BIRTHDAY CELEBRATION AND CHEMO TREATMENTS

 

Since we are going to be in Arizona on April 3rd, David and Nikki hosted a family get together to celebrate George's 64th birthday a little early.  Nikki asked what he wanted for his birthday and he said he would like the family to get together and just enjoy each other's company.  Nikki also planned and cooked his favorite meal, even though, she never made it before!  How brave is that?  His favorite meal?  Pat's receipt for scalloped potatoes and meatloaf!  Nikki took her receipt and it was great!!!  Thanks Nikki!! Topping off the meal was a ice cream cake that Amy brought down - George was in 7th heaven .  Of course, family also includes our great friends and travel partners, Bob and Donna.  For entertainment we had Kasey and Karsten with Mylee and Ty supporting dogs!  Here are a few pics of the party.

We are so proud!

Amy and Nikki (check out  the refreshments behind them)

When are we going to eat?  Do I have to eat toys?

Kasey is having a ball in Karsten's walker!

Pat with David's dog Ty and Kris without his beer!

Bob and Donna - Oh yeah , coffee was furnished for the old folks!

Is Karsten that heavy David?

We thought we would send some pictures of the second set of treatments.  George said it is a cake walk compared to the treatments 8 years ago.  No side effects, no pain, and really nice set up for taking the treatments.  Of course the proof of the pudding is -- when he is cancer free!  We are very confident and appreciate all the prayers and thoughts from around the country and hope you continue to say a few words to the guy upstairs (it seems to be working).  Some of our friends have also been through chemo but we bet that the facilities were not as nice --- these are brand new and they have the latest equipment and lab to mix the cocktails for the patients.  The nurses are very knowledgeable and very, very helpful to everyone.  The puppy is so gentle and ensues he visits all the patients several times a day - checking on them.  Hope you enjuoy the pics!

George realaxing!

Pat with a good book and a comfortable chair beside George during treatments

Plenty of room at the nurse's station

Chemo nurses, Amy and Ginger, looking over George's schedule

Roxie, the chemo dog with Pat

We are in final countdown to leaving Colorado Springs for warmer weather, we woke up today to snow and had to drive to Denver for the chemo...next week we hope to wake up to the big bright sun in the sky and drive to the golf course.  

Until next time we hope you enjoyed the blog today, it was a little different but that is what backyards are all about.... a little different!

Aunt Nikki babysitting for the Super "K's"

Aunt Nikki has a new job and we think she is very happy, tired but happy!!!

Aunt Nikki seems very happy with Karsten!

 !

Look I can now play the piano with one hand!

Kasey goes to new heights with Aunt Nikki

Kasey look behind you - there are lots of fish!

Aunt Nikki and Uncle David with the Super Ks at the Denver Aquarium

Nikki and Kasey behind the fish!

Karsten and Aunt Nikki in the Aquarium - Wave to us Karsten!

We thought we would visit with David and Nikki, as they took the boys home with them and to the Denver Aquarium the next day. Aunt Nikki is in her new job as the Nanny for Kasey and Karsten. 

How did that happen?  Kris and Amy were looking for a babysitter but were not sure they should take the boys out of their daycare learning environment.  Nikki did not like her job very much.  So we think after a few goblets of wine by Amy and Nikki, they decided that the best of all worlds for the boys would be Nikki taking over the daycare of the boys and be their Nanny.  So Nikki gave her job two weeks notice, Kris and Amy gave the Daycare two weeks notice and now the boys have a new Nanny.  Nikki and David adore the boys and she is a great for them.  She is so organized and is teaching the boys something new everyday.  Of course we are also happy that the two families are getting closer, it would only be better if David and Nikki lived a little closer to Kris and Amy. 

Hope you enjoyed the pictures, until next time we hope you are getting out and enjoying life...You know it is Spring!!!! 

GETTING READY TO HIT THE ROAD - AGAIN !!!

Our time in Colorado is rapidly drawing to a close and we are getting anxious to get on the road and see more of this country.  We now have some limitations with George's treatments being scheduled every 28 days but we think we have figured a way to see more backyards.  We have synchronized our medical appointments with our friends and travel companions, Bob and Donna to maximize our trips. Our road trips may be a little shorter and a little closer to Colorado but we will be doing what we enjoy - seeing this wonderful country and visiting with friends.  So as we mentioned before, we will be driving to Tucson on April 1st, two days after George's second set of treatments and return to Colorado about three weeks later for his third set of treatments (half way through the two day treatments).  The downsize of traveling is that we have two little boys that wrapped their little fingers around our hearts and it will be very hard to leave them, even for a few weeks.  I guess we need to trust their parents and Aunt and Uncle to take care of them in our absence but it will be hard.  We have included a few pictures for your enjoyment!

