Arizona Heat to Amish Warmth

Since my last blog entry, I have traversed many miles and am finally back home to beautiful Ohio where spring is still in the air and dogwoods are in bloom! Arizona should be renamed AridZone-Ugh! While it is a very interesting and sunny state to visit, I don’t think the saguaro cactus state

is one we would move to. Too much heat! At least the southern part of it! But Ohio…it is home! 

John had his annual (SMA) stair builders meeting in Tucson, Arizona last week, where we got to be reunited with so many friends and I participated in several of the extracurricular activities, which educated me on the flora and fauna of the area. I have held a desert tortoise hatchling,

 

ridden a horse named Callie on desert trails that are often crossed with rattlesnakes and horny toad lizards,

learned how to cook from scratch… several Southwestern dishes, including churros and taquitos. Several of us took a jeep tour through White Stallion Ranch and we tasted fishhook barrel cactus fruit,

and ate mesquite flour chocolate chip cookies! However, the best part of the conference was the people! I rekindled past friendships, made new friendships and sadly, missed those friends who were not in attendance (especially Chaz & Robin). 

One highlight was being asked to share my Gratitude Bell story at the conference and auction one off as a fund raiser for their organization, which I’m so very proud to say brought in $1,500 for the SMA! I am always profoundly grateful for any opportunity to share what God has done in my life! And the special woman who won it is also a fighter and my prayer is that Nancy C. will always ring it with a heart of gratitude for God and His great love for her! Listen and know that this Gratitude song is especially for you!

After the conference ended, John and I had the privilege of visiting with friends. One of John’s childhood buddies, Ted M, took us out to eat at the most famous vegan restaurant!!

Then John and I had a truly magnificent and memorable wild/dispersed camping experience, actually our very first van camping meet up with friends up in the beautiful Mount Lemmon area outside of Tucson. The moon was so bright we could see brilliant shadows all night! To do this with dear friends like the Vogels who love the Lord and share much in common made it a really precious time! And, yes!!! that is snow! There’s often a 30–40° difference from the top of the mountain down to the cactus-filled desert floor in Tucson!

Finally, our time together in Arizona came to an end and John dropped me off at Phoenix airport so I could return home and he could continue enjoying several hiking and mountain biking rides in Moab, UT and then drive home in a couple weeks. 

Meanwhile, I got my infusion treatments at The James to continue help keep my body in the beautiful state of health that someone diagnosed with stage four breast cancer could ever wish for! What I didn’t realize was how difficult getting my body clock turned around from Pacific time zone to Eastern time zone would be. I haven’t stayed up until 2 AM so many nights in a row in my life wishing I could just fall asleep! Thankfully, I got a little rest during my infusion… 

I’m really proud of how well John and I loved on each other, enjoyed each other‘s company, and recovered quickly from one little bump in the road conflict during the 2.5 weeks of being together almost constantly! If this was a test of life in the real WonderVan that is about to launch in a few months, with God’s help, we will be just fine and we are both bursting with excitement to see it come to fruition! 

It’s also important to be with other friends, have solitude alone with God, and to visit with family! So this past week I had 2 much needed dates with my son, caught up with family on FaceTime and phone calls and had my regular lunch date with this lady whom I love deeply! 

I had the child-like joy of morel mushroom hunting and, yes, I found a way to prepare them with my new way of eating…stuffed with scallion herb cashew cheese and air frying them! Very umami and delicious!

Two last blessings I’d like to share before saying adieu are ones where I’ve been touched by God’s generosity beyond measure! 

A very special person in my life introduced me to a niche bakery in Columbus, OH called Dan The Baker! Dan gave me a personal tour of his bakery behind the scenes and then GIFTED me not only with BEAUTIFUL loaves of bread and sweet croissants, but with some of his very own sourdough starter for an Amish friend of mine who just told me days before that she wanted to start making sourdough, but didn’t have a starter!! God is always a million steps ahead of me! 

Then I drove to the bucolic Amish Holmes County in Ohio and truly rested for 2 days enjoying perfect weather, perfect hilly scenery, perfect baked goods (the best sourdough bread and croissant I’ve ever tasted from Dan the Baker!), and perfect friendship that was exactly what this travel weary lady needed! Thank you RoyAmy!

A Foretaste of Upcoming WonderVan Life

My favorite new organic taco dinner with mushroom taco ‘meat’ and eating the rainbow of fresh veggies! This was my Last Supper before I headed out West for John’s work conference in AZ. Thought I’d share some pics along the way as we made our way from Ohio to Arizona. 

I saw this sign and cross in Illinois and thought, “There’s a message in this for someone!” Maybe when you’re at a Y in the road of life, what direction will you choose??

Along the way in Missouri we had the joy of visiting dear family friends then found a mountain bike trail with some beautiful Redbuds and Dogwoods, but sadly didn’t see any morels.

However, we did use our Harvest Host membership for the first time and parked our van (not the WonderVan yet) for the night in the parking lot of a winery/brew house and meet a sweet young gal who served us with a smile and shared camaraderie over eating plant based food! Thanks, L!

Like so many, we donned our Eclipse glasses but sadly we weren’t in an area of totality so it wasn’t as cool, sacred, awesome and amazing as some of my folks back home experienced. 

Oklahoma's…..a long flat drive with cows and oil wells. That’s it!

However, New Mexico had more topographic interest. We were all hyped up about Taos, but in all honesty, it disappointed. Along the way, there was so much poverty, dusty and arid terrain, but also had mountain views that were very pretty. Some passes even had snow still on them which was a treat to see in stark comparison to the desert-y rest of the state. We did a little off-roading for fun but not too much in the 2 wheel drive van. The WonderVan will handle this with no problem. 

