Mom's 2nd chemo

This morning, my mom went for her 2nd chemo treatment. Her doctor adjusted her treatment schedule because of the side effects she had the last time. Read the posted titled "Wonderful News" for the details of the 1st treatment. Today, after running some errands, I was able to sit with my mom for the last part of her treatment. I enjoyed spending that time with her. The nurses there take good care of her while she is there. From start to finish, her treatments last about 4 hours. Please continue to pray for her. The first 2 days after treatments are fine. It's usually the 3rd day when she starts to feel yucky.

Here's how you can pray:

Pray that the side effects this time would be minimal and not last very long.
Pray that she would not have trouble sleeping.
Pray that her red/white blood cell counts would remain high.

She had a great time on vacation. No one would have ever guessed that she was on chemo by the schedule she kept on vacation. She didn't miss out on a single thing!! PTL! She even spent about 6 hours in the heat at Dollywood and several times carried Cait or Gracie or pushed a stroller.

After her treatment, we returned her rental car, went to Target, had dinner and went to Lowe's where she bought a new dishwasher.

When we got home, I washed laundry and here I am now, posting a new entry.

I think I'll go for now and play solitaire.

All good things must come to an end- Day 6

It's always fun looking forward to an upcoming vacation. Getting away from the hum drum of everyday life is so rewarding. Spending time with family and friends in a new setting helps to make special memories. All that said, getting back to the reality of everyday life is inevitable. With our vacation coming to an end, we packed up Wednesday night and loaded the car for the trip home. To wrap the week up, mom, Chad and I, Wes, Shannon, Cait, Gracie and Daniel went to the Apple Barn for breakfast. It was so good. Not only was the food delicious, but the apple julep was wonderful. I'm gonna have to make some. After breakfast we said our good-byes and headed home. I went back with my mom so I could be with her for her next chemo treatment on Friday.

A Hayride and Picnic- Day 5

Chad was definitely in his element Wednesday night. At 6:00 all 25 of us piled onto a flatbed for a hayride through Cade's Cove. For those of you who don't know what Cade's Cove is, it's a HUGE nature preserve with deer, bears and other wildlife. That night, we saw close to 20 deer, some horses and wild turkeys. All of the children loved being out in the "forest". Gracie was convinced we were going to see a goat. She loves goats! According to Cait, every deer we saw was a mama deer. One highlight from the trip was what Gracie said when we saw 4 deer together. We were all trying to point out the deer and Gracie stood up and said, "Look, it's the sun!" Isn't neat how excited little children get about the small things in life?

After the hayride, we took a group photo and headed to the picnic area for dinner only to find it was already closed. Being the creative group that we are, we found picnic tables outside the park along the road. It was a perfect place to stop. Our dinner consisted of, fried chicken, sandwiches, fruit, apple fritters, chips and everything else that had not been eaten during the week. To top it all off, for dessert we had no bake cookies and butterscotch nutty noodles (chow mien noodles with peanuts and melted butterscotch chips). They were awesome! Chad is an incredible cook and made them for the trip.

The scene after dinner was priceless. Picture 8 children running in an empty field catching fireflies. To top it off, the ring leader of the whole thing was none other than my husband, Chad. He had them "flying" through the field waving their hands as if they were airplanes. That memory alone made the vacation special.

Did we have a fun day? Yes, even if our picnic plans were not quite like we expected. It's times when things don't go as planned that memories are made!!

Splash Country- Day 5

After another princess slumber party, we packed up the clan once again and headed to Dolly Parton's water park called Splash Country. Once again, we headed toward the kiddie part. It's amazing how kids can change your whole perspective on going to a theme park. It didn't matter to me what we did as long as all the kiddos were happy. Watching them get excited was a treat for me. Boy was the water cold. The excitement started with a ride down a slide. At one point, I thought I was going to flip over. Not good I thought! The girls loved it so much they wanted to ride the green one, as they said. Afterwards, I watched Daniel so Wes and Shannon could take the girls down the lazy river. He was such a trooper. For those of you who are worried, we covered him with sunscreen and kept him in the shade with a hat on his head. When they got back, they were ready for lunch. Can I just tell you that the price you pay for food at a park like this is a rip off. After some more fun, we headed back to the cabin to re-fuel for our hayride and picnic at Cade's Cove.

