Home...

Dad has gone home to be with the Lord. 

 He passed this morning at 11:00, literally 3 minutes after I arrived at his bedside.  He was very peaceful and was pain free.  Amy was holding him and I was holding his hand as he took his last breath.  We are all morning the loss of an amazing man, father and grandfather.  Thank you for all your thoughts and prayers these past few months!

Dad has transitioned to the more active stages of dying...he has become increasingly weak and exauhsted with very minimal food intake.  Thankfully his pain is well controlled on the pain pump and he has a lot of support from Hospice.  He has been able to visit with Becky, Alex & the kids and his sister, Margie, came in town --so he has been able to have some nice visits with her.  He tends to sleep most of the day, but does perk up when people come to visit.   Last week he was able to get out of bed to use a wheel chair to get to the bathroom and sit at the table to eat, btu that changed a few days ago.  He stays in the hospital bed in the living room and they have 24 hour in home help as needed.  Through it all he remains very gracious for all the help he is recieving and he continues to be the gentleman he always has been.  It is difficult to see him in this condition but we have comfort knowing he is very well cared for by Amy and the Hospice help.
This whole processes is very reminisent of mother's passing, which is very hard for Bill to see--it has only been 4 short years since we lost her.  Bill takes comfort in all your thoughts and prayers, we all do.  We know both mother and dad's memories will be kept alive through all the great memories they shared and created with us and we share those with our children.  It is also very comforting to know we will see them again...

Ali put it beautifully when she said,

 "When Poppa goes to heaven he will be all better and so happy.  We are lucky beacuse we know we will see him again and we will all be happy together!"

...home

Dad made it home tonight.  He has a hospital bed, a pain pump and pretty much any thing else he needs.  He continues to be very fatigued and we are very thankful for the pain pump.  Hospice is coming in the morning to make sure everything is lined up and add any services that maybe helpful.  Now we wait...

Made it...

So happy to share that Dad made it back to Cleveland safely!  They had a good flight from Cali--besides a bit of nasty weather.  The transition was amazingly smooth--Thank you Cleveland Clinic (even if they are the "dark side" they know how to get things done)!  Dad is back in his "usual" room on the Pal med floor at the Clinic, the staff got him straightened right out and started his pain pump up right away.  The plan is to get stabilized and then head home--not sure how long that will take...he is still very tired and having quite a bit of pain.  The most difficult thing it to see him have trouble trying to talk.  It is not the act of talking that is to hard (but it does take some energy) it is getting his thoughts out--and it is very frustrating for him.  We just keep telling him, it's okay and to rest.  I think that is the hardest part for everyone--the pain meds help with the pain, but there is not much to do for problems with verbalizing his thought.  They started a higher steroid dose to see if that may bring some brain swelling down, but no luck yet.  He can speak short sentences, but most importantly he can still recognize everyone and understand how much we love him!

Thank you again for all your thoughts, prayers and offers to help in any way!  We are so blessed to have such amazing friends and family!

xoxoxo

We are trying to get Dad home from Cali--it will probably be a medical flight to Cleveland Clinic or home, whichever is best.  He continues to be very weak and lethargic, his pain is somewhat controlled--the side effects make him not want to use the pain meds as much as he probably could.  We are thankful Dave and Charity are there for support, we wish we could all be there, but mostly we hope he can make it home--where he wants to be...

Thin spaces...

Dad took a turn for the worst while in California.  They arrived safe and sound Wednesday and had a lovely dinner with the Cali Scott clan.  Dad was able to go the Dave's hooding ceremony--which was very important to everyone.  But yesterday his back/liver pain got much worse.  The changed their fight to come home on the red eye last night, but before they could go to the airport, Dad's pain got much worst.  So they called the squad and went to an ER.  He is very tired and in some pain still...the hospice team in Cali do not have high hopes for him to come home....needless to says it has been a rough night.  Waiting for an update this morning...All your prayers and thoughts are very much appreciated!!!

