Saturday, December 31, 2011

Happy New Year's Eve!  It's the last day of 2011 and I am so glad to see this year go.  2011 has not been good to us overall, at least we got Buster he was the best thing to have happened in 2011.  Besides getting cancer the year was pretty shitty, it was a hard time for us both.  Needless to say I've been waiting for 2012, I am a person who likes even numbers, and I am glad to be entering into an even year.  I believe 2011 was so bad because it's an odd year.  The only odd number I like is 13, in fact it's my lucky number.  13 is my birthday and I like the idea that it's supposed to be unlucky, for me it's not.

Anyway, we just came home from a walk, all three of us went down to the lake.  It was fun to show Eric the lake in our neighborhood.  There's even a little island with a cute little bridge.  Buster had a lot of fun and we saw two other dogs.  Unfortunately, there was a dog that got hit by a car, we didn't see it but we saw the blood which was sad.  It made me want to keep a tighter grip on Buster I couldn't stand to loose him.  I feel for the family of the dog, although somebody took him some where, maybe he lived, I don't know.  When we got home Buster started whining at the door, I thought well maybe he is trying to tell me something, sure enough we went out and he took a pee.  I really hope he is starting to learn that he has to go to the bathroom outside.  He has had lots of accidents in the kitchen and he is not aloud on the carpet until he is officially house trained.  Eric and I are both sick of cleaning up pee.

Well I hope you all have a safe and joyful New Years Eve.  We will spend our night together at home having a quiet New Years.  Love and peace to you all from 6119.

Friday, December, 30, 2011

Happy Friday, I hope you are all getting ready for New Year's Eve!  We aren't doing anything special, just celebrating at home with some Champagne and Beer.  Tonight we are going out with our friends Bob and Linda Williams, it's so nice to have people to get together with.

Buster and I are about to go on a morning walk.  I'm hoping to tire him out so he won't be so active today.  It's Eric's second to last day off from work and we want to enjoy the day.  I better take Buster for two walks since he'll be alone while we go out. At least this way he should just sleep while we are gone.

I'll have to have my home nurse come out today as my dressing almost came all the way off!  It's not supposed to get wet or have air hit it for fear of infection.  But when I sleep, I sweat and the adhesive doesn't hold.  I woke up this morning and it was hanging half off!  Oh well, that's why I have a nurse to begin with.

I know I say it all the time but I seriously love Buster.  He is the best thing that has happened to us.  I love how he makes me feel, like I'm the best puppy mom in the world.  When I come into the room he runs for me and wiggles his cute little butt.  Precious.  Yesterday, Eric was complaining that we have no life anymore because every second is devoted to Buster.  I said you are looking at it the wrong way, Buster is a blessing, he teaches us not to be selfish.  He agreed, it was just a moment of weakness.

Well Buster is whining so I better wrap this up so I can take him for a walk.  Peace out friends, from 6119.  

Thursday, December 29, 2011

Happy Thursday!  I hope you are all having a fabulous day.  Buster slept till 8:00 this morning, what a miracle!  Maybe it had something to do with the walk we took yesterday.  He did so well, he walked for a good half hour and saw lots of doggies.  He was afraid of a few but barked right back at a couple.  Buster even stopped traffic, as we were walking a car pulled over to say; "So cute! He just stops traffic doesn't he?"  I was a proud mama.  We even ran into my neighbor on the walk, we caught up, she now knows about my Leukemia.  I've been wondering what they must think when they see I have no hair.

Today we will go for another walk, he slept like a champ after yesterday's.  I'm not sure if we'll get two in today since it's kind of cold out right now.  Yesterday, I got to do a little shopping, I finally spent my last gift cards from the day care center (teacher appreciation gifts), one for Michael's and one for The World Market.  Plus, I bought a new charm for my pandora bracelet, an Owl!  It's so cute, it doesn't symbolize anything other than the fact that I am wise.  :)  It was a good day, I haven't shopped in forever!  Plus, how can you go wrong with free shopping?

Well that's it for now, I wish you all the best for today.  Love from 6119.

Wednesday, December 28, 2011

It's a beautiful sunny day a little cold but then again, my sense of cold is not the same as it once was.  It's hard to believe I lived in Buffalo for six years, shoveling snow living in freezing cold temperatures, when it's so cold that you can hardly breathe.  I certainly don't miss the snow but I do miss the town thanks to the wonderful people there.  I call Buffalo my adult home town, it's where I grew up on my own and I have a Buffalo family made up of friends and family there.  So Buffalo will always have a soft spot in my heart.

Speaking of the wonderful people in Buffalo, I would like to thank Brian Radloff and Ron Serte (?) they sent me the best surprise, an autograph from Tyler Myers of the Buffalo Sabres!  Tyler is the tallest player and he's a second year player, former rookie of the year.  It says "Jen, Keep Fighting, Tyler Myers #57".  I love it, he really is one of my favorite players and he's definitely one of Eric's favorites.  This bad boy is going to get framed and hung up on the wall!

Eric is golfing today in Greenville with our friend Jason Aldrich, it will be fun for them to get out and have some fun.  I plan on going to Pandora to get a charm for my bracelet, which I love!  Then Buster and I are going on our first official walk.  I think he's ready, we already explore the space behind our back yard and if it's a short walk that will be okay, it will all depend on him.