The Rio Grande!

Our wild camping site on BLM land in NM had wild turkeys nearby. 

We kayaked the San Juan River for a day while John played around with fly fishing for trout. He managed to hook a little guy on day one which he ate for dinner. I took one bite and was surprised that I was kinda grossed out. For a gal who used to eat any animal protein, becoming plant based has certainly changed my tastebuds. 

We meet up with friends from Ohio where John and Joe G fly fished with a guide in quality waters of the San Juan near Navajo Dam. 

Then we headed out toward Arizona. 

On a whim we decided to stop at the Grand Canyon and OH MY!!!! were we glad we did. So many gorgeous views that photos never do it justice! We rode our mountain bikes along the South Rim trail, hiked Bright Angel trail, wild camped along forest service roads in the Ponderosa Pine forest, and took an unforgettable helicopter ride over the Canyon!! Both John and I actually teared up flying over it and we were speechless. 

Next stop…Phoenix to see friends from 30 years ago then Tucson for a conference. 

 

With Gratitude, Optimism Is Sustainable

I was cutting up pineapples in order to grill and dehydrate them for this upcoming September when John and I plan on living in the Canadian Wilderness for a month! We have dreamed about this for years! We will have only a canoe, tent and gear for fishing and cooking. Besides what fish we catch to eat (being plant-based now changes things for me entirely, so I’ll have to decide just how much fish I’ll allow myself to eat up there) I’m having to dehydrate or vacuum seal ALL our food which is why I’m starting to dehydrate now!

 

As I did that delicious preparation, I was scrolling through video reels and one came up that stopped me in my tracks, put a tear in my eye and made me want to share it with those who read my blog. This is one for the record books! Click on this link!! His profound words are POWERFUL! 

Then it made me think how grateful I am that Bevin Bells company agreed to make me a Gratitude Bell that others can buy for their own reminder to express gratitude to God for their blessings. I ring mine almost daily and it always elicits a response of claiming out loud what I’m grateful for in that moment. While it is still my hope that these will be placed in every cancer infusion center to encourage stage four cancer patients, most of the bells that I am aware of are hanging in people’s personal spaces, and it would be my hope that everyone reading my blog would consider getting a bell for their home or a friend to support the company that so graciously made this bell specifically for me. 

I flew to Florida on March 28th to visit my daughter, son-in-law and granddaughter and I’m especially grateful I get to spend this Easter with them to witness beautiful acts of faith in Jesus.

Unfortunately, on Friday night while drying a crystal glass, it just broke into two and the sharp glass shard rammed right into my palm leading me to the ER for 4 sutures.

The PA asked if I was ok with a medical student to suture it and for some odd reason I just really wasn’t in that frame of mind. I’m usually one to always help out students but this night I felt differently and asked the PA, Josh, to suture me up himself, which he gladly did. Come to find out he’s a Christian and sings in his church choir in Naples, FL area. I asked him if he was familiar with my favorite worship song, Gratitude, by Brandon Lake and he had not heard of it so I played it while he put in my sutures. He started humming along to it and I knew he was the perfect person for me this night!  He was such a gift from God and I love how my Heavenly Father takes such perfect care of me! Thankfully, only 4 stitches later and I’m going to be just fine.

 

Josh, the PA said he was sorry that I had that happen, but in that moment, I was so grateful that I got to see and experience God’s care for me and then the thought that it was Good Friday came to mind.  I had only 1 cut and was bleeding which made me pause and think how Jesus willingly took 39 violent whip lashes with sharp bones and metal shards on MY account…whew! I was so humbled to think how intense and unfathomable that excruciating pain must have been and how much blood must have poured out of him! Thank You, Jesus for going to the cross and enduring it all for me! 

This weekend I’m really thankful that I get to spend it with this little lady and her parents.

Sad that my hubby couldn’t come down with me but he’s working hard on our WonderVan. This weekend he’s putting in the flooring!!

 

Last week we started applying the olive ash burl veneer on the bench seats. It is even more exquisite than the photo shows. 

And today, April 3, 2024, I’m back up in Columbus, OH for my every 3 week infusion. It’s the first time I actually saw my oncology team since that amazing PET scan where Dr. Johnson called me on the phone to inform me of my clean scan!  (The past 2 infusions I only got the infusion but didn’t see the oncologist first).  I wanted to record them actually saying it to me, in person, so Amber who is the PA for Dr. Johnson and who did my exam today was gracious enough to let me record her making the official statement of that clean PET scan done several weeks ago. 

I did ask if there were any studies that have been done where stage 4 breast cancer patients with clean scans extend treatments out longer than 3 weeks. Unfortunately, Amber said she’s not familiar with any and suggested that since I have had THE BEST POSSIBLE results with how things have been done, and that it’s probably in my interest not to change my current treatment. She said that everything I’m currently doing, including eating a whole food plant based diet, is WORKING!! She said that I should continue on this path of Herceptin/Perjeta infusions every 3 weeks and eating super clean, exercising daily and having such a great attitude! I also asked my oncology nurse how often she sees someone with stage 4 breast cancer get CLEAN scans where there’s NO EVIDENCE OF DISEASE? She said it’s not very common at all!! 

She was in full agreement with me that it was a gift from God and a miracle! This brings to mind my absolutely favorite scene from The Chosen. Every word is powerfully moving to me and helps me accept whatever happens on my cancer journey. The miracle today of healing IS great news but I remember these words from the Bible book of Job and am humbled. This photo is the sunrise from this morning as I drove up to get my infusion! KJV is for my dear friend J. O’B 💕