Happy Mother's Day!

Mother's Day Gift from Daughter

My daughter apologized for buying me a gift instead of making something for me for Mother's Day, as she had been too busy preparing for her thesis presentation and doing her last two final papers, etc.  But I told her that she has treated every day as Mother's Day, even before, and especially since, my diagnosis.  She waited on me hand and foot after my surgery, when I couldn't do too much.  She slept on the floor by my bed after my surgery and the first part of chemo, because she was afraid she might not hear me from the next room should I be in pain or need something.  She arranged her schedule so that she could fly down to take me for my chemo therapy sessions and spend the weekend looking after me.  These past 10 months (since my "lump" was discovered last July) have been very stressful for both of us and I've been impatient and snapped at times, but she's always been gentle and patient with me and even-tempered.  I think she has honored me as her mother by her actions, every day.  Besides, I love stuffed toys (used to have a huge collection of them) and the plush bunny is so cute!

I was able to have a good night's sleep, last night, so, hopefully, I am back on a regular sleep schedule until the next chemo session! 

I had invited a friend of mine to spend Mother's Day with us, but she was unable to do so.  Instead, daughter and I spent a leisurely day, relaxing.

I made waffles and more of my strawberry syrup (strawberries I had cut up and frozen, mixed with a little sugar and lemon juice, and boiled) for brunch.  I thought some whipped cream would be a nice touch and sent daughter to the convenience store/mini market at the top of the lane, but they didn't have any!  I wasn't going to send her to the grocery store to buy one item, so we had the waffles and strawberry syrup without any whipped cream. 

For lunch, I pulled out a special packet of rice and curries I had in the freezer.  It is something known as "lamprais", a Sri Lankan specialty.  It is a savory rice with a rather specific mixture of different curries, all wrapped up in a banana leaf:

A Packet of Lamprais

The banana leaf imparts a lovely aroma to the rice and curries inside:

Opened Packet of Lamprais

Daughter and I shared this packet of lamprais for our lunch.  I shall probably have a salad for dinner and daughter will probably have some leftovers.

Today, I am grateful for:

- Being alive to celebrate Mother's Day with my daughter!
- Memories of my own mother.
- A loving, caring daughter.
- Being able to serve a special breakfast and lunch with what's on hand.
- The pile of dirty dishes in the sink and what they symbolize: plentiful meals, lovingly prepared and shared.

Now, I am off to make myself a nice cup of tea and then, tackle the dirty dishes in the sink!

Dishes to be Washed!

Hope each and every one of you have had a blessed day, today. 

Saturday Morning's Blessing

Rain Slick Road and Wet Ground; Taken from the front window

This morning's blessing was rain!

I wish I could say I woke up to the sound of rain, but I can't say that.  Because I had yet another night of complete insomnia, last night!  Coloring in my meditation coloring book didn't help.  I was wide awake!  I finally went to bed at 3:30 a.m. and lay down hoping to fall asleep, but I didn't.  I watched the clock hands creep.  I hoped that the sound of the early morning rain would lull me to sleep, but it didn't.  I eventually got out of bed at 6:30 a.m. and made myself a cup of tea.  While the tea brewed, I took pictures of the front garden and the back garden.  I suppose I will be considering a nap, later, this afternoon.

The Side of the Garage and the Lemon Trees, Taken from the back door.

It wasn't a very heavy rain, more like a steady drizzle, but it was RAIN and the garden got a good watering (it drizzled a little, last night, too!).  It means I don't have to pay to water the garden for at least a couple of days!

The Back Garden after the Rain

You can see the state of my "lawn" - it's practically non-existent!  The stray cats in the garden aren't very impressed by the wet stuff.

It has stopped raining now and the sun is trying to peep from behind the clouds.

This morning, I am grateful for:

- The blessing of rain and free water for my garden.
- A good cup of tea to wake me up from a sleepless night.
- Cheese pastries and almond cookies for breakfast!
- A lazy relaxed Saturday morning, reading blogs, etc.
- The promise of an afternoon nap.

I really should make myself a To Do list for today, so that I don't fritter away the rest of the day.  There's plenty to do but I'll make it easy on myself and do a Baby Steps To Do list:

- Make my bed!
- Put away washed dishes
- Do last night's dishes
- Put away last of the dried laundry
- Do a load of laundry and hang to dry
- Water/fertilize the indoor plants
- Tidy/dust the living room
- Tidy/dust the dining room
- Put away the styrofoam cooler the meat packages came, in the garage 
- Go through the week's paperwork; file; recycle
- Clean my bathroom
- Start tidying some kitchen cabinets - started; went through food storage containers and tossed to the recycling bin about 20 mismatched containers and lids!

If I can get through that list, I should be in good form!  OK, it is 11:38 a.m.!  I am off to be productive!  Wish me luck!

What have you planned to do today?