So that's it for today, I hope you all have a beautiful day.  Be thankful for each moment and show love to all those you meet.  I'll leave you with my favorite line from Dave Matthews Band, "If kindness is your king, then heaven will be yours before you meet your end."  Show some kindness today.  Love from 6119.

Tuesday, December 27, 2011

Happy Tuesday, I hope you all are having a great day.  It's rainy here in Charlotte, Buster's curled up sleeping on my lap, Eric is playing Golden Tee and I'm drifting in and out of sleep.  Buster has a way of making you sleep when he takes his naps.  We've already been to the store and are preparing for another quiet and lazy day.  Eric has the whole week off which is wonderful.  I'm trying to convince him to go see The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo, I know he'll see it, it's just a question of when.  Eric doesn't like movies so it's rare for him to go but he knows how much I want to see this one.  Even though I saw the Danish version already, it's such a good story I'd see it again anyway so at least this time I don't have to read subtitles.

I want to give a shout out to my girl Kristina aka K-Dogg, she sent me a beautiful infinity scarf which I love.  Unfortunately, so does Buster, but he tends to like anything that hangs around my neck.  So thank you Kristina it's beautiful and I love that you picked it out.  For those of you who don't know Kristina is one of the most fashion forward ladies and always looks good.  Pretty much all of my Texas girls are fashionable, I'm lucky to have them for friends.

Anyway, I'm really diggin' my new hats and coat.  Today, I wore my silly cherry rain boots with my coat and I almost wore my Owl hat, Eric thought it might be a little too much.  I looked awesome for Walmart! I love my Owl hat it is quite cozy and it makes people smile, just like my boots do.  I guess one silly accessory is enough.

Well that's all for now, I hope you have a beautiful day.  Peace out from 6119.

Monday, December 26, 2011

Good Morning, I hope this day finds you well.  Perhaps you are already back at work or you are lucky to have the day off.   I am just enjoying some cereal and basking in the sunshine from my kitchen window.  I really had the best Christmas and I'm so fortunate to have so many blessings in my life.  I will forever be thankful and make sure to appreciate everything as a gift.

Yesterday, I finished my painting and I really want to start another one.  There is something very relaxing and peaceful about painting, it's good for the soul.  The only problem is Buster isn't allowed in my painting room and he doesn't like it when we leave him alone.  He's now started peeing whenever we leave him alone.  If we crate him, he'll be good but if we leave him in the kitchen he will do his business whenever he's mad at us.  It's a wee bit frustrating.

Well I don't have much else to say, I hope you all have a fabulous day.  Much love from 6119.

Sunday, December 25, 2011

Merry Christmas!  Oh what a day, we woke up at 7:00am, took Buster out and had a blast opening presents. Buster loved playing with the wrapping paper.  Now I'm enjoying a mimosa but we just ran out of OJ, guess we'll have to switch to straight Champagne.  I'm wearing my new beautiful coat thanks Mom and Grandma, and I'm also wearing my new cancer bracelet and Pandora bracelet.  I love them both, they go perfectly with my tree of life bracelet.  I feel like a gypsy with lots of silver bracelets.  It suits my personality and I'm super excited to begin collecting charms for my Pandora, I now have a butterfly, the leukemia charm, an angel and the tree of life charm.  It's perfect, I also got a fabulous rhino, picture frame and lots of great hats!  When it comes to hats, I'm set, which is great cause my bald head doesn't like the cold.

Now we plan on enjoying our day, we were going to go to church but decided against it for fear of being exposed to sick people.  Eric worries and he does not want me to get sick, that would not be good.  We will be having steaks (thanks to a great friend of ours) and wine tonight which is awesome, I can't wait!  It's the perfect Christmas dinner, I haven't had steak in a while and to have filet mignon with a nice meritage we've been holding on to, it will be wonderful.

Now Buster is sleeping and Eric is playing his new Golden Tee game, turns out you don't have to go to the bar to play the popular game, you can now enjoy the classic Golden Tee game on your own TV.  Thanks Mom, I think it's the best present you've given to Eric.  I plan on finishing my painting I started yesterday, which I'm very pleased with!  Later we'll have our fabulous dinner and be thankful for all the gifts we have all around us.  I hope you all get to spend the day with those who you love and are thankful for every moment we spend with our loved ones.  Merry Christmas from 6119.  

Saturday, December 24, 2011

Merry Christmas Eve!  I can't believe tomorrow is Christmas, I'm so excited!  We have lots of beautiful packages under the tree from our fabulous family.  I'm trying to convince Eric to open at least one present tonight, I think I'll win since we've done it before.  Buster slept all night again and he hardly made any noise!  He's playing with his new toy that looks like a piece of bread.  He is chasing it all over the kitchen as I type this.  We seriously love him so much, he's the best Christmas present ever.  We are up early this morning and we've already been to Dunkin Donuts and have enjoyed a donut and coffee.  This time I waited until we got home to eat my donut so I wouldn't risk sneezing my donut in the car again!  

