PLEASE PRAY FOR MY FRIEND ANDEE

This is my friend, Andee, with her fiance, Karl.  Andee is fighting ovarian cancer and this photo was taken at a spaghetti fundraiser dinner Saturday night.... the night before she left to see a new doctor in Ohio.  The doctors in Indiana have told Andee that there is no more they can do for her.  But, Andee is not giving up!  She is seeking answers from other doctors.  First and foremost, will you please pray for Andee and her family.  She also has a small child and a very supportive family who love her very much.

I am having a fundraiser Thirty One party for Andee to help her with her medical expenses.  I am a Thirty One Consultant and am giving my 25% commission to Andee from any sales I get for her party.  If you would like to help, you can place an order on my website at www.mythirtyone.com/bags4you   Click on the link at the top "Place An Order" and then find Andee's Cancer Fight in the list and place your order under that party to help me help Andee. 

The special this month is any purse at half price with a $31 order.

Please let me know if you have any questions.  This is my way of trying to help Andee in a physical way.

Thank you for any help you can give and especially thank you for prayers for Andee.  I met Andee last year and she has such a sweet spirit and is such a fighter.  She wants to live for her little girl.  Her little girl needs her.  It breaks my heart to see her have to fight this nasty disease at such a young age.  But, in spite of it all, she's so strong and such an inspiration. 

The day I met Andee and Karl and their precious daughter.

I met Andee through what I call one of my "God moments".  Please lift them all up in your prayers.  Thank you.

ANOTHER SPINAL INJECTION

Well, I went for my second spinal injection.  All went well...again.  But, I must admit that I hurt when I left....and didn't really feel bad when I went.  I guess he woke up some nerves in there!  The first injection really helped, but after about two weeks of being pain free, the pain began to creep back in.  I had a check up with the Orthopedic Surgeon who ordered the first injection and he said we could try it again, since it was helping.  He totally left it up to me.  I told him if it wouldn't hurt me and might possibly help me....let's do it!  So, I did it again and today I started feeling better again.  I really, really hope it lasts longer this time!  I wouldn't mind going every few months for one if it means I'll feel better, but I don't particular want to do it this often.  And it would be wonderful if this took care of the pain FOREVER!

I feel like a woman....LOL!

My sister, Sheila, and I went bra shopping at the Fig Leaf in the Hospital again last week. Nothing can make you feel like a woman like bra shopping does...lol!  Did you realize that most insurance companies allow bras as a covered expense after a masectomy?  Me either until I had this done!   All that is required is a prescription from your doctor!  Imagine that...a prescription for a bra...lol...that just hits my funny bone!  I think I'm getting more and more used to my new foobs.  There's a few things I don't like about them, but most days I feel more "normal" with them.  The main thing, I guess, is that they look normal in my clothing and I think they do....no one would really be able to tell.  One is higher than the other and that has caused a problem here and there when I tried on clothes in the store....but I just didn't buy that top.  Hopefully it will still drop.  Mostly they look natural in my clothing and I'm happy I had the reconstruction done.  There are some days when they just feel too tight and uncomfortable though.  I enjoy the bra shopping.  I can't really explain it, other than to say that it makes me feel "feminine" to try on some pretty lacy bras. I never got fitted for bras before and as big as I was, I just got what I called "boulder holders".  LOL!  So, trying on these pretty, smaller bras is kind of fun.  I guess after going through this you try to enjoy what you can.  I will be going this month to get my areolas tattooed.  That sounds weird to me!  But, before I get those tattoos, I will be getting my pretty pink ribbon tattoo this Saturday.

ONE YEAR AGO......

Last year at this time I was going through mammograms and ultrasounds and waiting on the results of all of these tests.  The results were delivered to me via phone on April 7, 2011.  "We have the results of your tests and are sorry to say there is a malignancy.  Dr. Zusan would like for you to come in the morning at 8 am for a consultation."  I didn't even cry...I already knew.  Yes, even before that phone call, I already knew in my gut that it was malignant and had prepared myself for that news.  I could tell by the way they reacted while doing the tests and the fact that they also ultrasounded my lymph nodes.  I knew they would not do that if they didn't heavily suspect cancer.