I know it has been forever...again :(  Sorry!  I know I always have a reason for being so late--just so busy!  Work, Kids, husband, new roof, solo trip to Cali :) to see my sister graduate with her MASTERS!!!, more work, nice weathering and enjoying the BNEs--any way here is a little up date...
Dad is still active with hospice, he is not needing daily support and is feeling okay, just mainly tired.  They are trying to enjoy every day, especially enjoying the garden and flowers.  Dad turned 71 last Sunday--we got to help celebrate with a couple pineapple upside down cakes--Dad's fave :)  They are hoping to go to Cali for Dave's DOCTORATE graduation!!  June 6-12, it will be a long trip but so worth it for them to see the Calli Scott family!
Bill just got fitted for his tux for my sister's WEDDING!!!  Work is good and he survived the weekend alone with the kids while I was in Cali :)
Liam is 9 months old now!  He is a big boy who loves to eat, smile, laugh and roll all over the place!  He hasn't crawled yet, but it is coming!  He is still in love with his sister :)  He is going for his first hair cut next Saturday--I am not ready to let that long baby hair go, but is is pretty ridiculous ;)  He has to look super handsome for the wedding :)

 Love!

Dancing Princess!



I swear, he usually loves his sister! ;)

9 Months! 

The Family on Easter :)

Change in direction...

Dad came home from the hospital last week.  He was feeling pretty tired and had some pain over the weekend.  They went in for their chemo appoinment with Dr Shepard and had a lenghtly discusion of what opptions Dad now has. The oncologist said there was no other chemo that would really help Dad so, Dad and Amy decided to sign up with Hospice.  They got all set up yesterday.  Dad had a good day yesterday and they are now focusing on doing what they want to do to be happy.  Dad would like to travel--especially out to Cali to see Dave, Charity and the kids and out to Lima to see Becky, Alex and the kids.  Dad is also interested in going to Branson :)  We are just going to have to take it day by day and see how he feels.  I hope he can do the traveling he would like to do!  We are planning on taking advantage of whatever time we have with him :)

We are hoping Dad will be getting out of the hospital tomorrow--maybe after his stent replacement, or he may have it done out patient...just have to wait and see.  His pain is well controlled on pills and he is eating better.  Not sure when he will get his next chemo...

We are getting ready to have some great friends in from out of town and Bill has been prepping for the first smoking of the season.  Ali was very excited to do her job of helping make the BBQ sauce--so cute!!

Liam will be 8 months on Thursday--crazy how time flies!  He is rolling all over the place and has 6 teeth--crawling is coming soon!  He is loving eating almost anything--puffs especially :)  He even tried a slice of lime yesterday--he loved it!

Dad is still in the hospital and will most likely be there over the weekend.  He was actually admitted to an internal medicine floor--that is where there was a bed.  They are hoping to be moved to the Palliative Care floor today or tomorrow.  That is where Dad has stayed multiple other times, so they know them there--which make it nice for everyone.  The gall bladder was ruled out and we are still trying to get a handle on the pain he is having, he is on a fentanyl drip which the doctors are slowly turning up.  He did have a fever when he was first admitted but the doctors are contributing that to the cancer--tumor fever, as we call it.  Hopefully Dad will be feeling better this weekend for some visitors!  We hope the Clow family will be able to come over from Lima and we will be there for sure :)

Thank you for all your thoughts and prayers--they are much appreciated!!

Dad is back in the hospital...not sure if it is his liver metastasis or his gall badder acting up.  He did have chemo Monday, but they changed the drugs to second line therapy--because the spots on his lung and liver had advanced while he was getting his brain radiation, so they decided the Cisplat was not being very effective.  Since he had a rough past couple days, I am not sure of the plan for future treatments.  Quality of life has become a focus now...

