Overwhelming

The weekend is over and the kids are snug in their beds. We have successfully made it through a week with two kids having fevers and another getting a big dose of chemo. We are starting to plan for lots of things in May (Ally's first communion on May 1, the big celebration party on the 22nd, going to PA to see my grandparents, even a plan for my first ever garden...in collaboration with a few of my girlies). It is feeling a little overwhelming to me to have other things going on while I know this is going to be one of Ally's hardest months. As the calendar stands now, she will start her radiation treatments in Cincinnati on May 12th. That is also looming large in my mind. Two weeks of driving to Cincy and putting my girl in front of the radiation that could have some long-time side effects for her. It is hard to do, yes, but the possibility of the cancer returning on her brain is even worse. It cannot be an option. Thus, we move forward with treatment as Dr. B directs us.

So, I am trying to take a lesson from all that I have learned in the past eleven months. (WOW...almost 11 months now) And the lesson is to not get stressed out. Because all of these things mean very little if we end up back in the hospital again with any sort of issue. I guess I can plan a communion party in two days or rely on a whole group of other people to plan the 22nd. I have to make my focus on Ally and I will. I still have great trouble keeping up with regular things like email, laundry, birthday and/or thank you cards, mail, and messes in my house. Someday, someday, I will have time for all of these things. And more.

Ally is doing pretty well all things considered. Her biggest complaint is her joint pain...excessive pain in her legs, hips, ankles, etc. I feel so bad about it. She continues to take multiple baths a day to try to alleviate the ache. She puts the lovely rice bags on her throbbing joints (Thank you to Mary Nutter's mom for those lifesavers). We have even resorted to Vicodin a few times. However, you should know, she keeps going as much as possible. Shopping with my Dad, having her girls spend the night, going to her brothers soccer game, and hanging out with her cousins were a few of her weekend activities. The doctors always say the very best thing we can do for her is to keep her moving. And we do that. But by the time bedtime rolls around she is in quite a bit of pain. This is not something an eight year old girl should have to deal with...more like an 80 year old. She is also dealing with the effects of being on high dose steroids for a week. They totally put her into a daze and she offers little to no communication with us. She always appears sad, although deep down I do not think she is.

I will have to post a couple housekeeping items coming up here. First, the event called Ally's Army Battles Cancer, which is our party on May 22. We are in the process of getting tickets printed up. Once this is done we will have a few locations where you can purchase your tickets. This will serve as an RSVP to us and allow us to know how many are coming and plan for food, drink, etc. Also, some have asked if this is a "family" event or is it "no kids". We are asking that no kids attend. The reason being is that it is more of an adult party...beverages, dancing. But more importantly, we are going to be running a live auction to try to raise more money for our cause and that could be a bit hard with kids running around, etc. Don't worry, Ally is the exception to that rule and she will be at the party for the first hour or two running her lemonade stand and talking with everybody.

There is also a texas hold-em poker tournament being held as a benefit for the LLS Man of the Year campaign. I believe they are accepting the first 100 people. I do know they had an awesome time when they did this in the fall. A woman even won it! If you desire more information, there is a contact below.

May 6, 2010 6:30pm buy in, starts at 7
Texas Hold'em Tournament
call John at 937-427-6456 or email to johnk@synergybldg.com

Thank you for continuing to support and pray for our family as we continue this very long battle against Ally's disease. We are still very much in the depths of it, and appreciate all the love and support that we get from the Army. I continue to be amazed at the kindness, generosity, and love that has come out of this situation. Your prayers for Ally and our family mean so much to us all.