Still Standing

Happy Birthday

2010-05-23T20:03:00.000-05:00

We decided to celebrate Maggie's birthday one day early since I would be in the hospital for chemo. Maggie was more than willing to do so! I think she had a GREAT day!

Slumber Party

2010-05-22T15:29:00.000-05:00

Maggie planned a fabulous slumber party this year for her 11th birthday. She invited 12 girls and boy did they have a ball!

They had a water balloon fight. 150 water balloons barely lasted 5 minutes!

They ate pizza.

They played a fun game called spoons that mommy remembered playing in college. It was a lot like musical chairs...but with spoons and cards!

Maggie had a specially decorated peace sign cake to go along with the theme of the evening!

They even got to paint their own peace signs to take home!

She even found a few moments to sqeeze in a little DDR with a few friends...where are the others?

exhibition

2010-05-17T15:25:00.000-05:00

Maggie's cumulative project in 5th grade was about making healthy choices...namely in nutrition. She did a great job...even put together a blog! I am very proud of the leadership role she played in putting together this year's exhibition.

Field Day

2010-05-12T15:17:00.000-05:00

Maggie had a fun day at field day at school...she reports they came in last. She didn't really care. She was more upset about being a longhorn!

Shelling Cruise

2010-05-10T18:30:00.000-05:00

We found live starfish and the big catch of the day...a big sand dollar found by Maggie!

We saw dolphins all the time...right up by the beach!

Pure happiness...I wouldn't change a thing!

We found lots of live shells that of course had to be thrown back...neat to find!

I believe this was one of our favorite activities of the trip...shelling cruise to Upper Captiva.

Bowman's Beach

2010-05-08T18:26:00.000-05:00

We tried to go to a new beach each day...that was pretty easy!

Sunset Cruise

2010-05-07T18:19:00.000-05:00

What a memorable evening we had sailing the Gulf of Mexico watching the sun set. The weather couldn't have been any better. We even sw a few manatees.

Captiva Island

2010-05-07T18:09:00.000-05:00

We ate lunch at a restaurant called The Mucky Duck and stayed a bit on their beach. The water in Captiva was even bluer than Sanibel! We'll definetely have to come back!

Sanibel Island

2010-05-06T18:05:00.000-05:00

We finally made it to our long anticipated visit to Sanibel Island! It's nice to miss the Spring Break crowds and come during their slow season...perfect for our little family to get a break away from our busy lives in Houston and MDACC!

Banyan Tree...wow!

2010-05-06T18:02:00.000-05:00

We spent our first day on Sanibel Island going to Fort Myers to visit the Henry Ford/Thomas Edison Winter Estates. We were wowed by everything we saw...especially this single acre large Banyan Tree!

out of control

2010-04-30T17:57:00.000-05:00

Ian is really working hard to keep out tomatoes, peppers and cucumbers alive...they are taking over our side garden area!

great news!

2010-04-26T14:19:00.000-05:00

Good morning! I have good news from MDACC! Monica just called, and all looks really good on her scans. She is officially in “partial remission!” What a great word to be able to use! Monica had to clarify for me, “remission” = “not cancerous at this time.” The expectation is that it will come back at some point, but I’m happy to say that Dr. Seifker told her that the fact that she has responded so well to this treatment (less than 10% of patients who receive the same treatment get results as positive as Monica’s) is an indication that she should respond to other treatments, too. It makes me feel so much more comfortable to know that her doctors feel like they have a full toolbox for her.

Details of the scans: everything in her lungs continues to look good and is healing. There is nothing in the lungs that concerns Dr. Seifker. The spot on her spine continues to shrink and is closing nicely. It is even growing new bone, which is fantastic. The plan-forward is to continue chemo for 8 more weeks. After that, she will go through radiation treatment, essentially for good measure. Don’t know after that.

Today Monica will be admitted for her in-patient treatment. As y’all know, history tells us this will likely be a week of feeling pretty horrible for her. I am sure that going into it with such good news and realizing how worth it the chemo is will help her mentally. Even so, please continue the good thoughts and prayers. I know they hold her up. Thank you, all, for your continued friendship and support of the Phillips!

