ALWAYS THERE: St. Jude prom!

Hello everyone! The past couple of weeks have been very busy and I have some SUPER exciting things to talk about. On April 18, St. Jude held their annual teen prom for patients from ages fifteen to twenty. Every year the child-life department puts together a beautiful prom for the patients that miss their prom due to treatment and the patients who are off treatment are also invited. Members of Tri-Delta from all over the country collect prom dresses and donate them to the hospital. The girls get to go to the "Dress Fest" and pick out a dress for prom. The "Dress Fest" is basically every girl's dream; you walk into a room and there are hundreds of beautiful dresses and you get to pick one to keep! On the day of prom Lancome, along with local beauty places, come to the hospital and do makeup and hair for the girls. This is such a special day and St. Jude does a great job of making every girl feel like a true princess. And for the boys, there are no makeup and hair services... but they are loaned a tuxedo that they get to wear for the night! They have a "Tux Fest" similar to the "Dress Fest" where they are measured for their tuxedos. It is so neat to see everyone dressed up and it is a real treat since we are all so used to seeing each other in our hospital attire (which usually includes pijamas and comfy clothes and maybe a pair of jeans, on a good day). Prom is so special because of so many reasons. For instance everyone looks forward to this night because for one night we are excited about normal teenage things instead of having to worry about scary adult things. The people that you love and adore the most, all come together for this outstanding night and we get to celebrate, as one! We celebrate another day of life and cherish each other's company. We remember our friends that have passed and the ones that were not able to come to prom due to their conditions. St. Jude is an extremely hopeful place, but it is easy for the teenagers to lose their hope. Prom is so full of hope because even in the midst of some pretty horrible stuff, we all gather together and chose to dance rather than to let cancer steal our joy. I am so thankful for the hardworking people that planned the prom and that made it an unforgettable night. I am also extremely thankful for the people who donated money to make this night possible. About a week before prom my friend Luis and I were interviewed about our experience at prom/what prom meant to us and our story was turned into an article that was emailed to all of the St. Jude donors! The article was about our experience from last year's prom and one of the pictures from this year's prom even made it onto the St. Jude facebook page! So neat! Earlier this week the article was released and I have received so much love and support from all of the people reading it! Now for the not so exciting stuff. About a month ago, I went to St. Jude and met with the doctor in charge of my keloid treatment/surgery and he ruled out that the surgery was not effective. We discussed further treatment options that included radiation and more experimental treatment, but we have decided to take a break. My neck is still sore to touch and uncomfortable at times but it is something I have learned to deal with and I think I am going to take a little break, but I later might want to take my doctor up on his research treatment offer :) Also I have scans coming up next week. For those who have kept up with my blog since last year when I started it, you might remember me talking about my "no-iodine" diet. For pediatric thyroid cancer scans and treatment one must go on this diet for three weeks to a month depending on the doctor's preference. On the no-iodine diet you are not allowed to eat dairy, wheat, soy, processed food, red food dye, sodium, or meat. So I bet you are wondering what can you eat if you are not allowed to eat those foods? The answer if fruit and peppers... lots of fruit and peppers. I can also eat a large amount of vegetables and I just found out that I can eat a special kind of organic chicken, but I am limited on my intake. The first week of the diet is always the hardest because I want to eat everything but the stuff that I am actually allowed to eat. And by the second week, I finally start to get used to it. My amazing mom is on the diet with me too because she is wonderful and knows that it is pretty hard to live off of fruits and vegetables for three weeks but its easier when someone is doing it with you. She is awesome! I have been on this diet quite a few times before so the good thing is that this is nothing new! My mom has been experimenting with the food and coming up with more recipes which is super exciting. In the morning I make vegetable juice (celery, carrot, and apple) and have some almonds. In the afternoon for lunch I eat fruit and raw vegetables. And for dinner, my mom will make some pretty tasty things (given the circumstance). My favorite is when she makes pizza. She found a recipe for "dough" (not really dough) on a thyroid cancer website and she tops the dough with freshly made tomato sauce and grilled vegetables. It is super filling and very yummy. Since my protein intake is limited, I have been feeling pretty weak. Also it has been two weeks since I started the diet so naturally my body is starting to lose its energy. Please pray for my strength both emotionally and physically as scan week is right around the corner. I am very confident in the scans because I know that no matter the results, I will be right where the LORD has placed me. His plan for me is so great and I will continue to praise Him no matter the results. I will be posting more since this is a pretty busy and important time and I want to make sure all of my family and friends are "in the know". Thank you everyone for your prayers and continuing to love and support me. Y'all are the best! "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." 2 Corinthians 12:9.

St. Jude provides limos for the patients to ride in and once we get to the hospital (where the prom is held) we walk the "Red Carpet". All of our nurses, doctors, family members, and volunteers cheer for us as we walk in. This is a super special moment because we are surrounded by all of the people who love us and take care of our every need. This is one of the best parts about prom.

This is my beautiful friend Leslie. We met last year when we were both in treatment. I love her to pieces and I don't know if I could have made it through last year without her encouragement and love. She is an angel!