MRI Results!!

Hey everybody!! Great News!

We got the preliminary report back on Harold’s MRI. His doctor from the Cancer Center called us with the news just over an hour ago. He said there was no tumor or re-growth. The report did indicate that he still had some minor swelling. Nevertheless, with all he has had done from surgery and the radiation, we will take it!! Now, we are praying for the same great news when we go up to Duke next Thursday. I will keep everyone updated on our visit! You know me, I have a list a mile long of what I want to discuss with the Duke team next week. We know it is not over, but it sure feels good to hear some good news finally!!

Therefore, we will be celebrating the rest of this week…for Harold’s great report….for Harold’s Birthday tomorrow…and Holden’s Birthday is on the 5th. We are having Holden's “Power Ranger Bowling Party” on Saturday. Come on out and bowl with us!

Harold has been working a couple days a week for only a couple hours. And he needs to get out of the house…he is driving me crazy with his cabin fever. And never before has Harold ever asked to ride with me to the grocery store! Haha I will take advantage of that now…I know it will not last!

As for Harold’s shooting pains…well, the Duke Doctor called us late last night. She said it could be a facial nerve that is irritated from the radiation. She said we should not worry about it, unless the pain got really bad. But Harold told her that Tylenol works just fine. Otherwise, she would have called him in some pain medicine. But, you know Harold; he is not going to take ANY medicine, unless he absolutely needs it.

Anyone going to the Hockey game tonight?? We will ALL be there!!

We are starting out the year 2009 GREAT!!!

Thanks again for all the prayers!

Tuesday is the Day!

Harold's post-treatment MRI is tomorrow. Yikes! We are definitely on pins and needles. Harold's been having sharp, shooting pains along the side of his head for the last week and a half. And do you think he told me about it? Nope, I found out last weekend. At first, we thought it may have been a ear infection. So, I called his radiation doctor and left a message with our Duke nurse. The radiation doctor asked us to come in this morning. He said his ear canal was swollen and his eardrum looked "dull". I guess it's supposed to be shiny or something like that.

Anyhow, he said that being swollen after radiation was normal. He didn't really address the shooting pains, other than asking if Tylenol helps. I guess because we have his MRI tomorrow, he didn't want to push for any immediate answers. The MRI can tell us about the swelling and if anything else is going on. Harold's Duke nurse called this afternoon too. He told her what has been going on. She said that as soon as they receive Harold's MRI results, she would have the doctor review them.

We have an appt at Duke Clinic on the 8th already to review the results. But, hopefully, we'll find out something before then. As always, I'll have a copy of the results within a day. But I don't want to try and decipher all the big words without having someone explain it to us.

Please continue to pray for Harold and that we have good results from the MRI.

Harold's birthday is this Thursday, January 1st. What a great way to start out the year!!

Family Adventure

Well, the day finally came! Harold asked me in October to take him and the boys to the Green Swamp to go deer hunting with them and to meet his buddies in the club. And thanks to Mr. Guy for letting us drive his truck down there, we were able to spend the day chasing deer, er, dogs! We had a blast though! Here are some pictures...

Here are some things that I learned on my first deer hunting trip:

• All CB calls begin with "How 'bout it?" Harold, Deedee, Olin, Bubba, Chickenman, etc.
• That it's a Dog, Cat, Mouse game that doesn't end, much like a game of Monopoly. Hunters chase the dogs that are chasing the deer.
• Muddy roads are like roller coasters, and you better hold on to your drinks. It was a b u m p y ride the entire day!
• Deer play mind games with hunters, like crossing the road right behind your truck so that you see them in the rearview mirror.
• That the hunting club is a great crowd of people who make you feel more than welcome during your first trip.
• That you must be ready to hold on when that truck cranks up.
• I learned the reason why Harold's truck stayed dirty from Oct-Jan, it's not worth cleaning it in between trips.
• Explaining to a 4-yr old how to poop in the woods is not a task that I want to explain again!!
• That when Harold tells me they just let the dogs out again, that really means he'll be home many hours later!
• That you don't wear your good jeans as they may get torn climbing into the back of the truck.
• And that Chickenman gives out awards during the day...One guy got Honorable Mention for catching one of the dogs....and I got "Best Dressed" haha

I also learned that Hunter rides on the dogbox, the ENTIRE time Harold is riding in the swamp. And Holden doesn't know how to be quiet. He tried, but it never lasted longer than 15 seconds! All in all, we had a great time. And the boys were exhausted. They almost slept the entire way home, until we came up on a state trooper checkpoint. That's when we had to wake them up really fast to put on their seatbelts! oops...sorry guys!