5th grade carwash

2010-04-24T14:16:00.000-05:00

What a wonderful day for a car wash! Maggie started the day with winning her last volleyball game of the season and then on to help her classmates raise money for their 5th grade celebration after graduation. The weather was beautiful and they were able to raise $650!

Love Thursday

2010-04-22T14:14:00.001-05:00

reader forever

2010-04-22T14:10:00.000-05:00

I love that Maggie loves to read. It's about 7:00am in this picture...

yum!

2010-04-14T14:06:00.000-05:00

Isn't this yummy? We all loved taking this apart! It took me a while to figure out who it was from...the grandmother of a student that moved away last Decemeber!

5th grade camp

2010-04-13T14:03:00.000-05:00

Every year the 5th graders get to go away to camp for a week during the school year. What fun! It was a good week for this to happen for our family...as it was my first week back to school since October! Everyone had a great time and they are looking forward to going back this summer!

Children's Festival

2010-04-11T13:58:00.000-05:00

Maggie was pretty excited when Ian brought home backstage passes to meet/greet Chelsea Staub...star from Disney Channel's show, Jonas.

watermelon season

2010-04-07T13:54:00.001-05:00

Watermelon seems to be the only thing I want to eat when I am feeling sick...and we found a good one!

Prayers for Monica today, please. She's really having a tough time getting over last Monday's chemo. That was the day she got Cisplatin + Gemcetabine; Cisplatin is the really nasty one. It sounds like it's normal to have more of a problem with it as it accumulates in your system through prolonged treatment, but it's been more than a week, and she sounds miserable. She's trying to sleep as much as possible and isn't talkative, so prayers, thoughts and emails are the best way to go to hold her up in this. Thanks for all of it! - Jennifer

garden update

2010-04-06T13:39:00.000-05:00

Our garden is taking over and out of control...help!!!

the hunt is on!

2010-04-03T18:04:00.003-05:00

Today was our Annual Easter Egg Hunt at Helen's Park with our lifelong neighborhood friends. We've had this hunt since the girls were toddlers. I can see doing this on into their high school years...they seem to enjoy it every year!

Rosie girl

2010-04-03T18:02:00.003-05:00

Look what Rosie looked like when we picked her up from the groomers...she doesn't look very fierce with little pink bows!

Palm Sunday

2010-03-28T18:00:00.000-05:00

Guess what Maggie did during church services today?

middle school

2010-03-27T17:56:00.000-05:00

Pershing is our neighborhood middle school and our 1st choice of middle schools...until we got the mail today! Maggie was accepted into Hamilton Vanguard School (which we didn't even apply to) and wait listed at Pin Oak and Lanier. Lanier is out of the question but we have a pretty good of a shot getting into both programs at Pin Oak. All her friends now want to go to Pin Oak...the choice is Maggie's. Stay tuned...

volleyball

2010-03-27T12:29:00.004-05:00

The girls wear crazy socks this year on game days for good luck!

OMG !!!!!!!!!

2010-03-25T12:23:00.000-05:00

We were woken up at 4:00 am when the police rang our doorbell during a crazy rainstorm. He was concerned about our car. The storm drain in front of our house was spewing mud and water 4-5 feet into the air. The sidewalk had already flooded and a 1/4 of our corner lawn was gone. An hour later Maggie looked outside and said something was wrong with the stop sign...you couldn't see the pole anymore. It sank into the ground. When the rain stopped, we found a huge sinkhole in our yard...it was quite amazing!

Grandma Marion's

2010-03-21T11:35:00.000-05:00

Maggie spent the long weekend at her Grandma Marion's house. She loves it there because there will always be a handful of little cousins to play with and of course, Grandma Marion! We always miss her at home but know she's in good hands and having fun being spoiled!

Love Thursday

2010-03-18T22:51:00.000-05:00

pig pen at Barrington Living History Farm

Washington on the Brazos State Park

2010-03-18T22:31:00.001-05:00

Today we visited Washington on the Brazos State Park. Within the park they had a real working farm called Barrington Living History Farm. We especially loved all the period clothes and houses. The 5 day old spotted piglets were adorable! Recently, Maggie and I finished watching the PBS series, Texas Ranch House 1867 and Frontier House 1883...it made today's field trip that much more interesting and real to her. I love that Maggie loves pioneer history like her momma!