Eric has declared today as football day and is already checking his fantasy teams. I think I'm going to paint today, it's been awhile so I think it's time.  Buster and I have been playing all morning, now he has just laid down for his puppy nap.  He fell asleep in my lap as usual.  I still can't tell you how good it feels to have him come run and jump in to my lap, he loves his mama which makes me so happy.  

It finally turned cold here it was only 35 degrees out this morning, quite a change to what we have been used to.  It's fitting for Christmas to be cold, last year we got snow but I don't think we will this year.  There is not much else to say, I hope you all enjoy this day.  Love and Merry Christmas Eve from 6119.

Friday, December 23, 2011

Happy Friday!  Buster slept through the whole night last night!  Oh joy we were so happy to get a full night of sleep!  We are so proud of him, he is such a joy to our lives.  I am officially done with Christmas shopping and shipping.  It feels good to be done now I can just relax.  Eric and I are looking forward to our Christmas together at home, it feels nice not to be traveling.  Though we miss our families we enjoy the quiet time and the luxury of doing whatever we want to for Christmas.

It's still warm here and sunny, it was a beautiful day today.  Eric's work shut down began today so he's on holiday through New Years.  We are enjoying spending so much time together, we are lucky to be together all the time.  I want to mention, I forgot to thank the United Azerty crew for the scrabble game and fleece.  We love those as well, I didn't mean to leave them out!  Thanks again for your thoughtfulness.

Well that's it for today, love to you all from 6119.

Thursday, December 22, 2011

It is still unseasonably warm here in Charlotte, no rain today which is nice.  I think I heard the high for today is almost 70!  Buster had his best night yet last night, although he is already sleeping again.  Eric says he doesn't sleep at night he just sits there and watches us between howls....  Buster was being incredibly lovable before dosing off to sleep.  Seriously, he makes us so happy and there is nothing better than the feeling you get when he runs up and plops himself down in your lap.  I still can't get over how fantastic he is!

Nothing new in the health department, I'm still feeling good just tired.  I am still trying to wrap up holiday shopping, I am really late this year.  I have to apologize to our family since most of the presents will be late!  I do want to give a shout out to our friends at United/Azerty, your the best.  We received a nice box of goodies from Amanda, Deb, Nancy, Tera, Amy and Chris for the fabulous slippers, blanket, books and coffee cup.  I love all of it and really appreciate the thought.  For those of you who don't know Eric and I used to work at United/Azerty and there are some really great people there who we miss.

Well I better get my day going, lots to do and another trip to the post office (which is always interesting this time of year).  I hope you all have a fabulous Thursday, almost the end of the work week!  Love from 6119!

Wednesday, December 21, 2011

It's a rainy day in Charlotte and Buster has pooped and peed in the house!  Way to start the day, thank goodness he is so adorable otherwise I would be mad.  Other than that it's a good day.  I caught up with one of my best friends, Jaidee who lives in Buffalo.  She and her family are doing well which makes me happy.

Yesterday, I saw Dr. Miller and he was very happy about how I have recovered.  I am basically his star patient and he wished every one could have the same type of recovery.  I will be going for my next round of chemo on January 4th, which I believe is the same time as Norm.  It will be another five days like before and I'll start chemo in his office and then check in to the hospital around 4:30.  Hopefully, I'll react the same way and have a quick recovery this time as well.

Well Buster is barking and whining telling me it's time to play so I must cut this blog short.  I hope you all have a fantastic day.   Peace out from 6119.

Tuesday, December 20, 2011

Happy Tuesday everyone!  Buster is sitting in my lap enthralled as I type on the keyboard.  He did a lot better last night.  He almost slept the whole night.  Now if only we could stop him from biting everything!  I know he's a puppy and he's teething but he's got some sharp teeth and some times he acts like I'm the chew toy!  Eric tells me I need to work on my discipline skills.  I'm such a push over for our cute little baby.

I would like to give a shout out to Geri and Dick Wnuk, who continue to spoil me with presents.  I love the green monster slippers and so does Buster, thank you!  He seems to think they are toys coming to get him, he barks at them, it's really rather cute.  They are super comfortable and warm which I love.  The nurses will love them when I'm back in the hospital for my next round of consolidation chemo.  I see Dr. Miller today so hopefully he'll let me know when I have to go in.  It's very important to keep my cancer in remission so the bone marrow transplant grafts to my body easily.  That's what they call it, grafting, when your body rejects the transplant they call it graft vs host disease, which is common and treatable.

I heard from Duke yesterday, they won't have my results until after the holiday.  They were hoping to be able to use the test from Dr. Miller but it was not deep enough so they will use the blood I gave them on Thursday.  That's fine since we figured it we wouldn't hear anything before Christmas.  Plus, I'll take all the  extra time with Buster!

I can't believe it's the week of Christmas!  I still have some shopping to do!  Today I plan on cleaning the house and then hitting the shops.  Hopefully, I'll get everything in the mail today just in time for Christmas.  I hope you all have a blessed day (as they say here in NC).  Love from 6119.

