Dear ODOT....

Dear ODOT,
Why is your freeway so bumpy? 

We stayed at a hotel close to the hospital the first night primarily because Kristen didn't want to try to make the drive home so soon after surgery and she had an appointment with her Plastic Surgeon on Thursday.  I was grateful we were so close to the hospital just in case anything went wrong.  Luckily nothing did.  Kristen slept fairly well that night. 

We made it home!  Kristen is asleep and doing well.   We went to see Dr. Christiansen this morning at 8am.  He removed the bandages and fitted her with a special bra.  Her incisions looked good and he said everything looked like it should.  She has another appointment with him on Monday.  
I was hyper aware of every bump and crack in the road driving home.  I was trying to give Kris the smoothest ride possible because any movement is painful right now.  She survived the ride home and is settled in. 

Surgery Day!

The day started much before the crack of dawn today.  Both of us were awake long before the 4:30 alarms went off due to nerves I'm sure.   We checked in at the hospital at 5:30 and where back doing more surgery prep a few minutes later.  I should have counted how many times Kristen asked "what's your full name and DOB?"  Apparently everyone was satisfied that she was who she said she was because they kept on going.  They gave her a high tech paper gown.  It had several ports that they could attach a hose (similar to a vacuum cleaner hose) that blew either hot/warm/cold air.  They said that surgery goes better if the whole body is the same temperature whether that's hot or cold.  The Anesthesiologist came in at 7:00, got her IV started and gave her a motion sickness patch to help with nausea. She kept trying to give her a relaxant but Kristen didn't want it.  Kristen was amazingly calm and determined.  Both surgeons came in not long after that to make sure everyone was on the same page and to make the necessary marks for surgery.  Just before 8:00 we said our "see ya laters" and they wheeled her off to OR.    

We were told the surgery would take approximately 4 hours if all went well and recovery before I could see her would be about 2 hours.  The Dr. Shauer came out to talk to me after 2.5 hours to let me know everything was going great.   He had to remove a node from each side which wasn't part of the original plan but he felt it was necessary.  The pathologist should have the results of the tissue sample back by Friday.  At the 4 hour mark the Plastic Surgeon, Dr. Christiansen came out to let me know he was done and that everything went beautifully.  He placed 4 drains which need to be emptied at least 2x day and will stay in place for about 2 weeks.  After about 1.5 hours the nurse called me to let me know Kristen was still pretty groggy and loopy and would be a little longer before being moved to where I could sit with her.  Recovery was a little rough.  A lot of pain, nausea, and dizziness.   At one point they got her standing up and then sitting in a reclining chair and then immediately took her bed away.  I guess they didn't want her changing her mind and getting back in bed.  At about 5pm she was feeling pretty good, was able to eat some graham crackers and drink a little water. She was able to get up and walk with assistance down the hall but needed to hitch a ride back to her room.  She turned ghostly white and clammy in matter of seconds.  They quickly whisked her back to her chair.    Mom and dad came up shortly before she was released which was a huge help. We left with supplies and a stack of instructions for care. 


Kristen's main nurse in recovery was Mechelle from Austria.  She was very nice.  She was compassionate and gentle but also very direct.


Kristen is doing great as long as she doesn't have to move.  =) 

It's Almost Time......

The countdown has begun, as of right now only 11 1/2 hours until my "simple double mastectomy".  I check in tomorrow morning at 5:30, and surgery starts at 8:00.   Rachelle and I are in Eugene staying at a hotel tonight and tomorrow night.  We brought the kids up with us so we had to take advantage of the pool and hot tub.  It felt so good!  The hotel had cute little animals made out of towels or wash cloths around the pool/rooms.  The cutest one was in our room, in the shape of a  duck.  I forgot to take a picture though.

 Scott and April picked the kids up and took them to Wes and Ariela's for a cousin sleepover!   They are going to have so much fun.  Grace, Lauren, Meg, Roman, Dallen, Evan, and little Eliza all together for two nights.  Good luck Wes and Ariela!  Thank you so much!


 I thought I would share some of the things that I have received as a few "must-haves"for my surgery....



Button-up  Pajamas for easy access when the drains are in those first two weeks.

Cozy socks to keep my toesies warm.

Homemade pillows for some arm support. 

Goldfish crackers for something little to eat for an upset stomach.

Hydro flask water bottle to keep my water ice cold--got to stay hydrated!

Earrings to make me feel beautiful!

Dry shampoo because I am not supposed to shower for two weeks!! 

Facial wipes to help feel fresh and clean.

Journal prompt jar to help me write some interesting and meaningful things in my journal.

Smile jar that has inspirational quotes to pull out whenever I need a pick me up.

Drain band for holding the drains underneath my clothes, shhhh...no one will even know.

Mints for fresh breath and to calm an upset stomach.

So I am all decked out and ready to go!  The plan is to get there by 5:30, hopefully they will start the surgery at 8:00.  I think the surgeon told me that the actual surgery would take 5-6 hours.  If all goes well I will come back to the hotel in the early afternoon and rest.  The next day, Thursday, I have a follow up appointment with the plastic surgeon at 8:00. 

Well, that is the plan!  Thank you for all of your texts and calls.  Talk to you soon, wish me luck!

Three years later

Well, hello everyone!  Much has happened in the past few years.  As most of you know, we lost Darryl at the end of January.  It has been the hardest thing that we have ever had to go through. We are just starting to heal, we are trying to take one day, sometimes one hour at a time.  But that is not the reason that I am blogging.    I need to document a new phase in my cancer diagnosis. 

I have been doing yearly mammograms and going in to see the oncologist every 3-4 months.  Each appointment was filled with anxiety and nerves.  Thankfully, everything was clear and I was scheduled for my next visit.  In July I had another mammogram, but this time, they wanted to take more pictures, they left me in that room for 25 minutes, then came back, took more pictures and left again.  (That is not a good sign.)  I went in to talk to the radiologist and he saw some "calcifications" that he wanted me to get biopsied.  I was heading to Oregon in 3 days, so I scheduled it to be done there. 

I got the biopsy done, which was a very weird experience, lying on my stomach on a table with two holes in it.   (Use your imagination....)  Anyway, that Friday I got a call saying that the biopsy was positive for DCIS (Ductal Carcinoma In Situ).  This is the same kind of cancer that I had previously. I had the nicest lady that did my biopsy.  She also called me and wanted to make sure that I was ok and she told me about her breast cancer history.  She told me that "your chest isn't worth your life".  Her name is Jan and she was so nice.  I am so thankful for caring, compassionate people in the medical offices. 

I saw my surgeon that next week, who recommended I get a mastectomy.  It was my choice whether to do one or both.  I then saw the plastic surgeon regarding the reconstruction.  I have the date set for August 26, 2015 at 8:00am. 

Again, I want to use this blog to document this process.  I have gone back and read the posts so many times from when I went through chemotherapy.  I am very grateful that we did the blog.  Some things are just hard to remember.  At the time you think you will never forget...... but we do.  I will try  my best to document as much as I can.