Jan 2008--Ain't it Great?

Determined1 · July 2008

Missed you guys yesterday. I guess I'm steeling myself for 2+ weeks without access to the internet! Yikes!

I didn't really do much yesty, I did spend a lot of time reading my mom's manuscript. She's trying to write a book (who isn't?) and I've been reading it for her now and then. The last time I read it was a year ago and I must say, it's come a long way since then. I'm not really sure what she's going to do with herself when she decides this is finished-I imagine she's going to try to shop it to get it published. Whatever, as long as it keeps her mentally engaged and off the streets...

LWDana-I see you're headed to Puerto Vallarta and Cabo. That should be a great trip. I've been to Puerto Vallarta and found the village to be an interesting way to spend a day. The architecture is fun and there's a small market for bargaining. Always a draw for me is a place to sit outside and have a beer and watch people and there are places for that, too. I haven't been to Cabo, but my sister keeps recommending it. I'll be interested to hear what you have to say. So when will you take this trip? (I laughed when I read that you have a fear of heights but figure if cancer hasn't killed you, then you'll try the zip line. Just don't look down!)

First of all, Carol, major bummer about the computer stuff. I HATE figuring all of that out. I can totally empathize. But hooray that you only have 10 more tanning sessions. That countdown begins to be such a relief. And you'll probably find the boosts go more quickly than what you've done so far. Although my boost area was a big 3" circle, so don't be surprised.

I've not ever tried cave tubing, CathyCA. I'm thinking my claustrophobia (see, LWDana, I've got my hang-ups, too), will prevent that. I've not been to Belize, either, even though I float the idea every Spring. Someday. Why don't you try both Belize and the tubing and let me know if I should pursue...

Julie-I hear you on the yard sale stuff not coming back into the house. We always load up whatever doesn't sell and take it to Goodwill. I hope you guys get rid of everything!

Oh, we're headed to Croatia and Turkey for our cation. We're sticking to the Dalmation Coast in Croatia, so we'll be on the coast the whole time (ummmm, seafood!). It should be interesting as we tend to plan our own cations and therefore are responsible for our own transfers. So in Croatia, we're going to take the public bus system from Dubrovnik for 4+ hours to a town called Split, where we will catch a ferry to take us to one of the islands. I'm hoping in Croatia they don't allow chickens on the busses, as we've travelled with chickens before and they stink and make too much noise. Better have my iPod charged up for that leg of the journey! I'm looking forward to Istanbul, too. Don't know if you guys ever saw the movie, "Midnight Express," but the prison featured in that film has been turned in to a hotel and we're going to stay in it! The fitness center is in the dungeon. I'm so jazzed! Then we're renting a car and are going to drive to some ruins that are supposed to be better than those in Rome. When we're in that area, we're staying in a guest house with some locals in farming country-there will be much pointing and pantomime to communicate! It will be an adventure, that's for sure.

Hooray to SIS Kimberly for all that progress on your curriculum! You probably feel as though a weight has been lifted. Hang in there with the HOA. Those folks sometimes get carried away with all the power (we had an altercation one time over the color of fabric we used to line our curtains-seemed they wanted beige and we went with an off-white-a stupid waste of everyone's time, imo).

More info from LWDana on her trip-snorkeling and swimming with dolphins! That sounds like my kind of activity. Before I got married I was a certified scuba diver (I was always a little chicken when there was danger in the water, but I was always up for appreciating the beauty), but my dh doesn't swim, so I don't do water things as much as I used to. Every once in a while I'll go off and snorkel on a trip and leave him on land, but we don't do that often. You'll have to let me know how the dolphin swim goes. That's probably one of those bucket list items I'll never cross off...

Good for you, Carol, sticking with your walking. I'm always so impressed. I know I couldn't walk 18 miles in one day. The dh was just showing me this morning the route we're walking from our hotel in Dubrovnik to the bus station and it's about 1 mile. Normally, not bad, but we'll be lugging all our stuff. (Our travel style supports the "lugging"-we each take one carry-on size suitcase with wheels and one backpack, that's it, no matter how long we're gone). I hope the streets are not all cobblestone...

WoooHooo to Therese for making it through that first check-up. I can totally understand how you felt about going in there. I have mine in September and when I think about it I get that nagging feeling of dread in the back of my mind. I'm hoping that feeling doesn't last long for any of us. Celebrate the fact that you only have time to check in once in a while-that's a good thing.

Well, we shipped dd off to yearbook camp this morning. She's going to be co-editor next year so the other editor and her mom drove them to the camp (2 hour drive). I'm in charge of picking them up late Tuesday afternoon after my p/t. Dd was so cute, she didn't want me or dh to come outside to say goodbye to her. God forbid we show any emotion in front of her peer!!!! I'll miss having her around, though, she's really been a great buddy this summer.

Well, it's after noon here and I haven't even showered, yet. Guess I should get moving.

D1

golfer779 · July 2008

D1 - hey I could use your help in packing ... I've spent about 2 hours this morning trying to fit 50lbs of shit into a 35lb bag ... I'm embarrassed to say this is just for a weekend outing! It does include my sleeping bag and pad ... guess maybe a KING SIZE mattress is a little much to pack!!! I don't know about this camping thing ... Back to my efforts ... Carol

KathyL · July 2008

Hi Jewels! Been busy, but thinking of you all always. Glad to read about everyone's "normal things" going on. Paula, especially nice to read about dh's overtures to you. Those are the things that are so priceless and meaningful. Dana, hoping you have an enjoyable 'cation-- what a treat for your graduation!

The carnival was nice. Ran into a lot of people we know in the community. Took the kids swimming again yesty AM. It's been a weekend of fresh air, and tired kids! Can't believe August is rapidly approaching (just did my calendar and saw all that will be going on for the month). Have to back-to-school shop for the kids soon; they start Aug. 25. We also have our family 'cation to NC coming up (can't wait to chill out and it's not BC induced!). Before I know it, it'll be September.

