This has been one of those days that sees me feeling very content as I head to bed. The morning included cuddles and happy kids. I got Alex to sailing a bit early so I could get to radiotherapy, which went relatively quickly.
Remie, Mum and I had lunch and then went to the circus. It was Remie's idea in the first place (she left a note on my desk asking if we could go) but we all enjoyed it. I left at intermission to pick up Alex from sailing, then we went back and caught the final act.
Pizza for the kids' dinner and "Despicable Me 2" ended the kids' day. Mum and I caught up with Sue, Rach and Jenny at Petra's At the Roof for a bit of shopping, bubbles and secret wome's business. We actually organised it for Sue to use her voucher we have her for her birthday. She's gone in 3 weeks from today so it's all starting to get real.
I enjoyed having a relatively normal day. I got time with my kids, my mum and my friends (Nick is in Malaysia) so the balance was good. We have to appreciate when that happens.
Tuesday, 15 April 2014
Monday, 14 April 2014
Day 217: Uninspired
The skies were are grey, it's wet, I'm tired and I have some key things to do (like book flights to the US and do taxes). I would love, in theory, to exercise as well but my cankles are not ideally suited. I am tired of being tired and uninspired. I am over feeling like everything takes so much energy. Thankfully I know it's temporary.
So I try to do something little to remind me that I'm not just biding my time. I did book tickets to the circus tomorrow for Remie, my mum and me; Alex didn't want to go so I organised it for a day he's doing sailing. I also submitted 8 items as claims to our private health cover, filled out my absentee ballot for an upcoming Seattle election and taught Mum how to FaceTime me. I'll be happy with that for today.
So I try to do something little to remind me that I'm not just biding my time. I did book tickets to the circus tomorrow for Remie, my mum and me; Alex didn't want to go so I organised it for a day he's doing sailing. I also submitted 8 items as claims to our private health cover, filled out my absentee ballot for an upcoming Seattle election and taught Mum how to FaceTime me. I'll be happy with that for today.
Sunday, 13 April 2014
Day 216: Hospital-free days
I have enjoyed not having to drive to hospital and wait around. We haven't had much on this weekend, so I've been able to enjoy being I scheduled. It's a bit like I used to feel in SF on the weekends after ape bind 1h15m in the car each way to work, but at least I was getting paid. This is just more like having my time back.
It was wet and cool all weekend; I would've stayed in bed with a book if I could've. Instead there was a trip to the mall, 2 birthday parties, Nick and Kate, our neighbours, over for dinner and a quick dinner out with friends tonight. All events were good fun, so it was no hardship.
I am, however, feeling the cumulative effect. I'm tired, my nails are splitting, my hair is growing but is still patchy and thin, my sense of taste is still somewhat compromised, my tongue is yucky and my ankles are gone. The good news is that my eyes have largely dried up. I know the nurses said it'll take 6 weeks to 6 months for the chemo side effects to go away, but I'm ready to be normal again. I've had enough of having to deal with all this stuff, miss out on parts of life but continue onward. I know I'll feel back up to coping after a good sleep, so I'm going to turn the light out now at 9p. Good night.
It was wet and cool all weekend; I would've stayed in bed with a book if I could've. Instead there was a trip to the mall, 2 birthday parties, Nick and Kate, our neighbours, over for dinner and a quick dinner out with friends tonight. All events were good fun, so it was no hardship.
I am, however, feeling the cumulative effect. I'm tired, my nails are splitting, my hair is growing but is still patchy and thin, my sense of taste is still somewhat compromised, my tongue is yucky and my ankles are gone. The good news is that my eyes have largely dried up. I know the nurses said it'll take 6 weeks to 6 months for the chemo side effects to go away, but I'm ready to be normal again. I've had enough of having to deal with all this stuff, miss out on parts of life but continue onward. I know I'll feel back up to coping after a good sleep, so I'm going to turn the light out now at 9p. Good night.
Friday, 11 April 2014
Day 214: Non-stop
I occasionally wonder what this experience would have been like if I didn't have kids. On the positive side, I would be able to sleep when I'm tired, rest when I need and focus on what I need to do to get better. On the minus, I suspect I could wallow in self-pity and be much less connected. The point is moot, but I suppose that having kids has given me a reason to get up and keep going every day.
