#10

Made into double digits yesterday (Yaaay!) six more to go - heck yes I can do this! My friend Linda was receiving her treatment when I arrived, so I popped in to say hi to her before starting my own. Sabrina came by and helped me figure out my new camera. I'm sure I'll love it as I get more comfortable with it. It takes sharper / more clear pics than my old one was, and that's what counts.

I was wiped out last night! Incredibly tired and went to bed at 8:00. I slept til 4, which is early, but that was eight hours and I'm happy with that.

Brittany had a birthday!

her 22nd birthday ~ and I went to celebrate with her!



It was a quick / 24-hour whirlwind trip, but so glad that I got to go! I took Mallory's niece with me (so she could spend time with her new baby cousin Kale) and we didn't leave until 2:00 Sunday afternoon. We arrived where Britt lives (with Mallory's in-laws) a little before 9 pm. It's a beautiful home and Brittany is like family there. We stayed up visiting until nearly midnight and then it was time for me to crash! Yesterday (Monday) was Britt's birthday and she had the day off. We took our time getting ready, then headed out on some errands and shopping. She took me by the production building, where her church will be shooting a feature film soon. It's a pretty big deal! They've hired hollywood producer Brad Wilson and will be casting actors/actresses this week. Brittany has been busy working behind the scenes, preparing and painting sets, putting furniture together and working on wardrobe.

Around noon, we went by to see Mallory, Mickael and Kale (where Britt snapped this precious photo with my new camera :)


We all went out for pizza, then Brittany and I got pedicures. Mickael needed to be home for school today, so we headed out around 6 pm.... arrived in Bloomington just before midnight and I got home about 12:30. Advil PM is becoming my new friend ... as I slept until 8:45 this morning, which is unheard of for me!

Anyway, it was a great trip and fantastic to see Britt in her new home, spending time with good people and doing what she loves.

busy, busy, busy!

Sorry I didn't post on Wednesday after treatment. Or on Thursday for that matter :) But all is well in my part of the world. It's just been a crazy-busy week!

Sabrina was done in the field, and able to go with me to chemo this time. We had a lot of catching up to do! I saw Dr. Rowland before my appointment (first time in a month!) and he is very pleased with my progress. He was glad to hear that things are going well and said my labs / blood work still look good. Enzymes (red blood cell count) was a little low but nothing to panic about. He said they'll check again in two weeks and if it's lower, can always do a transfusion before my next treatment. I (half-jokingly) asked if eating some steak would help and he chuckled saying "sure!" Sabrina inserted "liver" and I said umm...... no thanks! Dr. Rowland said maybe I could convince people to take me out for steak, saying it was actually prescribed by him :)

Infusion went well, as usual. Quick and uneventful - just the way I like it! Ticking them all off my calendar one at a time . . . moving right along.



I went most of the day without headcover, but while at the chilly treatment center, wore this goofy looking green cap. I posted a picture of it back in May or June when I first bought it while in Indiana w/girlfriends. It's not my favorite but the nurses seemed to like it :)

I went to Bloomington that evening with Paul, to look at an upcoming windmill job. It was a beautiful location behind someone's home, where they've just dug a lake and the mill may be used to circulate water. We went out for bbq after that. Last night he had a bonfire where we had hot dogs and S'mores (yum!) and a fun time visiting with friends.

Randy returns to Florida today. I am going out now to say goodbye ..... will see him again at Christmas time. It's been great having him here and spending so much time together. We (ok they) got Aunt Neva's condo done yesterday, the auction house came to get the rest of her things and we are scheduling a good cleaning for it.

Still having fantastic, sunny fall weather. Enjoy your weekend!

Curtis Orchard w/girlfriends

I went to my aunts condo first thing yesterday morning. Well ok ..... it was more like 10 a.m.... but it was the first thing I "did" this day!

My Aunt Mary Jayne & Uncle Merwin were there, as were my dad, Aggie, and both brothers - cleaning more stuff out of the condo. Finally making BIG headway and a noticeable difference - whew! We are contacting an auctioneer for most of what is left, and will be able to put it on the market to sell before long.

From there I went to Curtis Orchard to meet girlfriends for lunch. This is the group that meets once a month. It was a great fall day, so we ate outside. Enjoyed the sunshine and lots of laughs!

great weekend!

ok, so I met my California friend, Leslie (and her Mahomet friend) at Satrbuck's in Champaign on Saturday morning. Plenty of conversation and laughs - we all hit it off quite well. Her friend Valerie in fact, said that we should stay in touch and get together again since we live so close to one another. Leslie brought me one of the shirts from their walk last week - what an awesome keepsake!







