Graduation - At Last

Today is a day that 6 months ago I thought would never come.  Time flies, doesn't it?      

                                  

Yup!  I finally graduated in my Chemotherapy treatments.  No more IV's.   I can say, though, that it was bitter sweet as I will truly miss the friends I've made at Harrison Oncology Poulsbo Campus.  The folks there have become very special, from the gals at the front desk all the way through to the wonderful RN's and my doctor Shirisha Jain. They all made my visits tolerable and I'd have to say we had some good laughs.  It's not over as I still 7 days worth of nasty pills and must return next Monday and Tuesday for my Neupogen shots to boost my white blood cells.  But, rest assured, the worst is over and I am one HAPPY CAMPER.  I will have a six week hiatus to rest my body and regain my strength then meet with the doctor regarding follow-on treatment which will include 5 years of some type of estrogen blocker pills, but I know it won't be Temoxifin as that is for younger women.  

Anyway it is a good day for me and I will enjoy it for what it is.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Another subject:

During the past 5 weeks I have been taking a collage and assemblage class from Tess Sinclair at the Artist's Edge in Poulsbo.  We met every Thursday morning and this worked for me as the Artist's Edge is just up the street from me.  I really enjoyed the class and my classmates.   Tess was a really fun and generous teacher.  I will take another class from her next year.

Our first assignment was a "Shrine" of our choice.  Don't know why I chose "Mermaids" but here you go:

This is the finished piece as it hangs on my wall.  Following are some close-ups:

These are some shells I had in my collection along with white "sand" collected the other morning from Oyster Plant Park, just down the street from me.  It was a cold damp morning and after I collected it I brought it home and boiled it to kill the buggies and then dried it for a few hours in my oven.  No one liked my cooking that day. 

This is a fish that my wonderful Jack carved just before he died.  In back is a transparency that I printed from mermaid picture I found on the internet

This Mermaid is from a doll pattern I got from the wonderful Barbara Willis.  I've made and  mounted it a couple of times before but I had to shrink it to get it to fit this project.  The skirt fabric came from my friend Pamela Armas of Treasures of the Gypsies.  Shells from my collection and a treasure chest (just the right size) from my favorite shopping place, Amazon.com.

The tiny sand dollars were a gift from Tess Sinclair as was the "test tube" holding more sand from Oyster Plant Park,  The green bead in the corner came from a private collection of Lois Venarchick from the bead store in Port Townsend.

The top has a poem by Walter De La Mare called "Mermaid",  another internet find.  (sorry for the blurry photo)  The fibers are from my collection.  Sometimes it just pays to have "stuff".  If only it was better organized.

The whole thing measures about 13 x 14".  I love it and am glad to share it with you all.  

"It feels mighty fine to actually finish something, especially when I haven't been feeling so great", she said as she nimbly patted herself on the back. 

"Toot your own Horn"

122 Days and Counting.

But who's counting.  Just had my second IV of my 5th chemo cycle.  3 weeks left on this one and one 28 day cycle to go.  (please don't check my math) There will be much celebrating.  I'm doing OK but most days,  "Just OK".  My mornings seem to go pretty well but by 1 or 2 o'clock I'm finished for the day.  I've started taking vitamin B12 to hopefully help me get back some energy.  Actually, I thin it's starting to work.  That's a good thing.  Also taking more nausea pills.  That is helping also.

  

There are so many things I want to be doing.  I'm excited to be taking an art class at the Artist's Edge which is just up the street.  It lasts 5 weeks and we are creating "shrines".  Mine is about mermaids and the deep blue sea.  Hopefully I will be able to post a finished picture or two in a few weeks (if I get my homework done.)

So, my sister-in-law, the wonderful Jean, took me to Trader Joe's in Silverdale the other morning.  I had two great guys checking me out, one a regular checker and the other a manager.  As they were bagging my stuff they asked how my day was going.  I asked if they really wanted to know the truth and they said yes.  So, I proceeded to give them the whole story about chemo, nausea, diarrhea, fatigue, and lastly the fact that "they" had taken both my boobs off.  These guys were great.  They really cared and I felt such great empathy from them.  When I started out they wished me a great day and complete recovery.  Jean wasn't done shopping so I went to sit on the bench just inside the front door.  Suddenly appears the manager with a beautiful bouquet of flowers for me.  Need less to say I cried and still tear up as I write this.  Amazing how a random act of kindness can change your perspective.  I already loved shopping there.  Now, I love it even more.  (No , this isn't and ad - well I guess it could be).