Scared?  I guess I was....mostly of the unknown. I had so many questions racing through my mind and could not wait to meet with the doctor the next morning to get the answers.  By this time, I had watched my mom and sister being diagnosed the year before and even watched my sister have a bilateral masectomy.  Because of their diagnosis, I had done a lot of research and I knew the different elements of breast cancer and that it could be different kinds of cancer and the biggest questions in my mind were...."what kind do I have?" and "how early have we caught it" and "what kind of treatments will I have and what will be my prognosis".  Those were the questions that gave me the most fear.  My sister, Sheila, had been diagnosed with a rarer type of breast cancer....Triple Negative.  Triple Negative is harder to treat, although it can respond well to chemotherapy.  But, it is unknown what feeds it, so there is no pill to cut your chances of reoccurence, as with breast cancer fed by hormones.  Therefore, the reoccurence rate with Triple Negative is higher.  That weighed heavily on my mind....do I also have Triple Negative?  Before Sheila was diagnosed with it, I had no idea what it even was....but now as I waited to get the particulars of my own cancer, I did know about it and it was probably the one question that haunted me the most...along with how early I had caught it.  I had been feeling something about that particular breast for several years....a swelling from time to time.....but no doctors ever found anything.  The feeling was hard to describe....it wasn't particularly painful, but it felt "different"...... I wasn't surprised that my breast cancer was on that side.  Now that weighed heavily on my mind, wondering how long it had been there and maybe not detected.  

But, I also had a "peace" and knew God would be by my side and I had no choice than to be strong.  I never realized how life changing the journey would be for me though.  I never realized the blessings that awaited me through the journey and the emotional healing that awaited me after a very difficult year, following the passing of my mother. 

So, this Saturday, April 7, 2012, I will be celebrating ONE YEAR SURVIVAL....I will celebrate by getting a special pink ribbon tattoo.  Painful....maybe....but not nearly as painful, I'm sure, as what I have already been through. 

I will also be celebrating on Saturday, April 21, as I walk in the Susan G Komen Race in Indianapolis. 

I have a lot to celebrate!

Until next time...what do you have to celebrate?  Give thanks and celebrate whatever God has brought you through.

Cindy



LIFE BEYOND CANCER......

My life seems to be returning to normal.....a new normal.  I don't think about cancer as often any more like I did at first.  Oh, I never forget it....but I can feel I'm moving beyond cancer at last!  It has changed me, however, and that is why I refer to my life now as my "new normal".  In my "new normal" I take the time to take better care of myself and I also live life to the fullest with lots of "firsts"!  Cancer has taught me to "live out loud"!  :=)

TASTE OF HOME

Well, look at this!  My sister and I got in the newspaper again....this time it was the local newspaper and our Red Hat sisters were with us!  We are such celebrities...lol!

We all had a great time at the Taste of Home cooking school here in town.  I told Larry to go pick himself something up to eat while I went and leaned how to cook for him.  lol!

Here we all are in a group picture we asked the reporter to take of us.  A few couldn't make it.  One of our sisters opted to go on a cruise with her husband instead of this event....imagine that!   LOL!

Here's a few others the Tribune took that night.

And look what I won!  This was one of the dishes the cook made that night......Taco Casserole....and I won it...yay!  Yes, it was yummy!

I had my supper already made for the next night.  Larry said it was a little spicy for him, but he ate it!  Makes you hungry just looking at it, doesn't it?  :=)

Isn't this a great picture of mother and daughter, Ruth and Linda Morrow.  Ruth joined us, but she's way too young for a Red Hat.  She had a pink cap with her, but didn't have it on when I snapped this picture.

After the cooking show, we went to Applebees for dessert!

