Team Medford LOVES the fall! The weather, apples, football, pumpkins, raking leaves, hot teas and soups, campfires and Halloween (Jody’s birthday!!!!!) This fall was special too as it was Eli’s first soccer season. He’s been begging to play for the last two years as he’s watched Emily enjoy it so much… so it was finally his turn. Jody stepped up to coach Eli’s team of 10 six and seven year old boys; it was truly like herding cats, and at times somewhat painful to watch, but Jody was a trooper and led his lil’ team of boys to a winning season! In true democratic Parks and Rec form the name Fluffy Unicorns was chosen! Go Fluffy Unicorns😉 Absolutely hysterical!!
Eli received chemo through his port on September 27th. Emily joined us that day and we had the privilege of getting photos taken by Flashes of Hope. They transformed the waiting room into a studio and a back room into a hair and makeup room and blessed all the families that day with mini makeovers and pictures;-) It was beyond kind!
Every 30(-ish) days he receives Vin Christine (chemo) in a liquid form that’s pushed through the larger shot-looking tube below into his port. It’s short and sweet and after seeing his oncologist to go over his numbers, we’re sent on our way until the next month.
We took advantage of one of the beautiful fall days and went to the pumpkin patch. This is a highlight for Eli and the girls. Eli takes this very seriously; he deliberated hard several times but ended up with the guy on the right….only to drop him on our way out and break the stem. He was pretty sad but we told him it was still the perfect pick so he cheered back up.
We were able to head down to Texas toward the end of October to visit three more of our awesome National Parks: Guadalupe Mountains, Carlsbad Caverns and Big Bend. As always, they each had their own special flair and draws. We rented a RV MUCH to Eli’s delight. He asks, at least weekly, if we can buy a RV so he was completely in his element;-) Guadalupe Mountains offered great hiking, great temps and great family time! Eli did AMAZING!! He hiked 7 MILES this particular day! His strength and persistence is ever increasing.
Our next stop was at Carlsbad Caverns just over the New Mexico border. The cavern’s over 1,000 feet deep and boasts the largest underground chamber in the U.S. The descent into the cavern was steep, dark, smelly and, to be honest, pretty creepy but once we got into the cavern and our eyes adjusted, it was BEAUTIFUL! Clearly our photos don’t do it justice. March through October the park offers a nightly bat program where thousands of bats fly out to look for their evening meal about dusk (couldn’t take pics of this). The bat program was Eli’s favorite activity of the trip!
Our next stop was WAY south to the US/Mexico border at Big Bend National Park. It was HOT, HOT, HOT! Due to the heat we were only able to get a few short hikes in during the am. Not sure what we were expecting but it was crazy to see just how close we were to Mexico at this particular spot. The kids could literally throw rocks to the other side of the Rio Grande. In the below pic, we hiked to a natural hot spring on the bank of the Rio Grande. It was about 107 degrees and the air temp was around 100 degrees; Eli submerged himself! We were all dying… in fact, the girls stuck their feet in the cool river.
Jody found McDonald Observatory in Fort Davis so we decided to stop and do a Star Party on our way back to El Paso. It’s an organized research unit of the University of Texas and they offer the opportunity to look through their ginormous telescopes at different stars, planets and galaxy. Jody and Lexie absolutely loved this! It was definitely a highlight for them;-) The pic below is from pretty far away but it’s two of their bigger telescopes. And of course we had to buy a sticker book to rehash it all;-)
And the final stop on our trip was at Balmorhea State Park that boasted an awesome 20-25 foot natural hot spring that you could dive and snorkel in due to all the fish and turtles! The girls especially enjoyed their time in it. Unfortunately we didn’t know it’d be that cool of a stop so only left ourselves a few hours. Eli was a little more content to sun himself along the side. And I had to include their pink notice regarding their “guest” swimmers on occasion!! WHAT?!?! This mama’s eyes were PEELED!
Another unfortunate event was Eli had chemo the morning after we returned;( It was uneventful, thankfully. Although he did gain another 2 lbs! Woohoo! He’s up to 38lbs now;-) Dr. Gowans isn’t super concerned with his nausea and vomiting due to his weight gain so we’re just continuing to pray for a divine intervention;-)
We celebrated Halloween as it’s Jody’s birthday so adds a little extra excitement around here;-) Eli was a SWAT police officer and wore it proudly. We did some trick-r-treating with some neighbors. The kids set off at a dead run as they only get an hour to collect as much candy as possible. I, personally, am very thankful for the one hour rule! It’s disconcerting how much candy these children can amass in one hour! What in the world?!?! I was able to convince/coerce each of them into selling me a gallon bag filled to the brim of their candy. Yes, I will stoop to that level; it’s worth every penny.
And funny on the timing of it but Eli had his final cavity repaired on Tuesday morning as well as a clean slate of health on his teeth cleaning. Our prayers were answered for no additional cavities! Thank you, Jesus! And on a fun note, Kids Kicking Cancer asked our family to attend a Piston’s game on Wednesday night. Jody took Eli and Emily and had a fabulous time! Thank you, KKC!
I’ll end this post hoping to make you smile;-)…. I let Eli be in charge of my phone one afternoon while driving in TX and this is what I found….
…apparently he’s into selfies;-)!! Lol….
Please pray for a complete and miraculous end to his nausea and vomiting. He’s doing great overall because he’s TOUGH but it would be such a blessing for him to feel good all day, every day! Thank you!
“In the day when I cried out, you answered me, and made me bold with strength in my soul.” Psalm 138:3
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