Monday, December 19, 2011

It's official, I no longer need to go the Blumenthal Cancer center!  I went this morning and my blood counts were good so Dr. Miller said I could stop the visits unless I start to feel like I need blood.  Yippee, no more 30 minute drives to the hospital three times a week!  I have an appointment with Miller tomorrow so it will be good to see what he has to say, if you ask me my recovery has been awesome.  I wish I could say the same for my buddy Norm, every day he needs blood and I get to go home.  Plus, he already has his next round of reduction chemo scheduled.  I assume I'll go in around the same time, I don't know for sure but I bet I'll find out tomorrow.

Buster continues to make us smile and I cannot get over how stinking cute he is, he has the best personality and gives the best looks with his expressive eyes.  Every once in awhile he'll give us a cute little bark, we don't mind that compared to the howling and crying he does at night.  Although last night he wasn't that bad, he still whimpered but he slept longer in between.  Of course he is sleeping right now, I try to keep him busy all day but he loves his puppy naps.  He loves to go outside but he's getting a little too brave and he keeps going out a little farther on our property, which isn't very big but it backs up to the main road in our neighborhood.  It terrifies me to think he could dart off in the wrong direction.  I think we will start putting him on a leash we just need to get him a collar first, he's so tiny the one we had doesn't fit him.

Well not much else to report, it's absolutely beautiful out (nearly 60 degrees!) Buster and I have been out several times already but we will go out again to enjoy this warm weather.  Although it doesn't really seem like Christmas is coming at the end of the week without cold weather.  Oh well, I'm still glad that I'm not shoveling snow.  :)  For those of you who are, I feel for you.  Love from 6119.

Sunday, December 18, 2011

Having Buster home is the best thing that has happened to us.  He truly is the best dog, and I swear it's almost like he's already toilet trained.  He's gone outside every time!  Of course last night was a hard one for him, being his first night away from his brothers, sisters and mother.  He howled and cried all night long.  I kept thinking he'll pass out eventually, but even then he would still wake up and howl some more.  Of course, now he is sleeping in his crate like it's no big deal.  In fact we took him out, he did his business, we fed him and he walked right into his crate and went to sleep.  Oh well, he's so adorable it's impossible to stay mad at him, no matter how tired we may be.

I can't get over how small he is, but I'm looking forward to him growing up, he'll be the perfect size dog.  Right now he fits on your lap so perfectly, and he can practically crawl up in Eric's hands.  Eric says that Buster already favors me, which he does kind of.  :)  Of course, I try not to encourage it but I love it!  He will come to me and curl up in my lap, he won't leave me when he calls him.  Given the choice he'll go to me over him, I said, well we already knew he was a Momma's dog, now I'm the new Momma.  Either way I would say Buster is pretty lucky to have us for his new Mom & Dad, and we are just as lucky to have him.

Well I imagine we'll all do some snoozing today thank goodness for lazy Sundays. Love from 6119.

Friday, December 16, 2011

Tomorrow is Buster day, finally we are almost there, almost ready to bring him home!  Now that I know my time is limited with him I plan on enjoying every moment with him until I have to go for the transplant. I hope he doesn't forget me over three months!

Happy Friday to everyone, I hope it's been a good week and you have a great weekend lined up.   We certainly do!  Today when I get home I'm taking our Rainy Day jar of coins to Coinstar, the money will go to buying Buster a crate and bed along with some baby gates.  I want to find him the best bed so his crate is comfy and homey.  It will be fun to go shopping, I haven't done anything besides grocery shopping in a long time.

I'm at Blumenthal waiting to see if I need any blood products.  I'm expecting to need something, I couldn't be so lucky to get to go home again today!  Poor Norm was here until 6:30 on Wednesday, he was jealous that I got to go home so quickly.  He's getting blood again today so he'll be jealous again if I don't need anything.

It's still crazy to think about the transplant and what it means for the next few months.  There's a chance I'll turn 32 while in the hospital.  I'll be starting 2012 getting a brand new immune system, living in an apartment in Durham, without my puppy.  However, it will be the best thing for me and the beginning of the rest of my life.  Eric and I were talking yesterday how when all this started we didn't expect it to be so long and intense.  I mean nobody plans on going through cancer or what that entails.  We never imagined going through something like this or how it would effect our life.  It definitely makes us stronger and teaches us to appreciate our love and our life together.  Thank goodness we have each other, I couldn't go through this alone.

Well I just found out I don't need any blood or platelets!  I just have to wait for my white blood count!  This is awesome! I hope you all enjoy your day and do something special for yourselves.  Every one enjoys a little fun for themselves.  Love from Blumenthal.
 

Thursday, December 15, 2011

We just got home from Duke, it took a little over 2 hours to get there.  It was a nice visit, very informative.  We learned that I will need to be at Duke for at least 3+ months, originally told to us as 110 days!  Hopefully, I will be an outpatient for most of the time but they will keep me near by so I won't be able to go home and the worst part is I won't be able to have Buster.  Basically, the transplant will knock out my entire blood system, I'll be getting a brand new immune system which will be attacking my own system.  Any risk of exposure to infections is not allowed.  I'm devastated because I don't want to miss out on any part of Buster's life but I really don't have a choice.  Now we have to figure out what to do with him since he is a puppy and we will not board him.  I'm praying the breeder will work with us and board him because we know they love him and Buster would be familiar with the environment and be around his mother.  So let's all be hopeful that they agree to our idea.  I'll keep you posted on what happens with our baby.

