| Heide's Status |
I’m sad to share that Heide Genevieve Rutten Medina peacefully passed
away this evening at 9:55pm Friday April 30th 2010. She painlessly slipped into a comfortable sleep
while surrounded by friends and family. She told us she felt warm love channeled from all her
wonderful friends and could see The Light. We will be announcing a Celebration of Life Ceremony on
this website once we have the dates confirmed. We are planning a ceremony in both CA and ND so
that everyone can share their love for this amazing person.
God bless Heide, God bless Heide’s friends & family and God bless those that Heide has touched
during her fight.
- Ric
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Update 4-12-10
April showers bring May flowers…. Love and support continues to
blossom in the Medina household. Heide and Ric are grateful for the
presence of flowers, meals and massages sent to them. I am touched to
see the acts of kindness and love shared by many to make life easier
for Heide.
I have not written an update and am trying to find the words for this
message. I am writing this message on the plane after enjoying a
bittersweet visit seeing Heide, Ric, Genevieve, Ava, our parents. We
enjoyed beautiful spring weather on Friday, visits from friends,
shopping and spoiling Ava and Genevieve and ice skating.
Unfortunately, Heide could not attend our activities away from home.
Her health status has changed since Ric’s last update in March.
Hospice is involved providing nursing and supportive services to Heide
and our family. Heide’s spirit and drive has enabled a courageous
fight, but medicine has not been able to stop the aggressive nature of
her cancer. Medicine has been a gift that has given us more time with
Heide to prepare with what is to come.
Heide’s journey has taught me a lot about the gift of life. Her
message written in July 2008 continues to be so relevant. I will
highlight points from her message (the full message is posted on this
website):
• Life is delicate and can change at the drop of a hat.
• Enjoy the “todays” instead of looking for the next best thing.
• Enjoy the simple things.
• Let by gones be by gones.
When life does not seem fair, think of Heide’s beautiful smile and
bright blue eyes. Her positive spirit will be there for you as you
have been there for her the past two years. Words I never imagined
writing.
As you read this message you may think, “What can I do?”. Continue
your prayers; continue to send Heide your beautiful words of
encouragement; continue your support of meals; continue your
interactions with Heide, limiting visits to 5 minutes; respect
regrets if a visit to the house is not reasonable or a phone call is
missed. ALL of your acts of support go noticed.
Praying for peace and comfort.
Margie
(Heide’s twin sister)
Heide Update 3-28-10
We were visited by the Leprechauns this morning to our kids delight. They mischievously tilted wall photos, overturned chairs,
hung teddy bears from the lamps, opened all the cabinets and drawer in the kitchen, peed green in the toilet and dropped gold
coins all over the house. Genevieve built a trap, but they busted out by ripping the corner of the box after eating all of the green
fruit loops. They left some face stickers and green wrist bands to take too school. The girls have been kept very busy by most
recently going to the snow and took ski lessons with Molly and Sadie Freeman. The fun was temporarily halted when I rolled
over Ava when we both slid down a hill on a sled. Kids would make great sledding cushions if it wasn't for all the crying. She
grew new skin on her thumb after many Sponge bob bandaids and neosporin treatments.
Heide's had a challenging six weeks and after a couple of problems she's showing good signs of improving. It all started with a
small case of pneumonia which was caught early. This required a hospital stay and infused antibiotics. The antibiotics
negatively interfered with her blood thinner and over the next week Heide suffered from balance, drowsiness and strength
issues. She lost some independence and in one of our visits we learned that there was some brain bleeding. The blood
thinning was reversed in the emergency room and Heide had a 3 day hospital stay. After several weeks of recovery we were on
a good track with a home health nurse and an OT/PT rep from Pathways. She comes in twice a week and is of great
assistance. We have a delicate issue of balancing her sodium level and this low level with fatigue instigated a small seizure on
Monday. We were concerned about more brain bleeding and was relieved to learn that that was stable. Heide is home and
resting and was very giddy and playful, so we are encouraged that she will surprise us all and bounce back yet again.
We continue to receive well wishes via the web site, facebook, cards and personal emails and are thankful for the kind
encouraging words. We of course share them with Heide to stress that she is not alone and her army is thinking of her.
