Roxy!

Yesterday was a big day for us! We were able to bring home our new puppy. We were up early and out the door by 8:30 in the snowstorm to go pick her out. We were able to choose between 2 puppies. The day we picked up Sunny I saw a red fox lab that the breeder had at the time and I remarked that the next dog we were going to get would be a fox red. I love their color. They are so pretty! John took less than 5 minutes to pick out "the one." The deciding factors were her color and her quickness in attacking a dead bird. Hahahaha Really, the latter is true. She was really quick to pounce on the dead bird that John put out in front of her. I barely had to time to look at both of them and he had already decided. It was kind of funny. She slept all the way in the kids laps and had an extrememly busy day as about 15 people came over during the course of the day to see her. She slept pretty much during the day which had me a little worried we were in for a long night. We decided this time our dog was going to be crate trained the right way and the breeders said they had great luck with keeping the puppies in the same room as them while sleeping at night. We had a little crate we used and within 10-15 minutes of going to bed, the dog actually layed down and slept the entire night until 7 am this morning. I think it was a fluke! We never heard a peep from her. I was amazed. She was fired up and ready to go this morning, much more lively than yesterday. I think she was stressed and traumatized yesterday being taken from her litter mates. The funnniest thing she has done so far is finding her reflection in the dishwasher and thinking it is a puppy mate. She starts to bark when she sees herself. It is quite humorous! She is a cutie and we haven't laughed so hard in a long time with her antics. Stay tuned........
p.s. the cat is not liking the dog thus far!

Cancer in a box

I put my cancer world in a box today. It is filled with all the tbings that I have encountered thus far in this path. Cards,notes, messages, gifts, books, my chemo journal, my "courage" stone from my SIL (it came with me to every treatment and doctors visit) and my "fearless" necklace from my niece (I wore it every day during my treatment, never once did I take it off), items from my "sisters" that I will pass on to another woman I may meet undergoing breast cancer and the last thing to go in the box will be my wig and scarves. This was not a fork in the road that I would have chosen, but it chose me. This little detour in my life is now over.

It took me 10 days to fully recover from this chemo treatment, far longer than the other three treatments. I can say I was crabby and irritable and thanking god I didn't have to go through any more! It was not fun! I still think it really has not hit me that I can now carry on with my life, although I do have some reconstructive surgery coming up this year.

Have I changed through all of this? I would like to hope so. I now really don't sweat the small stuff. Things that really sent me over the edge before, I just kind of take it in stride. I find myself not getting as mad as I used to about everyday little things that ticked me off (messy bedrooms, crazy drivers, my unorganized household)and I do find myself being kinder to people in general(opening a door for a mom with a stroller full of kids, reaching for some yogurt in the grocery store for the little old lady who can't reach that high or even saying a kind word to the crabby lady checking me out at the grocery store). You never know what path they are going down or what burden they bear. Someone else is always in a worse off situation than myself. I have been able to accept help from friends and family (and this one was hard for me) and have found the true meaning of friendship. For the past 6 months the cancer world has been a part of my life. I am glad to be able to now say GOODBYE!

HAPPY VALENTINES DAY!

Baked Chicken Reuben

I love sauerkraut! As a kid I remember my grandparents, Fern and Otto, actually making it in their basement (they were German)and the whole house reeked of cabbage. My grandmother would put it up in glass mason jars and store it downstairs in their cellar. Homemade kraut was delicious right out of the container! This recipe is really really old. I have had it forever and haven't made it in a long time. Even if you don't like sauerkraut, try it, it is really delicious. This is super simple to make although requires some ingredients you may not have on hand all the time such as the kraut.

Baked Chicken Reuben
4 chicken breasts (I use both boneless and bone in for this recipe)
salt and pepper to taste
1-16 oz can of sauerkraut, drained and squeezed out (I like Franks Bavarian Sweet kraut with caraway)
4 slices of swiss cheese (I used reduced fat slices)
1/4-1/2 c. of Thousand Island dressing (I use more than this)
Place chicken in greased baking dish. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Top with kraut and then a slice of cheese. Pour dressing over all. Cover with foil and bake at 350 degrees until chicken is done. Boneless shouldn't take more than 30 minutes, bone in approximately 45 minutes. If I use the bone-in chicken I place the sauerkraut under the chicken then top with cheese and dressing, boneless I place the sauerkraut on top of the chicken,then cheese and dressing.

