Just coasting through....

Nothing major has been going on.  Radiation is tough on Jason with the meds before hand making him very sick to his stomach.  We do however think we found a way to beat that!!  Popsicles!!  If he eats a Popsicle right after it helps!

The tumor is looking great!!  It has continued to shrink and make his doctors very happy!  Jason has been making friends in the clinic during his pre-treatment. He has a new friend who is a cop with lung cancer.  I met him Friday and he is very nice.

Sunday we were given an amazing gift from our breeder!  We have our 3rd corgi!  His name is Buster and he is a great source of distraction for the kids!  Friday he went with us to treatment and met just about every nurse in the building, Buster was a huge hit and is expected to make repeat appearances.

Below - Dr. Gerson with Buster Friday at the office.  She is AMAZING!

I want to take a minute to thank everyone who has brought us meals or plans to!  I wish I had the time to thank each of you personally....so instead her is a great big THANK YOU!  It means the world to us that people want to help!

Smaller IS better!!!

Thursday we went to our appointment as normal and everything was going as planned.  While heading over to radiology Jason asked Dr Gerson to give him some good news and tell him the tumor is smaller!  She looks side to side all sneaky like and says "ok...open up!"  Her face was of surprise and she said "I need a light!!"  That was when they came and grabbed him to get set up for his treatment.  Dr Gerson came out from the room smiling from ear to ear and said...."I really do think it looks smaller!!!"  I about fell over!  Jason was worried that she said it just to make him feel better....I assured him that is not her job...honesty is!  That car ride home was horrible!  The medicine they give him to protect his saliva glands make his saliva very thick and taste horrible.  He has to lay in radiation for 20 minutes swallowing it and feeling bad.....so that should explain what our car ride was like.

Today we had the kids go with us to see where dad goes to make him better.  We had an appointment with Dr Chua  so the kids were happy to meet a doctor.  Dr Chua came in and said the same thing....the tumor is shrinking!!  She said his neck looks great too!  When he came in the first time she said his one side of his next was visibly larger than the other.  Today his neck was even on both sides!  She looked at his tongue and said and I quote "OH YES, that is definitely smaller!!"  I don't think I will ever get tired of hearing those words!!

The kids sat in the hall while Jason got his pre-radiation meds and I went back and forth.  They really did do a great job!  I thought there would be a ton of fighting...the little fighting we had was quiet.  They got a tour of the radiation room and they showed them the back of the machine.  Lots of nuts and bolts etc!  Needless to say when Austin saw it his eyes were as big as saucers and all he said was "WOW".  The ride home was a rough one one again.....but I keep trying to remind him, the weeks of crap now will make the rest of his life better!

Thanks to everyone who has signed up to bring us a meal!  It has meant the world to us to have a little down time after treatment and not worry about cooking!  The meals have been amazing!

Let the feeding (tube) begin!

After talking with Dr. Gerson about Jason's weight loss we decided it was time to start using his feeding tube!  In a matter of 4 weeks Jason lost 20lbs. When we had the G tube placed the nurse went over the directions very quickly and it was a fake feeding, so I learned nothing!  I was very nervous about using the tube and scared I would do something wrong.  Yesterday my friend Lori came over and walked us through a feeding....breathing easy now! Once we work out a routine it will be a piece of cake!  I got a book to keep track of everything he eats and drinks and when  he takes what meds.  That is the only way I will be able to keep track!

Also yesterday, Rachel helped us set up a meal page.  This will help us out SO much!!  There are many days that after treatment the LAST thing I want to do is go stand in the kitchen and cook.  Noah has been doing a great job at helping, but I still have to be close and help.  I want to say this now....THANK YOU to everyone who is, has, or will be helping us!  I may not remember to thank you as often as I should - my brain has been mush - but please know that we appreciate all the help we get and this includes prayers!

The weekend has been a rough one.  Jason has had nausea from the chemo and we have even made a trip to Jewish hospital oncology to have and IV and anti-nausea meds given.  Kicking cancers butt is a tough job...but we are still ready to do it!