With all that, I could have used an afternoon of lying in bed reading. The school Easter Hat Parade was cute;thankfully the sun shone. This was followed by the daily commute to hospital with Mum and Chris as company. Chris checked out my treatment and called it " a science field trip".
Then it was home for lunch and a bit of admin. From there mum and I did some grocery shopping, picked up the kids and took Alex to hip hop. We hung out and watched am bit. Home and dinner called, then bath time. This is all standard with kids; it's just much harder and more demanding when one is not well.
It was Sue and Jono's farewell party tonight. We were there early so I didn't feel badly leaving at 9.40p; I'd hit the end of my ability to be social. I just find it takes a massive amount of effort when I'm tired. Good night.
With all that, I could have used an afternoon of lying in bed reading. The school Easter Hat Parade was cute;thankfully the sun shone. This was followed by the daily commute to hospital with Mum and Chris as company. Chris checked out my treatment and called it " a science field trip".
Then it was home for lunch and a bit of admin. From there mum and I did some grocery shopping, picked up the kids and took Alex to hip hop. We hung out and watched am bit. Home and dinner called, then bath time. This is all standard with kids; it's just much harder and more demanding when one is not well.
It was Sue and Jono's farewell party tonight. We were there early so I didn't feel badly leaving at 9.40p; I'd hit the end of my ability to be social. I just find it takes a massive amount of effort when I'm tired. Good night.
Thursday, 10 April 2014
Day 213: Parking discount and side effects
It took 8 days of radiotherapy for me to find out that I can get my parking covered for $2 per visit. I've been parking on the street, which has been quite easy, but the garage was nice today to avoid walking in the rain. I suppose I could've asked up front, but equally I would think I might have been told. It all seems a bit more surreptitious in radiation oncology.
My parent-teacher meeting with Miss A was as expected. Academically Remie is a star so far. Miss A is keeping a close eye on Remie socially and emotionally as a result of our earlier discussions. I am very happy about that.
Today's appointment was relatively quick as I was out in 35 minutes. Stragely I don't mind my 15 minutes of rest on the table as there's nothing remotely uncomfortable about it and they'll turn out the lights and put on music if I ask. I haven't had any "sunburn" side effects so far.
I am still dealing with lingering side effects from chemo. My tongue is still a bit funny but my taste is slowly returning. My eyes seem to have stopped weeping since the weekend but they do get gritty and itchy about once a day. I suspect that my lack of eyelashes is contributing to that. I now have no lower lashes on my right eye and a total of about 6 on both eyes. The loss creates a strange look. I am now very glad I had my eyebrows done. Finally, while I thought I sighted my ankles this morning, they have disappeared again tonight.
Mum and I had a great lunch with Daryl after our hospital time. We enjoyed the last swim lesson of the term. Camilla brought me more of her fabulous vegetable soup which is perfect for our wet and cooler weather. Emma L. popped in for a quick chat tonight on her walk and suggested some ideas for my post-treatment project. I'm hoping to be able to get some time in the next few weeks to plan something, though that might be hard given the last day of term is tomorrow and then it's 2 weeks of school holidays. Where ther's a will there's a way, I hope.
My parent-teacher meeting with Miss A was as expected. Academically Remie is a star so far. Miss A is keeping a close eye on Remie socially and emotionally as a result of our earlier discussions. I am very happy about that.
Today's appointment was relatively quick as I was out in 35 minutes. Stragely I don't mind my 15 minutes of rest on the table as there's nothing remotely uncomfortable about it and they'll turn out the lights and put on music if I ask. I haven't had any "sunburn" side effects so far.
I am still dealing with lingering side effects from chemo. My tongue is still a bit funny but my taste is slowly returning. My eyes seem to have stopped weeping since the weekend but they do get gritty and itchy about once a day. I suspect that my lack of eyelashes is contributing to that. I now have no lower lashes on my right eye and a total of about 6 on both eyes. The loss creates a strange look. I am now very glad I had my eyebrows done. Finally, while I thought I sighted my ankles this morning, they have disappeared again tonight.
Mum and I had a great lunch with Daryl after our hospital time. We enjoyed the last swim lesson of the term. Camilla brought me more of her fabulous vegetable soup which is perfect for our wet and cooler weather. Emma L. popped in for a quick chat tonight on her walk and suggested some ideas for my post-treatment project. I'm hoping to be able to get some time in the next few weeks to plan something, though that might be hard given the last day of term is tomorrow and then it's 2 weeks of school holidays. Where ther's a will there's a way, I hope.
