Round 4: ✔

Another round has come and gone smoothly. Kenzi had her central line inserted last Thursday and her PICC line removed. They intubated her for this procedure, which they haven't done in the past. They said they prefer to do that when they are working so close to her neck/airway. Everything went well and now Wes and I are learning how to flush this new line and do the dressing changes. She did well with this round of chemo; not quite as tired as the last time and not a lot of nausea or anything. They gave her a blood transfusion before she left the hospital on Wednesday because her hemoglobin was low. We are thankful for each round that passes with her still feeling relatively well.

Wes and I have been trying to switch out more, so we can spend time with all the kids, but it's difficult to find a balance that includes time together. We haven't been at home in Vernon together for 2 months now and have spent less than 24 hours together in the last week. With summer break coming soon, we are trying to figure out a way that we can have the whole family together more, but it's hard to make plans not knowing when Kenzi's surgery will be, what that will look like and trying to work around commitments we have in Vernon. We're still just planning each week as it comes. 

We continue to be amazed at God's goodness through this. So many people have come together to support us and help us carry this load. To be honest it is difficult to be on the receiving end and our initial instinct was to say, "thanks, but we're ok." This road will be long though and we know we need the support, so we are humbly accepting it and are so grateful. A huge thanks to everyone who has helped us through fundraisers, bottles drives and donations. Wes has had to take a step back from his company to be here. He's downsized and has had to hire another full time employee. He works a little while he can when he's in Vernon, but that's not a lot. We are thankful that his employee came back this year and Wes was just teaching him to drive the truck and trailer before this all happened. It's amazing to see how God lined that up. Looking ahead there's a good possibility that he'll have to shut down his snowplowing division this winter. There is a lot to think about regarding that decision and it's difficult to make that call, so please pray for us in that regard. 

Love is in the Hair is a fundraiser that our families organized. (You can check it out on Facebook if you haven't heard about it yet.) Kenzi has loved picking hair colours for people and we're so excited for the big reveal! I was able to be a part of some of it with Linden, Ayden and Beckham while I was in Vernon. We spent an evening with family and watched them all dye their hair. It great to have some laughs, but when I stop it think about the reason behind it, it's emotional to say the least. If you want to show your support by putting colour in your hair, we would love to see it! Don't feel the need to raise funds or donate, we just love seeing a rainbow of haircolour! I plan to have colour in my hair throughout Kenzi's whole treatment and Wes promised to keep his head shaved, so we're having fun with it.

While we were in the hospital this round, Kenzi started the Beads of Courage program. Kids who are going through cancer treatment get a different colour bead for different procedures/events, like chemotherapy, anesthesia, biopsies, nights spent in hospital and blood transfusions. It was crazy looking back and seeing how far we've come already and what Kenzi has all been through. We even took some shortcuts and did a bead for each week in hospital instead of each night, so we didn't empty the bead supply. It gives Kenzi something to look forward to and it's encouraging to see what she's overcome. 

We love seeing the communion of saints come together around the globe to lift us up in prayer. Even through this tough situation we see God's goodness and we feel His love through each and every one of you. You are such a blessing to us.

"I will give thanks to the Lord with my whole heart; I will recount all of your wonderful deeds." Psalm 9:1