November 30th

Typical Monday!!! :(

We headed off the the hospital bright and early this morning hoping to get everything done. Jess had been fasting all night for her test so she was hungry and thirsty by the time we got there. She got all of her scans and then we went to the blood/chemo room to get her picc lines changed and get her blood drawn and read. Things were going well until I got a phone call, the scans somehow got messed up, so we had to run back to get them done again before the dye in her system wore off. Then we had to jam back to get her spinal fluid drawn and have her chemo put in. For some reason they poked and prodded at her forever and they couldn't get any fluid out of her spine, since she was dehydrated. The doctor wasn't going to get the results in time from her scans so they decided to set it all up again for Weds at 11! They are going to draw Shane's blood and run test on him to see if he is going to the the "just in case" donor. He is missing school and there is nothing that I can do about all of this and it is driving me crazy!! I just read this to her and her Dad (and he says it is doing the same to him!) lol. But we did have a couple good things happen today. The insurance approved Shane getting tested and her blood still came up weak, but not bad! So please keep her in your prayers, that the scans come out good and she has the strength to endure all of this!!

Love to all,
Cindi

November 29th

Hello to All!

Hope that everyone had a wonderful holiday! We are still up in Bend and are heading to Portland this afternoon. We had Thanksgiving at my sister's in-law's house (Mike and Sally's). It was gorgeous and the food was incredible. Jess had it rough there, because of the steroids (we are thinking). I know that they are wonderful for the cancer, but they are hard on her (her heart feels erratic). The night before last she felt that she might want to go the ER but we ended up giving her one of the pills that help her sleep and it calmed her heart down. Hope that they will be able to wean her off some of the pills after the results we get on Tuesday. She was really scared and so am I. Pat came along for the support for this trip. Shane also came as they hope that he will be able to get tests done this week. It will be nice to know if he is a match. That is all for now.

Please keep her in your prayers as we have a big next couple of days.

Love you all,
Cindi

Thanksgiving, November 25th

Hello All,

Not much to report today. Jess is still the same. Super tired and sleeping lots. I will get back to you on Friday or Saturday, unless something pops up that I need to let you all know about. Thanks so much for your positive thoughts, energy, fundraising, and my mental support :) and especially all of the prayers!!!

We have a super big next week so please keep her in your thoughts over the holiday. Have a Happy Thanksgiving!

Please take care!!

XOXO Cindi

November 24th

Hi all!!

Back home in Klamath. Was a really long trip for everyone. Jess was really tired and was nauseous on the way down. We usually try to stay up there after chemo for a day or two, but since Thanksgiving is around the corner we wanted to come home. Jess took some medicine for nausea and for her temperature and basically slept the entire day. It was really nice to see her resting. We are going to stay home until Thurs and head up to Bend for dinner with the family. After that we will most likely head to Portland as Jess has a really big day on the following Monday. They will do lots of tests and we will get results a couple days later.

Take Care and Love to All!! Please keep up the prayers as we are hoping for good news next week!!!

XOXO Cindi

Chemo Day, November 23rd

Jess slept pretty well last night. Her heart was racing from the steroids, but she took some sleeping pills and was out. She woke up starving and her heart was racing, but she took a nice bath and I got her some breakfast so she would be ready to go to the hospital. When we got there everything went smoothly. We were there at 1230 and back at the hotel by 430. Still a long day for Jess though. They took her blood and gave her anti nausea medicine, and we had to wait for the test results and meds to kick in before they start her chemo. She received two rounds today. Her counts have started to go down some, but not very bad, but that is why she is getting tired easier. Her kidneys were still not where they should be, so our goal is to help make sure she drinks lots of water. She is now napping comfortably and it is always nice to have her resting in bed. That is all for now.

Thanks for all the prayers!

Love to all,
Cindi

November 22nd, Back in Portland

Good Evening!!

Sorry it took so long to get the blog going this weekend. We were all super busy and had a lot going on. Plus we just got settled in our hotel in Portland so it was a long day and it was a long snowy wintry trip. We are all extremely wore out. Jess took a couple long naps along the way. She got a little sick on the trip and had to take an anti nausea pill. Her head was feeling a little woozy too, she said it was from the motion of the pickup. I was really glad when we got here and she could get into bed and relax. We kept taking her temperature but it stayed good all day and I was really happy. She has blood tests and two rounds of chemo tomorrow so it will be another long day. Take care and thanks for reading today.

