Committed to a Cure

Yesterday we finally got our license plates on the truck. They have breast cancer plates in CO so we are officially "committed to a cure" with the pink plate. Here they are:I also found out yesterday that Robin from the Good Morning America show was diagnosed with breast cancer and she announced it yesterday. It is always hard to hear anyone say that they were diagnosed. Hopefully someday there will be a 100% cure for cancer. Here is a link to the video online if you want to hear her announcement.

http://tv.yahoo.com/good-morning-america/show/30753/videos/3535642

Olivia figured out yesterday that she could reach all the movies if she moved the bar stools. She stood up there for 30 min "organizing" her favorite princess movies. Silly girl.

I am not sure if the pictures that I post will show up in the subscription emails that I set up through feedblitz. Someone email me or comment and let me know if they come across with the subscription or not. Have a fun day!

Monday July 30th

I finally have an end in site. I have to do Herceptin next week and then again Aug 27th. Aug 27th will be my LAST treatment day!! Hurray! It is also Olivia's first day of kindergarten. I will still have to see the doctor but that is my last treatment. I am finishing right in time to not enjoy the new facility. My doctor is moving her office and facilities to a new wing of the Harmony campus of PVH. The nurses are all excited to have more room and lots more electrical outlets for pumps. Exciting times.
Nothing too exciting happened this weekend. We had our ward social for church on Friday that was fun. It was nice to visit and get to know newer faces in our ward. Saturday Jon and I spent the day cleaning the house and I worked a bunch. Saturday night we went out to eat and to hand out with Jon's friend from high school Ryan and his girlfriend Gail. We don't see them much so it was fun to catch up. We went to eat at Beau Jo's pizza in Fort Collins. Always yummy! Yesterday not too much either. We went to church and then had our home teachers over yesterday afternoon. Our home teachers are both into cars, one is a mechanic and the other likes to four wheel and built a moon buggy that he enters competitions with. Jon being the talker that he is always ends up talking about cars and whatnot. He could go on all day about it. It is fun to have home teachers assigned to us that are into the same type of stuff as us.
Jon is working nights in Greeley so he went to work last night at 8pm and got home at 6ish this morning. He is trying to sleep now, with the kids being noisy. It is nice to have him here though instead of out of town.
Not much going on this week. It is the end of the month, so the busy time for work with me and then I think we are going to try and go camping and ride the 4 wheelers this weekend with Vernon and Kira.

Email Subscription anyone??

Okay all,

I have updated my snapfish link with some of our summer pictures so take a look. Also...I stole this idea from a friend to do a subscription to my blog through your email. I am not sure how well it works but we will try it out. In the upper right corner of my page you enter your email address and I will send you an email every night that I put an update on my blog. I had some family members that were having a hard time figuring out how to view it and I know everyone isn't computer savvy so hopefully this will work out better. Like I have always said, anyone is more than welcome to view my blog so don't feel shy about subscribing. The more people I can help make aware of cancer or help through their own cancer journey the better!

Love you guys!!
Eliza

Tues July 24th

Today I went in to Sears to take pictures for that contest I won. I must say it was interesting having such a relaxing experience taking pictures since with the kids it is always so stressful. Don't pull you sister's hair, smile, look over here, stay still.....none of that! It is kinda weird taking pictures by yourself. I feel like a realtor or something. I did have to share one exciting thing though, I haven't put on make up in over a week since we have been at the lake camping for the last week. When I put on my mascara today I noticed that my eyelashes are practically back to normal. Hello Ladies!! I must say, I am in love with my lashes. I have always had long and thick eyelashes and it has been a bummer to have lost them and then have them fall out again when they were almost back to normal. I still hate my hair, but it is nice to have my lashes back.
I am having a bit of a hard time finding energy this week. I think I was just so busy while we were out of town I can't catch up on my rest. My arm is also bothering me somewhat. I noticed it was pretty sore starting last Friday after unloading the jet ski, I was trying to hang onto the dock and hold the jet ski from bumping into it. It is still sore in my arm pit area where they took a lymph node. Maybe just from playing on the jet ski so much and using muscles that I don't normally use there. It has been sore from there all the way down my arm. Maybe I need to do something to make sure those muscles stay active and heal better? Funny that my surgery was almost 6 months ago and it isn't all the way better yet. And better yet, I get to do this all over again before the end of the year.
I found a video of that Craig Morgan song I wrote about on here a few months ago and put it on the blog. Our friend who is a DJ at K99, Vernon, dedicated it to me when it very first came out. What a sweet man and a neat song! Give it a listen.

