Life as a Lewis

I had my CT scan this morning that will tell us if the new chemo drug is working, not working, keeping the cancer stable, etc. I know alot of people are praying for us today, and I've been able to keep my emotions in check much better this time around. I think I've gotten alot of practice lately in blocking off the worrisome thoughts that want to run rampant in my head; alot of practice in trusting that God is still in control. Those little anti-anxiety pills Dr. W prescribed for days like this don't hurt either. :) We should know results sometime in the next day or two. Because my scan was so early in the morning, Brian and I had a couple of hours to run errands. We ended up having lunch, hitting up Target and Trader Joe's. I had a whole lot more shopping planned, but I was (and am) feeling more and more exhausted as the day went on so we came home early and enjoyed a quiet afternoon (the kids are at Gram and Gramp's house). Do you all know that tomorrow is ...

For those of you waiting on an update, the nasty spot is an abscess. It's painful and gross, but hopefully not serious. Dr. W thinks we caught it in time and daily drainings/cleanings plus antibiotic should take care of it. And a serious thank you to my friend Andrea who was available last minute to drive me so that I could take pain meds! And because I find it nearly impossible to post without pics, here's another from last week.

Made this for supper last night with leftover Thanksgiving turkey, and it was delicious. Okay, actually Brian made it. But it was still delicious. And there's leftovers for tonight. This is a good article about taking pictures of your children - great tips everyone can use, not just OCD mamas with fancy cameras. I have always been a strictly white-lights-on-my-Christmas-tree kinda girl, but I am feeling serious temptation to switch to colored lights. Thoughts? I wrote this little tidbit on The Lily-Pad blog about UV filters. You should check it out even if it's only to read the short paragraph directly under the picture. ;) Remember how I was all on top of things and actually managed to get our Christmas card designed and ordered early? Well, I was apparently under the influence of pain meds when I ordered because I somehow managed to upload the web-sized version of our card instead of the full-sized so our pictures are all fuzzy. Thank goodness for a 100% sat...

We arrived home last night to a very cold, rainy Tennessee. Grateful that we didn't have to drive in rain the whole way home, just the last couple of hours. This morning everything was back to normal: Brian off early to school, Camden off to school (and tardy for the very first time in his school career), bloodwork and grocery shopping for Rory and I. Re-entry into the real world hasn't been a whole lot of fun. The kids are adjusting to not having grandparents and cousins to entertain them 24/7, and I'm having some major scar tissue issues. Waiting on a call back from the doctor, but I'm pretty sure that at the very least a doctor's appointment and antibiotics are in my future. Trying not to think about the last time I had this infection and ended up in the hospital for 9 days. Especially since I spent the trip home yesterday planning out everything we were going to cram in as a family before I go back to chemo in two weeks. Becky gave me a little handy flip ...

Our weekend was so crazy that I had no time to do all of the scheduled blog posts that were in my head, but I did want to say that the kids and I are in Illinois with my two sisters, my brother, my parents, two nephews with lots more family scheduled to arrive in the next 24 hours. There will be lots of laughing, really good food, good coffee, lots of photography, and some shopping thrown in for good measure. Since I've still not bought that cool thing-a-gig that allows me to upload pics directly from my camera to my iPad I have no cute cousin pictures to share and no sneak peek of the great senior session I had yesterday. I do, however, have a cute Christmas peak from a mini session I did Friday afternoon. In case I don't make it back here until next week, have a wonderful thanksgiving. Take a few minutes to think about how much you have to be thankful for. I bet it's a long list. 

Yes, I realize it's November 18 and these are a little late to the Halloween season. But since we were traveling home from Dallas on Halloween, the kids didn't get to dress up or trick or treat. Now to be honest, they rarely actually trick or treat anyway since we don't exactly live in a neighborhood, but we do usually let them get dressed up and at least take them to Gram and Gramp's house. When Becky arrived the weekend after Halloween, she came all stocked up with Halloween candy and a big idea to let the kids trick or treat at our house using both the front and back doors. We spent a frantic 10 minutes as she raced back and forth between the doors (she was changing hats; I was just taking pictures). I kept asking him why he was holding his hand like that, and he informed that he's holding the force. Okey dokey. Yes, that would be Becky in Camden's old Darth Vader costume. Not to be confused with the Darth Vader costume he ...

