JUST SOME RAMBLINGS.....

Yes, I'm in there somewhere!

Ok, today is just me and my ramblings....no major updates.  My first subject....The Susan G Komen Foundation.  I am not jumping on the "hate" Komen bandwagon.  I am not jumping on the politics of it all.  I am approached a lot as a breast cancer survivor on this subject, and although I've tried to stay away from it and all of the controversy on my blog, I can't stay silent any longer.  I want to set the record straight.  I am a cancer survivor....not even at my first year out yet (almost).  I don't need all of this hate and negativity in my life.  I don't need to be told that there is a cure but the Phamaceuticals don't make enough money on a cure....they make money on treatments.  How is that helpful to tell me there is a cure but I can't have it?  All of the negativity of those who want to bring down the Komen Foundation is just not helpful to me and has no place in my life right now.  My goal is to stay positive, as a positive attitude has been the most helpful to me personally.  I am not a "pollyanna", but I just don't find all of this fighting and hating on Komen helpful to me at all and I certainly don't find it helpful for people to tell me that cancer has a cure. And I don't need any links to "prove it".   Imagine any disease you might have and people saying there is a cure but your disease makes too much money, so it's not being used.  Imagine being called brainwashed.  Well, wow, that feels good, doesn't it?  Could this be true?  Maybe.  But even it it's true...how does it help me?  Can I buy this cure?  If not, then I'm going to file this useless information in my "the stupid things people say to you when you have cancer" file.  I am not going to join the fight against the Komen Foundation.  The only time I've even been involved with the Komen Foundation was last October when I attended my first Komen Race for the Cure with my sister in Evansville.  I did not raise a bunch of money for it.  I only paid my registration and went.  I was just out of chemo and my masectomy and was going through my reconstruction and I found it to be a very positive experience for me.  I met many wonderful people who were so encouraging to me.  It turned out to also be a special time for me and my sister.  I am already making plans to be at the Indianapolis Race for the Cure this April with one of my support groups, Merry Crazies and my cancer sisters, Carin and Amy.  It will be another positive experience.  It is what you make it.  And, personally, I do believe that the research that has been done has helped me survive this diagnosis.  I may not be cured....but I am surviving and as one cancer survior put it, I'm LIVING OUT LOUD.  I like that!  :=)

Ok, enough said...off my soapbox now!  :=)

Spinal Injection

Well, I went and got my first spinal injection Tuesday (two days ago).  I actually ended up getting two shots.  It was easy peasy...they put me to sleep...lol!  Hey, if they put me to sleep they can do anything!  It was a drug that I woke up fast from.  My friend, Linda, took me since they said I needed to bring a driver.  I was dizzy and woozie at first but it wore off pretty fast and we even were able to go to lunch and stop by Sam's Wholesale before heading back home.  I've never ever had anything done to my spine, so it sounded icky to me.  But, it wasn't bad.  The results:  I think it's working.  I won't say my pain is totally gone 100% of the time, but it's better and it's only been two days.  My leg doesn't hurt like it did and I feel more mobile.  I was mobile before, but hurt with every step I took.  I go back to the doctor in a month to report back on how it's working, so we'll see how it goes!

Relay for Life

A Thirty One bag I had personalized to use for my Relay for Life "stuff"!

Now that I'm feeling good with my treatments behind me....I am ready to pitch in and give my help for the cause.  So, I'm pleased to have a team this year for Relay for Life.  We will walk on May 19 at the Jennings County Relay for Life (a neighboring county).  I walked there last year and the people there were so wonderful to me and my sister, Sheila.  They invited us back this year to be their guest speaker at their kick-off and have just "adopted" us, even though we are from Jackson County.  It doesn't really matter....all of the raised funds will go to the same place....American Cancer Society.  We are coming up with some fundraising ideas, so if you have any great, fun ideas to pass along to me, I'd love to hear them. 

We are considering doing a Pink Flamingo Flocking fundraiser.  I think it will be a lot of fun!  I would love to raise a considerable amount for our team to donate to the American Cancer Society through the Relay for Life.  If there are other "relayers" out there, I'd love to hear from you!  I'm excited about having a team this year!  With my dad dying of lung cancer, and me, my sister, and my mom having breast cancer....it is a cause near and dear to my heart.

I will be having a Thirty-One fundraiser where I will give my commission to the cause.  More on that later when I get it set up.  Now, I am not turning this blog into a fundraising site and am not going to bug my readers to give to my causes....but if you are interested in doing so, I do want to let you know about them and give you the opportunity.  It is totally your choice.  It's what is going on in my life and it would seem strange to leave it out of my writings.

