THE BATTLE GOES ON

The battle goes on, but we are up for it.  After more tests this week (blood, CT scan and an MRI), we found out that the tumors in my leg are still increasing, so I will go back to the more aggressive chemotherapy treatments that I started with last year about this time.  The one chemo drug is just not doing the job.  I am very excited that on Monday, December 10, I will have a port surgically placed in my chest that will make the whole process much easier, as it has become increasingly difficult to get IV’s placed.  Last Monday it took four tries before it worked, and with the stronger chemo drug, it is almost essential to have either a port or a pic line.  I will be as happy for the nurses as I am for me.

For those of you like me who had never heard of a port until a year ago, it is a device which is surgically placed in the chest below the collar bone underneath the skin.  A catheter connects the port to a vein.  The drugs can then be injected by inserting a needle into the port.   Blood samples are also taken by using the port.  It can be left in for months or even years.  I have a friend who has gone through a lot of treatments and to quote her, “I love my port.”

 

The thing I felt the worst about is how this dominates our life and especially Daryl’s life, but he continually reassures me that the thing he wants most is for us to be together.  We do have a lot of togetherness, as next week we will spend fIve days at MD Anderson with the port placement, Echocardiogram, Dr. Homsi, chemo treatment and two days following, more treatments for anti-nausea drugs.  Luckily, that isn’t every week. 

It was exactly a year ago now that I was about to lose my leg, so this is an alternative that I can deal with.  I am grateful every day that I can walk and do most of the things that I want to do.  But I will have to admit that I was a little discouraged as I felt the change in my leg, then I spent an evening looking through last year’s Christmas cards and many other cards and notes I received at that time.  Your love and kindness totally buoyed me up and made me want to be half as strong as many of you think that I am.  THANK YOU SO MUCH!

We hope you are having a wonderful Christmas season.  We know that many of you are dealing with more difficult problems than we are, and we continue to pray for you.  It is a beautiful season which gives us hope, as we celebrate our Savior’s birth and think about how he suffered for each of us.  We love you and wish you choicest blessings now and in the year 2013.   

An added note:  Our granddaughter, Kylee Garn, (Greg & Rebecca's daughter) received her mission call to Morristown, New Jersey, Spanish speaking.  She will enter the MTC on February 6 and already knows Spanish quite well.  We are so excited about her call.  Our grandson, Josh Peterson will have his papers in soon, and we love receiving letters from our grandson, Jason Garry, who is serving in Tampico, Mexico.  These are great blessings for grandparents as many of you know. 

 

 

ARROW OF LIGHT & EAGLE COURT OF HONOR

This was a great week for scouting.  Tyler Garn, Kevin and Tara’s oldest son, received his Arrow of Light award in an impressive ceremony – complete with a flaming arrow on Thursday, November 15.  The adults as well as the children were mesmerized.  Tyler turns 11 on January 4^th and will hit the trail to Eagle after receiving all of his Cub Scout Awards. 

 

Mesa District representative explaining the points of the arrow.

The flaming arrow

Tyler with his proud parents, Kevin & Tara



Proud grandparents, Daryl & Irene
 



Delicious refreshments in the shape of an arrow

 

Nathan Garry Eagle Court of Honor

Sunday, November 18, 2012

 
Sunday evening, Nathan Garry, Steve and Dana’s second boy, received his Eagle Scout Award along with the Mormon Battalion Award in the Mesa 30^th Ward.  He is our fourth grandson to receive his Eagle Award, preceded by Jason, Josh and David.  It was an impressive Eagle’s nest with all of Nathan’s uncles and many others.  Daryl had the privilege of presenting the Eagle Award to Nathan.

Color Guard for the Court of Honor
Nathan's brother, Andrew and cousins, Dax, Tyler and Scott

David Smith presented the Mormon Battalion Award &
Grandpa Daryl presented Nathan with his Eagle Award.

Nathan with his brother and cousins, all future Eagle Scouts

 

Great support in scouting and in every aspect of Nathan's life



Mom and dad are especially happy!
 



Grandma and grandpa are especially proud!

One last hug from mom and Aunt Gayla

IT'S ALL ABOUT HAIR -- HALLOWEEN 2012

If you are a female, a good part of your life is spent worrying about your hair – cuts, color, style, perms, etc.  It is a constant go-around.  Then if you add cancer to the mix, you lose your hair and have to deal with wigs or being seen bald – not a good option.

Anyway, after that process, and a change of chemotherapy drugs about six months into this, my hair began to slowly grow back.  What a surprise to see what I would look like with white hair.  Our grandson, Ryan, saw me one day and ran to tell grandpa that grandma looks like a boy.

