DONE and DONE

Yesterday was Rion's last day of radiation and last day of the 1st round of chemo. I took the day off so I could take him to his last appointment (I knew we'd have to schedule the follow up appointment as well while we were there,) get some errands run that need to be done during the day, and spend some extra time together in celebration that we are done with this phase. I remember back at the end of February when we were getting started it felt like 6 weeks was sooooooo far away and that it was going to take forever to get to the end; we were so scared and nervous and not sure what to expect from the whole process- would Rion be sick? In pain? would his levels drop & they have to stop treatment or adjust his dosage? We he be so tired that there would be days he stayed in bed? Looking back though the time has really flown by and I am so, so grateful that it was a relatively painless 6 weeks with very few complications.

But nothing through this whole process has meant more to us than the love and support we've received from our friends and family. Y'all, I only took Rion to treatment one day a week and the first 4 days, 10 times total, and never once did we have to ask more than 1 person to take him because we got stuck without a ride. Never once did anyone tell us they were too busy or had something else to do. Never once did someone we ask have anything more important going on in their life. I can not describe to you how incredible awestruck we are at the magnitude of the love our friends and family have for us.

There have been days that I was stressed beyond belief- bills piling up, paperwork to be sorted through, a messy house staring me in the face- all things that when combined left me feeling overwhelmed and under appreciated! But then I'd get a letter in the mail, or a phone call, and someone would say just the right thing and I'd remember that I'm not just fighting this battle for me & Rion, but we are going to get through this so we can educate other young people about dealing with a cancer diagnosis and resulting treatment. This whole thing is so much bigger than us and dwelling on every.little.detail distracts from the big picture and what's really important; our family & friends have not only helped out tremendously with the financial aspect & the coordination of appointments, but they have kept me grounded and been there to constantly reaffirm that I'm doing a good job of whatever it is that I'm doing. I tried to think up something tangible I could give to everyone that has helped us out, a token of our appreciation, but I'm left dumb struck as to what to do. So instead I'm recommitting myself EVERY DAY to doing the best I can for me & Rion, and doing the best I can to turn this seemingly horrible experience in to something positive and useful. There isn't a single person that has helped us out that wouldn't be proud to be part of something bigger and if I can make that happen then I am!

We are working on starting a non-profit organization and doing a couple of fund raisers, but more and more I am focusing on the future and what comes next...i don't want this to just stop once Rion finished chemo & we have a set of clear scans. I want to keep the momentum going and do whatever I can to impact the lives of others in a positive way, to be their beacon of hope as our family & friends has been to us. Rion is blessed with an extended family that has put aside hard feelings from things that happened in the past to be there for us when it really mattered. I couldn't imagine how we would have gotten through this ordeal without them (and they are still continuing to support us in so many ways, it's not over yet.) What knowledge and experience can we gain from this that would help others who might not have the support system we have? I don't know the answer yet but with God's help I'm going to find it.

I didn't mean to come here and get all mushy and sentimental on you guys but this is real stuff. No matter how much we might wish it other wise, our lives will never be the same again...why try to change something you have no control over when you can turn it into something positive and useful to other? I know it's cliche, but we'd really like to leave the world a better place than it was before his happened to me & Rion.

Ok, enough of that! I wanted to leave you with some pictures I took yesterday while me & Rion were having our day of celebration.

First, here is Rion holding his certificate of completion that the radiation oncologists office gave him- it's personally signed by every single doctor, technician and office staff at the treatment center. I know everyone gets one, but still, it was a very nice personal touch!

Here is Rion modeling his radiation mask that he's worn every day for treatment. It's hard to tell from this angel but it has screws on the top & side that actually attach it to the table so he's held in position while receiving radiation (very important if you don't want to accidentally radiate the wrong part of your brain.) This was custom made for Rion using a mold-able plastic and I won't even get into how much it costs LOL

and last, here's Rion right after we shaved his head and gave him his new hair do. He has been looking forward to getting to do this so the spots where his hair fell out wouldn't be as noticeable...now all he needs to do is get a little sun on his head because it is quite white