Keep up the prayers please, as we have a couple more long weeks until we get to hear what is next.

Love,

Cindi

November 21st

Bummer day for Shane!!

Jess went to Jon's parent's house last night to visit and stay the night. So our house seemed really empty. She said everything went well and it felt good to get up early and get ready to go to Shane's game. Bonanza School had it set up again so Jess and Jon could bring her pickup on by the field so she could watch the game from there. It worked out really well. The weather was amazing considering it was supposed to be snowing all day. It was cold but the sun was shining and Jess said that it felt really nice to be outside for a little bit. :) She wore her mask and came to visit with the fans for a while, they were really glad to see and talk to her. By the end of the game she was exhausted and ready for a nap. The boys played a good last game considering they were playing an unbeaten team. They lost, but I was very proud of them, and sad for the seniors. Shane said that it really hit him after the game, since it was his last game of football. Jess is sleeping on the couch and I need to figure out dinner. Please keep us in your prayers as we head back up to Portland on Sunday morning.

Love to all,

Cindi

Enjoying Home :)

Hi All!!

Not much to report today. I went out and visited everyone that I could at Bonanza School. It was wonderful to see everyone and I just can't thank everyone enough for all that they are doing!!! The support has been unbelievable! :) Jess seemed to have a pretty good day. She slept in and then slowly got ready to go. We went into town and she met up with a few close friends, to catch up with. She wanted to stop at Wal-Mart to get a couple staple items. I actually didn't think she was going to be able to make it since she was so wore out, but she bravely trooped in and we got her stuff quickly! By the time we got home, which was a couple of hours later, she was ready for a nap. We are hoping that she is able to make it to Shane's playoff game tomorrow. He was voted 1st Team All League (for defense) and we are all really proud of him. At the last game they let her park her pickup close to the field so she could sit in it and watch the game. It worked really well because she was able to watch the game, nap, and stay warm! lol

That is all for now. God bless all of you!

Cindi

November 19th

Wow it is sure cold back home in Klamath!! :)

It is amazing to be back home for a few days!! We all decided that we don't want to go back to Portland, lol!! Jess had a great first night home. She ate well, took her pills, and got a really good nights rest. When she woke up this morning though she was really tired, but she had a couple of appointments in town so she had to get ready to go. We left about 15 minutes late, but that was okay....She ended up getting her nails done (with a mask on) and also getting her hair cut really short. She looks super cute of course :) It made her feel really good and that is what really counts. Since she has been getting hit again and again with bad news, it really helps to get girly stuff done! Needless to say by the time we got home she was completely wiped out and ready to sleep! That is all for now!

Please keep up the prayers!

<3 Cindi

November 18th, Home Sweet Home :)

Home in Klamath!

It was a long trip today, but we finally made it home! We were supposed to leave at 10 am, but ended up being 11 am. Jess has to take it easy when she gets ready or she gets really nauseous. She takes it one step at a time to make it easier, which doesn't bother us. Since she had chemo on Monday, that doesn't help with her energy either. The trip was a little hard on her since the movement of the pickup makes her sick to her stomach, but she was determined to make it home quickly so we only stopped a couple of times. We finally made it around 530. We are planning on staying until Sunday morning, since she starts chemo again on Monday. She is going to try to visit some family and friends as long as no one is sick and she will also have to wear her mask. We will be taking her temperature and she will make sure to take it easy to make sure that she gets enough rest and doesn't run herself down.

Thanks for all the prayers, hugs, and positive thoughts coming our way.

Love to all,

Cindi

November 17th

Coming to you from good ol rainy Portland...lol

As you know Jess had two kinds of chemo yesterday afternoon. She seems to take it pretty well as they have her nausea medicine figured out. They give her about 5 pills a half an hour before chemo and it works wonderfully. After we got home last night she was really tired so she took about an hour nap. I was wondering if she would be able to sleep for the night, but she took two sleeping pills and she ended up getting a good nights sleep. She has a hard time getting going today, but that is okay I tell her, after all she has been through. Her appetite is still strong because of all the steroids she is on so that is wonderful for now, to help keep her strength up. I am also making her drink lots of fluids today after the doctor said her kidneys were stress yesterday. That is all for now.

