Merry Christmas

May the Blessings of Christmas be with you today and always.

Luke 2:1-14

1And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be taxed.

2(And this taxing was first made when Cyrenius was governor of Syria.)

3And all went to be taxed, every one into his own city.

4And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judaea, unto the city of David, which is called Bethlehem; (because he was of the house and lineage of David:)

5To be taxed with Mary his espoused wife, being great with child.

6And so it was, that, while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered.

7And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn.

8And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night.

9And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid.

10And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.

11For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.

12And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.

13And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying,

14Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.

My other Dr. K

I had my follow up with my plastic surgeon (my other Dr. K) We are both very happy with the reconstruction so far. There are some "final touches" I could have done but right now I have no desire to have more surgery and if I do decide to have the "final touches" done in the future I will have to find a new surgeon. Yes I am losing him too. Yes he also recommended a new doctor for me sooooo we shall see. I'm sure all the new doctors will be wonderful...I'm just not looking forward to starting over.

I did go out and buy myself some new bras woo hoo!!! Now that the implants have settled in and all swelling is gone my old bras are WAY tooooo big. Of course I don't have to wear one. I don't need support anymore. These babies hold themselves up :) (I still worry that gravity will make these ones sag eventually too). The bras do give me a nicer shape. Not that the shape is bad. He really did a great job compared to some of the pictures I've seen during my research. No one else seems to notice the uneven areas that I think are obvious. The bra also makes me feel feminine hahaha how silly does that sound hahaha.

xoxo

Dr. K

I had my one year follow up with my breast surgeon a couple weeks ago. The appointment was great...everything is fine and I only need to have yearly visits for the next 5 years. I love my surgeon and I was so glad to get to see him before the new year because it looks like we will be getting new health insurance and I won't be able to see Dr. K anymore. I am so upset about this but Dr. K recommended a new surgeon and assured me that he would make sure the transition went smoothly. I am still praying that my husbands company will change their mind and stay with the insurance we currently have. If we switch I will be losing most of my doctors who I have been seeing for years. We've been through a lot together. I love them and I don't want to have to start over again with new ones :( I know they will all help me find great doctors to switch to and I am so very thankful to have health insurance. Its just no fun switching doctors especially with my complicated medical history. On a happier note I was surprised to find that my sister had an appointment right before me with Dr. K. She is 9 years cancer free!!! No we did not plan this it was a very happy coincidence. We spent the rest of the day together and had a lot of fun.

I have my 1 year follow up appointment next week with my plastic surgeon. I will be losing him too :( boooooooo.

xoxo

Bras Across the Bridge!

As you all know October is full of many Breast Cancer awareness events, walks, donations, and support. I wanted to share with you some great pictures of one of our many bridges.


(Photo by Ed Rieker for Aerie by American Eagle)

Yes those are bras and they are hanging from the Hot Metal Bridge...4000 bras to be exact, in all shapes and sizes and colors.

Our very own Pittsburgh-based American Eagle Outfitters came up with this idea to help spread awareness. They provided the bras and hung them from the bridge.


(WTAE)

The bras hung around for about 3 weeks and I am happy to say I personally got to travel over the bridge while they were there. After the 3 weeks the bras were washed and donated to a woman's shelter.


(Luminari Blog)

Can't wait to see what they do next year!

xoxo

Happy Thanksgiving

Thank you, dear God
For all You have given me

∩ │◥███◣ ╱◥███◣
╱◥◣ ◥████◣▓∩▓│∩ ║
│╱◥█◣║∩∩∩ ║◥█▓ ▓█◣
││∩│ ▓ ║∩田│║▓ ▓ ▓∩ ║
•°*”˜˜”*°• From our house to your house •°*”˜˜”*°•
•°*”˜˜”*°•Happy Thanksgiving to family and friends•°*

On October 29th I walked with my nieces CRS-A, AMS, and Gi in the American Cancer Societies Make Strides To End Breast Cancer 5k walk. It was a better day for ducks but we had a wonderful time and the walk along the north shore was beautiful. Here are a few pictures.




Gi is warm and dry under the blanket!





The Pirates get in on the pink action...


The North Shore...












The finish line...



