If kindness could heal

Hello-I hope all have had happy and blessed holidays. We had alot of the holiday activites in our home this year due to Nate being in his chair. We all had a great time and tons of wonderful food.

This Christmas has been like no other, as the kindness to our family as been so overwhelming. Many times when I checked the mail, I would find another envelope with a donation but not signed. Some little elf has been stopping by and leaving these gifts and I hope you read CarePages so you know how grateful we are. I also want to say thank you for all the other donations, gas cards, food cards, and goodies that have come our way, in the many Christmas cards that we received. Tom L.- Your note was very heart warming and Nate had a good chuckle out of some of things you wrote to him-Thanks so much to you and your family. I have thought many times during Nate's illness, "If kindness could heal, Nate would no longer be sick." We are very grateful to all who have been very supportive of our family.

Nate is still having some rough days. His muscles are still very weak, and his speech has him frustrated. Jeff and I both have been off during the holidays and are trying to change things around the house to make things easier for him. Thanks Uncle Mike for all your help with making the ramp to get out into the garage.

We have been trying to have Nate walk several times a day, along with doing stretchs to keep his muscles from getting weak, but have been falling behind during the holidays. I talked to Nate's doctors and they agreed that he would benefit to additonal therapy, so he now is scheduled for Aqua Therapy, Physical Therapy, Ocupational Therapy and Speech Therapy. This will be alot for him, but he wants it so bad. I catch him many times just lifting his legs or arms, then he will tell me he is "working out". Yesterday I tried to give him a lighter fork for supper and he told me "I want the heavier one back so my hands get a better work out." One thing Nate bought with his money from the essay contest was a recombent bike. It's a new added seat in our living room. The first time he used it, I'm sure he went overboard because his muscles started to shake and his knees just locked up. We have slowed him way down and stretch out alot before he starts. Most of Nate's therapy starts next week, but he was able to get in one session of Aqua Therapy last Wednesday. He is at Lakeside, and they have a chair that lowers him into the pool, so no walking needed. They put neck, arm, and leg floats on him and have him work his legs and arms. Then they stand him up and he holds onto the side of the pool and walks with no help. You should have seen the grin on his face while doing all this, he just loved it. I'm sure it felt so good, as he has not been able to do this alone for quite sometime. His therapist is Michelle and she told Nate that she was going to give him some good workouts and he may not like it-his answer to her was "Good, that's what I want." He will have some form of therapy 4 days a week. Please pray for this to help Nate regain the strength he has lost.

I don't think I mentioned in the last posts, but Nate has started his new chemo treatment of the Thalidomide. This is a nightly dose of pills, added to all the others. It does have some side effects, like being very tired and some dizzyness, and Nate as noticed this. For this they have him starting at half the dose for 2 weeks and then to full strength.

We return to Chicago on January 13th for another visit with Dr Goldman and is other chemo treatment. (He has 2 types of chemo with this plan) The chemo is an infusion through his port of Carboplatin. They add an hour of fluids before and after the chemo which make this a 3 hour long treatment. I hope to talk to Dr Goldman this coming week, because I hope to have them do another MRI while we are their. Due to his symptoms, I want some reasurance of what this tumor is doing and hopefully seeing some difference from his new treatment.

The fundrasier is fast approaching and the group has had several meetings. It sounds like things are coming together and I want to thank the whole group that has put so much of their time into it. Lots of really nice items are being donated for the silent auction, and I think my sister Haley, has posted some pictures of some on the facebook site see started. "ElimiNATE Cancer" . Alot of information has been posted but I was asked to post it also on this site:

January 9th, 2010

Elkhorn Eagles Club

Time: 5:00-10:00 p.m.

Food: Soups, Loose meat

sandwhiches and

dessert-$10.00

Silent Auction and Raffles

Again, I want to thank all who have been so supportive of our family. The thoughtful posts here on carepages, the encouraging notes in cards, the donations of money, gas cards and food cards, and the special words people say when we are out and about. We are so grateful to all.

Blessings to all this 2010,

The Waggoners