Aunt Jemima is back y'all!

Oh, you weren't aware that's my nickname?  ...
Well as you can see here, getting into character is coming quite easily.

Sorry for the delay in posting, but this week has been especially rough in the recovery department.  Good thing I've got my great nurse and my trusty cuddle buddy to help!

That's my nurse.  Eating lunch on a trashcan.

And cuddle buddy Charlie.  He's obvi not the nurse, y'all.  His lack of thumbs totes takes him out of the running for that job. Seriously...the things you come up with...

So, why the fabulous headgear, Aunt Jemima?  Well, the latest Adventures in Cancer around here are that I've started losing my hair!  Weee!!  Cause, what else can you say?  Just like any unfortunate men, I can't stop it, so I'm embracing it :)  If you didn't know, I've actually always (or for the past 4 years) wanted to shave my head, but since I never did it in college and then felt like post college I was supposed to be a "responsible adult," and keep my hair...it never happened.  So this is a small blessing, or a beware of what you wish for scenario!  I started losing my hair last Friday and it's been a steady process ever since.  Showering has been interesting, as the texture of what hair I have left is also changing (perhaps from the roots being dead? Dunno.  A question for my nurse-*not Chad) and usually it's just one big mass when I go to shampoo it.  So, it usually ends up getting a healthy dose of conditioner dumped on it, hoping that will help the untangling process.  I would totally get that No More Tears Detangler spray for kids (that stuff always looked awesome-any kids I used to babysit, know I was jealous of your sweet bathroom products) however, it looks like all my poop brown locks are gonna be gone soon, so there's $3.94 saved, ow!
I was feeling squirrely last week after Chemo #2 (more on that later in this post) and actually blowdried and straightened my hair-gasp-but, hahaha, it was overall a waste of time.  I had a lot of beautifully straightened and styled hair...all in the sink.  As fast as I would straighten and style it, I would be pulling it off of the straightener and from my shoulders. 
[could I say the word "straightener" any more? ;) ] [for kara whipple and all those who love mean girls: say crack again. crack.]

I will save you the pics of my hair in the sink, in the shower, on the floor, cause that's just mrhh.  Cause I have them, ooh yes I do.  Fun fact for the day:  hair is totally ok, as long as it's on someones head.  Once hair leaves the head, even mine, gross.

Excuse me as I pause for a marital dispute.  Chad just informed me, rather reluctantly, that he spent $130 at CVS.  CVS, really?  I can't even make it sound like I'm yelling cause CVS is already capitalized.  Dang you, CVS.  Oh, spending alert.  Red flag.  And he gets on my case for getting my nails done once a month-which is totally my safe space.  My zone.  Where I got to relax.  grrr.

So...Chemo #2 happened last Thursday.  Enjoy some pics :)

Mid-bite.  Gotcha!  I was craving Chipotle, and we don't have on in Lex-Vegas, so it was a treat.

Time to snuggle up with a good book.  Or, what I hope will be a good book.  Siddhartha, anyone?  Can't say it's a page turner, thus far.

They treat you right at the Emily Couric Center.  As usual, I brought too much to do.  Hardly made a dent in my reading plan for the day.  Ah, learning as I go.  But I also have a beautiful new addition to my life...that snuggly looking purple blanket was a gift from an old friend from high school whose husband went through cancer a few years back.  What an awesome surprise that was!  It's my chemo blanket now :) Thanks Miranda & Rob!

This last little beauty was courtesy of Chad, who informed me that I had "some lettuce" stuck in my teeth after lunch.  Eh, I was just saving it for later.

So Chemo #2 went well, and we headed to the lake after that for Labor Day with Chad's rents.  But they left early in the morning (4:30 early) on Saturday because...it's a surprise!

oh ho ho you'll have to wait until next time, because it deserves it's own post :)

As I said before, this recovery session has been rough.  I felt great over the weekend, got to spend time with amazing friends who came to visit and spend sweet time with Chad, but things took a turn for the worse on Monday.  Just a moment of a pity party-jaw pain was i.n.t.e.n.s.e. Nausea was in and out, and overall fatigue was in full force.  Oh and the hot flashes.  Menopausal ladies, I salute you. Hot flashes make me want to pull my hair out, if it wasn't already doing that by itself.  But like mi madre said, "this, no matter what it makes you feel, means that the drugs are doing their job."  True, double true.  So drug me up, buckle up and let's continue this ride! 

Encouragement I received from a friend today: "And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." (Phil 4:7) That's what gets me through, y'all.  Cause I don't understand it all.  And most of the time, I don't question it.  Cause it will just make me go in circles.  Instead, I've got to turn back to Christ and put my faith in Him.  Nothing else fits.

Until next time...