Before and after (some actually "during") pictures of the paint project

Painters and pills and cats, oh my!

The painters FINALLY showed up, for about 4 hours, yesterday.  

They didn't come Wednesday because the job before ours wasn't finished.

They didn't come Thursday because their truck broke down.

They came unannounced on Friday, and left a note to say they were here, but they didn't DO anything.

They were afraid it might rain yesterday, so they only did a little work.  It stayed bright and sunny until sunset.  No sign of rain.

But whatever.  At least they got a little bit done.  They're SUPPOSED to come tomorrow, but there's a 20% chance of rain, so we'll see.

You all will just have to wait for your before and after pictures.  *wink*

I had my check up, port flush, and bone shot on Thursday.

My blood counts looked good

The doc was completely open to my request to get off of the Neurontin and replace it with supplements.  He reviewed my list of supplements, and okay'd all of them.

I started that day with taking one less pill.  I will do that for a while, then call his nurse and tell her when I step it down by another, leaving me on one a day until I see him again in early June.

I am not sure why it has to be weaned down like that, but there must be a reason.  It IS an anti-seizure drug, so maybe if you stop, you could have a seizure.

Do. Not. Want.

Hopefully, I will start to see a decrease in fatigue and dizziness soon.

It was a good week this past week for getting outside to walk (would have been great for painting, too, but I digress).  

I didn't feel very well back on Monday, so I skipped dance class.  The pollen counts have been really high, and I have been dealing with increased allergy symptoms.

Mostly, though, it was a good week for fitness.

Something really bizarre happened yesterday.  I was home alone (while the painters were here), and someone knocked on the door.

I don't usually answer the door if Dave isn't here, but since the painters were here, I answered it.

It was NOT one of the painters.  It was an inspector from OKC Animal Welfare.  

Someone had called in a complaint about us having wild cats in our back yard, saying that we are baiting the feral cats, and holding them captive.

Really???

The first thing out of my mouth was "we do TNR"  (We trap them, get them fixed, release them back into their environment, and feed and water them so they can live out their lives).  

He recognized the name of the place where we take them to get them fixed.  He didn't know they do free spay/neuter for TNR on Saturdays, or that they do $5 rabies shots and ear tips.

The inspector smiled, and nodded, and took down my name.  We chatted about what we do; that we're trying to HELP our neighborhood.  

He asked how many cats we have, on average, in our yard.  When I said "three or four," he rolled his eyes.  WE are clearly NOT the problem.

He asked to inspect our messy back yard (there's a pile of brush that needs to get dragged out to the street for pick up, and all of our plant pots and patio stuff is out in the middle, so it's away from the house and shed for the painters), where we supposedly trap and abuse the cats.

He saw the feeding boxes (we got plastic tubs, cut holes in them to keep the rain and birds off of the food), and he saw that there's no way we can "hold" the cats captive in the yard!

I explained to him that we improved our shed so that they can't get under it anymore, and we blocked their access to the space under the house and the HVAC unit.

I told him where the cats COME FROM, under (or over) the fence in the back corner.  They come from that house on the other side of the block, where there are 20 or so of them.

I told him we've gone over and talked to the lady over there.  I asked if anyone called in a complaint about her, and he didn't know.  

SHE is the problem, not us.  Her neighbor has TNR'd a few of the cats that mostly stay on that side.  We've seen the trap, and have seen the snipped ear tips, on some of our occasional back yard visitors.

The inspector said that people don't understand what TNR is, and they don't understand how bad the feral cat situation is.

He recorded the complaint against us as UNFOUNDED, but he couldn't tell me who called us in.  He said if he knew, he would tell me.

I hope they called the complainer back and explained that we are doing this FOR THE BENEFIT of our neighborhood.

Okay, we are getting too late of a start on our day.  I made a yummy breakfast, but now I really need to get showered and figure out what I NEED to get done today, and what I will have TIME TO ENJOY today.

Oh, and happy Mother's Day to anyone out there who celebrates it.

Happy May Day

When I was a kid, my Grandma taught me about leaving May Baskets on the front steps of the ladies in our neighborhood.

