Sunday after Relay

Oh my goodness.....I feel like I am 90 today. After getting 20 min of sleep last night and walking on and off through the day and evening and then from 1am to 5am this morning. I feel like a train wreak.

Jon helped me all day Friday getting ready for Relay and doing all sorts of outside stuff like washing the car and packing the trailer. I worked, did all sorts of running around to get ready, and then when I was caught up on work I was able to get my house cleaned really well for the first time in 2 weeks.

We were up bright and early on Saturday to take the camper out to the event center. We got there at about 8:30am so we were able to park super close so it was really convenient. After dropping the camper off we came home so the kids weren't hanging out there all day and I left to get some last minute things at Wal Mart and head back to start setting up at about 11am. Jenn met me there with a bunch of decorations for our campsite and then Wendy and Annette came and help us get the rest of the stuff set up. I was kinda bummed because they screwed up all of the campsites. We raised a bunch of money last year so we were one of the first few in line to choose campsites. When we got there they somehow had changed things around because of the way they ended up having to change our spots. So instead of being right on the side walk by the track we were in the middle of everyone and not in our "primo" spot I signed up for. That was disappointing but we still had a great time. I was able to see a lot of people that I had gone through treatment with and just people in town that I haven't seen for awhile. My friend Dana that I went through treatment with was the honorary chair and speaker before the luminaria ceremony. She was truly inspirational and a true survivor in all aspects of the word. Her speech touched everyone in attendance. Here is a picture of me with my family right after the survivor lap.

Here is one of the "line" of the survivors and then Dana and I doing the "strong man" pose with the other survivors. Can you believe how far the line of us goes out? There were so many of us. I think I was the only rebel that decided not to wear my purple survivor shirt and where my team's hooters shirt instead.

Here is one of my brother and sisters that came to support our team and walk for Relay.

Here is one of me with Olivia and Alex and our hooters shirts Abbey made for us.

Here is one of most of the chicks on our team. What a good looking group of ladies!

They had bands there most of the day and night. We all took time to get our groove on a time or two....

Alyssa's girls should be on So You Think You Can Dance! Jon even humored me with a little country swing...

Here is some more snap shots from Relay....

Here are some of our luminaria ceremony with the luminaria I made for some of my friends that I went through treatment with.

The actual luminaria ceremony I think was a complete flop. They had problems with the sound and I think the DJ just picked random songs to play until the Relay Chair told him to just shut it off. Then he decided to walk off the stage and take a smoke break. Um HELLO! Besides the actual rule of there being no smoking allowed at the event, it was offensive to probably ever person in attendance. What an idiot! Last year they had a picture of each of the bags on the slide show so we could all see the pictures and messages everyone put on it and this year they did these really generic slides with names on them. They also left each slide up there for 7 seconds and the "In Memory" slide show took over an hour, just reading the names and then they didn't even have everyone sit and watch the "In honor" slide show names. I wasn't very impressed with that part of the evening.

Here is me with the Luminaria that had my name on it...

Jon got sick on Saturday and was so stuffed up and sick so I sent him home around midnight to sleep at home. We had a good time just hanging out as girlfriends for the night. My girlfriend Jenn and I walked from 1am to 5am and had a chance to visit with a guy we went to high school with. It was fun to catch up and just get to visit. But it was really hard and was raining most of the time. By the time we were done walking my jeans were soaked up to my calf and my shoes and socks were both soaked too.

The track this year was not level so we were walking up and down hills the whole time. It was hard work, but a great experience. Like I said earlier I feel like I am 90 today. Jon and I got the trailer home a little after 9 and my mom was nice enough to keep my kids most of the day. We both slept from 10 this morning until about 3pm. It is only 9 now and I think I am going to go to bed. My entire body hurts every time I move and my feet feel like they are going to fall off. Do you think that is possible?!? Relay is always an emotional experience and it was fun to be able to experience it with my family and friends. Thanks guys as always for your unconditional love and support. You all mean more to me than you will ever know!!

Relay is almost here!

It's been awhile since my last post and, as always, have been staying busy. I wonder if I will ever feel like I don't have anything going on.......I guess that is before being a mom, working, promoting causes, etc, etc, etc.... Oh well. Bring it on baby!

So busy last week with work and it being the end of the month. We did our relay for life garage sale last Saturday. Jon and Seth decided to take all our kids up camping for the weekend and Courtnee and I went up after the garage sale. Courtnee and Seth also acquired a camper this year and we are glad to have such great friends that enjoy the same things we do. Since Courtnee was helping me with the sale she came over here and stayed with me on Friday night. After work on Friday my team and I went over to my parent's house and organized all our paraphernalia. My friend Abbey had seen the card I posted earlier on my blog and decided to make some shirts along the same lines.....