Here is a picture of something I did finish this past month.  As I walk each morning I am looking for s couple of nice feathers to add.  And - yes - I know that isn't Mr. Poe, but this guy was much better looking.  This is done on a board about 8"x10".  The base is painted with a house paint sample from Home Depot (love those things)  The little wood pieces on the edge came from my neighbor Glenn's scrap pile.  The shiny round things are furniture tacks. The Scrabble tiles are  from my huge collection of same.  The little piece of paper in the bottom right came from a stack of "spirit" paintings I did several years ago by randomly dropping paints and inks on paper (never throw anything away)  The rest is all papers and copies from my collection.  The birds eye is a stick on plastic thing from the hardware store.  Now I've given away all my secrets.  I'd like to do several of these and get them in my Etsy store.  All it takes is time.  Let me know if you have any theme ideas.

I'm also happy to report that the quilting machine is up and running again.  Yes, ladies, your quilts are actually going to get done, and soon if I have my way.  I can only work on it a couple of hours a day as my surgery is not completely healed, but I'm plugging away at it.

So, next time you hear from me I should be either done with my treatments or really close.  Can't tell you how much I am looking to get back to normal (whatever that is).  My first project will be joining a fitness and nutrition group sponsored by Poulsbo Cancer Care.  This is a new program for folks who have finished treatment.  They've learned that just 10 pounds can make a difference in recurrence and prevention of cancer.  The program includes fitness, nutrition, yoga and meditation.  I'm very excited about getting out there and getting back in shape after the last few years of taking care of Jack and now myself.  

Here's to a great next few weeks.  If you get close, give me call and come visit.

Halfway Through Chemo

Well, time does fly by, doesn't it?  

    After I returned from RFKC I was really tired, as was to be expected, but as days went by I realized that I wasn't feeling any better.  By Tuesday I was pretty much exhausted and when I went to see my doctor (surgeon) and looked at the stairs leading up to her office, I made a beeline for the elevator.  I've never done that before.  Because my doctor deals with cancer patients all the time I discussed my fatigue with her and we decided I needed to go immediately for a blood test.  So, I went to my oncologist's office for the test and discovered that  my blood counts were way below safe.  I was immediately given a shot of Neupogen and scheduled for another the next day.  These shots are given in two's and boost the bone marrow activity in order to grow white blood cells rapidly.  The mail side effect of the shots is bone pain and I did get a little of that which was quickly remedied with Tylenol. 

    Meanwhile I was scheduled to go to Fiddle Workshop in Kittitas (next to Ellensburg) the following week, but because I was nervous about being around so many people and children (actually they are the same) in small spaces and the chance of infection, I opted to skip workshop for this year.  My fiddle teacher, Stuart Williams, did send me the materials I needed and I pledged to learn at least some of the tunes this summer.  It was hard to know all my friends were there and I wasn't, but I just have to know that next year I will be up and running full steam and healthy.

    Now that we know that my blood cells will drop, I am already scheduled for my shots next week.  And next Sunday I will leave for one week at the Centralia Old Time Music Campout.  Needless to say I'm really looking forward to seeing old friends and playing lots of tunes In the fresh air.  I will have my trailer there so I can fix my own food and sleep whenever I need to.  Comforts of home.

    Apart form the chemotherapy stuff, my body is healing well from the mastectomy and reconstruction.  Hard to believe that started only four months ago.  Still some cosmetic work to be done there, but that isn't for a couple of months and will be done under local anesthetic in my doctor's office.  After all the other stuff that is no big deal.

    So, every day is a gift, and each morning I arise with no expectations except to do whatever comes along as I feel up to it and sleep as much as I need to.  I am looking forward to the end of this chapter, but I am ready to face whatever comes my way.

