Ooooppps It Has Been A While.....

August 17, 2010: Okay so I just realized today that it has been a very long while since I posted....oopsie! So I guess there is a lot to talk about this time. Let's see since the last time I was on I went with Jenn spend time withe her family and go to her family reunion. It was a lot of fun and I learned a lot of new things about Jenn that I didn't know before. It was fun to go some where I had never been to before and just see something new.

This weekend I came home to get away from the lack of work and the large amounts of agitation. Saturday Bri and I went on a two hour horseback ride to raise money for children to go to camp next summer. It was tons of fun. IT has been so long since the last time I went horseback riding. It was also a very eventful ride. Between Bri loosing her phone and the little boy behind us we had tons of laughs. It was a lot of fun to spend time with my little sister.

The rest of the weekend I have spent my time working on homework, financial aid, and trying to go to Wilmington some this fall. I really wish everyone was on semesters now so I could have more time to work this out four days is definitely not enough time. I have all my classes picked out it is just a matter of Sinclair approving me register and then Wilmington approving me to register.....this is going to involve a lot of driving....boooo!

Diana Update: Okay so A LOT has happened with Diana since the last time I was on. HOpefully I can cover it all. I think I will go one day at a time according to where I wrote elsewhere.....

• July 30: Today Diana had a good day and she was able to have Kari and Amanda come visit. Considering she has had a rough week they said she is doing better but still very weak. She is on oxygen now but hopefully we will be able to go see her tomorrow for a little while
• July 31: Diana is still tired and weak and remains on oxygen. Thankfully she is done with this round of chemo and now her only requirement is to start working on getting stronger.
• August 1: While I was at home they had a cook out for Tim's birthday and Diana had her head shaved today since she is now loosing her hair.
• August 2: Hopefully Diana will be able to come home soon. Every day she gets stronger and comes closer to that goal. She will probably remain in the hospital for two more weeks. Her white blood count is down to zero and she is receiving antibiotics to keep from getting sick. She received platelets yesterday and will get some more today. While today had has been a good day she is still not allowed to have very many visitors because her white blood cell count is at zero.
• August 7: Over the past few days not much has changed she is gaining more strength and doing better and better. She received different platelets today. We were told that her body was rejecting the last set and this was closer to a perfect match hopefully she will be able to hold on to these so she can get her strength up and come home.
• August 9: Diana is getting her blood levels up and holding on to the platelets!! Although this is a good thing she is feeling another side affect from the chemo called neuropathy. It is a painful side effect that affects nerve endings so her feet especially are hurting. On the brighter side the doctor said hopefully she will get to come home Wednesday or Thursday.
• August 10: Diana still can't come home yet we are hoping for tomorrow.
• August 11: After 4 long weeks Diana was finally able to come home late this afternoon. She is home for hopefully two weeks to get her strength back up before she goes back for another round. She is strong enough to have visitors so I am going to go see her tomorrow evening after work.
• August 12: I saw Diana today. She is getting around pretty well considering her feet still hurt some and she has only been out for a day. She looks so happy to be home. 
• August 13:  Even though it is Friday the 13 Diana has been having a good day. She went to her doctors appointment this afternoon and received some good news. her blood counts are good and holding. They are going to give her until the 23rd to regain strength, eat, and rest. Then she will return for her next round of chemo. If everything goes well she will only have to stay for a little less than a week meaning she can come home Friday or Saturday!

Okay lesson learned. I will from now on keep up with my posting so my hand is not hurting by the time I am done.

Listen to your heart....

Friday, July 23, 2010: Today has been extremely eventful. I started work off by exploding a BBQ sauce bottle exploded two minutes before it is time to open. Not only was it on me but also everywhere else. To continue my eventful day I learned that my non-slip shoes are no longer no slip after sliding and falling on a wet floor. Thankfully the rest of my shift was decently uneventful and boring. On my way to Muffler Brothers I managed to get a flat tire. So I called AAA only to be told that it would be 45 minutes to an hour before someone would call me to tell me they were on there way and how far away they were. I changed my mind and changed my own tire after Darlene arrived. I felt quite independent until I got to the shop and was told they needed to keep my car over night. After threatening to dip me in holy water Darlene graciously let me borrow her car for the weekend. Before I left I went to see Diana. I was good to spend time with her and realize that my day was no where near as bad as hers; mine is just more eventful in a day. I headed home after the hospital.

