Starting Chemo in JAN 2007

Caya, love the name Chez Piggy. Sounds like my kind of place! Keep having fun there, Sister's orders.



Debbie that is a very deep wound. Mel could tell you about that wound vac, I think.

As for the shooting pains, they really just started the last few days. I did get through to the ob/gyn office finally and they just if I came in they would order a diagnostic mammo which is what I'm getting Wed. anyway. I may take tomorrow off and go take my mom out to lunch or something as it's' kind of on my mind now. It did help to google and find it's not uncommon, however. Sometimes googling is good. And I can't feel any lumps. So I'm assuming all is well.



Hope everyone else had a good start to the week. - Skye

Debbie, I think you made the right decision to go with the wound vac.  It will take weeks off your healing time.  It's a bit of a pain to lug around, but it's so worth it!  That is really a miracle machine.  I had one for a few weeks last summer after my surgery, and it was a godsend.  If your wound is really 3" deep or so  you'll be much better off - and no more packing the wound.  I'm so glad you're doing that.

Mel and everyone, thanks for the kind words about the Wound Vac. This whole time I've been thinking about how the inside edges deep in the wound would ever get together. It sounded like the wound vac would suck them together and make them meet. I think the crimp it will put in my schedule will be worth it. I just hope that Seton has wound care at the little branch near my house so I don't have to go all the way up to the main Hospital.

I may have exaggerated just a bit; the doc's fingers were probably only 2 inches apart, but still that's deep on such a small area.

Mel, are you the Tai Chi teacher's pet? It's nice to meet the neighbors sometimes. I know the handful of people that moved in when we did almost 23 years ago, but I don't have much in common with the younger families with little kids. I've gone out to watch the parade of bikes, trikes, and strollers on July 4th the last couple of years, though.

Mary, I hope things go well job wize for your son. Is this the one that's getting married soon? I can't remember how many sons you have.

Mel, I've been meaning to do tai chi myself, but will have to order a video I think. How cool that you can get together with your neighbors for something like that.

Mer, I'm feeling good vibes that your son will find something. Hope it's soon!

I did go to see my mom but she wasn't up to going out so I just visited her there and helped her get some tax paperwork done. The tax preparer said she needed a document signed by Evil Sister for the $40,000 "loan" so we put together an agreement paper and sent it for her to sign, though I doubt she will. It was kind of funny as my mom was reminiscing about the terrible tantrums E.S. always had as a child.



I was wrong about my mammo day, it's Thursday which is fine. The pains are just so odd, but I like to think of it as just nerve regeneration now. I will be sure to have them double check the area.



Kind of caught bits and pieces of the inauguration all day. Love Michelle's coat/dress ensemble, and the girls look adorable. Of course, what I'm waiting for with everyone else is the inaugural gown. Never mind the new president! :-) - Skye

Mer, just think of it as I did...a day at the Derriere Spa. I'm just glad to have it over with.

Saw your e-post that your DS still has job, yay! Now if your situation would just straighten out.

I'll post again post-mammo, Skye

Hello dear Tatas,

We arrived back from Montreal last night, drove through a bit of snow, but most of the way was clear.  I always enjoy going there because I minored in French in university, and I can still speak it farily well.  Some of the customers speak very little English, so it's very helpful for DH when I am there.

My sinus/ear/throat infection is still there, much less, but in the morning when I get up there is still some sputum crap in my throat so I end up coughing it up for awhile - YUCH!!  this has dragged on for 3 weeks now, but what can you do.  At least there is some improvement.

Skye - I am sure further analysis of your mammo results will prove to be nothing.  I liked Michelle Obamas inaugural ensemble, the shoes were okay, nothing special - they pretty well had to be understated because the outfit had alot going on.  I liked the white ball gown, she looked beautiful in white, but I think the dress could have been more flattering. The first daughters looked great in those JCrew coats in those pretty colours.

Mary - any updates on DS's job today?  The stress of the uncertainty for everyone is awful.  Try to make it until June at your job, if you can.  If you can't, get out - You don't need the stess either.

Viddie - glad Arlene's liver spot was very small, if the onc. is very opimistic - that is great sign. Have fun in Boston.

