09-09-09...

Anyone who knows me well can attest to the fact that I have never missed a birthday, and have a freaky appreciation for a good calendar date. And babies who are born with a birth date like 09-09-09 are pretty lucky!

Ten years ago today, 09-09-99, was an amazing day. My fiance and I had just moved in to our new home, and were throwing a pre-wedding open house party for 60+ friends and family. In hindsight, it was pretty ambitious, given the fact that our house was small, and it was two days before our wedding! But we were young, carefree, and all about fun with our family and friends. And, we were madly in love and so excited about our wedding weekend...the beginning of our life together.

One year ago today, 09-09-08, was another day I'll never forget. My scalp was tingling with a freaky, painful sensation that was like nothing I had ever felt, and my long, thick brunette locks that I loved so much were starting the early stages of shedding due to the chemo I had begun just two weeks earlier. Together, with the best friends a girl could ask for, and with the help of many cocktails, we cut off 8 12 inch braids and donated my hair to Locks of Love. It was one of the most difficult days of my life by far. And I still think about it all the time. While I've come to appreciate that I am more than the hair on my head, I miss it every single day.

Tonight, 09-09-09, we cleaned our house and packed our bags in preparation for surprising our two kids with an amazing trip to Orlando tomorrow. Last year, we had planned to take our two kids to Disney in November. The whole cancer/chemo episode last fall put an end to that plan. So, this summer, we decided that we were going to dust off those plans and take the kids to Disney this November. Well, the whole local recurrence of cancer and pending chemo put an end to that plan. One morning at work, I called my husband and said, "Hear me out...I have a crazy idea." And that evening we started planning our trip to Orlando for September during our 10th Anniversary weekend. Since this is the first week of school, we wanted them to be focused on school, their new classes, and all the fun that goes with it. The kids have NO idea that we have planned this trip. They are sound asleep and think tomorrow will be another day at school. We can't wait to see the look on their faces when they hear all about the big trip we have planned!

I am going to head to RW first thing tomorrow to get my daily dose of XRT before we head to the airport. Tomorrow will be treatment 17! It's been an easy, non-eventful week at RW, and my skin and energy are cooperating big time. Thank you, God. I am truly blessed.

I had an axillary dissection during my latest surgery, and my surgeon removed all of my axillary lymph nodes under my right arm. This puts me at risk for lymphedema. The therapist said my arm shows no sign of swelling and looks good, but took measurements of my right arm as a baseline.

In preparation for the flight, I met with a Lymphedema Therapist, and she wrote me an order for a compression sleeve and glove. There is something about the cabin pressure of the airplane that can be a risk factor to cause lymphedema, so I have to wear sleeve and glove compression garments (or as I call it, the arm girdle). My kids tried it on, so they will not be freaked out when I put this on tomorrow on the plane.

I made the mistake of Googling "Lymphadema, arm, breast cancer" and checking out the Images. I don't recommend that! But, Dr. Google did offer some information about lymphedema. Click here for the scoop from breastcancer.org

"Lymphedema is a side effect that can begin during or after breast cancer treatment. It isn't life threatening, but it can last over a long period of time. This condition involves swelling of the soft tissues of the arm or hand. The swelling may be accompanied by numbness, discomfort, and sometimes infection.

You can think of lymphedema as a plumbing problem: Veins and lymphatic channels are like pipes and drains that can handle the normal load of lymphatic fluid. If lymph nodes and channels are removed, there might not be enough pipes and drains to handle all the fluid."

Everyone is sound asleep now except for me! With that, I'm off to get a good night's sleep and dream about all of the fun we'll have this weekend. I am truly blessed to share our 10th Anniversary with the love of my life, and our two most precious gifts!

Life is good...