Aren't they funny. We thought so, and decided we would make some for our Relay team. After the organizing we went Wal Mart to get shirts and stuff to make some signs to promote the sale. Abbey, Courtnee, Jenn and myself all went back to my house for some girlfriend time and made signs and watched Juno. None of us had seen it. It was, in my opinion, kinda awkward and I am not sure I would have liked it had I not been watching it with my girlfriends. They are always saying the most off the wall stuff. I watched a re run episode of Rachael Ray the other day with Jennifer Garner on and she was talking about Juno also. Rachael promoted it as a real world "family" movie. Okay I don't think I would go that far seeing as how it is centered around a pretty adult topic of teenage pregnancy, but there were some funny parts. I guess in a setting with some girlfriends we enjoyed it though. I haven't had a 'sleepover' with a girlfriend since I can't even remember when, so that was pretty fun. Thanks Court!

Saturday we did our Relay for Life garage sale. I don't want to call it a flop but really wish we could have had some more traffic. I think if we do it next year we need to try and get it in one of those "neighborhood" sales to get more business. We made $300 and were happy to give that to our team fund! Go team!

Afterwards Courtnee and I drove up to Wyocolo, where we camp, and met the families. It was gorgeous all weekend. I kept my capri's and flip flops on until bedtime and we rode the four wheelers in short sleeves the next day. I got a sun burn. Wow what a difference a week made. From snow to the 70s. I was so happy. Isn't this funny though, some snow on the ground and in short sleeves. Olivia is still loving her four wheeler and getting better and better. Here is a quick clip of her going through the mud. She's so funny!

Of course what is camping with some out of control campfire. Apparently those dry pine needles are some serious stuff! Look at those flames baby! They are taller than Seth.

The kids always love camping, four wheeling, and being outdoors so we had a great weekend. I also had lots more time to almost finish the 3rd book in the Twilight series, Eclipse. Wow, all I can say is that I am a thoroughly addicted fan of this series. We came home on Monday and I finished it on Tuesday. Love it, love it, love it. For as skeptical as I was about reading these books in the beginning (who wouldn't be by the description of a vampire love story) I can't believe how good they were. Even my mom really liked them. If you haven't read them, you definitely are missing out and should read them. I don't even read very often. I think the last book I read was Harry Potter. I definitely became a book worm for the last couple weeks reading the series now. Jon wanted to know if he could have his wife back. I told him, well at least for the next two months until book 4 comes out, Breaking Dawn. ha!

This week I was able to chat with a gal in town that was newly diagnosed with 4 kids. I think the oldest is 8 and youngest is 2. She was just starting treatment this week and I couldn't help just going back to that time in my life and remembering how scared I was. Never speaking with anyone else that was a survivor and not knowing what to expect. It was just such a confusing and whirl wind time. I was glad that she was able to connect with a few people before starting treatment that had been there. I put together a 'chemo bag' for her for all those things that you never knew you needed. I hope that it is helpful for her and know she will do great...Go Heather!! I really hope that if there is anything I can ever do to make the journey easier for someone else I can do it. I started a message board on yahoo awhile ago to try and set up more of an online support for breast cancer survivors. I never had time or just felt too crappy during treatment to go to support group functions but know that I really would have taken advantage of an online support. I was going to try and keep it for local women but have decided to invite anyone who is a survivor or currently in treatment and still looking for a support outlet, wants to support others, or have a forum to ask those questions about treatment, side effects, or anything about the disease to log on. It is a yahoo group and the group name is hope_lives after the local support group here in town. Feel free to log on using this link Hope_Lives Yahoo Group. It is free so tell your friends and sign on! I will also put a link on the side bar of my blog. If you have any questions on how to do it send me an email or comment and I will walk you through it. You have to create a yahoo id, but like I said it is easy and free! Let's start supporting each other ladies!

My sister Toni, came into town yesterday with her son, Jack. I can't believe how much he has grown since the last time we saw them. We were all so excited to see them. I just copied her blog address to link to her name and she has a groovy song on there. Funkytown baby! Makes me want to dance. Today she came over and we went to lunch and shopped a little. We had a good time. Well as much fun as you can have while yelling and chasing your children through the store. :-)

Other than that just gearing up for Saturday and Sunday for Relay. I am really looking forward to it and am excited to see how much different it will be from last year. We are ready to kick some cancer bootie!

Memorial Weekend Update

Well we have been pretty eventful since the last time I posted. Thursday afternoon we had crazy weather here. There were a bunch of tornados that touched down, the largest in Jon's home town of Windsor where his parents still live. There was massive destruction there but thankfully Jon's parents were safe and their house and vehicles only received minimal damage compared to a large majority of the town. A friend just emailed me this picture of the tornado before it hit. Isn't it amazing?

Needless to say we spent a large part of the day on tornado warning and in the basement with the kids. Most of the schools in the area were on lock down and preparing for the worst. Thank goodness there wasn't one here in Loveland.

That pretty much screwed the day for preparation to go camping so we had to cram all the rest of the shopping and packing into Thursday night and Friday morning. Mom and dad had met us up in Laramie to go with us but after we got on the forest service road they decided to turn around and come home since it started to rain and the road was in pretty bad shape for my dad to be driving a car on. It ended up raining and snowing on and off most of the time we were up there but we still had a great time. We had a few glitches with the camper the first time we had it out. The fridge was giving us some issues on and off and the carbon monoxide detector went off on us on Friday night. After we aired it out a bit everything was fine. This is what we went to bed to on Friday night.

