Flowers

Grandma Judi & I smiling pretty with the beautiful floral arrangement from my Nanna, Poppa Brian & Auntie Bekah in Ohio.

Outdoor beauty

Mom received a lovely "Dark Eyes" Fuschia from her eldest brother Jerry & wife Jan in Indiana. It is her favorite plant of the summer. (Growing up I always remember several fuschias hanging over me as I played on the porch.) Mom loves tending to it & enjoying it through the window.

Berries!

Picking berries in Grandma Judi's backyard.

We found blueberries, huckleberries (they just came out!) and salmonberries.

Oscar's favorite are blueberries...here he is showing off a mouthful & his stained face!

Eleanor in the tall grass showing off her salmonberry with the bushes behind her. We will be having fresh berries in our pancakes in the morning, although it was a task to keep them in the bucket rather than the children's mouths!

Judi is Home

Grandma Judi & Poppa Ronnie made it home safely on the afternoon jet. They arrived in style as her friend MaryAnn picked them up in her car and drove them over on the airport ferry and then they were greeted by several nurses/co-workers/friends! Even the sun came out for them! It had been raining off and on all day! My Dad cannot get over the support & love shown to his bride. He is, naturally, estactic to be back in Alaska and is already making plans to go fishing later this week.

Mom looks great and has more energy than I had anticipated. She had a good post-op visit with her surgeon this morning and was given the go-ahead to return home. Thank you all for your thoughts and prayers...keep 'em coming for the PET scan on August 4th so we will have a better understanding of what to expect next.

Siblings

Big hug!
Oscar is all smiles showing off his new bottom teeth. He now has 12 out of his 20 baby teeth, 6 on top & 6 on the bottom. He seems to have a more difficult time than Eleanor did with teething.

StoryTime

The kids posing below one of Ketchikan's many totem poles downtown after StoryHour at the library. We have been going on Friday afternoons as well as Saturdays for their special events: last week a magician from Juneau and today the Annual Teddy Bear Picnic (complete with blankets, teddy bears & picnic!) that I attended as a child. Oscar enjoyed watching the live music. Eleanor liked walking through Whale Park afterwards and seeing all the flowers, foxglove is one of her new favorites. You can see the tall magenta spikes in the background.

Judi set to return to Ketchikan

Just spoke with my Mom while the kiddies were in the bathtub and she has purchased her plane tickets to return to Ketchikan! She will see her surgeon for a post-op appointment Monday morning, July 21st, and then fly home that afternoon. She will have to return to Seattle on August 4th for a PET scan and then we'll learn more about her upcoming treatment (ie: chemo, gamma/cyber knife, radiation). Apparently leiomyosarcomas do not respond well to radiation, so the oncologist is talking about cyber knife treatment. I think it also has something to do with the lack of clear 2 cm margins near her aorta, so pray that what the surgeon removed was sufficient!

On the loose

Mom had a good day today...you'll never guess where she went! To the zoo!!! I was quite happily surprised to hear that she is starting to get out and about, yesterday they took her to the locks and she enjoyed seeing all the flowers. Dad liked watching all the boats jockeying for position to pass through the locks. Today Mark pushed her in a wheelchair and she was able to watch Madisen's excitement and wonderment at the variety of animals. Mom liked the weaver birds best. Wonder what adventures tomorrow will bring for her?

Sweet as a Rose

Daddy had four pink roses sent to me on my birthday while I was in daycare with Mommy at work. What a special treat! Also, I am wearing my new princess nightgown from Nanna & Poppa Brian, I have worn it every night since I got it!?!

Grandma Judi is resting well at the condo and enjoying company. Old friends from Ketchikan Sheila & Roy Carlson (now living in Kennewick, WA) drove over to visit for the weekend. And Karen, Meredith's Mom, flew in from Maine this afternoon. Looks like Dad will be staying south with Mom for the long haul, and flying home with her sometime on or after July 22 as she'll have a post-op appointment with her surgeon on Monday July 21. Many thanks to all of you for your prayers, thoughtful cards, candy, balloons & even flowers! Mom keeps me informed and is overwhelmed by the outpouring of your support & love.

