one week, five days and fifteen hours later....

As I type this ….. it's been one week, five days and fifteen hours since John's doctor sat us down to say....your test results came back… your white blood cell count is high…..

Since then.... it's been a whirlwind…

Driving into the city…. a flood of doctors, nurses….tests….. waiting…. 

24 hours laters…. John you have A.L.L…. (leukaemia). Here's the plan…..
I barely remember all the information coming at us…. just that... treatment would begin immediately and John wasn't leaving the hospital anytime soon.

There are no words to describe it.....no way to prepare yourself for such a shock....
I wish we didn't have to go through this. I wish nobody did.

The truth is, cancer happens ….we are not alone or unique….. families fight cancer every hour, every day…….I'm so thankful John doesn't have to fight it alone. I know there are many out there...battling this disease all on their own.... 

Here's what I know for sure….today…this moment….

John is strong…John is faithful…. John is hope-filled…. John is not alone…..John can beat this.

We are strong….We are faithful….. We are hope-filled…. We are not alone….We can beat this.

Through this storm….there have been many blessings….. every single day since this journey began we have been showered with so many.

from early detection, to fast action….. to caring doctors… compassionate nurses….. exceptional care….  

from a small home town that loves John….reaching out…asking to help…. 

from our town's Lions Club arranging a suite for us to stay while in the city…… 

from my parents right across the street looking after Ben when Brett's working…. to our neighbours digging up gardens, planting flowers and cutting our lawn.

In a small town you are never alone. For that… I am so grateful….. 

I also have to say ... people are genuinely good.

quick story...
The first night at the hospital... I was lost…looking for the parking lot…. a stranger took mercy on me…. helped me find my car….. she then proceeded to give me her name and phone numbers….even offered me a place to stay….. We had never met before…..

Since then there's been so many people reaching out ….friends, family and strangers….offering places to stay, rides in the city…… help with my site, my classes….  our yard… 

So grateful....

John is hanging in there... he's had up days and down days..... through it all he's been such a trooper.... he doesn't complain...he just takes it all in stride.... He's a fighter...for sure....I'm so very proud of him..... 

This week I am easing back into my work….. finding my way.

I won't say it's easy…It's so very difficult.....it feels really strange… almost wrong…. picking up my camera was even a little scary…. 

There's something very difficult about moving forward when your love is stuck standing still…… 

I want you to know….. I appreciate all the love and support you have sent our way. So grateful.

::

Texture Tuesday will be back tomorrow… the theme for this summer's upcoming Texture Tuesdays will be free & easy…… I hope this is okay with everyone….. keeping things simple as we find our way….

I must sign off…. I am home for one more day…then back into Winnipeg I will go. Must keep busy....

Love and gratitude... always...

xo,

 

Our Story

In a second….everything can change.

I was face timing with a friend last Wednesday….. when the phone rang….. John's doctor called….
from there our sweet simple life began to spin.

The news…. John has a high white blood cell count and needs to be admitted into hospital immediately. A bone marrow biopsy the following day confirmed a diagnosis of Leukaemia. The hospital 3 hours from home….will be his new home for the next several months…… 

The doctors believe they discovered it early and he will make a full recovery.

He's been feeling 'off' for several months… since January I've been saying something wasn't right, his colour was funny… kind of yellowish. He finally went to the doctor last Tuesday. We were thinking Great… maybe they will get to the bottom of this. 

Who knew!!

John has been diagnosed with Leukemia (ALL). The treatment is very intense and in hospital. He started chemo on Friday. He will be in hospital for 3-5 week stints with a few days off in between and then back again for another round. This will continue for several months…

They did catch it early and the doctors are confident he will beat this thing.

In the meantime.....Bye bye summer 2013. 

It makes me so sad… John loves his yard and he had big plans for this summer… one minute he was cutting grass at his moms…next we were rushing to Winnipeg.  

I'm not sure how this will all work out…. I do know, John's job is to get better. I will juggle time between home and the hospital. I'm thankful I can bring much of my work with me. It's going to be tricky for sure…. but we will make it through.

Ben is at my mom and dads…and with Brett. I'm so thankful for their help. It would be really difficult being here knowing Ben was upset. You know how pathetic I am about him…. 'sigh'…

As for my work…. I will find my way … I am going to step back this week….take some time. Please bare with me as we find our footing.

My upcoming class, Start to Finish will run as planned… the schedule may be a little less structured, but I am determined to deliver… 2B, Texture Tuesday, Friday Finds etc….will be back on track next week. John is adamant that I move forward and continue my work. 

I am in Winnipeg with John this week, then home for a bit…. I am thinking I will split the time in half…. We shall see. I know I am here til Friday….from there… I have no idea…. 

Deep breaths….. big gratitude for everything good in our life… family, friendships, all of you, love, faith….hope...exceptional hospital care.... We have so much to be thankful for. We are truly blessed.

I will be back to this space very soon….. we are so grateful for all of your love and support.

Until next time.... so much gratitude.

xo,

p.s. I posted the uptop quote a week or 2 ago...who knew? so powerful....  i will hold it close on this journey.

{Texture Tuesday} The Look-Down eDition & a Give Away.

on the front porch....textured with dream-it.... mouse over to see the original

Hello friends, 

Welcome to Texture Tuesday. I'm so glad you are here.

This Week's TT Challenge details

In honour of Shutter Sister's month long celebration of Elevate the Everyday (more HERE) I thought it would be fun to match today's Elevate prompt which is.....Looking Down.... 

In celebration of Tracey's beautiful new book.... I'd love to send one lucky TT'er a copy of Elevate the Everyday. To enter, join today's TT link-up and leave a comment below stating one of your favorite everyday, ordinary moments..... I will announce the winner on Sunday. The contest will close on Saturday at midnight. 

So for this week, your image must center around 'look down' and contain at least one layer of any of my textures. And why not pop over to Shutter Sisters and link-up there as well.

::

I have a new texture for you today. I call this one dream-it.

Click HERE to download dream-it. Want free textures? Be sure to join the Texture Lovin' List HERE.

For my image up top I simply opened it in PS and added a layer of dream-it at soft light 80% opacity...then applied a fairly high gaussian blur filter.... which basically allowed me to borrow the tones rather than the texture. 

Before we start linking up.... let's talk next week's TT theme..... 

Tuesday, August 21st Texture Tuesday Guidelines are:

Your image must contain at least one layer of today's texture, Dream It. That's it...that's all.

New to Texture Tuesdays? Here's the short and sweet TT rules.

• please link directly to your TT post, not to your main blog url or flickr stream. Please do not link to your online shop. 
• please link back to the Café. You can grab the TT button HERE, if you wish.
• please visit the other TT participants and leave them some comment love. Remember it's a party.... and what's a linky party without lots of comment love? Right! 

Want more details? Click HERE for the full scoop!

.....

Okie doke... time to get started..... Have fun....and as always .... BIG GRATITUDE to each of you that play along. 

xo,

p.s. i had the honour to share an interview with Lesley Riley of Art & Soul Radio....If you'd like to have a listen, click here. :)

One more look down.... same recipe as the up-top image.

Update on August 20 by Kim Klassen

thank you for your entries, the book give away is now closed. The winner is Margaret Bednar. xo