6-21-09

It has been a week since the funeral. We are going to post a reflection of the funeral services as well as copies of some of the talks, for the many people who have asked about them. But then we will discontinue this blog in honor of our sweet mother and wife.

This is Ron
I felt that Jolene’s funeral was exactly the way Jolene had envisioned it so many weeks ago when she planned it. She wanted it to be simple, not too long, and full of good memories. There were fun moments that made us laugh. There were quiet moments that made us reflect. There were grateful moments that made us cry and appreciate Jolene’s life and her influence in our lives.

I appreciated all of the incredible support and love shown to us through attendance at the viewing or funeral, through cards, letters, flowers and monetary donations that we will use to pay for Jolene’s headstone. I wish I could send everyone thank you cards, but many were given to us without addresses, and in some cases anonymously. I do appreciate all gestures of sympathy.

I would especially like to thank those who participated in the funeral: Tony Heywood, Jolene’s favorite brother, (she loves them all), for the family prayer before the service. Joe Wilcock for the lovely song, The Bishop of our ward, Tom Warne for conducting and expressing such hope in his message. Jolene’s two brothers Larry and Dave Heywood for portraying Jolene’s life so eloquently, and for “staying on time” with their comments. All of Jolene’s nieces and nephews, for bringing tears to my eyes with their song. My brother Greg Davidson for his words about “loving first.” The Hansen Family song. We love the Hansens. The opening and closing prayers Jolene’s brother Tim Heywood and my brother Randal Davidson. My Sister Trisa Teerlink for being the chorister and Naoma Eastley for playing the organ. I can’t say enough about our ward members who helped with luncheon and dinners throughout this trial.

I know how hard it is to participate at such a somber occasion and keep your emotions in check. I feel they did a wonderful job. While she was planning the funeral Jolene asked me if I wanted to speak. I told her I would if she absolutely wanted me to, but I would prefer to sit on the front row with my girls and cry my eyes out. That is just what I did. I appreciated my best friend Lance Capener and his wife Nancy sitting right next to us during the funeral. Lance was my best man at our wedding 26 years ago, and it was important to me that he be next to me again as we laid my precious wife to rest.

The flower arrangement on her casket was a gift from her good friends at Skyline High. It was perfect. Ruth Dallas was so kind to make those arrangements for us. The good people at Mountain View Memorial were so kind to give us all the time we needed to say goodbye. I don’t want to miss thanking anyone, but I’m afraid with all of my attentions focused on Jolene, I’m sure there were many acts of kindness I didn’t even notice. I’m sure those of you who helped in anyway wanted it that way.

I would like to thank Jolene’s parents Evans and Sylvia Heywood for being with us during Jolene’s last days and staying with us through this past week. They have been away from their home for almost twenty days with out complaint. I know it wasn’t easy for them. They have taken care of us in ways that can’t be measured. I will never forget the way Jolene’s eyes brightened up when they arrived.

I would also like to mention my own mother who came almost every day since March to rub healing oils on Jolene’s feet and head. We don’t know that it helped medically, but Jolene loved mom’s soft loving hands and appreciated her incredible devotion. Mom never gave up hope, and we were both uplifted by her visits.

Obituary

Jolene Heywood Davidson
(March 25, 1960 - June 10, 2009)



Jolene Heywood Davidson
Jolene Heywood Davidson, 49, passed away peacefully in her home on June 10, 2009 after a battle with cancer. Jolene was born March 25, 1960 in Phoenix, Arizona to Evans and Sylvia Heywood. She was a school teacher. She taught at Jackling Elementary, John C. Fremont Elementary and Fox Hills Elementary. Later she became a Library/Media Specialist at Evergreen Jr. High and Skyline High School. She had many callings in her LDS Ward. She was the Young Women president, ward missionary and Relief Society teacher. Her favorite calling was as a visiting teacher to other sisters in the ward. Jolene was very athletic, she ran in two half-marathons and a mini triathlon in her last year. In high school she played volleyball & softball. Jolene is survived by her husband, Ron and two daughters, Savanna and Marie. She was preceded in death by her older brother Clarence and her grandparents. Services will be held Monday, June 15 at 11 AM at the LDS church on 2450 West 10400 South in South Jordan, Utah. A viewing will be held Sunday night from 5-7 PM and one hour prior to the funeral at the same church. Jolene wanted to thank everyone for their support and generosity: family, neighbors, friends at Skyline, fellow librarians. More information may be found on her blog: davidson4fun.blogspot.com

Memorial Info

Here are the details of the mortuary we are using.

Mountain View Memorial

www.memorialutah.com

3115 East 7800 South
Cottonwood Heights, UT


Also we are looking for any pictures of Jolene with her siblings. If you have them please email to sueellen34@yahoo.com

THANKS!

Funeral Arrangments

A viewing will be held on Sunday, June 14 from 5:00 PM – 7:00 PM at the LDS church meeting house located at 2450 West 10400 South in South Jordan.

The funeral will be held on Monday June 15 at 11:00 AM at the same location.

The Race Is Finished

June 10, 2009 7:45 pm
Mom passed away today. She went peacefully in her sleep. We will post more details later.

June 7, 2009

This week we had an afternoon that we thought we were going to lose Jolene. She was very weak and her breathing became very erratic. That was not that unusual. What was unusual was that she told us it was her time to go and that she was going to die. Our hospice nurse, (Sandra) said it is common for patients to know when they are going to die. We took this very seriously. We had some Relief Society ladies from the neighborhood here. I called Marie home from school and Savanna from work so they could be here when she died. But she didn’t die. It turns out that when she woke up and saw everyone gathered around her bed, Jolene thought we were gathered around because we knew something she didn’t know. She assumed we were here because we knew she was going to die. So Jolene was convinced it was her time. We had a good laugh about it later, but during that time we got to experience some very tender moments with Jolene.

