Good Thursday morning everyone!!  First thing that I wanted to do on the blog this morning was post a happy picture of pure JOY to this Nani's heart.  This is Tyler who crawled into one of the tents when we went to the mountains a few weeks ago and loved every second of it.  Hope this brings a smile to your face.  Thanks for the priviledge of letting me share his life with you.  He is great medicine for me.  He also turned 21 months old today! 

THANKS TO ALL OF YOU AND YOUR FAITHFUL, SWEET PRAYERS AND FOR YOUR ENDLESS LOVE, SUPPORT AND ENCOURAGEMENT TO ME AND MY FAMILY.  WE COULD NOT GET THROUGH THIS WHOLE JOURNEY WITH OUT IT!

I am so very happy to be home again.  I have to say for as unknowing again on how things would go for me during the past couple of days, God's strength sustained me again.  Please know that He does this in so many ways.  I know the majority of it comes from you all.  You are all used in such mighty ways and I adore you.  I feel like I have several books that could be written now.  I will share about some of these things as time goes by. 

 I am so very relieved about getting off the steroids over the next 2 weeks. They have really done a number on my body.  I should be regaining some strength back as we wean off.  The best part of Dr Ott's visit yesterday was that the staples (19 of them) were removed from my head!  I could actually wash all of my hair now.  Where my head has been shaved, hair is already growing back too.  He did a great job with the surgery.  Mostly cut on my hairline so you won't be able to tell. 

I have one Yervoy treatment done.  3 more scheduled to go.  Next one will be in three weeks.  I am scheduled for many, many appointments in San Diego over the next few months.  Luckily I can get some of the tests done here and have the results faxed, but not many.  My next brain scan is due in a few weeks too.  Now I am at the part where I need to continue to rest, recover and heal and focus on the treatments to get rid of the cancer.  I am so thankful that you are praying for my side effects to be minimal.  I am too. I hope to be able to finish these treatments with tremendous success.  Your daily prayers for my total healing mean the world to me.  I feel the prayers.  I do!  Lots of answered prayers we had too!  Getting my IV started on the first try was one of them. 

I have more to share but will stop for now.  I hope this makes sense.  I still feel like my brain function is fuzzy.  I am also suffering from light sensitivity right now and is hard to see what I am reading.  Dr. Ott said that is normal and will get better with time.

Now I have asked many prayers from you all.  I want you to know that I was praying too.  It is such a great way to pass the time when I am in treatment or laying around in the bed.  This is something that I can do and want to do.  So please let me know what you need prayer for and I will be praying for you.  Thanks to all of you who let me know already!  It was a great priviledge for me to bring it to our Lord.  My e-mail address is leslie@mgilbert.net  It will be kept confidential.

Read the bible in a year:  Today....Isaiah 1 - 4.

I know I have forgotten to say so many things but hope to fill you in more later.  Have a super day everyone!  God bless you!  Today is another precious gift from God and He is so Good!

Good Friday morning!!  Never forget that you are not an accident or an incident.....you are a gift to the world, a divine work of art, signed by God.  Isn't that awesome?  God's art work is you!

One day at a time.....Your continued prayers, love and encouragement get me through yet another day.  Healing from the surgery seems to get a little better each day.    Having the staples out of my head is so good.  The  weakness from the steroids has been the hard part.  Although they already started to do the tapering I will not see that get better until I am fully off.  I don't like it but also see it as a blessing because it truly forces me do nothing but rest and that is what I must do now. I know me...I would sneak around and do things I am not suppose to when Mike wasn't looking. :)  It would be also nice to have a full nights sleep.  I think when this is over I will sleep straight through for a month.   But we are all going to do some "happy dancing" when this part is over.....and really when I can be strong enough to do it myself. hahaha!

Yesterday some dear friends who live in Indiana were able to come by and visit me.  So happy to have seen you Mary Jo, Kori and family!  My friend Peggy Severe also surprised me with some cheese and guacamole covered french fries and her famous earthquake cake.  I was in heaven.   We are set food wise for the rest of this week.  Thanks so much for everything that has been brought.  It has been so awesome!  Oh yeah....Aunt MaryAnn, you bought me the most delicious french fries while I was in San Diego for those 2 days!  Perfect gift!  Yum!  Obviously potatos of any kind settle well with me and is one of my favorite comfort foods.  The weight gaining is very slow.  I lost more then I had realized while in the hospital but can now say that I have officially gained 1 pound.  Slow, but progress!

Oh I did not forget this but wanted to make sure that everyone knew......COMING SOON......FOOTBALL!!  Yes!!  So happy the NFL settled!  Just as soon as I found out I downloaded the San Diego Chargers schedule!  Woot!  I am ready for some football to start!  Superbowl.....here we come!  Ahhhh....love it!  Tyler is already throwing a football around and I have him trained to say "touchdown!"  HUGE Charger fan there....like he had any other choice. haha!