- Ric
Heide Update 1-24-10
It's been quite a long time since my last update and there are many things that have happend that I need to write about. I know
many of you are keeping updated through direct emails to Heide and via facebook so I've given myself a pass on not writing as
much. To start, in early December a Fun Run for Heide was organized and it was a wonderful success. The rainy weather
moved it from Houge Park to Farnham School's cafeteria, but the enthusiam was not hampered. There were so many people
that participated in the organization of the event that it is impossible to name them all, but I hope to express that it was
excellently run and people still comment on how much fun it was. There are great pictures on the site and we hope to add more.
The next week was a tough time for Heide with the final treatment of targeted radiation on her spinal cord and the continued
treatment of Chemo. This caused her to be very weak and required much sleep. This did not stop her from planning a
memorable Christmas for the girls. We tried not to spoil them, but due to the circumstances we could not resist to indulge them
a little. Heide's parents John and Mary were in town during this time and helped in the Christmas planning. I did get it on video
that Genevieve squealed "Best Christmas Ever!" - unsolicited. My Dad also visited from Colombia and spent some good bonding
time with the girls. His Christmas present was an album of the past year's events. Needless to say it was a full house for the
holidays at the Medinas.
New Years was rung in at exactly at 9 pm PST/ 12 pm EST with pan banging, trumpet tooting and loud whistles. Both Heide and I
were trumpet players in grade school - another serendipitous moment in dating. We had to lie to the girls that they did stay up
until mid-night which they called us on in the morning. We quickly blamed them for not knowing how to tell time and get
bamboozled so easily. Parental Poetry. John and Mary left on the 12th and Margie came in for a short visit. The girls love their
Aunt Margie and it was a fun couple of days having her as we were able to visit the Monterey Bay Aquarium.
Heide's treatment has been happening as scheduled and last Tuesday we got some good news that the cancer tumors in her
lungs and liver have shown signs of decreasing. This was great news and much needed. We are continuing with the current
chemo and are hopeful of continued good news. We celebrated Ava's 5th birthday this week with a party at Pump it up. What a
great place - can you imagine a warehouse full of jumpy houses & slides for your jumping and sliding pleasure. Nothing but
hopping for two hours made for tired happy kids.
I'm on family leave currently from Intacct and I've been able to spend more time with the girls than I would normally be able to.
After a year and a half of disruptions both of them are asking more questions and connecting the dots. They are very direct in
their questions and we are truthful in our answers and keep things positive for them, always expressing that they are loved and
not alone. We are very thankful for the ability to have this full family time and all of the support from Heide's army allows this to
continue. We are grateful for your continued prayers and thoughts.
- Ric
November 15, 2009,
Dear Family and Friends,
October and November have given us a mixture of emotions. We spent three glorious days in Disneyland. My mom spent three
weeks with us and my brother, Andrew came to also visit. I'm telling you Genevieve and Ava were in heaven jumping on Uncle
Peewee. We took him to the Pacific Ocean for the first time, We took Ric's convertible Cadillac to the beach. We had a fun-filled
obnoxious Halloween. It was so fun being part of the Fruit of the Loom gang. Thanks to to my mom for making most of the
costumes.
I had many scans and tests...non with any positive results. My brain scan showed a few more small tumors. I also had a CT
scan, which showed bigger tumors in my lungs and liver. This means another new chemo. I also had a bone scan, which also
showed more tumors. Because there is a tumor at the end of my spinal chord. The good news is that I don't need surgery.
Instead, I started 10 rounds of radiation for my spinal chord. Hopefully, this will stop any nuuero. problems. As you can imagine,
it takes some time to digest, process, and share the news.
