MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

Merry Christmas or Season's Greetings!

Not much new at this point. Taylor is doing well, I get to see her tomorrow. It has been a very eventful year, so much has happened. We have progressed throughout the year beyond where I sometimes thought we would be. The beginning of the year was a hard year. Taylor already had her first surgery, followed by a few others due to the broviac, etc. Chemo was wearing us all down and it was very sad seeing Taylor so sick, Mindy exhausted and Landon stressed...we managed to pull everything together to an extent after Landon returned home from working out of town(seemed a bit easier with a second parent on the scene). taylor seemed to take Chemo much better(still sick, but not as bad) and we all started to learn more.

We had the Kids with Cancer Walk, Taylor's first vacation to Kelowna, so many firsts happened this year.

I just want to thank all of you for the ongoing support. We all could not make it through this without all of your kindness, prayers, hopes and wishes! I hope you all have an amazing holiday! Soon hopefully we can celebrate Taylor's end to radiation and later Cancer Free! God Bless, please don't stop praying, wishing and hoping for Taylor our miracle child!

long time no update

Well Taylor had a bit of a flu last week. She was pretty sick and not her regular self at all until of course she saw me on Saturday.LOL She has been throwing up in the mornings, which has become alarming, so today they were to give her an emergency MRI; however MRI machine was down so she had a CT scan instead. They were worried her blood vessels were enlarging (I think, but we have no idea what that means). Anyhow all was found to be normal. They figure that she probably is throwing up (only early am) because of the anesthetic she has been getting daily and it is a build up from all of that. I pray this radiation will be done soon and Taylor can have the rest of her life to enjoy! Please continue to pray for our girl...she is such a blessing full of smiles.

I got to hang out with the Thiessen's on Saturday. The kids had tons of fun, booty shaking. Taylor goes and pushes buttons on the stereo when she doesn't like a song.LOL She sings some words or la,la,la to Rihanna's song Hard. very cut!

Taylor is chugging away

Well Taylor has been doing wonderfully. SHe is happy and moving around like crazy. She loved the Snowflake Gala...I guess she liked the kid martini/dance lounge area the best where she could get down and shake her little booty!

Yesterday was Enbridge's Kids party at WEM Galaxyland. Taylor had a blast and was totally wired. She only got a 1 1/2 nap in through the day, so she apparently slept in today until 1oam with Mindy.LOL She is so silly. Landon tried to get her to do another Santa picture, but she would have none of that! I will post her Santa picture she took with Grandpa Don and Grandma Roberta. Taylor will hopefully be finished Radiation on December 30th.

Taylor is doing great!

Just a quick update on Taylor. She is doing excellent. The only real set back from radiation seems to be her tiredness, but that is nothing! She was evaluated the other day to check her development. Apparently she knows 22 words, and is above the average...imagine what she would have been doing if she had her whole brain.LOL Kidding. She is so amazing!

She is so funny she says so clearly "Mommy" and "My Mommy" she reminds me of the little italian boy in "Life is Beautiful" the way she says it. She still call Landon "Nanny", but can also say "Daddy".

She absolutely LOVES the stairs. She likes to go up and down. We took her to Sherwood Park Mall on Saturday and she rode the big Clifford ride, which she loved and cried when she was taken off.LOL Kids!

This week Landon, Mindy and Taylor are off to the "Snowflake Gala", which I am sure will be tons of fun! We all cannot wait for Enbridge's Kids Party at Galaxyland. This will be her first time enjoying the fun, which I am sure will blow her mind.LOL

Taylor is on CTV tonight!

Hello,

So CTV has done an interview on Taylor that will be aired tonight on CTV at 6:20pm. The channel's news casters are Darryl McIntyre and Carrie Doll.
Yeah! I am soooo excited. Be sure to watch.

CTV may have something on Taylor...

Well it looks like CTV is interested in doing something on Taylor! Yeah!!! I am really excited. I will let you know as soon as I do when it will air! Hurray!!!!!!

Radiation is going okay...

Radiation seems to be going okay for Taylor, she always seems to overcome these obstacles! Taylor is tired and some occasions has had bad nights. Hard to tell with everything going on in her development whether it is teethings as her little...or should I say big "basketball" teeth are coming in or whether it is side effects of the radiation.LOL She looks amazingly cute with her big teeth.

She was taught this week to stomp! Apparently Landon taught her this new skill, which she greatly likes to utilize. She is also calling Landon "Nanny"...Mindy says its soooo cute! Cannot wait to hear her. I have not seen Taylor for going on 2 weeks, so I am sorry I cannot say too much about her...I will try and see her this weekend and possibly add some new pictures as I finally got a camera.LOL My Christmas present, just a bit early.

I am adding a link for those that have not seen the video Landon's Dad made for Taylor. He created the video to thank the Stollery for all the amazing care they gave Taylor for the past year. Apparently CTV also saw it and is considering doing something on Taylor...cross your fingers as I would love to see that done! The link below will take you to a Kids with Cancer blog to view the video as well people can make donations to Kids with Cancer. Hope you enjoy as much as I did. Showed all my students. My Drama 7/8 students sang away to the song it was very touching!

http://kidswithcancerblog.com/

Hear Taylor is tired

Well I hear Taylor has been tired. She apparently did not have that great of a night last night. I think my Mom said something about nausea, but that is unconfirmed. I will check into things and update.

Mindy is still loving work and reports that Landon is doing a better job on the home front than she ever could! I think Taylor seems to be LOVING having her Dad all to herself during the day...she certainly seems extra happy whenever he enters a room.

Radiation went well today!

Well all is well. Taylor did great today. Small mishap with a jerk of an anasteseologist ( annot spell today) that I will let Landon share with you if you see him. Apparently there should be no serious side effects other than later with some minor developmental delays. Taylor may possibly be cranky, tired, loss of appetite, but nothing compared to all that chemo, which is awesome!

So Landon will take Taylor daily for her treatments which should get faster as they all get used to the procedure. Taylor will probably be tired as her body will try and heal itself after the radiation. Taylor apparently also has gained 3 pounds in the last 6 weeks, which is awesome. She is now 22lbs and 3 oz. Nice little porky girl! Love it!

Taylor has not slowed down either today, so that is always a great sign. She was in great spirits and totally operating at warped speed!

Need to share a story I was told tonight!

My friend Shaundell told me tonight a very interesting story. Shaundell said that the day of Taylor's surgery 3 men entered her store, but not before "blessing" themselves. Of course this peaked her interest so she asked what they were here for. Apparently one was from here and the 2 others from the Ukraine. They said that there have been many miracles occurring here so they came to investigate (things like a woman with Breast Cancer who suddenly it disappears). Shaundell mentioned Taylor to which the priests told her they would pray for her!

The one priest came back the other day to ask how Taylor was and how her surgery went. Shaundell told him how great she did, he said he would continue to pray for her with the upcoming radiation...just thought it was a cool story. Men investigating miracles and coming across our Taylor's story!

Dear God

Hi God,

Its me again. I have to beg you for more help.

Taylor gets radiation tomorrow and for 5 more weeks daily. Please God guide the radiation to kill all the cancer. Please make sure you keep her intact, she is an amazing girl and will do so much good you will not regret the effort!

Make sure you send some angels too, we will need them. One should stand with Taylor to keep her feeling safe, 1 needs to help Landon keep his courage strong, and the last must go to my sister to keep her brave.

Thank you God

Radiation begins Monday!

Well I got to see Taylor, Landon & Mindy today. She was doing great. Taylor was in amazing spirits today, happy as could be smiling and racing around. She does this funny thing no where she lies on her tummy and pushes herself backwards...very silly!

Taylor will begin radiation therapy at the Cross Cancer Institute in Edmonton on Monday. Mindy & Landon will both be going. I don't believe there should be any side effects, but I will let you know.

Please make sure you keep praying and sending out positive energy to Taylor. I believe that is what has been keeping her going all this time, when they thought she would not make it...seems like the old Care Bear shows where they stand in a circle and shout "Care Bears Care" and then all this energy pours out of them to the person they are trying to help. Such a beautiful thing.

A little girl has passed away with a brain tumor

We have some people we know that lost their 5 year-old daughter on Sunday. On Friday she complained of a headached and was feeling sick...after checking her out they found she had a brain tumor (She was perfectly healthy and happy before all of this), complications with surgery occured that left her brain dead, so on Sunday they let Rayanna off her machines and she passed away.

Today is her funeral. Mindy & Landon will be going to show their support to her family. This is such a nightmare for this family. Please pray for her Mom Carla and her Dad Steve. They will need a tremendous amount of strength and courage in the upcoming days, months, years. Rayanna was such a beautiful child. She was originally from Africa and Carla & Steve adopted her. She was a petite and inquisitive child.

I know Rayanna will be dancing among the stars, giggling with angels on the clouds. She will start her day helping God wake up the sun and then later tug down the moon...Bless you Rayanna, say hi to all of our loved ones up there.

Not too much is new

Well hello there,

I have not had too much to report as of late. Taylor is doing great. She loves being home with her Daddy....a total Daddy's girl now. Mindy apparently comes home and she is happy to see her, but then quickly returns back to her Dad.LOL How fickle children are.LOL

Mindy is loving her return to work. As of now things are going great! Landon and Mindy got a great deal on a truck...Landon's Ranger was just not a safe car to be commuting in for either Mindy or Landon & Taylor (for her radiation treatments). So they have a great big truck no...their "adult" vehicle.LOL

Taylor starts radiation on the 16th, so we need to get our prayers, positive karma and well wishes going! I will keep you posted when this all begins. She has had a head cast made for keeping her head perfectly straight during radiation, but not much else has occurred. Taylor has received her Flu & H1N1 shots also for those who may have been wondering. Taylor is also headed to the Dentist (I think this week) to check on her teeth. Landon was concerned that they were discoloured and may have rot coming due to drinking Apple Juice or Chemo? I think that is the least of our worries, bit Landon is on top of things!

Taylor had a great Halloween being a Monkey! She even was allowed to eat chocolate bars...apparently she likes Aero's and Reese Pieces! Her love also has followed her Dad as I guess she can pack away the ice cream! LOL So if you ever want to bring her something you know have the list.LOL Kidding. She is walking up a storm and apparently does some funny little quick walk Mindy calls a "run" LOL cannot wait to see. She did not do while she visited me on Saturday.

