Memorial Day

Getting a little R&R on Sanibel Island. Britt, Jeremiah, his girlfriend Jordan and I are staying with Randy and having a fantastic time! Very glad to have gotten all the foot work done ahead of time, so I have no worries while away. We are getting plenty of sun, spending some time on the beach, by the pool and yesterday we went fishing. Just thought I would share a few pictures while I am here, taking a "mental health break" :D

a little more info.

while the babies I watch are sleeping :)

On Tuesday of this week, Sabrina and I met a genetics counselor at the cancer center. It was a much more interesting than I expected & very informative. We are doing a little family medical history to see if we can connect some dots. They also drew blood to do the BRAC test. The results of that will not only aid in my treatment, but will be informative for my family & kids as far as prevention is concerned.

From there, we went to the plastic surgeons office. This would be where we hit the first glitch in my journey. Everything as gone so smoothly until now, it took me by surprise when we hit a bump in the road. We ended up meeting with the manager of that facility first, then after a lengthy wait, another phone call and a text message .... I was seen by the doctor. I liked her very much. We were shown numerous before/during/and after photographs of her work and it was impressive. Had an exam, did some talking and decided that reconstruction will serve me best if done sometime after my original surgery. With so many unknown factors (most importantly my treatment plan) she would be reluctant to start the process yet. She believes I'll achieve much better results by taking care of the cancer first and doing reconstructive surgery down the road.

I sort of went in with that expectation, but we needed to get confirmation. I left there feeling satisfied that we've gathered all of the information possible and ready to move forward. I immediately made the phone call for them to schedule surgery. Now set for June 14.

So the kids and I, plus Jeremiah's girlfriend, are heading to Sanibel to stay with Randy for the next nine days. I do believe I've tackled all of the big things that I wanted to do beforehand. Though I feel frazzled at the moment, doing my last minute packing, etc.... I intend to go unwind, relax, and enjoy this time w/my kids. Sanibel has always = serinity to me and I could use some of that now!

Much thanks to those who've offered your prayers and support. Thanks to those who will be at our place while we're away. Great family / friends and peace of mind are priceless!

Finally - a surgery date!

Sorry to keep you waiting, but I have been (im)patiently waiting myself!

Will write more later, when I have more time.

Surgery has been set for Monday, June 14th.

Jeremiah graduates!

Friday, Jeremiah bought himself a Kawasaki Ninja street bike. Yeah, just what I needed... one more thing to worry about! Oh well, what's a mom to do? Pray a lot I guess!

Saturday was his last baseball game... that was kind of sad. He's played and loved the game since he was five years old. Has played with some of those same friends, all those years. As a mom, it's hard to see your kids be sad! Saturday evening we decorated the shed where his graduation party would be held with Caleb Davis and Devin Houser. That morning I browned 16 lbs. of hamburger for sloppy joes!

Sunday would be his HS graduation. What a full & fun-filled day. I was a proud mom, watching him walk down that aisle with Cody Dolbert. They've been buddies since they were 4 I think! The ceremony was awesome. It was 91* and sunny out, but thankfully the gym is air-conditioned! It was quite hot & muggy for pictures out front afterwards, but the party place was air-conditioned as well. We had seating for 100 but not everyone came at once.... we had a good crowd filing through between 4 & 8pm. Great turn out & a nice celebration for the kids.

So there's one big event in the history books, with vacation lurking just around the corner - yaay!

met my team today :)

May I just say that my first impression of Carle Cancer Center / Mills Breast Cancer Institute, was awesome! Totally nice, clean, modern and comfortable. They immediately put me at ease. I met more people than I can remember - all very nice and I had plenty of time with each one of them. Sabrina escorted me again and took notes just as rapidly as she could write! I called her madam secretary once and she kindly reminded me that I am just a little bit involved in this whole ordeal :)

The only thing I wish I'd left there with and didn't, is a date for surgery. Sorry. But there has to be consultation with a plastic surgeon before that can be put on the calendar. We confirmed that I will have a bilateral mastectomy. Though the left breast is just suspicious at this point, and not proven cancerous .... suspicion is enough for me. Having read, heard, and learned what I have about Lobular cancer and how it works, I'd rather go ahead and take care of it now.

There can be no "staging" or confirmation of node involvement until I have surgery. Under certain circumstances, they can do a reconstructive surgery at the same time as a mastectomy. But that depends on a lot of things (thus the upcoming discussion with a plastic surgeon). So there are still some things I will not know for awhile. Such as chemo &/or radiation.... they won't know until after surgery, whether or not I'll be doing those.

The oncologist today, recommended me having surgery within the next month. I am asking to have it done as soon after I return from vacation as possible. Britt leaves for Kansas City on June 21st and I know she'd like to be here for me & comfort me afterwards - I would like that too :) My mom will be coming up for my surgery, and my friend Beth has offered to come help out. I am also surrounded by many kind and caring local friends who've stepped up to the plate & offered to do what they can. So me and my team will forge ahead and get through this as quickly and efficiently as possible.

On Tuesday morning, I meet with a genetics counselor and the plastic surgeon.

That's all for today ~ you enjoy your weekend!

very briefly ~

My doctor from Decatur called today and said he'd consulted with the radiologist. There are six, very small, suspicious spots in the left breast. Probably not large enough to biopsy yet. A needle biopsy might be possible, but they'd have to locate each one and go through that process six times - uh no thank you!

It is still his recommendation to do the bilateral mastectomy. Because it is Lobular cancer and that's what this type does (invades both breasts) he feels it would be the best route to take. And I agree. Better safe than sorry as far as I'm concerned and it may save me going through this all over again, a few years down the road.

Keep in mind, this is coming from a surgeon, not an oncologist. I will meet with an oncologist, another surgeon and a radiologist on Friday morning. I am anxious to get their perspective.

sorry for the delay

if any of you are waiting to hear the results of my MRI .... so am I ....

I talked to the nurse yesterday (who was kind enough to call me despite having no news) but wanted to let me know that the radiologist and my doctor had not been able to get together yet to discuss it. She promised to call me again today. If and when I have any news - I will post it here. No posting equals no news :)

It was an incredibly busy weekend. After winning their game on Friday night, Jeremiah and the Knights played two more games on Saturday. Sadly, they lost both of those. It also rained throughout the entire first game (at noon) but we stayed nice and dry under a large (borrowed) umbrella. Took a couple hour break, met the team at a nearby park for gondola's from Avanti's and then grabbed a coffee at the mall before heading back for the second game at 4:30. Thankfully it had quit raining by then but was still quite cool and breezy! We got 4th place in that tournament. As predicted ..... Jeremiah wanted to stay for the championship game between Leroy and Gibson City. That one started at 7 pm! We stayed into the 5th inning then finally headed home as Gibson was beating Leroy by several runs, and did go on to win it.

Sunday I had a list of about 25 things I wanted / needed to do around here! By shutting the computer down ... I actually got a lot of it done :-) Funny how that works! Though I seem to keep marking things off my list, other activities and obligations continue to be added to it - yikes! Oh well, it'll all happen (graduation, etc.) whether I'm ready or not.

Today is Jeremiah's last day of high school!
And Britt will be getting her license and hitting the road again :)
I love ya both and wish you a wise and safe journey as you venture out!