On Saturday the 18th we started our morning at the ward Christmas breakfast and we had a great time there. The food was good and the entertainment was great as usual (I guess it helps to have people like Dan Collett in the ward). Following the breakfast we got our stuff and headed downtown for our annual shopping trip and night at the hotel. We started with a trip to Western Nut Company which always ends up being an expensive adventure. Then we went to Gateway for some shopping 
and fact finding (gift ideas for Mom). Shopping was fun but it wore all of us out and by about 4:30 we had done what needed to be done and we headed for the Marriott hotel to get checked in and rest. As we were arriving at the hotel Lauren informed us that she had left her nice shoes at home so she and her mother headed back to Gateway to buy a new pair (quicker than running home). So the rest of us rested while they went to get shoes. Then it was time for dinner. We had a 7:30 reservation for The Roof restaurant and as usual it didn’t disappoint us. The food at The Roof is always so good and of course the deserts were amazing. So we ate and then we (I) rolled ourselves out of the restaurant and went and walked through Temple Square and took some photos. By this time this old man was pooped and we headed back to the hotel room and retired for the night.
Sunday morning we got up and got dressed and headed to the Conference Center for the Mormon Tabernacle choir Christmas Concert. We got drenched as we walked to the Conference Center in a driving rain. The concert was amazing and we had a great time. It really did a lot to put all of me in a holiday mood. Following the concert it was time to head home and back to reality.
Monday December 20th was a beautiful day but we went to the Infusion Center at Huntsman anyway. Yes nothing like a little chemo therapy to put a person in the Christmas mood. By the way, before I forget, we need to revise our list of products needed for the do it at home chemo kit. If you are doing it please substitute a 16 oz bottle of Liquid Plummer in place of the 409. We have found that this is a better product for what we are trying to do. And as a note to those who may not be all there, the do it at home chemo kit is a joke and not meant to really be used. So back to chemo this week: This session allowed me to introduce Lauren to the chemo process since we decided to give mom a well deserved break from sitting with me, so Lauren went with me. This session proved to be a royal pain in the _ _ _. We sat there for 4 hours before the lab work was all back and we could start the poison. Thanks to some investigative work by Keen the Great it was discovered that the lab tech input the work needed wrong and then due to a machine breaking down and the last test needing to be done manually the results were delayed. So we finally got started and it was time for Lauren (dads Christmas elf) to go and finish up dads Christmas shopping as I sat there being poisoned (more fun than a tic on the butt of a dog). So following the session we went home and I (the wimp) went to bed. This session was rough. All I did until Christmas was go to work and come home and sleep. I do vaguely remember the kids having a Christmas party for their friends on Wednesday night (you would not have believed the amount of shoes at the front door).
So finally Christmas day arrived and the day started out different than any other Christmas has. Spencer came into our room at about 6:45 and proceeded to work on getting Lisa and I out of bed (we were very uncooperative). So at about 7:10 there was a banging on the front door and the sound of bells and a “Ho Ho Ho”. So I got out of bed and Spencer opened the door. Santa was there with three of his elves and we were given hot pastries, oranges and the twelfth day of Christmas gift. Concerning the twelve days of Christmas gift, there has been someone or we think several someone’s that have done the twelve days of Christmas for us. It has been a wonderful experience and we are very thankful for all they have done for us. The gifts are the parts to a beautiful nativity scene and it is a wonderful addition to the season. So once Santa left we opened our presents and had a great time as a family. Then it was time for the Kasteler side of the family to come over and open gifts. Following this it was time to head to Springville for the Scharffs side of the family Christmas party. It was great to see all of them and to enjoy everyone’s spirit. Following this the day was gone and it was time to head home.
All in all it has been a great Christmas but more than anything it has been great to be together as a family and also to feel the love of those around us.
So that brings us to my birthday on the 28th. As always my family took very good care of me and I felt very special. It is always hard to get older but I guess it is a fact of life and I need to get used to it.
The day after my birthday was the greatest gift of the season. On the 29th I went in for a CT scan and then we met with the doctor. It was mostly good news and we really needed that. The CT scan showed that the lesions in my Liver and Lymph Nodes had reduced in size. The Colon lesions appeared to be a little smaller or about the same and the spine was about the same. So this means that the chemo is working. So following the treatment next Monday, they will modify my treatments for the time being and take away one of the drugs. The one they will take away is the one with the worst side effects: sensitivity to cold, numbness, and some of the nausea just to name a few). That will really help. Then we will have another CT scan in 3 months to see again how we are doing. So it was a little late but what a great gift.
Thank you to all of you that have been so supportive and helpful. Your thoughts and prayers mean a lot to us.
Dave
