This was a busy week! I think I will split it up into two blogs so that its not so overwhelming to read.
Since I felt fine last weekend after not passing the chemo tests, I spent most of the weekend feeling good, resting and relaxing as Dom went to Folk Fest.
I had a bit of a struggle showering with this new PICC in my arm because it has to be kept dry. At the hospital they gave me a waterproof arm sleeve to wear which totally sucks for two reasons - the first is that one size does not fit all!!! This arm sleeve could fit a 300 lb man - I do not exactly have the same arm size - seriously this thing fits on my leg! Anyway, we tried to tape it on my upper arm and it was basically like I was wearing a waterwing and was a disaster.
In addition, its not exactly waterproof seeing as there are tiny holes where the stitching is to hold it together. So, this experience was frustrating and coupled with some more hair loss it resulted in a few tears. But as usual, I bounced back in no time and figured out that the Glad Press n' Seal is the best thing to use - that shit sticks to your skin like a bandaid. I'm not talking about the regular saran wrap, its the expensive stuff that sticks to everything. Needless to say when we go to Costco next, we'll be looking for a case of it. If I had more room in the bathroom cupboard I'd just store it in there since now I use it on a daily basis!
My friend Krista delivered the first "meal train" meal which was awesome - pre-cooked veggies and chicken for fajitas - complete with tortilla shells and pre-grated cheese for Dom and organic salsa (with no sugar added!). I couldn't have the tortilla shells or cheese but it was still delicious.
My friends Anne and Jordan dropped off some food as well - a delicious veggie chili. Unfortunately Anne had to take home two of the containers because I have so much food in my fridge and freezer right now (Dom and I went shopping to Costco - always a bad idea for people without a deep freezer). I am very grateful for the food - it is a huge weight off my shoulders as I've been so busy with appointments that not having to think about what to eat is great.
On Monday afternoon I went to the mall with my friend Laurel and baby Jonah to buy some fashion toques - I scored at H and M - bought 5 toques for $6.95 each - way cheaper than a few other stores that we went to first. I also discovered that H and M's latest style has shirts with nice baggy arms which have come in handy because right before we left for shopping, I quickly discovered that I cannot wear my entire collection of cardigans (and probably most winter sweaters) because the sleeves are too tight to wear over my PICC. So I bought fashion toques and three new shirts.
Laurel also took me to Walmart to buy a drain cover for the shower drain to catch all of the hair that I am losing - I honestly do not know why I didn't think of this earlier. Man, it is so much easier to shower - I was wasting sooo much time picking hair off of my fingers in the shower than actually showering - now I don't have to worry about it.
The toques were also
something that was a good idea and which were definitely purchases just in time
because when I got home and showered a lot of hair fell out - so much that I
can't really get away with headbands anymore (which is what I was wearing
before). My hair isn't falling out in chunks, rather it is thinning like a
middle aged man from the front and top. The best way to describe it is to think
of how Neil Young is going bald.
Mind you, I am way better and younger looking than Neil Young but you probably get the idea (I think Neil Young might benefit in investing in a few fashion toques himself). Since the hair on the bottom third of my head is holding on for dear life, I can get away with these fashion toques quite easily for now. This is just one of the six.
My other friends are gathering up their gently used baby legwarmers so I will have a wide selection to wear.
On Monday night Dom and I made a music video for my Aunt Pat's 60th birthday party. My cousins and Uncle Roger organized a surprise birthday party for her on Saturday night but with my chemo and plans for wig shopping, we knew we were going to miss it so we wanted to send something funny. So I made up new lyrics to the song The Joker by Steve Miller. Since just by writing this people are going to ask to see it, I'm going to post snapshots of the video since lucky me, its too big to post on the blog and I'm glad because its very embarassing (I'm a really bad singer). Some things should just be kept within the family.
We of course, included Lola and Fat May in the video too.
Apparently the video was a hit - brought tears to people's eyes from laughing so hard which was exactly the reaction we were going for.
On the way home, we stopped at our now favourite little store the Unconvential Moose that sells a wide variety of natural soap so we stocked up for the winter as we don't have any plans to head west until probably the new year. It was a great day for a drive too and always nice scenery along Highway 7.
On Wednesday night we stopped over at Kersten and Marc's who let us borrow their infant car seat, play pen and stroller for the wig shopping weekend with Courtney, Becky and baby Bailey. It was a huge relief for Becky as she didn't have to bring anything on the plane except for a suitcase and of course, Bailey. Kersten also gave me two pairs of baby legwarmers for my PICC which was great.
I think I will stop there and re-convene on another post in case you are getting bored.
