Recovery

DISCLAIMER: I am talking a little more candidly about the reconstruction surgery. Use caution if you don't want to hear about the details!













Ouch! That's my saying this go around.



First, I want to thank everyone for their prayers, well wishes, good karma, etc. It is definitely being felt here. We all appreciate it.

I had my first reconstruction surgery last Tuesday. This one was the DIEP flap procedure that takes tissue from my stomach and is used to rebuild the left breast. The stomach is then closed similar to that of a tummy tuck. My plastic surgeon is one of the best in Houston and really knows his thing so everything is going to look great once I'm all healed. Right now though, not so much.

I have a huge incision from hip bone to hip bone. It's supposed to heal and fade in the next 9-12 months, but it'll always be there. I'll have another surgery in a few months to finish the reconstruction. I'll have an implant on the right breast and my surgeon will make everything even and symmetrical.

To be honest, I hate how I look right now, but I know as everything heals, it'll look better. No one said fighting cancer looks good. But, the happy news is that we are near the end. For me, surgery is the end of the road. I should be done this spring. Starting Feb. 1, I do start taking the maintenance drug, Tamoxifen. This is a pill I'll take daily for 5 years. Tamoxifen helps prevent estrogen from binding to cells which should prevent the return of cancer. I just hope I can remember to take it every day. That's not one of my strong points.

Again, Jason and I want to thank everyone for their concern for our family and all the prayers. Though we are far away from most of you, we feel your presence and love.

Happy New Year!

I hope you enjoy this little look back on 2009. It was a rough year for many, but there were some good times as well. Happy New Year!

Party Time

The last week of school before winter break was party time! We started with Sydney's class party on Thursday. The 2nd graders had a lot of fun decorating cookies, making ornaments, playing games and having their book exchange. I had to leave early to go across the parking lot to Hayden's school.













His preschool put on a neat production with the 3s, 4s and 5s. The boys were shepherds and the girls were angels. They replayed the birth of Jesus and sang songs. It was so cute. Hayden looked like many of the other 3 year olds and was bored, but he only called out to me 4 or 5 times! We then enjoyed a wonderful lunch hosted by the school.


Friday, Anna and the rest of the 4th grade had their round robin party. Our room was the story room. The kids had fun that morning playing games, reading, doing crafts and a community project. The project benefited the senior citizens of our community and was such a nice gesture by our students.






Friday evening, Jason and I got all dressed up and headed into Houston to the Museum of Natural Sciences for his company party. There were about 100 guests for dinner and dancing along with a private showing of the Museum's Faberge exhibit. It was stunning! We so enjoyed being out with the kids and had a nice evening.




Right now, we are just enjoying our time together before Christmas. Unfortunately, Anna and I have strep throat and are quite uncomfortable. Honestly, Anna is miserable and I'm getting by as mommies do. Jason's been great taking care of the other 2.

Oh, I almost forgot! I ended my cancer treatment today! Nineteen months and 1 day after starting chemo, I'm finally done with all my infusion treatments. I did it! Yippee! Now, I have surgery in January then on to the maintenance drugs that I take at home. Just 10 more years and then I'm done with it all.

We hope you all have a wonderful Christmas. I'll update again soon.

SURPRISE!

Yep, I’m finally updating the blog. It’s been over a month and I intended to do this many times since then, but just never had the time or energy. The Doornik household is a busy household!

The kids are doing great. Anna finished soccer and has enjoyed having a little more after school time with her friends. She loves to talk with one friend in particular on the phone while they play the same online games. I do need to refocus both kids back a little to homework. We’ve slacked off some in the last 2 weeks.

Sydney also finished cheerleading last month. She really liked it, but has decided she wants to play tennis in the spring. I played varsity in high school, so I’m pretty excited to see her play. We are still working on her reading and math at school. Currently, she’s undergoing in class intervention for dyslexia and it does seem to help some. I’m going to try to push it more after the winter break.

Hayden has really blossomed. His language is improving. He just started using “and” in his sentences. It’s a huge thing for me to hear. This morning he told me he wanted “butter and syrup” on his waffles. In the past he would say “butter syrup.” His regular preschool teacher has been very impressed by his increased language. He’s actually loving Christmas right now. They’ve been working on that in his auditory class. The only problem we are having is potty training. That’s my goal during winter break. He will be potty trained. I hope…

Jason’s been working hard. He just go back from a conference in Washington DC. All of us wish we could have gone, but maybe next time. Once in a while, Jason does get to squeeze in some golf, but not as much as he’d like.

As for me, well, I’m doing great. I have 2 more Herceptin treatments, then I’m done!!! Yippee!! Ring the bell, ding the gong! Celebrate! My last treatment is December 23rd. What a great Christmas this is going to be. Yesterday, I saw my plastic surgeon for my pre-op stuff. Everything looks good for January 12. That’s the big reconstruction day. It’s the first of 2-3 surgeries and this is the big one. I’ll be in the OR for about 5 hours, then ICU for 24 hours. The hospital stay will be 3-5 days. The best part of the whole thing is that I get a tummy tuck out of it. Three kids, boy do I deserve it. See, there’s a bright spot to everything, even cancer.

Here are a few pictures from Thanksgiving. Our friends from Dallas came down as is our families' tradition. We just love seeing them with their 2 kids. In a couple of years, I can't wait for Hayden and AJ to play like Anna, Sydney and Rowan do. Being thankful for friends and family are just a part of Thanksgiving and we certainly had that.