She is not always coherent. She has said a lot of interesting and sometimes funny things, but during that special time she was very clear that she is at peace. She is comfortable, and she is ready to go. She is not afraid to die. We expressed love for each other. We had a special family prayer with her. The spirit was very strong in the room and we felt the arms of the Lord Jesus Christ around us, as well as the love of the Relief Society ladies. We are grateful they were able to be with us.We don’t know how much time Jolene has left in this life, but we believe her time is short.

Jolene’s parents are here with us now to help take care of Jolene. We are happy to have them here. No one can take care of you like your Mom. We are ever grateful for the continued support from our ward, and generosity of the kind friends from Skyline. All the cards and letters that we receive we read to Jolene, she expresses appreciation for the loving words from her friends. Thank you for the all prayers that are in our behalf. We appreciate and can feel them constantly. Thank you also for the service that is given to our family, it helps out a lot and we are very grateful for it.

Jolene had a tough weekend. On Friday during lunch she temporary lost control of her hands and her speech. I (Savanna) called my Dad at school then the nurse. The nurse wasn't worried it was to be expected. Just one more step in the process. She came out and gave us some morphine pills and instructions on how to use them.
On Saturday she had some pains so Dad and Marie worked on getting the pain controlled while I was at work. Saturday night we finally got on top of the pain. Now as long as she gets her pills she sleeps with no pain at all. Mom is weak but we're all ready to jump at the chance to help her out. She mostly just sleeps in bed getting up to take her meds and visit the restroom.
Mom has not eaten since lunch on Friday. As long as she gets her medication she doesn't feel the pain.
We thank you again for all your prayers on our behalf. There is a special spirit in our home that we are aware and very grateful for. The gospel of Jesus Christ is such a blessing it us. It brings such an undeniable peace to our lives as we face the each new obstacle with Mom. Our Ward members, family and friends also bring us much needed peace with their constant offerings of help. Because of them we are better able to focus on being with Mom instead of being with Mom and worrying about meals to cook.

Your prayers are heard and we feel them. Thank you.

May 24, 2009

May 24, 2009

Jolene has been sleeping a lot this week. She doesn’t have a lot of energy to do anything but eat, sleep, and go to the bathroom. She says, “Sorry I can’t talk on the phone, the medication makes me too confused. I’m getting weaker each day, all I do is sleep and eat and go to the bathroom. Thank you for the love, support, prayers, and meals.”

Ron is sad that he has to go back to school on Tuesday. He thinks that he’ll get more excited once he sees the kids. This week he’s been home with Jolene to help her out. He has been an excellent nurse!! For lunch Jolene likes to eat Café Rio every day so Ron goes over there for take out. The people that work there know him very well.

Savanna did the same normal stuff this week. Go to school and nanny for Emmry.

Marie is excited for school to get over with, only 9 more days. Marie also cut her hair off to donate to Locks of Love. She cut off a total of 11 inches. Thanks for cutting it Suzanne!

Thank you everybody for everything. The prayers, support, love, food, everything is incredible. Thanks to those who are going to be helping us take care of Jolene while Ron, Savanna, and Marie and busy with school. That help is really appreciated. Thank you again and we love you all!!!

5-17-09
Hey everyone this is Ron posting this week. We have had a good week this week. Jolene is holding steady. She is able to keep food down and is eating well. She is sleeping about 16 hours a day. We finally got over the constipation problem, so she is much more comfortable now. All it took was 4 Senna pills twice a day, one dose of polyethylene glycol a day, numerous enemas, and a couple of prescription pills I can’t remember the name of. In the end, (excuse the pun) all we really needed was 4 big doses of prune juice suggested by Eileen from our ward who is a nurse. Jolene is now drinking one cup a day to keep herself regular.

We are continuing to get a lot of support from friends and neighbors, however Jolene is very weak and too many visitors is too much for her so we are now asking people not to come visit. She is also unable to talk on the phone. It is too difficult for her to concentrate on the conversation. She is not even taking calls from her parents, which is very hard on her. You can still call, but you will have to talk to me or the girls. You are welcome to come by, however you will have to visit with me or the girls. If Jolene happens to be awake she might see you but please limit your visit to 5 minutes or less. We will not disturb her to visit with you. We hope you will understand. Please know that this is her wish and is in her best interest.

We continue to be blessed by all of your thoughts and prayers. We feel we have been blessed that Jolene is still with us. 5 weeks ago the doctors didn’t think she would be around this long. We believe this is a gracious blessing given to us by God because of the faith and prayers uttered in our behalf by all of you. Thank You!

Happy Mother's Day!!!

May 10, 2009

HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY!!! We’ve had a good week this week. The weather was awesome and it was just a good week.

Jolene had a good week. She has been sleeping A TON and has been having problems with constipation. So she’s uncomfortable a lot with that but she’s keeping all her food down, eating very well, etc so in that way it has been a good week. She tries to take walks every day, and on Saturday we were able to go to Grandma Davidson’s for a small BBQ for Mother’s Day. It was nice for her to get out of the house and see family but it wiped her out so she was unable to go to church. Her energy level continues to be low but she’s doing what she can to try to get it up!

Ron also had a good week. He was able to stay at home with his good wife and take care of her. He is proving to be an exceptionally good nurse. On Saturday he changed the oil in Jamie and tightened the bolt that’s holding Dora’s engine up. There is only 19 more days left of school for Marie which means there are only about 19 more days left of Dora. He is ready to be done with her. She has been an incredible car that served its purpose well. But her time with the Davidson family is just about over.

Savanna had it nice this week because Steven, Sheree, and Emmry were all out of town so she didn’t have to nanny. She went on a hike with her friend to some waterfalls in one of the canyons around here. She also took Marie to the Cheesecake Factory for her birthday, and to celebrate the ending of Marie’s AP US History test! Then she had work at the MTC on Saturday.

Marie’s highlight this week was when the AP US History test was over. Now that it’s over Marie’s pretty excited. On Saturday she had her first Mamaci practice for this year. It was good and she’s excited to start playing lacrosse again.

