Cancer Update

My doctors took my case before a tumor board to review. I had a CT scan and 8 nodules were found on my lungs. The doctors didn't feel a PET scan would provide any additional information and the additional radiation wasn't worth it. A lot of times Medullary Thyroid Cancer and where it has spread will not show up on a PET scan. The tumor board agreed with my doctors. My doctors had suggested watching the nodules by doing blood work at 2 month and 6 months post surgery. They also wanted to do a CT scan a few months after my first CT scan to see if the nodules were growing. The tumor board felt that was the best way to handle the nodules. The nodules are so tiny it will be almost impossible to do a biopsy. They also don't feel they will get an accurate result even if they tried to do a biopsy. If my tumor levels in my blood work are going up they will need to do additional scans to see where the cancer is growing. If the nodules grow then I will have to go through chemo.

My doctor feels they were able to clean my neck very well and got rid of all the cancer. She does not feel I need to do any additional treatments. However she is referring me to get a radiation consultation. She just wants me to hear the pros of getting radiation because she told me the cons of getting radiation. There is a chance my cancer could come back in the lymph nods left in my neck, where my thyroid use to be or in my neck muscle. If I was to get radiation it can cause a lot of scar tissue and could cause a lot of problems if I need additional surgery down the road. I am going to the radiation consultation, but I have no plans to get radiation. A lot of information I have read it can cause more harm than good to prolong my life, since all the cancer is gone. At this point there are no benefits to get radiation. 

I have been going through genetic testing to see if my cancer was genetic. Medullary Thyroid Cancer is a genetic cancer and is usually inherited. My surgeon really felt my cancer was sporadic, but we needed to make 100% sure. I think the genetic testing was the most stressful of everything I have been through in the past few months. The doctors said if it came back genetic my parents and brother would have to go through testing to see if they had the gene. All the first cousins on the side of the family that had the gene would have to be tested. Everyone who came back with the gene would need to have their thyroid remove to avoid cancer. It wouldn't be safe to leave their thyroid in or take the risk of waiting to see if cancer developed. Medullary Thyroid Cancer grows way to fast to take the chance.

I spent so much time praying the cancer was sporadic. My heart felt so heavy and burdened for my family. I didn't want my family to go through all the worry and pain. I also felt that if someone had the gene it would be my responsibility to make sure they went through surgery. My dad was trying to tell me he wouldn't get his taken out. I thought I was going to lose my mind. I then just had to take a deep breath and wait for the answers. 

The genetic counselor thought she would have the information by Friday. Friday was the LONGEST day. I sat around waiting all day for her to call me. At 4:40pm my phone rang and she had the results. The first thing she said was I have some good news. I took a deep breath and felt such relief. My cancer was NOT genetic. 

I hung up the phone, sat on the bed and just bawled. My family was safe! Also any future little Post's were also safe! The genetic counselor was able to confirm all my genes were normal and the miscarriages weren't from anything being abnormal.  RELIEF!!!! 

Now normal life resumes and plannings starts back up. Everything felt it was on hold until we had answers.  I also was SUPER happy because I don't have to go through chemo. I will have hair for Lacey's wedding. I can face anything now that I know my family is safe. Now I am praying for a miracle with my lungs. My prayer is that the next CT scan shows no sign of nodules on my lungs. God can wipe out those nodules. 

Wordless Wednesday

New Hair Routine

I had read Veronika's Blushing tutorial on how she does her hair and wanted to try it. A couple weeks ago I headed off to Sally's to buy velcro rollers, clips and a round brush. In the past I have not had good luck with rollers. They have gotten stuck in my hair or made my hair really frizzy

I learned you can't put the rollers in your hair when your hair is wet. That is why I had issues in the past with frizziness. You need to blow your hair dry really well, take a round brush to the areas you are going to put in the velcro rollers and then put the velcro rollers in your hair. I think I need to buy some smaller rollers for the top of my hair, so my hair curls more. 

I followed the tutorial to a T the first time. The results were GREAT! I actually love it more on the second day. The second day I brush my hair out and curl the ends. The volume is amazing! 

Day 1 - Round 1

Day 2

Day 1 - round 2 

I am wearing a new lipstick from Mary Kay. I forgot that Mary Kay lipstick is my very favorite. 

