Monday, May 23, 2016

We Didn't Come to Paris to Lay Up

It’s hard to believe Ryan is already winding down his 4th cycle of chemotherapy.  We have an appointment with his doctor this Wednesday to review the 5th cycle, which starts next Monday.  This week is looking pretty awesome, since Ryan has no IV drips and has finally recovered from the dreadful side effects experienced during this cycle.

What we found the most surprising about his new protocol was the lasting effects of the medications, even though he received far fewer IV drips this past month.  We were quite taken aback last week when Ryan missed all but one day of school on account of bone, joint, and muscle pain, as well as excruciating stomach cramps.  We noticed immediately when his white blood cell count dropped.  During those 4 or 5 days, we decided it’d be just fine for Ryan to sit around the apartment relaxing, because yanno what?  We can all learn to just. slow. down.

Having said that, we did get away for our lovely long weekend in the Dordogne region of France, and by the grace of God, Ryan felt especially good during those few days.  We brought 2 of his classmates along with us.  It was a 6.5 hour car ride each direction, and all 3 boys were troopers, playing lots of old fashioned road trip games and supplying plenty of laughter.  We stayed in an amazing cottage donated by one of Steve’s work colleagues.  The best part about the cottage?  A heated pool and really good WiFi, ha!

















Last week, Steve traveled home to the USA to celebrate Ryan’s step-sister, Hannah’s graduation from Fordham.  All of the kids met Steve in New York - Matthew, Steven, Patrick, Tom, and Blaise - where they enjoyed the festivities with relatives and friends.  They also celebrated Steven’s graduation from Clemson with a special family luncheon and a late-night Manhattan-style party. Congratulations to Hannah and Steven!

While he was in New York, Steve also took Blaise to visit both the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy and SUNY Maritime.  While I’m sad I missed those college visits, I know Blaise appreciated having Steve, Pat, Tom and Matthew along for their advice and expertise.




Here in Paris, Ryan and I were thrilled to host Gina and Mia for the weekend.  Gina is my cousin who moved to Germany 25 years ago, and Mia is her youngest daughter.  We’ve always been close and are lucky to see each other a few times every year.  Having them here in France was such a treat!  Unfortunately, Ryan’s side effects, including a low white blood cell count, left him in charge of guarding the apartment (in other words, playing video games and sneaking out to MacDoe’s with his friends), while Gina, Mia, and I toured Paris.  And even though we managed to see lots of awesome stuff - Disneyland (!!), the Mona Lisa, the Eiffel Tower, Notre Dame, Shakespeare and Co., the Arc de Triomphe, Sacre Coeur, the Tuileries Gardens, the giant Paris Ferris Wheel (!!) - we still managed to spend tons of time at home with Ryan, eating delicious meals Philly Cheesesteaks, telling funny stories, and playing Left-Right-Center well into the night!

























Next Monday, Ryan starts his 5th cycle of chemotherapy.  For anybody who’s counting, that means he’s now two-thirds of the way finished with the &$%*#$^ IV drips.  We do have an appointment with a specialist this Thursday to discuss the radiation protocol that may - or may not - happen after Ryan finishes his chemo cycles.  Having the appointment and the discussion is a necessary evil, but there’s a decent chance that after Ryan finishes 6 cycles of chemotherapy, he will have kicked cancer to the curb, and that’ll be the end of that.  Please keep him in your thoughts and prayers, that this will be the outcome.  Au revoir, Hodgkins Lymphoma!

I know it doesn’t need to be said, but again, THANK YOU SO MUCH to our many, many friends and relatives, and loved ones, AND strangers (!!) who constantly show your love and support through cards, meals, rides, notes, phone calls, texts, gifts, and non-stop prayers and positive vibes.  We love you all for keeping Ryan in your thoughts so often, and for providing help to us when we need it.  ESPECIALLY to my girlfriends here in Paris who KEEP ME SANE, you know who you are.

This week’s Special Delivery Shout-Out goes to my long-time friend, Chris, who I met 18 years ago on an old-school AOL message board when I was preggers with Blaise.  Turned out she lived down the street and would become a loyal and trusted confidant.  Last week, Chris sent a package to Ryan full of goodies and cards from her community, and it totally lifted his spirits!  Although I won’t lie - his favorite thing in that package was the flavored, sugar-free chewing gum from America - ha!

Keep those cards coming, friends.  Just a simple note or letter from America always makes Ryan smile.  Have a great week!

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