Wednesday, 9 April 2014
Day 212: Early and expensive hospital run
By 7.30a I'd already spent $5,500, sat in the car for 30 minutes and been zapped with invisible radioactive beams. You might think the day could only get better, but it wasn't a bad start to the day. First off, I got up, showered and dressed by myself peacefully. Secondly, I was into my treatment 10 minutes ahead of schedule and finished in 15 minutes. Finally, I was home by 7.45a and had the rest of the day.
Why so early? Apparently Minerva needs a major service every 6 months, and I just happened to catch one. The machine gets pulled offline from 7.30a and only priority patients get a spot; the others either miss a day or get a slot on Apollo, the other machine.
And why such an expense? I was invoiced for the past 8 days plus my planning session. I'm thinking of it as a free domestic ticket on Qantas as I'm using my Qantas frequent flyer card.
As I had the whole day, mum and I had a well overdue lunch with Susie from my Yahoo! days of yore. We chatted about the old gang and I felt connected to that long lost world, which was really nice.
My parent-teacher interview with Miss B was not at all surprising given that this is Alex's 2nd year in a row with her. When I told him about the meeting and asked him what she said, he got most of it. That's the way it should be: transparent communication.
Tonight Mum and I prepared a little presentation she's going to give in Remie's class tomorrow about "The Way Things Were", which is one of the social topics the kids in Year 1 have been learning about this term. Mum is excited. Very cute.
Why so early? Apparently Minerva needs a major service every 6 months, and I just happened to catch one. The machine gets pulled offline from 7.30a and only priority patients get a spot; the others either miss a day or get a slot on Apollo, the other machine.
And why such an expense? I was invoiced for the past 8 days plus my planning session. I'm thinking of it as a free domestic ticket on Qantas as I'm using my Qantas frequent flyer card.
As I had the whole day, mum and I had a well overdue lunch with Susie from my Yahoo! days of yore. We chatted about the old gang and I felt connected to that long lost world, which was really nice.
My parent-teacher interview with Miss B was not at all surprising given that this is Alex's 2nd year in a row with her. When I told him about the meeting and asked him what she said, he got most of it. That's the way it should be: transparent communication.
Tonight Mum and I prepared a little presentation she's going to give in Remie's class tomorrow about "The Way Things Were", which is one of the social topics the kids in Year 1 have been learning about this term. Mum is excited. Very cute.
Tuesday, 8 April 2014
Day 211: On time for the first time
It was Alex's school 3-6 cross country this morning. He was so looking forward to it - just to have it be finished. He hates running and won't train; he is his father's child in this regard. My mum and I got down to the beachfront at 9.30a for the start to show our support. Then we waited. As there was no communication regarding the order of the years, we watched and wondered. At 10.50a, the final girls' group started, leaving only the boys who turn 10 this year. I needed to leave by 11.10a to make my radiotherapy appointment at 11.40a. I rang the radiation oncology rooms and asked Ashley how far behind they were running. Imagine my surprise when she said, "Actually, Minerva is running a bit ahead of schedule." We decided to wait for Alex to start, with the thought that the worst thing that would happen would be that we would have to wait at hospital. So we saw Alex start, then raced to hospital. We were 7 minutes late and I was out in 20 minutes. Fastest yet. [I'm not surprised to reported that Alex was not fast, guessing he finished in the final 10 or so in his age group.]
On the way home we had a quick catch up with Sue over lunch. Their plans to move are coming together with a 6th May departure day. That will most certainly temper me looking forward to the end of my treatment on the 7th. I will be able to empathise with Remie over her friend, Hugo's departure sooner than anticipated.
The rest of the day was uneventful. I love those and need more of them. It's bed time now as I have a 7.10a appointment tomorrow (means departure by 6.30a) because Minerva is offline for regularly-scheduled maintenance from 7.30a.
On the way home we had a quick catch up with Sue over lunch. Their plans to move are coming together with a 6th May departure day. That will most certainly temper me looking forward to the end of my treatment on the 7th. I will be able to empathise with Remie over her friend, Hugo's departure sooner than anticipated.
The rest of the day was uneventful. I love those and need more of them. It's bed time now as I have a 7.10a appointment tomorrow (means departure by 6.30a) because Minerva is offline for regularly-scheduled maintenance from 7.30a.
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