Treatment #21 done; 9 more to go!

7490 Brompton, Apt. 442
Houston, TX 77025
713-660-7816
donshnell@sbcglobal.net

Today’s picture is of Colter and Luke comparing notes over their Easter baskets. They are really good babies. We’ve been so blessed to be with them so much over the last year. Thank you, God.

Today has been a regular sort of day. We walked the rest of Herman Park today and found a Japanese garden, even! It was a great day for walking because it was cloudy, so we were warm but not melting. Then we came home and had lunch and the sun came out so we could go get some sun at the pool. It was windy, so once the wind blew my MD Anderson ID card out of my book and I had to retrieve it from the pool! A little while later the wind blew my shoe into the pool! I’m at home with the wind, but the pool is what is unfamiliar! Nobody was there but us, so it was pretty easy to recover my goods.

All that walking today (73 minutes!) and my knee didn’t swell! It was growling at me over it, but it managed the walk. God is sure good to us! I thank Him for a husband to hold my hand through all this, and the knees to carry me!

Tomorrow I see the radiology oncologist; that should be interesting. I have some little blisters forming on my chest and it is really itching. I don’t think they will cut back on the radiation, but I think they will just take an approach of dealing with the problems as they occur. After all, our goal is to give me as much radiation as I can tolerate in hopes that it will kill any cancer cells that could be remaining. I’m all for that, so I’m not complaining. I’m glad God has me in His hands, though. I do have some ointment for the itching and it helps. I thank God for compassionate and skilled doctors.

More Easter pictures; Doris and Don look alike.

7490 Brompton, Apt. 442
Houston, TX 77025
713-660-7816
donshnell@sbcglobal.net

Tonight’s picture is Doris and Jerry with Don and I last week at the Easter gathering. It was a great day.

We enjoyed today, too. We met them at church and saw everyone except Luke. He had spent the weekend with Heather’s parents, so we really missed him.

After church and lunch at Luby’s we came home and took a nap. Then Don watched basketball on TV and I walked my hour by myself. I took my stick, but never had to use it. I just walked around the apartment complex, so I didn’t go anywhere that was the least bit risky. The weather was perfect for walking and I enjoyed noticing all the different license plates in the parking lot.

It felt so good to be out walking and I felt so brave to be out there by myself. I always feel like I’ll fall if I don’t have Don to help me keep my balance, so it was empowering to go by myself. I missed his company, and I was really glad when I looked up and he had come to find me. I had told him I’d walk for 30 minutes and then come back, so after 45 minutes he was worried. I didn’t mean that I was only going to walk for 30 minutes; I meant I was going to walk for 30 minutes and then trace my steps and do the 30 minutes again to make an hour. That’s how communication goes or fails, huh? I had my cell phone in my pocket and he didn’t think to call me. More communication problems, huh? Anyway, he walked the last bit with me and that was fun.

I called my friend, Jo, who joined us in Hawaii last year and she had fallen a few weeks ago and broken her wrist. She had to have surgery to pin it and set it right and now she’s doing physical therapy to get back her strength and range of motion. She’s working to touch each finger on her hand to her thumb and the little finger isn’t cooperating yet. That reminded me that I can touch all my fingers to my thumbs and I can walk for an hour BY MYSELF! God is so good to us! Jo is also a breast cancer survivor (over 10 years), so we are all counting our blessings!

Family Easter picture.

7490 Brompton, Apt. 442
Houston, TX 77025
713-660-7816
donshnell@sbcglobal.net

Here is the promised Easter picture of us with Doris and Jerry’s family. Jerry is on the far left, then Doris, then Gregg, with his wife, Stephanie in front of him holding their son Colter. Next is Brett, with his wife, Heather, in front of him holding their son, Luke. It has been so much fun for us to be here and get to spend some good time with all this family. I can never thank all of them enough for being such a warm family and sharing the babies with us. We’ve sure missed all our grandkids and Luke and Colter have helped to give us our grandkid fixes.

Today Don took me to La Madelaine’s for breakfast. I’m not sure if that’s the right spelling, but they have really good quiche, so it was a treat for me. We pretty much bombed out on yard sales; we found 2, but they didn’t have anything we wanted. It’s a good thing because our car will be loaded when we go home; I don’t think we have room for anything extra.

Oh, I have to correct yesterday’s post. We didn’t walk downtown. We walked near the medical center. I’m a hick from a town with 3500 people; it sure looks like downtown to me, but Don says downtown is somewhere else. I do know where downtown is, come to think of it, but it’s all a big city to me!

Today we walked another hour in a different part of this area where we live. We continue to be blown away by the multimillion dollar houses around here. If we weren’t seeing it, we’d have a hard time believing it. It’s fun to walk around and see the houses and yards. We feel blessed to be able to walk and see! God is very good to us!

I should have worn an Easter bonnet!

7490 Brompton, Apt. 442
Houston, TX 77025
713-660-7816
donshnell@sbcglobal.net

The picture on the blog tonight is Don and I on Easter. Tomorrow I’ll put on a picture of us with Doris and Jerry and the boys and their families. It was a great day.

We’ve had a busy day, but it’s not like we accomplished that much. We went downtown and walked around Herman Park. Besides that I can’t figure out how we managed to stay busy and get nothing done that amounts to anything. That’s a phrase I got from Ruthie, when we talked on the phone today; it describes so many of my days. Fixing meals and cleaning up after them seems to take a lot of my time and I guess it’s a worthy cause. Actually, I worked for several hours on our web site; it’s frustrating. I guess I thought I’d done all my computer work because we were getting ready for bed and I remembered that I hadn’t even done the blog! So here I am writing quickly and with seemingly nothing to report. All is well here. God blesses us so richly. I hope you feel that, too. Thank you for keeping up with us.

Sadie celebration continues.

