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Things are looking good this week! We made it to Charlotte safely. It rained the whole way. Feeling blah but much better than the last 3 days! It will pass.

Pictures from 3 weeks ago...

I have some pictures I wanted to put on the blog. The pics are from our trip to Charlotte 3 weeks ago. We drove home on the Blue Ridge Parkway. There are also some pictures of Bobby getting his medication at the hospital. It is pretty simple (so the pictures aren't very exciting). Bobby is doing well. He says he's tired, feels a little run down. The sores in his mouth have improved quite a bit. I've noticed that his appetite has decreased a little. He still has his quart of ice cream every night at bedtime. Whipped cream, chocolate...the works! He's been busy all week. He changed the brakes and a few other ?? things on my van. Oh-he says he "Changed the transmission control module." He balanced the tires on his truck, got a load of wood...I don't know but he's been busy at home all week. He's driving me crazy! I can't get anything done when he is home-and he is always home. Usually, when we are off work together, we spend the time together-not doing the piles of work that are here. Well, if we are both home...I have to get into the routine of being able to get my stuff done without distraction. We are enjoying the time together-even if the laundry is still in piles!

We're doing well

Nothing much going on-which is always good. Bobby had a routine appointment with the dermatologist on Tuesday. It went well. He didn't find anything suspicious-nothing new. Bobby goes every 3 months for an inspection-he passed! I like to celebrate even the routine visits-they might seem minor (especially to Bobby) but it is a blessing for ANY exam/test/scan to come back normal! Yipee! That gives us something to celebrate-at least every 3 months!

Bobby has been busy. He's been working on fixing the water pump in the backhoe? at his father's house. He said he got the water pump all put back together & installed it back on the backhoe. It may be a loader...they're all the same to me. So he puts it all back together and starts filling the radiator with water. The water he poured into the radiator just ran right out. Apparently, it was the radiator that was in need of repair-not so much the water pump! Sigh :)

Today is Dan's 14th birthday. He is excited. We talked on the way to school this morning that he will be going to high school next year. We had a teacher's conference on Wednesday. They said he is doing well. Mr. King, Dan's math teacher said that Dan surprises him all the time in class. He said he will put a problem up on the board and show the kids how to solve it. Dan will show the teacher his way of solving it-a way the teacher never thought of.

That's all for now, we have a busy day...

Update

I wanted to post an update to say hello to everyone (and there are so, so many friends & family out there). Hello, hello! Bobby is doing great! He is progressing through the clinical trial as expected-maybe even better than expected. He had developed some mouth ulcers which are now healing. He was having trouble eating-and eating seemed to make it worse. Now that his mouth is healing and there is less pain, he is eating better. One of the biggest side-effects of the Ipi is fatigue. Bobby has been tired and finds that if he can grab a few cat naps during the day it helps out. The Ipi can also cause diarrhea, which can be severe. We can be thankful that he hasn't had a problem with diarrhea. That would make anyone miserable. I think his spirits are great. He has definitely moved into a different phase of acceptance regarding the cancer. He is treating himself better, and is more willing to listen to his body-working with it and not trying to be Superman. This is all good. His mood is great, he is enjoying doing the things he/we love to do. He is spending time at home, working on projects, helping the kids with their (many) projects, and helping me with the never-ending housework. On the way to & from Charlotte last week, we drove a good portion of the Blue Ridge Parkway. The trees were at their peak and the weather was beautiful. Bobby didn't seem to mind that the 6 hour trip took 9 hours. We've heard some concerns that Bobby is sitting around the house feeling depressed, sad, and that he is just moping around (not to be confused with mopping-which is encouraged). The concern is appreciated & we know that the potential is there. I think the worst part is the guilt Bobby feels because of things he is hearing. He's not being lazy. He's not giving up or just laying around. Bobby is doing what he should be doing. He is enjoying life, living each day(at an enjoyable pace) and giving to himself the time he has given to all of us. If he wants to watch a movie or wash his truck--he can. Even with "nothing to do" his list is long and every day is filled with projects, errands, and a list of never-ending chores. I'm working more which takes time away from running kids around & housework. It is helpful to have him around. Bobby is enjoying his time that he has-to spend with the kids, to mow the grass, to help his family with projects-whatever, whatever he wants. Yes, he is tired. It is to be expected-it is normal, it is very common with immunotherapy. His body is working hard, the medicine is making it work harder. Bobby is never down in the dumps, he is hopeful, he is scared-worried what the future holds. He's being a great father, a great husband, and is taking time to smell the roses. I think he's doing what every person isn't doing-living the best life he can. We have one more dose of Ipi...in 2 weeks. Then, 2 weeks after that we go back for scans in NC. What we want is to see no disease progression. If there has been no change or they see a decrease in the size of the tumors, that means the Ipi has been working. Then, we will continue in the clinical trial and he will continue to get the drug but not as often as he is getting it now. Instead of every 3 weeks, I think it will go to every 12 weeks. We knew the beginning of the trial would mean many trips to NC. We're learning the drive and enjoying the time alone together. The kids are holding their own. We're very lucky to have them be able to help out when we need them. We're lucky to have such great support. Thank you!