When my parents were several weeks ago, I had the realization that exactly 3 years ago they were visiting and we took this picture. So I made them stand in the same spot and tried to imitate the pose although it's a bit harder when you're talking about a 5 and 8 year old instead of a 2 and 5 year old. :) (And, sorry, Camden, for somehow making you completely out of focus.) Don't ask me how they grew so fast because I just don't know. I'm going to call yesterday a success since I managed to design and order Christmas cards, finished editing my photo shoot, designed and ordered 2012 calendars, scrapped one page. Yes, I had lots of coffee. Well, lots for me anyway: 1/2 of a hot cup in the morning and then an iced coffee in the early afternoon. I am feeling quite a bit better today, which is pretty normal following my Day 8 treatment. I'm planning to tackle some projects around the house, take both kids for haircuts, and possibly attempt to get ...

Aunt Becky brought some cool pink hair spray to Rory when she visited last week, and I think she is kinda rocking the pink hair, just like she rocked the purple feather. Ironically enough, she asks Mrs. Jennifer for pink hair every. single. time. she gets a haircut. Because I'm sure you're all waited with bated breath on an update on me, I had a rough chemo day yesterday, but am feeling better today. Surprising, since I've been up since 2:00. In the morning. And I didn't go to bed until after 10:30 last night. I'm pretty sure there is lots of coffee in my future for today. I'm not bothered too much by it because after talking to the chemo nurse and working with my CT scan schedule as well as planning to be out of town the week after Christmas, I am not going back for chemo until December 13. That's like four weeks, friends!  I am on pain meds because I'm apparently in the 10% of people who experience severe muscle pain from this kind of chemo ...

After hearing Jennifer Hudson sing Happy Birthday for an American Cancer Society commercial, Rory said, "Wow. I can sing way better than that." I saw Michael J. Fox in an interview Friday, and he said something to the effect of "don't live where your diagnosis is going to take you; live where you are right now." It really struck a chord with me, and I am making an extra effort to live by those words. "Now that's something you don't see every day." from Camden after seeing a little pot hole in the parking lot. I guess the parking lots are alot better maintained in his universe. Wondering where my Project 365 posts have gone? Yeah, me too. I'm hopelessly behind. This last round of chemo/Neulasta has been hands down the easiest that I've had. Makes no sense, but it's true. I barely had to pull out the pain meds, and the nausea has been very manageable. I go back today for the final treatment in Round 3. The kids ...

Rory, Camden, and I rushed out the door early this morning so that we could fit in bloodwork in Springfield (for me), 5 year check up in Bellevue (for Rory), and lunch bunch in Nashville (for both of us) as well as a library visit all between the hours of 7:30 and 2:30. We ate at a place called The Wild Hare that I am fairly certain is not for people with children, but they were very accomodating. And the grilled cheese sandwich with bacon and tomato was delicious. Rory weighs 32 lbs, is 40 inches tall and is in the 10th percentile for both height and weight. The nurse was very sweet and did not make us wait in the waiting room so I didn't have to be exposed to germs, and even let us out the back way. I did not think to ask for any of that extra help with avoiding germs, and it was thoughtful of them to do it for me. They also did not allow Rory to get several of her immunizations that included live viruses so that I would not be at risk as well. Definitely would not have t...

My friend Emily (who was a chemo buddy) sent me Jesus Calling: Enjoying Peace in His Presence several weeks ago. It's a 365-day devotional that until recently I did not even know existed. In the few weeks since she gave it to me, I have had multiple people tell me how meaningful it has been in their lives. I must have been living under a rock to not have read it before. ;) Anyway, as I was headed to bed tonight at the end of my 36th birthday, I pulled it out, and today's entry reads: "This is a time of abundance in your life. Your cup runneth over with blessings. After plodding uphill for many weeks, you are now traipsing through lush meadows drenched in warm sunshine. I want you to enjoy to the full this time of ease and refreshment. I delight in providing it for you. . . "  Oh, my friends, I can't tell you how it made my heart smile to open this book and read these words on this particular day. This entire week I have thought so many times of how blessed I...

