Round #2

I did not draw this!

I did not draw this!

Readers! Today was round two of chemo. Once again the wonderful Rebecca A. came with me on my journey. She was at my house at 8am sharp and we headed downtown along with half of the citizens of ATL. I was scheduled to see Dr. Read today. They were running right on time and after my port was opened it wasn’t long before Dr. Read came in to see how I was doing. While driving down to the hospital Rebecca took notes for me about items I wasted to bring up with him. I gave him my list of complaints.

1. Have bump/cyst/thingy on my back by one of my incisions.- He checked this out and have happy to see that when pushed on, it moved around. Tumors don’t usually don’t move. He thinks it may be a cyst caused my the surgery last October. He will have a better idea when the scans are done on the 31st of July. He did say I could get a massage if I wanted to but not for them to push down hard on it.

2. Still having major pain under my right boob/rib/incision areas. The pain is pretty bad, worse in the morning and it has effected my sleep. Sometimes I even find it hard to push down my veg when juicing! -He is not 100% sure this is caused by a tumor. He stated that you usually can’t feel them like that. He thinks it may be a nerve growing back and miss firing signals to the rest of my body. I have to agree with him because I can I know exactly what I was doing the moment it started to hurt. I was in yoga and I had just gone up in a should stand when BAM! Son of a Sweet Pickle!. Like the cyst/bump/thing we should know more after the CT.

3. Sleep. It is hard to do. I have been waking up in the night every night in pain and have been having trouble falling  back asleep. My won’t stop racing and I am sad to say I don’t always have the most positive thoughts. But that is to be expected.- Dr. Read, Rebecca and I discussed my pain management. I love how he uses everyday situations to describe things. Todays was Tequila vs Beer! Ha! Anyway, I have two new prescriptions that will hopefully help me get my pain under control and gel me sleep through the night.

Before I passed out.

Before I passed out.

After my appointment we went down to the infusion center and I got hooked up. They gave me a Benadryl and dam! That thing knocked me out. I had such a hard time staying awake that I finally gave up and took a nap. My Man wasn’t pulling my leg when he says I snore. Rebecca said I was lightly snoring too! Wonderful. She was able to sit back and do some work and take a test for her continuing education credits. I got home around 2pm so all in all it wasn’t a horrible day.

I did not draw this!

I did not draw this!

At this point I feel fine. My white blood cell count was kinda low but not low enough for me not to have the chemo today. It is expected for the count to drop (red blood cells too) while going through chemo but you have to keep an eye on it. I was told to stay away from sick kids and to wash my hands a lot. No licking the floors of bathrooms!  I have my barf bucket by my bed just in case it starts to effect the old tummy. I think it will take a few days to hit me if it does this time.

Readers, I hope you are having a nice Thursday and enjoying your summer. It is hot in the ATL but that is the case in the summer down here. More info on 24 Hours of Booty Ride coming soon!

Amelia Island

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Readers! Team Hamer was on Vacay! For the 4th of July we decided to head own to Amelia Island, Fl. But we did not go alone! No,The Boy brought a friend, which we will refer to as ZCP. By 9:50am on Tuesday morning we were off our bellys full of bagels, coffee and apple juice and out car pack up with a number of bags, tablets and bikes. The drive took us around 5 hours and 45 minutes. We did not run into too much traffic or construction.

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It is very interesting riding in a car with two 9-year-old boys. They were both on their tablets while watching School of Rock on a portable DVD player. The Boy has watched that movie so many times that he was quoting the lines of entire scenes. Pickles! We arrived to the to Ritz Carlton at Amelia Island around 3:30pm with the sun shinning and the temperature around 90 degrees. Hot!

Our Room

We chose a room on the club level of the Ritz Carlton. Why did we pay the extra money for the room and the extras? As you all know, food and drinks at any hotel is $$$$. I mean $20 for a hamburger? Your kidding right? At this point, my appetite has taken a nose dive and I hate paying for food I don’t even finish! We ate lunch and it coast $100.00. Two kids burgers and fries, shrimp tacos, a taco salad (that I thought tasted funny), a beer and a bloody mary. Really? With the club level you get five “meals” and all the drinks, sodas, wine, water, cookies, candies etc you want. We ate breakfast every morning. Two kinds of eggs, oatmeal,bagels, fruit, rolls etc. I can’t begin to think of the $$$ we saved from breakfast alone. Then there is lunch, snacks, appetizers and deserts. If you work it right you can make it work for you. Which is why I am drinking champagne in the club level room as I write this. Waiting for the snacks to come out at 4pm. Ahi Tuna anyone?

We ended up getting a King sized bed room with a chair that folded out into a twin bed for the boys. We also had a roll away bed but in the end chose not to use it. Ok, first thing to say about the room, the outlets! There were so many! Which is good when you have four tablets and three phones. We had a nice balcony with two chairs and a table that over looked two of the three pools and the beach. Wonderful to watch the nightly sunsets from. There was a flat screened tv and the largest closet in a hotel I have ever seen.