Anyone else hit their one year anniversary yet? August 4 was the day I found my lump, so I'm coming up on a lot of "anniversaries" next month. In my mind, it's my "one year mark" in August b/c that's when it all started. I was dx, then left for our 'cation last year (we go same time, same place each summer). Came home, and started the surgeries. Whew, what a year it's been!

Sorry to be brief. I'll keep reading the posts and write when I can. Kim or Carol... can I get the address list, too?

PAlady · July 2008

Paula - Dishwashing has got to be one of the worst chores! I rarely buy things that are not dishwasher safe as I really hate to wash dishes, so I feel for you! It is so wonderful to hear how well your dh is doing. Ds likes to play Halo, too, but Call of Duty seems to be what he spends most of his time playing. He and one of his friends went up near Cleveland and played in a tournament in the spring. They won for teams and won $140.00. They thought that was cool. We stressed to him that playing video games is no way to make a living!

Wow, that Promise Scholarship sounds great. We are hoping ds can get some sort of scholarship money. We know we won't qualify for financial need, but hoping his grades can get him something. He scored about 1800 on the SAT and has a 4.2 gpa. I have to sign him up for the ACT which he wants to take on September 13. His school is having a parent meeting next week to talk about scholarships and college financing. So far I think they have done a poor job on guiding us or (the students) on finding the right college or deciding on a career. Etc. All he knows is he wants a smaller school, that is not local and to stay within 3 -4 hour drive. He wants to play soccer, too. He has gotten some interest from coaches, but there is not a lot of money in soccer scholarships - none if he decides to play DIII.

D1 - What is the book about that your mom is writing? Funny that your dh likes to play videos too. All three of my ds's are junkies. Dh could probably not even figure out how to turn on a system! I was always the one to play with them when they were little, but I like puzzle games and prefer the Nintendo cartridge games. Once they got into 1^st person and 3D looking games, I lost interest (and ability) to play.

The clot thing with the tamox bothered me much more at the beginning. I did have a weird thing happen on Saturday though, which I am thinking might be from the tamox. I woke up with severe pain in my lower right abdomen about 5 am. I thought for sure I was having appendicitis. Kept debating what to do till it finally started getting a bit better in the afternoon. I ended up not taking the tamox on Saturday night and was fine yesterday. Took it last night and have a faint pain in the same area again. Not sure if it could be the ovary or what, but may have to make a call to the dr. This sucks!

When do you leave for your trip? I am with Carol on the packing. I would never be able to pack all my stuff in your bags. I am definitely know for taken what I need and then some. I always feel the need to be prepared!

Julie - Good luck with your surgery - it is tomorrow, isn't it?

Kimberly - Glad you got done what you needed to on your trip and it was enjoyable, too!

Have a great day everyone!

Determined1 · July 2008

Carol, you have me lol on the mattress!!! That's not camping! All I ever get is my sleeping bag and one of those skinny pads to cover up the rocks and roots. I put my dirty clothes inside of a sweatshirt for my pillow. Hmmm. Maybe that's why I hate camping so much. Maybe it doesn't have to be as rough as my dh makes it...

Where do you go in NC, KathyL? One of my favorite vacations was the year we rented a house in Nags Head when the girls were really young (I want to say they were 2 and 4-they're 17 and 19 now!).

My dx anniversary is August 17. I actually found my lump the preceding January, but didn't do anything about it till May. In June I had a needle core biopsy and was told it needed to come out, but we didn't know it was cancer, yet. I put off surgery till after college girl's high school graduation and our vacation, so the period of time from discovery to dx for me was pretty long. Are you going to do anything special to mark the day?

Hey PALady, so you're doing the college search this year, too, huh? I'm not sure I'm ready for the stress of it again already, but once we get this kid squared away, we're done with it, so there is light at the end of the tunnel. I'm trying to get dd to take the ACT, too. Unfortunately, it's not as popular here as it was in the Midwest when I was getting in to college, but I think it's a much better test than the SAT (which is just an endurance test, imo). You have tons of really nice smaller schools in PA (my college girl was determined to go to school in PA-she's at Dickinson College). We looked at Allegheny, Muhlenberg, Gettysburg, LeHigh (the only place that rejected her), and she thought a lot about Bucknell, but in the end decided not to apply there. In what schools is ds interested? We'll have to compare notes and commiserate as we go through this.

My mom's manuscript is a murder mystery set in China in the late 80's. The crime is solved by a team of investigators from China and the US working in cooperation with one another at a time the two countries were just beginning to work together in limited fashion in the heavy industries. My mom used to do consulting work between the US and China at that time, so she's drawing on her knowledge of customs from that period. It's not a bad book this time around (last year was a much rougher read). This time I'm mostly suggesting word changes and I'm going to try to convince her to move a few of the chapters around and introduce them differently, but we'll see how that goes. It must be hard for her to have her kid read it and then criticize it. I'm not sure I could do that.

Most def follow up on the stomach pain-particularly since it went away when you skipped Tamox for a day. I plan to surely make my onc a raving lunatic by the end of my 5-10 years of HT, since I'll be calling him for all sorts of things. In fact, I've already called him to find out about flying and Tamox and to get the okay to take the black cohosh and Advil for headaches. Let us know what gives.

You guys make me smile about the packing comments. It's funny, I can pack for two weeks in my wheeled carry-on and a backpack, but it takes the same amount of luggage for me to be gone for 2 days! I've never figured that out.

I'm a little nervous about our trip today, since I was listening to NPR this morning on my way to the gym and heard a story about two bombs that were set off in trash bins in Istanbul in a busy marketplace. After the past year, I DO NOT want to become a terrorism stat. I really hope we can manage not to be in the wrong place at the wrong time on this trip...

Off to shower-I'm a bit stinky from my trek to the gym.

