I survived surgery!!! Ron and the girls took very good care of me and I couldn't have survived without Ron. I at first thought Ron was crazy for taking the week off to help me but am so glad he did. Do you remember the vows for better or for worse - Ron is feeling that right now. He has to help me get dressed, shower, empty the drainage tube, do laundry, finish Christmas shopping and the list goes on.........He can't thank everyone enough for the meals continually provide because it is one major thing he can cross off his too do list.

Now a few details on what is happening with CANCER. I had a partial masectomy and reconstruction done Tues. Dec. 11. My mom took me to the surgeons office on Mon. to have the drain removed and she told us that from the looks of the preliminary pathology report they are still showing some cancer. The surgeon removed 12 lymph nodes and 4 out of the 12 still showed signs of cancer - this didn't surprise her. I guess that is pretty normal results with people who have chemo first. She said that people who don't have chemo first sometime have 50 nodes removed. I am looking at the bright side and am happy with my 12!!! The surprise part is that they still found some ductal carcinoma in the original tumor area. I guess other pathologists are reviewing the sample and then will let her know the final results hopefully later this week. If I understand everything correctly this means possibly more surgery and a potential of more chemo. I DON'T LIKE either option but will do whatever they tell me to do. Please pray for my strength to get throught this!!! I haven't handled this news very well and have shed a lot of tears. Please pray for my families strength to get through this and for the doctors expertise to successfully remove all cancer from my body.

We want to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year and say THANKS for everything. Love, Ron, Julie, Anna, Rachel, and Grace

Hi everyone - I want to wish you all a Happy Thanksgiving!! I hope you all enjoy this special day with family and friends. I am thankful for all of your friendships, kind words, food, and support. I couldn't have gotten this far without you!!!!!! Well a quick update on me: CHEMO is officially done. Last Monday was completion day and I have been recovering ever since. I am not bouncing back to quickly this time. I think I have told you in the past that my hands and feet are numb as a side affect to the chemo well 2 days before chemo I fell down a small flight of stairs and sprained both of my ankles. Very embarrassing and VERY PAINFUL. I stumbled painfully into chemo and then have basically been home since. Everone who comes over finds me in the same place - my big blue overstuffed recliner. I'm going to surprise them someday and be in a different spot. I can't wait for that day. Our bedroom is in the basement and finally after a week managed to sleep in it. I'm making progress.
More about what happens next with me: After speaking with the doctors lately it has been made clear that my cancer was much more aggressive than we originally thought. Because of this, I will have to go every 3 weeks for an IV treatment of a preventative drug called Herceptin. (I was very depressed about this because I thought I would be done with IV's and I wanted my port removed) I will have to do this for a year. They also took some blood and sent it to a high tech lab to do some genetic testing so I can see what my future and the future of my children hold. Pray that the result are negative!!
I must tell you that Grace is screaming at me to get out of the tub so I have not proofed this letter - I hope it makes sense. Happy Thanksgiving - Love, Julie

Hi Everyone - I know it's been awhile but I thought I'd update you on treatment #9!! It was another long Monday. My mom and I got to the chemo place around 12:20pm for my 12:45 appt. and we finally got home around 7:30pm. I'm going to owe my mom huge for this!! We played scrabble with another lady who was having her last treatment (lucky her). I WON - I was doing so well that I managed to even stay awake through the Benedryl. This is quite impressive since usually I am drooling because it knocks me out so much. Anyways, Tues. I felt fine and like always about Wed. afternoon I start feeling very tired and have extreme leg pain and numb hands and feet. I got some pain medicine this time for the Dr. and that seemed to take the edge off. I went to church Sun. morning which was my first outing since Wed. and after 1 1/2 hours I quickly went home to rest. Today, Monday, I feel much better and started back up babysitting and even managed to go to the grocery store. (Ron will be very happy because we had no milk, no bread, etc.....) Well 1 more treatment Nov. 12 and then on to surgery and unfortunately radiation. I want to thank everyone again for the continued prayers and the displays of love that we have received. We couldn't have gotten this far without you!!!! THANK YOU - Love, Julie

Cards for a Cure

Hello Julie’s Friends!
As all of you I’m sure are aware October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. I want to send a “shout out” to all of you awesome friends who participated in the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure a few weeks ago to honor the women in our lives who have been affected by breast cancer. Due to a prior commitment, I was unable to participate in the event, and therefore have tried to come up with a way to assist in raising money for the SGK Foundation.

