I'm Traveling!

Okay, not so much me--I'm actually home enjoying a full 36 hours with no obligations whatsoever (whatever will I do???). But my words have traveled. I'm the "guest blogger" over at Bah! to Cancer while Stephanie vacations in Provence. Lucky, lucky woman. Guest blogger is a lot like guest star, don't you think? No, really. It must be. So check me out (and the rest of Stephanie's blog): Bah!to Cancer!  
And then leave a comment--preferably one about how much you enjoyed my guest blog. Wait, never mind, it's not like it's a paying gig! Okay then, give Stephanie props for kickin' cancer's butt too.

Have a great weekend. My coffee is ready, my book is selected, and the computer is all warmed up for more of my writing frenzy.  I love this day already.

Things I'm Happy About

Things I'm happy about this week:

1. I've gone on a walk with Seamus 4 times this week (and it's only Wednesday!).
2. One of those walks was with Chris, whom I always enjoy spending time with.
3. One of those walks was happily accidentally with my friend and former law partner Jane Carney. Despite the fact that we live two doors apart we rarely get (take?) the chance to chat, so it was nice catching up briefly.
4. On one of those walks, Seamus was an extremely well behaved beagle!
5. I had lunch with my dad. That's us in the photo, enjoying lunch at the Mission Inn to celebrate his birthday. [I thought my hair had come back in pretty much his same color...but nope, his is lighter. And longer!]
6. I'm really enjoying writing The Dog Lived (and so will I), the memoir version.
7. Reservations are rolling in for the Brunch for Breasts at Restaurant Omakase on October 11th.
8. I did a pretty good job of setting priorities this week. I even ate well. Mostly.
9. Many people have returned to reading the blog. I guess you all just needed some time off. 

It's only Wednesday, but hey, that's a lot to be happy about, so I thought I'd share. (I know what you're thinking....who got on Teresa's computer and blogged for her?? I know, I know. I'm thinking the same thing, but let's all just run with this now, shall we?)

Pink Sloth

Hmmm. So now that we know I lived (so far, anyway; obviously I need to build suspense) apparently my blog is no longer interesting. My readership has dropped precipitously in this last week. Is it possible to have a negative number of readers? Possibly, if some of you demanded the time back that you wasted on earlier posts?  Or maybe, if I'm not a daily habit, it just doesn't happen? Or, perhaps, just perhaps, you, like me, have returned to the regular programming of your life. Uninterrupted by cancer. That's a lovely thought, isn't it? Well, sure, yeah, it is...except for that whole part where you don't care about me anymore....(kidding! I can totally handle ...the rejection...totally. Really, I'm happy you have a life. No, really.)

In the last week, post-"I really need to prioritize and perhaps really did lose my mind in chemo" revelation--I have been trying to be a bit more judicious in my life choices. I'm new at this and clearly it's going to take a little time. But, as I work on the memoir (and I have!! It's 66 really crappy pages now...subject to many, many changes)  I find less energy for the blog. Makes sense, my mind is back in earlier times (how Seamus got his name; how Chris and I came to be; those sorts of memoir-ish things), and current times (the law practice!)  and hey, let's face it, regular life just isn't as funny as breast cancer treatment (stop the hate mail--I said "treatment"; breast cancer isn't funny--what one goes through in treatment for breast cancer is completely, totally, undeniably, absurd).

Today, however, I realized just how out of the breast cancer loop I had become...and in just a week! Today was breast cancer awareness day...in the beginning of Breast Cancer Awareness month. Today was the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure all over the country.  I had several friends participating in several of the races, and they were posting pictures on their FaceBook pages. I was sleeping in, having my second cup of coffee and reading "Kinky Gazpacho" by Lori Tharps (and it's good; I need memoir examples!) and friends and folks everywhere were out walking for the cure. Or, er, racing for the cure. I can't even fake it--I'm too lazy and pink-adverse for that. Give up a Sunday? Exercising? With crowds of sweaty people?? No!! Isn't it enough I had cancer and did the whole breast cancer "Survivor" thing? Must I get out of bed and walk too? No. No. I don't have too.