Mon July 23rd

I have been notified that I am slacking on my posts! Sorry Ashley! Let's see.... Since last post, Jon did take me to see the new Harry Potter movie last weekend. Overall a good movie, but of course the book was better. Still a great flick though.
I got my hair cut that weekend also. I had a friend get me a gift certificate to her stylist and I love her! If anyone is looking for a new stylist she is awesome. Her name is Roni and she works at Hair Atelier in Fort Collins. Such a sweet gal and I loved the salon. It is in old town fort Collins in a remodeled old house. Very cool ambiance. She did a good job on my hair, but I still hate it. Honestly there aren't many options when it is only 2 inches long. It does look better "shaped up".
I had a check up with my radiation doc on Friday the 13th. She said everything seemed to be fine and I was healing fine. I am now just tan, in the radiation area. A big tan block of skin over my whole right side...looks interesting.....whatever. It is only a little on the itchy side now. So she said that I didn't have to come back for 6 months.
My grandpa from Salt Lake was here last weekend as well. It was great to see him, he is such sweet man and it is always good to visit with him. I wish we could see him more often.
I had my Herceptin treatment last Monday. Jon was home trying to get ready for our camping trip and so I took Alex with me to my appointment. I also saw the nurse practitioner. The check up went fine. The normal poking and prodding and questions about any new pains. Of course, no. Which is awesome. I know the second that something starts hurting or bothering me I will become obsessed so it is a good thing I am doing alright. My mom and grandpa came to meet me for my Herceptin infusion. When I got into the treatment area it was so full that there were no empty chairs to sit in. Man that is depressing. So I had to wait for an open chair. I did get to meet a gal that is a friend of a friend that was just diagnosed in May I think. She is a sweetie and it is always hard to see new faces and more people getting diagnosed with cancer at a young age. I think she is in her mid thirties. Darn Cancer. She is a fighter also though and really positive. I had talked to her on the phone once and she had checked out my blog so she recognized me when I walked in and of course I am thinking...."Man it is embarrassing when you don't remember people you've been introduced to." I was safe though since we had technically never met. Keep fighting Dana and keep your head up. I went out to lunch with my mom, dad, grandpa, brother Mason, and Alex after Herceptin at the Olive Garden and that was nice. When I got home I had an email from the marketing department at Kids II (the company I won the trip from) that said I had to fill out these forms and get them notarized and overnighted back to them to claim my prize. Good thing I was not on vacation that day...sheesh. So of course we stopped everything and had the forms filled out and Bev from my work was sweet enough to notarize them for us.
After running around all day Monday and Tuesday we finally left to go to Glendo on Tuesday afternoon. We had a fun week and the kids had a blast playing in the sand and the sun. We of course got stuck by annoying campers that wanted to party until all hours of the night which is always frustrating but moved the camper around a little to where they weren't right on top of us. I guess it is almost impossible to go to a busy camping area and get quiet time. Jon's parents stayed for the week and then Jon's aunt and uncle and their 2 grand kids came up on Friday night. Our friends Seth and Courtnee and their 2 boys Taylor and Drew also came up on Friday morning. We had a fun week camping and playing on the jet ski. I was definitely ready to come home by Sunday. It is a lot of work with the kids and I was ready to sleep in my own bed again. We made it home at 3pm and spent the rest of the afternoon and night unpacking and putting stuff away. I am still not done.
I got the brochures about our trip to Atlanta while we were gone and it sounds really exciting. I have to go into Sears tomorrow to get my pictures taken for the magazine story they are doing on the winners in the October issue of Fit Pregnancy for breast cancer awareness month.
Jon started his new job last night. He will be working nights this week but he is in Boulder so he will still be home, which is nice. He is still doing refrigeration, just for a different company. So far so good and hopefully everything is a smooth transition with the insurance.
Nothing too exciting to report for today. Still trying to put stuff away and get back to working. Hopefully tomorrow will be a little more relaxing.
I didn't take too many pictures of our camping trip, I always seemed to forget my camera in the bag, but I will upload the ones I did take onto my snapfish link tomorrow. Hope everyone is having a fun summer!

Thurs July 12th

This week has gone by so fast. We have been busy. I have kept myself busy with work and running around. I hit a great sale with my friend Alyssa at the Children's Place this week and got the kids stocked up on clothes for next summer. I love saving money on cute clothes. My neighbor from down the street Ann and my old neighbor Pam took me out for a belated birthday lunch yesterday at a place in downtown Loveland called Henry's. It was very good. I don't visit the downtown area much but it was good and they had some fun shops that we went into on the way back to the car. They got me a really cut hand bag with a bright paisley pattern on it.
We are getting really excited to go on vacation next week. Jon has been going to Glendo state park in WY every summer since he was a kid. We started going the summer after Olivia was born and always have a great time. It is supposed to be in the 90s all next week, perfect weather for camping at the lake. I am excited to take our Jet ski up there and play. It is about 2 to 3 hours straight up I 25. If anyone is interested in going up there with us to camp during the week or next weekend let me know. We would love to have you. Our family always has a blast there.
Olivia is going to the dentist this afternoon and and quit talking about it. She has only been once but keeps asking when she gets to go back. Ever since I told her a few days ago she had to go back in today she hasn't stopped talking about it.
I have a doctor's appointment tomorrow with the radiation oncologist to check my healing progress and then I am going to get my first hair cut since I lost my hair! I can't believe it. My hair is about 1 1/2 inches long all the way around. It needs to be trimmed up and shaped and hopefully it will look a little less shaggy. I hate it. I guess it is better than not having any though. I will post a picture of it afterwards.
Harry Potter and the order of the Phoenix came out on Wednesday and hopefully Jon will take me to see it this weekend. I am obsessed, I admit it. I am bummed because the last book comes out next Saturday. Just in time to miss my vacation and perfect time to read my book. Darn. Guess I will have to fit it into my busy schedule here at home.