My plea to you - If you text or call and we don't call back, please don't worry or get upset!  This is a lot for us to deal with and we get tons of text messages and phone calls and TONS of questions - our brains get over loaded.  I could tell you what my day/night consist of and what Jason's does....but I wont.  I understand everyone wants to know whats going on and if Jason is ok.  He is fine!  We have a few really rough months to go through, but we will make it through and will be so much stronger on the other side.  Freaking out and worrying will not help, all it does is make the healing process harder!  I don't want Jason to worry about ANYTHING other than getting better!  Positive thoughts only!!  My job is to take care of JASON and my kids....no one else!  I don't mean to sound mean but I have to keep my focus where it needs to be, and honestly I'm lucky to have energy to do that!

Last comment then I will stop with my demands.....MANY of you question what we are doing...treatment, meds etc.  We have THE BEST doctors on our side, they want nothing but the best for Jason - and they will do everything in their power to be sure he has everything he needs!  They make sure we know all the consequences of not following their orders ...we know ALL the information.  Please don't question what we are doing or try to suggest other things.  We will do exactly what our doctors say and nothing else!  They know what they are doing and I trust them 110%!

I'm sorry about the last 2 paragraphs, but the last few days I have been bombarded by questions, comments, calls, texts, etc and it caused me to have a break down I did not need to have!  I have to stay strong and I will!  :)

The link to the meal page is to the right of this entry at the top!

First Day of Chemo.....

Yesterday was our first day of chemo.  We were the first in the center...actually got there before much of the staff! They took Jason's vitals and we got to meet with Dr Chua.  She said we should start using the feeding tube every day now.  After a quick visit with her we headed to the lab.  We got a new nurse who's name was Beth, normally we have Megan.  (Megan stayed close though!)  They started giving Jason all his pre-meds before they give the chemo.

I had an 11:00 chiropractor appointment so I ran to that while he hung out with the nurses.  On the way back I grabbed him a small 3 way and he scarfed it!  Not long after I came they took him to the bed and started his pre-radiation fluids.  The fluids that help protect his saliva glands.  He has become a pro at this and his vitals are still great while they give him the drug. (BP can bottom out with this drug)  While he was on the bed I met a nice lady about our age sitting next to me.  Her name is Michelle and she has breast cancer.  We compared stories and found that she will be on chemo every 3 weeks so we were excited to see each other again!

Heading to radiation I was unsure of what to expect!  Every day is a new adventure there!  We got there early and Jason and I sat together on the bed in the hall.  He even got to play Hall monitor...MY JOB!  Thursday I was named hall monitor since I was  all knowing of where people were!  Let me start with this...it's never a dull moment when Dr Gerson and I are together!  Once she found that we have a great sense of humor she ran with it!  THIS day, she sat next to me on the bed....it was Dr Gerson, me and then Jason.  She turns to me in a hush tone and says..."ready to do the radiation wave???"  She went first with me following and Jason pulling up the rear!  It worked once and she had to call other over to watch us!  They went through many names for our wave ending with the head nurse saying it was the "Micro-wave".  Ole radiation humor at it's best!  While Jason was getting loaded with his radiation Linn came to talk to me. Linn is the brains in the group.  He does all the fittings and settings for radiation.  We talked about Jason, about family and then Dr Gerson came over!  I love this woman!!!  She said he needed to show me his special trick....I was intrigued!  He had to go do something and Dr Gerson told me he has an AMAZING talent!  She said they can be standing having a team huddle and be all serious and Linn will jump from where is is standing and can land on the counter top!!!  I can't wait to see this!  I think she is going to have him do it next Friday for the kids.  They are off school so I thought I would take them with us so they can see everything.  The radiologist team said they would give the kids a tour of the room!  Dr Gerson is very excited to see the kids....when I told her they were coming she yelled "YEAH!  And I can play with them???"  I LOVE THIS WOMAN! The photos below are of the mask that Jason wears for every treatment.  Looks like something out of a scary movie!!

After he came out we did vitals and headed back to the lab for CHEMO!  This time we started talking to a guy in the corner of the room.  He was in a very similar situation as Jason.  He has the same type of cancer but his was found in the glands in the back of his mouth. They tried to remove them but did not get rid of it so now he is doing the same treatment as Jason with one slight difference.  He is getting his chemo for 3 weeks straight rather than 3 weeks apart like ours.  He is on the same chemo and goes to radiation too.  It was nice for Jason to have someone to talk to that is further along in the process.  He told him about cream for his face and that he really does not feel that bad!  We will see him next Friday also.  The nurses at the lab are so great!  Fay is an older lady who has more energy than my entire family combined! I think I found her fuel though!  She had me open no kidding like 16 creamer packets into her coffee cup!  I had to have fun with this to on the side I wrote...."Fay's creamer with coffee".  She LOVED it!

