When we headed to Houston at the beginning of February, I had no idea how I could make it through another stem cell transplant. It seemed unconquerable and I questioned if I could handle it physically and mentally.

Well, today I’m headed home! We made it through some tough times and now it is home to recover and be back with our babies!

Last week, my doctor let me take a trip to Florida to participate in celebrating my parents’ 50th anniversary. Instead of 2 weeks, we went for 4 nights – but at least it was something and it was beautiful!

Yesterday, my doctor signed me off for 3 months. There are tons of rules and local appointments I’ll need to go to – but I’m free! Tonight I’ll be in my own bed after 4 1/2 months.

Thank you for your loving prayers and words of encouragement. Every single one has been important to me. Love, April

 And now we thank you, our God, and praise your glorious name. I Chronicles 29:13

After being in the hospital since Tuesday, I think I have been thoroughly tested. The main concern was increased white blood cells and protein in my spinal fluid. More and more this is looking like a reaction/inflammation to the chemo that was injected with the 3 lumbar punctures. Thankfully all of the scans they’ve ordered (head CT, brain MRI and full-body lymphoma CT) have all come back with remission as the radiologists’ impression. We are thanking God for this. To play it extra safe, the stem cell doctor ordered a bone marrow biopsy which was completed about an hour ago. I told the physician’s assistant who performed the procedure that I’d rather go through child birth – I at least told her after the procedure, so hopefully I didn’t rattle her too much. It’s the 4th one I’ve had and I can’t say it gets any easier.

So, after 4 unexpected days back in the hospital, it looks like all is clear! Despite the inconvenience, I’m thankful for the aggressive reaction to rule out any recurrence, infection, etc. The team here is amazing. There’s definitely no dilly-dallying.

Thank you for your prayers and concern. I should be discharged from the hospital late this afternoon. They will have me come in for labs a couple more times, and then I should be on my way out of Texas. I’ll keep you posted.

Jonathan here again.

Today began without any surprises – coffee to April, a walk, some work, and then talk of Lupe Tortilla for lunch.

Then the phone rang at noon, and here we are in the ER – waiting to be admitted.

April’s standard lab work after her lumbar chemo treatment showed signs of meningitis. Meningitis is serious stuff. However, with no physical symptoms other than shock from the call, it looks like it’s not bacterial. That is a very good thing.

So, please keep us in your prayers. We will know more tomorrow after additional tests results are known. The beach is looking like a long(er)-shot, so please pray that we are able to go next week.

Who are those people? Could it be that 20 years have passed since we met out in Yellowstone National Park? Could my body language possibly show anymore affection for Jonathan as I leave to go home? Wow. Things have changed.

Obviously from the pictures, you can tell we’ve both experienced quite a hair makeover. Neither one by choice. And my love for Jonathan couldn’t be any stronger – especially with seeing his sacrifice during this time. You get to truly see what someone is made of in times like these. It is not easy. We do not always think positively, smile and encourage each other – but I think we’ve done a pretty darn good job moving forward and trying to trust God through this out-of-the-blue diagnosis. Wow. 20 years.

So, I think I have an end-date. My Stem Cell doctor said I need to go live my life – after I sheepishly asked if I could possibly meet my family in Florida at the end of their 2-week trip. (celebrating my parents’ 50th anniversary – Congratulations, Mom & Dad). His response was so welcoming, but then the over-analyzing side of me thought, “Does he know something I don’t know?” These are the mind games that permeate through even the most mundane hospital visits.

So, the deal is that I can leave after I complete a checklist of procedures, tests, classes, etc. The biggest hold up is getting 2 more lumbar punctures with Methotrexate. That leaves me to estimate that I’ll be discharged on . . . . . . . . . June 15th! Yay! I see the finish line after what originally felt like would be an eternity.

Please pray as we wrap things up for: that my lumbar punctures move forward with few side effects, that my full-body lymphoma CT scan will be completely clear, and that now the healing will begin physically, emotionally, etc.

Sorry for the slow update. At this point, it probably seems like either something has gone terribly wrong or I’m on the mend.  Thankfully, it’s the latter. After being admitted into the hospital for treatment of a terrible stomach bug and headaches from the lumbar puncture, I’m back to the apartment and back to my outpatient schedule.

I still have the headaches from the intrathecal methotrexate, but I do have relief when I lie down.  This has set me back a week for my schedule of four doses, so that’s a little disappointing, but obviously we don’t want to rush things.

School has finished for the girls and our lease for our apartment is ending this weekend. So, the kids and grandparents will be heading back to our home. I will wait out the remaining treatments here with my sister and Jonathan switching off “caregiving”. We are very grateful that the same local ministry that housed us in February is welcoming us back.

Please pray for the kids as they return home without us, and for the grandparents who will need extra energy and patience. Please pray that my remaining treatments are efficient, that I have patience and that I keep trusting God with each step. Please pray for Jonathan’s balance of work, family and tending to a wife with cancer – it is a big load. He does an incredible job and I pray for his continued energy and determination.

