February Has Arrived

Yes, February has arrived.  January passed way too quickly...  And it was kinda disappointing that there was no snow (or at least none to speak of).  Don't get me wrong.  I don't like shoveling nor do I like driving in the snow.  My idea of a snow day is staying home, a fire in the fireplace and watching the snow through the window.  It is peaceful and it is pretty.  And, honestly, one of the joys of living in New England is the change in seasons.  Oh well, you all can remind me of these words when we're hit with a snowstorm in March and I'm complaining about it!  But again, isn't that what we New Englanders do?  But enough about the weather...

Last weekend was moving the rest of Dan's stuff out of his apartment in Bristol, RI.  We rented a cargo van and packed it to the gills and Dan packed more stuff in his car.  Amazing how much he accumulated in 1.5 years.  Unpacking took much less time than I had expected.  Some things ended up upstairs in the garage, some in the basement, some in Dan's room, and some is still in the garage or on the back enclosed porch.  But Dan is sorting through things and some of his stuff is being blended into the household (like cleaning and laundry supplies, some cooking utensils, etc.).

Ed and Dan loading up the van.

The van mostly loaded.  We did add more...

On one of his days off this week, Dan rearranged his bedroom to fit in some more furniture that he brought home with him.  It actually looks good.  Dan continues to chip away at his thesis book.  His goal was to finish by last week, but that didn't happen.  So now he's attempting to finish it by today.  He spends time working on it at night after work and on his days off and weekends.  Of course, moving and packing/unpacking kinda threw off his productivity last week.  He's planning to go to Long Island next week to see his girlfriend, so he better have his book done or Mom won't allow him to go!! lol

Ed had another treatment this week on Monday.  Bloodwork still looks good and the Dr. B. believes his liver is shrinking again (although I don't remember him ever saying it was getting larger again...but whatever...).  We will plan for another CT scan in March.  Ed hopes that if things look good we can cut back on one of the chemo drugs.  Time will tell there...

Dan and I were all prepared that Ed would not be feeling well when he got home Monday so we planned dinner and I also lectured Ed that he shouldn't plan on running errands afterwards but instead come home and rest.  It seemed to do the trick since he was feeling okay Monday evening and Tuesday.  But by Wednesday, he was feeling queasy and tired again.  Thankfully Dan cooked dinner on Wednesday (since he had the day off) and so Ed could come home from work and rest.  By Friday he still wasn't feeling great and so came home from work early.  Hopefully he'll be feeling better by Sunday.  We'll see.  At this point, we're just planning to lay low over the weekend.

We are beginning to take into account in our plans the fact that Ed doesn't feel well the week of treatment.  If we're looking to do something (such as go away, go out to dinner, etc.), we are now avoiding treatment week.  But, all-in-all, certainly nothing we should be complaining about.  We are still much more fortunate than others and need to remind ourselves of that during this tougher days.

This weekend we celebrate our nephew Nick's 13th birthday (not sure how he got that old) and we'll be staying home to watch the Superbowl.  Ed's friend Mike invited us to his house, but since Ed is not feeling 100%, we're planning to just stay home.  Can you believe it's been 6 years since we've watched the Superbowl with Dan?!  We really are so happy to have him home with us right now!

Go Patriots!!

Dan and his roommates (Matt & Nate) on the front porch of their apartment. A good group of guys.

Treatment Days

Ed had another treatment on Monday, January 9th.  When I got home from work, he was resting in bed.  He was feeling a bit queasy and achy.  The same was true after his last treatment as well.  The good news is that the chemo is keeping the tumors at bay.  Unfortunately, though, Ed is experiencing more side effects than he did in the first two years.

So as Dan and I prepared dinner for ourselves and set some aside for Ed to have later in the evening, I realized my updates on this blog tend to stay on the positive side and only share the good.  But for those of you who come here looking for updates on how Ed is doing versus a sugar-coated story, I have been doing you a disservice.

Don't get me wrong, Ed is still battling this nasty disease and the chemo is keeping the tumors at bay.  But the Avastin has resulted in more side effects than Ed experienced earlier.  As you know, he was losing his hair last fall and ended up shaving his head in September.  He has since lost his eyebrows and eyelashes although this is less noticeable hidden behind his glasses.