When we got back, Shannon and I went for a walk. It was nice spending time with her catching up. Let me tell you, no amount of training could have prepared us for the hike we had. I promise the incline on the road had to be at least 60 degrees. For that reason, we walked a shorter distance. The tough workout was worth it. The view at the top of the road was breath-taking. God's creation is so beautiful. I felt the effects of the steep walk for days. I guess that means I got a workout.

Dollywood- Day 4

On Tuesday, we packed 5 cars and headed to Dollywood. Not an easy task when 2 sets of twins, a 4 month old, 3 year old, 5 year old and 8 year old are involved. The entertainment for the ride there consisted of a singing concert by Cait and Gracie. They sang everything from Jesus Loves Me, to Old McDonald. They have the sweetest little voices. Listening to their conversations was priceless. They are so precious! Once we got their, we boarded the "choo-choo train" as Cait and Gracie called it and headed for the park entrance. The girls were mesmerized by all they saw and heard. Mom offered to watch the kids so Wes and Shannon could ride a few rides so off we went with Cait, Gracie and Daniel. The first ride we rode were the cars. While waiting in line, the girls tried to choose which color car they would get to drive. I rode with Cait and it was priceless watching her "drive by myself". She and Graice both were hooked.

After the cars, we headed to the kiddie rides. They had an absolute ball riding the pigs, ducks and bumble bees. The pictures I got were priceless. After about 45 minutes of riding, they were pooped. Naps were now in order. It didn't take too long for them to crash for about an hour.
During that time, I rode the swings with Wes... they weren't too bad. I remember as a teenager riding any ride available, but as I've gotten older, my how things have changed.

Once the girls woke up, some of the family had joined us and they headed off to ride the carousel (or as the girls called it, the "circle"). Once again I got great pictures. I promise you're gonna love them all. Beware, there will be a ton! By the time we did that then walked around the park some, it was almost time for the Veggie Tales show. We had great seats and the girls had a great time. For those of you Veggie Tale fans, they told the story of the King with the chocolate bunnies.. aka the story of Shadrach, Meshach and Obednego.

After a fun filled day at the park, it was once again time to board the "choo choo train" and head to the Old Mill restaurant for dinner. It's amazing what an appetite you can get after spending 6 hours in the blazing sun. Dinner at 8:30 with a hungry children is an experience. They couldn't bring our fritters and salads fast enough. At one point Gracie was dipping her fritter in thousand islands dressing. What a combination. When all was said and done, we left with full tummies and tired bodies. After today I felt as if I somewhat understood how my parents felt when my brother and I were kids. Tired, yes. But the memories made that day were worth every bit of it.

Highligts Pigeon Forge Day 3

Any day shopping is a great day and Monday that's what I did. Chad and I both set ourselves on a budget and stuck to it. I found some cute shirts at the Gap. One was only $3.99. By then, mom, Chad and I were hungry (imagine that) so we went to Fuddrucker's for lunch. Talk about a good burger. I got the kids meal which comes with a cheeseburger, fries, drink and cookie for about $5.50. I thought that was a good deal. Not wasting any time we headed back to the outlets. I also found a cute top for my friend's, Audra, baby at Hartstrings. My and I went to the cosmetic outlet and after much trial and error I found a lipstick color that looked right...cranberry fizz for those of you who wanted to know. My final purchase was made at one of my favorite stores... Kirk land's. I found a really pretty tall, red vase with a gold design. I also bought big hydrangeas to put in it. I also found a big metal plate (or as Chad calls it, a gong) with stand to put above our kitchen cabinets. Before checking out I found the cutest tiny pillow that says, "God bless our home". It's been so much fun shopping for our new home.