Okay so I will hopefully have something more exciting to report soon,

Inspiring Change!

Hi so I am writing about me, but kind of Taylor...

I had a physical a couple weeks ago. I was asked my regular questions by the doctor..."still drinking all that coke?", "Still smoking only a few cigarettes?", etc. I told her yes, she asked if I could quit...must have given her "the look" as she tried to soften her advice, she made excuses for me..."you're stressed", "maybe when things get less crazy in your life", "try some easy stuff"( I had told her about Taylor, etc)...anyhow, my blood pressure was high so she has me doing tests, etc. Basically the analysis was I am fat and need to exercise.

Anyhow, I was a bit shaken by the high blood pressure and just kept going over in my mind that day what had gone on. I had a bit of an epiphany I wanted to share.

I basically felt really dumb when my epiphany hit..."Taylor goes through so much...she is fighting for her life! What the hell am I doing throwing mine away?" All the things I was being asked to change are brainless...stop drinking so much pop, watch what I eat and do a little exercise throughout the day.

So I have quit drinking Coke, as well as quit smoking! Next on the list is a change of diet... and including through baby steps- exercise. I will start with only weekends and graduate up. But I am doing it and I will never look back! I will also try some dieting with Mindy as she wants to shed some baby fat also...mine is just lazy eat too much fat. LOL, ooooh and I am going to try to not drink beer, but wine..cannot give up alcohol...how would I cope...kidding!

The latest news....

Well Taylor is doing great. She has decided she is a "Big" girl and no longer uses a soother, will not use her walker as she is walking pretty much all the time! Apparently she has hit the "terrible ones" LOL and has some tantrums if she does not get what she wants...who saw that coming?LOL So normal!

Well another most exciting news is that Mindy is returning to work in less than 2 weeks! Hurray. She is super excited. The best thing is that she found the PERFECT babysitter for Taylor. Taylor absolutely adores her new sitter as they love to play and snuggle ...can put her to bed in a flash, great at just about EVERYTHING...The new sitter has done EXTENSIVE work on their home as well as can train dogs to ring the bell to go outside, fixes almost anything (right Mom.LOL), has charm and wit!

Landon is going to win the best Dad of the year award and look after Taylor. This is such an amazing turn of events! Now we don't have to worry about Landon being gone for 6 months and they keep their family together! Yeah!

So make sure to give Landon your congratulations. I am so extremely proud of him there are no words!

Taylor Stitches are out!

Well Taylor got her stitches out. Everything went well. They had a bit of a wait though and because Taylor could not eat she got a bit grumpy!LOL She is such a food hound. Apparently she gained .3 of a Kilo since after surgery, so nothing seems to keep out little star down!

Saw Taylor yesterday at my Aunt Ruth's house. She was looking great as always and I got lots of sniffs and hugs from her. It was actually an amazing time and I would like to thank Auntie Ruth! What an amazing meal...absolutely loved seeing everyone and will have to make a point of doing it more frequently!

Taylor gets her stitches out tomorrow

Well Miss Taylor will be getting her stitches out tomorrow. She will need to be sedated for them to cut them out. Hopefully nothing too bad. Apparently they are plastic surgeon stitches...they were extremely well done, very finely stitched. So I hope she feels no pain and only relief from getting them out!

OOops did not update...

Well Mindy, Landon and Taylor were able to return home on Thanksgiving Day (Monday Oct 12) Yeah! I have not seen her since today, but I am ecstatic to report she is COMPLETELY back to normal!!!! So amazing to see her. So my Mom is staying out at Mindy's this week to help out with Taylor monkey. So happy to say everything looks so amazing, doesn't even seem that she had surgery!

Super Taylor is on her way home!

Yahoo! Taylor has recovered so well she gets to go home today! I cannot even express my elation....OH MY GOD!!!!

So our fight is far from over. Taylor still needs your prayers and good wishes, hopes and dreams for her coming. I pray that the cancer cells get zapped out so this all can end....I pray that the radiation causes no significant or noticeable damage, I can help her learn if she has any learning complications! I guess that is why we were sent the challenges we have! I pray Mindy can head back to work soon as I know she misses everyone there. I hope they find the most amazing caregiver for Taylor to allow Mindy and Landon ease of mind when Mindy returns to work....I just am too bloody excited right now to think straight...be back later!

Happy Thanksgiving

Well Taylor is doing well. A bit tired today. She has not had a bowl movement for 4 days so I think she is getting "stuck up".LOL Hopefully tonight she gets a good one.LOL

We took dinner up to the hospital tonight. My Mom and I cooked up our regular smorg and dragged it all up to the Stollery so that we could continue tradition that we eat as a family! So hope everyone had a great dinner!

Let's just say Taylor is AMAZING!!!

Well Taylor is doing magnificently. She is really getting back to her old self in warped speed.LOL which is exactly where she always operates.LMAO

Taylor is eating, smiling, laughing, waving, etc. She is a bit itchy from the adhesive from tapes, etc as she is allergic to them and rashes out big time, but unfortunately that cannot be helped at this time.

So everybody have a great Thanksgiving. We are having a small one at the Hospital. I know what I am Thankful for!

Food drop offs?

Hello,

So I thought I would ask if anyone wanted to do up a meal or something to drop off for Mindy and Landon? We order out a lot as it is the only thing to do because we cannot cook ourselves generally because we are at work or at the hospital. We are making them a Thanksgiving Dinner tomorrow, but anyone interested could let me know if they would mind doing that? Landon will be back to work after Monday so Mindy will be there with Taylor. Basically she needs lunch & supper, breakfast if your feeling food savvy. They seem to be dreaming of "comfort" food...a.k.a basic foods like roastbeef, mashed potatoes and gravy, chicken, porkchops, shepperds pie, etc....I think you catch what I am throwing down.LOL SO if you would like you can:

e-mail me: DorcasL@telus.net

or phone me:

(780) 467-9988 (home)

(780) 695-5550 (cell)

I amy not answer so just leave a message. I have a bunch of running around to do...watch out for the crazy in the stores and on the road....it may be me.LOL

I am sooo excited!

Well I left Taylor, Mindy, Landon and Mom early yesterday at 8:00pm as I was tired (cannot even imagine how tired they are) and wanted to see my kids before they were in bed.LOL So when I spoke to Mom I got what happened after I left. As you can remember from yesterdays post, Taylor was on a great recovery. Taylor seems to be getting her old self back quickly. She was reaching for peoples food, eating up a storm, etc.

Early in the day yesterday the Speech and Language Pathologists said we were okay to feed Taylor some food (we were not doing this as we were not sure we could, so she had bottles only up until then). So Mindy began feeding her yogurts yesterday...soon after this though Taylor began reaching her arm out when she saw anyone eating something...so before the "okay" from Speech and Language Dr.Mindy and Dr. Josie decided Taylor was okay to eat more solids, albeit softer ones. So Taylor had her popcorns twists, a dinner of mushed roast beef potatoes and peas(she did not eat the peas, but spit those back out as fast as they came in.LOL). We had Pizza and Wings last night, which of course led to Taylor having Pizza. I told Mindy she could get in trouble of Speech and Language walked in seeing her holding a pizza slice up to Taylor's mouth.LOL

Needless to say it was great seeing Taylor at it again. She always has to have what we are eating, food is a very special time for Taylor as she gets soo much enjoyment from it.LOL

Okay so when I left they were about to bathe her. They did, which she did not care for as she likes to be able to move around and splash, which she could not do (for obvious reasons). Apparently she was in a lot of pain ( Grandma Josie claims they were not wanting to give her codeine,but Mindy and Landon "made" them...hmm, maybe they did the gangsta hustle to scare them? LMAO well maybe not!)

As soon as drugs were making her comfortable I guess Taylor was smiling....real smiles!!!!!!She was turning her mouth up a bit earlier, which I knew was a smile, but not FULL SMILE! Woot!Woot! As well she was giggling and acting silly! She was laughing at my Mom telling her "Nooo,nooo,Noo Taylor" as well Mom took her for a walk around the Oncology where she is used to everything and apparently she was throwing the toys around in the playroom as she usually does.LOL So Angel Taylor had an absolutely amazing day. DOctors predicted we might see her coming very slowly back to herself on Sunday...see they are wrong, wrong, wrong! Taylor just keeps saying "to hell with the odds, I AM TAYLOR!"

Keep praying and sending positive vibes. I will try and get a Pumpkin Pie Blizzard up there today and see if she likes it!LOL

Taylor is doing amazing!

Well, Taylor had a rough night as she may have been in pain, but they sorted that all out this morning. She is now on regular pain drugs. She is getting stronger and more like herself as the day progresses. She is now eating everything again as well as drinking. She watched some treehouse as well.

Taylor is doing really great!

Well Taylor is out of PICU (Pediatric Intensive Care Unit) and on a regular unit for her recovery. She is still super sleepy, which I think is a good things as she needs to heal. She slowly is coming out more and more for lucid moments. She is drinking Apple Juice, but they have to wait for feeding her solids. You can see her amazing personality coming out here and there.

Landon is being the best Daddy and staying with his little angel tonight to give Mindy a break....isn't he GREAT!!!!I think I will need to grab him a pumpkin pie blizzard tomorrow!

I cannot say much more...things are looking awesome. Thanks for the amazing support. I got to kiss my Shining Star today, and am eagerly awaiting seeing her smile.

Dear God,

Thank you for another day of keeping our Angel safe. Help her cope with the pain, let her get the rest she needs to recover. I see you have sent your Angels. I see that your Angels are giving us strength in all the care for Taylor she is receiving from Amazing Doctor's and Nurses, from Mindy & Landon's positive outlook all the way down to Mom getting deals for our food at night.LOL You are pretty thoughtful God! Thanks for walking with us down these scary days, months, and year. Sometimes you carried us, but you were always there.

Amen

Taylor fought the Cancer Monster and kicked butt!

Hello,

So Taylor is doing well. The Tumor was completely removed as was shown in the MRI today! YEAH!!!!!! Thanks for the prayers, love and support! Taylor has a black eye from the surgery a.k.a. fight with the Cancer Monster, but looks great. Cannot wait until we can pick her up and squeeze her. To see her amazing smile will be a dream come true!

