Back in Business!

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I rested up most of the today, took a shower and picked up The Boy from the bus. How cool was that? Kinda cool. Our school system is having issues with the buses and we found out during the day that they were adding another bus to our afternoon route. The Boy had said at one point they were sitting 4 to a seat. So he is now on the “gray” bus and only 2 to a seat. They are still running behind. His drop off time is supposed to be around 2:35ish but he didn’t get dropped off till a bit after 3:00pm.  Hopefully they get it all worked out soon.

When we got back rested and then went to get me a new baby! We went and got a new computer! Woot! Pictures are back people! We discussed dropping off the old one to see if we could fix it. The least we want is all the info on it. If they can fix it, we will see how much it will cost. We have come up with a price we would be willing to pay to have it fixed. If we do, we will put it in the kitchen and it will become The Boy’s computer. I am so happy to have a Mac again. So easy to set up. So pretty! Ok, here are some pictures from my last hospital visit.

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Made my bed as comfy has I could. Brought Chillie, Blind Monkey and Blue Bunny with me this time.L1030033 L1030038

My Workstation.

L1030041Theo!! Theo is the man! Theo a great RN. He has admitted me both times now and works during the day shift. I was totally bummed when I found out he wasn’t going to be there Monday and Tuesday. But RN Helen did a great job filling in for him.L1030043

This was taken around 6:30am. Poor guy, so glad he is mine.L1030047

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Rebecca brought us Dunkin Donuts on Saturday morning! LOVE YOU! The coffee is so Yummy and were tasty! Then Elley’s came and brought me lunch. Have a mentioned how bad the food is at the hospital? So good to see them with their back from the beach tans!

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Time for to change the dressing, put on your mask!

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My man’s mini bar.

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This one of my night RN’s, Tiffany. She rocks! SHe got me through some rough nights. SHe has the calmest sweetest voices ever. Was so quiet when she would come in at 1am or 3am or 4am…whenever that dam monitor beeped! She also made sure I got out of there as early as possible on Tuesday morning. This picture was taken at 4am and she was on it!

Two posts today Readers! Time for me to get some rest!

Fur Kids Watching Over Me

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Hey Y’all!

Sorry for the delay. The last two days have been long and hard ones. I will say it feels so good to be home. I can’t begin to say that enough. Monday was a very stressful and emotional day for me. I don’t even know why I thought I would be able to come then but somehow I got it stuck in my head.So when I realized I had another day of medicine ahead of me, it hit me hard. I was done. I was ready to get out. I was tired of being hooked up to beeping monitors, having my vitals checked, having to monitor how much I pee! Oh don’t get me started on that! My pee smelled so f-ing bad due to all the crap being pumped into to me! Ugh! It still kinds of smell, not all the medicine is out of me yet I guess. There were tears over stupid things (Terry Balfour’s funeral on True Blood! Dam thing lasted the whole show and guess who cried?), not going home, My Boy not acting like the boy I know, the crap they feed you at the hosptial….You name it, I cried.

As I said, I am home and happy to be here. How am I? I am tired. I am nauseated. The dreams/hallucinations are intense, and mentally and physically exhausting. I wake up tired and covered in sweat. But right now, I am ok. My assistant, Kathryn, is coming over to review some work and @ 10am I finally ate something. Plans for the day: take a shower and pick The Boy up from the bus stop.

I do have bad news. My Mac seems to be dead. I am not that surprised but still upset. A few weeks ago it had issues but it seemed to fix it self then. Well, I was wrong. In a perfect world I would go get a new one today but no sure that will happen. That being said…No pictures untill I get a new one. The laptop I am working on is a work laptop and I do not want any personal pictures on it.

Shout Outs:

Dona C.– Thank you for Dinner!

My Mom- The soup was sooo good! I will make it myself soon.

Pat- I LOVE the scarf! It is perfect for me! Thank you!

My Fur Kids- All three have been by my side since I got home. Simon and Panny helped me through my crazy dreams, letting me know that I am up and not still dreaming! Timber as always watching over me.

 

Well, Pickles! I spoke to soon…

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Well, Pickles! I spoke to soon…

Guess where I am? If you guessed in my bed with a soft furry cat on me, one at my feet and a dog on the floor, well your wrong. Booo! I am still here at the hospital. I am done with the chemo but I have to get Mesna for 24 hours after the last dose of Ifos. Lots of people only have to get 12 hours and the attending thought that would be the same for me. But NOOOOO. SInce I am having such a heavy-duty dose of Isfos, I need to 24 hours. I will then get 4 hours of post hydration. This all being said, I won’t make it home till tomorrow.

