Three treatments down!

Last Thursday, May 14th, was Joe's third chemo treatment. Prior to this treatment, Joe discussed his chemo side-effects (headache, nausea and lethargy) with his doctor. The doctor added an anti-nausea medication to Joe's regiment to aid in combating this side effect. Joe was also given a few more tips to prepare his body for treatment, such as hypo-hydrating 24 hours before chemo. The new prescription and helpful tips seem to have help alot, as Joe tolerated this chemo treatment so much better! Treatment started at 10 am and Joe ate a meal of roast beef, mashed (masked?) potatoes and green beans while undergoing treatment. When he and Vicki returned home from the hospital, they were even able to enjoy a short walk together. What an improvement!

Joe has one more chemo treatment in Coffeyville on May 28th. On June 22nd and 23rd, he will return to M.D. Anderson Cancer Clinic in Houston to evalute his progress. As always, we will keep you updated all along the way!

Memorial Day weekend will be here in just a couple short days and the Grays will be hitting the road, Jack! Ben, Sally and Milo will be traveling with Joe, Vicki and Willow to Eureka Springs, Arkansas for the long weekend. We will be staying in the camper-trailer. This will be the first trip of the year for the trailer and we are ready to roll! The weather should be beautiful and Eureka Springs is sure to be an experience!

We hope you have a super, spectacular weekend! Stay safe and have fun!

A weekend full of celebrations

Okay, it's almost the weekend again, but I wanted to tell you guys about last weekend. Friday, May 8th was Joe's birthday and Sunday was Mother's Day. So, we had some serious celebrating to do! SallyAnn's mom, Susan, was able to join the Gray's for a weekend in Coffeyville. This was Susan's first trip to Coffeyville, so we showed her around town a bit. She got to see both Taco Bell AND Walmart! I'm sure she was impressed!

Ben, Susan, SallyAnn and Milo arrived on Friday night. Saturday included a trip to Country Time Antique Mall and Walmart for the out-of-towners and our chaperon, Vicki. We thought Joe might rest while we were gone, but maybe he was just enjoying the silence! That afternoon we all enjoyed the BEAUTIFUL spring day with a field trip to the back yard (also known as the back 40) where the camper-trailer is just waiting for a long weekend! We brought dogs, music, snacks and beverages and sat in the camper with the shades up and the windows open - it was SO nice! Joe, Vicki, Ben, Sally and the doggies will be taking the camper to Eureka Springs, Arkansas over the Memorial Day weekend, so this was just a preview!

We made the quick trip back to the house to make dinner. The boys fired up the grill and the ladies got the sides ready - it was time to enjoy our Omaha Steaks dinner! The Illinois Gray's (Steve, Nancy and Jennifer) sent Joe an entire meal from Omaha Steaks: 4 big, beautiful steaks, roasted potato wedges and sweet corn. Oh. My. Gosh. Everything was delicious! The steaks were grilled to perfection (good job, boys!) and the sides were amazing! Once we digested a bit and loosened our pants, we enjoyed the carrot cake made by Vicki for Joe's birthday. Wow.

Sunday morning we all attended church together and came home for lunch. Both Susan and Vicki received potted geraniums for Mother's Day from Ben and SallyAnn. Let's hope Sally didn't jinx the plants with her black-thumb just by touching them! Later that afternoon, the Kansas Citians headed back north after many hugs and pictures! (Click here to see pictures from our weekend!)

Thanks for the great weekend!

Weekend wrap-up

Ben and SallyAnn (and Milo) traveled down to Coffeyville this past weekend to spend time with Joe & Vicki (and Willow). Willow was so relieved Milo was able to make this trip!

Since Joe's chemo treatment was on Thursday (April 30), Joe wasn't feeling the best throughout the weekend. He didn't get a headache like the last time, but was suffering from nausea. Even though Joe wasn't feeling super, we still made the most of our time together by chatting, watching tv and movies and laughing at the silly dogs! SallyAnn filled the house with the delicious smell of homemade apple pie on Saturday. Due to the nausea, Joe wasn't able to enjoy the pie on Saturday, but has made up for it since!

Joe wasn't feeling well on Sunday morning, so Vicki, Ben and SallyAnn went to church and let Joe rest at home. Thankfully, they were given communition to take home for Joe. Everyone at church has been so kind and helpful. Vicki was able to chat with Kasey who battled breast cancer and has been an inspiration. Kasey has had some of the same experiences Joe has: visiting M.D. Anderson, chemo treatments and simply fighting the cancer with everything you've got. Kasey and her husband have been so great and we are blessed to have them in our court.

Thanks for checking in with us! Don't miss the slideshow below! (If you get email updates, you must visit the site to see these pictures.)

Pictures from our weekend

Ben was home to visit for the weekend and helped us with a few projects. We were able to get quite a bit accomplished. Ben is a great motivator and a wonderful son! We missed not having SallyAnn here, but she had a commitment to cantor at church on Sunday in Kansas City.

We are glad you are here. Leave us a note!

Thank you for visiting our blog...
it has been heart warming to see
how many of you have been
“Keeping up with the Gray’s!”

We invite you to contribute
to our blog by leaving your
comments here. We would
enjoy hearing from you and
it would be a great source of
“good medicine” for us. We
would love to hear how you
are doing too!

Love to All,
Vicki, Joe, Benjamin & SallyAnn

"First" Haircut

Well.... not his VERY first haircut, but his first since being diagnosed. He was looking a bit scruffy! Our doctor told us that Joe may not lose his hair from chemo... that's a plus! But if he does, he'll be the first male Gray in his family to be bald... those Gray guys grow quite a head of hair!

A little story about Joe's barber... after moving here,
Joe was on the search for a good barber. He decided
to try a little shop not far from home. During the first
visit, Joe and the barber found they had several things
in common, including relatives around Burlington. It
turned out that the barber is married to Vicki's cousin!
So, Joe ended up with not just a barber, but a new
friend and cousin. Good to know you Kirk!