If Jess is feeling good tomorrow we are going to try to bring her home for a few days to get here out of here. Keep your fingers crossed! :)

Love to all!

Cindi

November 16th

Hello from the chemo center...

It is 430 and we are still here! We arrived at 1230! It was super busy here and they had all her stuff planned for today. So we have been from room to room. We started with lots of blood being drawn, as they were checking her levels. We got the results from that and everything is good. Her kidneys are a little stressed so she really needs to start drinking more, especially water. At least 2 liters or they will put her on an IV. We also found out that she didn't have to have the lumbar one since her spinal fluid looked good! We had two doctors look in her mouth and they were really impressed by how much it has shrunk. I asked them if it was rare to see, and they said that it is and it is also interesting for them to see cancer shrink like this in person instead of a scan. Great news!! They also came to talk to us about a donor, she doesn't need it now, but they want to test Shane to know if they have a match in case they need one. So of course, they are going to check with the insurance because it is a 10k procedure. Wow! Then they would like a full sibling (Rob just got by lol), to check. So if the insurance okays the check Shane will be up here in a couple of weeks to do so....just seems like a lot is going on. She finally got done with the two chemos so we are ready to leave. I don't want to sit in her any longer than necessary. I need to get going.

Thanks for keeping all the positive thoughts and prayers coming our way!! They are greatly appreciated.

Love and God Bless,

Cindi

November 15th

Hello All!

Jess was feeling pretty well this morning so we took her shopping at a few places before it got busy after church. We had to stop a few times and let her sit and then eat, but it was nice to have her out and about with us. We brought her thermometer and sanitizer and used them when we felt necessary. She lasted a couple of hours, but when she was done she was done!! We took her straight back and she was already napping on the couch shortly after :) I was really worried about her, but like I said before when she is determined to go somewhere or do something she usually gets it done. Tomorrow is another big day for her so she will need lots of rest tonight. She has 3 rounds of chemo tomorrow. 2 through her IV and PICC lines and then she will also be getting the spinal one as well. She is already dreading it!! I am off for now. I will let you all know how she does tomorrow. We need lots of positive thoughts and prayers.

Love, Cindi

Jessi's Birthday, November 14th

Happy 21st Birthday Jess!! Thanks to everyone who wished her a Happy Birthday!

We went to Shane's game last night and they won!! We told the boys that Jess was their good luck charm ;) It was a long trip for her and she really ended up not feeling very well, but she was determined to see her little brother play football! Especially since it is nearing the end of the season (could have been the last game). She took a few naps so I felt better about her having such a long day. When we got there Bonanza School had arranged, with North Douglas, for us to be able to park Jessi's pickup on the track. Thanks so much to both schools! It was damp and cold and there isn't anyway she would have been able to handle sitting out in the cold. The Drain School announcer talked about Jess, he wrote an amazing piece about her, and said how she was at the game to surprise her little brother...which it was really hard to fib to Shane about!! I can't even tell you how and what he said, but it was really amazing, he made us all cry in the pickup. He even mentioned her after the game and said Happy Birthday again. Wow!!

The Bonanza fans all came by and either talked to her or me. She was able to wear her mask to help with spreading of germs. It was an incredible night. Shane was very excited to have her there, and it was nice to have so much support and for her to be able to watch him. Jon made the long drive back to Portland. Needless to say that when I left the apartment he and Jess were still sleeping, lol. We are planning a fun day for her birthday, but will be keeping a close eye on her, to make sure she doesn't get too tired. We have family coming up so that will help make it extra special!

Thanks everyone again, God bless!

Love,
Cindi

Friday the 13th ;)

Good afternoon!