We were also lucky enough to visit with Denny, Monica, Aiden, Jordan and Cassie. Margie also came for another visit. She left
this morning and we miss her already. My parents are flying in tonight for a visit. Yeah!!!!!! We are looking forward to hosting
Thanksgiving (don't worry, friends are cooking/cleaning). Started Christmas shopping, which I love to do. I hope we have GOOD
news on our next update. Your love and support is still so much appreciated.A
LoVe,
Heide
9-28-09
Dear Friends and Family,
We realize that it has been awhile since our last update. No news is good news. I will have a brain MRI in about 3 weeks and a
CT scan in about a month. For now, ignorance is bliss. We are enjoying the beautiful. hot fall. I'm still on steroids which has it's
pros and cons. Pros: good appetite (too good at times), more energy. Cons: puffy face (horrible for someone as vain as me),
weight gain (ditto on the vain remark). Let me focus on the fun, positve things I get to do. Walk Genevieve to school. She has two
awesome teachers that are making her first grade year experience wonderful. Ava started a new preschool. It is so nice to be
able to drop her off and see her play with her friends and see her projects. She is "writing" and sounding out words. Makes
Mommy very proud. In Sept., Genevieve turned 7. We celebrated up at Garrod Farms, She was in heaven with her two best
friends and the horses.
We had Auntie Margie this past weekend for a visit. We had so much fun getting pedicures, going to lunch, chatting. Genevieve
and Ava were in heaven with their auntie! They got pedis as well. Margie bought them sassy shoes. What more could a girl
want?
The girls are busy with swimming lessons on Saturdays. Again, it makes me so proud and happy to see them improving and
loving the water. The most exciting news we have is that we are going to Disneyland in two weeks!!! We will have lots of
pictures to share with you. We are so appreciative of all the meals that continue to made for us. I actually cooked a meal the
other night and, boy, do you save me a ton of work.Your prayers and well wishes are still appreciated. When we have news, we
will share it with you.
Love,
Heide
Heide Update - 8-25-09
We had a busy week the last week and a half with a couple of second
opinions and next stage planning. As I wrote earlier we are nearing
the end of what is FDA approved and have not yet found a treatment
that is stabilizing Heide's cancer. We did visit both UCSF and MD
Anderson and we were happy to hear that Stanford's treatment regiment
was re-enforced by these organizations. We also picked up several
clinical trials that could potentially help and we are working with
another oncologist to help us review all trials and determine what is
appropriate.
We stayed with Becca & Cliff in Houston and I was able to go to
Aaron's Bronco football scrimmage against the Bengals. Aaron did a
fantastic job as an outside linebacker following in Cliff's footprint.
We arrived home on Friday for our normal Saturday soccer practice and
we met Genevieve's new first grade teachers at a Houge Park picnic. We
are very excited to get Mrs Stone & Mrs. Wooster to take Ms. McCoy's
young legacy and mold us a 1st Grade school lover. Ava will be
starting her new pre-school Growing Footprints and will be re-united
with her little girlfriend Linley who Ava says is her best friend.
Ava and Linley were born two days apart at our local Good Sam Hospital
- we were leaving the front door and the McMillans were coming in the
back door.
I want to thank everyone for their messages of hope and encouragements
and for the constant reminders of prayers being said.
--
Regards,
Ric Medina
Heide Update 7-27-09
Just the facts. We are worried about recent developments that can be
post surgery related with continued swelling in Heide’s brain. It
could be radiation necrosis or surgery related pressure so we
undertaking a MRI to learn the cause. We need to learn why some
seizures are continuing and why the sporadic dizziness. The cough
that was the catalyst of this adventure has continued and we learned
that there are some fibrous strings that have developed in the lungs.
The tumors in the liver and others have grown so the latest chemo is
not working. We are looking at two possible Chemo treatments and
based on the results of the brain MRI it would direct us in one or the
other direction. We are in the process of looking at a tumor board
review (2nd opinion) at UCSF & possibly MD Anderson.
The above is the recent activity since Heide got back from her 3 week
visit in North Dakota. The trip on the other hand was everything we
had hoped it would be. She needed to feel the red earth of Tara -
anyone under 35 might need to google this. It started with a three
day family reunion that culminated with a big gathering at the
Rutten-Murphy farm house on the 4th. Note to self: Don’t buy $120
worth of firecrackers for your two daughters that are scared of loud
noises just to watch your in-laws kids burn them up in under 5
minutes. There are too many names to name, but there is a statistic
that the Rutten clan is 1 baby short of 25 second cousins. The
following weekend was the class of 1989 DLHS 20 year reunion. There
was a big turnout for the kick off event at The Cove, which was a
family event and delivered pontoon rides on the lake; Devils Lake.