Okay, so actually these didn't get scrapped on the actual Digital Scrapbooking Day, but it was during that same weekend, and it was because Becky was here and we had specifically planned to scrap together.  Jenna Desai, Micheline Martin Togetherness collab Sabrina Dupre: Everyday Memories Lots of different things so full credits here Lauren Grier/Jenn Barrette: Everyday Moments Zoe Pearn: Indian Summer (and can I just say that I ADORE this kit)

Having trouble knowing where to start, so I'll just go from the beginning. Feel free to skim. So my last Friday festivities started with a beautiful package in the mail from my friends, most of whom are fellow adoptive parents. They collected fabric scraps that were special to them and made them into a quilt. And not only that, but they each sent in a scrapbook page with notes to me. I cannot tell you how much I love it. LOVE it. The day continued with two photoshoots at a local park. It was cold, wet, dreary, and while not quite as successful as I would have liked, I still got some sweet shots of some sweet kiddos (no sneak peeks because it's a surprise for their family). I rushed home to change clothes, then Brian and I headed to Nashville to TPAC to see Wicked. It was amazing. Our seats were right on the floor, and I laughed alot, smiled alot, and might have even shed a tear or two. As we left our seats and walked into the lobby, Becky was there with balloo...

A dear friend of our family has organized a prayer event for us today, and if you would like to participate, click here for more information. And I also just wanted to share that I think it is no coincidence that I woke up this morning feeling well and rejuvenated. This is typically one of my hardest days during the chemo cycle, but I am feeling no side effects today. Thank you, Michael, for being so kind to us, and thank you to all of my friends and family who continue to pray and to fill in for me when I don't have the words to pray myself.

I've been absent from the computer world for the last 3 days for a very good reason. Becky surprised me by showing up at Wicked Friday night! Her birthday was yesterday, and my birthday is Saturday so we've been very busy celebrating. And a little video. Yes, I was crying even though that is (thankfully) not too evident. Four years ago Becky had just finished up chemo, and I flew to Tulsa to surprise her for her birthday so this is a little surreal. We've scrapped, shopped until we dropped, had make-overs in honor of her birthday and my new eyelashes and eyebrows, had photo shoots (both for clients and for our own family), been to the movies, baked a birthday cake, and much more. Today we're headed to the hospital for chemo so the rest of her visit will probably be less eventful. Maybe I'll even have a chance to look at the hundreds of pictures waiting to be viewed and shared. I'll be back sometime this week with a play by play of the weeken...

In the midst of cleaning out photos yesterday (still not even close to done, by the way), I ran across these photos that I don't remember taking. Granted, I have chemo brain and it's entirely possible I even posted them on the blog, but I don't think so. And I feel like I lost what little street cred I might have by posting my straight out of the camera picture yesterday so to redeem myself I feel compelled to tell you that these are nearly straight out of the camera. :) Settings for all three pictures are f2.8, 1/640 SS and ISO 400. Used my 35mm lens, and they were taken in April, right after I got my Nikon D7000. In the next 24 hours, not only do I have three photo shoots, but we have tickets to see Wicked tonight (thank you, Jenne and Kari!), plus tomorrow is Digital Scrapbooking Day. Sounds like a pretty spectacular 24 hours to me. Using the new November BYOC at The Lilypad. Lots of good stuff going on over there this weekend, so if you're...

Not alot to post about today, but you know me: gotta keep a schedule, and that includes blogging. :) It's cold and rainy out, and I am very happy to not have anywhere to be. And even though it's cold out, I've decided today is the day to bring the iced coffee back into my morning schedule. Despite the fact that I am almost 2 weeks behind in my photography class, I think that any extra time I have today should be spent working on clearing out bad pictures, duplicate pictures, etc. since my 1 terabyte external hard drive is almost completely full. How does that happen? Oh, yes, it would be because I take approximately 6,542,200 pictures a week. And speaking of pictures, how about a complete mish mash of photos.  One of Rory from this weekend that I forgot to post. Exhibit A as to why I shoot in RAW. This was just a test shot before I had settings right on my camera. Because I shot it in RAW, I was able to correct it in Lightroom. This was the or...