I am in the same location as yesterday :) Earl grey tea with vanilla cinnamon, is very tasty! lol. The doctors appointments were very long, but successful yesterday. We left the apartment around 1230 and didn't leave the doctor's office until 430!! Needless to say that Jess was extremely tired and so were Jon and I. We started in one building, where they drew her blood, and then had to go wait in another to get the results. If you have ever been to OHSU you know it isn't worth leaving and coming back...just to big and crazy! When the doctor (her secondary doctor) finally made it in she said that Jessi's blood results came in strong again and her liver results came back better. We were all really relieved to hear such good results. She said that we still need to be cautious of who and how many people are around, but not as cautious as we eventually will have to be. She is supposed to drink LOTs of fluids to help the chemo flow through. We are also told that we should be taking her temperature often to make sure that her temperature is normal and if it was high it is an indication that something is wrong. If it is above a 100.4 she needs to go to the ER immediately. Her head doctor happened to look in accidentally and when he saw Jess he asked how she was and he looked in her mouth to see the tumor. He was amazed!! He had looked at it on Monday and said that he noticed visible shrinkage!! We are all excited and WE KNOW that it is doing it to all the other cancer in her body. Thank you for all the prayers and positive energy! I know that it is helping her beat this!!!!

Love you all,
Cindi

Sorry, I am posting these for my aunt...she writes them! Got to this late today :)

Good morning!! I am sitting in Barnes and Noble this morning because we don't have internet at the apartment, so I had to find somewhere to get on, lol. I figured that I would be in trouble if I didn't get on to do the blog :)

Jess had a rough night last night, she was not sleeping well and was pretty restless. We have a Doctor appointment later today, so we figured that we can find out if there is anything she can do to get a better nights sleep. She is bruising very easily and getting itchy...we are not sure if that is from all the meds she is on. We are going to see what we can do to help with that, if anything.

We get to find out her blood counts today and see how they are. We are hoping that they are up that way she doesn't have to limit her diet or restrict the amount of people she can be around! We are hoping her immune system is strong enough so she doesn't start catching everything!

She is hoping to go to Shane's game tomorrow...it is a secret from him, shhhh ;) it will depend on her results today. We are also hoping that she can sit in her pickup and be able to watch and stay warm!!

Thank you so much for the positive energy, thoughts, and prayers. I know that they are all really helping her!

Love to all,

Cindi

November 11th

Hello,

Jess is feeling better today! We put all her pills out and spread out when she takes them that way she isn't taking as many as once, so they don't have such a strong effect and make her so jittery! It scares me when things are bother her, like last night, I wanted to rush her back to the hospital! But with her sleeping pills and the window open (she keeps getting night sweats), she slept better than she has since this has all happened. Today has been a really good day! Tomorrow we have to go into the hospital for all of her blood tests. They are going to check her count, if she has a low count then we will have to be really careful of germs and she will have to go on a low bacterial diet.

If you have something you want to send to her, please don't send it to the hospital anymore. You can give it to my husband Pat or Bonanza School so they can give it to Shane to bring home. If you would like a physical address to mail anything to please email me: ckelfam5@aol.com and I will let you know where to send it.

Jessi's 21st Birthday is this weekend. We are all super excited. We are hoping that her count will be okay, so she can have somewhat of a normal party, minus Vegas and drinks lol.

Love to all, thank you for the prayers!!

<3 Cindi

November 10th

Hi all!! As you know we stayed in the apartment last night! Wow it was nice. Jess didn't sleep to well though, she didn't have her sleeping meds yet and she is taking a lot of steroids which keep her awake. This morning they called and got all of her medical stuff delivered to the apartment, it was really cool! It is a little overwhelming that we have to keep track of so many medications. I went and got an extra large pill day box, so hopefully that will help keep us organized. We also have to flush her pick lines daily to keep them open and take her temperature; so I am going out to get her a thermometer today too. She is allowed to leave today, but was too tired, so I left her lounging on the couch with the remote, lol. We will get to see on Thursday if she is allowed to keep her regular diet, so keep your fingers crossed. I went and got all kinds of antibacterial soaps and wipes for around the apartment too.

Thanks for checking up on Jess and all of your prayers and thoughts.

