Busy Few Weeks Update!

It has already been 3 weeks since my last update, and the time has flown by! We have seen many answers to prayer in the past few weeks! Once again I can say that the tumor has NOT been growing, so the current chemo regimen appears to be controlling the cancer for the time being! Baby Asher is doing great, as he has for the entire pregnancy! God is so good! I have reached 31 weeks and Asher is about 3 1/2 pounds now. We were able to have another ultrasound this past Wednesday. We even got to see him in 3D for part of it, which gave us some beautiful and clear profile pictures of his face. 🙂 My OB is comfortable at this point with the tentative goal of inducing at about 36 weeks. He projects Asher should be around 6 pounds by then and will have a good chance of not needing any special care after delivery at that time. We are SO thankful for all your prayers and God’s protection of our precious little miracle!!! Pray that these last 5 weeks (yes, that’s only 5 weeks away!) will continue to see Asher’s growth and protection through his birth and the cancer will continue to remain under control until then. After that we will be able to begin more aggressive treatment to rid my body of this cancer.

We have enjoyed many activities over the past few weeks, along with a bout of a stomach bug that took an entire week to pass through the entire family. Being sick makes you even more thankful for good health that we often take for granted in our everyday lives. We were able to attend many wonderful activities, including a trip to Eric’s Grandma’s 93rd birthday celebration in Iowa, seeing a few friends and many family members!

I did not have chemo last Friday as both my chemos were on their “off” week. It was so wonderful to enjoy a week of extra energy and just feel more “normal” again! I was able to attend a Girl’s Night with my sweet Bible study gals that Friday night. We stayed up entirely too late, but it was so worth it to enjoy a great time of fellowship and sharing our joys and burdens with one another. I am so thankful that God has given me these precious women to walk through life with during this time! They are such a blessing and encouragement to me!

We had a wonderful time in church Sunday morning, and then we were able to go out with a chemo friend and her family last Sunday afternoon and evening. They have 3 kids as well. Faith has written to their oldest, an 11 year old daughter, and found out they have a ton of interests in common, including music. We made a date for us moms and daughters to attend our High School’s musical production of Beauty and the Beast so the girls could meet. It was an excellent production and we all had a great time! The husbands hung out while the younger kids played at our house and we all went out for dinner after the show. What a fun and refreshing time for all of us and a wonderful friendship God has given us with a family facing a very similar situation. Please keep Jeff and DeDra and their family in your prayers as DeDra battles cancer for a second time as well with a young family.

Our other activities for the week included a meeting with PTO friends, a fun Dr. Seuss-themed school concert for Faith, a fun visit from family from Colorado and Missouri, Church Growth Group, and Kindergarten Roundup meetings and Roundup for Ethan! I can’t believe my little man is ready to start Kindergarten in the fall, but he is so excited and had a blast at Roundup Friday! I had to be at the doctor’s office for my double chemo day all day, so we were thankful that Eric’s sister Nancy was able to come out for the weekend and stay with the boys, take Ethan to Roundup, and help out around the house!  We even went out for a little shopping and dinner last night afterwards. 🙂 The week isn’t over yet as today we are looking forward to seeing my Grandparents, who are returning north after being snowbirds for the winter, and Eric’s sister Lori and her husband Carl will be stopping by as well in the midst of our normal Saturday activities. I’m so thankful for the timing of everything and the extra energy to be able to enjoy so many things packed in to one week! God is so good!

We are looking ahead to celebrating Easter in a very special way this year! Not only do we get to celebrate our Savior Jesus Christ’s perfect sacrifice for our sin and triumph over death in our own church Sunday morning, but Eric will also be baptizing his dad Larry on Easter Sunday evening! It has been such a joy to see the change salvation brought in his life this past December 9th. He has always been a wonderful father-in-law and loving support to our family. But now there is such joy in him, knowing he has received freedom from sin and death and will spend forever with our Savior in heaven! You can’t help but be lifted up and encouraged when you are around him. We are super excited that Eric has the privilege to baptize him Easter Sunday at 6pm at Indianola Regular Baptist Church in Indianola, Iowa! I know Larry would love for anyone that can to attend as he tells of the exciting and wonderful change in his life because of our loving and faithful God! We can’t wait to share this very special day with Larry and many of our wonderful friends, family, and faithful supporters! May you all have a blessed Easter!

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.” John 3:16-17