The Avastin has also resulted in high blood pressure and so now Ed is taking blood pressure medicine and recently had to up the dosage.  He frequently has muscle aches and his energy is low.  Of course, I attribute this to him being older and tell him he needs to be more active and exercise/move more often (which falls on deaf ears).  In general, though, treatment days seem to take more out of Ed than they ever did previously.  He feels more queasy and tired, has an obnoxious runny nose for hours, and comes home to rest afterwards.

The good news is that this only typically lasts a day and overall, the good days still greatly outnumber the bad days which we are thankful for.

Happy New Year, Happy 2012

Happy New Year!  I hope you all had a great time ringing in the new year.  We certainly enjoyed the 3-day weekend!!  Dan left for Long Island Thursday night to spend New Year's with Cassie and her family.  This is the first time in 24 years that we did not spend New Year's together and Ed and I somehow survived!  Of course, lately, we need Dan to help keep us awake til midnight!!  We did manage to stay up til midnight and watched the ball drop in Times Square on Dick Clark's Rockin' New Years Eve.  We must really be getting old because some of the groups they had performing (1) I've never heard of and (2) weren't very good!!  I mean come on--a band that is named LMFAO and has a dancer who had a cardboard box on his head the entire time??!!

All-in-all the weekend was good and productive.  Got simple things done around the house and started sorting/cleaning things out to start 2012 organized.  I think we decided we were NOT going to rent a cottage in Misquamicut in July.  The place we've rented for the last several years is not available this year.  So we discussed whether we wanted to find another cottage or do something different.  We ended up deciding not to rent for a week since we have Dan's graduation in May and we'll be staying Bristol for a couple days for that plus we'll probably have a small party/picnic for him as well (so well save our money these events).

Last week Dan got a part-time at ES (where I work) as a copyright permission assistant.  Not that that is anything to brag about....but rather he has some part-time work that will give him a regular paycheck and will give him the flexibility he needs this month to finish his thesis project and to start looking for a full-time job.  I am thankful for all the flexibility and support (N)ES has given Dan over the years.  They fully understand that he'll be looking for full-time work and gave him this position since it gives him flexibility for interviews, etc.  They are so good to us (did I tell you our HR director was Dan's middle school principal?)  Keep your fingers crossed that he can find a full-time job in his field (architecture) without have to go to Dubai!

Ed is doing the same...no changes--which is good news although he hates that he has lost his hair (including eyebrows and eyelashes now).  But other than that...he feels fairly good and continues his treatment every two weeks.  Next CT scan won't be until later in February.

And, me, nothing new.  I continue to update this blog which I'm sure is QUITE boring for most of you.  I don't even have any fun pictures to post today!  But I'll keep it up for now.  If you're out there and find this even remotely informative or entertaining, please drop me a comment or click a reaction (below each posting) once in a while, just to let me know you're out there!

Here's hoping 2012 is good to you and here's hoping it's a healthy and prosperous year for all of us!!

Merrry Christmas

Merry Christmas!!  And thank you to our families for making it special.  We spent Christmas Eve with the Brzyckis at Missy & Dennis's and then Christmas Day with the Jasmins at my Mom's.  Of course Christmas morning was spent at home opening the gifts from each other (and Santa!).  It was a great Christmas and today we're planning to just lounge around at home and extend our celebration.  I do fully believe in celebrating for the 12 days of Christmas!!  We hope everyone has a joyous Christmas with family and friends!

Preparing for Christmas

Like most of you, we are in the throws of preparing for Christmas!  The shopping is done (okay, minus one gift that Ed is responsible for...but other than that, all shopping is done!).  Baking is also done!  And today will be spent wrapping!

To be done baking is a major accomplishment.  For those of you who don't know, I bake a variety of cookies and candies each year.  And each year, I tell myself I'm cutting back, but somehow that just doesn't happen.  I do like to bake a variety of cookies and I have stopped doubling recipes so that I only make a single batch, but I like to try new kinds.  This year, crazy me ended up with about 100 dozen cookies and that does not include the fudge, truffles, rum balls, etc.  And I eliminated some types of cookies this year that I traditionally make.  The good news, though, is that I give the majority of these away as gifts, so many benefit from my craziness (and I do keep a few in the house for Ed and Dan to enjoy!).

And speaking of Dan, I'm happy to report he is home for Christmas.  In fact, he is pretty much home until he finds a full-time job wherever that might be.  He has his apartment in Bristol, RI, through January and he will go back later in January for a few days to finalize/print his thesis summary and attend presentations for other arch students.  At that time, Ed and I will also go out with a U-Haul to bring the rest of his furniture/stuff home.