Harold & I talked about making it our family tradition to go down the day after Christmas every year. We just might have to do that. I couldn't do this every day, but I can handle once or twice a year. Atleast next trip, Harold will be driving.

Merry Christmas!

We hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas!

My baby is 9 years old!!

I can't believe my baby is already 9 years old. It surely doesn't seem like it's been that long! Time sure passes by so fast with my babies! I heard him at daycare when I dropped him off this morning telling everyone "I'm going to be 9 yrs old at 4:45pm today"!!

We had a small gathering of the grandparents tonight for his official birthday cake!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY HUNTER! I LOVE YOU VERY MUCH!

Here's a Funny Story for you

Holden's daycare was going on a field trip to the mall on Monday to see Santa, ride the Carousel and then eat lunch. Well, daycare asked for any parent volunteers to help keep the kids together. So, Harold decided that he would go, if he could ride the daycare van with them. As it turns out, they had room for him to ride. So, he hops on the daycare van with Holden and the six other kids from his class. Holden is a chatterbox the entire way to the mall. He probably thought he was somebody...his daddy was the only one riding the van with him. The other parents drove and met them at the mall.

First, Holden didn't understand why he had to "Sit on his name" (I had to put his name on his carseat on a piece of masking tape). That was funny! Holden talked Santa's ears off and then rode the horseys.

I wish I had taken some pictures of this. I think Harold thought it would be fun and games. But he was ready for me to pick him up by 11:30 pronto! When I left work, I told everyone that I had to take my lunch a little early to pick up my husband from daycare! haha! I bet Harold doesn't volunteer for that again! He was so aggitated!! But it was funny to me! And Holden loved it that his daddy went with him!! Priceless!!

Busy, Busy Week

I'm not sure how this happened. We go from daily trips for radiation and running around non-stop, to just running around non-stop. We have been so busy this last week.

Saturday morning, we rode in the Fayetteville Christmas Parade on the Family Foods/Taco Bell float. It was cold. Luckily, we were float # 21 out of 107. So we were finished in less than an hour. And we bolted to the car to crank up the heater!

Then, Saturday afternoon was Hunter's birthday party. We met some of his friends at Fun Fun Fun to play games and then the LazerTag. I didn't realize how much fun that LazerTag was! Holden just met the height requirement and I knew he would want to play with them. He thinks he's the same age as Hunter. The guy let me go back there to take pictures. They have black lights and bright, glow-in-the-dark paintings on the wall and the music was loud. But it was so cool!



























For the first time ever, Hunter was actually "SMILING". He never smiles. It made me feel so good to know that he loved his gift!!

















Of course, I wrapped it in one box and then wrapped it in another box. He was all grins. Don't ask what Holden was doing...I guess he wanted some attention too!

Hunter has 3 boys stay the night with him. I thought I was going to go crazy! Boys will always be boys. I had to guard the kitchen or it would be empty! Harold decided to take all 4 of them to the hockey game. So, Holden & I enjoyed the peace and quiet and we watched a movie together.

On Sunday, the boys stayed until after lunchtime, which was okay. They were being good and being quiet! I bet Hunter said Thank You for his iPOD about a dozen times. I'm so glad he likes it!!

It’s FINALLY here!!

Harold’s last day of treatment!! No more radiation and a 4-week break from chemotherapy! And what a day to celebrate!

We started out with Hunter’s awards ceremony! He has straight A’s and achieved his AR goal for the 2nd nine weeks! That’s awesome, especially considering all that has been going on the last couple months. I’m so proud of him! Atleast he gets something from ME! Ha-ha!
Then we had Harold’s final radiation treatment at 10:30am. I don’t know who’s going to miss who the most...Harold or the radiation techs! They have been so wonderful to us! And they really go out of their way to make you feel good, despite why you are there every day!

I don’t know who harasses who more. On Wednesday, they had begun decorating for Christmas throughout the entire department. In the back waiting room, they had a snowman with a name tag: “My name is Harold”! Oh the torture that Harold gets! But on his last day, the snowman was a “snow-woman” and had a note that said “Harold is my boyfriend”. Those girls are so funny! But don’t feel sorry for Harold, he was asking for it! Devan and Crystal have treated Harold like a brother and made him feel so comfortable.

They even let me go with Harold to the back during his treatment. It was really cool. And you know I always have my camera! Here is Harold strapped down to the table. Don't you know there was some trash talking done during this time!!??

