I've heard it said that winter, too, will pass and spring, a sign that summer is due at last.  See, all we have to do is hang on.  ~Maya Angelou~

There may be some posts in the coming weeks, but I just wanted to let you know that if you don't hear from me for stretches of time, it is because I am enjoying a break from doctors and tests.  There may not seem like anything that is worth reporting in that time frame.  On the other hand, there may be all sorts of things to talk about, in which case, I'll talk.  I just didn't want you to worry if you don't see a new post for a while.

Some bullets:

• My strength is returning daily.
• Sunshine lamps are the bomb!!!  Here's the other style I have.
• MetroMint is still my favorite water.  I love the Lemon Mint for everyday drinking, but the peppermint is still my tummy soother.  I like the Orange mint, but not as much as Lemon.
• My radiation buddy, Manila, is done with her radiation tomorrow!  GO MANILA, GO!
• A very sweet person here at work bought tickets for Paul, the boys and me to go see Monsters, Inc. on Ice. The girls will be gone on their mission trip.
• Paul is going on the Men's retreat next weekend (a week from this weekend).  Please pray for an uplifting, soul filling time for him.
• Ciera went back to school today after being sick Monday and Tuesday.  I told her to take her Tylenol every 4 hours even if she doens't think she needs it.  So far, she's made it through the day.
• It's snowing
• I need to program.
• I'm procrastinating.
• It has to stop.
• 

So, if there's anything important to report, I'll check in or make sure that someone else does.  But otherwise, just take no news to be good news!

Love to the masses!

Evie

It's that time again...

The girls are doing their basket auction for their mission trip.  They're both going to Mexico over Spring Break.  Their submissions are filled with Lemongrass products (surprise, surprise!)

Meleia's Basket:

It is called "Pamper Yourself."  It holds nearly everything that Lemongrass carries in Grapefruit Lilly or Pink Grapefruit.  In Grapefruit Lilly: Lotion, Hand Soap (in a pump), Homemade Bar Soap, Bath Crystals, and a lotion and massage bar.  Also, Pink Grapefruit sugar scrub, and Citrus Sunrise sheet and pillow spray.  It also has a pretty sage green hand towel and a decorative pump for lotion or soap.  It is valued at about $85.

Ciera's Basket: 

It is called "Head and Shoulders, Knees and Toes."  For your head, there is a Rosemary Shampoo Bar (it's bar soap for your hair!), and Berry Lip Balm.  For your shoulders, Lavender body wash.  For your knees, Vanilla Latte Sugar Scrub.  And for your toes, a complete "Foot Fetish Kit."  It has herbal foot soak, walnut foot scrub, peppermint foot balm, and a foot shaped scrub brush.  She also has a decorative lotion/soap dispenser and a teal colored hand towel.  It is worth about $75.

They are also each making a dessert for the silent auction.  You buy tickets to the auction to eat a meal that doesn't include dessert.  So then, as a table, or as individuals, you go bid on the desserts.  Just before the live auction starts, the dessert auction closes.  And you get to eat goodies while the live auction happens.  Ciera is making Miss Amy's Chocolate Covered Cherry Cake.  Meleia is making Miss Amy's French Vanilla/Raspberry cake.  Both will look and taste fabulous, so they should draw a pretty penny.  This should be the end of their fundraising, I think.  Fortunately, the Mexico trip only costs $450, so they haven't had to raise as much as the HS kids, who had to raise $1700 for their trip to Peru.  Ciera decided she wanted to go on the Middle School trip as a leader.  She and Meleia should have fun together (I hope).

SO! If you want to bid on either of these baskets, let me know, and I'll bid for you by proxy like eBay does.  

I worked 26 hours this week.  And because my boss doesn't want me doing any projects that are emergencies, I'm able to just work at my own pace and get things done.  It's a very different feeling (I'm used to the deadline, crisis-type stuff), but I think I like it  I'm able to just  make a checklist and do what needs to be done.  I finished 2 projects this week alone that have been hanging out there for a long time.

It's kind of nice.

Michael says 32 hours next week.  So we're getting closer and closer to full-time. 

Tonight, UPS delivered the next month's worth of my bags and formula.  Good golly!  They bring in 6 cases of food (I still have one left from last month) and a box of the bags.  And it can't freeze, so we can't put it in the garage.  I told Paul we should stack them and put a cloth over them like it's an end table.  Hehehe...

Rohan is in Denver for his "alone weekend" with Granny and Pop.  Ciera is at play practice.  Colton went home with a friend.  Meleia and I are just sitting in the living room, each on our own laptop, watching the news and yakking.

So this is what life with only one child would be like... quiet. 

