Jon Speaks

Our friends from Australia, Ray and Leonie Dennis, introduced me to Art Rome a few months ago. Art was a Navy Seal, in his early forties, healthy and hard-charging. Ray and Art worked together on developing optics for the Marine Snipers and Naval Special Warfare. Art and I were diagnosed with the same type and stage of cancer within a week of each other. Art died last Wednesday, January 24th.

Please join me in sending Art's family your purest thoughts and prayers

JN

I'm Now Married to a Bald Guy

It's official-Jon's hair fell out in clumps on Wednesday so he shaved his head. We are leaving for Safari Club in Reno this afternoon so I will post some pictures as soon as we return. He looks pretty good :)

No News Is Good News

This week is probably the most normal our lives have been since "the diagnosis" (thus my lack of blogging!). Jon has felt good all week and managed to get in four workouts. I went to a seminar, we had dinner with friends in Seattle, and went to a going away party for our friend David Lane, who left for Brazil on his 2 year LDS Mission. For the past few months it has been problematic to make any kinds of plans, never knowing what each day held. It felt good to have some sense of normalcy in our lives.

We are back at chemo today. Jon is just finishing up. His blood work was a little on the low side...white and red cells still within the normal limits but hemoglobin and hematocrit slightly low. It is to be expected with the chemo and our naturopath gave him some new blood tonics to raise his counts. We are still waiting on the results of the alkaline phosphotase test. CT scan will be in 8 more weeks.

This morning Jon began to notice he is losing his hair. If it continues he plans to shave his head...so does Levi and Mike Carpentar. They really all want to look like Ultimate Fighters!

This has been Jon's best week on record since his diagnosis. Chemo was Monday and he has felt good all week. Today (Thursday) he feels a little sleepy and lightheaded, but no headache, nausea, or fever.

We are both feeling extremely optimistic about the new course of treatment!

Another Record Day

Jon's alkaline phosphotase was 138 yesterday. (test for liver function, normal is 110, he was 195 when diagonsed)

I hear a rumor that he and Kelsey are going jeans shopping today!

JON'S BIG ANNOUNCEMENT

Jon announced yesterday afternoon that on Sunday, January 14th he felt the best he has felt since his biopsy! He had a good work-out and ate like a horse.

He is back at chemo today where they have slowed down the Taxol a bit to prevent any more reactions. His white count is lower than his norm but still well within the acceptable range.

He started reading Muscle and Fitness again last night.

If he buys himself a pair of new jeans, we will be in business.

More Goose Hunting

The man is bound and determined to kill those geese! He's feeling better and left last night with Kelsey and Levi to goosehunt again. This time he is equipped with bendaryl, compazine, and ibuprofen (just in case!) All three were excited about their mini-adventure. Tomorrow is his next chemo and both Tonya and Kristi will accompany him. He will have a total of 8-12 sessions before the next CT scan, this will be the 3rd in the series. Keep sending him lots of positive thoughts and prayers! We are all visualizing the tumors shrinking with every chemotherapy.