7490 Brompton, Apt. 442
Houston, TX 77025
713-660-7816
donshnell@sbcglobal.net

The pictures on the blog tonight are from my Sadie collection. The first one is from 3 (was it 4?) years ago when she was so proud of a loose tooth. The second one is from this January when we were in Branson and Uncle Phil got this shot of her making some notes in her diary, maybe. I think she’s a real beauty (Grammy is so objective!). I should have put these pictures on yesterday’s blog when it was her birthday, but we’ll stretch out the celebration. Sadie is Tricia’s oldest daughter, and she turned 11 yesterday.

It feels so good to be thinking of going home! And, my nails are getting long; it’s fun to have my ‘tools’ again, but I don’t think I’ll let them get very long. Short is so easy. Tonight is my first night without taking gabapentin; that’s the drug for the peripheral neuropathy, and I’ve been weaning down off of it. I’m a little scared, because my fingers are still a little sore. The worst was my toes, though, and they aren’t hurting anymore. I’ll see if I have shooting pains when I quit taking it and if I do, I’ll have to go back to taking it for a while. I suspect I will be fine without it. I sure thank God for recovering from the neuropathy; that’s the only side effect of chemo that they say doesn’t always disappear when the chemo is over. I love being able to wear shoes with toes, again! God is GREAT!

Last night Heather sent great Easter pictures. I’ll get them onto the blog over the next few days. (This sounds like TV baiting you to come back after the commercial!)

Happy Birthday, Sadie! (11)

7490 Brompton, Apt. 442
Houston, TX 77025
713-660-7816
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Today we got roses and carnations at Kroger’s after Easter sale. I cleaned up last week’s flowers and mixed in the roses and carnations. It was great fun. The picture on the blog is of me with last week’s glads mixed with the carnations and you can see the roses in the background. I think we’ll get home in time for me to enjoy the iris season, too. Of course I have lots of rebloomers, so there will be irises until Thanksgiving, off and on, at least.

I am feeling so regular, again. We walk and it doesn’t bother me at all. My knee hurts, but it’s not swelling, anymore, and it’s not giving out on me at all. God is so good to bless me like this!

This week is the week they ‘relax’ my treatments. The radiation is the same, but they aren’t using a technique that they used the first 3 weeks to keep the radiation close to the skin as opposed to going so deep. They used that technique every other day. This week they will not use it at all and see how my skin reacts. They watch me carefully because they want to radiate the skin enough to be sure they’ve killed any remaining cancer cells, but not enough to hurt my healthy skin too much. They want to go deep enough with the radiation to kill any sneaky remaining cells on my chest wall, but not deep enough to cause too much damage to my lung. It’s a tricky balance; they know they will cause some damage to my lung, but they want to be absolutely sure they don’t leave any cancer cells there. The pathology from the surgery showed good margins and they got all the cancer that they could see, but there could always be a remaining cell that they didn’t detect; that is the reason for the radiation. Of course I had nodes involved, too, so they are concentrating heavily on remaining nodes under the breastbone, collar bone, and arm to be safe. So far my skin is a little red and is beginning to itch from drying. I can tell that the radiation makes my skin and muscles tighter, too, so I am diligent with my range of motion exercises.

That’s probably more information than you wanted, but it’s what is real in the world of fighting cancer. Soon I will make some recommendations to you about insurance. We’ve learned a LOT and we can advise you so that you’ll be better prepared.

God is great! I am so grateful for flowers to boost my spirits every day since we’ve been here. Nearly every day of my life I have cut flowers in the house and I so enjoy them and thank God for them.

Museum day.

7490 Brompton, Apt. 442
Houston, TX 77025
713-660-7816
donshnell@sbcglobal.net

The picture on the blog today is me as we headed out for radiation this morning. Gretta, you’ll remember this shirt from when we lived in OKC! I raided my closet of everything that buttons down the front to bring down here. It turns out that I only needed those shirts for a couple of weeks, but it comes in handy to have it for layering on cool mornings.

I did all my exercises this morning and then Doris and a friend from church came to go to lunch and the museum with us this afternoon. They have a Leonardo da Vinci show and it’s amazing what a thinker he was, not to mention painter! Besides that there was enough to see to keep us busy for a week, but we sailed through in a couple of hours. There was a little girl there with her mother and when we went into the dark room that housed all the gems she was petrified of the dark! The jewelry was beautiful, but she was having NONE of it; she was screaming, "I’m so scared of the dark!" I felt so sorry for her. Her mother gave up and took her out into the rest of the museum and the next thing I heard was the same little girl screaming IN GLEE and pointing to the display that had a bunch of animals; down on her level was a little "SNAKE!!!" That snake didn’t scare her a bit. Go figure. Kids are the best!

The museum wore us out and I walked way more than an hour in there! God is so gracious to give us good feet and knees that mend!

Today was the 2nd day of the 4th week of 6 weeks of radiation. They gave me some lotion to apply to my skin that is itching. I have to apply it between the markings; now THAT will be a trick. I have everything but the Santa Clause on my chest; to rub lotion in between the lines will be tricky. I’ll do my best, though. God will see me through the itch, I’m sure! Thanks for reading and caring!

First day of the last half of radiation is DONE!

7490 Brompton, Apt. 442
Houston, TX 77025
713-660-7816
donshnell@sbcglobal.net

The picture tonight is Luke, Brett and Heather’s son. I don’t have any Easter pictures yet, so I’m using the back up St. Patrick Day picture. Luke smiles like this all the time and he always lights up for the camera.

I got a nap in this morning; anymore I rarely get a nap, but today it fell just right. We went to radiation at dark and I’m used to that, now. We came back and I ground up enough Salba to last us the rest of our time here. It feels good to have that done. After that I did the rest of my exercises and then fell back into bed for a nap. At 10:30 Don woke me up to go walking. It was perfect for walking; brisk enough that I needed a jacket, but then I walked up enough heat to tie the jacket around my waist. I love it when it’s like that. After our walk we came in and had lunch and then went out to the pool to collect some Vitamin D. I got another nap out there in the sun! Two naps in one day; I love that!