Then Chris turned on the television to watch football. And the players and refs had donned pink hats, and gloves and....and....shoes!! The big, burly NFL dudes were in pink shoes!! Based on Facebook and television (and really, is there any other form of life??), Chris and Seamus and I were the only beings not participating in some sort of breast cancer awareness thingy. I have to admit, it felt a little strange. Was I supposed to be doing something breast-cancer-y today? Can't I claim the "too soon" excuse? Or am I, as I suspect, just a giant pink sloth?

It's good to know  that some things never change. Once a cancer dork, always a cancer dork. Not only did I manage to not at all handle my breast cancer in the expected way, apparently I'm not doing the survivor thing right either!

I'm determined though. So next Sunday at the Brunch for Breasts....I'm doing penance. 3 brunches and 2 Cure Royales for me! Also, we took Seamus for a walk tonight. But he adamantly refused to don a pink collar.

On Being Aware of Breasts

(Imagine the random hits I'm going to get on this blog because of that title. 13 year old boys and sundry fetishists, welcome. Or, er....not.)

It's October 1st. And so begins Breast Cancer Awareness month--as decreed  by U.S. President Obama (okay, and all of our Presidents since 1985 apparently). And here's part of his declaration:

"NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim October 2009, as National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. I encourage citizens, Government agencies, private businesses, nonprofit organizations, and other interested groups to join in activities that will help Americans understand what they can do to prevent and control breast cancer."  (you can read the whole thing by clicking on President Obama's name above).

If my President asks, I must, of course, respond to the call. So let me share with you what I can to help prevent and control breast cancer.

First, and foremost, ladies...do those self exams. And gentleman...yeah, it can happen to you too. So no helping with our exams until you've at least done your own. And here's my best reason for emphasizing the importance of the self exams: I had a "perfectly fine, no cancer detected, nothing suspicious here" mammogram on July 22, 2008. In late November of 2008 I felt a thickening in my breast ("right breast, 10 o'clock"--that's the medical term for where it was. ;-) ) and by December 23, 2008 my second mammogram came back as "highly suspicious of malignancy."  And, of course, it was indeed breast cancer and a rapidly growing aggressive one at that. Note that timeline. There wasn't any misreading of my July mammogram. Nothing can be seen on that film. 5 months later and a 1.7cm tumor is clearly visible. Imagine if I had waited until it was time for my annual mammogram? Right. So don't you do it either. Self exam! A little self awareness never hurt anyone.

Next, of course, do get those annual mammograms. They at least help you know what's normal in your breasts. If something is there it isn't going to go away just because you are ignoring it. There isn't a single case of cancer being ignored into remission. Those cancer cells are nasty little bastards that would love to be left alone to do their dirty work. Don't let them!! The sooner it's caught, the better. Why take any chances?

Those are sort of the obvious "breast cancer awareness" items. But it really wouldn't be me if I didn't have a few more things to say, now would it?

Let's talk about those pink ribbons.

I was never really a fan of pink--and I mean baby pink (I'm fine with fushcia, hot pink, all that). It's completely consistent with my life in general that I would get a disease that is notorious by it's pink ribbon branding, just so it could attack even my aesthetic sensibilities. Apparently, I have Estee Lauder to thank for this.   According to Wikipedia (and how could that be wrong??)

"In 1993 Evelyn Lauder, Senior Corporate Vice President of the Estée Lauder Companies founded The Breast Cancer Research Foundation and established the Pink Ribbon as its symbol, though this was not the first the ribbon was used to symbolize breast cancer.^[2] In the fall of 1991, the Susan G. Komen Foundation had handed out Pink Ribbons to participants in its New York City race for breast cancer survivors."



[And note that that the big company basically stole the ribbon idea from what was then a start up little foundation where one sister was honoring the memory of her late sister! Of course, Susan G. Komen Foundation seems to have survived and thrived. As has the pink ribbon.]