The meeting on radiation went well. Because Taylor's cancer is so rare the studies are few and far. So basically the radiation will be shot in to the area the tumors were located to try and zap any cancer cells left. The line the radiation goes is apparently a great line as it is a straight as you could hope for in the brain area (Mindy says it is like beaming a light to zap the cells, so you want a straight line the light can hit...no curves on this bloody road please!). There is around a 5% chance of severe complications like brain damage, death, etc...not that bad of odds if you ask me! If Taylor after this radiation does not get any tumor growth for a year she has a 30% of living another year. If she gets through that year it goes to 50% she will live until she is 5 years old. Basically the longer without a tumor regrowth the higher mortality she has.

I know this sounds bleak, but it is not! If you consider she is the youngest to be diagnosed so early as well as the fact that it is rare so they really know very little I think she has a chance of defying these odds. She has already lived and thrived past their forecasting so to hell with them.LOL No we need them, but no negativity people believe she will live and she might just outlive us all!

Please continue you to pray for Taylor and send her love, hopes and wishes. All of your concern helps fuel us to continue fighting for Taylor. So thank you.

Dear God,

Thank you for protecting Taylor. Dr.Pugh's hands managed to get all the tumors, which we are so blessed to have done. Thanks for sending your angels to protect her, please keep them near her, I am sure they are all in love with her by now...it is impossible not to be.

Please let her know my hopes and wishes will always be with her. Let her know how proud we are of her tonight for fighting this valiant battle the Cancer Monster is so scary I don't know that I could be so brave.

Please don't forget my sister, she has been so strong and amazing. She needs your guidance and strength. Make sure Landon knows how much we love him too, he has done such an amazing job of being a Dad. Continue to give my Mom strength. We are so blessed you sent her to us...I have never heard her complain no matter how exhausted she is for caring for all of us with her never ending love, patience and kindness to us when we need her. Bless Don and Roberta with an extra dose of strength... they love Taylor so much and worry. God please make sure that everyone who has been thinking of us and Taylor know how much their support means.

Please, please guide the radiation to any cells that remain so that Taylor can enjoy the life you have given her.

Amen

Surgery was successful!

Well it was a very, very long day. Taylor's surgery got bumped back until later in the day. Taylor was operated on once to remove the tumors, then she was sewed back up, MRI was done, than another part of a tumor was still left so Dr. McDreamy went back in to get it. So at around 10:00pm tonight she was done for the day. It was basically about 10hrs...she is going to be kept sleeping due to such a long surgery to help her recover and get the rest she needs.

All looks well, Dr. Pugh said she did great and he is happy with what happened. They are going to try and get another MRI to double check tomorrow if possible, but maybe thursday if they cannot fit her in tomorrow.

Landon and Mindy also will have a meeting tomorrow about the radiation. They will get some stats, etc of what to expect with radiation. Apparently it is done at the Cross Cancer Institute... the radiation, not the meeting. So more news tomorrow. Please continue praying and sending out your positive energy...it helps, never believe it doesn't.

Must sleep as I am a bit tired.

Dear God,

Keep protecting my Shining Star, she has fought so hard. Keep the angels watching over her. Thank you for the gift that Taylor has given us, she shows us the true beauty of life. Please watch over my family tonight and the days to come. Difficult decisions will need to be made and we need your guidance to protect Taylor.

Amen

Don't forget to pary tonight, send good karma or whatever you have been doing to keep Taylor safe...

Hi Everyone,

I have been hearing how shocked everyone is with the news. I want to thank everyone for their kind words and offers of help. At this point I am not sure what we will be expecting. Surgery I am sure will be fine...it is the radiation that is a bit scary. I will let everyone know how all goes tomorrow. I think Mindy & Landon should find out more about the radiation on Wednesday. I will definitely keep you posted!

Again keep all the prayers and love shooting towards Taylor, Mindy & Landon. They have been an amazing example of strength, love and hope.

Dear God,

Keep my Shining star safe! Please send out your angels to protect her. Give us all the strength to help her where we can. Make sure Taylor feels all the love that surrounds her. Let Mindy and Landon feel our hopes and wishes to help them get through this most difficult time.

Amen

I wrote this a long time ago, last year when we were really entering this battle but feel it is something to remember...

I am grateful for Taylor and how she has increased my belief in the good of the world...
I am grateful I have Mindy as my sister, my anchor, my hopes and my dreams...
I am grateful that Landon has been in my life with his amazing energy to keep us laughing, try anything, help always person...
I am grateful for my children and all the happiness they bring me...
I am grateful for my husband and all his support and pushing when I stop believing in myself....
I am grateful for my mother and all the endless love she brings. She is the epitome of strength and kindness...
I am grateful for my brother and his calm, intelligence and heart...
I am grateful for my friends who keep supporting me no matter what....
I am grateful for my students past and present who show me the beauty of each day...
I am grateful Barb found me when she did as it got me back together during a patch of uncertainty...
I am grateful for everyone who has offered up the prayers, support and kindness in this uncertain time...
I am grateful for all the acts of random kindness I encounter every day....
Please add your grateful things...

More Information about the Taylors future

Hi everyone,

We all are a bit shell shocked by the information we received yesterday on Taylor's MRI. Taylor has 3 Tumor growths that are growing rapidly. Two are the size approximately of half a pinky finger and one is half of that. Taylor will have surgery for removal on Tuesday October 6th. Dr. Pugh (a.k.a. Dr. McDreamy) is going to do her surgery again. Dr.Pugh will remove the tumor and then get an immediate MRI to check he has everything he can and remove anything he misses. He is clearing his entire schedule so as to focus on Taylor...he says Taylor is "special" to him (yes he said all his cases are special, but Taylor holds an extra special status) so he will give her his best! Yeah! God Bless Dr.McDreamy!

Surgery will remove the left frontal lobe of her brain that is dead so that the cancer cannot hide out there(I think this is right, but Mindy always corrects me when I am wrong.LOL it is like the game telephone you play as a child...remember how things get distorted.), as well they remove the tumors...duh! When Taylor is healed up she will get radiation every day for 5 weeks (I think just 5 days a week though, not 7). After this it will be followed by an MRI to check...after that we will have decisions being made what to do for Taylor. Mindy and Landon still need to speak with the radiologists to see what impact this will have. It will cause learning delays that could be anywhere from moderate to severe...hard to say. Mindy and Landon at this point are focused on the "quality" of Taylor's life, not the length. We really cannot think to far in advance as Taylor has been a miracle from the beginning. She seems to be more resilient than anyone could have expected. Doctor's apparently are actually astounded she survived the first year as well as even thrived in becoming such a normal happy baby! So this should take us all up to Christmas with this first stage.

I need to again ask everyone to send Taylor all your wishes, prayers, or whatever the heck has been making this work...we have had such a blessed year and it has been because of everyone. I reflect all the time on how much having such an amazing group of people supporting and rooting for Team Taylor has helped us survive this year.

I am praying that surgery goes amazing, that the radiation kills the cancer for good, and Taylor comes out feisty as ever. I think Taylor has been put here to make are hearts bigger, to make us stronger, to make us think of others. I know I always reflect on the fact that others may be going through some tragic things and that I shouldn't cuss people out in traffic, I should extend smiles freely, help where I can, because you just never know. Seems silly that it took Taylor to make me really get this, but it did! Taylor will always be my shining star on a dark night that guides my way...

The Cancer Monster is back, but we cannot let it win!

Well Taylor's MRI came back with signs of rapid growth. She has surgery on Tuesday October 6th and then radiation every day for 5 weeks after she is healed from surgery. I will let you know more soon. I am off for a visit with Mindy, Landon & Taylor....

Taylor is getting chemo today

Well things are back on schedule. Taylor is getting chemo today. Mindy apparently had a little adventure herself with Doctor's as she went to get her varicose veins taken out? May have that wrong. Anyhow you will have to ask her, she sounds like she had way too much fun at the doctor's office.LOL

Taylor also had a great milestone today...she took 10 steps all by herself! Yeah! She also was a hellion as she used her walker to race around and kept Mindy running after her.LOL She is officially TROUBLE!!!!

Have a great week and try to avoid the nasty colds going around! One caught me, but I plan on losing it soon!

No Chemo today

Taylor did not go in for chemo today as she was neutropenic. So maybe next week.

Mindy says she has told most people so I will let the cat out of the bag. Taylor is scheduled for another brain surgery on October 6 or 7th. They need to get a "horn" that was left last surgery as it could cause problems with seizures later. There were also 2-3 spots they are unsure of and need to check. Everything will be tested for cancer growth. It may be nothing or it may be something, they need to go back in to see. Please keep Taylor in your prayers as I am sure the surgery will be fine, but I would rather error on the side of caution.

Had a little visit with Mindy & Taylor. Taylor looks great! She is into everything and traveling at warp speed.LOL

Remember it is the time that Terry Fox runs and Cancer fundraisers are happening at school. Try to support or raise awareness. I would love to see Cancer cured in my lifetime so that we can worry about more important things. This is a battle we must win! Too many suffer through this. My school has decided to do a Alberta Cancer Institute fundraiser so that we can direct money raised by our school directly towards the Cross Cancer in Edmonton. We have many dealing with Cancer in our school community and felt this was the best way for us to raise money.

Taylor is ONE!!!!

Hello,

I am going to stop apologizing for not keeping this up...you all know the drill and lists of excuses!

So today is the anniversary of Taylor's MRI. It was such a black day that day last year. I remember feeling like the ski was falling, that how were we all going to deal with these results. Than we found out there was a tumor that HAD to come out...we faced Taylor having to have surgery and not knowing if she would survive, or be damaged from the surgery. It was so scary and I am feeling so blessed that the darkness those first days and months have ended. I think we are all stronger and more blessed because of Taylor. I know that whatever comes next we will be able to get through...that times may get hard again, but we will survive because Taylor is our shining star on a dark night.

Saturday was Taylor's First Birthday Party. Not all of you could come as there was just too much going on. Please don't feel left out as we are actually hoping to have a special party once we know what the next year holds for Taylor. The meeting on Taylor's next year has not happened yet, but should soon as it is the anniversary dates. I hope we can perhaps look at doing a fundraiser or some special thing to give back to the stollery for the amazing care they have given to Taylor as well as the support offered Mindy & Landon.