Maggie completed a scavenger hunt within the Star of the Republic Museum. Ian would have been jealous...he is the Texas history buff of the family! We also visited a really cool replica of Independence Hall which is revered as the one of Texas’ most significant historic places, it was here in 1836 that representatives of the Texas settlements met to make a formal declaration of independence from Mexico. This replica of Independence Hall marks the place where the Texas Declaration of Independence was signed and the government of the Republic of Texas was created.

We also managed to find 2 letterboxes on site!

Our day wasn't complete until we stopped in Brenham for lunch and Blue Bell ice cream at a restaurant called Must Be Heaven on our way back home!

Little House

2010-03-17T22:27:00.000-05:00

Today we went to go see a Little House on the Prairie play at A.D. Players. It was adaptation of the book series that I loved as a child. It pleases me that Maggie loves it, too. I hope someday she is able to go see the Little House museums and houses up north...I always wanted to do that, too.

rodeo carnival

2010-03-13T20:29:00.000-06:00

We went to the rodeo carnival today despite it being Spring Break. It was crowded but for some reason the ride lines were not that long. It was a beautiful day and we had a great time being together.

Love Thursday

2010-03-11T14:09:00.000-06:00

Maggie came home with this from Girl Scout camp recently...her first attempt at whittling!

Jonas Bros.

2010-03-07T14:04:00.000-06:00

We lucked into some tickets to see the Jonas Bros. at the rodeo at the last minute. Maggie was quite pleased at the surprise!

5th grade auction item

2010-03-05T13:46:00.000-06:00

Every year Maggie's school has an auction to raise money and each class contributes a project. This year Maggie's interest in origami influenced their class project! I think it turned out really nice and should sell for a sizable amount of money for the school.

Love Thursday

2010-03-04T12:17:00.000-06:00

Thanks, Vicki

Young Inventor's Project

2010-03-03T15:57:00.000-06:00

This year Maggie's school opted to do an invention project instead of a science fair project. Our Maggie is always thinking up ways to be cozier and warm! She invented a way to attach her pajama bottoms to the tops of sock with velcro so the pants wouldn't bunch up to her knees! Clever girl.

Spring !!!

2010-03-01T15:54:00.002-06:00

Spring seems to finally be here...knock on wood! We've had a harsh winter this year! Maggie's Meyer Lemon has quite a few sprouts. We'll see what happens. This is the same tree that snapped in half during a storm. Who knows what it has grafted into! Nonetheless, we are excited!

I don’t know about y’all, but I’ve been anxiously awaiting the news on Monica’s re-staging today, and it’s good! She just called with this report from her oncologist: the two lesions in her lungs that had previously decreased in size (as seen in her sneak-peak CT scan in Jan.) are almost completely resolved, meaning the tumors themselves are gone, but there is essentially a scab left that will be absorbed by her body. In addition, the tumor in her spine is shrinking nicely. Finally, no new cancer activity anywhere – the only measureable tumor left is the one in her spine, and it’s going away! Hallelujah! Monica said that the whole oncology staff was excited and happy. Even Dr. Seifker, who is usually very serious and sober, was smiling and kept saying “this is good news!” Big sigh of relief. So, the plan is working, and they’re sticking to it. She is waiting around to get in a room and have her first treatment of this next cycle. This is the Cisplatin + Gemcetabine combo day, so she’ll stay the night in the hospital. Two more cycles of chemo and then another restaging. Today I am so thankful for this good news, for Monica's strength of body, spirit, and character, and for all of you who sustain her through this. - Jennifer

gardening

2010-02-28T15:43:00.000-06:00

It was a nice day so we took advantage of it! We repotted some of our pots on the patio, ripped out all the dead stuff from the latest freeze and was able to plant some tomatoes, cucumbers, lettuce and broccoli.

1st volleyball game

2010-02-27T15:40:00.000-06:00

Maggie had an amazing start to this volleyball season! Only 3 of the 8 girls on her team was able to make it to the 1st game...and they beat the socks of the other team 3 games in a row! They did a great job. Well done, girls!

