100 Days Cancer Free!! :)

Today is a mile stone! It has been 100 days since Raylee's cancer was removed. I thought about having a big celebration for anybody who wanted to come celebrate with us. But I decided to wait until spring when it is warm outside and we can have bouncy houses for the children. Today the high was only 40 degrees and we woke to over 6 inches of snow. A celebration is in the making. However today we did celebrate between the 4 of us and just made it personal.

Like I said, it snowed last night and we woke up to pure whiteness. Of course, Raylee and Jorja wanted to go right outside and start playing in it. They had to wait until at least it was sunny. So around noon we put the winter gear one and out the door they went. My girls love the snow. For some reason it seems to be a white fluffy blanket to them because they fall into it as if it will protect them from hitting the ground. It seems that with each season there is an excitement from them for the change. In spring they will be excited for summer. They get excited for all the holidays that come with each season as well. I wonder if this type of 'childhood excitement' is something Christ wants us as adults to have when He asks us to be like children. They look forward to the changes, we as adults often complain about them especially the winter time because of the cold and snowy conditions as they bring an inconvenience to us. Instead of looking at the snow as an inconvenience I like to look at it as a pure white blanket that cleanses everything. Do you ever notice how it is more quiet outside when it snows as if the snow itself muffles noise? Or how it just seems to calm everything down (maybe not rush hour traffic but besides that)?

It is hard for me to realize that 100 days has gone by since Raylee had major surgery to remove the monster that laid inside her. It seems like a distant but recent nightmare all at the same time. She is adjusting well. The month of November she does have lots of follow-up tests to find any side effects to the chemotherapy and to scan for any returning cancer cells. The other day we were able to get her caught up on all her vaccinations and dental appointments. Chemo therapy does a number on the mouth resulting in tooth decay. Raylee has a few cavities and will have them fixed in December. Since she is so young she will have to b e sedated for the procedure. She was also weighed the other day and she has gained more weight. I am proud of her, she now weighs 29 pounds.

We keep moving forward and we keep trying to adjust to our new normal. It hasn't been easy. Raylee has a different realization of being a kid. When she plays with her Barbies or her dolls they go to the hospital for Chemo medicine. She is always taking about Chemo medicine. I struggle with excepting the impact the Chemo experience had on her. Some nights she still wakes up crying because she has nightmares. She isn't scared of anything or anybody. She freaked out at the dentist office because they are like doctors. She freaked out when the nurse was giving her a flu shot and her missing vaccinations. She has several more tests this month including the CT Scan which they will sedate her for if necessary. It fear it is going to be a bumpy month.