I really love the results and plan to do this every 3-4 days. I am still trying to go at least 3 days before washing my hair. Baby powder is the best dry shampoo. Suave dry shampoo is great, but baby powder works just as well. I go through a bottle of dry shampoo every 2 weeks. I have a very small bottle of baby powder I have had for months. It is just cheaper and easier to use. 

Quinoa salad

I found a fabulous new quinoa salad recipe. It is super easy and yummy. We took this a couple times last week for lunches. I would eat it with carrots and a pudding. I think we got 6 servings out of the recipe below. 

Ingredients

• 1 cup dry quinoa, rinsed
• 1 tbsp olive oil or coconut oil
• 1 3/4 cup water
• 1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 avocado, chopped into chunks
• handful cherry tomatoes, quartered
• 1/2 red onion, diced
• 1 small clove garlic, minced
• 1 red bell pepper, chopped into chunks
• small handful cilantro, diced
• 1 limes, juiced
• 1/2 tsp cumin
• 1/2 tbsp olive oil
• salt, to taste

Directions

1. I cook my quinoa in my rice cooker. I added the chicken bullion to the water for a little extra flavor. If you follow in the instructions from the website it says to toast your quinoa in coconut oil first. I skipped that step. 
2. Let the quinoa cool for about five minutes and then add all the  ingredients. I added a little salt and pepper before I ate it.

Jeremiah 32:17

My dad called me in the middle of all my cancer craziness with a Bible verse for all of us to claim. This verse has brought me a lot of comfort during my trial. If I was am having a rough day I read this verse and remind myself God has control. 

Jeremiah 32:17 (KJV)

Ah Lord God! behold, thou hast made the heaven and the earth by thy great power and stretched out arm, and there is nothing too hard for thee:

Juicing

I started juicing last week and boy was it an adventure! I did a lot of experimenting with different veggies and fruits. I found somethings I like and other things that are awful! I learned I do not like celery in my juice. Oh my lord it gives it a bitter taste. I cut out the celery and the juice was a TON better. Then I realized I don't like tomato juice in with my green juice. Leave out the celery and tomatoes.

Day 1 I followed this recipe, but I cut it in half. It was perfect for one person.
1 bunch kale

1 bunch spinach

1 cucumber

2 carrots

2 apples

2 tomatoes

4 stalks celery

1 jalapeno

There was no kick or taste of the jalapeno. I was expecting a little bit of spice, but nope. 

It wasn't exactly my favorite, but it was also the first juice I ever made. I think a lot of it has to do with changing my taste buds. I will try this again without the celery and tomatoes. The first day I felt like I was burping up grass all day long. lol That went away after the first day. My body has to adjust to the crazy juices. 

Late Night Snack

Art asked if I was going to make any juice for him. I told him I would make him a juice one night for a night snack. What a better snack then fruit and veggies?  He cracked me up because each drink he took it was like taking a shot. He told me he had to shoot it down to avoid the taste. 

I drank mine so fast I didn't even remember to take a picture. This was my favorite juice! I had to take a picture of Art juice he was slowly shooting down. 

I just grabbed stuff out of the fridge and juiced it - Kale, spinach, apple, pear, strawberries, carrot, sliver of ginger & cucumber

Fruit Juice

The most sweet and easiest drink was a fruity drink. Of course it was a favorite because it was sweet. 

strawberries, carrots, pineapple, and mixed frozen berries. I just threw this one in my blender with a little water. I kept blending it until everything was super fine. 

I juiced 4 out of 7 days. I thought it went a lot better than I expected. I plan to keep juicing for breakfast. I also drink a cup of warm lemon water. I have stopped drinking tea and coffee for awhile. I haven't missed any of the caffeine.

We bought our juicer at Target a few years back. It isn't anything fancy or expensive. To start I recommend buying something cheap. If you continue to juice then upgrade. I don't think you should spend a couple hundred bucks on a juicer if you aren't going to use it all the time. That is just my 2 cents. 

Wordless Wednesday

Many Faces of Kaleb

Kaleb came to visit and have dinner a couple weeks ago. Isn't his little puppy sweater stinkin adorable!!!! Well he had a few choice faces for Mimi. He is getting so big! His little cheeks are adorable and starting to get chubby. I can't wait for him to have little chunky legs. 

Yay....whatcha lookin at?

Hey! Help me this big furry thing is sniffing me!

Like my tongue?

Ok I am sleepy let's go home kids. 

One Month since Surgery

Well today is officially one month since I had surgery. It is just crazy to me that it has only been a month, but then again it feels more like 6 months. So much has happened in just 4 weeks.