Good thing for a warm camper! Or so I thought until we woke up freezing on Saturday morning. Turns out the indicator on the propane tanks we thought were full was broken and they were both empty. After we got a new one though everything was back up and running. Jon had taken the TV out of the bedroom to put in the camper so we still enjoyed a few movies while we were up there....now that is what I call camping. I hung out in the camper for a good part of the weekend keeping warm and reading both Twilight and New Moon the first and second book in the series by Stephanie Meyer. I couldn't put them down and have already started the 3rd book, Eclipse. The kids were perfectly content to be playing outside in the cold and taking turns riding the ATVs on Saturday while it was snowing then raining then drizzling.

Sunday actually stayed sunny but was still chilly. We had a pretty nice ride on the ATVs for most of the day before it started sprinkling again. Here are some snap shots.

Monday we woke up to rain and snow again and headed out late morning as soon as we got everything together. It was a fun trip and I really enjoyed my books and just relaxing with the family.

Tuesday I went in to get my hair cut and colored again and brought Olivia with me. We both got a cut. She wanted to cut her hair as short as mine and I told her no way. We finally agreed on to the shoulders so she can still put it up in a pony. What a cutie!

Since we have been back I have been playing catch up with laundry and now working a bunch. We are getting ready to have our relay for life garage sale on Saturday and I think Jon is going to take the kids up camping again this weekend....we will see. I put the rest of our weekend pictures on picasa. Enjoy.

Getting ready for the weekend

I got this card this week from Dianne a friend I met that is also battling breast cancer from California. She loves to make cards and just sent me this one, how funny is this?!?

I LOVE IT!! Thanks Dianne, you will be here soon too! It has been so nice here this week. In the 80s everyday. Then today came along it is still dark outside at 10:15 in the morning. Raining, overcast and not yet to 60. Gotta love that changing Colorado weather.

I went to a Relay for Life meeting on Tuesday night and think that the new location they are doing this year is going to be awesome. It will be at The Ranch behind the Budweiser Event Center. They have a close place to park the camper near our team campsite around the track which will hopefully be a shorter trek then last year. We are also doing with with Fort Collins and it should be much larger and hopefully more fun. At least we will have better bathroom facilities! I am really looking forward to doing it and it seems like we have a great group to do it.

We ended up raising $106 from our Baskin Robbins fundraiser on top of the "tips". So we made over $200 for Relay. Great job team! We are still planning on having our garage sale next Saturday on May 31st and would still appreciate any donations that you are willing to make to our sale to raise money for American Cancer Society and Relay for Life. Contact me if you have anything you want to donate to our sale.

Wendy, Annette, and Julie (I think was helping also) finished the quilt for our contribution to the silent auction and relay. It is made out of that super soft material. Look how beautiful it is. Great job ladies! You Rock!

I found out this morning from my cousin that my aunt who had Huntington's disease is rapidly declining and has been given a few months left to live. I was so sad to hear that she is doing so poorly. According to my cousin she can't chew, swallow, walk, and doesn't want to have visitors any longer. My cousins lost their father at a young age and are now going to be losing their mother shortly. Please keep them in your prayers during this difficult time. I love you guys!

We picked up the camper yesterday and are in the process of cleaning and getting everything packed and ready to go for tomorrow. We are so excited! I have so much left to do but can't wait to get up there for the weekend and just relax and spend time with the kids. No Internet access so I can't even be tempted to get online and work. Darn! I am hoping to start reading Twilight by Stephanie Meyer. My sister, mom, and many friends are all raving about the series so I figured while I don't have anything that I HAVE to do up there it would be a good time to start. I guess they have made a movie that is coming out in December. Here is a movie trailer for it. Looks pretty good.
Wish us luck with no problems having the trailer out for the first time. Hope everyone has a fun Memorial Day weekend!

Hello to the 80's!

As in the weather. It was actually a nice day today. Finally May weather. Well it has been non stop all week. Busy, busy. Monday I spent most the day getting ready for our Relay for Life fundraiser at Baskin Robbins. I went over to my friend Wendy's house and we made signs to hold up with Annette and Julie. They turned out really nice.

They also are making a quilt for our silent auction contribution, and it looks great so far.

I also had to go to physical therapy in the afternoon. Things are still looking up there. Just need to keep up with my stretching and exercises. We were at Baskin Robbins from 5 to 9 on Monday night and had a decent turn out and lots of help.

We had some girls from church volunteer to stand and hold signs, which was so nice since it rained and then snowed on Monday night. Stupid weather! We still had a good turn out for cold weather. Here are some fun pictures of all of us holding signs outside and freezing our butts off, and also of us helping scoop ice cream. I have to say that scooping ice cream is not as easy as I once thought that it was. That takes some serious arm and pec muscles. Wow. Wendy also made us some really cute pink shirts that say Cancer Sucks across them. I think we will wear them to Relay. We haven't gotten the final numbers from Baskin Robbins but we made $110 in tips and cash donations. I was really pleased with how well we did.

Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday were all really busy with work for me and Jon was working days this week so he leaves early and gets home late. But it was nice to be able to have him here at night to snuggle up with. Most of my shows had their season finales this week. Survivor, The Bachelor, CSI, and Without a Trace. My DVR is going to be getting a nice break this summer.

