Day 290 - Runnin' Roxy & Burnett Boxes

So I filled you in on my lovely headache experience through the previous night - I'm glad to say it was LONG gone when I woke up! That was a rough one, if I do say so myself! 


The little dogs woke me up with their incessant & unnecessary barking. Grrr. I worked on the blog posts & then headed out into the world. Well, maybe just the kitchen. Roxy was hard at work on Mom's books, but stopped to chat for a bit. We made plans to go for lunch once Mom got home from the city. I thought it would be best for me to get ready, but of course I got sidetracked!


I thought I ought to tidy things up a bit & make some space for my husband in my room! I quickly filled 2 bins with 'stuff' (still worth keeping!) & managed to clear a shelf in the bathroom, a space in the closet, a shelf in the closet & a shelf in the small wardrobe. Not bad! 


I still have a lot to tidy & organize before he gets here, so tomorrow will be busy. I spoke with him on Skype today & he is set on getting a hotel room & cabbing it out to Bragg Creek on Friday. I told him it's not an option! Besides, cabbing it to Bragg Creek is preposterous! Nobody cabs it to the middle of nowhere! Adding to that, I won't get to shock him with my 'mysterious wig' & outfit! He won't recognize his wife & that will be more fun for me! :o)


My Taslie gift packs arrived today - even the gift wrap is plant based & biodegradable! I packaged up the rest of the baby gifts & they are all ready to deliver. So are some of the Moms! ;oP Thanks Tami!


Roxy & I ended up dining in Bragg Creek at the Boardwalk Cafe. She treated me to a delicious soup & sandwich. It was a curry soup & boy, was it every good! My curry taste buds are a bit selective, but they approved! I caught up on what's happening in her world these days. She's a busy girl! Adding to her already busy life, she's decided to run a full marathon this October in Niagara Falls. It's the only marathon that is held in 2 different countries simultaneously! She starts on the US side & ends up on the Canadian side. Yesterday she ran 24 kms, her longest distance yet! And I thought I was doing great to do 5 kms! Hah! 


It was intriguing & inspiring to hear about her training process & all the interesting snippets that I would have never thought of! Roxy also eats a mainly raw diet, so she always has something new on the menu. I'll be anxious to hear all about her marathon come October. 


On that note, my friends are making me feel quite lazy - Triathlon, Marathon... hmm... Maybe I should catch on to this little trend... Could I do a marathon while I'm on chemo? Half of me says, 'Don't be crazy!', while the other half says, 'Crazy? Count me in!' And then reality hits & that would mean giving up my weekly dose of chocolate peanut butter ice cream. Ooooh, I was so close! :o)


Roxy dropped me off at home & was on her way to see her husband, Kevin. They were headed to Brooks for her sister's farewell party. Jamie, her sister, is relocating her family to Pennsylvania, where her husband got a new job. No doubt a tearful farewell is in store!


I hopped out of Roxy's car & into Mom's. She was headed to Cochrane to her windup Toastmaster's BBQ, so I thought I would pop in at the Burnett's & help them pack. Luckily they just arrived home about the time we drove into Cochrane. I was happy I was there early enough to see Heidi & Harrison still awake. I took 'Tina' so Harrison could play with her one last time. :o( After Harrison went to bed, Valentina was depressed. It was quite cute. Heidi is up & at it everywhere! Crazy! I can't believe how much she's grown! Still so happy & smiley! 


Jenn & I managed to pack up most of the kitchen & poor Mike carried box after box all by himself to the van & then to storage! Jenn was grateful for the help, but I felt like there was still so much more to be done! If I only had the time to help them out! I am hoping they can stop on the weekend to meet Jaco. I'm really going to miss them! The lump in my throat was a giant one. I was glad Jenn was far enough away & Mom was on the phone, as I couldn't have spoken if I'd wanted to! 


I stopped at Safeway & bought some rice crackers & 7 layer dip. I thought I bought the seafood kind. Nope, it was the Mexican kind. With guacamole. It was dark & I'd already eaten about 6 mouthfuls when I realized it wasn't sour cream. I'm sensitive, not allergic, to avocados. I get horrible belly pains & I look like I'm a few months pregnant. Tonight was no exception. I wasn't feeling so hot by the time I made it home.


I knew it was time to go to bed when my tummy rumbled & Valentina 'woofed' at it. Then a bug flew in my mouth while I was brushing my teeth. Lovely. On that note... I hope your day ran smooth, sans bugs & tummy troubles!


Love & hugs,
Valentina & Maria
xoxoxoxoxxoxoxoo

Runnin' Roxy on the go!

Valentina gets a bug!

Harrison hams it up for Aunty 'Jo'

Heidi Jo grinnin' & goin'

Tweet Pea lets Heidi have a play

The fabulous & now famous 'Mama J'

Day 172 - Silver Award!!!!

