5 Years

So it has been awhile! I am posting regularly on facebook but I wanted to share the update on here as well. 5 years ago I was diagnosed with Acute Myelogenous Leukemia (AML) Subtype myeloblastic leukemia (M2) three days before my 34th birthday. Not that there is ever a good time but it was the day before the HSI and I was the Clinical Management Flight Superintendent at the time.

I remember the first doctor told me if I made it two weeks it would bee a miracle and somehow we slowly progressed to plan two through several doctors and nurses, favorable cytogenetics, induction chemotherapy, post-remission therapy, maintenance chemotherapy, tons of transfusions and a whole lot of support from all our friends and family... Somewhere around the third year my doctor told me the next milestone would be the five year mark. Given my prognosis is still 5 years with a 45-65% chance of survivability the goal has always been to prolong my quality of life to that end. 5 years is here and now so I should be declared cancer free real soon, now mind you i've been told we will have to keep a watch on my blood counts till the end of my life also...so much for worry free I know but it could have all worked out a lot worse! I was looking through my old blog tonight and I saw the picture where Marc made me celebrate my 34th birthday on the night before I had to be admitted to the James for what seemed like an eternity. Well come Sunday it is going to be the 5th birthday I get to celebrate since then. Hope the weather cooperates I think I want to go for a ride on the scoots.

So I'll just say I'm still here, the cancer did not beat me only temporarily slowed me down (it was such am inconvenience lol). The kids are all old enough they will remember me no matter what the future holds, I have a head full of hair again (well sorta lol), I still have my military career, and I created a very successful small business two years ago. My very loving and tolerable husband Marcus Vest has stayed by my side in sickness and in health and through every adversity including my ongoing chemo brain, mood swings and the insane work-a-holic that hasn't slowed down! I believe whole heartedly regret for the things we did can be tempered by time; it is regret for the things we did not do that is inconsolable. I could not ask for anything more my, life is a beautiful thing.

                             PERSPECTIVE

 the worst of times...                                                            

             ...to there really are better days ahead!