Happy belated Easter!!  I have been super busy with bridal showers and Easter--so here are a few updates:

Dad was in the hospital again for a few days last week--mostly dehydration issues, everything else came back negative.  Not sure of that will delay the chemo he was supposed to start this week or not

My sister was in town from Cali for her bridal shower--Yay!!  I think it went well and now I can breath again ;)

Liam is teething--again!  He has about 6 teeth now, and I think another two are trying to make their appearance...fun times!  Tina asked at least twice--"does he ever sleep?!?" (since her room was right next to his, she had to endure our usual sleep antics)

Bill is working on a special task force at work finding medical parts to go to Africa to help upgrade a hospital--he is really excited about it!

Here are a few pictures to enjoy ;)

Handsome boy!

Birthday girl!!

Precious

The Girls :)

Ali on her big girl bike!

7 Months!

Love!!!!

Can you see how much he loves her?

My 3 loves!!

xoxo

Hey there long lost friends!

Once again it has been way to long :(  Life has a way of making the little time have to do stuff pass all too quickly!  I can say I think I am finally over my sickness--I had it at least a month and ended up cracking a rib or two with all the coughing I was doing.  So I still have some pain every now and then, but over all I am feeling so much better!

Liam is a growing fool--seven months already!  About 6 teeth and huge legs ;)  He is a happy laid back guy, but still has some sleep issues--which make Mom have some major sleep issues :(  But we are hoping that we are making some good progress on that issue lately!

Bill is still in super Dad mode and has even enjoyed some outside work time.  He and Ali cut the grass last week during our mini heat wave--so nice!

Dad finished his radiation this past Monday for his metastasis on the brain--it went well, but now is the time that the side effects can kick in high gear--so here is to hoping that does not happen.  He is sporting a new hair do though ;)  He will also start his 4th round of chemo (of six) after Easter.  He had some scans after his 3rd round and the spots in his bladder and lung have decreased!!  So they are continuing the treatment with hope it keeps helping.

I will try to put up some picture soon, we have some from Ali's 4th birthday last week :)  Time is just passing too fast!! 
xoxo

You have waited long enough...

Here it is--I know it has been a long time coming--sorry :(  I have been super sick for over a week now, I cannot remember the last time I was this sick!  My mom says there was a time in elementary school that I was so sick I couldn't even watch TV--so I guess that was the last time.  I am finally on antibiotics and starting to feel better, but not back to myself yet...anyway you are here to read about the boys--not me ;)

Liam is doing great, if only he would sleep a little better a night...all I am asking for is a little consistency :)  He usually wakes up around 2-3 to eat then sleep until 8 or 9, but of course he has not done that while I have been sick.  I am very happy he did not catch this awful bug I have, so I better just count my blessings!  On a fun note we started cereal this past weekend.  Liam will be 6 months old on the 26th--I know can you believe it???  So I know people usually start cereal sooner, but we did not start Ali until she was over 5 months either...anyway he LOVES it!!  He eats lunch and dinner, every last bit :)  We plan on starting some veggies next week, I hope to make his baby food again, like I did for Ali.  I found it easy, inexpensive and I knew exactly what was in it.  Liam is officially rolling over both directions, but he doesn't do it too much, guess he doesn't feel the need to.  He is enjoying his high chair and loves his exersaucer--it is a great way to watch his big sister :)

 open wide!

  yummy!!

I can do it myself, Mama ;)

Bill has been such a champ lately taking care of the kids and taking great care of me!  He has been so helpful and willing to play with the kids and let me rest and then make me soup and tea.  I would not have been able to get through this without him!  He has woken up in the middle of the night to care of Liam and me (ie take me to the ER), then goes to work all day--except for the 2 days he had to take off to watch the kids/me.  He is also sporting a beard--which I have to say has grown on me and Ali and Liam love it...Liam especially loves grabbing it ;)

Dad has started his third treatment, he is currently mid cycle and is feeling pretty worn out.  He had a follow up MRI of his neck and brain, which showed increase metastasis on his brain.  They spoke with the radiologist and he gave them the options to do nothing, whole brain radiation or possibly a study with spot radiation.  They decided to enrole in the study which take 2 weeks and does spot radiation on the lesions.  Since I have not been able to talk well with this sickness, I have not had a chance to talk to them directly, so I don't know too many details.  They did have a very nice visit with Becky, Alex and the kids yesterday and Ali got to see them at church Sunday :)

Thank you for being so patient, hopefully I will continue to recover so I can update more frequently :o)

It's coming

You are all due for a big update...and you will get it....soon ;)  I have been super sick, but hope to get the update on here by monday at the latest.  Please be patient :)
Thanks!
xoxo

It's been a while...

