She’s ALWAYS been there, through HAIR thick, hair thin, or hair gone and smooth for her to clean & lick🐾as I was her pup (at the time…)

So this furry mama up top, came to us soon after my little Snuggles was born and just a month or so before I was 1st diagnosed. God sent her just in time! (Funny how He seems to always get that stuff on point!)

She became like another set of eyes in the house, watching and guarding the kids, gently nudging the baby away from plugs and sockets, barking or getting in the way if she didn’t “approve” of how high they were swinging or running, etc. She was far more of a “hellicopter mom” than I ever tried or intended to be🤦‍♀️. That is, until her focus began to switch towards me. She followed me and the baby (as she was then) everywhere we went as I nursed Miss Snuggles, and fought with the curious lump in my right breast. She’s always just known.

I could go on and on about the sweetness and the uncanny “service dog” traits that are so natural to our Phoebe girl which are actual true inherited traits from her bloodline in a family tree of service dogs. So interesting to see after learning from @SouthernCrossLabradoodles where she became a mother to three litters and where my son chose “a furry baby brother” at last… (another guy to have around!) from her last litter, Winston. Shown in slideshow above.

To quote a friend, Karin Davis, who walked in on a similar scene like that depicted in the slideshow above of Miss Phoebe staring at what WE see as her reflection. Karin picked up on, but “nailed” a joke that we just couldn’t put our finger on. She quoted “FINDING NEMO” Bear with me one more sec before I move on to the REAL UPDATE you’re just entertaining me for….

*Remeber, if you will, the Angelfish who toured Nemo through the tank, introducing him to every fish UNTIL…

And finally… to end the suspense as promised, the update:

**What was it that Phoebe “just KNEW??“

** What is the BIG UPDATE?? SPOKEN OF IN THE TITLE OF THIS BLOG?

** WHY IS SHE STILL WRITING ALL OF THE DUMB QUESTIONS AND NOT JUST TELLING US ALREADY???

**She’s a blog writer, not a SUSPENSE, THRILLER, NOVELIST… (or is that some fantasty? Is THAT the update? UGH!

** SERIOUSLY?? SOOOOO… DRAMATIC

HERE IT GOES….

As of just this past Monday, 11/11/19, after FANTASTIC results on my PET scans the week before of my body (always nice to know you’re bod’s all clean and clear, right?!

THANK YOU, TEAM BUNA, FOR THOSE PRAYERS AND GRACES that I know I need for that extra “OOMPH” of healing!!

Together, we make a pretty darn good team.  Whatever lies ahead, as long as y’all stay with me and, as my amazin’ Pirate Doc keeps sayin’ I just gotta keep “all my people to keep doin’ what they’re doin'” (to which I keep nodding and smiling… “PRAYING, right?”  

Response- “Yup.  That. Lots of that!”

Together, I’d say we ALL, docs, nurses, YOU, GOD-my Divine Physician, dogs, … you name it! God’s orchestrating it all and this stupid cancer’s got NOTHIN’ on us!

Boom!

So Here’s the Deal. / Back to the Update!!

So … after a GREAT clear PET scan last week🙌🎉🎉🙌🙌🎉 (Body is showing totally CLEAR of active tumors👏👏! Major WIN🎉🎉!!!

(Cue roller coaster) 🎢.

This past Monday, 11/11/19, we with my radiologist to follow up on my recent brain MRI on from the prev week.

• News was not so great😏! (If you’re a Louisiana Football fan as I’ve been born & raised these past 2 weeks compared to the LSU tigers kickin BAMA’s tail one day and Saints followin it up w an gut wrenching loss to the dirty birds FALCON’s right after!! (There’s my true fan colors, blood in my veins. Hope I didn’t lose any TEAM BUNA fans in my game talk?🤭😢👎(Boo!)
• Maybe some of the new Buna’s Hope & Team Buna merch we’re working on will help win ya over🤗. Coming SOON!

Stay Tuned

• So what’s the Deal w Me??

That MRI showed 14 NEW tumors in the brain, 11 we’ve treated before, but have returned. Very rare situation. But docs are forming an amazing team to stay get on top of this ASAP and constantly monitor any and all progress.

This is pretty different from before bc we’ve never had to re-radiate the exact same area at the same angle before on the tumors that are new growth from preexisting tumors already treated. (If that makes sense? May have to re-read that last part a few times)

If you’re keeping up w/ the count, that leaves 3 more tumors. These 3 are larger than my “usuals”🙄. One larger tumor showed up on the left side at near the base of my skull (which is where I’ve had a lot of pain in migraine form for a good week now.

(Naturally, Phoebe 🐾 has been licking this area and the next 2 listed for a few weeks and on and off this summer, while herding me to lay on the couch😉#SmartDog).

