Celebration of Life!

A Celebration of Life will be held at the First Baptist Church in Fort Collins at 10:30am on Wednesday April 8th. There will be a lunch following the service. Please pass this along to anyone who might want to come. Thank you all for your continued support!!
Katie

Update

Just a brief update, as I don't have time or energy for more right now. Mom went home to be with Jesus this morning around 8:00. She went very peacefully with my dad by her side. I will update again later with more and funeral information. Thank you all for your love and support.
Katie

Where do I start?

It has been so so long since I last updated. I guess I have been a little busy lately. Mom has been in and out of the hospital the last few months. I will just start with the most recent news.
A week ago Sunday, we were bringing Mom home from the hospital to my parents house into Hospice care. We came home, got her settled and were awaiting the Hospice nurse to come out for an evaluation. Mom was doing fine, sitting up and enjoying her favorite food- a popcicle. :0) During the evaluation, we were showing the nurse some of the things we do to care for mom and things began to spiral downhill very quickly. It is a long, nightmare of a story that I will spare you all from hearing. We ended up calling 911 and followed her to the hospital. It was a long night we were certain she wasn't going to make it through. Ten days later, we are still at the hospital, waiting for her to go Home to be with Jesus. She is unresponsive, but peaceful. Please pray for us all as my sister and my dad and I are staying here with her. We are taking turns leaving to go home to clean up. Pray for her during this time. Pray that Jesus will take her home soon. She is ready to be out of pain and resting in His arms. She is a strong woman, fighting hard to the very end. God is so good, and we know He is in control.
Thanks for all of your prayers during this very difficult time.
Katie

Home at last!

She is home again! After a week in the hospital with lots of procedures she is finally home. She is enjoying her own chair and a little peace and quiet. The plan is to head to Denver tomorrow for more testing before beginning the clinical trial.
Thanks for your prayers,
Katie

A success

Well two days later, and two surgeries later, the stint was finally a success. Praise God!
It has been a very, very long week and our prayer is that she will start to feel a little better and can soon go home. Hopefully the study in Denver will also begin soon.
Please be praying for clear communication between our family and the doctors and for mom to be out of pain.
Thanks,
Katie

Unsuccessful

The procedure today was unsuccessful. Another procedure is scheduled for tomorrow. It is much more invasive and requires a longer hospital stay. Please pray for strength for us all. It was a really long day.
Will update later...
Katie

New year, new treatments.

It is a new year with new adventures ahead!
The last few weeks, mom has been in a lot of back pain and really tired. She went to Denver last Friday to run some preliminary tests before beginning the new chemo treatments. One of the scans done showed that she has a blocked bile duct in her liver. You may remember that this was the problem over a year ago when she first found out about the cancer. She will be having the same procedure done again she had before. Basically, they put a stint in the duct to clear it out and allow it to flow. Her surgery is scheduled for Tuesday morning. Hopefully the week after that, the rest of the tests can be run in Denver and treatments can begin soon after that.

Please be praying that the stint placement would be simple and she would handle the surgery and anesthesia well. Also, that this would relieve some of the pain she has been experiencing.
I will update when I know more.
Thanks,
Katie

A good month

Well, I haven't posted in a while because there hasn't really been anything new to post about. I think overall it was a good month. We had a nice Thanksgiving and a wonderful Christmas. Mom was able to be at all the family functions and even enjoyed a little Christmas shopping. :)
She has been very very tired, and is still having digestion issues. She is also experiencing some intense pain in her lower back. We are still waiting to see what might be causing that pain.

Throughout these last few crazy months, she managed to make my sister and I two amazing lap quilts. These are gifts we will forever cherish. It was a wonderful surprise and tears were shed by all!
Next week the preliminary tests will begin for the clinical trial in Denver. Please be praying for these new treatments to be helpful, and that the side affects wouldn't be too intense.
Thank you for your continued prayers and support.
Katie

The next step

After about two months of chemo, we found out today that there are new cancer spots in her body and the old ones are still there. She now has a spot on her liver, and three in the area her pancreas used to be. There is also a spot on her lungs, but they don't know for sure if it is cancerous or not. Mom's oncologist recommended she quit her current chemo treatments and strive for the best quality of life. There are a few options left, including Cyberknife, and some clinical trials at the University of Colorado. We will be looking into those in the weeks to come. For now though, we are hoping to have a nice Thanksgiving without any of the nasty side effects she has been experiencing from her chemo treatments. This is not the news we were ready for, we had really hoped that the chemo would have shrunk or stabilized the cancer.
We do know, that God is in control, and He already has His plans laid out for us. He is good, so good.
I am thankful this year for my mom and her amazing strength. We are all tired and overwhelmed, but her faith is unwavering. I could not ask for more from her.
Please be praying for my family as we soak in this new information and make the decisions we will soon be facing. Pray for strength, and wisdom.
Thank you all for all of you prayers and support. It means so much.
Katie

Weekend Away

We spent this last weekend in a beautiful condo in Breckenridge. My sister's in laws gave us all a weekend away. It was a good time of relaxing and enjoying each other. It was nice to leave all of the distractions of our lives behind for a few days. We shopped a little and saw the amazing sites around us. For the most part though we just played games and relaxed. It was really nice.
Mom did pretty well, although she hasn't been feeling great. Please continue to pray for her as she endures the chemo treatments and its side affects.

Katie

Trusting

It has been a tough week.
I struggle with what to say exactly on this blog. It doesn't seem like something for a blog, but it is the fastest way to reach the most people. However, it is hard to make my fingers type. My heart hurts.