Afterwards, they gave Harold his mask and a "pink dolphin" balloon for the Celebration! He wouldn't let me take a picture of the balloon. :O

We thought that Hunter and Holden would be freaked out over the mask...because it does look like it came from Michael Myers or Jason! But Daddy had to model it on the couch last night and Holden ran around the house trying to find his doctor set!! It was so funny. My camera's memory card was full so I couldn't take pictures.

Last night, we also had our get-together at Beef O'Bradys and Harold saw friends that he hadn't seen in a long time as well. Every day seems to be a reunion for us, which is fantastic! As I've said before, you need your family and friends by your side!

On the way home, we were instructed to stop by the Pearce's Mill Fire Dept for yet another surprise! There were tears shed...happy and sad! We considered them our family and they told Harold that they considered him as a brother! And Harold & I have many, many good memories at that station!! Harold proposed to me there! We sat on top of the fire truck and watched the Hope Mills Lake fireworks together! Had some fun Christmas parties there. That was our home away from home. Hunter & I used to go up there every night that Harold worked to eat dinner together or watch TV before I had to get Hunter back home for bed. Hunter was only 2.5 years old then. Hunter loved the fire dept.

Holden's been a little scared of the fire dept for all the noises that it has...the speakers, the sirens, the horns, etc! Well, last night, Kevin and Billy decided to take the boys on a ride on the fire truck...lights and sirens too! They loved it! Just like the old days. I miss those guys!

Thank you Cumberland Road and Pearce's Mill Fire Departments for all you do!! We love you just as our family!

Lots of goodies to report…

For those who have talked to Harold this week, you will probably notice he has been in an awesome mood! And who wouldn’t be? Today was his last day taking the chemo pill and he only has 2 more days of radiation. We will be celebrating Friday! It has been a L_O_N_G six weeks of treatment. A little bit of normalcy will go a long way with us.

Harold wants to start back working…he feels well. And he hasn’t been taking as many naps as he was a couple weeks ago. So, he got a doctor’s note to start back ½ days. Harold will get stronger every day and going back to work will actually help speed that process. Our employers have been so accommodating! We are very blessed for that!

So, here’s the plan…Harold’s post-treatment MRI is scheduled for Dec 30th. We already had an appt with the Duke Clinic on Jan 15th, so I tried get an earlier appt. But they were booked. So I emailed our Duke nurse and she took care of it for us. :) We now have an appt on Jan 8th to review the MRI results.

Starting in January, the treatment plan is to remain on Temodar (chemo) for the next 12 months (5 days each month) and have an MRI done every 3 months to check the progress. But who knows, that may change. (for the better, I hope)

Right now, our treatment plan is to rest and enjoy our time together with our families during the holidays. I finished my last final Sunday night and I am looking forward to the break! And Hunter will be out of school until Jan 6th.

16 More Days 'Til Christmas!

What a day...

I am so exhausted. We've had a very busy day. The golf tournament was awesome. Harold & I saw a lot of friends that we haven't seen in a long time. Of course we talk to some on the phone, but it was great seeing them today. And we were very surprised at how many people came, as were Jackie and Kandi. We owe them a HUGE thank you for all they have done for us. They have been hustling and bustling for the last couple of weeks. They have been so awesome as well as the dozens of people who have helped them along the way.

Harold & I made our rounds this morning thanking everyone during registration. But Harold was very emotional tonight after alot of people had already left golf course. I think it finally hit Harold. He has so many friends. I guess he didn't realize how many people respect him and think of him as a brother or a son. I have heard that all day. These people know what we are going through and they know our situation. We are not on the side of the road holding a sign that say "HOMELESS, please help". These people sincerely care for us and our extended families. I always knew that Harold had many friends. There have been many late nights where Harold has received a phone call from a friend in need. Of course, I didn't understand why he had to jump up and run out the door, even if he had a migraine. He would give his clothes off his back for a friend. What goes around, comes around.

Harold - you are a phenomenal man. You have a heart bigger than the world and I love you for it. You give me strength and hope more than anyone else. We are so blessed to have our family and friends in our lives. It is during times like these when you find out who your true friends are. And honey, you have have lot of friends. I'm so glad to be a part of your life. I love you, Harold! And I'm looking forward to many, many great years together!

Thank you to everyone who participated in the golf tournament, whether you were a volunteer, a player or a sponsor. We are very thankful for you have done for us.

Prayer Request

....not only for us, but for family friends. We have some really tough times right now in our family, but I cannot imagine the worrying and sleepless nights with a 4- month old baby in the hospital.