Tomorrow I see the radiology oncologist for my weekly visit. I’ll tell him that I’m itching and I think he’ll give me some lotion that will help. That’s what the other ladies tell me will happen, so I hope it does. A little itching is not something I can’t stand, though. I thank God that radiation is not causing me fatigue. That is a common side effect and I had my quota of fatigue with chemo. I feel really good and I have a pretty good level of energy, I think. It’s hard to tell when I’m judging myself, but I know I feel better than I did when I was on chemo. Even my fingernails are growing and it doesn’t hurt when they touch anything, like it used to. Maybe I’ll let them grow.

I thank God for this opportunity to feel better and better. I thank Him for the beautiful azaleas that we see on our walks, too. There is so much for which to give thanks! Even my toenails are coming in right! Two naps in one day! PTL!!!

Happy Easter (and Happy Birthday John Hodge)!

7490 Brompton, Apt. 442
Houston, TX 77025
713-660-7816
donshnell@sbcglobal.net

Here is the picture of the bouquet I made for the table with last week’s left over flowers. I keep them right there with the picture of the kids.

Today was a really wonderful Easter. We went to a great Sunday School class and then went in for the main service until we had to leave to go to the nursing home where Doris and Jerry help do a service once a month. During the song service a student from Abilene Christian College was behind the song leader drawing scenes to represent the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus. It was very interesting and I’m glad we got to see that before we left.

After the service at the nursing home we went to Brett and Heather’s house for a really good dinner with family members from both their families. I think there were about 20 of us there. The food was really good and the company was really fun. It was really fun to watch the kids. It’s great for us to share these kids since we are missing our kids so much. Heather and Stephanie took pictures, so when they share with me, I’ll put some on the blog.

How great is our God to provide so richly for us, even for our salvation and eternal life! Someone sent me an email yesterday that suggested that when we go to bed each night we think of something to thank God for that we haven’t thanked Him for previously. I like that, because when I start giving thanks, I tend to start with all the same things and fall asleep before long and yet there is so much for which to give thanks!

High on my list of thanks is the ability to walk an hour each day. We came home and did our 12th day in a row today. PTL! I need to also tell you that I’ve been able to sleep on either side for the last week; even without using the wedge! I’m so enjoying that and thank God for it, too.

Another bargain bouquet.

7490 Brompton, Apt. 442
Houston, TX 77025
713-660-7816
donshnell@sbctglobal.net

The picture on the blog tonight is welcoming you to my slumber party. Just kidding; we’re going to bed early! I said that, though, because I have on my favorite pajamas these days. I’m standing by the flower bargain we got at Kroger’s today. $1 for the gladiolas and the others were left from last week’s bouquet. There were others left from the bouquet that I used for a vase on the table. I’ll put it on the blog another day.

We walked for the 11th day in a row. It was beautiful here for our walking. We slept late this morning and then went to yard sales before going to brunch at the Golden Coral. Then we came home and walked for an hour. Then we laid out by the pool, collecting some vitamin D for a while. I came in and iced my knee, and ‘poof’ the day was gone! Well, somewhere in there were exercises (besides the walking).

We are grateful for the experience we’ve had here. It’s been good and I am fully recovered from the surgery. The radiation isn’t bothering me; well, maybe a little itching, but that’s all so far. I can make it three more weeks. We are so ready to be home and get on with life as we used to know it. I don’t imagine it will ever be the same, but it will always be good. God is so gracious to us. I am so thankful that He has us in His hands.

Plans for the weekend.

7490 Brompton, Apt. 442
Houston, TX 77025
713-660-7816
donshnell@sbcglobal.net

The picture on the blog tonight is one of my sister, Ruth, her husband, a friendly stuffed bear, and me when we were up at Big Cedar back just after Christmas. I wanted to say that was Don with us, but, of course he was taking the picture. We were all staying in Branson, but the Big Cedar Lodge is just south of Branson and a favorite place of ours to prowl. I wanted to put this picture on here, so you could look back a couple of days and see if you think Ruthie looks like our mom; most of us think so. I get to claim our mom’s white hair, though. Ruthie only has about 6 of those, I think; she got our dad’s dark hair. I got his receding hairline, though! I’ll have to find a picture of him to put on the blog when we get home. I don’t have one with me, but I think of him so often. One of his favorite things to say was "Happy Easter Egg," so this time of year was when he was really on target!

Today was our 10th day for me to walk an hour or more. I’m really pleased to be able to maintain that walking. I also completed the halfway mark on my radiation treatments, too. That feels good. So far I’m not having any side effects from the radiation.

Tomorrow we’re going yard sale-ing and then out for brunch. Sunday we are going Easter Egg hunting with Doris’ family. We’ll have Easter dinner at Brett and Heather’s home; it’ll be a great celebration of Easter.

Every day is a good day to celebrate Easter, in my opinion. Sunday will be special, though. Every day is a special day; having cancer makes that more and more obvious. I hope you don’t wait for a wake up call of your own; feel free to use mine!

My body is here but my heart is at home.

7490 Brompton, Apt. 442
Houston, TX 77025
713-660-7816
donshnell@sbcglobal.net

The picture on the blog tonight is another one of me sitting at the computer. It’s where I spend lots of my sitting time. This one gives you a pretty good shot of my ‘tic tac toe’ chest. When my radiation is done I can take a shower facing the water and SCRUB off these marks! I think that, but when I get there I’ll probably learn that my skin is too sensitive to scrub. That’s okay. I’ll let it wear off and be happy. I’ll be glad to be done and to head home. I packed our flannel sheets today, thinking it’ll be warm enough that the regular cotton sheets will feel good. If I touch something I think we won’t use, I’m packing it. Home is calling!