I have many wonderful blessings in my life given to me by our gracious and loving God. Two of those cherished gifts are my friendship with Julie and my gift of stamping. So, I have designed some simple note cards that I would like to make available to all of you. I will be accepting orders until October 31st. The note cards are $8 for a pack of 5 with envelopes. The 1st 10 people who order will receive an additional surprise in their order. I want you to know that all money received will go to the Susan G. Komen Foundation made in a donation in Julie’s name. I’ll also be giving Julie a few packs of her own.

If you would like to order please contact me via email or phone. My phone number is: 616-481-1099. I accept paypal/cash/credit card/checks or money orders. You can let me know which sets you would like by the sentiments on the card: Dare to Be Fabulous, Life.., or Thank you.

If you would like more information about the Susan G. Komen Foundation click on this link: http://cms.komen.org/komen/Donations/index.htm.

The 1st note card is my favorite because it makes me think of Julie. She is daring and courageous and of course she’s absolutely fabulous! As you can see the flower has lots of sparkle to it too – just like Julie.

Thanks Everyone!
Laura

Imagine yourself 9 months pregnant with extremely swollen feet - that's me!!! My last treatment went much better and only had me completely down for 2-3 days. Yeah!!! Dr. Campbell tried a new drug which hasn't caused the burning hands and feet but this one causes numbness. My feet feel extremely swollen and numb - not the best feeling in the world but at least I can get around. I meet with the surgeon this week discuss option and set up the appt. (I hope) I, of course, have a plan and would like to have surgery sometime during the week of Dec. 10. I think I better start Christmas shopping soon!!! Thanks again for all the meals they were delicious and definitely appreciated. Julie

Sign Up For Meals

Hello Julie's Friends! - Laura here
A huge thanks for all of you willing and wanting to make meals for Julie and family. I had one signed up for next Tuesday, but now she cannot do it so if someone doesn't mind taking Tuesday, (October 2) that would be great!

I want all of you to know that the support for Julie has been wonderfully overwhelming even for me as I am getting many calls and inquiries for those of you wanting to make meals and or help in any way you can. I want to let all of you know that I am doing my best to get all of you in, but the list is pretty huge - goes to show what an awesome person Julie is and her list of friends is long. God bless all of you for your help and I promise I will do my best to let you show her your love thru the meals as best I can.

Here are the other dates available: Please pop me an email as to what might work for you - if you have more than one date that you can do, please let me know - as I have many people who would like to cook and I would like to get everyone in.

Dates are: October 2

October 2

October 22

October 23

October 25

October 26

November 12

November 13

November 15

November 16

If you have time in the weeks in between, let me know and I'll plug a few of you in - Julie will just have to deal with more meals than asked :) - I think she can handle it. Then only day I'm sure they are taken care of is Wednesday nights as church provides the meal.

Thank you - Thank you - Thank you for all your help.
Oh yes - and for all of you participating the the RACE FOR THE CURE this weekend - good luck, have fun and God Bless!!
My email is: lauradiekevers@sbcglobal.net
Thanks!!

I LOVE MY GOOD WEEK!!!! I thought I should update everyone on my last treatment because originally I thought it was going well but things drastically changed!!! I woke up Thursday, Sept. 15 and had major aches in my legs and feet. I could hardly walk. I layed around all day and then Fri. still felt miserable so I decided to call the Dr. I spoke with a nurse and explained my symptoms and unfortunately these are the side effects. I also found out that I had a yeast infection in my mouth and throat which was extremely painful. They gave me something for that but it didn't do much good so Mon. my nurse gave me something else for it. After a few days that started to work. Eating during this time was extremely painful because my throat felt like it was closing up. Also, my hands and feet had burns all over them. Warm water increases the burning so showering was a little challenging. I am not looking hilarious showering with water shoes and rubber gloves. NOT ENJOYABLE!!! The burns this week don't hurt but my hands look terrible because they are majorly peeling. Thanks to my parents family and friends I made it through a very rough time. Please pray for me next week as it time to start all over again. Only 3 more!!! Love, Julie

When Julie was first diagnosed with breast cancer one of the things we talked about was that it would be nice if we could do the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure together as a family. I don't think Julie will be able to participate this year, considering how bad the chemo has been, but I think Anna and I are still hoping to do it. Anna VanBragt, Jennifer Ursum and some other friends are also planning on doing it. If you are considering participating in the Race for the Cure or would like more information, please contact Anna VanBragt at 534-1944 or at Vanbragt@tds.net, or go to http://www.komengr.org. There will be special t-shirts available for Julie's friends. The money raised from the race will go to breast cancer research, and the goal this year is to raise $500,000.

