Sunday, November 22, 2009
New baby!
Quick update! I have a new nephew thanks to Michelle and Michael! Born 3 weeks early tonight - Grayson Thomas Rosemore 7lbs 14 oz. Mom and baby doing great. We get to meet him later this week when we go to Birmingham for Thanksgiving. Grayson was born on his sister Erin's 19th birthday today! Aunthood is a wonderful thing!
Thursday, November 19, 2009
All is well
I just wanted to check in to tell you things continue to go well. I have not started getting anxious about my Dec 8 and 11 scans yet. I think keeping busy really helps. I feel pretty good. I actually put on a regular bra for a few hours twice this week. You may remember that both my lung surgery incision are right long the line where my bra hits. Since I had both lungs cut on, I have the scars to match on both sides. It was not too terribly uncomfortable wearing a real bra (underwire and all) although I am not up for 12 hours of it yet as the area is still tender. On my right side the surgery was two years abo - almost to the date- and it still can be uncomfortable too but I am making progress.
We had an incredible weekend driving topless (don't get too excited - just top down on the convertible) in our glorious Atlanta weather. We are busy trying to get things done before Thanksgiving vacation since Bob leaves for England just a couple of weeks later. He still busy renovating our bath and poweder room, and it is a very time for me at work trying to wrap up things before year end. Before my last trip to England, I had just learned I was going to have lung surgery again, so that overshadowed our vacation a bit. Hopefully, we won't have that news this time around.
If you have been reading this blog since the beginning, you may remember me mentioning Carol Lynn, another Sarcoma patient I met during chemo. She started chemo just after me and the nurses suggested I talk with her and give her some ideas of what to expect. We became friendly and stay in touch, and have even ridden to the Sarcoma support group together. Carol Lynn had another Sarcoma spot in her leg and had to have it removed recently. I just learned tonight she has an infection and will have to have several weeks of IV anti-biotics and a wound vac to keep her incision tight and heal from the inside out. I went through all this same stuff you probably remember - 4 weeks of IV's four times a day and about 3 months of that crazy wound vac. It is a long process and seems like it goes on forever. Please say a prayer for her! She has a great positive attitude and sense of humor and that will serve her well through all this. Mainly it is an inconvenience - for the patient and the caregivers - husbands in both our cases. I remember during that time I became so dependent on Bob. He was keeping me "plugged in" and managing my IV's and wound vac. Just getting up to go to the bathroom was an ordeal because I had to unplug the wound vac and IV and roll the IV cart with me. The IV flushes so much fluid through you that you are always havnig to go to the bathroom. Af ter it was over and I went out of town on my first business trip I cried till I got past the airport - about 40 miles. I was so dependent upon him that I was really scared to be alone. And this was the same woman who was single and lived by herself till she was 44 years old! Carol Lynn's husband seems like a great guy and was always by her side whenever I would see her at chemo (just like Bob) so she is as lucky as I am. It is just going to be a long 6 weeks for her.
And while we are giving out prayers, my friend Karen is having surgery on her heart valve on Tuesday. Karen was part of my "Department of Transportation' that transported me home from chemo. Please put Karen on your list too. There was hardly a week that went by during 2007 when I did not get something from Karen - a card, baked goods, email and like you, she still is out there checking the blog regularly.
We are off to be with family for Thanksgiving in Birmingham and Uncle Charles and Aunt Jan's and will stay with Michael and Michelle. Although it will be a couple of weeks early, I am really hoping their baby boy will arrive that weekend! I keep kidding them that a real Rosemore would not miss both the Alabama-Auburn game and the SEC championship with Bama playing, so I am betting he will arrive soon.
We have an awful lot to be thankful for this year, so once again, Thanksgiving will be important to us. We hope you have a great holiday and will get back with you after scan on Dec 8 (chest, pelvic and abdomin) and Mri on leg Dec 11.
We had an incredible weekend driving topless (don't get too excited - just top down on the convertible) in our glorious Atlanta weather. We are busy trying to get things done before Thanksgiving vacation since Bob leaves for England just a couple of weeks later. He still busy renovating our bath and poweder room, and it is a very time for me at work trying to wrap up things before year end. Before my last trip to England, I had just learned I was going to have lung surgery again, so that overshadowed our vacation a bit. Hopefully, we won't have that news this time around.
If you have been reading this blog since the beginning, you may remember me mentioning Carol Lynn, another Sarcoma patient I met during chemo. She started chemo just after me and the nurses suggested I talk with her and give her some ideas of what to expect. We became friendly and stay in touch, and have even ridden to the Sarcoma support group together. Carol Lynn had another Sarcoma spot in her leg and had to have it removed recently. I just learned tonight she has an infection and will have to have several weeks of IV anti-biotics and a wound vac to keep her incision tight and heal from the inside out. I went through all this same stuff you probably remember - 4 weeks of IV's four times a day and about 3 months of that crazy wound vac. It is a long process and seems like it goes on forever. Please say a prayer for her! She has a great positive attitude and sense of humor and that will serve her well through all this. Mainly it is an inconvenience - for the patient and the caregivers - husbands in both our cases. I remember during that time I became so dependent on Bob. He was keeping me "plugged in" and managing my IV's and wound vac. Just getting up to go to the bathroom was an ordeal because I had to unplug the wound vac and IV and roll the IV cart with me. The IV flushes so much fluid through you that you are always havnig to go to the bathroom. Af ter it was over and I went out of town on my first business trip I cried till I got past the airport - about 40 miles. I was so dependent upon him that I was really scared to be alone. And this was the same woman who was single and lived by herself till she was 44 years old! Carol Lynn's husband seems like a great guy and was always by her side whenever I would see her at chemo (just like Bob) so she is as lucky as I am. It is just going to be a long 6 weeks for her.