Today I have been feeling pretty tired. This feels weird because I haven’t done anything! I know it is due to all the medication, but it is hard to deal with. I have no appetite but I now I need to eat something. They really need to work on the food here. Thankfully, My Man had been bringing me dinner. Ok, I will stop complaining now…

I spoke to my parents and The Boy made it to the bus and off to school.They said he was ready to see all his friends. I hope he is having a wonderful time and behaving. I look forward to hearing all about it however knowing him, he will have forgotten all of that. What is up with that?

Sorry for the short update. I think I will take a nap now.

Day 4 (maybe my last!) of the chemo Tour

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Good day! How are you guys? I am doing ok. My Man and I had a good nights sleep thanks to RN Maggie. She was great! Very quiet. Justin said he even sleep pretty well. I have requested Maggie for tonight too. At the moment, I have having my 5th cycle of chemo. Only one more to go! That means, if all goes well, I will be going home sometime tomorrow! WOOT! WOOT! People!

We got up around 7:30am and kinda laid around. What else do you do? Around 8am I got cleaned up and into today’s PJ’s. My Man went to find a good cup of coffee and some yummy treats to share. Which was a good thing. The bagel I ordered was stale. Ick! I then got tired and slept on and off till about noon. Crazy how tired the meds they give you can make you. It’s not like I do much while I am here!

After I woke up, I talked to my Dad, who is installing a new screened in door on our screened in porch. He is also painting it red! (Thanks Dad!). The Boy was in the background giving him tips and making sure he was doing it right. Nice to know things haven’t change since I am gone. Talked to my Mom and she had been cleaning (THANK YOU) the house. She said all the kids are good but that Turbo my be going broody. She has never done this before. It is usually Poppy. It could be that they are both just hot, the weather has been crazy hot and humid here.

Tomorrow is the first day of school for The Boy. I am sad that I will miss it but happy I should be home when he gets home. I am afraid he is going to have a rude awaking when Nana Pete comes and wakes him up at 6am!

My Man and The Boy have come down for a visit. My Boy and I went for a walk around the floor and met some of the RN’s and staff. Now he is watching a movie on my iPad and My Man is on the computer. House Hunters International is on the TV. All we are missing is Panny, Simon and Timber!! I miss them all. I know that Panny would love sleeping on the bed with me. She would like it when I moved the bed up and down.

Reader’s! I hope you are havig a great day and living life large!!!

Day 3 on The chemo Tour

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Guess what I am doing? Can’t? I am sitting on my ass and the chemo is following! Last night went well. I took my sleeping meds and was out when they started my chemo. I did wake up enough to move so she could access my port. I then woke up at 1:30 am because I had to use the bathroom and then again at 4:30 am when the teach and RN came in to check my vitals and change my fluids. We had a nice talk. They helped me pick a good RN to ask for the day shift and so far Helen has been spot on. I am sure all the RN’s here are great but I am getting a very high dose of chemo and other meds, that I want the best. So now I have Theo, Tiffany and Helen to request. Of course my main man, Theo, has the weekend off and is improving his education by taking two oncology classes on Monday and Tuesday!! What! On well, I will see him in September.

Shout Out

My Poor Man!!! He is the best husband in the world. He comes down every night, with his beer cooler, goes out on Peachtree to get dinner, watches TV with me and works on his computer. Gets me Hot Coco  and then watches me get my sleep medicine. Does he then go to sleep? He tires….but at last, that man gets no sleep. The beeping, the RN’s coming and turning on the lights, him calling the RN’s…..I feel so bad for him. He is a trooper. And I am so lucky to have him.

Had a morning visitor! Rebecca came down with Dunkin Donuts coffee and a couple of donuts! Wonderful! The three of sat a talked and then she and I went for a short walk. It was nice to talk about stuff other than cancer, chemo, and am I peeing enough. For the record, I am.

Not too much more to write. Things are going well so far. Have a wonderful day! Live Life Loud!!

 

 

 

Whatcha Reading? What am I listening to?

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Whatcha Reading?

I found a book to read!! My friend Kristen suggested I check out The Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh.

