Aww...

I love this pic. Mikey loves my bald head .. he rubs it all the time.  How cute is he?? ♥

Treatment 2

Treatment number 2 has come and gone. I think I am doing ok. Thursday went smoothly. No reaction this time. They are giving me oral Benedryl. I had my shot on Friday - no issues.

I have a little pattern developing.  Seems the Sunday after my treatment seems to be my worst day so far. This Sunday like last time I had horrible waves of nausea.  But the pills help right away. 

Still no side effects such as mouth sores or skin issues.  I'm just tired. 

Nothing like a wool cap in 90 Degree Heat!

Well here is the wig ...

BUT..... I just can't wear it.  It's itchy and feels like I am wearing a wool cap.  It's just too uncomfortable.  God bless the gals that can do it .. but I have decided to go with the Pirate look.  I'm now the proud owner of a dozen colorful bandanas. 

I had a talk with myself wondering why I was torturing myself with a wig.  Who was it for.  I really think I was wearing it for others benefit.  I didn't want to make others uncomfortable.  How stupid is that?

If I ever had a right to completely focused on me and my comfort level now would be the time.  So I stuck the wig up on a stand on my closet and learned how to tie a bandana on my head so it wouldn't blow off.   Thank you to all the Bikers our there ... your dew rag instructions rock!

This is what I look like on a daily basis now.

here are a few more silly shots -  I have to have a sense of humor about all this or I will just curl up in bed in the fetal position and not come out until it's all over.

My lovely turban lol 






Styling in a big hat:





Look out Norma .. I'm ready for my close-up too!!

It's Gone ...

Hair today ... Gone tomorrow ...

After grocery shopping today and having wind literally blow gobs of hair out of my head while driving - I had my sister get out the clippers. 

It's been 2 weeks to the day and right on schedule it started falling out in gobs.   I had to shave it ... I just couldn't bear seeing it clumped in my brush or on my shoulders.  It was falling out so fast I wouldn't have been able to even cook dinner.  I didn't want to get hair all over everything so I took matters into my own hands.   Or put it in my sisters I guess lol 

The pics aren't too great.  The lighting was bad but Miss Alex did a pretty good job.  










Here lies my hair ... it lived a good life ... One day it shall rise again!

4th of July Rib Recipe

This works great for pulled pork or just for Ribs ... they were so tender they nearly melted in my mouth :D 

4 cups apple cider vinegar
2 cups dark brown sugar
2 tablespoons peppercorns
1 tablespoon sea salt
1 teaspoon mustard powder
whole pork shoulder (~14 pounds)

Combine all the dry ingredients in a blender or food processor and process until a fine powder.

Add the cider vinegar and process again until mixed.

Rinse the pork and place fat-side-up in a large pan. Pour the sauce over.

Cover tightly with foil, and place in a 250°F oven for at least 7 hours.

Remove the foil and check the internal temperature. Return to the oven until it is 190°F.

Put under the broiler to crisp the fat on top.

Pour off and reserve the liquid. Separate the grease out and discard.

Remove the fat layer and pull the rest of the pork apart with forks or tongs.

Pour the de-fatted liquid back in.

I put it in the oven at 8 am this morning and pulled it out at 3:30

My only variations .. I didn't have mustard powder .. but I added a few glugs of Worcestershire sauce and a few splashes of Hot Sauce and cut up two big onions as well.  When I pulled it out I removed the ribs from the juice and placed them on a baking sheet - covered them with Sweet Baby Rays bbq sauce and then baked them for another 30 minutes 350 to set the sauce.

Mmmmmm.....

My niece Rachel made these for me for my Birthday.  YUM!!!

 She made these delicious little morsels for my birthday. They were so tasty and so colorful. I think they are just beautiful. She did an amazing job. Even with the blazing sun trying to kiss the frosting off them they still looked amazing ♥

Happy Birthday To Me

I am 46 years old today .... 220 pounds lighter than last year and going through Chemo .... what a life eh?

It has been quite a ride for the past two years.  No one can say I lead a dull life.

First Chemo Treatment

I am just going to copy this from a forum I posted on .. I'm too tired to write it all out again lol ... forgive me.

I'm home ... finally ... I knew the first day was going to be long but holy schmoly!

I had 3 hours of consultation with the team and had to watch a video .... get an EKG or EEG I guess they call it now... had to have a series of blood work and then Chemo finally started about 11:30  That lasted till 4:30.   My sister had to leave to take my brother in law to work so she didn't get back to the hosp until 5:15 so I just hung out watching TV lol

It wasn't too bad ... I can say that now because it takes a few days for the bad stuff to start if it does start.  The only sure things is I will be very very tired and I will loose my hair .. all the other symptoms may or may not happen depending on how my body handles it.

I had a bit of a reaction to straight Benedryl to the blood stream ...my hands and feet started twitching .. that was a site lol.   So then came a shot of Adavan and I was out like a light .. I slept through the whole thing.  They woke me up when it was over.

And yes the Port was awesome.  It was a pretty damn good pinching feeling when the hook needle went in .. but then it was over and didn't hurt through the entire procedure.

I went out so fast I forgot to tell my sis to take a pic of the rigging - I will next time

Now I have to be back tomorrow morning for a Nulasta shot .. that will help keep my white blood cell count up. 

Then I have to have blood tests called NADIR's every thursday through out this treament series so they can keep a close eye on my levels.  The biggest worries are infection and anemia.  Either can drop to fatal levels in a heartbeat .... that was a comforting thought.

But I have my Germ X right beside me and and a purse full of masks ... I will look like Jacko back in the glory days :D

So that's the scoop! ♥

Wig Fitting

I had a wig fitting today at GFH.  It was quite a relief to know that they donate the wig.  They are an all encompassing Cancer Center and gift all initial wigs so you don't have to worry about having no hair.  That came as quite a relief since all wigs I have seen are 75 - 300 dollars depending on what you want and length.   I thought I might have to break out the straw wig from Halloween lol!

The Gal that helped me was very friendly and helpful.  I found a style that isn't too bad.  I thought I would have to wait 2 weeks for it but she let me take it then and there.  She also gave me a few turbans.  Not sure if I will wear them.  I'm not really a turban type gal. 





I have to thank my sister who made the calls and figured this all out for me.  I haven't been dealing so well with everything and the day is looming closer and closer.  So she made a few calls and told me to be ready to go first thing in the morning lol .... she loves me ♥

The Steri Strips are off

The steri strips came off the port itself but they are still stuck pretty good to the vein incision.  It looks like a bottle cap got stuck under my skin.  You can see the bruising below my tattoo ... but a lot of the swelling has gone down and I can move my head around fairly well again.