I’m a little behind (sorry sis!), but the latest news from Sarah-land is that her radiation treatments are OVER!

The end couldn’t come quickly enough, since the process and the treatments made her very (VERY) tired.  She had had 32 total treatments over the course 6 weeks.  Radiation is not a fun experience, because it involved a lot of sitting VERY still, a lot of uncomfortable positioning, and they have to burn the skin.  The techs told Sarah that the burn is how they know the radiation is doing it’s job, so it’s a “good” thing. (Um, not sure Sarah agrees with that!) 

Here are a couple of pictures with the gals from the radiology office:

In other news, in case you didn’t notice from the pics, Sarah doesn’t wear her wig much anymore because it is just way too hot.  She has been spiking her hair since they came here to visit us in Vegas.  It’s a cute look for her, don’t you think?  (She’s not sure about it, but it’s better than roasting in a wig!)

And just one more little side-note/editorial from a big sister - bear with me for a second while I get mushy.  We’ll plan to keep this blog updated if and when there is “health” news to share, but I for one am hoping that I don’t have to update for a very LONG while! 

It’s been a tremendously long and difficult year, but I’m so, so proud of Sarah.  She has overcome an incredible hurdle (or ten) in the last year, and my mind still spins when I think of everything she’s had to endure.  She is one AMAZING woman, wife, mama, and friend… and God has big plans in store for her.  If you haven’t read the testimony/speech she gave at the recent Ladies Day in Roseville, you need to click on over and READ IT now! 

And in case you missed it previously, Sarah is GETTING ON with her life and finally working towards getting her scrapbooking business going.  You can check out a few of her sample cards HERE and place an order for two (or ten).

God bless you and yours…

And of course, there is NO rest for the weary these days, which is why after just two days of radiation, Sarah found herself heading to the ER last Wed afternoon.  For herself?  Oh no, not this time!  Instead, she was taking Austin in because of major stomach pains.  Turns out he needed an appendectomy!  (If you are counting, that’s TWO appendectomies in the family in just over one month.  We’re not looking for any more though!)  Thankfully Austin is recovering quite nicely, and he only missed a couple of days of school.

In other news, Sarah is finally feeling well enough to get her scrapbook/design/card-making business going, and we put together a new online order form for her the other day.  This specific order form is for custom cards.  You can check it out here: http://www.sarahrosedesigns.com/order.htm If you need a card for any occasion, Sarah is definitely the go-to girl for you!

Thank you, as always, for visiting and for praying for Sarah and the family!

Sarah is doing very well since surgery, and is almost completely recovered.  In fact, she recently re-painted her kitchen AND she has been seen outside throwing softballs to Hailey.  You can’t keep HER down!

On March 16, Sarah went in for the CAT scan, AND got her “tatoos” for radiation. (Yes, she really does have tatoos, but they are just three little permanent dots that they will use when giving her the radiation treatments).  Radiation is scheduled to begin on April 14th, and will be five days a week for about six weeks.  We were happy about the date, because it means Sarah, Ron, and the kids can come to VEGAS for Spring Break (which is April 6-10). 

In other news, Sarah has begun putting together a team for the May “Race for the Cure” event in Sacramento.  The team name?  Super Sarah’s Super Sexy Superstars!  You can join Sarah’s team and walk with her OR donate money to the cause through the komen website which is found HERE. (You’ll need to enter Sarah’s name to find her team info). T-shirts are in the works for the team, and we’ll update you on that soon!

And one final note… Sarah recently spoke at the Roseville Church of Christ’s Ladies Day, which was themed “Faith Through Trials”.  She sent me a copy of her speech before-hand, and she has agreed to let me post it here on the blog so those of you who weren’t able to attend could still “hear” what she had to share.  She’s my sister, so I may be biased, but I think it’s a pretty incredible speech.  You can read it by clicking HERE.

As I mentioned above, Sarah and Ron and the kids are planning to visit us in Vegas for Spring Break next week.  We’ll try to get a few photo updates of the fun-filled week (unless we are too busy!)

Happy Almost April, everyone…

~ Char

Today (Wednesday) Sarah saw the radiologist and made tenative plans to begin radiation, sometime in March.  She will need a CAT scan first, which is scheduled for the middle of March, and at that time they’ll make a definite date for beginning radiation.  Once she begins, she’ll be getting radiation treatments 5 days a week for 6-8 weeks.

The radiologist will also be referring Sarah for a physical therapy appointment, mostly so she can get a brace for her arm(s) for when swelling occurs. (The swelling is a side-effect of her lymph nodes being removed, and physical therapy and a brace/cover will help keep swelling from happening).

Thank you for your continued prayers!  More updates soon!

The pathology report showed that 2 of the 3 lymph nodes that they took from the left side, and 2 of the 11 lymph nodes from the right side had cancer in them.  Also there was some cancer left in the third layer of tissue in the chest area, but the doctor chose not to go that deep surgically, knowing that radiation will kill what was left.

Sarah had her Herceptin infusion yesterday, using the new port (they had to put in a new one during the surgery).  The new port was acting finicky at first, but once they got it working, the infusion went well.

Today, she if off to school for a Valentine party in the kids’ classrooms.  Praise God that she is feeling so good and doing so well!

The pathology report was good - there were spots of cancer in the nodes and tissue they removed, but the doctor’s feel very positive that they removed all the cancer that was left.

Sarah will be seeing the surgeon tomorrow, hopefully to remove a few drains (she has four total).  They make her uncomfortable, so she is anxious to have them removed, although she has been told it will be painful.  Please pray for the appointment tomorrow (Tuesday), and for her pain management and continued healing!

She spent most of yesterday (Thursday) resting and sleeping (thanks to pain meds)!  She is doing really well, although definitely tired and her strength is low.  She’ll be seeing the doctor next week to remove a couple of the drains, if all goes well.

Thank you for your prayers!

They didn’t have to remove quite as many lymph nodes as originally anticipated, and the doctor was unable to see any cancer in any of the tissue or nodes he removed.  He did find some crystalized spots where cancer USED to be, but as far as he could SEE there was no cancer.  They will, of course, send it off for pathology testing, but the news is as good as it can be.

As of 4:30 p.m., she was being moved into a room and was groggy and still waking up.  The doctor said she’ll be pretty out of it for the rest of the day, and maybe some tomorrow.  I’ll update more once I hear more!

Thank you for your prayers!!

- Char

Please pray for the doctors and the surgeons… and for Sarah and not only her physical health, but also for peace of mind as she goes through this next phase of the journey.

God bless you…

They are still making plans for surgery, because of her genetic issues, to eliminate the possibility of the cancer coming back, and we’ll have more info about that soon.  (She sees the surgeon for a consult tomorrow).

Please join us in REJOICING over this news!!