Taylor has been great. A bit on the whinny side, but hey, she is now a big girl. One whole year old! Taylor has *hopefully* her last chemo this Wednesday, September 16th. It is the anniversary of her neurosurgery at 6 days old. SO please keep your prayers for Taylor going as well as cross everything you can that Taylor gets a cancer free card soon!

Love you all!

Summer has ended

Well, summer is officially over. My sister Leah and the kids are back to school, and Taylor and I are off for a few more months. I went to work on August 31st to clear my Maternity Leave, and have taken a leave of absence until the end of October. Hopefully we will have more answers in October as to what our future holds.

We went in for chemo again this week on Wednesday and were released today. Taylor has been feeling good so far, so my fingers are crossed that we get to enjoy the long weekend at home.

Taylor's First Birthday is around the corner...next Thursday September 10th - Can you believe it has already been a whole year? I am still wondering where the time went. We plan to have a small birthday party for her next weekend, and are thinking that a really big End of Chemo bash will be in order pending everything we are told in October goes well.

I hope everyone is enjoying the weather, and has a great long weekend.

Love,

Mindy, Landon & Taylor

They are out!

Well they were released today as Taylor's counts were good. Mindy is looking forward to relaxing a bit at home and then getting ready for August 31st for her return to work for a day. Yahoo!

Darn it all, her numbers were just a bit low to go home...

Well Taylor has been doing good ever since the fiasco of pulling out her tube. They were hoping to get out today, but her numbers were just a bit off...so for sure tomorrow they will get out. Mindy had a visit from Landon, and of course Mom has been there everyday. I missed today as my husband is going in to with drawls not having me at his beck and call.LOL Kidding...but he does want to spend "time" together.

Mindy & I had a "movie" night last night. We watched "17 Again"...it was cute, with light humor. I am getting excited as is Mindy & Landon for Taylor's first birthday. Not sure what will happen as far as parties, but we will wait and see. It is one of those tough times to plan as it also falls to when they are looking at what is going to happen next with Taylor's health. I am sure though that we can figure out something special.LOL

Day 1 of chemo...

So Mindy had an exciting start to her day. Today they started chemo...Taylor decided to yank out her tubes...some BIG problems go along as it messes up the i-vad...needless to say after blood thinner and another test tube x-ray Taylor was back up in running.

Taylor I guess was a grump this morning. She would flip out and cry whenever someone touched her or said hi (Hospital staff, not Mindy), but eventually she was much happier this afternoon when I saw her( I totally think it is me because I am her FAVOURITE AUNT!!LMAO).

Mindy seems to have a cold. I think it may just be that she is tired from Taylor not sleeping very well lately. So all is well right now. Mindy was feeling much better after she had some benadryl. I will get an update later as Grandma is always up to see them after work.

Yup, its chemo time

Well sorry I have been failing in keeping everyone up to date. I have seemingly continue to keep myself too busy to keep up? Well lets just say I try...LOL

Taylor is back in for chemo today.

Last week was supposed to be the week that Mindy, Landon & Taylor got to have their "mini" vacation, but things went a bit south. Things started at the Zoo, which was great...Landon has NEVER been to a Zoo? So Mindy said it was a blast as Landon was sooooo excited.LOL Then when they eventually got to the hotel Mindy was exhausted and not feeling great. Taylor was cranky...woke up feverish so they had to head to the Stollery...very short hotel stay! LAndon was then feeling yucky, Taylor was okay with her blood work but still had fevers which of course is always scary...

So Saturday we had a "Ladies Night" and left Landon with Taylor (Taylor was feeling better, but cranky and Landon was not feeling very good yet...bet hey we had been planning this for like 2 friggin years so Ladies night was so going to happen.LOL). We had a great time, lots of laughs and we DANCED!!!LMAO

So Mindy got a "day pass" today so we headed to the park, got slurpees, and then had a relaxing dinner and gab fest with Mom!! Was a great night. Mindy is a BIT tired as Taylor has decided she would prefer to sleep with Mommy & Daddy(Taylor apparently "starfishes" not leaving Mindy much room.) So we shall see if Taylor ends up sleeping in her stroller tonight.LOL I hope Mindy can get some sleep.

So until tomorrow I really don't have too much to say. Night!

It's been a while

Hey everyone,

It has been a while, Landon was on holidays last week and my sister was in Banff on a ATA conference, so we weren't updating the blog, sorry.

Well, things started off great, Landon and I were getting lots of things done around the house, Taylor was feeling good, and we headed off to Calgary to go to the zoo...

The zoo was great, seen lots of exciting things...x rated elephant show and all, hee hee. After the zoo we headed off to find a hotel room for the night and a restaurant for supper. We noticed that Taylor had been sleeping an awful lot that day, but otherwise things seemed fairly normal. I started feeling ill after supper and fell asleep early with Taylor...we were party poopers. Taylor woke up around 11pm with a mild fever and was getting cranky. She soon fell back asleep and seemed to cool down a bit, so we went back to sleep. She woke up again around 3am burning up again, so we decided to hit the road and head back to Edmonton, so that we would be there first thing in the morning for them to take a look at her. She never got a real fever until later that day. So, for the next couple of days she was fevering and was feeling yucky, and Landon got whatever she had too...I took her to the Stollery emerg on Thursday night, and they weren't sure what she had, but figured it would work its way out.

So, to say the least, Landon's vacation was a bust - I went out for girls night on Saturday night and he ended up going to Stony Plain emerg to get checked out since he wasn't feeling right. Things seem to be getting back to normal now, Landon is back at work, and we head in for Taylor's next chemo on Wednesday if her counts are good and they have a bed available.

I am busy trying to plan Taylor's first birthday party...September 10th, my little girl turns one! I also go back to work for one day on August 31st to clear my maternity leave, and then I am off on leave again until the end of October, or whenever we know more about Taylor's future and treatment plan.

Love,

Mindy, Landon & Taylor

They are out!

So this was a short chemo, so Mindy and Taylor are getting out early this afternoon. Hurray! We are going to head off to GoldBar park.

Chemo today

So Taylor is in for her chemo today. It should be a short one, so hopefully out tomorrow or the next day. Taylor apparently is the same weight, but has grown an inch. She is also quick on her way to walking as she is standing on her own. Funny how we go from all fours to being always standing...weird concept. Anyhow all is well. MIndy is eagerly awaiting her return to work. She goes back for a day, August 31 and then has a leave until October to iron out Taylor's future plans.

I don't know about you, but I think we skipped summer. This sucks! LOL I guess we will have to leave for the summers instead of thinking we should stay around because its nice. Damn weather.LOL

MRI Results are in

MRI is back. Everything still looks good. In September the Doctor's will have a meeting with Mindy and Landon to discuss what will happen next with Taylor...continue chemo, radiation, no treatment just MRI's to check? We will have to wait until September to find out!

NO RESULTS FROM MRI

Hi, I just wanted to let people know that Taylor's MRI results are not in yet. I did not want anyone to worry that I had not posted because of something else. They are just not in yet, but I will let you know when I know.

They are out of the hospital

Just to let everyone know Mindy and Taylor are out. Taylor is a bit grumpy "squealy" as Mindy says. Tomorrow is MRI and results should be next week.

They will be out tomorrow

Well I saw Mindy briefly. Seems although I am off it is hard to get up and visit for long periods due to my kids. Mindy is pretty bored, but doing okay as at least they have a private room. Apparently lots of the kids are sick right now, so many are in isolation. H1N1 is causing the hospital to be extra cautious (which is good).

So MRI will be friday, but results will probably not be in until next week. When I know I will update. I pray we get another good one.

Landon is off starting Friday I believe so they are going to have some vacation time together. Not sure what they are doing, but I believe a trip to the Calgary Zoo may be one thing they do this summer. Obviously they will need to be taking Miss Taylor to the lake as she loves the water sooo much.LOL

Hope everyone is enjoying the sunshine. I believe we brought it back from Kelowna with us, so your all very welcome.LOL

They will not be out until Thursday it looks like

Mindy and Taylor are feeling much better. Taylor will probably not be out until Thursday morning. I am sure they are a bit bored so feel free to give them a visit.

Taylor has a cold

Apparently Taylor does have a cold. She is still getting chemo as well as remaining in isolation. She is a bit grumpy Mindy says, but still doing good.

Okay so here is the low down...

Taylor went for her blood work today, which was fine; however, she has a boogie filled nose that they swabbed to check if she is sick. They are in for chemo, but do to Taylor potentially being sick they are being "isolated", which really means they get a luxury visit as they have their own room and not as many people going through. Yeah! LOL Mindy is really tired and not feeling great. She has a sore throat and was feeling a bit nauseous. Hopefully it is nothing. It was probably "stress" due to Mindy worrying Taylor would get sick on our trip (Mindy's words, not mine).

The MRI has now been moved as well to Friday. This sucks as it would have been nice to have it over with instead of probably having to come back into the city. Anyhow I will keep you posted on what happens next. Other than that Taylor is in good spirits, looks healthy, etc. Mindy needs rest, and possibly her own visit to the hospital.

We are back!

Well we left in a panic last Wednesday for Kelowna after receiving a clear bill of health on Taylor's blood work. We drove through the night and were there at around 6 am BC time. Needless to say we were EXHAUSTED!LOL The kids were all great and slept through the night drive.

We had a great time at the beach, enjoying the HOT weather. Sorry to all of you that had to be in Edmonton where it was cold. Taylor absolutely loves the water. As soon as she see's water she goes postal. She tries to leap out of your arms into the water. Taylor's favorite thing to do in the water is splash, drink lake water and sand...YUCK!LOL

Taylor seemed to be a bit out of sorts while we were there as she did not sleep well. She was good in all other ways, but just seemed to not like sleeping somewhere different.

On Monday (tomorrow) Taylor is back in for blood work then chemo & her next MRI on Wednesday. I will keep you posted on what I know, as I know.

A day at the Beach

Well we took Taylor to the beach for the first time yesterday, well the first time in the water. My friend Danielle and her little guy Benjamin came out for a visit. Taylor was a little shocked at the water temperature to start with, but soon climatized and was very happy splashing around. She floated around in her little floaty things and was walking on the sandy bottom and splashing with her hands. She also kicked her feet when the water was deeper, so she is a natural fishy.

She really enjoyed sitting in the really shallow water and splashing, and trying to drink the water and eat the sand off the bottom of the lake...YUCK!!!! She did it quite a few times, so she obviously liked it...Landon caught it on video.

