Day 22: Today is home day!!!!!! Kelly made a good turn around yesterday afternoon and she slept most of the night (which is a first since mid-January). Her pain is now much more under control and this afternoon she was discharged. Kelly received excellent care while at Sarah Cannon Cancer Center, thank you to all the doctors, nurses and staff who took care of her during her stay. 

She did well on the ride home, but is still extremely weak and her immune system is very low. With the flu and various other sicknesses going around 😷 we are asking for no visitors for the time being so she can continue to recover and regain her strength. We remain overwhelmingly grateful for the outpouring of love and prayers going up for her continued battle. 

"And we boast in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us."  - Romans 5:2-5

Day 19 in the hospital. Kelly is in excruciating pain constantly at this point, no pain meds are helping. Please pray for some relief and comfort. Still not sure when she will be able to leave the hospital, hoping for the first of the week. Please keep praying. She did have a good day on Friday and was able to get outside for a little bit for some vitamin D and fresh air, it felt wonderful. Praying for peace, healing, and more hope filled days like Friday. We are all grateful for the cards, acts of kindness, messages, and most especially your continued prayers. 


"I plead with you - never, ever give up on hope, never doubt, never tire, and never become discouraged. Be not afraid." - Saint John Paul II

'It's not the news that any of us hoped that we would hear

It's not the road we would have chosen, no

The only thing that we can see is darkness up ahead

But You're asking us to lay our worry down and sing a song instead

And I didn't know I'd find You here

In the middle of my deepest fear, but

You are drawing near

You are overwhelming me, with peace

So I'll lift my voice and sing

You're gonna carry us through everything

You are drawing near

You're overwhelming all my fears, with peace

You say that I should come to You with everything I need

You're asking me to thank you even when the pain is deep

You promise that You'll come and meet us on the road ahead

And no matter what the fear says, You give me a reason to be glad

And I didn't know I'd find You here

In the middle of my deepest fear, but

You are drawing near

You are overwhelming me, with peace'

- Ellie Holcomb, "Find you here"

Kelly had surgery Tuesday afternoon (Feb 7) in Nashville. This marks day 11 of her multi-hospital stay. Dr. Numnum was able to remove the bowel obstruction during surgery. So far we have had a few road blocks including a superficial blood clot caused by an IV, found out yesterday afternoon she has aspiration pneumonia, and this morning her labs show she is anemic. Due to the superficial clot they had to remove her IVs (after being stuck multiple times in both arms) and her doctor ordered a PICC line. Nothing like being woken up at 2am to get a PICC line inserted. Now that it is in though, they won't have to stick her anymore for IVs because she now has two access points with her original port. They started antibiotics for her pneumonia shortly after inserting her PICC line last night and have been giving her blood today for the anemia. Praying for no more complications, a smooth recovery, and answers to unanswered questions. She has been able to eat small amounts of liquids and is currently being 'fed' via her chest port with parenteral nutrition and plenty of fluids. As of now she will probably be here at least another week, so please keep the prayers coming. #KellyKicksCancerintheOvaries #PrayersforKelly #TealTeamKelly

****If you want to send a card to brighten Kelly's day, she is staying at the Sarah Cannon Cancer Center at TriStar Centennial Medical Center in Nashville.****

St. Jude pray for Kelly. St. Charbel pray for Kelly. Ven. Fulton Sheen pray for Kelly. St. Peregrine pray for Kelly. Our Lady of Lourdes pray for Kelly.

"Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.” - Joshua 1:9

Today is Kelly's fifth day in the hospital due to a small bowel obstruction. She had an NG tube inserted last Wednesday and after 5 days no significant improvements have been made. They made the decision to proceed with surgery in Nashville today or tomorrow, but will be leaving the NG tube in until several days following the surgery. She is currently on her way to Nashville via ambulance. This (NG tube) has been the most painful and uncomfortable thing she has experienced thus far. Please pray that God delivers our sweet Kelly from her suffering and that her surgery is successful and without complications. We also continue to pray for her complete and total healing and trust in God's timing. #PrayersforKelly #TealTeamKelly #KellyKicksCancerintheOvaries

Kelly and mom returned to Jackson last night after being gone for the month of January. They originally returned to Atlanta for treatment the first of the year, however due to a series of unfortunate events she became very sick about 3 weeks ago while in Atlanta. She had a CT scan this morning and has been admitted to the hospital (in Jackson) due to a high-grade small bowel obstruction. They will more than likely have to do surgery, but will try non-surgical means first for the next couple days. She will be here for the next 7-10 days. As always please keep Kelly in your prayers during this difficult time. #TealTeamKelly #PrayersforKelly #KellyKicksCancerintheOvaries 

'I can do all this through Him who gives me strength.' 