I was thinking this whole deal would take one month, now I hear I will be completely out for three months, to the point where I will need a care giver for twenty four seven care.  I'll be super weak and feel like crap and it will take awhile for my body to recover and for the new immune system to completely take over and adapt to my body.  The whole thing is a slow and day to day process, and it's a big deal not everyone goes through a transplant.

Now, we wait while they test my blood and search the database for a donor match.  They expect to find a match but if they don't they will go an alternative route and use the blood cells from a babies umbilical cord.  Both methods are equally effective.  Either way the transplant will be a long road to recovery but we'll get through it with the help of family and friends.

It will take about two months to get the donor matched and lined up so at least I'll have two months with Buster before I have to go up to Duke.  It will be a huge adjustment for us to basically live in Durham for three months but we'll do what we have to do.

A lot of you have asked how you can sign up to be a bone marrow donor, now I finally know the answer.  All you need to do is call your local Red Cross if they don't have a program for marrow donors they'll know where to find one.  I also learned there are millions of people in the donor database already so finding a match is very likely.  The funny thing is who ever is your match will be a long lost ancestor of mine.  After waiting a year after my transplant I'll be given the option to meet my donor as long as they agree to it.  I think that would be cool.

So all in all it was a good day but I am tired, we left the house at 7:15 which is early for us!  So I hope all of you had a good day!

Love from 6119.

Wednesday, December 14, 2011

Today is a great day!  I am already back home from the Blumenthal center. Turns out I don't need any blood products today and the best part is my white count is at 4.6 which means I'm technically not nutrapenic any more, meaning I can now venture out in the world again!   Hallelujah!  I'm so happy to be free and it's a good sign that my body is already recovering from the chemo.  Tomorrow, we go to Duke for my initial consultation appointment.  I'm looking forward to this as I'm hoping we will have a lot of our questions answered and hopefully schedule this transplant.  Our appointment is at 10:30, it takes about 3 hours to get to Duke so it will be a long day for us.

In other news, it's a beautiful day here, 50 degrees with a high of 65 and of course it's sunny with NC blue skies.  I never got my walk yesterday so maybe I will today.  Eric told me I could practice the Buster route, we plan on walking him twice a day together.  It will be our daily family outings.  It will be good for all of us as Eric and I are lax when it comes to exercise.  Only three more days until Buster is home, oh I just can't wait!

I hope you all have a fabulous hump day, I know I am already!  Love from 6119!

Tuesday, December 13, 2011

Hello everyone, sorry for the late blog post.  I've been feeling bad today, my teeth and jaw are killing me.  I do grind my teeth, which sucks and is super annoying not to mention the damage it causes to my teeth, my dentist says someday I'll grind them all away!  Anyway I called my Dr. and spoke to Anastasia (my nurse), I told her how I felt and she had no idea why I would feel this way and as long as I'm not bleeding I'm doing okay.  I have to say it is nice to have such an accessible nurse who I know and trust, I really do love my Dr. and all the office staff.

Yesterday, I received two bags of platelets, so I was at Blumenthal from 8:30 to about 1:45.  Not as bad as all day and it went by pretty fast.  I used the time to color, I've been making little cards with birds on them.  They are full of color and I'm going to make a sort of mosaic out of them.  It's been fun making them and people seem to like them so I think my overall project will look pretty good.  My buddy Norm also received two bags of platelets, it's nice to have him as company everyone laughs at us cause we are on the same schedule.

Just four days left until we have Buster home with us!  I seriously cannot wait, we are going to have so much fun with him and I know he will add so much joy to our home.  Eric is equally excited for Buster which is awesome, we can't wait to have our puppy, our baby!

Well that's all for now, I hope today finds you all well.  Peace out from 6119.  

Monday, December 12, 2011

I'm back at the Blumenthal Cancer center, this time I'm enjoying a caramel brule latte.  I'm just waiting for the results on my blood counts.  Hopefully, I won't have to be here all day again but if I do I brought lots of goodies to keep me busy.  This week will be a good one, on Thursday I go to Duke for my transplant consultation and then Saturday we go get Buster!  Plus, the breeder sent us new pictures, he's growing so fast!  She says he loves to be near his mama, hopefully he'll be able to transfer that feeling to me.  I just can't wait until he is home with us.  Buster will make our family complete.

We had a good weekend, the house is now decorated and clean.  We were able to relax and enjoy each other.    Although, I am going a bit stir crazy being stuck at home, at least I can go in the car, just to be able to go somewhere.  Eric and I are both addicted to Bejeweled, it took us long enough to get hooked, we now play both on the computer and our phones.  It's amazing how that game can suck you in for hours of mindless fun. I just found out that I don't need blood, yay!  Still waiting to find out if I need platelets which only take 30 minutes so I know I won't be here all day again!  My white blood cells are at .5, which is down from Friday, that doesn't make me happy.  They are supposed to be growing, oh well hopefully this is the lowest my count will go.

