Mom started her 2nd cycle of her chemo yesterday. Each cycle is: 1 chemo treatment for 1 week, the another chemo treatment the following week & then 1 week off. Her 1st cycle went well & at the end of her "off week" she started to lose her hair again & is now wearing a bandana all the time. Dad is still trying to convince her to go with him to shave off their hair together like they did last year.

Nyomi completed her 4 week long theater camp & LOVED IT!! All of her aunties, uncles & cousins came to see her perform & she's so grateful for all of them coming to support her.

and my Ry is getting so big!! Smiling & laughing & recently found her feet!! Here's a video of her laughing at my burping noises. I'm not sure why they're so funny, but she loved it.

my ryry laughing at my burping noises

Yesterday, on the 21st, we went in to the dr's office for a consultation at 1pm & was scheduled for chemo at 2pm.  We got through the consultation fine & headed downstairs for the first treatment.  We were informed that Mom would be given a "sample dose" of the medication to make sure that her body could handle it & would not have a reaction.  They gave her medication prior to the sample dose to prevent nausea, stomach upset, etc & then they started the sample.  Mom's body had a reaction to the medication that brought the dr's & nurses running & clearing out the room & pumping Mom full of steroid medications to get her stable again.  She did come right back & ended up stabilizing after a few minutes.  They gave her a breathing treatment & she began to cry.  We were informed that by this time in the day, it was getting late & that they wanted us to come in the next day to try it again.

The same thing.  The sample dose & everything.  

I looked at the nurse like she was crazy for thinking that I'd let her try it again.  But she insisted that this first reaction happens quite often in people & that the 2nd try goes just fine with no reaction.  I trusted her, so did Mom & we said "ok" that we'd be back.

Today came & everything went GREAT.  The sample dose went great with no problems, so they continued on with the full dosage of her chemo medicine & Mom did great & felt great...just felt sleepy & hungry.  We took her to get some lunch, stopped by my hula sisters house to pick up my kids, stopped by my hula studio to pick up my car & say "hello" & then she went home & is now home resting.

Thank you for all of the phone calls, text messages, emails & prayers...

So we took her in & her dr prescribed her some pain medication, some antibiotics & let us know that the CT scans that Mom took on Friday came back showing more nodules on her lymph nodes & that there were new spots on her muscle on her side & would like to start another round of chemo immediately.

Mom cried.  I cried.

I know that she was just hoping that it would all be gone & we could just move on.

Dad hugged her & let her know that it was going to be ok & we'll get through this just like we did the first round.

HERE'S her first round of chemo, which was on February 25, 2008 & documented on my old blog.

Happy Birthday baby!!  Love you!!

Love you Dad & Happy Fathers Day...

Thank you both so much for always supporting me & my business!!  

This year, not many people stayed all night long, but our team did have someone on the track during all 24 hours.  I walked on Friday from 9-10pm, then on Saturday from 2-3pm & then from 4:30-5pm.  I even decided to track my progress (a fundraiser put on by one of the teams) & i walked 6 miles total over the weekend.

This years theme was 80's & so we had "Don't Stop Believin" in a cure & dressed up in 80's gear.  It was SO fun to dress up like that again & to dress up Nyomi too.

Here's a few photos of our weekend!!

I know that it's been a few weeks since my trip to Chicago for Ryan & Meredith's wedding, but there's a reason behind the delay.  Ryan & Mere went on their honeymoon & I wanted to make sure they were home before seeing any photos besides the sneak peek.  So that is my excuse...

Meredith & I became friends in Mrs. Allen's 3rd grade class in 1988.  (holy moly!)  We remained friends throughout elementary school, played softball & took dance classes together too.  But we all know that while growing up, people change, friends change & interests change.  We went to the same junior high, but went to rival high schools.  Meredith & I were always cordial to one another as we grew up, but we just lost touch.  And after high school, I hadn't seen Mere at all.

It wasn't until last year when Mere & I reconnected on the wonderful internet.  On Facebook.  It was so nice to catch up on the last bajillion years & when we talked on the phone for the first time, we giggled like we were back in elementary school, because our laughs were still the same after all these years.  While catching up, Meredith came across my photography work & hired me to shoot her upcoming wedding & the rest is history.

When I arrived in Chicago, I was almost petrified.  It had been yeeeeeeeeeeeeeears (yes with that many e's) since i had seen anyone from junior high school & well...i was nervous as hell.   But when I saw Mere & her parents in the lobby of the hotel, I went back in time & it was like we were all young again.

Meredith & Ryan, thank you SO much for allowing Kili & I to be a part of one of the most special days of your lives.  I am still in awe that after all these years, we reconnected & got to spend some time together as grown ups.  I wish you nothing but love & happiness in your new lives as one.

Click HERE to see Meredith & Ryan's slideshow.

Here are a few photos from our adventure around town.

PS - I am still editing photos from Meredith & Ryan's wedding (there were over 1500 shots to sort through).  When they are completely edited, I will post up again.  Thanks for visiting! :)

More to come soon...