Christmas

We are so enjoying our Christmas this year!

A year ago we were in a Seattle hotel room in a city that was paralyzed by a record snowstorm. "Totally different" was the description for our Christmas last year. As thankful as we were, it was still hard to enjoy Christ's birthday and the joy of the season.

Gus, my father and I spent the morning at Lindsey and Lane’s, and then we went to Marian and Linda’s for Christmas dinner.

Gus will have a birthday this coming Wednesday. It is a BIG DAY because he will be eligible for social security benefits finally. All those years of paying in will finally pay off.

Fairmont Hot Springs

Gus and Kathleen

Gus, Kathleen, Lane, Lindsey

Scott and April

We had a wonderful time in Fairmont. Gus was sick most of Saturday, but started feeling better on Sunday. Scott never even gave Gus and I a chance to draw straws on which couple Lane would sleep with. We were shoved into the room with the double beds and sure enough that was where the little boy was staying.

Celebrate One Year After Surgery

Scott and April have set their wedding date for October 2, 2010. They have chosen to exchange their vows at The Fenton House, a site that just happens to be listed on the National Register of Historic Places and is a large part of Scott’s family history. This is so special to Gus, my father and I because that old homestead is a treasure that we have poured our love into.

http://scottandapril.ourweddingday.com/

A year after the surgery we are so thankful to be where we are and have Gus feeling as good as he does. To celebrate this event, Gus, April, Scott, Lane and I are headed to the Fairmont Hot Springs Resort this week-end. We are hoping Lindsey can join us for part of the time. Lindsey is usually so busy taking care of her more than forty horses that she boards that she can’t leave like we can.

It was Gus’ idea of a fun time for a little boy and his grandparents to go to Fairmont and celebrate. Since Gus and I neither one are fans of chlorinated water, we needed Scott and April to actually be the water chaperones. We’ll draw straws to see which room Lane sleeps in.

December 17th Is A Good Day To Have In The Past

December 17th is never a comfortable day for Gus and his sisters. This was the day their father died, their grandfather died and their aunt died. Same day, just different years. When the Wuelfing family gets past this day each year, they breathe easier.

Gus and I try very hard not to be superstitious, but last December when the cancer surgeon in Seattle wanted to do Gus’ surgery on December 17th , Gus said no. He was not going under the knife on that day! Then he realized they wanted him to come in for testing on the 17th, with surgery scheduled for the 19th. That was acceptable.

Gus is not having a good day today. He has spent the day in the recliner under a warm blanket. Yesterday, he accompanied a friend to a cow sale in Three Forks. He had a wonderful time and felt o.k. Thursday is normally the worst day in his week of treatment.

Gus’ potassium level was borderline on Tuesday which was acceptable to the doctor. The nurse had a little trouble getting the IV started, but nothing of great concern. His CA 19-9 was 51 again. This is the first time we have ever seen it stay the same three weeks in a row.

Gus asked the doctor months ago about discontinuing his expensive prescription for high cholesterol. The doctor felt Gus had more important health issues, so Gus quit taking the prescription. Gus had his cholesterol checked on Tuesday and it was surprisingly low. It was 150.

Chemo must be effective for lowering cholesterol, because Gus’ diet certainly is not. Gus’ advice to you though is not to do chemo just for its medicinal purposes.

Mule Deer Quest Only a Good Memory

The “mule deer quest” started at midnight that night. They only got as far as Great Falls before they stopped to get a little sleep. It was a wonderful time for Gus, but he came home with only memories. No meat. They just didn’t see the pheasants and deer they thought they would.

Gus had his blood work for his CA19-9 taken Tuesday, November 24. The count has continued to rise and is now 51. We hate the thought of it continuing to rise after one full cycle of treatment, but it is still low enough to not be a great concern. Normally the count would have started dropping once Gus was back on chemo.

Gus did gain back some of his weight. His appetite isn’t great, but food still tastes good. It just doesn’t taste great to him.

Gus has been told and now has discovered the truth that if he pushes fluids the day before his infusion, it helps the veins getting the IVs started. After knowing that he would have to have a port put in after hunting camp, Gus seems to be doing fine. The nurses and technicians have not had any issues drawing blood or getting IVs started since September.

Last Tuesday was a nightmare driving to Bozeman . . . . slick roads and blizzard conditions. As Gus was fighting to keep the car on the highway, he looked at me and smiled. Only a fool would try so hard to get to his chemo treatment.

Gus’ low potassium level was a concern to the doctor, so Gus was given an infusion of potassium also. Otherwise the doctor was pleased with how Gus is feeling. The day before we went to Bozeman, Gus was outside splitting wood. The oncologist is amazed at what Gus continues to do.

If Gus can achieve something each day, it makes sitting in the recliner for hours at a time more acceptable.

Mule Deer Quest

Gus is leaving tonight at 10:00 pm or later with Scott, April and friends. April doesn’t get off work until then. They are driving to a ranch northeast of Great Falls to hunt pheasants and Gus is hunting a BIG mule deer buck. Shooting a large buck has been on Gus’ bucket list for over a year. They should be home Sunday evening very late.

Gus and I want to celebrate our 30th wedding anniversary doing something special. I was thinking of a 3 day trip to some resort. Gus was thinking much BIGGER. His idea is to go on a 5 day trip to the Mayan Ruins 80 miles south of Cancun, Mexico. Gus loves the water and those beaches are calling to him. In reality, we are going with some dear friends so we are not quite as adventurous as we sound. They were already planning the trip and we just invited ourselves. We will leave February 28th and return March 8th.

When Gus starts chemo after a longer than normal break, there are several things that always seem to occur. He loses weight, his platelet count drops quite low, his appetite disappears and he feels his worse. He has lost about six pounds since November 3rd. Gus has really struggled these last three weeks with feeling so poor.

To Mr. Anonymous that commented on the blog update dated November 2, bear in mind that if “Gus wants it, Gus gets it”. Mr. sounded like he was an authority concerning recliners not being allowed in hunting camp. How would he know considering he has never seen one there yet. Watch the blog for further updates on Gus’ search for a blow-up recliner. Gus is open to any help from others in his search.

Apricot

Gus has now had 2 infusions since coming home from hunting camp. He never did feel very good last week, but we know we are dealing with the mental and emotional as well as physical. It is very hard to get excited about driving to Bozeman weekly.

Gus informed the doctors that we would not be doing any CT scan until after the first of the year. They should have been scheduling one in November/ December. The oncologist did say having a CT scan every three months is more aggressive than we need right now. Overall Gus is doing very well.

The CA 19-9 taken Tuesday November 3rd had risen slightly since having no treatment for three weeks. It was 43 as compared to 37 taken September 15th. It is still within the normal range so there is no concern. The count steadily decreases while Gus is on chemo, but starts to rise when he is not in treatment.

Gus and I cherish “Fun” moments more than ever. We focus on them during our low times. We had a fun moment last Saturday evening. We were in the car coming home from Butte and the conversation centered on how some parents combine their names when they name their children. Each of us shared our thoughts, but all conversation stopped when Scott stole the show with his spontaneous idea. Their first child could be named “Apricot”, the combination of April and Scott.

Gus and I now know what our grandchild’s nickname will be. The child (boy or girl) will be known as Apricot Wuelfing to us.