Diana Update: Diana was pretty tired today and was sleeping when I arrived while she slept we went down to get dinner. When we got back she was awake and I laid on the bed with her. Before I left the doctor came in and said she is doing well and is on track. He plans to give her platelets in the next couple days and more chemo a few days later. Her card pile is getting bigger and bigger, and is very uplifting to see.

Saturday, July 24, 2010: Today is dad's birthday! I went to pick Nick up from Josh's house and on the way back the van died, I beginning to wonder if Darlene is right about me being vehicle cursed. I got to see Bri today and we hung out for most of the day. We went to Bob Evans for lunch and did some shopping afterward. We went back to my house for dinner and birthday cake. We opted out on dinner, mom made steak, baked potatoes, and corn for her, dad, Nick, Lee, and Josh. And of course mom made an awesome homemade Angel Food Cake. It tasted amazing! Josh and Nick left and the rest of us went to see a Inception. It was okay but not a movie I would buy, I had to concentrate too much. Bri spent the night and we watched Secondhand Lions and had pizza. All in all an awesome night.

Diana Update: I've been told that today was not a good day for Diana. She isn't feeling well and is starting to feel more of the effects of the chemo.

Sunday, July 25, 2010: I didn't go to church today and just as Bri and I were heading out to the pool we get a call to come to the church and pick up the Wahls. So i got to drive the big van. Yay!! Afterward Bri and I finally made it out to the pool and just hung out and talked. There was so much to catch up on! Since I didn't have to work Monday Bri and I drove Darlene's car back to Dayton and Bri brought me back home. When we got back to the house Mr. Fauley was at the high school so we went over to visit. Bri and I twirled flag for a little while and Josh and Nickolas left to go make pizza for us to eat. By the time they were done Bri had to leave so I went back over with the boys and just hung out for a while. Spending time with them and at the high school made me think about somethings that I wish I could go back and change. Not because I know what the out come is but because I didn't make choice according to what I wanted and now I wish I would have because I have lost out on some pretty great things. But obviously we can't go back in time so I have to live with my choices and make the best of them.

Diana Update: According to Darlene today has not been any better of a day for Diana. She is having problems with her back pain and giving her pain medications it is just a matter of finding the right one. I am hoping that tomorrow is a better day for her since it is her birthday. She will have another spinal tap tomorrow and will begin her second round of chemo on Tuesday

Monday, July 26, 2010: I worked on homework today until Jenn came up to take me back to Dayton. I must say the trip back has been the most amusing trip I have ever made with anyone. She dropped me off to pick up my car and guess what ASHLEY HAS AIR CONDITIONING!! I am super stoked that I can now drive down the road with my windows up and not die. I went to see Diana before class and she was feeling a little better but still very tired. I can't wait for her to get her gift from Alicia. I think it will help brighten her day.

Diana Update: Diana was feeling a little better for her birthday today. They have also found pain medication for her. She received a lot of birthday cards and now they are over flowing everywhere. They sang and had cupcakes before I was able to get there but I was glad to hear the nurses sang to her this morning and brought her some cake as well. Her nurses are awesome they are so involved in everything going on medical and non-medical. I brought her some angel food cake and coffee cake from mom which she was excited to see. Mom also sent relaxation music to help her sleep. She did not receive her spinal tap today. She will have that tomorrow along with platelets and the beginning of her second round of chemo.

Tuesday, July 27, 2010: My life has been rather uneventful today and I am quite okay with that.

Diana Update: The doctor called this morning and we have been asked to have no visitors for the rest of the week. It is going to be hard to not be able to go see Diana I was hoping to go again tomorrow before class but I guess not. She had her spinal tap today and began her chemo and will go for four days. While the chemo has made her weak she may become even weaker from the upcoming days of chemo. Hopefully she will start feeling a little better rather than worse.

Missing home

Tuesday, July 20, 2010: Diana Update: Today Diana received a bag of chemo as part of her first round. Her blood cell count was down to 20000 today so things are still going very positive. TI haven't had a chance to see Diana yet but since I saw her on Monday she has had her cut short. This was to make it easier when her hair begins to fall out.