And while we are giving out prayers, my friend Karen is having surgery on her heart valve on Tuesday. Karen was part of my "Department of Transportation' that transported me home from chemo. Please put Karen on your list too. There was hardly a week that went by during 2007 when I did not get something from Karen - a card, baked goods, email and like you, she still is out there checking the blog regularly.
We are off to be with family for Thanksgiving in Birmingham and Uncle Charles and Aunt Jan's and will stay with Michael and Michelle. Although it will be a couple of weeks early, I am really hoping their baby boy will arrive that weekend! I keep kidding them that a real Rosemore would not miss both the Alabama-Auburn game and the SEC championship with Bama playing, so I am betting he will arrive soon.
We have an awful lot to be thankful for this year, so once again, Thanksgiving will be important to us. We hope you have a great holiday and will get back with you after scan on Dec 8 (chest, pelvic and abdomin) and Mri on leg Dec 11.
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
Doing well, enjoying life
I have not updated in a while, and as usual, that is good news. I am feeling pretty good and working on getting my stamina back. But mainly, I am just working and watching a little tennis and football. Until this week, we have had wet weather and I have used that as an excuse to not go for a walk. No excuses now because it is just beautiful here, and I really need to get my energy level up so I can get back on the tennis court.
My chest CT date changed to Dec 8, and I have my leg MRI on Dec 11. I am really busy at work so hopefully I will not have time to worry about the scans for a while! Bob leaves for England on Dec 13, and I will leave to meet him there for Christmas Dec 21. My new nephew should arrive a couple of weeks before I leave, and I cannot wait to meet him!
Bob is in the process of remodeling our guest bathroom. It is going to be very pretty, and I am very excited. You cannot imagine how much a mess one small room can make. He's promised to have it finished by Thanksgiving, and he is making good progress. In the meantime, there seems to be a fine layer dust in every room in the house, and we have tools, fixtures, and "things" all over the house and that just drives me crazy! I am really ready for this project to be done!
I am still going to my Sarcoma support group each month and enjoying that very much. Until today, I was also on this Sarcoma "list serve" thing from ACOR (American Cancer thing). Mainly information about Sarcoma is funnelled through there and others with Sarcoma email back and forth. Everyone is very helpful, and you can learn about clinical trials, new technology, communicate with people who have your same illness or are sarcoma caregivers, and know what your are going through. There were a few people I emailed "off line" for a while, where our emails were just sent to each other and not to the whole group. Unfortunately, many of these folks are very, very sick. It is always great to read when someone had good scans and is having a good day. There are a lot more emails about really bad days or from caregivers telling us their loved one is in hopsice or has passed away. There are many sad stories, and the ones about children with Sarcoma are especially heartbreaking. Today, I realized this was hurting me too much, and I am not helping anyone at all. It is very painful and scary reading about the state the patients are in. I do my best to send them all my best wishes and prayers and be supportive, but, I need to leave the group for a while. It is so depressing and frightening. I "signed off" the list tonight so I will no longer see the emails each day. I feel guilty for leaving, but it is something I have to do right now for me. I am sure at some point I will sign back on, but I am just not able to do it right now.
Otherwise, life is good, and we are enjoying every minute. I am so lucky to be feeling good and am able to work and spend time with family and friends. Nothing makes me happier!
My chest CT date changed to Dec 8, and I have my leg MRI on Dec 11. I am really busy at work so hopefully I will not have time to worry about the scans for a while! Bob leaves for England on Dec 13, and I will leave to meet him there for Christmas Dec 21. My new nephew should arrive a couple of weeks before I leave, and I cannot wait to meet him!
Bob is in the process of remodeling our guest bathroom. It is going to be very pretty, and I am very excited. You cannot imagine how much a mess one small room can make. He's promised to have it finished by Thanksgiving, and he is making good progress. In the meantime, there seems to be a fine layer dust in every room in the house, and we have tools, fixtures, and "things" all over the house and that just drives me crazy! I am really ready for this project to be done!
I am still going to my Sarcoma support group each month and enjoying that very much. Until today, I was also on this Sarcoma "list serve" thing from ACOR (American Cancer thing). Mainly information about Sarcoma is funnelled through there and others with Sarcoma email back and forth. Everyone is very helpful, and you can learn about clinical trials, new technology, communicate with people who have your same illness or are sarcoma caregivers, and know what your are going through. There were a few people I emailed "off line" for a while, where our emails were just sent to each other and not to the whole group. Unfortunately, many of these folks are very, very sick. It is always great to read when someone had good scans and is having a good day. There are a lot more emails about really bad days or from caregivers telling us their loved one is in hopsice or has passed away. There are many sad stories, and the ones about children with Sarcoma are especially heartbreaking. Today, I realized this was hurting me too much, and I am not helping anyone at all. It is very painful and scary reading about the state the patients are in. I do my best to send them all my best wishes and prayers and be supportive, but, I need to leave the group for a while. It is so depressing and frightening. I "signed off" the list tonight so I will no longer see the emails each day. I feel guilty for leaving, but it is something I have to do right now for me. I am sure at some point I will sign back on, but I am just not able to do it right now.
Otherwise, life is good, and we are enjoying every minute. I am so lucky to be feeling good and am able to work and spend time with family and friends. Nothing makes me happier!
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