The next day had a golf tournament, a coffee social at the Liquid Bean
and a tour of the High School. In walked the 1989 Satans to the lair
of the 2009 Firebirds. Ohhhh Scary. In the evening the festivities
moved indoors with a party at Proz’s. As a sheltered catholic high
school graduate and outsider it was fun hearing stories about the
under age drinking, the pre-marital hook ups, near death driving
exploits and weekend hockey fights. The party continued late in the
evening and sadly Heide had to leave early, but her best women Margie
continued in a pair of miss-matched sandals. Fashion faux paux.
There were many firsts for the Medina Girls which included tubing,
fishing (worm drowning), ear piercing, a missing toof, and no fights
to name a few. G lost a toof and the toof fairy dropped off a note
and $1.00 even before she got to bed. It doesn’t get dark until
10:30pm and the fairy needs to sleep. Ava loves the speed of tubing
and putting a frog on her head. That same frog was saved from being
an astronaut on a July 4th rocket as suggested by one of Liz’s girls.
Genevieve and Ave met their cousins and played wonderfully with Will &
Peter, Ellie, John & Tommy which was great to watch.
We have a couple of Dr. Appointments this week to learn more and I
will update accordingly.
Regards,
Ric Medina
6-15-2009
Hello Heidelovers,
We are just around the corner from the 1 year anniversary from when
Heide was diagnosed - June 23. It's been a roller coaster of year as I
looked back and re-read all the updates. Watching Heide today you
could not imagine that just over a month ago she had undergone brain
surgery. The only effect left over is a small speech lisp which only
gets worse after a couple glasses of wine or a later than normal
night. The extra energy, appetite & weight gain have also disappeared
since steroids are no longer needed. Its a shame too since she was
quickly approaching Barry Bond's home run record while on the juice.
Heide is still getting Chemo, but only once a month and we should test
for the results of this series in August.
We are travelling to North Dakota (Fargo & Devils Lake) for the 4th
of July weekend and Heide's 20th High School reunion. I want to hear
her classmates yell out their cute and cuddly mascot name and spell -
Gimme an S, Gimme an A, Gimme a T, Gimme another A, Gimme an N, Gimme
an S - What does that Spell - SATANS. That's right folks they were
the Devil's Lake Satans. I don't make this up. The only things
scarier are the Maori's doing the Haka before a Rugby game. Heide's
been keeping tabs with people on Facebook so its going to be a fun
time rehashing some of the old stories.
Last Friday Genevieve graduated from Kindergarten which was fun to
watch. It was just yesterday when her entourage escorted her for day
1. Life move fast. It was a moving last day with some class songs,
each child talked about what their favorite memory was, and what do
they wanted to be when they grew up. Genevieve's favorite memory was
when Heide helped in class and she wants to be a horse trainer,
because she loves horses. Genevieve mentioned that she wanted summer
to be over so she can start 1st grade. Ava will be going to a new
preschool in Sept and she is super excited. She is also super excited
about playing soccer and swimming lessons. After all those years
watching Genevieve do things she is finally able to participate and
she has an older sister to show her the ropes.
You might see us out and about since we are trying to make date nights
more frequent. Thank you for all the love and support that you are
sending our way via prayers, emails, cards and phone calls.
Love Ric
Dear Friends and Family,
I got home on Saturday. Wow! Two days after going through a craniotomy. That is something I'd never thought I'd have to say. I
want to thank God for His healing and answering mine and so many other's prayers. My neurosurgery team and nurses gave
me truly amazing care at Stanford Hospital. Having Ric, my mom, Michelle, Sydney, and Flo as moral support was good for my
soul. We found some things to chuckle at...mostly my speech and my bad jokes. Everyday my left hand and speech are
improving and getting stronger.
Before the surgery, I was trying to be positive and optimistic that everything would be o.k. That is easier said than done. I've
spent many moments thanking God for allowing me to experience the "little things" since coming home. Some examples:
watching Ava lovingly arrange flowers in the bug box as beds for the snails she's found in our backyard. Genevieve jumping on
her bed, "rockin' out" to the Hannah Montana Movie soundtrack while singing with Ava as backup "It's s ho-down..." Watching
Ava sing and write the alphabet. Listening to Genevieve read is true magic for me. She does it effortlessly and she loves to curl
up with a Junie B. Jones book. Here's another thing I'd thought I'd never say. I happily unloaded the dish washer because I
could! Last, but not least, Ric and I spent a few moments sipping on our coffee/tea this beautiful, sunny morning on our patio. A
perfect start to a day.