Went to see Dr. H today.  They've decided to wait 4 weeks before doing anything more.  In 4 weeks, I'll have another PET scan done to see where the cancer still is, if it still is.  Dr. H hopes that it's not there.  I'm a realist and I believe that they will find some somewhere, but we'll see.  He's looking into some alternative treatments as well as traditional chemotherapy.

We were about to pull the PICC line when he decided that he wants me to come in on Monday for a CBC, because my hemoglobin is really really low again (8.2).  If it's lower, or the same, he wants to do an iron infusion next week.  So we left the PICC alone, and will pull it after the iron infusion.  When they put in my tummy tube, they scoped the upper part of my small intestines.  He said that it's completely smooth, so I'm not absorbing any iron.  That's why they need to do the direct to blood infusion.

If and when it's time for chemo, they'll put a port in.

So that's that.

Oh, and with all of the activity, my leg is swollen again.  He wants me to get a compression stocking that is thigh high.  Didn't find one at Wal-mart.  But anyway, I guess he thinks that the valves in my leg were damaged by the blood clot, so while they're supposed to be pushing blood out, instead, they're letting blood drip back down or something, and that's causing the edema.  It's the danged activity, I guess.  The more active I am, the more it swells.  Blech.

So, yesterday, I...

• Worked IN THE OFFICE for 6 hours
• Drove to the hospital to have blood drawn and to pick up a prescription
• Drove to the mall to get jeans for Colton for the talent show
• Drove to Walgreens to get the script filled.
• Went home to rest for a few hours until the talent show
• Went to the talent show
• Went home and CRASHED.

I'm glad I was strong enough to do it.  However, I don't want a day that busy again for a while.  Tonight, after I leave work, I will be going to Walmart just to get baskets for the girls' basket auction for their mission trip.  That is ALL.  And I think I'll drive the little cart around.  Then I'm going home.  The kids all have Bible study tonight, but that's Paul's job. I will be putting up my feet and resting through the evening, and going to bed early!

Tomorrow, I have an appointment with Dr. H to discuss our battle plan for chemotherapy.   Stephanie is going as my second set of ears.

AND!  I got a package in the mail yesterday from Amy... it had SNICKERDOODLES IN IT!!!  Amy was baking a week or so ago, and she was baking snickerdoodles.  I told her that they were my FAVORITE cookie, but that I HATED making them.  So she sent me some of hers.  That'll put a pound or two on me, I think!

I will post pictures of Colton's new do.  Just have to get around to it...

Well, today, I took the boys to the Mall to get their hair cut.  I wanted to take them to Cost Cutters, which is next to Dillard's.  We parked at Dillard's and walked in to  a giant shoe sale.  I bought a pair of Michael Kohr's clogs for $25, and we headed to Cost Cutters.  They had a 2 hour wait!  Oh my.  So we walked to the other end of the mall to Mastercuts.  Yes, folks, I walked to the other end of the mall.  I had to take 2 Oxy IRs, but I made it.  We signed the boys in at Mastercuts and went across to Build-a-bear to pick out small goodies for the boys' bears.  Colton got a football for his Denver Broncos bear, and Rohan got an Air Force t-shirt for his bear.

Colton got a haircut that makes him look 2 years older.  He needs product in his hair now.  Ay yi yi.

Meleia met us at Mastercuts very dejected.  She had tried on about 20 pairs of jeans and couldn't find a pair that fit her right.  After walking back to Dillard's, we were finally successful.  Levi's.  Size 1 medium.  It was worth $30 to not have to hear her fuss anymore.  She got a cheap streak and didn't want me to spend that much on them, but I told her to give me those jeans and just hush.

We met up with Ciera (who was shopping with her friends), and headed home, where Paul's folks were waiting on us.

Ciera still has chores to do, and we've got dinner to make.  I'd better go.

Oh, and I did take in a few extra calories at the mall.  I sent Meleia up to get me an Orange Julius.  I haven't had one of those since before radiation due to the limitation of the amount of Vitamin C.  Yay, me.

Well, yesterday, things went a lot better.  I was able to clean the living room, and  I slept in my own bed for the first time last night.  I drove for the first time since being in the hospital.  It was all good. 

Meleia's devotional went really well at the team meeting last night.  She was very nervous, and I guess as people kept coming, she nearly chickened out.  But I had a parent this morning tell me that she was spirit filled, and she did a great job.  Her theme was teamwork, which was appropriate since they're building a house in Mexico, and have to work as a team.

I was able to go to church this morning.  It was good to get out and to see everyone.  I took the backpack pump with me, and so was able to not feel icky by the time I got home.  I wore high heels which was dumb.  Won't do that again. High heels aggravate my hip pain.  Besides, Ciera said that they made me look more "waif-y", so I shouldn't wear them anyway.

