2- Dos Mas!!!!

And only a week and half left of Taxol!!!  So pumped!  I'm a little excited to get going on the AC. The sooner that starts, the sooner I'll get done with all this and I'll never look back!!

Chemo went fine and I having to us an IV wasn't so bad. (see below why I used an IV and not my port). It definitely has become a routine. I just get in a room, open the blinds, get comfortable, find something on TV to have on, but not really watch and just hunker down waiting for the drip to begin.
Oh, the best part about today...I had 2 warm blankets, my normal 'chemo' blanket AND, the snack station had hot chocolate!!!  Made my day! And even better, Rob made it! It was the best (shhh, don't tell him)!! It's always cold in the rooms and the chairs are vinyl so not warm at all!  Other than that chemo was just fine and on with our day we went!!

Like I've said before, sitting around makes you think more. Before Cancer, I knew life could change at any moment, I thought about it and really tried to take it all in and enjoy life. However, until you have something life changing happen to you, you really don't understand or feel how quick it all can change. I really am trying not to let the little things bother me. I know I have control of my life and the kids, etc. But do I really? Or does God? I know if he leads me to a path, I need to open my eyes and see it for what it is. I can't ignore the signs. Do you ever ignore the signs? Do you see the every day miracles? The near miss of a car accident, the urge to pick up the phone and call someone? And just now, as I'm typing. Something urged me to get up and check Nathan's backpack for a book he needs to finish for a report due next Wed., sure enough he forgot it at school. Thankfully, it's early, the teachers are still there, and we live 2 min. away and his teacher met me in the lobby with it! Why do we ignore these signs? Why do we ignore God tugging at our sleeves? We all need to take time to sit, relax, enjoy each other and maybe even have each person name something they are thankful for, something God gave us that day! Maybe I'm losing a little A and becoming more just Type A, not AA. I'll  never lose both A's, I like it! I'll never go to the other side and don't really want to! No offense to you Type B-You rock it and are good at it, it's just not me! ;)

I wouldn't say this week has been rough, but different than most!  Apparently doing toe push-ups and a ton of arm movement exercises isn't what my body liked last week (I accidentally went straight into a toe pushup without thinking-and then realized I could do them, so I proceeded along).  I thought boot camp had been going well, but Thursday (a week ago) workout (which felt fine at the time) told my body different come Saturday morning. I woke up in a lot of pain, on my left side only. The side where the cancer was, the side without lymph nodes. By Saturday afternoon, my left side had swollen, noticeably, and by Sunday morning I was really irritated. UGH!!! Come Monday it was better, but still lop sided. I went to boot camp Tuesday and really cut back on what I had been doing. By Wednesday the swelling was still obvious and painful. I decided to call Dr. Gordley and got an appointment early Thursday am. Dr. Gordley didn't say much, had no real explanation why the swelling was there or that I should or shouldn't be doing what I was doing. However, he drained almost 70cc (almost 3oz) of fluid!!!  Yes, that was an entire cup size on one side!! I left his office feeling much better and just dealing with muscle soreness now.  Sure enough, I woke up Friday and felt like a balloon about to burst! My left side is still swollen and sore.
Thursday was also my 3 week check up with Dr. Nelson. After seeing Dr. Gordley I went to St. Lukes to give blood and I really don't like this one lady that draws it. I don't always get her, but have had her the most. She's the same one who way back when poked around so much I had bruises up and down my arm. Last week she drew from the side vein in my arm and today, thankfully stuck me in the normal spot, although she shoved the needle so far in I could barely see it on the outside of my arm.  UGH, UGH!
On to Dr. Nelson's office. Long story short, everything looks good. My blood work actually peeked, not like a normal person, but everything was higher today than in each of the past 3 weeks. (Maybe it's because I've been adding fresh spinach and watercress to my blended fruit drinks every day-we'll see if that holds true for the next 3 weeks!) He said it's good because I'm 3 weeks away from starting AC and the stronger I am going in, the better!  I then showed him my port. It started irritating me Wednesday and was noticeably red. I can feel the muscles pulling and just not comfortable. And I think the location is bad, bra straps, tank top straps, etc. rub right over it.  He said it is irritated and there's a risk for infection. UGH, UGH, UGH!!! He told me not use the port for chemo tomorrow, use an IV. I had to cover it with gauze and hopefully by Friday it'll be better. The last thing I want is an infection or worse, have to have it removed and another one put it-or chemo via an IV from here on out!!

Side effects are still minimal. Hot flashes are common, but not too often. Food doesn't taste great, some things taste fine, but not everything-mostly restaurants have a bland taste. And I crave nothing, maybe soup and that's about it. However, the scale shows I'm eating just fine! Still get a little blurry eyes the day of and a few days after chemo. I get bloody noses, but only when I blow my nose-which is often because of the dryness and cold. Probably has something to do with the new cells not regenerating fast enough because of the chemo. I am very thankful for it all, because it could be way worse!

Other than that I have to say I CANNOT STAND THE COLD!!!  Brrrrrrrrrr.  Not only is my head cold, my neck is too! I didn't like the winter before and having little to no hair makes it that much worse. This Winter is going to be a true test to my mental state as a Southern girl who likes the heat and humidity!!!  I will be more than ready for the hot sun and then I'll have to deal with my head getting sun burned!!  ha ha!!  Oh the joys of cancer!