ELEVEN MONTHS.  Wow.  Who knew time could go by so quickly?  This time last year, I was just getting ready to get "beamed", aka radiation...Yikes!  Yes it was around this time last year I was at my wits end with chemo, and that chick was about to rip the hair out of my head making the radiation mask.  Oh my goodness I wouldn't wish that on my worst enemy!  So, here I am - 11 months later.

I recently watched a presentation online that was very helpful and for the newly diagnosed I feel like it would be a fantastic resource.  The title was "Lymphoma in Your Teens, Twenties and Thirties: Coping After Treatment and Through Long Term Survivorship".  If you want to listen to it, click here.  The speaker is a long term survivor of Hodgkin's.  It spoke about how your life is before cancer, and how much it changes when you are diagnosed.  Here are two images from the presentation that really show how many things actually change in one's life:





That's a lot of new issues for someone to deal with, much less someone in their twenties.  It talked about how you are thrown into the world of hospitals, blood draws, scans, constant meetings with doctors, and how you are told where to be and when.  It really helped me realize how much time and effort went into my diagnosis and treatment.  It helped me realize that I am not alone in how I feel pretty much all the time.  It spoke about the 2 faces of cancer which is spot on:  1.  Celebration and Hope   2.  Uncertainty and Fear.  Well I feel like I am those 2 faces all the time.  I celebrate, but then I worry.  This is all just part of it.   I can't expect to move on and forget about the mind-blowing nightmare that happened 16 months ago.  It will take time...and I get that.  It seems as though each day that passes it gets a little easier.  But then I read about someone relapsing on my lymphoma forum, and it makes me extremely anxious.  I wonder if I should quit reading the forum, but then I realize that those people need encouragement and help just like I did, so I stay.  Anyways, I just thought I'd mention my thoughts...that's what this blog is for right?!  This time next month it will be one year since I finished treatment...YAY!  Can you believe it's almost February???  Crazy!

If any of you are wondering how I'm feeling these days I must say that I feel fabulous.  Ben and I both have been working out and eating right (most of the time!) and I feel like we are taking good care of ourselves.  We are both really looking forward to warmer weather so we can go exercise outside again!  I am still trying to lose my chemo weight...man it sticks like glue!  Or, it could be the fact that I am pushing 30...OMG did I really just say that?  AGGGHHHHHH!  Whatever, I'm curvier than I was before...Ben doesn't seem to mind at all and as long as he thinks I'm still smokin' hot that's all that matters right??!?!?!?!  ;)  My hair is looking good these days.  There are still a few of those scraggly hairs left on my head, but no one notices but me.  I think I might grow it long again - just because I can.  I hear a ponytail calling my name!

My next follow up is in February for blood work only.  Then, I am scheduled to have another scan in May.  Well, I'm not so sure about that.  Have any of you seen the news recently about the dangers of CT scans?  Turns out the give off A LOT more radiation than they originally thought.  That makes me SO angry.  How could they not know that from the beginning?  They are messing with peoples lives here, and that makes me furious!  I've had 5 total including my PET/CT's.  It's scary to think about.  There are many people out there who've had 50...even 100 scans.  I am very uncomfortable with that fact that I've had 5.  But, you have to think that it might be even more dangerous to not do scans.  So, I don't really know what to do.  We are going to talk to my oncologist about it in February.  I'll let you all know what we decide!

Hope you are all having a good week - and I don't know about yall but I am sooooooooo ready for spring!

Love to all,

Today is my niece's 16th Birthday...oh my goodness how time flies!  I remember when she was just a baby, and now she's driving...WOW.  She's a sweet, talented, beautiful young lady - and I just love her!

Lauren, I hope your day is fabulous...can't wait to celebrate in a few weeks!  I LOVE YOU!

Happy Friday everyone!


I wanted to post this.  I copied it from Fantabulously Frugal's website...and thought it was a great idea.  These people really need some help, and everyone has 5 or 10 bucks to spare.


1. Text "HAITI" to 90999 and donate $10 to the Red Cross.  This was set up by the U.S. State Department, so you know it's legit.  The $10 donation will be added to your next cell phone bill.

2. Text "Yele" to 501501 to donate $5 to Yele Haita, a charity set up by Wyclef Jean to help those people in his home country of Haiti.


3.  I can't do either of these because I have a company owned phone, so I donated through this website:
Doctors Without Borders



I hope all of you have a fantastic weekend!  Love to all,


Kerri

Gosh, I don't know what's going on but this is the second celebrity in 6 months to be diagnosed with Hodgkin's.  He is one of my favorite actors, and he was on my all-time favorite show Six Feet Under.  I literally cried when that show went off the air, it was so awesome!  I am hopeful that he will be as strong of a voice that Ethan Zohn has been.