Come Halloween, I had the idea to spray my hair purple.  I called Tara, Kevin’s wife, to run it by her.  Nicole (7) answered and just giggled when I asked if they had some purple hair spray that I could use.  That clinched it – I would go with purple.  Tara actually did the spraying for me, as it takes some experience. 

Each Halloween, after the grandchildren are finished trick-or-treating, we meet up at Byron and Michelle’s where the kids dump out their candy and do a little trading plus admire each other’s costumes.  Well, the reaction was pretty fun and funny.  The grandchildren really liked it, but my children were the most shocked and surprised to see their mother with purple hair.  Mind, you, I did not go anywhere else.  This was strictly for family, and it turned out really fun.  Why did I choose purple?  Of course, it is Daryl’s favorite color.

 

You will see the pictures below.  Since this has become somewhat of a grandma blog, I have posted a bunch of the grandchildren pictures which will not be of interest to many of you, except, if you are a grandma, you will understand.

Irene & Tara

Gayla, Tara, Irene, Dana

 

 

Kurt Peterson

Tyler Garn & Paul Peterson (Customized costumes
by Dr. Chuck & Gayla)

Emily Garry, Paul & Scott Peterson, Andrew Garry

Dax Garn

Southern Belle, Addie Garn

Nicole & Ashley Garn, Lucy Garn

Ashley & Nicole Garn, Lucy Garn

Sam & Suzy Garn

Ryan & Tyler Garn

Tara & Allison Garn

Chuck & Gayla Peterson Family



Halloween 2012!  It doesn't get much better than this. 

 

CHEMOTHERAPY -- NOVEMBER 6, 2012

Too bad to associate my last chemotherapy with Election Day.  I hope the chemo has better results.  The thing about cancer is that you are never really sure what is going on or if the treatment is doing what it is supposed to, but we are always hopeful.  This turned out to be a long day with much of it spent in waiting time.  We arrived at Banner MD Anderson at 10:30 in the morning for blood work after which we met the Dr. then had chemo.  We left at 6:30 p.m.  The thing that saved the day is the Dana and Gayla came so they could meet Dr. Homsi, as we talk about him all of the time.  I hadn’t had any new tests, so it was almost like a social visit with a few questions.  He was pretty funny, and the girls now know who he is.  I will have another MRI and CT scan on December 3 which should tell us if resuming the chemotherapy is helping. 

The day after chemo, I always go in for another IV treatment for anti-nausea drugs and hydration.  I was only there about four hours, so we came home and were able to go to the temple, as it was our stake temple day.  The day after that, I had several things to go and do from morning to night.  I got along just fine, but Friday, I “hit the wall” so to speak.  I did as little as I could that day and just recouped.  I have been fine ever since. 

When I look back at a year ago now, how I was feeling and what I was facing, I could not be more grateful.  I continue to “live in thanksgiving daily, for the many mercies and blessings which he doth bestow upon you,” or upon me!  Alma 34:38

Also appropriate as we approach Thanksgiving this week:  “O give thanks unto the Lord; for he is good; for his mercy endureth for ever.”  1 Chronicles 16:34 

 

The Lord surely is good to us, and so much of his goodness is manifest by each of you.  Thank you once again for your love, your continued interest and encouragement.  May you have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

 

More to come soon.  Halloween and "It's all about hair."

 

 

MEDICAL TESTS & MORE CHEMOTHERAPY TREATMENTS

We arrived home on Monday, October 1, and I had tests on Wednesday, October 3, – blood tests, a CT scan and an MRI.  They all went well with the MRI being easier than usual.  Two days later on Friday, October 5, we met with Dr. Homsi to get the results.  He prefaced his findings with the fact that he had both good and bad news.  The good news is that my lungs are clear, and the bad news is that the tumor in my leg has grown since the last MRI. He presented three options and wanted to know my feelings.  They were to resume the chemotherapy with one chemo drug, to resume with the two chemo drugs or to have the tumor removed surgically.  I told him that I had no interest in surgery, as I had gone through that three times only to have the tumor return each time.  His recommendation is to have a couple of treatments with the one chemo drug then have tests again to see if it is working.  I will begin this Wednesday then have another treatment in four weeks.  We trust Dr. Homsi’s judgment and were reassured with all of the wonderful conference messages that Heavenly Father is aware of any trials that we may be experiencing.  Sometimes I get tired of the rigmarole, but for the most part I am very grateful that I can enjoy life and function as well as I do. 

 We were thrilled with General Conference and with the announcement of the age change for missionaries.  We have a grandson, Josh Peterson (BYU), and a granddaughter, Kylee Garn (BYUI), who both became instantly eligible to serve missions.  They were both planning on missions, so it will just change the timing, especially for Kylee who turned 19 in September.  

 

UTAH VACATION -- NEW BRIGHAM CITY TEMPLE, ETC.

