Grandma's biopsy results came back this morning, and they revealed what we already expected: that she has Stage IV lung cancer that has spread to her bones. She has decided to go ahead with radiation, so that is wonderful news, and treatment begins tomorrow afternoon. I will tell you that GM has been discouraged lately; who can blame her? But luckily this morning she seemed to be in better spirits. As my mom told me, I can't think too much about this diagnosis. It really does make my stomach churn and I choose not to go there. Pastor Tom's sermon Sunday could not have come at a better time, nor could it have been about a better topic: fear. As I sat there in that pew, he reminded us that worrying solves nothing; in fact, it can be downright debilitating, and that only about two percent of what we actually worry about comes to happen.
So instead of focusing on the "what if", I'll remember these Bible verses. Gosh, they certainly help.
Philippians 4:6-7
Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.
Matthew 6:30
And if God cares so wonderfully for wildflowers that are here today and thrown into the fire tomorrow, he will certainly care for you. Why do you have so little faith?
1 Peter 5:7
Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you.
And for my personal favorite...
Matthew 6:27
Can all your worries add a single moment to your life?
Ah, I feel better. Honest. God, I know Grandma is in your hands. And at 29 years of age, the reality of all of this is sinking in. I don't like this diagnosis, but I, Cathy, have no control over what happens, and that's why I have faith in You.
Thanks again for all of you prayers and support. Keep 'em coming.
Newest Grandma Update
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
Grandma Update
Thursday, September 24, 2009
My grandmother was diagnosed with bone cancer on Monday, and needless to say, this has been a very difficult week for her and my family. Grandma is one of my absolute favorite people in this world. With this soon-to-be-89-year-old, you will find a charismatic, imaginative, opinionated, and laugh-out-loud hilarious woman. If you're in a room with her, and she's talking, you're guaranteed an entertaining story, and more than likely, she'll have you laughing so hard you're crying.
Because I've grown up in the same town as Grandma, she's always been around. Friday nights when Chris and I were younger, you could find us at Grandma and Grandan's house. And it was almost guaranteed that Chris and I would be loaded up with popsicles, Tang, shoesting potatoes, frozen Hy-Top pizza, and eating Cool Whip out of the container. Heck, we might have just renamed Grandma's house "The Sugar Shack!!" I thank Grandma for my love of all things television. At Grandma's house, we were going to watch something good. Talk shows, Mama's Family, Wheel of Fortune, cartoons, game shows, we watched them all! And every Sunday after church, our family headed to Grandma's house to eat lunch and visit. Every Sunday. I loved going over there and watching football, reading the newspaper, and chatting with Grandma. I will always cherish our weekends we spent together.
I think that's what makes a diagnosis like this so difficult. Grandma has ALWAYS been a part of my life. She's ALWAYS been there. I've grown up with her, and she's become the fifth member of our family. Especially once she moved in with my parents almost five years ago.
One thing I know about Grandma though is that she is one tough cookie. She has been living in pain for quite some time, and while we are thankful to finally have a diagnosis, we certainly wish it wasn't the one given to us. But you know what? Things happen for a reason. God has a plan for all of us, and while that's hard to understand in the present, we have to keep faith that things will turn out as they're supposed to. Has this week been difficult? You bet. Have I bawled my eyes out on more than one occasion? Of course. Am I sad that my grandmother's bones have succumbed to this horrible, horrible disease? More than you can imagine. But I am also SO very grateful for prayers that have been sent her way and the outpouring of love and encouragement we have received. I have asked some of you to pray for her continued sense of humor and for her spirit to not be diminished, and I am happy to report that those prayers have been answered.
She is having surgery tomorrow (Friday) at noon to have a rod implanted in her left leg because the cancer in her femur has made her bone so brittle that it will soon break without reenforcement. The doctor will also perform a biopsy at the same time, and we'll have more information after those results come back.
As I mentioned, yesterday she was in much better spirits, and for that, I am so unbelievably grateful. I know that God answered yours and my prayers, and here is proof that her sense of humor has not diminished: As of yesterday morning, she was still contemplating whether to have the rod surgery or not. Here’s Grandma's conversation with the oncologist yesterday in her hospital room:
Grandma: Doc, I have a question for you. If it were YOUR mother in my shoes, would you still recommend to her that she have the surgery to implant the rod?
Doctor: (thinks for a second) If it were my mother, I would tell her the same thing, that she needs the surgery.
Grandma: Well then doc, since you said that, I have another important question I need to ask you: How do you feel about your mother?!
