May 2010 Chemo

Ok, just came back from a CAT scan I was supposed to have for my eyes (Graves Eye Disease). I was supposed to have a few shots as is and a few with contrast dye. And they couldn't get my vein to inject  the dye! I hope my eye doctor will be happy with this, because if not, they'll have to take me to the hospital and make an anesthesiologist find my veins to inject the dye for the CAT scan.

I've been busy with my gardens for the last week. It's harder than I thought it would be. Besides being two weeks after the last revision (so not much lifting) I get tired sooooo easily. I have a neighbor helping me, fortunately. Got some patio tomatoes, bell peppers (one tht survived the winter in the house an dnow is full of 2" peppers), rosemary, and many othes. I'm re-doing the flower beds in the front yard that got totally messed last year as I couldnt' do any kind of gardening. I'll post photos when I'm done.

I hear you! three years ago I had 3 volunteer tomatoes growing right near the wall of the house. I called them "bird-poop tomatoes". I moved them to a proper place in the garden, and what do you know, they were the small cherry-size pear yellow tomatoes. The were making bunches and bunches of fruit. There were still so many green tomatoes on them when the frost was announced, that I picked them up and pickled them. I had 3 big jars of pickled green tomatoes.

Hey LibraryJenn -- was reading your post of a few weeks ago and wanted to be sure you know that grapes, raisins and chocolate can be deadly to dogs.  I know your puppy got into a bag of grapes, so you should tell your family to be extra careful on those 3 items.  We had to take our mini poodle to the vet to give him an emetic when he climbed up on the table and ate the raisins from my girls' "toothpicks and raisins geometric shapes" activity.  I had to sit there while he puked up the raisins and count them so we could tell how many he had digested.  Not fun -- but only a MOM would do it.

Jen

Hey Denise, I have never had tumor marker testing done and they do it regularly for you?  Do you think it's because you were stage 3a or just an insurance thing (maybe Kaiser doesn't do it?).

I am so sad that with my next haircut most or all of my chemo curl will be gone!!  It was the only good side effect.  Enjoy that curl while you can.

Jen

Hi ladies...haven't been on in awhile (good thing as denise said).  Bf found a job and we're slowly settling into a nice routine.  While I haven't lost a lot of weight, I do feel tons stronger and am fairly busy now.  Sometimes its even hard to remember being so weak.  I sure don't miss the days of grocery shopping with one of those motorized carts hoping I could make it through the checkout line without fainting. 

My parents will be coming to the area for the summer.  I haven't seen them since last year; usually only once a year.  But they're coming for 3 or 4 months and I'm really excited.  We skype occasionally so they can see Gage.  He is getting so big; talks constantly now.  He was 5 months old when I was dx.  He's 20 months now.  I can't wait for nicer weather here so we can go to the park.  I took the jogging stroller out of the shed and pushed him through the slush today just to get outside.  He calls the stroller "baby's bike." 

Well, hope everyone else is coming along.  I'm not due back at the onc for 2 months and then only for some blood work.  No more scans for awhile.  Super Yay!!

Take care

Bone scan was clear

Hi Ladies!  Just popping in.  Onc gave me rx for Femara today and will start taking it after DIEP.  My sx is this Wed. (bilat).  I am ready and even excited - really hoping for a flat stomach:-)  I've been seeing a naturopath and am feeling stronger and healthier.  Kim and Denise, I'm with you on the curls- feel like a poodle:-)  Love to all of you!   Off to karate with Luke....    ~ Daiva

KIMLOVES   Love your hair you are looking soo good.. I'm so glad your doing well.....I was going to do the 3 day in San Fransico this year but I dont think I'm going to make it ..I just decided to do the 5k  in May for SBK ..Just got my paper work so I will just raise as much as posible till then .I think they said $15. for 15 people.. so I will put that on on my facebook. page ..

 Daiva I sent you a note on facebook  I'm going to be jealous of your flat tummy!

Glad your doing better Jenn and

Whoop! Whoop! to you  Leanna 

Take care everyone!

Kim - I love all the hair... it looks great!  Mine is no where near that long!

Daiva - I'll be thinking of you!!!  I hope all goes well, heals well, flattens well and looks great!!!    I'm excited for my DIEP coming up too... and a bit apprehensive. 

Jenn - I hope all is well with your chest pain... let us know how you are doing!!  I agree... your 30s can only go up, up, up!!! 

Paxton - Awesome about your parents... that should be fun and helpful!! 

Jenn what a relief! so glad it wasn't the lungs.  I have working my scar tissue every day and more then a couple of times a day , when I'm just sitting watching tv..  LOL if some one looked in the window they would think I was feeling my self up! lol  There is a very good change in the radiated side. still looks tanned though.. there is one big hard tissue right n my arm pit .. it getting better but dang it was huge.. and hard..   the other side is very supple and soft.  the scar is ugly but soft.  .. oh my ...