The month of October finds pink ribbons on absolutely everything! (Note photo). To a very, very ridiculous extreme. This morning I noted that Yoplait wants me to send in my pink ribbon bedecked yogurt tops (clean, they are careful to request) and they'll make a contribution to Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure. Really, Yoplait? Why must I wash a piece of foil, package it up with 20 other pieces of washed foil, pay postage and waste and envelope so you can donate...what, 20 cents? Maybe? Why couldn't you, dearest Yoplait (maker of my pina colada morning fix) just donate $X for every Yoplait yogurt sold in October? Or maybe just, um, donate money and then tell us you did it. Could it be that you know folks (or at least not the sane, busy ones among us) are not actually going to wash foil pieces and send them to you, so in actuality you get great "press" and advertising and you look like you're supporting important breast cancer research, but in reality...not so much.

And that's not even the worst offender. You can pretty much buy any piece of crap/ tchotcke bedazzled with a pink ribbon. And when you do, maybe, maybe 1/8 of a cent winds its way down to an organization that might be doing something about breast cancer. Maybe. Believe me, I get all sorts of emails and solicitations to buy things with pink ribbons and a lot of it is just so ridiculous and so clearly not actually benefiting anyone except, obviously, the manufacturer. Now,  I do own some of the pink ribbon festooned items. I will admit.  I have awesome wine glasses with not only pink ribbons, but rhinestones!! And I have another set with pink stems! And I love them, don't get me wrong (although let's be clear, in both cases the pink is definitely of the hot pink variety--some were gifts from friends who know me well; note, they are after all wine glasses!), but I have no delusions that money went to any breast cancer organization. And that's my point. If you are buying these pink ribbon items because a) you like them, or b) you think your friend/sister/relative/ co-worker who is dealing with breast cancer will like it and know you thought of her, fine. No worries. Buy away. But....if you really want to help breast cancer research, or breast cancer patients directly, please consider helping an actual existing local organization that you can see and talk to and verify the existence of.

I'm quite involved, at the moment, with one of those local agencies and we just named the Inland Agency's Breast Cancer Resource Center  "The Pink Ribbon Place"--precisely because everyone does indeed know the pink ribbon symbolizes breast cancer awareness. And believe me, we're running with the pink ribbon symbol. But we're doing it to raise money that will directly benefit people diagnosed with breast cancer and needing a place to turn for support. The Pink Ribbon Place will run support groups, have a lending library for books on breast cancer, have information, scarves, wigs, prosthesis available, and really is working toward being a center that can help a person dealing with breast cancer every step of the way. So yeah, we're going to exploit that pink ribbon, too. Starting with a Brunch for Breasts on October 11th at Restaurant Omakase from 9a.m to 2pm. $40 per person and $20 from each meal will go directly to The Pink Ribbon Place. (That's a lot of tin foil mail-ins right there!). If you live near Riverside, consider supporting the event. Your donations really will count. And, you'll have an incredible meal...check out this menu:
October 11th
Brunch For Breasts
9:00am - 2:00pm

eggs benedict
soft poached eggs, apple bacon, hollaindaise
breakfast sandwich
brioche, arugula, tomato, apple bacon
pumpkin pancakes
maple crème fraîche

polenta brûlée
polenta cooked with fontina cheese
all served with assorted fruit & our breakfast potatoes

our grilled cheese
brioche, gruyere

lobster salad 'on a roll'
maine lobster, tarragon, lemon, crusty roll

chicken apple sausages
smothered in apple & onion

omakase burger
brandt beef, garlic aioli, onion, tomato
all served with assorted fruit & duck fat fries

chocolate 'gooey' cake
ginger - sea salt ice cream

apple croustade
whipped marscarpone

pumpkin pound cake
cream cheese ice cream

pain perdu
french toast with caramelized quince
$40 per person, $10 for specialty drinks

And the specialty drinks? Mamm-osas and Cure Royales!! And yep, 1/2 the proceeds from those will benefit The Pink Ribbon Place as well! Drink for a cause! Does it get any better than that?