Royal Family Kids Camp

I just returned from 6 amazing days ministering to 29 abused and abandoned children from the Washington State Foster Care system.  Our church (Gateway Fellowship) has sponsored this camp for 20 years and I am one of 5 who have not missed a year.  It is a grueling 6 days of labors of love for these kids.  They are with us 24/7, from Monday through Friday.  The work that they see is great.  The work that goes on behind the scenes is amazing.  Generally each counselor is responsible for 2 children; some just one, depending on the need.  So with 29 kids we had 16 counselors and some 30-35 additional staff people on any given day.  It is a huge undertaking.  My job is to coordinate the staff and make sure everyone is in the right place at the right time.  Luckily there are many "self-starters".

I was truly blessed this year as I was unable to do any real physical work (lifting and hauling) due to my recent surgeries.  The good news is that it was the first week of two of no chemo.  I still had some nausea but most of all I was just tired out by the afternoon.  Most days I managed to get a short nap in but didn't sleep well at night.  My first day home was spent sleeping and trying to get the laundry done.

I am grateful for the privilege of serving these children, many of whom have been badly abused by some adult(s) somewhere.  They all carry the scars, physical and emotional.  I am thankful for my childhood of security and love.

My prayer is that some day there will be no need for Foster Care, as all children will be raised in a safe and loving home.

Part of the activities include a play every day.

I'm in the middle as Lady Liberty

 

Feeling Good

I'm almost through my second week of my second chemotherapy regimen and I'm feeling really good.  Other than some dry skin (I've got a lot of skin) I have had almost no side effects.    Actually I feel better than I've felt for a couple of years - since before Jack was diagnosed with brain cancer.  And, HURRAY, the sun has finally come to the northwest.  My surgery is healing nicely and quickly.  The doctor is very pleased.  I'm still not as physically fit as I plan to be, but everyday I'm doing something to help that.   Gotta go at it slowly.  Don't want to "bust" anything. Working in the yard has been wonderful and the yard is actually starting to look like a place I'd like to spend time.  My sister-in-law, Jean, and I have made a commitment to walk at least three mornings a week.  When the weather is good it's easy to do.  Also, I plan to utilize the elliptical machine that is sitting like an "elephant" in the middle of my living room more every day.  Thank you Marcia!  

So there's a short update.  Today I'm off to meetings and an afternoon at Fiddle Tunes in Port Townsend with my Chele friend.  Looking forward to visiting with friends we haven't seen since last summer!
Hugs

Thursday

Just to prove that I'm doing "something" here are some pictures of my current endeavors.

This is my finished piece from the Class I took with Celeste Simon when I was in New Mexico last fall.  The actual size is 24"x24".  The base is a game board.  Others in the class used a solid board, but because I was traveling I used a Monopoly board that easily divided into 4 pieces to fit in my suitcase.  When I got home I engineered another board for the layer behind and a third piece of foam board to hold the whole thing together.

My favorite is the accordion fold "book of birds" that is along the top.  It is removable.

It took me quite a while to finish this, but I am very happy with it.

Music to My Ears

 This is a page I worked on this past week, just for the fun of it.  It is about 10"x10".  I have a table set up in my living room so I can sit and play art whenever the mood strikes.

The close-ups are a little blurry, but you can get the idea.

Note to self: Learn to use your camera.

 

12 Days After Surgery

Can't believe it's been only 12 days since my second "big " surgery.  (and last).  From here it is strictly cosmetic and will not happen for about 3 more months.  We need to be sure everything is completely healed and there is no more swelling, etc.  in order to be sure everything gets in the right place.  I'm feeling very good.  The doctor is pleased with my healing progress and as of tomorrow I am done with the "compression" garments.  It hasn't been bad but it's been a challenge.  The whole process had been a challenge, but knowing the cancer is removed is a big step toward peace of mind.

I started another round of chemotherapy on Monday.  I was quite anxious going in as my last time had been so miserable.  So far this round is going great.  I have a new prescription for nausea and it seems to be working so far.  I got through yesterday with flying colors.  Got a lot done and still didn't need much of a nap.  Now that my surgery is healing, I'm not so tired.