I would like to thank some friends who helped out with Genevieve and Ava while I was in the hospital. Knowing they were being
so well taken care of, put my mind at ease: Kirsten, Silvia, Maria, and MIssy.
A huge thank you to Stacy and Erin for organizing the delicious Dream Dinners. We appreciate the participation from the
families of Genevieve's Kindergarten class!!
Much love and many hugs to you!
Heide
Heide update 5-1-09 late night edition
In one of my most recent posting I jokingly suggested a new form of
messaging through the use of a limerick. Well the limerick contest is
open for submissions and the bar has been set very high. We may need
to start a new web page if this catches on. Here is the first
submission and Enjoy.
There once was a fine fellow named Ric
Who suggested a new limerick
Well here's one that's mighty
For our awesome Heide--
We all want her want her well
And damn quick!
- Bob, Caryl, Lucas, & Logan Rutten
Love, Ric
Heide Update - 5-1-09
Today has been an easier day on the supportive visiting side now that the surgery is out of the way. I want to thank everyone for
their positive messages. The flood gates have been opened and the messages have been coming in steadily. Mary and I spent
the last hour reading the messages to her and its' wonderful to see the sparkle back in Heide's "baby blues". She is alert,
asking questions, telling stories, making jokes and is very happy that John McCain won the presidential election. The nurse
wakes Heide up every hour and asks "What year is it? Whats your last name? Who's president? We have not told her that
Obama won for fear of the shock. (I'M JUST KIDDING for the blue staters). The nurse warned not to joke or it will lead to more
testing, poking & prodding,
When I arrived home last night, I got to hear Alexandra Stracey read stories to Genevieve & Ava. Alexandra had to negotiate
them down from 20 stories to just 4 books. Once they went to bed they were out sleeping within seconds. You can hear our
baby rhinoceros Ava sawing logs.
Thanks for your prayers and well wishes for our Heide and our family. I ask that prayers be added for the people that did not get
good news in the ICU and for the innocent kids that roll by in crib gurneys. It is hard to hold back tears.
Love - Ric
Regards,
Ric Medina
4/30/2009
Hello All,
This is Ric writing and sorry Margie for hi-jacking your list. Today was a long day and thankfully we had good news to share.
Mary and I visited with Heide several times during the afternoon and each time we were pleased that she was more lucid than
the previous time. The effects of the drugs takes time to fully get out of the system.
During all that waiting I saw a lot of facebook and personal messages coming via her email account, but I noticed that the web
site forwarding was not working. If you sent a message via the web site it was lost, but that is now corrected. These
messages give Heide strength so I hope that you would not mind recreating those again. This will give you an opportunity to
correct those spelling errors and add that extra line that you wished you wrote. Rhyming not required. Limricks get extra
points.
Both Mary and I know that when we are sitting in the waiting room we are not alone, we are really like that goofy Verizon guy
with the army of people in support. Heide's Army.
Thanks,
Ric
Hello,
Thank you for your well wishes and support you have given Heide and our entire family. She had the surgery early this morning.
The doctors were able to remove 100% of the tumor and feel they got 100% of the cancer cells. The ominous white circle
surrounding the tumor on the MRI tests was found to be scar tissue (not new cancer growth). This is the good news we were
hoping for.
Heide has been slowly coming out of the anesthesia. Her speech and alertness has been improving all day. A CAT scan was
done this afternoon which showed normal results. Heide will spend the night in ICU and will be transferred to the medical floor
on Friday. It is anticipated she will go home on Saturday. Heide will continue chemotherapy, when able, to target the bones,
lungs, and liver......KEEP THE PRAYERS COMING!!!!!
We all appreciate your well wishes and words of concern. Forward your messages to Heide at www.forheide.com
Love to all,
Margie
Hello Everyone,
It's Thursday morning which started at 4 am with a dark trip to Stanford for the surgery. At 10:30am, Dr. Harsh came out an
gave us the news that the surgery was successful and that 100% of the tumor was removed. The outer edge of the tumor was
radiation "scarring" which is good news, and there were no active cancer cells found. Everyone's prayers and well wishes
were heard and Heide will be home on Sat morning.