This time last year, I didn't even know I had breast cancer. This time last year, I couldn't even feel a lump. Now, I'm proud to say I'm an 8 month survivor. (They start counting from surgery--since that was the last we saw of any cancer in my body). I like to think it's all behind me but it's obviously an experience I'll never forget. As Chris's mom Trudi (a 16 year survivor) said to me early on, I'm part of a club now. And the club's color is pink. Okay then. Bring on the pink! [But let's not forget the awareness part too.... Self exams, people. Do it.]

[Update: I didn't know this when I posted the above last night, but apparently there is a website all about what they call " " pinkwashing""." It's called "Think Before You Pink. Huh. I'm not the only one who gets crabby about pink! It's a project of Breast Cancer Action...and I have no idea who that is, so now  of course I have to wonder, is BCA for real? Wait...is this blog real...am I real...?? More coffee, please.]

Living Strong

Thanks for all the comments on the last blog post (and a few emails too). Seems I'm among the last to learn this whole "balance" thing. I have however started consciously working on it. Not too bad so far.

This was a a busy week at work and I've been on a bit of a writing roll--the whole memoir thing as taken on a life of it's own (up to 60 pages of that really crappy first draft so far!). But those are both good things. It feels great to be writing. Chris and I also had some enjoyable time with friends  (and their dogs) when we "had" to sample some wines for Forgotten Grapes.

So that's photo number 1 --Seamus and co-horts Harold and Bobby--in our kitchen begging for some of Chef Brein's food while their humans engaged in a little wine tasting on the patio. And yes, we know it sounds like our dogs are from some private school. And Seamus is the foreign exchange student.

I did also attend a couple of fundraisers this weekend (old habits die hard; and the tickets were already purchased). Friday night was the Riverside Humane Society's Comedy Night. Chris was my co-M.C. and he did great!! (I might be biased, but it's true anyway.) And the Riverside Fine Dining Group's Gala event kick-off for restaurant week was Sunday night. Here's the best picture I have from that event (Becky Whatley and Scott Petersen at the Omakase serving table; and how awesome is that moon??):

And then here's me...hot, sweaty, but having fun. And can you note the important thing in this photo?

Right! It's my yellow LiveStrong bracelet! That's the one that my new friend and fellow Cancer Conqueror Stephanie, she of the Bah! to Cancer blog, got for me in Dublin at the Lance Armstrong Global Cancer Summit. It traveled from Dublin to England (where Stephanie lives) all the way to California. I sent her a Survivor shirt in exchange and if you click here (on this! right here!!) you can see her blog where she's posted a pic of her in the Survivor t-shirt. Which I just find really cool. One of the  silver linings to the breast cancer odyssey is definitely the people you meet (even online in this case). Odd, but true.

Oh, okay, so in the photo you might also notice cleavage. My plan was to distract people from my ridiculously short hair.  Not bad for a breast cancer chick though, huh?

Something's Gotta Give

I've been away from the blog for a little bit. Did you notice? Eight days with no blogging. There's a good reason for that. I think my late-blooming epiphany hit. And it hit kinda hard. But being thick-headed as I am, I suppose it had to hit me hard or I may not have noticed. So I've spent this last week on a sort of auto-pilot but also with spikes of what can only be described as rage. My apologies to anyone who may have gotten in the way of one of them (I don't mean Chris although that is him in the photo, exhausted on our friends boat during a writers group meeting. He's one of the only people on the planet who rarely annoys me and and even more rarely pisses me off. So I haven't been raging at him directly-- he has however had to listen to my raging about other people, things and abstractions. Thank god he has a fantastic sense of humor. And is also brave. Very, very brave. As in 'he's still coming home every night' brave.)