Well, things have been good. We have bloodwork on Wednesday and if all is good, we will be on our way to Kelowna on Thursday night or Friday morning.

I hope everyone has a great week.

Love,

Mindy, Landon & Taylor

They are free

Well they got out today. Yeah! Taylor has been such a monkey wanting to run free. So we wait and see how she takes this chemo. She was a bit cantankerous last night, but maybe she will feel good soon. Other than that we should be heading out to Kelowna this week! Yeah!

Unfortunately they have to stay one more day...

Well because this chemo is generally hard on Taylor they figured they would keep her one more day and hydrate her some more. She is in good spirits, although refusing to sleep. She was playing, banging and yelling until about 10:30pm last night and then woke screaming. They were not sure if it is nausea, pain or what, so they just covered all bases and she was fine. 

I went by this afternoon and they are doing okay, although Mindy is pretty darn tired. So hopefully they get out early tomorrow so Mindy can go home and get some rest.

Taylor is having chemo today

Well Mindy and Taylor went in this morning for chemo. I guess it was complete chaos as it was really busy. So because of the backlog Mindy and Taylor got a pass to leave for a few hours. Mindy came over and we went for a walk to grab a slurpee and go to the park. Taylor had to be back for 6:00 pm so she is probably getting chemo now. 

This chemo was cut back by 20% as it was always causing her counts to be low and she had lots of side effects that were hard on her, it also made her chemo cycles off as they would have to wait for her counts to go back up. So hopefully this cut back will do the trick. Taylor is still cute as ever. So as of right now all is great, but I will keep you posted They hope to be out tomorrow as this is a "quick" chemo.LOL

Chemo this week

Hi,

I thought I would let everyone know that Taylor has chemo this thursday. It will hopefully be a nice quick one where they get out the next day....so cross your fingers.

Not a whole lot has been going on lately. Landon has had a nice long weekend off, so they have been spending lots of time together. Landon's birthday is Wednesday July 1st, Canada Day. Taylor has been zooming around and enjoying her new water ability...LOL nothing to hold her back now with the i-vad! Mindy has a sexy new hair-do. So all is well in the Thiessen household.

I am now off for the summer so hopefully I can be more attentive. I forgot last time to mention they were out of the hospital! Ooops.LOL

We are out of the hospital

For those of you who don't already know, we are out of the hospital. We got out on Monday afternoon as Taylor's levels were good...she cleared this one quick, which was awesome!

We had a bit of a grumpy room-mate this go around, which wasn't too much fun, but I found out on Sunday that she was just told that her cancer isn't responding to the chemo she has been going through for the last 4-5 months and they had to switch over to their last resort chemo, hoping that it works, or she will be taken off chemo and will eventually pass. She is 8 years old and doesn't quite understand what is going on, so that is why she is so miserable. Poor girl! There is another little girl that is 4 years old that we see often, and she was just told the same thing, they have the same type of cancer called Wilm's Tumour which in both cases has spread to other organs and have unfavourable cells. The 8 year old had her kidney removed 4 months ago and the tumour is already as big as her kidney that was removed - it has grown back and fast. These poor little girls, one is from Slave Lake and one is from Cold Lake - so they both have to travel long distances and have siblings...I thought my life was difficult.

Well, Taylor got her IVAD and it is healing up great, we look forward to taking her swimming in the lake this weekend. She is thoroughly enjoying bath time, and if she had it her way, would sit in the tub all day. We go in for blood work on Monday and will likely be admitted on Tuesday June 30th for her next chemo. We are sad about that, as we were making plans for Landon's birthday on Canada Day, but we will have to post-pone them I guess. Landon is off on Saturday and doesn't have to go back until Thursday July 2nd, so we are looking forward to having some time together as a family and getting the house fully baby-proofed, as Taylor has begun exploring even more now that we are home.

Taylor and I are going to Kelowna with my sister and the kids from July 11th to the 18th to visit our brother, and we are getting excited to being away. Taylor also has her next MRI on July 22nd, so fingers crossed everyone!

Well, I hope everyone has a great Canada Day!

Love,

Mindy, Landon & Taylor

Had a short visit with Mindy and Taylor

Taylor is being flushed right now of the chemo (completely normal as it is done after each chemo). This one though takes awhile so they could be in for another few days. Brought Mindy some sandwiches and pasta for dinner. She is good as is Taylor, but Taylor is really bored. It is hard being in the hospital for Mindy right now as there is never a "break" from entertaining Taylor who is not very happy sometimes as she is bored. Don't get me wrong, Taylor is doing great, but after awhile she gets whiney as she cannot do much with tubes in her and she cannot crawl around on the hospital floor and explore like she would do at home. Anyone feeling bored could go up to the hospital and watch Taylor for an hour or two would let Mindy get some breathing time in. I should have today, but needed to put some time in with my kids as I have not been home much due to going to the hospital to see Taylor last week and this week. I will be done my last week of school next week so I will try and do that when I am off in the summer. 

But overall all is good and we are really looking forward to our trip down to Kelowna!

Dropped in for a visit today

Well I swung by the hospital today. Taylor is getting her chemo today. She is looking great. Full of energy and lots of trouble.LOL She is behind the bars of the crib at the hospital and looks like a caged monkey.LOL She peeks out and bangs the rails while standing. For a change of scenery we took her for a very short stroll around and around and around and around the unit...we cannot leave the unit during chemo, which sucks as there is a very limited amount to see.LOL

I brought KFC for Mindy (I know such a healthy choice. I will bring something better tomorrow when I have some time to cook). It seems every time I want to eat Taylor thinks I have something so delicious she must have it, so inevitably I am forced to share (damn kids!LMAO). We had her in a highchair where she could not keep her hands off the poutine, but at the same time was acting like we were asking her to play with disgusting worms.It looked really funny. She would put her hands completely in the poutine and then keep shoving loads of french fries and gravy in her mouth. SHe would keep it there awhile moving it around and then spit it all out. Such a goofball!

On a better note Dr.McDreamy swung by to see Taylor. Apparently Taylor was sleeping so he did not TAKE A PICTURE, but he will take one tomorrow! LOL SO we may get some pics of the good doctor up.LOL What is so friggin awesome is that he has been looking at all her MRI's as they have been done and he thinks that there is nothing left, that the spots are just blood from the surgery, which is completely normal with head surgery! He believes they really may have gotten all the tumor (cancer) so maybe if we cross every body part we can she may never get it back...I will always dream and wish that for Taylor...Good night all!

Surgery was done on Wednesday

Hi,

So Taylor had her i-vad put in yesterday. She did amazing. She was up to her old tricks shortly after surgery, which is awesome. She is not getting chemo until tomorrow so Mindy got to leave the hospital for a couple of hours today. She went to visit Don and Roberta and then Grandma Josie.

So I will let you know if anything changes, but all is good right now.

Leah

Surgery scheduled for Wednesday

So Taylor's surgery is scheduled for Wednesday morning. They are planning on putting in the I-Vad, which will be so wonderful in comparison to the Broviac. I won't have to worry about maintaining it 3 times a week, keeping the exit site dry, and keeping the tube pinned up and out of Taylor's grabby hands - which I think will be the best part. We also will be able to go SWIMMING!!! Taylor LOVES the water now, so she will probably enjoy this the most.

So we will likely start chemo on Wednesday or Thursday and will be in the hospital for 5 days or so (based on the last time she had this chemo) as she has to clear it out of her system before we get discharged. So, we will likely be spending Father's Day in the hospital.

Taylor has become a very fast crawler and has been pulling herself up on furniture. She gets a devilish grin while heading for the dog toys, dog bowls, cords, etc...anything she isn't supposed to have. She is quite funny, everytime she sees water, a sink running water, etc she thinks she is going to have a bath and gets very excited...and then very disappointed. She is a very silly little girl.

The Kids with Cancer walk went well, between Landon and my mom and Leah, we raised over $1100 for the cause and got to enjoy a lovely morning getting some fresh air and exercise. We hope to see you all out there next year (we are thinking of making some cool T-shirts or something).

Have a great week and Leah will likely provide some updates later in the week when more action happens!

Love,

Mindy, Landon & Taylor

Walk for Kids with Cancer was today!

Hello,

So lots has been going on lately. Mindy and Taylor were released from the hospital on Friday, which Mindy was very, very happy for as she was really, really tired. Taylor is awesome and looks great. She is motoring around, enjoying her new found freedom. 

We had the Walk for Kids with Cancer today. I was late so I can't tell you how that part went. I still did the walk, but there were not too many around when me and the kids walked.LOL Taylor was in excellent spirits. We compiled all of our pledges and managed to raise over $500. Hopefully next year we can raise more as well as perhaps be on time.LOL

Taylor has her next surgery on wednesday, which hopefully will be the i-vac(could be i-vad, but I never seem to get them right). After the new tube is inserted they will more than likely give her chemo. We are going to attempt a trip to Kelowna Mindy, the kids and me so that should be really interesting. We are hoping that the i-vac is what they put in so that she can play in the lake at Kelowna.

Taylor had her Broviac surgery this morning

This morning Taylor had her surgery to remove the damaged Broviac line. All went well other than they found a pus pocket. They sent it away to be analyzed to make sure they were giving her the right antibiotics to treat the infection. Mindy feels she is responding well to the antibiotics. Mindy says she was in good spirits today other than being more sleepy than usual. They will not be doing the surgery until next week to install the other line. It looks like they will be putting in an i-vad line, which will be much better I think. I believe with this one there will be not as many issues with things getting into it. So maybe they will be able to leave tomorrow which I am sure that they will both be happy about! Chemo will be delayed until the new line goes in, so maybe next week when she gets the new line they will also do chemo.

The "Walk for Kids with Cancer" is this weekend. 

And things were going so great...

Well Taylor got sick yesterday. She had a fever and her broviac line swelled up and was red. Mindy took her to the Stollery Emergency where I eventually met her and we waited....