I did have one little adventure on Monday.  When I left the doctor's office I had to stop at Group Health to pick up the new prescription for nausea meds.  When I locked my car and got out I thought it odd that I heard a car running nearby.  Wouldn't you know - it was mine.  Car running, keys inside.   Not good.  I did however have my cell phone in my pocked so before I even went in I summoned my wonderful sister-in-law and she sped to my house, picked up my keys and had them to me almost before my prescription was ready.  Hooray!  And thanks for small towns.  The Oncology office is actually within walking distance and Group Health is about halfway between.

So my chemo schedule is back on - two weeks on, two weeks off.  On the Mondays I go to the Oncology for a blood test, doctor visit and IV drip.  The whole thing takes about two hours.  For the entire 14 days I take oral chemo at home each morning during breakfast.  The secret to the whole thing is keeping food in my stomach.  I have to eat every two hours as well as take the nausea pills in order to not get feeling sick.  Also I have to drink lots of water.  I'm used to eating when I'm hungry and drinking when I'm thirsty so it's hard to do it on a "schedule".  But I have to remember this is only temporary and when it is all over I will be cancer free and ready to get on with life.

I am grateful every day that my cancer was caught at a stage where it was "easy" to deal with.  I have so many people who are really suffering from treatments and know that I am truly blessed.  Also, I have wonderful friends and family who have been so helpful and supportive.  Once again - Thank You All.

Surgery Tomorrow

   I got real nervous about my blood counts. and my doctor and I decided it was better to know ahead of time if I was OK for surgery.  Neither of us wanted to find out the day of the surgery that I wasn't ready. So, I went yesterday and had a quick test done and was thrilled to find out that my counts are way back up again.  That means I'm off to surgery tomorrow morning (June 15th).  This surgery is to remove the "expanders" and place in the "real" silicone boobs.  I've also asked him to do a little tweeking here and there so I will have more incision than originally planned.  I figure that if this is my final chance to make it like I want it, I should take advantage of the situation.

   It will be a "day" surgery.  Much less invasive that the first one that removed everything. That means I will be out of the hospital in the afternoon.  I will go to my sister-in-law's for at least the first 24 hours, then home to my house hopefully Saturday evening or at the latest on Sunday.  I figure that since I'm going to be sitting around doing nothing I may as well be doing it at my own place.  This time I plan to take the pain meds for as long as I need, so if you talk to me please don't hold me to anything that I say :).  

   Thanks to everyone for all the cards, flowers, emails, prayers, calls and visits.  Each and everyone is greatly loved and appreciated.

   I will try to post again as soon as possible next week.

Hugs

A Little Set Back

Went for my chemo appointment yesterday morning and my blood test showed that my white blood cells are too low for the treatment.   So, because of that and my surgery on the 15^th my next round of chemo has been put off until the 25^th of June.  This will give me plenty of time for the whites to get strong before the surgery.  They need to be in good shape to help the healing happen.  They know what they are doing so I have to just go along even if it messes up my summer even more.  Also, because of my reaction to the drugs they may decide to lessen my dosage.  That’s ok too.

I had already taken my first day of oral drugs at home so I felt ugly all day anyway,  I guess I now know that it’s the orals that make me “uncomfortable”.

So now I am looking forward to several more days of feeling better before the  surgery.  I’ve actually got a good start on a couple of fun art projects and made the final addition to my piece from the class I took in New Mexico in September.  Hope to get pictures tomorrow.  Also have a couple of quilts I’d like to quilted done before my surgery.  So that’s a little update.