Book Club Night

Did I tell you I love my book club ladies? Well I do, and I hardly ever miss a monthly meeting with them. (We missed you Margaret!)These ladies have been a great support to me during my treatment and I love them dearly. We actually do talk about the books we read (I know you are wondering that)and usually very seriously. But the best part of the evening (well, at least I think it is the best part of the evening) is the "social hour" with good food, wine and fun conversation, catching up on each other's lives in the past month. Some of these ladies I only see on a monthly basis so the conversation usually never ends when we get together. I was feeling well enough to venture out and showed up at Linda's with a bottle of champagne to celebrate my chemo graduation. My friend Linda has her own little cooking business (she makes enchiladas) so tonight we feasted on her black bean and spinach enchiladas and for dessert we had a great fruit tart with champagne. I was out way too late last night and am feeling a little tired this morning. Linda and I HAD to see the next episode of The Housewives of Orange County, so I stayed after the group left and watched it with her. If you haven't seen this show you must tune in sometime. It is quite entertaining!

Another New Layout

I know, I know, you are probably saying "she changed her layout AGAIN!"
Maybe it is the weather or something (having a heatwave here in WI) or maybe a new chapter in my life now that toxic drugs are over with, but I felt the need to change the layout. The other one looked "dark" and my dark days are over.
The weather has been absolutely gorgeous out! Well, gorgeous for Wisconsin in February. We had a high of about 50 yesterday and today it should reach 40 degrees. Now when the weather turns that warm in February people come out hibernation here! Honestly, people we haven't seen all winter are out and about in the neighborhood. One of our neighbors had his motorcycle out! I have been feeling a little queasy but managed to get out for a walk again. The fresh air felt great and I didn't even have a winter coat on. Almost all of our snow has melted. Is spring here? Nahhh, just a little teasing to make us forget how we hate living in Wisconsin at this time of the year! Enjoy the weekend!!!!


I have to tell you this funny stuff that is going on in the house. John is getting pretty pumped for the arrival of his new hunting partner,Roxy. He bought a set of videos off the internet about dog handing,training, retrieval,etc. Along with the video came a huge binder of reading information also. He vows this dog will be trained "the right way" Don't get me wrong Sunny was a great hunter, she just didn't listen unless she wanted to. LOL She should have been a little more disciplined. Along with the videos he came home with a huge bottle of Nature's Miracle (the spray that is supposed to get rid of urine smell) and two little canvas dummies for training purposes. And so at night we are being subjected to these training videos which are so incredibly boring that both John and I fell asleep last night watching them. The woman who is the host of the video is about 80 years old and has the most boring voice. Little did he know the video was made in 1995. Oh well, I am sure that the information is still useful. Natalie just shakes her head and laughs!

I love to laugh and I needed a good laugh today because I am feeling kind of crappy. I saw this on my niece's blog and had to steal it from her. This is hilarious!

I am a chemo graduate!!!!

I AM DONE!!!!!!!! DONE, DONE,DONE!!!!!!!
I can't even tell you exactly how I feel right now. It hit me when I was walking in the parking lot to my car and then I started crying. I made it! With all the setbacks and delays I made it through the treatments. I am extremely happy, not happy, ecstatic that I am done. I told the nurse today that I should be drinking champagne during my treatment. It was a roller coaster of a ride that's all I can say. I dreaded chemo from the time I knew I had to have it.


What is next for me? I meet with my plastic surgeon in a few weeks to discuss surgery and we will go from there. I have in my own mind what I would like to do, so I need to see if we are on the same page as far as how soon I can have surgery.
I would like to have my expander surgery as soon as possible, before we go to Arizona. I have another vacation planned in June (and that is another post in itself) and I would like to be almost done or done with expansion by then. That again will depend on my white count as to when we can go ahead with surgery.

I am holding off on popping the champagne cork at this time and will have to settle for an anti-nausea pill and a bottle of water! But maybe next week, I will be toasting to myself that I made it this far and the climb is all uphill at this point.

Green Tea

I am a coffee drinker! I have grown to like certain teas but don't drink them very often. 3-4 cups of green tea a day is recommended as a natural anti-cancer fighter. I found this pomegranate green tea at World Market. They carry the Republic of Tea brands and have quite a large selection. While it is not quite as good as a pomegranate martini it is pretty tasty!
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Green tea is high in the antioxidant EGCG (epigallocatechin-3- gallate) which helps prevent the body’s cells from becoming damaged and prematurely aged. Studies have suggested that the combination of green tea and EGCG may also be beneficial by providing protection against certain types of cancers, including breast cancer.

