Erica says one of her greatest joys this month is that she has not received any bad news in a long time. Yay! But we are not a couple that settles for just no bad news, so we’ve been making our own good news. Here is a quick recap of the last 4 weeks.
We celebrated both of our boys’ August birthdays with a trip to Deep Creek Lake. Renting a boat, we were able to wakeboard and ski for the first time in possibly a decade. I am happy to say that I can still hang with the wild boys (IYKYK). The day was so packed we all forgot to take photos. Thankfully, Christian’s girlfriend, Lauren, snapped this great one of Erica and Christian with his dog, Crosby.
We also had a visit from a dear friend from Erica’s childhood in Lake Floyd, WV. April Kaull stopped by to give us this excellent drawing that Erica’s father had done when designing the Kaull’s West Virginia home. It was great to see you April!
Labor Day was a serine paddle on Lake Arthur/Moraine State Park, just 30 minutes north of Pittsburgh. A different speed from Deep Creek Lake, but water none-the-less. Our happy place.
Earlier this month at North Park, a small lake near our home, we took advantage of high water to paddle up a tributary that is usually not accessible by kayak. This was a surreal moment of being transported to another place and time — discovering a new world in our own back yard where pterodactyls still exist.
We squeezed in a trip to Cleveland for Octoberfest with the Gumeny family. Great friends. Good times.
The best moments to celebrate are the ones unplanned, like the spontaneous church service that Erica and I found ourselves in during her latest treatment. Due to changes at the hospital, we did not go to our standard open treatment room. Instead, we were directed to a small closed room which was shared with a another chemo treatment patient. Carol was just beginning her cancer treatment journey and informed us that she had also lost her husband to cancer years ago. Carol came prepared with a laminated sheet of Bible verses of hope and promise. She read this 2-sided sheet out loud, prayed for her and Erica and openly shared her faith with the nurses. I often talk about God healing through miracles and medicine. Thank you, Carol, for sharing your faith and fight with us.
Erica will have one more treatment before her next series of scans on October 16. Please continue to pray for healing, motivation to overcome fatigue and resistance agains scanxiety.
YAY! Through The Valley 
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