Love to all,

Cindi

November 9th

Good news today! Jess got out of the hospital (OHSU) and is allowed to stay in the apartment that Jon's families friends have allowed us to use. They gave her tons of medicine, she has to take about 25 pills a day! It is going to be a little crazy getting used to at first. She has to go back in on Thursdays for checkups: blood work and tests, etc. On Mondays she will get her chemo treatments. She is allowed to go out in public, she just needs to wear a mask and steer clear of sick people. We don't have to wear a mask around her right now because her blood count is high enough. They said that younger patients take longer to have lower counts, which we are thankful for! Jessi has to stay up in Portland for at least 3 more weeks. Then it looks like she will be released to receive her treatments, overseen by OHSU through Medford.


It was quite a day for her today. She woke up feeling very tired, and with getting her prescriptions, paperwork, etc, she was pretty exhausted by the time she got the the apartment, and started feeling sick to her stomach. We also need to keep her on a strict diet, to make sure that she doesn't get too much bacteria into her system. But, they also said she was allowed to go and eat out if she felt up to the task. It will be really nice for her to feel like she has some independence. She was really excited to be able to leave today.


I will try to keep you posted on how she feels the next couple of days. We will let you know how the trip to the doctor goes on Thursday! Hopefully she stays strong and healthy being out of the hospital.

Thanks and God Bless,

Cindi :)

Special Thanks, November 8th

Good day today. Jessi's appetite has been really good and she hasn't had any nausea so far today, we are all really happy. She has been itchy and they are wondering if the morphine is possibly giving her an allergic reaction. They are going to check on her after she showers and still see if she has it then. They may end up putting her on an antihistamine. The doctor came in and checked the tumor in her mouth and feels like it has shrunk. I actually started to tear up because I was so happy to hear that, it is nice to hear that she is beginning to make some progress.

They have put her on a rinse twice a day to help keep her mouth really clean, to help keep infection out of the tumor. If she can keep up the chemo without any nausea that will be really great, and they may end up letting her stay at the condo and just come in for treatments.

During the month of October there was a blog post that had the address to the hospital so people could send cards and prayers if they liked...we weren't sure if some people never saw it. We heard that there was a Spaghetti feed in Bonanza as well as the can food drive. Plus the SEOPHC club is putting on a horse show to benefit Jess in March and possibly a gaming show too. Also, my niece Laura started a fund at South Valley. We cannot believe the support that we are receiving and cannot thank everyone enough. It has helped out immensely. All the prayers and support have helped keep everyone's spirits up!!

Thank you all and God Bless!! Thank you for continuing your support and following her progress. We are so happy that she has been on lots of prayer chains!!!

Love,
Cindi

November 7th

Hello All!

After a fun filled (not!) trip to Bonanza, we rushed back to Portland to be with Jessi. She received her 2nd and 3rd dose of chemo. I was upset that I wasn't able to make it back in time for her first one, but Jon was with her so that made it easier. They switched her nausea medicine around so hopefully she will not be violently ill this time. She was just waking up when we got here, so it was good timing. It is a little scary because the lumbar chemo seems like it is the most important and it is hard to see her not feeling well. They just finished up with the other two and she is doing well; although she is extremely tired. Pat and Robbie came up and will be here until Monday. Shane had to catch up on some work this weekend and was unable to make it. I will let you all know how she is feeling tomorrow. Thanks for checking up on her and staying proactive in prayers as this she has a long road ahead of her.

Love you all,

Cindi

November 6th

Hi to all! My sister and I made a quick visit to Jess this morning before we headed to Bend. I am going to go down to Shane's Senior Recognition Night for football in Bonanza. Although, I am going to turn around and come back to Portland first thing in the morning because Jess is starting another round of chemo. She is going to get two different kinds as well as the spinal one (lumbar). The spinal one is the chemo that made her really sick last time, this time it is slightly different so they are hoping it doesn't have the same effect. It pushes the chemo up into her head and brain and so she is feeling a little overwhelmed. It will be nice to go and support Shane (especially since it is his senior year) and Jess wanted me to, but she said come right back, lol. The nurse practitioner came in this morning and said that they were keeping an eye on her liver. It seems to be getting a little stressed from all the chemo and it also has a tumor on it that I wasn't aware of...I seem to be on a need to know basis, lol. I wasn't in the room when the initial results were told, so I missed that piece of information somehow. Jess says that they said keep doing what she is doing and they will keep an eye on it. Keep up the prayers, she will need lots tomorrow for her long day!!! Thank you for all the support.