Sorry I have taken so long to update--the good news is there is not too much going on ;)

 Dad has his week off of treatment and starts his 3rd cycle next Tuesday--after that cycle is done (2 weeks) he is get scanned to see how effective the chemo is.  He does have a head and neck MRI to check up on the area that were radiated and make sure nothing else is causing any trouble.  He has been able to take less pain medication--yay :)

Bill is having fun hanging out with the kids on the weekends since I am working 7a-7p every weekend this month, with my parents being out of town.  He has been super Dada and super husband :)  I would love to stay home with the family, but it is kinda nice to have more time of during the week to be with the kids...

Liam is having some major trouble sleeping at night--which makes for a tired Mama.  My only guess is that he is hungry or teething.  We are going to start some rice cereal soon--hopefully that helps :)  I would love to sleep more that 3 hours at a time...

:)

Dad has his second dose of his treatment tomorrow--just Gemzar, no kidney kicking Cisplat.  Then he will have a break next week.  Hopefully he continues to feel pretty good.  The docs are working on switching up his BP meds to try and help with some side effects and more tests this week may give us some insight on the continued pain he is having to deal with.  Stress test was done Thursday--all went well :)

We have Ali's first parent/teacher conference tomorrow--hope we get a good report.  When I asked her about it today, she said "Sometimes I am not so nice at school, but other times I am"  I guess we will really find out ;)  Of course Ali is super smart--she only needs to develop her sharing skills--big surprise right ;)

Liam is loving some one and one attention lately--Bill had to snuggle him over the weekend for him to take his nap.  And it just killed Bill to nap with Liam ;)  I am not complaining about the snuggle time because it will pass to quickly.  I love the mornings when Ali comes into bed with me and snuggles.  It is crazy how fast this time flies--I am trying to soak up every moment I can.

I have a new mantra--the idea is not so new, just revitalized...

Believe the best and enjoy it all!  You never know what tomorrow brings...

Happy Birthday, Bill!!!

Happy Birthday to my amazing husband!! 

 These years have flown by!  I cannot believe we have been together for 16 years!  It does not seem that long ago that I thought to my self  "How am I so lucky to be dating such a hot guy" :)  And now we will have been married for 10 years this August!  I am so very blessed to have you in my life...you are the best husband and wonderful Dada to our children!!  We are all so lucky to have you!  I am looking forward to spending so many more birthdays with you!! (I know I am going a little crazy with the ! but I am really excited :) 

XOXOXOXOXO

Dad got his chemo yesterday--Cisplatin and Gemcitabine--which is what he was on for the first round.  It is the standard of care and the oncologist wanted to try again to see if he could tolerate it.  Actually to see if his kidneys could tolerate it, because last time they did not like it vary much, but he was hoping that problem was actualy fixed with the stent.  The treatment went well--they were downtown at 715 but it did not get started until 9...at least they got a good parking spot :)  Today they made a trip to the urologist beacuse Dad was having trouble with urinating, turns out he is probably just dehydrated....so more drinking and waiting...