Last night I was having a very strange pity party..for some reason I couldn't get out of my mood.  I was missing the old me... took a sleeping pill    Only the 3rd time since this started..  strange for it to hit last night... Feeling better today wonder if I was just over tired  ..even though I didn't do anything different.. oh well ..

LibraryJenn, I am going to keep positive prayers for your healing.  Gosh, it sounds painful and I know it is scary to not know what exactly is going on!   Extra extra hugs to you going through this at such a young age and with a little one -- yes, we will believe and push forward that indeed your 30s will be all BEST of the BEST years!     

 Sacphotomo, I just got through fighting some depression myself.  I am approaching my 1 yr and for some reason, it seems to be triggering weird feelings.  I sometimes read of someone that has died of breast cancer and that still wigs me out.  Sooo, here's some hugs to you for pushing through the blues! 

Certainly all of us send positive vibes to one another and any others that are walking behind us on this scary journey!  Leanna, you are so right --we each have to do something to help us get back the power of our being that bc seems to steal from us while we were dealing with the initial learning of it / surgery / surgeries / chemo and radiation and then those who have reconstruction / hair loss / people being supportive but not really knowing what it feels like to endure all that comes with bc.  Feeling powerful in whatever ways we can -- each of us -- to lift ourselves up so that we can indeed be the warriors on this walk.  I still get very emotional at times and I suppose perhaps on a level, maybe we always will!  We know we are the ones that are the rare gems -- we fought the battle and have won!  WAR CRY!    HUGs to each of you and spread out the hugs to all those around us who have bc but have not yet been told and have all that ahead of them -- our strength helps them endure as well!  MUCH LOVE!  (Sorry I must still be dealing with wild emotions! -- as I am rambling!)

Thanks Kim

Daiva - haven't heard from you, so hope the DIEP went well and you are resting comfortably   Thought lots of you this week.

FYI - sometimes you ladies are the reason I can see the light at the end of the tunnel.  It's nice knowing that there is someone else you "know" dealing with the same sh*t.

Hugs and have a great rest of the weekend. ~Jenn

Great, Daiva!!!!!  Thanks for updating us!!  We were all worried about you!

Hello ladies,

Guilty as accused, I haven't been much on this thread lately. Been exceptionally busy with my facebook campaign, the festival that I'm organizing in fall (and all the fundraising events that I'm organizing in order to be able to have that festival), work in my garden, get things all ready for my sweetheart who is deploying in a week or so, doctor appointments, my websites (I made one new and bought a domain to do another one - I have 7 websites out that I own lol) and I think I forgot a thing or two. Yes, I guessI'm slowly getting back to the whirlwind life I had prior to BC.

I had in the meantime an gynecologic oncologist visit to check on the cyst on my right ovary, she wanted to schedule me for a hysterectomy, I said, whoa, lady, take it easy, nobody is taking out my innards right now! Anyway, it was established to have a transvaginal ultrasound every 3 months to keep an eye on that cyst. I also had a follow-up with my BS and everything looks great. I am not on Arimidex anymore (it was giving me high blood pressure, high heart rate and increasing my thyroid levels) but on Aromasin and except for some mild knee pain sometimes, I seem to be doing just fine on it.

And to finish this post, here are some photos of my yard, so you can see how much I did. I actually started working on it when I was only 2 weeks out of the last surgery, I know, I'm crazy, but this year I want to make up for everything I couldn't do last year. I love the smell of freshly dug dirt. I need to buy some nighcrawlers to aerate the dirt and some nematodes to take care of the pesky underground grubs.

Front yard: flower bed extended. got a new red pampa grass, everything else was there already - it's now coming up, so the yucca and hardy hibiscus can't be seen well.

 Backyard - new "harvest corner", I had two roses of Sharon there, got new lattice and edging, andnow there are also two raspberry and two blackberry bushes, some strawberries on the ground, and planted some sunflower and corn seeds in the back along the fence

Frontyard - lots of potted plants - two patio tomatoes, two bell peppers (one was in the hosue over winter so already has fruit on it), rosemary, basil, and some other herbs just put the seeds in.

 backyard -extended the flower bed. Leather leaf in bloom, crape myrtle now budding, got a new phlox, a baby elderberry and a rose I got from Lowes.

 Planter along the laundry room in the backyard, with two cherry tomatoes, some dill, and more seeds for thyme, more dill and coriander/cilantro. The planter is actually an old battered chest that I got at a flea market, the lid was broken and I paid $3 for it. Makes a great planter and it's on wheels.