Chemo 7 - Check

Today was Chemo # 7.  One more to go, and that will be on Tuesday, January 3, 2012 -- unless we find regular-priced tickets to the National Championship game (yeah, right!!!), in which case Dr. Bondly says I can do my last chemo on the last Thursday in December so that I'd be feeling good by the time to go to New Orleans.  I don't feel good about our chances to find cheap tickets.  If we don't, then it's not meant for me to go to this championship game.  I'll catch Bama on their next BCS title game!!   How's that for optimism  -- both that Bama will make it back to another championship game and that it will be during my lifetime (and I'm planning on being around for a long, long time to make sure that happens!). 

I am totally off my normal Christmas schedule this year.  I just have to attribute that to the cancer.  Usually I'm still buying presents two or three days before Christmas and wrapping everything on Christmas Eve.  This year, on December 12th, I'm nearly through buying gifts, including stocking stuffers, and this is the most surprising of all, most everything is wrapped and under the trees.  Cancer has obviously destroyed my procrastination too!   LOL 

Jenn is home from Auburn for the next four weeks.  She starts her last semester at Auburn on January 9th (big game day!).  She will be graduating in May with a degree in Chemical Engineering.  She's studying to take the MCAT in March (test to get in medical school).  After taking a year off, she hopefully will get in medical school in the fall of 2013.  Today she told me she's thinking of applying to schools in the North in addition to the usual schools down South!!  Don't know if I can let my baby go that far, but we'll see!!

Enough for now.  I'm feeling really good today, but that's the steroids kicking in for a few days.   If this treatment goes like the last two have, I'll be quaranteening myself by Thursday or Friday for a few days due to fever, aches and pain.  Thankfully, the last two have been short-lived, and I have no reason to think this one will be any different. 

To think that after today I only have one more chemo treatment is almost unbelievable.  It really doesn't seem that long ago that I was sitting in that chemo chair for my first treatment on August 22.  I have read and heard people say that going through chemo is the worst time of your life, but I truly cannot say that.  I have been so blessed in so many different ways by so many people -- even people that I do not know now or people who I did not know prior to treatment.  Even with cancer, my life is much, much better than it was six months ago.

Love you all,

Rachel