It was a different kind of "Ding Dong Ditch" game.  I'd pick violets from the yard, which were always in bloom on May Day, and put them in little containers.  There were probably some dandelions in the mix, and lily of the valley, if it was blooming, too.

Then, I'd quietly place them on the step, ring the door bell or knock, and run away.

She said this was something she did when she was a little girl, way back in the first years of the 20th century (she was born in 1900).

Not too much to report on this week.

My eyelashes have started to grow in.  Just like before, however, one of them is turned inward and has been irritating my eye for 4 days so far.

The body hair has started to grow in, as well.  Gotta make sure I have shaving gel and blades on hand!  It's weird to be so excited about having to shave my legs again!

My 54th birthday came and went last week.  I got a bunch of Cubs related gifts from my sister and husband.  It was definitely a theme!

The laundry weasel has already stolen one of my new Cubs socks.  *grumble*

Dave and I went out for a very nice dinner because I had a $25 coupon for the restaurant.

We have changed our habits over the past few weeks.  We are drinking a lot less alcohol, exercising more,  and eating a much cleaner diet.  We are back on track.

Dave has lost 5 pounds, and I still have lost none.

This Thursday, I go for my 6 week check up at the Cancer clinic, will get my bone treatment shot, and will see the doc and present my argument for switching to some new supplements instead of increasing the Neurontin.

This visit to the clinic will also involve getting my chemo port flushed, which has to be done every 6 to 8 weeks.  SO, I will take my numbing cream with me to work, put it on and cover it with plastic wrap (like I did before every chemo treatment), and ask them to take my labs through it while they're at it.

In other news, we have started storm season in Oklahoma.  There have been two days of severe storms in the state this past week, and the really surprising thing is that my employer has released us early, with pay, both times, so that we can get home before the storms hit.

The storms have then proceeded to not hit IN the metro area, which is a good thing.

I wonder what changed, though.

It was like this when I first started.  We were let go early when the weather was threatening, either winter or summer.

Then, that stopped last winter, and we were told that EVEN THOUGH THE OFFICE WAS BEING CLOSED, we could only leave if we used our paid time off hours.

Last winter, I was in the beginning of cancer treatment, and had to save every possible paid hour off to go to doctor appointments and chemo, so I was left alone in the office a couple of times during snow and ice storms.

Now we're back to being paid if the office closes.

My boss's boss is nothing if not inconsistent!

Whatever...I have been glad to leave early for no reason a couple of times this past week!!

The weather forecast is dry this coming week, so our house will finally get painted.

I will post some before and after pictures HOPEFULLY next weekend.

This coming week should bring the free cleaning service around again, so I am looking forward to that.  It's SO nice!!

Happy May Day!

Sunny Sunday

It's been a pretty weekend so far, though windy.

We got a lot done around the house yesterday.  Dave cut back brush and made another big pile.  He scraped areas of the driveway where weeds and grass had taken over.  He finished trimming the shed, so it's ready for the house painters.

I planted stuff in pots, did laundry, and cooked for Dave's dad, and for us.  My feet hurt by bed time, so I took a nice hot bath before bed.

Today, I hope to vacuum area rugs, go with Dave to deliver the food to his dad, and maybe relax a little.

Dave still needs to mow.  There's more rain in next week's forecast, so if he doesn't do it now, he'll have a harder time later.

My hair finally stopped falling out a couple of days ago.  I have patches that are nearly bald.  It's really quite ugly.  That, along with the lack of eyebrows and lashes, makes me feel really bad about how I look these days.

Add to that the weight that I have gained, and it's pretty nasty.

But I have said some prayers, and am going to research natural remedies for CIPN (chemotherapy induced peripheral neuropathy).

I will present ideas to my doc when I see him on 5/5, and see if we can take me off of the Neurontin.

Turns out, it was not the steroid injections every week that made me gain the weight.  It's the Neurontin that they started me on in September when the chemo made my fingers and toes/areas of my feet go numb.

I started the weekly treatments at the same time, so I assumed it was the increased frequency of the steroids.

But then, I found out that Neurontin causes weight gain, too, and considering that I have been doing everything I can to lose this weight, and NOTHING is happening, and the steroids are well and truly out of my system, it has to be the Neurontin.