Hugs and all to you all

Karen

Here we go again

   Another few weeks have passed and these have been good and bad.  I finished my second week of chemo feeling pretty lousy.  I was pretty tired but gave myself a chance to sleep alot.  I was also feeling a little bit nauseous every day but tried hard to get past that by eating little bits every hour or so. Oddly, I did lose some weight while doing that.  I saw my RN at the end of the two weeks  for a blood test and check up to make sure I was doing OK.  She encouraged me to take the nausea pills each day before I take the oral chemo pills.  I hadn't done that because I wasn't fond of the possible side effects, one being tiredness.  I was already pretty tired and didn't think I needed any more of that. Well, this round starting on Monday will find me taking the nausea pills.  I'm sure they will help and what the heck, I'm sleeping alot anyway.  Oddly enough, I was unable to eat anything green for most of the last month.  I'm just now getting back to being able to eat some vegetables.    
   I've spent lots of time during my "two weeks off"  getting projects ready so I have stuff to do while my useful time is limited, and also figuring out how to break them down into small periods of time. Hopefully I will function better during my next two weeks of treatment.  I do have some things that NEED to get done as well as some things I really want to do.
   I'm very happy to report that Jean and I actually got the vegetable garden planted as well as 6 tomato plants in the ground.  Now all I need to do is water, if it stops raining.  My friend Meghan came and worked in the back yard cleaning out flower beds and moving pots around so I have lots of "new" planting space.  Just need to decide what will work where.  

This is the view out my bedroom window when all the lilacs were blooming.

The bed below the fence is now cleaned out and I'm thinking of putting blue berries there.

Oh yeah - And I got my hair cut off

   So, I have one more day before my next round of chemo starts.  I'm not exactly looking forward to it, but I am looking forward to getting through the next few months and coming out on the other end with a clean slate.  

   My "exchange" surgery for the breast reconstruction is on June 15.  Hopefully I will be "up and running" by the following Monday. It is day surgery and should keep me down for just a day or so.  We'll see how that goes.

   Meanwhile, thank you for all your prayers, cards, calls, and e-mails.  It's what keeps me going!

Another beautiful sunny day in downtown Poulsbo.  I’ve been rising early and enjoying the early morning cool of the sun.  My yard is getting weeded and beautified by my wonderful Sister-in –law, Jean Ford, and I’ve actually done some myself.  I wish I could do more, but that’s another story and another day.

Sorry, once again, to be so long with my update, but I wanted to see how the first week of chemo went before I reported.  I had my first intravenous chemo on Monday, May 7^th.  The clinic visit takes a little less than 2 hours.  I see the doctor or nurse practitioner first, and they are very thorough.  Each visit they will check my blood cells before I am treated and also discuss any possible side effects I may be having.  By the way, the clinic is less than a mile from my house, and I am able to drive myself.  Yes – I can drive.  After the doctor visit I go to the treatment room. It is a large room with many nice lounge chairs.  I choose my chair and am immediately approached by the next available nurse.  After verifying my name and birthdate, an IV is put into my right arm.  First I am given a drip of steroids and an anti-nausea drug.  That takes about 20 minutes.  Then the nurse comes with two hypodermic syringes that fasten into the IV near the insertion point.  She administers these manually and that takes about 5 minutes.  These are the actual chemo drugs.  This is called a “push”.  Next I am given s drip or “push” of saline to be sure the drugs are sent into my blood stream.  So, the entire treatment takes about 45 minutes, but the actual chemo takes only 5 minutes.  Since I am there such a short time (compared to many others) I have just used my time there for napping.  Nothing much else I can do.

I have now had two IV treatments and will not go back until June 4^th.  My cycle is 28 days and the IVs are on the first and eighth days.  When I start the IV treatment I also start 14 days of oral drugs that I take at home with my breakfast.  This is the third drug in my CFM treatment.  After those 14 days I have 14 days of no drugs.

My side effects have been fairly minimal.  At first I had some constant nausea but I have fixed that by having a big breakfast with my pills and eating many small meals all day long.  I guess that is what we call grazing and it works great for me.  I’ve stocked my freezer with small Trader Joe’s frozen meals, so when I get hungry I just put something in the microwave.  I’ve also been pretty tired.  This also comes in waves.  I’ve just decided to give in to that and take naps as needed.  So if I’m talking to you and say I’m going to take a nap, it’s not because I don’t want to talk,  I just plain need a nap.  Good news is that during my 14 days off, the side effects should go away.  I will plan for that and those will be my days to get back to work at my quilting and bookmaking and sock dying fun.  Also, as I figure out how to deal with the chemo side effects I will be able to get more done.  I really miss my studio time.