Go Texan Day

2010-02-26T15:31:00.000-06:00

Today was Go Texan Day...we had to go get new boots! Of course, what this photo is missing is a cowgirl hat!

Love Thursday

2010-02-25T16:25:00.001-06:00

wonderful day spent in Galveston with Jennifer

Starry Night Takes Flight

2010-02-24T15:25:00.000-06:00

This was a last minute idea for our annual silent auction school fundraiser. This children painted origami peace cranes in "Starry Night" colors and I attached them to a upclose star from Van Gogh's famous Starry Night. Each peace crane represents one of my students this year and the silver crane is supposed to be me. I hope this goes over well...

curls?

2010-02-22T21:30:00.002-06:00

Somebody is gonna have curly hair tomorrow!

flowers

2010-02-22T17:35:00.002-06:00

Beautiful weather means pretty flowers! I pulled weeds and dead stuff from the freeze from the flower garden and added just a few bits of color until we can really get started in the spring.

library

2010-02-21T17:22:00.003-06:00

Today started out rainy and dreary but ended up being a wonderful day. It was a great day to walk the park and to the library to check a few books out!

friends

2010-02-21T00:01:00.000-06:00

Clementine and Rosie

cookie booth

2010-02-20T20:21:00.003-06:00

It was a perfect day for Girl Scouts to sell cookies at a cookie booth! Can you believe they sold $500 worth of cookies? Wow.

cookie time!!

2010-02-20T13:16:00.004-06:00

We are finally down to delivering the last few boxes of 200 cookies Maggie sold this year! Whew.

Chinese New Year...again

2010-02-19T18:34:00.004-06:00

Maggie celebrated Chinese New Year with friends...lion dancers and all! I'm sure she's in it for her favorite dumplings!

Love Thursday

2010-02-18T00:01:00.002-06:00

shells found on our last Galveston trip

Sanibel or bust

2010-02-16T18:59:00.000-06:00

I finally bit the bullet and made reservations for airfare, cottage and car rental for a week in May to visit Sanibel Island. Yikes...it's so far from now! We are very excited and I visit a fun shelling blog and beach web cam daily!

ears pierced

2010-02-15T18:06:00.000-06:00

After literally years, Maggie finally decided to get her ears pierced! It was such a hard decision...she was so scared! I had no rule about when she could get it done. I figured the right time would be when she could get past the pain factor. Her sweet piercer was so patient and kind...she rewarded Maggie with a ring to match for her bravery!

Happy Valentine's Day

2010-02-14T18:03:00.000-06:00

We celebrated by having a wonderful breakfast feast prepared by Ian and exchanged our own sweet valentines.

GS camp out

2010-02-13T17:59:00.001-06:00

Maggie had a Girl Scout camp out this weekend. I was sad about not going...until it got really cold! OK, I was still a little sad about not going. Note that Maggie is using my hiking backpack. I was really pleased that she got so into it and even wanted to use my hiking sleeping bag!

principal's club

2010-02-12T19:07:00.000-06:00

Maggie is set to receive all A's and E's on her report card again this grading cycle and was rewarded with a little celebration and certificate today. :-)

Rosie & Mags

2010-02-11T17:47:00.000-06:00

We never seem to have a shortage of pictures of Maggie and Rosie!

Love Thursday

2010-02-11T17:41:00.000-06:00

almost time...

2010-02-10T17:36:00.000-06:00

I love the innocence at this age. Maggie happily made valentines and put together treat boxes for everyone in her class.

Greg Mortenson

2010-02-07T17:29:00.000-06:00

I took Maggie and Ben to see Greg Mortenson speak. All three of us have read 3 Cups of Tea and have each been inspired to help his cause to raise money one penny at a time!

birthday pictures

2010-02-05T17:09:00.000-06:00

I finally got around to framing and hanging up pictures I got for my birthday. Kelly Rae Roberts is my favorite artist right now and I love all her work! The picture on the lower left corn is from Ian and has my trademark 3 hearts in the lower right corner. :-)

Love Thursday

2010-02-04T17:05:00.001-06:00

When I don't feel well, all I want to eat are oranges, Clementine tangerines and canned mandarin oranges!

update...

