the best medicine...

9 month old Carter,

his happiness is contagious,

already bringing joy to our Christmas!

blessed!

one week post op

things to remember if I ever have to do this again:

1. insist on an epidural- makes the chest tube discomfort negligible.

2. keep the catheter in as long as I'm attached to something else.

3. when switching over to oral pain pills, 1 pill per 4hrs. at first, if not tolerated then try 1 every 6 hrs.

4. say yes to generous friends who want to cook for you. The food has been fabulous and this has saved Drew a ton of work!

5. try to avoid the holiday season next time (really).

6. give myself at least 10 days before doing anything out of the house.

7. pray real hard that my cancer will NOT come back, and I'll never have to do this again!

the stockings were hung...

We needed to add another stocking to the mantel this year...

for guess who?
That's right, Carter of course!

Drew and I still use our childhood stockings! My MIL had hand stitched the girls stockings the year they were born. They are counted-cross-stitched and embroidered. When we started to add to the family we decided on needlepoint, but as no one in the family had the time or talent to do that, we ordered from either LL Bean or Lands End.

When I was looking for Carter's this year I wanted a design that was a bit different from what we already had.

I found this adorable Toy Soldier at Horchow.

I think he's quite pleased with it, don't you?!

the elves came while I was away...

The two days I was out of the house last week, a couple of little elves came

over and put out my Christmas decorations.

They thought they would have more time,
but I surprised them and checked out early.

I love my handmade Santa Claus's!
Toy shop Santa, Golfing Santa (for those warmer days off), and Baking Santa

I had such a nice homecoming... it was dark outside and the house was aglow with little white lights, the smells of a delicious dinner
simmering on the stove,
and my smiling Grandson Carter to welcome me home.

thank you elves!

EPIDURAL, 8 letters I'm thankful for

I'm home from the hospital, so much sooner than the doctors even thought. They were originally going to keep me in 2-3 nights, but (thank you Lord) my surgeon was able to do a wedge resection, the least invasive of the proposed 3 scenarios. Hooray, I get to keep more lung! Thank you Dr. Force. This may be more detailed info than you want to know, but I want to remember it, just in case, so here it is.

Also, I feel, it's because of good pain management. I had an Epidural put in prior to surgery, to be used as an analgesic port for post-op pain. The most painful part of a VATS procedure comes from the chest tube they have to put in for drainage. This tube goes in ~ 4-5 inches and is the worst pain I've ever felt (even more so than my 3 completely natural childbirths)! With the meds coming through the epidural, I had very little chest pain from the tube and the incisions. It made for a much more pleasant hospital stay. They also kept my foley catheter in for most of the stay too, which this may sound weird, but I like having one. I like not thinking about going or using a bed pan.

Then, I had to transition over to oral pain pills to go home. I took the same "Hydrocodone" prescription I did last year, or so I thought it was the same, but this time for some reason it was making me nauseous, ugh. What's worse pain or nausea? I decided last night that the nausea is worse and have opted for extra strength Tylenol vs the Vicodin I was prescribed. So far it's been okay, and I feel better than yesterday.

My family and friends have all been great! Flowers, phone calls and cards. My hubbie is a superb nurse and is very attentive. xoxox My girls have been in and out to visit and help out and cook. Baby C has been over to smile at me, although I can't hold him for 4 weeks, that's going to be tough! We had our first friend meal tonight, a delicious pot roast, potatoes and carrots. Perfect for this cold winter night and very much appreciated!

Okay, enough for one day, time for a nap... see you tomorrow.

my Christmas wish...

My Christmas preparations are a bit overshadowed this year. I've run out of time. This Thursday I go in for lung surgery, VATS, to get rid of a second metastatic nodule. The same surgery I had last year on November 30th. I was a lot more prepared last year though, both for Christmas and for the surgery. After the "watch and wait" mentality of the past 10 months, I guess I just can't get my heart around doing it, especially now at this more than busy time of the year. I wish we were back in the summer and doing it then. But time has moved on, and "it's time" for it to come out. Since we made that decision I've done a really good job of distracting myself... between kitchen planning, Halloween and Thanksgiving, and most recently apartment shopping and moving GradGirl back to Atlanta. Now it's December 1st and time's up. My pre-op is tomorrow and the surgery the day after. My house is undecorated, my cards unordered and my shopping half done. I'll hopefully get back to all of that in a week or two. But for now, I need to take a little time for myself.

My Christmas wish is to be cancer free and to be healthy. Not something I'll find under the tree. My wish is for the surgery to go well, to recover to good health, and to be able to breathe fully. That's what I'm asking for, that's what I'm praying for. My wish is for God to hear my prayers.

Dear Carter...

On your Christening day

May God grant you always
A sunbeam to warm you
A moonbeam to charm you
A sheltering angel so nothing can harm you
Laughter to cheer you
Faithful friends near you
And whenever you pray
Heaven to hear you.

God bless you