Thanks again for all of your prayers and support,
Ron

Hi Everyone - I had my 7th round of chemo Monday and I'm happy to report that I feel really good. I am on a new drug for the next 4 rounds and so far I really like this one. I hope that the side effects never happen. I dare to dream!!!!!! Monday at chemo was another long day and my friend Laura came with me. She loves to rubber stamp so we were going to make cards the entire time. Well, it turned out that Laura made cards and I slept. I was given an extremely large doze of Benedryl to combat any reaction I might get with this new drug. The Benedryl knocked me out! I was slurrying my words and probably even drooling. Poor Laura she was probably extremely bored. What a great friend. My blood work showed that the white blood cell had improved so I convinced my Dr. to let my go this round with out the dreaded Neulasta injection. We pray the white blood cells stay in the decent range. Now the red blood cells were really low but they gave me an injection to improve those so in a few weeks I hopefully should have a little more energy. Well take care everyone and I hope everything is going well with you. Keep praying!! Love, Julie

I owe everyone an apology because I haven't written to tell you what happened last chemo treatment. SORRY!!! It was actually really good news, Dr. Campbell couldn't feel any of the tumors which means they have shrunk a lot!!!!! YEAH - Prayer works!!! I am going to start with a different chemo drug Sept. 10 and then I will have treatments every 3 weeks apart. I'm hoping this means that I will get 2 good weeks. I am under the impression that this drug will be gentler on my body than the other one. The side effects for this one are more fingernail and toenail brittleness and more mouth sores. The best news is that I probably won't have to have the shot on Tuesday that makes me so miserable. Good news!! The only thing of concern is that I got my blood tested yesterday and they called me yesterday to tell me that my white blood cells were really low so I needed to be very careful and watch out for infection. I don't think that I will go to Celebration on the Grand anymore. Poor Ron - he was really looking forward to it but I'm to chicken around all the people. Well keep praying and I will try to write soon. Love, Julie

Well I'm counting down (with dread) the last few hours before I feel miserable again. 2 1/2 more to go. I have round number 6 today at 12:30. YUCK!! I've only managed about 5 good days since the last treatment so I don't feel mentally ready to handle todays treatment but I still have a few more hours to get there. I hope it happens!!! The only thing I am looking forward to today is hopefully finding out the next steps that will be taken. I will let you know soon what that is. I'm hoping for surgery in Dec. because I don't have time in Sept. with school starting sports, piano, dance ..........oh yeah and I start babysitting the day after Labor Day. Many people think I'm crazy but I still have to take care of Grace what's 2 more sweet little girls. Well, I'll write soon but now I have to clean my house and finish my laundry. Julie

5 treatments down - YEAH!!!! Only 1 more big one left!!! Mon. was another long day at chemo. My father wanted to go with me but I don't think he realized how boring it was going to be. My appt. was at 11:15 am and we didn't get home until a little after 5pm. Everything went well just very slow. Tues. I felt good and managed to get a few errands done and spent time with my sister-in-law and friends in the evening. I may have overdone it a little because today (Wed.) I am wiped out. It's 1pm and I've already had a nap for the day. Pathetic!!!! I'm just lucky because Ron and the girls are up north at a cottage that we rented to celebrate Ron's parents anniversary and they don't have to see my so lazy! Thanks again for everything and keep praying!! Love, Julie

Hi Everyone - sorry it has taken me so long to write but I made it camping the entire week and had a lot of fun. The kids too!! I owe my sister Joni and her girls a huge thank you because they cooked and cared for my kids a lot. I just had round number 4 of chemo Monday and they increased the dosage again. I know that this is a good thing because it is killing the cancer but it is taking a toll on me emotionally because I am much more tired and nauseaus. I keep telling myself that I only have 2 more big treatments left and then things are getting easier. The good news is that the Dr. couldn't feel any of the 1st mass and he said that the lymph node mass weren't much smaller too.

Thanks for the meals this week they are definitely appreciated. The outpouring of love, cards, phone calls and of course meals is so overwhelming. We are definitely feeling loved!!!!! Thanks again for everything. KEEP PRAYING!!