I can't wait to do it again next year.

xoxo

1 YEAR CANCER FREE!!!

Is it really possible that it has been 1 year since my double mastectomy? 365 days without Cancer!!!
When I think back to last October I do remember all the emotions all the anxiety about the diagnoses, surgery, and treatments but what I remember most is the tremendous love, prayers, and support of my family and friends. I was never alone in the hospital. Every time I opened my eyes someone was by my side. Every doctors appointment my husband or sisters or nieces would go with me (sometimes all of them :). Every four hour chemo treatment went by quickly with them by my side talking and laughing as if we were sitting around a table having tea. In the spring my sons college baseball coach had a pink ribbon put on the teams game hats and gave me a hat to wear to the games. The love and support continues even 1 year later. People have made donations in my name, hit home runs for a cure, dedicated a pink out high school field hockey game, and on the 29th some of my nieces and I will be walking in the American Cancer Society's Making Strides Against Breast Cancer 5K walk.

Here are just a few pictures from the past year:

Me and my boys after surgery...love them so much!







First Chemo





Hospital for 3 days after first chemo...I'm ready to go home





Hair Hair Long Beautiful Hair.............









Last Chemo...Dance with me!











Growing back even more beautiful



Pink Out Game!



I'll post pictures of the walk next time.
xoxo

Got Boobs...Check them!!!!

Yes it is October and everywhere you look there is pink!!! Its wonderful to have a whole month where everyone is spreading awareness. Now ladies some time today while you are at home do a self exam and do one at least once a month. Are you due for a mammogram??? schedule it. October is great but you need to love your boobs all year long. Guys you should check yours too and everyone encourage the women in your life to do a self exam and schedule their mammograms!!!

xoxo

Change change change

Sorry for the lack of posts. May through August has been a very busy time. If you would like to read the full details you can find them on my other blog (see the link on the right).
Things have been going well. I had my last plastic surgery in June and I am very pleased with the final results. The weather has been very hot so its been nice to wear tank tops with no bra :). My hair is growing very well, soft and very curly but lots of gray :( I saw my oncologist in June. She is very pleaased with how I'm doing. She loves my reconstruction! She said it's the best she's ever seen...Yeah!!! She gave me the go ahead to get my hair colored...yeah squared! I already had an appointment scheduled just in case. Now that my hair looks like a cute very short cut I can stop wearing my wig, hats, and scarves. Again with the heat this has been nice.
Speaking of the heat oh what fun the hot flashes have been!!! I seem to sweat a lot more anyway but during a hot flash omg! I'm covered in a damp film and dripping down my forehead and back...oh so very attractive. Then my arms and legs start itching and its a prickly stinging feeling. I need to call my oncologist to see if it is possibly caused by the Tamoxifen.
So it is actually one year ago today that I received my biopsy results. In some ways it seems like yesterday but in most ways it seems much longer. While thinking about that this morning I realized out of all the diseases I have fought the cancer has been the shortest battle. I have been at war with Crohns disease for about 26 years now. The Hepatitis C from my blood transfusion was a 2 year battle (however I had it, without my knowledge, for 15 years). After knowing for certain on August 23rd, the cancer was only in my body for 1 month and 29 days and the actual battle ended with my last chemo on February 8th 2011. Thats 5 months and 16 days. Even if you count the 5 years I will be on the Tamoxifen (which is not a battle. It is preventive medicine). It is still a much shorter battle than the Crohns!
xoxo

Follow Ups

Sorry for the lack of updates. That cold really knocked me down. My doc. gave me an antibiotic and cough medicine which helped a lot. I’m feeling much better except for the hot flashes and panic attacks in the middle of the night…oh Tamoxifen I wish you weren’t so cruel !

I did have some follow up appointments with my oncologist and my breast surgeon and my plastic surgeon . They all went very well. The oncologist is happy with my recovery from the chemo and me tolerating the Tamoxifen (when I had my appointment I wasn’t having the panic attacks. I’ll be sure to mention that next time. The breast surgeon was also pleased with how well I am doing. Now for the plastic surgeon…while he is happy with the healing I still have extra skin on the sides and the right side is still smaller. You guessed it, this means more surgery (hopefully the last!). I’m scheduled for June 15th so I’ll try to post before that. We are in the middle of a remodeling project that decided to start on its own!!! I’m going a bit crazy with that. Dirt and plaster everywhere. YIKES. I’m going to have to move in with my niece during my recovery.

xoxo

Darn!