Isn’t that hilarious? Ah, good ol’ GM! Gotta love her!!!! :) I'll wrap this up by asking you to pray for strength for her and my family, wisdom on the part of her doctors, and courage for her as she faces this. Thank you so, so very much for all your support and prayer. Please know that it means the world to us.
The Many Faces of Abby
Here is our "little ham" in action!
Happy
Excited
Sad
Contemplating 
Silly!
Oh what two years olds will say!
Thursday, September 10, 2009
Conversations with Abby from the past couple of days:
As I'm changing her diaper this morning:
Abby: God held me.
Me: (thinking that this is coming out of left field) God held you? Like a baby?
Abby: Yes.
Me: (confused) Where did he hold you?
Abby: Right there (points up toward the ceiling)
Me: Um, OK. What did God say to you?
Abby: (says something indecipherable)
Me: What? What did God tell you? (I am anxiously awaiting what her imagination can come up with!)
Abby: (smiles mischievously) Pop!
Me: (grinning): Popsicle? He said the word Popsicle to you?!
Abby: YES!
Me: (doubting) God told you that you could have a popsicle?!
Abby: YESSSSSSS!
Me: Wow, Roo. You will do anything to get a popsicle, huh?
Kudos to her for name dropping God though. I'm just hoping when she turns 16 that she doesn't say that God told her she needs a new car and that she can start sleeping over at her boyfriends. Sigh.
Abby's little friend Ava started school Tuesday and so on our way to school, I thought it would nice if we said a little prayer for Ava on her first day of school:
Me: Abby, let's say a prayer that Ava has a good day. So, repeat after me. Dear God..
Abby: Dear God...
Me: Please..
Abby: Please...
Me: Watch... (preparing to say "watch over Ava")
Abby: (eyes light up): Watch DORA!!!!
Me (chuckling): No, no Dora! Okay, now repeat after me: Please watch...
Abby: Watch Elmo!
Oy. So much for our prayer. Sorry Ava! :) And not to worry Ellie, we said a prayer for you too yesterday! :)
We've been talking a lot about eye color lately, and Abby knows that she has blue eyes like her daddy, and that Mommy doesn't have blue eyes like them, but brown eyes.
So, last night while Matt and I were bathing her, I noticed that her left eye was a little pink.
Me (to Matt): Hey, do you see that? Her eye is pink.
Abby (stops what she's doing and looks at me like I've angered her): No, Mommy! It's BLUE!!
Speaking of Abby telling me like it is, this morning she was looking at her Cinderella book. She is very much into "pretty" things, princesses, etc. The other day she insisted on playing "dress up." What a hoot! Anyhoo, as she was looking at her Cinderella book, we were talking about the pictures. She became VERY concerned that Cinderella had lost her shoe. Abby LOVES shoes, and she always seems to notice when something is out of place, so the loss of Cinderella's glass slipper was disconcerting to her. Well, we began to talk about that and other aspects of the book, when she looked up at me, put her finger to her mouth and said, "Shhhhhh! No, Mommy. Be quiet. I read the book." Oh. Okay. Being put in your place by a 2-year-old is a very humbling feeling. :)
After I picked up Abby from school Thursday, I asked about her day. I also asked if she pooped while at school. Now, you moms out there understand this question. We are always on "poop patrol", right? Plus, the teachers had forgotten to put her sheet in her folder about what all she did that say, so I was clueless as to her bodily functions. :) Anyway, I asked her,
Me: Abby, did you poo-poo at school today?
Abby: No.
Me: You didn't poop? That's OK.
Abby: No poo-poo. I toot.
Me (laughing): You tooted at school today?!
Abby (now grinning too): YES!
Me: Oh Abby. That doesn't count.
Gotta love two year olds, right?
Abby also informed me that a crocodile was on her bookshelf this morning. Not to worry, though. According to her, it was a "little-bitty crocodile."
Ah, the imaginations. Gotta love them! :)
Park Pics
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
Here are some pics from the park the other night. We decided to enjoy the cooler weather (which has since been long gone, replaced by much muggier nights!) and feed the ducks. Enjoy!
Abby and her Daddy
Watching the ducks
Throwing bread 
Beautiful
Our little Roo
First Day of School
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
Today was Abby's first day of school at our church, and I am very happy to report that she did Awesome!! She walked in the room without even a thought about her mama! No goodbye hug. No kisses. Such a Big Girl. But, I'll be honest: a little "I'll miss you, Mommy" would have been nice! Oh well. I'll take what I can get, right?