Thanks to everyone that called, emailed, texted, sent care packages and thought of Heide and the family at this time. Heide is a
fighter with strength drawn from all her friends.
- Ric
Dear Family and Friends,
The sunny, warm weather have made spring bring our back yard to life.
The hummingbirds, butterflies, and bees are back. Ava loves to cut her
own bouquets. So there's never a shortage of flowers in our house!
We've had a busy few days. The fun started last Thursday when my
friend, Kirsten, took Genevieve, Ava, her son, William, and myself up
to the San Francisco Zoo. The weather was perfect. Our favorite
exhibit were the baby giraffes. On Friday, Genevieve and Ava started
their soccer. Nothing better than sitting in the sun, chatting with
friends, and watching your kids have a blast.
Friday afternoon, Jordan Sabo, his girlfriend, Cassie, and their 3
month old son, Aiden arrived at our house for a long weekend visit.
Jordan is the reason I moved to California 17 years ago (time flies!).
I was his nanny. They now live in Visalia, CA. Aiden is a cutie and a
very easy baby. His smiles and coos warm up my heart. We spent
Saturday afternoon touring Los Gatos. Saturday night, we had the
"gang" (Jordan's parent's friends) over for pizza so they could meet
Aiden.
By Sunday, I was tired out. While Ric took the girls to the pool for
the first time this year, I sat in the back yard and soaked up some
sun and finished reading a book....yes the temperature was in the
90's. Sorry to my North Dakota support...I hear you got snow this
weekend and it was parka weather.
Well, onto the "fun" stuff. On Easter morning, I had my second
seizure. Ric and I spent most of the day in the ER. Last Tuesday, I
had a brain MRI and met with my radiation oncologist and a
neurosurgeon. After reviewing my case with a team of specialists, it
was decided that removing the tumor is the best option. The tumor is
on the right side of my brain and is causing a lot of swelling. It is
probably the reason for the second seizure. The good news is that as
far as they can tell, the tumor itself has not grown and there are no
new tumors in my brain. We'll take the small victories! My surgery is
scheduled for April 30. Margie, my sister and my mom are arriving next
week. We hope to squeeze in some fun before the 30th.
Thank you for your continued prayers and words of encouragement. Enjoy
life's small moments and go give your spouse, loved one, and/or kids a
hug and tell them you love them.
Much love,
Heide
3-24-09
We need to crank up the prayer machine and make more bubbles. We had a meeting with Dr. Carlson yesterday and were told
that although the majority of the tumors are under control that a couple have grown and new ones have been detected in the
liver. It was tough news to hear and it took us by surprise. Cancer has the tendency to mutate and become resistant to the
chemo that is being administered. We had very good results with Navelbene, but next week will be on a new regiment with a
new chemo to control the new growth. The silly part (as in crazy, no rhyme or reason) is that Heide has been feeling very well
and full of energy the past few weeks. There's been more time playing with the girls and staying up late watching American
Idol. After the news Heide was feeling "Sad, Mad & Scared" which were old emotions from early in our journey. After absorbing
the news, her spirits are still strong and determination is rock solid.
The house is a little quieter since John and Mary left and they are very much missed. We've had many friends assist with day to
day activities and the house is still operating with the efficiency of a swiss watch. They are probably excited they went home
just in time to to get busy sand bagging for the upcoming North Dakota floods. My Mom spent her vacation here last week
chasing her grand kids and planting flowers, special thanks.
Heide continues to receive emails and cards with best wishes that helps her stay focused. Thanks to Silvia, Michelle, Shelley,
Kirstin, April, Erin, Lori, Jen M, Stacey, Jen W for helping keep a standard routine for Genevieve and Ava the past week.
Love - Ric
3-16-09
HI friends and family,
I had an MRI on my brain on Tuesday, and again received good news, and there are no new tumors. A few more have gotten
smaller. What a relief! My prayers were answered. There does seem to be some swelling around the largest tumor. My doctor
has put me on steriods to decrease the swelling. I'll have another scan in a month to see if this helps. If it doesn't, surgery may
need to be done. We'll cross that bridge when we get there. I have a CT scan on Friday to check my bones and lungs. I'll
probably get those results next week.