Mel, good for you doing Tai Chi.  My BIL has done it for years, he loves it.  I am going to get back on my treadmill next week, I've just been so weak from this infection and the antibiotics, I just haven't had the energy to do much.

Debbie - I hope the wound vac is available near your house and that the treatment starts soon and works really quickly.

Rebecca - sound like you had a great weekend with the family. 

hugs to all

Caya

Hello my dear friends,

I have been reading, so have kept up; we were out of town for four days over the weekend. We always go to our beach retreat for our older dd's bday, which was last weekend. We took four days, and it was heavenly. All three of our kids were there, with their husbands and girlfriend, so it was a houseful. They are all good friends, and we just take walks, ride bikes, eat way too much, read a ton, play board games. I am so sorry to be back at work, but I guess it isn't possible to play all the time.

Skye, I empathize with you. I broke some ribs about ten years or so ago, and it really hurt, for a very long time. I imagine your mind wanders to dark places in the middle of the night, but rads and chemo do very bad things to bones.

Caya, you must be so weary of the antibiotics. Personally, I think that what you need is a couple of wks in the Caribbean. How is your dh, by the way?  I was off on Tues, so watched the inaugueration, and thought Michele looked great. And those girls are way past adorable. I just want to say, by the way, that I am not sure anyone has ever looked at me the way he looked at her when they were dancing that night.

Rebecca, I love the description of your class. I would take it in a heartbeat. And your weekend away sounds just as good as mine!

Mary, this job market is so worrisome. Your son has good skills, though, and I am sure he will land on his feet. I just wish your job situation were more pleasant.

Viddie, so good to hear from you. I am glad your friend's dr sounds positive.

T, busy as usual, and so impressive. Glad you got a break.

Mel, your posts are alway so tender and thoughtful. I hope you are doing ok. Love those dogs.

Jan, so glad your strength is back. My husband is running a half marathon this weekend. It's a fund raiser for Huntington's, which someone dear to us has been diagnosed with. I am delighted that he is able to run again, and although his goal is to get back to full marathons, this is a great start.

Debbie, hope that nasty wound heals soon. What a mess that must be!

So  I am doing fine. I am excited about the baby. My dh is very disinterested, as he was during my pregnancies, though once the child was / is here, he is terrific. I went to the local Carter's outlet today; they have a big sale in Jan, and I also had a 20% off coupon. I got our dd 19 garments for $84, so was very pleased with myself. She doesn't want a shower, so I want to be sure she has a basic layette. He saw the stuff on the table, said " does she need all that?"  I said "yep."  And that was the end of it. I know he is shaking his head, but my stance is that I earn half of our income, and I am not a bit spendy, so back off, buddy. I know he will be a great grandad. He is already talking about making blocks, etc. He just does not get the whole idea of spending money on clothes.

I read a really interesting book over the weekend. It was about facing death. I have mentioned how nervous I am about driving, and actually, I am finding that I am more anxious about many things. For example, I have always embraced opportunities to travel for business. My work has allowed me to go all over the country, and I usually tack on a weekend and explore on my own. I have never minded traveling alone, and some of my happiest memories are of exploring the Everglades alone, driving up to Pike's Peak, seeing Rocky Mtn National Park, the Smokey Mtns,  etc, all on my own. But recently, I try to avoid it, which is so wierd. Anyway, this book was written by someone who has counseled cancer patients, and he says that generalized anxiety is common and is tied to fear of death. It's more detailed and complicated than that, but the funny thing is that after I read it, it all clicked for me. I had been dreading the drive to our beach retreat before we went, and I was a basket case on the way there. But after reading the book, I was totally calm on the way home. And next week, I have a short business trip that is not bothering me a bit. I don't mean to bring up death to depress anyone, but we all have to admit, it's been on our minds for two years. This book really crystalized things for me.

Ok, got to pack lunches and get organized for work tomorrow. But then it's the weekend, so I am going to be very stoic, and not whine about work.

Hugs to all,

Melia

Nothing much going on here.  I'm starting to dread the prep for the colonscopy and it's a month away.  I found out I do the prep on Ash Wednesday, which is a day of fast and repentence, wow I'll be repenting! 