Cindi

November 5th

Hi All,

Not much to report today. Jess is about the same...maybe a little more tired. The nurse had to make her walk around today, and she actually did 4 laps once she got going. Which is wonderful! They said her blood count is looking strong still, but will start declining as the chemo works its way through. She ate well at breakfast and at lunch, they said that is because the steroids are keeping her appetite up. Jess seems to like the snacks and drinks I got at the store for her, so I went and picked some more up. Jon went and picked up some movies so they can watch those when they get sick of the TV. The hospital has a DVD player in the room so that is a definite advantage, we aren't stuck watching cable all day!

That is all I have for now.

Love to all and God Bless,

Cindi

November 4th

Hello All,

Jess had a good day today. In fact she made Jon and me walk 5 laps around the floor! lol. The chemo from yesterday isn't as intense as when she gets it in the IV. The doctors said the steroids are the reason she has this sudden burst of energy. They actually make her edgy and she was unable to sleep last night, so they gave her two sleeping pills to help make her more comfortable. The doctor came in when I was here today and he is hoping that he can let her leave next Tues or Weds to go stay at Jon's Grandma's friend's apartment. Then she would have to come back for her treatments. He said that it is a big IF because she has an open lesion (the tumor) in her mouth. He said that he is afraid it might get infected when her blood count goes down. So we are just hoping for the best and her possible escape from the hospital for a few days! I also went to look at some wigs today, but it wasn't open yet, so I just window shopped. I saw some super cute and nice ones that I think Jess may like, so I am excited to go an look for her when it is open. That is all the info for now. Thank you all for following Jess' story and getting on here to support her.

Keep up all the prayers and God Bless.

Cindi

November 3rd

Jess looks really good this morning. She at well at breakfast and lunch. I went to the store yesterday and bought her some frozen meals and snacks (goldfish crackers, suckers, vitamin waters, etc)...just in case she doesn't like what they are having :) I have to be careful when I buy certain items since she is on a low bacterial diet. However, I do want to help keep her appetite and strength up, so thought I would try to buy things that would improve her appetite. She had 3 shots of pediatric chemo around 11 am today and so we are hoping that it doesn't make her sick. They would like us to watch out for headaches, which could be an indication of a blood clot in the brain, but they do not think that is likely...thankfully!!! They had us ice both of her shoulders before they gave her shots, since they are known to hurt and burn. She said that the shots only made her arms feel really heavy and weighed down. She started to notice some hair falling out today. She is a little upset, but I told her we saw a wig shop not far away. I told her that I would pop in tomorrow and see what they had. She would like a cute upbeat short one.

Thanks for following her blog and seeing how she is doing. Thank you for all the prayers, keep them up!!

Love to all,
Cindi

November 2nd

Hello All,

Better news today, Jess is feeling a lot better after her rough day yesterday. A new doctor came in for the month (he is highly recommended), he said that if Jess stays strong enough during the next few chemo treatments she maybe able to leave after the next 3 weeks of treatments. She would just need to come back to the hospital to finish out the regiment and then possibly get the rest in Klamath of Medford over the next 18-24 months. Please pray that she will be able to stay strong enough and the treatments work as they hope so this is possible.

Thank you and God Bless.

November 1st

Quick update on Jess:

Jessi had two kinds of chemo yesterday. One shot in her IV and then the other one takes about 20 minutes. She is given chemo again on day 8, 15, and 22. She also gets another pediatric chemo IV shot next week. She felt fine last night after the chemo, and we were all really hopeful that she would not feel sick at all. I think we counted our eggs a little too soon! She woke up this morning with a really bad headache; so she ate breakfast hoping that may help. A couple hours later she got nauseous and has been sick a couple times so far. Not as bad as last time; so we are keeping our fingers crossed. The nurse came in and gave her some anti-nausea medicine. Hopefully that will help!!

The prayers and the cards from Bonanza School/Community were appreciated very much. They are in her room and add color and encouragement.

Thank you all for staying updated on her progress and keeping positive thoughts coming our way!