Fit to Fight

A hard pill to swallow

So in my sweaty delusional state last night I started reflecting back on all the challenges I have been through in my life and it hit me hard. Up until I was diagnosed with Leukemia I have never failed at anything I set my mind to except my last AF Fitness test in February. I gave that test everything I had and my body said no can do. I missed passing it by 10 seconds. This failure was a hard pill to swallow, not even prior to my diagnosis when my blood counts were silently dropping at an alarming rate did I fail the fitness test. I believe several of my 445th AES colleagues can remember that summer in 2008 when we had to take that PT test back to back during block training. That was rough, I had barely passed that test and I literally felt like I was going to die, and looking back I am lucky I didn’t. The Leukemia was already taking over my body, but I blamed it on being overweight and smoking at the time. So you may wonder where I am going with this. On January 1, 2012 I weighed 189 pounds, yep 189 pounds. Holy shit, I had really let myself go. I saw pictures of myself at my sister’s wedding last fall and I was mortified by how bad I looked. Ever since I went into remission in December 2009 felt like I had something to prove and I had more time to get it done, how much who knows. My doc is still telling me I have a 50-60% chance of 3-5 year survivability. Well, I am at the year 3 mark of that prognosis and I am not buying it, last time I checked there is no expiration date stamped on the bottom of my foot. It amazes me that everyone thought I would slow down and enjoy life, because I had been given a second chance. Well anyone who truly knows me should know better, hello people; I am a work-a-holic. I have been doing the exact opposite in case you have not noticed. Unfortunately and to my detriment, I had been living on fast food and running from my job at ODH or at Wright Patterson AFB, from there to my warehouse, from there to pick up take out for the family because well I don’t cook and I really don’t have time to anyways, and once at home I would end up on the couch with the laptop working until 10-11 sometimes 12 every night only to get up at 4:30am the next day to do it again. Needless to say starting my own company has been the second biggest challenge of my life but it has also been the most rewarding. Realistically it has also been the most detrimental to my health because this has been my daily ritual for the past 15 months. So let me preface this by saying more than likely I am always going to be a work-a-holic. I am just wired that way and most of the time I really do enjoy working. Over the years my work ethic if anything has just gotten stronger so that is not going to change. The only thing I have never put a lot of effort into is myself, because, like most people we are the easiest thing to ignore. So I made a decision back in December that I was not going to renew my waiver that made me exempt from taking the fitness test. Deep down inside I knew that enough time had passed and that I should be able to pass the test. It became an integrity issue for me, I was watching many of my colleagues struggle with the fitness test and I began to feel guilty about having a waiver. So I started working out a little here and there and watching what I was eating, but it was literally one bite at a time as it went into my mouth and still was not all that healthy. In January I started seasoning training at the base and it I have to say it was much easier to drink the cool-aide, that is, to make life style changes. I have to say the fitness lifestyle works great when I am on orders with all the base resources at my disposal and dedicated time to work out. I have been able to attended healthy eating classes and stress management with allotted time just for working out, with state of the art work out facilities. This morning I got on the scale and I weigh 169 pounds. I have lost 20 pounds in 6 months. Now although that is not a lot of weight loss it is a very healthy weight loss. I have gained quite a bit of muscle in place of my fat, and even though I still have a lot to lose, I don’t feel bad about it not losing more. In hindsight considering I was bed bound most of the time for almost a year and on steroids for over 3 years, I knew this is going to take some serious time so I am ok with that. Honestly, I think I will pass on Sunday, god knows I am going to give it everything I got. If I do pass it may be with a 75 and I let me say I will be proud as hell of a 75 score. Some of you may be wondering where am going with this rant? Well if for some reason I don’t pass it this Sunday the important thing is I am not a piece of shit and neither is anyone else who does not get an outstanding score on their fitness test or that is struggling just to pass it. The fitness test is just one Air Force Standard and as such must be met they have increased since I came in but it is what it is. Because of this, I made a commitment to myself that if I cannot pass my fitness test on Sunday even though it will only be my second failure, it is my time to go. No matter what I am still the same SNCO I have always been, if not better. I am at a cross roads where will not allow everything that I have worked so hard for in my Air Force career nor all the sacrifices my family has made with me being away from them to be for nothing i.e by getting my first letter of counseling or a letter of reprimand or referral EPR that is rated at a 3 or a 4 which is a career buster because I don’t meet the standard or fit a certain image. As a training manger I sit at a desk and I won’t be deploying anymore anyway. It is a support position it is not flying and in my unit everyone knows it is all about flying, I should know I used to be a flyer. The reality is the workout scheduled is not so realistic when I go back out into the civilian sector to a fulltime job 7:00AM-3:30PM, running my company 4:30PM-10:00PM plus 3 kids still at home. You see there is not a whole lot of time for fitness in there but I will try the best I can to maintain something. I have had the optimal conditions for the past 5 months to make it happen so there you have it, my Air Force career is riding on this. I’ll let you know how it goes.

November 30 2011

Man I hate needles, partly from being a pin cushion during the past three years living with AML. Some vampires were much worse than others. I think I have developed a Pavlov reaction to getting stuck that sometimes. I am now a needle wimp without some serious pre-medication action. But in weighing it all out, I wouldn't let that stop me from going back into the James Cancer Hospital and getting these Bone Marrow Biopsy’s and Bone Marrow Aspirations every quarter. Hopefully we can get to an annual schedule soon.

So what’s the dealio, how am I doing? Well as you can see in the video I am still alive and kicking, just waiting on the results. I am anticipating everything is still good. My doc still will not change my prognosis. Rats, I hate hearing that I only have a 60% chance of 5 year survivability even now. Its frustrating. I am am just as busy if not more so than I was prior to being diagnosed. I have put on a few pounds… well, maybe more than a few pounds, I am still having some respiratory issues that are hindering my physical capabilities. I am also still struggling with cognitive disconnects or chemo brain type episodes, ocular headaches and the daily does of bone and joint pain but considering it all I really can’t complain. I am luck to be alive.

So hopefully I can maintain remission and prove my doc wrong. However, if she is right it will not be a pretty road. My sister was tested to see if she is a bone marrow match and unfortunately, no match. It is very personal decision to be tested and placed in the national registry. After you watch people that are close to you die, some very quickly, others have suffered immensely, and as you watch them die you wish that there is something ... anything ... that could be done to help relieve their pain. In my case there wasn't a thing I could do, I am in the same boat. It is a very helpless, empty feeling.