Bryan and Sarah Miranda's little baby has been at Chapel Hill for almost a month. Here is their blog... http://averysblogspot.blogspot.com/

* Please pray for Avery to build strength and to heal her so that she can come home for Christmas.

To Bryan, Sarah, Peyton, Ray and Barbara (and the extended Miranda family): We are all praying for your strengths as well during these trying times. Please don't hesitate to call if you need anything.

"You hear, O LORD, the desire of the afflicted; you encourage them, and you listen to their cry." Psalm 10:17

Things are still going smooth...

Hey everyone..just wanted to do a quick update. Harold's nurse from Duke inquired about Harold's lab work yesterday. Apparently, he's supposed to have blood drawn every week, but hasn't had any taken since 11/5. Whoah! So, I sent the email to the radiation office and Harold had labs done at his appt this morning. Pretty fast! And of course, I was a little hesitate about what the levels would be, especially since it was over 3 weeks ago. But, you know what? The nurse called this afternoon and said Harold's labs looked great! First, she called him to see how he was feeling. Then she called me to explain how the rest of his treatment plans will work (she knew Harold wouldn't remember!). We think Harold's last radiation treatment will be Dec 12th...a few days earlier than the 16th that we thought. That's fantastic! If he finishes next Friday, she wants us to schedule his MRI 2-3 weeks afterwards. Then we head to Duke to review the results. Right now, we have an appt on Jan 15th. But if he finishes earlier, I will get that appt moved up too!

Anyhow, I hope to find out tomorrow if the end date is set yet. I'll keep you posted.

On to other news: Jackie & Kandi continue to do an awesome job with the golf tournament. It's hard for me not to jump right in and help out any way that I can. Harold & I saw the list of golfers and we look forward to seeing all of you there Saturday!! I'll go ahead and warn you...I will be there with my camera. SMILE!! We've gotten some really nice cards at home too. I had a nice surprise today...a card from a nice lady from a leadership training program that I went through several years ago. I couldn't believe she remembered my name. I definitely need to get in contact with her.

Harold's been in really good moods for the last couple days. And that makes things so much easier. It's still challenging, but atleast he's feeling good. Harold's been taking long naps almost every day. He gets so drained by his treatments. Today, he slept 2 hours this morning and another 2 hours this afternoon. But that's ok and it's completely normal, his body has alot going on and needs its rest to heal. He's losing more of his hair on the sides. Of course, the incision side is almost baby-bottom smooth, but now he's losing it on the left side right above his ear. There's also a spot on the back of his head about the size of a silver dollar. He wants to shave his head at his appt Thursday evening. I don't know how short he'll go. He might just have her cut it very short. Either way, Harold's wearing a ball cap every day.

After his treatments are finished, he should have more energy. We know that it won't happen overnight, but atleast he won't have radiation setting him back any more. I'm sure he'll want to go back to work after Christmas too, atleast 1/2 days. And he needs to...he needs to get out of the house.

I have my last Final on Sunday for the semester. I'm really looking forward to a break from school too. But I still haven't decided about the Spring semester yet.

That's all for now...I hope you have a good night!

Holiday Weekend

I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving holiday! We certainly did. It was a much needed break! On Thursday, we ate lunch with Carolyn, Chuck & Michael. Then we headed over to my sisters after Holden's nap. My mom, Bruce, Lisa and Tom had a huge spread for dinner. Then, that evening Harold & Hunter went to the hockey game.

We didn't do much Friday. I got a lot of cleaning done. Holden & I took daddy to his radiation appt. Holden was a celebrity. They were asking for his autograph since he was in the paper!! Holden wrote a "H" for Bryan, one of the techs. On Saturday, I went shopping with my mom...it was still crowded. I didn't get much of my list crossed off. I'm waaayyy behind. And Saturday night, we headed to the Crown for a FireAntz game. Holden's first one in a long time. Here's some pictures of Holden and daddy!


And it was Star Wars night!

Today, it's been raining all day. I got to "spring clean" our bonus room and I rearranged some furniture. I'm looking forward to work tomorrow.

I hope everyone has a great week. We can't wait until Saturday to see everyone!

Sandspur Newspaper Article

In today's Sandspur (Hope Mills community newspaper), they ran the article on us. Feels weird seeing our picture on the front page! But, the article sounds good. When we were interviewed, we talked about everything. But they only select what they want to include in the article. One thing we didn't talk about is if Harold was still employed with Family Foods. The reporter put in there that he "worked" as a maintenance supervisor. Well, everyone knows that Harold is still employed by Family Foods and Mr. & Mrs. Matthews are definitely taking care of us. Harold's boss is even cooking the pig for the golf tournament. So, I just wanted to clear the air on that one. We don't want anyone thinking that Harold is no longer employed with them. Just as soon as he can drive again, I probably won't see him. He'll be working 12 hour days! ha-ha!

http://www.sandspuronline.com/ The website usually updates around 10am on Wednesday. So, last week's story is still on there right now.

