So...whats for dinner?

Lacey - ah my slow brain. Funny.

Wench - I liked taking care of the pool for the first 15 years too!! Then it because a chore to fit in around working full time & all my volunteer activities.

Sandy - glad to hear Bob's scan was stable.

Hsant - unfortunately I've been the beneficiary of 6 MOHS surgeries so far. I go in every 6 months and she freezes at least 20 places each time. Interesting aside - when I went in after chemo treatments, there were absolutely NO problems. My skin was completely clear of pre-cancerous lesions or cancers for the first time in my life and she was most complimentary. Of course the result wasn't worth the treatment method.

If I don't cook yellow squash & zucchini & corn TODAY, I'll likely be throwing them away. Eeek.

The PET results are in. Pleura lining is resolved. Bone mets have reduced in uptake by about 40%. Tumor markers [which are generally accurate for me] have gone down over 50% since starting Xeloda. This stuff is working! So the discussion turned to "how can we make sure you can manage the toxicity levels so you stay on this for a good long time." After considering all the options, we have chosen 7 on/7 off schedule keeping me at 6 pills per day. Dr. C is confident that this protocol, developed at Sloan, will be effective for me now that my tumors have been knocked back.

I start cycle 7A tomorrow morning. Gonna celebrate with white carbs! English muffin!

Dinner tonight, after a very long day at Dana Farber was fish & chips at an Irish pub. No drinks since I had to do some troubleshooting on a client files. Olivia came to visit today! Her first visit to her Grandmama's house. My daughter had just finished attending a breast feeding support group. We are now even. We BOTH have breast support groups! Tomorrow, I am babysitting Olivia while my daughter makes a presentation at her school. And the new dishwasher arrives. Busy and full day already.

Sorry not to respond to all your posts. Brain has been a bit distracted lately.

*susan*

MO!!!!!! How are you doing? Miss knowing how you are doing, and hearing about your adventures. PM me if you are willing.

*susan*

Wow, Susan. That really is great news! So happy for you, and good reminder that solid, valuable research continues! Enjoy Olivia tomorrow!

Mommy, we have a very long hedge (a large corner block's worth) that DH and I have always managed along with many, many shrubs and small trees throughout our property. There have always been accompanying body aches to this management effort. Last summer, DH decided to contract it out to a landscape company after his broken hip. I doubt that we will be in charge of it again, given our ages, rotator cuff tears, etc. There is something very satisfying about trimming one's hedge the way you want it to look...but those body aches, not so much.

Tonight we enjoyed some marinated salmon from WF, along with a red leaf lettuce garden salad and a side of spaghetti squash/onion/kale/cheese saute.We enjoyed more of the sour dough bread that I bought yesterday. It was a tasty healthy feeling meal.

My trip to the derm doc was relieving. I learned that the facial marks that I thought might be pre-cancers or beyond, are not. Just more ugly marks from all my days at the shore as a young'en. Since I am not terribly vain, I will be leaving them alone. I hope that your visit was equally unremarkable, Minus

Great news, Susan!

Went to my garage to drive down to Oak Lawn to spend an evening reception and financial seminar with Bob in the Christ Hospital doctors' lounge. I'd been away all week and nobody was inclined (nor knew how) to start my car. Hit the keyless-entry clicker and....nothing. Maybe the remote battery was dead? Tried the other clicker....same result. Called Subaru road service, who sent a bulletin to the dealership and dispatched a tow truck. Meanwhile, inadvertently discovered the clickers hide an emergency conventional key. So I got the door open, but the engine was deader than Jacob (or Bob) Marley. Noticed the dome light button was depressed--which I didn't do--and the fuse box cover was missing. Anyway, it took 5 calls and 4 hrs, but the tow guy finally arrived. Gave the battery a jump, but it wouldn't hold a charge. By then the dealership was closed and I couldn't get a loaner, so I had to wave bye-bye to my car as it was driven up onto the flatbed to be dropped off at the dealership.

So I set out on foot to CVS to pick up my Benicar Rx, and went into Whole Foods for some pasta and champagne...but the wine bar was closed. So I picket up some fresh Copper River salmon and a spinach-edamame salad. Fired up the grill, sprinkled the fish with Salish smoked sea salt and black pepper and a little olive oil and wrapped it in some salted oiled foil and placed the packet on the screaming hot grill and closed the lid. Dressed the salad with orange olive oil, ponzu, and Sicilian orange sea salt By the time I'd dressed and plated the salad and opened the wine (Maryhill Rosė of Sangiovese), the fish was done. Had dinner on the deck, from where I'm typing this on my iPad as I sip the wine. Tomorrow I will figure out how to get to the dealership and what needs doing besides replacing the battery and fuse box cover

I'm 3 pages behind. Oops

Susan, whatever Olivia eats that helps her griw us the right stuff.

