Labor Day Weekend

Labor Day weekend was my weekend to play. It's been over a week since my chemo, so I'm having fun with friends and family. I really enjoyed seeing many faces whom I haven't seen in quite some time.




Derrick, Kathy, Traci, Kristen, and Angel went out to dinner with us on Friday night at the Lazy Dog Cafe in Torrance. After dinner, we visited Auntie Mary. What a nice surprise it was to see Mimi there too!



On Saturday, we decided to go for a ride to the Sawdust Art Festival in Laguna Beach. We had perfect weather, the sun was out, and a small ocean breeze kept us cool and comfortable.


We also wanted to check out the international street fair in the City of Orange. Hank was quite excited to find a store with old records. 33's and 45's, remember those anyone? Or am I dating myself?


Later that evening, Anthony, Derek, and Shane came by to visit. Thanks for the beautiful roses, Missy!



After church on Sunday, our group found a new place to hang out for lunch in Brea. Did you know that TGIFridays have half price appetizers on Sundays? What a yummy deal that was. Is anyone game for some more sliders?


Tiffany and Scotty wanted to show us their toys. We had time to play a few games and eat ice cream too!



After our visit with Ada's family, we were off to celebrate Mikayla's first birthday. You are such a beautiful, sweet baby!!! I'm so glad I was able to carry you!!! Great job, Darlene and Billy!

Kristen and Sammi enjoyed reminiscing the good ol' days of childhood. Or are they still living it?!?!? Hmmmmm, it's hard to say with teenagers.


There were a few familiar faces too (Dave with Caleb, Lisa with Noelle). We had a wonderful time. There were so many babies, all over the place. The baby relay race was sooooooo much fun to watch! Did you know that I love babies?!?!?



After a small nap, we were ready for some more food. Can you believe it? We met up with a few more friends in Cerritos (Heartley, Frances, Lori, Breanna, Brian, and Benny). Some of the local restaurants were giving out free samples of their food. It was quite yummy, and filling too.


As a perfect ending to a perfect day, we were able to meet up with Lydia on Sunday night. It was really great seeing her again, even though it was a brief visit. Monday, Labor Day itself, was an uneventful day. We had lots of chores to do, but most of all, we needed the rest. It's pretty exhausting to have so much fun, but someone has to do it! ;-)

For me, summer has come and gone by so fast this year. Partially, I think it's because of all the doctor appointments, the cancer treatments, and of course, our fantastic vacation. Stevie has started going to El Camino College last Monday, August 25, 2008. Sammi will be a sophomore at North High School, starting Thursday, September 4, 2008. We miss summer already. We had a few challenges, but we manage to have a ton of fun. They are both excited to see their friends, and to make new ones, as they build their young minds.

I need to work on my mind too. After all, I've been Mental-Pausing for twenty plus years now, I suffer from CRS (can't remember s.... stuff!), and now I have Chemo Brain to add to this list!!! Scary, huh? Sadly, I don't have to work too hard to maintain my KooKoo reputation. I enjoy hanging out with babies. They are so full of life, energy, and there's never a dull moment. Is there anyone who needs a few hours of babysitting in Torrance?!?!?!? I also get my "fix" when I help out in the church nursery at Ambassador Church (relocated now in Brea). It helps God's kingdom to grow (one baby at a time), but I also benefit from it too. It's a win/win situation. That's my story, and I'm sticking with it!

God has so many wonderful plans for each of us. He knows exactly what we need, and when we need it. He is the ultimate healer. He sends people (as our personal angels) to help us and to encourage us through our walk on Earth. I'm so fortunate to be one of his chosen children for his majestic kingdom. Someday, we will all meet our maker, but for me, I hope that won't be for at least another 50 years. I'm having way too much fun down here! ;-)

Chemo #3

Pat


Lisa


Lovely, William, and Sammi


Here I am with Diane. We had actually met about 3 weeks ago, at the wig shop on the day after I had passed out. She was there to hear all the commotion. How embarrassing, huh?