Sunday I ran six miles! LOL Not really but I wish I could. My exercise regimen has been shot to hell since my cancer diagnosis. I am not using it as an excuse but I just have let it slide for the past several months. Sunday was a gorgeous sunny day and not too cold out so I decided it was time. I dusted off my Reeboks,grabbed my son's IPod, took my hair off and headed out the door. While I didn't run 6 miles or even 3 I did my usual neighborhood walk of almost 2 miles. It was nice to get some fresh air and get the legs working again. Swimsuit season is fast approaching, so that is my incentive. I need a svelte body to go along with these great new boobs that are coming soon!

I am planning on fitting in another powerwalk this morning along with grocery shopping, laundry and of course my transcription job (and maybe a little break in there to watch the Y&R.)
Happy Monday!!

Zuppe Italiano

My friend Cathy recently dropped off a batch of yummy Sausage Tortellini soup her personal chef made (that would be her husband) and it prompted me to dig out this old recipe for a soup I make that is very, very similar. I love the flavor of this soup. It is very filling and goes a long way.

Zuppe Italiano
1-1/2-2 pounds of Italian sausage (I use one package of Johnsonville Sweet Sausage).
olive oil, if needed
2 medium onions, chopped (I use one)
2 cloves garlic, minced (I use one)
5 c. Beef Stock (or vegetable)
3-1/2 to 4 c. chopped tomatoes (I use the two largest cans of petite diced tomatoes)
1-1/2 c. of dry red wine
3/4 tsp. dried basil
1/2 tsp. dried oregano
1 medium green pepper, chopped (I use red or yellow)
2 c. shell or bow-tied noodles (or one package of frozen tortellini)
salt and pepper to taste
parmesan cheese for garnish

Prick the sausages with a fork and place in a saucepan. Cover with water and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes. Remove the sausages,cool, remove casing and slice into 1/4" pieces. Saute in large pot. Remove when browned leaving 3 Tbs of fat in the pan (add olive oil if necessary). Add onion and garlic and saute 5 minutes. Add tomatoes,stock,wine,herbs and reserved sausages. Simmer for 25 minutes. Add peppers, zucchini and noodles. Cook for 25 minutes longer. Season with salt and pepper. Serve with grated cheese.

Dinner with my Sisters

Last night I met up with my "sisters" Connie and Sara. While we have emailed, texted and chatted on the phone lately we hadn't found the time to get together for dinner. It was nice to talk in person as well as eating yummy food. This was my first time to Stir Crazy. We opted to order off the menu instead of having our food woked by the chefs. We all decided we wanted to be waited on for dinner instead of having to make our own food. Connie and I ordered the Almond Crusted Curry Chicken and Sara had a Beef Double Noodle Bowl. We also shared an order of potstickers. The food was great, although the chicken was a little spicy which didn't help us out with all of our hot flashes during the night. Imagine sitting at a table with 3 ladies who are asking "is it hot in here or is it because of the flaming woks that is seems hot in here?" LOL It must have been the flaming woks! It was great to see these ladies as they have given me much support during my journey! They are both lucky enough to be able to say "been there, done that" and I am closely following in their shoes.

A few people have asked me which puppy is ours in the puppy photos or how do we know which one will be ours. There is an actual science to puppy picking. We don't actually know until the day we go to pick our puppy (Roxey) up which one will be ours. We have 5th pick of the 6 female pups. By the time we get to the breeders only 2 will be left and we are able to pick from those 2 pups which one we would like. Doug and Pattie Kennedy are pretty well known for there puppies and most of them are spoken for before the pups are born and sometimes even before they are bred.
This is a great time to get a puppy as she will be able to hunt this fall already, which is why John was glad we at least had our name in for a puppy from this litter. Thankfully she had enough pups for us to get one. It is kind of ironic as this is the exact time we got Sunny 9 years ago. She was out hunting ducks her first fall when she was 9 months old. John's brother Rick just recently mentioned to me he remembers the first time they took her hunting! Great memories!!!


My next chemo is scheduled for next Wednesday!!!!!