Jolene, Savanna, and Marie were all sad that they were not able to run Race for the Cure on Saturday but they appreciated those Bingham Lacrosse girls who ran in ‘Celebration of’ Jolene Davidson. Thanks for that, it was great. We’d also like to thank those who have brought us food, came by to visit, have been praying for us, and sending their kind words. It is ALL appreciated very very much. Thanks for the continued support every day and for the thoughts and prayers in our behalf. Through the Lord, we are all going to get through this trial. Thanks again!

Thankful for friends and family

Another beautiful spring day in Utah. Ron and I have enjoyed a walk this morning, and just spending time visiting with Grandma and Grandpa Heywood as they celebrate their 52nd anniversary. We enjoyed having all the family stay with us this weekend for Sarah’s, (Jill’s oldest daughter) baptism. It was a very nice service. Marie gave a talk on the steps to baptism, and Savanna gave a talk on the Holy Ghost. We enjoyed visiting with all of the Hansens that attended the baptismal service. They are such a great family. We are happy that we can be related to them through Jill, (my younger sister).

I was thrilled that my very close friends from Skyline High School came to visit this past week. The food they brought was excellent. We loved the Olive Garden Meal. The lasagna was delicious. The paper crane tree made by the Japanese club was thoughtful. The banner and DVD from the student body officers brought tears to my eyes. I am grateful for all of the thoughts and prayers offered in my behalf from these wonderful people. All of these gestures help raise my spirits.

Our ward continues to be a strong support. We continue to get meals from families in our neighborhood. More then once we have had our yard taken care of. The Elders have taken over Ron’s church responsibilities. Thanks to those who helped arrange the baptism on Saturday. I was glad that I was able to attend the event. But it did tire me out.

I continue to feel very weak. I am eating well, and keeping my food down, so that is a blessing. I haven’t gotten on a scale lately to see if I am gaining weight, but Ron is encouraged and feels that I am looking stronger.

Savanna started her last class at BYU this week, and is babysitting Emmry for Steve and Sheree. She finished her first season as an assistant coach for the Bingham lacrosse team. Marie also finished her lacrosse season this week in an exciting game against Olympus.

blooming

4-29-09

We are enjoying the springtime weather the only problem is that I remain exhausted. Thank you again for all of the generous food donations, flowers, prayers and concerns. We are surrounded wonderful friends. I remain pain free and just sleep all day. On Saturday we enjoyed attending Brandon and Jenny’s. They are such a cute couple. Thanks again for your thought! Thanks again!

Love Jolene

Springtime in Utah

April 23, 2009

I am doing so much better that last week. Just like the weather I am experiencing a rebound! Ron is relieved that I am not on my “deathbed” and thanks to his mother we have been able to get the funeral arrangements done. Thanks to my dad and Larry we have most of the financial things in order, and thanks to mom my house is clean. Savanna and Marie have been so helpful during this trial. I truly feel that I am surrounded by angels. The faculties at Heartland, Skyline, Elk Meadows have been so supportive and caring. Ward members also are there when needed.

I am now done with treatment and in the care of Hospice. These medical professionals are so up front and honest with us I really appreciate them.

Each day Ron helps my take a short walk. It is hard for me to have limited energy, but it feels so good to be outside in the warm weather. Tomorrow we are looking forward to Brandon’s reception. It will be exciting for a wedding.

Thank you again for all your kindness and love. We truly are blessed!!!

Jolene

Bounce Back

Hey it's Savanna again. My mom will probably be able to do the blog update next week. She had bounced back this week. She is eating and feeling stronger and better. Her nausea is for the most part completely controlled, so that is a GREAT thing.
Mom has decided not to continue with any treatments (radiation or chemo) for the time being and we feel that this break has really made all the difference. She still is continuing to lose weight and that is a concern but she is eating now and enjoying it. I bought BYU ice cream for my grandpa Heywood and she has enjoyed her fair share of it. :)
We are so grateful to all the visitors we've had this week. Mom's brothers all were able to fly up and spend the day with her. Dave and Tim came up on Wednesday and Tony, Jana and Larry came up yesterday. It's always fun to have them, we spend most the time laughing.
On Friday Craig and the girls came up to take Jill home. It was fun to have those girls around. They are such cuties and silly kids. It was also Craig's birthday so we enjoyed some cake and ice cream. Dad and I got to open some early graduation gifts from Jill and Mom. Its especially fun since we both got the exact same things but in different colors. His are red and mine are blue.
Yesterday was Girl's Pref for Marie. She had a blast with her friends and at the dance. She is such a social butterfly it amazes me. It's been a hoot to coach her in lacrosse and see her in a different setting. She's pretty cool!

Well next week my Mom'll be writing the blog so be sure to check it out.

Still Struggling with a Smile

Easter's not Easter without an Easter Bonnet.
Thanks go out to those at Skyline for all the great hats.
We're putting them to use.


Hello to all the blog followers, this is Savanna writing the blog update for this week. It has been quite the weekend.
Mom is having a real struggle keeping anything in her stomach. She has gotten real skinny, if cancer wasn't so hard I'd say its the best weight loss program there is. My mom continues to amaze me with her positive attitude. She is always finding something to smile about. We sure do love her!
As we continue to battle through this we are continually blessed to see the love and support we are surrounded by. My grandparents (Mom's parents) are now living with us as well as Mom's sister Jill who is a nurse. It is such a relief to have a nurse living with us who knows all the questions to ask and how to get what is needed from the doctors.
We are so grateful for Craig and Jill's family as well as Craig's parents who are now taking care of their family so Jill can be with us. On Sunday, at the drop of a hat, Craig and Jill packed up their kids and drove up to be with us. We are grateful for their willingness to change their lives around to help us.
It's always fun to have the Grandparents here as well. Grandma takes such good care of us while Grandpa spoils us rotten with pies every night. Its nice to not have to worry about petty things like laundry and cleaning.
A shout out must go out to our neighbors and friends. They are always looking for ways to help us. They've kept us well fed and have even mowed our lawn(you know who you are;) ) They've also been good about visiting for short periods. My mom is getting to know the four walls of her room very well and the visitors certainly change it up a bit.
This last weekend being Spring Break and Easter brought lots of fun. I was able to travel to Moab with the Stubbs family. It was a perfect amount of time to de-stress and prepare for upcoming challenges. The Stubbs family has always been a second family to us. Thank you for allowing me to come down and relax for a bit.
For Easter Sunday the Davidson family came over to visit with Mom and then Marie and I were able to go up to Grandma Davidson's for the Annual Easter Egg Hunt. The love and support the Davidsons give us is priceless. I am so grateful that they are so close and so supportive.
As we go through these struggles we are not alone. We have so many family and friends who are more then willing to drop everything and help out. We also have the wonderful peace and comfort the gospel of Jesus Christ brings into our hectic lives. This Easter holiday took on a deeper meaning as we face these tough times. It made the knowledge of the Atonement that much more meaningful in our lives.