There are many people in a position to make a difference for someone in a similar situation. Without a bone marrow transplant (BMT), this form of leukemia, called AML, could claim it's victim in about 3 - 5 years, possibly sooner. With life giving marrow this person's chances of a full remission (recovery -- free of cancer) can be as high as 80 - 85 percent!

I signed the back of my drivers license to be an organ donor like many others, but I'd probably have to be dead to do most of that donating. With bone marrow donation, you would replenish your marrow in about 3 weeks (and remain alive too).
Matching is much like hitting the lottery numbers. To date, of the over 2,000,000 people typed by the National Marrow Donor Program (NMDP), only around 4,300 unrelated been fortunate enough to be selected to donate. Currently only 65 percent of all people requiring bone marrow transplants can find a suitable donor. Thirty-five percent are not so lucky. The key to unlock their disease is in the bones of someone still untested. I’m just saying…

So that’s it for now, I know these posts are few & far between but facebook me, it is updated much more frequently.

Bone Marrow Biopsy & Aspirate results are in

I got the call Friday, less then 5% Blast cells so I am still in remission, WOOHOO!

2010 Season's Greatings!

I am so excited to share our Christmas Card this year, it is truly unique & I love it. I can't stop smiling every time I look at the front picture with Zack holding the Train. It makes me think of Gulliver's Travels, well a Zack attack version that is! Tomorrow I go in for the 10th Bone Marrow Biopsy. This is the"1 year" aspiration post chemo so keep your fingers crossed for less than 5% blast cells. I will post the results once I get them around the New year. In the mean time from my family to yours, Happy Holidays & Merry Christmas. I hope you enjoy the card as much as we did making it!





Trent Beaver, Photographer "Simply the Best" London Imagery delivered way more than we expected. Trent Beaver is really gifted and you can't beat the prices for the time & quality he puts into each session. I didn't think anyone could get our whole family, Vest party of 6, to relax in front of the lens, but he succeeded. Trent's personality/demeanor/down-to-earth vibe was a HUGE factor in our repeat business i.e family portraits, senior pictures, the most unique & best Christmas photo card that I & many of my family, friends & colleagues have ever seen ever. I just wanted to say what a pleasure it has been & thank you so much! I can't wait to see what you come up with next!

Social Media Revolution

Truth is nothing is private aymore.

Thank our veterans and those serving today

There are two distinct types of people in our country: people who are fighting for their lives and people who are fighting with their lives. Many of us go through life seeking our own purpose, not thinking very much about the country we live in or how we achieved or maintain our freedom. We often take for granted all that we have, focusing on our personal needs, such as seeking better jobs, taking care of our families, enjoying the fruits of our labors. In a sense, we fight for all of the fine things this free country affords us. This group, of which most Americans are members, is basically "fighting" every day for their own lives.

And then there is the other group. They are the few, the ones who have taken a different road. It's a path paved with the price of freedom, traveled by those who embrace the toll it may take to achieve it, chosen by those who know only they stand in the way of freedom's destruction. It's a path that places their lives in the hands of others and often ends with a knock on the door.

Who is this group of people? What makes them willing to lay down enjoying their own personal wants in order to preserve our national freedoms? These are our young, healthy, educated seemingly invincible military men and women, who are often in their early twenties, young people who are perfectly able to achieve success in a civilian world. But something else motivates them: serving. They willingly and lovingly decide that if cutting their lives short will advance the cause of freedom, then the price is not too great.

You may have heard the saying, "There have only been two defining forces in the world willing to die for you: Jesus Christ and the American Soldier. Jesus died for your soul and the American Soldier died for your freedom."

The men and women currently serving in our military and our veterans deserve our highest respect for fighting with their lives to protect the rest of us as we fight for our lives. That's what Honor and Remember is all about.

IOMC Halloween 2010

Wow, what a great Halloween Party. Gobbler (Marc) & I had an awesome evening with our IOMC family!A good time was had by all!

Good cause to honor breast cancer victims, survivors and supporters

NAPA AUTO PARTS and NASCAR Sprint Cup driver Martin Truex, Jr., are teaming up with Susan G. Komen for the Cure to honor breast cancer victims, survivors and supporters via a special, one-of-a-kind fan-generated paint scheme featuring the names of individuals affected by breast cancer.