The Plastic Surgery (Boob-Job) is coming along nicely.  I had my last fill last week and it is now starting to feel much better.  Those first few days are pretty uncomfortable.  This time I swear you could have bounced a quarter off my chest.  It feels like I’m wearing a way too tight bra but there’s no taking it off.  The other day my brother came to take me out to dinner.  When we were finished he said he had to get me home to get the truck parked back on my chest.  Funny, but true.  I am now scheduled for surgery on June 15^th.  This is a day surgery where my doctor will make a smaller incision to remove the temporary expanders and replace them with the “real” thing – the permanent silicone ones.  Permanent actually means temporary also as they will last for 10 – 15 years.  Then I will make a decision to have them replace or just removed.  Will I really care when I’m 75 years old??  A few weeks after the exchange surgery I will have a couple of office visits where the doctor will do a little cosmetic surgery and his nurse will do some tattooing.  (no detail needed here)  This will finish off the plastic surgery phase of my adventure.  Anyway, I’m looking forward to this “final” phase of the reconstruction.  By mid July I should be feeling pretty good and able to start my summer commitments beginning with Royal Family Kid’s Camp.  I’m praying that my white-blood cells hold up for that.  So far, so good.

So, there is your update.  Just know that I am doing great and am reminded regularly how blessed I am that this isn’t worse and that we caught it in time to make it right.  The other great thing is that it is happening during the most beautiful time of year in the Northwest. If I have to feel lousy sometimes, at least I’m feeling lousy when the sun is shining and everything is in bloom. 

Life is good and this event has certainly changed my outlook on life.  My priorities have changed and I have less thought about the little things that just don’t matter. 

Once again, thank you all so much for your kind words and prayers, phone calls and cards and e-mails.  Each one means so much to me and it is what will get me through this with joy and grace.  I wish I could answer each and every one.

May Update


Since my last update, I have had two "fills" on my reconstruction, both of which were/are uncomfortable, a couple of spots being more tender.  This pain has caused me to be somewhat cranky and tired also.  The constant discomfort is very energy sapping.  However, I have reached my desired size and will have one more fill "for good measure" before my exchange surgery on June 8th.  At that time the plastic surgeon will remove the temporary "expanders" and place the final silicone fillers.  This will be a day surgery at Harrison Hospital.  I will come home the that afternoon.  After that, there a couple of little "cosmetic" procedures in his office which will complete the process.  It has made me very happy to be able to see the end of this part of my treatment.


Yesterday I saw my oncologist for the results on the "recurrence" testing that was done on my tissue.  They have studied hundreds of women and come up with a matrix comparing tissue, type of cancer, age, and several other pieces of information and are able to draw together a score that predicts the likelihood of recurrence.  We were very certain my score would be very low and fall into the "very unlikely" range.  However, fates being what they are and God's plan usually being different than my own, my score came in in the middle zone, a 22 out of fifty.  This is not terribly bad, but because of the type of cancer I have (hard to detect) and the possibility of it lodging in places that would be untreatable (lung or stomach lining), I have opted to 6 months of chemotherapy.  The chemo will be fairly light and will take place right here in Poulsbo.  The side effects will be minimal (comparatively speaking) and will NOT include hair loss.  I will have IV's two Mondays then have the next two weeks off.  During the weeks of the IV's I will also take pills.  The IV's include two drugs and the oral being one drug.  My first week will be next week starting on May 7th.


I was delighted to come home after the scheduling to discover that the treatments will not fall on the Mondays I am scheduled to be away at Fiddle Camps.  This is a real up side to this adventure.  Also, my treatments will be over in September.  This means I will have loads of sunshine and fresh air to enjoy, even if I am not feeling so great.


I can't tell you how much your calls, e-mails and cards mean to me.  The love I am feeling from all around is what sustains me daily.  I covet your prayers and good thoughts.  
     
Special thanks to my sister-in-law, Jean, who has been my driver, interpreter, dog keeper and constant companion during this past month.  I refer to her as my "Handler".  I could not do this alone.

Breast Cancer

So then, I guess it's time to get back to posting my life and times. I have cut and pasted from my e-mails to get this caught up.