Tomorrow I will be posting an assignment for everyone.  It is a little project I would like to work on.  So easy!  I will give you the details tomorrow.

Here is Tyler happily playing in the water. He is coming over to our house tonight to hang with Poppi and Nani.  I am ready for him to be here already.

I would like to wish a very big "Happy Birthday" to my friend Jessica Brigman!!  Have a absolutely fun and memorable day!

I did receive all of the prayer requests and I am on it!  Seriously, I want to do this.  I have lots and lots of time.  leslie@mgilbert.net I am lifting you up in prayer several times a day and night too since I don't seem to sleep.  :) 

Read the bible in a year:  Today....Isaiah 5 - 8.  Saturday.....Isaiah 9 - 12.  Sunday....Isaiah 13 - 17.

Have a fantabulous day everyone!!  Today is another priceless gift from God and He is so Good!  More about my project tomorrow and a sweet story to share.

Psalms 120 verse 1: In my troubles I pled with God to help me and he did!

Good Saturday morning! So are you all ready for your simple assignment?  As you know there is a big Craft Extravaganza benefit being planned for me and it is truly going to be awesome.  Many tremendous blessings are already coming from it. God's hand is definitely in this big project.  I sure do hope everyone can stop by and have some fun.  All you have to do is show up....no crafting experience needed.....total fun planned.  It is August 6th at T.L. Waggoner school starting at 4:00 p.m. Any questions....please ask away.   Well I was wracking my brain on what I can make to remember this wonderful generous evening as a momento for myself.  I have an idea now but need your help.  I am looking to collage the words HOPE   BELIEVE   FAITH in a BIG picture frame to hang on my wall at home.  What I would like from you is to make any or all of these words for me in something flat.  Kind of like maybe no bigger then 2-3 inches tall to 4 -5 inches long.  It could be made in any material you want.  Like beads, bling, buttons, metal, wood, paper, flowers, jewels, pearls, yarn, glitter, foam, cross stitch,felt etc....really anything!  I will then collage it all together along with a picture of the event and also have a mat frame for everyone to sign when they come.  I will take a picture when I am all done to show you how it turned out.  I HOPE to get a lot. So please....get creative!  I just want a little piece of something from everyone. Denise Rogers...I want something red neck from you or Truman. :)  So you can either bring it with you to the event or just pop it in the mail for me.  If you need my mailing address just e-mail me leslie@mgilbert.net  Can't wait to see what you make.  I will absolutely love everything!  So even if you don't live here you can be part of the wonderful evening that has been planned by some very generous, talented and gifted women.  If you are cringing now because you don't craft......stretch yourselves.  You can do it! Easy peasy!!  Get the word out for me. So very cool!

The sweet story that I wanted to share with you is that the girls had a planning meeting last Tuesday for this event at the exact time I was receiving the Yervoy treatment.  They stopped during the meeting and just took the time to pray for me.  I was so touched.  I have been so blessed to witness that no matter what is going on people stop to take a moment to lift others in prayer.  I felt the prayers too ladies!  Thank you so much!  God was right there listening and He answered those prayers.

Lots of birthday wishes today!!  "Happy Birthday" to Vicki Rush, Madeline Willis and Debbie Sempsrott!  Have a super fun day ladies!  You are all so awesome!

I also want to wish my very kind, sweet, caring and so good to me son in law Ryan Middleton a very "HAPPY BIRTHDAY" on Sunday!!  Can't wait to celebrate your birthday!  Lots of July birthdays in our family!

Let us take the time to remember all that we have been blessed with and all that we have.  Life is not always easy, but it does help to look at some of the awesome little things we can take great joy in.  Especially how much God loves and cares for us.  I am keeping all the prayer requests lifted to God. 

Read the bible in a year:  Today...Isaiah 9 - 12.  Sunday.....Isaiah 13 - 17. 

Have a super great weekend everyone!!  Today is a wonderful gift from God and He is so Good!!  Now get crafty!  Love it!!

Also....leave any questions you might have in the comment section and I will check back lots to answer you. Love you!

Good Monday morning!!!   Wow!!  The response to helping me with my project has been super!!  One of the first people I thought of when I put this out there was my friend Gaynell.  I could see her cringing in my mind as she was reading it.  This little project is not something she would like or enjoy doing but I knew in my heart that she would and I knew exactly how she would do it too. AND...I knew she would be one of the first ones to get it done too.  Well I was right!  She had it done and to me on the same day!  You know I love it Gaynell!  Thank you!    I should of told everyone to  take your time.  There is no rush.  I will wait a while to get started. You have lots of time.  I will start designing it at the end of the month.  So I already have two done and in my possession and I have to say this is going to be such a fun project for me.  I am very excited!  Caroline....wow....do you know me or what?!  Beautiful and a great story to share when I show it off.  I want to tell you all what I get in...but I love the fact that you don't know what the other is doing and it will be an original!  Happy heart here!  Also I realized that the size doesn't matter.  If you need to go bigger, that is fine.

