On-line 3-day Team Auction

Ok readers, all five of you, my 3-day team is hosting an on-line auction for the next couple of weeks on some really great prizes. I hope that you will take a look to see what we have to offer and bid on some great stuff. All proceeds go towards our walk, so not only will you be help us to reach our fundraising goals, but you will also be trying to win some great prizes.

I hope to see your name on the list of winners soon. You have until September 12, 2010 to place your bid. Let the bidding begin. You see the list of all the items here at Sweet for a Cure.

Kindergarten at Last

Well it has become offical I am now the proud Mommy of a Kindergarten student. Isabelle is so excited to be going to school she could hardly wait to get out of the car, I think she might have jumped. No tears were shed because really who has time to be sobbing when dropping of your kid at school. Thats right I just dropped her off in line and went on my way. I could hardly get out and walk her in seeing how I had four other kids in the car. I think she will love it and do so well, I can hardly wait to hear about her day.

So far though I have gotten an e-mail from her teacher, asking where her lunch is. Nice, she told her teacher that I had just packed her snacks, and I will be the first to admit that her sandwich was really sad, but just snacks come on Is really? I will get to find out about her day in about an hour and half, I can hardly wait. Until then I have a few pics I would like to share of the girl. Two from home and the third from my car window as I was watching her walk into the building. Such fun and what a big girl!

Meet Hoppy

Meet the newest member of our family, Hoppy. Isabelle brought him home with her all the way from Wisconsin. So far so good, I have not killed him yet. It seems that my track record with pets right now is not too good, so we'll see. The kids love him and he thinks the kids are more wild than he is. He likes to eat and play with his food and water dish, making a huge mess. I really want the weather to cool down so he can spend some quality outside. Rigth now we figure that it is just too hot with the 100+ degrees out there everyday. For right now he hangs in the house. Here's to cooler weather.

First Day of School

Well today is Barrett's first day of school. He is going to the Montessori Acadamey in Arlington, and is very excited. One of his favorite people, Mary will be joining him there this year. They are even in the same class together. That will really make my life easier for drop off and pick up, but I think it will also be good for the kids. I can hardly believe that school is starting already. It feels like we just got out for summer break. Time flys when you are having fun. They are both very excited and I think they will do so well there. It is very exciting. Here they are getting ready to leave for their first day. Of course when we get there, Barrett is asked "where did all your hair go?" It just makes me so sad, but at least it will grow back one day.

Bear, Bear, Bear . . . need I say more

Everyone should have a Bear. Well maybe not, he does have his moments when he wants to be funny, cute or sweet. Then there are the other moments when he is just a pill. And I say that nicely. I love him so much but he can drive me insane. Like today. . . he must have felt left out because Isa got her hair cut today and Cooper had his last week.

So he took it upon himself to do the same. Typical middle child seeking attention. Of course he could not just cut off a few pieces and leave it at that oh no, he had to give himself a buzz right at the front where I had not choice but to shave his whole head. Believe me I really thought about leaving it that way as punishment but I figured he would not care. Here is the "new" Bear, I really hope it does not take long to grow out. I have to put sunscreen on that head of his. It's just crazy! All that beautiful, sometimes curly hair. I think I might have shed a tear.

Will there ever be Peace

Why can I not go to the bathroom in peace? It seems that no matter what I always have at least one child in the room with me at all times. Never can I take a shower, make a phone call or pee by myself. They don't tell you this before you decided to take the plunge and have children. That not matter what every waking minute will be consumed with little people, asking for something and getting your freshly washed, just put on outfit dirty. I only want to be able to pee by myself, is that really too much to ask?

First Hair Cut

Cooper is such a big boy now. He has just had his first haircut, and let me tell you he looks so much older now. I know that sounds silly but he really does.

He did pretty well, considering there was another little boy there who was screaming, so Cooper thought that was what he should be doing as well. Then he calmed down and let the lady do her thing. Plus he got his first sucker, so he was really happy about that one. I can hardly believe he is growing up so fast. Where has all the time gone.

At least now I don't have to hear Ben complain about his "mullet." I don't think that was the case, but hey whatever. He does look super cute and more grown up. I think he should stop but he does not have the same feelings.

Why I am walking . . .

I can still remember the day when my Mom and Dad came to our apartment to tell us that Mom had Breast Cancer. Ben and I were sitting down in the pampasan chair and they let us know that she has cancer and before our wedding she is going to have surgery. Since she is just having a lumpectomy, she will have to have Chemo and Radiation both. But she did not want to start her treatment until after we were married. She was so strong throughout her whole series of treatments and surgery, stronger than I would have thought she could be. I was so proud of her.

About a month before my wedding we went do to Tyler, Texas for her surgery. It turned out to be an out patient surgery, that means she was able to come home the same day. In the end I think it might have been better for her to stay over night but I do not think Dad would have liked that very much. We kept getting reports about the number of lymph nodes they removed throughout the day, and the number kept growing. I began to think how could they take any more, how much of her breast is going to be left. Or why do they not just take it all and be done with it, after all they can make new ones.

See the reason I think it took so long was the she also has fibro-cystic breast disease which makes her breast very dense. That in its self can make it hard to detect breast cancer, which she probably had years before her surgery but do to some outstanding factors, never came to light until almost ten years ago. That is another story in and of it self.

After the surgery Mom came back and was still very sleepy from the drugs and just needed to rest. Once she had finished this process we made our way home until she would have to go back for treatments, two days after we were married.

I remember that it was several weeks later that we saw them again, and Mom had previously called and we were talking about how here hair was starting to fall out. You always hope that your hair won't fall out but it still happened. She walks up and I was not sure what to expect from the hair loss but what I saw was not what I expected. She looked as if she had very, very thin hair. You could see her scalp, which has never seen the light of day until now. Her hair is really very thick so it was strange to see this woman I know and love with so little hair.

You know what she wore her hair, or lack there of, proudly. Never once did it slow her down or make her feel like less of a woman. Once she lost her hair the only time she would wear a hat was when she went to church. In support of her, the ladies at the church all began to wear hats too. You would have thought that we lived in the deep South and went to a Baptist Church. The support the ladies showed meant so much to me and my family. Cancer is not a one person ordeal it affects so many people.

My brother and father both shaved their heads, Ben said he would do it too, because I felt that I should show my support and shave my head. Ben did not like that idea to much. It was risky for Adam to shave his head since he was in his last year at the Air Force Academy, and they tend to frown on whole head shaves but it all worked out.

I also remember the way the chemo affected my mom and her body after her treatments. It took almost the whole two weeks and sometimes three to recover enough to be able to get the next treatment. Sometimes she would have to lie in bed because she was so weak or would get sick because the chemicals were so strong she could hardly keep anything down. Cancer sucks the life out of you, and makes your life hard.

At least now she is doing well and has been cancer free for the last nine years. She does have to take a daily drug to keep the cancer hormones at bay, but other than that she is doing well and keeping healthy.

I wanted to share with you the picture that they had taken during her treatments for the pictorial directory. The photographer did not want to use the picture because of her lack of hair but she said no, this is how I look right now. She was not going to let cancer get in the way of her life.

I hope that all of you never have to go through Breast Cancer any type of cancer for that matter. Right now your donation will help make that a reality for many. If you have not donated please do so by clicking on the button on the right or by visiting my facebook page. Together we can kick cancer to the curb.