My Little Princess

TyAnnes 1st Birthday!

TyAnne had a great 1st birthday. Daddy was on is off week and we had lots of Family around to share yummy cake.

We had a great Halloween,lots of fun!

Happy Halloween!

Emily and TyAnne

Good News!

Well we have good news to report, blood tests show the cancer marker number is dropping fast. It is down to 10 from 33 after the surgery. Tyler also had a PET scan on monday and the news from that was also good. The scan didn't show any cancer cells, which is also good. We are working on finding a surgeon to try and take out the rest of the cancer cells on the abdominal wall. Things are looking really good right now as Ty is winning the battle against cancer. Even though things are looking better, we are by no means out of the woods yet. This is only a sign of progress and not an end to the road as chemo will continue throughout the winter.

On another note, their are several fundraisers set for Nov 20th. The first event is the 5k/fun run set for 8:00 with registration online at conqueringcoloncancer.weebly.com or at 7:30 at Jeannie Stevens Sports park in Tremonton. At 1:00 there will be an auction/raffle at Marble Park in Bothwell, followed by a dinner at 5:00, and the concert at 7:00. All events are family oriented and geared towards the family environment. We would like to encourage everyone to come and attend these events. Thanks to everyone for participating and helping with everything. Still the most important thing for us is your thoughts and prayers.

Another Update

Sorry it has been awhile since we updated. TyAnne is growing like crazy and is learning new things everyday. Tyler is always trying to teach her something, not always the best things. Tyler is preparing for his third chemo session tomorrow and is not at all excited about it. It seems that as soon as he starts to feel like doing something, it is that time again. Last time it took a week to get over the treatment and then a few days to get enough energy to do anything besides watch TyAnne. He is doing well for the situation and is learning to cope. Thank you to everyone for their thoughts and prayers in our behalf.

It Just Doestn't Stop

Just a quick update... TyAnne had a her 9 mo checkup and she is doing great. She is mentally advanced for her age and just a ball of fun. She is going places and fast. Tyler is feeling good. He has had a port-a-cath, placed (its like an IV but easier on his vanes) and feeling sore from that. All in all, we are getting through one day at a time. Just a side note: Tyler will be starting Chemo on the 15th. We'll see how that goes.

"No Place Like Home"

After seven days in the hospital, Tyler finally came home Tuesday evening. It was good to be home. Tyler had struggled with changing the meds from his epidural to IV to oral. Monday when they started the oral meds, Tyler had problems and spent most of the morning throwing up before they changed to a different med. It was a setback that he was able to overcome. Monday was very interesting as to Tyler's neighbor. Dave ended up having his appendix out and was in the room next door. We were all wondering when the bad things would quit coming to this family. Tyler is doing a lot better now that he is home and able to eat real food again. Thanks to our neighbors and the members of the ward for their help while we were gone and getting settled when we got home. We really appreciate our families for taking care of the yard. Thanks to everyone for their thoughts and prayers in our behalf.

Happy Anniversary!!

What a wonderful way to spend our 6th anniversary, together in the hospital. Tyler did make some gains today, he had his epideral pulled out of his back and then had the foley cathiter removed. Tyler has been up and moving around on his own power, which is really good. He still has not been able to pass gas and cannot move on to eating more than clear liquids. Every little thing is good. We have been up walking atleast four times a day, and each walk is getting longer. Today was also Susan's birthday and all of the family, except TyAnne, came to the hospital to have cake and ice cream together. It was fun to spend time with everyone. They picked a good place to be, so Ty could be there too. TyAnne has one tooth that has broke through and three more that could breakthrough at anytime. She is such a blessing to us and gives Ty something to look forward to everyday. The poor little girl is having a hard time being with her daddy because she knows something is wrong, but still loves to give him lots and lots of kisses. We want to thank everyone for their love and prayers and the support that we have recieved. Heavenly Father has been pouring out blessings already. We know that He is watching over us and is helping in this process. We need to rely on Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ to make it through this struggle. The Atonement and priesthood are such great blessings that everyone can recieve. Thanks again for all the prayers and thoughts. I helps to keep moving in the right direction, forward.

What a day...

What a day yesterday was. Tyler's surgery didn't go quite as we expected. When the surgeons got to the tumor they found that it had gone through the colon and into the stomach. That obviously complicates the situation. They had to take the lower part of his stomach along with approximately two-thirds of his colon. He has what they call a "midline incision" which means he will have a "wicked, awesome" scar. Needless to say, he didn't get the tummy tuck he had asked for. He also ended up with an NG tube and a catheter both of which should be classified as "cruel and unusual punishment." He has an epidural catheter in his back for pain management and it seems to be working quite well. He was able to stand at the bedside a couple of times yesterday and even took a few steps in his room. Hopefully the catheter and NG tube will be removed later today so he can rest better. The fact that the tumor had spread now makes the cancer a stage IV and so the treatments will have to be much more agressive than we had originally planned. We are still waiting to talk with the Oncologist after he receives the pathology reports. Tyler has received several beautiful Priesthood blessings and we recognize that our Heavenly Father will determine the course of events. Tyler is strong and determined and we have great support from our families and friends. We have had so many thoughtful gestures already and we appreciate them so very much. Please remember us in your prayers and thank you for all the love and support that you have show to us. "Don't quit when the night is darkest it's just a while 'til dawn."

I guess we never know...

I guess we never know what challenges life will hand to us. Our lives were going along quite uneventfully until the end of May when Tyler was laid-off from ATK. That was a tough challenge but we were dealing with it. Then in early July Tyler went jogging one morning and afterwards developed stomach pain. The pain continued for a couple of days and so we went to have it checked out. Initially we thought it was likely an infectious problem and things improved quickly with antibiotics. After a 3 day hospital stay, the pain resolved and we came home and things returned to normal. We went to Island Park camping with Ty's family for a week and weren't too worried about things Then came the dreaded colonoscopy and it certainly wasn't the news we expected. Colon cancer. How does a 30 year old get colon cancer? The doctors are all scratching their heads because it is so rare in that age group. They are wondering if there might be a genetic link but there is no significant family history of cancer. I suppose it is just one of life's curve balls. Tomorrow we take the first step - surgery. The doctors have told us to expect a 4 week recovery period after the surgery and then Tyler will start chemotherapy if it is indicated. The good news from last week is that the CT scans all looked clear - no signs of metatastasis and the oncologist tells us that there should be a good prognosis. We will know a lot more after tomorrow's surgery. We have good doctors providing the medical care and with the support of our families and friends we will make it through this.