Over the course of the past 6 months I have met quite a few breast cancer survivors in person, on the internet and through my blog. One of the people I recently met is linked to my family but not of my immediate family. Lynn was diagnosed with breast cancer about one month after me. She has had a journey that I don't even know all the details of, but in the course of her 40 young years had had over 50 surgeries and has even had a kidney transplant. Lynn had the same plastic surgeon as me. We had talked on the phone, exchanged Christmas cards and she even came to visit me in the hospital when I was last in. She herself was also in just recovering from a mastectomy when I was in. This past weekend Lynn ended up in the hospital with a urinary tract infection and has died from complications from her hospitalization. She leaves behind a husband of only several years and a 16 year old son. Please say a prayer for Lynn and her family!

She is the first person I have known with breast cancer that has died,although she didn't die from breast cancer.

Life is short,cherish every moment and never take anything for granted!

Puppies!!!!

We were out the door early today to go and visit the puppies at the breeders (Water Dog Specialties) Doug and Pattie Kennedy are the owners, and we got our dog Sunny through them 9 years ago. They specifically breed hunting dogs, both water and land. The Kennedy's breed Labradors. These puppies are fox red labs. Their coloring is a reddish color, similar to a golden retriever. Doug said the coloring of the puppies will change and they will get darker in color. They are beautiful dogs. The puppies are now 4 weeks old and just starting to eat dog food along with mom's milk. February 21st is the day the puppies will go out to new homes. Mom, Rhea, had 10 puppies in all, 6 females and 4 males. They are sooooo adorable!!

Honey Dijon Ranch Chicken

I am a pretty good cook, I will admit it. Over the past several months we have gotten so many delicious meals I haven't had to cook too much. I am getting back into the swing of things now that no one is knocking at my door anymore. hahaha
I am adding a new section on my blog that will include my favorite recipes.
Tonight I am grilling honey dijon ranch chicken breasts. This is my absolute favorite way to make chicken on the grill and is the most requested recipe from Natalie for chicken. I love this recipe because it contains items I always have on had and it is fast and easy. There are 2 ways to enjoy this chicken. Grill it and use on a sandwich, which we do most often, or slice it and put it over angel hair pasta. It is also great in a salad the day after. Enjoy!!!



Honey Dijon Ranch Chicken
4 boneless chicken breasts
1/3 c. orange juice
1/3 c. vegetable oil
2 Tablespoons dijon mustard
2 Tablespoons of honey
1 envelope of ranch dressing (I only use 1/2 envelope)
Mix ingredients together and marinate chicken for several hours. Grill.
*I have already marinated the chicken for only 30 minutes and the flavor is still great!

Money!

Today I went to my favorite coffee spot, Caribou Coffee, to get a cup of coffee before heading over to get my oil changed in my car. I got a dollar bill for change and on the bill was a stamp that said "track me at wheresgeorge.com"
Ok.. any website intrigues me, so once I got home I logged on to this website to see what it was all about. If you enter a little bit of information about any kind of bill you can see just exactly where the bill has been and how long it took to get into your hands. This is what it said about my bill. " This bill has traveled 282 Miles in 173 Days, 13 Hrs, 48 Mins at an average of 1.6 Miles per day. It is now 282 Miles from its starting location." This bill was from Minnesota. Once you register the bill, and it leaves your hands you can see where the bill ends up. I don't think I will track this bill daily once it leaves my hand but it was kind of fun to see where my bill came from!

SUN!

I am excited! (and feeling good btw!) One of my New Years resolutions was to go on a a family vacation this year. With my health crisis, I strongly feel that a family vacation is in order. Natalie will be off to college in a few years and life is too short not to enjoy! (these were the arguments I used on the husband hahaha He finally caved in and sees my point I think) Despite the crappy economy and our medical bills, we are headed to Arizona for spring break. I have not been to Arizona in years and loved it when we were there last on a golfing vacation. I am using my medical transcription fund to get us there. And... I got a REALLY good deal on airfare!! I have been watching air fares for a few months, go up, go down, go up, go down. If you don't check them every day you may be missing out! In a matter of a few hours the price of a ticket (orbitz.com) went from $316 to $244 back up to $308 and even flight times disappeared and reappeared. I just happened to be checking AGAIN when I saw the $244 price and jumped on it(and that is for a nonstop flight, taxes included). I found a house (vrbo.com) in Cave Creek outside of Phoenix that looks great and perfect for our needs. Our needs being something with an inground pool(girls request), a decent TV( boys request), 3 bedrooms (kids hate to share) and out of the city (a must!) We aren't that picky. LOL It is something to look forward to help me get through this dreary January!

