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

Day 112 - No Storm.

Starting the day running late never proves successful. You'd think I would know this by now, but apparently I just haven't learned it yet! 


Mom & I were to leave for town at 1100. We left at 1145. Of course, this put us late meeting Al & Wilma for lunch. Luckily I called & told Al we would be late & it wasn't too big of a deal. I was thrilled to see them again. Sometimes you meet some people & you feel an instant connection with them. It was this way with Al & Wilma. I swear, I can feel their warm hearts when I'm around them!


I met them flying home from the ship this last time. Funny, I spent 26 days on the same small ship with them & we never met. Then, when the cruise is over, we meet standing in line for the shuttle to the airport! Turns out, we were actually on the same snorkeling tour in Bora Bora! Ha! 


Anyhow, we enjoyed a wonderful visit & I look forward to seeing them again soon! They have a fantastic journey coming up that will take them to Cape Town, Namibia & West Africa. I am so thrilled that we share the same passion for travel & far flung destinations! I can not wait to hear all about it! I shared some tips on Namibia when I first met them & I'm sure they'll have plenty to share with me about West Africa! 


We enjoyed a lovely lunch at Earl's. It was such a beautiful day out - if it weren't for the remaining bits of snow, I'm sure they could have opened up the patio! Of course, time ticked past quickly & before we knew it, it was time for me to leave for my Oncology appointment. Valentina said a quick hello & goodbye & we were on our way!


Mom had left lunch early to run a few errands &, of course, she was running late, so I went to the appointment on my own. I did sneak out later & called her & luckily she was close by. 


I must say, it was quite ridiculous. We sat there for an entire hour before the Doctor came in to see us. When he finally did, he said he didn't have the biopsy results yet! What?!? He could have at least told me that from the beginning! Now I was going to be late for my Acupuncture appointment. Argh!


What did surprise me though, was that he had my CT scan results already! I had the scan in another town from another Doctor & he had access to them?? Well, that was the good news! He said the Doctor who did up the report didn't have my previous scans to compare them with, but from what the Oncologist could tell, the cancer hasn't spread (!) & it doesn't appear to have grown at all!! If it has, it is very minimal! YAHOO!!! I didn't get a copy of the report, but I will get that when I meet with my GP next week. Now that's what I'm talking about!!! Now, remember, I had my last PET scan the end of July. I didn't start my current protocol until the later part of October. It's working!!!! Hallelujah! 


The rest of the appointment didn't go so hot. He said he wasn't sure what the hold up was with my pathology report, but in case it didn't turn out, would I be willing to do an excision biopsy? HUH? Whoa, whoa, whoa. Stop the train! If I wanted to do that, why on Earth would I have you jab a bunch of big needles in my neck!?!? Do I look insane to you?!? I told him, nope. Another Core Needle Biopsy if this didn't work. Besides, he mentioned the former grumpy surgeon who would be the one to do the surgery. I commented on his lousy attitude & the Oncologist said, 'Oh, they're all like that.' I said I didn't care, that's not an excuse! I heard a Westjet joke on my last flight & I'll manipulate it to fit this situation. What's the difference between God & a Surgeon? God doesn't think he's a Surgeon! :oP


The next topic of discussion at the appointment was the Chemofit test. He completely dismissed it & said it was useless. He said it was often only done on end stage patients (of which I am no where near) & they had already been through chemo that didn't work, so how would the test prove anything? Then he said if the test worked they would already have it in place. Right. Don't even open that can of worms. Bite your tongue... Just bite your tongue. And I did! 


Then I asked a few questions about the chemo protocols. Turns out I would be up for ABVD. Yup, the one that causes cardiac toxicity & oxygen toxicity. I asked about scuba diving. At first he brushed it off, then in the end, he tells me I can kiss my scuba diving career goodbye. Goodbye?! I haven't even started!! I haven't dove the Great Barrier Reef yet! Sorry, no can do! And for those of you who are rooting for the chemo path... Even my 'Other Doctor' said NO to the bleomycin (oxygen toxicity). Pulmonary Fibrosis? No thanks. When I asked the Oncologist about my options if I didn't do bleomycin (lungs), doxorubicin (heart), cyclophosphamide (secondary bladder cancer) or prednisone (13 side effects) what my options were, he said none! And then he tries to tell me that there are more protocols for Lymphoma than CHOP & ABVD! Caught you!