Well I had my 3 week post-op appointment after my swap surgery and it looks like I may have to have some touchups done. Some of the extra skin is just not falling into place and therefore I have these small but annoying bulges off to the sides below my armpits. As per Dr. Jiffy Boobs instructions I have been massaging the areas to help smooth them out. I don’t think its very noticeable to anyone when I’m clothed, unless they are really examining the shape of my boobs (and if they are they deserve the ewwww that they get). Right now when I go out I wear one of my old bras. I took the underwires out of them (they are a no no). The bra hides the bulges and gives me a more natural shape. Yes that’s right my “old” bras!!! Even though I wanted to downsize I seem to be about the same size??? I think I look smaller but I guess not. Maybe because they aren’t saggy and they are up higher that makes them look smaller. I don’t know but I can tell you one thing… Ya know how your bra straps usually dig into your shoulders…well now that the bra isn’t really holding them up my straps keep falling off my shoulder.

I’ve been exercising and my arms are getting stronger and I’m getting my range of motion back. It still always hurts more on the right side and my left side is definitely stronger. I’m not exhausted all the time either which is wonderful. I still overdo it sometimes but it is getting easier and easier to do more things.

I’m still having lots and lots of hot flashes. It’s been very cold here which doesn’t seem to stop baseball coaches from playing games. So I have sat at 5 games so far in layers and layers of shirts, sweatshirts, and jackets and surprisingly enough I don’t have the hot flashes when I’m that cold. At one game I did but it felt good (for once). It warmed me up for a few minutes :) My head gets very cold. I have to wear a skull cap and at least two hats and then I also put my hood up.

My hair is starting to grow back in and it seems to be coming in straight and soft. Not course like everyone said it would. The best news is that it is coming back in dark…Yeah. Especially on the sides. I see gray on the top but right now it doesn’t look like much more gray than I had before and of course as soon as I can I will be dyeing it!

I go back to Jiffy Boob in early May so if I have to have more surgery it will be after that. I need to have my 6 month follow up with the surgeon in April but (if I can) I might try to schedule it the same day as Jiffy Boob.

More baseball today and right now it is 29 degrees…buuuuurrrrrr. Send me warm thoughts.

Xoxo

Swap!

Exchange, change, trade, switch, substitute….

If you haven’t guessed already I had my swap surgery about 2 weeks ago. It went very well. I was originally supposed to stay overnight but I was allowed to come home the same day :) It was a much easier surgery and no drains!!! I never even asked the doctor if I would have drains, I just assumed that I would. I was very happy to be wrong. Like I said it went very well. I wasn’t even that uncomfortable when I got home. Of course I was taking pain pills! I could definitely tell the expanders were gone. The implants are much more comfortable, softer. I was required to wear the very attractive and oh so uncomfortable compression bra yippie! I was told to leave it intact until my follow up appointment in one week :( This was disappointing…I wanted to see how they looked sooooooooo after a few days I peeked hee hee. I just kinda pulled different areas of the bra away from the boobs. I couldn’t really see that much but I could see that the cleavage was much nicer (not as wide). I was disappointed to see there was still some extra skin on each side. Hubby seemed to think it was just swelling. I went for my follow up and got to take the bra off. When I told him that I hadn’t really seen them yet he asked why. I told him that the discharge nurse said not to take the bra off. He said well they are yours you are allowed to look at them! Hahaha! Upon examination there was still swelling but there also is some extra skin. Dr. Jiffy Boob told me I need to massage it every day. I did some research and read that after about six weeks everything should fall into place so to speak. I’ve already noticed improvement since last week. I have to do my stretching exercises again. I’ve lost some range of motion. He gave me the green light to use my 3 lb weights while walking on the treadmill. I’m so glad to be able to exercise again. I’m tired of being a couch potato. I’ve got to get these arms into shape for the tank top summer coming up. What am I saying…I’m already wearing tank tops. I’ve started taking the tamoxifen and I am having hot hot hot flashes (I’m having one right now). I don’t know how I’m going to get through all the baseball games. I go back to see Dr. Jiffy Boob next week. Hopefully he will be happy with my settling process. I hope everything falls into place…I don’t want to have more surgery…but I will if I have to. I’ve gone through a lot for these Ta Ta’s. I want them to look their best.

Speaking of baseball, B has his first scrimmage game today on the high schools brand new turf field. I am so excited but I know I’m going to have to dress in layers. The high today is 41 and it is always very windy at the field. I have to dress warm but when I have hot flashes it will be awful. I’ll be peeling layers off and then putting them back on only to peel them off again. I know one thing for sure, I won’t be wearing my wig. I don’t want it to blow off :) Hats are the plan for baseball games. J went on his spring baseball trip to FL. The team did very well, 6-2. He has a double header today (away). His first home game is Friday. I’m looking forward to going to that.