Well, I guess I brought all my stuff for nothing!  I'm just so happy that I'll get to go home!  Hope you enjoy the new pictures of Buster.  Have a great Monday!  Love from the Blumenthal Center!

Sunday December 11, 2011

Happy Sunday everyone, I hope this day of rest is all it's cracked up to be for you.  We don't have much going on here, just planning on watching some football later.  It's sunny out so if it's not too cold I may go out for a walk, don't worry Mom I'll make sure I bundle up.  It's so exciting to think that next weekend our little Buster will be home!  I keep imagining him running around the house, he's going to keep me busy and I can't wait!

We were planning on going to church this morning but that's not possible with my low white blood cells.  Tomorrow, I'll get my counts checked again so hopefully it's moved up from .7.  It seems like it took a long time to get my counts up when I was in the hospital, I'm hoping it won't be that long this go round.  Although in the hospital they eventually had to give me a shot in the stomach every day until my counts jumped so hopefully I'll be alright without the shot.   

Well not much else to say here, I hope all have a great day.  Love from 6119.

Saturday, December 10, 2011

Ah Saturday, my favorite day of the weekend.  We went out to get Dunkin Donuts this morning and then we went on a drive, out in the country.  We also made a stop at Bob & Linda's card shop but I stayed in the car since I can't go anywhere.

Of course, I did have a moment this morning that was not so good, I sneezed twice both times with donut in my mouth which sprayed all over the car.  For those of you who don't know Eric's car is his baby and today I blew snot and donut all over his sanctuary.  Yikes and gross, sorry if this is too much information.  Needless to say Eric was NOT pleased.  So when we got home the first thing we did was clean the Cadillac, now it is spotless and "pristine" as Eric likes to say.  What a mess, it was horrible I couldn't stop the sneezes and I didn't get to enjoy my donut and coffee!  Oh well, the truth is when we stopped to get napkins, as Eric left the car I busted out laughing since it was kind of funny, after the fact.

Anyway, yesterday I spent my whole day at the Blumenthal Cancer center, I got there at 8:30 and left at 4:45.  Crazy huh?  It takes two hours per bag of blood plus a half hour for each bag of platelets add that to the hour it takes to match your blood type and you have a long day.  At least I brought lots of stuff to keep me amused and it was a plus that A&E was running a Criminal Minds marathon, love that show!  All in all it wasn't a bad day but it's a long day, which I'll have to do that three days a week!  Hopefully, each time I won't have to have as much blood, it just all depends on my blood counts.  Anyway, this is the life of a cancer patient waiting for a transplant.

Please pray for my white blood cells to come back, I need to be at 6 to be out and about again and right now I'm at .7, I have a long way to go.  Thanks for your prayers and support it means the world and helps me to stay positive.

When I came back from Blumenthal Eric had put up the Christmas tree, that made me happy.  There's just something nice about coming home to a Christmas tree in the front window.  I can't believe it's almost here and soon enough our Christmas present, Buster, will be here!  Today we will decorate the tree while listening to Christmas music!  I just got A Very She & Him Christmas, and it's awesome lots of great classics.  I'm in love with Zoe Deschanel or (however you spell it) and I want her hair, it's beautiful.  Anyway, I have a great day ahead of me and I hope you do too.  Enjoy the weekend!

Love from 6119.

Friday, December 9, 2011

Today, I'm writing from the Blumenthal Cancer center at CMC. It's bigger than the Infusion room at my Dr.'s office but about the same.  Norm is here too, we are both enjoying our lazy boys while we wait for our blood results to come back.  It takes an hour and half to get my blood typed and crossed, which is what they do to select my blood donor.  It will take a half an hour to determine if I need any blood products.  They gave me a nice little red bracelet with my blood number on it which is good until Monday.  I have to come back Monday, starting my three days a week routine.  

I remember when Dr. Miller told me this whole process would go on for 6-8 months and that I wouldn't be able to work, now I understand why.  No job would allow me to take off three days a week for treatment and then there's the risk of infection.  Working with children is definitely out of the question.  So I will enjoy this time since I can't imagine another time when I will be not allowed to work.  Thankfully, Eric is able to support us I can't imagine what we would do if he couldn't.  Now covering the hospital bills is another issue, our insurance is good but it doesn't cover everything.  Given that a month long hospital stay costs over $100,000, I can't imagine what we would do without insurance!

It's finally cold in Charlotte, I'm enjoying wearing warm sweaters and it's starting to feel like Christmas.  We haven't put up the tree yet but the Christmas village is up and we will have the tree up by the weekend. First, we plan on doing a super cleaning of the house so we can prep for Buster coming home.  I cannot wait until December 17th!  Of course, we still need to pick up a few things to puppy proof the house.  We've decided to keep Buster downstairs so we will be putting in some baby gates and we still need a crate and some more chew toys.

Yesterday, I had a moment when I forgot I was bald.  I received a coupon for extra bonus points if I get a haircut and color at the local Ulta store. I thought oh a haircut and color would be nice and then I remembered I have no hair!  Ha!  I still get random compliments from people about my head a nurse asked me today if she could touch it, it seems I pull off bald well.  Which is nice since it looks like I'll be bald for a little while.  My hair is definitely not growing and is still falling out a little.

