On Thursday, August 18th, we frantically packed up the apartment hoping to get everything ready for our noon flight. I glanced at my phone and saw a text from my sister that read “you might be an Aunty today!” Between two flights from Boston to Winnipeg my family and I were in knots about how my sister was doing and what was going on. 

The week leading up to my surgery back in May, Heidi and Eric had an ultrasound and asked the nurse to write down the gender of the baby in a sealed envelope. Heidi and Eric refused to look inside the envelope, but instead, handed it to me when they got home. They told me they knew the next couple months might be tough for me but that it would be better knowing if I had a niece or a nephew to look forward to come August. Sure enough I opened it and it was blue…tough part would be keeping it to myself for so long (mostly successful with only one slip up! Ha Ha)

We landed In Winnipeg at 6:30 PM and were greeted by my in-laws. They drove us over to our house where they had not only painted our entire upstairs but did so much more than we could ask for. Several family members and friends had put in work and we even got new bathrooms and Paul got his office fixed up! At this point, we still had not heard any updates about my sister. Once everyone had left our house we got a call telling us the baby was here and ready to meet us. At 9:30 pm August 18th, Henry Sawatzky was born. Little Henry was so gracious in is his arrival, not only were we able to spend time with my husbands family who we missed so much, but we were able to be with Henry on the first day of his life and celebrate with him. God’s timing is impeccable. Welcome Henry, I have been waiting for your arrival for a long time. 

I can’t believe the day has finally come. I never thought it would. I remember at the start I couldn’t wrap my head around finishing 30 whole treatments in 6 weeks. It didn’t seem attainable and now the day is finally here. I feel very fortunate to share this moment with Paul, my Mom, my Dad, and our little yorkie, Ruby. But I know they aren’t the only ones here with me, as there are countless people back home who have awaited this day for as long as I have. Some are ringing their own bells at home for me today. I am so grateful for the support and thoughtfulness of others, both near and far. Although I will begin a new chapter that consists of chemo once I am home, it does not take away from the satisfaction of ringing this bell today! 

And with that it is time to pack up the apartment and be on our way home come Thursday. It is about time, my sister Heidi is pregnant and due any day now. There is never a dull moment, and there is no question that the arrival time of this little bundle will be in perfect timing! 

This is Ruby, the newest addition to our family. At 3 pounds, she is so sweet and has the best personality. We have wanted another dog for a while now and on my birthday, we took an uber to visit a yorkie breeder in Beverly, just outside of Boston. We fell in love with the little runt and decided we would get her. The apartment has been full but we love having her spunky self hopping around. Paul brings her to a lot of my appointments at the hospital and we share her cuddles with the staff and other patients.
Today marks one more week until we are home! It also marks one more week of Ruby being an only fur baby until she realizes she has a sister named Phara, a border collie who also doesn’t know there is a new addition to her family. Here is to hoping for a smooth and successful transition for us all next week!

I am also entering the last few days of my treatment and the side effects continue to be only minor, some fatigue and nausea but all manageable. Thank you to everyone who has continued to reach out and check on me. I can hear the bell ringing already! 

July 21st marked my 25th birthday. It also marked my 12th radiation treatment andto my dismay, the day my hair would evidently begin to fall out. My brother lance came to Boston to visit us during my birthday week. I woke up, showered, and rushed over to the hospital for treatment like I do every week day. Paul usually walks me to every appointment and waits for me until I’m done. This time he told me lance would take me. I thought this was a good idea since he deserves a break (and we all know how important Pokemon GO is these days). After my treatment, I came out to the waiting room but couldn’t find my brother or Paul anywhere. Until I turned the corner to see a huge display of decorations, cupcakes, and coffee in the waiting room. I was slightly embarrassed but more grateful that they made such an effort to show me love. Nothing like “special treatment” on your birthday. 

Thank you to everyone who reached out to send me birthday wishes. It made my day! 

So far, I have completed 19/30 proton radiation treatments. They have been going relatively well, with a little bit of nausea and loss of appetite. Below is a picture of my “spaceship” for the summer. My treatments take only about an hour, where they spend most of the time lining me up so that the radiation beams enter the correct placement. My only job is to lay still and not move for the duration of the hour. The team that works with me plays music during the treatment, where Paul often asks them to play Justin Bieber much to my embarrassment. I also have been doing a dose of chemo every week on Tuesdays. Once I return to Winnipeg I will likely have to do 6 more months of chemo (once a month). But for now I continue on in this Boston adventure.

On my last radiation treatment, I get to ring this bell. I am very excited for this day and can hardly wait. It will be very surreal once this chapter is closed. And with that another one will open!