Birthday Girl

Cousin Madisen & I made cupcakes to bring to daycare to share with my new friends there.
Pink is my favorite color and I just love sprinkles!

YUM!

Jumping in the bounce house at daycare

Four candles...one for each year

Let's eat cake!

Clucking like a chicken in my new Hello Kitty scrubs. (don't ask...she was just being goofy! Too much sugar?) I want to be a nurse like Grandma Judi so these will come in handy! (She's been wearing these out and about and gets lots of comments! I had thought she'd use them for playing dr at home but she, per usual, had something else in mind.)

Kiddin' Around

Picking Blueberries with our friend Carson.

We made a pie to surprise Mommy with when she returned from Seattle, we even hid under the table and jumped out to yell "Surprise!" when she arrived to pick us up. Oscar is a champion blueberry picker and has officially mastered the pincher grasp. He even fed Jill (Carson's Mommy) blueberries! Too cute...

Breakfast?

Helping Poppa by pressure washing the deck for him.

Pike Place Market

Dad & I enjoyed people-watching and the smells of fresh flowers, fish & produce at the Pike Place Market.

July 4th Wooden Boat Show

Kiddie sailing "pool," we saw a boy fall in and the mom quickly retrieve him, exciting!

Dad enjoyed seeing the wooden racing boats he recalled from his childhood. The Wooden Boat Show at Lake Union was our July 4 afternoon break from the hospital.

Walking Papers!

Mom kept asking how her peonies were doing back home so I was glad to bring her some from the Pike Place Market. (Hers are just starting to peek out!)

Mom was released from the hosptial this morning, Friday July 11th, after the veinogram showed no blood clots in her leg causing the swelling! She is resting comfortably in the recliner at the condo and enjoying watching her granddaughter Madisen zoom around! These pictures were taken on Sunday, my last day in Seattle before flying back to Ketchikan to be with the kids.

Thursday

SO...where to start. Guess Mom was put on a clear liquid diet for 2 days to help keep food down and today she was allowed back on regular food. We had talked on my way to work and she was tasting for an egg, then she told me on my way home from work she had eaten TWO eggs and an english muffin today! And they stayed down so that is always good! She also had her first shower today since the surgery and said it never felt so good!

Tomorrow she will have a veinogram on her left leg as her ankle is really swollen. The Dr has ordered the ultrasound to check for blood clots as the source of swelling. Mom was glad she shaved during her shower! :)

The Oncologist is still wanting more information before he decides what her treatment should be. He wants her to have a PET scan in 3 weeks (the wait is so that there will be no interference from healing after surgery). We also learned from the pathology report that there are two areas where the margins are not as clear as we had hoped. Near her aorta & renal vein. So cyber (gamma) knife radiation is a stong possibility in addition to chemo, but again, we need the PET scan results first. Mom said that God orchestrated the deliverance of that news perfectly as all her company was present so she didn't have to learn that news alone. She feels uplifted and held high before God, at peace with this news.

No word yet as to when she'll be released from the hospital. Her surgeon wants to have an appointment with her before she can fly back to Ketchikan and she'll be out of the office all this next week on vacation. We had hoped, if possible, that she could be home sooner but now we are looking at July 22 at best. Dad is doing so well in the city, although those of you that know him know that he is chomping at the bit to get back north to the "clean fresh air" & away from the "one-armed parking garage bandit!" He is not used to paying for parking and it bothers him so to have to pay $20/day!

Please continue your prayers for God's work & will in her life. I believe she is such a strong witness to all those around her & I am thankful daily to have her as my MOM! :)

Walkin' Wednesday!

