November 4 - 6, 2011

Yesterday Ran ate a McDonalds fish sandwich (in between hiccup sessions) and said it was the best thing he had eaten in his whole life! Really, those were his words!!
We were at the hospital by 9:00, as always, for the 9:15 Super Hero Radiation treatment. After only one week the receptionists greet us and check Randy in before he even makes it down the stairs to the desk to say "Good Morning." We are beginning to be on a first name basis with the other early morning radiation patients , enjoying our first cups of coffee over what seems to be our new topic of conversation; where, how big, how long have you had, how much treatment, how often, how far along, how are you feeling today? We then turn to where are you from, how far is your drive, kids, jobs (although many are retired!), vacations? See you tomorrow. Be careful driving home. Have a great weekend! See you on Monday! Next week we hope to walk there a little more often - as the aftermath of Chemo begins to fade away -  and get a little more exercise which is highly recommended.
After meeting with Dr. Sun, our Radiation Doc, for the regularly scheduled Friday appointment we quickly hurried back to the HL, grabbed our dirty clothes, packed the duffle bag, and were on the road home for the weekend. I drove a bit over the limit as Randy drifted in and out of sleep.
We found a crock-pot of warm soup and chicken breasts cooked in wine waiting for us at home. Although Hazim, our house guest for the remainder of the semester, had to head to OK before we got there he left us a big hug via food! We were in town just in time to say "Hi" to Matt and tell him our pending plans for Saturday. If Ran was feeling up to it, 'if' being the key word, we planned a walk to the UnderCliff, meet up with Oney and Sheff and then hitch a ride home with them. The weather was going to be perfect and we needed some slow movement and Vitamin D! Surprisingly, he asked if he could walk along with us. For those of you who don't know my brother Matthew, he is one of our very favorite people. When he is around you are happy. That's just the way it is! We almost never pass up an opportunity to be around him. I thought he was kidding at first when he expressed an interest in walking with us - as he walks for a living - but he wasn't. If it is possible to love him any more then we did - we do. It meant a lot to both of us that he wanted to spend his free time with us and was willing to do our normal in order to do so. That's some real love - 10 miles worth in fact!
Despite a rough evening Randy woke up feeling well on Saturday and it was a perfect day. . . great lunch, continuous conversation, lots of laughing, lovely evening in our own home. The HL is wonderful but nothing beats home. Randy felt great all day. Thanks guys!
This morning we worked on getting caught up on work, laundry, and tying up loose ends. Ran didn't sleep well so he snuck in a little nap before leaving for IA this afternoon. Should make it by around 11:00. He's been checking in along the way - so far so good. I must say, nothing about him leaving alone seemed right. That was a bit hard. The next couple days will be rough but I've vowed to work my tail off and see him shortly.
The biggest concern at this point is what we expected from the beginning - eating. It just wasn't appealing for the majority of the week. You think you know what to expect but there just isn't a way to know it all. We have a better idea now and our strategies have changed. Next time, we feel we'll have the upper hand!
ONE WEEK DOWN. . .SEVEN TO GO!