D1

Cathy-CA · July 2008

Saw a cute play yesterday afternoon called "The Marvelettes" at one of our local theaters. The first act is set at a 1958 high school prom and the second act is 10 years later at the reunion. Lots of classic rock songs in it.

I'll leave in a bit to see the rads onc, but I expect that to be a quick check. Other than some very slight flacking/peeling everything is back to normal.

Julie -- sending good thoughts your way for your surgery. Sounds like you had a very busy weekend.

Kimberly -- I love Lake Tahoe. We used to own a place up by Heavenly Valley's Stage Coach lodge. Dh and I were married out on the lake at Logan Shoals and spent a lot of time there early in our marriage.

Therese --congratulations on a good exam. I think it will take all of us several exams before they start becoming "routine" again.

Kathy -- August is probably my one year anniversary, as well, but I don't have a date to put with it. I remember talking to a friend over Labor Day about the fact that I was feeling something different in my breast, but since I had a mammo scheduled for October didn't think it was worth going to the doctor about. The October mammo, of course, is when everything started happening in quick succession.

PALady -- with ds's good grades and test scores, he should be a good applicant for lots of colleges. Since our son only had one place he wanted to go and they do early admission, we had things wrapped up pretty easily.

D1 -- I can definitely handle two weeks with a roller bag and tote unless it's a cruise. Then I start dragging out the dressy clothes and accessories. Normally, for a weekend I can just do the tote, but it depends on what I will be doing. Some stuff you have to take whether it's for one night or one month. I'll let you know about Belize and cave tubing in December. I'm looking forward to your Croatia report since we're going there next October.

Carol -- If the air mattress is a practice run for the 3-day, I'll pass along what I've been told by our training leader. She said the tents hold one double air mattress comfortably. If you share a queen it will fill the whole tent. If you and your tent partner are sharing your queen, maybe she can take some of your stuff in her bag. The more handy hints we get on our training walks, the more I'm glad I'm camping at the Marriott for this thing. LOL!

JulieK_11_30_07 · July 2008

Hi Jewels! Just another quick check-in. Things have been busy here! Ds is finishing up the laundry as I type. We made it out on the boat yesterday and had a great time. We told ds he could invite a friend if he wanted and he actually said, "No -- I think I'd rather it just be the three of us since mom's having surgery this week." I could've cried!

I got up today - reconciled the checkbook so dh can pay bills tonight. Then I spent a couple hours powerwashing the back patio and cleaned the pool. Things are good to go there now. Dh and I are going out to dinner tonight after we drop ds off at football practice. He'll be spending the next few days with a friend since I have to stay overnight at the hospital after my surgery.

Glad all is well with the Jewels. D1 - your trip sounds amazing!! I've never even been out of the country. I can't wait to hear all the details!

I feel for you ladies helping the kiddos with college decisions -- I know that can be such a chore.

Carol -- LOL on your king size air mattress!! Hope it fits in the tent!

Kathy - Wow! I can't believe you're coming up on your one-year already! Mine's not until November.

Paula - hope dh is still doing well. Sure hope your dishwasher is fixed by now!! I can't stand doing dishes!!

Well, we're headed to STL at 5:00 am tomorrow for my surgery -- I should be back home by Wed afternoon. I'll check back in as soon as I can.

Be well, Jewels!!

Julie

golfer779 · July 2008

Just briefly checking in here afterwork, I'm waiting for my ds to finish up playing out in the boat, so I can take the boat trailer to town to pull her out. With no bottom paint and being in salt water, the green crap likes to run amuck on the hull. Time for a once over, with some fresh water and a vacuuming.

Just to set the record straight, I'm not really packing a king size mattress, how bout a dinky little twin with a tiny inflatable pillow. Supposedly two twins will fit in the little tents. For this trial run this coming weekend, Ginny and I are supposed to be sharing a 4 person tent with 2 others. Now that really doesn't sound like my cup of tea, so I'm planning on bringing an actual 3-Day tent that a friend from work who walked the San Diego 3Day last year got at the end of the event. I guess its cheaper to buy new tents every couple years so they gave away the tents at the last event of the year.

So Cathy, I'm not sure if San Diego is still the last event of the year, but how bout bagging the Marriott for a pink tent ... just what we all need, huh?

Julie, best of luck for an uneventful surgery tomorrow, hope all goes really well for you. Enjoy your dinner out tonight ... and may I say I would be overjoyed to have my ds actually think for one minute about someone other than himself as of late! Two thumbs up to your ds for thinking of Mom!

Kathy, Aug 4th ... time to celebrate in my book. I bet that I'll be more apt to remember that surreal day in October than I would my anniversary!

D1, as always I enjoyed the chat, and on that note I'm having a very "cool one" as I sit here, almost guilt free! Bring on those hot flashes tonight!!!

KathyL · July 2008

Norma: Hope you get that pain checked out soon. Sounds like it could be an ovary. Appendicitis would probably be worse by now, as you know. I've had ovarian cysts before that have ruptured, and it feels like what I think appendicitis must feel like-PAINFUL!

D1: We go to Emerald Isle. It's below the Outer Banks. Lovely place with not much to do but relax.

I don't think I'm going to do anything for my "anniversary" but note it. What are you going to do? Maybe I'll be more excited about the "year" of my surgery (when it was all gone).

Your mom's book sounds interesting... I like mysteries.

Julie: Hope your surgery goes well.

Thinking of all the other Jewels. Have a good night gals. Tomorrow's my long day. Maybe I can check back in Wednesday.

LilWarrior · July 2008

Cathy,

We are going on the Carnival Pride for 7 days, and it goes Puerto Vall, Cabo, Mazatlan and I cant wait. I will drinking and snorkeling, and canopy and swimming with the dolphins.

I am so excited, it cant get here fast enough.