The Blessings Continue

Yesterday (Thursday), I went for my blood test first thing in the morning.  The phlebotomist noticed that I had lost weight!  I guess, after losing 20 lbs., it's becoming noticeable.

Came home and made myself a cooked breakfast (scrambled egg, shredded potatoes, 2 slices of ham cold cuts) as I thought that would appeal to me, but it didn't.  I ate it because I made it, but I didn't enjoy eating it.  I can't taste salt these days, so the food had no taste.

I did office work the rest of the day and requested vacation time off to attend daughter's graduation.  My request was approved.  It feels weird to ask for vacation because working from home feels like a vacation to me, but I don't want to worry about completing assignments on time when I am away for those three days.

I also took an afternoon nap!  Later, I washed all the dishes in the sink, cleared the kitchen counters a bit, and baked the much postponed banana bread!  I had to throw away a few of the bananas that had gone beyond the over-ripe stage, but there were three bananas that were just right.  Because my recipe calls for 1 1/2 cups bananas (approximately 5 bananas) and I only had 3, I tossed in half a cup of apple sauce, as well to make up the difference.  Unfortunately, I forgot to cover the top during the last 15 minutes of baking and the loaf got a bit over browned!  I had intended it to be given to my neighbor across the street, whose father-in-law passed away earlier in the week, but I don't think it would be appropriate to give a slightly burnt loaf, so I'll keep this for us and make her something else.

Still later in the evening, I picked up daughter from the airport.  She is home now until we both drive up to her graduation and back.  Yes, she'll come back down with me and then, fly back up at the end of the month to start her new job on June 1.  She still has to finish two final papers for two of her classes, but they need to be submitted on-line, so she can work on them from home.  By the way, she said she met one of the professors who evaluated her thesis presentation at another thesis presentation, yesterday, and he had made it a point to come over to her and tell her that he thought her presentation was done very well!  Daughter was very happy to hear that.  He had asked her if she planned to continue with her studies, but she had told him she'll be working for at least a year.  She's all "studied out" and doesn't want to think about further studies right now!

Yesterday, I spoke with two family members and a friend.  I invited my friend to spend Mother's Day with us, if she's not doing anything.  Not that we are doing anything special, as such - won't be going out to brunch, etc., but we can order lunch in and spend time together.  

Last night, I needed to take anti-nausea medicines and had a hard time falling asleep.

Today (Friday), I've had a relatively good day.  I went for my 8th chemo treatment in the morning (4 more to go!  Yay!)  Although my appointment was for 9:15 a.m., I didn't get called in to be weighed, etc. until much later and then, I had to wait again until about 10:30 a.m. to be seen by the doctor.  I wasn't hooked up to the machine until almost 11:00 a.m.  By which time, I was feeling hungry!  So, once I was attached to the IV, daughter went to a nearby fast food place to buy us breakfast sandwiches and a coffee for herself.  Then, after I ate, I napped while the chemo was being administered.  

I dozed a bit in the car on the ride home, too (daughter drove).  But I didn't take an afternoon nap, today.

When   we came home, I saw that a big box had been delivered to my door step while I was out.  It was from my supervisor at work!  A box of frozen specialty meats and other items (baked potatoes, seafood, etc.)  With a note that said she was thinking of me and missed me at the office!  I thought it was so very sweet of her!  It was from her, personally, not the office as a whole.  Of course, I called her and thanked her.  She had also called about work and left a message, so I responded to that, as well.  And I submitted this week's completed work assignments, later in the evening.

A Gift from my Supervisor

My nextdoor neighbors treat themselves to a box of this company's meats every so often, and twice now, they have shared some of the hamburger patties with me.  They were some of the best hamburger patties I had ever had!  I looked into the company's gift catalog over Christmas to see if I wanted to order some items to send to the out of state nieces, etc. (but then, decided to go with gift cards to the book store for their children, instead, because I didn't know if one niece and her family ate beef).

The funny thing is, just a couple of days ago, when I was craving a hamburger and couldn't get one because it was still too early and they were serving breakfast items, only, I was even thinking of asking my nextdoor neighbor if she had any of the frozen hamburgers in her freezer and if so, could I buy some from her!  The only reason I didn't ask was because I knew she would just give them to me if she had them and not accept money and I didn't feel right about asking her knowing she wouldn't accept money.   Also, I told myself it was a silly thing to do!  Surely I could wait until my daughter came home this weekend and get her to buy me some ground beef to make myself some hamburgers if that's what I wanted.  And then, I came home today to this gift box of meat, including hamburgers, from my supervisor!  How coincidental is that!  Or, was it coincidental? 

But guess what I made for a late lunch?  :D  Hamburger patties, with corn on the cob and homemade French fries!  I know, I should have made a salad, too, but it seemed a bit too much of an effort (I have to wash everything in vinegar, etc.). Maybe I'll make a salad for tomorrow's lunch.