SOUTHERN INDIANA TORNADOES

Pretty scary to think of that coming toward you!

Speaking of fundraisers, I have one going on right now on my Thirty One website.  If you are looking for a way to help the people in Indiana that have suffered from the March tornadoes, you can make a purchase on my website and I will donate 100% of my commission from your purchase to the tornado victims.  I don't have much money to give myself, but I do have a way of raising some, so this is just my effort to help my neighbors who have been so devastated in these horrific storms.  Just go to my website at www.mythirtyone.com/bags4you and go to the tab "Place an order" at the top and look for the "Tornado Relief Party" and place your order under that.  You can have it shipped directly to you and when my commissions from this party come in, I will be donating it to the victims.  Thank you if you are able to help.

The school!  They let school out early because of the weather outlook and that decision saved lives!

The worse tornado hit just 45 minutes south of me.  I was substitute teaching that day and we had bad weather heading our way right at the time for school to let out.  So we kept the children over for a half hour to wait for it to pass.  By the time I got home, I got a phone call from a friend in Illinois asking if I was ok.  She had seen that a tornado had hit in my area....I didn't even know yet myself and immediately turned on the tv!  It's always such a good feeling to know others around the country care enough to call and check on you. 

The town south of us..Henryville, IN....is just a small community and they are just devastated.  The stories are heartbreaking and there are inspirational stories coming out, too, like the woman who lost both of her legs saving her children.  She's been on all of the national news stations, so no matter where you live, you may have caught her interview from the hospital on tv.  What an inspiration!  She has such a positive attitude about it all....a young woman with her legs amputated and saying she will walk in 3 months, after the doctors told her she could be walking in 4 months!  I am in awe of her!  And you know what?  I believe she will be walking in 3 months....she has the right attitude to accomplish just that!

These are just a few of the pictures to show the devastation.  There was also loss of life, including a family of 5.  My heart just breaks over that story.  We all held out such hope for a baby that was found in a field clinging to life, but, like the other 4 members of her family that were killed in the tornado, she also lost her life after a few days in the hospital.  We all prayed for that little baby and we all grieved upon her passing.  

There were several other communities in Indiana hit with a tornado that same day as Henryville.....Marysville, Holton, Pekin, Chelsea....all in my area of Indiana.  There were also some tornadoes that hit Kentucky and a few other states.  It was a devastating day for many and I hope to help ease at least some of their pain with a financial donation, as well as volunteering some time for whatever they need.  It will take a long time for them to recover from this.  And, don't forget prayers.....prayers are always needed.

No news in the cancer area to report on.  I am trying to start up a breast cancer support group and we will be meeting for the first time tonight.  So, if you know anyone in my area who may be interested, please let them know!  I will be going for my check-up with my oncologist this month and then next month I will be getting my areola tattooed.  I am also planning to get my first pretty tattoo on April 7, my one year cancerversary!  :=)

Until next time...hug your loved ones and appreciate life.  We never know how our lives can change in the blink of an eye!  Give thanks for everything!

Cindy 

LIFE AFTER CANCER.....

As I reach the end of my treatments and surgeries (not there just yet), I pondered what to do with my blog.  I do still have my upcoming surgeries and will report on them and then my check-ups for at least the next 3 years and I'll report on them.  But, I don't plan to have any more beyond that....cause I've kicked this cancer's butt, right???? So, where do I go with my blog between these surgeries and appointments?  There just isn't much "medical" to report right now....which is a GOOD thing!  

I was discussing this with my good friend, Martha, and she said she enjoyed reading about my everyday life....like the Halloween post.  So, she encouraged me to continue my blog and just tell about my "every day life".  And I've enjoyed blogging, so if you guys want to hang with me....I think I'll do just that....blog about my every day life!  There's just something "therapeutic" about blogging and for those who don't know me, it will give you more insight into "who" I am!  And for those who do know me, I hope you enjoy my life stories too and maybe you'll learn some things about me that you didn't know!  Cancer does not define "who" I am....it was a "chapter" in my life, but there's so much more in the "book"!

So, with that being said, let me tell you how my day has gone so far today.  The man in brown just arrived and dropped this off.  OOOOH, I love UPS Packages!  I sell Thirty One Gifts, Scentsy, and Thirty One, so I'm always getting orders delivered by UPS.  But today was different....it wasn't an order at all!  I knew I had WON something from Thirty One and thought they were shipping it to me next week....but could it be here already???  The return address said it was from "Business Impact Group" in Minnesota.  Don't know who that is....is must be my prize!