Sorry to not post yesterday...it's not easy being a "single Mom!" I have pics to upload and post from Eleanor's Birthday but it will have to wait until I have more time on my hands. Tomorrow is my last day of work for the week so be patient! :)

Mom is much improved and they are talking of having her released from the hospital! She is trying to put on the brakes though. She is moving around well, doing 12 laps around the nurses station yesterday, approx. a 1/2 mile! Her concern is that she is not able to keep food down and has regressed to a mostly liquid diet (juice, jello & applesauce) b/c of her bloating and excess water weight. She has gained 25 pounds in water since the surgery!?! Thankfully she lost 6 pounds of it yesterday alone. This is turning out to NOT be the weight loss regime she thought it might be!?! I've been teasing her that there ARE better ways out there to loose weight, and now it is so ironic for her to have gained!

Her Dr has confirmed that the malignancy was a lieomyosarcoma that originated in her renal vein. (Lieo=smooth & myo=muscle, so a smooth muscle tumor). She met with her oncologist late tonight to discuss chemotherapy...unfortunately I fell asleep and now its too late to call back to hear the report so that will have to wait until tomorrow! It is a Dr that comes to Ketchikan so they coincidentally know one another from work; so wonderful! Mom is also enjoying the company of her brother Elliot. He was kind enough to relieve Dad for a day so he could spend some time away from the hospital with Mark, Meredith & Madisen.

Eleanor had a good Birthday & was so cute asking me "Do I look like a 4 year old now?" I'm hoping to have a joint late party & welcome home Grandma Judi combination party but it's a little tricky as I don't know for sure when Mom will return from Seattle. Thank goodness for open-ended plane tickets!

Monday

I am back in Ketchikan & will be back in the dental office tomorrow, Eleanor's FOURTH BIRTHDAY!?! How time flies! I helped her to sleep tonight by telling her birth story, she was so excited to have us be back together again. She has had so many changes lately starting with our trip to Alaska, the wedding (which I have yet to post pics of!), Daddy going back to Virginia, Mommy going to work & starting in daycare, and then Grandma Judi going to Seattle for surgery! She was such a big girl to have that many sleepovers in a row so I could go south to be with my Mom. She has informed me that she doesn't want to have any more sleepovers!?! I told her she will most likely change her mind someday...

Mom continues to improve and had most of her "leashes" removed today: her catheter & PCA pump, she now receives her pain meds by mouth. The only line remaining is the IJ in her neck. Her Dr was by this morning and said she hopes to have Mom out of the hospital in a few days! She has yet to give a definitive diagnosis although the term lieomyosarcoma has been used, a rare form of cancer also known as LMS. http://www.lieomyosarcoma.info/ The final biopsy results are not in yet though so this is not confirmed.

Thank you for your prayers, her headaches are being resolved with Tylenol every 6 hours, and her abdominal swelling has gone down some. Please continue to pray that the Team of Doctors & Oncologists will develop a solid game plan for her future treatment.

Mark, Meredith & Madisen will be arriving tomorrow, as well as one of my Mom's younger brothers, Elliot, from Detroit. Today she had a visit from former Ketchikanite's Lynn Anderson & Kay King. What a joy to help pass the time by reminiscing with family & friends!

Smiling Sunday

Great News! Today Mom was transferred out of ICU to the Med/Surgical Floor! She also has been getting up to sit in a chair vs the hospital bed and even took a walk down the hallway tonight. Today was my last day to be with her as I head back to Ketchikan tomorrow morning. Mark, Meredith & Madisen will be coming south on Tuesday.

Please pray for her headache & the abdominal swelling on her left side to go down. No word yet as to how long she'll remain at the hospital, I'd guess at least 5 more days? Hope to learn more after she meets with her surgeon tomorrow.

You can now contact her:
Judi Lundamo, Room 700
Swedish Medical Center
First Hill Campus
747 Broadway
Seattle, WA 98122
206-386-6859

Saturday in Seattle

Judi is much improved today! She is still in the ICU with hopes of going to the Med/Surg Floor tomorrow. Her fever is gone (PTL!), no BP medications, and her epidural was removed this morning. She has been switched to a PCA pump with dilaudid for pain control. Physical Therapy got her up and sitting in a chair in the morning and doing some leg exercises in the afternoon so we were all pleased with that progress.

Thank you all so much for your prayers, she can feel each & every one!

Happy 4th of July!