Michael C. Hall has Cancer

Whew, after a busy Christmas and New Years, Ben and I are trying to get back into the swing of things. It's tough after having two full weeks off of work. I really was spoiled there at the end. We had a wonderful Christmas with my side of the family this year! We spent a lot of time at my parents house and at my Brothers house too. We had some really, really good food courtesy of my Mom and Dad - mmmmmmm they can cook! And it was nice just to relax, and spend time with them. We saw some friends as well, and went out a couple of times which was fun. Santa Claus was good to both Ben and I - I guess we were good last year! I had a blast until the Sat after Christmas when I started to feel weird. I knew it right when it hit me - I was getting sick. UGH. I HATE being sick. I honestly don't remember the last time I was sick. It was WAY before treatment last year. Anyways, I came down with a pretty nasty cold that Sunday, and it lasted well into the week. It made me miss the Lady Gaga concert - I was BEYOND upset. I love her music, and Kristen and Abbie said it was one of the best concerts they had ever seen. UGH thanks a lot stupid cold! So, I finally started to feel better on Wednesday and never made it into work that week. Ben and I left for Hilton Head Island on Thursday morning which was New Years Eve. We stayed at Kristen's parents condo, which is beautiful and so convenient to great restaurants and places to hang out. We went out that night with Kristen, Matt, Abbie, Steve and our friend Matty C who used to live in ATL, but lives in Hilton Head now. It was so much funnnnnnn!!!!!!!!! We had a meal of lobster tail and filet, then went bar hopping. We rang in the New Year at a place called Remy's - fun times! It sure beat the heck out of last New Years!  We had a great time in Hilton Head.  We stayed through the weekend and on Saturday we all went to Wild Wings to watch the Gamecocks play in the bowl game. Whatever the heck happened to them I don't know - they played terrible! Oh well! So, after the game Ben starts feeling bad. I was like OH NO! Yep, he got my nasty cold. He's still got it - he's been down for the count since Sat night.  I feel terrible for giving it to him, and I hope he feels better soon.  Say a little prayer for him!

Overall we had GREAT break and I am still wishing it wasn't over yet!

Here's some pics of Hilton Head!







Hope all of you are staying warm - it was 17 in "Hot"lanta this morning...What the heck? I can't stand it!

Happy New Year everyone, may 2010 be the best year ever!!!

Love to all,

It's almost Christmas!   Ben and I are getting ready to pack up and head to my hometown of North Augusta for the week.  We are going to a wedding Saturday night, and I hear winter weddings are beautiful...we're excited!  Sunday we're coming back to Atlanta to celebrate Ben's grandmother Rere's 80th birthday party, that should be a great time!  Then we head back to North Augusta Monday morning to spend the week with my side of the family.  Whew...it's gonna be a busy weekend!

Christmas is my favorite holiday of the year.  My 2nd is the 4th of July - and that's only because I love summer so much.  Thanksgiving comes in at a close 3rd.  Christmas is always a time of joy, togetherness, and love and I like that.  Christmas with my side of the family is always spent eating ridiculously good food, and I'm talking every single night.  We always have lasagna on Christmas Eve, and my Mom's is just out of this world.  My Dad's birthday is December 22nd, and we're having shrimp and grits that night.  Yum!  We'll eat at my brother's house one night as well, and he can throw down on a grill like it's nobody's business - he should enter those cook-offs on the Food Network!  Like I have said before, we like to eat, drink and be merry when we're together - and this year won't be any different!  We always play a certain song called 'Merry Christmas from the Family" by Robert Earl Keen during this time of year, and we quote "Christmas Vacation" at least once every hour.  We sit outside in the freezing cold, listen to the Christmas mix on my ipod, and build a raging fire every night.  It's also a time when we get to see some old friends.  A lot of my high school buddies still live in North Augusta, and a ton of the people who moved away always fly home for Christmas.  I am betting we'll all meet up one night and go out - there was one year that I believe around 40 people showed up.  It was a complete high school reunion, fun times!

We'll be in North Augusta for a little over a week, then Ben and I are going to work just a couple of days the following week.  Then we are going to head down to Hilton Head, SC with Kristen and Matt to spend New Years Eve weekend.  Abbie and Steve are planning on making an apperance too, and it's always a good time when the 6 of us get together.  I can't wait!

Don't forget to cheer on the Cocks as we play UConn in our bowl game on Jan. 2nd!  Go Cocks!!!!!!

I hope all of you have a very Merry Christmas and a wonderful New Year!

Love to all,

Kerri


ps...check out the link below that...it's the cutest Christmas card ever.

Yall have to do this...

http://elfyourself.jibjab.com/view/x9L9clC1UdvqxQL2keSI

Go to elfyourself.com and make your own!  I've laughed at it so many times!

Love to all!

Kerri

Do yall like my new design? I thought it needed sprucing up! I've become pretty familiar with blog design. It's easier than you think.

Ben and I went to a Leukemia and Lymphoma Society awards show last night...it was great! Those people are so awesome, and it felt good to be recognized. Well, all I really got was a piece of paper, but whatever - it still felt good!

Hope everyone has a fantastic weekend, I love Fridays! (at 5 of course) We have my company Christmas dinner tomorrow. Of course, we'll be watching the SEC Championship game too, ROLL TIDE ROLL!!!!!

Love to all!

KJS

Dec. 2, 2008. I walked into my oncologist's office, Ben was sitting right beside me. We were waiting on the results of my first PET scan following 5 rounds of chemo to see if I was in remission or not. Dr. H casually walks in, my heart is pounding out of my chest as I'm sure Ben's was as well... and he says "its a complete response, you are in full remission". Those were some pretty sweet words. I am celebrating one year of remission today. That is something to be thankful for! I am in such a great mood today!

I have had a tough time with my hair over the last year. This time last year it was getting pretty thin, and I know I was so blessed that I didn't lose all of it. Well the only thing with not losing all of it is that you have to deal with the new, weird hair that starts growing in after chemo. It was kinked, blah, nasty hair. But, it filled in very quickly and slowly started to get back to the old texture it was. I got most of that nasty old hair cut off last night. It FINALLY looks healthy again, and I am so happy! It's amazing what little things can make you happy, and a good haircut certainly does.

I took this pic just now in my office, the lighting is terrible and my blackberry doesn't take good pics but at least you can see what I'm talking about.



YAY!

Love to all!

Kerri