And that's not all!  The blessings of gifts of food continues!  

Armenian Pizzas and Cheese Pastries

Later in the evening, my neighbor across the street called and brought over some Armenian pastries and cookies, etc.  It's for her that I had baked my banana bread (which I didn't give because it got a bit burnt).  She said people have been bringing over loads of food and she's distributing them because there's too much!

Mini Fruit Tarts, Cream Puffs, Cookies, Baklava

This is what she brought for me, thinking I was alone, not knowing my daughter was home!  There's enough and more for us both!  I had some of the cheese pastries for my dinner and some baklava for dessert.  Daughter went out with friends for dinner and a movie, so she'll have her share tomorrow.

There's more!  Another blessing!  Not food, but rather, a card from a cousin for Mother's Day, with some lovely sentiments (about spreading smiles and joy and sunshine) and a note saying the words in the card are all true and the family is lucky to have me in it and she is lucky to call me her cousin!  How sweet is that?!

Today, I am grateful for:

- A good chemo session and down to 4 more!
- Daughter to drive us back so I could doze in the car.
- A generous gift of food from my supervisor!
- A generous gift of food from my neighbor!
- A lovely card and sentiments from my cousin!

So, my week, which started off with me feeling a little bit on the down side has ended on a high note!  With lots of blessings and shows of love and support from family, friends, colleagues, etc.  I have been reminded, once again, that I have nothing to complain about, I have nothing but blessings.

What are your plans for the weekend?  How are you spending Mother's Day?

Wednesday's Doings

It was cloudy and overcast this morning, but there was no rain, and the afternoon was nice and sunny.

I went for my immune booster injection in the morning.  On the way back, I had a craving for a particular burger, but the fast food place near my house was only selling breakfast items at that time in the morning (around 9:30 a.m.), so I came home.  They sell breakfast all day; I think they should serve their burgers all day, too!

So, instead of having a burger for breakfast, I baked a frozen beef pot pie and had that!  I wasn't in the mood for eggs and potatoes or pancakes.  Yes, some people have breakfast for dinner; I have dinner for breakfast!  It was both breakfast and lunch, actually, so brunch.

After that, I settled down to do my office work.  I was able to complete a good portion of it and sent it off, a bit later.

In the afternoon, I took a nap.  I woke up feeling achy from the injection, so I took a Tylenol and felt better.

Later in the afternoon, my neighbor across the street called to inform me that her father-in-law passed away.  I had seen him being taken away by ambulance, last week, and had called to ask her what happened and if there was anything I could do to help.  I won't be able to attend the funeral, but I will send something over through daughter, this weekend.  Daughter is friends with my neighbor's two daughters, so she might attend the funeral on both our behalf.


I had a phone call from one of my aunts in the evening and later, I phoned one of my friends for a chat.  So,  family and friends segments of my life were plumped. 

Today, daughter bought her cap and gown!  Tomorrow, she will attend a commencement briefing!  After that, she will fly down in the evening and we will drive up for her graduation, later (the graduation ceremony is being held on the 16th).

Today, I am grateful for:

- A safe drive to the clinic and back.
- Getting office work done in a timely manner.
- Afternoon naps.
- Medications for aches and pains.
- Phone chats with aunt and friend; video chatting with daughter.

How was your Wednesday?  Have you ever craved hamburgers for breakfast?   Or is it just me?

  

Good News Tuesday

Daughter emailed the School of Public Health Program Counselor to inquire about her thesis presentation results and received an email confirming she passed!  Woo Hoo!  Now she can concentrate on the last two final papers for her other classes and order her cap and gown (she didn't want to do that till she knew for sure she'd be walking!)

It has been a fairly quiet day.  I did office work in the morning and evening.  In the afternoon, I went to my podiatrist appointment to have my feet checked.  Apart from some nail discoloration due to the chemo treatments, my feet are OK.  The important thing is I don't have any signs of neuropathy, which is one of the possible side effects of the chemo.

After I came home, I ate some spaghetti for an early dinner.  There's more leftover for tomorrow.  Cantaloupe for dessert.  Afterwards, I took a nap!

Later, I put the sprinklers on at the back garden.  And I finished coloring my picture:

Colored Picture

Today, I am grateful for:
- Daughter received confirmation she passed her thesis presentation.
- My feet are healthy.
- A safe drive to the clinic and back.
- An afternoon nap.
- A relaxing hour spent coloring.

How was your Tuesday?

Colorful Monday

Coloring Book and Pencils

Yesterday, two of my cousins and their mother visited me.  One cousin brought me a plate of food (which daughter and I enjoyed for both lunch and dinner) and the other cousin brought me the coloring book and pencils shown above.  Well, of course, daughter and I enjoyed the coloring book, too! 