Mom remains in the ICU and is still in good sleepy spirits! Although still swollen, it has gone down from yesterday and she had both her IV needles removed from her right & left hands. The IJ (intra-jugular) line in her right neck remains as today it was used periodically for blood draws/tests. She was running a fever of 101 when we first got there at 7:30 this morning, this afternoon it was down to 99 but had jumped back up to 100 as were were preparing to leave this evening. She also has an occasional cough & wheezing in her lungs that the nurses are monitoring. She is thankful to still have her epidural as it keeps her comfortable in her incision area. The nurses also titrated her down to a much lower dose today on one of her two blood pressure medications, they are now taking her BP at 1/2 hour intervals.

Today was the first day that Mom left her bed with the help of a physical therapist. She was able to stand up and do the "side-stepping tango" along the side of her bed. Dad & I were both very encouraged by this, as well as her upgrade to a normal diet. She didn't truly take advantage of it but did have some wonderful seasonal patriotic fruit: strawberries, blueberries & raspberries (her favorite!), yogurt & tomato soup.

Dad & I were able to take in the Lake Union Wooden Boat Festival during one of Mom's naps, we enjoyed seeing beautiful original wood boats & eating American cuisine: hot dogs & ice cream! We also watched the fireworks both on local TV & out our living room window (yes, there really is a 7 second delay!) here at the condo, it was the first time we had ever watched them together and Dad's first time seeing them in over twenty years as he is usually out fishing on the boat.

Happy 4th of July! Although this wasn't in our plans, there is no other place we would rather be than with Judi!!!

Grandma Judi in Seattle

I hope that this will be a helpful temporary venue in which to share information regarding my Mom's medical treatment. I thought about creating a new blog but most of you know this address so perhaps this will be easier than creating something new.

Mom had her surgery yesterday, July 2nd, at Swedish Medical Center in Seattle, Washington. I flew down that night from Ketchikan and am so grateful to be here with my Dad and be with her during her recovery time. She is still in the ICU and quite swollen and sleepy from her major surgery yesterday. We learned on Tuesday, July 1st (Mom & Dad's 41st Wedding Anniversary) that the mass found just two weeks ago was a soft tissue sarcoma. We were all so shocked...Mom dubbed the tumor the "muskrat" and the Dr feels quite confident that she was able to "evict" all of him. We should learn more about her follow-up treatment next week after the team of doctors meet to determine the best course of action, ie: chemo, radiation or both. She has an "L-shaped" incision & the only organ lost along with the "muskrat" was her left kidney. There had been talk of possibly removing more to maintain clear 5cm margins (approx. 2 inches) to ensure getting all of the cancer out. The tumor was 11cm in size and close to her aorta which posed a trickiness that only the finesse of an excellent surgeon whose hands were guided by the Lord could remove.

This morning she had really low blood pressure and was receiving a BP medication to help regulate it. It seems to be much improved tonight and the automatic cuff goes off every 15 minutes rather then every 5 so she is happy with that! She has an epidural (middle back) which is helping keep her pain at bay, she consistently reports a "2" on a scale from "0-10" with 0 being no pain. She is able to have clear liquids and today had 2 popsicles and 2 small cranberry juices! The staff at Swedish is wonderful and she should have consistent care with both her day & night nurses being on for the next 3 days, although we are hoping to have her transferred out of the ICU prior to that! She has had such a peace about her and wants you all to know that she can feel the love & power of your prayers.

I will be here until Monday & then Mark, Meredith & Madisen will come to relieve me. Thank you Carol for watching Eleanor & Oscar for me, otherwise I could not be here helping my Mom as I am. How can I ever thank you?

If you have anything you'd like to send to Mom I will post the hospital address as soon as she has a room number for which things can be sent! (There are no flowers allowed in the ICU.) You can also mail cards to her at this address:
Judi Lundamo
c/o: Klepser
965 W Nickerson, #14
Seattle, WA 98119 until *hopefully* mid-July when she can return home.

Thank you all again for your generous outpouring of support & prayers, we appreciate your thoughtfulness so much in our time of need.