Basically, I have exhausted myself. And a tired, burned-out Teresa is a wicked, impatient, intolerant Teresa (oh my god I hate stupid people. No, really. Wait, I hate arrogance more. No, stupidity. No, it's definitely arrogant stupid people...that's the worst.). After launching into back to back tirades over certain aspects in my "volunteer" life, I realized that I was indeed burned out, exhausted and, um...not happy. And here was the kicker--I missed being in chemo!!! Okay, not the chemo itself, but the way I was able to run my life then. I, for once, gave myself permission to say "NO." "No, I can't do that right now--I have cancer!" and "NO, I will not be attending that event. I have cancer!" and "No, I can't solve that problem for you right now, I have cancer!" Oh, and just "NO. I have cancer." It's the perfect excuse. Nobody says, "Right, I know. You have cancer but I still need you to give me advice on x, solve y, and attend z for me." Nobody does that. So it was a huge relief. I decided right after I was diagnosed that I would have to just reduce my life down to "Fighting cancer and keeping my law practice going." This seemed like it would keep me busy enough. And everyone understood when I took a leave of absence from the 3 non-profit boards I serve on and the one civic organization, no one expected me to attend fundraisers; I didn't have a single "obligatory" event (family or otherwise), and basically, I had peace and quiet. Me, Chris, Seamus and, well, cancer. And I didn't feel guilty about it in the least. Please, it's cancer! I think when I say "it wasn't as bad as you would think" when I talk about the cancer experience--that's in part what I mean. My life was simplified and uncomplicated. Work. Heal. Repeat.

My first clue to my eventual epiphany should have been when I was looking forward to the chemo weekends. Again, not the chemo itself, but I can distinctly recall  thinking on the Wednesday before chemo would start, "Fantastic! 4 days off where I can just stay in bed if I want to." Now, it never worked out that way--Thursday chemo days took all day and on 3 out of 4 rounds I actually went into work on Sunday, but I did like the idea of it. My second clue should have been when I was at my therapy appointment and said "Luckily, cancer is a great excuse so I'm not going" when I was only just starting to feel tinges of guilt for not doing something I probably may have possibly had the energy for but didn't want to do. My therapist (yes, of course I have a therapist...have you not been reading carefully??) said "Why do you need an excuse?" I believe I ran screaming from the room at this point (note to self: make another appointment).

So this week I looked at what I'd done to myself. I finished cancer treatment (okay, so let's be clear, I no longer have cancer) on July 14th. A little more than two months ago. And then I promptly, immediately, swiftly and with no questions asked, resumed my life. Full speed ahead. Cancer's not getting me down, no sirree. I even stopped wearing wigs, hats, scarves, etc. on July 19th. And between then and now here's what my schedule has included:

4 Non-profit board meetings
1 all day strategic planning retreat
4 doctors appointments
1 veterinarian oncology appointment (which takes a 1/2 day because of where the specialist's office is)
6 fundraisers attended
7 non-profit committee meetings
3 wine tasting events (for Chris's growing biz)
1 wedding
4 parties
1 giant Survivor party
4 Writer's group meetings
2 days of jury duty
1 family visit to Missouri
1 trip to Chicago for a 3 day conference
4 speaking engagements/ seminars
1 new associate hired and training commenced
2 books read
30 blog posts (counting this one)
39 pages of a really shitty first draft memoir written
1 Breast Cancer Resource center advisory committee started and many events planned.
60+ days of practicing law full time.

And that was in the summer. You know, the lazy, hazy, crazy days of summer? Right. Yeah. I'm a moron. And the thing is, I'm pretty sure I didn't do any of those things well.

When I throttled back  my life to "fighting cancer and continuing my law practice" I managed to read 12 books, write 150 blog posts, still visit with friends, spend lots of time with Chris, and actually sleep. Oh, and I was never in a rage at being pulled in too many directions at once (okay, sure, there was the rage over the whole chemo-stein thing, but that passed...eventually).