Margie has told me that many have asked how I'm doing. I can't tell you how much I appreciate all of your well wishes and
especially prayers.
Many thanks to:
Kelly Fiorentino, owner of The Shampoo Lounge in Los Gatos: thank you for hosting the Cut-a-thon in your salon. Although we
have never met, It never ceases to amaze me how giving and loving strangers are!
Much Love,
Heide
3-4-09
The pre-Ides of March have rolled in and we've been pretty much on auto pilot for the past several weeks with very little, close
to none, to report. Our two North Dakotan snow birds are still with us, but sadly they will be retuning back to the tundra mid-
march. They will arrive just in time to catch the pretty brown left over snow. I know that Heide has been keeping up with people
on Facebook of all places. I tried to register, but at 43 years old it wouldn't allow me to subscribe as being too old. The actual
phrase was "you're too old, go and typewrite someone a letter!" So I gave up. Heide has been doing very well and goes to
Stanford every Tuesday. Her activities are limited due to medication that make her drowsy and naps are an essential part of
the day. We have been able to get out a few times which I will detail below.
Next week we will meet with Dr. Gibbs for our 3 month brain check up which has us hopeful of either more improvements or no
change since last December's MRI. Heide continues to get acupuncture treatments twice a week and we've attributed it to her
not getting any of the colds/flu that continuously flow through the house. It is hard to keep healthy with two "germs" running
around the house. Heide's hair is growing back and too her excitement its a new color, a light brown, tannish, silver blend under
the light. No one has seen her real hair color since the 6th grade when she got the "Dorthy Hamill" bell cut, which is the guys
version of "Adam Rich's hair in "8 is enough". Google it.
Our most recent outings have been ice skating and a short weekend with snow sledding at Lake Tahoe. Check out the most
recent photo's. Skating was Rod & Mia Teague's idea which Heide jumped on immediately. She fondly remembered the days of
skating backwards, doing cross over corners, checking out the hockey players, weaving in and out of slower traffic, and
listening to loud Night Ranger's Sister Christian on overhead speakers. Well, those days are long gone and she was with me
shuffling robotically complaining about weak ankles. Genevieve and Ava picked it right up for CA kids. They really didn't need
the buckets, but they didn't want to show off since Jim Bennette had to use them to keep up-right.
Sledding in Tahoe was a lot of fun and thank you to April & Andre Walewski for allowing us to use their cabin "winter palace".
We went up with Cara & Kenneth Demarse and their two girls Addison and Alexa who are Genevieve's and Ava's age. It's funny
that it does not take too much snow to have fun as kids. I tried to teach them the two rules of sledding - 1. when you are done
with your ride look up the hill, because that is the direction the next sled that will hit you is coming. 2. Hold on tightly to the sled
when you climb up the hill, because it will come loose once you are more than half way up. Needless to say Ava got run over
and I had to run down the hill to fetch several loose sleds.
We'd like to acknowledge the following people/school for their contributions and support:
Heide's Message:
Carla Anderson, thank you for your ambitious fund raising while you ran your first marathon. Having done a marathon myself, I
know how llllooooonnnnnggg and painful they can be. Congratulations on every step of your 26.2 mile journey!
Grace Breyley, thank you for sharing the profits from the sales of your beautiful artwork. To see Grace's talent, go to www.
Keska.etsy.com
Many thanks to the students and teachers of Blossom Hill School. Having been the Literacy Teacher for the past 4 years,your
support through the Read- a-Thon is both so touching and impressive. Reading is one of my favorite hobbies. My six year old
daughter, Genevieve, is learning to read and it is so exciting to see the "magic" unfold.
Thank you everyone for your prayers, your constant reminders of your love for Heide and your many ways of support. Next
update to come next week.
- Ric
1/28/09
Dear Friends and Family,
Things are going well. I received chemo today after having to wait two weeks for my white blood cell counts to get high enough.
