Drats! I did it again . . .

Sorry, guys! I had no idea it had been this long since I last wrote in here. No wonder so many people are sending me emails saying that they miss the entries! Nope, don't have a good excuse either.

I've been off chemo since the end of May ~ all except for the avastin which is not really chemo, it's an antibody that suffocates the tumors by preventing the creation of new blood vessels. My oncologist and I decided that I needed a break because I was getting so weak. It took me a while to start feeling normal again and even longer before I was able to eat like I should.

I started having physical therapy sometime in June and that's really made a tremendous difference. Instead of shaking at the least little effort, my legs are strong again and I can walk with a bounce in my step again. Trish, my physical therapist, says that I've gained back my strength and now we're working toward improving my balance and endurance. While I don't really look forward to the workouts, I feel wonderful, if tired, after they're over. ; )

I saw Dr. Mehrotra last week and she took me off the avastin too. I broke a tooth flossing ~ can you imagine! ~ and have to have it crowned. In order to do that I have to stop that drug too because of possible bleeding problems. I'm having that done next week and then, on September 1st, I'm having a CT scan and a bone scan. The results of those will determine what kind of treatment I receive then. Prayers are definitely welcome!

I've been feeling really good and have done lots of things that I hadn't been able to when receiving the chemo. Among them is cooking, shopping and eating out ~ I guess you could say I'm now part of the real world again. : )

We still enjoy watching the wildlife, especially the little fawns. They have been so cute as they run and frolic with one another. The deer come to our pond to drink (and to try and eat our trees) a couple of times a day. They nibbled off all our daisies and balloon flowers and I don't even know what happened to the black-eyed Susans ~ I never even saw them this year!

Dave got me a beautiful wooden swing for the backyard which we placed right next to the pond. It's so relaxing to sit there and enjoy the scenery and the tranquil sound of the water. It's a great place to just meditate, talk or read ~ yeah, even sleep! As you can imagine, I love spending time there.

My hair is slowly growing back. I'm not wearing hats or scarves these days because it's simply too hot. Besides, I've gotten over being self-conscious about my bald head. There is a lot of silver gray now and I'm not exactly sure what color the rest of it is ~ it's dark, that's about all I can tell. My lashes and brows are growing in too so I can wear make-up again. I'd forgotten just how long that whole thing takes and I was 10 minutes late for my last doctor's appointment! LOL Actually it was much easier before ~ every cloud has a silver lining. ; )

A week and a half ago, I had a wonderful visit with two good friends I worked with years ago. They came for the day and we had a great chance to catch up. We hadn't visited in five years ~ they live downstate near Detroit. I had so much fun; it was a truly fantastic day! Here is one of the photos taken that day:

In case you can't tell, I'm the one in the middle! LOL The other two women are Pat, on the left, and Linda R. Everyone should have such great friends!

Here's another picture that Pat took of a doe and her two fawns:

And, yes, any bare branches you see are definitely due to these scoundrels!

Chessie is hanging in there. In fact, she's better than she was when I last wrote here. I don't know how long this will last but we're enjoying our time with her. She's become my constant companion ~ following me everywhere I go. Casey isn't so sure he likes that and tries to nudge her away from me every chance he gets. So life with the dogs goes on! : )

Well, guys, I'm starting to get a little stiff from sitting here so long so I guess I should go do something a little more energetic. Thanks for sticking with me even though I've become a terrible correspondent. Thanks to all of you for the cards, gifts and phone calls ~ I'm more grateful than you could ever know.

'til next time . . . a serene mind creates a happy heart.