From now to Oct. 11, consumers can submit the names of loved ones affected by breast cancer to appear on the No. 56 NAPA Toyota by making a minimum donation of $5.60 via the NAPA Know How Facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/napaknowhow). The NAPA Signature Car application allows you to enter a name and select the area of the car where you would like the dedication to appear. Your dedication will then be featured on the #56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota for the November 7th NASCAR Sprint Cup Race at Texas Motor Speedway.

With the help of fan donations, NAPA is hoping to raise at least $250,000 for Susan G. Komen for the Cure during National Breast Cancer Awareness Month and to recognize more than 56,000 individuals affected by breast cancer with the custom paint scheme.

June 13, 2010

My last update was in December I think. Gee's has it been that long? Marcus reminded me not everyone is on Facebook & I should be more mindful of that. So here goes. I had my 9th biopsy last week & I met with my Dr. this week for the results. Less than 5% blast cells meaning I am still in remission. I rode all the way to Washing to D.C & back memorial day weekend about 1300 miles round trip, I have been working fulltime & still doing my reserve thing in the military my Medical Evaluation Board (MEB) is not slated until September so keep your fingers crossed. I am a little heavier than I would like to be & my physical strength is crap. The Dr.s keep telling me I am minimizing everything that I have been through & that I am very de-conditioned it is going to take a lot of time. The important thing is I am still alive & kicking & life is good especially considering I should not be here.
My Grandmother Passed Memorial Day weekend & it deeply affected me. I had not thought a lot about death in awhile & her passing was not unexpected. The funeral was very nice & my Uncle performed her Eulogy & it was beautiful. I kept visioning her dancing around her kitchen humming an old tune with a big grin on her face. That always used to make me laugh, that is how I choose to remember her.
During my last visit I asked my Dr. about the 50-60% 5 year survivability she put on my prognosis & she didn't want to talk about it much. She danced around it a bit & just kept saying I should enjoy every day. I have been thinking about that a lot here lately. The first year after chemo treatment everyone is so paranoid about you. You can't always live your life in a bubble so I am not. I hope to go out when it's my time & not a minute sooner so I am not sweating the small stuff or at least that is my story & I am sticking to it.
Brandon graduated last weekend, WOOHOO! 1 down 3 more to go. Man that boy had me sweating it. I had to look at the diploma twice. I am very proud of him for sticking it out.
This is not a news flash for those of you who know me, my guilty pleasure is riding my motorcycle as much as I can. I just love the freedom of it. I am trying to ride as much as possible to make up for the tim that I couldn't when I was sick. No interruptions its very calming. I rode about 270 miles on my motorcycle yesterday with the IOMC up to Willard & back. It was raining when we started out but it didn't last long. We all had a great time hanging out with the Willard Chapter. Their hospitality was awesome! It was hot & humid as hell when we headed back to our clubhouse for the UFC fight. We hit a little rain in Columbus, put the hammer down & out ran the worst of it. I left early to get home for the kids. I heard I didn't miss much since Chuck got laid out in the first round, what a letdown! I hit one hell of severe thunderstorm with torrential down pours 1/4 on the way home. Thank God Hope was in the car behind me, I had to wave her around so I could follow her tail lights home, I couldn't see squat. I was freaking soaked from the neck up, I looked like a drowned rat except for my smile from ear to ear. The frog togs did their job, I got a little wet around the ankles from where the zippers are but considering but I really can't complain.
Poor Marc wants an Street Glide so bad he can't stand it. I know it is killing his back on his Sportster but he is toughing it out until he gets his car paid off. A few more years & he should be able to get one. I am very impressed with his restaint. I keep thinking I am going to come home one day & there will be one in the drive way but he is being very responsible & for that I am proud of him!
I am in the office for a couple of days & the base for the next 2 weeks. I am also going to the VA for contamination testing so that should be interesting. I am going to try to update my blog with newer photo slide shows & stuff. No promises for when the next posting will be. So until I write again...

SURVIVOR

Hello everybody, my Marcus reminded me today how much I have really neglected my Blog these past few months. I found facebook & that is where I have focused my updates these days. It seems like once I got through the hospital chemotherapy treatments & I moved on to the next phase of maintenance chemotherapy treatments, which were out patient, my life started picking up the pace again like I was never sick at all. (& that is a good thing)

I am very happy to report I just finished my last round of Chemotherapy treatment on December 5th! WOOHOO!!! I am so glad that part is finally over. I go back to the James Cancer Institute in January 2010 to get the 7th bone marrow biopsy taken. I am confident it will still show I am in remission, since I just finished chemo. The true test will be the bone marrow biopsy in the fall of 2010. That will be the fist biopsy in over 2 years that I have not had any chemotherapy to keep the cancer away.