My hair is starting to grow back. It is still very fine like peach fuzz. So far it is still dark Yeah! So many people have told me that their hair came back all gray. I already had some gray hair so I know that will be back and I did dye it and will dye it again as soon as I have too!!! The hair on my legs is also coming back. I have to shave about once a week. So far no armpit hair!!! I wouldn’t mind if that didn’t come back!

Well I’m going to relax before the game….GO TEAM(s)
xoxo

Looking Back!

Yesterday it was 6 months since I received my biopsy results. In some ways it feels longer than that. So many tears at first. The recovery from the surgery is foggy but went very well and seemed to go quickly (I'm sure the pain medication helped). I think the chemo is what made it feel so long. That was just awful. Looking back it really did go quickly. Some people have a much longer more difficult road with their cancer. I know I still have another stretch of road to getting my strength and energy back. There will also be the recovery from the swap surgery but I think and pray that that will be easier than the mastectomy surgery. It certainly is more exciting. If I had a choice I would certainly choose no cancer over new perky boobs but if I have to have cancer I’ll take the new perky boobs too :) I have learned some things too. I always knew that my family was wonderful. They have taken such good care of me and given me so much love and support. My heart breaks for people who do not have family in good and bad times. I have been surprised to learn some things about friendship. There are the close, very good friends who have been so wonderful and supportive. There are the close, very good friends who I really thought would be there for me but have seemed to disappear. I don’t blame them for this. Cancer is a very difficult thing to face for many reasons and not just for the person who has it. I will always consider them friends and if they reappear I will welcome them back with open arms. There are the friends who maybe you haven’t known as long or been as close to that surprise you with so much love and support. Then there are the new friends who I have been so fortunate to meet. Who I would have not had the opportunity to know if I hadn’t had cancer. Some of them will be my friends forever. Some I may never see again but we shared some time together and shared our experiences. I will always consider them friends and I will remember them forever. Now that I am a survivor I look forward to spending more time with all my wonderful family and friends and making even more friends along the way.
xoxo

Adios Chemo…Hello Boobies!

Well hello everyone. Its been a while since I’ve posted and a lot is happening. I had my last chemo on Feb. 8th and I’m happy to report that it went well just like the one before. I can’t tell you how good it feels to know that I don’t have to have anymore. With the first three chemos the side effects seemed so much worse because all I could think about was how I can’t do this again. After this last one I felt like I could deal with the side effects better because I knew that I wouldn’t have to do it again. Right now all the major side effects are gone. I am just left with exhaustion and very weak muscles. My last blood work was ok except for low iron. I go back to see the oncologist in April so if I’m not back to normal levels she will probably want me to have an iron infusion again. I am supposed to start the Tamoxifen next week. I’ve already been having hot flashes since the chemo and one of the side effects of Tamoxifen is hot flashes. I think its going to be a long summer. I am hoping to start easing back into my walking and exercising routine this week. I had a jiffy boob appointment today and had my 7th and final fill. I will have my swap (expanders for implants) surgery next Wednesday March 2nd. I can’t believe its time already. It will be so nice to get these expanders out. I’m told that my hair should start growing back around a month after the last chemo which will be next week. I was mostly wearing hats around the house but now I’ve mastered tying a scarf so I’ve been wearing them a lot. I wear the wig when I go out and everyone who doesn’t know about the chemo can’t even tell I’m wearing a wig. Everyone who does know is amazed how good the wig looks. I’m glad I went with the more expensive one because not only does it look nice it is comfortable. Well I’m starting to get uncomfortable from the jiffy boob filling so I’m going to relax now and maybe take a nap :) I will let you know how the swap surgery goes and how my new boobs look Yippie!

xoxo

3 Down 1 To Go!

I had my third chemo and yeah it went better than the last two. I had the same amount of heartburn, muscle and joint pain, and exhaustion. My blood pressure, heart rate, and temperature all elevated. I waited on pins and needles for the horrible diarrhea to start and right on schedule it seemed to be starting (Sunday night and Monday morning). I followed my oncologist’s instructions and the week after the chemo (the Monday that the diarrhea was increasing) I went in for fluids. I was feeling horrible as usual and not looking forward to the week of running to the bathroom and going back for more needle sticks and more fluid. Then…Monday afternoon and evening seemed normal. Wow could it be…no I won’t get my hopes up. I went to see the oncologist on Tuesday and still so far that morning things were good. We were both very excited so we canceled the fluids for the rest of the week and waited. If the diarrhea increased again I needed to call and come in for fluids. Praise the Lord it did not increase and I actually feel good and my next and last chemo isn’t till Feb. 8th. Oh please let that one go as well!