The medication is not helping what it's supposed to help, so why bother continuing on it?  I know that I "can" take up to 6 capsules of it a day safely....but if it's just going to make me fatter, I really don't want to do that.

There has been no improvement in my numbness for a LONG time even with increasing the dose from 3 a day to 4 a day a few months ago.  It also makes me dizzy.

If it's making it so I have to buy an entire new wardrobe because my clothes don't fit, and it's not DOING anything, maybe we can try something that won't make me fat, instead of adding more of the drug that's making me fat.

Makes sense to me, so we'll see if the doctor agrees.

Without the chemo going in, at least my symptoms can't get any worse.

Okay, well, I am off to the shower so we can get our day started.

Have a good Sunday!

Progress

The home improvement projects are progressing.  Pictures below.

Last weekend, Dave, and our young friend, Andrew added lumber and bracing brackets to the pergola over the hot tub.

Late in the week, the contractors showed up to finish out the car port extension and install the new  fence across the new end of the car port.

Then, yesterday, Dave removed the old chain link gates, and dug out the rotted tree stump that was in the way of the new covered parking spot.

The new carport area is now fully functional, and with the original bit of fence to the right, the house to the left, and the new stockade fence and gate at the end, whichever car gets parked in the new spot will be very well protected.

It will almost be like being in a garage.

Unfortunately, the exterior painting can't be done until we have 4 or so days of sunny, dry weather, and the rainy season just started.

It could be a while before we see the paint job being completed.  That's now the only thing left.

Before and after pictures, well... after.

Oh and here are some pictures from the side shed rehab Dave and I did ourselves on March 26th.

My hair continued to fall out heavily over the past week, so the other night, I trimmed it short.  A little TOO short in one spot when I held the trimmer at a bad angle.  Oops.  So then, I had to even things out, so now it looks like shit.  OH well.

Hopefully, the falling out will stop over the next week or so, and regrowth will begin.

It's now been three weeks since my last treatment.  This past week was my first without any appointments or any reason to go to the clinic.  SO nice!

My sense of taste is almost back to normal, and the dry mouth is almost completely gone.

Fatigue remains an issue, but I have been doing my best to be active, taking walks and using home exercise options.

I also returned to dance class this past Monday night.  It felt good, but looking at myself in the mirrored wall was a bit harsh.

I will get over it.

Cooking and staying in on a rainy day is what's ahead for me.  Sounds lovely.

Hope you have a good day, too, Gentle Reader.

2 weeks after

It's been two weeks now since my last treatment, and my eyebrows and eyelashes are gone, and my hair is falling out more than ever.

Yesterday, I realized that this situation is unique in my chemo experience, so I did not know at all what to expect.

But having the hair loss (other than the body hair, which fell out right away) START after the end of treatment was certainly NOT expected.

Back at the beginning, the first round of chemo was 4 treatments (Taxotir and Cytoxin) in three months, and I lost all of my hair starting about 10 days after the first treatment.

Then, there was a break for surgery, during which I regained a LOT of head hair.

We resumed chemo with different drugs after surgery (Adriamycin, the "red devil").

I lost my re-grown hair starting, again,  about 10 days after the first treatment.  I lost my eyebrows and eyelashes and everything else after the second treatment ( I think..it's been a long time).... so I was already as bald as I was going to get when we started the last cocktail of different drugs (first Taxol, then Abraxane, ending with Abraxane--that's the one that's $4000 per treatment) in September.

Then there was another break after the last treatment in November.

I took almost 2 months off between the end of 7 months' of constant treatment before we started this most recent round of 9 treatments with the same drug that was used at the end of everything last year.

During that break, my hair grew in thick and my eyebrows and eyelashes came back.

The point is, I have no point of reference of going into receiving Abraxane without already being bald from months and months of treatment.

The body hair loss happened pretty quickly, but the head hair was not falling out much at all, and the eyebrows and eyelashes were staying put....until after the last treatment on March 25th.

Since then, my hair loss has been profuse.  Especially the past week.  They eyelashes have all fallen out since last weekend.

I am REALLY HOPING it stops soon!!  I can see my scalp through the spikes when I put my hair gel in, and I can feel my scalp much more easily when I shampoo.