As you probably noticed I have given my blog a face lift as well. Downloading some free digital scrapbook software and following some easy step by step instructions I really like the new look. The websites I used are at the bottom of my blog on a links list. Wow, this could get addicting. It also took me a lot of time to figure out changing some dimensions so my posts were wider, like they were before. I think it is more reader friendly. Whatcha think??

Friday my work had a company BBQ doing fundraising for a homeless charity here and they were kind enough to let me set up a table to sell the pizza cards for Relay. It went great and I was able to sell 12 pizza cards and also got some cash donations. Everyone was very generous! Jon and I were able to go spend some time together last night. We did some shopping and went to see Maid Of Honor. It was the "ultimate chick flick" according to Jon but we both enjoyed it. Who doesn't like Patrick Dempsey? Cute movie. We picked out some bedding for Olivia's new room downstairs (to be finished in 2010). ha! Hopefully we will have our basement done sooner rather than later.

Today Jon was on call and the kids and I went to my parent's house. Olivia and Alex stayed and "helped" my mom plant some things in her garden and Cody came with me to pick out some paint for Olivia's room and our front bathroom. My walls are all so boring, so I am starting with our bathroom. I started painting this afternoon and only got one wall done before my arm and chest hurt so bad I couldn't finish. I suppose it will be yet another project that will be on my honey do list. I do have to have help with most of the rest of it since I am not sure how to paint around some of the hardware and the toilet. Jon left at 7am this morning and he still isn't home and it is after 10pm. I bet he is so tired! I know I am....so I am off to bed!

Baskin Robbins Tonight

Well tonight is the night! Please make plans to stop by with your family and friends to buy some ice cream and support our fundraising efforts for Relay For Life benefiting the American Cancer Society. The location is in the Orchard’s Center here in Loveland off 287 by King Soopers. Baskin Robbins has agreed to donate a % of their sales from 5 to 9 this evening to our Relay team. Please forward this on to all your local friends who might be willing to stop by!

We are fighting cancer one dollar at a time!!

New Look

The more blogs I frequent the more I think mine is boring. I got this background through my friend Alyssa's links but have added the link to this page on the side bar of my blog on the blogs I frequent. If anyone else has a link to free neat backgrounds let me know. I am not crazy about this one but it was the one I liked the most. Whatcha think?
Also I had to say how excited I am about our Disneyland Trip in October. I got an email saying Orbitz was having a big sale on round trip airfare on select round trip tickets from Denver through October. I have been watching the fare for awhile and last I checked it was $245. I bought our tickets yesterday for $138 a piece! Nice! That saved me a few hundred bucks when buying tickets for 5. We are so excited to be going and planning to go.
I also was excited today to get an email about Bath and Body having their anti bacterial soaps on sale 5 for $10. They only run this sale a few times a year so I love stocking up on these. They are nice to have on hand for last minute gifts. Who doesn't love yummy smelling soaps, especially when they are 2 bucks a piece?!? I love saving money. Oh and getting money. We got our "stimulus" check today. Good thing so I can pay for those airline tickets! Ha!
I have been looking for a jewelry amoire for my mother's Day present but haven't been able to find one I love. I saw them at Target a few weeks ago and they had them online, but not in the store. I found an OK one at American Furniture that was on clearance but I don't love it. Anyone have one they love and where did you find it??

Buddy Check 9, buddy

Hi out there to all my blog readers. If you know me you know you will be hearing about buddy check 9 on the 9th of every month. Buddy check 9 is a reminder to do your monthly self breast exam. EARLY DETECTION IS KEY! I also learned at our most recent relay meeting this week that the most preventable cancer is.....colon cancer. Encourage everyone you know that is "that age" to get their colonoscopy. This is the only cancer that they can remove by detecting the "pre cancerous" polyps and removing them. I am sure it is not a fun thing to do but again....early detection saves lives! Here is our monthly message from buddy check 9 go to gal Kim Christiansen:

Hello Everyone!
This is perfect timing for our monthly Buddy Check reminder, since Mother's Day is this weekend. This is our opportunity to express our love and gratitude to our mothers and grandmothers. It is also a time to reflect on the gift of family and friends.
Today I'm enclosing the story of two friends, two buddies in the breast cancer battle. Just this week they shared their story with me.
Jane and Peggy have been best friends for 24 years. In September 2007, they celebrated the marriage of Jane's son. Peggy says Jane looked stunning at the wedding and demonstrated an amazing spirit on such a special day, especially because it came two months after she had surgery for breast cancer. In a twist of fate, months later, Peggy was diagnosed with breast cancer too. Her surgery was just a couple of months ago. Peggy is now undergoing chemotherapy treatment.
In 24 years of friendship, Peggy and Jane have raised children, survived divorce and job changes and enjoyed many blessings and challenges. Together they plan to embrace their new challenge, surviving breast cancer. Peggy's message adds, "We understand and appreciate the concept of what it means to have a Buddy. Our paths to discovering cancer and our plans for treatment are very different, but we have never been more unified. Through faith in God and each other, we live every day with purpose, passion and a great deal of laughter and we hope to be role models for other women."
We all hope to have a friendship like Peggy and Jane do, and we wish them health and happiness.
Please tell someone you care about to do a breast self exam.