Kasey helps Grandpa sweep the "dirt" around the motorhome with the motorhome's washing brush. 

Grandma giving driving instructions to the boys, looks like Karsten is listening and Kasey is ready to go!

Karsten really enjoys his Johnny Jump Up!

Kasey going down the big boy's slide - Grandpa let go of me!

We attended Karsten's baptism today!  David and Nikki drove up to Denver to share with our youngest grandson this major milestone in his young life.  I am sure Kris and Amy will be posting this on their blog so be sure to click on their blog for story and more pics.

Karsten with David and Nikki before being "wet down"!

Kasey enjoying a little freedom before the church services!  He has that "I got away from Grandma" look in his eyes.

Good Looking family

Nikki with Karsten, Amy, Kris and David holding Kasey
If only we could only get everyone to look at the camera, this could have been a great picture.

           Hello everyone--  it is picture taking time!!!!

 We have had such a wonderful time visiting with our kids and grand kids.  Lucky for us we will be back (a little more regularly than what we thought a year ago) and will get to enjoy them all again.  We hope this blog finds you in good health and spirits.  Take care of yourselves and get out and enjoy life!

We ran across this quote from Elisabeth Foley, it is the way we feel about you - our friends and family.

"The most beautiful discovery true friends make is that they can grow separately without growing apart."

We hope that we have grown separately but not apart from all of you!

Kris's 33rd Birthday and More!

The last couple of weeks have been reserved for birthdays and now that Nikki's celebration is over, it was time for Kris's birthday!  Even though, we understand Nikki celebrated her birthday from Feb 27th until March 5th...Oh to be young again!  Congratulations Nikki!!!!

Kris normally is a Lobsterfest kind of guy for his birthday but he decided on a steak night so we went to the Texas Roadhouse.  Amy, Kasey, and Karsten celebrated with Kris and us!  Although it was very loud and we had to wait a long time to get a table,  the steaks were great, and done to perfection!  We thought we would post some pictures of the celebration!

Mom, I think I ate the whole thing!

He really does not look 33, does he?

While we were waiting, Amy found a beer glass holder on a sleeping Karsten's car seat!  Is that an legal or do we have grounds for Grandpa and Grandma to blackmail someone?

Karsten is not 21 Kris so no beer - no matter how much he wants it!

Grandma, No time for playing, I am hungry, when are we going to eat?

Thought we would update you on George's treatments.  Everything went great!  No side effects, no nausea, and he is feeling great.  So we did two days of treatments this week and the next treatments are the 29th and 30th of March.  The nurse said that the first treatments would be the worse for George so we do not expect any side effects on any of the other treatments----Great news!!!!!!

We have also talked to Bob and Donna and decided that we are headed to Tucson, AZ for most of the month of April to see our friends Tom and Maryann Graue.  On the way down to Tucson we will be stopping off in Albuquequer for a few days to see Mike and Rita.  It has been a long time since we have been on the road and we all wanted a little warmer weather for our next backyard adventure.  So after Karsten's baptism on March 20th and George's treatments we are out of here until the end of April.  We fully expect to see our friends, Doug and April here in Colorado as they make their way back to Gunnison for their camp hosting at Blue Mesa --- can't wait to see them again! 

Our blog should be back on schedule with regular postings as we get ready to travel and of course once we are visiting this country's beautiful backyards.  Hope you all are enjoying life and going out of your way to be HAPPY!!!!

Catching up with our Backyard!

Sorry for being gone for so long and not posting but hopefully we will get back in the swing of things and let you know what we are up to and give you a glimpse of our backyards.

The Wait is over and we are getting on with the treatments for George's little medical problem.  Yes, he does have Follicular Lymphoma, it is Stage 3 and Grade 3 but that is not all bad news.  George was approved for clinical trials that were very promising and utilized a drug called bendamustine and a protein call rituxmab in a combination (B-R) that had been used in East Germany for the last 30 years.  But at the last moment before the trials would have begun, our doctor had us come in for a consult and told us that we could do the trial or just do the protein and drug regime without the trial's formality and also George would not have to do a lot of baseline tests to get ready for the trials, like bilateral bone marrow biopsy, more PET and CT scans, numerous blood tests, a complete physical and a few other hoops...we opted out of the trial and will start the B-R regime on Tuesday, March 1st.  So how did that happen,  just recently this regime was approved for follicular lymphoma, intial treatments.  George will still do  2 day treatments each month for six months, and a follow-on of jsut rituxmab for 2 years with just one treatment every two months.  We are both very very optimistic but will keep you posted on this blog as he goes through his treatments.  If you would like any information on this treatment please just google "bendamustine plus rituxmab".  Bendamustine plus rituximab may offer a new standard of care for treatment of NHL and indolent lymphoma.