LilWarrior · July 2008

You are snared by the words of your mouth; You are taken by the words of your
mouth. Proverbs 6:2 (NKJV)

Your breakthrough is in your mouth! There are some areas in all of our lives
that have been dry for a long time. You might be reading this and your marriage
is dry. Perhaps your relationships are dry. Your financial situation is
dry. Your health is bad. Your mind is troubled. Your emotions are shattered. Or
your nerves are on edge. But God is saying if you are going to be delivered, if
change is going to come, if revival is going to come, it's in your mouth. It's
not up to God. It is up to you.

What do you say about it? What do you say about the situation you are in? You
can prophesy your own destruction or you can declare that you will live and not
die. You can declare that health is yours. Prosperity is yours. Joy is
yours. You can prophesy that your marriage will work. You will get that job. You
will get whatever God has in store for you. No devil in hell can stop it. God
said it, so declare it. Your victory is in your mouth.

Precious Savior, I am in a situation in which it appears that there is no
hope. I'm pressed on every side; everything seems to be falling apart in my
life. But I thank you for the power of declaration. Your word says that I am
snared by the words of my mouth. I am taken by the words of my mouth. Your word
also says that whatever things I ask for when I pray, I should believe that I
receive them, and I will have them. Father, I believe your word because your
word is true. I therefore declare boldly that I will have all that you have for
me, my situation will turn around, my outlook is bright, and I will live and not
die. My future is bright because I trust in you!

LilWarrior · July 2008

There are seven scriptural methods whereby you can receive your healing. I
believe the prayer of faith is the highest form of prayer to receive healing.

In Mark 11:24 Jesus said,
Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you
receive them, and you will have them.

Well, is Jesus a liar or does He tell the truth? He tells the truth! He says,
"whatever things you ask...." Wouldn't that have to include healing? Yes, it
does.

Therefore, it must be God's will to heal. Otherwise He could not make that kind
of bold declaration. "Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you
pray"-not after you pray, not a month later, not when you see something, not
when you understand it, but "when you pray, believe that you receive them, and
you will have them."

If you believe you receive them you will confess that, "Bless the Lord-I believe
I am healed, I believe I have received my healing." Now, once you make a faith
confession you are going to get opposite from the enemy. His motive is to move
you off your faith confession.

Someone might say, "Yes, but you don't look like you are healed." I didn't say,
"I look like I'm healed," I said, "I believe that I received my healing."

"Yes, but how do you feel?"

"Bless God, I am not going by how I feel-I am going by what I believe-and I
believe I am healed, in Jesus' Name."

"Yes, but that doesn't make sense."

"That's right; it is not sense, it's faith."

"Yes, but that's illogical."

"You're right again; it's not logic, it's faith."

"Yes, but I just don't understand that."

"I don't understand how it works either, but I believe it is true because God
said it in His Word."

Listen friend, I don't understand how television works, but I believe if I turn
it on, I can watch a movie. The fact that I don't understand how it works does
not stop me from enjoying the benefits of watching my favorite TV programs in
living color.

I don't understand how a gasoline engine works. I don't understand how it works
inside without blowing up the whole thing. Instead of blowing up it pushes a
piston down that drives a crank-shaft that turns a drive-shaft to the rear
wheels that turns the wheels when you put it in gear that moves the car
forward. I don't understand it, but I could care less-all I want to know is that
when I turn that thing on and put it in gear, it is going and that is all that
I'm concerned about. How about you?

I don't know how an airplane stays up in the sky, as big as a 747 is-that thing
is gigantic. How does it stay up in the air? The good news is that I don't have
to understand it to get on the plane and fly from Los Angeles to Hawaii or
somewhere else. All I have to do is believe the plane can fly me there, get on
board and go. After all, that is what you want anyway-the results-right?

Praise God! You don't have to do any more than believe that you receive your
healing based on the Word of God and you shall have it!

Is healing for all? I believe that it is so. I believe that I can walk in divine
health all the days of my life. I believe and confess that I will never be sick
and I'm not being presumptuous. The Bible says in Psalm 91:1, "He who dwells in
the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty."

I believe I'm right in there under His right wing-right up under that wing. God
Himself said in verse 10, "...No evil shall befall you, nor shall any plague
come near your dwelling." Whose dwelling place is God talking about? My dwelling
place because I am under His shadow of protection.

What is a plague? Isn't that sickness and disease? God said, ""...No evil shall
befall you, nor shall any plague come near your dwelling." Well, I guess God
lied. No, He is not a man that He should lie. He went on to say, in verse 16,
"With long life I will satisfy him, and show him My salvation." Praise
God! Healing is for all.

Oh, that's not to say I'm not attacked. I'm attacked. The devil just sits like a
blood hound-every morning I wake up he's sitting right on the foot of the
bed. Sometimes he throws that dart the right way, but it doesn't stop me and it
won't stop me because I'm being strong-not in Dana -but I'm being "strong
in the Lord and in the power of His might."

SISKimberly · July 2008

Hi all,

Sorry I've been AWOL, but I've been getting in lots of stuff and am off to Ashland, OR today, so won't be around again until next weekend.

I've read all the posts, but have to leave in an hour and need to shower first, so not a lot of shout outs.

Carol - Yes, my dh plays golf. Was your camping adventure this past weekend, or the one coming up?

D1- I so thought of you when I heard that NPR story. Travel safely. Oh, your mom's book sounds like a great story.

Paula - I am so glad Ed is doing so well. If he's up for being amorous, he's doing AWESOME! And a new dishwasher isn't a bad thing especially if it's an energy efficient one compared to the one that died. I am with you on prefering a dishwasher to doing it by hand.

Julie- Thinking of you today! Whoohoo, foobie time!

Theresa- So good to hear from you. I'm so glad all was Fabulous on your first check up.

Kathy - Sounds like you're ready for a break. You've been a busy gal. A year is coming up fast. Isn't it amazing how time has flown in hind sight? I'm calling my surgery date my first anniversary of being NED. Not sure how I feel about my dx date yet. I do know that my teacher friend, the one who was dx a day or two after me, and I will get together as we've talked about not losing touch once school starts by doing coffee every Friday morning as our time to catch up.

