Day 2 - Round 3

Today went by pretty well with limited worries from any side effects. I woke up early, got there a little late, but Marsha had my seat all ready for me. You see I always pick the electric recliner so I just have to press a button and I go up or down. There is only one in the 40 or so chairs in the clinic. I have only missed out on it once in the 12 times I have been to chemotherapy. Marsha now secures it for me! She's the best nurse.
My vein did decide to harden up on me and I had to get the IV taken out. I hope tomorrow's IV is a good one and stays in until Friday's last treatment.
Feeling good and strong today.

Day 1 of Round 3 complete

Finished my first day of my, hopefully, final round today. I felt decent all day, with a slight headache after treatment. I drank about 2L of Gatorade and 1L of water and + the Lasik medication = pee a lot. I actually went 3 times in about 20 minutes, no less, and an old guy next to said " Don't drink and drive". Took me awhile to turn around and laugh, but these are the kinds of people in there next to me. (I later spoke to him and he had cancer up near his shoulder/neck area which they got rid of, then it came back in his brain, which they got rid of,m and now it has returned to its original spot - he's been dealing with cancer for too long). I also saw my 'smoker
 buddy again today. I sat in my favorite white mechanical lazy boy chair which, lucky for me, was on the side of the room to 'Smoker Joe'.
Better get to bed now, Day 2 starts bright and early.

Thanksgiving & tomorrow

We all had a great time @ Thanksgiving dinner at MawMaws in Fort Smith. It was Lachlan's first one and he had a blast with his US cousins. The picture left is when Auntie JuJu and I took him out on a walk. It was about 32F (0C) when we went out so he had to bundle up.

So tomorrow is my last week of chemotherapy treatments. Dr. Travis has said that I have this one, they give me another scan and then I should be all done. I like the sound of that! I am a little nervous about getting into the chemo again. I have had about 4 weeks off of it and really started to feel good. Now I take another couple of steps back. I know this is the last round though and it will be a great Christmas when I can finally say 'I am cancer free'.

As always I will post every day throughout treatment.

Thanksgiving @ the Haasers

Gearing up for Thanksgiving dinner the the in laws. It's always a big meal with a big crowd. I am thankful of my family both here in US and back home is Australia.
On the cancer front, I have been feeling fantastic energy wise lately, but today my tumor area is just feeling tight and there. Noticeablely felt. But like Jennifer said it could be anything, not necessarily the tumor being active. Anyway, time to forget about it. Last treatment week starts this Monday. Not looking forward to it.

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Team 11th & back home.

(L-R Austin, Blake, Travis, Stinger, Haynie, Will, Sasse, Me)

Back from Houston with a good showing at the Regional meet. Now they take a break during Thanksgiving.... then we start our 2011 track & field campaign.

In Houston, TX

Came down to Houston TX yesterday with Ramaker & Boys XC team of 8. Good trip so far with the guys racing this morning. Not sure of team result yet, but Will got 15th as an individual. Happy with team's effort and good investment to do it all again with this team next year. I'll post results when they are up. Movie tonight, then fly out for home tomorrow morning. Miss my wife and son.

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Still feeling great and State champs!

I haven't blogged for a few days because mainly I have been feeling good and it would be pointless to blog about the same statement all the time. So I'm feeling great and just relaxing before my 3rd and final treatment week after Thanksgiving.

A couple of weekends ago I got the go ahead from Dr. Travis to push my body a little to see how the tumor and my body reacted. Maybe it was a polite way to say, lose some weight..... I'm not sure, but I did go and cheer on the BHS XC boys and girls at the State meet. The boys were ranked 2nd going into the meet, but we knew that we were going to be tough to beat. The girls were ranked 2nd and going to have to race very well to win.
So it came down to the race and the picture to the right shows our last pre-race speech. It was a great day and the boys ended up winning quite easily for their 2nd championships in a row and the girls got 2nd by a small margin. Now the boys are going to Houston, TX on the 19th -21st Nov for the NXN South Regional meet. The top 3 teams in that race go to Nationals in Portland, OR. The boys have never gone to either meet before, so it should be an exciting experience.
This is a video I put together of the highlights of the State Meet. State Highlights

Work next week?