 

We spent the month of September (my least favorite month in Arizona) in Utah this year. The weather was perfect, and we were doted on by family and friends. We love and appreciate them so very much. I was a little worried about being gone that long, but it was delightful. As part of that, Daryl had his 55^th high school class reunion of which he was the chairman. It was very casual, and everyone seemed to enjoy time to visit and reconnect. He also got in some good rounds of golf and participated in a golf tournament.

A highlight was the opportunity to attend the Brigham City Temple Open House, the dedication and then a session on the second day it was open. It is absolutely beautiful in every detail. I will have to admit that like Elder Christensen talked about in his conference address, I was noticing all of the moldings, peach blossom motifs, beveled glass windows, marble floors, etc. I didn’t want to miss anything. We felt very blessed to be a part of all of those events.  We were also able to attend the Rexburg, Logan and Bountiful Temples.

Brigham City Utah Temple -- Dedicated September 23, 2012

Notice the peach blossom motif in the circles.

Brigham City Tabernacle -- across from the new temple

 

Taken from the window of Scott & Sydne Parker's home in Bountiful, Utah.

At home in the yard

We enjoyed peaches, corn and tomatoes practically every day.  Daryl and my sister, Norma.

The charm of Tremonton, Utah!

 

 

Our plants and flowers flourished while we were gone.  Below are a few pictures.  I will have to admit that I got carried away!

 

 

 

The sweet potato plant is taking over the furniture! 



Tenth and Hopefully Last Chemo Treatment for a While

Irene had her tenth chemo treatment on Tuesday, August 21^st with a follow up visit the next day for the anti nausea medication and the Nulasta shot to protect her heart.  As usual, a blood draw, meeting with the doctor and the chemo treatment through an IV takes most of the day. In the meeting with Dr. Homsi prior to the chemo infusion, he suggested that she schedule the next MRI and CT scans in six weeks which will be ten weeks since the last scans.  If everything looks about the same as the last scans, he is going to let her go without chemo infusions for a couple of months.  We are so hopeful for good reports following the next scans.

 She tolerated the chemo treatment well with no nausea and very little weakness.  We continue to wrap her leg each night and she wears the constriction stocking during the day.  Even with that, occasionally the swelling in her leg appears greater for a few days, and we worry that something may be going wrong. 

She was able to enjoy a trip to the Washington DC area with two of her sisters and their husbands to visit her 90 year old brother, Byron, and his wife Hazel.  We enjoyed a wonderful week visiting with the family and seeing some of the sights in that beautiful part of our country.

 

 L to R, Norma Coombs & Nadine Woodhead, (my sisters), Irene, Byron (my 90 year old brother and his wife Hazel



 Norma & Theo Coombs, Bob & Nadine Woodhead, Hazel & Byron Hall and Irene
 

 

 Back:  Daryl, Bob Woodhead, Hazel & Byron Hall, Irene   Front:  Norma Coombs & Nadine Woodhead (my sisters)

Byron was a bombardier in a B-24 Bomber during World War II and flew 30 missions over Germany. He kept a wonderful journal of that experience, and Irene has recently put that journal into a book with a number of accompanying pictures and documents. We were able to meet Jack Umphrey, the pilot, and only other surviving member on the crew at Byron and Hazel’s home. It was very educational to hear more of those WW II experiences. Jack wanted Irene to autograph his book to which he had contributed some of the information and is delighted to have.

 

 Byron Hall & Jack Umphrey -- Bombadier & Pilot in WW II -- the last of their crew.

 

Jack & Rusti Umphrey with Irene & Byron's book

The link for Byron's book is: http://www.blurb.com/books/3365346   Byron was a very good writer if you are interested in history or just in looking at the pictures.  View full screen!

I understand that this will mainly be interesting for my family.  Thanks to each of you for your continued love and support. 

GOLD MEDAL SLEEPOVER

Not to be outdone by the grandsons, and in keeping with the Olympics, I had a "Gold Medal Sleepover" with our granddaughters ages 5 to 12 -- (six in all) before school started. It all began with timed races in the pool, dinner, making lollipops and watching the Olympics. The next morning after a Gold Medal Breakfast (fixed by grandpa), we had "Gold Medal Makeovers," complete with makeup, hairdos, jewelry and fancy dresses of their choice & a photo shoot.  Following that, each girl took the podium and was presented with a Gold Medal for her outstanding qualities. It was a great way to end the summer.

Posing for Grandma

 

 



 Gold Medal Girls

 

 

Lucy Garn (Byron & MIchelle's)

 

Addie Garn (Greg & Rebecca's)

Nicole Garn (Kevin & Tara's)

Ashley Garn (Kevin & Tara's)

Emily Garry (Steve & Dana's)

Saydie Garn, (Greg & Rebecca's)