Now  back to the original purpose of this blog...what is going on in our backyard?  Well ,we will be in Colorado until our second treatment in April.  What is good about that is that we get to spend time with our kids and grandkids!  The weather had been pretty good so far this winter with the temps for most weeks above 40 degrees and many days in the mid 60s.  Yes, we did have a cold spell in early January with below zero temps but that was for 5 days only so we are not complaining.  Do you want to see pictures of Kasey and Karsten!  We have them since we also get to watch them every once in awhile; when we can convince Kris and Amy that we will not take off for parts unknown with the boys! 

Karsten was a very sick little boy earlier this month and we stayed with him during the day while the kids worked and they stayed all night in the hospital withh him while we stayed with Kasey.  He is doing fine now thank goodness.

Karsten still looks pretty good!

Grandma with mask, looking after Karsten!

Later we actually got to bring the boys to the motorhome and keep them a couple of days.  We know Kris and Amy were worried that we would leave the state with the grandbabies but they were brave and let us.  Actually, they came by and we think they were checking up on us !  The boys were great and we had a ball.  Here are a few pics - enjoy!

Breakfast with Grandma and Grandpa

 Karsten --What do you think?

I really do not like this hat but Grandpa said I had to wear it for this pic!

Ok we will sit together but not for long!

Grandma watch out Kasey is trying to escape out the window!

Could we use this for child abuse!!

They said they just came by to go to the CSU and Air Force basketball game --Yeah right!

We think they were checking up on us!

We also got to celebrate Nikki's birthday with one of her favorite resturants, PF Chang!  Happy Birthday Nikkit and just how old are you?-- Hint she was in high school when Kris and Amy graduated from college!!!  We all had a lot of fun.

David and Nikki looking good!

Sorry girls, we wanted a picture of Karsten sleeping!

Are those wine trees in front of the girls?  Three wine glasses at a time, hmmm!

Kasey likes to use crayons but where is the food!

David, I think those are for eating not bull fighting!!

We were a little long in the tooth with this blog but hopefully we caught up a little and you enjoyed the pics!  Please take care of yourselves, get out and enjoy this life, and by all means be happy!  It is great getting back to our backyard and to start living again without the worry about something we have so little control over. 

Our close friend Bobbi Wiley sent this to George in an email and we thought it applies to all of our very close and wonderful friends.....

"Close friends are for good times AND bad and all those in between, those layers make up the glue that holds us close and separates us from casual friends"

Here is to GLUE!!!!

Follicular Lymphoma!!!!!!!

As you may have noticed, we have not been posting as often as we did last year.  We have been a little worried and preoccupied!  We think now is a good time to let everyone know what we have been up to the last 6 months or so!!!  Before we went to Ohio last fall we had an appointment with our oncologist.  Dr. Schewe saved George's life 8 years ago and has been following him all these years.  He did a PET scan on George in August and found something very small but alarming.  He did not know if it was a non Hodgkin's lymphoma or a virus.  He suggested that we come back in December for another PET scan and see what that scan would tell us.  The December scan showed that there were now two growths, one in the abdomen and one in the chest cavity.  Dr. Schewe referred George to one of the best chemo oncologist in the Denver area, Dr. Bergen.  Dr. Bergen wasted no time and scheduled both a needle biopsy and bone biopsy to be performed the next week.  The needle biopsy would be used in conjunction with a CAT scan to pinpoint the exact lymph node.  But the Intervention Radiologist (IR) would not take a chance once he saw where the lymph node was - one was on the liver and one was on the aorta.  The problem was that his other organs were in the way and he could reach the lymph nodes with a needle.  So we proceeded with the bone scan, it was successful.  Not deterred, Dr. Bergen knew the best IR specialist in Denver, contacted him and ask him to look over all the PET and CAT scans and see if he could do a needle biopsy.  Dr. Lenoni looked at everything and said let's do it!  He was successful - so now we had two biopsies.  Unfortunately, the needle biopsy was not conclusive (too much junk in the node), the bone biopsy found no cancer in the bone marrow.  Dr. Bergen asked the top surgeon in Denver, Dr. Jeff Cross if he would look at doing a surgical biopsy.  We met with Dr. Cross and he said he would do it but no promises, he said sometimes lymphomas were just too hard to diagnosis and results were inconclusive in small nodes.  January 25th, George had his chest surgery.  Dr. Cross cut 4 holes about an 1 1/2" each in his side for his camera and equipment, a larger hole in his back for the chest tube, he deflated his left lung and cut out a lymph node about the size of the top of your thumb.  George is still recovering from the surgery but is getting better everyday.  The biopsy had to be sent to a special lab out of state and Dr. Cross called us tonight with the results.  It was follicular lymphoma!!!  We have an appointment on February 2 with Dr. Bergen to find out the path forward.  We will continue to update you on George's progress but we are very hopeful now!