Soecialk, fingers crossed and prayers said for safe sx and fast healing.

Red, hope the test went well and results are good.

Lacey, glad your results are good too.

Chi, sorry your hard work was ignored. Sigh.

To all, much live. I will comment more as I catch up.

Cheesy papusas with beef and pico de gallo today. Leftovers tomorrow.

No clue yet. It's pretty warm here today, so I think it will be something quick

For all who's tests have come back as good congratulations! That is awesome!

Susan - glad that the Xeloda is working so well and that you have a schedule going forward. This is great news. Does your 7/on 7/off mean more or less toxicity than you've been dealing with? Wow - 6 pills per day. I hope they are on the small side. Olivia is adorable.

Lacey - Forgot to say - I would hate the hedges across the street being removed. I love the privacy hedges provide - as well as the landscape benefits.

Moon - I'm always glad when you check in. Special - remember Moon's saying from other threads: Just Because you Can, Doesn't Mean You Should. Take this time to just do nothing & nap as often as possible.

I had lunch today with a friend at a Japanese restaurant across town. Her husband died last month and I knew this was a place that is quiet and we could sit & talk as long as we wanted. She's doing OK but I expect it will all hit hard when they have the memorial towards the end of June. I had a great Bento Box lunch - miso soup, salad, shrimp & vegetable tempura, two pieces of a hand roll (tasted like California Roll) and fried rice. I ask for Ponzu sauce & the owner suggested I also try a Wasibi/honey combination. Quite good. Houston has a Mexican restaurant in every strip center. Lots of Chinese places & more Vietnamese too. The new places opening seem to be Asian 'fusion'. But good Japanese restaurants are hard to find. I hadn't been to this one in 10 years but it was still worth the treck.

Susan, congratulations on your good numbers! Olivia is a beautiful baby.

AuntieNance, packing up the family house is always hard. Heck, I moved my dad out of my parents empty nest house, and it was stressful. They were there for fourteen years, and there were a lot of great memories with my parents and my sister. Best of luck for an easy move. I'm sure it's a huge relief to know that your father likes his future home.

Special K, I hope you're feeling well.

Minus, 6 MOHS? That's a lot! Mm...love a good bento box.

Tonight is leftover chicken cacciatore for my dad. He did pretty good last night with respect to eating. Not sure what I'm going to have, maybe a turkey and Swiss sandwich on a low carb wrap

hsant - serves me right for the MOHS. I was raised in sunny California, moved to New Mexico when I married where there are 364 days of sun every year, and then to Texas. Not to mention - there was no such thing as sun screen when I was younger & sun tan lotion was a pain. In fact as a teen, we slathered on baby oil and baked in the sun.

Nance - My parents had been in their home for 55 years when my Mother died. My Dad absolutely refused to move. I finally picked a place and had someone keep him busy while I moved some of the furniture in and got it arranged. When he got there at the end of the day he said, looks just like home. Whew - huge sigh!! But I agree, the little things that sparked my Dad's memories were not at all the things I would have thought.

Susan, wonderful news about the success of your treatment. And I second all the compliments for little Olivia. She looks so sweet and huggable.

Lacey, I cringed as I read your report about the destruction of mature, beautiful trees across from your property. I hate that kind of change and question the values of those behind the change.

SpecialK, I'm glad you are resting and taking it easy after your surgery.

We are in Mason City, Iowa, tonight after our second day of travel. We walked next door to a Pizza Hut for supper. I wasn't at all hungry but we ordered a thin crust pizza that tasted really good.

Tomorrow we hope to arrive at Pine Hollow Resort in northern MN and start settling in. I call my mother at night and have good conversations with her, getting a recap on her day. My youngest brother will be arriving from OK on Thurs. and will visit her during the weekend. She continues to work hard with the goal of going home.

Count me among the former sun worshippers who make regular trips to the dermatologist.

SpecialK, did you say you have a bobcat and a panther around?

I had boiled shrimp and cocktail sauce along with Greek pasta salad, all from Central Market. Plus some leftover roasted garnet sweet potatoes. Sort of a random assortment, but all good.

Ouchie Susan!

I agree, "OUCH". It looks like they messed up several times.

I have a "ghost chili" growing in a pot. Test daughter #2 gave me some of the seeds, which is why I started growing them. They are rated at 400+ times hotter than Tabasco sauce. Does anyone have any ideas for using them in the kitchen...besides as an oven cleaner?