LWDana- I'm so thrilled for you being able to anticipate such a wonderful 'cation after graduation in October. It will be here before you know it, and you so deserve a 'cation.

Norma- I'm thinking it's an ovary thing. My teacher friend had that kind of pain on Tamox. Her doc told her it was the Tamox and advised getting the ooph if it continued. She got her period back, too, and she's my age, 47. I wonder if Tamox is connected to that little joy you both have to deal with

OK, I've really got to go.

Take care gals. I'll check back in on Sunday.

Love ya, SIS Kimberly

Cathy-CA · July 2008

Dana -- I think a Carnival cruise will be the right thing for you at this time. Given everything you've gone through, being on a ship that emphasizes "fun" (every announcement ends with "go out and have fun") and has lots of crazy actvities should be a wonderful change for you. Every cruise line has its own flavor and if you go into it with a let loose and have fun attitude -- which I know you will -- I think you'll love your cruise. If you like sushi, make sure you stop by the sushi bar in the late afternoon.

sheshe48 · July 2008

Hi Jewels,

I have been so busy with wedding stuff and details. Everyday there is something I have to do for the wedding. I went yesterday and Sat to look for a new mothers dress and shoes. Could not find a dress to save my soul. We shopped from 11 am to 10 pm. Looking for dresses for my lil sis and me last Sat. She could not find anything she liked and I found some things but not the right size or something. I did find a pretty shoe, low heals. I have to order them because they were out of my size. We closed down the mall, we were the very last customers to leave the store and the store security got mad at me because I wanted to get my order in. I looked all Forgettin day for shoes I was on a mission and that security Witch was not going to get in my way!. Luckily they could see I had a bandanna on and figured I had some kind of cancer and let me have my way without going to jail. This nice man security guy told that security WITCH that he would escort me out of the store after I ordered my shoes and paid for them. Thanks Mister!! I'll take a picture and put them on line when the shoes come in. Yesterday I took the other shoes back and of coarse they all recognize me from Sat. I'm glad it was early in the day and they figured I would not close them down. It's very stressful getting down to the nitty gritty of a wedding. Oh I fixed my bodice it fits much better now. Mostly I just pulled it down more in the back. What a dope am I! Sunday night I was at the grooms mom house we are working on a project together for the wedding. My daughter and I are also working on a project together. We ask all the grandmothers and aunts and the moms to give us a reciepe and Brandy typed them on really nice paper and we are making cook books for all the woman guest at the reception. We are combining the familys and some of all of our recipes. I think that is a wonderful Idea that Brandy had. Then we also ask all the woman that was at the shower for recipes and I put them in a box for Brandy and Adam so they have so many recipes to start off thier marriage. Well enough about me.

D1 Thanks for the nice things you said about the dress and my smile. I will have make up on. I wish the outfit had more color too. I did not want to wear black to my daughters wedding. The grooms mom is wearing black and the dress is beautiful. I thank she out did me, but that's ok.

I have also been eating a lot of salads. dd make this stir fry with chicken and sausage and potatoes and some green peppers and spices and they thought it was ok. Man I found all kinds of uses for it. I had burritoes and put it on lettuce with ranch dressing. I just would of not used that spicey sausage. I have lost about 12 pounds so far. I have to really fight with myself. I just want to eat all the time. I almost forgot D1, that price for the plummer does not sound to bad. He could of charged you an arm, leg and your first born. he he he lol. I guess I think i'm funny. But nothing funny about plumbing bills. One day I accidently flushed a wash cloth down the toilet, I was living in a apartment. I found out later it got stuck in someone elses pipes that lived in the same complex. I was so embarressed that I caused the whole mess. I kept my mouth shut. ha he. It was buzzing around the complex about the found wash cloth for weeks.

Carol I think that's great that your husband monitores your sons computer. All parents need to know what their children are up too. Me I used to read her diary sometimes. I know that's bad, but I needed to know if she was ok. I can't believe you can walk 18 miles that great, but rads will seek up on you and tire you out. Be careful, I did not burn on my back, but my breast burnt bad and that Aquaphor is good stuff. I don't know what I would of done without it. I lubed with Aloe by day and Aquaphor by night. I'm glad you are almost done, the boost really burn you. 2 weeks later I was still burning. It's like you have a fire lit inside you and it takes almost 3 weeks for the burn to stop. I started itching real bad the other day, put on aquaphor and it stops. I'm all healed up so what is up with that?

LW I'm so glad your dad is sending you to Mexico, you need a cation. I'm glad D1 was able to give you some pointers for lymphdema. Have fun, my daughter went on a cruise 2 years ago and had the time of her life. She want to St. Martins and Megans Beach and one other place. They were going to do the glider thing and changed thier minds and went sailing thru the trees on cable. I forget what it is called; I have pictures of her it's so cool. Have a great time when you go girlfriend.

SIS Kimberly So glad you got to go to Tohoe for some clean air. That's too bad about all the forest fires in your neck of the woods. Sometimes we get them, not as bad as CA. It rains so much here that it keeps out forest from drying out so bad. August is the only month that we have a dry season. It's been pretty dry since Sat. Michigan is very green and blue with our 5 great lakes. Glad you got your class work done. My daughter was relived she got a letter last week saying her school district was not going to lay her off. So many teachers got the ax. Brandy is only 23 years old and only been there for a year. They did not lay off at the middle school and that's where she is working. She is also an elementary school teacher that's the ones that are taking the hits with the lay offs. Thank God she also got certified to teach the middle school. I think that's wonderful your son went back to school and man is he taking hard classes.

Therese So glad you are back on the boards, we missed you.

To all the jewels still in chemo treatments and rads good luck and you all will be done before you know it. I love hearing all about your lifes.