Well I guess that's it for today, I hope you all have a fantastic Friday!  Love from Blumenthal!

Thursday, December 7, 2011

I slept in this morning which was very nice.  It's wonderful when you get to wake up on your own time, especially when the sunlight is shining in as if to say, wake up and enjoy the day!  Spoiled, I know but I plan on enjoying every second of this time, it's one of the good things that comes from having cancer.  Besides "I have cancer", is my favorite excuse for everything I do now, it's the ultimate trump card for getting what I want.  Eric just laughs and says "Well you don't have it any more since your in remission." but the excuse still works.  

Yesterday, I had a moment when I couldn't breathe very well, my chest and throat felt like they were restricting.  I definitely had labored breathing but eventually it passed, it was just scary for a bit.  Poor Eric, he didn't know what to do, neither did I.  Thankfully, it has not happened again and I'm feeling good today.  Tomorrow, I go for my blood checks and I'll find out what my counts are, I'm hoping my white count comes up so I can venture out in to the world again.  It's weird to not be able to run to the store and I want to see a movie, "My Week with Marilyn" looks good and I love Michelle Williams.

Anyway, happy Thursday everyone, hopefully you have had a good week and are making plans to enjoy the weekend.  Love to you all from 6119.

Wednesday December 7, 2011

Happy Wednesday everyone, I hope your day is going well.  Sorry for the late posting as Eric is telling me, I'm slacking on the job!  Yesterday, I received a nice packet from Duke Medicine, giving a nice overview of the transplant program and what I can expect from the whole procedure. I have my initial consultation on Thursday December 14th. This is when they will test my marrow, and start the search for a donor.  They will explain the transplant procedure and we will plan when the actual transplant will happen.  They said the appointment could take 5 hours, so bring something to entertain myself while waiting.

I want to give a huge thank you to Tech Data, specially to Melissa Lang who informed Eric of their company's blood and marrow donor drive which is going on today.  Melissa let Eric know of the event and he in turn asked everyone he knew to get swabbed for the marrow database.  So thank you to all of you who did, I appreciate you adding to the national database, who knows maybe one of you will be my match!

Other than that I'm just counting the days until we get Buster, I seriously cannot wait to have him home with us!  I have his picture framed in the living room and another on the fridge, and I love getting more pictures from the breeder so I can watch him grow.  I'm already a puppy mom and he's not even here yet!

Hope you all have a good hump day!  Love from 6119.

Tuesday December 6, 2011

It's a rainy day here in Charlotte but it's still nice to be out of the hospital.  Today, I'll have a visit from my home nurse to get my dressing changed and have new ports put on my hickman.  Other than that it will be a quiet day.  I'm not allowed to leave the house, I can't be around people who might get me sick so I'm home bound.  Once I go in Friday to have my blood counts checked I'll find out if I can go out in the world again.  Until then I have plenty to do to keep me busy.  Like decorate for Christmas!  I'm also finally working on putting our wedding album together, you would think after three years I would have done this already but no, I am a procrastinator.  It's fun going through the pictures again, they take me back to that amazing day with family and friends.  Thanks to my good friend, Matt Morrissey, I have beautiful pictures of the whole day!

I'm feeling pretty good today, they told me this week may be a hard one, that I should feel the full effects of the chemo but I don't feel that different and my chemo rash went away, so once again I'm fortunate.   Yesterday, I was really tired and felt a little bad in the afternoon but nothing I can't handle.  I took a super long nap in my bed which was fabulous!

Well that's all for today, I love you all.  Peace out from 6119.

Monday December 5, 2011

Oh happy day, I'm back home already!  I was afraid it would take longer to get checked out of the hospital but we just walked into the house and it feels so good to be home.  I don't know if it's just being home but I don't feel as bad as I did in the hospital.  My last chemo bag ended at midnight and then they gave me a shot in the stomach this morning to help boost my white blood cells.  The shot might make me feel like I have the flu but it's worth the trouble.  Friday, I will go in for my first visit to the Bloomenthall Cancer center, I'll have to go there three times a week to have my blood counts checked and to receive blood or platelets as needed.  My buddy Norm will also be there Friday so it will be good to see him again.  It turns out he has a 10 year old boxer, we plan on getting the dogs together once we are healthy enough.  That's the funny thing about all of this, we've been fortunate to meet some really good people in a town where we had few friends to begin with.  I guess it just goes to show you, there's always some good that comes from the bad things that happen to us.

It was funny being back to the hospital, back to the "Quad in 4Tower" as they call it.  I had a smaller room this time but I was lucky to still have a view.  Plus, knowing all the nurses and staff was a bonus and everyone remembered me.  Everyone told me how I looked beautiful even with out hair and they couldn't believe how good I looked given the leukemia.  It makes you feel good when people remember you and compliment you, it's how friendship begins too.  It turns out I'm a very easy patient so all the nurses wanted to have me.  One nurses aid told me I don't look or act like a patient and that's what she liked about me.  My positive attitude has done me well, it's helped me fly through this disease and treatment, right into remission which is where we will work on keeping me.  Once I have my transplant I'll be good to go once and for all.  