Morning after surgery

Day 2

Day 4

Before and after surgery - geez louiz!

Before surgery and day 4

Day 4 on the left, one week on the top, 2 weeks on the bottom

One month after surgery

One month with Bee Magic on my scar

Here are some facts about the past month:

• 8 visitors in the hospital
• 12 meals delivered to my home
• I didn't drive, clean or cook for a full 2 weeks
• 10 doctor appointments
• 5 ultrasounds
• 1 CT scan
• a minimum of 10 phone calls with doctors
• a zillion emails back and forth with numerous doctors
• hundreds of hours on the couch
• lots of puppy cuddles
• Two trips to the airport to pick up & drop off mom
• a few pills short of becoming a pain drug addict. lol
• one episode of Honey Boo Boo - I am not sure my life will ever be the same. I am traumatized! 
• Started juicing
• reading lots on nutrition
• I have never heard so many tell me they are praying for me in all my life. It has truly been amazing

I am praying/hoping month #2 brings us fabulous news there is no cancer in my lungs and all my levels regulate. Nothing big just 2 simple things. 

Here are a couple pictures we took when my mom was visiting. There weren't a lot of pictures taken, since most of the time I was on the couch, mom was in the kitchen or cleaning. I wore a turtleneck for about 3 days. Then I said FORGET it. They just irritated my neck and I stopped wearing them. Besides my scar doesn't really both me. If it doesn't bother me then I don't care what other people think. 

Seven Years!

Today Art and I are celebrating 7 years together. What a perfect picture for our life together than the picture below. 

Our road together has to many twists and turns. The majority of the road we had planned should have said warning sign with blinking lights - sharp turns ahead. When we went out on a first date I never imagined he would end up being my husband. I just thought he was a fabulous friend and it was nice to meet him. Art said when he met me he was thinking that is my future sexy wife. That cracked me up the other day when he told me that. 

Tonight we are going back to the Afghan restaurant where we went on our first date.  I'm glad we found each other and we have gone on this amazing journey together!

Roller Coaster Ride Continues

The cancer journey continues. The past 2 weeks have been a little intense. I haven't really wanted to share much because there has been so much to process. I needed to be able to process everything before I could talk about it with the world. This is going to be a long post. Grab a cup of tea and settle in!

The week of surgery I had a lot of blood tests run. One of them was a pregnancy test. The doctor called me on Wednesday prior to surgery to say it was positive. My first response was HOW IN THE WORLD DID THIS HAPPEN?  The doctor and I both cracked up laughing. A lot of phone calls were made between lots of doctors to see how we should proceed with the surgery. My surgeon asked me to talk with Art to see how we wanted to proceed, but she also expressed how important it was to get the cancer out of my body. I told her no matter what we decided abortion was not an option period.  I called Art and we agreed to go ahead with surgery. Precautions would be taken for the baby. My OB told me it would be perfectly fine with how early I was. 

The first 6 weeks of the pregnancy went marvelous. I had all the symptoms of being pregnant. The baby was growing, my HCG #'s were going up great, we saw a little jumping bean on the screen and a heartbeat. A beautiful heartbeat like we haven't ever seen before. And then the bleeding started. Rush back to the doctor and we still saw a heartbeat. In my heart I knew it was a matter of time. There is no way I could bleed the way I did and have a successful pregnancy. I know my body. I went back to the doctor for another check up before the weekend. I needed to know what was going on before I headed into a long weekend with no doctors. The doctor confirmed I was having a miscarriage and scheduled a D&C. 

Back to the hospital, admitting office, pre-op and operating room. All the same rooms within a 3 week period. Three weeks to be exact day of when I had my first surgery. However this surgery was not going to be as long, as major and I wouldn't have to spend the night. The morning prior to going to the doctor I had a cup of chicken noodle soup. I had to wait exactly 8 hours of when I ate before they could do the surgery. So there we sat in the pre-op waiting. Then an emergency came up and we got pushed back. I started to get REALLY cranky because I hadn't eaten in over 8 hours. grrrrrr  I told Art before going into surgery the worst part of any surgery is getting an IV. ugh! I just HATE getting an IV. This round I had to be poked twice before they got the IV in right. I wanted to cry when the first time didn't work. This was a very quick surgery 40 minutes and I was out. The recovery time was a little over an hour. We arrived at the hospital at 3pm and left at 7pm. 

