The Adventures of Recovering

Here's a picture of me coming out of the hospital on Tuesday morning. I personally think it should be illegal for someone to look this great 24 hours after surgery. I can't believe that my hair survived laying in that hospital bed! I didn't even brush it!! I wish it looked that good now! I'm hoping that I can get it washed and have Victoria do it for me today. I'm so tired of looking like a bedhead!

Tuesday evening Sam came up to me and showed me a little bump on the back of his head that "doesn't belong there." I looked at it and really didn't think anything of it. I put a little Neosporin on it and sent him on his way. Then a few minutes later he was back by me. I think he was wanting to be close and needing a little mommy time and attention. I put my hand right on his back and rubbed it. I immediately said that someone needed to turn on the lights because I thought Sam might have the chicken pox, and sure enough... by the next morning he was covered. Really he's done super well, and I'm pretty sure he'll be back to school tomorrow.

Then, I was lamenting the fact that Emilee hadn't had the chicken pox and two weeks later we'd be doing it all over again. Well, by Thursday night she was starting to break out too! I'm so perplexed as to where they got them. I haven't heard of anyone with them, so I can't figure out where they were both exposed to them at the same time.

Poor Emilee is pretty miserable right now! She's "wanted" chicken pox anytime she's heard about someone having them, but now she's decided that she could have passed on this experience. I'm so grateful that this happened now...I can't imagine how hard it would have been if I was going through chemo. I wouldn't have been able to be around them.

I'm doing pretty well though. I continue to feel stronger every day. I haven't taken a pain pill since Friday, and even then I only took 1/2 or 1 each day after my surgery. I take Tylenol a couple of times a day since that seems to do more for me than Motrin.

Tomorrow I meet with the radiologist and the oncologist. I'm very anxious to hear what they say since we know everything about the tumors and my lymph nodes now. There are no more ifs or maybes. I will post when I know and I'm up to it. Tomorrow will be a real test of my endurance. It will probably wear me out to be up and about.

Thursday I see Dr Moline and hopefully get my drains out. Can I say I really HATE my drains!?! They are the worst part of this whole thing! They both have very little fluid so I'm hopeful that she will take them out. When my drains are gone I think I'm healed up enough to wear a regular bra again so I can start wearing normal clothes and feeling normal again. Oh, and I'll get to shower again. Then I'll be able to do my hair and look and feel (and smell) normal again!!

Thank you for all of the votes for our video! I'm pretty sure as long as no one else enters in the next week and a half we will win!! So keep on voting!

Happy Birthday to an AMAZING Man!!

First off, Happy Birthday to my wonderful husband! I feel so sorry that he has a grouchy wife today. I warned my kids that Mom is feeling well enough to be really grouchy so they'd better do what they're supposed to! I've been a great arm chair quarter-back today. I've ordered everyone around and noticed every little thing out of place. My poor husband has worked since he walked in the door tonight...so much for a wonderful, relaxing day today!

At least for his Birthday we got a great call from Dr Moline. We couldn't find the phone in time so we had to settle for a message that said that the pathology reports were in hot off the press so drum roll please...negative lymph nodes, (HUGE APPLAUSE) negative margins, (EVEN BIGGER APPLAUSE) so no surprises at all. Just what we already knew from the biopsies and other tests. I do want to ask about the exact size of the tumors, but that will have to wait until tomorrow when I call to ask when I can get these stupid drains out. There wouldn't be much pain at all if I didn't have them so I'm very anxious to get them out and to be able to take a shower!!

As for right now. I don't need any pain meds as long as I don't move so I'm staying very still and have only had to have 1 pain pill today. I'm feeling like I will survive!! Thank you for your prayers and support. They mean more than I can ever express. Tonight I'll sleep really well knowing that I truly am cancer free!!

Vote for Our Video

Here is the link to the video we posted for the Early Detection video contest. Please go and vote for us!

http://kxly.upickem.net/engine/Details.aspx?p=A&c=18323&s=5361070%i=1

The Big Day

We arrived at the hospital at 6:30 this morning for Rebecca's 8:00 am scheduled surgery. We were hoping to avoid the type of craziness we experienced yesterday when we went for her pre-opp nuclear injection. Yesterday's supposed 30 minute visit turned into a 3 hour bore-fest. Even though it was not what we were hoping for yesterday everything eventually got taken care of and we were no worse for the wear.

They took Rebecca back a little after 8:00 am to do her pre-opp preparations. Of course she was raving about the beautiful sky blue head dressing she got to wear. I didn't feel to bad for her though - at least she has hair to keep at of the way. After about half an hour they were ready to wheel her back to the O.R. The anesthesiologist came and gave her a nice "cocktail" and before she knew it she was out.

About 10:30 the doctor came out and told me that the surgery was over and Rebecca was in post-opp recovery. She said that everything went well and that the lymph nodes they removed all looked normal to her, though they wouldn't be sure until after the lab had a chance to study them under a microscope.

After about another hour they wheeled her out and up to her room. It's kind of funny because the floor we're on is the same one where all of our girls were born. Those trips to the 9th floor of Sacred Heart were a little bit more exciting.