I want to say, though belated,"Happy Birthday Nathan!", who is my wonderful nephew who turned 6 on Saturday.  We love you, sorry for the delayed shout out! We miss him along with his brother and sisters Timmy, Stephanie and Sarah in Buffalo, NY.    

Thank you to the Peterson's, Patti, Kirk, Alex and Eric, who have been family friends all my life, well really they are family.  They sent us a beautiful Boxer calendar, which is full of cute Boxer puppies, some just like Buster!  Speaking of Buster, I have posted new pics from the breeder, he's growing!  Thank you for the cards of encouragement they make me feel great, it means a lot to be reminded that I'm not alone!  

That's all I have for today, I'm going to relax and enjoy being home.  

Love to you all from 6119!

Sunday December 4, 2011

Today is going better than yesterday, I'm on my second to last bag of chemo now.  Unfortunately, I received the news this morning that Tucker is not a match for the bone marrow transplant.  While Tucker and I are super bummed, Dr. Miller doesn't think it will be hard to find a match for me in the national database.  So I'm going to trust him and not worry about finding a donor.  Now, the next step is to have my initial appointment at Duke where they will retest Tucker and begin the search for a donor.  Hopefully, Dr. Miller's nurse has already set up the appointment for the week before Christmas, I'll find out tomorrow.

I'm looking forward to going home tomorrow and Dr. Miller says it should be in the morning so hopefully I'll be home by lunch.  Now I'm going to attempt to beat Eric at gin rummy while we wait for the football games to start.  Hope you all have a great Sunday and get a chance to relax before starting the new week.

Love from room 4908.

Saturday December 3, 2011

Today was a hard day, my nausea has bothered me all day and I spent the majority of the day in bed.  My chemo rash has started, this time on my feet and legs, I had no energy and hardly left my room.  Eric golfed today so he came up for dinner, the only thing I could get down was some cornbread and chicken noodle soup.  At least tomorrow is my last full day here, although I've been trying to convince Eric to help me with a jail break, I figure there's at least two hours between nurse checks so no one would notice.  Eric is being responsible and telling me not to think about it and besides I get released Monday.  I'm just ready to go home.

Even though I feel so bad I'm staying positive and know this treatment is what will keep me in remission.  It's hard to think that two months ago I could have died but that's what makes remission so important, that word represents hope and keeps me going every day.

Love to you all from room 4908.

Friday December 2, 2011

Happy Friday everyone!  I am back on my chemo today, I'll have one bag this morning and one tonight.  I thought my off day would be boring but I slept all day and night, I forgot how exhausting chemo can be.  Luckily, I was not sick, my buddy Norm (who is also being treated for Leukemia) was puking all day yesterday, I've been lucky to just have nausea.

We received more information on my bone marrow transplant.  Originally, we thought the transplant would be over Christmas but we learned today that I will have my initial appointment at Duke the week before Christmas.  The initial appointment is to take my blood test and explain the procedure, if Tucker is not a marrow match they will begin the search using the marrow database.  I won't have the actual transplant until 2012.  This means I'll be home to celebrate Buster's first Christmas, which I'm looking forward to.

After I am released Monday, I will go in once a week to have my blood checked to determine if I need blood transfusions or platelets.  Based on my blood counts I may have to have another round of consolidation chemo just to make sure I don't relapse.  Since my genetic mutation makes relapse more common and difficult to treat, Dr. Miller will be aggressive with the chemo treatments.  If I did not need the transplant I would be having chemo once a month for the next 6 months or until my tests consistently come back clean.

That's all I've got for today, I hope you all have a great Friday!  Love from room 4908.

Thursday December 1, 2011

Happy Thursday Everyone, gosh I can't believe it's December already!  I'm officially checked into the hospital now, I was lucky yesterday since my chemo ended at 12:30 and wouldn't start again until 9:30 I got to go home before officially checking in to the hospital.  I had all my stuff with me so I went ahead and checked into my room but escaped before they could tell me otherwise.  I told them Dr. Miller said I could go home and the nurses didn't like that, they said well Miller doesn't work for the hospital.  I said well if you don't like it, I'll just run away and check back in later!  The nurses agreed to look the other way, it was nice to go home and have a little rest before heading back to the hospital.  

Today I'm on my off day, I'll start chemo again tomorrow but today is kind of boring since I don't receive any treatments, they don't even draw my blood anymore.  We didn't have much to talk about when Dr. Miller stopped by, so far I'm doing well just a little nausea which is to be expected.  It's nice to see my nursing friends again and my favorite nurse Mary made sure she was the one to admit me yesterday.  Unfortunately, Mary is off now and I won't see her again while I'm here but it was nice to catch up with her.  We plan on getting together sometime when I'm out of here.  

We officially told Dr. Miller about Buster and showed him a picture.  He said oh you got a guinea pig...I said NO, he's a dog!  He had no issues with Buster, which was nice since previously he said he would have to think about it first.  I think he was flattered to know Buster's full name is Buster D. Miller, he said but you wont call him that all the time, I said only when he's in trouble and I have to pull out the full name!

There's not much else to say, I'm a little tired so I'm going to take a nap now.  Hope you all have a great day!  

Love from 4908!