#5 Almost Done...Sort of

I get to cheat this cycle. I am only doing one week so my feet and hands will be feeling reasonably good for the wedding and reception. That means I am all done this Sunday and can start the recover mode. We will decide if I will take the second week from this cycle at the end of my 8th and last cycle. I vote yes! 

One of my "bullet wounds"

It was certainly "doctor week" this week. I saw the surgeon that did my breast surgery on Monday. She will be taking care of my melanoma when the time comes. First she wanted me to see a UCSD dermatologist to make sure none of my other moles are suspicious. I did that on Wednesday and now I have 6 new holes in me! I am regretting not waiting until after the wedding for this since I now look like I have bullet holes all over me...great! Oh well, what is one to do?! I guess I will be doing my best Bonnie and Clyde impersonation...just need Clyde and I am ready to go. Between my tumor surgery, breast reduction on the other side, 2 biopsies followed by 6 more and the surgery that awaits me for the melanoma I think I have lost a pound of flesh! LOL  I DO NOT recommend this as a weight loss method! ;o)

I think this is such a lovely
look for the wedding!

Blessings

I have had so many wonderful blessings and joyous distractions. From going to NY for Cam's Broadway debut to Kendall and Christian's wedding right around the corner I have such a thankful heart! I will have all 3 kids home and under our roof this next week...doing the happy dance about that for sure! I have taken this whole next week off so I can spend some fun time with my little Kendall Roses before she becomes a wife. We are going to make it a stress free and fun week for sure! We started off by going to her final dress fitting and grabbed boba from our favorite place. 

Prayers

I humbly ask for your prayers that my other biopsies come back negative. That way I will only have the one that needs surgery. I also ask that you continue to pray that my Xeloda is doing all that it is supposed to be doing from me and that my cancer will not return. I pray for a cancer free body so that I can get back to doing His work. My heart gets so filled by being able to get out there and help others...especially my girls in Mexico!

Things That Made Me Smile

Betty and Cam on the
Neverland Stage

My dear friend Betty King has always been so supportive of my kids theater ventures. In fact she has dubbed herself Cameron's #1 fan (that is after me of course). She has seen all of his shows and even went all the way to NY to see him on the Broadway stage! She left on a redeye Friday night and returned Sunday...now that is one loyal fan! ;o) Love you Betty!

This little guy brings a smile to my face

almost every day. My friend and neighbor is a nanny to him and his sister. "Brudder," as he is fondly called, is usually out in the cul de sac ripping it up in his hot rod while sporting his flame mohawk helmet. He makes me so excited to be a grandma! 

And to all of you...you make me smile because when I think about how wonderful you are to be praying for me it makes me so happy. I thank you all from the bottom of my heart! God bless you all!

#4 = Half Way DONE!!!

Yup, tomorrow will be the end of cycle #4! I can't believe that means I am half way there! Woo-hoo! My feet are really taking a hit but it is only for about 1 week of the 3 week cycle. They feel like they are on fire and then when I step on them they feel like glass is in my shoes. At least it is only a few areas at a time. They are being nice to me by taking turns between the balls and heels at least! They are starting to peel on the bottom and my hands have decided to join the party! The knuckles on my hands (on the palm sides) are also peeling a bit but do not get the pain my feet do...then again I don't walk around on them! LOL

There has been sooooooo much going on in life lately. Let's get the crappy part out of the way first and then I can end on a happy note or two!

The Crappy Part

So I am a good girl and try to go in once a year to get my skin checked. That time rolled around right before we left for NY and you have probably guessed by now that I didn't get the best news...and to top off the crappy news it came at a VERY crappy time! (Never a dull moment for this girl)

We were just leaving our hotel room to meet our whole group for dinner followed by Cam's Broadway debut when my phone rang. Only Kendall knew I was expecting the call so we told everyone to go ahead and we'd catch up. Well...I have a melanoma but it is only at the "in situ" stage which for bad news is actually good news. It was a very small dark mole/freckle on my left upper arm I had noticed and pointed out to the doctor. She didn't even think it was anything but took a biopsy anyway. Glad she did! I am going to have the surgeon from UCSD, that did my other surgery, take care of it and will have a consultation a week from Monday. It looks like we can wait until after the wedding so that is good since the sleeve on my dress for the wedding is higher than where the scar would be and that's my good side for photos so we just can't have that! ;o) I am going to go to another dermatologist to have someone else double check the rest of me to make sure we didn't miss anything. I am not sure that the method of having pieces taken out of oneself is a good way to lose weight! Argh! Oh well, what's a girl to do...just a bump in the road!