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I think someone is up.

The boys started out sleeping on the twin pull out but at some point The Boy says he woke up with ZCP on top of him and moved to our bed. ZCP said he was using The Boy as a pillow.

Daily activities

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ZCP brought a boogie board so of course we had to find a surf shop so The Boy could get one. It cost a little more than we thought it would but it was a well made one that provided hours of fun for The Boy. The waves were large on Wednesday due tropical storm Arthur but were pretty calm the rest of the week. The boys had a blast. Much more than at the pool, although they did enjoy the indoor hot tub and enjoyed going there at night.

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How cool is this? They moved the club level room to the beach! Woot! Woot! My Man was thrilled! We walked up and was shown to a set up chairs, towels and beach umbrellas (a must for me). There were sodas, waters, beer, wine and snacks too much on while hanging out by the water. it was nice to just hang out, watch the boys ride the waves and read my magazine.

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The weather was very nice most of the trip but there was some rain. Once while we were visiting downtown. The sky just opened up and the rain poured down. There was thunder and lighting and The Boy kinda freaked out. Not a fan of lighting.

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The Boy and ZCP

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My new voodoo doll!

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Yummy!

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Overall we had a great time. The Ritz is known for their service and they did not disappoint. Everyone was so nice, introduced themselves and went out of their way to make sure we had everything we needed.

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And now some food porn….

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You cook your meat on a 400 degree block of salt! What? What?

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The cutest thing I ever ate.

The cutest thing I ever ate.

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The Kitchen seat

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ZCP and The Boy

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Future Chefs?!

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By the time this came out I was in a food coma. SO FULL.

Calling all Bike Riders!!

 

New Hair Do!

New Hair Do!

Readers! The mullet is gone! Woot! Woot! On Saturday I went to Van Micheal salon and my new hairstylist, Bryan, had the great honor of cutting off the curls in the back. I am so happy they are gone (although, they were very soft). What to you think? He did not cut much of the top since the goal is for it to grow out and catch up with the back part. I also got some special shampoo that will help thicken it and make it grow faster. I sure hope it does what they say it will. I want my long hair back so bad.

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Calling all Bike Riders!!

Do you like to bike? Are you interested in raising money for Cancer research? Want to come visit the ATL? My Dad and I are trying to build a team to participate in the 2014 24 Hours of Booty! This is a ride that lasts 24 hours held here in Sandy Springs in October. A great time to come visit! Now, you do not have to ride the whole 24 hours. In fact, neither does your team. There is no way me or my dad could do that! But what fun would it be to have a nice group of people riding to raise money for such a great cause. You can be a survivor, living with cancer or just a super cool person who wants to help!

There will be an area were you can set up your own little camp site or you can stay at home or in a hotel. There is a registration fee and each rider must raise $200.00 to participate. You can also earn prizes for how much money you raise for the ride.

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I think it would be a lot of fun! Let me know if you are interested in joining the My Hotel Yorba Team! 

Happy Friday

Happy Friday Readers!

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I hope y’all had a nice week. The Boy and I got home from our visit to Lake Martin today around 11:30am. It was a great trip but it is nice to be home with Timber, Panny and Simon. The Girls look great and seemed to enjoy the snacks I gave them when I went to say hi. Zazzles and Terry Pete are getting bigger every day. I found carrots, tomatoes and garlic ready in the garden when I checked. Woot! What a nice welcome home.

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Our friends lake house was very nice and on the perfect part of the lake in a quite cove. They had everything a kid or adult would want at the lake to play with. The Boy and his BFF went out on the canoe, boat, rope swing (2), rock diving (oh my) and tubbing. In fact that was the favorite thing to do. It was so much fun to watch them bounce along on the waves. Both boys had big smiles on their faces.

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The Boy!

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The weather was great, not too sunny so the heat was bearable. We parked the boat at a beach and island so the kids could play in the water a couple of time. Kobie, the wonder dog and 1st mate, went with us wherever we went.IMG_4452

Kobie Selfie

Kobie Selfie

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The kids also did some fishing using hotdogs as bait. The fish really liked hotdogs because they caught a few of them pretty fast! Don’t worry, all fish and 1 turtle were all released back into the water.

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The house had three bedrooms and three baths. The first night The Boy sleep in one of the three bunk beds but chose to bunk with me the two other nights. He said he slept better with me. Not too sure I can say the same thing.

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I hope y’all have a nice weekend! Have fun. Be good. Be Safe!

 

Armpit Hair Already? What the h@LL….

I did not draw this!

I did not draw this!

Readers! The. Boy. Has. Armpit. Hair. What the heck!?! He is only nine years old! What is happening (Don’t worry, I know what is happening…). Yesterday and today all he has been talking about is how he has armpit hair. More on the right then the left. At first I thought he was talking crazy. However, in VERY bright light, you can see about 5 hairs under his right pit. He is over the moon! Takes his shirt off and pets it. Runs to the bathroom mirror to look at it. Shoves his pit in my face so I can look at it. Nice. He says he is the only one of his friends who has any armpit hair and that he is advanced for nine. I asked, “How do you know you are the only one?”  “They would have told me Mom, they would have told me.” OK….