I hope I can announce a Houston end-date with the next post. . .

April has had a rough few days. We’re not sure if her body is just tired from all of the medicine, or if it’s specific side-effects, or if it’s the central nervous system chemo from Monday, but she is sick, tired and has little appetite. So, please pray for her quick recovery. Also, as April mentioned, we are feeling fatigued after almost 4 months here.

On the positive side, the girls are finishing an amazing time at Trinity Lutheran. The school has been a great experience for them. Harrison is having fun with my parents, and we are of course very thankful for the effective treatment that April has received here.

Oh – below is a near-disaster from last Thursday. If you need advice on saving a computer from about 8 ounces of water, I can help.

^{Philippians 6} Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done.

We’ve been here nearly four months (for the second time), and I have to say we are growing tired and weary. We have so much good news to celebrate, but we are so ready to not only have my health restored but our family life at home.  Months and months of this takes its toll and makes you wonder if you are still hanging on by a string.

We are trying to live in today and take it as it comes, but it is hard to not grow anxious. We are waiting for my magnesium to become sustainable with oral supplements and to get all of my blood counts tweaked just right. I’m also starting treatment for my central nervous system next week. This is the injection of methotrexate that’s injected sort of like an epidural. The goal is to kill any disease that could have been hiding behind the blood-brain-barrier during all of the other treatments. This will be a weekly injection for probably 4 doses if my counts stay in line. So, my goal setting didn’t quite match up with the physicians’, but I’m hoping things will pick up speed and we will be headed home before long.

My prayer is for Trust, letting go of the worry and  letting go of the fear – they like to pop up out of nowhere now and then. Please pray for the girls as they wrap up their school year here. They have mixed feelings about leaving here and going home. Jonathan’s parents are up to bat and have taken over the reins – they are doing a great job. Please pray for our entire family to transition home with energy, peace and strength.

^{Matthew 31} “So don’t worry about these things, saying, ‘What will we eat? What will we drink? What will we wear?’ ³² These things dominate the thoughts of unbelievers, but your heavenly Father already knows all your needs. ³³ Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.

³⁴ “So don’t worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring its own worries. Today’s trouble is enough for today.

Time is going by quickly and time is going by slowly. I imagine you know exactly what I

mean. It is amazing to think that we’ve been here almost 3 months, but when I think of some of the painstaking days, it seems to crawl by. As I tend to do, I have made a goal of getting out of here. I’m planning on us loading up and driving out of town by the last day of this month. I’m really hoping that that coordinates with the timeline my doctors have for me. From my understanding, the main items I need to check off of my list are: being able to stay hydrated and to keep my magnesium level up (with oral supplements). Sounds easy enough, but the medicine that prevents Graft Vs. Host Disease depletes the body of magnesium in a pretty severe way. So, every day I have to have an infusion of magnesium and, at the same time, I’m increasing my oral supplementation of the mineral as well. Oral magnesium is hard to tolerate in high doses, so it is a slow, steady increase to about 10 tablets per day – I’m at 4.

Late this week, we will be switching out parents – my parents are heading home and Jonathan’s parents are arriving. My in-laws are brave to join our demanding apartment/childcare routine – but, they are thankfully rested and up for the challenge. My parents have done an amazing job and deserve a nice, long break.

I’ve posted some pictures from the last couple of weeks. The highlight, was Elizabeth’s award. She was awarded “Most Christlike” on the track team. There is no greater compliment ever, and we are so proud of her. Harrison is taking swimming lessons at the YMCA and is loving each class as well as the other children who are easily distracted by his antics. Amber has started tennis coaching, and really enjoys it.

Last weekend we were hosted to another beautiful getaway. This time we went to Lake Livingston, north of Houston. The couple who runs the church condo that Jonathan and I stayed at the first few weeks in February hosted our entire family at their lake home. We had wonderful home cooking, beautiful views of the lake and fun with the boat, jet ski, fishing, swimming, etc. Of course, I couldn’t participate in all of the that – but the kids savored every moment.

Thank you for all of the celebratory comments on my good scan results and for the birthday wishes! I’ll keep you posted on my departure goals. I’m hoping to find out this week if I’m on track or not. I’ll let you know. 🙂

Just received the PET scan radiologist’s full report. After scanning down through all of the findings, the final impression states that, I’ve had an “excellent response to interval therapy” and that there is “currently no evidence of lymphoma.”

Thank you Jesus. We feel so blessed. Our prayer is: continued recovery and that this disease has been cured. Time will tell. Thank you for your prayers, love, support, and overwhelming number of birthday wishes!

Love, April

We have not yet seen the official results, but we were told by our physician that the scan looks good based on his opinion. That’s not an official reading, but we will take it as good news.

Also, happy birthday to April !! She is a warrior, and we hope to celebrate with a steak within the hour.