Today made my 10th day in a row of walking an hour or more. I’m sure thanking God for the ability to do it. As far as my surgery goes, I am totally healed. The radiation is not bothering me a bit. It’s simply something I have to do every day. I have 30 treatments to do and tomorrow is my 15th one, so I’ll be half way done in the morning! We’re sure enjoying being near Doris and Jerry and their families while we’re close, though. Judy will be home from Japan in a couple of weeks and we’ll get to see her a bit before we go home, too. It’s been great to visit with friends and family here, but home is so sweet. I think I might get home in time to see some of my irises in bloom! I thank God for home and for this home away from home. We’ve been so blessed with comfort, family and friends, not to mention my healing. I really feel good, and I thank God for that, too! I’m also very grateful to the friends at home who are looking after our house and yard!

Remembering our favorite hike and Tom and Linda.

7490 Brompton, Apt. 442
Houston, TX 77025
713-660-7816
donshnell@sbcglobal.net

The picture on the blog tonight is Tom and Linda Rose. Maybe I’ve introduced them before, but I could never say enough about them. I went to high school with both of them and they were good to welcome me, a ‘foreign’ new kid! It was so wonderful when they joined us in Hawaii last year for a couple of weeks. Linda will always call Don, Don’s Tours because he wouldn’t give them a break in Hawaii. He didn’t want them to miss a thing and they were such good sports. I love this picture because it’s our favorite hike and Tom and Linda (everyone we took there) loved it, too. It’s the kind of place that most people never see when they go to Hawaii, but Bob Dwyer not only shared his home, but he told us all the ‘secret’ places to go, also! This is not the bikini beach kind of Hawaii; this is the Hawaii that we love. Of course we loved the beaches, too. I thought of these times when Linda wrote and mentioned Don’s Tours because we are walking an hour a day here in Houston. We did LOTS of walking on the Big Island, too.

What’s happening now: Not only is hair growing on my head, but I’ve had to pluck 4 stiff whiskers from my chin! I have more peach fuzz on my face than I ever had, too. I don’t miss my breasts at all, in fact it still feels like they are there. Sometimes I look down and am surprised that they are gone. Actually I like the look of them gone, but I still have feeling as if they were there. That’s bizarre, but it’s how it is. What I don’t like is that I can see my belly, now, and it’s way too big! I hope this walking will help me to shrink it some, but I’m going to have to back away from the table and snacks, too. The hairs are growing back on my arms and legs, too. The hair on my legs is not nearly as thick as it was before, but it’s enough to shave. I trimmed my hair again today; that’s the third time I’ve done that. It gets so woolly on my neck and ears, so I trim it. I tell you all this because I believe it has helped me to have been through it with Mom; if you go through it with me, then maybe you can help someone else to go through it or it will be easier for you if you are faced with it (God forbid!). The best thing about all of this is that Don loves me with any measure of hair or none, tic tac toe on my flat chest, and walking with a stick or not; what a partner! I thank God for blessing me so richly.

Meet my mom.

7490 Brompton, Apt. 442
Houston, TX 77025
713-660-7816
donshnell@sbcglobal.net

Today’s picture is of my mom. Her death was in 1986, but she lives on in the ways she still touches our lives. I live by her example every day, and especially through this journey with breast cancer. I was looking for a picture to put on the blog today and thought I should introduce Mom since I mention her so often. One of my favorite quotes is, "How long does a man live? Is it as long as you can touch him or as long as he touches you?" That quote enabled me to go on with life after Mom died; I had great difficulty with her death until I ran across this quote. It has helped me through many losses since.

Today we got to walk before the rain got here, so it was my 8th day in a row to walk an hour. Yeehaw! I’m so pleased to be able to walk; I know that’s good for me.

We saw the radiology oncologist today and he is very pleased with my progress. I am almost half way through the 3rd week of radiation and not having any ill effects of it. I thank God for that! We are counting down the weeks until we can go home. We are very content here, but home is so sweet! So, if all goes as scheduled we’ll be heading home in about 3 ½ weeks.

Compare the hair growth.

7490 Brompton, Apt. 442
Houston, TX 77025
713-660-7816
donshnell@sbcglobal.net

You’ll have to pardon me for two pictures, but I wanted to compare the hair growth over the last 7 weeks. The first picture was on Jan. 23rd when Judy was sharing her hair with me. The second one was taken on March 12th, seven weeks later. Maybe you can’t tell, but there is about ½ inch of growth there. I figure I’ll need a couple of inches before it’ll look like much of a hair style, but I’m getting there and thought you might be interested.

Today Don and I walked for the 7th day in a row with no knee problems. God is so good to me! We were pleased that we didn’t get the predicted rain, so we got to walk around the nearby neighborhood some more. The houses here are amazing. Don calls them monsters. They are lovely, but we look at them and think of the cleaning and yard work; just thinking of it knocks us flat. Of course these people have yard men and housekeepers. We are blessed to have Angela to help us keep the house clean a couple of times a month at home and Joan to keep the yard in shape.

Tonight Dancing With the Stars begins and we’ll watch in amazement at the moves those people can make. We are so pleased and thankful to God to be able to walk for about an hour every day. I continue to do my exercises and am so grateful for the range of motion that I’ve regained. The exercises are a big help, but I believe God is taking care of me and I thank Him for that. I thank Him for the memory of my mom’s great example to me for exercising, too. She got up every morning and tip-toed all through the house, holding the broom over her head as high as she could reach. We used to think it was pretty funny, but, now, I respect her so much and treasure my memories of her diligence.

Happy Birthday, Nate! 16!!!

7490 Brompton, Apt. 442
Houston, TX 77025
713-660-7816

This is the pink hat and the T-shirt that was given to me at the conference yesterday. The hat is not as goofy as it looks; I’m wearing it on top of a baseball cap because they gave me the ribbons on my baseball cap too. In the background is the floral centerpiece that they sent home with us. It still looks so beautiful!

We went to church with Doris and Jerry today and then went out for Mexican dinner afterwards. Then we came home and walked another hour. It was a beautiful day for walking.

Tomorrow we start with the radiation, again. So far, so good. I thank God that I’m having no problems with the radiation. We are so blessed; the 23rd Psalm was read in the service this morning and it reminded me that "my cup runneth over!"

Azaleas!