Love,
Julie

What a week!!! It was a long hard week of chemo this week and it caused several pity parties!!! Mon. was chemo and then already Mon. night I was extremely sick to my stomach and tired. This is very unusual. Typically it is the next day or Wed. before things get rough. Tues. I layed around all day and then went to get the Neulasta shot and talked to my nurse and asked her why I was feeling so terrible this time. She said that the doctor upped the chemo dosage. I guess he did this because I was handling chemo so well. Bummer for me!!! The good news thru all this is that he could hardly feel the original lump that I found but he could still feel the lymph nodes. Friday we met with the surgeon again and she sent me for another ultrasound to check everything out. I was hoping to have official news from this already but no luck. The ultrasound technician said that the radiologist said that the mass wasn't a lot smaller but the density of it was much different. This is the first day that I have actually accomplished anything and I'm suppossed to be going camping to Pentwater next week. I HAVE A LOT TO DO!!!!

I LOVE the 2nd week after chemo!!! I feel like normal me. I went to have my blood checked again on Monday and took Anna and Rachel with me so they could meet my nurse and see where I've been going all the time. They weren't really interested in driving all the way out there but when they got there we found out that it was patient apprecation day and they got a rootbeer float. It was now definitely worth the trip!! Anyways, my blood work came back GREAT!!! It showed all normal levels again which mean my body is bouncing back from chemo very well. GOOD NEWS!!! I am praying that it continues this way. I have had a busy week helping my younger sister with wedding plans and doing a lot of last minute projects for her wedding on Friday. It was a lot of fun and I finally felt like a contributer since for the last month it seems like everything revolved around me. I hope that everyone has a great weekend and enjoys the nice weather. Julie

It's me again - I just wanted to let you know that I survived the head shaving experience. Unfortunately the first lady that we had at the wig shop wasn't working yesterday and the lady that shaved my head was a little different so I think that I need to go back on Mon. again to see the first lady. My girls said that I looked really different but that they will get used to it. Grace, of course, just keeps telling my that I look weird and then she rubs my head. God loves Grace - she will definitely keep it real!!!! I told her that she was lucky because everytime she has a scratch she can rub my head. How much luckier can she be. Well, my emotional state is much better today and I am feeling better too. Thanks for the prayers!!!

Hi everyone - I just wanted to give everyone a quick update that this week has been long and challenging. I was more queasy this week than the first time, but I was still able to go to the parade, hang out at my sisters house, and see the awesome Grandville fireworks. Thursday I was very tired and extremely emotional because my biggest fear was coming true. My hair is falling out and FAST!!! Today, I am going to have my head shaved and then have Molly and Aubrey fitted. My mother, sister and sister-in-law are going with my so depending on my emotional state we may need some more RETAIL THERAPY (Poor Ron!!) Please continue praying for my and my family. Thank you, Julie

Today was the second of the chemo treatments, so we're officially 20% done with chemo already. Julie is doing fairly well, but very tired and somewhat nauseous. The good news we received today is that the PET scan showed no signs of any other cancer. According to the RN who gave Julie the results, there are two lumps in the lymph nodes... one is 4cm and the other is 2cm. My understanding is that there will likely be another PET scan after the chemo treatments to see if they have shrunk, and if so, by how much. Julie also discussed the timing of the lumpectomy/mastectomy with the nurse. It sounds like they may do the surgery after the first 6 chemo treatments, or they may wait until all of the treatments are done.

Thanks everyone for all the help, food, cards, etc. They are all greatly appreciated.

Ron

Hi Everyone - can you believe that I am actually writing on my blog!!! For those of you who don't know, I am the worst emailer ever. I thought that I would give everyone a quick update on my life this week. I have felt great which is a fabulous feeling - I haven't even taken a nap yet this week. I told my friend that I think that I have felt better because I finally made it to Target and I hadn't been there for about 3 weeks. She said that "RETAIL THERAPY" was a great thing. SHE'S RIGHT!!!!! Well, Mon. was a big day is was try #2 at wig shopping......much better this time. I actually bought 2 wigs so I can't wait to introduce you to Molly and Aubrey. Molly is a cute and Aubrey is a little more sassy! After wig shopping I had to get my blood drawn so they could check all my blood level after cycle #1 of chemo. My great nurse Deb said that they were so good she couldn't tell I had even had chemo. I think that your prayers are definitely helping because this was great news. Today I get to go for the FINAL test. It is called a PET scan. Supposedly it is the best way to see if there is any other cancer in my body. I can't wait until this is done. It is a 3-4 hour test with a lot of sitting around. Thanks again for all your prayers. They have definitely been felt and appreciated.