Things Change Fast

Hello everyone this is Marie again writing for our family. :)
So, last week things were looking pretty good for my mom. She didn’t throw up for like 4 days in a row, she was getting her energy back, and ya it was great! Then on Sunday I think she threw up once, then Monday she threw up some more, and it kind of got worse from there. She decided to cancel her trip to Arizona for Easter because she was throwing up, didn’t have a lot of energy, and she was starting to get headaches. On Tuesday night her headache and throwing up got worse. My dad took her to the ER at about 10pm. They gave her some IVs then a CT scan. They got home at like 3am so it was a pretty long night. On Wednesday, Savanna was able to stay home from school to take care of my mom. She was calling doctors and doctors were calling all throughout the day. One of the calls from the doctors to Savanna was to tell us that the spots on my mom’s brain had grown. The doctors decided to start radiation on her brain immediately the next day which was Thursday. She went in yesterday to get some more IVs, then to start the radiation. The doctors also made her new schedule and gave her a MRI so they will be able to see more clearly the details that are going on with the spots in her brain. She will be having radiation on her brain for the next 15 days. Today my mom and dad went in again for radiation and hopefully they will be able to meet with one of our doctors to talk with them and ask them some questions. It’s Easter weekend though so a lot of the staff are out of town.
My mom’s condition has changed quickly in the last few days so none of us were quite prepared for it. We were all sad that she had to cancel her trip to AZ; hopefully she’ll be able to re-schedule that as soon as possible. We are so grateful that we live so close to the hospitals and doctors that can help us. We’re also grateful for all the prayers that are said for our family. Those prayers are seriously what help us get through each individual day. We believe this is only the beginning, and more hard times are coming. But we will get through this with the Lord’s help. Thank you again for your continued prayers and love. We love all of you! Thank you!!!

Dr. Visit

Yesterday Ron took me to have a check up with Dr. Harker......He is optimistic about the cancerous lymph nodes, they have shrunk!!! The bad news is that he wants to do two more rounds of chemo! I'm not ready for chemo again! Luckily I will have a few weeks off to regain some strength. My blood worked confirmed that I am anemic and my white blood count is low! That was no surprise since my energy level is low. I have another MRI brain scan scheduled for April 15th and hopefully the spots on my brain have remained stable otherwise I get to have my brain radiated!!!!So I am asking for everyone to pray that I have a "stable brain". When we got home I lost my breakfast....what a fun day!!!!

There was some good news, I qualify for a 6 month handicap parking pass, so I'm sure that everyone will want to be my friend at Jackson this year...just think driving to the entrance of Jenny Lake and having the perfect parking spot!

Thanks again for all your prayers and thoughts....together we will beat this cancer!

Birthday Weak

3-29-09

I’ve had a better week! Tomorrow I have an appointment with Dr. Harker and then on Thursday I will see Dr. Avizonis. Hopefully the initial report on my last treatment will be positive. I’m predicting that they will be scheduling scans in the near future to see exactly what has happened. I am hoping that I will have a few weeks off since I still feel very weak!

Ron was able to finish the radon mitigation project in our home yesterday. It was a lot of work, but now the system is pumping the radon out the roof into the air where it won’t cause any trouble for anyone!

The girls remain busy with all aspects of their lives….school, lacrosse, and their social lives fill their days with endless activities! Oh to have the energy to keep up with their lives!

Ron is enjoying teaching his 4th graders. Last week he was busy Wednesday and Thursday evenings with parent-teacher conferences. Ron and the girls are looking forward to going to Moab for Easter in a couple of weeks. Hopefully the weather will be warm for them….it has been snowing the past few days and everyone in Utah is hoping for Spring!

I have been able to keep my food down for the past few days! Food still doesn’t taste good, but I can eat. Now I just need to rebuild my strength, I have lost a lot of weight and don’t have enough energy to do the things that I want to do. But I am slowly regaining energy. Yesterday Ron and I were able to take Cleo on a walk. It is nice to get outside!

On Friday I was able to go into school for a few hours. It was wonderful seeing my friends. They presented me with two boxes filled with hats that the clubs at Skyline had gathered for me. It was fun trying on the different hats, some were very creative! I look forward to wearing them when I return to school. Hopefully I will be able to work part time soon!

I was able to celebrate my birthday on Wednesday, we really didn’t celebrate since Ron had conferences and I wasn’t feeling the best. I did enjoy a great meal of soup and salad from the Lindseys and Lynn Park brought me some strawberry shortcake! It tasted pretty good!!! I look forward to having a much better birthday next year!

Again I want to thank you for your kind thoughts and prayers. I feel comforted as I deal with this trial. Ron and the girls continue to be wonderful in helping me with anything that I may need. Hopefully next week will be even better than this week!

Beetdigger Tournament

Prom-A Night to Remember!

Another "Weak" Week

3-22-09

Another week has passed and I am slowly regaining my strength……slowly!!! This is the frustrating part for me. I can only eat “soft” food in small amounts so that limits the amount of energy I can get from the food I eat. I can’t tolerate anything that is sweet so jello, popsicles, and milk shakes are out of the question. How I long for my taste buds to return so that I can enjoy eating food again. I am doing better at keeping my food down, but it seems that I lose one meal a day! Hopefully that will stop this week so that I can get stronger and return to work at least part time!