7490 Brompton, Apt. 442
Houston, TX 77025
713-660-7816

This is a picture of me as we walked past a beautiful bunch of azaleas not too far from our apartment. I was standing about 3 feet off the sidewalk in these people’s yard; I don’t guess they even saw us, but if they did they probably thought it was pretty funny. I couldn’t pass up a picture with the azaleas. Can you believe they let me bum around Houston in that get up and with that stick? I thank God that nobody seems to even notice and we walk peacefully.

This morning we went to a conference at MD Anderson that was wonderful. "Hereditary Breast and Ovarian Cancer Patient Conference." It was so informative! We enjoyed every minute of it and we learned so much. They had great sponsors and we were treated so well. Tomorrow I’ll have to dress up in the T-shirt they gave us and even a pink cowgirl hat (It’s the big Rodeo season here in Houston.) The tables had beautiful live floral centerpieces and they sent those home with us! That was the ticket for me! Those flowers are so beautiful. I’ll be sure to get those pictures on the blog tomorrow.

We came home and had a quick lunch and then went out for our walk. We walked in a great neighborhood and it was really a fun walk. I think I like walking the neighborhood better than the trail because it’s so interesting to see the houses and yards that I don’t even notice that we’re walking.

God is great to give us so many opportunities. I feel truly blessed to have had the learning experience that we had today. I thank God for the awesome weather we are having, too. I’ve been able to walk every day since Tuesday; that’s 5 days! We hope to get home from church tomorrow in time to walk again. I sure thank God for these blessings.

Happy Friday!

7490 Brompton, Apt. 442
Houston, TX 77025
713-660-7816
donshnell@sbcglobal.net

This picture is one of the ones Don took when we got home yesterday from our walk. I always have him take 3 or 4 because I usually manage to close my eyes for one and he wiggles and blurs another; hopefully, we get one we can use for the blog. Yesterday we got lucky and got TWO we could use! It’s a wonder because that walk is hard on both of us. He can walk it really well, but it’s the dragging me that’s so hard on him.

Sometime in the last 24 hours he said, "I can’t believe you’re doing so well with this walking. Don’t your legs hurt or anything." ANYTHING????? EVERYTHING hurts! Actually, it’s not that bad. I am feeling muscles I’d forgotten that I had. I’m thanking God that He gave me these muscles, the sunshine to use them, and a husband to drag me. I’m really convinced that this walking is good for me in so many ways. Of course it’s good for my muscles, but it’s the kind of weight bearing exercise that will help me to build up my bone strength, too. Plus it has to be good for circulation, both blood and lymph. I’m really so glad that Don takes the lead in our walking; I’m sure it’s good for him, too. God has been great to bring us to a great place for walking as far as location and weather goes. The trail is really great. It’s close to our apartment, but we’ve walked all the nearby trails, so we’ve been driving to the other ends where he hasn’t walked. Today he completed walking the whole trail. I’m thrilled to be with him; I don’t have a goal to walk the whole trail, so we won’t be catching up the days I missed.

Today was red shirt day so we both wore T-shirts that had Oklahoma on them. Some guy at the trail hollered and told us we could get killed in Texas wearing OU shirts! YIKES! He was being friendly, but some just might not be. The stick might come in handier than I think! I thank God for red shirts and the troops we support with them. I thank him for friendly Texans, too!

Walking, walking, walking!

7490 Brompton, Apt. 442
Houston, TX 77025
713-660-7816
donshnell@sbcglobal.net

Today was awesome, but I am shot again. This picture looks like I’m surviving well and I am, but I’m really tired. This is after our 70 minute walk, proudly showing the range of motion in my arms. Don has these goals to finish every bit of this bayou trail and I’m going with him. I found a great walking stick and it sure helps me on the inclines when we go up and down little hills. Plus, it’s my security in case my knee gives out on me and I have to hobble back home.

We got up early and had breakfast before we went to radiation. I think that’s a better move than having it after we come home. Maybe I’m adapting to getting up at dark, I haven’t had a nap today because there wasn’t time. I sure could have slept! I’m going to bed early tonight, for sure. I keep saying I’ll do that and then I look at the clock when I fall into bed and it’s 10:27 or later! Tonight we ate supper early, so that’ll help me get things done in time to get to bed early. Sometime this week I’ve got to find time to do laundry and find time to grind my Salba (super food). The chiropractor gave me a recipe for a good liver cleanse and suggested it would be a great detox after chemo and radiation. I agree that it’s a great idea, but I’m not looking forward to drinking the concoction. I’ll fix it for the first time tomorrow and report to you how it is.

I’m so grateful to be able to walk all these days and for so long. My knee has done great! Praise God! It’s so important for me to get this exercise. I remember my mom was a fanatic about her exercises and walking about 3 miles a day. I thought she was doing it to keep her weight down, but I realize, now, that it was about range of motion and ‘use it or lose it!’ She was a wise lady! I walk and exercise with her in mind and with love and appreciation to God for giving me her example and this opportunity at life.

Up at dark.

7490 Brompton, Apt. 442
Houston, TX 77025
donshnell@sbcglobal.net

Here I am sitting at the computer getting ready to write the blog. Click on the picture and you can inspect my hair and eyebrows! I do have eyelashes, too, but they’re so light you can’t see them. Maybe I’ll do some mascara again someday.

Today has been another kind of catch up day. Catching up with ME! We got up at dark to get to the hospital for my new radiation time of 7:30. At least it was daylight when we came out from the treatments! I really don’t like getting up and going somewhere at dark! I’ll get used to it, I hope. We shared a banana before we left and came home and had breakfast. Then I did my exercises and went back to bed. I’ve got to get into bed early tonight so I can be nicer in the morning.

After my nap we walked for 65 minutes! I’m so pleased with that, but whoever says walking energizes you is not walking in my shoes. It makes Me tired! Thank goodness Don goes with me and holds my hand so we hold each other up. The weather was beautiful for the walk, so I’m sure thanking God for that. Houston gets a lot of rain, but it’s sure nice and warm here most of the time. God is good to give me a warm place. He sure gave us a warm bed and shower, so I’d better quit griping about getting up at dark. We ASKED for the early morning time, after all. (We didn’t know they started THAT early!) I’m thanking God for the opportunity to be here for these treatments, too, so I need to get a grip and quit talking out of both sides of my mouth. I’m just being honest and admitting that dark is not my favorite time to go somewhere. God bless you for reading this!