After we finished up at the outlets, we met up with my Aunt Maggie, Angie, Connor, Christian, Aunt Jackie and Uncle Loyd at Goody's, but didn't find anything. To kill time before we met everyone for dinner at the Apple Barn, we went to Chick-Fil-A and let the boys play. They had so much fun. In fact, Aunt Maggie was sitting by the window next to the play area, and when Christian saw her, he ran towards her and was surprisingly met by a glass wall. It reminded me of the Windex commercial. He was just fine, a little scared more than anything.

At 6:30 we (20 0f us) met at Apple Barn to enjoy a wonderful dinner. They're apple fritters with apple butter are to die for. Mom and I split the chicken pot pie. It covered the entire bowl. As usual, after being full, everyone took there dessert to go.

When we got back to the cabin, we went to the pool. Connor and Christian had the cutest covered inflatable cars to play in. They loved them and looked absolutely adorable in them. When I told Connor that the car said, "Beep, Beep", he said it after me. It was priceless! At first the boys (my twin cousins, Connor and Christian) didn't like the water, but they time we had to leave, they were screaming because they didn't want to get out.

Kaylee(5), Parker(8) and Brock(3).. first cousins.. had a ball playing with each other in the pool. Sweet memories are made when cousins get together.

Without a doubt, the highlight of the day was when my brother, Wes, his wife, Shannon, the twin girls Cait and Gracie and baby Daniel arrived. If any kids have ever been loved, they are!! The girls were so excited to see "Grammy" and uncle Chad and aunt Betsy. One of the first things they asked was, "Where's Serlock? (Sherlock). For those who haven't read the entry entitled Pigeon Forge or bust, Sherlock is our cat. Which by the way, had a great time. Back to the nieces and nephews. Before we got out, Cait and Graice got in the pool with us. They are like little fish. They love the water. Before we new it, it was time for bed. Cait and Gracie got on their princess pajamas, and then "Grammy" and aunt Betsy got on their "princess" pajamas, and we had a slumber party. It was so sweet. The girls were so excited to be there that it took a while for them to get to sleep. Once they were asleep, they were out. They couldn't wait to go to the park and ride the horsies (Dollywood).

Pigeon Forge Day 2

Sausage, eggs, biscuits and gravy. That's what I woke up to this morning. We are putting our $360.00 of groceries to use immediately! Boy do we have cooks on this trip. My Aunt Maggie made the grits and eggs while Aunt Jackie made sausage patties, homemade gravy and biscuits. What a feast!!

Chad is here!! That was the highlight of the day for me!! Chad decided not to take today off and came just in time for our wonderful dinner. I got to Jacksonville on the 5th and today was the first time I had seen him since then. Absence DOES make the heart grow fonder!

Other than going to Wal-Mart and a few stores, today was rather uneventful. It was nice just being able to chill out and not have anywhere to go.

Tonight for dinner we had a feast (we really will do other things than eat). We had fried chicken (which I helped make), fresh squash, black-eyed peas, home-made mashed potatoes and cornbread.

Tomorrow we're off to the outlet mall. Can't wait!

Pigeon Forge or Bust!

Well, after waking up at 4:30 and picking up good friends, we were on our way to Pigeon Forge by 6:30. The big event of the morning was trying to get our cat, Sherlock, in the van. He's been staying with my mom since we moved to Nashville. Now that we have a house, we're going to make the "transfer" to Nashville at the end of the week. Bless his heart, he thought we were going to the vet, and he did everything he could to avoid it. I have battle scars to prove it, too!
Once he realized he was "safe" he did great! Although, I think he was still scared because he didn't eat or drink anything the entire trip up. He looked like a king on his throne sitting in the middle seat. Will post pictures when I get back home.

For lunch, we stopped in Ashville, North Carolina at the Moose Cafe. There we met up with more family for a nice lunch. We even bought fresh vegetables from the local farmer's market.

Once we got to the cabin and decided where everyone would sleep, we unpacked then headed to Bennett's Bar-B-Que for dinner. We must have been hungry because we sure did clean our plates! I even took pictures of leftover bones to show you. (I know you're thrilled.)