I am feeling good these days, still get a little tired at times, but generally not bad. Jennifer is pushing me to go to work if I feel up for it, but something is holding me back. Not too sure if its nervousness about how people will react, not sure if I feel self conscious about how I look or if I won't be able to get through the day. I do want to get back into the swing of things though. Thanksgiving week is the following week and then I have 1 week of Chemo treatment. So if I go to week next week, most likely I will have about 3 weeks off after that. I will make a decision by the end of the day and let the right people at work know @ work.
On another note, my hair is started to slowly grow back.... but I mean slowly! Hardly noticeable really.

Feeling good after yesterday

Yesterday I had a 100F (37.8C) temperature by about 7pm and I didn't want to eat anything. I basically showered and went to bed. I did, however, have to start my "if your temp gets to about 100.5F then take these" antibiotics. So I'm on those for the next 6 days. I woke up this morning is a lot better shape. Normal temperature and about to eat! So I'm back again after another bump in the road. I have a funny feeling that the bug that hit Lachie and Jen also took a swipe at me. Hopefully thats the end of it.

Storms in out lives.

I have a few blogs that I read now. I thought that if I write mind, then I should read others. The blogs I read are on the right hand column under Favorite Blog List. One of them is called "Here I Am. Send Me." This women is fighting breast cancer. Her latest post made me really think (You can get to it by clicking here). She wrote about her time in church this past Sunday and how the pastor talked about storms in our life and how they make us a better person, a stronger person. I know that this is pointed to me too. This bout of cancer has given me a new look on life. I am getting through my storm now and the clouds are clearing, but many other people are going through a longer, more violent storm. I have experienced the chemotherapy, the pain, the despair and the helplessness, but some people have got to go through that for years. I truly pray that this women heals and can move on with her live without cancer. The sun is going to break through the clouds.

A fantastic day

Today was set to be a busy day: State Championships mid-morning to ~ 4pm, then the Reality Check fundraiser, "Dancing with the NWA Stars". With doctors orders to push my body to see if the tumor reacts I was going to have a normal day. I met with the team for breakfast @ Panera, then we went back to the Athletic offices at school to relax before heading to the course. Felt great from the time I got up this morning & trying not to think to much about the tumor. The State Championships was a great time to forget everything and just get with the team. The boys ran what they were expected to run and did a fantastic job executing the race plan. They won easy in the end. This is the 2nd year running for the boys. Before that they had not win it since 1983! So its good to get the ball rolling on a streak of victories. The girls put themselves up there early, but just couldn't hold on to the lead as Rogers HS came through the field and got them. Check out the BHS XC website that I look after for more photos and videos in the coming week.
Tonight was the Reality Check fundraiser. It was such a great night with Tommy Runnels, the guy that took my place, winning overall Dancing with the NWA Stars. They also donated $1200 towards my treatments. Thanks for all those they put votes in online. I really appreciate it. I will post pictures and video if I get it.
Tired now, but clocks go back tonight, so sleep one more hour!
AWESOME DAY!

Tumor smaller & dead

So I went to see Dr. Travis today and he said that the tumor is still there, but it is only 5cm x 2cm (2in x 1in). Now it started out at 9cm x 5cm (3.5in x 2in). So it is drastically smaller and that why I don't have pain anymore as its not pushing against anymore organs. The 'squirming' I have felt is the nerves reacting to the shrinking. But the best news was that on the PET scan it came up negative (PET scans images the biochemical activity of tumors)meaning that the cells are basically dead. So Dr. Travis suggested, as an insurance policy, that I do one more round of treatment. This will kill anymore cells that might be hiding, or not detected. After that I will take another set of CT & PET scans and if the tumor is smaller, then great, but if it is the same size then thats good too. You see the chemo attacks the alive cells and may not even touch the dead ones. I asked about surgery to take it out, but he said for this tumor it doesn't make it any better or worse with or without surgery. They will just monitor it over time.
So looks like all the prayers and positivity out there from friends and family have been answered. I should be done with this cancer right in time for Christmas! Oh yeah, now thats a Christmas present.