PTL

7490 Brompton, Apt. 442
Houston, TX 77025
713-660-7816
donshnell@sbcglobal.net

Whew! Busy day, so I’m hiding in my cammies. Really, everything went well today.

At my check up this morning, we learned that my thyroid seems to be responding well to the medicine they gave me for hypothyroidism. I’ve had it for years, and was taking Naturethroid, a natural pill for it. They wanted me on a mainstream pill for before the surgery to be sure I could wake up after the anesthesia.

At the chiropractor today he gave me the results of my MRI. There is nothing wrong with my knee other than arthritis and some cysts that fill up and bother me from time to time. That’s no big deal. Nothing requires surgery; I can walk and not hurt anything even if it is painful for me. I can be adjusted from time to time to help me cope with the pain, plus Tiger Balm does wonders. We were glad to know that no surgery is required.

At the radiology oncologist this afternoon we learned that the radiation is going well. They are pleased that I am walking. I did walk 45 minutes on Saturday and then we walked for an hour today. Whoopee! My knee didn’t give me any trouble Saturday or today.

So, like gray hair, this little old lady has old knees and we can accept both of those as good news. At least I have more and more hair and I’m able to walk! PTL!! We’re thanking God for all the good news and for knees good enough to walk in this awesome weather. It’s wonderful to be where it’s warm and to be able to enjoy it. God is great! I’m so grateful to be able to wear shoes to walk, too! My neuropathy is SO much better! Thank you, God!

Slept 'til noon!

7490 Brompton, Apt.442
Houston, TX 77025
713-660-7816
donshnell@sbcglobal.net

Today’s picture is one Don took when we got home from today’s treatment. It was cool today because it’s rained all day, so I was glad to have a sweat shirt to keep me warm.

Yesterday was such a full day I fell into bed a little after 9 last night. I got up at 7:30 and fixed breakfast and then went right back to bed and slept until noon. What a lazy day, but I sure felt better when I got up the second time! I think having such a full day on the heels of a short night (time change) was reckless of me. Tomorrow is another full day. We have to get up at 5:30 to get the shuttle for MD Anderson; my appointments start at 7:30 and go all day, so we’re taking the shuttle. It’s not like anything important is happening, it’s just full of check ups; then the rest of the week is pretty easy. I start having the radiation treatments at 7:30 in the morning on Wednesday; we asked for that schedule so that we can get the treatment out of the way and then have the day to do whatever we want.

If I’m not dead tired, I’m feeling really good. The feeling is starting to come back in my chest; I could feel the tech drawing lines on me today and I never could feel it before. He doesn’t draw new lines everyday, but he has to retouch the old lines as they wear off. God is so gracious to give me numbness for 5 weeks while I heal! My left arm is almost back to normal and the right arm is much improved. I still can’t sleep on my side, but I can sleep ‘to the side with the use of that big wedge that someone left here. All the peach fuzz I EVER had is back on my face. I’m so fuzzy! My arms are way fuzzy, too. My legs have a few hairs, but nothing like they used to have; the electric razor takes care of them really well. The hair on my head feels like hair, now and I have ‘hat head’ when I take my hat off. I think I won’t be wearing hats for much longer because it’s not cold and I hate the ‘hat head.’ This is an interesting process.

Exhausted!

7490 Brompton, Apt. 442
Houston, TX 77025
713-660-7816
donshnell@sbcglobal.net

Tonight’s picture is one of Elena stuck in a basket; she’s saying, "I know, I suppose you have a rule about baskets, too!" It’s a good thing I have lots of pictures of Elena to back me up when we forget to take pictures of what’s happening here! I forgot to take the camera with me today!

We met Doris and Jerry at church today. Brett, Heather and Luke were there, too, but Gregg, Stephanie and Colter were staying in because Colter has a cold. After church we all went out to eat at a Mexican restaurant, so that was awesome for me. After lunch Don went home with Doris and Jerry and I drove out to Charlotte’s house. It’s about 45 minutes from Doris’ house and I managed to get there without getting lost or getting overcome by the traffic. I even made it back to Doris’ house and only had to turn around twice when I missed my turns. I can’t believe Don let me loose with the car in a place this strange to me; I guess he counts a lot on our insurance. God took care of me, though. I got to see Charlotte’s house for the first time and we had a cool visit. I gave her a haircut and then headed for ‘home.’

After picking up Don we came back to the apartment and I’m ready to crash. It was a long day after a short night of sleep. Again, I’m so thankful for this apartment to call ‘home.’ I thank God for taking such good care of us; He provides the apartment, He keeps us safe through lots of traveling, and He provides this avenue for me to communicate with everyone we love.

Walked 45 minutes!

7490 Brompton, Apt. 442
Houston, TX 77205
713-660-7816
donshnell@sbcglobal.net

The picture on the blog tonight is me as I left to go to the retreat on Friday. We should have made more pictures today, but we forgot to do it.

We walked for 45 minutes today and my knee didn’t bother me at all. I surely thank God for that! It’s been bothering me for the last several weeks, so it was so nice to get out and walk today. It was also beautiful here, so it was great for walking.

We’re going to bed early tonight since the time is changing tonight. We’re going to meet Doris and Jerry for church tomorrow and then Don will spend the afternoon with them while I drive up to see another Itazuke friend. My friend, Charlotte lives about ½ hour north of Doris and Jerry and she’s had two surgeries since we’ve been here. Usually when I come to Houston I cut her hair, so I’m going up to give her a hair cut tomorrow. She used to live in Houston and she’s moved out to Cleveland, so I’ll get to see her new house, too. I will only stay long enough to see her house and give her a haircut, then I’ll come back and pick up Don and we’ll come back home before I wear completely out. It’ll be a great day. I’m driving for the first time since surgery. It won’t be any problem. I can do everything just fine and the traffic going that direction from Doris’ house isn’t that bad on Sunday.

