Surgery tomorrow!!

I feel so ready for my surgery that is tomorrow.  It seems like we've been talking about this surgery for months so I am glad the time is finally here.  Lets get the rest of this nasty cancer out of me.
I am also very anxious to find out the results of the surgery.  The surgery is when they really find out how much cancer you had and or have.  This is the time to find out the true stage that the cancer was.  Lets all pray that it is exactly like they thought it was or better.  I know that my nodes were involved and the surgery will tell us how involved.  The GREAT news though is that it is all gone from the nodes now.  The chemo did its job on those nodes.....sweet!!  They will still be able to tell where the cancer was in those nodes and they will still remove the nodes.  


Dan and I have great attitudes and we are doing really good.  We will keep you all updated.

Enjoying NO chemo and preparing for surgery now...

Hi all.  So sorry it has been a while since you have heard from me.  Danno and I have skipped town for a few days to celebrate chemo being done and also to prepare for my up coming surgery.
We actually brought Karley and her friends Kristen Nelson and Chelsey Roos toVegas with us for the first couple of days.  This was Karleys 21st birthday present.  The girls were good, we got no sleep worrying until they got home every night, but it was all good.  The girls left on Monday so it has been just Dan and I since and we have been having a great time.  A lot of sunshine. A lot of walking. A lot of time together. A little gambling.  We really are not gamblers, but we sure are sun worshipers.  Been wonderful to see some sunshine.

I have still been experiencing some really sore fingernails and toenails.  It's so weird.  I have been having some tingling in my feet. I have had a real hard time sleeping.  Insomnia really sucks!  My hair has started to come back in....woot woot.  Dan calls me fuzz head :) It sure looks white :(.  Please don't come in white and straight haha.

Now our focus is on surgery.  I am actually feeling okay about it.  I want all of this cancer out of me.  My last scans showed that all of the cancer was gone from the nodes with the chemo :).  That is really good.  The tumor in my breast was still seen but was definitely smaller. So after surgery all cancer should be gone...yea!  My mom will be with us the day of surgery and my sister is coming a few days after surgery.  That will be nice for both Dan and I. Dan can spend the night with me in the hospital.  I am happy for that.
My emotions about the whole thing have been really good so far.  Lets hope they stay that way.

Thank you everyone for all of the wonderful support I continue to get from so many of you.  Dan and I appreciate it so much!!

GREAT WEEKEND WITH GREAT FRIENDS.....

Friday evening five of my high school friends came to spend the weekend with me. It was the best time.  We laughed and laughed and laughed all weekend.  Four of us were basketball players together from the 7th grade through High School.  One was a cheerleader and one was on the dance team.  


I am so touched that they took time out of there busy schedules to come and stay with Dan and I. They came from Spokane, Bend OR, Goldendale and Seattle. 


We really have some great stories from little ole Goldendale. What a fun town it was to grow up in.  


We played a little basketball in the driveway.  Wow....we must have been in the best shape ever when we played in school cause it was hard to play now. We walked our loop out here in the country each day. We played games. We sat by the fire. We went to Doc and Anns (little divy cool tavern out here in the country) Friday night.  We talked about way back when.  It was just so much fun.  Thank you so much ladies!!

                                                              Doc & Anns

The morning fire......

The departure......boo hoo

One of the funnest, most special weekends ever!!  Thanks ladies!  I love you all.

My Last chemo :)

Friday the 13th of April, my last chemo treatment.  Whoot Whoot!!!! Very exciting day.  Everything went as planned.  I took my doctor and his staff some yummy cookies and I also gave the nurses at the infusion area cookies.  Dr. Kaplan has been such a wonderful doctor through this whole thing.  I also love his nurse Stephanie.

                                                 Dan, Dr. Kaplan, Me and Stephanie

My last treatment :)

Friday was a pretty long day.  After my treatment we had an appointment with my surgeon. Dr. Claire Buchanan.  It was actually my pre op appointment for surgery.  So they went over all the information that I need to know prior to surgery. 
I am to show up at the hospital at 8:15 am Monday the 30th.  Surgery to begin at 10:00.  I should just be in the hospital one night then home to heal.
I have started to feel a little concerned about being deformed a bit, if you will.  They talked about the special camisole that I will wear for a month and just all the other stuff that goes along with one loosing there boob :(.  It's okay though. I have to do what I have to do.


GREAT NEWS......I do not have the BRCA gene mutation.  That was so nice to get that news.  Great for my girls and great for me.

Eleventh "taxol" treatment done.....

It has been a very nice week.  My mom came into town last Saturday and has been here with me all week.  Dan has been in Texas since last Sunday.  Helping Tami with her kids and with the new arrival Charlotte, which they call Charly :)

                                                               So Precious!!!!!


Shelly, my sister also came to visit on Monday and Tuesday.  It has been a wonderful week visiting with my mom and my sister.  We have laughed so much :)
My mom is doing really well.  She is still in her neck brace, but doing so good.  She sees her doctor next week and will probably be able to go with out her brace real soon.  Big event....my mom got an iphone!!!  She is actually texting us now.  This is really cool.  Now if she will only let us show her how she can be online and follow all of us on facebook and stuff she will really be connected.  This might take some time haha.


I have been doing pretty good.  I started having soreness in my toe nails and finger nails, weird.  It took me a while to figure out that it was related to the "taxol".  I have started to have some tingling in my feet, but it has been pretty mild.  The toe nails and finger nails soreness is so annoying.  I find myself pushing on the nails all the time.  My fatigue is the same.  I never seem to get anything done :(  I cannot fall asleep for nothing lately.  Hate that.  I do have sleeping pills, but I don't like to take them every night.  But I have started to because I need to sleep.


My mom and my sister just loved my wig and had a lot of fun with it.....

Looks just like me from the back huh :)  My sister said she finally has the hair she always wanted haha.  This was a fun day!  I wore my wig and then they did too.  We laughed so much. Cried a lot also.  It was the first time mom saw the video that Shelly made when I shaved my head.  That is a tear jerker still.  Mom has handled all of this really well.  It was the first time she has seen me since I lost my hair.  She just wants to keep taking pictures of my bald head.  I don't like pictures of my bald head :).


Today went really good.  It was really cool to have Haley and Mom with me.  It was there first time going.  Haley took a really cool video, but I cant seem to get it up. Darn it!

                                                             Mom, Haley and Me


Well, I now have one more chemo treatment.  So awesome!  And it really has gone by fast.  I still have not got my results back for my BRCA testing.  Should for sure get it next week.  On Monday I have a doctor appointment for "latisse". I have an appointment for an MRI and for a CT SCAN.  The Latisse is to help my eyelashes grow back in faster.  I am really excited about that :).  MRI & CT SCAN are to check to see how well all of this chemo has done.  I hope its done really really well.


Last chemo next Friday and then my very good high school friends are coming into town to stay with us for the weekend.  Going to be a great time!  We all reconnected at our 30 year reunion last summer and they have stayed in close contact ever since.  Great, funny & fun group of girls.  Can't wait for Gina, Jamie, Bergie, Syd, Jody and Ali to come see me. Woot Woot.....going to be a fun fun weekend.  Gina and Jody are coming from Goldendale.  Syd is coming from the Spokane area, Bergie is coming from North Bend Oregon.  Ali is coming from Seattle.  Gonna be a great time!!