I also asked about support in the line of nutritional, supplemental & so forth. Oh yes, we have therapists & nutritionists. Okay, so what kind of supplements? Oh, no supplements while you are on chemo, they could interact. Okay, what about eliminating the chemo drugs, dead cancer cells & other bodily waste? Just drink lots of water. Seriously? I can feel my poor liver wincing from here, let alone my kidneys & intestines! I have come to realize there is NO LOGIC in ANY OF THIS!!!! 


Needless to say, I am more excited to get to Mexico than ever before! Especially with the news of NO GROWTH!!!! I'm praying that my pessimistic Oncologist didn't want to share the wonderful news that it's actually smaller than the last scan! Hey, a girl's got to have some hope, right??!!


I left TBC in a state of mixed emotions & headed for my Acupuncture appointment, now half an hour late. Luckily someone cancelled & I was able to still get in! Dr. Mah tested my supplements & all but the Cayenne & Curcumin (tumeric) tested strong. I reckon it's because I loathe being in the kitchen! :o) But, he strengthened me to them & by the end of the session I was good to go! It's so relaxing. I fall asleep every time! I'm lying down with a heat pack on my neck, a heat lamp over my abdomen & then of course, the 8 needles in me. Needless to say, there's no rolling over! :o)


After the acupuncture, I headed for Community Natural Foods. Again. I had to pick up some supplements for Mexico & I added a few more to the regiment. Perhaps the funniest part of my day was when I asked for some help with the coffee. I needed to get medium roast fine grind. The fellow told me they didn't have any ground coffee, but I could use the grinder in the store. I agreed & asked which kind of coffee to do I choose? He asked what kind of flavour I wanted. *Blush* I replied, 'Well, the flavour doesn't really matter. It's for an upside down coffee.' He looked at me perplexed. I continued, 'It's for an enema.' 'Okay, well then... Do you want to go to Vienna, Guatemala, Tuscany, or Kenya on this enema?' :o) All in a day's work. FYI - It's supposed to help detox the liver. I haven't tried it yet, but I'll spare you the details.


I also bumped into Zoe, my MCP friend. We shared a big hug & I told her I'd pop in after I returned from Mexico to let her know how I was doing. Several hundred dollars later, I was on my way to prayers, only 1/2 an hour late.


Prayers are always fun. It's great to share in each others lives & share in our faith that our prayers will be answered. It's even more fun when they are immediately answered! I prayed that Jaco would find the time to update his CV so we could have it in to the recruiter before she returned from her holidays. My husband, in all his perfection, does NOT respond well to outside influences of pressure. The more I push, the more he resists. Running late? Hurry up? Drag my feet. The day of our wedding in Waterton, we had 20 minutes to get ready. He tells me, 'I'm going to the gym. See you in a bit.' AHHHHHHHHH!!!! But, luckily punctuality isn't a strong gene on my side of the family either. Hey, we'll get there! My own personal time zone! ;o) Anyhow, to my amazement, I returned home to check my emails & find his CV in my inbox! Wow! He is perfect! Two prayers answered! :o)


Exhausted I crawled into bed after a brief chat with Jaco. He was up at 0300 still packing & ready to fly home... Oh how I wish I was on that plane too!


A big thank you to my Mom for rearranging her day to come to the appointment with me. Even if we did just sit there & giggle about Valentina's flatulence!


Lekker slaap & see you soon!
Love, 
Maria & Valentina
xoxoxoxoxoxoxox

Al, Wilma & KC

Sigh. I've only shrunk by 6 lbs. Do you think my UGG's weigh 19 lbs?

Valentina hits Tom Baker again. What a good girl!