I went to the Look Good Feel Better class offered by the American Cancer Society. It was wonderful and I highly recommend it for anyone who is going through cancer treatment. It was a small class of only 4 ladies and we each got a tote full of beauty products that were donated by many well known cosmetic companies. We went through the steps of cleansing, moisturizing, applying makeup, nail and skin care, and then learned about wigs and tying scarves. There were wigs and scarves and hats to try on. All in all it was very fun and informative. I can tell you tho that I am very glad that (so far) I haven’t completely lost my eyebrows. They are much thinner but I still have enough. Why am I so glad about that??? I am very very very bad at drawing on eyebrows!
xoxo

Fluids, Fluids, Fluids, or Not???

I really should not wait so long between posts because I can’t remember everything that happened??? Well I’ll give it my best shot. I had my second chemo on the 28th (the lower dose). While it did go better then the first one (I at least didn’t end up in the hospital) I basically had the same symptoms within the same time frame. First the increase in diarrhea, the awful aches and pains, elevated temp., blood pressure, and heart rate. This time I took pain pills to ease the pain. The one improvement was that my fistula didn’t flare and I didn’t have nearly as much bleeding with the diarrhea. The day of chemo they gave me extra fluids and had me come in the next two days for more fluids. It was a holiday weekend so I went 3 days without fluids. Unfortunately I was not able to enjoy New Years Eve. That was one of my worst days and I was in bed by 10:30. We are going to have a redo sometime soon :) Because I continued to have severe diarrhea I did what they told me to do. I called and came in for more fluids that Monday after the New Year. The nurse told me if I continued to have severe diarrhea to call in the morning and come in again. I did so I called and came in. The one male nurse (I’ll call him nurse jackwagon), who doesn’t usually have me as a patient, came over and said “We all talked this morning and are wondering what to do with you?” (Really!) He told me that I can’t just call and come in for fluids when I’m not on the schedule. (You mean what they told me to do. Meanwhile the room is practically empty so I’m pretty sure I wasn’t jamming up their schedule.) Then he proceeds to tell me that I don’t look dehydrated and if we want the diarrhea to stop we shouldn’t be pumping in more fluids. I said that I thought the purpose was to prevent dehydration so that I don’t end up back in the hospital and that when I was in the hospital the diarrhea improved while I was on fluids. He then tells me (and this is very funny because a nurse should have some idea of what crohns disease is and the symptoms) that I need to do things at home to stay hydrated, that I need to eat foods that bind! I almost laughed right in his face. I said that I have crohns disease and there are no foods that bind me. He said I need to drink lots of fluids. I told him that I do. I drink lots and lots of water in addition to juice and milk. He asked if I drank coffee and I said no I might have 1 cup of tea a day. He said well you shouldn’t drink tea because it is a diuretic, or anything with caffeine. I told him I never drink anything with caffeine. He asked me how many times I went the day before I said 16 (you jackwagon). He was determined to convince me that my diarrhea was my fault. He said well if you are going to come in for fluids we need to put you on a schedule, how about Mon. Wed. Fri. I said fine. This lovely conversation was on a Tuesday so he said not to come in tomorrow just wait till Friday and then next week they will put me on for Mon. Wed. Fri. I told nurse jackwagon that since I have an appointment with Dr. A (the oncologist) on Tuesday I won’t come on Monday. I’ll just ask her on Tuesday what exactly I should do. Before I left the other nurse told me if I still had severe diarrhea to call and come in…Really??? So like a good little patient I went back on Friday and yes my diarrhea was still severe. Nurse Jackwagon didn’t come anywhere near me. When I was done the nurse said if you continue to have severe diarrhea to call, they have a doctor on call all weekend. Nurse Jackwagon really made me feel like I was being ridiculous and that I was a nuisance. At this point I am determined to never call again no matter what is happening.