Cindy, Trish, and I are chemo buddies. Have you noticed how my new buddies and I all have the same cool hairless doo?!?!? We shine brightly together!!!


Surprisingly, my chemo only took 4 hours this time. It felt like we were playing hookie from chemo! hee hee hee So, May and I made the best of it, and forced ourselves to go to lunch. Yummy! Thanks for taking me this time, May!



Carissa and Justin. Thank you for bringing them, Auntie Jean!


James, Lily, and Matt


Auntie Carla


Auntie Jen


Thank you, Lauren and Ryann, for my new panda bear! San Diego Zoo will be happy to know that I'll take good care of her!


Ralph, Ally, and Jack came by to visit us too. Yippee! More holy hugs!

Chemo #3 - August 21, 2008 - My oncologist, Dr. David Chan, is changing my treatments due to all of the issues I've had in the past few weeks. Sadly, I will be having chemo every two weeks now, with different meds, for a total of 8 sessions instead of 6 as originally planned. I am happy to hear that my future chemo treatments will only take about 2 hours, instead of the dreaded 7 hours. I'm a bit anxious to see what new side effects I may have in the last 4 treatments, but I know God will help me through all of those too. Maybe I'll sail right through with no effects at all? Wouldn't that be great? Anything is possible with God on my side. But it's all in his hands and his will. In the meantime, I am blessed by so many people supporting me. I'm meeting lots of great people during my walk with cancer. Already, it has been an interesting roller-coaster ride, and this is just the beginning of a long road ahead for me. Thanks for sharing my ride!!!

Oh me, oh my!

I've been really blessed being a part of a terrific women's group. Our core group has been together for over 15 years. We always have a great time together, no matter what we do, from bible studies, prayers, crafts, shopping, and of course, food!!! Thank you, Kathy, for hosting us year after year after year. I'm looking forward to our next event, when everyone is back in town from all of the wonderful summer vacations. What will we share next? hmmm ;-)

I've also started with a second support group with the Wellness Community, for women who are newly diagnosed with breast cancer. It's been incredible just sharing with the other women with our feelings, our fears, our side effects, our treatments, any concerns we may have. It's comforting to know that I'm not the only one having side effects!

Speaking of side effects... I've had a few itchy bumps and heartburn for a few days, but this Thursday, August 14, 2008, it got worse. I had a little allergic reaction. To what? I'm still not sure. It could be the chemo itself, or something I ate, or something in the environment. I ended up back in the ER, and then was admitted into the hospital. I had a difficult time breathing, problems with my esophagus, and was covered with hives from head to toes. Not a pretty site at all. With more meds, I had convinced them to let me go home early on Friday. But not before I got some surprise visitors.


Thanks for the visit, Angel and Jolene! You had made my morning special, and my hospital stay more bearable!!!

Summer Camp at Camp Pendleton

In Stevie's past four years of high school, I've helped serve with North High School's JROTC program. I've been blessed with many experiences, and gained some friends along the way. For me, old habits are hard to break, so off I went to volunteer again. In the past, I would help throughout their week long summer camp at Camp Pendleton. Due to my health issues, I decided to go for just one day on Sunday, August 10, 2008. It was nice meeting people from the new schools, but I really enjoy seeing the familiar friendly faces!


North High School's Saxon Battalion



On the far right, Stan, "The Man", headed up the rifle range.


Maria, Stan, Deena, and myself.


Irene, Jackie B., and me! Just taking a break after serving up the grub. Dibs anyone, for some more S.O.S.?!?!?


Sargent Major Duran tries to hide, but I always find him!


This year, I had the perfect haircut for the U.S. Army, don't you think? hee hee hee

After serving the breakfast, lunch, and dinner meals, and hanging out at the rifle range, I was pretty exhausted. Thanks for the ride to and from, Stan! You had made the trip so much easier and pleasant for Stevie and me. Perhaps we can do this again next year, eh? No promises, but I'd like to keep in touch with the gang.