Hope everyone has a Wonderful Wednesday!

Holden's surgery went good!

Holden's nurse was so good to him. She marked his right ear "just like daddy", Holden said.

They gave him some "cherry juice" to make him sleepy before they took him back. But it made him mean! He beat up his kitty that he had with him, so the nurse said the kitty needed surgery too. She put a net hat on the kitty and an armband. Holden thought that was the coolest thing! Here's a picture of him finally getting tired, holding his kitty and his money. I had to bribe him to go this morning. So he's holding on to that dollar to buy a Power Ranger!

They finally took him around 9am. And the doctor was back out to talk with us around 9:30am. Holden did really good. He said that his tube was really attached and that eventually it would have fallen behind his eardrum. I'm so glad we caught it!

Here's Holden in recovery. He saw two of everything and was very wobbly.

Once we got him home around 10am, I tried to get him to lay down in my bed. But every time I left the room, he'd try to get up and fall off the bed! So, I took my laptop and sat in the bed with him until that stuff finally wore off. And boy did it take a while. He was a handful!! He's now resting...hopefully for a while. I need the break too!

Golf Tournament

I forgot to mention. If you're not golfing in the tournament on Dec 6th, please feel free to stop by. While all of our friends are golfing, Harold, the boys & I are going to be hanging around. We'd love to see you there!

Also - it's not too late to sign up! Get it in!

Life is so challenging...

Growing up, I had no idea how challenging life can be. When you see Harold & I, we may be all smiles. But deep down, we are tearing apart. This is the MOST challenging time of our lives. Our relationship has changed, but I know that in the end, our marriage will be stronger than it ever has been. Some days I say, "Life Sucks". But at the same time, I also see the light at the end of the tunnel!!

I'm sure Harold will probably get mad for me telling this, but we need your support. Harold sits at home all day (obviously not by choice) and all he thinks about is what he could be doing. So, he's starting to get bummed out. I've noticed that last couple weeks that he's been different at home. He won't tell me what's on his mind...I feel like he's got a wall up with me. But I've also noticed that the littlest thing sets him off...more than usual. Me and the boys are having to walk on eggshells to make sure we don't make him mad. He seems to be short fused and gets agitated very quickly. Well, anyone who knows our boys, knows that they will drive you nuts on a normal day! :) I know Harold doesn't mean to be that way, so I called 3 people looking for advice and help. I talked with his nurse at Duke, the Neuro Psychologist at Duke and his Radiation Oncologist here at the Cancer Center. But it took me posting the questions on the brain tumor message board to find out what's really going on. There's so much that the doctors don't tell you. I'm sure they have their reasons, but sometimes they need to have some common sense.

With that said, I found out that Keppra has some pretty serious side effects, including aggression, being angry, etc. Obviously, we don't want to mess up the good effects of the medicine; Harold needs to stay seizure-free. So, the doctors decided that another medicine would help counteract those feelings. I'm sure Harold is down about staying home and feeling dependent on everyone. And there's nothing wrong with needing some extra medication. It's only temporary! It'll take about 2 weeks for us to notice if it's helping him. Hopefully, Harold will be back to himself by Christmas. I noticed (as well as others) that when we ask Harold about hunting, he has no interest. And for those who know Harold, that's NOT normal.

So, I just wanted to let everyone know that if you see Harold and he's not himself, he's ok. He just has alot on him mind as the rest of us do. Please help us by stopping by to visit with him during the week. Or if possible, pick him up and let him ride with you for a little while. There's only so much I can without missing alot of work. Of course, the only downside to this is that he can't be gone for too long. He's gets extremely tired. Not the tired like you and I get...this is a fatigue that sends him straight to bed almost immediately. Yesterday, he seems fine, but called me at 3pm and said he was going to bed. Hit him like a brick wall. That's normal too. He's going to get more tired as the weeks go by. Just keep that in the back of you mind too when you pick him up for a joyride.

I love Harold more than he'll ever know. And I'm here for him 200%++. He needs to understand that our lives are forever changed, and he is still here for a reason. It's only been 7 1/2 weeks since his surgery. And he's doing awesome!

Thank you for your prayers and kind words!!