Okay, so I'm totally wiped, but after I saw this I just had to blog! Scroll down to April 10th... Whoo hoo! How awesome is that?!?! So even though it's way past my bedtime, I had a little whoop & a holler lying in bed, as well as a few happy tears!


As for the day, I was so thrilled to see Carrie & Olga this morning! I can't remember if I mentioned it or not, but the ambulance was outside their door a few days back. I didn't see either of them at the clinic for the following days. I was quite worried, but didn't have any way to find out what was up. Turns out Carrie had a bad, bad stomach bug & had to be hospitalized. Thank goodness she's feeling better & coming back for treatments!


I took my 'Spanish The Easy Way' book to the clinic today. I showed Jose, the shuttle driver & he somehow got it in his mind that I suddenly knew fluent Espanol. WRONG! He kept talking to me in Spanish & asking what people meant, as in translate from English to Spanish. Oh dear. I'm only on page 20 & I've got a long ways to go! I should have dug it out long ago, but I didn't! I've had the book since my College days & we all know that was awhile ago! :o)


I went to the Plaza Rio today with the hopes of developing my roll of slide film - cross processed. Nope. Nada. Nobody wants to do it. So, I guess I'll just drag it back home with me. I also picked up some medication to try & a hamster waterer for Valentina's big flight. The vet suggested I freeze water in it & then put in into her carrier so she can drink. 


I tried it with her tonight & she caught on right away. Clever girl! Last night was her first night in her 'big girl bed'. I thought I should get her used to her carrier for the flight. I put the hot pack in her fleecy pillow cover & closed the door. She was pretty good, except every time I would roll over, she'd give a little whimper - like she was reminding me she was down there & not beside me in the bed!


I caught the shuttle back to the hotel with 3 other Americans. This one fellow asked me about Canada's healthcare & if it's as bad as 'they' say it is. I am so sick & tired of hearing Americans complain about Obama & socialized medicine. For crying out loud! It's going to take some time to work out the kinks, yes, but in the long run, it will be a positive change! Sometimes, I just don't think they 'get it'. This fellows biggest beef was that Obama & the bigwigs would get better healthcare than the rest of the general public. Well, duh! I suppose that is one of the perks of being the leader of the country! Surprise! He also gets to live in a really shwanky white house too!!! But all in all, it really shouldn't frustrate me as much as it does. I heard on Facebook today that Ellen DeGeneres couldn't even pronounce 'Saskatchewan'. The end.


I played ball with Valentina today. Only it rained. I nearly peed my pants I was laughing so hard at her. I'm laughing again as I type this. There was a dry patch, a patch of water with truck tracks in it & then more dry ground. I throw the ball, not knowing what she'll do. She barrels through the water, finds the ball on dry ground & burns back towards me. When she gets to the water, she comes to a halt. She pussyfoots her way through the water. Delicately putting one foot down & then the other. She gives me the ball & I throw it again. As she is running away from me to catch the ball, she attempts to take a giant leap across a big puddle. Her perception is completely off & as she takes her giant leap, she lands right in the middle of the big puddle with a HUGE SPLASH! Of course, she tiptoes through the puddles on her way back... This carried on for a good half hour. Man, that dog cracks me up. I'll try to upload a few more YouTube videos so hopefully you'll enjoy the moments as much as I did!


I stood in the pouring rain for 15 minutes waiting for the bus. I went to the outlet mall &  picked up some of my supplements today. It's just not the same as Community Natural Foods. They don't have the selection or half of the products! It's very frustrating! I bought what I could find, but it certainly won't be the same! I also found myself a new pair of running shoes! Yay! The Nike Outlet had a whole whack of shoes on sale. At first I wanted Nike Free's. They were out. How about some Lunar shoe? Okay. Nope too big. Okay, mens. Yup, it fits. What? $70?! Oh, alright. I get to the till. WHAT?! $79?!? Argh! I finally found a pair that was $49 & fit perfect! Now I have no excuse NOT to run when I get on the ship! 


I came back to the room & decided to use the pot I bought for $18, seeing as I only have until Friday a.m. to use it! I made quinoa (Keen-Wah) pasta & mixed in a SUPPOSEDLY mild curry sauce, 1/2 can of coconut milk, pineapple, apple & red pepper. Holy smokes is it hot! But yummy!!! My lips are still burning! 


Tomorrow is the big appointment with Dr. Donato. Fingers crossed & prayers answered he can help me. 


Sleep well wherever you are & here's to a brighter, sunnier, warmer tomorrow!
Maria y Valentina
xoxoxoxoxoxoxox

Working her charm!

The world's busiest border crossing! 100,000 people every day!

Splash on our way out...

Tiptoe on our way back!

Tilt your head & she's still cute!

Where's Valentina?

The Big Girl Bed