Looking Back on This Day in 2010

January 20th will always be a significant day in EZ's Multiple Myeloma history. You can read all about it in my post from 2014 by going to the link here.

I couldn't let this day slip by without reminiscing. January 20, 2010 was when we first met EZ's local oncologist, Dr. Alan Kritz, and began this journey of life with Multiple Myeloma. We hardly knew what was about to hit us then, and it feels good to be six years down the road and looking forward to the future with great hope and expectation. We are so blessed to live in an area where two hospitals do stem cell transplants (Duke and University of North Carolina), and where there are many excellent myeloma specialists available to treat patients. We are thankful NOT to be in an oncologist's office today, but rather at home in front of the fireplace, waiting for some snow flurries to begin falling.

Lucy, our newly adopted English Springer Spaniel

As I think back to a time of deep uncertainty with EZ's cancer diagnosis, job/insurance loss, a 31 day hospitalization, huge financial concerns, radiation, chemotherapy, stem cell transplant, and a scary future, I am reminded that none of this came as a surprise to God. He holds our future in His hands, and He helped us get through each and every day with His strength, not our own. We hardly knew how to put one foot in front of the other, but He loved us. He helped us. People prayed for us. Friends and family supported us. Doctors cared for us. We are grateful. 

EZ's Mr. Clean look

We don't know what the future holds, but we know Who holds the future. We will continue to be educated about all things MM. We will be involved in our Triangle Multiple Myeloma Support Group. We will give to wonderful organizations such as the IMF, MMRF, and LLS, in the hope that research and advances in treatment might continue to improve and prolong the lives of patients. We will pray for a cure. We will live life with hope, and treasure every day. We will try to show love and support to others who are fighting the good fight with MM. We will do this together, hand-in-hand, one step at a time.

Bacardi Beach, Samana Dominican Republic

Please leave a comment if there is any way we can encourage, or be of help to you today.

Happy New Year 2016!

Greetings! For those of you that may not have heard from us in the past year, can you tell from this picture that life is good? Hope that puts your heart and mind at ease right away. We realize that in the world of unpredictable Multiple Myeloma, not hearing from fellow survivors for a bit can be scary. 

In November of 2015, EZ and I were able to celebrate our 40th anniversary (a month early) in beautiful Samana, Dominican Republic! It was an amazing time away for the two of us, to reflect on all of God's goodness in our marriage, and in Ernie's battle with MM. We took long walks on the beach, snorkled, dined in fine fashion, watched beautiful sunsets, and just enjoyed celebrating love and life.

With EZ's diagnosis six years ago, we were shocked, saddened, devastated, fearful, confused and overwhelmed. But today, we are grateful and full of hope for our future. Our prayer is that others would be encouraged by our journey, and see that there is One bigger than ourselves and our circumstances. Thank you to our family, friends, and church for your prayers and support over the years. 

EZ's M-spike remains at 0, "undetectable". The results of his bloodwork remain stable, as they have all year. He continues to take 10 mg Revlimid daily, with no days off, and has been on this regimen for 5 years now, tolerating it exceptionally well. Yes, he lives with neuropathy, daily sweating, a suppressed immune system, and insomnia, but overall, he can still enjoy life every day!

I can't wait to share more highlights (EZ's deep sea fishing trip to the Bahamas), and lowlights (the passing of his sweet Mom), from 2015. My goal is to blog much more often. We love and appreciate those we have met online, traveling a similar, or dissimilar, journey with MM, and never want to lose touch. There were many times in the past that we never imagined traveling again, or seeing our 40th anniversary, but here we are. If you are facing difficult circumstances, try to keep the faith and hold on to hope for the future. We are proof you might be surprised by all the blessings that await you!

 

Three Years Post Stem Cell Transplant - Happy Birthday EZ!

August 25, 2010 is a day we will never ever forget. This is the day EZ got a new lease on life with his stem cell transplant at Duke.  We will forever celebrate each year we are given, and never forget the difficulties EZ faced, and overcame, to get here. Click the titles on his One Year Celebration and his Two Year Celebration for a look back.