Scan done, but family sick

I got my scan done today. It will show me how the tumor is going with the current treatment. I am praying that it is not there anymore, but I cannot convince myself that it is totally gone. I don't know why. But it doesn't stop me from hoping, praying and trying to push myself to believe. Jennifer and Lachlan are sick today. Haven't moved too far from the couch. Little Lachie was so cute and cuddly that I just wanted to hold him so bad, but I know that I don't want that bug. It seems like it might be some kind of stomach thing that wipes out your energy...... I think it might feel like the weeks I have chemo treatment and I hope that I don't get it in the next few days. My immune system is so down that I could get anything easily. I already cough up some good yellow green stuff today and felt like I had 'sicky' breath.... oh man oh man. Dr. Travis tomorrow midday will tell me what the CT & PET scans showed and I will also ask him about me getting this bug.I'll keep you posted.

Big day Thursday!

So I get my next CT scan on Thursday. It will show if there is anymore cancer in my body. Dr. Travis is quietly, although he liked to tell me, confident that I might not see any of it in there. Totally clear. I know I am on some serious dosage of chemotherapy, but that tumor was of a good size and if it is gone I will be a very very happy man. I won't count my chickens before they hatch. I will wait for the test results on Friday morning when I see Dr. Travis again. I will then have a choice to make: Stop treatments because there is no more cancer, or continue for 2 more cycles to make sure it is gone for good. I am undecided as to what I should do. Cross that bridge when I get to it. Full of idioms today!

Fun & Games

This was a shot I took from the webcam just before I went to dinner last night. Lachlan loves seeing himself on the computer screen and this shot just makes me laugh.
My 'tumor area' on my right side of my abdominal area has been playing up a little, but Dr. Travis tells me that it is the nerves getting the sensation of the shrinking tumor. Just like when the tumor is growing the nerves are stimulated, it is the same in the reverse. Makes sense really. I have also had like a film on the inside of my mouth. like a very think plastic covering. Very strange feeling and it doesn't help tasting different types of foods. I did, however, taste those really hot wings I had last night @ BBW. Thats why I say its only gotta be thin :-).
I have been feeling really good lately though. I have got better and better over the past 3 days. Tonight we have a get together with the boys and girls cross country state teams to go to, so that will get me out of the house and getting me back into a normal state of living. Should be good food too!

A short video tonight!

Sorry for the sound :-( But this was my first time trying this out

Waiting for Dr.

Waiting for Dr. Travis to come and see me. Got blood test back & all looks good. White blood cells still down, but shot boosting the baby ones. My skull has been hurting a little. Could be cold or could be shot. Not sure. Jen & l are both really hungry..... comeon doc!

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Today a great day!

Yesterday wasn't the best day, just tired and drained. I struggled around with Lachlan's first Halloween experience going to a few family and friends places. One thing got me last night though..... it was the first night that I hadn't needed sleeping tablets to head to bed for nearly 3 weeks. I went to bed thinking that I'd be up all night, or at least early (as I usually did in the days following the first round). Well, to my happiness I slept the whole night through (with a few pit stops of course) and woke up with a thought. Yes, a thought! :-) My goal was to stay active and moving my brain around all day. First it was some breakfast, some medical bill organization and then some BHS XC stuff on the web. I had a friend come over for lunch and some Fifa11 on the ps3 and that was great right through to about 1pm. I then managed to go and meet the team for practice and do their tempo workout with them on the bike. My energy is still good now, but I think I will shut it down for the night and not bite off more than I can handle. Oh, of course, I had time to play with Lachie. He's growing so fast.