Many things to update

I've wanted to post since early in the week, but I just haven't had time. Sorry. There has been a lot going on in our neck of the woods, so let me see if I can remember everything.

We finished spring break last weekend. It was such a nice time off from school. We all had so much fun enjoying life and each others company. The girls had a few playdates and sleepovers, we rode to the park, and played outside a lot.

Last Friday, I drove to Fort Worth to attend a conference on Saturday for parents with children who have hearing loss. It was such a great conference. The speakers are wonderful. I attended a class on auditory neuropathy and another one on emerging literacy. Both really were helpful. After the AN class, I am motivated to get the ball rolling on getting a second implant for Hayden.

I met with Dr. Hart last week regarding radiation. She had me come in on Tuesday to do planning. They do a ct scan and plan how I'll need to lie on the table to see what can be done. It was uncomfortable only because I had to have my arms up over my head for a long time. I still have some discomfort in my left arm from surgery. To make sure I'm in the same position each time, they take pictures of my arm placement, use a molded head rest, and tatoo (yes, tatoo) 7 dots on my torso. These are used to line up the lasers to make sure radiation is going to the right place. I'll find out next week if it's a go.

Anna developed strep throat on Wednesday and had to miss school. She was such a trooper even though she was in a lot of pain. Sydney rode the bus for the first time by herself and she took her first ride on her bike without training wheels. She's getting to be such a big girl. Anna went back to school today and we also found out that she passed the TAKS reading test. We are so proud of them!

Lastly, I had another echo today. I won't know the results until next week, but I do know that my heart was still skipping beats. They are looking to see if my EF rate is above 50%. If it's below, as it has been, I wonder what they'll decide to do about finishing my treatment.

Radiation may be on

I saw Dr. Hart today. She's my radiation oncologist. After talking with Dr. Casimir, they agreed that I can go ahead with the planning stage. Dr. Hart is going to see if we can do radiation and avoid hitting my heart. That's the big concern right now. With my heart compromised, both doctors don't want to further stress it with radiation. They won't know until after I go through planning. I may have to be there longer each day, but I'd still be done in 7 weeks. If they can avoid hitting my heart, then I can do radiation at the same time as Herceptin. This would be great because then reconstruction moves up and I'll be done sooner.

Had I not been Her2+, I may have been able to avoid this altogether, but that just isn't going to happen.

Many moments of great

We had such a wonderful weekend. Jason got up early Saturday to hit golf balls while the girls and I had a lazy morning. Then we spent several hours watching some great soccer from our girls. Sydney has improved each week and Anna just is becoming this little powerhouse. She was all over that ball! Then Jason and I got a last minute invitation to sit in the GE box at the Houston Rodeo. Trace Adkins was playing at the end of the rodeo events and even though we aren't country music fans, it was great! Jason's friend and his wife were good company.




















Sunday, after church, Jason took the girls to play golf with him. His friend also brought his son and all the kids got to drive the golf cart. I was able to get some things done at home with no one to bother me. We tried to see some wildflowers, but the kids really weren't in the mood.



Now, we are looking forward to spring break next week. We have friends in Dallas to visit, a few play dates lined up and the rodeo to see if we can. Life is busy, but delightful.

And we wait...

I went to see my oncologist today. I was hoping to hear "lets start back up again" but I didn't hear that at all. She wants me to wait another month. Towards the end of March, I'll have another echo and then see my oncologist on April 1st. I hope to get the okay to start the Herceptin so I can finish it. I still don't know about radiation. I'm going to try to get in to speak to Dr. Hart about that. So, once again, I wait.

Some good news though: Hayden started school today! I found a Mother's Day Out program at the church next to the girls' school. He goes Wednesday and Friday from 9-2. He did great! He went straight to the toys and played. No problems when I left. He napped and ate lunch and played with the others kids. The only issue was he kept wanting to exchange toys. The kids didn't know what to make of that. At least he offered another toy and didn't just take the one he wanted. We have a to work on this a little.

Anna took the TAKS test yesterday. The portion she took was reading. Math is in April. She was really nervous, but felt she did well. I'm sure she did. For non-Texans, this is the assessment test to see if kids are on track.

Sydney and Anna are still doing soccer and having a blast. Both girls did great in their games on Saturday. Sydney actually had 2 games and we were proud of those girls and how they handled it. They were tired by the second game, but they didn't complain much. We all took a nap after lunch that day!

No News is Good Right?

Everything has been pretty quiet recently. Anna and Sydney have been doing great in school and soccer. We've been able to balance school, homework, sports, friends, and relaxation pretty well. They haven't complained at all and are actually having a good time.

I registered Hayden for Mother's Day Out starting next week. He'll go Wednesdays and Fridays for 5 hours a day. I'm so excited!! He'll get to play with other kids his age and I'll be able to do my treatments weekly and know he's in good hands. His school is next door to the girls which is nice. I know he'll go through May, but I may keep him in through the summer. We'll decide later.

The health front is pretty quiet too. I talked to my oncologist's nurse yesterday. I was scheduled to have Herceptin today, but we all agreed not to do it until I see my doctor next week. I'm hoping to get started again soon so I can be done soon. I'm not sure what they will want me to do first: start the Herceptin or do another echo. Either way, I want to get it going. I should be patient and grateful that I do feel so good, but I just want this over.

Here are a couple of pictures of the kids. The one of Hayden has a story behind it. He's been falling asleep in his closet the last 5 nights while holding his Grover. The other night, he was in there all the way. It was too cute.

Oh, what a wonderful day!

Well, it didn't start out wonderful, but it is ending that way. After rain and a longer than needed wait for Comcast to fix our Internet this morning, it is such a beautiful afternoon. It's 80 degrees, sunny with a light breeze, and the kids are out playing with their friends in the yard. We just came back from the park where the kids played soccer and tag. Oh, to be young!

No news on the cancer front. I'll go in to see my oncologist in March and will hopefully resume the Herceptin. I'm trying to remember to take the heart meds with some success. Right now, we are just trying to be a regular family.

The girls started soccer last week. They have the same coaches who we really like. Anna's team is the Black Widows and Sydney's is the Wildcats. The season ends the first week of April. Hayden is enjoying playing in the yard on nice days and would stay out there for hours if I let him.

Here are some pictures from today of the kids. Enjoy.

Sweet kids

I wanted to share a quick sweet moment my children had tonight. Part of Hayden's bedtime routine is to say goodnight to Anna and Sydney. He usually says "night night, Anna" and "I love you, Sydney". He did the usual tonight, but wanted to add hugs. He loves a group hug with his sisters and giving them kisses. It's so sweet. I love to see my little ones show each other how much they love one another.