Happy Halloween

This is the Halloween Ramble Post...and it is in no order so beware.

Halloween was a little bit different this year for our family...we knew we would be on the road to Ohio and miss "Beggar's Night" here in Waukee.  So the night before we left I had emailed a few friends and asked if Max could come early.  We have great neighbors and friends who were happy to oblige for Max.

As the day ended up, I got a call while I was at a nail Appointment from one of Tommy's good friends that Tommy had been hurt in basketball.  So I left mid appointment and went and got him and took him to the ER.  At the ER the Doctor's first words were "I will be shocked if this isn't broken"...not the words I wanted to hear.  My mind raced with all sorts of things, will he need surgery, will it heal fully, how will he shower, will he be out for all of basketball season, what color cast will he pick....I mean lots of questions.  Scott got there as soon as he could with Max and Jack.  Gratefully it was NOT broken and he was diagnosed with a severe sprain and splinted up and sent home.

By then Max had missed his trick or treating time window I had made...but gratefully he still got to a few of the houses.  A cute picture of Jack taking him around...

REWIND....

Oh and the week before was The Great Pumpkin Party at our church, our boys all volunteered to serve different nights.  Drew went as a buddy with his friend Anthony and this year they also ran a game for part of the time at Anthony's Mom's request.  I believe this is the 4th year Drew has gone with Anthony.

Scott took Max on Thursday night, that was his main trick or treating.  It's WAY too crowded for me, so I was grateful Scott was back in town to cover that.  I headed to MN for Mom's chemo and they did the party.

Oh and this is earlier in the week....Jack helped Max carve his pumpkin.  THANK YOU JACK!  They had a fun time.

And also last week...Max wore this to his hair cut appointment in the hopes that his hair lady would give him candy...which she always does.  But it was too cute that Mr. Police Officer wanted to wear it regardless.

 And this my friends....is SO much truth.  I LOVE Reese's Peanut Butter Cups.

Celebration of the End of Chemo

Friday, October 24th we celebrated the end of Mom's chemo treatments.  While she had her last official chemo was Friday, October 31st we celebrated early due to our upcoming trip to Ohio.  What a blessing to fill the family room with balloons and notes from friends and family near and far...notes of celebration and encouragement from so many.

It has been quite the journey.  An emotional roller coaster of sorts, a road we would not have chosen yet it was filled with blessings.  A good friend told me at the beginning of this to "watch for the blessings" not to miss them...at the time I could not imagine how there could be blessings with cancer.  But she was so right....it was full of blessings.  

The top of my blessing list is the gift of time together...I have spent MORE time with my parents, and my brother, in the past 7 months than I probably have in the past 8 years combined.  The hours of time talking or just sitting, or sleeping on a hospital cot.  Just time.  I always knew my Dad was a rock star of a man.  But watching his devotion to my mom continually blows me away.  He adores her.  He fights for her every need.  He truly would like to have taken this entire journey on himself and save her the pain and illness.  Those words "In sickness and in health" have never been so real to me.  I am SO blessed to call my Mom one of my very best friends.  The fact that we didn't have any "baggage" to work through, there was no "I wish I had told you I loved you" nothing like that between us I could truly just LOVE her and CARE for her...what a blessing to have that relationship.  Oh and the laughs and giggles we have had...between shaving her head, to picking out wigs, to trying to find something she could drink or eat...we have laughed a lot in this journey.  

We are praying hard that this is the end of our cancer journey.  That her numbers would remain in normal range.  That the cancer is gone in her body.  That we can just focus on healing now.  We thank GOD so much for the wisdom of Dr's and researchers, and oncology nurses....  We are choosing to celebrate and soak in every single moment of this journey to healing.  

Oh how I love my Mom...more every single day. Thank you to my sweet Love for his amazing care of me in this season and care for our boys.  He has been amazing.  And thanks to our boys for stepping up in some responsibilities and for their understanding of Mom needing to be with Grandma.  Thanks for our family and friends who have surrounded us with extra prayers and love...and sometimes toilet paper and costco runs.  God has provided so many people for us to lean un and I am so grateful.  

Waiting to be called back for chemo...how beautiful is my Mama?  SO beautiful. 

Snuck out of Chemo to "meet a friend"....well actually friends and we met at

 Party City to pick up 100 teal balloons...

This is the rest of the team...who helped tie the notecards onto each balloon

A toast of water and lemonade...Charlie and Alice were there when we got home from chemo to the sea of balloons.  They had cupcakes to celebrate!

Letting some of the balloons go...off and away cancer.  Alice said Grandma Lu could catch them in heaven and Grandma Jean!

"What a blessing it has been lifting you up in prayer"

I have to say that this idea did not come to me on my own.  My friend Terra was praying one day and she texted me this idea.  She had this vision of balloons in Mom's yard with writing on each one from friends and family encouraging her.  I had yet to even think of how to "end" this chapter.  And between her thoughts and my thinking of how I could pull off something that would work right for us...the idea of notecards and balloons came to mind.  No idea or prayer is ever too crazy to share.  So thank you Terra for sharing what God had laid on your heart with me.

Letters to my Grandma

About 2 weeks ago I sent an email to my cousins to write letters to my Grandma so we could have words to post for her funeral...it turned into much more.  These letters were all written to my Grandma the last week of her life.  They were read and reread to her the last week of her life.  They ended up being a precious gift I don't want to forget the words