2010-02-03T17:01:00.000-06:00

Monica got home from MDACC this afternoon. She is just laying low and resting now. She sounds good but tired. As she said, don't know if the exhaustion is just from 2 nights in the hospital or from the chemo - probably both. Thank you, as always, for the strength of your thoughts and prayers! - Jennifer

update...

2010-02-02T16:56:00.000-06:00

Just wanted to let y'all know, chemo went okay yesterday, although got off to a late start. I just heard from Ian, and it sounds like the nausea and vomiting have hit now. They decided to keep her in the hospital another night. If you recall, the last time she received both chemo drugs (the week of Christmas), she ended up right back in the ER just hours after she was released. They're trying to avoid that this time. I know all the Phillips hate for her to have to do that, but I also am sure they feel more comfortable with Monica under the watchful eyes of the nurses. I'll let you know when I hear she's settled in at home - hopefully sometime tomorrow! - Jennifer

homework

2010-01-31T16:51:00.000-06:00

I love that for as long as I can remember, Maggie has been the responsible type...and did her homework all on her own. She is too rule oriented and governed by consequences to even think about not doing it. I truly hope she continues to be this way...

International Festival

2010-01-30T15:28:00.000-06:00

Today was a wonderful day for our school International Festival. It was great to participate insomething we love and to see so many friends out and about! Great day.

Spelling Bee

2010-01-29T15:24:00.000-06:00

The school wide spelling bee was today. I'm so glad I was able to attend...even though it is gut wrenching to watch! Maggie proudly made it to the top 4 and will be challenged to another bee next week! Ugh...another whirlwind of hard words to master!

Love Thursday

2010-01-28T14:51:00.001-06:00

our favorite family game, Rummikub

I am SO HAPPY to report that the scans/x-rays Monica had Monday shows that it is post-surgical scar tissue causing her current symptoms, not large tumors!!! Even better, they also show that a couple of the small tumors have actually shrunk with the initial chemo, so she's responding! Wahoo!!! So, back to plan A. She will continue with the original chemo prescribed. She's opted to wait until Monday to start that so she can be around for some activities over the next few days over the weekend. The symptoms she's having are very real, and her oncologist stated that these are exactly what she sees with tumor growth, so that's what she expected. Dr. Seifker had the scans read and re-read and even looked at them herself to be sure. Monica will have to just live with these symptoms, which she's just fine with. This is wonderful news, of course, that gives her the chance to keep fighting. I really do not mean to be putting y'all through an emotional roller-coaster. I know that every one of you cares about this dear family. Please do not let me take away from this good news when I remind you that this disease is still dreadful and the road is still very tough. We can celebrate today that rather than many steps back, she has taken a tiny step forward! Thank you, as always, for your thoughts, hopes and prayers. - Jennifer

update...

2010-01-26T14:38:00.000-06:00

Dear Friends, Monica and I have heard back from so many of you in the past 24 hours. Of course, everyone is devastated over this latest development for Monica. After reading many of your notes, I decided that I may need to clarify some things. As much as it breaks my heart to say it, it is important to understand that the goals of Monica's doctor's are to prolong her life and to provide her with a quality of life as long as they can; there is not a cure (and never has been) for her type, stage and extent of cancer. I do not want to discourage anyone from paying for total healing - I know we all hope daily for this walk-on-water miracle. However, I'd like to ask you to add to your hopes and prayers some other things like peace for her family, pain and nausea free days, ease of breathing, removal of fear and sadness, the right timing and finding the right words to talk with Maggie, etc. - Jennifer

update...