There is a possibility Liam is going to try to be cutting more teeth--he was a little cranky yesterday for my parents.  I went the tylenol route for bedtime and he actually slept from 9 until 330--YAY!!  I really do hope he keeps up this getting up only once during the night.  Of course last night he was talking quite bit after he ate, but he eventually settled down after I turned on the mobile, put the pacie in (3 times) and finally gave him another dose of tylenol--then he slep until 930.  The next thing, after he maintains the once a night feeding, is to get him out of his straight jacket...it won't fit for much longer!  He is already in his 6-9 month clothes--and he turns 5 months tomorrow!  He is growing and changing so much everyday :)

Bill is getting a kick out of the X-box--and so are we!  Ali is still trying to get the hang of it.  We plan on trying out her game, Kinectimals, tonight.  I am sure it will be hilarious :)  Now we just have to find a way to get the pictures from the X-box to the computer--well maybe not, there are some pictures of me that people just do not need to see ;)

Great Weekend

We had a great breakfast together yesterday.  Dave made his absolutely amazing buttermilk pancakes---sooo yummy!!  Of course Liam was happy to help out, and I think Dave was happy to let him :)  We will miss Dave, but know we will see him soon in July!! :o)

 Dad is still very tired and still working through the pain--mostly in his back and neck.  We will see what this week brings us--chemo?  Hopefully better pain control and less side effects...

Ali had an impromptu sleep over at Grandma and Grandpa's--so it was just us with Liam last night (and our house guest, Aunt Margie)  We had a very nice time with some friends at a get together--we are so blessed with wonderful friends! 

I know this is a few year old, but I love it :)

xoxo

 Then we came home to hang out with Margie.  We watched Courageous ---amazing movie!  I was prepared with a box of tissues and I have to say I used about half of the box, but it was so worth it!

Home!

Dad finally made it home yesterday--after a marathon discharge at the hospital, Dave braved the snowy Northeast Ohio streets to bring Dad & Amy home.  It only took 2 hours :(  But they made it safe and sound--just a little tired.  Dad is still working through some pain, trying to get it under control and catching up on his rest.  We are hoping to spend some time together tomorrow morning before Dave heads back to Cali.

We drove out to see Becky, Tim and Elizabeth for lunch and Aunt Margie met us out there--she will be spending the weekend with us also.  It was great to get the Scott siblings together and the cousins were excited to see each other--just wish we could get them all together :)

Liam & Tim

Becky with her two little brothers :)

Liam is talking up a storm on his play mat---almost rolling over, but the toys and sides of the mat keep getting in his way.  I think we have figured out a little trick to help him sleep--Bourbon...just kidding, it does help Mama sleep though ;)  Liam has been going to bed later these past few nights and both times he only woke up once!  And after we put him down, he stayed down--no running up the stairs to put the pacie back in :)  For now, Liam has a new bed time of 930...

We got some great pictures of Bill & Dave playing together on the xbox--it was so much fun (we won't talk about the pictures of me :)  It is so nice that the brothers have gotten to spend some quality time together--too bad Cali is so stinking far away!

Finally here!

Soooo glad to have Dave in town--we are going to really enjoy him staying here and hope to have a great time together!  Too bad I have to work tomorrow :(  But both Bill and I have Friday off, so we should get some good quality time in...

Dad is still at the Clinic, hoping to come home tomorrow (Thursday).  This hospitalization has really worn him down, we are hoping he can recover quickly.  If his bladder and kidney would cooperate, that would be great! The plan is still to do chemo Monday, we will see if that stays the plan...

Liam & Ali are loving having their Uncle Dave to hang out with!  Liam is happy to share some great giggles and of course Ali did a show for him within 20 minutes of him being here :)  Bill is pretty happy to have his big brother here too--and so am I, just wish the whole family could have come with him.  We are so blessed to have an amazing family...

Dad had a rough tube removal today, quite a bit of pain--which was relieved with medication. I have a feeling he won't be leaving tomorrow unless we can find out what is causing his pain (he will have a CT tonight).  So more hurry up and wait...

Oops!

So I was obsessed with our visitor coming in today that I completely missed that he will be here tomorrow ;)  Way to go, Sara!  I guess the house will be all nice and clean for just us tonight, and maybe I can get some grocery shopping done today, which I have not gotten to in about 2 weeks ;)

Dad maybe getting out of the hospital today, waiting to hear should be getting out of the hospital tomorrow.  Plan is for chemo monday if all counts are well--not sure if they will start the cycle over or start in the middle where they left off 2 weeks ago.

