Oh what a week!

What an amazing weekend we had!  First of all, it was Rick’s week off from chemotherapy so he was really starting to feel well over the weekend, which was a wonderful treat!

Rick’s brother Mark drove to Utah from San Diego to bike in the Huntsman 140 ride for cancer research. The ride started at the Huntsman Cancer Institute, then 70 miles south and then back to Huntsman again.  Wow, 140 miles is a long ride especially in the heat!  He was able to raise over $3,000.  We were so touched that he would do it.  We were at one of the water stops at Westlake High School.  The grandkids loved holding up their signs that said, “Ride like the wind” or “We love you Uncle Mark” or “Kick Cancer’s butt!”  It was so fun to cheer for him.  When he got to Rick, Mark presented him with a Huntsman 140 jersey that said, “survivor” on it.  It was very emotional for our family.  Mark turned to Rick and said, “next year you are going to ride it with me.”  Later in the day, Mark sent us this wonderful note:

Dear Rick and Jana,

Thank you so much for your donation. I can’t tell you how much it means to me.  I am so touched by my amazing friends & family and their generosity.  

The knowledge I have gained in the past 2 months about cancer research has made me realize that there needs to be more done.  The advancements are amazing!  Scientists are finding new ways to fight and cure cancer. It was important for me to do this ride, firstly to support you and secondly to support cancer research.  Every time I felt tired or felt in pain, I just thought about your struggles and what you were going though.  It made the ride much more bearable.

The ride was such a great experience.  There were 1000 riders who were all out riding for friends or family who have been affected by cancer.  All had worked to raise money for cancer research.  It was so special to sit at the finish line and listen to the announcer tell about the riders, who they were riding for, and how much they had raised.  I raised over $3000 and had a huge cheer when I crossed when they said how much I had raised.  It really made me feel happy and grateful for all my amazing friends & family.  I can’t wait for you to be there next year to experience it.

I love you guys so much.  My thoughts and prayers are with you every day.

-Mark

Another great event last weekend was that Madison went through the temple for the first time.  This will now allow her to visit the temple regularly and feel the strength and peace that is there.  It was so wonderful to be with her along with most of our children and Rick’s mom and Dale.  We are so happy for Maddie and so proud of her. 

Monday morning Rick and I got up early and went to get some scans and other tests run.  It didn’t take very long so when we got home, we took the grandkids to see “Finding Dory.”  It was so fun to be with most of our grandchildren. (we miss the Wheadons kids that live in Indiana.)

Today we met with the doctors at Huntsman.  Mark was able to be there with us.  What a great support he has been!  The doctors presented the results of the scans up to this point.  They were concerned that the clinical trial drugs that Rick has received to date, have not been as effective as they had hoped.  The doctors determined that we should suspend the current treatment regimen and move forward with a different set of clinical trial drugs.  While we were disappointed in the results, we are pleased that the doctors are willing to make a mid-course change that would work toward better results for Rick.

We treasure the time we have together and continue to see the blessings in our lives.  Although this isn’t a trial that we would choose, we have grown so close as a family and have learned to make the most of each day!  We continue to feel the Lord’s hand in our lives and appreciate so much the thoughts and prayers of all of you!  We recently saw this quote that made us think of all of you and the way you have supported our family.

“Together we can lift and strengthen one another in the great and important days ahead.”   --Neil L. Andersen

For Father's Day, Maddie put together a video for her Dad. It is very touching and she said I could share it:

Below are a few photos of friends and family being Strong Like Rick!  We have also seen many posts on facebook showing support for our family!  Thank you so much for your love and support!

Love,

Rick and Jana

 The Pitchers

 The Youngs

June 17, 2016

The first week of June was kind of a tough one.  The morning Rick was scheduled to have his chemotherapy treatment, he got a stomach virus.  Tanner, Marcia and Maddie also got it.   Rick was so sick, we weren’t sure whether to go up to Huntsman or not.  We decided to head up there and when we got there and told them about his night, they immediately started an IV with fluids and zofran for nausea.  It really helped him start to feel better.  (In fact he got feeling better than the others that were home.)  We were so thankful Rick didn’t get the fever that the others had.  We went ahead with the chemotherapy treatment that day as scheduled.  Rick’s sister Kristie joined us for our appointments and for infusion.  We loved having her there.  She is always so happy and positive!

On June 9^th, Whitney and her family arrived from Connecticut to live with us.  There have been so many blessings associated with their decision to move back here.  Bill was able to find a great job at Ancestry.com, their house in Connecticut sold the weekend that they moved here, and it has been such a blessing to know that they are here to stay. 

We continue to feel so much love and support from the Carollo Engineers family.  Here are pictures we received from the Boise and Portland offices showing their love and support for Rick and all of us.  They are being Strong Like Rick and socking it to cancer!  The love and support continues to buoy up Rick and help him in this fight!