2010-01-25T14:14:00.001-06:00

Hi, everyone. I have some important news to pass on regarding Monica's health. As some of you may know Monica has been experiencing symptoms similar to what she did before the tumors were removed from her lungs - coughing, shortness of breath, and of affected voice. This has progressed through the past week, and today her oncologist said that, as Monica suspected, it is likely this is due to rapid growth of the small tumors that remained in her lungs. They have cancelled chemo today and are running emergency CT scans/chest x-rays ASAP. There is a small chance that this is scar tissue from her original lung surgery, but along with her doctor's, Monica feels pretty strongly it is cancer. Her oncologist was wanting to talk about hospice care. She will meet with the oncologist and review the scans as well as plan-forward on Thursday. She was told she will likely start a new chemo regime then. They told her that the chemo she was getting originally was pretty hard-core, and this will be even more so. What I mean by that is she can expect to be pretty heavily impacted by the side effects. They originally went with what they thought had the best chance of arresting the growth of the tumors. This new chemo is not as targeted for her specific disease and her oncologist suggests a 20% chance it could stabilize her cancer. Basically, as she moves forward having to try new things, the chances of those new therapies working decreases down to less that 1%. The new chemo regime will take 36-48 hours to administer, and therefore, will require a minimum 3-night stay at MDACC. She will do this every 2 weeks. Her oncologist does not recommend surgery at this point to remove any new tumors. She says it is a quality of life issue, that the cancer is spreading so effectively, the time spent on recovering from major surgery is not worth it. This is definitely a time for prayers for peace and strength for this family, and I thank you so much for caring about them. - Jennifer

frogs

2010-01-23T14:06:00.000-06:00

Once Maggie found out about these miniature frogs she knew she had to have some! She had Christmas money to use and bought her own frog ecosystem. The frogs only have to be fed twice a week through the top of the aquarium and the water changed twice a year...can't beat that! She named them Sam and Lilly. Cute.

Love Thursday

2010-01-21T14:10:00.000-06:00

When I was a child I would find multiple shark's teeth (and sand dollars, too) every visit to the beach in Galveston. Now for some reason I just cannot make that happen. I've told Maggie about this so now she's hot to find a shark's tooth (and a sand dollar), too. Maybe this summer...

Ian's birthday

2010-01-19T14:04:00.000-06:00

We had a quiet celebration at home together to celebrate Ian's 40th birthday.

Galveston

2010-01-16T13:33:00.000-06:00

At the last moment we decided to take Jennifer's offer seriously and borrow their beach house for the MLK holiday weekend. It was a bit windy and chilly but we were able to spend some fun times together alone as a family. We also found AMAZING shells...which is very unusual for Galveston!

Clementine

2010-01-14T13:28:00.000-06:00

Why aren't our pets "normal" like other people's pets? Apparently, Clementine has had a hidden passion for skateboarding! He even climbs aboard and let's Maggie and I push him for fast rides in the hallway!

update...

2010-01-11T13:15:00.000-06:00

Monica had her appointment this morning with her oncologist's physician's assistant. This is her first week off chemo, but she keeps up those weekly appointments so that they can continue to monitor how her body is tolerating the chemotherapy. Today the PA was able to let her know that Friday's brain scan was clear and healthy. While this was not really something that the doctor's or Monica were concerned about, it is definitely nice to say "healthy brain." All seems to be going well, as far as they can tell. Monica has her nausea managed, and her primary side effect is simply lack of energy (and lack of sleep, which clearly doesn't help the lack of energy). Hopefully with these two weeks of rest, her body will have a chance to recover nicely before the next round starts. If you see Monica (she's been at school and otherwise out-and-about) you will notice she is sporting a new haircut. The volume of hair she was losing was so much, she decided to lessen it by getting a cute bob! The next couple of weeks may be quiet simply because there won't be much to report. Don't worry, I'll definetely get back to everyone as there's more information to disperse. - Jennifer

5th graders!!!

2010-01-06T13:06:00.000-06:00

It's hard to imagine these girls are already in 5th grade...so grown up compared to when they met as babies less than a year old! I'm pleased as punch they've remained friends. Hopefully, that will continue regardless of which middle school they go to.

finally!

2010-01-04T12:57:00.001-06:00

We actually went out to a restaurant with family this evening...we haven't done that in months!

Monica's chemo treatment was uneventful today. She is, however, totally exhausted. The expectation is that nausea will hit sometime tomorrow (sounds like a hurricane making landfall!), so she's taking the new miracle drugs preemptively. Let's keep crossed fingers they do their job this week! After today, she will have the next 2 Monday's off, starting back on round 2 at the end of January.