It sucked as they had to run tests which are never fun. Booger test was sticking a very long thin tube up her nose that then goes down the back of her throat...quick, but a bit painful I would think. The nurses were all efficiency, but I feel a bit too "efficient". Then there was a urine test, which meant literally shoving a catheter repeatedly up there and pushing her into various positions while she screamed, cried and tensed up. This was truly painful. I am still very angry about this as I do not believe they would have manhandled an adult this way. Eventually Taylor peed all over them while this occurred, which serves them right! Next came blood tests, which they could not use the Broviac as it was "contaminated", so she got poked twice and it was done.  Then finally it was a x-ray where her Broviac is to see what was going on there. She basically has her hands in the air and is squished into a test tube! That did look kind of funny and she was not too upset with that. So we waited and waited. I left around 10:30pm. Mindy did not get a room until 1:30 am. So needless to say they are a bit tired.

Today they started thinking she could have a blood clot in her jugular that may have caused the Broviac to burst. Luckily after an ultrasound, which was another trial according to Mindy, they discovered it was not a blood clot. So as far as I can tell the Broviac is broken and they will be doing surgery to remove it for 48 hours and then redoing the line. Mindy hopes that they may use a different method than the Broviac, so we will see. They need to wait to get rid of the infection before doing anything more than removing the Broviac, which must be causing the infection. Taylor is still red and swollen by her Broviac line, but definitely seems in  better spirits.

So we wait and see. I wish for Taylor that all goes well and they find a better solution than the Broviac as this would be her third one...how many scars will she have on her if they have to continue doing this? She is also now hitting the potential that she may pull it out as she is more mobile. I will keep you posted!

Leah

Taylor is crawling!

Well Taylor is officially crawling.LOL Now Mindy is going to have fun. Taylor has been doing great. She is a very strong willed little girl. She is starting to get some hair coming in, it seems thick and blonde. Who knows if it will stay or not, but she is looking cuter than ever.

Taylor had chemo today

Well Mindy and Taylor went in for chemo yesterday, but did not get the chemo until today. Taylor looks great. Apparently she was a bit of a handful today as she wanted to be held or with Mindy ALL DAY so Mindy would have to put her in the stroller and take her to the bathroom with her.LOL

Taylor has found a new fun toy. There is a little push car she can sit on and you take her for a stroll. She bounces around in her seat, puts her leg up and yells out or grunts when you stop and she wants to keep moving.LOL She has kept up to being a "smile slut" as she just blinks her big blue eyes and gives her 2 tooth smile to anyone walking by that glances at her. Of course everyone comments on how lovely she is, so I guess she is only living up to what everyone else thinks.LOL

Mindy is good. A bit tired, but they will be out probably tomorrow morning. So have a great weekend and enjoy the lovely sun that we have!

Woot, Woot another clear MRI!!!!

Yeah so the news is in, the MRI was clear. There were some spots Mindy said, but the Doctors feel they are blood left from the original surgery. So celebrate good times!!!!!

Taylor had her MRI today

Hello,

Sorry I guess I should have posted before this, but Taylor had her MRI. Everything went well. I will let you know when the results come in. 

So far so good!

Well, Taylor and I left the hospital on Thursday and Taylor wasn't feeling great, but we really wanted to get out of there. She is doing much better now, eating up a storm and not tossing her cookies anymore. Her hearing test came back normal, so that's good. Regarding her Kidney test, it came back at 76, but that doesn't mean that her kidneys are only working 76% - it just means that the stuff they injected into her for the test didn't all clear in the 3 hour window - but there are alot of contributing factors...so they are still discussing how reliable these kidney tests are for her - as they didn't do a base line before chemo started...that could just be her norm...nothing to be worried about. All her bloodwork shows that her kidneys are just fine.

We had a great extra long weekend. Landon, his dad and his uncle Jim came over on Saturday and started to put our house back together - they got about half of the cedar up on the ceiling, which looks awesome! Taylor and I stayed at my moms, helped my sister host a baby shower on Saturday for my cousin Kristen and her sweet little baby Damien, and Leah and I went out on Saturday night for some girl time. I had 3 drinks and was feeling quite tipsy, so Leah took me home :)

Taylor has started scooting on her bum around the house, and likes pushing herself around backwards on the hardwood...it's amazing how fast they can travel. I posted some new pictures on Facebook and on the website for everyone.

We have Taylor's MRI on Friday May 22nd and if her blood counts are good, we will be going in for chemo again next Wednesday.

I hope everyone had a nice break over May Long, and hopefully all your gardens will bounce back after this lovely snowy weather.

Take care,

Mindy, Landon & Taylor

They are out of the hospital

So Taylor had her chemo this week. Apparently they suffered the roommates from hell! Mindy is very happy to be out of there. Taylor is doing well. She had her kidney test, which shows her kidneys are working at 72% (I am not sure if it is 72 or 74), but MIndy feels that may because of a small formula glitch she had where she was not drinking very much before she came in, so please don't worry at this point. 

I will be sending out an e-mail regarding the "Walk for Kids with Cancer" as Grandpa Don reminded me that not everyone keeps up with the blog. So sorry I am not trying to harass you, well maybe a little, but I want to make sure everyone gets the information.

Okay so I am gonna start my harassment campaign...no kidding, but kind of.LOL

Hello, So I have officially signed my family up for the "Walk for Kids with Cancer". It is on June 14th, 2009. It is a great cause as money will be donated to kids with cancer foundation...duh! My family is "Wishes for Taylor" and Mindy & Landon are just called the boring "Thiessen Team" wow you think they could be more creative.LOL I recommend coming out or doing a pledge to help raise money and awareness. There is a BBQ and you get a cool t-shirt....as well you get to hang out with me & Mindy...."the cool kids" LMAO 

Anyhow, I was lucky to get out there to see them on Mother's Day. Taylor will probably go in this week if they have room. She did not go in last week as her counts were down. She was a bit crabby Mindy said (she seemed pretty good to me though) because she is "backed up". Hopefully she gets her pipes cleaned out so she feels better. 

Taylor has pretty much lost any hair she was born with, but no is springing up some fuzz on her noggin. Too cute. She looks so funny watching her "shows" (Baby Einstein & Treehouse) as she is so involved she smiles, talks and laughs with what is going on in the program. Too cute. I never realized kids could be that involved.LOL She hangs out in her excosaucer and jolly jumper or her little "mat/pillow play area".

Taylor is doing great!

Well today I was privileged to spend some time with Mindy and Taylor. We had some running around to do in preparation for our Cousin Kristen's Baby shower. We ran around and Taylor was great. So happy it is so amazing. I got to hold her, which is always exciting. Her personality is changing so much. She is just so happy. I think she is happier now that she can do more. She is always moving around and bouncing. She loves to squeal. Her playing strange days seem to be over. Her new favorites are pudding and popcorn twists. I must take credit for the popcorn twists as I brought a huge bag for Mindy in the hospital for her as I remembered how much my daughter liked them as a baby. Apparently they are "baby crack" her eyes seem to glaze and she gets excited when she sees the bag.LOL

Mindy & Taylor are staying at my mom's. Mindy is going to go with her friend Danielle to the stollery as Danielle's son Benjamin has bronchial pneumonia and needs support. So scary when babies get sick. So pray for little Benji that he gets better soon. I am sending my positive wishes out to them.

Well....

Mindy has been in and out of the hospital this week making sure Taylor remains hydrated. Nothing serious. Taylor is a happy camper. Mindy will be coming in to the city this weekend and stay at my mom's.

She is doing much better

Well Mindy went in today. Her blood counts are awesome. They put her on an IV for awhile and she seems to be happier. They only had to stay for a little while which was great. They then went for a visit to Grandma Roberta and Grandpa Don. So no worries. I will let you know if anything else comes up.

Well Taylor is not feeling so good

As expected Taylor seems to not be feeling well today. She has not eaten much. Mindy will probably take her in tomorrow unless she begins a miraculous recovery tonight...not likely though. Mindy is also going to visit another family that has a very young girl going in for heart surgery. I know all your prayers and thoughts will be going out to these people in this time of distress.

It has been a crazy a 7 months thus far. Who would have seen all this coming? I know though that this has also been an amazing time. We have all pulled together and grown as people. I cannot believe how much love we can have for people. You think that things are amazing until you find yet more things to keep you enthralled. Taylor is such a blessing. She has made our lives richer. I am completely amazed by Mindy and Landon. They have been I think the best people to have dealt with such a trying situation and make it look so easy. They are truly up to the task. Mindy is the most amazing, loving and kind mother I have ever seen (our mom is pretty amazing too!). When I look at all my stresses and juggling I cannot fathom how they seem to do it all and so positively. Bless their hearts!

I will let you know how things go tomorrow unless Mindy beats me to it! LOL Sending out all my love tonight...Taylor I hope you feel better tonight, you deserve it!

Taylor had Chemo today

Well I am back! LOL I went to the Stollery today to visit Mindy and Taylor. Taylor looks great! She was a tad cranky as she was not getting in good naps, but that seems to be what happens when staying at "The Hotel la Stollery". Unfortunately this is the chemo that tends to make Taylor sick so although they will probably be out tomorrow they more than likely will be back sometime during the week.

I just wanted to let everyone know that Taylor's next MRI is on May 5th. We also may start looking for supporters and joiners in the "The Walk for Kids with Cancer" on June 14th. So keep watching. 

Next Chemo

Since today is Wednesday, we are supposed to be getting admitted for chemo today. We aren't sure if there will be beds available, and are kind of hoping that we get delayed a few days at least so that we can stay in the hospital for an extra day or two. This next chemo is really hard on Taylor and we seem to get out the next day, but return a few days later because her back hurts and she refuses to eat...so we are hoping that this one goes better. We were thinking that if she stays for a few extra days that if she needs morphine for the pain, than they can give it to her, as the codeine doesn't seem to help at all with this one. Poor little thing.

We had a great Easter weekend, got some visiting in with family, some work done in the garage, enjoyed some of the warm weather, but again forgot to relax. Taylor and I went to the Stollery Monday morning for bloodwork - her hemoglobin was really low on Thursday morning, but since we had left to visit Enbridge they weren't able to do a blood transfusion. So, the levels were up a bit on Monday morning, but still quite low. They figured they would let us go a little longer before she needs a transfusion, to see how she does. We also went to visit Great Granny Thiessen and Great Auntie Linda on Monday, which was nice, it has been too long. I also had a dentist appointment on Tuesday morning, so Nana Roberta babysat for us. Taylor had a great time being the centre of attention as usual - god bless grandparents :)

So, we are off to the Stollery again for her physical with the doctor, and maybe more bloodwork and/or a transfusion. I am crossing my fingers that we don't get admitted today as I haven't packed up our stuff. I have been feeling especially lazy lately, probably due to being so busy.

