I'm a party woman!

Charlie has turned me into a movie buff. We went to see Hairspray a couple days ago. It was hilarious! To answer you, Marianne, John Travolta made a great woman! I couldn't believe it was really him. Yesterday, we went to see Becoming Jane, which was another good one. We have enjoyed lots of ice cream by the lighthouse, and Charlie brought the sunny weather with her. We went to the Farmer's Market and I bought some pretty flowers and today I did some shopping in Marysville. Charlie has also taught me how to crochet and I have already made one hat and am starting on my second. Charlie leaves on Sunday and I'm trying to convince her to move to Seattle so that we can keep partying. I was happy to get a phone message from my cousin, Eloise, and wished I had been there to get the call. It was nice to hear her voice.

I'll get my blood work done next week and hopefully my blood counts will come back up and I can get my second dose in another week.

second dose done (well, kind of)

I went in for my second dose of IV chemo yesterday. I get two different chemo drugs by IV. They did some blood work and gave me my first drug. After starting the second drug, my blood work came back, which said that my red blood cell count was just a tiny bit low, but my doctor didn't want to proceed with the second drug, just to be cautious. So, we stopped the IV without finishing the treatment. They gave me a different drug which is supposed to help with my red count and next week I will go back for more blood work. If my blood work is fine, I will go in two weeks to repeat the second treatment. That means that instead of having two treatments behind me and only two left, I still have three treatments left to go.

The good news is that the doctor said that I may be able to start doing things like reading again. This doesn't mean the left side of my brain is healing, but that my right side is taking over and training itself to do things that my left side used to do. This is WONDERFUL news for me, and I am making an appointment with a specialist today to start working on this. I would love to be able to read again, even if it is just a little bit.

Today, I'm going with my sister to see the movie "Hairspray." It has been so much fun to have her here and has really lifted my spirits!

second dose tomorrow

Just wanted to let everyone know that I have my second round of chemo tomorrow at Swedish Hospital. My sister is taking me down and we plan to spend the day. Hopefully, everything goes well.

I've been enjoying a nice visit with my sister. We've had lots of fun and laughs, and also my visit with Jim's son, Michael was really nice. Some friends from the Women's Clinic brought over dinner on Friday night and we got to sit around and chat. It was nice to hear what is going on at work.

After tomorrow, I'm halfway done with this new treatment. We're looking forward to some good news!

Charlie and me

Thought I would share a picture of Charlie and me from today at lunch. We went to Applebees with Megan and the boys, although Tyler did not have the best of times, the rest of us enjoyed our time out. I'm really enjoying spending time with my sister. We always have fun together.

hello again

This is going to be a busy week. Melissa and the girls left on Monday, and I had Megan and the boys over to play all day long. Today, my sister, Charlie arrives for a visit. Every summer, we like to have what we call "Sister Week" where we travel together, and this year we will spend it here at my house. Jim's son, Michael, will be here this weekend, and I just got word that Ashley and her kids will be coming back to town on September 14th. I love seeing all of the people that I care so much about.

I have actually been doing really well recently. My new anti-depressants are helping quite a bit, so that I don't feel like I'm losing my mind. Physically, I'm feeling pretty well. Walking has become a little difficult for me and I am getting more and more tired, but I am still able to do many of my regular household tasks. Last week, my 22 year old washing machine finally died. We got a replacement delivered yesterday, and our dishwasher promptly broke, so we are waiting for the replacement to come soon. It feels like everything is falling apart, including me sometimes.

I have my second dose of my new chemo next week. I am anxious to get through another round of this and move on.

Picnic!

My granddaughter, Madeline, planned a picnic for all of us today and we had a great time. We had hot dogs, chips, and cupcakes, then she read a story and passed out presents to all of us. It was a lot of fun.

Feeling good

The day after my treatment, I'm feeling great! My spirits are up and I feel like I'm getting my mind back, or at least parts of it. I haven't gotten sick today, which is a relief, and I am actually able to carry on a normal conversation! Yay! Hopefully things keep up this way!

treatment done!