I haven't gained much weight.  I weighed myself for the first time in a few weeks, and weighed a whopping 107.  I haven't weighed below that since getting out of the hospital, so I guess it's OK that I weigh that.  I'm not dropping weight, which is good. I'm just not gaining.  I guess I really need to start eating on top of taking in my tube nutrition.  But when nothing sounds good, it's hard to eat.

There was a man at church today who noticed my tube for the first time.  We were sitting next to his family. Paul explained to him that I was "eating."  He said that it wasn't fair that I never got hungry, and that I got to have my lunch during church.  Silly man.  I told Paul to tell him that I didn't get hungry when I DIDN'T have the tube, so it's better this way.

I also was able to fix my hair in a way that covered my bald spots.  My mom took me last Saturday to get my hair cut, and she cut it pretty short on top.    Somehow, that makes it easier to cover the balding places.  That, or my husband lied to me.  But since he knows I would rather wear a hat than look bald, I think he probably told me the truth.

My parents are on their way down. Just to say, "hi."  I think I'll try to take a nap before they get here.

Thanks for praying me through yesterday.

I'm so tired of having melancholy days.

Last night, I  threw up all of my evening meds, and then I couldn't sleep, so I'm sure that has something to do with the weepy mood today.  I'm cold, but sweating (thank you very much, menopause).  I'm housebound.  I'm sad that my plan to show my boss how strong I was didn't work becasue he showed up while I was in the shower.  And because I got sick last night, I didn't get to go in for a staff meeting like I had wanted.  I spent the day in the chair, like every other day.  I got up to make cream of wheat, and didn't finish it.  I've gotten up a few times to go to the bathroom.  Otherwise, I'm in the chair.  Tied to Ms. Pumpin-Stuff. Sitting here using the computer or watching TV.

My mom said to just chalk it up to a no-good-very-bad day.

Ciera dumped the newest guy who showed an interest in her.  She felt like she prayed about it, and God told her not to date him.  But I worry that she makes some of these decisions because I'm sick.  I don't want her to miss out on anything because I'm in bad shape.  That thought makes me cry.

Great, another reason to get weepy.

The middle school pastor came over today to help Meleia be prepared to give the devotional at their mission trip meeting tomorrow.  She'll do a good job.  She's so funny.  She said that she's not nervous because she doesn't know anyone on the team yet.  That's the exact time I would get nervous.  She said she'd be more nervous if she knew everyone.

Rohan went to play with Luke today for a while.  That was very good for him.

OK, I'm sweating and cold again.  Time to get the computer off of my lap.

Y'all just keep praying.  I'm having a hard time today.

So, today, I had made an appointment to get the bandage on my PICC line changed.  It is supposed to be changed once a week.  They changed it last Thursday when I had chemo.

But today, I found out that for a 5 minute appointment with a nurse, where they clean and change the dressing on the PICC line, I would have to pay $50.  OK, if I absolutely had to...

So I called the nurses' line at the doctor's office, and they didn't call me back for a while.  So, I called appointments, and cancelled.  And then, pulled out the kit that home health had sent for PICC line redressing.

There are some things that I couldn't do. I didn't change the statloc, because it seemed to scary to me. I gloved up, Paul gloved up, and we did everything that I have watched the nurses do for weeks of having this thing.  Except for changing the statloc.  I cleaned it well with iodine, and cleaned the skin with the skin protectant/cleaner swabs.  We placed a sterile gauze pad over the entrance  into the skin, and then put on a new tegaderm.

THEN the nurse called.   I told her what I'd done.  She said good for me, and that it would probably be fine until next Thursday when I'm coming in again anyway.  I think she wished I had changed the statloc, but last week when THEY did it, the line pulled out a bit, and that just heebed me too much.  She just said to watch it for infection like always, and that it would probably be fine.

So take THAT, insurance.  I'm not paying you $50 to basically change a band-aid.

If you've never seen a PICC, here's a link with a picture.  They're showing this one going into the lower arm but mine is in the upper arm.  It's easier to hide that way.  Harder for me to flush by myself, but since Colton has taken that on that responsibility, I don't have to be able to reach. http://www.picclines-sat.com/serv01.htm

Paul will try to get used to it.  He just wishes to get used to it on a night when he doesn't have to be alert to teach the next morning. So we'll be trying it on Friday night.  We already sleep with a fan on, so he'll also have to see if it's loud enough.  I'm not 100% convinced that the pillows we bought are going to be the right solution.  They looked like a good idea, but we'll have to see.  My parents spent a lot of money on them, so if they're not going to work, I don't want to keep them.

I now have 2 sick children.  And I'm wearing my personal Ionic Breeze so that I don't catch what my kids have.  I feel like such a bad mom.  I can't snuggle them or kiss their heads.  They totally understand why.  I'm just letting Mommy guilt get the best of me.

I do love that we have DSL, though.  Meleia is playing computer games on the kids' laptop, Colton is playing games on the desktop, and I'm working.  It's amazing....