Buddy Check 9 Day!

Sorry I haven't updated everyone in awhile. But it is a great day to update since it is in fact BUDDY CHECK 9 DAY! So give the girls a good squeeze and make sure everything feels right. If you want more info on doing a self breast exam follow the buddy check nine link on the side bar of my blog.
I had a great birthday and we are all having fun with our new toy. We have been out to Boyd Lake 4 times and it is a blast. Since the lake is only 5 min away it is very easy to load up the kids and go play for awhile in the morning or after naps. We out to eat with my girlfriend Abbey and her husband Larry the weekend after my birthday to celebrate. It was fun hanging out with them. We think the last time the 4 of us went out without any kids was year ago before we had the twins. Yikes, that was overdue. Jon is feeling much better but still is somewhat sore every now and then. He didn't work much last week, just here and there. We did get a lot of odds and ends done around the house. We finished laying our mulch and planting some bushes and flowers in the yard.
Jon also put in his 2 weeks notice at Source. Source has been such a wonderful company to work for and we have appreciated all their support to our family! They have been extremely supportive to our situation this last year. His buddy Tommy has started his own business doing refrigeration and so Jon has decided to go and work for him. It sounds like he will be working over in Greeley for awhile so that will be nice for him to be some what closer to home.
For the 4th of July we went to a BBQ at my nurse practitioner's house, Lisa. She is awesome and has helped me out so much over the last year. It was great to see her beautiful smiling face all year when I was feeling horrible. What a great person. She was definitely cut out to work in oncology. Then we went over to Boyd for a few hours after the twins had a nap with our friends Brad and Patti and their 3 boys Austin, Grant, and Trey. Jon has worked with Brad at different jobs for the past 4 years and they are an awesome family. Their youngest 2 are twins. We got home at about 6:30 to clean up and grab a quick dinner before we headed out to the fireworks. Our neighbors across the street Jeremy and Danielle came with us to the fireworks and then my girlfriend Alyssa and her family. We were the "twins club". (Heath and Alyssa also have twins) Must be something in the water here :-) The weather did get rainy for a little bit right before the fireworks but stopped right before they went off. Of course the fireworks were awesome! Loveland has the best fireworks show in Northern Colorado. They are set to a music program on the radio and we always enjoy them. Cody was narrating the entire event. "Green, mom. Purple, mom. That one might land on our socks. Wow that was high in the sky." He was pretty entertaining.
Friday we went out to eat with Heath and Alyssa. Since Heath rescued the kids and I a few weeks ago and hooked up our AC we thought we should at least buy them dinner! We went to the new Texas Land and Cattle in Fort Collins. Good Eats! It was very yummy. Who doesn't love Steak, I know we do! It was fun to visit with them also. I don't think we have been out with them since last fall or summer either. It was fun.
Saturday we were back at Boyd for the majority of the day with Heath and Alyssa and their 2 older girls. The kids all played on the beach and we took turns riding the jet ski. The rest of the day was lazy. We were all so worn out from being in the sun and cleaning up from being out that we relaxed for the rest of the night. I did my grocery game shopping on Saturday night since I really didn't have coupons that I needed to cut from this Sunday's paper. It worked out well and I didn't have to take all the kids with me which was a bonus. Still saving a ton of money and loving every minute of it! If anyone is interested in signing up for their free trial be sure to use my email as recommending you. It is elizajonbrock@msn.com If you have any questions about it feel free to ask also. Takes some work but it is worth it for the money you save for sure!
Jon's parents have been traveling for about a month and came back on Saturday so they came over after we got home from church yesterday to hang out and eat dinner. It was great to see them and the kids really missed them!
I had to do Jury duty this morning. After checking in and watching a video we were led up to the courtroom and informed they would need 14 jurors in an attempted murder with a hand gun case. Yikes. Of course my number was chosen first to go up into the jury box with 30 other people and start getting questioned. I though it would be very interesting as I have never done jury duty before. After getting through a numerous amount of disqualification questions the judge informed us that we could be sitting on the jury for 7-10 days plus deliberation time. Holy cow. The judge said if this is a genuine hardship for anyone they could discuss it with the judge, prosecution, and defense so I did that. I don't think I could find day care for the kids for 10 plus business days and then I would be missing my Herceptin on Monday which again isn't an option. Although I do think it would have been rather interesting to do and be a part of. I ended up getting dismissed at about noon.
Jon left to work in Casper for the week around 1pm when I got home. It has been nice having him here the last 2 weeks.
I also got a very exciting call this afternoon. My girlfriend Alyssa nominated me back in April for the "Bright Starts Pink Power Mom search" put on by Kids II corporation. They are a baby product brand. Click Here to read the article about the search. Well they called this afternoon and chose me as one of only 8 winners!! I am so excited. Here is the excerpt from the article about what I won:
"The eight “Pink Power Moms” will be flown to Atlanta in October for a weekend of wellness where they will be recognized at the Susan G. Komen for the Cure Pink Tie Ball and a donation will be given in their name to the breast cancer charity of their choice. The winners will also be featured in a national advertising campaign and have their inspirational stories shared throughout Breast Cancer Awareness Month."
I think the magazine I will be in is called Fit Pregnancy. I am so excited. She said that they put you and a guest up in a nice hotel and treat you to spa sessions all weekend. I can't believe that I actually won something. I have never won anything exciting besides concert tickets. It is Oct 12th to the 14th. I can't wait!