Look who it is!!!

2010-01-03T22:39:00.000-06:00

We saw Zada!!! Well, the picture tells me I did. I seriously don't remember seeing her at all. I remember going to my grandmothers funeral but I don't remember seeing Zada. I was newly on my trifecta of non-nausea medications...that's all I can say about that.

Happy New Year

2010-01-01T22:34:00.001-06:00

Happy New Year! My hope is that we may all prosper in good health and happiness!

New Year's Eve

2009-12-31T13:31:00.001-06:00

We had to cancel our annual New Year's Eve celebrations at a friend's house. I felt my all time worst. Maggie went on without us and was able to have a good time. When she got home Maggie and Ian watched the ball drop in Times Square on TV. We almost had to go to the ER but the Dr. on call decided to try one more thing...his concoction of 3 drugs he uses for his own patients. Huge miracle...it worked! Happy New Year!!!!!

41st birthday

2009-12-30T13:23:00.001-06:00

My 41st birthday came and went without much attention. I felt horrible. Jennifer came over and brought flowers and presents and mom/Howard brought a coffee cake. Small celebration... that's all I could muster.

update...

2009-12-29T09:35:00.000-06:00

I just want to report that Monica had her 2nd chemo treatment yesterday. She was feeling good going into it, and the process went fine, but she was hit again last night with nausea. She's feeling pretty miserable, but so far she's been able to stay home. She is currently there, trying to rest, and trying to stay hydrated. It seems that she's able to do a slightly better job of that this time than she was last week, so hopefully that means she'll be able to avoid the ER. She was hoping that only getting one drug this week (Gemcitabibe) rather than the two combo from last week (Gem + Cisplatin) would minimize the nausea, but so far the difference isn't noticeable although being able to stay out of the hospital is a good thing! - Jennifer

lollipop

2009-12-28T19:18:00.000-06:00

I LOVE that on the top of Maggie's list to Santa this year was a big lollipop!

sweetie pie

2009-12-27T19:15:00.000-06:00

Maggie showing off her new shirt!

Merry Christmas

2009-12-25T18:56:00.001-06:00

We had a nice Christmas. Quiet. We had a small gathering of family and enjoyed the day together.

Christmas 2009

Love Thursday

2009-12-24T16:25:00.000-06:00

Maggie made me this BEAUTIFUL origami heart out of 1 piece of wrapping paper...I love it and it is now one of my favorites! Today is Christmas Eve and I was not able to make it to Christmas Eve services...I didn't even catch Maggie in her Christmas dress. Others reported back to me that she looked like an angel.

Monica has been admitted to a room in MDA to try to keep her hydrated and manage the side effects she's experiencing. They have been taking care of her in the ER from when she went in Tuesday night to this morning. One thing I did learn today that I was unaware of is that one of the two drugs she received on Monday she gets only once a month. That drug is particularly harsh and the reason why they will always keep her in the hospital at least overnight after the first day of each 4-week cycle. The hope is that means maybe the other three weeks of her cycle will be more manageable. At least it will be one less chemo drug. She is trying to rest she has her phone turned off for now. I imagine we won't be seeing her active on FB for a while, either. Just know that she's working on the fight. Maggie and Ian will be attending Christmas Eve services at Palmer this evening. Hopefully they will have Monica home for Christmas. However, in the big picture, of course, we want her to be where she can be best taken care of. - Jennifer

update...

2009-12-23T16:21:00.000-06:00

Poor Monica hasn't been able to keep even water down. She was doing fine while at the hospital, but I guess the anti-nausea medication they sent home wasn't as good as what she was getting in the IV. That's really just my guess...I don't really have any facts. Anyway, she went back to the hospital last night and is still there. I don't know if she's still in the ER or has been admitted. I'll let you know when I hear more. - Jennifer

Clementine

2009-12-20T13:45:00.000-06:00

Every year Clementine claims his favorite spot to nap...under the Christmas tree!

Mags and Rose

2009-12-18T13:35:00.000-06:00

We seem to have a lot of these...