Kris If you are done with chemo I would get rid of that port. It could get infected at some point or the vien could blow. That's what happened to my Picc line port, my vein blew, at least it blew the after all my chemo treatments were finished. I guess there is no immediate hurry to go get it out. How is the new grand baby doing?

Julie I'm also glad you are getting your class work started and you got your class room in order. Now you can enjoy the rest of your summer.

dd is going to Traverse City, MI. for her honeymoom. They are going to spend their wedding night at a fancy hotel in Detroit. A gift from the wedding party. Then they leave for Traverse City and they will stay their until Wed. They will leave early in the morning so Brandy can be at work that day,School starts. They will be staying at a nice hotel on Lake MI. I just love the great lakes, they are so bueatiful.

Cathy congrats on teaching CPR. I have been certified for CPR so many times, it's good to know. dd has to get certified yearly too because she is a teacher.

I love you Paula I'm sorry if I left anyone out. I'm so tired and have to get on with my day. Take care Jewels.

Hugs, Sherry

sheshe48 · July 2008

Hey D1 for weeks I have been meaning to say that was great that you got new drapes in your living rm, I keep forgetting. dd finally put up drapes in her living rm, it looks much better.

sheshe48 · July 2008

Hey LW Dana I hope you are ok, I just heard there was a earth quake in Los Angels. I don't know if Lincoln is by Los Angels. I hope you are safe too Kimberly. I heard on the news the earth quate was 5.8 or 5.6. Let us know you are safe. More shout outs later, I have a class to go to tonight.

Cathy I think that is great that you go to a cooking class. It sounds like fun, I love to cook, tomorrow I'll put one of my recipes on the board for the jewels.

Sherry

Cathy-CA · July 2008

Sherry -- I think people away from earthquake areas are always more afraid of them than those of us who live here. As these things go, this was a pretty moderate quake. I don't think there have been any reports of damage. Lincoln is about 400 miles away from where the quake was, so I doubt Kimberly would've felt it. I'm probably slightly closer than Dana and it only made the chandeliers swing.

rock · July 2008

bump

sheshe48 · July 2008

Cathy Sorry I missed you, I did not realize you also lived in Calf. I was thinking that today, it's a normal occurrance in Calf. I'm glad everyone is fine, when I was pregnant with my daughter over 23 years ago we had a earth quake in MI. My bed shook and I could hear the windows shaking it jarred me out of a deep sleep. I did feel afraid, I have not felt one since. MI. had another one a few months ago, not far from here, but I slept threw it. We don't have them often, we do have them. We are more afraid of them because we don't have them very often. Have a good night

JulieK_11_30_07 · July 2008

Hi Jewels -- just a quick check-in tonight for me. Glad all of our California girls are okay after the earthquake -- thought of you all when I heard about it.

My surgery was successful and fairly uneventful today -- they called yesterday and changed it from 8:00 a.m. to 7:00 a.m., though, so we had to get up at 4:00 a.m. and were otd at 4:45. My surgeon talked to dh after the surgery and said I could come home instead of staying the night if I felt up to it -- I said "heck yah!" and we were home by 3:30 this afternoon. I slept for a couple hours when we got home -- starting to get tired again though. For some reason, a couple hours after I was in recovery, my blood pressure dropped for about an hour. They monitored me closely and couldn't find a reason for it -- increased my fluids and tried a couple other things and it eventually came back up, so they released me.

The pain's not too bad -- just uncomfortable mostly where the drain tubes are located. My goal is to get them out by next Tuesday - let's hope!! I'm going to try to be really good and not do too much -- I may have mentioned that my sister had to have one of her implants redone twice b/c she was a bad patient and did too much too soon. I do not want to have to go through that!

Thinking of you all -- I'll try to check back in tomorrow.

{{{{{HUGS}}}}}!!

Julie

RN2teach · July 2008

Getting ready to head out to my health occupations conference early in the morning. Just finished the last of the laundry, loaded the dishwasher, and have my bags packed and in the van. I'm driving our team of teachers the 2 hours north to Bridgeport, WV in the middle of the state.

Dh had several big seizures Friday evening. He was stung by a wasp just an hour prior to the first episode... dunno if that contributed to the seizure, but I wonder... He slept through the weekend and is starting to feel better. I'm a bit uneasy about leaving him, even though both of the kids will be here and they're trained to take care of him. I take dh for his next MRI on Monday and we'll be heading back to Duke next Wednesday.

I always have trouble getting to bed before a trip-too much running through my mind. Thought I'd check in with the Jewels and see what was up with you all...

Kris- chia pet, huh? Thanks for the laugh! Good point on getting the port out while the deductibles are met-I'll keep that in mind when I talk to my surgeon in September.

Dana- your upcoming cruise sounds fabulous! Glad to see your posts. The devotionals are nice. Thanks!

Carol- 18 miles... I'd say you're the energizer bunny of the Jewel world! The big camp out is this weekend, right? I'll wish you a great weekend now in case I don't catch you before you leave.

BTW, the KC was delish!!! The cats got a couple of crumbs (believe me, ONLY crumbs) and they send their thanks as well.

Cathy- Did you score any good books at the library sale?

Kimberly- Sounds like your visit to Tahoe was productive. Those corks can be a PITA, can't they? I need a new corkscrew... ds and I had a major wrestling match de-corking the last bottle of wine I opened.

I'd like to have the Jewels address list, please! Sending you a PM with my email addy.

Therese- great to hear that your first follow-up went well. LOL at the 4 months/40,000 miles comment. We'd better take the extended warranty, eh?

D1- Croatia and Turkey... WOW girl, what a ‘cation! I remember Midnight Express-one of those movies that is hard to forget, IMO. I'll never forget those dungeon scenes... I'll be praying that all is quiet in the region during your visit. When do you leave?

Kathy- I'd say you've earned a trip to the beach! I've never been to the beaches around the Outer Banks. I've heard they're beautiful.