Holden's Surgery & Update on Harold

Holden has surgery this morning at 7:45am to have his tube removed. As I mentioned earlier, his eardrum has "encased" it. For some reason, it started to grow around his tube. I got to see it with the otoscope and it was gross looking to me. It's a 5 min surgery, so hopefully we'll be home by 9am. Holden's been talking really loud for the last couple months. I'm hoping this will help correct his hearing so that he isn't so loud.

I'll update the blog once I get home and get him settled. I need to let everyone know about Harold and his "changes". There's nothing wrong with him. I think it's side effects from his medicines and he's bored to death sitting at home all day. So, all he has to do is think about what he could be doing...I feel like he's getting depressed. But, I'll update you with all that too when I get home.

I don't want Harold to get mad at me for telling everyone. I just want everyone to know that it's okay to come by and talk with him (even if you only have 30 mins). Having company would make his day...it really would! And if you want to run to Walmart and need some company. Please come by and pick him up. He actually went to Food Lion with me last night (family field trip). And that's not something he would normally do. But he needed to get out of the house.

That's all for now, I'll update soon. Harold's doctor is going to be meeting with him today as well. I spoke to him about all this yesterday.

By the way, like our new family pictures?

Long, Overdue Update

Okay. So, I’ve been told on numerous occasions that I’m “slacking” on the blog. I am sorry…sincerely! We’ve had a lot going on and, to be honest, I have not felt like talking typing. So, I’m going to sum it all up for ya!

Thankfully, this past weekend was uneventful. Of course, we put up our Christmas tree and have the house decorated. I know it is early. Our neighbor started it and everyone else on the street caught the Christmas bug. One house down the street even has lights “all” over their house. And my boys decorated their little 2-ft trees that they have for their rooms. I will post pictures later.

I have spent the last 4 days working on a 15-page term paper for school. ugh! I stayed up till 11pm or midnight a couple nights. It 've been tired, but that’s the only time I had to work on it. There is too much going on at our house in the evenings…I hardly have time to chat on the phone with my mom. We have dinner, baths, Hunter’s homework, laundry, etc almost every night. Thank goodness for our DVR! I might be a week behind on Desperate Housewives, but atleast I get to watch it when I can.

New Car? I traded in my Envoy for a new car about 2 weeks ago. We needed something with a lower car payment and better gas mileage, especially since I am the family taxi now. I started out test-driving a Toyota Camry. They are nice, but my last 4 vehicles have been SUVs. It was extremely hard to get used to sitting on the ground. And Harold & I talked about it…it’s just simply too small for us. My Envoy had the 3rd row of seats, which were always down. So, I could load it up with the entire house for trips. I couldn’t see us doing that with the Camry. So, our salesperson showed us a Highlander…without the 3rd row and it was very nice. It is silver, just like my Envoy. I got it at a really good price. And I didn’t want to buy used because my car is our family’s main vehicle right now. I do not need any additional stress. I am sure people are wondering…why buy a new car with all that’s going on? Well, I’m always going to have a car payment. I’ve learned to accept that.

Tuesday: Holden had his Pre-Op appt. And wouldn’t ya know, that Monday night, he had a fever of 101.3!! And his throat hurt. So, Tuesday morning, I took him to his ENT office for the surgery paperwork and asked if his doctor could see him. Holden has the croup, which is viral. Hunter just had it last week! The doctor put him on an antibiotic anyways, so that he wouldn’t catch anything else before his surgery next week. Holden stayed home with daddy Tuesday and Wednesday and they “slept in mommy’s bed” (that’s what Holden told me). He was running a fever both days. That’s unusual for him.

It’s always something at our house! That’s our Family Motto!

Harold’s treatments are going well…just this morning he noticed that he’s losing some hair right where they radiate him. But it is not bad at all. He’s almost finished; only a couple more weeks.

Stress levels have been high at the Sublett household though. Most of it is to be expected…you have the normal Christmas frenzy. I haven’t started shopping; nonetheless, I don’t have my list made up yet. That is highly unusual for me! And who doesn’t worry about money during the holidays. It is always tough…you want to buy everything for everybody, especially your kids. However, we just can’t do that this year.

Earlier in the week, I got a phone call from a local community newspaper reporter. She heard about the golf tournament fundraiser and wants to come over Friday to talk with Harold and the family. That should be interesting! Lord knows what the boys will tell her! J

I promise to update the blog more often...things seem to be settling down.

My Sister

Hey guess what?

My sister, Lisa, & her hubby, Tom, are having a BOY!!

"His" arrival is tenatively set for April 13th!!