Ron and the girls remain so supportive and helpful to me during this time! Ron is always there to encourage me when times are tough, he also helps me with making sure that I eat and take any necessary meds. Savanna is helpful and does her best to make sure that I have everything I need. Marie also helps out in any way that she can. Yesterday she drove me to her lacrosse games and carried my chair and camera for me. It’s sad to think that I don’t have enough energy to carry my chair and camera. I did love getting outside in the nice weather and just sitting on the sidelines watching Marie play lacrosse and Savanna coach her team. It was a fun afternoon for me!

Ron is about ½ of the way done putting in the radon mitigation system in our home. He is sore today because yesterday was the day that he sawed a hole in the cement in the basement and hauled 25 gallons of dirt outside. The pipe is now cemented in the bottom of the hole, so next week he will move into the attic and finish the project. I am thankful that Ron is so handy and does so much around our home.

Savanna stays busy with student teaching, coaching lacrosse, working at the MTC, and doing things with her friends. She is getting near the end; hopefully she will see the light at the end of the tunnel soon.

Marie had the busiest weekend…she was involved in a lacrosse tournament on Friday and Saturday, and she also went to prom at the State Capital Friday night! She looked like a princess in her dress and she had a lot of fun with the group that she went with to prom! The driver drove his mom’s Expedition and took the time to run “Bingham Blue” Christmas lights around the interior so that it looked like some type of limo. The group enjoyed the looks they got as the drove to and from prom; they also enjoyed rolling down the windows and waving to people. We are so grateful that Marie has such great friends and are supportive of her.

Hopefully I will continue to regain my strength so that I can return to a normal life soon!!!

Thanks again for everyone’s love, support, prayers, and kind thoughts. I know that all of this is helping me as I battle this cancer!!!

Bingham vs. Murray

Ron was able to take me to the game today!!! It felt wonderful to be outside and sit in the sun. We loved watching Marie play and Savanna coach. Sitting in a chair wasn't too exhausting for me, so hopefully I will have energy to go and cheer for future games!

Bingham Lax

Nausea!!!!

3-17-09

Happy St. Patrick’s Day! I am home trying to regain my strength after a trying week! Today I am grateful that I didn’t have any treatments, now my body should start to regain strength!

The downhill spiral began on Tuesday of last week after my last big chemo treatment on Monday the 9th. I became nauseated and couldn’t keep anything down, including water. After 3 days of this Ron was ready to take me to the emergency room! We opted to see the doctor after radiation on Friday morning. She sent us to the infusion center at the Huntsman Cancer Institute and I was given 3 liters of IV and some medicine to help with the nausea. This helped but I continued throwing up on Saturday, so we made another trip to the infusion center for 2 more liters of IV. On Sunday I began keeping some food down, but since I am limited to bland liquids I still don’t have much energy.

Yesterday was my final radiation YIPPY!!! Afterwards Ron and I met with the doctor again, things are going better but I continue to feel weak and it hurts to swallow solid foods (side effects of radiation on my throat)! I will have a few weeks off to recover before I meet with the doctors and move on to the next level, probably more scans.

During this trying time I have come to the conclusion that it takes a community to help a person battle cancer. I am so grateful to friends, neighbors, and family that have provided me and my family with meals, treats, cards, flowers, transportation, prayers, and endless support. I continue to be amazed at the love and support that is constantly extended to us on a daily basis.

I am also grateful to the Skyline Community for their support and donations to the Utah Cancer Society! They had a “Hat Day” to collect hats for Jay Gunderson, the choir teacher who is fighting cancer, and me. At a choir concert on Friday night they collected over $1200.00 to donate to the Cancer Society. It is wonderful to have such loving and supportive friends and students at my school! Even when times are tough I can draw on the support of my friends to get me through!

Ron has been amazing with being my “nurse”! He has gotten me up in the middle of the night to give me medications; he has taken time off from school to get me to doctors and the Huntsman Cancer Center. He has been there to cheer me on and encourage me when all I wanted to do was cry! I love him so much and cherish our marriage!

The girls have been supportive too during this hard week. They do whatever they can to make me comfortable and help to keep our home running smoothly. I look forward to seeing them participate in lacrosse games and other activities.

I hope that I will continue to regain my strength so that I can return to my normal life.

Thanks again to everyone for your prayers, thoughts, service, and concern! I truly am surrounded by angels.

Exhausted!!!!

March 8, 2009

Hello everyone, this is Marie. My mom is too tired to write the weekly letter so she has delegated me to do it for her. :) This week has been normal I guess, just the normal stuff going on.

Jolene had Chemo and Radiation every day this week in the mornings. Thank you for taking her Ruth, Linda, Grandma, Savanna this week and Stephanie next week. Thanks a ton, it helps out a lot! I know that she has appreciated it a lot, and my dad appreciates it too. My mom is feeling really, really tired. She sleeps pretty much all day. I think her routine is to wake up, go to Marv’s, shower, eat breakfast, go to her treatments, come home, eat, and then she goes to bed until she wakes up for dinner or a snack or whatever. When I get home from school she’s asleep, and then when I get home from practice she’s eating dinner. Then at like 7 we have prayers then she’s asleep by 7:30. So basically she sleeps a lot. She also doesn’t have a lot of energy. She’ll get better though. And I know that she’s excited to be done at the end of this week. On Monday I think the doctors will tell her what is going to happen after this round is done. She thinks that they’ll probably give her some time without any treatments to let her body recover, and then they’ll do the scans all over again. We don’t know for sure, but we’ll find out. Thanks for thinking about her and praying for her, it really is helping.