I thank God for his many blessings, including the opportunities to give back to our neighbors, our community. By helping others, profoundly, our hearts grow deeper with appreciation for all that we've been blessed with, giving us a better understanding as to what God's love is all about. As the saying goes, "the more you give, the more you'll receive". May God bless you for taking the time to read my blog, too. Thank you for your support and encouragement. Holy hugs and kisses to ya!!!

Louie, Louie, Louie!!!

Look who came to visit! I was so excited to have Tiffany and the boys come over. They were not use to seeing a big mattress on the floor, but they got the hang of it in no time.





It was a lot of fun watching the boys play with Auntie Stephanie, Kristen, Sammi, and Stevie. They are just so cute. I hope to smooch them again soon! Thanks Tiffany for everything!

On a more serious note, I had another small side effect from the chemo. On the Chinese lucky day of 08/08/08, at 8:45pm, I got the chills! Deep chills! The down to the bones kind of chill, that I've never experienced. My entire body was shaking with body aches, as Hank and Stevie massaged my cramping feet and legs. It took almost 40 minutes for me to warm up to a 102.8* fever. I'm just relieved the fever broke that evening so I didn't have to get a blood transfusion! My doctor sure scared me. Thank you Lord! I've been blessed with another day!!!

Chemo #2A and #2B

Hello again everyone! I had another KooKoo moment. Sorry, no pictures this time, since it's not something I want to remember too much. Last Thursday, July 31, I was scheduled for my chemo treatment, #2A, at the Cancer Care Associates of Redondo Beach. Everything was going fine, at least for the first hour. Then, I felt a sharp pain in my stomach, I tasted the medicine on my tongue, I saw a few stars, the room started to spin, and I woke up to a ton of nurses and doctors looking over me!!! OMG!!! What just happened?!?!?!? Oops, I must have passed out!!! The EMT had strapped me to a board, and off I went to the ER of Torrance Memorial. I had a bump on my left temple, and I had a small tear on my right ear which they glued back. Needless to say, I didn't get my full chemo. Overall, I'm fine. I'm just really embarrassed to have caused such a scene.

On Monday, August 4, I was rescheduled for my chemo, #2B. All went well again, for the first hour! Then I felt my chest tighten, I started seeing stars, and I had medicine mouth again. Immediately, the chemo team jumped to my rescue. When they turned off the medicine, I started feeling better. Turns out, I'm "sensitive" to the first chemo drug. It was given to me again at half speed, which went well. I'm bummed that my 4 hour treatments have now been extended to 6-7 hour treatments. That's a lot of time to be sitting there and hooked up to an IV. But that's a small price to pay, for getting the treatments I need to fight this breast cancer. I'm doing fine now. I just have the normal fever and body aches that follow a few days after treatment.

I thank God each and every day for his many, many blessings! He has blessed me with Bobbie, who has been by my side throughout these chemo treatments. She has been my rock on Hank's behalf. Hank feels bad that he can't be there for me, but he can't get off work. My poor Hank, he's been forced to work OT on top of all of this. I guess this is God's way of handling our medical bills, right? I thank God for Stevie and Sammi, for they have stepped up to help care for me, helped with some of the household chores, and running errands. I thank God for my sibblings, who have been caring for my parents, who have a ton of medical issues of their own. I thank God for the many family, friends, and neighbors who have brought me food, and helped me clean my house, too! I thank you all for your support, and I'm so grateful for your generous loving hearts. God is sooooooo good, all the time! His love shines through you! I see it, I feel it, all around me!!! God bless you!!! And THANK YOU!!!

Wedding time!

On August 2, 2008, we had the honor to help my cousin, Denise, celebrate her wedding day. Welcome to the family, Jimmy! Congratulations! We are so excited for the two of you. It was wonderful to see many of my relatives, whom I have not seen for years. Many traveled from Hong Kong for this special occasion.







In order not to freak out the cousins with my many medical issues, I had decided to invest in a wig. So what do you think? WIG or NO WIG?!?!? Hmmm, I'll probably need it come winter. For now, I'm enjoying the freedom of being bald! hee hee hee