Your cancer journey began a few months before mine (late November). It is a melancholy milestone, isn't it?

Norma- your son's grades/scores are impressive! He should be able to rake in some college dough. If he has time, you might want to get him started on scholarship essays. The basic essay for many scholarships should include his career goals, why he chose the field he will pursue, and how he plans to reach his goals. I start my seniors off with this essay every year and they take that essay and tweak it a bit for most of the scholarships they apply for.

I agree with you about the lack of guidance on college/career planning. There's a great website that I use with my students: http://www.educationplanner.org/ that you might find helpful.

Sherry- so, did you take back the cute flats? I hope you found some that you'll be comfy in for the wedding. I'm glad you made it out of the store without having to beat someone with your shoes. (They'd have deserved it, of course!)

SO glad to hear that Brandy survived the job cuts!

Julie- home already?! Glad you got to come home today-you'll rest better there than at the hospital. Kick back and let your men wait on you (if yours are like mine, that doesn't happen very often).

I'm off to bed for a few hours-gotta be ready to go in 5 hours...

Wish you all the best for the rest of the week. I'll catch you on the weekend.

Paula

sheshe48 · July 2008

Hey D1 I forgot to mention for you to have a great cation with your mom. It's so nice that everyone is getting back to their lives and making life as normal is normal to us now.

golfer779 · July 2008

Morning Jewels

It's the "well done" one here ... I will be so ready for my rad txts to be completed next week. I'm now sporting a lovely surgi-style bra to hold my gel pads in place. Quite the look!!! Getting comfy at night is becoming a bit of an issue as well. Thank god for my Lorazepam to knock myself out! I have truly seen the reality of the word "cumulative" this past week.

Met with my onc yesterday to discuss my future treatment plan. I will be taking Femera (AI) for 5 years as well as having an infusion of Zometa every sixth months for a three year period. I asked about keeping my port as I REALLY don't care for needles. The doc will be checking my hormone levels again in 3 months, he said he'd be very surprised with as low as my numbers we're that they would rebound much at all. I'll also be getting a bone scan so I'll have a baseline. Had my blood drawn yesterday to have my Vit D level checked too. Who knew that there would be so much to this whole deal. I was happy to hear that I could start my AI after I return from "cation".

I'll be checking back in later today, at work this morning,

Carol

KathyL · July 2008

Hi Jewels!

As always, I have been burning the candle at both ends. Worked all day and eve yesty, and again this AM. Got home and dh was going to go out and fill my gas tank for me so I could sleep in today... and the battery in my car was dead! Well, at least I made it home. But no sleeping in today as we had to juggle schedules and rearrange our day with only one car. Dh came home at lunch with me and put a new battery in (saved us some moolah). He's back to work now and I'm just waiting for the clenaing ladies to come, then I'm off to do errands and pick up the kids. Would've liked to have taken a nap this afternoon, but it appears I can't now as I have to leave in about a half hour... and I'd rather check in here! 2 birthday parties to go to this weekend with the kids, and I'd like to try to get to the Rehoboth Beach outlets to do some back to school shopping for the kids (yeah, we'll see how well I can organize that one). Just glad I don't have to clean this weekend Smile .

Kim: Hope your next adventure is a fun one (do I have any doubts?!?). Did not realize there were quakes in CA, I haven't seen a paper in 2 days or turned on a TV in the same. Maybe tonight I'll catch up on what's going in the world! Glad to read from Cathy that the Jewels in CA should be fine.

Cathy: Thanks for the update on the CA girls and the earthquakes. Sheesh, I can't believe I didn't know. BTW, I am so impressed with your travel knowledge. I hope to go somewhere exciting some day just so I can consult you! My mom is going on a cruise (don't ask me which line... I have no idea) August 8 to some areas near Mexico, and I think the Bahamas. I am much more of a land person. My dad is headed to Alaska this weekend for 10 days; his dream trip that he finally decided to do. My speed right now is NC's beach and doing nothing but chillin' in the sand. Once the kids are bigger, I'll branch out I hope. I'd love to see Hawaii, England, France, Italy, maybe Australia. (((sigh)))

Sherry: Hope you find the dress and shoes you like for the wedding. It's so hard to find that "perfect" outfit, huh?

Julie: Hope you're recovering well and can enjoy the new boobs soon! Make that trip to VS when you're feeling better and dress 'em up!

Paula: Hope the trip goes well and dh is OK while you're gone. It must be hard to go and leave him. Praying the MRI looks good for him, too.

Carol: Sorry to hear rads is frying you. Hang in there skin! I don't know much about the AIs, but I do have a friend on Zometa and she says the infusions go easily for her. She's doing that and herceptin currently.

Well, I'm outta here. Hope everyone is having a good day.

Determined1 · July 2008

Ugh, I hate getting ready for vacation-there's so much to do! I'm going to take a quick breather and see what's up here before I head off again.

Wasn't Julie's surgery yesty? I was thinking about her all day-if I got the day wrong, I hope you got my good vibes! I'll read the posts, I'll bet someone remembers...

Pressure from CathyCA to give a full cation report! I'll do my best to scout Croatia for you. One thing I think you'll miss is our hotel in Korkula. Dh told me today that he inadvertently booked the wrong place and the one we're in has no a/c! He didn't want to try to negotiate the language barrier to change it, so we're going to suck it up. Hopefully there will be a cool breeze and we can open the windows those two nights!

Clearly Julie's surgery is this week-that crazy girl is out playing with her power washer again!

Okay, there's Carol mentioning the Tuesday surgery. We're all thinking about you, Julie. Oh, and I second Carol's sentiment about your ds thinking of someone other than himself. A rare occurrence in a teen, make no mistake.

KathyL, you gotta like a destination where all you do is relax. I talked to the dh about my anniversary and suggested that we drink the bottle of champagne we got for my final rad session, but never consumed. I can't believe we've been cancer survivors for a year!