Afterwards, we had our 2nd highlight of the day.. Grocery shopping for 25 people. We filled up three buggies full of groceries with everything from toilet paper to sandwich meat. And yes, I took pictures. I promise they are coming! When all was said and done we spent $360.00. I am very proud to say that my Kroger card saved us $45.00. It's fun "Krogering". After putting away groceries and showering, we all managed to make it to bed before midnight. What a day!!

Cousin Bonding

I've been quite the social butterfly this week. Today after going to the doctor with my mom, I went to my cousin, Angie's house. I say cousin, but in reality we're more like sisters. We grew up together and are very close. She has three precious children: Kaylee (5), Connor/Christian (twin boys who are 15 months). Talk about a time! I fed and rocked sweet baby boys, watched a 5 year old boogy down and even managed to make Connor scream when I gave him a bath. He wasn't in any real danger..water managed to get in his eyes. I felt horrible though. I was so glad I had the opportunity to go over there. Angie is an incredible mom. How she keeps up with 3 kidos is beyond me, but she is perfect at it. Not to leave Mark out, Mark is a great dad. Over the years we've realized that the 2 of us have alot in common. Sweet memories were made today!

Tomorrow we're off to Pigeon Forge. Can't wait!

Wonderful News!

Went to the doctor today with my mom today, and I just wanted to let you read the email she sent to all our prayer warriors. It's a little long, but so worth the wait! She has such a way with words. Notice at the end where she mentions that she can't wait to spend the week with her grandchildren (notice how she omitted the children part!)

ENJOY!! There is power in the name of JESUS!

Dear Sweet Prayer Partners,

Now that I finally have my "Victory '08" group in place, I'd like to send weekly updates so that you will know specific answers to prayer and specific prayer needs for that week.

First of all, I cannot express how grateful I am for each and every prayer sent up to the Father on my behalf. I am blessed beyond measure. Today Betsy and I were talking to my oncologist and we told her that this group of doctors is about the most prayed for group on the planet! She was grateful and said that she certainly believed in the power of prayer.

Updates since my initial e-mail. I did have the MUGA test which showed my heart to be in fine shape! Next day I had my "porta cath" inserted successfully and the very next day, Friday, May 23, it has its inaugural infusion of chemo. And here is where the "fun" really stopped! My chemo meds consist of 3 different ones combined with a lot of initial stuff to cut down on the side effects as well as strengthen my bones. Apparently the chemo did not get the message about cutting back on side effects because I experienced every one that the literature on it suggests could happen. Unlike the 2003 round, a different med. was added, and what normally consists of 3-5 "down days" ended in about 2 weeks. I required IV fluids to offset complete dehydration. When I was at my lowest, Dr. Fox told me that we would get through this "crisis" and then determine what could be done to prevent all of this again. During the week of "devastation" I lost 13 pounds - yes that is about 2 pounds per day. I do not recommend this as a weight loss option! Needless to say I was eager to hear what we could do to prevent an encore - and to think what my insurance is billed to do this to me ! Something's wrong with this picture! The one day session and the follow up shot the next week was $33,700.00. My Aetna insurance is awesome - I only have to pay a $30.00 copay each visit. What an awesome blessing. On top of that I have a cancer policy which comes directly to me.

This week has been almost normal - whatever that is! I experienced the loss of my golden tresses and went for a wig fitting Monday. This is without a doubt one of the most difficult phases of the whole ordeal. I discovered the "Walk of Hope" boutique at the new cancer center at St. Vincent's and the folks in there are absolute angels in dealing strictly with cancer patients. I picked out a rather sassy wig whom Betsy and I named "Florence" (I figured if Donna Deegan can name her wig, so can I !) - got some cute hats, turbans and scarves, so I'm set for the duration. You just won't know which look I might have when you see me next!

In the meeting with the oncologist today, Dr. Fox said that I will begin a new schedule of chemo. Instead of getting the full "whammie" every 3 weeks, I will go each Friday for 3 weeks in succession and receive 1/3 of the dose. The 4th week I'm off, only to start the schedule again the following week. I should be able to recuperate over the week end and be back in full swing for a few days at the time. Her prognosis is great - said she expects full remission. Will probably be on chemo for the majority of this year.

