Shoulder Cozy

I'm so glad Kandyce shared the wonderful gifts she and her family made for me. It was such an amazing, uplifting, and touching care package to get. And yes, I cried at each and every handmade gift in the box because Kandyce pinned little sweet notes notes to everything. One gift she didn't have a chance to take a picture of is this warm and adorable shoulder cozy:

Here's the angle from the back:

I'm going to let Kandie explain how she made this cozy herself. I love it. It keeps me warm without making me feel overheated or trapped under too many layers--it's pretty much become part of my chemotherapy day uniform. I get lots of compliments on the cozy and I think it's helping my healing. I like to feel Kandyce close by while I envision my tumors in my liver shrinking and the healthy liver regenerating.

I am feeling great these days and don't have any liver pain at all. My labs show that elevated liver function numbers have gone down after only two doses of chemo and my liver has shrunk--it was very enlarged from extensive tumor growth. We feel the love, support, and prayers of all of our friends and family--and even strangers I should add--are helping tremendously and we feel happy and lucky every day to live this wonderful life we have.

I am on a break from chemo right now to get my blood counts up (they look good and I should be back on track with my full doses by Halloween morning). During normal chemo weeks, I have very little energy and I take advantage of any moment I feel good to play or even just sit with my growing little boy while he has a snack, so I may not post as regularly as I would like to. Kandyce is becoming an amazing crafter/sewer and she's holding down the fort for both of us. I plan on sharing updates and other handmade gifts I have received that have really touched my heart as often as I can.

Here's to old friends and healing handmade gifts from the heart!

Cancer

I hope you all know what it is to have a friend who you have known over half your life. I hope you know what it is to have friend who knows you better than anyone else, even your husband. I hope you know what it is to have a friend whom you are so close to she has dreams about your fourth child before he's born and accurately "see" that this little one will be blond and blue eyed, despite the first three being dark with dark eyes and you both laugh at her dream because it's just soooo funny.

I really hope that everyone in this world has what Kelly has been to me these 23 (can that be right!!) years. And I hope you never have to know what it is to have this precious friend to be so sick that you have to face the wisp of a possibility of your life without this friend. That is where we are. Facing and fighting Cancer. So very far away, I feel so helpless. I imagine this is a little like what Kelly must have felt when my Dad died earlier this year. Wanting so much to be there and be supportive. Feeling like your place is right next to her on the couch providing the shoulder to lean on. But, I have come to accept that is not where I belong and rather, this is my role in this journey. I am ready to go at the drop of a hat, but until I am needed this is where I stay and I offer up all I can and pray like there is no tomorrow.

The kids and I put together a gift box to send to Kel in Kentucky. I asked the boys, if they were sick what would make them feel better. Three agreed that they would like a pillow. So their collaborative effort resulted in this...

pretty cute.

Jo and Li Li designed their pictures on paper and then I cut out each little, itty bitty, teeny weeny, small, tiny (you get the picture) piece, pinned it to felt, cut out little, itty bitty,

teeny weeny, small, tiny (okay, okay) pieces in felt and appliqued them to the pillow. Li Li (6) designed the turtle and Jo (9) the butterfly and the rose. Pooh bear (8) stuffed and sewed the pillow.

KT made Kelly a necklace.

Gabe (11) drew her a "Cancer Eating" Dragon (that I forgot to take a pic of, oops) and I made Kel a shoulder cozy. There were also some books and other goodies. We loved making things for our dear friend though they were just small symbols of the love we are truly sending her.

So, in this month of Breast Cancer Awareness with pink ribbons everywhere you turn, please use them to remember to say some prayers for Kelly and her family and everyone else fighting this disease. If you are blessed enough to be near your dearest friend, give them a big hug. Take care of yourself and your loved ones.

And live.

P.S. Here is a link to an incredible dance choreographed for the Choreographer's friend fighting breast cancer.