I went in for my new round of chemo today. All in all, it went well and so far I feel good. I went in this morning, and they delivered the first drug through IV. The stuff in my IV that they were using to keep me hydrated spiked my blood sugars, though, and my numbers went pretty high, so they had to give me a high dose of insulin. I felt a little sick, so they gave me an anti-nausea medication that made me fall asleep and I slept in the hospital for most of the day. They gave me the second medication this afternoon also through IV and I was able to come home and eat dinner with my family this evening.

So far, I am feeling well. We will have to wait and see tomorrow if I get any major side effects, but I am feeling upbeat and excited about the treatment tonight. If all goes as planned, I will return for round two at the hospital in about two weeks, and I have to do this four times total, so the treatment will be over in hopefully about eight weeks.

I love reading comments here from family and friends. It makes my day brighter. I appreciate all the love and support I've received from everyone, even some that I haven't seen in a long time.

Jim and me

Here is a picture that our friend Mike Lansberry took of Jim and me at church. I enjoyed a great visit today with my friends, Nada and Linda. I start my new treatment tomorrow and am excited to get on with it. I will post updates throughout the week.

chemo and stuff

The doctors pushed back the start of my new chemo treatment to this coming Monday. I am really anxious to start, but am also nervous. I want to get on with it and am hoping that it will give me some of my mind back. Today, I went to Seattle to meet with a therapist that works with oncology patients to talk about why I'm so down. We worked through some stuff and I am on some new medications to help me with a some of my depression over my health situation. Hopefully, I won't be feeling so sad anymore.

My friend, Jim Summers, came over recently and we worked on music together. Music has always been such an important part of my life, and it is wonderful to have friends that help me continue with it. My friends Linda and Nada are coming over soon for a visit. I love hearing what is going on with everyone.

Other than that, I've been spending time with my grandkids and my daughters and enjoying the time that I get to spend with them.

I'll update next week after the start of the new chemo treatment. Hopefully I won't feel too awful.

Me and my granddaughters

Here are a few pictures of me and my granddaughters, Madeline and Anna. I have really been enjoying their visit the last two weeks.

New chemo treatment

Last weekend was a lot of fun. Melissa had high school reunion events to attend and Jim and I got to babysit Madeline and Anna. It was lots of fun spending time with the girls. Last week, I also got released from my calling in Relief Society. I am sad because I really enjoyed that calling, but I understand that life moves on. I was planning on starting my new chemo treatment on Tuesday, but it has been pushed back to later this week sometime. I'm a little nervous, but anxious to move on to the next thing and hopefully this will do the trick.

at the beach

I had a fun day with Megan, Tyler, and Noah at the beach. Here is a picture of Tyler and me being sassy.

update

I had an MRI on Tuesday and met with my oncologist yesterday. Unfortunately, we did not receive the good news that we were hoping for. The last round of radiation and chemo did not do what it was supposed to and it appears that the tumor has grown. My oncologist has suggested that I begin a new round of chemo next week. It will be administered by an IV once every two weeks and I will have to go to the hospital for the treatment. It is a clinical trial and has not yet been approved by the FDA, so it carries with it an enormous amount of risk and side effects.

I am obviously very down about the results of my MRI. I want to do everything I can to prolong my time with my family and friends, so I will start the new treatment next week and assess how I feel after that. I have been having a rather difficult time lately since I have not been able to sleep and I am a bit depressed over my health situation.

Luckily, I am blessed with wonderful family and friends who I care about deeply. I am enjoying spending time with my daughter Melissa and her girls Madeline and Anna while they are visiting in town and also Megan and her boys. I really do look forward to visits from friends whenever they have the time to stop by.

One of my favorite ways to pass time is to play with my grandkids. On Monday, I had four of them over at my house picking blueberries and Tuesday, I went to Megan's house and all the grandkids had a blueberry party. It was fun to watch them play in the backyard and eat ice cream with blueberries on top. I also love hearing updates from Ashley in Colorado, where Ryan is getting ready to start Elementary School and Abby is a real walker now. I am planning to go to Whidbey Island with my daughters tomorrow and possibly the Taste of Edmonds next weekend.

I appreciate again all of my friends and family who constantly keep me in their thoughts and prayers.