remove the tumors in his right lung only.

November 2007 - Wade has a benefit. We were extremely blessed to have so many friends and family come out to support us!

January 2008 - Fourth surgery. This time they go in through his back on the left side and remove the tumors in his left lung only.

April 2008 - The tumors have returned AGAIN! This time chemotherapy is recommended.

May 9, 2008 - Wade begins chemo.

August 2008 - Completes chemo. It is successful...the growth stopped!

May 2009 - The tumors in his lungs have grown a bit. They decide to watch them for a bit.

August 2009 - The tumors (now 5) have grown a very tiny bit. However, because they are continuing to grow, they give Wade the option of a clinical trial that only has a 5% chance of working, or do chemo where it will have at least a 50% of working.

September 2009 - Wade decides to do chemo.

September 10, 2009 - Wade prepares to have his CVC port inserted. After, the plan was for him to be admitted and begin chemo that night. However, due to complications, they were unable to insert the port. They tell him to come back the next day and they will try again.

September 11, 2009 - They try for a second time. They finally get it in and do an X-ray. Wade is admitted into the hospital. They return with the x-rays and it shows that it still was not in all the way.

September 12, 2009 (midnight)- More people come in to try again. Success! At 5:30 a.m., he begins his first round of chemo!

Good News and Bad News

Bad news first...

Wade went to get his port in and they were unable to get it in. It took them over an hour and as he put it, "They were digging" in order for it to cooperate with the vein. They had to do an X-ray to make sure there was no damage from it. All was good. So he goes back tomorrow for another try. He was supposed to be admitted to the hospital after the port was inserted. So if all goes well, he will have the port in and then he will start chemo that same day.

Good news...

He gets to spend one more night with us. :)

One more thing...

My brother has been having a hard time with his diabetes lately. You may have read previous blog entries from this. One of the negatives about diabetes is that it can affect your eyes and possibly cause you to go blind. Unfortunately, JR has had many days when has not been able to see. That is why he has undergone so many surgeries. His most recent one was yesterday. He was so sick afterwards that he was constantly throwing up. This obviously is not good since there is so much pressure on the eyes when you throw up. So he's been sick and in a lot of pain. Please, please pray for him as he endures this battle!

Things

Well, we found out today that Wade will be starting chemo on Thursday. He goes in for his orientation and then he gets his port Thursday. Then he will stay at the hospital for the chemo. We've been dreading this!! It's going to be much harder this time...I think. The kids are a little bigger and older so they are picking up on what's going on. Wade's mom and dad have already offered for us to come and stay with them. Of course we'd love to stay home, but it just makes more sense to stay with them. They help with the kids and they live so much closer to the babysitter. It saves me about an hour a day on the road. Of course there will be more to come on the situation.

I found a few pictures on my phone that I'm going to post. I'm still working on posting a few videos. Until then, enjoy the pictures. They're mostly Reagan today. Getting a picture of Kaden is nearly impossible!

**Nevermind on the pictures. I'm having a hard time posting anything. I will post them later!**

First Day and an Update on Wade

Today was the first day of school! I'm sort of short on words. All I can really say is I am exhausted and my feet HURT! My back was good until the end of the day. And even then, it wasn't horrible. I have a pretty good class. So far I only have 14 kids though I'm sure that number will grow. More to come on school.

I've been meaning to add an update on Wade. Several weeks ago he went to the doctor for his check-up. He currently has 5 tumors in his lungs (he did have six!!!) Two of them have grown since the last time he went. So the doctor explained that there was a possibility of doing a new vaccine that has had a wonderful outcome in some patients. It could stop the growth of the tumors. He had to have something in his blood that allowed him to take this vaccine. Unfortunately, he didn't have this special something. So, the doctor (who is EXTREMELY smart) is looking into other clinical trials. Usually when you hear this, you think the worst. This is not the last resort. The doctor knows how much Wade hates chemo and is looking for other options. Of course if he HAD to, he would do this again.

Wade is amazingly optimistic and feels really good about everything. So more to come as we hear more. Please keep praying for his healing.

On a brighter note, our friend Brandi took some really good pictures of the kids when we went to their house to hangout one night. I LOVE them. Check them out here.. http://www.flickr.com/photos/brandibakerphotography/sets/72157622058370324/

I'm Baaaaaack!!

It's been way too long. I thought I'd blog more being off all summer. For some reason, I didn't get anything done this summer.

We had a wonderful summer. We decided not to have Kaden's tubes taken out of his ears. We actually cancelled 3 times. He did so good that we hated to mess with a good thing. Maybe they fell out on their own. We will have to make an appointment soon to see.

At the beginning of the summer, we stayed at Galveston for a week. It was great. The only bad part was that somebody was sick everyday. I was sick at the beginning, then Reagan and then Kaden. Not to mention Wade got a ridiculous sunburn the first day at the beach.

