The Kiddos

Here are some pictures of the kids a friend of ours took...I think they turned out pretty darn cute! (Yes, I know I am biased)

1 down, 5 to go

I completed my first complete chemo cycle on Monday. I will go back in two weeks to begin the second cycle. So for those of you keeping track (I know I am ;-)), I have 10 more chemo treatments, once every two weeks, for the next 20 weeks, or 5 or so months, for a total of 5 more chemo cycles. This most recent chemo treatment has been even more uneventful than the first...which is awesome!! Fewer side effects than the first round. So sorry if this is a boring chemo diary, but in our books, boring is good!!!

Sometimes this doesn't all seem real. We took our kids bowling Friday night with some friends and had a great time. I didn't feel sick, nor did I look sick. Friday night, and nights like it are, are invaluable as it is possible to forget , at least for small time, about all of the crappy stuff going with my health. I was able to be a mom, wife, and friend and just enjoy the company of those I love and have fun!!

I have been asked recently a number of times, how I knew something was"wrong". To answer that question, I had a noticeably swollen lymph node in my armpit that would not go away so I went to have it checked out. After some inconclusive testing, the node was surgically removed and biopsied. And, after an agonizing week, the result came back as Hodgkin's Lymphoma. The swollen lymph node was really the only indication that something wasn't right. I was feeling fine. After all, I had completed a triathlon just couple of weeks prior.

Here's hoping that future chemo treaments go as well as this one.