Younger DS was really disappointed in his job fair.  He's trying to get an internship for the summer in finance.  Bad timing, would you say?

Having people over for early dinner tonight.  Everything is ready, just waiting for them to arrive.  I always get nervous cooking but nothing that a glass of wine can't handle.  Caya, enjoy your quiet week.  Glad you got to spend some quality time with Amanda.  We plan on making a trip up to college in a few weeks to see our son and take him out to eat.  Hugs

bump

Viddie, falling down a flight of icy stairs on the T?  Good God.  You are very lucky.

My onc. appointment is also in Feb. -  next week on Thursday.  He should have my breast MRI results, and since I had it over 2 weeks ago, and did not here from either my onc. or my breast surgeon, I am assuming no news is good news.

I still am not feeling great - still a bit of stuffed sinus, sore throat and some mild ear pain.  I will probably call my GP tomorrow -I have to get better, I'm supposed to be going to Vegas in 2 weeks for the (you all know) Shoe Show, and there is no way I could risk getting on a plane in the shape I am in. Like, it is major enuf already.  My hips have been hurting more lately too, mostly when I sit too long, and probably the extreme cold does not help.  Melia I think it was you who said I probably could use a couple of weeks in the Carribean, and I agree.- OY!!

Tina, Paris sounds adorable.  DH is getting right in there with the diamond collar and all..... lol:)

This Friday is the third anniversary of detecting DH's aneurysm and the coiling procdure.  Talk about lucky. He is fully recovered from the other thing, weaning off the meds.

Very quiet at my house, Amanda took the train back to Queen's U this afternoon.  I have a meeting on Wed. night of women cancer survivors - they are having a comedienne/singer performing - How to reduce the stress in our post cancer lives.. should be interesting.  I don't normally go to that stuff, but since the DH is out of town, it will give me an excuse to get out of my jammies and get dressed...

hugs to all

Finally I have some news about getting the wound vac machine. I called the wound spec this morning to see what was taking so long, and she said that KCI called her because they couldn't get my phone number to work. I don't know what number they were calling, but the rehab got me OK. We've only had this number for going on 23 years now so who knows what the mix up was.

Anyway UPS should deliver the machine tomorrow morning and then I'll go in the rehab to get started using it. After I got the delivery time, I called rehab and left a message. They called back while I was at lunch to offer me a Friday appointment. My husband said that was unacceptable, and we wanted an appointment on Thursday. The WCS I met will be out on Thursday, but they found someone else who could do it on Thursday and called him back. I guess having a retired husband around 24/7 is good for some things. He tells me that he read them the riot act about how I've had this hole for more than 2 months, and he didn't want me to have to wait even one more day if I didn't have to. One day makes a difference to us even if it didn't to them.

Caya, that sinus infection is sticking with you an awfully long time. I hope it gets better soon.

Viddie, oo what a fall. I'm glad you made through with just a few scrapes and bruises.

Mary, stop worrying ahead of time about your colonoscopy prep. There's plenty of time to worry when you actually have to do it. When I did mine in Oct, I had too much regular Jello for supper, and my blood sugar was higher than if I'd had a normal meal. Aside from that everything went fine.

I agree, Tina, the new dog sounds very cute. Did you get any jewelry out of this, or did he get everything for the dog?

Take care all. I'll check back and let you know how the machine is working.

God bless and keep you, Lynn. Stay strong and safe.

Melia

Lynn, don't stress.  My God.  That's the last thing any of us need.  The bazillion emails were getting to you back in July when we were in Vegas.  We understand.  Not everyone has time for it and you shouldn't feel bad.  Facebook is good/quick and we'll see you here from time to time.

Debbie, glad your DH set them straight.  Two months is ridiculous to be putting up with this.  No, I didn't get jewelry...I held out for something better.  I said I want a place in FL  Now I need to figure out how we could swing it financially...

Dear Lynn,

I wish you all the best. Please take care of yourself, and try to pop in here once in awhile, just to say hello. Good luck with your university course, and everything else.

xo

Caya