Christmas will be here soon & it is hard to believe that this time last year I was desperately fighting for my life, my how things have improved. I hope this holiday season finds you all happy, healthy and surrounded by the ones you love. Don’t take one second of your life for granted!

For those of you who have AML & stumbled across my blog in your search for information or survivors. I have been in your shoes. The search was an obsession when I was initially diagnosed & it was hard pill to swallow when I went months & found no survivors I started to panic & slipped into a severe depression. I have detailed my journey from initial diagnosis to remission on this blog in the hope that it will help someone else because finding survivors helps give you hope. Scroll down to the right side of the page to the archive section. My AML fight all began back in September 2008 & although it was a long road it was not an impossible one. Don't get to hung up on the medical bills, you will never be able to pay for them all, set yourself up with payment plans that you can afford to pay on for the rest of your life. (Be realistic & keep them small, you will have multiple billers you have to pay on) You need to have a really good support system, mine was my Marcus. He pushed me when I needed it & loved me through it all. My children were my motivation when I felt I could not fight it any longer on the really bad days. For every bad day the good days far outweighed them. I have been VERY involved in my treatment & always pushed the doctors to keep me informed every step of the way. If you do not question them they will not tell you because most of the patients are to sick, tired or weak to know what questions to ask. Now I am a firm believer that attitude is everything & you have to stay positive. If you just lay there & let it, the cancer will take you! You have to fight it, the fatigue, the depression, the cancer... I used to be a pessimist, it was a major change for me but I had to become an optimist (I always say I am a realist so I wanted hard facts & in my age bracket there were not many to go off of since the demographic for someone with AML is 65 years or older males & I am a 35 year old female. The point is, THERE IS HOPE & YOU CAN DO IT!

Although I am not on my Blog much these days I am on facebook just about every week, so is Marcus. My e-mail address is sandittie1@yahoo.com or type in Sandi Golden-Vest on the facebook search engine & add me as one of your friends. I post something just about once a week & if I don’t Marcus does. I look forward to hearing from you.

Thank you all so much for your prayers & support,

Sandi Golden-Vest

August 4, 2009

Ok I have been putting most of my pictures on facebook because it is so much easier to upload them in bulk on there. Here are a few of the good ones from Sharon's visit...
Granma & Grandpa Oard's house


Dinner at Red Lobster, Dads favorite next to Kewpee, with & Aunt Bonnie & Jessica as well


Copper & Aunt Sandi


I even cooked a few home made meals while Sharon was up here


I was able to stop by & see my other side of the family as well while I was in Lima to. Grandma Darlene, me, Elaine, Aunt Debe, Aunt Lynn, Paige & Zack. Preston was there to but it looks like he ran out of the picture.

Brandon & Zack at the LHS Football Pancake breakfast fundraiser


This is me at Cycle 5 Chemotherapy treatment last week... look at all that hair finally!


If you want to see more photos go to facebook, type inmy e-mail & request me for a friend & I will confirm you. I have tons of pictures of the family on there.

July 29, 2009

I am back in for treatment this week. I am on Day 2 of my 5th Cycle of Maintenance Chemotherapy. I did see my Dr. today she is going to work on Marc's FMLA forms. We talked about the future a little & I let her know I quit taking all my medication. It was a long talk to say the least. I am trying to let my body stabilize a little bit & let my immune system recover itself... so far she is being supportive but cautious. We talked heavily about relapse in my age group it is very likely that if I am going to relapse it will be within the next year so time will tell.

My sister made it back home to Colorado. Pictures will be coming soon. I won't put a date because you all know I have been slacking off my blog something awful.

Katie is coming home soon from Louisiana & Paige is heading out for Atlanta to spend some time with her Aunt Wendy. Brandon is in full swing of football conditioning & camp, 2-a-days will be here before we know it. Brandon & Tiffany celebrated their "6 month" anniversary last Friday to dinner in Hillard & a movie this was a a big deal for Brandon & then last Sunday they went to Kings Island. Seems like he is never home anymore & when he is Tiffany comes over... to be young & in love...