Funny for the Day!

WOMAN'S PERFECT BREAKFAST



She's sitting at the table with her gourmet coffee.



Her son is on the cover of the Wheaties box.



Her daughter is on the cover of Business Week.



Her boyfriend is on the cover of Playgirl.



And her husband is on the back of the milk carton.

Post chemo update

I hated being nauseous when I was pregnant,and I really was not even that sick. Well, chemo nauseau is worse! Even with the two meds my doc prescribed I have been sickish since Friday. I have another prescription for something else which I may try. I am feeling a bit better today. Yesterday I actually did nothing. I mean nothing. It was an effort to get myself dressed and moved to a chair. Besides the icky feeling in my stomach and the horrible taste in my mouth I am freezing cold, and then I am burning hot. Yes, the hot flashes have begun! Ughhhhh!

My beauty routine is getting easier by the day. I now have half of my eyelashes so putting mascara on the few eyelashes I have takes no time at all. Waaaaaaaaa! It really is quite ridiculous looking! I will continue to put mascara on my eyelashes even if I only have 3 left. LOL John said he didn't even notice. Welll... that's a man for you. They never notice anything.

Happy Sunday!

I know you are all on the edge of your seats waiting to hear from me and I bet some of you have been on my blog more than once checking on me. :)

Welllllll.......to start the day off I headed out in the snow and very cold temps in the dark only to "crawl" to the hospital with all the other cars out at that time of the day. Well... because of the snow and slippery conditions I think that the hired help was late getting in. I even made it in before the receptionist in the lab was there. Not quite the routine start that I usually have. Got checked in and waited until they called my name. One stick..... ack.... no good! Couldn't get a blood return.... crap! The lab tech puts a warm compress on my arm in hopes that some big fat vein will appear. ("Have you drank a lot of water?" she says. "It helps to hydrate your veins." What the heck, I am barely awake and breathing at 7 am with only a half a cup of coffee choked down on the ride in. ) She calls for her partner to give it a try. I knew this would be a success as I had this tech last week and she is GOOD! She got an IV line with no problem. I am sent on my way over to the day hospital. When I arrived to my dismay the other 2 people that had their labs drawn are still sitting in the waiting room. Not a good sign when the people ahead of you are still sitting and waiting. I head to the desk to check in. The receptionist here says "Hi Gail, back for another try this week?" Wow! She remembered who I am and that means that I have been there way too much if she now recognized me. LOL I plant my butt in a chair furthest away from the floor to ceiling windows that make up the entire outside wall of this building and they are no longer heating because of the budget cuts(that's a joke but could be true haha). The time is 8:05 am. Time passes, my hands and feet are no frozen solid and I get up to walk around and get my circulation going. The receptionist is talking to a co-worker about how cold it is. I mention that I feel like an ice cube and she runs to get me a warm blanket. Love those warm blankets! At 9:20 I hear my name. A nurse is headed my way with papers in her hand. "Is it a go?" I ask. "Yes" she says. YES!!!! YES!!! YES!!!!
I want to do cartwheels in the waiting room and give the nurse a hug I am so happy. I feel like I am on cloud nine heading in to get my toxic drug treatment. Now tell me if that isn't crazy I don't know what is!!!!!! All of a sudden I had 3 text messages from various friends wondering what is going on, one of them was "please tell me you are having chemo right now!" (one my "sisters" checking in on me.)My treatment was quick and painless. I left the day hospital at 11:30 and headed over to see my friend Connie at Small Stones who was working. She was almost excited as me that I was able to have chemo. (us "sisters" have this common bond. We understand each other like no one else. One of the blessings I have found in this journey--"sisters.") I stopped for lunch (I won't say what is was. I was ravenous having not eaten breakfast. It wasn't the most healthy but I will blame that on the steroids making me so hungry). Nap time for me! I am feeling great now! Just incredibly thankful and happy that I was able to get through another chapter.
ONE MORE TO GO!!!!! WHOOHOOOO! YIPPPEEEE!!!!!! Stay tuned for more updates. Thank you for all your prayers and good wishes!