Nap Time

Short update this week: Bryon finished his chemo on Friday — four rounds of treatment, with each round being five days, and six hours in the chair each day. What a relief I feel.

In 3-4 weeks he will have a scan and additional testing to make sure the tumor is dead (chant with me: kill the tumor, kill the tumor...). Then we will know what the next step is. He still has lots of healing to do and I feel like I have missed pretty much all of 2018. Maybe I'll catch up, maybe I won't... It'll be fine; I've decided not to worry about it.

With Bryon’s chemo done I think I can go take a nap and even rest through it. Looking forward to better, happier days!!

It Takes a Village

WOW. And GASP! It is incredible how many people have stepped in to help my son battle cancer.

His girlfriend, Amber, has been absolutely amazing. She kept me informed when Byron first went into the hospital. Then she stayed with her parents and loaned her apartment to me so I'd have a place to stay during Bryon’s first round of chemo.

Amber’s parents, Cyndi and Dave, have opened their home to all of my family as we've traveled to California to be with Bryon.

Our oldest daughter, Genette, started a fundraiser for Bryon on FaceBook, and some of my classmates from high school (even though high school was quite some time ago) chipped in to help with his medical expenses. And these were kids I didn't even hang out with! Storytellers added to the fund. So did Bryon’s friends, my friends, Genette’s friends, our youngest daughter Carmen's friends. My family has been overwhelmed by the help we've been offered. 

Extended family on my side and my husband’s side have been such an encouragement and help. There are just too many people to mention.

Many have sent cards of support, silly stories, jokes and puns to lift our spirits. Prayers, good thoughts, best wishes, text messages and positive energy have come from not only all over the United States but from the United Kingdom, Greece, Australia, countries in Africa…who am I missing? (I know I must have left someone out.)

This broad and generous support has brought me to a deeper understanding of what it really means when we say, “It Takes A Village!” I had no idea that our "village" was so extensive. How, oh how, do I say thank you for EVERYTHING and EVERYONE who is part of #TeamBryon? You have touched my heart and even healed wounds that have lingered with me for far too long. I've learned that people who do not know you can and will become part of your life; and that's a good thing. It truly takes a village.

Thank you, from the bottom of my heart. You are appreciated!

Sincerely and with love,

Lona

#TeamBryon

My daughter, Genette, and niece, Samantha, decided to make t-shirts in support of Bryon's fight with cancer. Genette drove from Virginia to Sam’s house in West Virginia for a weekend and the two girls designed a simple logo and ironed it onto t-shirts for the family. My sister, Kay, and brother-in-law, Chuck, drove from Maryland to Sam’s house to help in the “manufacturing process.” I was in California, so they did a video chat with me so I could see what they were doing.

The design is in the color that I call "Bryon blue." Here is the story behind the color. When my kids were little, everyone in our family was assigned a color; Steven, my husband, has purple; I have yellow; Genette is green; Bryon is blue; Carmen is red. It was really an organizing system — cups were purchased in these specific colors so we knew which one belonged to whom, we identified gifts by the color of the ribbon… you get the idea, right? As the family has grown, so has the spectrum. Genette married Abe; his color is gray (he picked it, it is not my fault). Amber, Bryon’s girlfriend, has chosen teal, her favorite color.

It was appropriate that Genette and Sam used Bryon blue on the shirts. When I look at those t-shirts, I don’t just see an article of clothing, I see the love of family.

I see cousins getting together to help Bryon fight.

I see these girls being friends and enjoying each other.

I see my sister supporting me, as she always has, as I stand with my son.

When my extended family wears these shirts, I see one unit. We live in different states, are at different stages of life, with different ideas.

We are different individuals. But when it comes to the important things, we are united... we are a team.

#TeamBryon #dontmesswithmycubs

Paper Flowers

Our oldest daughter got married a year and a half ago. She lives in Lynchburg, VA, and, of course, she wanted to get married there. She and her fiancé had both been living in the area for several years and they had established a great group of friends and a church family there so certainly it made sense. 

I wanted to have a shower for her but since her social group was in Lynchburg, it made more sense for me to travel there and host it in the area rather than having it in Charlotte, NC. I wanted it to be special, original, and transportable from Charlotte to Lynchburg. I needed to do as much as I could at home so the set up would be easy.

After some thought, I decided to multi-task flowers/decor and favors into one. It was Spring, so a garden theme fit in perfectly. Origami is one of my hobbies, so instead of purchasing flowers, I made them… about 100 of them.Then I made tags for each flower with a positive word on the tag; happy, wonderful, amazing, lovely, enjoyable, and so on. I used them to decorate the tables and at the end of the shower everyone received 2 or 3 flowers to take home and enjoy. My daughter kept several as a memory, too.  

Our lives are made up of memories and then we share them with others by turning them into a little story. What happy memory do you have? What did you do that was special and original?