Post Run For The Rose Update. 4/12/2018

"Your relationship with Me transcends all your circumstances. This is why you can praise Me and enjoy My Presence in the midst of the darkest difficulties. To find Me in such times, you have to really exert your faith; but I am always near."

It seems much easier for us to praise Him as life has been so very positive for us right now, but then I have to think, the TRUE reason why we appreciate these times right now, is because we have had some of the darkest of times. But even through those dark times, we found Him very near- guiding us through it all, giving us the strength to rely on Him to carry us, at times when we felt far too weak to go through it all alone. 

We were so blessed to make our 5th trip to Run For The Rose in Houston last weekend, where we had 70 team members, and we've raised over $6,000 THIS year alone. 

Which means, in the last 4.5 years of Dad's brain cancer journey, we've been able to donate $33,595 to support brain cancer research. 

Y'all, that is pretty darn incredible. 

This year was a bit interesting for me, as I didn't feel nearly as prepared, or as organized, as I typically am when it comes to the Run For The Rose- but I had some good reasons! Friday & Saturday I was in Austin celebrating one of my best friends marry her best friend. This best friend of mine even asked me before she set her date when the Run For The Rose would take place, so that she could make sure there wasn't a conflict. And as sweet as that was, I could not have ANYONE plan a wedding around my schedule. The wedding happened to fall on the same weekend as the run, and although I was exhausted Sunday after leaving the wedding in Austin around 11 pm, to make it to Houston by 7 am Sunday- the meaning behind the entire weekend was still all very much there. 

Someone asked me how I did it- how I managed to be all in at the wedding Saturday night, knowing I would get (basically) a nap before the Run For The Rose- and you just figure it out for those that you love. I had a weekend filled with some of my absolute best friends as we danced and celebrated our friend- and a weekend filled with my family as we supported Dad and the countless other brain cancer families. 

I mean, does it get any better than that? 

Dad looked great at the Run For The Rose, and he did such a great job during the "Survivor Walk"- which always manages to have me in tears. We are so proud of Dad, and Mom, for all the sacrifices and the strength they have shown throughout it all. 

Thank you all who have loved, supported, and prayed for us throughout Dad's journey. We know we are in fact the lucky ones in this journey- Dad has beat each and every statistic placed on him- and for that we are so very blessed. We've been given some incredible quality time with Dad, and we continue to praise Him for all the strength He's provided to us throughout this journey. There were times we didn't think we would survive it all, but with His hand leading us through the journey, it was all possible. 

Thank you all again for making our 5th trip to Run For The Rose so incredibly successful, and thanks for helping us BTHO Brain Cancer!

Holy Cow- It's Been 4.5 YEARS? Dad's 4.5 Year Cancer-Versary. 4/5/2018

I think the title says it all- HOLY COW! Y'all, today marks 4.5 YEARS since Dad's seizure. A day we consider Dad's "Cancer-versary". 

We still can't believe it's been 4.5 years- as it all seems like FOREVER ago that we heard those words "malignant tumor", and it also seems like just yesterday that we sat in the ER trying to figure out exactly WHAT was going on with Dad. 

We've learned a lot about ourselves these last 4.5 years. 

I've personally grown spiritually in ways I didn't think I could- as this journey had me shaking my fist at God for the first 6 months or so, and yet He never left my side, no matter how angry I was. No matter how much I questioned this journey. 

It's pretty amazing to find that someone can love you SO much, that no matter how angry, no matter how hurt, no matter how upset you are with them, they never let go of your hand, or your heart. My personal relationship with Jesus Christ has given me a new sense of comfort in this crazy world. I still get anxiety over scans, or when Dad has a headache, or days when Dad is confused- but I've found this peace with it all- that it is what it is. That we've been given FAR more time than we were ever promised- so at this point, we've figured it out before when things looked bad- I have no doubt that we will figure it out again IF something happens in the future. 

The last 4.5 years were nothing that we imagined our life to be like before Dad's seizure- but that's what is so interesting about life, it's never what we expected. 

We have a new normal. And sure, there are many things we wish were different. We wish Dad had more strength. We wish his speech was where it was before his seizure. We wish Dad NEVER had brain cancer. 

But IF these things were different, if Dad was never diagnosed- I wonder if our relationship with Jesus Christ would be as strong. I wonder if we would be HAPPY to take lots of family pictures for every special occasion. I wonder if we would appreciate life as much as we do.

These last 4.5 years have us celebrating SMALL victories- and we pray the next 4.5 years (and more!) will have us doing the same. We are so proud of Dad for his unbelievable amount of strength and determine- and we are equally as proud of Mom for her strength and determination. These two have shown us all what it is like to have complete faith in time when faith seems no where to be found. 

This weekend we get to celebrate Dad's 4.5 YEARS as a brain cancer SURVIVOR by attending one of our favorite events, Run For The Rose. It's a little 5k that is doing such BIG things in the brain cancer community. We are praying for good weather and for all to have a great time. We are so blessed that we've raised over $5,000 this year alone, and are bringing 70 participants on Dad's team. We thank each of you who have walked with us in this journey, thank you all for helping us BTHO Brain Cancer!