COMPLETE REMISSION!!

The words are finally starting to sink in. I'm almost afraid to say them out loud, but I wanted to share the good news!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Yes, I feel like dancing and crying (tears of joy) all at the same time. The PET scan came back clean. My doctor declared me in Complete Remission - No Evidence of Disease. The 5th cycle of chemo is a memory and only one more to go! The timing could not be better - this will be the most thankful Thanksgiving that I will ever have -- and my wonderful son is cooking dinner. I have a bottle of red wine chilling and I think tonight is the night to crack that sucker open and chill it and kill it!!

I also want to thank each and everyone of you that read my Blog, for your prayers, good wishes, support, and a good swift kick in the behind from time-to-time (you know who you are, LOL), and I appreciate that, too. I couldn't have done it without all of you, the support of my family, my circle of friends, and my good buddy, Bailey.

I just love Queen and I've been playing "We Are The Champions" over and over.....

I've taken my bows
And my curtain calls
You brought me fame and
fortune
and everything that goes with it
I thank you all

But it's been no bed of roses -No pleasure cruise
I consider it a challenge before the whole human race
And I aint gonna lose...

We are the champions my friends
And we'll keep on fighting - till the end
We are the champions -We are the champions
No time for losers
cause we are the champions of the world

Indian Summer

I thought that I would update my Blog today, when I'm not in that snarky "Predni-Zone".


The weather here has been just gorgeous - almost summer-like with temperatures in the high 70's during the day and cooler Autumn-like weather in the evenings. I felt like I was robbed of summer, but I'm just loving this weather. As a matter of fact, I have been enjoying sitting in the yard with a good book on the weekends and my bottle of Hawaiian Tropic sunscreen and working on my tan. I'm fortunate that I don't burn - and the chemo drugs make you very sun-sensitive, so hello good tan. I, also, love it when you can throw open the windows and air out the house.



Bailey and I went to the Pulaski Day parade on Sunday, 10/14, since the parade route starts about 4-blocks from our house. Bailey really seemed to enjoy the String Bands.







I did survive Hell-Week last week. Both the CAT and PET scans were relatively uneventful. Chugging barium is not my idea of a nutritious breakfast, although, I used to be pretty good at chugging when I was younger. This was not a skill that I ever thought that I would be calling on again! I won't know the results of the tests until Cocktail Time at the Chemo Bar on Wednesday.





I did a little bit of piecing on my "Some Angels wall-hanging. I think I muffed up the bottom wording -- so I'll be ripping that out and redoing it -- or maybe not. Perfectionism is so overrated. I'm anxious to start on the embroidery portion.

Four Down - Two to Go

WOW - As I was just checking my BLOG, I see that the last time I posted was right after Cycle 3. I received this beautiful bouquet of flowers from my friend, Connie and her husband, at my half-way point. Connie has gotten me over some rough hurdles through this whole ordeal, especially when I was being a brat (I know you find that hard to believe.)

Now Cycle 4 is a memory and I only have 2 more times to belly-up to the Chemo bar where all of the cocktails are infused. Once again, I was the first one there and the last to leave. I felt like the greeter at Wal-Mart. I lost count of how many people I said hello and good-bye to.

My doctor actually displayed a sense of humor this time when he delivered the Good News/Bad News - The good news was my blood counts had all jumped back up -- the bad news was that I had to stay for treatment (like he was really going to cut me loose!!) I know this isn't really ha-ha kind of funny, but it was an attempt at humor. I smiled to be nice.

I do have to go for a CAT scan and then the dreaded PET scan on October 17 and I was able to convince the doctor that there was no reason why my head had to go under the machine. I was real persuasive. Once he agreed, I asked if he would write that on the order, and then I would follow through every step of the way (he rolled his eyes as he said he had no doubt that I would follow through). The hospital called today to confirm my appointment and the scheduler wasn't sure if they could do that - so she went to check with the technicians. She came back to the phone laughing and said that the technicians remembered me from last time and YES, they WOULD do it. She also said that she wrote CLAUSTROPHOBIC across the top of the order, highlighted it in yellow and then drew stars around it - so there would be no mistake. I think I like this person. I may have to take her a box of candy.



This was a gift from my friend, Jenny, at The Stitchery. She must want me to get my quilting mojo back as bad as I do. I can't wait to make something with these cute patches and ultra-cute buttons. Any suggestions?


The weather here has been gorgeous. Summer-like during the days and a nice autumn nip in the air in the evenings. I'm still working on my tan. Thanks to chemo, sun-sensitive drugs, and my bottle of Hawaiian Tropic dark tanning lotion, I have the best tan that I've ever had. Hopefully, next summer, I'll only need the Hawaiian Tropic.

WHAT'S ON YOUR SEWING TABLE?

If you are one of my quilt buddies and have made it this far down in the posting, I do have something on my cutting table. The "Some Angels" wall hanging that I traced 3 weeks ago now has the first border sewn on. I have finally turned on my sewing machine and sewn a few seams. I know this doesn't sound like much but I have another little chemo curve ball, peripheral neuropathy, caused by the Vincristine and all of my fingertips are numb down to the first knuckle. This really sucks. I did treat myself to another manicure, so I can at least type with my nails rather than my fingers. Oh, I just can wait for this to be OVER!


I need to get my sewing machine warmed up to work on my granddaughter's Halloween costume. We went to Joann Fabrics last week and picked the pattern and fabric for her costume. She is going to make such a cute gypsy. Then, we went out for dinner. Her father (Sonny Boy) told us that we had a 10 PM curfew. I told sweet granddaughter that I never made a curfew in my life. She kept looking at her watch through dinner, wondering if we would make the curfew. Just to torture her, I said that if we were cutting it too close, that I would ride around the block a few times just so we would be late. She was horrified. Like, Sonny Boy could punish me (he-he). She was determined to make curfew. Her father laughed the next day when I told him the story. You gotta love a kid that respects her father that much!



Just in case you were wondering, Mr. Bailey is doing just fine. He's a little on the tired side here - too tired to even play with his tennis ball. He was probably waiting for me to fetch it.







Here he is waiting for dinner. He likes to watch the carousel in the microwave as it goes around.