I've been very blessed in that all the colds and coughs that made their way through our house skipped over me. I think it was the
combination of Chinese herbs, acupuncture, and luck. As you can see from the pictures, we had a wonderful Christmas. Ric's
dad visited from Columbia for a month over the holidays. Genevieve and Ava were lucky to have all 4 grandparents here to spoil
them! One of the highlights were our reindeer hats. All who sat at our Christmas Eve and Christmas dinners were lucky enough
to have a custom reindeer hat waiting at their seat. All made with love by Genevieve, Ava, and Nana. As you can see, Papa John
was "thrilled". We have a new member in our family, a HUGE stuffed Saint Bernard named Clifford given to Genevieve and Ava
from their Uncle Lou. The darn thing even sheds. The girls love to flop on him and sleep on him.
We celebrated Ava's 4th birthday with a carnival themed party in our back yard. We had games, balloon animals by Nana, face
painting by Ric, "pony" rides, a pinata, and everyone was a winner! Ava especially loved playing with all of her buddies.
We hope my healthy streak continues as I've gotten to enjoy outings to the park and San Francisco, picking up the girls from
school, getting together with friends, and yes, even cleaning out closets.
We are forever grateful to all of the meals that have been made for us, all of the rides to my various appointments (as I can't
drive since having the seizure), and the love and prayers being sent.
Love,
Heide new photos
Update 1/1/09
Who's already broken one of their NY's Resolution? I have much to report so I will begin with what Cara wrote in the last
update. Some of Heide's brain tumors have shrunk and the smallest ones have "disappeared". The largest one (Right Front
Lobe) is hollowed out in the MRI images and this is a good sign. The full brain radiation has done its thing and we are expected
to see additional shrinkage, but we are not out of the woods. We will continue to monitor the tumors and treat them with
targeted radiation if they show signs of changing. You can imagine the relief everyone felt hearing this news and this tee'd up a
more relaxed Christmas and festivities.
Christmas was a lot of fun and it started with Christmas Eve Children's Mass at St. Francis Cabrini, which is around the corner
from our house. My brother Lou had stopped by earlier and dropped of the a 5 foot long, 3 foot wide stuffed dog which the girls
named Clifford. This thing is huge, it sheds and will soon be up for sale or free to a new home. Christmas day started in the
early morning with the pitter patter of feeties on the hardwood floors. Genevieve was heard saying that "it was the best
Christmas ever". Dinner included reindeer hats that the girls made a couple of days earlier and everyone had to wear one to
get fed. The festivities lasted for several days and everyone was tired by Saturday night, exhausted. On Sunday morning all
was normal - Mary got up and made coffee, John walked to get the paper, the girls turned on the morning cartoons and Heide
was getting breakfast. I just got home from an early morning golf outing and was sitting reading the paper when Heide called
out from the bathroom. When I arrived she was in a full seizure of both sides of her body and face. While Mary dialed 911, I set
Heide on the floor to keep her safe and waited for the paramedics who arrived very quickly. It felt like several forevers before
Heide had regained control and had relaxed. She was able to talk to the medics, while she was being strapped to the gurney,
for our trip to Stanford. At Stanford there were many tests done and we spoke to Doctor's from Oncology, Neurology, ER &
others and the consensus was that their were several inducing factors with fatigue being the biggest catalyst. She is now on
Anti-seizure medicine, and we truly hope it was our one and only seizure she will have to experience. So our new motto is
Good News celebration in moderation and no more 4 day benders.
On Monday we had the CT Scan to learn about the progress to her lungs and bones and we had a meeting on Wednesday (New
Years Eve). We received Great News from Dr. Levy that the scans showed that some of the tumors on her lungs had shrunk in
size. There was improvements from 30% - 50% of tumor shrinkage. This means that Navelbine (Chemo) has had a good effect
on Heide's cancer and we will continue this regiment. This is a relief since we now know the type of chemo that is having good
results for Heide. The scans will continue every three months. We'll continue praying for good news.
I'm writing this on New Years day and thinking.....Goodbye 2008 you will not be missed and hello 2009 and the prospects of
continued good news. We would like to express our love and thanks to everyone for their prayers and support to Heide and our
Family. May the New Year also bring good news and continued good health for you and your family.
- Ric
--
Regards,
Ric Medina
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Collective Healing For Heide Medina