Brace is the Man

Happy Thanksgiving from Mission ER. As you know yesterday, he got his G-tube then but he couldn't use it until today. After radiation yesterday at 2pm he just felt worse and worse every hour. This morning he announced we were going to ER. What is great about Mission ER..... They gave him pain meds on an IV. He felt it in like 60 seconds. They gave him a suction cup to get all the crud out of his mouth. He's addicted. He can't really spit so it is a real blessing. All the nurses are trying to convince someone here to send us home with one paid for by the insurance. They said in ER they don't really do G-tubes so they convinced someone Catherine from the oncology floor to come down and not only teach me but feed him. The nurses are smart and fabulous and liked Brace's sense of humor. No one is here because it is Thanksgiving morning. I'm not in charge. (Karen) That's my favorite. Thank you's... All the Th...

Great news, G-tube surgery is complete. The interventional radiologist was the same Kevin Burns that did the port. We love Mission Hospital. So professional, smooth and friendly. We are hoping that the home health nurse will come today to teach me how to use the feeding tube. Seems like a hard day to get someone to come. The pain meds make him feel so much better. He should be ready to go over for a radiation treatment in 2 hours. Now that's something to look forward to. Feeling blessed. So many little miracles. Thank you for Sandy Schreiber for meeting the Walmart delivery man this morning. Thank you to Kjarstin and James for their help today. Thank you to Leslie Lake Ashby for coming to visit with your darling family.

James Swift went through the CDs and found a good picture of Brace's tumor. It starts in between his eyes and goes straight back. The space between his eyes is supposed to be clear and black. Pictures like this are cross sections and a little hard to understand. :) But this picture makes it pretty easy to see the problem. Steroids: So I've decided that Saturday after 2.3 chemo treatment, he was reacting to the steroids and that is why he felt so good. How do I get some more for him? Ha ha Sunday, 11/24/2019: Brace slept in and I went to church. At around 10:30am he went to check the mail and talked to our neighbor Mike, whose wife just bought a new convertible Bentley . If you didn't know it, Brace loves cars and knows almost everything about the all the models. Mike let him take a ride around the block driving. Upon driving back, there is Jim Murri knocking on our door to give him a ride to radiation. No irony there.... Jim was a good sport abo...

I saved and published before proofreading. My power was dying.... Eeek. I think I corrected. :) Tuesday / Wednesday 11/19-20 Brain Tumor Morning radiation Tuesday morning and then off to a client meeting with his amazing boss Dave Haslam in Vegas. At 4pm on Wednesday we had an appointment with Dr. Vikas Rao, the Neurosurgeon near Mission Hospital. He is also thinking the tumor is not cancerous and is probably not a problem. He says Brace has much bigger fish to fry. He will be measuring the size when they do the next MRI for his face and brain to determine the growth rate. We have an appointment for February to see what they want to do once we are done with the cancer treatments. Then off to radiation #7 at 6:10 and then home to eat a nice meal and collapse. Thursday. 11/21 Chemo #2.1 Blood tests this morning at 7:30am. 8:30am Chemo 2.1 started and it was the first day of chemo with the port. 10:00am Blue Cross approves immunotherapy in peer to peer rev...

How is Brace Feeling? He is tired and wiped out.  He was able to sleep last night.  He shaved on Saturday night and it hasn't grown back.  His hair is thinning out and he says, "I should be a dome by next Sunday."  He has great hair, as you know, and he is worried it might not come back all the way. Sideburns should survive until Thursday.... that's my guess. What to Pray For?  1. Pray that he can sleep 2. Pray that the technicians and nurses can perform the treatments as prescribed. 3. Pray that he can eat even after chemo. Sunday, Monday and Tuesday should be his worst days. What are we grateful for?  The outpouring of love and service. Living here with so many wonderful neighbors and friends. Our Savior and Redeemer who understands how to succor us. Sunday 11/17/19 He was feeling pretty wiped out, but we did make it to church.  He didn't sing in the choir which was a first, but it was good to meet our friends at church. We c...

Saturday Nov 16th 1/4 Inch Hair - Brace did it. He chopped his hair this morning. Thank you to the many that offered to bring sheers. Amanda Morrell across the street brought them right after I sent the message early this morning. Rob & Kim Peck , childhood friends, came over this morning and we headed to Lake Arrowhead to check on the house. We went to Carpet Station in Crestline and Brace was in typical form telling inappropriate jokes. We chose a carpet for the house and should get a quote this week for the downstairs. Rob and Brace fed on each other at the long day in the car. Diane and Scott Perkins : My sister and brother in law, fed the four or us after coming down the mountain. It was nice to be there. Diane made the table so pretty. She's so good at that. Thank you for feeding us Scott. Feels like home for me at the Perkins' home. Thank you's Thank you for the pears and the kiwi's. Thank you for your texts Thank you for v...

Liver MRI : Brace had an uneventful MRI this morning. It takes a while for the write-up and CD. After talking with Dr. Carroll the other day I'm not that worried about it. He then ran to LA to work with a client today. Trust: One of my clients is an estate lawyer and was kind enough to meet with me this morning to setup our family trust. Everything should be set by next week. If you need a referral, she was amazing and gave me great advice. Dana and LouAnn Lake came to visit Brace this afternoon from Arizona. It was a treat to see them. I forgot to take a picture. Brain Surgeon : He was on call at the hospital and had two surgeries. We postponed out appointment to next Wednesday. Fast Radiation: We are coming home now from radiation. It was his fastest yet. He doesn't complain or freak out, which they said is uncommon. Until we did this I had no idea what radiation on your face really meant. We are thrilled with the doctors and the techs her...

Thank you to James Swift and Michael Silverberg . Radiation last night and this afternoon. James sent me a picture of the sign telling us the doctor's office was sexist. As you can see, James fits in well with the family. Thank you to Michael by being crazy flexible on timing when radiation changed the appointment last night. During radiation they nudged him less and he was able to position his mouth better to breath during the treatment. I am amazed at how many people do this. WOW. This morning Brace has a headache and feeling more wiped out. He's trying to work until he no longer can. We think he might make it through next week. Chemo 2.1 starts next Thursday. He still looks great, but clumps of hair started coming out today in the shower. Oh happy day. Again you can't tell his hair is coming out, but it's starting. Tomorrow: MRI Liver, Brain Surgeon appointment and radiation. Thank you's Thank you for driving. Thank you for v...