My week has been pretty busy. The guy that does my job (and more) from the office was training this week so I had to work a bunch extra. Jon has also been working until the morning hours like 7 and 8 so has been asleep for most of the day. Back to feeling like a single mom for the week. I had my Relay for Life captains meeting on Tuesday and am gearing up for an exciting weekend in June. My team has our Baskin Robbins fundraising night this Monday from 5 to 9, so don't forget to stop by and get an ice cream with the family and support us! We are also trying to collect donations for our garage sale on May 31st. All proceeds for this will benefit American Caner Society. Also if anyone is interested in purchasing the Nick N' Willys cards let me know. They are 10 dollars and good for 10 LARGE pizzas. This is such a great deal and again benefits American Cancer Society. Give me a shout if you want one.
Yesterday I had my 6 week follow up with Dr. Brewster. She is overall happy with the results as am I, but the right side is still tighter, and a bit harder causing me to look a LITTLE bit smaller on that side. I had asked her about physical therapy helping this in time and she said most likely my muscle tightness will for sure improve but the damage from radiation with the scar tissue will only improve if she goes in there again and loosens up the scar tissue. She said she can also put a little bit bigger implant in that side so they are more symmetrical. All options of course would be paid for by insurance and she said I was welcome to do this whenever I wanted or not at all. I am glad to have the option, but need to really think about if I want to do that or not. For sure I am not going to be doing anything for awhile. I am just going to enjoy my summer and relax and feel NORMAL.
If you haven't supported Relay for Life yet there are lots of oppertunities to either just donate to me or my team online (follow the link on the side), or support one of our fundraising efforts of Baskin Robbins, Nick N Willys, or the garage sale. Help us support the great cause!

Where have I been for a week? #2

Yikes I am pretty well doing terrible at keeping my blog up to date in the last week. I know last week I was super busy with work and didn't have much free time to update but have been had really nothing to do with work the last few days so that has been a welcomed break. Jon has been working a bunch and I have been trying to play catch up with house work and things I haven't "gotten to" for awhile. Last week we had a few really nice days in the upper 70s and then the last part of the week was freezing and even snowed one day. Huh? Enough already. I thought it was May? Let's get to that 80 degree weather already! Olivia only has a month of school left so we are trying to figure out some fun things for everyone to do for the summer with the city like soccer, swimming, or dance. We will see what works out. I got to go on a girls night out with my friends on Friday which was a blast. We went to Olive Garden for Dinner and then out bowling. It is Mel's birthday this week so we made her wear this crown and sash all night. It was funny. Then of course we had WAY too much fun bowling. Alyssa lifts her arm up so high in the back when she bowls so we were all having fun with her. I can't even lift my arm back that high with nothing in it let alone with a 10 pound ball in it. So here is Alyssa doin' her thang....

Then here is Mel's version....

And here is Aislinn's version....I thought we were going to get kicked out for this :-) Oh wow!

She said she got the ball way up there and couldn't put it back down so it fell in front of here head. My goodness I am still laughing about it!

So I won the first game but then couldn't play anymore because it hurt my arm too much. Michelle was having shoulder problems so she bowled the whole game left handed and got 2nd place. Good job Michelle!

I uploaded the rest of the pictures on my picasa site.

Saturday we ran errands in the morning and picked up a few new house plants and bushes for the yard. Olivia went to her friend Isaac's birthday party in the afternoon and had fun jumping on his new tramp and playing on the swing set. She wants to know when we are getting a park in our back yard... We had Alyssa and Heath and Vernon and Kira over for dinner and games on Saturday. It was fun to do game night and we bar-b-qued burgers and brats. Tis the season for those fun get togethers.

I am also trying to get more Relay for Life stuff organized. I am pretty sure I recruited both Michelle and Melanie to be on our team and have had a few others sign up this weekend, so I am getting really excited. We are doing a fundraising night at Baskin Robbins here in Loveland in Orchard's Center on 287 and 29th on May 12th from 5 to 9pm so plan on stopping by with your family and friends to buy ice cream and support us. We are also trying to get together stuff to do a garage sale again at the end of the month. If you have anything you might be able to donate send me an email or give me a call. I will try to be better about updating my blog this week :-)

I have physical therapy again this afternoon and am feeling better everyday. I also have my one month follow up with my surgeon Dr. Brewster on Thursday. Hopefully all is going well and the scar tissue isn't building up too much around my right implant. I can tell it is definitely tighter than my right side. Although I am not complaining. I am perfectly happy with the results and realize it isn't ever going to be perfect. At least the technology exists to be able to have this kind of reconstruction. I am so grateful to be here today and be healthy! Last year at this time I was just starting radiation. Good bye and good riddance to that!

Attention All Pink Power Moms!!

