Dr.Ken Has Cancer? (Yup, Appendiceal Carcinoma)

Life has been weird. 🙃 Not in a bad way, it's just much different than the previous 30+ years Ken and I have spent together. I'm not complaining; I'm soaking it all in. 🥰 But it's still weird. 🤷🏼‍♀️                                                 Ken and I enjoyed a few days of holiday...in Calgary. 😊 It's a far cry from our former globe-trotting ways, but in no way less precious. Here we're enjoying the amazing views at The Saskatoon Farm, south of the city.  We've always joked that Ken would probably drop dead at work in the middle of performing a neurological exam at the age of 92. No one could see him retiring before he absolutely had to; he loves being a neurologist! But apparently, God had different plans. For now. And honestly, this time has been a gift. Sitting in the sunroom listening to Lectio 365 together every morning, praying together throughout ...

  What do you mean, unexpected? You've been promising us an update for months, girl! Uh-huh, I know, I know, sorry — life got in the way, as it so often does.  However, I've given myself permission to eat chocolate while blogging, so hopefully I'll be posting with a bit more regularity.  I had no idea just how cherished a gift my prize of a $100 gift card each month from Jacek Chocolate would be. It's almost like God knew I'd need more really, really good chocolate than usual! What I mean by unexpected is that the contents of this blog may come as a surprise to most of you. I promised you authenticity, and I meant it! However, first, let's bring you up to speed. 🏎️ At the end of June, I posted about Ken's journey thus far, which has been anything but easy. I then posted a personal update on my blog (which can be found  here ) in mid-August. Unfortunately, despite switching chemo protocols from CAPOX to FOLFOX, Ken continues to struggle with debilitating sid...

  Starting upper left, going clockwise: The entrance to The Cross Cancer Institute (CCI) CCI was built in 1968; it's older than both Ken and me! Ken is waiting for his appointment with Dr. Zhu. I found on-street parking, but because it's only for an hour,  I'm not sure it was worth the stress! 🤨 Sorry for the lack of communication; life has been a bit turbulent lately. 😵‍💫  And that would be the biggest understatement of my life. 🫤  While I was going through my own treatment, Ken would often say that it's harder on the caregiver than the patient. After Ken's second infusion, I asked him if that was still true. 😇 "Come on, that was a stupid comment." Actually, it was more like "Khum ahnnn, thad was a 'tupid commennnnnt."  No, he wasn't drunk; he was in the midst of Hell Week. Yes, it occurs every time, and no, it doesn't usually improve with each infusion; rather, the opposite. 🫤 It is extremely difficult to watch loved ones go t...

The calm before the storm. 🍪  (Volunteers come around with coffee, juice, and cookies. Ken loves cookies. 😋) Whoo boy. I'm kinda regretting promising authenticity. 😏 Don't let Ken's smiling face fool you, the past week has been he🏒🏒.  (H-E-double-hockey-sticks.)  When I was going through chemo, I affectionately dubbed the first week post-infusion "He 🏒🏒  Week," referring to the brutal training of Navy Seals.  Unfortunately, that label also applies to Ken.  The infusion went well, though the pharmacy was running behind, so we had a late start. Then Mr "My-veins-are-great" decided to allow his veins to play roly-poly-olly, and a second nurse had to insert his IV, since the first one gave up. 🙄 Now, in all fairness, she only tried once; they're supposed to try twice before getting a colleague. Our nurse, I'll call her Sharon (not her real name), was interesting. She also works in the ER at the Royal Alex, which caters to a rough crowd, so pe...