Wednesday, July 21, 2010: I had class tonight and I was talking to a friend from the Lake about missing home. We were talking about how we always said we couldn't wait to get away and now that we are on our own in the "real world" really wish we could go back to high school. Back to when we didn't have to work and the biggest worry we had was what we were going to do with our friends that night or up coming weekend. To everyone who just graduated spend as much time as you can with what is left of your summer and everyone still in high school enjoy it love it in fact cause trust me you are going to want to go back to those days one day. We did have our laughs about the stuff we have to deal with now not everything is bad it is just that there is more we have to be responsible for. I would go back to living at home doing nothing any day right now.

Diana Update:  I was hoping to see Diana today but was not able to go visit. I do know that she was really feeling the chemo affects today. According to Darlene she said it felt like 2 Mack trucks had hit her. Her white blood cell count is down to 7000(!) now! While the white blood cells are being destroyed so are the red so Diana will need to start receiving blood soon. Along with this she basically has no immune system now, so it is even more important for us to scrub extremely well before we go in. She received her last bag of chemo today and will be done for a few day before starting her second round. This round is the most intense she will receive. Hopefully with a few days without the chemo she will be feeling much better for her birthday and have a little more energy.

Thursday, July 22,2010: I hate my car!

Diana Update: Diana has finished her first round of chemo. The final count is in.......2300!!!! She has made amazing progress. She received her first 2bags for a blood transfusion today. She is going to go 7 days with out chemo to regain her strength and then proceed with 4 more days of chemo. Hopefully she will be able to come home soon after!

Faith, Hope, and Love

Okay so I'm going to try something new and write about my day or write every few days about anything going on I just want it to be where I can talk about anything and anyone I don't get to talk to a lot can still know what is going on.

So over the past few days:

Thursday, July 15, 2010: I was getting ready to come home when I found out that my Aunt Diana has been diagnosed with Acute Lymphocyte Leukemia. She was admitted to the hospital that night and she will be there for 3 to 4 weeks. Needless to say my family's life has changed and a new motto has come about: Faith, Hope, and Love.

Friday, July 16, 2010: I got my butt out of bed and went to the fair to work the music booster booth from 6-10 am. it was a lot of fun and uplifting to see everyone that I have missed over the last two weeks (including my family). Later Adriam and I hung out and watched the Rodeo =tons of fun!


Saturday: I was unneeded at the booth so I went back home and did some truck searching on the internet. Later Adriam and I headed over to Mary/Mom's to meet Baughman and we hung out for a while before heading back to the fair to see the Tractor/Truck Pulls.


I absolutely love the black smoke pouring from a truck loaded with power! Definitely not something you see or hear in the city.

Diana Update: Diana had surgery today to insert and a piece for all of her IV's and fluids. She will also begin chemo tonight and start her path to remission.

Sunday, July 17, 2010: I worked the fair again this morning from 6-3 It was a long shift but Tiffany and Glen came to hang out with me making the time fly by. I still can't get over how fast the summer has flown by.

Later we went to the Demolition Derby where we were poured on by the rain. Although I can't complain because even though I was in jeans and a white tank top I had tons of fun. Nickolas and JJ threw me down in the mud and then it was on.










Diana Update: Diana had her second and third bag of chemo and lots of visitors. I haven't seen her since Thursday but I am planning to go on Monday. So glad to hear that she is having a good day. The doctors are talking a lot about getting her into remission. The only side affects she is having are chemo headache, and feeling weak from the loss of red blood cells.

Monday, July 18, 2010: Nothing really exciting happened today I just did a LOT of sleeping I forgot how much it takes to stay up until 2 or 3 and then get up the next morning and do it all over again. I have had a lot of fun though this weekend. It was what I needed before heading back home and to work.

Diana Update: Diana had a spinal tap today they removed spinal fluid which was clear and a good sign. They replaced the fluid with chemo. she was tired today and had a headache so over all kind of a bad day. On the better side when she entered the hospital her white blood count was 52000 and today the doctor said she was down to 32000. We are on our way to get her back home for good again. I was able to go see her tonight and spend some time with her. I missed her over the weekend and glad to see that she hadn't had a horrible day even if it was a good one.

Well time for bed and whatever tomorrow may bring.