I just got an email from the organizer of the contest I won last year. It is a little different but still a fun thing to enter. If you know of a deserving mom that is also a breast cancer survivor nominate her! If picked they donate $1000 to the breast cancer charity of her choice and they are also giving them a $1000 prize package. Visit the website here to find out more or here for details and prize packages and nominate a pink power mom! The contest is sponsored by Bright Starts and a donation to the Susan G Komen foundation will be made for every nomination so nominate away! The also highlight the 2007 winners, me :-) included, here. Recognize a breast cancer survivor that is also a mom today!

Think Positive!!

Think about the things you do right

My kids got this little sign that says this at their primary activity last Saturday and I thought it was a good thing to remind myself. I am sure there was some great object lesson they were taught along with this but to me it is a great reminder to stop making the negative lists for myself. I am always saying I didn't get this done today, I should have worked more today, I should have done this differently, I should have been more patient with the kids today. I bet we would all do better being more positive with ourselves and making a right list rather than a wrong list.
I have been struggling a bit with the twins preschool situation next year. I wasn't able to get them into a MWF morning class at Community Preschool for next year so was put into a MW afternoon class. The problem with this is that Olivia has early release on W and gets out of school a little after 1pm on Wed and I would be running around crazy Wednesday afternoons and only have one afternoon to myself a week. The twins went to a birthday party yesterday and I met a gal who told me about a preschool she sent her kids to that she just loved. It is called Paddington Preschool and the gal does it out of her home. She has a MWF or a T Th class. I called her for more information this morning and does have a full class next year for MWF but does has some openings on T Th. After visiting with her some I found out that she lives on the street I grew up on 51st Street here in Loveland and her program sounds awesome. We are going to go in and visit her class tomorrow morning and see.
Some exciting news for Relay for Life....My friend Wendy who is signed up on our team lives next door to the gentleman that owns Baskin Robins here in Loveland. He said that he would be willing to do a fundraiser night for our team on a Monday night. I will let everyone know which night we will be doing it so you can all stop in for Ice Cream for family night!

Beep Beep There's a Jeep

Cody has learned how to drive the battery powered Jeep. I think it is hysterical! Here is a clip..

We had a fun family night on Friday and took the kids to see Nim's Island. It was a really cute movie and all 3 of the kids sat the whole way through it. It was fun to just go out and have some fun as a family.

I was at physical therapy again yesterday. I am seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. Still very sore and have some tight muscles but it is getting better. I just have to stay on top of my stretching. Jon has worked a bunch this week, both days and nights, and it is only Tuesday! I am getting in gear with Relay For Life and our team is up to 5....don't forget to jump on board and join our team or visit our team site and donate to a great cause to benefit American Cancer Society!! (follow the link on the side bar)

Who is Ready to Relay Baby??

Okay I knew that I was going to forget something on my last post. I went to the Relay for Life captain's meeting on Tuesday night. We currently have only 3 people on my team, but I know lots of you have told me you were interested in doing it again. My team name again this year is We Cancer-vive and it will be on June 7th, 2008 starting 2:00 pm until June 8th, 2008 8:00 am. It will be at The Ranch- Larimer County Fairgrounds and Event Complex off I 25 and crossroads Blvd. This year we will be doing our relay (Loveland) simultaneously with the Fort Collins Relay. We aren't joining together but they way it was explained they will have tracks right next to each other. I think this should be really neat to see others I know participating from Fort Collins. I will probably be staying there the whole time and I was told they have RV parking so we will probably bring our trailer to have more comfortable accommodations for over night. We need to go out there and see exactly how it is set up. I think it will work best if your family wants to participate to just sign up one of you, unless you and your spouse want to take be on different shifts for walking. I know there were many of us that brought our families and it was a very fun event for the kids as well. If you are interested in joining the team Click Here. Or if you just would like to donate to our team Click Here to donate online. I think you can also purchase Luminarias that will be set up at the event in honor or in memory of a someone that is close to you that has been diagnosed from the web site. Last year it was really neat to see all the luminarias throughout the night.
I think we will try to do a garage sale again since that raised some money for our team last year and they told us at our meeting on Tuesday that Nick-n-Willy's Pizza is going to help teams raise funds. There are many locations here in Colorado. One in Loveland and one in Fort Collins for our area. They will be charging teams $1 per card and the cards have 10 punches on them good for a free large pizza per punch. We will charge $10 per card so $9 goes back to our team and more importantly RFL. You can't be a deal like a buck for a large pizza. What a generous sponsor of RFL. Please email me at elizajonbrock@msn.com if you would like to purchase one or more of these cards and I will get them to you. Here is a map of locations through out the US if you are a reader of my blog, not from around my area. Also if you are on our team let me know if you would be willing to try and sell the cards and I will get you a handful.
Any other ideas for trying to raise funds would also be appreciated so comment away. They say that doing fundraisers at Relay is also a good way to up the dollars. I know other teams did their own auctions, sold beverages (soda/water), and many other things. Are we interested in doing this at the event this year?

Where have I been for a week?