I went on Tuesday to see the oncologist and she said my blood work has been good. She asked about the diarrhea and I told her exactly how many times a day I was going, when it starts, and how long it lasts (I’ve been keeping track). I told her I was confused about what to do as far as the fluids go, that I was doing what I was told and calling to go in when the diarrhea was severe, but the nurse said I shouldn’t be doing that and needed to be on a schedule. She looked everything over and she said based on when the diarrhea starts she would have the nurses put me on the schedule for the Mon. Wed. Fri. Mon. the week after my chemo. She also said I’m going to write in here that you can call if the diarrhea is severe and you need to come in for more. (Yeah right I’ll call and then be treated like I’m overreacting, no thank you) She said she wanted to push forward and do two more treatments like planned. She also wants to see me again in two weeks to make sure I’m doing ok. I can’t wait till this is over.

Oh the other funny thing is that in the middle of all this I called my GI doctor to see if I could take anything to help with the diarrhea. He prescribed Lomotil and told me if it didn’t help to call and they would arrange for me to come in and get fluids!!!

The good news is that just like the last time I am at the point where my poo is back to normal and I am feeling better (except for being completely exhausted). My next chemo is on the 18th and then only one more after that. I CAN DO THIS!!!
Later that same day that I saw the oncologist I went to Jiffy Boob for a fill up. He is very happy with my progress. I’m amazed at how big my new boobs are getting (I think I’m still less than half the size I use to be but I was quite big before :). I actually have some nice cleavage going on!!!

I registered for a class through the American Cancer Society. It’s called Look Good Feel Better. It’s a class to teach you how to care for your skin and apply makeup while you are going through chemo. I’m looking forward to that. Just about all the hair on my head is gone but I still have my eyebrows. The area where I always plucked is not growing anymore hair. I have lost some eyelashes but I still have enough that most people wouldn’t notice. I have no hair under my arms Yeah and the hair on my legs has stopped growing so I don’t have to shave them either Yeah!!! I’ll let you know how the class goes.

xoxo

The Post I Forgot to Post!?!

I started this post after Christmas and then forgot to post it (chemo brain) so here it is :)
Once again this is on both blogs :p

Being home and hydrated made me feel very good. I haven’t had much energy but I also haven’t had much pain and I’m back to my normal for me poo routine. The fistula has also been behaving.

My hair started falling out (2 weeks after 1st chemo) so we had a little buzz cut event. My boys already have buzz cuts and B and J’s friend Jeff needed a trim so J buzzed Jeff first and then B. Then off with my hair :( but I have to say it doesn’t look that bad. J already looks a lot like me and now we look like twins hahaha. We took pictures but I don’t think I’ll post those. I went to pick up my wig the next day and it is wonderful. The color and style are just like my real hair. People will never guess it is a wig (if they don’t already know that is)

I was very disappointed to miss my beautiful niece CSD’s wedding. I just wasn’t feeling well enough and my doctors don’t want me to be around any large crowds to prevent being exposed to germs. Thankfully I have the most wonderful family in the world. My niece CRSA and my sister CAE sent me pictures during the ceremony and reception….THEN my amazing, beautiful, wonderful niece and brand new bride CSD, brand new hubby N, and her Mom (sister CAE) came to my house on Christmas Eve to reenact the wedding reception. With the wedding dress on, Mother of the bride dress on, bouquets in hand; they came down my staircase escorted by my son (in shorts and a tee-shirt hahaha.) I cried! I also dressed for the occasion and wore my wig. They brought a center piece, snacks, cookies, and cake. We took lots and lots of pictures, and then we ate, and the bride and groom cut the cake. My beautiful niece KRS and brother RJS and sister in law RJS were also in attendance. I can’t even find the words to express how wonderful and special this day was for me. I love you all so much xoxo.

I finished my online Christmas shopping but everyone got a lot less than normal. They weren’t disappointed tho because they are wonderful. Hubby wrapped everything for me on Christmas Eve evening…nothing like waiting till the last min. (of course I do that just about every Christmas ;) This year we did a 2 fishes Christmas Eve Dinner (as opposed to the 7 fishes). Christmas morning was very nice. We opened our presents and then went to CRA’s for a wonderful Christmas morning breakfast. The rest of the day was relaxing. Hubby cooked a nice Christmas Ham dinner and we watched our boys play Wii. I use to be good at these games but apparently it’s not like riding a bicycle!

xoxoxoxoxo
Love, Laugh, and Always know where the nearest bathroom is