Now on to Christmas! More to follow. And I promise it will be before the end of the year!

Happenings...

I love this time of year! The weather this week has been so nice. Cool mornings, comfortable days, and blue skies from horizon to horizon.

Last weekend we enjoyed Halloween around the neighborhood and then Wings Over Texas Air Show. The kids brought home so much candy, it was crazy! Some friends down the street turn their garage into a haunted house. It was neat watching them set up that day and then having the kids go through at night. They loved it! We enjoyed the evening with our neighbor and his daughters and then grabbed a friend of Sydney's to finish. It's so neat we don't even need to leave our little pond area. The street circles the pond with 4 cul-de-sac off-shoots. It's all we need for a grand-ole time!

The air show was fun. We joined three families from Jason's men's group from church. The kids thought it was really loud but they did enjoy seeing the Blue Angels at the end. Poor Hayden didn't have a good time. He developed another ear infection. So, 2 weekends, 2 events, 2 trips to the on-sight first aid tent. This weekend is going to be quiet!

My dear, sweet, darling, daughter, Anna, turned 10 years old on Wednesday. She spent the afternoon in a makeup soccer game, then we celebrated with cheesecake and presents. Her party with friends is on Sunday. I just can't believe she's in double digits! She's a decade! Wow!

Fun, Fun, Fun

Soccer, Cheerleading and Renaissance Festival, oh my! What a fun weekend we had. The weather was beautiful and we just had great family fun.

First, Saturday was sports day. Anna had a soccer game and pictures early on Saturday. It was really cold, so Jason took her while I stayed with the other kids. She played a good game, really strong on offense. She usually likes to play defense so it was great to have her break out a little.

Next, Sydney had her game. She cheers with the YMCA at their flag football games. This was her first game and she seemed to have fun. We noticed she was kind of quiet, but she still had a good time. We'll see how the rest of the season goes.

Today, Jason and I took the kids to the Texas Renaissance Festival. This has become an annual event for us and we all have a good time. This weekend, we enjoyed the Pirate theme along with the great weather. The kids got to ride ponies, giant swings, and other rides. We ate good food, listened to great music, watched jousting, and enjoyed several shows. Our favorite show is the Mud Show. Sydney actually hates this one, so Jason took her and Hayden off to play while Anna and I watched it.

We were really proud of the girls. They both decided they wanted to try the bungee ride. Bungee cords are attached to harnesses they wear and they get to fly in the air. Sydney even did a back flip!

Hayden loved riding the ponies the most. Our day ended when little man got stung by a bee. He was in a lot of pain, but is doing better now. Thankfully I had some Benadryl on me. The folks at First Aid where helpful too. With the exception of the bee incident, we had a beautiful weekend. I love this time of year and really enjoy spending it with my family.

It's Fall!

Well, it is officially fall here in The Woodlands. Both girls were cold enough last night to sleep under their covers and all 3 kids wore jeans for the first time here since April. It's wonderful!

I've been super busy this past week. Our fall fundraiser ended yesterday. I, along with 10-15 volunteers, spent hours processing orders. We do most of our PTO business online to stay within compliance with the state, but this is one event we have to process checks and cash. It takes a lot of hours to do that. Our goal was $30,000 in sales. At the end of the day Friday, we were sitting around $40,000. I'd be surprised if we didn't get another thousand or 2 before the end of next week with all the stragglers. Not to bad for my first time doing fundraising. My chairperson has done a great job handling this project and its been a pleasure working with her and the other volunteers.

The kids have been busy too. Anna is in soccer again this season. She had her first game last weekend. Her team lost, but they played well. The other team has played together for several seasons. We were rained out today. Sydney opted to try cheer leading instead of soccer. She's been having fun learning the cheers with one of her best friends. The parents have had a few issues with the YMCA, but hopefully we will get those worked out by next week. I don't want to pull her out since she is having so much fun, but if some safety issues aren't corrected soon, then I may not have a choice. Her 2 coaches are doing a great job, but their supervisors aren't and as a result unsafe situations are occurring for the girls.

Hayden missed 3 days of school last week due to an ear infection. He kept getting a fever but always responded to Motrin. I knew it wasn't the flu but still had to take him in. The pediatricians office was full of sick kids. The nurse practitioner was so excited to write a prescription for an antibiotic. It was only the 3rd one in 2 days. The evening we took him in, his eardrum burst and all the fluid was draining. That's why he didn't go to school; it was just one more orifice for little germs to get into his body. Hayden can't get the flu shot because he is allergic to eggs. He's had it the last 2 years, but since he had a documented reaction to eggs, he can't get the shot now. We hope he'll outgrow this in a few years and then can get protected.

Yesterday, when I was going thru Sydney's school folder, I was so excited to see the initial paperwork for Sydney's dyslexia testing. Her reading level is in the bottom range of normal, but her fluency is very low. As a result, she'll get tutoring at school for that and she will be tested for learning disabilities. I've found that there are several types of dyslexia and I know Syd has some variation of it. For example, she tries to read "almost" as "mlast". She does this quite often. She also has the classic symptoms of reversing numbers and letters when she writes and reads. We've known she had dyslexia since before she started Kindergarten and now we are finally moving forward.

To end, here is a picture of my sweethearts from yesterday morning. They are all wearing their spirit wear for school. So cute! Also, these are the before and after pictures of our powder room. It's been done now for a couple of weeks, but I just haven't loaded any pictures.