Every day is a better day. Jon's mostly just very tired and still sleeps a lot. Yesterday we spent the day with Elizabeth looking at some retail spaces for the botiques she strives to open one day. It's a few years off but she is very motivated and its fun to plan and dream with her.

Afteward Kelsey, Elizabeth, and I had our Tarot Cards read (Jon slept in the car). The women told us all that Jon would be cured, I was coming out of a dark period in my life (thank God!), Elizabeth would have twins, and Kesley would become a doctor after college on the eastcoast. All sounds good to me.

We then had dinner with Kristi on the way back to Sumner. It was good to have some time with her and she continues to amaze me with her strength.

Well he's up out of bed and only taking ibuprofen for mild pain/fever. Hopefully every day will get better from here.

Jon's been resting most of the day. He hasn't really had any pain or nausea but is very tired and has a mild temperature. He got out of bed this evening to do a little paperwork and I'm trying to get him to eat a bit of chicken soup and jello.

I've been practicing a lecture I'll be giving on Friday about stress and it's affects on your health. I should definitely be an expert by now!

We're home and Jon is resting comfortably. He's been able to reduce to one pain pill every four hours so that is a huge improvement. They just couldn't get that IV machine setup fast enough last night. He's taking three different meds for nausea as well.

His sense of humor has returned until I knocked him out with his pain meds at 5. The nurse from this morning actually asked me if he ever speaks?? I told her she was lucky he was keeping to himself :)

Pain and nausea are under control with oral meds so we're heading home.

Well we thought we were a little wiser this time around but to quote Jon, "Just when you think you've seen it all..." He remained in severe pain with vomiting most of the evening. Fortunately the Dilaudid finally kicked in and made the pain manageable. After that they were able to give him meds for sleep and nausea. It's 8am and he's still asleep. They should be here shortly to take him for his CT scan.

Although Jon is in severe pain the surgeons are very pleased with the procedure and the amount of cancer they were able to kill. They treated a portion of both the right and left lobe that had the highest concentration of cancer and are confident that they were successful. They both expect Jon to have this degree of pain because of the intensity of the treatment. Jon shook their hands and thanked them. After all, this is about killing cancer and we all know Jon's favorite saying, "Pain is weakness leaving the body." I think I'll give him that tshirt to wear when we get home.

After the CT scan they will attempt to move him from IV to oral Dialudid. If that will control the pain we will still be able to go home today.

Things took a turn for the worse this afternoon as the two oxycodone had absolutely no effect on Jon's pain level. Next they gave him another oxycodone and a shot of morphine, still no change. Finally Dr. Goswami came in and ordered Dilatted (sp?) in a self-delivery machine. After a few pumps of that Jon is pretty much knocked out. It looks like it may be a rough night after all. The kids have left for the evening and we're hunkered down for the night with lots of drugs.

Jon was out of surgery and back in his room by 1:30. He was in good spirits and ate a large lunch immediately. He asked the anesthesiologist to give him the minimal amount of anesthesia so he was awake and alert when he got here. The only drawback is that he is much more aware of his pain level now. The nurse just gave him two oxycodone so he should be feeling better in about 30 minutes.

The surgeon opted to treat the left lobe of his liver rather then repeat the right one. We will ask for more details when we see him tonight, but we're assuming its to give the right lobe a little more healing time.

Jon and I are back at the UW this morning for the next chemoembolization. We're a little smarter, relaxed and prepared this time around. Jon made sure to eat as much as he possibly could yesterday and topped everything off with a midnight protien shake, just in case it was an all day wait with no food. His weight was 178 last night...just a few more pounds to go to reach his normal weight.

We were here at 6:30 am for all of the preliminaries and they took him into surgery at 11. He should be approximately two hours. I'm napping in his room until the procedure is over and the kids are coming by this afternoon. I promised to have a meal and glass of prune juice waiting for him when he returns :)

Embolization #2

We're back from vacation and preparing for Jon's next chemoembolization. He is feeling strong and looks great (equipped with hair on his head, eyelashes and eyebrows). We are to be at the UW Medical Center on Thursday at 6:30 am for the second chemoembolization. Dr. Goswami will be doing the second portion of the right lobe of Jon's liver. They tell us that the side effects should be about the same but Jon and I have decided that they won't be as bad since there is so much less cancer to kill and we have the prior knowledge of having already had one procedure. All in all it's still much better than systemic chemo.

The kids and I had a wonderful vacation in Connecticut and NYC. It was great to see my sister and her family. When Elizabeth and Kelsey were younger they used to spend a few weeks a summer with their cousins at my mom and dad's in Pennsylvania. When the girls went off to college that ended and this is the first time all the cousins have been together in approximately five years. It is amazing to watch them pick up where they left off, like they just saw each other last week. I won't be surprised if Kelsey decides to go off to college on the east coast to be closer to his cousins and extended family. I guess that means I'll just have to make more trips back there!