Sigh.

SO unexpected.  You'd think that it would have started at 10 days like the other times, instead of waiting until the drug was out of my system.

I've also been really fatigued (compared to how I normally feel....I can still get stuff done and take my walks, but I don't feel as good as I've felt over the past year of treatments).

The good news is, my dry mouth is gone, and the mouth sores have stopped.  Things are even starting to taste normal again!!  YAY!!

Got my first "maintenance" injection on Thursday.  The shot itself was pretty painful, but no ill effects!!
NOW, I don't have to set foot in the clinic for ANYTHING until May 5!!!  How nice that will be!!

In other news, the free cleaning service finally started coming.  They did a very nice job, and it's been so lovely to NOT have to clean my house this weekend!

They will come back three more times, once a month.  I am so pleased that I qualify, even though chemo is over.

Chemo side effects certainly are NOT over yet, so it's a blessing.

The home improvements have begun, so our feeling of being "rich" (while the tax refund and Dave's bonus sat in the bank) will be over soon.

I am still SO very grateful that the fund raisers that were done on my behalf (and by me personally) are paying the medical bills this year.

These home improvements are WAY past due, and had to be put off because of the medical bills last  year.

It will be so nice to get them all done.

As I think I posted before, Dave and I did the rehab on the shed ourselves two weeks ago.

The two front room windows were replaced with craftsman style this past week.  Dave found them at a place called Architectural Antiques (not the chain, a privately owned local place FILLED with junk).
They were really inexpensive, and our painter is also a construction contractor, so he was able to swap them out for us as part of all of the stuff he is doing for us.

Then, yesterday, they came and did the carport extension.  Once the fence is replaced/moved up, we will be able to park both cars under cover.

Now it's supposed to rain for a couple of days, but by the end of this coming week, the fence and the exterior painting of the house and shed should all be finished!

Bye bye, big pile of money!

Breathing room

The scan results showed that the spot in the liver had only shrunk by 2mm after 9 doses of Abraxane.

My doctor feels that more chemo at this point would not produce enough benefit.  SO, I am done with chemo.

This gives me a sense of relief.

He also explained that there COULD be microscopic lesions elsewhere in the liver, and that pursuing this one spot with more aggressive therapy (i.e. radiation) may also turn out to be moot, should those other possible spots decide to start growing.

Our approach is to do nothing, wait, and watch.  We will repeat the scan in 3 months.

While the looming black cloud of  "your liver could actually be full of cancer and we just don't know it" (how I heard the conversation), is hanging over my head, the over all scan results were favorable.

No new metastases, AND, the doc did re-confirm his previous stance that the possible reason for the spot to NOT respond well to chemo is that it MIGHT only be scar tissue.

Unfortunately, we don't know, and can't find out.

The uncertainty remains, so I was less than jovial about the scan results.

Oh, and restaging doesn't mean anything, really.

I will always be a stage 4.  That never gets taken off of my name.

In other news, the scan report included the words "evidence of previous hysterectomy."

Since I have never had a hysterectomy, we naturally questioned this.

While the doctor's only response to this was that he would put a call in to the radiologist to confirm, the head nurse had a more elaborate response to the question.

She explained that chemotherapy can cause the uterus to basically disappear.  I guess because it is a hollow vessel, and not a solid-tissue organ, what happens is that it collapses in on itself, and it shrinks up like a raisin.

Disgusting, but also apparently true.

She put the call in to the radiologist, but since it was Friday afternoon, we did not hear anything back to either confirm  nor deny this as being the reason for there not being a uterus on the scan.

If this IS what happened, rather than some technical or other kind of glitch, at least I have the comfort of knowing that I do not have to worry about my terrible periods coming back once my body recovers from chemo.  Bonus bright side to getting cancer.

It WOULD have been nice, however, to have known about this possibility prior to beginning treatments.  Informed consent and all that.

**EDIT Monday 4/4/26-- The nurse called.  I STILL HAVE A UTERUS.  I did not ask why the report said otherwise.  It has been amended. **

Be that as it may, I have 3 months to breathe, recover, and just go for my monthly bone injections.  I won't know what to do with myself!!