Thankful - mercies both big and small

A surprise sunny bouquet of flowers sent with love from Saskatchewan!

The title of this blog - my cup brims with blessing - is a verse I've been ruminating on lately. Things haven't been going the way we hoped, yet I've been so mindful of how blessed we are.

This fight against cancer is not a walk in the park. And I am certainly not a glutton for punishment - I hate the needles and the idea of receiving chemo. I still mourn not being able to have another child.

However, despite the scary and uncertain times, and the less than ideal news we've had to weather through this past little while, I have to say I can't help but be thankful.

Some things I've been so thankful for lately:

• Our amazing community both near and far - even before these challenging times began, Jer and I were marvelling at how blessed we were with the good friends from church, neighbourhood, school and work, as well as our awesome relatives. I believe that God, knowing my fears and anxieties about not being able to function or take care of my family as I would like to, has overwhelmed me with the support rallying around us. And boy have we felt the love:
• Praying for us - we have felt the tangible power of these prayers as they have uplifted our spirits, calmed us and opened our eyes to all the small mercies
• Cooking for us - within less than 12 hours of our friend putting together a meal schedule for the next month, every slot was taken up with many waiting for the next schedule!
• Covering my work responsibilities and alleviating financial worries
• Caring for Nolan, driving him to and back from school and activities, playdates
• Thoughtful flowers, goodies, and cozy items to make chemo treatments more palatable
• Dropping off groceries and offers for weekly grocery runs (though with all the daily meals, we won't need much)
• Driving me to and/or sitting with me during chemo treatments
• The many encouraging, lovely messages, emails, cards - I apologize for not having the energy to respond to each of them, but know they are appreciated
• Unique and creative offers of help - spending the first night in the hospital with me, helping with planning of Nolan's birthday party, helping decorate for Christmas (as I love me my Christmas - the sooner the better), helping me buy and pick up Christmas presents, dog walking, etc.
• Small mercies:
• Private hospital room with a view!
• That the student nurse freaking me out with her "I haven't made anyone scream yet" spiel was sent somewhere far away from me before she had a chance to poke me for a blood test  (thank you Lord!)
• My great, on-the-ball, compassionate doctors and nurses
• While we felt peace about going to fertility treatment and going through the IVF process once, we have had a rough go of it and were devastated by the many miscarriages we've suffered over the years. Yet, our fertility experience allowed for 2 years of images and close monitoring of my ovarian cysts, which in turn led to very quick, decisive treatment at an early stage of the cancer. Left to my own devices, this aggressive malignant tumour would have run rampant and the prognosis would have been very poor.
• As awful as it sounds, that God allowed this latest miscarriage, sparing me from the difficult choice between saving the much-desired babies and treating the cancer
• Family flying in to care for me with household chores, cooking and lots of juice
• The amazing friends who have encouraged me with their tips, real talk about the ups and downs, and faith-filled battles against cancer - read Gil's blog and Clibby's blog to be inspired.
• My wonderful rock of a husband, my sweet sweet boy, and my devoted canine daughter who hasn't let me out of her sight since I came home tonight on an overnight pass from the hospital.