We go on vacation this week - 25 family members - to the mountains. I will come back early with my "side kick" Betsy for treatment Friday. Looking so forward to the week with MY GRANDCHILDREN!!

My request for prayer is that you stay with me - daily- on this journey. Most of all, I want to remain strong in my faith and trust in the Lord as the Great Physician, and as I pray for you who have committed to pray with me, we'll see victory in all of this.

I love you all - please pass this on to others with whom you might have shared my story. Please let me know if you have needs I can pray for with you. Many of you have shared scriptures, and I am keeping them together - trying to memorize! That is NOT easy at my age. The one passage which has remained with me from 2003 is 2 Cor. 12: 9-10 - look it up - it is awesome. Paraphrased, it says :His grace is sufficient for me - in my weakness but in His strength, I am made perfect....I take pleasure in my infirmities...for when I am weak, then I am strong.

Great is Thy Faithfulness

I have discovered one of the neatest things. This may be old news to you, but in Nashville, something that has become very popular are vinyl wall words. You can get all kinds of quotes imaginable, and you can even create your own. One of my favorites is the monogram with your anniversary date. Anyway, they are vinyl words that come on a roll (like contact paper). They are so easy to put on walls. The next time you are at Garden Ridge or Hobby Lobby check them out. I say all that to say this. One of my favorite scriptures is Lamentations 3:22-23 which says, "It is because of the Lord's mercies we are not consumed, because His compassions they fail not. They are new every morning; great is Thy faithfulness." I was in Lifeway not too long ago and found this scripture. These are the words I have placed our kitchen above our table.

I have been reminded of how faithful God always is to supply our every need. If that wasn't enough, He also chooses to bless us above and beyond that. He is concerned with even the smallest details of our lives. For example, while shopping at Kroger recently, Chad's favorite pizzas were marked down to .24 cents (no, they weren't freezer burnt!) and we recently received an O'Charley's gift card from one of the preschool families at church. The girl that cuts my hair only charges me $10.00 to shampoo, cut and style my hair when it would normally cost $40.00. That's huge. Stop and take a minute to really think about how good God has been to you. Who knows, you may find His faithfulness on the receipt from your last trip to the grocery store. Have fun!

Mom is doing great!!

Thank you so much to those of you who have been praying for my mom. She is doing AWESOME right now. She had a rough first week, but is well on the mend. Her hair started falling out this weekend, so on Monday she had her hair shaved and got her wig. It was very hard for her the first time to have this done, but she said it was a tad bit easier (still hard though) this time. There is a neat salon at St. Vincent's Hospital (in Jacksonville, FL where she lives) in their cancer center. They really do their best to make this journey as easy as possible for their patients.

She kept up with the best of them this past weekend. From Thursday through Sunday we had wedding festivities every night and you'd never had known she was going through chemo. That is a huge answer to prayer!

Her next treatment will be on June 20th. I'll be in Jacksonville for that and will fly out Saturday evening to head back home.

I've so enjoyed getting to spend this time with my parents, family and friends.

Tomorrow I will be going to lunch with my dad. His favorite place to eat is Cracker Barrel. I love getting breakfast anytime of the day. Their pancakes are to die for! YUM! YUM!

Wonderful Friends Take 2

Had a great time with Betsy and Marshall tonight. We ate roast with rice and gravy, carrots and potatoes, and for dessert we had brownies. Delicious!! I was right about the house.. It's adorable and has such personality. As soon as I get back home, I'll post a picture of the happy couple with one of their dogs.

I've got lots of pictures I need to post.

Wonderful Friends

Today I was able to have lunch with a great friend.. Susan Johnson. We hadn't seen each other in a while so I enjoyed going over to her house for lunch. We caught each other up on all we've been doing and enjoyed a nice lunch. She's one of those friends that you don't see often, but just pick up where you left off the last time you were together. She has a wonderful husband, Chad(yes, a wonderful name!) and 3 adorable children.. Taylor, Tucker and Taryn.