We were finished at about 5:00 and headed for home.  LONG day!  About 7pm Jason started to feel very sick!  It ended up being a long night of switching between the 2 nausea meds they gave him.  Once he gets them in he feels pretty good, but until they start working it's rough!  I think we will ask for a different medicine....Megan was telling us about it yesterday at chemo. Jason wants to get out of the house today so after my hair appointment I think I will take him out for a bit.  I told him I have to go buy his bubble first!  :)

FIRST WEEK OF CANCER TREATMENT DOWN!!!!!!!

Radiation time!!!

The last 2 days have been so busy that I have to really think while posting this blog!  I hope I don't bounce around too much......

Tuesday was our first radiation appointment!!  I have learned one very important detail in cancer treatment....just when you think you know what is going on and have a set schedule.....YOU DON'T!  We were told the day before that we had to come in early because they wanted to give Jason an injection to try to prevent remnant damage to his saliva glands.  We got to the Radiology dept and when Jason's nurse saw us she said we have to go to the oncology side for the injection, so we packed up and headed across the hall!  We went back and they showed us around and told us all about the injection.  They would give him a saline drip with  anti-nausea meds.  Then they moved him to a bed that can be inverted because this injection can cause a massive drop in blood pressure and if he drops they can help regulate him by flipping him upside down.  They checked his vitals every few minutes and he stayed steady!  Apparently we were running a little behind because Bonnie had to keep coming over to rush the girls!  They are BIG about staying on schedule!!  When he was finished with the meds they wheeled him over to radiology for his first treatment.  This first one took a little longer as they had to double check his settings.  Jason's nurse Bonnie hung out with me and she really is an amazing woman!  Once we were done, we headed for home!  Jason felt pretty good after his first treatment, he was tired but felt ok.  The photo below is one I got while sitting outside of the radiology room.

Today we got to Oncology at 11:00am.  Tomorrow we will go at 11:30....we were a little early!  There was another small delay as they devised the plan...this is not a treatment they do often so it is new to many of the nurses!  I have to say they handle it like CHAMPS!  Jason's vitals once again stayed solid and he headed over for his second radiation treatment.  One of the nurses tried to move him and pushed a bit to close to his G tube which caused him some pain.  I told him from now on no matter where he is, or what he is doing he MUST tell them he has that!  I also said I would have a shirt made with a red button on it that said "DON'T push my button". Once they were done they let me go in and see the room! I think I will ask tomorrow if I can go again and get a photo.  I like to grab as many photos as I can so that the kids can see what is going on.  On the way out we ran into Dr Gerson...I love this woman!  She was asking how he was feeling and how the injections were, then she started to pet him like a dog!  HA HA

We start chemo on Friday and that will be a packed day!  We have to be there by 7:45am to start the bag at 8:00am and have radiation as scheduled at 1:20pm.  I'm thinking I will ditch him and go to the chiropractor while he gets his bag and then go back!

We have yet another surgery on Tuesday.  He will have his "super port" placed early that morning and then head to radiation that afternoon.  The port is medical appliance that is installed beneath the skin.  A catheter connects the port to a vein.  Under the skin the port has a septum through which drugs can be injected and blood samples can be drawn many times, usually with less discomfort to the patient than regular needle sticks.  This will be placed on his chest just under his collar bone.  Below is a photo of what will be placed in his chest.

Faith and Austin have both been in to talk with the school councilor and I contacted one of Noah's teachers to see if he would talk to Noah.  I just want the kids to know they have people other than the ones around them all the time to talk to.  As for me...I started a slight melt down today but I think I pulled out well.  It can be overwhelming when looking at all I have to do day to day!  This is my life for the next 9 or so weeks and I might as well get used to it!  Noah has been stepping up and really helping me out!  He has been asking if he can start cooking dinner so we have been working on learning how to make certain meals.  he also has learned how to do laundry and is helping with that!  He has his teenage moments and that is ok!

Enough typing....time to clean up dinner and do some laundry!  :)

BUSY BUSY BUSY

Time flies when your preparing for cancer treatments!

This weekend has been interesting, getting used to the care of Jason's feeding tube.  We had a couple scares....a scare to us but the doctors tell us it's all ok and normal.  Like I said...this will take some getting used to.  We are not using it to feed him yet, honestly I'm a little nervous about that!  I don't want to screw it up!   The other night Jason's tongue started to bleed and that had us up most of the night.  The dog's are doing their best to help Jason feel better.....

