Has it been three months!?

Recent dinner date!

Okay, admittedly, I am not the best at keeping up with blogs or journals...obviously. Which is odd, right? For a writer? I'm finally updating here to let everyone know that I'm doing okay right now. What a difference now versus a year and a half ago.

Spring is finally starting to fully poke its head up here, in West Virginia. Been a crazy up and down of warm/cold weather, but it looks like we're finally in the clutch of spring. The buds, bugs, and birds agree.

I'm still doing treatment every two weeks, but my doctor has still been holding off of the heavier/harsher chemo drug and sticking with a more tolerable chemo and immunotherapy. He was happy with the results of the last scan and didn't feel like we needed to go back to the nasty stuff.

I've been active, going to the gym, doing things around the house and yard, and, of course, writing, writing, writing. I just signed a contract for my 30th book! A graphic novel/Ready to Read that I'm really excited about. The Junior Monster Scouts series wraps up in May, with the 10th book in the series, and there are several Junior Monster Scouts and Night Frights Ready to Reads rolling out (two this summer!).

My weight is up, as well as muscle mass. I'm stronger now than I was before being diagnosed with cancer! In think that the gym, and the yardwork/labors, and eating relatively well (although Jess will still make fun of the amount of food I can put away, and the wide variety of toppings I'll put on a pizza, or the fact that I'd eat a taco for breakfast, lol) have contributed to that. Maybe also mentality? While I'm doing well, I still always have this nagging shadow attached to me on a daily basis - that I'm operating on limited time. But we all are, right? That's part of being mortal. But speaking of food...it's still weird to think that only two years ago, a year and a half ago even, I couldn't really eat. Hell, I had a feeding tube in my stomach. But now....complete reversal. Well, mostly. I still make sure I eat a bit slower and take my time.

My nurses and doctor are great. I couldn't be happier at Shenandoah Oncology. They really take care of me. Which is good, because I'll always have to deal with this. I don't think it's ever fully going away. It'll be a lifetime of scans, and chemo/immunotherapy maintenance, but if that's what it takes to keep me around, then okay....we do what we have to do. But I really feel good right now. Jess and I are enjoying life and each other and our dogs and our wonderful little house in the woods. The kids are doing well - school and jobs and life. We don't get to see them as often as we'd like, but that's what happens when they all become grown ups and everyone doesn't live in the same five-mile radius.

I have a CT scan today to see where things stand. If the results continue to look good, I'll be able to keep off of the Oxaliplatin, maybe even move to treatment every three weeks....or once a month? I'm not sure about the reality of that schedule shift, but a guy can dream, right?

As always, thank you all for thinking of me, of us, and your continued support. I'll post more than once every three months, okay? Stay tuned!

Best,

Joe