Ron is finally done with his hours!!! He is so excited to be done with all his administrative hours! Now he just has one more class I think, then he’ll be ready for graduation in May. He is also looking forward to be able to do what he wants to do when he goes off track. Pretty sure he’s going to be going to Moab for like a week in May. That’s what he did last year with Cleo and he absolutely loved it. I think that he will probably miss being at Bingham though. It was funny to see how excited he was about getting to wear one of those walkie talkies in his ear, and being on the inside of everything that goes on about Bingham. It was kind of nice to have him know everything about Bingham cause then I could get some information from him, like what the basketball schedule was and everything. Congratulations Dad for getting all 450 administrative intern hours!!!

Savanna was busy this week too. On Tuesday she took the day off from school to take Jolene to treatment. Then she had coaching lax all week and school. I think she likes her new class of 2^nd graders. It’s funny to hear all the stories she tells about what goes on in the life of a 2^nd grader. She is going to be a great teacher. I’ve realized from her stories, that it takes a ton of patience to be a teacher. Good for her for having that patience. Savanna is also turning out to be a pretty good lax coach. At the beginning of the season I didn’t think she’d do that great, but she’s proving me wrong. She really does know a lot of stuff about the game and now I wish that she would’ve told me some of this stuff 2 years ago! Oh well, its fun to have her be there everyday and coach, I like it.

For me this week it was a normal week. Busy with school, lax, homework, and hanging out. It was sad for Bingham this week. We did well at basketball but lost by like 20 pts in the semi-finals to Lone Peak. We also took 2^nd in Debate which is really sad cause we’ve won state for like the last 3 years in Debate. Oh well, maybe next year. Ha ha but it was really funny at the basketball game cause we had a theme of superhero’s so the fans all dressed up in superhero attire and aw man, it was great. There were these two kids that were dressed up as Luke Skywalker, and the red guy, Darth Mal? But anyway, they had their light sabers and the force, so during half time they had a duel with the force and their light sabers, it was so good. Ha ha, I guess you had to be there, but it was pretty funny.

That’s about it for our family I think. Daylight savings started today so that’s weird but it’s exciting cause that means that summer is closer! It’s still freezing cold outside though, but oh well. Thanks for all the support and the prayers that you give our family! It helps us out more than you know. We love you all and have a great week!!!

-The Davidson Family :)

Bald is Beautiful!!!

After itching for the past few days I decided to have Chris cut my hair as short as possible.....so today I am bald!

It is amazing how cold it is when you don't have hair!! Thanks to Mary and Ruth for cheering me on and discovering that I only have one scar on my head and that I do have "stork bites". I don't think that I have ever been bald! According to mom I was born a headful of hair!


Now I will have to experiment and see what I prefer: wigs, hats, or scarves?!! Thanks to the Skyline Student Body I will have a collection of hats because they have organized a hat contest to collect hats for me! Thanks again for all the love and support...hopefully the weather will warm up so I won't be so cold!!!

GI Jolene

GI Jolene

2-24-09

Another milestone in my battle.....the buzz haircut!!! Yes, my hair was beginning to fall out any time that I combed it, showered, or slept. I was getting tired of all the hair, I felt like Cleo, our dog...always shedding! So my dear friends at Skyline offered to help me.

Thanks to Chris my assistant principal who is also a beautician for having so much fun buzzing my head. Thanks to Janice J. for providing the clippers. Thanks to Sally for documenting the event by taking pictures. Julie for videoing the event. Ruth for letting us use her sewing room. Thanks to Dierdri and Kris for cheering me on. We really did have a lot of fun, especially when Chris made me look like "Bozo"! I'm sure that I will enjoy the ease of this new look! My hair is now shorter than Ron's hair. The only shock was seeing how much gray hair I really have!

Thanks again to these dear supportive friends at Skyline!!!!!

Radiation 101

2-24-09

Here is may daily radiation routine....Ronnie and Collette that are the two technicians that work with me each day declined the opp0rtunity for a photo, but they are great at taking care of me while I take a ride on this machine.
I go to the Huntsman Cancer Center that is located adjacent to the IMC in Murray.

The check-in is very nice and easy!


These are the lockers where I put my clothes and purse.


Aren't the gowns cute?


This is the radiation room.


Notice the thick vault-like door that seals me and the radiation inside!


This is the table that I lie on while I get zapped 13 times. Notice the scenic picture that I can look at during the treatment. The table moves under the large arm and the technicians line my body up using lasers with the tattoos on my body. The large round arm located at the top rotates around my body and zaps the cancer cells from all different angles during my treatment..it really amazes me how much science and technology work together to help me beat my cancer!!!!

Marie and Jr.

True BYU Fans!!!!

New Addition

2-22-09

We are looking forward to spring-like weather again this coming week! The lawn is finally snow-free, and the lacrosse team is grateful to be practicing in 40* weather!

The family continues to remain busy….Ron with school and high school activities; Savanna with student teaching, coaching lacrosse, and working at the MTC on Saturday; and Marie with school, lacrosse, and friends! My week was busy too with radiation and school every day! Yes, it was great having renewed energy and being able to work each day!

We had a new addition to our family this weekend….Junior! Marie has had the opportunity to be a single-mom this weekend for her adult roles class at high school. She was assigned a “mechanical baby boy” that imitates the demands of a real baby! He cries when he is hungry, fussy, needs to be changed, or when he needs a burp! Marie is proving to be a great mom and has taken the challenge of not leaving Jr. . Jr. has had a fun weekend attending a Bingham Basketball game where he was quite fussy (maybe it was too noisy?) . He also joined Marie for lacrosse practice (luckily he slept the entire time). He also went with Marie to workout on Saturday morning and then to the school play last night. We heard him cry a few times last night and then early this morning. We are hoping that he will be a “good baby” during church! I’m sure that this will be an eye-opening experience for Marie!

I have enjoyed renewed energy this week. I met with Dr. Avizonis on Friday after my radiation treatment. I asked her about my “raspy” throat. She explained that she made the choice to radiate closer to my “voice box” than to my saliva glands. So the result is that I have lost my voice. I really have to strain to talk, so I just whisper. This may be an blessing to my family and the kids at school! She explained that my “voice box” will heal faster than my saliva glands. Dr. Avizonis also told me that the lumps in my neck feel like they are breaking up…she can now fill two or three lumps instead of one big one! Yippy!!!