We are excited to have him home and thankfully he has some part-time work lined up so he can earn some money as he begins his search for a full-time job and begins the next chapter of his life!!

Ed continues to do well and maintains his "standard" two-week chemotherapy treatment.  Still keeping tumors at bay and, in general, he's still feeling fine.  I joined him this week for his doctor's appt so I could share baked goods with Dr. Bowers and his staff.  They are such wonderful people there and I can't thank them enough or express my appreciate adequately for all they've done for Ed these past two years.  Here's hoping I'm delivering Christmas cookies to them for many years to come!

Since I'm sure this will be my last post before Christmas, here's wishing everyone a Merry Christmas! And a Happy Hanukkah to those who celebrate this holiday!

Lining everything up to begin the package prep!

Linzer cookies--new cookie I made this year. I'm pleased with how they came out!

First layer of candy boxes (fudge, truffles, rum ball, haystack)...

Top layer of candy boxes (macaroons, brittle, peppermint bark, choc-covered oreo, Linzer cookie)

The many finished packages (which I can thankfully store on our three-season porch to keep refrigerated!)

Happy 75th Birthday Mom

Sunday, Dec 11th marked my Mom's 75th birthday!  Because she hates surprises and parties and being the center of attention, we held a very small breakfast with just immediate family and a couple close friends.  It was a nice way to recognize my Mom and it had everything she loves most--family and friends and good food!  Next month we celebrate her Auntie Alice's 90th birthday, so here's to at least 15 more years for Mom!!  She definitely comes from good genes!!

Auntie Gingy, Mom, friend Sandy, friend Theresa

Dan's FINAL Thesis Presentation

This month marks Dan's last semester at Roger William University and on Friday, December 9th, he gave his final presentation for his thesis project.  We are so proud of this accomplishment and all his hard work to get him to this point.  His girlfriend Cassie drove up from Long Island to attend the reviews and so was there to take some pictures.  Once he completes this semester, he will have earned a Masters of Architecture (although he won't walk for graduation until May 2012).  We are so very proud of him!

Two Year Anniversary

Early December marks the 2-year anniversary of Ed's diagnosis.  Depending on what date we want to use, the actual 2-year mark is either December 3rd or December 9th.  December 3, 2009 was when the gastroentrologist informed us that, beyond a doubt, without a biopsy, he knew Ed had colon cancer.  December 9, 2009 was our first meeting with Ed's oncologist where we got the "official" diagnosis and prognosis.  Regardless of what specific date you use as the marker, here we are two years later and life is treating us well.  It is so hard to believe it's been 2 years.  The days and the events of those days are still very clear and vivid.  And I remember how we only prayed and dreamed of having 6 months together and if we were lucky, could we make it a year??  Never did we think beyond that or consider two years later Ed would still be with us battling this disease.

On December 2nd, Ed had another CT scan and the good news is "no change".  Tumors are still present, but no new growths or changes in the size of the tumors.  And Ed feels pretty good considering.

So as we mark the two-year anniversary, we are thankful that we've had this extra time together, that he has been "healthly" for the most part (except for that little inconvenience of needing chemo treatment every two weeks), and we are thankful for Dr. Bowers and his oncologist nurses (especially Shane), and their team and all the advancement in cancer treatment that enables those like Ed to fight this battle.  (Cait, I'm thinking of you as well at this time as you also mark your two-year anniversary!)

God is good!

Thanksgiving 2011

Thanksgiving was a wonderful, traditional event.  Dan arrived home Wednesday morning.  I had the day off of work so I could bake pies for Thanksgiving (a pumpkin, apple, lemon meringue, and butterscotch banana).  Dan was originally planning to come home Tuesday evening but since he didn't get out of studio until 7:30 PM, we agreed it made more sense for him to get up early Wednesday to make the two-hour drive home.  He was home by 9 AM!

What I'm most thankful for...having Dan home!

We were blessed to have the entire family together for Thanksgiving and we never take this for granted.  There was my mother, my brother, my sisters, my sister's husbands, and their children.  Auntie Gingy (my mother's sister) also joined us this year as well as my brother's friend Andy.  It was a great day with good food and good company!  I love this holiday...a day set aside for family and friends and to thank God for our many blessings.