She's doing fine and enjoying the opportunity to rest as much as she pleases. Thank you for all your thoughts and heart-felt prayers. They have meant a lot to us.

Almost Ready...

I think I'm about ready! I've shopped, baked, canned and cleaned to get everything ready for my family for the next few weeks. Here are some pictures to show my work:

All I have left to do is cut Jed's hair, make one more bed, vacuum, and wrap Scott's Birthday presents. YEAH!! I wasn't sure sometimes if I'd get my whole list done. The house is clean and the freezers are...well, let's just say they're stuffed! Here's the proof of a couple of the freezers. I didn't want to bore everyone with all of them.

I think they'll be fed for a while. They are bringing meals for the next 2 weeks so this food will last for a couple of months! Off to get my last couple of things done. I'll be picking Lee up in about 4 1/2 hours. I should have a nice, relaxing Sunday before it all happens on Monday!

Who says the 13th is bad!?!

Today is such a great day!! It's the second best thing that could happen to us on October 13th! (For those of you who don't know today is Sam's Birthday) I got news today that my BRCA gene testing came back negative. I do not have the BRCA gene (the gene) that causes breast, ovarian, and prostate cancer so I know that I don't have it and I didn't pass it on to my kids!

So...one big piece of the puzzle complete. Now we just keep praying for good surgery results.

Two Weeks and Counting

Today after spending the entire day in doctors' offices I finally know a little more about the direction of my treatments. Two weeks from today I will have a mastectomy. After the surgery is finished the tissue will be sent to pathology and they will determine a few things. The first is if the tumors were removed with clean margins. The next is if the tumors that are seen on the tests are several separate tumors or if they are all the same tumor with lots of branches. If they are separate then that is HUGE in determining the need for any further treatments. If the margins are clean (meaning that they removed the all of the cancer) then that will also be a HUGE piece in the decision whether or not to do more treatments. Another factor is if I'm a carrier of the BRCA gene.

The test I had done Friday (PEM) showed that there is more cancer than was previously thought in the left side, but the right side looks completely clear. Also, it shows my lymph nodes are clear. Dr Moline plans to remove my sentinel node during my surgery to biopsy to be extra sure there is not cancer there.

Today we met with the Radiologist, Dr. Lamoureax. He was wonderful and spent 2 hours with us explaining everything. He says that IF the surgery is successful with good margins and my nodes are clear AND I test negative for the BRCA gene then radiation shouldn't be necessary. I won't meet with the oncologist until after surgery, but Dr Moline says she thinks that Dr Nichols will same the same about chemo. IF everything goes just how we want I may not have any chemo at all or very little that is much weaker than most.

Scott and I felt very peaceful with our day. We are so grateful that we found Cancer Care Northwest and are feeling the blessings of early detection. We continue to pray for good surgery results and that I'm not a gene carrier. We are so grateful that Scott's wonderful mom is coming to help us during the surgery time. I will only be in the hospital for 23 hours so it's still considered "outpatient" so I will have a lot of recovery time at home.

So two weeks and counting...I have lots to do to get ready!!!

Sometimes Cancer Really Stinks!!

Today I got the results of my biopsy Friday, and yes, there is more cancer. Dr Moline said that there isn't any way to do the lumpectomy so I'm getting scheduled for a mastectomy. The scheduler called and said that they will plan to do it on October 20th. Well, I didn't like that a whole lot since that's my Birthday. She was going to try to squeeze me into the 18th, but I don't want to be waiting all day for my turn for surgery. So...she's going to talk to Dr Moline and see if we can wait for the 25th as that's Dr Moline's next available day. Also, since they haven't done any biopsies on the right they are going to hold off doing anything on that side until after the PEM test on Friday. Dr Moline said that it looks like I'm going to have to have radiation and chemo after surgery so they won't do reconstruction until later.

I get to meet with the oncologist and radiologist next week sometime to see what my treatments will be and when I get to start. Right now we are praying for good results of the PEM so that we can feel good about one more test that says that my lymph nodes are good.

Even with the results of another cancerous tumor the good news is that it is about 5x7x12 mm. It's not very big so if my lymph system is clear like they think then I still have stage 1 cancer. Today was harder than I thought it would be, but I am so grateful that it was caught so early. I told Dr Moline that my breasts have served their purpose by blessing me to nurse my 5 beautiful babies and that I haven't needed them for a while. I'm so grateful for the timing of this! I'm so grateful that my kids are big and a great help to me! I'm also grateful that today the sun is shining in my house as I work feverishly to get the things done that I need to before my surgery! I'm so grateful to live here in Spokane and have Dr Moline. She has been a huge blessing to me in this! Thank you all for your love and support to me and my family. Like I've heard said before, "There will be one less boob in the family soon!" :) (Thanks to Grandma Ginnie and her example of handling breast cancer gracefully! I know she's smiling down on us right now, and Grandma Bonnie too!)

I guess the last good thing is that I get a tummy tuck when they do my reconstructive surgery kind of as a bonus. They will use the fat in my belly and just move it up. Then, they will take away my c-section scar and make my tummy flat and beautiful. I've always dreamed of doing these surgeries. Before they were a dream. Now, it's planning when they will become a reality. :)