Hmmm....I don't really know where to start, can I remember almost a week ago?!? Sheesh! I did physical therapy last Thursday morning and just did massage since it had only been 2 weeks since surgery. It felt good but made me super sore the next day. I also went back to physical therapy on Monday and did the dry needles again. I was trying to explain to my therepist where the pain was coming from and when it was happening. He kept looking at me funny and then brought out the anatomy pictures trying to explain what I was saying didn't really make sense because of where the nerves ran behind my pectoral muscle and down my arm. Since I had surgery on that muscle there is really no telling where the anatomy in me is. (if that makes sense) Every surgeon is different and who knows what ended up where. So after getting into more of it we decided it was just sharp muscle pain from the back of my arm. He did the dry needles on that muscle. This is where he puts these really thin needles into the muscle, then I hold this metal stick thing in my hand that is attached to something that shocks me through the needle and then the muscle contracts. I was amazed that almost immediately afterwards I was feeling much better. And have continued to be in less pain. Yeah!


The dr. appt on Thursday also went well. I was stressing because the implant on the radiation side wasn't moving as freely as the other one. She had warned me of the importance of moving them around so scar tissue didn't form and tighten around the implant. She said that she was happy with both sides and how they are moving. That was good, but I can tell that they are different as far as tightness from one side to the other, I guess I will never be the same but am very happy with the result. She clipped the sutures out that were left and said see ya in a month! The one crappy part is that I am supposed to continue the displacement exercises moving them around 3 times a day and laying on my tummy twice a day for 30 min for 6 months. I can tell that this is going to be a challenge for me and have already started slacking, ashamed to say. It isn't easy doing that when kids are running all over. I just have to remember that I need to do this in order to heal properly. Still taking my meds on and off and still feeling easily tired. I have to keep reminding myself to slow down and take it easy.


Friday I had my girls night with the gals I met in treatment. These are always great and I will treasure these friendships forever. The women that can relate to me because they have been there. Of course I forgot my camera so I am waiting for copies of the pictures.


Saturday Jon got paint to start on the basement once again. He had a great idea to get a brush for each of the kids and they "helped" daddy for a bit in the afternoon. They had a blast!

Look at this funny video of the kids, needless to say we were in the shower for 30 min trying to get all the paint out of their hair and off of their skin. But they had fun, so that's the important thing, right?

Saturday night Jon and I went over to his good friend Danny's home for dinner. We have not seen his family and it was fun to be able to catch up with Danny and Wendy. She made these awesome steak sandwiches. I need to get the recipe from her to share it.

Sunday I tried going to church with the kids but only got about 1/2 way through before I was exhausted and sore. Jon was at home napping since he starts his work week on Sunday night. It was beautiful here on Sunday so we all went home and daddy spent some time at the park with the kids before we ate dinner.


It was also in the 70s here on Monday and Tuesday which was a really nice preview to spring before it snowed again yesterday. Let's get on with the summer already! I need to move to California I have decided. My sister is always calling and telling me about the nice weather there. I think Colorado should look into that nicer weather. This time of year sucks for me. I have horrible allergies and my throat itches so much I just want to stick my toothbrush down my throat and go to town. They just switched my allergy medication to over the counter which I think is code for ripping everyone off and charging 3 times more. I paid 15 bucks for a 12 day supply. That's more than a dollar a day! That is irritating.


I am trying to remember what else I did this week. Stayed busy with work at home and trying to feel back to normal. I went to Target today to pick up some random things and saw that book A New Earth by Eckhart Tolle on sale for $12 so I bought it. I am a faithful follower of Oprah and if you watch her at all I am sure you have hear this title about a million times. Anyway, I am going to read it and see what all the fuss is about. Anyone read this? What'd you think? I guess I will see what all the hype is about. Speaking of TV....The Bachelor is down to the final 4 chicks and next week he does all the "home town" dates where he meets their families. Since the show premiered I was surprised to see there was a girl on there from my home (and current) town, Loveland, CO. It will be fun to see Loveland on national TV on Monday.

Buddy Check 9

Well it is that time again ladies. Time for your monthly self breast exam. Here is a blurb from the buddy check 9 email:

"We ask you to do a breast self exam every month, with the hope that you will notice any change in your breast(s) at the earliest possible stage. Next, we want you to tell someone else about the importance of self exam. Call or e-mail a friend, family member or co-worker and encourage that person to embrace this monthly self check.
Finally, we want to thank all of you for your support to Denver's Race for the Cure. This week, the Komen for the Cure Denver Affiliate will award nearly 3 million dollars in grants to groups/individuals involved in the research, education and awareness efforts around breast cancer. For example mammograms and treatment will be provided to the uninsured and underinsured. Also, financial assistance is given to cancer patients and there is funding for prevention, research and education programs. Of course the goal is simple, to eradicate breast cancer. Thanks to you, this is a realistic and attainable goal. "

Remember early detection saves lives!! I have my first physical therapy appointment since surgery tomorrow and also a follow up with Dr. Brewster. Hopefully both will be good. I think I get to have my sutures removed...that ought to be fun. Hopefully the physical therapist will have some good ideas on improving that nerve pain I am having from the implant pushing funny on my underarm. I am feeling better and better everyday, just dread that 3o min floor time morning and evening. Yuck.

I did my hair today

Ha! That was funny to write, but really I haven't done my hair and make up for awhile. Today was the first time I really ventured out and about. I was asked to be on a committee to help with the fashion show at the Hope Lives! Gala that I was a model in last year. The meeting went well except the Gala will be on Oct 25th which was the week we were thinking about taking the kids to Disneyland. So I am not sure if I will be able to help out. I wanted to finally post some pictures of my hair cut and color.