Our traditional photo.
L-R, Andy, Dave, Marion, Jeanne, Ed, Cathy, Tim, Mom,
Dan, Nick, Matt, Lexi, Ali, Theresa, Gindy, Mike (with Shana and Sparky)

Enjoying the meal...

Enjoying the company by playing some board games...

Team A won Taboo (Mom, Cathy, Theresa, Ali)

Team B won Pictionary (Marion, Lexi, Dan, Jeanne)

Grandma and Dan miss each other too...

Dan and Grandma

Dan left to go back to school Saturday morning.  He has a lot of work left to do to prepare for his final and he's not very productive when he's home.  Now on to the mad dash towards Christmas!

Our First Cruise: Arriving Home (Sunday)

We arrived back in Florida Sunday morning around 8:00 am and departed around 9-9:30 am.

Sitting on the Lido deck waiting to disembark.

The guys--Ed, Nick, and Tim.

All-in-all it was a great trip. We wish there were more activities during the day but if we had known better, we might have planned our time differently. We sailed on Carnival Sensation which we understand is one of the older ships so it's lacking some of the amenties on newer, larger ships. My sister also indicated that the Disney cruises had more activities and more food options. However, Carnival was significantly less expensive, so I guess you get what you pay for.

Would we do it again? Absolutely! Seeing the Bahamas was quite a site! And we did upgrade to a balcony room and that was so well worth it as well. I could have simply sat on our balcony and been happy. But we did partake in the activities and that was fun as well. It's true you get out of it what you put in into it and what your expectations are. A great, short getaway (that seemed much longer than 3 days)...a perfect way to refresh after the events of the power outage!

Our stateroom...looking towards the balcony.

Desk area.

Looking back towards the entrance from near the desk.

Bathroom--toilet and sink (looking towards the left from the doorway).

Bathroom--shower (lookings towards the right from the doorway).

Across from the bed--TV and connecting door to next stateroom.

Our room was the extended balcony, bottom level, last one on the right.

The Carnival Sensation docked in Nassau.

Our First Cruise: Day 3 (Saturday)

The last day (Saturday) was a "day at sea". We basically hung out, went to the casino, sat by the pool, watched people, had the "drink of the day", ate, played bingo, participated in trivia games, and played mini golf.

It was quite windy that day.

But we found a sunny location that wasn't too windy.
Had our "drink of the day" and some pizza while hanging out here.

The early morning while I was out getting coffee.

Playing mini golf with Nick and Lexi.  It was definitely windy up there!

Lexi singing and dancing with our waiter Roberto at dinner.

A seal for our final evening.

Lido deck at night.

Our First Cruise: Day 2 (Friday)

Friday morning we watched a beautiful sunrise from our balcony.  I hit the jogging track on the top level and brought coffee back to our stateroom for us to enjoy while sitting on the balcony.  We then had breakfast at the buffet and then arrived in Nassau, Bahamas by noon.

Ed watching the sunrise from our balcony.

The blue seas of the Bahamas.

Arriving in Nassau, Bahamas

Nassau, Bahamas

We purchased a "Sea and See" excursion which included a submarine-like ride underwater to see the fish, coral, sponges, etc., followed by a brief bus tour of Nassau. Ed and I then walked over to a nearby beach where we had a drink, jerk chicken, and collected some beach sand for Dan. It was quite windy, but the water was so warm and we still cannot believe how blue the water was.

A small number of straw markets at the top of the hill in Nassau.
Nothing compared to the number down in the city.

The nearby beach we walked to.

On the beach!

Having drinks and jerk chicken on the beach.

Me on the Beach in Nassau.

We did souvenir shopping at the straw market and the stores along that area before heading back to the ship around 6:30 PM. What was most surprising was that the stores and market closed at 6 PM! Ed and I missed the sit-down dinner (elegant night) and so went to the buffet that night for dinner.

The buffet-style dining room.  You got used to the neon colors!

Friday nite we played trivia games in the main lounge. Having Lexi there to encourage us and make us sit in the front row to play made it actually more fun and enjoyable. Having the kids gave us reasons to act like kids and we also participated in a scavenger hunt earlier in the day.

Ed being a good sport and playing in "Carnival Conquest".

Lexi showing off the "trophy" we all got for winning "Carnival Conquest".

We had a lot of fun and laughs. We then watched the musical song-and-dance show before heading back to our stateroom for the night.

An elephant for Friday night, some chocolates, and our FunTimes for Saturday.