So what is this follicular lymphoma?  Well we know it is stage III because it is above and below the diaphragm.  We know it is not an aggressive lymphoma because it has not spread that fast.  So what do we know... well we have done a lot of research since August and we think that given that George has cancer this may be the best news we could have received at this point!  If it is a small cell follicular cancer it will be slow moving, in fact they might decide not to do anything yet!  They may wait until he has symptoms such as night sweats, enlarged lymph nodes in the groin, neck or under arms, or any of the other symptoms associated with this type of cancer.  That is called a "wait and see" treatment.  Or they may decide to have George start on a chemo regime.  Since he still does not have any symptoms we will let the doctors tell us the path forward.

We want our friends and family know a couple things.  We have the best team of doctors looking after George, they are all at the top of their specialties.  This type of lymphoma is the easiest to cure with a 70% survival rate after 10 years.   We caught this early (before any symptoms) because of Dr. Schewe and his diligence in following George for eight years.  Also Pat's cousin, Mildred, had the same cancer 16 years ago and she is doing great, (also want to thank her for the information she gave us back in December).  There was also a small group of family and friends who have known about this since December and we want to thank them for their prayers and thoughts.  We also asked them not to spread the word until we knew more of what was going on with George and now want to thank them for keeping this to themselves.

So there you have it --- everything that we know about this Non Hodgkin's Follicular Lymphoma.  Of course you can research it and see if we missed anything but for now we are pretty happy with the outcome (if you can be happy with cancer) and optimistic about the future.

Cancer or not we will continue to explore our backyard (this world), we will continue to enjoy life as if there is not tomorrow, and we hope you all are doing the same!  Remember -- Life is good - don't waste it!

Happy New Year!!!

It has been a while since we posted, sorry but we have been a little busy.  After Christmas and Kasey's birthday, we had to do the little things around the motor home to get it ready to really live in it full time.  We have been neglecting our little home since we started watching the grand kids.  Also, we had to make our doctor's appointments which is a lost day for every appointment.  I wonder if those doctors understand how inconvenient their schedules are for two retirees that have so much to do!  After Kris, Amy, Kasey, and Karsten, took off for North Dakota, we were invited to spend Christmas day with David and Nikki along with our friends Bob and Donna.  We had a great time and Nikki, with a little help from David and George, put on a great spread.  Also, David now knows how to make a great lasagna.   Everything was really good, but Nikki's peanut butter pie was just outstanding!

David and Nikki opening a few presents on Christmas day

Bob and Donna enjoying a relaxing moment while Nikki slaves away at the stove

David putting together his GDO, yes David,  it is one of those presents that you must assemble!

As you know we are supposed to be in Florida as of Jan 1.   We got a little sidelined with those pesky doctors. It seems that George might have a little medical problem that needs to be taken care of before we head out.  So we have a few medical tests to get accomplished first. We think we have the best team of doctors right here in Colorado and would do not want someone that we do not know to check him out.  In our next blog we will let everyone know how the tests turn out but do not worry, we will keep you posted.

We hope everyone made it through the holidays unscathed and you were able to enjoy family and friends.  We were so fortunate to celebrate with the whole family before Christmas and to enjoy Kasey's birthday together.  Celebrating with our friends and fellow travelers, Bob and Donna at David and Nikki 's on Christmas day was special.  Kris and Amy skyped us a couple of times from the frozen north (it was actually colder there than  in Colorado this past week and it was damn cold here, i.e., -9 degrees at night).  We got to see Karsten eating and Kasey walking a little more each time we saw him.  We were allowed to dog sit for the New Year's Eve weekend.  Mylee and Ty kept us company from last year to this year!  It was nice having them around to play with and of course sleep with.  Bob and Donna joined us for our traditional pork and sauerkraut New Year's day meal.  Do you have a good luck New Year's day meal?

We now have a to do list for us (read that George) to accomplish before we travel to Florida and the warm weather (hopefully) so we still won't have any time to just relax but guess what....it is still fun!!!  I mentioned to another friend, Bobbi Wiley, in an email before New Year's eve that we should all have as much fun as we can without getting arrested.  We also hope you have decided to enjoy 2011 to the fullest (just don't get arrested).  Remember, life is short - get out and enjoy it!! 

Until we post again.....Happy New Year!!!!