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  • The Victorian language of flowers was used to convey romantic expressions: honeysuckle for devotion, asters for patience, and red roses for love. But for Victoria Jones, it’s been more useful in communicating mistrust and solitude. After a childhood spent in the foster-care system, she is unable to get close to anybody, and her only connection to the world is through flowers and their meanings. Now eighteen and emancipated from the system with nowhere to go, Victoria realizes she has a gift for helping others through the flowers she chooses for them. But an unexpected encounter with a mysterious stranger has her questioning what’s been missing in her life. And when she’s forced to confront a painful secret from her past, she must decide whether it’s worth risking everything for a second chance at happiness.—From Amazon.com

I am really enjoying the story but right now I am at the point where the main character has to make a dig decision and I just hope she doesn’t make the wrong one! The book takes place in San Francisco and flash backs to the wine country. This makes me miss our friends Aidan and Kysha and long for good wine, crusty bread and yummy cheese.

Three days later…

I finished the book. I really enjoyed it however there were times that I did not like the main character, Victoria. She makes some choices that I found inconceivable as a mother. Thankfully she realises her faults and makes the best decision. It just takes her a bit to get there. I totally suggest the book!  I need to come up with a rating system… Should it be a Paw rating or Beak rating?  What do you think??

What am I listening to?

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Right now I am listening to the new album by The Civil Wars that came out on August 6th. I have been a fan of the duo when I first heard them interviewed on NPR before their first album came out. I loved their work on the Hunger Games soundtrack and was upset when I read they had broken up. Thankfully they came to their senses and got back together!  After only listening to it a few times, the stand out songs for me are The One That Got Away, a cover of the Smashing Pumpkins song Disarm and Scared Heart which is song by Joy in french.

For those who are not familiar with The Civil Wars here is some information about them.

  • The Civil Wars is a duo composed of singer-songwriters Joy Williams and John Paul White. Williams and White met in 2008 during a song writing session or “writing camp” at a music studio in Nashville, Tennessee. In an exclusive interview, Williams stated that the band name was generated, “As I was driving around town looking at all the Civil War monuments I thought about all the wars that we each face. So the name came about that way.”  According to their website, the group’s name, The Civil Wars, and their song “Poison and Wine,” sum up their thematic direction. They are about the good, the bad, and the ugly of relationships.-From Wikipedi, the free encyclopedia

Readers!!! What are you listening too?

Cycle 2 Day 2

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I started my frist round of chemo 9:30pm last night. I had go through a 4 hour pre-hydration cycle. I also had to take two huge horse pills of potassium since I was low. Then they gave me a boost of magnesium. Not sure what all that was about but we have gotten taken care of. While I was on my own, I unpacked some things and tried to make my room/bed more homey. The pillows were the buy of the week! Glad we brought those.

I took my sleeping meds while the chemo was going and fell asleep around 10:30pm. I didn’t wake up till 4am mainly because I had to pee so made. Just so happen the tech came in and took my vitals. All good. I was able to fall asleep till about 7am but then the machines started beeping. Thankfully Theo came back to work and got me on his rounds. He is my favorite RN. Last nights RN was late starting the pre-meds and I can’t stand when people are late…I even called! OH MY….. (I later found out from Theo that the clock in my room was 15min fast! Don’t I feel like a tool!?)

Later in the day

When I was first writing this I got really tired and figured I would take a cat nap. I wasn’t sure if I would fall asleep but I did so for about an hour. Theo came in to start me on my premeds and right after he left, my friend Dona C. came in for a visit. She brought me a mini coffee maker! How nice! The coffee here SUCKS! She also brought two packets of hot coco I can make. Yummy. Thank You Dona!

Cycle 2 is done. I start my premeds again at 10:30 and chemo at 11:00pm. I am on two kinds of medications right now, so I am always attached to the hospital christmas pole. Calanet came down for a visit and my parents came a little later. My Mom and I went for a walk Off The Floor! Woot! We went down to the lobby, mom bought some goodies and we went outside for a little walk. It was nice but once we went inside one if my machines started peeping. We got back to the 7th floor and I found Theo down one of the halls “Theo! I am beeping!!” That got a laugh out of him and the RN next to him. He fixed me up and I headed back to my room.

Now I am hanging out with the parents, me and my dad on our laptops and mom reading on her kindle. I’m waiting for my boys to come on down. Can’t wait to see them.

Hope everyone is having a great day!