I can't believe we are in the month of August already!!  How was your weekend?  I had a good weekend mentally.  Just a trying weekend physically because of the steroids.  It is okay though.  Mentally great helps make up for the physically hard. I have now started to taper some more down from the steroids and will be off of them completely this Sunday! Yay!  I didn't say anything before because I did not want to jinx it, but Mike and I had our Tyler with us for a sleep over on Friday and for the day on Saturday.  Of course I was really the one who was reaping the benefits.  I got all of the cuddles, kisses, play time, reading etc....and Mike got all the work.  No, it wasn't really any work at all.  Ty is pretty happy go lucky.  I am so happy that we had a chance to have him to ourselves.  That plan didn't quite work out how I had planned a few weeks ago did it?  That is an understatement!  :)

One of the things that I had wanted to do was get Tyler outside for a bit in his swimming pool and a garden hose and just sit there and take pictures of whatever he did.  It was very funny and sweet.  I haven't taken many pics lately and I was having withdrawls.  So it was a joy for me to do.  I am having trouble posting a pic today but hope to have a picture up tomorrow.

We celebrated my son-in-law Ryan's birthday last night.  It is always great for me to get out of the house for a little while.  Love spending time with the family and you know me.....celebrating birthdays!

Thanks Mick and Peg.  Now I know the secret and my food will never be the same again.  hahaha!

Prayer requests:  Please pray for a couple of people who were injured in an accident recently.  Pray for them as they go through the recovery process and for their families too.  Also please pray for someone who is hurting from depression.  They truly cherish the prayers from you all.

Read the bible in a year:  Today.....Isaiah 18-22.  Tuesday....Isaiah.....23-27.

Joshua 1:9....Yes, be bold and strong!  Banish fear and doubt!  For remember, the Lord your God is with you wherever you go. 

Have a marvelous Monday everyone!!  Today is another gift from God and He is so Good!!

Thanks again for your prayers and for loving me so much! 

Good Tuesday morning everyone!! Here we are with another sweet day that God has blessed us with. I am ready for what God has in mind for me today. Even if it is mostly from the couch. :)  The couch is a great thing too.  Rather be there in my own home relaxing then anywhere else. 

My day started out awesome yesterday! My friend Jessica Salgado brought me by some of her homemade cinnamon rolls and brownies! They were heavenly! Thanks Jess. Happy  way to start my day. Mike and Jeff are so thankful too!

I wanted to share a funny story with you about my friend Margie Wiggins. She has no idea that I am sharing this but I know she won't mind. Margie is a beautiful woman with such a great sense of style. Well a few years ago she had to have surgery. When she was home recovering my friend Cheryl and I decided to visit her. We got to her house and there was Margie, in her comfy pajamas, on pain meds and she had on the most beautiful, sparkly, elegant, fancy earrings. We had to laugh. She said it made her feel better to have on something pretty like that. I LOVED THAT! I never forgot that Margie. You are so right. Sooooo, my friend Cheryl makes beautiful earrings and I asked her to make me some big fancy earrings to wear. She did. They are gorgeous and I wear them for my treatments and when I feel like a little pick me up. So just a fun suggestion to anyone who wants to do something like this for someone who could use a little pick me up. It will definitely bring a big smile to their face!

I also like to wear the beautiful  bracelets I received from Taylor Aguilera. They always lift my spirits. I  asked my friend Jessica who also makes great jewelry to make me a sparkly bracelet and yep it is coming too. Totally having some fun with all of this.  It brings smiles to the people I see getting treatments and it is a great way for me to share God's love with them, by sharing what God's love through my friends does for me.

Here is a picture of Tyler playing and laughing with Nani on the couch.  My sunshine.

Prayer requests: For a friend of mine's Mom who is having surgery this morning.  Pray that all goes smoothly and she swiftly recovers.  The prayers here are sure appreciated. Pray also for someone who had surgery last week. Please pray he will heal quickly. Also for someone's mom who hasn't been feeling well lately. Pray they can make her as comfortable as possible.

Read the bible in a year: Today.....Isaiah 23-27. Wednesday......Isaiah 28-30.

Isaiah 40 verses 28-31: Don't you yet understand? Don't you know by now that the everlasting God, the Creator of the farthest parts of the earth, never grows faint or weary? No one can fathom the depths of his understanding. He gives power to the tired and worn out, and strength to the weak. Even the youths shall be exhausted, and the young men will all give up. But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength. They shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.

Have a terrific day everyone!! I feel like it will be a fun day for you all! Today is another wonderful gift from God and He is so Good!!

I have a question today from someone for all the blog readers......They would like to know what color your kitchen cabinets are? I f you don't like your current color would you tend to go lighter or darker? Interesting question.