My Man being my man, googled it and sure enough boys start going through puberty beginning around 9 years old. Today we went to the store and while I was picking up a prescription I asked him if he needed anything. To my surprise he said yes but wanted to wait until I had paid (got it free) for my medicine. Once I was done, he whispered to me he wanted deodorant! What? what? Who is this kid? He is gone a week and comes home with hair under his pits and the need (want) for deodorant! Pickles.

I did not draw this!

I did not draw this!

Aparently all of his friends were wearing deodorant at camp. In fact, he wore some on his friends deodorant. Lesson #1- DO NOT share your deodorant with your friends. I told him we would ask his dad. My Man said why not (he thinks he was in the third grade when he started) and we found him a travel size of deodorant, showed him how to use it and once again, The Boy is thrilled. Puberty is the best thing! Sweet Sweet Pickles.

What’s next? (I know what is next and I AM NOT GOING THERE!)

Night Readers…..

The Boy is Back!

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The Boy


 Readers! The Boy is back! We made the two-hour drive to Alabama early yesterday morning and picked him up from Camp Winnataska. It was so nice to give him a big hug. I think he grew. He talked non stop for 20 minutes about everything they did during the week. To say he loved it would be an understatement. He even said the heat and falling asleep where not bad at all. Bugs? No problem. The obstacle course was a favorite.

SO cool

SO cool

He also said that he won the award for muddiest camper and by the looks of his shoes and beach towel, I can see why. He loved the care package items he got, played cards with his buddies every day and loved his shorts and new shirt. He even met a girl!!! WOW! Her name was Izzy and she is from Birmingham. They held hands at the country dance. That is all I could get out of him. Nice! I am so happy we sent him to camp this year. Perfect age. He is all ready to go back next year too.

Best Buddies!

Best Buddies!

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New Sacroma Pj’s! Thanks Devra!

On Friday night My Man and I spent our last night childless and went out to dinner and watched the Braves play when we got home. They won! For a second there I wasn’t to sure they were going to pull it off.

Once we got home from picking up The Boy on Saturday, I went out and water the garden. I pulled more carrots for my morning juice and watered the plants by the pool. Then The Boy and I got in the pool and guess what happened? It started to rain. Of course it did. My plants should be good for the next couple of days. I was kinda bored and had no idea what to do to keep me busy so I ended up working. I got a lot done, ready for next week and finished a financial plan. The Boy and I will be going to the lake to stay with his best buddy, Zach, and his mom and sister for three nights next week. I will have a couple of conference calls but no wifi! Pickles. Hence getting everything ready this weekend. We will be going to Lake Martin in Alabama, not far from Auburn.

Hi.

Hi.

Their lake house looks wonderful. Jennifer said she was going to get me out on the paddle board. Wait. What? They also have canoes and a pontoon boat. I know The Boy will have a blast with Zach. It should be a lot of fun. Looking forward to it. I ended up downloading a new book for the trip. Still reading Radical Remission but know I need another one. I picked The Giver by Lois Lowry. I had been looking at it for a while and thought I would give it a try. But there is a problem. I am pretty sure I could finish the damn thing before we leave for the lake! I have really gotten into it. Pickles! Any suggestions?

Today the sun is out and My Man and The Boy plan on getting in the pool and do some cleaning. I will be heading to Costco where I hope not to buy too much! (It is just like Target!)  I hope you all have a nice and peaceful Sunday!

A letter from camp

Readers!

The Boy's letter

The Boy’s letter

The Boy has written!! Granted, I got this letter today, the day before we pick him up, but it was still very cool! He seems to be having a very good time and is one busy little dude. I love how he asks for more stuff. It never ends! I did set it up that he get a little something everyday along with his letters and cards. One day he got a camp shirt, some playing cards a water gun or camp shorts. More than he actually needs. I just hope he come home with 75% for his stuff. One of his friends already wrote his mom that he has lost his towel and camo shirt. Pickles!

The Boy and his buddy Sully

The Boy and his buddy Sully

How you doin?

How you doin’?

I wanted to let you all know that so far, I feel pretty good after my chemo. I did bring the barf bucket by my side of the bed last night just in case but I slept fine and only woke up when Timber barked around midnight. No crazy zombie dreams either! I was able to go to a morning appointment and then workout with SK today. The pain in my ribs isn’t as bad either. Still hurts but not as much. Maybe it was the yoga I did last night? Who knows.

My Man are going to go out to diner tonight and then wake up early to drive to Alabama to get The Boy. I can’t wait to see him and hear all about it. I bet he will pass out in the car drive home.

Sleepy Panny

Sleepy Panny

Have a Happy Friday!