so many things to do this summer
1. Kick Cancer’s Ass!
2. Get lots of sleep
3. Eat my veggies every day
4. Become habitual about exercise
5. Get really, really good at yoga – like sexy, awesome good
6. Catch up on all those thank you cards I need to send out
7. Rearrange the furniture in the nursery
8. Write more
9. Find ways to fit a little Joy into even the crappy days
10. Play
11. Dance
12. Sing (sorry if you happen to be within earshot)
13. Giggle
14. Snuggle with my baby
15. Get caught up on all the movie watching I’ve missed the past few years
16. Read a book for fun
17. Work the kinks out of my blog
18. Write fiction
19. Get a massage, maybe several
20. Pay the late fee at the library so I can check out more books
21. Blog more
22. Increase my blog readership
23. Learn to focus on what I can control and let go of what I can’t
24. Play
25. Spend as much time with my little girl as I can
26. Tickle my daughter more
27. Snuggle with my husband
28. Go on as many adventures as we can
29. Laugh
30. Do the best I can to make sure my breast cancer doesn’t interrupt my baby’s childhood.
This is my 500th post in this blog. Who knew I had that much to say?
Still I sit here thinking about writing another post and I’m torn; I have so much to say, too much actually.
I wonder about over-sharing, about letting my battle with cancer consume my blog the way it has consumed my life.
I wonder about how this blog will change over the coming year.
I miss the frivolous, light-hearted posts I used to write; my monthly letters to my daughter have taken on a new significance in the past couple months.
I’ve been reading over some of my favorite posts, and in honor of my 500 posts, I thought I’d share a few of them here
20 Year High School Class Reunion
Contemplating my high school class reunion and how connecting with my old classmates on Facebook changed my attitude towards attending.
Pregnancy 101: How to Roll Over
Sometimes a pregnant woman in bed feels (and looks) like a beached whale. Sometimes she needs to roll over. Sometimes the results are disastrous.
I feel pretty
Self image is such a complicated issue for young women. I contemplate what makes me feel pretty, and how to help my daughter negotiate these issues as she grows up.
Influence
Do you pick up an accent when you visit the South? Is your mood affected by anyone else’s mood? What influences you? What influences you on a subconscious level? How do we teach our children to manage their influnces?
Pregnancy
Pregnancy isn’t all bloating, and waddling, and strange cravings. Pregnancy can make you feel Amazing.
Dear Baby Girl
A note to my daughter, written before she was born.
A Blessing
A stranger appears, blesses us, and vanishes. One of the coolest moments of my life.
What Fuels Your Vote?
Whenever you take sides on a political issue, how do you come to your decision? Once the decision is made, do you have peace in your heart, or fear?
One Year Later
My father taught us a lot about living, the most powerful lesson came to me at his funeral.
Patience
Sometimes getting the perfect shot can be frustrating and take quite a bit of patience.
I’ve been thinking about the direction and purpose of my blog in relation to this breast cancer diagnosis. When I first found out I was pregnant with my daughter, I swore I would not let CoffeeJitters turn into a mommy blog. It took about a month to figure out that idea was a little ridiculous. My daughter is just about the only thing I write about any more.
I suspect over the coming months cancer will continue to consume my thoughts as it has this month, and that’s bound to have an effect on my choice of topics for posting. On the other hand, writing about my daughter makes me happy. Cancer, not so much.
Although there has been some pressure to use CoffeeJitters as a clearing house for my cancer updates, I would like to reserve this blog (and facebook) for me, for what I want to write about. To avoid allowing CoffeeJitters to become cancer central, I’m setting up a site through http://www.lotsahelpinghands.com where I will post updates on my condition as well as details about help we will be needing on issues such as housekeeping, child care, transportation, and meal prep. Please contact me directly if you would like access to that site.
That said, here is a quick update on what’s going on: The mass has grown to 8 cm. It is a combination of two kinds of cancer: Ductal Carcinoma in Situ and Invasive Ductal Carcinoma. There is no good cancer, but the first kind is preferable as it stays in one place, while the invasive cancer, well, invades other areas. From the images, they can not determine what percentage of the cancer is in situ and how much is invasive. They won’t know exactly what stage I’m in or what the prognosis is until they operate. So far it looks as though the cancer has kept to the breast although a few of the lymph nodes look suspicious. The condition of those lymph nodes will be the most important factor in determining the stage of the cancer and prognosis. So step one is the mastectomy (which we are still working on scheduling) which is both the primary treatment for the disease as well as providing more diagnostic information.
I’m not declaring the blog a cancer free zone, I’ll probably write about it from time to time. Breast cancer that strikes women under the age of 40 tends to be particularly aggressive. Additionally, these women often have very young children they are raising. When we think of breast cancer, we usually think of grandmas, not women who have to suddenly wean their infant because the breast is going to be removed. This is a whole new demographic of women challenged by breast cancer that has received little attention. I’m sure I’ll be writing on this topic from time to time.
Meanwhile, rest assured that I am eating my vegetables, exercising, and researching all the different options available to me.
Sunday night my little brother got married to a smart, beautiful, sassy, funny, bold, independent, adventurous, organized, and very sweet girl. She is exactly what he needs.
Congratulations you two! I think you are perfect for each other.
Blog Action Day
While we represent less than 5% of the world’s population, the United States is in the unique position of both being a world leader in greenhouse gas emissions and a world leader in clean energy technology. We are among the best and the worst.
This December the world’s leaders will come together in Copenhagen to discuss climate change and a global response. President Obama was voted into office with a mandate to make a change, including a change to our approach to caring for the environment. Let’s remind him of his promise to take a stand for the planet that we will pass down to our children and grandchildren.
Sign the petition to tell President Obama that we want him to to carry this mandate for change to the world leaders and take action to significantly reduce greenhouse gasses.
CoffeeJitters is an affiliate to a number of sites and services. I do not endorse products I don't love. I may receive compensation if you purchase items from links on this website.
