Christmas!

Okay, so I was afraid I would be sick and tired over Christmas because of the way the chemo treatments would land, but guess what?!?!?! I won't!  I scheduled my next chemo treatment for Christmas Eve. (I'll have to bring treats!) So I will be fine on Christmas Eve, and Christmas Day, and then tired (possibly sick) the next couple of days. Woohoo! Isn't life grand?!

Halfway done with Chemo!!

Chemo was on Tuesday, December 1st, so I am woefully late for an update. Sorry folks!


So, I got WonderfulHubby and the Big Kids off too school. Then I ran around the house trying to remember what I had planned to do before I left for chemo, simple stuff like washing dishes, and putting dinner in the crock pot. I got that accomplished right before my good friend CH arrived to take me to the hospital for treatment. We dropped the Little Kids off at my most wonderful neighbor's and then went to find parking at the hospital. It was a later appointment, so parking wasn't easy, but we made it. When I was checking in I realized I had left some paperwork at home, and they said I would probably have about a 15-30 minute wait, so we ran back to my house and got what we needed. Got back just in time to have Nurse Jennifer call us back and do the blood test. No worries there.

We waited for a while in the room for Dr. H to come and check in on me, but it's always good to have time to sit and visit with longtime friends and talk about whatever comes to mind.

When he came in, Dr. H asked if I had felt a change in the lump. I told him I hadn't, but that's what I had said before and been utterly wrong. After examining it he said that it had drastically reduced again, and there wasn't really a lump left to measure, just an area that was thicker. In my mind I picture it as a clay ball that had been bashed flat suddenly, and then all the loose bits and debris had been brushed away. Anyways, he says that he wouldn’t be surprised that if by the time they do the mastectomy they won’t find any cancerous tissue left. Neat, huh?!

So then we headed back to the chemo room. It was more crowded this time than usual. Probably from everyone who got bumped over Thanksgiving weekend.

I picked out a couple of new hats, and waited to get hooked up. CH bought me lunch from the cafeteria. (Thank you! So yummy!)

While in the midst of chemo, Ginger came in. She is the person who started the support group Young Survivor Sisters, which I joined a little while ago. She told her story about how chemo was always a long boring, and really kind of depressing day. So she created Happy Chemo. She went to local businesses and asked for them to donate products, which she passed out during a drawing at her chemo sessions. She has continued this, coming into the chemo room on occasion, which luckily included that day. She had a few lap blankets to for the drawing, and then enough candles so everyone who didn’t get a blanket would get a candle. She was so happy, talking to everyone. She even brought in her 3 year old boy who she was pregnant with when they discovered her Breast Cancer. And he is a sweet, cute, perfect little guy.

CH and I had a great visit during chemo, and I am so grateful to her mom who watched her kids so she could come up and sit with me!

The next day was very normal, getting kids off to school and cleaning house and such. I was nervous for the night, because really no one likes to get sick. But, I didn’t! And now, even this long after chemo, I never did get that nauseated. This was almost as easy as the first treatment. I was still pretty tired. My mom came up on Wednesday night to help with the kids on Thursday. I got a few naps in and had a pretty restful day. A wonderful woman from church brought us dinner that night, some super yummy chicken and rice. I think she brought it once before after I had one of the kids. I really need to get that recipe too! The next day I was able to take the kids over to my neighbor’s for most of the day so I could get another nap in. And while I was tired, I was hallucinating tired, like I was last time, so that was a relief too.

So far, the tiredness has started to ebb, the metallic taste hasn’t been as bad (knock on wood!). I wonder if I was getting sick last time when I went in, and getting chemo on top of that made everything worse. I asked the doctor at chemo treatment about how sick I had been, meaning to ask for something more to help, but he said I must have been sick, because my type of chemo doesn’t cause that exact reaction. (A nurse I asked a little later did give me a little something more for the nausea, which I am sure helped.) So, whew! Perhaps it won’t be that bad again. And I only have three more to go. I can do it! Now just to decide whether I want two new boobs, or just the one…

Cute Kids

Today I took the girls with me to pick up a couple of things at the store (I HAVE to have Miracle Whip for those after-Thanksgiving sandwiches!). I was talking to Older Girl, asking her about school, and what she wanted for Christmas. She asked me what I wanted for Christmas. I was starting to think about something she could give to me, and she said "I know mom! For your cancer to be all better!"
I laughed and said that I would LOVE that for Christmas, but it probably wouldn't happen this year.
She is such a sweetie. I love that she is aware enough to know this something that I would want to be gone. I am sad that she has to worry about it at all, because I know she does. But at least she is a sweetie.
Last night I had some energy (after my long autumn's nap) and started dancing and singing with her in the living room. I would lean her one way, and then the other, then twirl her around. Then all the other kids had to have their turn. It's so fun to play with my little munchkins! I'm glad they like me so much. :)

No Chemo Today

I was supposed to go in for chemo today, but I got sick on Monday. I caught the little one's stomach bug. Luckily the on-call Doctor for the Oncology office told me I could take Immodium and Phasyme. (Phazyme is an over the counter that helps with gas. It worked really well, I totally recommend it.)
Anyways, so Tuesday I woke up feeling better tummy-wise, but completely exhausted. So I called my mom, and luckily she was able to come up and help with the kids, so I could take a nice long, semi-delusional nap (another one of those where I could have sworn I was more awake doing things or talking to people, crazy!). Anyways, the Doctors do not like you to come in for chemo when you are sick, so they rescheduled me for next Tuesday.
I am bummed about changing the schedule. I am glad I will be a-okay for Thanksgiving though.
Happy Holidays!