Happy Birthday to me!!

I spent most of the morning on the phone with friends and family which was nice to talk to everyone. What a fun way to spend the morning. Then went to Heceptin at 11am and was there until about 2pm. I had to get some extra fluids as well since I am still a little on the "low" side. I came home and tried to work for awhile but didn't get too far. Jon came home from work with my birthday present at about 2:45.






What could it be??

I couldn't believe he came home with a Jet Ski. We have talked about getting one for awhile but never really very seriously. We love going to Glendo every summer and we recently frustrated that we don't get to play with the 4 wheelers more often because it is so difficult to find legal places to ride them that are close and it is hard to load everyone up to travel for hours before playing and then travel back. It is the biggest present I have ever "unwrapped"....

Here is Olivia and I trying it out:

We took it to Boyd for a few hours this afternoon to play and it was definitely a bunch of fun. I am so excited and hope that we get to play with it a bunch. Since Boyd Lake is only about 5 min away from the house it should make it pretty easy to get out there and we will definitely be taking it to Glendo in a few weeks!

Wed June 27th

It's been an interesting day. I made dentist appointments for all of us yesterday and I have a tooth that is really bothering me so they said I could come in first thing this morning and get an evaluation. Of course I have a cavity but he also said my teeth are probably shifting around, also contributing to the discomfort, and I should think about seeing an orthodontist. (Someone that I hoped I was done with after having braces for 5 years of my life!!) I was getting ready to leave and the hygienist asked if I wanted to stay and have my cleaning since someone cancelled on her and I thought I might as well get it over with rather than have to wait and come back in a few weeks. When I was getting my cleaning they came in and asked if I wanted to come back later in the day to do my cavity filling due to another cancellation. So you get the picture. I spent most of my day with the dentist getting taken care of and the remainder of the day feeling like I had a bowling ball attached to my face. When the Novocain wore off my jaw was so sore from having my mouth open so wide and now my tooth still aches. What a pain. I guess I am glad it is taken care of now and hopefully I will feel better tomorrow.

A big mile stone this weekend for Alexandra.....She started to go potty. Yeah! I am finally seeing an end in site to having to change diapers for the last 5 years of my life. She just decided on Sunday that she wanted to start wearing her Dora pull ups and be a big girl. We have so far made it through every day with only one accident and she is still wearing a diaper at night, but I can handle that. Her brother on the other hand wants nothing to do with that business. What do I need to be a big boy for, I am sure he is thinking. He doesn't have any interest in wearing his big boy spider man pull ups. A tactic I thought might help, but I am sure now that is a way of the diaper companies ripping me off even more. Less diapers, more money. Makes perfect sense.......

I have been working a bunch this week and finally got my laundry folded and put away today that has been sitting in laundry baskets on my floor for the last 2 days. Hey, at least I got it cleaned. I hate folding and putting away laundry. It was much easier when I was only doing it for myself. Now that I could handle. This 6 loads a week stuff is for the birds.

Jon is doing better. Still pretty sore, but slowly getting back to normal. Poor guy. Way to take one for the team babe!

Yesterday my dad almost poked his eye out.....He ran into a shelf bracket on the wall after taking the shelf off and sliced the bridge of his nose and under his eye. He had to get some stitches and then they super glued the cut on his nose. Ouch, it looks like it hurts. We had my mom and dad over for dinner last night after he got home from the urgent care. He said, "I wish I could say, you should see the other guy." Ha! He was lucky he had on his glasses and it didn't get his eye. Here he is:

Well tomorrow is my Bday! The big 2-7. Sheesh, how NOT exciting. Birthdays just aren't what they used to be are they? At least for me I suppose. I told Jon that I didn't want to have to plan anything this year and so he is supposed to make all the birthday plans. He said he got me a present this year, which normally is let's go and pick something out that you want. Still nice, but it is fun to be surprised every once in awhile and have him pick out something for me. I don't think we are going out until this weekend but not sure. I get to be surprised. I also get to go in for my Herceptin tomorrow morning. Yee-haw! Defiantly happy birthday to me. Just where I want to spend my birthday, the cancer center. Oh well, better luck next year for sure.

Saturday June 23rd

My oh my. It's only 8:30 and I have already been up for over 2 hours. I hate it when the kids get up so early!! The twins got their twin mattresses yesterday to go on top of their beds. We have just had their toddler bed mattresses up on their twin beds for the last month or so and finally made the switch yesterday. My fear happened this morning at 6am I woke up to hear this loud thud and Alex crying. She fell off the bed. I am surprised she made it all through the night. She wasn't hurt, I think just scared.

