Treatments are done!!

Thursday was Kera's last day of radiation treatment.  It was such a great feeling to be done with that and now I am so excited to go through a whole week straight where I don't have to leave and drive to Salt Lake in the middle of the day!  All of the radiation therapists that worked with us at LDS hospital were wonderful.  There were 5 therapists that rotated throughout the 6 week process, and each one of them was so thoughtful and patient and loving with Kera.  It definitely made a difficult experience easier to handle.  There was Collette, Allie, Aubrey, Doreen, and Kristin.  Each one of them brought Kera a gift on her last day of treatment.  Collette gave her a plug in Scentsy candle with smelly waxes because during treatment Kera had a hard time with the smells during the radiation process, and so Collette brought some scentsy waxes and would rub them on her mask every day to help with the smell.  Allie brought a set of colored pencils and papers to use for school and because she knew Kera loved to color.  Aubrey was nice enough to make a pack of hairbows and headbands because she noticed Kera loved bows and always had different bows and headbands when she showed up for treatments.  Doreen always commented on the different kinds of flip flops and sandals Kera wore to treatment, so she bought her a cute pair of lime green sandals.  And Kristin got Kera some fruit smelly markers and a little notepad.  They also brought little treats for Kera when it was Friday to celebrate two days off of treatment.  I am so thankful to each of these ladies for going out of their way to love and help Kera feel more comfortable while doing the treatments.  Also Dr. Hunter, Kera's radiation onc. doc was wonderful.  He was always so friendly and helpful and tried his best to make Kera feel better when she was suffering from the nausea and would listen to our concerns and answer all of our questions with sincere concern.
As we were thinking about what to do to celebrate our last day of treatment, Kera came up with the idea to go on a hike and make a sign that said no more treatments and she would wave the flag.  So before we left for treatment on Thursday I helped Kera make a flag that said "No more treatments" on it and after the treatments were done we drove to a trail by the capital and took some pictures and waved the flag.  I told Kera to shout "no more treatments" as loud as she could.  Kera, not one to make a scene, even though there was nobody else there, was too embarrassed to shout it, but she spoke it loudly.  I told her I would do it for her and I shouted it out as loud as I could.  It felt good to say, and it marks a milestone in this whole process.  Kera also decided that instead of throwing a big party, that she wanted to go to a place that sold caramel apples, cotton candy, and treats like that.  I told her that the Utah State Fair was coming up, so we decided to go to it as a family.  Maybe I didn't think this plan through completely.  I bought entrance tickets and carnival wristbands ahead of time which we bought for Jacob and Kera since I thought Michael may not be tall enough to ride most rides, but it turned out that there was a kiddie ride area and lots of rides that he could go on, and also Kera wanted to ride the rides with me, so I decided to buy two more wristbands for Michael and I.  It was also pretty windy and humid that night, so the weather wasn't exactly ideal.  Kera really wanted to play some carnival games, so she played a few and won two stuffed animals.  Kera also insisted on getting a caramel apple and a sno cone.  She really only felt up for going on a few rides, and spent the rest of the time eating her treats.  Jacob and I rode many of the rides, and one of them, the rocking boat ride, made him really sick.  So around 7 pm Kera had a bad headache and her stomach hurt, Jacob felt like puking, and in fact threw up 3 times on the way home.  Luckily we had some throw up bags in the car from all the times Kera's gotten sick.  We decided to head home at that point.  So maybe the night was a bit much for her to handle, but I think we still had a good time.  Oh and they had a duck race and each of the kids were chosen to race a duck.  I helped Kera with her race, and we won the first round.  The prize for winning was a duck whistle.
Kera has been really hesitant about going back to school and is still very self conscious about the way she looks.  We are down to .5 mg of the steroid, but her cheeks are still puffy and she still is a few pounds heavier.  Her right eye is still have some trouble tracking, and the radiation has left her hair patchy in spots. I can see why it is difficult for her, but I pray that she will have the courage and confidence to face her peers and not let it stop her from doing things she wants to do.  It breaks my heart when she tells me that she looks in the mirror and cries, or that she hates herself because of how she looks.  I've tried telling her that it's the inner beauty that's important, but these changes are hard, and I know it must not be easy to have to face these issues. I decided to go to her classroom on Friday and talk to the kids in her class about Kera being sick and taking medicine that makes her look different.  I asked them what questions they had about Kera, and we had a good discussion.  I told them that she wants to feel normal, just like all the other kids, and that answering questions about her sickness was hard and made her feel different, so I told them to ask their teacher if they had questions instead of asking her.  I was glad I went and talked to them, and I hope it will help.  She is still afraid to go, especially about seeing other kids from her class last year that aren't in her class this year.  She asked if she could stay inside at recess, and I told her I'd talk to her teachers about it.  I feel like at this point if I can just get her to want to go, staying in at recess or anything that would make her feel more comfortable is fine.  We'll see in the morning if she gives it a try.
Dave and I gave our talks in sacrament meeting today, and I think they went pretty well.  I really didn't want to stand up there and talk about our trial and knew it would be difficult to talk about something so personal, but I felt it was important to do, and now that it's over I'm glad I did it.  I will post a copy of the talk on here. I know a few people told me they would like to read it.  :)
Also, I want to mention that Michael started his second year of preschool at Jellybean Junction and he goes to school in the afternoons on Monday and Wednesdays, and in the mornings on Fridays.  He loves it and he's making new friends already.  I'm including a picture of his first day.

Michael's first day of preschool

Kera right after treatment with her therapist Doreen

Kera sticking her tongue out at the mask she had to wear every day during treatments

Kera receiving her certificate of completion for treatments and she also got to ring the celebration bell when she was done!!

So excited!!

My favorite picture of her with her flag