Number Five...

I had my chemo as scheduled on tuesday and things went well overall. I had been talking a little bit to Natalie about my upcoming surgery and she was very interested in it, so I decided to take her to my chemo appointment with me. What a trooper! She did not want to leave with my friend as planned and stayed the whole four hours with me. We did puzzles, read books, talked, ate snacks and just relaxed. I let her watch them draw blood and touch the vials and the IV tubing, etc. She seemed very okay with all of it. I guess the demons you do not know are scarier than the ones you do...

I cut back a little on my steroid meds - with permission of course - and this chemo is even easier than the last round. I still am very tired and have 'chemo mouth' - but at least the severe muscle aches are minimal at best. I did get a new fun event to deal with also this past month and that is menopause - yikes! Okay, that is all I will say for the sake of the guys...

I will get a second MRI of my breast on wednesday - to see if the lump has shrunk - which is a good indication of it responding to the chemo. I have to meet with my radiation oncologist, regular surgeon and plastic surgeon in the next few weeks and start thinking about surgery. I am taking this weekend off of scheduling appts, planning things and just resting and hopefully having a little fun with the family.

I did find a local physician who will probably cover my practice for me in September when I have surgery done. I need to meet with her in a few weeks and just iron out some details. I want to get things planned so we can take a family trip between the end of chemo and my surgery. I want the kids (and myself) to see me healthy at least for a few weeks before I am down again.

I am still keeping my spirits up and working reduced hours. As long as I can get an extra hour or two of napping in, I seem to do okay. If I keep busy at work and home, I do not miss all the outdoor things I wish I was doing. I have learned to take the kids to 'indoor places' so they can run and exercise and I can watch. I will be jumping right in and playing too - in time. For now, I am reading a lot of books and making good use of my bathtub.