Back to "Normal"

So we are getting used to a new normal I think.  I started driving to work this week, so that means it will be easier to do the same schedule all the time.  Last week Leann took me in or I got rides, and that meant a lot more randomness.  It still seems like there are enough Dr. appts but at least at work things feel pretty normal.      We've got a lot of help around home since I can do little to help with the chores.  I pretty much sit in my chair, do PT exercises, or take a nap.  The feeding tube is helping out a lot.  As we expected it has taken the pressure off of meal times.  I can basically feed myself any way I want.  If a meal looks good, I can eat as much as I want by mouth.  Then I feed myself a can of formula through the tube.  My sister in law is working on some formulas for more healthy home made stuff that I can put through the tube.  I've noticed that it doesn't leave me as groggy and over full as the Rx formula.

No word yet on the start of chemo.  We'll call Mayo's next week and see what they've learned.  I think in the next week or so the chest tube sites will be more healed.  Right now they are still a little sore.  The stomach tube has healed enough it doesn't hurt to laugh or cough anymore.

Thanks so much to those of you who have helped us out in any way, even if it is daily prayer.  I'm  continuously amazed by how many people tell me they pray for us every day.

Love,
Derek & Leann

What I'm Learning From Cancer #13 (written originally last year when I still could do more physically)
Know what’s important, then do it – It makes you think about what is important and what is not.  The hard part is then doing it.  Laying in a hospital bed and realizing that you will most likely not see your kids grow up has a way of changing your perspective.  For me it helped me to think about what are the most important things to be spending my time on.  I realized that I had to make the most of every opportunity to spend time with my children.  I want to teach them as much about character and life skills as possible while I’m here.  I realize that I cannot ensure they “turn out”, I have to leave that to God, but while I have time I want to make as much difference in their lives as possible.  It’s still hard though some times as things like work and taking care of the house can pull at our time.  But I just try to focus on involving the kids in as much as possible, and try to spend time reading to them from the Bible or good books that hopefully they will learn from.  So the first step is deciding what is important to us, and then the second is actually doing it.  The second step is harder than the first I think.  Every few weeks it seems like Leann is asking me – are you doing what you wanted to with your time?  It’s good she asks me that.  There are times when I kind of have to make adjustments again.  But overall this effort is what makes life more enjoyable anyway!  If we’ve decided something is important to do, it’s rewarding when we actually get it done.  So I encourage each of you to think about what’s most important to you and then how you will actually get it done.