Zack is Zack rotten as ever but still cute as a button. I will get pictures posted one of these days.

Marc has been in the garage every night this week swapping parts off my motorcycle. He sold my bike & got a me one that is 1 year newer, it was to good of a deal to pass up. She is a beautiful Pearl color. Thats about it in a nutshell!

July 14, 2009

Sorry I have been out of touch since before the 4th of July. I have been busy since I am back to work full time plus I was down at the base 4 days last week. My sister Sharon will be flying in on Friday so we have been trying to get the house in order before she gets here. We pulled up all the old carpets in the house & moved Zack up to his room I finally got done painting the dresser. He was too scared to sleep in his room the first night but he slept in the last night. Marc has been painting his old room he still has one more coat to go...

I have some really good pictures from our holiday weekend but I have not made the time to upload them yet soon... I hope.

June 25, 2009

I really like this picture of Zack on the slip & slide

It has been 15 days since my last post & I have had many phone calls asking for updates so here goes: My 6th Bone Marrow Biopsy results came back at 1% Blast cells, this means I am still in remission. As long as the Blast cells are less than 5% I am considered in remission. I finished my fourth cycle of Maintenance chemotherapy, Dicitabine, last Thursday. This is the halfway point, we have 4 more maintenance cycles to go. I should finish up somewhere around October. My Dr. released me to return to work full time effective next Monday. I have been building up to this & although I am not 100% I am pretty sure I can handle it. Here are a few pictures of the Biopsy, a lot of over the shoulder shots since Marc was not able to be there with me. I can't get over how fast may hair grew it is a little over an inch long in certain areas now. If it was not or my eyeballs most people cannot tell that I am still sick anymore.



The Union re-instated me as a steward at work & I already filed a grievance for someone. I also threw together a 3 year Training & Exercise Plan for the Agency over the past 2 days so I have been jumping right back into work without to much difficulty. I am still coming home & crashing every night though. I really don't have the energy like I used to have but once the Chemo is over I hope that it will eventually come back.


This is a good picture of Zack & Marc a couple of weekends ago


this is the last picture I got of Katie before she left to go to her dads

This is a cute picture of Paige in the egg toss during Circleville's Community day

We are taking a break from riding this weekend & staying home. Friday night we are taking the kids up to the Strawberry Festival & just hanging out at home all weekend & then next weekend we are taking them camping for the whole weekend. Brandon will be going with Tiffany & her family camping in Cambridge the same weekend. After Brandon's girlfriend slept over the weekend while we were up at the lake I was not so sure we were ever going to let him do much of anything, but he is almost 18 & we have to start letting him make his on way. I am hoping her parents will keep close tabs on them.

This is a picture of Marc & I the weekend we went up to Lake Erie for Sandusky Bike Week. If you look real close you can see the senic Davis-Besse nuclear power plant in the background...

I have not seen my sister since I got sick & she is coming home the weekend of July 18th. She will be bringing my nieces with her, Copper & Sierra. It will be great to see them all. I have only seen pictures of Copper & Sierra is the same age Zack was the last time they were up here so I know her & Zack will have a lot of fun together. I will have to keep on Marc to make sure he stays on top of the pool especially with it being so hot here lately. I told Sharon we will have to go on a ride while she is up here, she used to ride a little Honda Rebel. Can you see me riding Marcus bike with the Ape Hangers...

My Aunt Lynn is also coming to town in August so I am anxious to see her & Dennis as well. I really hope that they can come down and stay for awhile. I really feel that we have gotten closer especially when I got sick. My Lynn & Aunt Debbie both have been very supportive & close to me through this. When I moved away from Lima I have been real bad about not making it home & staying connected to the family. I can't say that it is any easier now but I am not making any excuses for it. I think I did that a lot when I went from 1 child to 4.

This is Marc's mid life crisis bad hair day!!!

Zack got his 2nd annual summer mohawk yesterday, as if he does not look rotten enough already.

This is me & my buddy Bill Larue in the background, we meet up during Bike week & finally got to ride together for the first time.

I found this picture from a ride Marc & I went on down by Jimbo's earlier this year & I can't remmber if I posted it once already.


Marc was back on his camera kick tonight when the severe storms rolled in & he got picture happy with the raindrops.there were a lot more than this.