I had a weird feeling in my left breast between Christmas and New Years. I went to my doctor and she sent me for a mammogram and an ultrasound. Nothing was found. However, unsatisfied with that she sent me to a breast specialist, Dr Sheila Lally. Dr Lally was not happy with how things were looking and acting and sent me for a MRI. Still nothing was found. She still wasn't satisfied and had me have a needle biopsy. By this time I was certain there was nothing going on but my imagination. However, thanks to Dr Lally's persistence, the biopsy found cancer in the form of a Lobular Carcinoma. This is not a common diagnosis and is pretty much a definite precursor to full blown breast cancer. The decision was made to do a bilateral (both sides) mastectomy with reconstruction. Both sides because, although the right side was tested clean, this cancer tends to mirror itself. Following are the e-mail updates........................

Monday April 2nd

I have just returned from 6 wonderful days with my friends from New Mexico, Colorado and Texas. We were in Port Townsend for Artfest where we took classes and played and visited. It was a great vacation away from all the stress of gearing up for my surgery.

So, the surgery is scheduled for Friday the 6^th of April. Just a few days away. I will be at Harrison Hospital in Bremerton at 7:30 in the morning. I will have dye injected so that the doctor can see my lymph nodes. Then my surgery will start at noon and should take about 6 hours. Afterwards I will spend the night and hopefully be released on Saturday. My release will depend on how the surgery went and on pain control. When I am released I will go to my sister-in-law Jean’s house until I am able to have the drainage tubes removed. This will take about 6-10 days. My follow-up will be on Thursday, April 12^th and I am hoping the tubes will come out then. Meanwhile, Jean is fully vested in taking care of me at her house.

Please, feel free to call us anytime after Saturday 360-779-5257. One of us will try to answer. If we don’t, I will try to get back to you when I am able. If you’d like to visit, please call and we will let you know when is a good time.

I won’t be able to send out another e-mail until I am back at my house.

Sunday April 15

I’m happy to report that I a finally home at my house. The surgery was on the 6^th and my doctor released me on the morning of the 7^th. This is a good thing as we quickly discovered there is no rest in the hospital. Jean (sister-in-law) stayed with me and neither of us got a wink of sleep. Even if you fall asleep you are woken in a few minutes so they can get your name and date of birth and take your blood pressure. Guess they think you may forget who you are. Anyway, Jean took me to her house and nursed me back to being able to take care of myself. Yesterday I came home to my house and it feels great. All my stuff is here and I can play all day.

On Thursday, my doctor removed the drainage tube on the right side, but the left is still there and I have to take care of that. Not a big deal. I still have lots of pain and I really have to pay attention to what I am doing. Especially, no lifting. I quit the pain meds several days ago and am only taking Aleeve. It works well. I’m wearing compression “gear” and that is a challenge. I’m just figuring out how to keep it from slipping. Also, it is difficult to pick stuff up off the floor. I have figured out how to put on my socks and am wearing only slip on shoes. Overall, I am doing quite well since it’s only been a week. My spirits are up and I feel like I’m on the mend.

The lab results did find a VERY small spot in one of my lymph nodes and I will meet with more doctors this coming week regarding this. So far I’m pretty sure that they will do nothing until I’m healed from this major surgery. Then, it will likely be just a short round of radiation. I’m only speculating.

I can’t tell you how overwhelmed I’ve been by the love and care I’ve received from so many of you. So many cards, e-mails, calls, visits, flowers it’s overwhelming.. I wish I could get back to each of you, and I will try.

So here I am, and please don’t hesitate to call. I will be sleeping a lot, so do leave a message and I will return your call when I can. Just know that I am doing fine and also that I have a long healing road ahead.

So, this is where I stand now. I am grateful for a persistent doctor whom I have grown to love as a friend and trusted advisor. And I am grateful for friends and family, especially my sister-in-law Jean, for the daily love and care taking. Without this my journey could not be done.

My plans are simple. Because I have two months with no real responsibility but healing, I plan to use this time to read, relax and do art. I also have a quilting project that is simple sewing and will finish that in time to make my first quilting machine project when I can do that work again. Also at the top of my list is continuing to paint with my Flora Bowley internet class and work on getting my Etsy sight up and running with Hand Dyed Socks and Hand Made Journals. I feel this time is a gift and that I am responsible to use it wisely. My plan also includes keeping this Blog up-to-date.

Here is to Hope and Healing.