SIS Kimberly-I'll be gone by the time you get back from Ashland. Hope you're enjoying your time away before school begins. I'll be thinking about you and Carol kicking back and admiring your fence while I'm dodging bombs in Istanbul! (What are we thinking???)

Sherry-Whew! This wedding stuff sounds more stressful than getting the kids into college! Something to look forward to! I'm glad you're not wearing black to the wedding, too. Black is not a wedding color, imo. I know you're going to be just radiant. When is the day again? I'll probably be on my trip (I seem to be missing a lot of stuff around here while I'm on cation).

LOL at the washcloth story! I wouldn't have fessed up, either.

A honeymoon in Traverse City! Oh my. That's such a beautiful place. I hope they have a wonderful time.

Hip hooray that Julie came through surgery okay! I'll bet those girls are going to be real beauties! Listen to yourself and lay low-no powerwashing.

Hey Paula, hope the conference is going okay. I was sorry to read about dh's setback over the weekend an d understand how you must've felt to leave for your conference. You left him in good hands, though. You may not return till after I leave on Friday, so please take care getting back and forth to Duke. I'll continue to send my very best thoughts to you and Ed.

Carol-were you able to put your reservations on the table with the onc? Did he/she offer any alternatives? Or are you satisfied that this is the best approach for you right now? Gosh, I hope they can use your port for the Zometa-I can totally relate to the needle thing.

Speaking of needles, I agreed to have the BRCA testing done, but I told them I wanted to do the blood draw at a time I'll be giving blood anyway. They were very accommodating, so I'll do the draw at my next onc appointment in early September. They all have a note on my chart that says I'm afraid of needles, so they bring it up before I have to!

How do you keep up with yourself, Kathy? You make my head spin. I think you really need your chillaxin at the beach-it can't come too soon for you!

Well, I'm going to get back to my cation preps. College girl had her tetanus updated today, so I'm breathing a sigh of relief over that. I packed the first aid kit and it's overflowing with remedies for tummy distress! I'm something of an expert on those remedies, now!!!

Later.

D1

Determined1 · July 2008

I got a card and a sticky note pad from my SP today that made me lol. Just what I needed. Thanks SP.

D1

golfer779 · July 2008

Evening Ladies,

To my Gem friends, know that I have read all the posts and so enjoy reading about what any of you are up to.

Just a quickie to say to D1, yep, I'm on-board with what my onc is suggesting. I went in with my small list of questions, and feel confident that I'll be on track for some good preventative meds. I am planning on keeping my port in, I will need to get it flushed every 4 to 6 weeks, but I still feel that with the numbing agent I put on it, I'd rather deal with a trip to the doc office for the flush then having anyone try and find a vein in my left arm. My right arm has always been my good side, bigger veins, yada, yada, but its now off limits. The last time my left arm was used for an iv was when I had my second surg for the Axil Node surg, and the anethenelogist (intern) had a hell of a time finding a vein. Not a good memory to leave me on!

Saw my rad doc today, she informed me that my skin looks good ... I said that I'd hate to see skin that looks bad !!! It was a tough one today to get my arm up in its mold ... feel like I'm going to split my chest. Paula, yep I'm off to camp out this coming weekend, sounded like a pretty fun time a week or so ago, as of tonight, I'm glad that I will be in good hands, (Ginny is a retired nurse), and such a kind/caring person. The dh is not on-board with my decision to go to a camp out ... the stubborn me doesn't want to give in to my txt screwing up my plans!!!

7 boosts to go ... off to lube once again tonight!

Pleasant dreams all, Carol

golfer779 · July 2008

D1, here's hoping our fearless leader and family have a great "cation" ... be safe my friend! We'll miss hearing from you the next couple weeks, so if your doing the internet cafe, a quick hello would be cool. Oh, I will be sure to raise a glass in your honor with Sis Kimberly ...

Carol

Determined1 · July 2008

Checking in. I hope I'll be able to do a quickie tomorrow before we head off, but just in case I can't, I'll miss the Jewels! Hold down the fort.

Julie, keep those new girls in line and take care of them.

KathyL, I'll think of you on the 4^th-whodathunk you'd been doing the cancer thing for the past year? Bet you're glad it's behind you... Have a great cation, too!

Paula-I'll be thinking of you and Ed, hoping for the best. Take care with all that driving.

Tina-are we getting Brett Farve? Do we want him?

Sherry-enjoy that wedding. Your smile will be the best accessory you wear.

Carol-I wish I was going to be around to send you a big ol WoooHooo next week, but I'll be thinking it! And I fully expect you and SIS Kimberly to raise your glasses in my name! (You reading this Kimberly??)

I'll try to take good mental notes on Croatia for you, CathyCA.

Haven't heard from PALady on the pain. I really hope everything is okay...

Jenn-Hope you get some Morning Magic while I'm gone (heck, I hope I get some, too!)

Been missing LJ-hope I didn't intimidate you with my snappy repartee about the hair. (Oooh, got mine colored again today and I've graduated to permanent color! Looks better than the silver. I was channeling Jay Manuel from "America's Next Top Model"-I'm sure you don't watch that, you need teenaged girls in the house to see that one-with the silver.)

LWDana-keep the faith, girl. And enjoy your cation plans!

There are so many other Jewels we don't hear from so often-Therese, Vettegal, WVGirl, Joan, Wendy, sista, CHJ, Maz, and Deb. You guys are all getting on with it and that makes me happy, keep it up! Actually, I LOVE the fact that we're getting on with life--it doesn't just make me happy. (I apologize if I'm missing someone, my family is growing weary of my forgetfulness...)

I'll try to check in if we come across an internet café, but will likely only be able to chat for a minute (I doubt my family will put up with me and my extended review of our thread...). Guess I should go pack-I keep avoiding that...

Onward through the fog, Jewels!

D1

Jan 2008--Ain't it Great?

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