The kids LOVED the beach. Reagan was scared at first, but then she warmed up to it. It was hard to keep them out of the beach. It was during our vacation that we discovered how well Kaden could swim without his floaties. This led to an amazing time in the pool this summer. He's one crazy swimmer. He's able to dive down and get toys at the bottom of the pool. Of course it makes us crazy nervous and we're always right there, but man he does awesome.










This summer we...

Stayed cool by playing outside in the water...






...enjoyed 4th of July fun and fireworks at Joan and John's







...made rainbow cakes







...cleaned (well, some of us)




...welcomed Baby William





...painted with Daddy






...and just had fun!






Now summer is officially over and school starts tomorrow. I was at work all last week with the exception of Friday. I just so happened to pull a muscle in my back. I couldn't stand up and I could barely walk. It was horrible. I was terrified that it was going to be something more serious judging from the pain. I heard/felt it pop. We went to the ER as soon as it happened. So, I missed Friday and missed meeting my kids. I was so upset. Plus, I am nowhere near where I want to be. So much still needs to be done. I can hopefully get in early tomorrow and get the basics ready. I'm pretty sure you never really can be fully prepared for what the first day brings. I'll just pray for the best.

More on how the first day goes as well as Wade's doctor appointments to come. I will also be posting some of the most adorable videos ever on here. Be looking!!!

Happy Birthday My Sweet Little Girl

Reagan,

Today you turn two. It's so hard to believe. You have changed so much. You have become quite a big girl. Your personality is really taking shape. I've noticed that lately you do a lot of the same things and facial expressions as your brother. You put your own little twist to them though.

Every person you come across is instantly drawn to you. You have a way to make people melt. You sing non-stop. In the car ride home, it's constant singing. Your favorite is "Old MacDonald". And on his farm, all he seems to have are cows. You LOVE Baby Einstein and beg to watch it every night before you go to sleep. Just what we need...a bad habit in the making.

We just started swimming again for the summer. You HATED it at first. You cried hysterically and layed your head on daddy's shoulder the first time in. Now, I know you don't remember, but you LOVED the water last year. However, this past weekend, you finally opened up and we had a hard time getting you out. I can't wait to watch you all summer long in the pool.

You are extremely spoiled. You rarely get in trouble. And when you do, you cry so hard that you begin gagging. It's as if you are about to throw up. A little dramatic I know, but you really do get this honestly I must say. ;) Daddy can't stand to hear you cry. Mommy's a lot stronger at making you stay in time out than Daddy. However, I melt too once you start yelling "Mommy, I'm sorry!"

I love when you wake up in the morning. You start out by quietly calling me. I love to wait though because it gradually turns into a yell. This is only something you can laugh at if you've heard it. It's impossible to describe.

You had your first haircut May 9th. Suzanne cut your hair. She gave Kaden his first haircut too. But the best thing is that she also gave me my first perm when I was 3 years old. She's also done Nina and Granny's hair for nearly 30 years. We were all there...including Papa and Grandad. It was a big day. It was a 4th generation day!!! You were such a big girl and barely even moved. Once it was cut, you looked like such a big girl. It made mommy a little sad. Where did my little baby go?







You love your family and friends. Kaden is your best friend. You truly look up to him and he is always looking after you. You have an amazingly big heart. You always make sure everybody is okay. I'll never forget walking in the door after work and hearing you say, "Hi Mommy! I missed you today!" It made my heart melt. And of course the "I love yous" are indescribable.

You love your daddy. At night you always tell him, "Daddy, let's wrestle." You're so fragile and "girly" that it makes me so nervous when you rough house with the boys. But you hold your own. You're getting braver every day.

You still have your moments of being scared to death of things. I'll have to post a YouTube video of the night two birds got in our house. You were so scared. Afterwards though, you made everybody think you weren't scared at all. Too bad it was all caught on tape.



I can not begin to tell you how much joy you have brought into our lives. You are the little girl I always dreamed of. You're way better than my dreams. It's not even a close race. I will never forget the day when we found out we were having a baby girl. It was surreal. I will never forget the day you came into our lives on this day, 2:03 p.m. How blessed we were and are. You have made me a better person. I love you sooo very much sweet baby girl. Happy 2nd Birthday!

Sick Babies

Here are pictures from last night and today of my two sick babies. Reagan is feeling MUCH better. Kaden is still not feeling well. This last hour is the first time that he's been acting like himself. We will see how tomorrow goes.

This is Kaden last night. He was saying, "I'm siiiiick". He was playing with a new playdoh toy. Notice the busted blood vessel in his eye.


This was Reagan last night. She was already feeling better. After all, she was a princess.


Kaden not feeling so hot this morning.


Kaden trying to sleep and Reagan making sure he's okay.