So, I opened it and this is what I found!

What fun....they even gift wrapped it....how cool is that?

Yep, it is my PRIZE!!!!  I won this by submitting a $500+ party the last week of October (thanks Kelli!) and my name went in a drawing and they drew my name!  It was the only qualifying party I submitted during this promotion and I never ever even gave it a thought that I would win.  I so don't ever win, that I didn't even think about the promotion when I submitted the party.  So, what did I win, you say?  Take a look!!!  This is no small prize!

Now, now how cool is that?  They gave away 450 of these the month of October!  How generous!  They are a great company to work for.  

It was funny how I found out I won.  I signed into my facebook and these other 31 consultants who know me were congratulating me for winning an XBox.  Like I said, I didn't even give the promotion a thought and here they were telling me I'd won and I was like, "I did?????  Seriously????"

I was excited to win anything, but must confess that my first thought was, "an Xbox...what am I going to do with that?  I'd like a Kindle Fire, or an Ipad or even a Wii....I sooooo don't play video games!"  LOL!  "Oh, but my husband will be happy!"  :=)  I thought about not telling him and giving it to him for Christmas, but he has some type of game system now and if he already had an Xbox, I didn't want to give him another one.  LOL...hey, I don't care about his video games, so I didn't really know what kind he had!  So, I went and asked him...he does not have an Xbox....but he'd like one!  I bet he would...lol!   I told him I thought I won one and he looked at me in disbelief.  I told him I hadn't verified it yet....once I verified it and went back and told him it was "a sure thing", his eyes lit up like a little kid!  Men and their video games!  LOL! 

Well, when I verified it I also verified the particulars of it and saw that it was a Kinect.....which meant absolutely nothing to me.  So, I did a google search real fast and it was then that I realized it was similar to a Wii, which I was wanting!  I don't do the sit down video games, but I think I'd have fun with the interactive dancing, fitness, bowling games.  So, then I got more excited!!!!

By the way, Larry still doesn't have an Xbox!  LOL!

FUN IN THE CAVE

Last night my good buddy, Martha, came over to help me brainstorm for our stamp class coming up next Tuesday.  My other good buddy, Linda (hi Linda!), was down in Kentucky, but she joined us on Skype and we were able to show her what we made!  We have such fun during these brainstorming nights.  And last night we were so happy with ourselves that we got all 3 projects designed for the class.  We always make 3 cards and one 3-D item.  And of course we are into "Christmas" right now.  So, here's what we came up with!  We were so pleased with ourselves!  I hadn't felt like stamping much this summer while on chemo and it feels so good to have my mojo back!  We call our stamping sessions "therapy"!  You can be in a bad mood and as soon as you begin to create, your mood instantly lightens up.  My stamp cave is my "happy place"!

See how cute this one is.  I wanted to show you how the little windows open and close. It has little peek-a-boo frames with a stamped image under each one!  We used a Big Shot die for the frames....from Stampin' Up! of course!  :=)  It was a fun card to make!

Our 3-d item is this cute triangular box made from one piece of cardstock and decorated like a Christmas Tree. And of course I'll have candy for them to fill it with!  :=)  What a cute Christmas treat to pass out to co-workers, friends, family...or have at each place setting at Christmas dinner or a Christmas party!

Now I just have to get the "kits" cut out for next Tuesday and tidy up the "cave" and we'll be having a great night out there next week!  I always look forward to "class night"!  Good creative fun, good fellowship with other creative women, and good food!  Does it get any better than that?

Speaking of good friends, my friend, Angie, from Ohio is coming to Indiana today with her children and hubby and their 4-H group!  I was so excited when she emailed and asked me how close Norman, Indiana is to me!  Out of all the places they could have been going to in Indiana, they end up coming to my COUNTY!!!  It's just up the road from us.  It's at a horse camp and they are pulling their horses and will be there all weekend.  We are going over tonight and join them around the campfire and eat!  I love, love, love campfires, especially this time of the year!  And this is in the Hoosier National Forest, so I know it will be beautiful with the Fall Foilage!  I'll be in "earthy heaven"!

Until next time, make every day a "fun day" and find your "earthly heaven"!  :=)

Cindy

PS....the muscle in my breast area is feeling better.  It was really tight after that last "fill" and oh so uncomfortable.  But, I'm feeling much better now!  Life is good!  I gotta love that my medical issues have become a "footnote" in my life now!  :=)