In between my thyroid surgery and the D&C so very much was happening. I was going to the doctor constantly, blood tests, CT scan, ultrasounds, genetic counselors. Just nonstop! The doctors were trying to figure out how they could run tests around my pregnancy. I was concerned how would a baby make it when I had so much going wrong with my body. I have so many levels that are just off. The doctors are trying to regulate a lot. Then I was having tests run to see if the cancer spread. 

I met with my endocrinologist about 10 days after my surgery to go over my pathology report. This was one of the worst doctors appointments. The worst part of it was hearing the cancer could have spread, they are concerned it did because of my blood levels, and my life expectancy. I found out I have a very rare type of thyroid cancer called Medullary Thyroid Cancer. This type of cancer can be genetic and is a very rapid growing cancer. Only about 4% of thyroid cancer patient are diagnosis with Medullary Thyroid Cancer. Additional tests have to be run to see if it is genetic or sporadic. The areas the cancer could spread are to my liver, lungs and adrenal glands. 

An ultrasound was done on my liver and confirmed there is no cancer in my liver. I jumped for joy and had tears of joy when I got this news. For some reason I had worried there could be something wrong with my liver. I never once worried there would be anything with my lungs. I had 2 x-rays and everything looked clear with my lungs. We are waiting for one test to come back on the adrenal glands, but it does not look like it has spread to my adrenal glands. The results came back and the cancer has spread to my lungs. It is very small nodules on both lungs. At this point the doctors are still discussing how to proceed. This news has been very hard on me. The spots on my lungs have probably been harder on me then finding out I had thyroid cancer. 

There is the chance nothing will be done with my lungs. They may just monitor the nodules and my blood levels to make sure nothing is growing. My case is being referred to a board of oncologists to see if they can provide any additional thoughts. All my doctors are doing a lot of research and trying to come up with the very best treatment plan for me. My prayer is that the nodules end up shrinking and going away. One of my worst fears was chemo. I do NOT want to go through chemo period! At this point as long as the nodules do not grow then I do not need chemo. 

A lot is going to change with treatment and tests now that I am not pregnant. I have let all my doctors know I had a miscarriage and they can discuss how to proceed with my treatment plan. So we stay tuned for the future. So now we just sit and wait to hear from the doctors. I should hear something in about 10 days.

Here is my neck 3 weeks post surgery. The scar is actually doing really well! My neck is SUPER stiff! I have been massaging my neck and incision. My neck just feels hard and doesn't move very well. The doctor did say it can take sometime for everything to return to normal. Somewhere around 3 months. 

First Phone Call

Seven years ago today Art called me for the first time. We had been emailing back and forth for about 6 months while he was stationed in Kosovo. When he came home he emailed and wanted to go out. I told him I wasn't interested. He really wanted to go out on Valentines. I told him I HATED Valentines Day and referred to it as Hate Day. He convinced me to go out with him, but I made him wait until February 16. What a man waiting around for some crazy chick! lol 

He called me on Valentines Day to wish me a Happy Valentines and talked to me for about 10 minutes. I was at work and he was driving to the gym. I can remember that day like it was last week. He turned Hate Day into Valentines Day. Although we still don't celebrate Valentines Day. Art said I refused to go out with him 7 yrs ago on Valentines, he isn't taking me out on Valentines now. lol  We will celebrate 7 years together on the 16th and go out to dinner. 

Valentines Outfit

I have put my valentines outfit together. A red top I found at Target for $12.99, gold and black chain necklace on clearance for $6 and a red scarf with black hearts my mom brought me. The scarf below is the closest thing I could find online. 

What are you wearing for Valentines? Any romantic plans?

Wordless Wednesday

OOTD

Here are 2 outfits I wore last week. I spent a lot of time on the couch resting. The doctors have told me I needed another week of rest. 

Skirt: Old Navy

Top: Old Navy

Bubble Necklace: Ebay

Pants: Forever 21
Tank Top: Target

Cardigan: Old Navy

Juicing

This week I am going to start juicing. My goal is to juice each morning for breakfast. I am trying to get back into my healthy eating this week. The past few weeks my eating hasn't been the best. My breakfasts have been a little crazy. Cheese & crackers, left over burritos, chicken noodle soup, oatmeal & blueberries or anything else I can find in the fridge. 