Oh, and did I tell you that I, THE QUEEN, visited the PRESIDENT?  LOL

SUMMER WEATHER GOT HERE EARLY!

I had to go shopping for some summer clothes sooner than I expected!  Who would have guessed it was going to be 80 degrees in March!!!  All of my summer clothing from last year are size 18/20 and my old capris fall off of me and are so baggy!  So, I went and got me a couple of new pair of capris....size 14...yay!!!  I'm so happy to still be at a size 14.

And here's a side view so you can see how natural my foobs look!  They don't FEEL natural YET!

And look how fast my hair is growing now!  I'm actually thinking I'm going to cut it like it was back in January!

Like this...what do you think?  I'm seriously thinking of getting it cut this short!  I just wanted to grow it out a bit first to see what the curls/waves would look like.  But, I really, really liked it SUPER SHORT!!!!!  It sure did grow fast since January, didn't it?

MY FIRST PEDICURE!

With the warmer weather I also dug out my sandals and realized I needed to go get a pedicure....my VERY FIRST one! 

Ahhhhhhhh!!!!!!!  Yes, I take my camera EVERYWHERE.....lol!

LOL...yes, I have hairy toes and BIG veins!  Ick!  But look how beautiful my toenails are....lol!

And while I was at it....how about a manicure too!

Yep, I have juicy veins in my hands too.  Must be why they like to put IVs in my hand...lol!

And look at the pretty flower she painted on my thumbnails!  One of these days I'm going to get a funky color like lime green or bright orange!  I had been trying to paint them myself at home, but to honest, I'm not good at it and they chip off immediately!  So, if this lasts me 3-4 weeks, it will be worth it to just let them do the job for me!

LUNCH MEETING WITH MY THIRTY-ONE ROOMIES!

I was so happy to meet up with my Thirty One Conference roomies.....Amy and Vicki!  I've talked with both of them on facebook and the phone since then.....but we hadn't seen each other since the conference last July!

Here we were last July! 

And here we are just yesterday!  Wow, what a difference 8 months has made, right?  Of course they look great in both pictures, but I was pretty sickly in the first one.  I had just finished my chemo a couple of weeks before the conference and was two weeks away from my masectomy.  I look at these pictures and realize how sick I really was.  I'm glad I took pictures all through my journey....I can now look back and them and see how far I have come!  Amy and Vicki both met me when I was sick and bald....so they had never really been with me when I wasn't sick!  It was soooo good to meet up with them again and we are making plans to have a play day in my stamp cave!  Can't wait!!!

Speaking of Thirty One....my business is going great after jumping in and turning it around in February.  At the end of this month, I hope (and plan) to be promoted to DIRECTOR...yay!!!  This has been a goal of mine since I signed up to be a consultant!  I am so excited!  And what's really neat is.....Us roomies, Vicki, Amy, and I will all be Directors at the next convention in August!  Vicki has already promoted and Amy and I should promote by the end of the week!  How cool is that?  None of would have realized last year that we'd be going back to the convention as Directors this year!!!  That's a big accomplishment!  With taking almost a year off from my business, I am shocked at how fast it has turned around for me and that I'm actually on track to be a DIRECTOR!  I always said...."in God's timing"!

SPINAL INJECTION

Well, today I went back to Dr. Chambers....the Orthopedic Surgeon....as a follow-up to the spinal injection I had.  The pain in my buttocks and leg let up for two weeks after the injection, but it returned (mostly in my buttocks...a little in my leg).  It was so awesome to be pain free or that two weeks....and a dissappointment that the pain came back.  But I have heard people have to get these injections repeatedly....even just weeks apart.  So when he asked if I would want to choose to get the injection again, I said yes!  It helped and may help longer the next time, so I told him if it doesn't hurt for me to get it again and might possibly help....then I'm ready to do it again!!  So, he's making the appointment for me and I should be doing that again in a couple of weeks.

Well, that's pretty much my update for this time.  Until next time....enjoy that sunshine out there!!!!

Cindy

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