The style is what I like the most since really it hasn't had much of a style. I just had to post these pictures of my son, Cody. I think it is hysterical that the twins know how to play on the computer. They just look to little to get it. They love playing on pbskids.com and nickjr.com. So here is Cody...













Isn't that face so funny?!? Ha!

General Conference Weekend

This weekend my church held general conference. This is when we have the opportunity to listen to talks and council from the leaders of our church. This is broadcast on BYU tv on both Saturday and Sunday at 10am and 2pm. They also broadcast it via satellite at all our church buildings. It is special because this conference we all had the chance to sustain our new prophet Thomas S. Monson. He is the 16th prophet of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. I got an email from my sister of an activity the children could do while listening to the speakers. They are sitting and coloring a bingo activity.

I have been surviving the week with lots and lots of help from my parents and Jon. I am still having pain with my right side and it feels like it is rubbing on a nerve. When I move the implant on the right side or lay on my tummy (which I have to do for 30 min twice a day) I feel that pain going all down my arm and it is very uncomfortable. I am hoping that this isn't permanent and Dr. Brewster can help me with this issue when I see her. I am starting to work again a little bit at a time. With the pain meds I am on it is sometimes difficult to concentrate.

My sister Toni got her hair cut this week. I told her about this Oprah show I saw this week where they did 100 hair cuts and people donated their hair to Pantene's Beautiful Lengths. Hilary Swank let Oprah cut her long ponytail off to kick off the show. This program makes free wigs for cancer patients who have lost their hair. So she cut her long hair and donated it. It looks so cute. Check out Toni's blog to see her pictures.

My sister Toni also told me about this site where you can publish your blog into a photo book called Blurb. Check out the site, it looks pretty cool.

On another funny note...Kids say some funny things. I have said to Alex sometimes, "Alex, I am mad at you because......" Well now she has started to say, "Mom, are you happy at me?" when she is taking a status of how I am feeling. Cody has never been able to say chocolate yet and when my dad was over the other day he wanted to watch Charlie and the Chocolate Factory so asked my dad to start it and he was cracking up. He says it as Sh-lock-it. It is pretty funny. I have to write these things down so I don't forget. Olivia has spring break this week so I am going to have to find some things to do with the kids to keep them busy!

Still truckin through Tuesday

So I went in to the Dr yesterday for my 3:30 appointment and she was running super late. I waited to see her until about 5pm but wasn't going anywhere until I got that drain out of me. would have waited until midnight! I wanted to post a picture of what this thing actually looks like to those of you that are lucky enough to have never seen or heard of one. They call them a JP drain, I think after the person who invented them. So here is a picture of it. That whole white part is put under your skin and then the tubing sticks out of the skin and is sutured to the incision. It pulls fluid from swelling. Then when they remove it they just cut the suture and then pull...hard. I have had them for my last 3 surgeries and though the last 2 when I had them pulled I was prepared and knew it hurt, a lot. But when I went in to actually have it done it always hurts more then what I am prepared for. Notice how the white part is a little wider than the tubing. Yeah....it actually pulls your skin apart a bit since it has been healing in your skin around the tubing. Did I mention this stinkin hurts?!? Yeah.... Luckily it is now out and am trying to heal from that today. I also wanted to talk to Dr. Brewster about that right side. The implant is harder to move around then the left side. Because the radiated skin and previous scar tissue the implant isn't moving around as well as she thought it should be. Ultimately we don't want the scar tissue to form all around the implant and form a tight capsule. Since I can't move it far enough with my own strength I have had to have both Jon and my mom help me move them around. Dr. Brewster also now wants me to lay on my tummy for 30 min twice a day. I did it last night and twice today. That is a darn long 30 min when it is painful to do. It forces the implants up towards my throat and keeps the scar tissue from forming and staying up at the top. I honestly think I was much more comfortable Sunday and Monday then I was today. Just doing that laying on my tummy makes me hurt and ache for hours afterwards. I know I am close to the end of the "tunnel", but it is hard. I just want this to be over with already. Hopefully the laying on my tummy will get easier and not harder. So far each time I have done it, it hurts the same. I am also clear to have a shower this evening since my drain site will be healed over with a scab and not considered an "open" wound. Yes....I have bathed and washed my hair (several times) since my surgery but wasn't allowed to get my chest area wet. I am so looking forward to my shower here shortly!!

Today my dad came over and was here helping me out with the kids, the house, and grocery shopping. I am so lucky to have my parents close to help me out so much. Olivia had her class pictures today at school. I braided her hair last night so he had this crimped hair in a pony tail. She looked so cute so I had to take a picture of her before she went to school this morning. She got this dress as a hand me down from my friend Alyssa's daughter, Darian and is always running around the house in it so she was excited to be able to wear it to school today. What a cute smile!! Cody and Alex are now obsessed with playing "games" on the computer now. They need almost constant help with playing so that gets a little frustrating but it is so funny. Here are a few snapshots of them playing.