Jon had his vasectomy done yesterday and is fast asleep again after another round of Vicodin and ice. I feel bad for him, but it is much nicer being on the care giver end than the patient end. Although I would love to still be in bed and worry free of any responsibility this weekend. He had an appointment yesterday at 3 and didn't end up getting into the procedure until about 4:15 since they were running so far behind. He took Monday off of work and hopefully will be doing much better by then.

Yesterday we also got new cell phones. That was much needed! Jon's went through the wash a few weeks ago and so his display didn't work right anymore and mine was just the low end free model we got over 2 years ago with our plan and the reception was horrible and dropped almost every call I got. We ended up switching carriers and are now with Verizon. Our phones are pretty nifty. I have never had a phone with any extras so it is kinda neat. We both got the LG chocolates. His is lime green and mine is pink. Here they are:

Still loving my car. Every time I drive it I love it even more. The space is just so nice with the kids. Jon is done working in Montrose as of this past week. I think he is working in Denver this week but at night. Then not too sure where after this week. Hopefully close.

I go in for Herceptin this next week on my birthday. My brain MRI came back and everything is fine. I wasn't really worried about it but I guess there is always the underlying fear that something will not show up okay. I have made an appointment with a micro surgeon in Salt Lake to have a consultation with over Labor Day weekend and I will know more about reconstruction after that. Hopefully I can get it over with before the holidays. Originally they told me that I need to wait at least 6 months to have anything done but that puts me right between Thanksgiving and Christmas which is always a hectic time.

It is supposed to be 95 today so hopefully we will be able to get out and enjoy the weather. Speaking of which we have our AC up and running as of Wednesday which is awesome. My friend Alyssa's husband Heath came to my rescue and hooked everything up on Monday and then finished up on Wednesday. My hero! I don't know how people stay at home all day with no AC. It is so uncomfortable having a house that is 80 plus degrees and then not having it cool off until 11pm.

I am still staying very busy with work, but enjoying being back in the "normal" routine. I really do like my job and like that it makes my brain work and I learn new things everyday. It also helps that I like the people I work with! My hair is still growing and is really wavy. I have 4 cowlicks and so it grows pretty crazy. I guess it is better than being bald though. It does give a whole new meaning to bed head. It defiantly has to be wet and gelled after I sleep on it!

Avril Lavigne - Keep Holding On

Tues June 19th

Well not too much exciting to report in the last week. I went in on Thursday to do my brain MRI. The nurse that was doing my IV poked me 2 times in one spot and 2 times in the 2nd spot before actually getting one in place. The brain MRI is much different then the other breast MRI's I have had. Much louder and much more confined. I took an anti anxiety med before I went and was loopy for the rest of the day. Friday I went in for a skin check at the radiation oncologist and everything is healing fine. I have this funny line around the radiation area that looks like a scar. It is a white line from where my skin peeled.
This weekend went by fast. Jon was working on trying to get our AC fixed. The kids and I went to the lake with a friend on Saturday and then we all went to a BBQ on Saturday night. Jon took me to see Pirates 3 on Saturday night and my girlfriend Lanie joined up with us. It was fun to get away a bit and also see Lanie. Sunday the kids and I went to church and then later in the evening went to my parents for a father's day get together.
Jon left again on Monday morning for work and should be back sometime on Thursday. I have been keeping very busy trying to keep up with work and chase the kids. Jon is having his vasectomy on Friday and taking one for the team since I am not allowed to be on hormonal birth control any more. What a sport. We will probably be laying low this weekend and hopefully have good time just taking it easy.
I still haven't gotten my results from my MRI so I am assuming it isn't anything to be worried about. I have to do Herceptin next week on my birthday......Happy birthday to me!! Dang! Oh well, birthdays really haven't been too exciting the last few years. I think once you hit the "grown up" birthdays they just don't bring the excitement like they used to.

Monday June 11th

This is a display from the luminaria ceremony at relay for life. What a fun weekend. We had a great time at dinner on Friday. How can you not enjoy yourself at the melting pot?? Love it, and of course the company was wonderful. Vernon and Kira are awesome people. Happy birthday Vernon!

Saturday we got up and gathered our things and headed out to relay for life. Jon and I attended a free lunch for survivors and then the festivities started around 1pm. It was neat to see all the people all fighting for the same cause. I can't believe how many people have been touched by this awful disease and it will truly be a miracle when a cure is found. The kids were at the end of their ropes by 3pm so I took them home to nap for a few hours and came back around 6pm. My girlfriend Shari who I through Olivia's preschool was diagnosed in January and was asked to be the honorary chair person. She gave a wonderful speech before the luminaria ceremony and it was neat to hear her story. There were so many luminaria bags lining the track paying tribute to those who are fighting cancer, surviving cancer, and have also lost their battle with cancer. It was pretty moving to see. I had fun chatting with the girls until the wee hours of the morning. Of course talking about the things women always seem to talk about when they get together.....pregnancy, child birth, the days before we were all responsible adults....you know. Good times. Good memories!! I stayed up until around 2am and then went and laid in my sleeping bag for a few hours. I never did go to sleep because I was so uncomfortable with all the layers and shirts rubbing on my radiation burns. I got up a little before 5am and walked until about 6:30 when they stopped counting laps and started serving breakfast. We ended up packing it in and going home and I was at the house again at 7am, ready for a nap. Jon ended up coming home to put the kids to bed on Saturday night so he was kind enough to let me nap all morning. Relay was defiantly an experience to remember and it was fun hanging out with family and friends to visit and reminisce. I hope they had as much fun as I did!

