A Letter from Emilie

 Dear friends & family, This is a hard letter to write. Hard because it is not good news. Hard because I want to be brave, but I am a little scared. I am a little sad and a little angry.  I have been having numbness above my left ear. I feel it when I hold still, often several times a day. My doctor ordered an MRI to take a look, just to be safe. I really thought it was just my scalp reacting to my chemo. It felt weird  and similar when I lost my hair earlier this year. It was probably just this happening again. We were able to do the MRI on Tuesday. Dennis had a snow day so he was able to help me brave the yucky roads. I was grateful he was there. I am a bit claustrophobic and was not prepared for the long test. (I am used to short CT scans) I decided to pray while I was in the machine. I was filled with peace.  I received a call from my doctor on Thursday. (It is never good to receive a call from the doctor when you have an appointment the following Monday.) Th...

Dear Friends and Family, It has been a LONG few weeks! I apologize for the lack of updates.  Here are the highlights and adventures from the last few weeks:  Emilie's cold and cough: I started coughing at the beginning of January. I have been on two different antibiotics trying to kick it. It has been a rough full body cough, and combined with chemo I have been feeling pretty rough. Just finishing a two week round of Augmentin. I am finally noticing it letting up! I lost my voice for over a week. It still sounds like I am a heavy smoker. I miss my voice!  Brandon's Recital: Brandon did an amazing job at his Senior Recital. It was awe inspiring and I can not tell you how impressed I was at his hard work. I tried to upload a snippet but it is not cooperating. I will keep working on it! We got to bring some refreshments for the reception afterword. It turned out to be a really fun night. Congratulations Brandon! He and McKenzie have decided not to walk, but they are graduate...

Dear Friends and Family,  Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! We made it! I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas. We were almost able to have the whole family for Christmas.   It was so fun to have the family together. We did our traditional Christmas dinner of Cornish game hens and mashed potatoes. We decorated the table, got out the candles, and enjoyed candlelight and sparkling cider. It was really fun to have everyone together.  Saturday was so fun and we got to spend time together at my my mom's house. We had some yummy food and then we acted out the Nativity. It is my favorite Christmas tradition! I always feel the spirit so strongly testifying of His birth. I love singing Christmas the hymns. I did not write a Christmas letter this year. I thought it might be fun to update you on the family! JAIME   AND   TATE-   They are living in Delaware so we did not get to enjoy their company this year. We did get to Facetime them and had a good cha...