22 More Days of Radiation!

Believe it or not, it's going by pretty fast. And thank goodness Harold has been feeling well. He tried to do too much yesterday and he was extremely tired last night. But today was much better.

Kandi & Jackie would like to announce that if you are planning to play in the golf tournament Dec 6th, please send in your registration as soon as possible. And if you have any ideas for sponsorships or goodie bags, they are willing to listen!

Also announcing....Party at Beef O'Bradys!! December 11th is Spirit Night. Please meet us for dinner at Beefs in Hope Mills. The owners have graciously agreed to donate a portion of that night's proceeds for the fundraiser (sorry alcohol and tax doesn't count)!! But you must let your waitress know that you are there for the Cumberland Road Fire Department Fundraiser. All sales from 5pm to 8pm will qualify. Hope to see you there!

Just another day in the Sublett Household!

We had our appt with Dr. Friedman today. He was running a little late today, they told us when we checked in (how about 1.5 hours late!) Then, when we get back there to see him, he's with us a total of 3 mins. But we can't complain, we had a good checkup. He said that the swelling was a muscle, which explains why with the CT didn't show any fluid. He said it would clear itself up. As for his vision, he couldn't really tell us much, other than we'll have to wait and see. Harold tried to trick him into getting permission to drive...but I really think Dr. F was testing Harold's memory! We'll never know! haha But Harold did get permission to go deer hunting with a gun after Thanksgiving. I didn't know that Harold shot left-handed...so that helps that the gun will not be on the shoulder by his incision. Atleast that will give Harold something to look forward too. We go back in February for another checkup.

Holden had an appt with his ENT doctor today. He put his ear tubes in back in 2006. I think I mentioned this on the blog a couple weeks ago, but Holden has been complaining of ear pain and wakes me up 1-2 times each night. Well, mommy can only take so much without sleep. His pediatrician didn't seem too worried about his ears, but mommy's intuition was telling her something different. So, I called yesterday and they had an appt today at 4:20pm. Luckily my mom was off today and could take him. And luckily we made it back in town in time to meet them. Holden's right ear has a tube in it and the darn eardrum has started to grow around it! That white "scar tissue" that his pediatrician saw was actually a thin layer of his eardrum on top of his tube. Oh joy!! The ENT Doctor didn't want to wait any longer to remove it because it could potentially fall behind his eardrum and would take longer to remove surgically. So, we have surgery scheduled for Nov 25th! A whole 5 minute surgery. He did try to remove it in the office today, but it was really attached. And Holden didn't like it one bit!!

So, as you can see, there's never a dull moment in our house! Feel free to join us anytime! :)

What is Normalcy?

nor⋅mal⋅cy 

Pronunciation [nawr-muhl-see] –noun - the quality or condition of being normal, as the general economic, political, and social conditions of a nation; normality: After months of living in a state of tension, all yearned for a return to normalcy.

This is what I am hoping our lives will return to one day. Is that too much to ask? Today, I'm riding in the car with Harold after his treatments and I told him that I couldn't wait until our lives were "back to normal". He said..."What's normal?"

Granted...our lives were never "normal" before all of this happened, but that is what I'm yearning for. All this driving back and forth and daily chaos is enough to put me in a straight jacket before I'm 40!! And my kids are helping that along! But that's another story...

Harold & I are heading up to Duke tomorrow for his 6-wk post-op appointment with Dr. Allan Friedman. We'll be leaving town after his radiation treatment (which has been moved to 8:30am starting tomorrow yeah!!) . Hopefully, Dr. Friedman can shed some light on Harold's nightly swelling that he gets right above his cheekbone and when/if his double vision will ever clear up. I'll update the blog once we get back.

And I cannot say this enough: THANK YOU for your daily words of encouragement and prayers.

Quick Update

Well, I'm a little behind in updating the blog..sorry about that. I think all this rain has given me bad headaches. Anyhow, Harold's treatments have been going well this past week. We did have a little scare on Tuesday night. Harold has some bad swelling beside his eye. It felt like it was full of fluid. We showed the PA at our appt on Wednesday. His first words were, Let me find Dr. Bryan. I want to be sure that it's not "cerebral spinal fluid" or "blood" leaking. WHAT???!! You don't tell me that! I instantly had a knot in my throat, felt like I was going to throw up. I look at Harold and he's crying. I knew I had to be strong for him. Lord only knows what was going on through his mind. I just couldn't believe he said that. So, Dr. Bryan comes in and wants to order a CT to see what the fluid was. A couple hours, some blood work and an IV inserted later, we finally had the CT. I pushed for the results before 5pm...there was no way Harold & I would have sat at home the entire night waiting and wondering. The PA called around 3:30pm and said that three people looked at the CT and didn't see anythng wrong with it. Very strange. Harold still has that same swelling every night, but not as bad. It appears that it's getting better each night. Whew! Just another bump in the road....I'm getting carsick from all these bumps...we need to have the road paved! haha

But then, Wednesday night, our neighbors, Mark & Pam, surprised us with a wonderful gift. I tried to take a picture with and without the flash. It's a beautiful framed picture of Santa!! I put it up today in the living room, right beside where the tree will be. We are truly blessed to have such awesome neighbors and friends!!