My hair, or lack thereof

Starting about two weeks after my first chemo treatment, my hair started to thin. Now I have alot of hair (thank you dad!), so at first it wasn't a big deal, just slightly more to toss after combing. I was losing a bit more each day, but nothing to be concerned about. And it felt different. Most of the time when you pull a hair, it hurts, right. But more often, hairs I would yank from my head experimentally wouldn't hurt at all to pull, and there was little resistance.


After the second chemo treatment, it started to thin more, and my hair follicles hurt. Like when you wear your hair in a ponytail all day, and then let it down, or comb it in a different direction than usual. But this was all the time. So I started wearing a hat to catch the stray hairs and to not have to bother with combing my hair or running my fingers through my hair (which is a common habit of mine).

My hair starting thinning even more that week. I would run my fingers through the ends sticking out the bottom of my hat, and come away with what used to be a comb full. And it got so itchy! I don’t know if the skin was dry, or if loose hair ends were making me itchy, but there it was. I wore a hairnet at night so I wouldn’t leave hair all over the pillow. The nurses had recommended not washing my hair as often, so it wouldn’t fall out so quickly. I washed it a week after, because it just felt gross. I lost a ton in the shower, and more to combing. Now, like I said, I had a lot of hair, so now it looked okay still, just like I had thin hair. But, well, even with a hat, hair was landing everywhere. Pretty gross!

On Friday morning I had gone into the American Cancer Society room in my hospital because when I had talked to them earlier, they mentioned that they have free wigs and hats that I could come choose from. A lot of the hats had been donated by the local school district cafeteria workers. I wish I could thank them personally. They had such a lovely variety of flannel and knitted hats that it was hard to resist taking one of each kind! (I did make myself take only three.) And then we walked into the wig room. She had quite a collection of wigs on stands, and then big totes just full of them. I sat down, and as she was asking me what color I wanted, I saw this beautiful wig. The main color was dark brown, like my natural color, with red and gold highlights, like I love to have in my hair. And it was a longer wig, long enough to almost brush my shoulders, cut in long layers. This wig had just been donated the day before, and I could hardly believe my luck!!! She gave me the box it came in, some wig shampoo and conditioner, and a wig brush. She said she’d give me a card for a local wig shop that would help me “fluff” it, but the little kids got a little excited as we were walking out, and we forgot, but I can get it next time I go in, I’m sure.

By Friday afternoon my hair was driving me so crazy I sat down on the edge of the tub, leaned over the garbage can and just started pulling out what would come. Little Boy walked by (I had left the door open) and asked what I was doing. I told him I was pulling my hair out and asked if he wanted to help. So he did. It was pretty cute.

Now I want to interject in here, that I had six weeks to come to terms with the fact that I would lose my hair. I knew it was going to happen, and I was okay with it. I liked my hair, but it wasn’t so utterly lovely that I couldn’t live without it. I mean, I have a good passel of gray hairs, it tends to be frizzy, and before I cut it, it would be in a no-hassle ponytail most days.

Oh, and Big Girl was a cheerleader for me to cut it! When chemo started we told the kids that I would lose my hair, that I would probably shave it before it all fell out. So Big Girl would ask me almost every day when daddy was going to shave my head. I think she asked more about that then how soon Little Girl would get here when I was pregnant!

So Saturday morning I told WonderfulHubby today was the day. While the kids sat in the living room watching Saturday morning cartoons, we set up in the dining area, in plain sight, and he started shaving away. I still had a lot more hair attached then I imagined, so it took quite a while. I few passes with the shortest attachment on electric razor I use to cut the boy’s hair. Then just the bare blade on the electric razor. Then shaving cream and one of WonderfulHubby’s new razors (the kind with 5 or 6 blades), about three times. WonderfulHubby was so good and careful, he was so nervous about knicking my head. Little Girl was in her highchair eating breakfast and watched the whole thing. She just smiled, and thought it was funny.

All the kids had to run over and rub my head when he was done. It feels pretty cool, kinda sandpapery. Of course, that day a big storm blew in and snowed! But that’s what hats are for, right?

I’ve worn my wig a few times. At church on Sunday, people had a hard time believing it was a wig. Hehehehe, I may keep this wig forever. The highlights on the wig will never get gray streaks or grow out.

Well, and that is about that.

Kids!

On Sunday afternoon we were all doing our thing, hanging out around the house, playing computer and watcing tv and whatnot. I realized I hadn't seen Youngest Girl for a while. I had Oldest Boy look for her downstairs, and WonderfulHubby helped me look for her upstairs. We found her. In the doorway between our bedroom and our bathroom.
With an open box of tampons.
And about 75% of them spread out around her.
Some were out of the plastic wrapping, some were pulled completely apart. She had one each hand, one to her mouth to rip it open when we found her. She looked up at us like "What? These things are FUN to pull apart, and smell good too!"
Thank goodness it was a generic brand I found on clearance, so only about $1 down the drain.
Or donated to "Craft Supplies"
However you want to look at it.  :)

Immune Booster shot

On Thursday when I went in for chemo, they checked and my white blood cell count was a little low. Not too low so as to skip chemo, but low enough I would have to get the immune boosted shot again. But they have a different kind that lasts for 14 days, so I wouldn’t have to go in everyday, and that is the one the doctor wanted me to get. So I went in on Friday for that. I just ran up there with Little Boy and Little Girl after the Big Kids got off to school. The Chemo hadn’t hit me yet, so I felt fine. There was a couple in the waiting room that had two therapy dogs with them. Little Boy and Little Girl were ecstatic to see them, and enjoyed petting the gentle dogs. These ones were the Norwegian Water Dogs, so they were big-ish, and had black curly hair. After the dogs left, the kids spent their time moving the magazine table in the waiting room. If they worked together, they could move it just fine. And they remembered where the treat bucket was to get their suckers after my shot. Super cute kiddos.