From there I went out to my dads, where my Aunt Shirley, Uncle Phil and cousin Cheryl had come down to visit with Randy (and see me too I guess :) My aunt & uncle from Fisher were also there ..... we had a big lunch and nice afternoon together. I stayed after everyone had gone and apparently we visited clear into dinner time! We decided to go to Monical's in Mahomet where I got this picture with Randy.



Since Jeremiah had been unable to attend Saturdays get-together, Aggie invited he and I out for biscuits and gravy this morning :) So I was back out there at 8 am. and took my computer so that we could Skype with Brittany. It was great that she got to visit / live chat, with Randy and her grandparents. After we all had plenty to eat, and Jeremiah and Randy talked sports ..... it was time for a couple more pictures before we left. We'd been talking about my new hair growth, so I just decided to pull off my cap and show them. My dad and brother thought theirs (on top) was just a bit longer than mine!



When we left there, Jeremiah and I headed to Champaign and did a little camo shopping for him. He just took a hunter safety course and plans to bow hunt soon. The rest of my afternoon was spent doing dishes, dumping water softener salt, cleaning a closet, watching football and vegging with my feet up.

A fabulous - fun weekend though!

Tomorrow morning I'll go to my aunts condo, where the guys will be working to clean it out :) and then to Curtis Orchard to meet girlfriends for lunch. Sounds like more good, fall fun to me!

oh wait, one other thing ....

It's October 1st! And October is breast cancer awareness month. (Yeah, as if you didn't know that already - ha!) I'll be the first to admit that my view of October, pink ribbons, etc. has changed immensely over these past few months. Yes I used to think it was overkill. Yes I got tired of seeing it and hearing about it. But no, I could not relate personally. Let's just say I knew OF breast cancer, and people who had it . . . . but I didn't KNOW breast cancer. And now it's personal. I am on a breast cancer message board where we were just discussing our different viewpoints on this issue. I love pink, I always have. Now I enjoy seeing the variety of merchandise in the stores. I look at it, I browse through it, and I wonder what some people think when they see that. I consider that it might be the first time they can put a face with the cause. And I smile.

steroids

kept me from sleeping very well on Wednesday night (after chemo) I think I posted that I didn't nap that afternoon, in hopes of sleeping that night. Nope. Didn't work - darn it! I went to bed just before 10 and woke up around 1:20. Could not get back to sleep, felt wide awake! Tried to sleep (however you do that ?) for more than half an hour and finally got up around 2. Went ahead and fixed my coffee, took the dogs out, messed on the computer, had some cereal, unloaded the dishwasher, did a load of laundry, and finally got sleepy around 6. Napped on the couch from 6 to 7 .... then got on with my day.

Craziness I tell ya!

It actually wasn't that bad. I'd rather get up and handle it the way that I did, then to lay there frustrated, tossing and turning.

I had my ob/gyn appointment yesterday (following that sleepless night). This was my second opinion, following that abnormal pap a couple of months ago. This doctor is married to my oncologist - and I liked her very much. She totally put me at ease and wasn't alarmed by my multiple abnormal / suspicious paps. It is a very common virus and she saw no urgency in me having any procedures done right away. She suggested I just wait until the first of the year, when I'm done with chemo and radiation, then have another pap and go from there. So that was good news. It confirmed what I was feeling and I trust her opinion.

Otherwise yesterday consisted of some errands around Champaign. I took care of some business for Aunt Neva's estate and that felt good. Tomorrow I meet a new gal pal from California. Met her on a photo website and started chatting there months ago. Ironically she works for Clarient, a cancer diagnostics company. At one point she sent me a fantastic care package, with that Fight Like a Girl t-shirt and a lot of other great stuff in it. Just last weekend she walked in a Susan G. Komen walk for the cure - and wore my name (and two others) on her back :) More irony .... she has a girlfriend that lives in Mahomet! That's who she is visiting tomorrow - and how I get to meet her. After that I'll go out to my dads for lunch with Randy and more family. Looking forward to it!

Oh, thankfully that sleep issue only lasted the one night - the night of treatment. Let's hope I didn't just "jinx" it by saying that! Zzzzz . . . . .