I feel I need to get back to no processed food, very limited eating out, organic veggies, healthy, healthy, healthy. I am even more determined to be healthy, since being diagnosed with cancer. This is a goal for me and for Art. I have felt in the past year sugar is the devil and the more research I do the more I believe it is the devil. Also dairy is not necessary for adults. The problem with no dairy is CHEESE. How in the world could I ever give up cheese full time?  Another thing to work on.....I would much rather limit the items with sugar than cheese right now. lol

Here is the "green juice" I plan to try this week:

1 bunch kale
1 bunch spinach
1 large cucumber
2 large carrots
2 apples
2 tomatoes
4 celery stalks
1 large jalapeno

I have also been pinning juices like crazy on Pinterest. You can find my juicing pins HERE. You will see mostly all the recipes are GREEN juices.  I will keep everyone updated on my juicing adventures. 

Unanswered Prayers

The other day I was laying on the couch thinking of some unanswered prayers I'm thankful stayed unanswered. Have you ever listen to Garth Brooks Unanswered Prayers? It's a great song!

I'm thankful for all the crazy exs that stayed unanswered prayers. God really has blessed me with an amazing husband. We've had our bump in the road just like everyone else. He has taken such great care of me over the past 3 weeks. Stood by my side, been my cheer leader, remained positive through numerous tough doctor appointments, sat by me in the hospital, took care of me after surgery and loved me each step of the way. He takes away the stress of all this cancer.

My normal process after I leave the doctor and get some tough news is I cry on the way home. That's my time to think the worst, get my emotions out, and have a woe is me moment. Art sits by as I have my moment using crying away. Then he reminds me of the what ifs, the positive things, how God is going to get us through this and cancer won't beat me. I go through these emotions before I call my family & friends to give them an update. By the time I make my phone calls I feel positive again.

I made the mistake of not going through my process when my mom was visiting after a rough doctor appointment. I got soooo angry on the way home I yelled at her. Instead of yelling I should have let myself cry. I didn't want my mom to see me cry or not be strong. Instead it backfired on me.

Another unanswered prayer was my job. I had been looking for a new job. A place I interviewed with started dragging their feet in November. I got irritated with why weren't things working out. Why wasn't God answering my prayer? Well thank goodness that prayer wasn't answered. I needed my Cadillac insurance plan. We have only paid $20 for all the doctor appointments, surgery, hospital, prescriptions, lab work etc. Yes, that is right twenty dollars!!! I pay a large amount each month for insurance, but in the long run its paid for itself.  It would have been awful to start a new job & go through cancer. We could have switched to Art insurance, but would have had hefty co-pays.

Those are the 2 major unanswered prayers that come to mind. Some times we get frustrated with the fact we feel God is ignoring us. In reality he knows what is better for us in the long run. I have stepped back lately to look at the bigger picture. 

Psalm 27:14 (KJV)
Wait on the Lord: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the Lord.

Cuddle Bug

Sammy has been glued to me ever since I came home from the hospital. He spent Thursday-Tuesday with Grandma & Grandpa Post while I was in the hospital. I asked them to bring him home the day after I came home. He came home that day, jumped on my lap and laid beside me for the next 2 weeks. He laid on my lap almost all day long. If he wasn't on my lap he was beside me on the chair or couch. He has been very cuddly and making sure I was ok. Each night he sleeps right beside my legs. If I get up he wakes up, watches where I go, and then goes back to sleep when I do. 

Sammy is not normally glued to me. He is Art's buddy and usually is glued to Art. He wouldn't even sit on Art's lap for the first 2 weeks. If Art called him he would look at him and just stay beside me. He realized I couldn't play hard, so he would play very nicely with me. If he wanted to play rough he would take his toy to Art. I swear this little guy is a person. Sometimes he acts just like a little man instead of a dog. 

I love this picture. He jumped up on my lap, laid his head on my pillow and started snoring. Puppy snores are the best!!!! 

Driving Miss Daisy

I was the passenger in the car for 2 weeks. I did not drive, clean, cook, or do laundry for over 2 weeks. That is just plain craziness!!!! Finally I told mom I needed to drive because she was getting ready to leave. I had to be able to cart myself to doctors appointments. 

OOTD

Here are some outfits I wore last week. Each day I got up, showered, did my hair, got dressed and tried to spend a couple hours in something other than pajamas. I first thought I would wear lots of turtlenecks. As it turns out they actually irritate my neck a lot. I decided not to let the scar bother me. This is me. I had surgery and I am not going to cover up my neck. 

Wordless Wednesday