Here's a funny story...Hunter writes up his Christmas/Birthday wish list. Let me read a few things to you that are written on it:

• Nerf guns
• Shoes
• Playstation games
• collectible cars
• dirt bike
• and the list goes on and on and on...trust me!

Looks like normal kid stuff, right....here's some other items on his list:

• Lamp
• trashcan
• thumb tacks (not sure where we are going here?!)
• bookbag
• pencils

I'm saving this list for when he's older and has a girlfriend...

As for Holden, same as I mentioned before...he wants everything!! And if anyone is available to babysit one Saturday morning and take notes while he's watching TV, please let me know. I lose consciousness by the 14th time he says "I need that!" for every commercial! Thanks to great advertising!

Hope everyone is having a great weekend!

Golf Tournament Flyer & Information

Click here for the http://www.scribd.com/doc/7963316/Golf-Tournament-for-Harold-Sublett and Registration Information. (3 pages)

To PRINT - Select Download, then Adobe Acrobat (PDF).
To EMAIL - Select Share, enter email address.

Hope to see you there!

Election Day

Today marks history for the Sublett family. Harold & I both voted for the first time. I know we’re a little behind. But, wow, it’s empowering! Really makes you feel good. Politics isn’t something that Harold & I discuss on a daily basis. Every once in a while, we’ll talk about something we heard on the news or in the newspaper. I’m glad we decided to vote this year. There was a lady in front of me at the Board of Elections that shook everyone’s hand on her way out. She was proud…must’ve been a first time voter like myself. When I walked out to my car, I felt good too. Now, I can’t answer for Harold. He voted at Pearce’s Mill Fire Department. That’s where I dropped him off after his treatment today. There was a long line. So, he "shot the bull" with the guys until the line got smaller. He’ll never admit it, but I could tell he felt good about it too. I’ll tell Hunter about us voting tonight. I should’ve gotten my “I voted” sticker to show him. Hunter asked me a couple weeks ago who we were voting for. I know they talk about the politics at school. They probably even had their own election in their classroom, like they did last year. That’s pretty cool. Teachers are so creative!

By the way, does it always rain on Election Day?

29 More Days of Radiation!

51 Days til Christmas!!!

Weekend update

Sunday was a good day for us. It was nice outside...I got some things done around the house, Harold got the garage cleaned out. Just before lunch, Harold said he didn't feel so well...kinda queasy. Not good! We decided not to take the nausea medication on Sat and Sun to see how the chemo pill was without it. He didn't say anything about it Saturday. And Sunday wasn't bad, he said it was just a little. So, he took a nausea pill and he took a nap while Holden did.

They got up about an hour and a half later and they were ready to go! Holden's daycare was having a Fall Festival at the church, so we took him up there for a little while. This is Holden on the way there....we don't ask questions! He's goofy like his daddy! :)



And little did we know, Holden would meet his "Match"!! They were shooting webs out of their wrists!!



Then Holden got to throw some real darts, but he didn't pop any balloons. We'll have to practice for next time! He was so disappointed when he didn't pop any. He did hit the backboard one time.


And he had his first horse ride.

As for today, it was good. It lasted forever though! I guess we made up for that extra hour today. Harold had his treatments on time today and we were in/out in less than 10 mins. Finally back on schedule!

Friday News

Harold had New Patient Orientation at the Center today. We had no idea how many resources there are for the center and its patients. Lots of good information. Of course, they were running a little behind today for the radiation therapy....they were partying!

When Harold & I were in the waiting room, we heard these streams and then they came running through the door and through the room. It was Toto, Dorothy, the Witch and a Flying Bat. They were dressed up as Wizard of Oz. I managed to get a group picture with everyone. They really put a lot of thought into this for Halloween. I've told you before, they are different! But in a good way! Full of surprises!




And finally, here are some Halloween pictures from last nght...






And my Molly as a little mad at me for the Pumpkin outfit. Meanwhile, Bazy our fat cat was warming her belly by the fire.