When I went to pick up Abby from school, I was one of the last ones in line to pick up our little tykes. Of course I brought my camera, so I stayed until everyone left to snap some pics and chat with Abby's teachers about how she did. I am also very proud to say that the teachers said she was Fantastic! They also called her Caring, Helpful, and they expect her to be A Friend To All The Kids In The Class. That made my heart smile. They also reported that she was concerned about the four or five kids who cried during the day (I think those teachers should be given a medal--and perhaps some Advil--for taking care of crying two year olds for five hours!!). Abby does tend to get upset when other kids are upset, but luckily she didn't cry; they said she just seemed concerned--at a distance.
On the way home from the church, I called Matt, and as I was telling him about what all her teachers said, I started to cry thinking about how much those compliments meant to me. What they said made me feel proud to be Abby's parent, and I am so blessed to have such a sweet, sensitive, and social little girl. Roo, I wouldn't trade you for the world!
After we got home, I told Abby how proud I was of her for being such a Big Girl today, and as I was talking to her, Emotional Me started to tear up again. Abby looked up at me, saw me tearing up, put her hand on my knee and gently patted it, and said very softly and sweetly, "There, there. No cry, Mommy." How sweet is that?!
OK, before I begin crying again, here are some pics!!
Our big girl...
...who, if she had her way, would have worn this to school. (This was her outfit she had on at breakfast this morning!)
This puts things into perspective:
First day of school this year...
and the first day of school last year. Wow!
Here are some pictures from Abby's room after I picked her up:
Her assigned seat
Abby walked over to this "Feelings" poster, saw the Sad Face, pointed to it and said, "Oh no." So, Mrs. Cinda asked Abby to point to the face that showed how Abby felt today. Abby then pointed to the Silly Face, as you can see here! Ha.
Pointing to a book
Now, while most kids would rather run home immediately after school, Abby wanted to run through the halls of the church instead!
Her first artwork of the year.
Overall, a very successful day! I got some of the house cleaned, enjoyed a lunch with other childless moms (which meant I had "real" conversations and didn't have to deal with cutting up food), and got a big hug from my little girl after a few hours apart. I would call that a good day. Now, if we could only work on getting her to nap at school. These "no-nap" evenings are not the easiest in the world!!!
I hope y'all had a great Tuesday as well! :)
Roo At The Zoo-- Take Two :)
Monday, August 31, 2009
Abby and I met our friend Lisa and her two kiddos Truitt and Meredith at the Dallas Zoo a couple of weeks ago. We hadn't been there before, and I thought it was a great trip! Abby was super excited to see the giraffes, but ever since her zoo trip, she's talked about the gorillas. A lot! That one gorilla (which you'll see in a minute) left a long-lasting impression!
Here's Abby before going into the zoo. She loves elephants!
The gorilla came over to the glass once he spotted spectators. It was amazing to see this creature so closely! He definitely loved putting on a show!
Love this one. Abby kept saying "hi" to him. Now, had the glass not been there, I think it would've been a whole different story! 
Meredith giving the gorilla a High Five!
Mr. Gorilla
Abby watching a very large tortise walk toward her. (Side note: she insisted on bringing along her $1 Target Bin hat for some reason! However, it was quite useful once the sun started beating down on us!)
Friends.
The giraffes! Finally! Abby was excited!
This cracked me up. Who cares about looking at snakes and spiders when you can watch a zoo keeper clean out a pond?! :)
Abby's new friend, Mr. Elephant.
All the kids.
Me and Roo at the Zoo! :)
And a great time was had by all! :)What Abby's Been Up To These Days
Thursday, August 20, 2009
The other day, I wrote down on a piece of paper funny conversations/things Abby's done here lately so I wouldn't forget. With her being two, the list grows daily. But I thought I'd share some of what's on the list with you. Enjoy! :)
A conversation that took place two weeks ago:
Me: Abby, is Daddy a girl or a boy?
Abby: A girl.
Me: No, silly. He's not a girl. If he's not a girl, then what is he?
Abby (thinks about it for a second): A babe!
If Abby's unhappy with me, she says, "Time Out, Mommmmmmy! Big trouble, man!" Oy. She really is a schoolteacher at heart!
The other morning I had come down dressed for church. Abby was sitting at the kitchen table with Matt, and she stopped what she was doing, looked up and me, and said, "Aww, Mommy! Pretty!!" That was the first time she'd ever said that. I'll admit I teared up a bit.
She loves to watch herself do things in the mirror. The other morning during breakfast, she held my compact and watched herself eat Cheerios. Uh-oh. Vanity's starting early.Abby can count to twenty. Well, sort of. This is how she says it, "1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 18, 20." Those others aren't that important, right??
Another conversation from the park a couple of weeks ago, as we were talking about God giving us rain, as the ground was SO very dry that day:
Me: Abby, where is God?
Abby: In the book.