We had a wonderful, fast paced celebration with the Dew Crew yesterday after church and before Awana. EZ planned the menu of French Dip sandwiches, kettle cooked chips and pretzels, and cookies & cream ice cream pie with Oreo crust. (For all the food critics out there, I KNOW this isn't the healthiest menu...it was his birthday, so we indulged! Back to leafy greens, veggies, fruit, lean meats, and much less sugar tomorrow:-)

This year we have been heavily involved with downsizing and moving to a new home that requires much less maintenance on our part. We sold our house of nine years, and moved to our new home on August 9th, which is the reason I have been absent from the blogging world. Now that we are somewhat settled, I hope to do alot of catching up. 

Once again we have so much to be grateful for. Here are just a few things that come to mind:

1. No hospitalizations or major illnesses this year.
2. EZ can sit for longer periods of time and we have enjoyed dinners out.
3. EZ flew for the first time! Six hours from Charlotte to Seattle, first class, no problems.
4. We were able to take a cruise to Alaska, courtesy of my sweet mom. Amazing!
5. EZ almost single handedly packed up our entire basement, making multiple trips with his trailer to
    a storage unit to unpack. His physical stamina and ability to build and work on projects has
    greatly improved.
6. He remains on 10 mg Revlimid daily, and continues to be in complete response with no detectable
    M-spike.

When you live with an incurable cancer, you never know when the tables will turn, so for now, we celebrate special 'anniversaries' such as this, with much joy. Sleep remains elusive, peripheral neuropathy wreaks havoc in his legs and feet, he lives with pain every day, and fatigue hits pretty hard sometimes, but he copes, never complains, and carries on.

(Can you tell Samuel wasn't too happy about this picture?)

We don't ever want to take this day for granted and thoroughly enjoyed planning and celebrating! We are grateful to be in our new home, creating new memories, and remembering God's goodness to us.

(Our daughter, Leah, created this housewarming sign for us!)

Thank you so much for stopping by to rejoice with us!

 

Family Outing - Cirque de Soleil!

Fusing the 3000 year-old tradition of Chinese acrobatic arts with the multidisciplinary approach of Cirque du Soleil, Dralion draws its inspiration from Eastern philosophy and its never-ending quest for harmony between humans and nature. The show's name is derived from its two emblematic creatures: the dragon, symbolizing the East, and the lion, symbolizing the West.

As part of our Mother's Day gifts back in May, we ladies all received tickets to attend Cirque de Soleil - Dralion, in Raleigh on August 18th.  We had been looking forward to it for months, and it was totally by accident that we even colored coordinated our outfits! Guess three generations of girls are more alike than we even realize...

Nick has been to Cirque shows in Vegas before, but for the rest of us this was a first and we loved it. What made it even more special was the fact that EZ could actually go to an arena and sit in the seat for almost two hours, except for a break at intermission! Those rows are very close together with very little knee room, let alone room to slouch down or partially recline. All I have to say is thank goodness for pain medication (though he did pay a bit of a price the next day with some extra sacral soreness). I really appreciate the fact that EZ toughed it out and was able to do this with his family. Another first and a fun family memory! (Hopefully Leah and Kyle can join us next time!)

 

EZ's Hiking Again!

A year ago EZ was recovering from pneumonia. Fortunately we managed to keep him out of the hospital, but it's always a bit scary none the less. This year we are taking hikes off the Blue Ridge Parkway! We weren't quite sure what the trail to Cascade Falls would involve, but EZ was game, so off we went...dogs and all! A little plaque described it as a "30 minute leisurely walk". It is part of E.B. Jeffress Park.

It didn't take long to hit some steps...of course we had to remember that what goes down must also come back up! A bit of a challenge with peripheral neuropathy and a damaged sacrum with lots of mangled nerves, but EZ LOVES mountain trails like this and wanted to give it a go; he used to walk them all the time before MM sidelined him.

Before long we spotted the Falls. The sound of the rushing water, the cool misty air, the rustic trail...it was all so beautiful!

Soon it was time to head back up! We took our time, rested when we had to, and felt great about this milestone. We look forward to taking many more hikes in the woods discovering hidden treasures like Cascade Falls!

It was a gorgeous sunny day and we couldn't leave this spot without a few pictures of the view from the top...just love the endless mountains!!
 

 How's this homesite for a little bit of heaven?