June 10, 2009

Katie made it off safe & sound to her Dad's, I talked to her this afternoon, she said she was babysitting her brother Jonah & they were having a good time. I know she was ready to get a break from the pace of our house. I sent her report card with her & she told me she has not shown it to her Dad yet, her grades are not that bad but she could have done much better if she would have applied herself a little more. She said she is starting Art classes in July so I am sure she will really enjoy that.

I took Zack for a very short motorcycle ride last night, he loved it. Brandon started Drivers Ed today & is lifting for football daily except the weekends. Paige coned me into hair dye & baking goods at the grocery store tonight. I am going to enroll her the next time the Red Cross offers their CPR/First aid course here in town so she can get a baby sitting job if one comes along this summer. She took Zack to the Park on Tuesday afternoon & they had fun, they stopped at McDonald's afterwards & had a Happy Meal.

I will be back down at the base again on Friday. Only 2 more weeks of part-time hours at ODH & then I am back to Full Time. We decided we are not going to try & go to Sturgis this year, wishful thinking but it just isn't going to happen.

As far as my condition I have really been slacking when it comes to keeping up with my lab draws. My lab order expired & I forgot to call & get an updated order. They still drew them on the expired order at Madison County Hospital but it was a pain, no pun intended. I did call the Hospital again & they said they sent it but I had them fax it again only to find out they re-faxed the expired lab order. Needless to say I am not having my lab draws done twice weekly...

So here are my Lab Updates:
Day----WBC----ANC--------Hgb--------PLT---- Transfusions
6 Mar---185-----1.4------80---------11.3---------120------------N/A
I had a couple of lab draws when I went in for treatment in April but I do not remember what the labs were. So like I said earlier & as you can see below, I have really been slacking...
28 May---268-----1.3-----400---------11.4---------200------------N/A
10 Jun---287-----3.5----2200---------12.5---------198------------N/A

I am sure my Dr will give me a long lecture when I go in tomorrow, I will have my 6th Bone Marrow Biopsy. My ANC counts are good so we should be a go for the Biopsy. Marc is fighting with his work for FMLA so he cannot go with me, that will be a first & I am really not happy about this plus who will take the pictures? I will have to do the Biopsy without any drugs other than a topical numbing agent, I do not want to risk driving & getting in an accident afterwards & I will be going to the James straight from work.

This week after completing 3 day's in a row of the Homeland Security Exercise & Evaluation Program course, it has deflated me. The only reason I think I survived was due to my colleague's Paul from ODH & Kristen from Sandusky County HD, thanks guys my cheeks hut from laughing!

The weeks keep going by faster & faster & it seems like each time there are many tasks that I do not get done. Marc who is normally a morning person & up at 4:30 am every morning has been not getting up until about 5:30am. To my surprise he has been hitting the snooze button several times. this is very not like him. We both seem to be really tired a lot here lately. I will blame it on the nice weather & endless list of things that always seem to be done, such is life. As soon as I get the results back from the Biopsy I will update the Blog, I hope I am just being paranoid but for some reason I have been real nervous for this appointment, we'll see.

May 26, 2009

I am very happy to report my hair is starting to come in a little bit more! I still do not feel the greatest. My allergies have been in over drive & I don't think my sinuses can take much more. My Great Uncle Noonie, Andrew Jones, passed away last Friday. Unfortunately I do not feel well enough to make it to the viewing tonight & the funeral is tomorrow. Lima is such a long drive even when I am at 100% but it seems especially long when I am not at my best. I sent flowers and our condolences I hope the family will understand.

Marc was not feeling to good most of the weekend either & by this morning he was so sick he could not go to work. It just kept getting worse, he ended up at Urgent Care by midday. They put him on a Z-pack & a few other things. He had Brandon drive them home, Brandon is already out of school for the summer. Katie still has one more exam to turn in.

The Tooth Fairy made her second visit to Zack last weekend. He came to our bedroom & told me his tooth was loose & next thing I new 1 little wiggle & he was handing me the tooth.

While fighting the allergies Marc decided to go ahead & open the pool this weekend. it was getting to the point that it was pond more than pool. Brandon said he pulled a frog out of it. After some motivation from my cousin Amber, Marc decided it was warm enough out to go ahead & start up the pool. The water on the other had was not so warm though according to the kids.