Thanks again for all your thoughts and prayers. Keep them coming, as they seem to be working.

Love,

Mindy, Landon & Taylor

Easter Weekend

Happy Easter everyone!

Leah and family have gone on a fabulous and long overdue vacation to the coast for some retail therapy. They are on Spring Break right now, and I am pretty sure that if Leah didn't get away, she would be getting admitted to a "special" hotel to recover from a mental break. I think the school system needs more teachers aides to help out...it is truly amazing how much work is expected from one teacher each and every year - Thank goodness there are such dedicated teachers out there that love their jobs!

Well, during our last hospital stay Taylor cut her two bottom front teeth - which everyone in the hospital got to experience with us, as she yelled and screamed about her teething experiences, ensuring everyone knew the agony she was going through. She didn't cry or anything too terrible, just talked alot and VERY loudly. Some people thought it was pretty cute, but after a few days with no breaks and no ear plugs, I was happy that the teeth came and the volume turned down.

So, my baby has her two first teeth and has been enjoying scraping them on her cookies. She has been eating really well - I have been blending everything, which she has been enjoying (with the exception of Tikka Masala with chicken and rice - a type of Indian dish) She liked Butter chicken, so we thought we would try another kind, but she wasn't too fond of it. She now wants to eat whatever anyone else is eating around her, which she can often be distracted by giving her a baby cookie, thank goodness.

Taylor has certainly found her sense of humour in the last few days, we were at our friend's Birthday party on Thursday night, sitting around the campfire, and Taylor couldn't contain herself...she was laughing and laughing at the fire. She had never seen a campfire before, and for whatever reason she thought it was hilarious. It wasn't one of those evil laughs that we were worried about her becoming a pyromaniac or anything...but a sweet girly giggle.

She has been sitting up pretty much on her own, with the occasional topple over, and depending on her mood, will push herself on her tummy to grab things (she prefers to roll over and smile at you, hoping that a cute smile will win you over so you get it and hand it to her).

We are looking forward to Easter dinner tomorrow at Grandpa and Nana's house, now that they are back from Florida.

I hope you all have a great long weekend, and get to spend some time with those that matter most to you.

Love,

Mindy, Landon & Taylor

They are out

Well they finally got to go home today. It was a long and painful stay for Taylor & Mindy after being away from the hospital so long. It was very boring and more challenging to keep Taylor occupied as she is now getting older and capable of doing more things. 

Chemo is done, just having saline or whatever it is run through

Hi

So Taylor had her chemo yesterday. She was a bit out of sorts. When I came at lunch I brought Mindy a Big Mac and fries...Taylor ate some fries until she eventually choked, as well as had french fry bits all over her bed.LOL Then she was completely MAD as she wanted the Big Mac. I don't think I ever saw a baby swoop into trying to grab something as she did when Mindy put her in her Bumble chair near where the Big Mac was sitting.LOL

Anyway she seemed sick yesterday and had a problem with the first catheter insertion. She was too upset so they could not do it until the night nurses came on, apparently they did it on the first try, God Bless the night nurses! Mom was a bit upset watching the whole process. She was near tears that they were "hurting her" (Taylor). Very sad, but something that has to happen. 

Taylor though is back in great spirits today according to Mindy, which is awesome. They should be out probably tomorrow. I guess Landon got a snowmobile (they have been saving to see how they do by being more conservative) so he is off for a "boys" trip on Saturday. I would have a Girl's night other than I am feeling very sick, so should probably just stop for awhile.

But the funniest thing is Taylor's determination. She wrestles the spoon with Mindy when she tries to feed her. Anything that goes anywhere near her head causes her mouth to open and try to taste (Grandma thinks she looks like a baby bird.LMAO). And Mindy says Taylor no longer wants to breast feed as she prefers bottles. She will not eat until she is given a bottle, no matter how long she goes without food (not that Mindy is starving her.LOL). She is now over 17 pounds (I think 17 pounds 2 ounces?) losing that new baby look, looking so much older which is scary that time goes so fast!

Chemo tomorrow...

Howdy,

So Mindy and Taylor had a nice long break. Taylor is doing amazing and looking absolutely amazing. I went for a visit this weekend which was great. She acted a bit strange, but she may just be punishing me for not being around much.LOL she is the most amazing girl.

I am totally loving the fact that she is so bloody head strong. She looks so funny in her jolly jumper. Looks like a little midget Irish dancer doing a jig...arms by her side and just hopping away. Got to love it!

Anyhow she is probably the most beautiful baby (aside from mine of course. LOL). Apparently today she was eating like a horse. MAybe she is growing...or maybe its all the Jolly Jumper exercise!

Mindy is looking fabulous as always, Bitch...no kidding, she does look great though. Hope we can swing a Girls night soon.

March 22nd update

Wow, it has been a while since the last update...Leah has really been slacking! Just Kidding, she is finally getting her life in order and getting caught up with work and home priorities since we aren't needing as much support lately. THANK YOU Leah for being the bestest sister EVER!!!

So, here is a little update of what we have been up to. Landon is officially done in Ponoka, for a while anyway, so we have been enjoying our time as a family and working on getting things done around the house. My friend Danielle and baby Benjamin have come out for another sleepover, and Taylor and I have been trying to get some visiting in, since we didn't have to go in for chemo last week. Taylor's counts weren't high enough for chemo so they decided to let us wait until Monday (March 23rd) to come in for her kidney test and chemo, which was a nice little break for us.

We have been trying to feed Taylor solids, but she is resisting the bland food...she thinks that our food would be much better, as if we are trying to feed her poison while we are dining on gourmet meals...so, we are going to try bringing the blender out and seeing if she will eat our food - they say the chemo dulls her tastebuds, so she probably prefers stronger tastes...salty and sweet instead of bland. We know she likes the sweet stuff like ice cream, icing, pie filling, whipped cream, pudding, etc. but I don't think we want to give her mouthfuls of that to keep her happy. She also likes gravy and cheese flavoured things like pizza, cheese buns, etc...and LOVED Zenari's pasta and cream sauce (probably because I ate there everyday for lunch while I was pregnant with her). So, we are going to start experimenting...we will let you know how it goes.

Landon has also been working on her video's and has posted some more on the website along with updated pictures.

Thanks again for everyone's support.

Love,

Mindy, Landon & Taylor

Saw my girls Tuesday

Well Mindy and Taylor did come over on Tuesday. Taylor would look at me an cry, looking away! She was totally playing strange...hurting my ego, amazing that they can do that. Well she just has not figured out yet that I am SUPER AUNTIE(Said in a loud announcer voice with tons of excitement)! Who does she think she is? LOL She did get better later, but I think she was cranky as well as couldn't figure out who the heck I was.LOL I was wearing lots of makeup(red lipstick) and had red on with dark red glasses so maybe she hates my fashion sense.LMAO

Anyhow she looks great! Cute as a button. She is starting to look like a more mature baby? Well hard to explain but she looks like she is aging...duh! but anyhow someone will understand me so I guess that is my audience.LOL

So Taylor is doing really well, Mindy has a stunning new haircut..she looks like Mom and I! LOL Funny how that happens. Landon is now back home and working by the location by their house. So all is well.

I think Mindy is trying to steal my blog!LOL

Hello,

Mindy is right I have been busy. I am missing them very much as I feel like I have not seen them for a million years. Mindy says Taylor is doing good, apparently she is a circus performer in her Jolly Jumper...jumping away, doing the splits, turns and Mindy figures soon it will be flips.LOL

I hope you are all enjoying this miraculous weather. I was hoping we would have an 8 month winter this year and look that is what we all have been blessed with.LMAO Enough bloody winter already!

Mindy has had her hair colored and gets it cut this wednesday. So I am hoping we can all go out soon, or at least us girls, to have some fun! Us girls are really sooo amazing and deserve the night out, so I hope you are all ready as I want to dance! LOL Nothing like shaking my big fat Mommy butt with some teenagers!LOL Honestly I have been wanting to but this weather has not been cooperating so all of you that may be wondering our party is coming, but I want to wait so we don't get caught in a bloody blizzard, although that might be fun as we could seek shelter at a luxury hotel, maybe get some spa treatment, eat room service....wake up Leah, wake up! Anyhow soon we will PARTY!!!

I may get to see Mindy and Taylor today so cross you fingers for me. Also they have Taylor's pictures updated so if you haven't seen the latest check it out!

Taylor's chemo & kidney test

Hello everyone,

It has been a while since my last post. My sister has been extremely busy and has left the updates to me lately, but I have been forgetting to actually do it.

Taylor went in on Wednesday last week (March 4th) for a kidney test (GFR) to ensure that the chemo isn't damaging her kidneys. What they had to do was inject dye into her body and at 1 hour and 3 hours post injection, take a blood test to ensure that her kidneys are filtering properly. That was a VERY yucky day for Taylor, they said they couldn't inject the dye into her broviac line and pull the blood from the line as well, so they would have to put an IV in. She is a very tough girl to get an IV in, as her veins are so little, and she has my rolling veins, which makes it almost impossible to get a good line. So, I had explained this to the nurses, but they insisted that they had to put an IV in...well 5 tries later, and a very upset crying baby, they ended up making an exception and using her broviac line anyway. I was very upset that they put her through all that torture over the course of an hour, the oncology nurses told me I should put my foot down next time as that was completely unreasonable.

So, after all that, Taylor was in a super great mood for the rest of the day, it is amazing how forgiving a baby can be - thank goodness. We ended up bouncing back and forth between the Oncology ward and the radiology ward in the hospital for the entire day, as we were also prepping for chemo that day as well, so she had lots of blood tests, and a check up with the doctors. So, everything came back normal, which was great, and we got a bed for chemo that day as well. We were discharged on Thursday morning (March 5th) and Taylor has been feeling great so far.

We had a great week really, Danielle and Benjamin came over on Tuesday before we went to the hospital, so that she could watch the puppies for us. Landon ended up coming home on Thursday as well, since the roads were so bad that they couldn't pack up any more equipment to be sent home. So, we had a nice visit with Danielle and Benjamin and Landon has been home and has had some time to get some things done around the house (replacing the humidifier, setting up a home server, etc.)