We found out last week that Mom's cancer has returned. It is in the area her pancreas used to be, and they are watching a spot in her lung. It is inoperable. She will begin Chemo treatments next Monday. We are praying she can tolerate the treatments, and that they shrink or stabilize the cancer. Pancreatic cancer is fast moving, and typically very aggressive. We were all shocked, and devastated. It is a very hard thing to hear.
Life is precious, and so very fragile.

However,we rejoice in the fact that this is not it for those who trust in Jesus as their Savior. The best is yet to come. Our Heavenly Father has prepared a much better place for us! God is so good.

Please be praying for her, and for Dad. Pray for peace, for relief from the pain, and that these chemo treatments would help. Pray for rest, comfort, and enjoying our times together.

Thank you for your prayers and support. She will be checking this blog, so if you want to leave a comment for her please do.

Psalm 28:7
The LORD is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and I am helped. My heart leaps for joy and I will give thanks to him in song.

Thank you Lord for such amazing parents!

I will be posting more frequenly now with updates on her progress.

Katie

Happy Anniversary

The last month was a little rough. Mom has battled infection and fever and even been in and out of the ER a few times. It seems things are looking up, and the medication she is on is working. She is a trooper and I am so glad to see she her finally feeling better.
Tomorrow morning they leave bright and really really early for their 30th Anniversary celebration with an Alaskan Cruise. I can't think of two more deserving people to have such a wonderful trip! They are very excited! Please be praying for moms health during the trip. They will be gone for about one week on the cruise,and then visiting family in Alaska for another week. We are praying for some R&R and that she is feeling well enough to enjoy this once in a lifetime trip!


Katie

Finished!

Hooray!! Mom's final chemo treatment was this Wednesday! She is done!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I can't put enough exclamation points after that! She is done!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
We are so thankful for this process to be over. God is Good!!
She is feeling weak, and still a little sick. She should start feeling better in a few weeks.
Thank you for all of your continued prayers and support. They were always felt. Please keep praying for her over the next months. She will continue to have scans done to be sure everything is okay.
We are off to enjoy our summer now, and thankful for our many blessings!
I will continue to keep you updated on her progress.

Katie

Only TWO left!

That's right! Mom only has two more chemo treatments left to go! June 11th is the last one! We are very ready to be done.. so is she!! Things have been going pretty well. A few minor complications last week put her back on antibiotics and hydration everyday, but she is feeling okay. She is tired a lot, and eating is still a challenge but overall doing well. Keep praying for her these last two weeks, and continually that the cancer will stay away!! She will be tested every few months for the next 2 years (or so) to be sure the cancer is clear. Pray for strength and courage. She is so grateful for all of your support and prayers. God is good, all the time!
Katie

Day by day

Things at home have been going really well. Mom is home and feeling tired, but good. She is totally off of antibiotics, and so far so good. She has even started back into an exercise class to regain some strength, and she is back singing in church! She is glad to be home! No word yet on when they will put the new port in, hopefully we will find that out this week.
Thank you all for your continued support and prayers. God is certainly watching over her!

Katie

Another trip to the hospital!

After another short stint in the hospital, Mom is home again and doing pretty well. They removed her port this time hoping to find it was the infection site. It wasn't. We are not sure where the infection is, or how to treat it, but at this point the antibiotics are keeping her healthy and she is home. After the infection is totally cleared from her body, she will have to go back in and have surgery to put in a new port. (The port is how she gets her chemo drugs and all her fluids.) We are tired, but haven't lost faith that she is in God's hands and we do not need to be worrying about anything. We keep praying for His provision, and timing in all things. We trust in the Lord and lean not on our own understanding!
Keep praying for her endurance!

Katie

An unexpected turn

Well....
Saturday afternoon Mom came down with a serious fever and chills. We took her to the hospital and they admitted her. Not exactly what we were planning. They started her on some heavy duty antibiotics and hydration. She was doing well, but the doctors couldn't figure out what was causing the fever. It is an infection of some kind-maybe in her port, or maybe internally. Anyhow, they were going to send her home tomorrow (Wednesday), but she spiked a fever and chills again this afternoon. Now she has the doctors really stumped. So, it doesn't appear she will be going home tomorrow. All her doctors are going to work together to figure out whats going on. Please be praying for her during this time in the hospital. As you can imagine, it isn't where she wants to be. She is thankful however, there is a place she can go and be treated for whatever this is. God provides for us all.
Pray that the doctors will figure this out, and a speedy recovery will follow. Also pray for strength for mom.
Katie

Radation Complete!

Friday was the last day of Radiation! Praise God! Mom did so great these last five weeks, and it is finally over! The radiation office gave her a cake and had a mini send off for her! We are all so proud of her for making it through this rough process!
She will continue with Chemo once a week through the first week in June. Things are going well so far! Keep praying!
Katie

Taking it's toll

This week has been a little rough. Mom hasn't been feeling great. She is really tired, and sick to her stomach most of the time. It seems Radiation has begun to take it's toll on her body. She is nearly finished with the Radiation treatments and counting down the days! Please continue to pray for her strength and wisdom for the doctors as they treat her. She still has a long road of Chemo treatments ahead of her.
Thank you for your continued prayer!
Katie

Things are going well

Radiation has been going pretty well. She is on day 7, and had only minor side effects so far. She is doing chemo at the same time and the combo package seems to make her tired and a little sick, but nothing too drastic. She has really been a trooper!

Please keep praying that these treatments would do what they are supposed to, and that she would be cancer free at the end of the treatment cycle in June. We are so thankful for God's grace and peace throughout this entire process.

We will keep you updated! Thanks for your prayers!

Katie