Tonight I'm having dinner with one of my best friends, Betsy Dixon, and her husband Marshall. We have literally grown up together. We have lots of memories together.. birthday parties, trips to the circus, lots of slumber parties,choir tours, and the list goes on. She is the perfect example of what a friend should be. She celebrates with you in the happy times and she's there to walk with you through the not so happy times. She and her husband, Marshall, have been married for almost 2 years. I can't wait to see her house. It's got to be cute. She's got great taste.

A day to chill

Good afternoon! Today I have just chilled out at my mom's house. It's been so nice to not have to be anywhere. As you have noticed, I managed to change our blog layout. Miracles never cease! Watch out and tomorrow you may see pictures.

Just wanted to update you a little more as to what the Smith's have been up to. We were blessed to have been part of a wonderful church in Brunswick, GA. God really blessed Chad's ministry as many children came to know the Lord over the 3 1/2 years we were there. I was in the choir and a praise team. I also played for our Sunday night praise team and taught Sunday school. God brought many wonderful people into our lives that we are still in contact with today. It is still exciting to hear about what God is doing at First Baptist, Brunswick. Chad an opportunity to go overseas to Zambia and Brazil with 2 group from our church and had an amazing time leading VBS to MKs (missionary kids) in Zambia and to children in an orphanage in Brazil. I even benefited from the trip with some really pretty jewelry (ha! ha!). Come visit us and you can see the amazing wood piece Chad brought back.

We were so spoiled to be so close to both of our families. We became closes friend with I-95 during that time.

Betsy' email: bsmithbrunswick@aol.com

Chad's email: csmith@hermitagehillsbaptist.com

I'll go for now! Mom and I are going out to eat then taking a trip to one of the Wonders of the World.... Target!!

First time bloggers

We finally have a blog. I feel like we're now part of our technologically savvy world. I hope to update you regularly as to how we are doing. I love the idea of keeping up with friends and family through blogging. Hopefully soon I'll find a cutsie layout, but for now, this will do.

Chad and I moved to Nashvhille, TN in December. He is now the preschool minister at Hermitage Hills Baptist Church. We love it there. It's so neat to be a part of church where God is at work. We had VBS last week and had a ball. I still have Outrigger Island going through my head. The songs and motions are very addicting. I hope to find a full-time teaching position next year. We recently bought a house. We loved our apartment, but it was getting smaller by the day. God has been so good to us. We couldn't ask for more!

My cousin, Wally, got married tonight and the wedding was beautiful. His new wife, Jenny, is absolutely beautiful and so sweet. We are so glad to welcome her into our family. I've been in Jacksonville since Friday and will stay until next Saturday. It's been so much fun seeing family and friends that we don't normally get to spend time with. Our family is very close and when we see each other we simply pick up where we left off the last time we were together. We travel in packs. I'm so thankful for the blessing of a wonderful family.

Three weeks ago my mom found out that her cancer is back. In 2003, she was diagnosed with breast cancer, and after chemo treatments and surgery had been cancer free for the last five years. Needless to say, we were stunned to hear that it had returned. It has been amazing to hear of the hundreds of people who are praying for her and our family. She had her first treatment 2 weeks ago and had a rough week recuperating, but is thankfully, back to "normal". Her determined spirit and positive attitude never cease to amaze me. We have been praying for specific needs in this journey and God has already answered two of them. We wanted her to be able to enjoy all the wedding events of this weekend (and she's "partied" all weekend long), and we also prayed that she would be able to enjoy our family vacation to the mountains in a week. God granted that. She will not have another treatment until the end of our vacation. It's so neat to pray specifically and to watch God answer! We are claiming complete healing for her. I don't think her doctors truly realize how much they are being prayed for.

If you get a chance, send her a quick email or card.

Email: mfoote@coj.net or marthafoote@bellsouth.net.

Address: 7836 Knoll Drive North, Jacksonville, FL, 32221

I will keep you informed as to how she is doing. I guess that's all for now. It's after midnight and this chick is tired!!