First of all, thanks to everyone for the prayers, cards, and food. Its been overwhelming how many people have stopped Julie and I to let us know they're thinking of us and praying for us.

This looks to be a fairly easy week coming up. Julie is planning on wig shopping tomorrow with her mom and sisters and then go to Dr. Campbell's office for her weekly blood testing. Wednesday Julie and I will be going to get her PET scan, which will give the doctors a much better idea if there is cancer anywhere else in her body. Since the bone scan, chest x-ray and CAT scan all came back we're optimistic. Julie is happy that she doesn't have to drink any more barium sulfate like with the CAT scan.

So far the chemotherapy has been fairly managable. She was definitely sick Tuesday and Wednesday and has been tired since the chemo on Monday, but she's at least feeling well enough to do some of her normal activities. She went furniture shopping yesterday and went to church then grocery shopping today. I have a hunch that over the next six months I'll be able to tell how she's feeling by how much money she's spending.

Thanks again for all of the thoughts, and we'll try to keep this blog updated so everyone knows what's going on.

Ron

Hi Everyone.
It seems the blog site has been getting around and I am glad. I have spoke to Julie a little since her chemo yesterday, however we still need to find out how often she will be needing help. This week things are pretty well taken care of as Julie's older nieces are in town and doing a lot of the sitting. The meals are being taken care of due to the vacation bible school going on this week at church (dinner is being served there before). Ron, Rachel & Grace were at VBS last night. Anna had a softball game and Julie mentioned that she was going to try to make it to one or both of those events. She was feeling okay after her 1st treatment ( a little nauseous and tired) but wanted to get out. I know she had Dr. appts. today and another busy day tomorrow. So bear with us - we'll get a schedule going yet. Thank you to al who have added yourselves to the list.
One other thing - I am of the understanding that their house cleaning is being taken care of for them.
Thank you all for caring and I will be in touch. As soon and I can pin Julie down I will teach her how to post here so you can hear everything from her.
God Bless
Laura

Helping Julie

I thank Pam for putting the idea of a blog out there. This will be a great way for all of us to stay up to date on Julie's progress, check the schedules for bringing meals, cleaning, childcare, lawncare & give Julie a chance to communicate with us when it is convenient for her.

Many of you have expressed an interest in helping the Hubberts through this difficult journey. To the right of this post is a place where you can enter your email address to subscribe to Julie's posts to this blog. This means that whenever Julie posts and update on how she is doing (or someone who may be filling in for Julie) you will get an email sent to your email address with the post. You will not have to come to the blogsite each time you want an update. With this blog you will also be able to leave comments to Julie. I encourage you to click on the comment button below each post and give Julie your love and encouragement.

If you would like to be put on a schedule to bring the Hubberts meals, assist in cleaning their home (more detailed information below) be on call for child care if needed, or help take care of their lawn, simiply click on my email address to the right or give me a call and

1. let me know which area you would like to help,
2. when you are are available
3. and how I can get ahold of you.
4. If you know someone who wants to help, but doesn't have access to the internet, just pass on my name & number to them & I will add them.

Once you express your desire to help, I will give you a call and see what date(s) work for you. I will give you those dates then post your name on the interactive calendar here on the blog. This way you will be able to see when you are scheduled.

If you sign up to be on call for child care there will be a list here for Julie to access with your phone number. If you don't want your phone number to be listed here on blog, just let me know and I will keep it off.

If you are interested in helping with cleaning Ron & Julie's house we are thinking it may be best to have someone who can do this when Julie is at Chemo. This way we won't feel as if we are intruding on Julie's valuable rest/family time even though we all want to be around her, hug her and make her feel better.

Thank you so much for loving Julie and wanting to help. The best help we can all give Ron and Julie is the POWER OF PRAYER. It is incredible what prayer can do not only for the person you are praying for, but it will help you too - for we all know that if this was one of us with cancer she would be doing the same for us because she is just such an incredible person.

So we can all start here with Prayer - Pray for Julie. Pray for Ron, Anna, Rachel & Grace. Pray also for Julie's parents and siblings and for her doctors. God gives us all Grace - "Grace is the divine ability to cope with every circumstance". With our love and prayers we can all help Julie and her family.
God bless you and I look forward to hearing from you.


Laura Diekevers (Julie's Friend)