Jon and I attended Ed Frawley's memorial service on Saturday. It was a moving tribute to Ed, his life, and the lives of the many people he had touched. Two coworkers came all the way from Japan to honor Ed and his family. Many coworkers, family members and childhood friends paid tribute to Ed through sharing stories about his childhood, friendships, and family. I would say Kristi, Cody and Kyle are doing as well as could be expected under the circumstances. Please keep them all in your prayers during the coming months.

All in all it's been a pretty good weekend. Yesterday, we attended the wedding of Levi's close friends, BJ and Ariel. Levi and Maelie were both in the wedding and were as beautiful as ever. We had to laugh as Maelie squealed with delight when she walked (and stomped) on the carpet of rosepetals walking down the aisle. Poor Ericka chased her around as she held onto her pregnant belly. That girl is definitely her father's daughter! They are an adorable young and growing family. Elizabeth and David were also in the wedding of their friends from EWU, Stephanie and Doug, in Pasco on the same day. They returned to Seattle tonight.

Kelsey, Elizabeth and I leave for a trip to visit my sister, Barbara and her family in Connecticut on Tuesday. We will be back in time to honor Ed Frawley at his Memorial Service next Saturday. Jon will hold down the fort and maybe do a little backpacking while we are gone.

I really need to get a picture of Jon on the blog...everyone at the wedding commented on how great he's looking these days. His hair is back as is the sparkle in his eyes!

So no news will be good news. I should be back to the blog a week from today.

Memorial Service for Ed Frawley

Ed's Memorial service will be Saturday August 16th at 2:00 @ Orting Community Baptist Church

The address is 308 Kansas St SW
Orting WA 98360
360-893-4411

Return of the Chuemaster

Jon and I received a telephone call from Dr. Chue this week to check up on Jon and his recent procedures. It was a wonderful reminder of the excellent care and compassion we have received at the Seattle Cancer Treatment and Wellness Center.

Right now, Jon is under the care of Dr. Goswami at the University of Washington/Seattle Cancer Care Alliance until the embolizations are complete in September. Dr. Chue is just following him with scans and bloodwork. He reminded us to make sure that Jon's next CT scan includes his lungs so they can monitor the small tumors there while the focus remains on his liver. Once the embolizations are complete we will return to SCTWC for follow-up and on-going monitoring. Dr. Chue already has a "maintenance" plan in place.

He informed us that pancreatic cancer survivor, Arron Barret did complete the Seattle to Portland Bike Ride this year. He is a four year survivor, virtually unheard of outside SCTWC. Dr Chue also teased Jon that he had numerous other patients that have already "out-survived" him in pancreatic cancer. You know there's nothing like a little bit of competition to keep Jon motivated. I am always surprised at Dr. Chue's sense of humor...much more then what you would expect from such a smart guy!

We had an excellent backpacking anniversary trip and are going on a bike ride today. Jon looks really good with hair, eyebrows and eyelashes, he's still a little on the skinny side but is working hard to put on some more muscle. I'm working on getting a recent picture on the blog but my digital camera is broken :(

In Honor of Ed Frawley

On Sunday night, August 3 we received the tragic news that our brother-in-law Ed Frawley had died suddenly of a heart attack at the age of 48. He and his wife, Kristi (Jon's sister) had been living in Japan the last few years while Ed worked as a liaison between Boeing and Mitsubishi. They have two adult sons, Kyle and Cody who live nearby in Buckley, WA. Kyle showed up on our doorstep late Sunday night with the news.

Tonight the family gathered at our home to share memories and stories of Ed's life. We were able to see Kristi via vidoecam in Japan with our niece Ann's computer. Kristi shared with us numerous stories of honorariums and memorials that have already taken place at the Mitsubishi Plant in Japan. Ed was well-loved and respected by everyone he knew. With the help of friends, Kristi is packing up their home and attempting to return to the US by early next week. Her best-friend Pam is already there and her son Cody leaves for Japan early tomorrow morning.

Please keep the Frawley family in your prayers.

This has been a good week for us. Actually I have to say Jon has felt better than I have after crashing my bike 3 times during the Seattle Century when my clipless pedals refused to unclip!! He's offered me a few of his Oxycodone but I'm sticking with ice, adjustments, massage and a few ibuprofen. We both feel well enough to leave for a weekend backpacking trip to celebrate our 2nd wedding anniversary. It's hard to believe how much has happened since then and I am grateful for every day (some days more than others!)

Jon saw Dr. Goswami today for a follow-up from his first chemoembolization. The post CT scan showed excellent uptake to the tumors and Dr. Goswami remains optimistic about curing this cancer. We could not have asked for better doctors on this journey. The next procedure is scheduled for Aug 21 where Dr. Goswami will finish of the rest of the right lobe then one more shot at the left lobe in September. It's getting to the point where Jon is scheduling procedures around his backpacking and hunting trips. With any luck the CT in October will be clear and our life will return to some semblance of normal.