Jon left for work on Sunday afternoon at about 1pm. We had tried to turn on the AC right before he left and it wasn't working. We found out that the unit itself was fried along with our thermostat and wiring in the furnace. Nothing was working. I am not sure exactly what happened but we are going to have to replace it all.....nice. Hopefully our home owner's insurance will cover it. Just in time for our first 2 90 degree days of the summer. Luckily it will only be in the 70s tomorrow and Wednesday. Work is keeping me busy and hopefully my burns will keep getting better. They have started the turn around from getting worse to getting better. Rubbing is still uncomfortable but not super painful. Back to taking only a couple ibuprofen a day. A few goofy things that i forgot to mention last week was that I have 2 toenails fall off last week randomly and my eyelashes are starting to fall out again?? What is going on? I asked my oncologist and she said that sometimes the toenails grow slower so it wasn't uncommon to still be experiencing the side effects of that....nice, since I stopped Taxotere before Christmas, but OK. And also that eyelashes grow in cycles so they are most likely all on the same cycle and will take a few cycles to get them back to normal. What a mean tease. Just when I though my lashes were getting beautiful again.

I of course have some awesome pictures from Relay for life so check them out on my pictures link on the side bar of the page.....

Friday June 8th

It has been a tough week. My skin was sorta getting better at the beginning of the week and then went down hill again in the "boost" area. Just when I thought things were getting better....So still trying to keep the creams on stay on top of either Ibuprofen or other medicine and wearing loose shirts. It has been hard to keep up with the kids this week also and I have noticed that I am getting more and more tired still. Apparently the side effects from fatigue could also take a few weeks to get better. The burns they said they can still get worse then they are now for up to 10 days and then better after that.
I went to see Dr. M yesterday at the Cancer Specialists office. I feel like I haven't seen her in forever since the last time I saw her was after my surgery. I would see her every other week during chemo. I did Herceptin also on Thursday. I have to do a brain MRI next Friday, doctors orders. Apparently the 3 big spots to keep an eye on now are brain, liver, and lungs. I have never had a brain MRI but just the sound of the words brain MRI give me an uneasy feeling. She said they get pretty close to your head and you are really confined so I will be taking an anti anxiety med before the procedure and I get to have yet another IV done to put in contrast. Fun. So sick of IV's and getting poked. Thank goodness for the port though or I probably wouldn't have any arms left.... The Dr. also says that they will continue to do a mammo on the left side every year and I will still see her every three months for the next year. I have my last Herceptin treatment at the end of Aug.
I also had to go back to see the radiation doctor today to get a skin check. They will still check my skin every few days for the next week. The spots under my arm are getting better at least.
Thanks to everyone that helped me with the kids this week. I really appreciate it. Jon got home last night and we have Relay this weekend. Tonight we are going out with our friends Vernon and Kira to celebrate his birthday at the Melting Pot. YUMMY! The melting pot is a fondue restaurat and it is awesome. I am really looking forward to it. I will take lots of pictures to share with everyone!

Monday June 4th

Well I got up this morning and went to radiation thinking it was my last day and WHAM!!! The nurse hit me with, oh after the doctor saw you last week she changed your prescription for 5 boost treatments instead of 4. DARN! So one more day. The weekend didn't get much better. I have been taking my Vicodin and also doing all the creams and numbing medicine on my burn site. Also doing the Domboro soaks about 3 times a day. Still wearing the BIG T shirts as well. I am pretty uncomfortable but trying to "endure to the end". So after tomorrow I should still notice that the "boost" area or area around my mastectomy scar will still keep getting worse for about a week and then slowly start to get better. The really painful area under my arm I think is starting to get a bit better instead of getting worse. It has leveled off and I have noticed today that it hasn't gotten worse than it was yesterday so hopefully I am on the downhill with those areas. I am also pretty tired both yesterday and today.
I am still loving my new car, even though I haven't really driven it a bunch yet. Mostly just been the passenger. Jon hooked up my I drive in it on Saturday so I can just plug in my I pod to the glove box and control it through the radio. It is much easier. I took it out of my car before we traded it.
Jon left again for Montrose this morning and will be coming home either Thursday night or Friday morning. Relay is this weekend and I am really looking forward to it. Hopefully I will be well rested and feeling better by the weekend!

Saturday June 2nd

Wow, I can't believe it is June already. Bonjour summer! Now if the weather could get a little warmer we would be set. It has been pretty mild here this week in the 60s and low 70s.

I found a new favorite song this week by Sarah Buxton called That kind of Day. It's about a girl who is having a bad day....funny. Anyway listen to it if you get a chance, it is too new and doesn't have a way to put it on my blog.