So my epiphany? It's a kind of simple, stupid one...I really need to prioritize my life better. Just because I can solve a problem, doesn't mean it's mine to solve. Just because I have a blank spot on my calendar when someone asks me to do something doesn't mean I have to say yes. Just because I once upon a time said yes I'd do something doesn't mean I have to do it for the rest of my life. Just because life has been unfair to someone doesn't mean I have to step in and try to make it more fair (um, hello?).  I'm allowed time for me and hey, I might actually like that! I could read more! I could write more! I could sleep more! I could spend more time with Chris (doing all of the aforementioned)! And guess what? The world will continue to go on! Just like it did when I had cancer (and hey, that kind of hurt my feelings at first but now...wow, now I actually know  the world--and the non-profits--will continue on just fine without me! This is awesome. Thanks world, for letting me know that! How very stupid of me to think otherwise. Stupid and arrogant. And we all know how I feel about that!).

That's my epiphany. It's not the greatest one, but it's all mine. It still remains to be seen what I'll do with it. Just right after I stop thinking "hey, my epiphany is going to turn me into a quitter." 

25,000 Clicks and 2 hands

I see by my counter on the blog that I am just about to reach 25,000 hits to this blog. That probably means a whole lot of nothing, but that just makes me giggle anyway.

In other fun news, last night Chris and I went to Massage Envy to participate in "Massage for a Cure." $35 for a one-hour massage with a part of the proceeds going to the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure (nationwide Massage for a Cure raised over $35,000 yesterday!). We're such givers, we were willing to be massaged for a cure. I wore my Survivor t-shirt and commenced to fill out all the paperwork. They customize the massage so they have you list things like "Illnesses, surgeries, health concerns"--yeah, umm....I'm gonna be here awhile. Then there's the boxes you check for particular health issues or concerns. Chris leaned over to make sure I checked the box for "insomnia"--these days I'm more likely to forget to check the box for "cancer". And yes, there was such a box and that was the first time I've had to check that. Reminded me of the first time I had to check the "divorced" box...really? Me? Huh. (I'm just going to start looking for the "loser" box!!).

The massage was wonderful, and I think it even helped my foot problem (no hair massage, so I'm still on my own for that). Then post-massage they go over the membership "opportunities." Works like a health club--monthly fee charged to your card and with that you get a one hour massage each month; if you want another massage it's $39. Which is a pretty good price. So you know I signed up. Hey, I need to pay attention to my health right? Call it an epiphany! ;-) At any rate, because I was a "Survivor" and apparently the only breast cancer survivor who showed up at this particular location, the manager threw in one free massage for me! The cancer card keeps on paying!!  I'm feeling better already.

(photo is from Massage Envy website...Google is reminding me to comply with copyright laws. On the other hand, I'm sure Massage Envy doesn't mind my free advertising for them.)

I meant 2 1/4 issues

While I was complaining yesterday I forgot one thing. (Don't you hate it when you forget to complain??) It's related to the hair thing, so maybe it's only 1/4 of another issue that's bugging me. My eyelashes. They grew back in but they are as wimpy as eyelashes can be while still being called eyelashes. They seemed to be doing okay, but then most of them stopped growing. 3 or 4 little super hairs on each lid kept growing. So now, with a little mascara, I have little hair horns sticking out from each eye and that's it. The other lashes as so short it's hard to catch them with the mascara wand. What's up with that?

I'm considering that Lashtese product that Brooke Shields hawks on television where she pretends to be at a birthday party with women she clearly doesn't know. But can I trust Brooke Shields? She's famous for her gigantic eyebrows so I'm thinking her lashes are also naturally pretty long. Plus, she once dated Michael Jackson. Then again, she did go to war with Tom Cruise (and won) so there's that. Mostly though, it's like $175 a tube and I hate the idea of anything in a prescription around my eyes.  I guess I'll be waiting this one out. With my toddler hair though, I'm just thinking I should have been granted those huge, long, sweeping eyelashes so many (boy) toddlers seem to have!

Still Waiting....