Take some time to count the blessings! We’re so grateful when we think about it and don’t take everything for granted. God is so generous to us.

Retreat was a bust.

7490 Brompton, Apt. 442
Houston, TX 77025
713-660-7816
donshnell@sbcglobal.net

The picture on the blog today is me doing some of my stretching exercises before I left for the retreat this morning. That hair on the back of my neck is getting pretty woolly, again, so I’d better trim it this weekend.

The retreat was a bust, in my opinion. It felt like the facilitators were doing their job, but they’d prepared for a 3rd grade class and we were college graduates. There were only 13 of us there, so the people who did their jobs got paid and it only wasted time for 13 ladies. Actually, I think some of them thought it was good, so I guess the facilitators were prepared for them and I was in the wrong place. I AM learning that MANY people have their cancer return or they have another cancer. It teaches me that I have to CHANGE my lifestyle or another cancer will homestead with me, so I’m more convicted to de-stress and keep up with my diet.

Don did a great job while I was gone. He vacuumed and he bought dinner on the way home, so I didn’t even have to cook when we got home. I caught up on emails (I think; if I owe you an email, remind me!) and I’m going to bed early. It’s cold here; in the 40’s. We’re spoiled to warmer weather since we’ve been here, so I’m going to wrap up in the electric throw that Terri gave me and the quilt Diana made.

I thank God for the internet to keep in touch with all of you and to do research so that I don’t have to be in the 3rd grade for the rest of my life! God is great. People are great; bad people make big noises and we forget how quiet the good people are. One of the good people called me to start today off nicely this morning; a high school classmate was in Houston and called to say hello. Tommy (Warmbrode), send me an email; I don't have your email address with me, and thanks for the call!

Jesus paid the price for all of us.

7490 Brompton, Apt. 442
Houston, TX 77025
713-660-7816
donshnell@sbcglobal.net

If you read the blog everyday you’ll remember that Elena explores everything with her ring finger before she puts it into her mouth. Today’s picture shows her exploring her birthday cake while she keeps an eye out to see if there is going to be a "rule" about exploring your birthday cake.

Today went well. I had an MRI done on my knee and we should have the results of it by next Tuesday when I see the chiropractor. My knee is feeling lots better, too. It’s raining cats and dogs, so we aren’t testing it by walking; maybe this weekend. Day 4 at the radiation camp went well; no problems or side effects.

Tomorrow I’m doing a retreat all day at the hospital; I’ll leave 5 minutes early to get downstairs for my radiation treatment. Don is batching it tomorrow; he’ll be fine because I’m leaving lunch for him and he’s a grown up, after all!

I do radiation at the same time as a lady from Lafayette, Louisiana and she’s a dear. She finds a way to preach a little sermon in her own way everyday in our waiting area; I love it. She is 69 and is having trouble with her range of motion so she is having therapy twice a week. She said, "If this is the worst thing that comes out of this, I’m okay with it!" I said, "Sure; it’s a lot better than being dead." She responded, "I never worried about that, either, because the day I die is the day I’ll be walking on streets of gold . . . not because I’m so good but because my Jesus is good and he paid the price for me." I could only say, "Amen; preach it, Sister!" She didn’t say it in a haughty way, but in a loving way. She’s a nice lady and I’m glad to have the opportunity to spend some time with her. God is so good; I hope the other girls appreciate her, too.

Thanks for family!

7490 Brompton, Apt. 442
Houston, TX 77025
713-660-7816
donshnell@sbcglobal.net

The picture on the blog tonight is Gretta (Jilly) and Joe with Elena, the princess on her birthday (everyday???) I’m still celebrating and giving thanks for this little Princess.

Today’s radiation treatment went as it should go, I think. I walked in and didn’t get involved in any conversation in the waiting room at all. They called me right into the machine room and there were no snags at all. I think I was in there for about 15 minutes. I was learning so much the first 2 days that I didn’t know a snag when there was one! I couldn’t believe it when we were through so quickly today. The other two days they had to take some time to make more marks on me one day and position the table one day with the help of a physicist one day. Today it all clicked by like the clock and I surprised Don when I came out so quickly!

Tomorrow and Friday will be full days. Tomorrow I have three appointments. Then Friday I’m going to be at MD Anderson all day in the wellness clinic for a woman’s retreat. That should be interesting. I’ll be ready for rest on Saturday, I imagine.

Tomorrow I see the chiropractor and then I’m having an MRI done on my knee. We’re going to see if we can’t get to what the real problem with my knee is. It is better, but is still very weak. Whatever it is I’ve had for years, but it’s getting worse and the chiropractor here seems to think he can get to the root of it and fix it. I’m for that!

God has been so good to us; we are richly blessed and thank Him that we were born in this country and into God loving families. We thank Him that our family is growing and for their health and happiness.

Happy Birthday, David!

7490 Brompton, Apt. 442
Houston, TX 77025
713-660-7826
donshnell@sbcglobal.net

The picture on the blog tonight is two of the guys on my support team. Of course, Don, on the left and Bob Clark on the right. Bob and his wife, Diana, were down here a couple of weeks ago visiting. Bob and I went to school together in the 8th grade in Japan. He and Diana lived in Alaska and we started emailing back and forth about 10 years ago. Then they retired and moved to Texas, about 4 hours from where we live in Hobart. They came to visit us and fell in love with a house down the street from us, bought it and moved to Hobart! How cool is that? We love having them nearby; they are like family to us. They travel about like Don and I do and we’re nearly always going in different directions, but we dream of traveling together one day. It was sure great to have them visit us here.