Daughter calls this her "sunset" rose:

Sunset Rose

I love how vibrant her colors are.

My attempt is a little more pastel:

Pastel Flowers

It has been a relatively quiet day.  I spent most of the day doing office work.  Daughter went back to Berkeley, today (but she'll be back again on Thursday).  Later in the evening, I took the trash cans to the curb, watered the front garden, and washed the dishes that had piled up in the sink.

Today, I am grateful for:

- Daughter had a safe flight back to Berkeley
- Phone calls from cousin
- Emails from a friend
- Pictures to color
- The start of a new month

How was your Monday?  Have you tried coloring, lately? 

April Review and May Balanced Life and Monthly Goals

First, a review of April's goals and how I did:

Spiritual:
-  Focus on prayers and meditations; on gratitude and being thankful; appreciate the blessings:  There were lots of prayers and I tried to focus on gratitude, being thankful, appreciating the blessings and all the positive things.  Occasionally, however, a bit of negativity crept in, and that's something I need to work on in May.   

Environment:
- Maintain for the most part; do a little decluttering and organizing:  I maintained, did a tiny bit of decluttering, but not much organizing.  It's OK, though; I need to be patient with myself and remember that I am not in the best of health, right now.
 
Daughter: 
- Enjoy her company as she continues to come down each weekend to accompany me to chemo sessions.  I told her it was not necessary, as I seem to be doing so much better with the new chemo, but she explained that it was necessary to her, for her own peace of mind.  So, I will sit back and enjoy being cossetted:  Daughter couldn't visit for 2 weekends because she got sick, but she is better now, did her thesis presentation, and came down for this weekend.

Family:
- Most contacts will be on the phone or on-line, again.  Expecting an in-person visit from a cousin on holiday from Australia:  I had a visit from the cousin from Australia, plus a couple of other visits from two other cousins and an aunt.  There were lots of phone calls and on-line contact, as well.  On the whole, it was a good month for family.      
   
Friends:
-  Contacts will be mostly on the phone and on-line, which will be OK:  I found myself asking for more help from friends.  I also had a much rescheduled visit from a friend, so it was a good month for friends, as well.     
 
Career:
-  Will continue to work from home:  I am continuing to complete my weekly assignments in a timely manner.

Finances:
- I will continue to budget and manage my finances:  Doing OK in this area. 

Health:
- Once again, the main focus will be on health.  I've started the 2nd part of the chemo treatment and so far, the side effects have been manageable.  Need to focus on more regular exercise, drinking plenty of water, eating more veggies, etc.:  Chemo treatments have been going quite smoothly, all things considered; the physical side effects (insomnia, nausea, indigestion, fatigue, bone aches and joint pains, etc.) have been manageable and I haven't had to experience some of the more severe physical side effects that others have experienced on this same treatment.  I am very grateful for that blessing.  However, I have started to experience some emotional ups and downs, which are also part of the side effects.   I wasn't quite expecting that.

Time Management:
- Need to procrastinate less.  However, as long as the important things, like work assignments, bills being paid, etc., are being done on time, I will not worry too much:  The important things got done; that is enough for now.

 Leisure/Crafts/Hobbies/Me-Time: 
- Continue knitting the new blouse I started, yesterday; continue to sew the quilts; do more gardening: I have continued with the knitting and the gardening; not as much sewing.

Now, moving forward with May goals for a well balanced life:

 Spiritual:
-  Focus even more on prayers and meditations; on gratitude and being thankful; on appreciating the blessings; on the positives.  Let go of the negatives.    

Environment:
- Maintain for the most part; do a little decluttering and organizing, but be kind to myself and make allowances for the fact that I am not feeling 100%.
 
Daughter: 
- Celebrate her achievements as she graduates with her Master's Degree in Public Health this month!  Enjoy her company as she comes home for 3 weeks in May, between her finals at the end of next week and starting her job on June 1.  I have received the OK from my doctors to travel up north to attend her graduation - we plan to drive there and back. 

Family:
- Most contacts will be on the phone or on-line, again, and I need to accept and be OK with that.  However, the month is off to a good start because two cousins dropped in for a quick visit this morning (one brought me a plate of food and the other brought me an adult coloring book!) and  another cousin and aunt have said they'll visit this evening!
    
Friends:
-  Contacts will be mostly on the phone and on-line, which will be OK.   
 
Career:
-  Will continue to work from home.

Finances:
- I will continue to budget and manage my finances. 

Health:
- Once again, the main focus will be on health.  I've 5 more chemo treatments to go!  Plus, I've an appointment with the podiatrist, this week. 

Time Management:
- As long as the important things, like work assignments, bills being paid, etc., are being done on time, I will not fret too much about managing my time.

 Leisure/Crafts/Hobbies/Me-Time: 
- Continue to knit and sew; start coloring!

I am looking forward to a well balanced life in May!