Thankful Thursday - Our First Light the Night Walk - Team Walking with EZ

We are so very grateful to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society for many reasons, but especially for their Co-Pay Assistance Program. Honestly, I don't know what we would do without the yearly grants we have been approved for, that help with insurance premiums and co-pays. Below is a description of the program from their website, and you can click here for more information.

Co-Pay Assistance Program

Dealing with cancer is hard enough without having to worry about its financial burden. The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society Co-Pay Assistance Program helps you pay your insurance premiums and meet co-pay obligations. We'll also help you find additional sources of financial help.

Their mission is to "find a cure for blood cancer, and to improve the quality of life for patients and their families", and they work mighty hard at it! They are also dedicated to funding research, which is critical if a cure for blood cancer is going to be found. Time is of the essence.

We were pretty excited about our first Light the Night Walk and an opportunity to give back in support of the LLS. We got on board late, so only our son, Nick, was able to walk with us, but next year we will be there in full force with lanterns shining! It was a wonderful experience to celebrate life with the many survivors, friends, families, corporations, and LLS volunteers and staff. Thank you to those who gave in support of our team!

It was a beautiful North Carolina Saturday night with an awesome band, delicious food, and great people. Survivors were treated to dinner and a t-shirt, and carried white lanterns. One gold lantern per team was carried in remembrance of those we have lost to blood cancer, and there was a wonderful Remembrance Garden and Ceremony. Red lanterns were carried by the friends and families of those surviving blood cancer. What a sea of beautiful colors lit up the night sky in downtown Durham! It was an honor to walk with such an amazing group of people...especially my survivor. Team Walking with EZ will be back next year for sure. Hope you'll join us if you are local!

Woah, Long Time No Blogging!

I really can't believe it's been three months since I blogged. As our routine became more "normal" and issues related to Multiple Myeloma became more mundane (and that's a good thing!), the busyness of life just took over. So much has gone on these past three months it's hard to know where to begin!

We had a wonderful Easter celebration with the whole family able to join us at home. We even had a special guest...Nick's girlfriend, Anne. We were all smitten, and very thankful she could join us for church and Easter dinner. Anne has just completed her second year of dental school, and the two of them really compliment one another. We have enjoyed having her at many more gatherings since Easter and already feel like she is part of the family! (She was a brunette with straight hair when we met her, but has gone back to her natural color and curls. All of our curly haired granddaughters are thrilled!)

(Lovely dishdrain,..hostess fail!)

 EZ had his 6 month check-up at Duke (4-4-13) and all is great. No M-spike detected, continue on 10 mg. Revlimid daily, and come back in 6 months. We were thrilled! This August will be three years post transplant. We continue to have confidence in the oncologists that are determining EZ's plan of treatment, and pray that this complete response hangs around a long time. We also attended two seminar/dinners put on by the ABMT Clinic at Duke (in April and June), and were able to hear from them about all the latest research and clinical trials. It is always a blessing to re-connect with other survivors, new and old, and see them doing so well!

Our son Nick was presented with his "white coat" during a special ceremony at the UNC School of Dentistry (4-5-13). This signifies his official entry into patient care at the clinic, and it was quite impressive. We are so proud of all the hard work he has put in studying this first year in order to reach this point. He will be leaving on July 16th for a month in Nepal, to participate in a humanitarian project with four other students and a faculty member. They will hold dental camps providing much needed dental care such as extractions, fillings, cleanings, and sealants. They will then travel on foot in the Annapurna Ranges, providing oral hygience education and supplies to villages along the route. This is an amazing opportunity for Nick and we can't wait to see pictures and hear about his experience.

We celebrated EZ's Dad's 90th birthday (4-11-13) with a visit to the mountains. His father continues to amaze us with how active he is mentally and physically. He loves nothing more than riding tractors, four wheelers, and bulldozers in the woods. We just recently celebrated EZ's Mom's 89th birthday (6-18-13) and feel so blessed to have both of them in our lives, married 67 years!

 On 4-25 we headed for Jacksonville, FL for the wedding of a longtime friend's son. We thoroughly enjoyed our time there, seeing friends from our years spent in south Florida. It was a beautiful rehearsal dinner, wedding and reception and we are thrilled for Daniel and Rebecca!

 

The biggest news for April involved all the preparations to list our house for sale. It is sold, and we are officially closing in a month, both on our current home and a new home...yikes! More on all that coming soon, but for now I've got to start packing!

 

Our Day at the Classic and Crazy Car Show Fundraiser

Last Saturday we attended our very first Classic (and Crazy) Car Show at Stony Hill Baptist Church, as a fundraiser for the Seneri family, whose son Paxton battled medullablastoma for 11 months. Our church, once again, stepped up and stood in the gap for a family deeply affected by cancer. (How well we remember the outpouring of love we felt at Standing in the Gap for Ernie Baker)

It was a beautiful Fall day and there were cars galore...every shape and size, in pristine condition, on display and hoping for our votes. How fitting that even the little ones got involved!

Car owners paid an entry fee, attendees bought ballots for voting, raffles were held, hot dogs were sold, and a silent auction took place for items from tools to floral arrangements. A live auction was held  for a handmade Hungary Catepillar quilt. Fight Like PAXTON, a non-profit created to benefit other families battling childhood cancers, was accepting donations and selling t-shirts. It was a glorious day where everyone came alongside the Seneris and celebrated the life and legacy of Paxton. From race cars to VW Bugs and Corvettes, these cars were gorgeous!

Mom's favorite, a Ford like the one she road around in as a little girl.

This Jeep was the big winner for the day!

Amidst all the NC State red, we had to love this Carolina blue!

EZ thoroughly enjoyed taking little grandson Samuel around to see all the "beep beeps".

Mom was very excited when her raffle number was called and she took home a brand new Vizio 19" HDTV!

It was such a joy to be a part of something we know, from personal experience, will benefit and bless the Seneri family. We are also very grateful to be part of a church body that loves and cares for others.