This week marks the completion of round two, which is the halfway point of the clinical trial and also means that this week has been Rick’s week off from chemotherapy.  Having a week off is always a welcome recovery week. 

On Wednesday afternoon, we decided to take a short fishing trip to another great fishing spot.  Rick said to me, “I can either sit home and be sick or I can sit at a fishing spot and be sick.”  We met a good friend, Phillip Solomon there.  He gave Rick a shirt from their recent power plant upgrade project.  The shirt said, “Failure is not an option” and Phillip said, “the slogan is also for your fight against cancer.”  We fished for two hours and had great success!  These moments always help us get our minds off of cancer for a while and keep us smiling! 

We found a quote this week that really resonated with us.  It says:

“At times we may despair that our burdens are too great.  When it seems that a tempest is raging in our lives, we may feel abandoned and cry out like the disciples in the storm, ‘Master, carest thou not that we perish?”  At such times we should remember His reply: ‘Why are ye so fearful?  How is it that ye have no faith?’  The healing power of the Lord, Jesus Christ – whether it removes our burdens or strengthens us to endure and live with them like the Apostle Paul – is available for every affliction in mortality.”  -Dallin H. Oaks

This quote reminds us that things really are in the Lord’s hands and what is required of us is to have faith in Him and in His healing power. 

Thanks to all of you for your love and prayers!  We really feel it!

June 2, 2016

Last week Rick had the first treatment in the second round of chemotherapy.  He has three weeks of chemo and then one week off.  On his week off, we thought we might go to St. George for a few days, but he didn’t feel too well that week and needed the week for recovery.  Rick’s Mom (Sherrie) was able to be with us that day at Huntsman.  She was very impressed with Huntsman and all the doctors who are on Rick’s team.  We loved spending the day with her!  She is such a wonderful blessing for Rick and me.  That day Rick also started an acupuncture regimen at the Huntsman Cancer Institute wellness center.  It was a new venture into alternative medicine that is designed to help with nausea, pain and breathing.  Annie said that her job was to help Rick with eating, sleeping and breathing.  Remarkably, Rick felt the affects after the first night.  At one point, Sherrie and I looked over and Rick was resting comfortably with needles all over him!

 The day after treatment, Rick felt well enough to embark on a trip to St. George for a change of scenery.  We stopped along the way at one of our favorite fishing spots and fished for a couple of hours.  Rick caught this nice three pound trout which put a smile on his face.  St. George was a nice break for us.  Rick actually felt well enough to walk two miles each day.  Our doctors are happy to hear that he is healthy enough to do that.  We are happy that his blood pressure is getting regulated so that he can be more active. 

While in St. George, we took a ride across the Arizona strip.  We put the top down on the mustang, turned the 70’s music up, and sang at the top of our lungs.  Good thing the desert and the dog were our only audience.  It was very therapeutic!

On Sunday, we returned home and went to the cemetery where my parents are buried.  My sisters and their families that live close by were all there wearing their STRONG LIKE RICK shirts.  What a wonderful sight that was!  It was so inspiring.  We are so thankful for the support we feel from both of our families! We can’t thank them enough for all they do!

On Memorial Day, Kelsey and her family came to visit us.  Our little three year old grandson went and gave Rick a hug.  He turned to his sister and said, “Agnes, I told you Grandpa’s hair falled right off!”  We got such a kick out of that.  He was the first one to say anything about Rick’s hair.  It’s true, he has been losing his hair for the last week and a half.  He hasn’t lost it all yet, but it has thinned out a lot.  We think he looks better than ever though!

Rick also had a visit on Monday from a dear high school friend, James Baird and his wife Lindy.  They were here visiting from Maryland.  It was great to see them.  We also had a nice visit from Marcia’s mom, Mayumi Cole from Atlanta Georgia. 

Last Tuesday, Rick had his second week of round two chemo treatment and another visit to the acupuncturist.  It is inspiring and humbling to look across the infusion room and see so many people being treated for cancer.  One woman in our pod was receiving her last round of chemotherapy and she got to go and hit a big gong signaling that her treatments were over and she is cured!  When the gong sounded, everyone started to cheer!  We got a visit from AXEL (the service dog) who visits the patients to cheer them up in the infusion area.  He not only left us with a smile, but a lot of hair all over my pants.  We continue to be inspired by the people who volunteer to support those being treated at the hospital.  Some play the piano in the reception area and others play beautiful music on Native American flutes.  It is very peaceful and relaxing.

 Each day, we see the Lord’s hand in our lives as we continue on this journey.  We know He lives and is watching over us. 

We also continue to feel so much love and support from friends and family across the country.  Below are some pictures of them showing their support for Rick!  We love you all!

 Marcia's Dad & Grandparents

(And Mazie the Dog)

 Marcia's aunt Lisa, Greg, and Andrew

 Justin, Andrea, and Family