- Philippians 4:13

To me, Christmas and New Years always seems to come so quickly every year and be over just as fast. This year is no different. In fact in many ways it came even quicker, but slower at the same time if that makes any sense. My mom and I joke all the time asking why all the Christmas decor/cold weather since (to us) it's still June!

Christmas Day this year was low key for our clan. We slept in, watched Christmas movies, and enjoyed each other's company. Everyone was home just the way I like it! The day after Christmas was full of my mom's side of the family - cousins, aunts, and uncles. The weather was warm and the sun was even shining a little! The perfect Tennessee Christmas!

This year for New Year's Eve, we played games and laughed SUPER hard - I'm talking belly laugh with tears rolling down faces!! Then we went around the table telling the biggest lesson and greatest joy of the year. This is a new tradition we started this year and was a really beautiful way to end this insanely crazy, bizarre, surreal year. The top of all of our list was of course the miraculous healing journey that I've been on (and continue to be on). We have all experienced extremes of emotions this year - anger, fear, sadness, happiness, joy. Through all of this we have grown so much closer as a family. This year has required us to lean on each other for support and to put all of our trust in God.

My biggest lesson this year was appreciation. Appreciation for simple things: waking up each morning, breathing and moving without the pain of a giant port in my side, the ability to celebrate another birthday, hair regrowing on my head just to name a few. So many things I took for granted before God decided to hand me this cross. It gives the whole saying of "God won't ever give you more than you can handle" a whole new depth of meaning! I'm so thankful for you all - my family and friends - you have been a huge support throughout this year and I know will continue to be as we start this New Year.

Please continue to pray for me and my family as we keep on keeping on with this journey of health. Mom and I are starting the year at the clinic we found in Atlanta and will be away from home for an extended period of time. Know that I keep each of y'all in my prayers as well!

__________

"Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you. And the God of all grace, who called you to His eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will Himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast. To Him be the power for ever and ever. Amen." - 1 Peter 5:7,10-11

Update by Kelly:

While we were in Dallas in October for the Truth About Cancer Symposium, we heard of a Doctor in Atlanta who uses a team approach of mixed conventional and alternative medicine to treat patients with varying disease processes. We have been in search of someone local who does this. Fast forward to earlier this week when we finally sat down long enough to catch our breaths. Mom called the clinic in Atlanta to learn a bit more about what exactly they do down there and what treatment recommendations they would have for me. We ended up being on the phone with the doctor who sees cancer patients for about an hour asking questions and learning. He left us with his direct phone number and instructions to decide what we wanted to do and let him know when/if we wanted to go see him. We prayed about it and decided that if my numbers were low at my next blood test then we would wait and see, but if they were on the rise still, we would act with a bit more urgency. 

On Friday morning (Feast of St. Juan Diego as well as the birthday into heaven for both of my maternal grandparents AND Venerable Fulton Sheen) I went to get my blood work done including my CA125. While we were praying and hoping for lower numbers, we were told that they had increased instead. Almost immediately I was told to go get a neck, chest, abdominal, and pelvic CT scan to rule out any new tumor growth. Thankfully, Dr. Graham squeezed me in Friday evening. He was able to compare it to a CT I had from August and said that everything looks the same which was a good sign. Nothing new growing! While it's great news that my scans are clear, my blood test is still concerning. While at Hippocrates (South Florida clinic trip from October) we were told to expect increases in my CA125 due to the extra strict vegan detox diet that I've started since being there. The CA125 can fluctuate for a number reasons aside from increased cancer growth. So for now we feel like God has opened this new door for us to explore and learn what we can. The treatment program focuses on a proactive approach to boost my immune system that I can break up into parts before and after Christmas. Mom and I will be gone for the 2 weeks leading up to Christmas then we'll go from there. 

At a funeral for a friend we recently attended, the preacher Jerry Tidwell reminded us of one thing that is so important to remember: to find joy in the journey. There's so much to learn and so much to stress over, but at the end of the day what fun is stress and worry?? I'd much rather focus on enjoying this journey rather than being worried about the destination. God has a great master plan for my life and I'm thankful to be here living out my life however He wants me to. Thank you all for the continued prayers and support as well as for being a part of my life. I hope that everyone has a great Advent season and a very Merry Christmas!