Christmas Chemo Dose 12

Aaron had dose 12 yesterday. The week prior he didn't feel too well and we aren't sure why. What we do know is there isn't anything alarming from his blood work and his oxygen saturation is good. He has even been able to gain back the weight he lost during the week he didn't feel well. He will have scans two days after Christmas and that will tell us if this chemo is still working. Fingers crossed.

In the meantime, our cf kids spent another 2-3 weeks in the hospital. Between having kids in the hospital and Aaron feeling very sick Thanksgiving day I hope to never repeat a Thanksgiving like that again. Thanks to some very generous neighbors we had a real Thanksgiving dinner the day after Maddie was discharged. Our friends and neighbors are the best.

I've been thinking a lot about what Elder Maxwell teaches in his talk "Endure it Well". There are so many golden nuggets in that talk it's hard to choose what sums up my feelings most about our situation at this time, but I think this quote summarizes well:

"Patient endurance permits us to cling to our faith in the Lord and our faith in his timing when we are being tossed about by the surf of circumstance. Even when a seeming undertow grasps us, somehow, in the tumbling, we are being carried forward, though battered and bruised." 

Things can always get worse, and for us they probably will, but as a result of our struggles I feel more and more gratitude for the birth, life, and sacrifice of our Savior.  All we truly hope for, all we live for, and all we patiently endure is wrapped up in Him. He is our brightness of hope.

"We tend to think only in terms of our endurance, but it is God's patient long

 suffering which provides us with our chances to improve, affording us 

urgently needed developmental space or time."-Maxwell

Merry Christmas

Aaron still does all his IV meds through a peripheral line. He is one of the few cancer patients that doesn't have a port. I think that's pretty impressive after three years of pokes and meds. I wish he didn't have to go through all of this. He is a great example of patiently enduring.

Great oxygen saturation. We like to see it at 94+

Party in the hospital. We have a pod to ourselves and one nurse to
care for just our three kids.

Thanksgiving dinner in the hospital cafeteria. These kids didn't complain.
Their mother could learn a lot from them:)