The same pain has bothered me at the central back area of my head where a second large tumor has also quickly grown (since we just did this MRI only 3 mos. ago) in a precarious spot which is the very spot in the back of my head where I’ve been hurting, directly in the back-center. The final 3rd large tumor (which is an area where I had also been noticing strong pain from) emerged at the base of my skull. In total, 14 new growths👎. 11 were small tumors that could be counted as old tumors that have been treated in the past but have oddly decided to show regrowth, but Dr.Woods & Dr. Bouie feel they remain that they’ll be easy to treat through Gamma Knife. However, the remaining 3 were larger and of a different nature & positioning. They are pretreated tumors that grew back, but bigger, hence termed “new growth.”

Possible solutions:

1–Begin with Gamma Knife targeted radiation for as much as docs feel safe retreating. I begin this upcoming Monday for 5 days in a row & began steroids (for protection) immediately already, as much as I hate those things🙄.

Then … the plan is to just take it day by day and evaluate as we go according to how tumors (and I) respond. Yet again, HE reminds me to quit looking ahead, STAY in my LANE and live for THIS moment. ONE DAY at a TIME!!

(I guess I’m still in need of some work in that area! So I’m onto another challenge to sharpen those tools👊)

Sidebar: Many a College project, as you can imagine, for me and my fellow Edu majors were prompted by SNL or of the like sketches & voices. Never dull. We atleast laughed our wat through school😂. Cindy, Sylvie, Joe, Matt? Anybody have any old VHS or cassettes to send? I got nothin!

I digress… back to The PLAN:

2- Dr.Woods & Dr.Bouie, are meeting now to discuss the strong possibility of a true brain surgery to remove any larger tumors that would be better to be removed than to be radiated again causing more damage than good…. if they’re lying on spots that Bouie feels can be removed without consequence. Although admittedly, this unknown is prob my most unnerving yet! To say the least! However, His “peace & grace beyond understanding” washes over me, inside and out any time I even begin to flinch!😳😌🙌✌️✌️✌️

My bro, (My second oldest brother, Jean (pronounced like “Jean Claude Van Damm”

is a neuro technician and has worked with this top neurosurgeon, Dr.Bouie. He speaks very highly of his technique and astuteness, which gives me comfort🙏). Making that connection alone, (for me) puts my shoulders down a few notches. Again, I’m reminded of what we’ve all seen and come to know. God has always been all over this! He’s formed a mighty team between : My incredible growing medical team, Team Buna (That’s YOU, my prayer warriors), family, friends, community, my dogs 🐾😉, and of course the Head Coach: my Divine Physician upstairs!

All in all, He’s brought us as a TEAM together and … formed an ARMY💪with one Almighty and All Knowing Captain whom I can stand behind and put my life on the line for! Wether I know which way’s up or down… He says GO and I’m going. No time to waste my days on worries.

3- The Hubbie & I met after appts to have lunch and a lil prayer time to LET GO and LET GOD before a final appt for the day to meet and problem solve some exhausting side effects w yet another amazing specialist to T.C.O.B. (Take Care of Business on another front on this big ol’ team👏👏👏) Fun times! 🙏🙏🙏

💙💙One thing we feel strongly as we did in the beginning…. God’s got this!! I feel an unexplainable peace that I know took over all of my prayers, my soul, and my connection to God in evety step from the very beginning. It was that verse that I felt now nearly 6 years ago both through Marley’s “3 Little Birds” during my first breast MRI and HE had it make much more sense as the verse PHIL4:6-7 “Cast your cares upon the Lord, and HE will give you a peace and grace that’s beyond understanding!!” plopped right out of a blank envelope in my mailbox and landed in the perfect spot in my bible during my “Bible Roullette” prayers🙌🙌💙

How true this is NOW, AND how vivid we’ve all seen this to be over these past years, not just for ME, but in our family & our community!!!

God’s not giving up on us yet!!

Takes a village and i sure do love ours💕💕💕💕

Thank you, ALL my peeps for your love, prayers & support!

We’ve spoken to our kids right away Monday night during our night prayers, asked our family for their prayers, have reached out reaching out to friends and school.

We lift up every bit of treatment, suffering and inconvenience that this brings for so many others’ intentions and ask that you continue to bring us your intentions as it gives purpose to not only me, but to you in seeking GRACE in our every day cross and seeing the HOPE and the life in EVERY cross. Not for our own ATTENTION, but for the power and grace of REDEMPTION!!

Knowing that no matter what lies ahead, if we put all that we got in his arms… he’ll carry us through!

We got to BELIEVE IT!

I can’t figure out cancer on my own… so much on my plate to juggle??? Who do I think I am? But I thank God in advance for the CURE that I know is out there for my

STAGE 4 METS Breast cancer HER2+ PR+

🙏As always, thank you, God bless you, 🙏

🙏And I pray for you, you pray for me🙏