Me (laughing): Yes, Abby, that's right. He is in your books we read, but can you show me where he is right now? (Hoping she'll point to the sky as she knows to do.)
Abby (thinking long and hard): Over there! And she proceeds to point to the man mowing his yard across the street.
She is very quick to apologize.
She is on a major carb and fruit diet lately. Girlfriend would eat bread 24 hours a day if she could!
If I ask her what being a Big Girl means, she'll reply, "No Fussin'!"
Abby's new game while driving is looking for American flags. Her BeBe and Pops have taught her about where she lives (in Texas) and instructed her that when you see an American flag to put your hand over your heart. So now, in the car, when she spots one she yells, " 'Merican flagggggggg!" and then she says, "Look, Mommy!" And sure enough, she has her hand over her heart. So cute. Today, I put my hand over my heart too, and she didn't like that. Her response, "No, Mommy! You drive car." Oh. Got it. Did I mention she likes telling people what to do? Ha! :)
Stay tuned for zoo pictures soon! I'm off to paint her bathroom!
This Morning's Procedure
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
Abby had her tests run this morning on her kidneys. If you recall, the doctor diagnosed her with a urinary tract infection two weeks ago, and because of her being so young he wanted to be certain there was nothing going on with her kidneys. So, he scheduled her for both a renal sonogram and a VCUG. Well, there is good news and bad news. First the good news:
Abby did AWESOME! The nurse told us that she has never seen a two year old handle her procedure as well as Abby. That made my heart smile. :) The past few days, we role played having a sonogram, and she knew that it would be painless. In fact, yesterday morning when she first woke up, I went in her room, and she was in her crib, her Ariel doll in hand. Abby had lifted her shirt to expose her tummy, and she had Ariel's hand on her tummy, simulating a sonogram. Abby said, "Look Mommy. Doctor!" It cracks me up that she turned her favorite little mermaid into "Dr. Ariel"!! Too funny. So, when it came time for a real sonogram with a real nurse, Abby did wonderfully! It did help that Mickey Mouse was on TV too. :)
Then came the VCUG. First they sweetened her up by letting her pick a Beanie Baby toy. She chose Bucky the Beaver. It was that or a "Class of 2008" Owl. Seriously. Ha! Abby had to wear a little toddler-sized gown and they had to sedate her. While watching my child slowly drift off into oblivion is not my favorite thing to watch, I must brag on her because she, again, did GREAT! The anesthesiologist had her blow into her mask ten times, and by blow seven, she was just about out. I was so impressed she didn't fight it. The procedure took about 15-20 minutes, and she recovered very quickly.
The bad news was the diagnosis: she does, in fact, have reflux (or VUR, Vesicoureteral Reflux, in case you look it up on WebMD which I've already done today!!). This means that when she urinates, instead of all of her urine leaving her bladder, some of it flows backwards into the kidneys. This obviously isn't good because it allows bacteria to reach the kidneys, leading to mores severe issues. Reflux is graded on a scale of 1 to 5, 5 being the most severe case, and Abby's is a Grade 3 on both sides. The doctor at the Pediatric Imaging Center said that many kids outgrow the reflux, which hopefully will be the case for Abby.
I did speak with our pediatrician when I dropped off a urine sample after her procedures, and he said he will likely put her on antibiotics to eliminate (hopefully) any future infections, and he will also refer us to a urologist; but he wanted to look over the results first. Well, about 10 minutes ago, my phone buzzed that I had a voicemail. Guess who? The doctor's office with Abby's results and information. My phone never rang. Don't you just love when that happens? So now I'm waiting for the nurse to call me back with more information.
So, that's what I know. I'm so proud of Abby and how mature she was this morning. And she seems to have no effects whatsoever. Luckily, a trip to Target to pick out a toy, a milkshake from McDonald's and a fifth watching of The Little Mermaid didn't hurt! :)
When I know more, I'll post something. I hope y'all have a wonderful Wednesday!
OK, the nurse just called me before I posted this, and Dr. G. is putting Abby on a low-dose antibiotic, and she gave me the names of two urologists in the area to set up an appointment with. So now you're up to speed!
Pretty In Purple
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
From a photo shoot we had in the master bathroom. :)
And here's one of my new favorites!
I must mention Abby's newfound love: herself. :) She LOVES to watch herself doing things in the mirror. She especially loves to cry, very dramatically, in the mirror and watch herself. It's really comical. Here she is at breakfast yesterday watching herself drink milk. What a hoot!
I've been working on a list of things Abby is doing these days, but I'll probably type and post that later. Right now, she is upstairs in her crib chat-chatting away. Hopefully she'll talk herself to sleep soon! :)