So no good news to report as far as the radiation. Jon got home on Thursday and was a huge help with the kids on Thursday. I was in a bunch of pain on Thursday. I just didn't even want to move around. Still wearing the huge Tshirts so the seams wouldn't rub on my armpits and the shirt would just hand off of my neck and not rub the front of my chest. I was rubbing my Silvadine cream on every 1 1/2 to 2 hours because it would start hurting again that soon after applying it. I showed Jon the burns in the AM on Thursday and then at night before I got in the shower they were so much worse. Red EVERYWHERE instead of just in spots. Come to find out yesterday morning when I asked the nurse about it she said that it will still keep getting worse up to 10 days after the radiation is done. After she told me that I know I had heard it before but must have just forgotten. (chosen to block it out more like) Any who......I ended up seeing the doc and nurse after radiation yesterday because it was bothering me so much. I got a whole new regime of medicines and creams and she told me it was okay to use my pain meds from after my surgery if I thought it hurt that much......It did! They ended up giving me some pure Xylocaine Jelly to put on the really bad spots under my arm that hurt, which helped a whole bunch. Then I am to do these Domboro soaks a few times a day which I think also helped yesterday. I am still just amazed at how bad it has actually gotten. Bizarre that it is painful in one area and super itchy just a few cm over. All sorts of different meds to help out though. I keep telling Jon, "Can you bring me my bag of tricks?" Since they gave all this stuff to me in a brown paper bag.

Thursday was my bosses' last day of work. I will really miss her. She has been really great to me through this whole process and I will be sad to see her go. Hopefully we will still stay in touch.

Yesterday we did have an exciting afternoon. Jon and I have been looking at buying a bigger car for at least a year, since our family has really outgrown our old Cherokee. It is a tight fit for all 3 of the kiddos and they have absolutely no room for anything else or anyone else which makes it hard to carpool to school. Jon had been looking at Excursions but since they only made them a few years and don't make them any longer we were having a difficult time trying to find them. I think there were about 20 in the whole front range and Denver area. Which is not many. We ended up going down to look at one yesterday afternoon and came home with one. We are all very excited. Finally some room to spread out and Jon is excited that we got a diesel vehicle that we can still pull our toys with and not be going 50 miles an hour through the mountains. Here is a picture of it from the dealer's website.

Hopefully it will last us a REALLY long time! My brother is graduating this morning and that is really the only plans we have for the weekend. I think Jon might try and do some landscaping today since we need to buy some more mulch and do some weeding. (good luck with that Jon!)I am glad I should be able to just hang out and relax.

Wednesday May 30th

No good news to report. Still painful and really itchy. Today I started my "boost" treatment. This treatment uses the same machine but they put this funny attachment on the machine that looks like an upside down microscope that gets very close to my skin. I always think that my chin is going to hit it when they move the table. They had to draw on my skin around my scar with a marker today though and it actually really hurt. It felt like needles on my poor burned and irritated skin. This treatment they also use a bolus on every time, meaning the wet rag on my skin so the treatment stays on the outer layers of my skin. Which I assume means that that area is going to get much worse as far as the burns. At least the rest of the burns including the ones that hurt really bad under my arm next to my lymph node scar will get better in the next week or so. The area under my arm and on my collar bone have blisters on them today. Jon is going to be home tomorrow morning so that will be good. I just said, I have to have your help this week. It just hurts too much to be all over the place with the kids.
My younger brother Mason is graduating from high school this weekend. He wants to design video games. I went to my parents this evening for dinner and for some help with the twins and Olivia stayed the night with my sister Heather. My brother Mason was looking for some gum after dinner and I told him that I had some Big Red if he wanted some and my dad said, he is talking about gum Eliza not your radiation burn. Ha! I can always count on my dad-e-o for a big laugh.
Jon and I also decided after this weekend that it was time to start looking for a bigger vehicle. Now that the kids are getting bigger it is just harder to fit everyone in the car and be comfortable. We have been looking at the diesel Excursion but they are pretty hard to come by. I think we will be looking for awhile before we find one that will work, in the area at least. Hopefully I will be able to sleep better tonight. I think I will say cheers before bed with an Ambien :-)

Tues May 29th

Well things went from bad yesterday to horrible today. It is so uncomfortable and painful that I can't put my arm by my side or have anything against my skin without it hurting. Jon left this morning around 11 and a good family friend Nina and her daughter Leslie came over to help me get the kids lunch and put them down for naps. Leslie is my age and it was good to see her and her family. They took Olivia for the afternoon to play with her son Eli and let me have a bit of a break. The radiation machine was down off and on all day so after about 5 phone calls from the doctor they finally got me in this evening at 5pm. My mom took the kids to her house and I went to the doctor. The doctor looked at my skin and said at least I was done with the treatment to the chest area. Tomorrow I start my 4 day regimen of the boost treatment to the mastectomy scar area. My underarm still hurts the most. The new skin is exposed to rubbing of my shirt and my arm and is very red. They said to just keep a bunch of Silvadine cream on the whole area and hopefully it will improve soon. I have been popping the Ibuprofen every 4 hours too. I have just had a very frustrating day trying to deal with getting comfortable and not moving around a whole bunch. Hopefully it will be better tomorrow.