Two remaining issues. That's it. Pretty much. Sort of. There are two issues still lingering post BC treatment. And I don't mean to complain, because really, neither one is too bad, but I'd really rather get over them and move on. And yeah, both are side effects of chemo.

The first is, of course, my hair. As you can see in the photo, it's growing. It's dark and it's growing.  It's lightening up as I spend more time in the sun, but it's not really growing fast enough for me. I'd read that it grows about 1/2" a month. I don't think that's happening. And hey, did you know hair grows faster on the top than the sides and back? It's true. Makes perfect sense too, since the top has to catch up with the sides so we look somewhat normal. If you look at toddlers (not babies...toddlers--when their hair really starts growing) you will see it's true too. They tend to get a thatch up on top and then eventually the sides kick in. If you think about it, the other way around (or even equal growth all around) would look darn funny. So okay, the top of my head has maybe an inch of hair. There's maybe 3/4" on the sides and 1/2" in the back just at the neck. That doesn't seem like a lot of productivity when one considers that I had my last chemo 4 1/2 months ago. I haven't used a blow dryer, a brush or even a comb since March 13, 2009. That's 6 months tomorrow. Not that I miss all that time dealing with hair in the morning (I've put that time to excellent use on Facebook over another morning cup of coffee; brilliantly productive. It could have been yoga, or walking the dog, writing, or hey, getting into the office earlier, but no. I'm not that kind of gal.) So I don't miss dealing with the hair, but I'd still like to return to "me." Folks keep asking me if I'm going to keep my hair short. I guess that's nice--they must think it looks good enough that the answer could possibly be yes. (That or they are asking in the same way one spouse asks another  "is that what you're wearing?" right as the two of you are leaving for a party. Not that that has ever happened to me.) Let me just say, "No. This is not what I'm wearing to the party of life. I'm going to change just as soon as I can."

And the other issue is my feet. There has been some progress. I can now see veins on the top of my feet. They are no longer just inflated sausages with toes; my feet somewhat resemble human feet. I put my tennis shoes on the other day to walk Seamus and my feet just went right into the shoes! A miracle. Previously I was loosening the laces so much that there was hardly enough lace left to tie in a bow (let alone a double knot so the boys don't untie them when I'm playing on the monkey bars...wait, sorry, flashback there....). But they're still fairly numb in the morning (which makes getting out of bed a thrill a minute) and pretty much anytime I sit for awhile. And the ankles are sore enough to make stairs difficult. Weird. But temporary. Like the hair thing, I just have to wait it out.

In the meantime I'm hobbling around with toddler hair.

Chase Away K9 Cancer

Today was Seamus's check-up day. He's now a 3 year survivor of canine cancer (mast cell tumor on his tushy--that's medical speak). Chris and I both took Seamus into Tustin to visit the fine folks at the Veterinary Cancer Group, and most particularly his wonderful oncologist Dr. Dutelle. To Seamus this is the "place with the dog cookies" because every desk, exam room, waiting area and level surface has a jar of dog treats, and not a single person is able to resist Seamus's most diabolically cute demands for said cookies. After all Seamus went through in this place (surgery, months of chemo, a weekend in doggie ICU, and many, many, many follow up check-ups that always involve poking him where he sits--and generally he tries to sit to avoid the poke), it's a tribute to the staff that he still loves going there. He will happily charge into the facility without pause. No paws planted, joints locking screeching halt when he realizes where we are. That makes things a lot easier for us as well. So that's Chris of course (doesn't his hair look great?) holding Seamus. Seamus is studying the new artwork in the facility--it's a print by Stephen Huenck (love his stuff!) that says "Chase Away K9 Cancer." Yeah, we did that.

Seamus is doing great. No signs of cancer or anything else for that matter. So we all celebrated...at Huntington's Dog beach. Let's call this next photo "Two Survivors" and then of course, there's the guy who Chased Cancer Away for Seamus and me both (and Stephanie, here's my blue sky to match yours) :
You gotta love a day like this.