Today we went for the second radiation. We go into a big waiting room where I leave Don to wait for me. I go into another area and change into a hospital gown and leave my clothes in a locker and go into a smaller waiting room and wait for them to call me back to the machine. The room that houses the machine is very big and spacious. The machine is huge, but I climb up onto a little table that is about the size of an examination table in a doctor’s office. The mold they made of me last Monday is on the table and I fit myself into it. There is a towel on the table so if they need to move me over a tad they just pull the towel with me on it. My right arm has to be in a position where my hand is up about at my ear and my elbow is about level with my shoulder. They tape it into that position to be sure none of the skin on my arm gets radiated. I lay still and they move the machine all around to send the radiation beams at me from different angles. I think I’m in the room with the machine about 30 minutes.

Waiting to go in there is when it is interesting. Today it was way interesting with ladies who were sharing their histories and experiences with treatment. It’ll be interesting to see who is in there every day. I have the 4:00 slot for all this week and a couple of days next week and then I get to go to the 7:30 a.m. slot. We asked for early appointments so we could get the radiation done and get on with our days. This is certainly a new experience for me; I feel like I’m in outer space or something when I’m in that room with the machine.

We saw the radiology oncologist today and he was checking to be sure all is in order. He did tell me that I shouldn’t expect to have any side effects for the first 2 to 3 weeks, other than the skin being red. It’s a little pink now, but that’s all.

God is taking care of us and we thank Him for His graciousness. We thank Him for you who care, too. Our nephew, David, had a birthday today, and we thank God for him, too!

First radiation treatment done!

7490 Brompton, Apt. 442
Houston, TX 77025
713-660-7816
donshnell@sbcglobal.net

The picture on the blog today is one that came with her birthday pictures; poor baby doesn’t have enough toys. JOKING! She’s enjoying them it appears, but most of all she’s proud to have those teeth!

My first day of radiation went without comment. They were running behind so there were 8 of us waiting in the waiting room for treatments. You’d think it was a teenage slumber party because everyone was talking at once! I was surprised to see that all of them except 2 were younger than me; one only 26! I listened and was surprised at the subjects of conversation; none of it seemed worth the breath it took to me, but I guess chattering is how they cope. I enjoyed the peace and quiet of my treatment, so I guess that says something about my age, huh?

I’ve decided it’s a good thing they aren’t tattooing me because these marks will disappear in time, but the tattoos would stay with me forever. You really wouldn’t believe all the markings on my chest. They added green today.

This morning I saw the chiropractor again and my knee continues to get better. I compared how it is today to how it was this time last week and it’s way better. That’s good for only a week. Again, I have to thank God for all the good care I’m getting, for the breast cancer AND the knee problem. God is great and sends who we need. I believe it and thank Him.

Happy Birthday, Jerry!

7490 Brompton, Apt. 442
Houston, TX 77025
713-660-7816
donshnell@sbcglobal.net

We met Doris and Jerry and the boys and their families at church and then went to dinner with them all at Doris and Jerry’s house. Dinner was delicious, but the kids were the absolute best. Luke, at 11 months, is walking around, holding onto everything; he’ll let go and stand, but doesn’t go solo yet. Colter, at 9 months, took off crawling yesterday and he’s getting the hang of it really well. In today’s pictures you’ll see Luke standing on the sofa and Colter crawling in the background. Luke has a mouthful of teeth since we were here last! The second picture is Colt, on his way to crawling position. He looks more like Gregg every day, I think. If you clicked on yesterday’s blog picture you’d see more pictures of these guys in front of my flowers.

We came home from our day of celebration and took off for a walk. I made it 5 minutes before my knee snapped out on me, so we headed back. I iced it and it’s doing okay. I see the chiropractor in the morning.

Tomorrow my first radiation treatment is at 4:00. I don’t expect to feel or notice anything tomorrow. I think it’ll be a week or maybe longer before I notice any side effects. I’m not concentrating on the side effects, anyway. The important thing is that I complete them to have the best chance at beating this cancer. I will do my part. I thank God for the opportunity to do this. So many people don’t have the support I’ve had. Don is so awesome. Doris and Jerry and Judy and Aki have been so hospitable. I believe I’m getting the best care there is, and I’m so grateful for the opportunity to have family and friends close and a home away from home at that. Thank you, God.

March already!

7490 Brompton, Apt. 442
Houston, TX 77025
713-660-7816
donshnell@sbcglobal.net

The picture on the blog today is one of the Feb. 15 flower bargains; this bouquet had been $27 and we got it for $2. It’s STILL looking pretty, and this is two weeks later! I love it! And, Ann, the azaleas are starting to look dazzling all around here. I must remember to take my camera out and get some good pictures, soon.

Tomorrow we’re going to Doris and Jerry’s house for lunch. We’ll meet them at church and then both their boys and their families will join us at their house for Sunday dinner. It’s Jerry’s birthday, so we’re celebrating his birthday and my ‘done with surgery and ready for radiation day.’

I did my trial run for the radiation yesterday. They showed me where to go and all the processes I will do everyday for treatments. I think it’s no big deal, but I just had to know where to go and what to do. When they got me all set in the machine they did x-rays instead of radiation; that will determine if I’m all lined up right. Monday they’d made a mold for my body to fit into, so I just go get into my mold everyday. They put even more marks on me and said they will add some more on Monday. I look pretty bizarre, but I can cover most of it with clothes. If I had a turtleneck I could cover it all, but then I’d choke; I hate turtlenecks!

My nerves in my arms are still waking, so I have some pains there, but it’s better or else I’m getting used to it. I think it’s better. I don’t have any other pains except my knees. I haven’t even had a Tylenol in a couple of days, so I’m doing really well. My range of motion is very good, so I’m pleased with that, too. My knees are better. I’ll see the chiropractor again on Monday; he’s really working hard with me to get me back to walking while we are here. I’ve walked 4 days this week, so I must be getting better.

I thank God for my progress. It’s really amazing that I’m doing so well. I can hardly believe I had a double mastectomy a month ago! It still feels like I have breasts, they just don’t happen to be there. I knew about phantom pain, but I didn’t realize I’d still feel like I have breasts. God is so amazing!