This week is PACKED!  Today we went to a doctor who will be putting in a central port for Chemo and any blood work.  The rest of the week is as follows:

Tuesday 1/10 - Radiation
Wednesday 1/11 - Possible surgery to implant port and then radiation.
Thursday 1/12 - Radiation
Friday - Chemo for 6 hours then followed by radiation.

Next week should be radiation only unless they throw us any curve balls.  With that I bid you Good night!  Sleep is something we take very seriously around here! Some nights it's hard to come by!

Thanks again for all your support!

Romantic Night Away

Greetings from the beautiful and peaceful Bethesda North Hospital, well unless you count the old lady down the hall screaming at me when I walk past her room!  "HEY GIRL, COME HERE GIRL......HEY GIRL.....COME HERE!!" Yes, I ran away!

Yesterday we arrived a little nervous, but ready to get going!  They took Jason back and got his IV and gave him a very pretty gown!!  I got to spend some time with him before they took him in to surgery, we spoke to LOTS of doctors and gave them all the same answers...they really need to compare notes!  They wanted to try using the "twilight" gas and hoped that he would not keep coming out of it, but because he is young and fit they were not sure.  I found out after that they did have to fully sedate him.  This proved to be an interesting time in recovery!  He teased the nurses and asked them the same questions over and over again.  They really enjoyed him, and I took a video!  When waiting for transport to his room I told him he was to close his eyes and pretend he was asleep...no talking to strange people or they may place him in a padded room!

Once we got to the room it was a lot of shuffling around and MANY questions!  By the time everything settled down it was 9:30!  Up and down all night and a fever made for a busy night.  He has been doing well this morning, his fever is going down and he is keeping his pain meds going.


The GI Dr came in already today and said he wanted to do some blood work, a urine test and a chest x-ray......then......he may discharge him!!  That makes Jason a happy boy, he wants to be home to watch the Bengals lose today!  HA HA

Communication was not the best yesterday...but it was hard to text or call people when I had 100 other things going on...so for that I want to apologize to family and friends.  Jason is my #1 priority and he comes first!  

Thanks for you continued support!  Love you all!

Hitting the high speed lane....

We just went from hurry up and wait to FULL STEAM AHEAD!  In 1 phone call we got the following information......

Tomorrow 1/6/2012 they will give Jason his G tube.  They require a 24 hour stay so we are currently working out what to do with the kids.  I guess I don't HAVE to stay with him all night, but I want to make sure I am aware of everything that goes on and any information that may come.  Jason is not the best at relaying info to me.

Monday 1/9/2012 we meet with a doctor who will put in a central line to use for blood work and chemo treatments over the next 9 weeks. Not sure when he will put that in, with everything starting that week I would think it would be SOON!

Our first radiation appointment has been moved to Tuesday 1/10/2012 a day early, and the first chemo treatment will be that Friday the 13th. (great date huh?)   :)  His treatments are 6 hours long, so that will be one LONG day!

With all that information I now must run to keep working out what to do with these kids!

Keep the prayers coming.....Now is when Jason will need them to help him push through.  As ready as he is to get this started and kick cancers butt, he is nervous about it.  Thanks everyone!

I'm a happy girl

Second blog entry in 1 day...I know sorry...but I'm very excited!

Ok, so we had our appointment with Dr Gerson today.  I LOVE THIS WOMAN!  Yes we had to sit in the tiny room for a long time waiting and then when she got to us she had another patient with an issue and had to ditch us....but she is SO worth the wait!  Going into this appointment she knew we were not feeling the news from the ENT doctor.  She took a look and agreed with Jason that YES it had indeed gotten larger...but as she says "That's what it does without treatment!"  She had talked to Dr Chua (oncologist) and was waiting to hear from the ENT doctor.  While we were there she got a hold of him and talked with him about our plan.  Apparently he gave her a totally different answer than he told us!  He agreed with her about doing treatment BEFORE surgery!  This confuses me because he was pretty set on surgery first and I felt like he was trying to scare us into it!