Liam is currently in his exersaucer, which he loves...waiting for sissy to come home from school, so he can be entertained :)  It is amazing to see him interact with his toys, he just turned the page of the animal book that is on the exersaucer!  It is so cool to see him put things together and start to get his arms and hands to do what he wants them to do--I love it!!!  I guess we have another genius on our hands ;)  If only he would sleep for a stretch longer than 4-5 hours at night...

Bill has now started into the Bond007 game...it is a great stress relief for him and gives him something to do while I try to up date this blog and check all my emails...or stalk on FB ;)  I know he is excited to hang out with our visitor this week!

I am back to days for wed and thurs, so I should be able to get to update a little more frequently...

Sorry it has taken me so long to update--have been working evenings and getting ready for a special visitor :)

Dad is still at the Clinic.  He had a stent placed in his ureter this morning, all went well.  Hopefully this will let the urine drain from his kidney and we can have the tube and bag removed from his back.  We are hoping that the doctors can convert him to pain medication that will work at home.  And then he can come home...

Liam for sure has 2 teeth!!  Cute little white teeth.  So far he has only used them on his toys ;)  He is very observant, especially of his big sister--it is adorable to see!

I will have more time to update later...

Ohhhh...that explains it

So you know how I needed Liam to sleep more at night--after that posting he was up EVERY hour!  Yes, every stinking hour.  At one point I woke up and said "Oh good, I got to sleep for 20 min straight!"  I kept trying to stick with enjoying every minute, but it gets hard after 10 times in the middle of the night--knowing I had to be up at 515am to go to work, and work a 12. (which turned into a 16 because we were so busy.  Our hospital was at 99% capacity--crazy!!  Just so glad to be off today :)  We realized why Liam was up so much--he broke his first tooth yesterday!!  Bottom left and I am pretty sure the bottom right is close to follow.  I cannot believe he has a tooth already!  It seems to soon...

Dad has his radiation treatment for the spot on his shoulder today at 2pm.  Hopefully that will decrease the amount of pain he has to deal with.  The doctors are in the process of trying to figure out exactly how much pain medication he will need at home--this will probably take all weekend.  Hopefully he will not need very much, once the radiation treatment does it's job.  So as usual, it is wait and see--which can be pretty frustrating--but he is in good hands...

Bill is looking forward to busting out the snow blower again--he has not been able to use it very much this season, this has been some crazy weather.  And I am happy to announce that he finished the Batman game he was working on--of course he has to go back through as Cat woman...oh boy ;)  Maybe his brother can help make the process a little faster--at least for my sake :)

On another note--sorry you all have to log on now with a password, we just wanted to make the access a little more private...hope you understand :)

xoxo

To Do

Dad had the procedure to place a drain through his back to help drain the kidney, this should bring his levels back to normal--which they had started to do on their own--but this will make sure they stay normal.  Dad and Amy spoke with the oncologist and radiation doctor about his MRI results.  The MRI of his back showed some spots on his spine, but the radiation oncologists are not concerned about them.  The MRI of the shoulder showed a spot they will radiate to see if that is the cause of the increased pain--maybe Friday.    They have also made the decision to continue the current chemo  regime after Dad's shoulder is radiated.

So there are a few things that need to happen before Dad can go home:
Radiation treatment to shoulder
Pain controlled on pills or a combination of pills & patch
Kidney function back to normal
Able to stay hydrated without IV fluids (so able to eat & drink well)



Here is something I need Liam to do:
Sleep!
 He is going though a phase of not wanting to sleep well at night, maybe a growth spurt?  Maybe teeth?  He is chewing on anything and everything.  I actually gave him a small bottle of breast milk not 1 hour after I fed him, thinking he was still hungry and maybe I would be able to sleep past midnight before him waking me up again.  We will see if this helps...I am wondering if I should start some cereal for dinner, fill him up?  It is a guessing game, which eventually I will figure out :)  I always tell myself when I am up in the middle of the night, that this phase will be over all too soon...

