Happy St. Patty's Day (yes, it is a little late!)

So, the girls were decked out in their green and "needed" to wear their silly hats with orange hair - they were cute and made many people smile today!!  Hope you had a GREAT st. Patty's Day!!

Tia, Tua, Asa.... having a great time in Karate class!

(be sure to "pause" the music box - located on the right hand side of the screen - so you can hear the girls doing their karate moves)

The girls have been taking Karate since the beginning of the year and have learned so much.  They love going to class each week and I can't help but smile whenever I see them in their size 000 uniforms!  But they are doing great, and wanted to share a few videos from last night - they did solo demos for the first time.  And by the way, Elyse is the youngest in the entire school - and still keeps up well with the rest of the class!

Getting it all together.... or at least trying to!

So, this is our "last week" of having only 4 people staying in our house.  This sunday my mom will be "moving in" with us (during each week) during her chemo and radiation treatments.  Our office is now "mom-mom's room".  The cats have been warming up the nice and comfy bed.  I'm sure they hoping that it stays right where it is forever...  The girls have been "preparing" all of thier "ideas" for what to do with mom-mom...  She's going to need to go home on weekends to rest up for her weeks here - and maybe not due to the treatments - because of the girls.  But we are going to do our best to keep our chins up, keep smiling, and making the best of each day!!  Keep those prayers coming and we'll keep everyone updated on how our "adventure" is going!!

winter at the beach

We figured we needed some fun famiy time, so off we went to the shore.  We stayed with Aunt Gerry and had a great time.  The girls played with Oliver the cat (he might still be resting up from all of the activity) and loved every second of it.  We made our usual trip to Ocean City.  We collected shells and checked out what washed up on the shore after the many winter storms, cruised the boardwalk, and even watched the "pizza guys" (as Elyse called them) make pizza from our counter seats at Mack n Manco pizza.  We also went to Atlantic City for the evening.  There is always a stop at "It's Sugar"... and we all get to pick out our favorite candies to take home.  We then went up to the third floor of the pier and enjoyed the GREAT view from the adirondack chairs overlooking the ocean.  The girls played in the sand and we got to sit back and relax for a moment or two.  We really do love going to the shore - no matter the season.  And it's always great to get to see Aunt Gerry - thanks for the hospitality and we will be seeing you again soon!!

Prayers needed for my mom!

First of all, I wanted to thank all of you for your prayers and support through these challenging times.  We have a tough road ahead of us, but with you all being there for us, we know we will make it through just fine. 

Here's a little background.  My mom (Linda Scheib) has been a real trooper through the pain and discomfort she's been feeling for months now.  After we got back from Disney (in December) she was diagnosed with a hiatal hernia, which would explain some of the pain she was in.  She was given meds, but they didn't seem to help and actually the pain was getting worse.  She then was set up for a CT scan, which showed she had a mass in her pancreas.  After this news, she and my dad made the trip to Jefferson for an endoscopic ultrasound and biopsy.  After the biopsy came back, it was confirmed, my mom has Stage 3 pancreatic cancer.  The doctors then had to look into if she was a surgical candidate.  At that time she was not due to the size and location. 

So, then we were referred to Fox Chase to talk to them about getting started on chemo and radiation.  The surgeon at Fox Chase then agreed that she was NOT a candidate for surgery, and we then went to meet with a medical oncologist and radiation oncologist.   We were VERY impressed how the doctors treated my mom and how much time they spent explainng what she would be going through.  She will be starting Chemo and Radiation treatments (to be done simultaneously) on March 21st for 6 weeks.  After those 6 weeks, she will be given a "break" for the body to recover and so that the docs can check on how the tumor is reacting to the treatment.  More than likely she will be going on for at least one more chemo cycle.  We are hoping that since she is young and healthy (other than the cancer) that she will do well during treatment.  And since I live closer to Fox Chase and am not working full time, she will be staying with us during treatment.  We are actively setting up her bedroom (thank goodness we bought a house with an extra bedroom or this would have been tough!) so that she can be comfortable during this time. 

So, please keep her in your thoughts and prayers.  We have a tough road ahead of us, but we will do our best to keep her spirits up, and we know the girls will bring a smile to her face every day!  I will also try to keep everyone updated (via the blog) on how everything is going... so keep checking in on us!

I'm attaching a link to the Fox Chase cancer center if you want more info on pancreatic cancer.  http://www.fccc.edu/cancer/types/gastrointestinal/pancreatic.html


Pancreatic Cancer Graphics