post-chemo progress

Hello hello :)

It's been 2 days since I finished with my first dose of chemo, and so far I'm feeling fine....well, except for a sore throat each morning. Hopefully that doesn't mean I'm headed for any ulcers. I've been obsessively using the baking soda, but we'll see how effective that is. No nausea as of yet though ::knock on wood::

I must say that I'm amazed at how many people have found their way to this journal. I am so excited to have readers! It makes me smile every time I see a new comment :) I cannot tell you how much I appreciate all of the support and advice.

Yesterday I was finally able to get out of the house for some fun. These past 2 weeks have been a blur of graduation, moving home, hospital visits, pharmacy visits, and lots of time spent drugged up on the couch or in bed. I got a much-needed break from all of that at last. After spending the morning enjoying some time with my Mom and Keen, I headed over to Dan's for lunch. We had pizza and some fruit cups. Not being able to have fresh fruit this summer is definitely going to take some adjusting. I am craving strawberries like nothing else! I have also found that my taste buds have become much more sensitive to spicy foods, so I suppose I'll have to cut back on my intake of salsa for a while. I'm just glad to see that my appetite is still healthy.

After lunch Dan and I headed out to do some shopping. We stopped by Target for some medical supplies for me, including my favorite purchase: a fancy new pill-organizer. It's pink and green and divides my medications into days of the week as well as morning and evening. The best feature is that you can snap off each individual day so that you don't have to lug around the whole box. How very handy!

Next we checked out the silver flatware that my mom asked for at the mall. I had no idea that forks could be so expensive...Dan thinks perhaps we should settle for plastic utensils when we get our own house someday. That sounds good to me. Once shopping was finished, we headed back to Dan's to relax for a bit. I'm doing my best not to push myself too much, which is a change. I really enjoy having a busy schedule. But I suppose this whole experience will be a lesson for me on the importance of patience and down time.

The evening was action-packed though. Dan and I went to opening night of Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End with his dad and his brother Jon. It was pretty good. Maybe not my favorite installment of the series, but a great summer movie nonetheless. I think there were a few too many subplots, but it was funny and full of great special effects as usual. I pigged out on nachos and cheese and we managed to smuggle in some Bruster's ice cream too :) I figured if I got caught sneaking food in I'd just play the cancer card and make up something about needing ice cream to wash down my meds. How could anyone argue with that? I probably shouldn't get into the habit of using my disease as a means for getting away with ridiculous things like that, but it made me laugh thinking about it.

In all, yesterday was fantastic. I hope that there are plenty more "normal" days like that ahead. So far this morning I'm feeling great, so I plan to head over to Booth's Corner to shop for a wig and maybe a fruit pie to satisfy my strawberry craving. Dr. G wrote me a prescription for a "cranial prosthetic" to take with me. I'll let you know if I find anything good. I may try a new hair color for the first time in my life. We'll see.

I hope everyone has a great weekend! I love you all,
Lauren