I think I can

It was fun to get out a few weeks ago for the Get Your Rear in Gear Run. Thank you so much for your generous donations, support and especially to all of our good friends in Hopkinton who came out on a sunny Saturday morning to join us. It was a perfect day to walk through the apple trees at Gould Hill Orchard, admire the view (I think we saw Mount Washington-peeking through the morning fog) not to mention an ideal excuse to pick some apples and eat a cider donut. Thank you!

I am now nine weeks into and half-way through my regime of clean-up chemo, which consists of a hefty daily dose of extremely toxic-smelling pills. If all goes as planned this will be the last part of my cancer journey that started nine months ago.  I think I can!

I am continuing to take four Xeloda pills twice a day for two weeks followed by one week "off" to give my body a chance to recover before the next assault. I meet with my local oncologist on my off weeks to check in and have blood drawn to confirm I am healthy enough to continue with the next round. Thankfully my labs have all looked good so far. 

As far as side effects, fortunately the chemo I am on doesn't usually cause all of the dreadful side effects typically associated with chemo, or at least not to the same extent as some chemo drugs. I have not lost my hair, though it has thinned. Any tips on regrowing hair would be appreciated! Another side effect is very dry skin and in particular peeling finger tips. Each night I slather my hands with Bag Balm and wear thin cotton gloves to sleep to protect the skin on my hands. The skin has peeled enough that my iPhone no longer recognizes my finger print. I am also suffering from "chemo brain", which is essentially mild cognitive impairment and feeling like I am in a bit of a brain fog most of the time--to the point of entertainment for Flo and Bea when I ask them to remind me of someone's name or complicated words like rock:) And I drive Flo and Bea crazy with my repeated requests for them to wash their hands and do everything else I can to keep myself healthy in spite of a compromised immune system. I am hopeful that I can remain healthy enough to finish these last 9 weeks of chemo, meaning I would be done with this whole charade by mid-December. 

gratuitous picture of the happy apples (full of antioxidants)
and little oranges (lots of phytonutrients) that was always
 my favorite page in the book.

It seems that in addition to continuing to recover from surgeries, my body is perhaps adjusting to the chemo and I am feeling better more days now than not.  This is such a relief!  I have found that exercising daily as much as I am able is what helps me best tolerate the chemo. I make this my priority most days and it has been great to start riding my bike again, which I really missed doing over the past few months. I won't lie-I still have rough days, nights and moments but they are fewer and farther between and it seems like I am now moving out of crisis mode and beginning to think about what comes next. 

But for now, we are all so happy to have my brother and his son visiting from California.  Flo and Bea never ever tire of playing, being silly, snuggling and making up games with their cousin Augie. Having him here for 5 days has been such a treat for them-and equally a treat for me to have time with my brother who has also been a most helpful visitor in every way. We will be sad to say goodbye to them.