Somethings I need Bill to do:
Finish this darn Batman game--at least this "objective" that keeps playing over and over on the TV--driving me nuts!
Keep being awesome :)

xoxo

Burrito

So Liam slept in his crib for his nap today--this is a pretty new thing for him--still not a pro at it, but we will keep practicing :)  At one point he was sleeping on his side, like I said in the last post--almost rolling :)  If I want him to take a nice long nap, we use the swing, but I know he will out grow that soon than later and since Ali is such a great napper, I hope he follows suit! (Yes, he is in a baby straight jacket ;)

Dad is still downtown at the Clinic on the Palliative care floor--they are the best and controlling his pain and nausea.  Just a little educational note for everyone--Palliative Care is appropriate for patients in all disease stages, including those undergoing treatment for curable illnesses and those living with chronic diseases, as well as patients who are nearing the end of life.  I always recommend patients get involved with Palliative Care as soon as possible because it makes all transitions so much easier, and they are awesome at pain control along with other symptom management, sometimes other specialties lack this expertise.  Can you tell I have a lot of respect for the Palliative medicine folks? (xoxo Libby)  He is having an MRI today to try and find the origin of the back pain, which is currently under control on the fentanyl drip.  They did some other tests and found out his one kidney is slightly enlarged, the doctors are planning to fix it by placing a stent to release the pressure--not sure when it will be done, but either of the two procedure options are common and should do the trick.

Bill (III) is still loving his Batman game, and more importantly---the fact that the Steellers lost!! :o)

The boys

Just wanted to make it easy for everyone to stay up to date with the WWS boys!  Lets start with the smallest one--who is not so small ;)

Liam--He is continuing to be a happy little boy, who as I said is not so little.  At almost 4 1/2 months he is weighting in at 17 1/2 pounds, double his birth weight!  Bill calls him our "Tank", he thinks it is nicer than me calling him our "fat little boy" :)   It amazes me how many more folds he has compared to what Ali had as a baby--even his ankles have folds!  Liam loves the exersaucer and his swing--which can give Mama and Dada's arms a break.  He has rolled over stomach to back and almost from back to front--but that darn arm keeps getting in the way.

  It is clear that he also adores his big sister, and I think the feeling is mutual.  The way he looks at her and watches her every move is amazing.  Ali likes to snuggle him and has even helped feed him a bottle or two, but she gets bored of that pretty quick, I hear.  She is doing a great job at sharing her old toys and will even share her favorite snugly, Bunny, when we cuddle in bed in the morning--so precious!

Bill III--Bill is still at PartsSource where he sources medical replacement parts.  He constantly sources more than any other person on his team--he is just a crazy hard worker.  And thanks to all his hard work, the family got an iPad2 a few months ago--which Ali get the most use out of ;)  It is so nice that Bill works just 10 minutes from home, so he can come home on his lunch break.  It is a great break for him, and a nice treat for the kids (and me) to see him.  Of course he still loves his Eagles--even if they are not in the playoff this year :(  But no worries, there is still football on our TV to watch at any given moment, or there is always the Batman video game which is his latest stress reliever.

Bill Jr--As you are all aware, Dad has stage IV bladder cancer and has gone though one full cycle of chemo (cisplat/gencitabine) and started his second of 6 cycles last week.  His kidneys did not like that so much so they have decided to cause some trouble  That issue along with the usual nausea that chemo can bring and pain in his back has landed him back at the Hotel de Clinic.  His pain and nausea are under control and his kidney function has not gotten any worse.  He will more than likely get day 2 of the second cycle of chemo Monday or Tuesday this week--Gemcitabine, which will not tick off his kidneys.  Then we will go from there.  As long as his kidney function starts to trend back to normal and his pain and nausea stay under control he can get back home. 

Of course all your thoughts and prayers are much appreciated!  I will try to update this blog at least a few times a week, more if needed...

xoxo,

  Sara