I am grateful that the side effects of my cancer remain minimal. My hair is becoming thinner so I may be losing it in the next few days…I’m sure that this will be emotional, but I am getting tired of all the grey! My next “double dose” of chemo and radiation could be harder on my body so I am not looking forward to that! So I will enjoy next week and then plan on being down for the next two weeks while I deal with chemo again! I have to keep reminding myself that each treatment is helping me get the cancer under control.

We again want to express our thanks to friends and family that continue to support us through this trial!

Marie's Night at the Ball!!!!

Draper Temple Open House

Renewed Energy!

2-16-09

I hope that you are enjoying “President’s Day”! I am!!!! No radiation, no chemo, no school….what a great day!

It has been a busy week for us….

First of all thanks to mom and dad for taking care of me and my family these past 10 days. Our family has loved mom’s cooking, organizing, and cleaning! My family and I have loved dad’s gifts and I have enjoyed the seat warmers as he has taking me to my treatments. The first week of February has been the hardest week for me so far! Chemo and radiation made me feel totally exhausted, I never knew that I could sleep so much during the day and then sleep all night! I am so grateful that mom and dad were here to “hold down the fort” so that I could just sleep and do what my body needed to do to fight this cancer. We truly felt blessed to have them be here at this time! We will miss them, and Cleo will miss dad!

Ron remains busy with school, his classes, and Bingham High activities. Last week he went to basketball games on Tuesday and Friday. On Saturday he was able to help out at the Sweetheart’s Dance.

Savanna remains on the go with student teaching, coaching lacrosse, and being involved with institute and the singles ward.

Marie is always going….school, lacrosse, friends, and social events with her friends. She really had a lot of fun at the Sweethearts Dance on Saturday.

To celebrate Valentine’s Day the Hansens got tickets for us to join them at the Draper Temple Open House. We loved the VIP tour of the temple. (yes, cancer does have some benefits!) It was a great experience to share with the Hansesns, especially Sarah and Kela. The girls loved the beauty of the temple. We were in awe of the beautiful paintings, murals, chandeliers, and the peace that was in that holy structure. Kela always makes thing interesting because she is so observant….the midgets that were with us in the sealing room and the celestial room made things memorable. One of the highlights for Kela was riding in the wheel chair from the chapel to the temple and then enjoying cookies after the tour!!!!

I am now regaining strength and energy….I was able to go to school for half a day on Friday. I am hoping that I will be able to work at least part time during these next few weeks as I continue with radiation treatment. The first week of March will be hard again because I will face chemo and radiation, luckily Ron will be off-track so he will be able to help me during this time.

We continue to benefit from everyone’s prayers….the side effects continue to be minimal and the treatments are going well. Thank you again for your thoughts, concerns, and prayers….

Exhausted...

2-8-09

This week I have been extremely tired….it feels like I have run a half-marathon each day and that I can’t regain my normal energy level! Thank goodness that my parents are here to take care of me this week. Mom’s cooking has been the best, my family is getting spoiled!!! It seems that I just eat, sleep, go to treatments, exercise, and then go to bed and start over again!

Everything is going well, minimal side effects basically just exhaustion! Radiation is every morning and only last about 10-15 minutes. Chemo varies from 4 hours on Monday to 1-2 hours on Tuesday through Friday. I am looking forward to a break from chemo after tomorrow, after my treatment tomorrow I will enjoy 3 weeks off! Then I can relax and see what effects radiation has on my body!

Again we are grateful for the continued love and support that is given to us from family, friends, and neighbors! I am so grateful that all continues to go well and that the side effects remain minimal!

Day 2 of Round 2

2-3-09

Day two of radiation and chemo was better than day one! Thanks to Nelda, Ron’s mom, for taking me and sitting with me during the chemo!

Yesterday was very uncomfortable at radiation. I had to lie still for an hour on a very uncomfortable table while the radiation machine took x-rays of my lung and neck and then zapped me! The worst part was my neck since the form that my neck rested on was not padded!!! Talk about a pain in the neck!!!!! Luckily I was given permission to move half way through the treatment, and I only have to go through this once! I am now wondering how the radiologist does this process with children, they must put them out! It felt good to move my neck around when I was done!

Today I was just in that position for about 5 minutes. They zap the cancer in my lung 6 different times, each at a different angle, and then they zap the area of my neck where the cancerous lymph nodes are 6 different times at different angles. It is quite amazing..thank goodness for modern technology.

Yesterdays chemo lasted 4 ½ hours!!!! It appeared that they put about 3 liters of liquid into my body, so yes I was going to the bathroom a lot last night! The chemo treatment is more comfortable than radiation, but it did last longer yesterday! I didn’t leave until 6:30 P.M. so I felt like I was getting a private treatment since everyone was gone except my nurse, my doctor, and a few people in the reception area. What individualized treatment!!! I came home, ate, went to the bathroom, and lay down in bed. I was tired! Because I was so tired Ron asked his mother if she could take me today!

Today’s treatment was only 1 ½ hours, but by the time I got home I was tired so I ate some lunch and then took a welcome nap. I will just have to listen to my body and take it easy until I figure out how this round will affect me.

Ron will be taking me tomorrow and then my parents will be in town for a couple of weeks!

Thanks again for all the support that everyone is providing to me and my family! Each day I receive encouraging emails and cards in the mail! Your faith and prayers are a strength to us during the trial!

Super Bowl

2-1-09

Half-time during the Super Bowl…..come on Cardinals…what a defensive play by the Steelers to end the half! We are enjoying the game with Greg and Jake….rating the commercials has been fun, so far the Mr. Potato Head driving has won!

Life continues to move along!

Ron is busy, but he is enjoying the Bingham High basketball games, he is going to two games each week for administrative hours.

Savanna has decided to go to the Singles Ward at the Institute at SLCC near our home. Student teaching is demanding on her schedule, but she is able to help coach lacrosse.

