"I have learned over the years that when one's mind is madeup, this diminishes fear; knowing what must be done does away with fear."-Rosa Parks

7 more to go

Another week almost complete following treatment #4 of round 2. Might have been the roughest one but manageable. A couple days after treatment I got some of the leg pains I was expecting but also a fever. To be safe we went to Emergency as per my instructions. I hate being overly cautious, but better to be safe.
After a little wait, in an overcrowded waiting room, I was given a room to wait privately, so I could avoid the ever present germs flying around. I was greeted by some very friendly nurses and a dr that seemed thorough in my evaluation. We did an X-ray to make sure no pneumonia and blood work to check my numbers. Everything came out ok and seeing as I was already on antibiotics for my sinuses, the dr felt it was ok for me to go home. I had taken Tylenol at home, so at the hospital, I didn't actually have a fever but was told to come back if it got any worse. I felt much better that evening and the following day.
The fever did return but it wasn't as bad. So topped up with Tylenol, we headed to Lukas's first Portfolio Night which are his second term conferences. Such an interesting experience being on the other side of the table. I always feel so bad when the parents look more nervous than the kids, at conference time, and here I was, now THAT parent. Hoping my child is being respectful, courteous, hardworking, kind, focused, cooperative??!! Lukas proudly showed us all around his room pointing out all of his work and telling us stories about his daily activities at school. What a great night, so proud of that boy. He's come a long way in his confidence and maturity- thank goodness. He absolutely loooves school which I can only pray will continue.

So on we go for number nine tomorrow. I'm feeling less energetic as the days go by but I'm ready to go! Looking forward to checking this one off my list and moving forward.
I've called in a sub for my chemo partner so Loni can watch Kane at his last gymnastics class. M.R has been by my side since I was 10 years old. This wasn't on our list of things to do together, but what the heck- we'll add it to our list of memorable events. Not sure it'll be as fun as Madonna or Cuba, but we can say we did it.

"I am a woman in process. I'm just trying like everybody else. I try totake every conflict, every experience, and learn from it. Life is neverdull." - Oprah Winfrey

8 more to go

A week has almost gone by since my last treatment and I'm feeling so good it's making me a bit nervous. Lol. I never expected it but am so thankful for it. A few aches in my calves and some restless feet at night are the only things I can whine about, for now.
I'm feeling well enough to volunteer at Lukas's school one morning a week. I'm helping in the grade 1 room, working mostly with a 7 year old girl who has moved here with her family from Sudan. It's nice to feel useful for a change instead of asking for something. I also got to go to my school and say hi to everyone and have lunch with my work husband. The kids have grown so much!? Happy to share with them that everything is going as well as we could hope for right now. Loni and I even got a double date night in with our friends to the casino- one of my most favorite places to listen to music.
My check up went well with my doctor and we are starting to map out the next phase of our plan of attack. 8 weeks of 8 more treatments. 4 weeks to rest. Surgery. Then 4 more weeks to rest. And then 6 weeks of radiation. Which puts us at one third through this marathon.
I think I can... I think I can... I think I can.

“You can't go back to how things were. How you thought they were. All you really have is...now.” ― Jay Asher

9 more to go

Another treatment complete! Feeling well physically, emotionally, and mentally. These weekly treatments, being less concentrated, are allowing me a little reprieve. I'm resting whenever I can but also enjoying some fun with my family and friends.
I was able to spend some time with some dear teacher friends and watch a very focused, dedicated group of young men win the league basketball championships!
It was so great to watch their hard work pay off. Special thanks to D.B for coaching the boys after I was unable to finish working with this great group of boys I started with last year. A very special thanks to both boys and girls teams for showing me support the entire season with their beautiful, thoughtful warm up shirts. I will wear mine proudly for a very long time.