Brandon had a good time at Tiffany's on Monday he was there from 10:30am & got home about 8pm. He has grown up so fast, I told Marc he is almost all grown up. I took him to get his driving permit last week. The week before he passed the written test but his Birth Certificate had the wrong last name on it so we had to go get it fixed only to find out that his social security card cut off the last 4 letters of his 2nd middle name. It seemed like the odds were against him to get his permit but we did finally get it.



Zack was excited all week waiting to go to the Park for a few hours with Misty & he was wired for sound when she brought him back home. The weather was hot & they went out to eat twice & the Dollar store so he was in heaven. The weather was great even though we did not feel the best we took advantage of it & got out for a ride. Unfortunately the weather did not stay on our side on the way home...Maybe this explains why Marc is so sick?

May 21, 2009

2 weekends ago Marc had a little too much fun at the Benefit we went to, he wiped out on his bike... he was hot roding It in the grass (trying to recapture his youth I think LOL). These past few days been a little rough. Marc thinks I have allergies, sinus pressure, congestion, cough, runny nose can't breathe for the past 3 days but no temperature. I have been feeling awful but without a temp above 101 I get to stay outta the hospital. I have been in training at the Ohio Emergency Management Agency (OEMA) the past 3 days taking a course on Emergency Planning for Special Needs Populations so the days have been rather long. Along other things it has reminded me just how much I hate Columbus rush hour traffic. Here are a couple pictures from Paige's & her friends before the 8th Grade Dance last Friday Night. We have really been enjoying the weather. Zack loves to play outside here lately he has been very fascinated with baseball. He can hit & through pretty good. This is a cute picture of Paige & Zack Brandon & Tiffany are still going strong, she was over the other night & I believe Brandon is going to her place on Monday for a Holiday Picnic with her family. Katie has had a total image change she colored her hair blond awhile back & I really had a hard time with it, it just did not look good on her so she colored her hair a dark auburn & it actually looks pretty good on her especially with her pale skin tone. This one was in progress & this one is after, she loves it As you can see Spike may still be a pup but he is not so little anymore. I will be at the Base this Friday & Next Friday making up my June Drill weekend. I am still tolerating my work load fairly well so as a whole I can say my transition back into the workforce is going better than anticipated. My next major medical event is my 6th Bone Marrow biopsy which is scheduled tentatively for June 8th.

I am in the process of adding another video of Zack & the Kids playing Rock Band, Zack really gets into singing, I am sorry my camera does not record volume as well but for reference the song is "The memory remains" by Metallica. Once I get it uploaded in you tube I will post it on my Blog.

May 14, 2009

I know I have kept many of you in limbo waiting on the prom pictures so here they are posted below. I also finally got my Easter pictures off Marc's camera & they are below as well.

This week I have been doing good at work & have been very busy even though the situation seems to be deescalating to a certain extent. I will say that by the time I get home every night I am still really tired. I am going in tomorrow to have my labs checked I think my counts are off a bit.

I go back to the James cancer Hospital for my 6th Bone Marrow Biopsy on the 8th of June or sometime during that week. After next week I will be back to work 4 days a week so I may have to schedule it differently.

I found out that my Uncle lost his job last week due to the economy. He had been working there for several years & it was very unexpected. The job market is slim everywhere right now especially in isolated areas, such as theirs. So prayer warriors please add my Uncle to your list!

Paige has the 8th grade dance Friday night. After serious discussion Marcus & I agreed to let her go. She is really excited so those pictures will be posted hopefully next week sometime, you guys know how I have been very delayed in my postings since I went back to work.

Zack has been on white every day still & is looking forward to the field day (all day fun activities at school). we had to make a color wheel at the house because all his pent up orneriness would come out when he would get home & the only thing that really works is threatening to change his color.

Katie is in her own world these days preparing to go to her fathers for a couple of months this summer. She has been a bit more moody than normal with everyone in the house. I am also a little worried about her school, she still has 5 courses (credits open) this means her exam grades are not back & she still has a few exams to turn in. She only enrolled in 7 credits this year Brandon has completed 9 & has 3 more that are open. He had to take more credits to play sports at the High School that & he is trying to graduate a year early.

The weather is getting much warmer finally but with the warm weather come the spring rains. I will ride my bike when its wet but I don't particularly like to. Marc is getting used to his ape hangers but I see him dropping his hands from time to time to get some blood back in them. I tease him about it but he says it looks cool.

I hope you enjoy the pictures!