Watching Cam sign autographs
was WAY cool! 

Okay...Now the Good and Happy Stuff!

Cameron surrounded by love, pride
and support!

So as all of you friends from Facebook or Instagram know, we all went to NY to be there for Cameron's debut on Broadway. We had 11 family members all fly in from various parts of the States to be there for his big moment! He is the understudy to the lead and has many very nice roles as a featured ensemble in Finding Neverland. It is the story of JM Barrie, the man who wrote Peter Pan. It is such a beautiful show with humor, great songs and dancing and is very touching. In fact it was extremely touching for a particular mother and daughter sitting in the audience that just got the melanoma news! We both bawled our eyes out at the end and Kendall actually had a hard time talking for awhile. I absolutely LOVED this show and it will be coming out on it's first National Tour in October. It will come to San Diego late Spring! 

Me pointing to Cam's name
on the cast list

It started out as a wet July 4th
but 3 garbage bags later it didn't
stop us!

More Happy Stuff...Don't You Just LOVE Happy Stuff!!

Two other great things. First of all my lovely niece Jennifer (my brother John's daughter) is here with her son Jackson from Colorado. It is such a treat to have them around and fill my house with joy! My other lovely nieces (I have the best ones in the world!) brought their kiddos over as well and we had a "cousin celebration" in our backyard! There is nothing better than watching a bunch of kids all splash around in the pool and enjoy each other. Even Kendall got in on the act and brought the 3 kids she was watching over the weekend. We ended up with 8 kids all together. I was doing the happy dance just having them all here!

Of course the next happy thing is of course, Kendall and Christian's wedding is less than 3 weeks away!!!  They are both gone this weekend on their bachelorette and bachelor parties. The girls are in Palm Springs and the boys are in Newport Beach. We moved Christian into the apartment they will be living in after the wedding. It is in Hillcrest and is small but adorable! Its actually a little duplex so no noisy neighbors above or below to deal with. We've been having Kendall's dress fittings and she is going to be such a beautiful bride. I can't believe my baby girl is going to be a wife soon! She and Christian are such a great couple with such a strong conviction to the sacrament of marriage. Can't wait for the Big Day!

Blessings and Prayers

Well, I think the above happy stuff covers the blessings portion pretty well. Of course it is the peace that my faith brings me that let's me deal with these hurdles. I am so thankful for that and for the gifts I receive each and every day! I try to keep my eyes open to them so I can see them all. Some are obvious like having loved ones around or having exciting things happen in life. Other are more subtle and are there everyday but we are too busy to see or hear them. The singing of a bird always touches my heart, seeing adorable babies, hearing the garage door or front door open and knowing Joe is home, and being surrounded with loving women at work. I am trying harder and harder to really enjoy each and every minute of each and every day. Not only to enjoy but to be thankful for it all. I am working on less complaining and more thankfulness. When people ask how I am, I like to say GREAT! Do you notice how many people answer "okay" when asked how they are. I want to say, "Really, just okay? I think if you really think about it I bet you are actually GREAT!" I know I am!!!  

I ask for your continued prayers...I couldn't be here typing this without them! You are all powerful prayer warriors for sure and I love and appreciate you all! Thank you from the bottom of my heart! Please pray that my side effects do not get any worse and please pray especially that the chemo is doing what it is supposed to be doing and killing any possible unwanted cells in my body! I too will pray for each of you. 

Now go out there and find things to be thankful for y'all! Life is a blessing!!

I wake up with my hair like this every morning!
Bekie at work said I look like Wolverine! LOL