Well today is Sunday and the weather is crummy still, so we haven't been doing much...we haven't left the house for 2 days now. We are looking forward to a good week of visiting and being productive before we have to go back to the hospital next week again for chemo. All in all, we have been doing good and enjoying Taylor's new developments...she really likes the jolly jumper, and playing with her toys...and even likes having baths now, which is CRAZY since she hated them for so long.

Well, that's all for now folks, we will post again soon if anything exciting happens this week.

Love,

Mindy, Landon & Taylor

What have we been up to?

Well I thought I would let everyone know what we have been up to...as you know Taylor's MRI came back clear - yahoo! Landon was home for the weekend since the plant was shut down from the cold weather. We had a busy weekend of running around and to top things off our dog Abby was sick. The final straw was on Sunday as we were getting really worried about her and took her to the emergency vet in Spruce Grove. Turns out she is just fine, she had an infection in her ear and in her tummy from some bacteria. We have to give her medication for the next few days, but otherwise we are happy campers.

Taylor has been doing great, eating alot, sleeping good, and making us laugh. She is quite the goofball. She has started screaming (happy squeals) and blowing raspberries and talking up a storm lately. She is getting used to the jolly jumper which is pretty cute and other than that we have just been enjoying our time as a family.

Landon has gone back to Ponoka for his last round *crossing my finger that this time really is the last time* and we are getting ready to head to the hospital for Taylor's next chemo and some kidney tests to make sure she the chemo isn't damaging her kidneys.

Danielle and Benjamin are going to come out to Alberta Beach and stay with the puppies and have a visit with us for a few days which will be nice - thank goodness I have such amazing friends.

Well, that is the plan for this week...we will update you on how things go.

Take care everyone, and Thanks again to everyone for all the wonderful things you do for us (prayers and thoughts included).

Love,

Mindy, Landon & Taylor

MRI "Unofficial" Results

Hello all,

We have another clear MRI! Yeah. Celebrate.

The plant also was too cold and Landon got to come home, so there was a double blessing.

No news on Taylor's MRI

Well there has been no news on Taylor's MRI...so we wait. Please keep your thoughts with her. 

MRI was today

Well the MRI went on as scheduled. They will probably not know anything for 48 hours. Please continue to send all your wishes, prayers and dreams to Mindy, Landon and Taylor. All my hopes are going to Taylor right now...Hug the ones you love tonight and every night. We never fully understand how precious they are until faced with not having them.

They are out, but will be back for Taylor's MRI tomorrow

Well,

All is well. They were released today and out in the horrible flurries we are having. Tomorrow that will be back to the city for Taylor's MRI. Please send all your love to them and good wishes.

They finally got a bed

Well,

Events unfolded this week a bit unplanned. On Wednesday Landon was sent home as someone "blew up" the plant. So that was great. Mindy has been waiting since Wednesday to get a bed at the hospital as they were all full. She can only be on the Oncology ward when she gets chemo as only a few nurses are trained for that, so its not that all hospital beds were full, just oncology.

Yesterday in the late afternoon, after much frustrated waiting (couldn't do anything, but wait!) they got a bed. Mindy and Taylor should be in the hospital probably until Tuesday when Taylor gets her MRI. Landon should be leaving Tuesday...

Mindy is hoping that they will put Taylors next chemo off a bit so that Landon will be home for the dogs, instead of the regular gong show she preforms. I hope to get up there so I will let you know the details later.

Hiya,

Good news. Mindy and Taylor will be off to see Landon in Ponoka tomorrow. THey have reserved one of the posh hotels out there...at the NEW SUPER 8!!! Wow, hope they get some pictures...LMAO

So maybe next time I am on I can reveal their hot and heavy reunion.LOL Nope don't think that will ever happen.LOL TOO WEIRD! Anyhow I hope they have a great visit. Mindy should be back in to the hospital with Taylor I am thinking on Wednesday and be there until Saturday. So go for a visit or drop her a line....after tomorrow of course.

Hope you all had an amazing Family Day. Me and my kids did our shopping (still searching for a kids size 1 skate for Aaryanna who needs skates and a hockey helmet for school for one hour of skating...sometimes I hate teachers.LOL).We also did a "family" wash Mommies car.LOL

We had a "date"

Well I would like to report that Mindy and I had a date. We went for lunch at Moxies followed by the movie "Confessions of a Shopaholic" was lots of fun. I am actually at Mindy's right now. She is trying to get Taylor to sleep. I think she may be a little over tired.LOL Should be fun.

Taylor will more than likely be going in for chemo this week. On the 24th of February she has her next MRI. This means I need to ask for everyone to be sending out positive vibes that day. 

Taylor is good, but is not getting chemo

Hello,

Taylor is doing well, but is not having chemo this week as her counts are low. Landon is back in Ponoka. He has to work there for 10 days, but after that he should be back for good! Yeah, I know both of them are really looking forward to being back together. It should make life a lot more manageable.

Not to much is new. Mindy has been out and about a bit this week. She will be going to work to visit tomorrow. We might squeeze a "date" in this weekend and catch a movie.

well Landon is home...

Hi,

Landon is home for the weekend. I am thinking he should soon be back home for good, which will be awesome. Taylor has been doing good, but a little fussy. Hopefully Mindy and Landon will get some pictures up of Taylor playing peek-a-boo it is so cute. She actually holds the blanket in her tiny little hands and moves it up and down herself.LOL too bloody cute that girl! 

Okay have a great and wonderful week!

They went home yesterday

Sorry, I did not get a post up yesterday. Nothing seemed to be wrong with Taylor, so they were released yesterday. Mindy is happy to be home. Landon should be on his way home either tonight or tomorrow. 

Still waiting for results

So there is still no news on Taylor's results. Hopefully tomorrow we will see. She did start eating tonight. She may not have been eating because the bottles they had were different than the ones she is used to. If she does not eat they want to put her on a feeding tube, but that is certainly NOT what Mindy wants as it would probably be more of a hazard as she would pull on it, and be more susceptible to getting an infection. Hopefully with the new bottles she will begin eating. She has not lost any weight s she should be fine. She is still sore and not wanting to be held. 

Danielle and Benjamin were by today for a visit and Grandpa Don visited yesterday and should be back up tomorrow. So not sure when they will be getting out. Will keep you posted.

Taylor update

she had to have oxygen today as her her heart was racing and her saturation is around 80. She has been good, but not eating. Mindy also says she pooped a lot today, but not sure what else is wrong. They will not be able to leave until she is eating...I will go up there tomorrow and hopefully have better news to report.

She is getting a blood transfusion

Just had an update from Mindy. Taylor is getting a blood transfusion...and she had a poop. So that is great. She also let Mindy hold her, so Mindy is happy. Mindy also gave her a kiss for me because I asked her to and she SMILED...HA!HA! top that. LOL 

Mindy had to take Taylor to Emergency today

Well the bad news is that Taylor is back at the hospital. She is still having the back pain, but she had some blood in her urine and her tummy was distended or really hard. So she was in quickly to be looked at, but were not sure exactly as to what it is. She is being hydrated as she is not eating much, which is probably causing constipation along with the codeine. Her blood work came back funny so they did it again tonight and we will have to see how it comes back.

The good thing is she is still happy and in the best place she can be for care. I will keep you posted. I am not sure how long they will be there yet. We will see.

I had my lovely friend Wendy over as well as Mindy & Taylor

Well,

Mindy and Taylor were over. Taylor seems to being having pain in her back. Does not like to be moved much right now. She also was I guess waking up a lot on Friday-Saturday night/morning, not for any reason, just waking up. All in all she is doing really good and is happy. My mom went to stay with them last night after they left my house. Grandpa Don is supposed to go out for a visit today. 

Taylor and Mindy were released yesturday at 9:00pm

Hi,

Just to let everyone know that Taylor was released yesturday from the hospial. They are not there anymore Mindy of course was pretty excited. She is at my Mom's until she picks the dogs up from Lindsey.

I heard her GIGGLE!!! HA! HA! HA!....hmmm, not sure who I am taunting ? LOL It is amazing and I cant wait for you all to hear. Children's laughter is the sound of angels, truly!

Taylor had her first Giggle today!!!!

Well she did it, she laughed. Mindy apparently was playing with her on the bed, pushing her little short, chubby legs up, etc and Taylor let out a giggle. Mom said that later in the hospital (she is back in for chemo) she laughed some more. I haven't heard, but am pumped....which probably means she'll laugh for everyone else and never when I am there.LOL

Anyhow, I am a touch sick so that means hugely sentimental. So I will go on my tirade.LOL Look out.

I want to say how proud I am of Mindy. She has the patients, love, kindness, caring devotion I do not think is witnessed often (perhaps I should write the pope and nominate her for sainthood.LOL) Mindy is ALWAYS calm. She never, ever gets upset with Taylor. This is amazing as it really is exhausting and I would think normal to perhaps snap every now and then, but not Mindy. Mindy has always been like this though. Even as a child. God do I love that girl. I think of Mindy as a balance....she always seems to give it!

I also am proud of so many others. Yes you all witnessed my craze when I panicked Mindy was in need from getting stuck at the hospital. I want to say that very quickly people DID respond. Michelle, Mindy's sister-in-law went way out of her way to bring by food and have a quick visit even though she had a sick little girl as well as a little boy. Thanks, Michelle that was awesome! Then Brenda and Faye came by with more food and love. Danielle managed 5 dogs and a baby boy so that she could look after the crazy beagles while Mindy and Taylor were in the hospital, Don and Roberta quickly tried to recover from illness to go visit, Eva, Lorna, Lindsey swung by for visits. I know many of you also wanted to come by, but could not...Thanks for the calls to Mindy and texts, e-mails...it means a lot. And of Course Grandma Josie and her daily visits. Love ya Mom. And thanks to Edwina and Barb for their never failing support. Joyce for always giving me her ear at work...cause I always need to unwind. All of you especially unmentioned that I have forgotten (will always forget some sorry). Landon I miss you lots...who would ever have thought that would happen? LOL I was so happy to get to see you this weekend. Thanks for being so great to the kids. They had a blast...did not want to leave.LOL

Sometimes I am emotional in a bad way, but hopefully I refocus to be good, cause that is really where we all need to be. God bless keep praying for our girl.