Marie enjoyed an easy week at school, especially getting out of school on Friday to go to UVU to cheer on the Bingham drill team for state. Bingham came in second. Next week she will have a few days of sleeping in because it is test week for the sophomores! On Wednesday Marie turned 17 years old, but since we were so busy we went out to dinner on Monday. Thursday her friends brought over a birthday cake! Marie really has some great friends.




I have enjoyed a week off from chemo, tomorrow I will start round 2. I am nervous about how my body will respond to chemo and radiation. Again I am hoping for minimal side effects!

We look forward to seeing mom and dad later this week. It will be nice to have them here with us for a couple of weeks!

Enjoy the rest of the Super Bowl, go Cardinals!!!

Love,
Jolene

Ready for Round 2

1-30-09

The end of an energizing week!

I have enjoyed not having any chemo treatments this week and spending time with friends. Yesterday Larry Wilde, a fellow librarian, took me to lunch and then during the afternoon dear friends Barb and Janene, from Evergreen paid me a visit. Afterwards I was able to join them with Moses and Chris for “coalition” meeting at Crown Burger. Today I enjoyed a Café Rio lunch with the Skyline group..good friends and good food! These are reminders of how many wonderful and support friends I have surrounding me during this battle.

Monday I will begin round two. It will be much more aggressive I will be having chemo for longer sessions for 6 days in a row and then 3 weeks off. Radiation will also begin on Monday with a 5 minute daily session for 6 weeks. I hope that the side effects will be minimal and that I will still have the energy to work at least part time.

We are looking forward to having my parents with us for a couple of weeks. Hopefully they won’t freeze in this cold weather.

Thanks again for your prayers and support…we are surrounded by great friends and family!

Another Week

1-25-09

This past week has been busy for our family…..

Ron continues to stay busy with school, classes at the U, and basketball games at Bingham High. He did get the results of the radon test in our house; it came back high, so now Ron is doing research to find out how to ventilate our home. If you are interested in ordering a radon test click on this site….http://www.radon.utah.gov/. Since January is national radon awareness month the kit only costs $6.00.

Savanna continues to enjoy student teaching at Draper Elementary, she is also helping with coaching the lacrosse team.

Marie enjoyed having Monday and Tuesday off from school. She was thrilled yesterday when her winter league team won the championship game. Marie played well and even scored a goal!!!!

On Thursday Ron went with me to see Dr. Avizonis, the radiologist. It was informative meeting with her. She talked to us about my next round. I am thrilled that I will have next week off, but then starting on Feb. 2nd I will be starting radiation and chemo. I will have radiation every day for 6 weeks, and then I will have chemo for 5 days in a row and then 2 weeks off. It will be a more aggressive round so I hope that my body will be able to handle this treatment. I have been blessed with having minimal side effects so far, hopefully it will continue! On Thursday I also got my radiation tattoos….too bad they look like freckles; it is hard for me to find some of them!

We appreciate everyone’s prayers and thoughts for us. Thank you!!!

Go Cardinals!!!!

Thanks for Dinner!

Thanks to the Cardona women for bringing our family dinner tonight. Yvette and Ivonne brought some delicious soup, rice, and oranges for us to enjoy!

Chemo Day

Chemo Day

WARNING….WARNING…WARNING…WARNING…WARNING…

OK, you HAVE BEEN warned…..I decided to document my chemo treatment today. If you have a weak stomach you may want to skip viewing this blog!!!!

Thanks to Marie for joining me on this treatment and being the photographer.

My appointment was at 8:00 A.M. this morning, the first stop is the desk to check in and make a co-payment!




Now we wait in for a few minutes in the waiting room.



Don’t you like my “press and seal”? I wish that they used this instead of the dreaded tape. Before I go in I have to apply an ointment that numbs the area where my port is so that I won’t feel the needle that they have to insert.


This is the tray of medical equipment that is used to access my port. Notice the needle that is located right beneath the yellow plastic object that is on the lower right hand side of the tray.


This shows you a picture of my port. It is the bump right below the collar bone.


No, this is not blood!!! This is the iodine mixture that is applied to kill any germs that may be on the port access area.


This shows a picture of Shelly, the nurse as she is inserting the needle. I can’t feel a thing, it doesn’t hurt!


After the port is accessed Shelly can take a few vials of my blood. They check my white blood cell count and make sure that it is high enough before they administer the chemo.


The worst part of accessing the port is the tape…yes it has to be strong tape so that germs can’t seep through, but it is so strong that it hurts when it has to be removed!!!! The thought makes me cringe!


Ready to go…but first I have to meet with the doctor.



Dr. Harker took the day off so I just met with Rick his PA today. Everything seems to be fine with my blood work so all systems are go for chemo!

Now we wait in the Chemo Waiting Room for a few minutes while they get my chemo ready!

Here is a picture of the chemo room at the Utah Cancer Specialists. Usually the room is busy, but since it is MLK day there were only 2 other patients today.


Today Darren was my chemo nurse; he is getting me hooked up to receive the chemo. Notice the comfortable leather recliner that I get to relax in while I get my “drugs”.


Darren makes sure that I am warm and comfy during my treatment. I love the warm blanket. They also let us have treats while we are undergoing chemo. You can see the refrigerator behind the chair where Marie sat during my chemo, it is stocked with juices, pop, and other munchies!


Now I just sit and relax for either an hour or an hour and a half while the chemo drips into my body! Today Marie and I watched an episode of “The Office” while we were waiting.



At half-time I usually have to unplug the pump and take a “potty break”. With the juice plus the liquids dropping into my body I have really need this break.


Now the worst part of the treatment…removing the tape!!! Darren is gentle, but it still hurts!!!!


The tape is gone!!!!!



The little bandage to keep my port free from germs while the puncture wound heals. I only have to leave this on for about an hour!


Marie and I are glad to have completed my final chemo treatment for the first round!!! I continue to have minimal side effects, I will find out later this week when I start radiation and my next round of chemo!!!!

Thanks again for your thoughts and prayers!