Love Thursday

2009-12-17T13:28:00.001-06:00

Maggie loves the bottle cap necklaces and was pleased to make her own bottle caps with a kit she received as a Christmas gift!

Good news from MDACC. Monica's bone scan shows only the one spot of cancer on her spine, noting else (as far as bones go). She'd been very worried about the pain she's been experiencing in her shoulder, but it looks like that's surgery related. The other good news she has to share is that she actually hasn't had any pain today, so hopefully that means healing is happening! That's all for now. Thanks for your thoughts, prayers, meals, FB chatting, etc.! - Jennifer

Polar Express Day

2009-12-17T13:10:00.000-06:00

Today was "Polar Express Day" in 1st grade at school. Even though I am not teaching anymore, I couldn't pass up a day to visit in my PJ's. This is me with the rest of my 1st grade team I teach with...I really miss being at school! It's all I know...

really?

2009-12-13T12:27:00.000-06:00

Rosie is such silly, weird dog sometimes! She lays like this all the time...like she is comfortable!

update...

2009-12-11T10:38:00.001-06:00

Monica went in for a bone scan today. and while she was there they told her that they've decided to push her chemo back a week. Basically, they feel like she needs more time to heal from the larynx surgery she just had. So, chemo starts Monday, December 21...week of Christmas. It's 4 weeks of treatment, a week off, then another 4 weeks of treatment before she is restaged. - Jennifer

Love Thursday

2009-12-10T21:14:00.000-06:00

Monica went to see her oncologist today. Here's what the doctor said: her cancer is very aggressive. A new CAT scan shows cancer in her spine now and new growth in both her lungs...one sizable one in both the right and left lobes. Sizable, we think, is around 1 cm range. If you remember, these were not there on earlier scans, and certainly the growths in her lungs were not there when she had her lung surgery on November 9. So, the fight is on! She will start chemo on Monday. This will be once a week for 4 weeks in a row. After 2 cycles of this, they'll do more tests to see if everything is working. If it is, she'll keep on that program. If not, go to plan B (don't know what that is right after now). She will be on a trial - this is an additional drug that they will add on to what she'd be doing anyway, so she won't be missing out on anything. this is not a placebo test. They do, however, have two different groups p one that gets the extra drug right away and one that gets it a little later. She doesn't know yet which group she'll fall in. She'll spend the night at MDACC after the first round each cycle just to be sure she gets and stays hydrated. - Jennifer

container overload!

2009-12-09T21:08:00.000-06:00

One drawback of accepting so many meals...we have a million containers that are pouring out of our cabinets! We have reorganized, cleaned out and thrown away a lot...

update...

2009-12-07T20:57:00.000-06:00

Monica is out of surgery. The doctor said that the implant went well. Her voice will be stronger, probably a bit higher. Hopefully it will help her with her low energy, as this has been a continuing problem for her. She will be out of the hospital late tomorrow morning and is not allowed to talk for 48 hours. while she can't talk, please send her FB messages, as that's her preferred means of communication right now, and I think it's important for her to keep up contact. Monica has along the process tended to push herself too far, resulting in some real set-backs. We'll hope that she can avoid that this time but then, when it's appropriate, work to get her strength back. That's going to be important as she moves forward with chemotherapy. She also visited the pain management doctors, and they are going to start stepping her off the medications she's been on since her original surgery. As you may know, Monica has continued to have a lot of problems with nausea, and the hope is that this is tide to the pain medication she's been on. again, getting her appetite and strength back is what we need to support her on in prep for chemo. - Jennifer

maggiebee99

2009-12-06T20:54:00.000-06:00

I thought it was time to give Maggie her own email address! Times sure have changed since I was 10 years old!!!

Maggie & Momma

2009-12-05T20:51:00.002-06:00

How many 10 year-olds will wear a matching shirt with their momma? Maggie!!! Always my Maggie.

gingerbread house

2009-12-05T20:45:00.000-06:00

Gingerbread house building is always a fun day at our house. Each year our house always seems to have a different design. The heart on the roof was a first this year.

Maggie's tree

2009-12-05T20:42:00.000-06:00

More tradition...Maggie puts up a little tree in her room every year.