Monday May 28th

I thought this song was appropriate :-)

We have had a busy weekend! Jon brought all 3 of the kids with me to radiation on Thursday morning so all the radiation nurses and staff could meet the kids that I talk so much about. They were so cute and had a good time getting all that attention. They have some kids toys and snacks in the reception area so they were happy. Jon worked all day on Thursday getting ready for our camping trip. He replaced the ceiling in our tent trailer and fixed the heater motor. I had a Relay for Life meeting on Thursday night and Jon took Olivia to her last swim lesson.
Friday morning Olivia had her last day of preschool and they had a school picnic at the park. Olivia has just loved school and her teacher has been awesome. Here is a picture of Olivia and her teacher Mrs. Miller.

I had to go to radiation at 1:45 since we went to the picnic in the am. I am glad I don't have an afternoon appointment because they were running 45 min late from the schedule and I arrived early. Olivia said, "I could probably just go with you to the doctor and play with the toys since Cody and Alex are napping." So she came with me, but actually did awesome keeping herself busy with the toys and talking to the nurses. The even let her sit in the area behind the walls where they watch me on the camera and work the machine, since they can't be in the actual room when the radiation is being done. She had a ball. The rest of the afternoon we did our last min errands picking up groceries or odds and ends we forgot. Friday night we packed up our cars and the trailers so we were ready to bounce in the morning.
Saturday we got up and everyone met at our house to caravan up to the Mountain Home area north of Walden. Seth and Courtnee and their 2 boys Drew and Talyor came and also "uncle" Vernon and Kira and her son Riley came. It is a great area for the 4 wheelers because there are tons of trails to go on through the woods with lots of obstacles. We got up there about 1ish. It sprinkled on and off for a few hours but wasn't too bad. We still rode the 4 wheelers and played all afternoon. Olivia got to learn how to ride her four wheeler with Jon or I on the back and so did Courtnee's little boy Drew. The first time Drew and Courtnee started he turned really sharp and threw Courtnee off the back and then ran her over! It was funny to see, but it gave her a jolt and a nice battle wound on her knee. Needless to say Drew was done for the day after that.

We sat outside next to the campfire and hung out until bedtime. I got the kids these glo in the dark braclets from the dollar store that are always a huge hit when we are camping. I am not going to lie though, it was a COLD night. The heater only worked until about 4am and then we were freezing. The kids woke up at 5:45 and Jon got up and started the generator so we could turn the heater back on. When I woke up my skin had really been bothering me for a good part of the night and found out that it has started to peel where I was sleeping on my hand and it rubbed against the t shirt. My skin has turned a brownish gray color on the top and still red underneath. I was pretty uncomfortable most of the day. With having layers on my skin was constantly rubbing against my shirt and was the pits. I still managed to have a blast with the kids and Jon on the 4 wheelers. Our friend Kenny showed up in the early afternoon and was pretty familiar with the area and took a bunch of us on a fun ride through the forest and mud puddles. Jon was a trooper and stayed behind with the kids while the napped. I rode his Raptor and it wasn't as hard as I thought it was going to be. It is has a lot of power and I don't really like riding it because the throttle is really touchy and takes off real fast. It was fun though. Here we are after we got back. By then I had had enough and was pretty miserable. Jon packed up our stuff and we left last night at about 7pm so I could sleep in my own bed and be a little more comfortable. We both had to drive since we pulled up the four wheelers and tent trailer. I thought I was going to pass out by the time we got home.
Today we played catch up and clean up. Jon cleaned up the trailers and four wheelers and I did laundry and put stuff away. I also did my grocery shopping in the afternoon so I didn't have to take all the kids with me tomorrow. Jon took Olivia to see Sherk 3 this evening. We were all going to go, but I just wasn't feeling up to going and the twins needed to go to bed on time. So much for that thought it is 9:30 and they are still getting in and out of bed and talking. Stinkers. Jon will leave again in the morning to go back to Montrose until Friday. I am pretty uncomfortably and trying to wear the biggest tshirts I can find so it doesn't rub in my armpit or my chest. Just very sore and taking Ibuprofen and using my creams. I haven't had the dizzy spells all weekend and have been trying to push the Gatorade and Powerade.

I put some pictures of our camping trip and Olivia's picnic on my snapfish link. Enjoy!

Wed May 23rd

Things here are just getting a little harder each day. I am getting more and more tired and still having dizzy spells and headaches on and off. I went in again for hydration on Monday afternoon and that seemed to help some. My skin is still really red and I have peeling and some raw spots on my surgical scars, but no blisters or peeling on my skin. I have had lots of help from my parents and friends with watching kids. Sitting around is really the only thing that helps me to feel better, which is really hard with the kids and feeling like there are things that need to get done. Olivia got in her first bike accident on Monday at preschool. They had a bike day at the park where all the kids brought their bikes to school. Apparently she was just going to fast and not paying attention and went right over the handle bars. Both of her elbows and her hips have battle wounds on them and were scrapped up pretty good. But that afternoon she wanted to get back on and ride again for the afternoon so it must not have been too traumatic. Good thing she was wearing her bike helmet. Jon is supposed to be getting home some time today which will be nice. He has been gone for 10 days and I am defiantly ready for him to be home and help me out with the kids. So far we are still planning on going camping this weekend, but I suppose that could change if I get any worse. The kids are all really looking forward to it so hopefully it will work out.