So Dr. Gerson says, "He is on board with our plan of chemo and radiation then if need be....surgery.  THANK GOD!  I'm done questioning why he changed his mind.....I'm just happy that we can proceed as we all think is best!  Jason was wanting to know about his ear pain and the swollen lump of a lymph node.  Dr Gerson said it may go down right away!  It's hard to tell but she said he has youth, healthiness and non-smoking on his side! She also thinks after treatment he will heal fast thanks to those 3 items!  Dr Gerson wants him on a regular vitamin, extra D and extra protein. She also said none to a little caffeine and no soda....well he can have 1 a day.

They will most likely start chemo the same day they start radiation and that date is still set for next week.  1/11/12. We are waiting to hear back about when Jason will have his G tube placed.  We are getting so close to starting this fight and we are so very  much ready!

I just wanted to let everyone know that today went as well as it could have and we are so happy! They also said they sent an order in on the biopsy....they want it tested to see if it has traits of HPV.  If so....that means it will be easier to treat!  Same treatment plan, but it usually responds better.

THANK YOU for all your kind words, thoughts and prayers! Today was just what we needed to help our mood! :)

Who are we and How did we become us?

Many of you may not know how Jason and I met or anything about our family. Well, I'm going to give you a sneak peek into just that!

It was my senior year of high school, and my friends and I would often go to the bowling alley to shoot pool.  This weekend the billiard was packed and in the far corner I could see a group of 3 guys.  One in particular stood out to me!  I was never the one to go up to a guy so I was not sure what to do....but I knew I wanted to meet him!  I turned to my friend JJ and told him I thought the guy over in the corner was HOT!  JJ jumped up and went over to talk to him!  After many trips back and forth and many questions on if I was 18 or not he came back with a piece of paper, it said Jason Smiddy and his phone number. Yes I giggled and got all weird, AND I had not expected him to come over and sit down to talk to me before he left....WOWZA!  :)

Jason told me to call him after 8 because he would not be home, I think he had a class. COLLEGE BOY!!!  I called him and we talked most of the night.  Our first date, I had to pick him up because he had his license taken away after an accident.  We went to Frisch's and I ate french fries because I was scared to eat REAL food in front of him. After that we went back to his moms apartment and hung out.  Asking Jason now, he said he was nervous....not as much as me!

After that first date we were together most of the time! Mr. "I'm so big and bad" started wearing his seat belt in my car...only because I wouldn't drive until he he buckled up.....AND he started to listening to country music!!  Jason was my date to my Senior prom and shortly after Senior year we decided to move in together. We got married on April 25, 1998 and had our first baby Noah - December 8, 1998.  (We wasted no time!) We had a small wedding, close family and a few friends gathered at a gazebo behind the church, then went back to our place after.  We have plans to renew our vows on a beach VERY soon!  Our marriage was not the easiest in the beginning, I'm sure it had something to do with the wasting no time part....but no matter how many arguments we had.....I loved him more than anything!  We had our beautiful daughter Faith on July 21, 2001 and Austin was a surprise showing up August 20, 2002!  Our family was now complete and  it was time to enjoy it!  Through the years we moved from Finneytown to Glendale and then to West Chester- where we are now!

Jason and I have had our ups and our downs....we were even separated for a short time....but even while we were separated and I did not want to see him, we were dating!  I just can't seem to get enough of him!  You may hear people say, "He completes me" well as corny as it is.....he does!  Jason fills me with love, he helps me when I'm down and we fit together perfectly!  NOTHING can make me feel better faster than being wrapped in his arms!  He makes me smile when I want to be mad and laugh when I want to cry!  I LOVE him!

Funny facts -

My grandpa never called Jason by his name.  When I introduced them I said "Grandpa, this is Jason"  His quick reply "Hello Jasper".  Jason was quick to correct him, "No sir it's Jason".  "I know that Jasper!"  {{Giggles}} Until the day we lost my Grandpa to cancer, Jason was always Jasper!

Growing up Jason and his family used to drive past my house ALL the time to drop his brother off at St. X.  They probably passed me while I did cartwheels in the front yard!  :)

BOTH of our families have ties back to Glendale Ohio - AND know many of the same people!

Noah's middle name is 'Jay' which was my nickname through H.S. AND Jason goes by that name at work and with some friends.

Jason has many names.....Jason, John, Jay, Jasper.......

CURRENT
Today we meet with Dr Gerson again.(Radiologist)  She called yesterday and wants to change how they have his head placed for radiation next week.  She also said lets do treatment BEFORE surgery!  She thinks she can cure him with out it!  We LOVE her!  Update on that appointment later!