Momma said there'd be days like this...

...although this day isn't quite as bad as the past three. We've decided that we're over it already and we've just checked one week off of the chemo calendar. uh-oh... There's something about a constant stomachache, headache, neck ache and general feeling of malaise that just brings a person down. When even water tastes bad, a self-proclaimed foodie like myself hits bottom. Beautiful, aromatic food enters this house from all corners of the surrounding counties and my family is well-fed (this gift is SUCH a blessing to us!!!), but I am sad because my mouth acts funny, my throat constricts and burns and most things just do not match up to what I'm sure their taste actually should be (chocolate - a usual diet staple for me - is one of the most disappointing things on that list). ugh!!!! I may need to call you all back in January to remake everything that you have dropped off here... :) It is such a blessing to look on the calendar and see those meals coming though because I can't imagine what it would be like to cook with a restless stomach and banana, yogurt & string cheese taste buds. I think that there would be a lot of grilled cheese sandwiches going on. (which would probably make the kids ecstatic...) So, thank you, thank you for being so faithful to us all in this way. I was sure that I wouldn't need so many meals but thank goodness Shawna just put her foot down.

Today I wandered out to Nordstrom for a completely different prosthetic experience. I hesitated on whether this was a blog kind of topic but I just want to get the word out to ANYONE with a loved one who has breast cancer that there is a better way!!!! After leaving the last place feeling like I might as well just put on a big sweatshirt and never attempt to look like myself again, it was so uplifting (no pun intended...) to find out that I can still wear whatever kind of lingerie I want. I really kind of dreaded going (headache aside... but shopping - childless - is usually the kind of thing that I would do on my deathbed!) but the woman that I worked with was incredibly knowledgeable, sensitive and so just downright good at her job that it actually turned out to be enjoyable. Unfortunately they do not currently take my insurance but I am hopeful that this is the type of setting that will grow and expand so that other women do not have to go to some tiny, dingy room full of old lady (no offense if you fancy yourself old and like stodgy underthings) undergarments with someone telling you that you can never wear an underwire or anything attractive again. This disease takes enough away without having to make you feel like a complete stranger to yourself. Thank you Nordstrom and thank you Becca!!

Ok, so now I need to take my daily rest (maybe this is a part of cancer that I could get used to...). It really does seem like a necessity. My body wears out so quickly these days and doesn't seem to bounce back like it used to. I am trying to force down as much water as I can (even though it tastes like I'm drinking it from a dirty iron cup) and learn sudoku puzzles (my doctor literally recommended it to help keep my mind from falling into the potentially irreversible "chemo brain" pit) while also allowing my body the time that it needs (it is awfully needy these days) to recover. It isn't very comforting to know that just about the time that my taste buds start to revive, my body starts to get itself on track and my stamina is just getting up to speed... I'll be back down to Magee to do it all again. fun... fun...

Continue with your prayers warriors. Someone told me this weekend that even though we know that you all are praying for us, it is good for us to be told repeatedly. And, that is so true... it is so touching to know that we are in the forefront of your minds and that you are keeping us before the Lord. We are just now truly realizing what a LONG road this is going to be and that we are going to need every ounce of strength that He has for us in order to make it through.