The Six Hundred Dollar Man

Paul had an appointment with Dr. Hancock this morning. As we suspected, from the increased pain he's felt over the past month, the tumor in his leg has grown from about 3 cm long to over 9 cm. Dr. Hancock outlined several options for treatment:

1) Do nothing, but run the risk of Paul suffering a catastrophic fracture in his femur - not good.

2) Remove the diseased portion of the bone, replacing it with some combination of donor bone/metal rod/prosthetic bone/screws.

3) Interleukin - a treatment that utilizes the body's own defenses to attack the cancer - this may not be effective on tumors in the bone.

4) More of the same chemotherapy that Paul had earlier in the year - yuck!

Dr. Hancock is working on getting Paul an appointment with Dr. Randall, a Sarcoma Surgeon at Huntsman Cancer Institute. He is among the best in the country. We'll let you know what we learn from the consultation.

Update: Paul and I will be going to Huntsman on Wednesday. We will meet with Dr. Kevin Jones, who is a partner of Dr. Lor Randall's.

We have a PET/CT scan on the 7th of October. This should give us a clear picture of how well the Temodar is working at keeping the cancer from spreading to other areas of Paul's body. We know it isn't very effective against cancer inside of his bones.

After we finished talking with Dr. Hancock, Paul had a Zometa infusion. One of the nurses asked how things were going and he told her what we had learned. Paul commented that the doctors would probably take out the cancerous bone and replace it with a "bionic leg." He said, "I'll be the Six Hundred Dollar Man." I love that he is able to keep a sense of humor in spite of the pain and suffering he has endured. He is the strongest person I know.

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Yesterday in church Paul was released as Young Men's President and I was released as Scout committee chair and Advancement chair. Paul is now a Ward Missionary and I am responsible for the Ward Bulletin each week, and am the Ward Historian as well. I also resigned my job as office manager. The combination of family, school, church and work was becoming more than I wanted to juggle. So the last thing on was the first thing off.

Parker has been invited to become a member of the National Honor Society. We are very proud of him. He has worked hard in school and is reaping the dividends. He will be working for a neighbor during Spud Harvest, so no motorcycle rides for him during the break. I guess it will just be Paul and the three younger boys, since I will be in school the whole time. I suppose I could play hooky...stay tuned.

Hayden earned his Star rank in Scouts. He's going to the merit badge Pow Wow at BYU-I in November, bringing him one merit badge closer to Eagle. Cameron earned his Bear rank in Cub Scouts and he and Jacob have been busy practicing for the Primary program.

I've been tagged!

10 years ago:
1) I was ten years younger.
2) I was recovering from giving birth to my fourth son.
3) I was in worse shape than today.

Today's TO DO List:
1) Get up at 6:30 a.m., shower, dress
2) Ride on hot, noisy school bus with seventy screaming seventh graders to Idaho Falls and back (INL Science Expo)
3) Wait on said school bus in parking lot of Middle School until grumpy male teacher decides everyone is "quiet enough" to be allowed to disembark (this really happened)
4) Get some "Work" work done
5) Fix dinner (I'm thinking take-out)
6) Go to bed

Favorite Snacks:
1) Chocolate anything, except cake (weird, I know)
2) Fresh fruit, especially nectarines and apricots
3) Mother's Taffy Cookies dunked in milk
4) Homemade Cracker Jack popcorn

If I were a millionaire:
1) I'd add on to our home
2) Put money in savings
3) Buy a red Pontiac Solstice, convertible, of course
4) Or an Audi TT would be okay, too
5) Share

I have lived in:
1) North Ogden, Utah
2) Napa,California
3) Carson City, Nevada
4) North Ogden, Utah
5) Ogden, Utah
6) Fort Morgan, Colorado
7) Colorado Springs, Colorado
8) Rexburg, Idaho

Jobs:
1) Babysitter
2) Carpet Cleaner
3) Office Cleaner
4) Nut House employee (really)
5) Weber State Reserve library assistant
6) First Security Bank - mailroom; collections department
7) Office manager
8) Mother
9) Part time student

I tag:
Deaun
Kareena A.
Sherry

Deja Vu

OUCH! My arm!

I've been looking forward to taking my new bike for a spin, so Paul, Hayden, Jacob and I went for a ride near Island Park on Saturday. Since Parker hasn't been released by his doctor to get back on his motorcycle, he stayed home. Cameron chose to keep him company. The weather was perfect. We made a big loop, going from the Osborne Bridge east towards Island Park Scout Camp, then south along the old rail bed, before heading back west to where we started.


The ride was fun, with a few exceptions: dirty contacts and bruised kidneys. I solved the first problem by popping out the offending lens and washing it, trail side, with eye drops. Putting it back in was tricky without a mirror, but sunglasses worked in a pinch.

In regards to the second problem, I might have exaggerated just a tiny bit, and the solution is rather controversial. Let me explain. The rail bed we rode on was horribly rutted and washboardy (is that even a word?), leading to a very jarring ride. The condition of the trail can easily be attributed to irresponsible ATV riders. To resolve this issue, I propose that the dirt bike riders of the world unite in an effort to have 4-wheelers banned from public lands (that sounds so elitist!). I apologize to all the responsible ATV riders out there.


BIKERS RULE!





In spite of the minor setbacks, we had a great day. We brought lunch and enjoyed a few hours in our beautiful "backyard."


My new bike - pretty, isn't it? (I know, only a girl would say that about a piece of machinery).


Photographic proof that I really can ride.


We had to ride on the pavement for part of the way. This was Jacob's most, and my least, favorite part. Don't get me wrong, it was fun, but I kept having images of one of the kids wiping out flash through my mind. Paul reassured me they would be more likely to crash while on the dirt trail (thanks for the comforting thought). I guess the secret is to not think about all the things that could go wrong, just enjoy the experience.


Paul stretching his legs.


Oh, and by the way, the first picture with my arm in a splint - fake. Only the head is mine. We all made it home in one piece.

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Paul spoke in Sacrament meeting today. If the number of people crying at the end of a talk is an accurate indication of its power and effectiveness, you could say Paul hit a home run. He shared some of the things he has learned through the experiences of the past year. It was a great talk, and I'm not just saying that because I love the man and have a vested interest in his happiness.

The Need for Speed

Parker celebrated his seventeenth birthday with a trip to Teton Spectrum Raceway, an indoor go cart track. We thought about going for a motorcycle ride, but decided that Parker's arms needed more recovery time before we put them to any sort of physical test. Maybe next weekend. Paul bought me a motorcycle, a Honda CRF 150. It's a little bigger than my old one, but still a manageable size.


After the boys finished racing go carts and playing video games, Paul took Hayden, Cameron and Jacob home while Parker and I went shopping for clothes...mind you, this was at Parker's request. He has a unique sense of style, to say the least.
Click on the picture so you can read what the shirt says.






The boys have been back in school for three weeks. My classes begin tomorrow. I am taking a British Literature class (yea!) and a general science class, as well as an online English Major/Career exploration class.

I think we're beginning to see positive results from the Neuronton that Paul has been taking. He says his leg doesn't hurt quite as much as it initially did. He's scheduled for a second MRI later this month. His next PET scan will be in October.