The adventure continues....

So much time has passed since my last post I thought I'd better write an update to what's been happening in our lives this summer. Most of you know my husband was diagnosed with cancer and he has had four chemo treatments and this week, he will have his fifth. Meaning only one more chemo is left which we are looking forward to. We've also found out a bit more about the type of cancer we are fighting and how it will affect our lives in the future. The type of cancer Mike has is a "low grade" cancer meaning the cancer is harder to get rid of and not as fun to deal with. In fact, the tumors will probably stay with my hubby forever. After the sixth chemo treatment, Mike will have to undergo additional maintenance chemo treatments for the next two years. The drugs won't be as toxic as the R-Chop chemo but he will continue to get one drug, the Ritoxin. The goal for the cancer is to stop the growth and actually decrease the size of the tumors in his abdomen. A cat scan was done four weeks ago and the scan showed the tumors had decreased some but they are still there. Hence the need for "maintenance" chemo for the next two years. We don't know what God has in store for us, but we are confident He will be by our sides as we continue the adventure. In fact, we are scheduled to teach a new Bible Study class for our church in the fall called, "Honor". The study is taken from the movie "Courageous" and we are excited to see how God is going to use this study in the lives of couples at our church. Joshua 1:9 keeps croping up and we are relying on this verse a lot. (Do some research and read it). Now for some fun stuff... chemo has changed my husband a bit. His taste buds have been "skewed" a bit and I'm having to revamp some of my recipes to adapt to his taste buds. One of the things he loved was my take on a spicey bean soup. Spicey Bean Soup 1 pound of navy beans - sock them overnight 1 pound of chopped ham 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes 2 cups of diced potates. 12 cups of water 2 teaspoons of salt - or salt to taste Combine the beans, water and seasonings with the ham and cook until the beans are tender. Add the diced potatoes and cook until they are done. Once the beans and potatoes are done, use an immersion blender and blend the soup only partially - this will thicken the soup and give it some body. Serve hot with a dollup of sour cream and your favorite bread. This soup also freezes well and like any soup is always better the second day around!