The Adventures of P Squared

Christmas 2011

2011-12-25T19:59:00.005-06:00

So excited that it's finally Christmas Day!

She took every single tiny piece of wrapping paper off the box. Just open the box, already!

sitting on the doll potty, playing with her new doll

eating chocolate pie at Paw-paw's house

playing with the ball popper

All in all, we had a wonderful Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. We spent time with good friends and family, played, ate, napped, and ignored the growing laundry pile. That might not be your definition of a good holiday, but it works for me.

Virginia Trip

2011-09-29T20:03:00.009-05:00

We recently took a road trip to Virginia to attend the wedding of one of Nicholas's cousins. Aside from the interminable rain, the trip was enjoyable. We visited the Virginia Aquarium, where Miriam had a grand time looking at turtles and fish.

She got to touch a starfish. I'm certain that starfish was quite relieved when her little hand made its exit and left him in peace.

Here we are at the wedding. Notice the big girl bow in Miriam's hair. And I made my dress, thank you very much. Celeste was rockin' her new dress, and both the guys were making their new suits look good.

Miriam's newest hobby is arranging things. Here she is with the contents of my wallet. (Hey, I had to pack and she needed entertaining. Don't judge.) She also enjoys arranging stacks of paper, coupons, pens, and the contents of her sock and pants drawer. To arrange her drawer, she carefully removes each pair of socks, unpairs them, and puts them in a basket. Each sock is then lovingly placed on her bean bag chair. Upon completion of the sock arranging, she turns her attention to her pants, each of which she stuffs in a small trash can. It does not matter if the trash can contains dirty diapers or not. She then takes the trash can to the bean bag chair and unceremoniously dumps the pants on top of the socks. (Why the socks are gently placed and the pants are dumped I do not know.) Sometimes the dumping is quite energetic and some pants fall to the floor. This is not acceptable, and the wayward pants quickly join the clothing in the proper spot on the bean bag chair. She usually performs this ritual about once a day, so yes, I have given up on refolding her pants and socks.

Pea in the Straw

2011-08-15T20:25:00.004-05:00

Got milk? Got peas? In a hurry? Simply place a pea in your straw, drink, and enjoy both at once!

Miriam ate her peas this way for almost 10 minutes straight. Hilarious.

She also enjoyed her milk on park bench - sans peas.

Mommy's Little Helper

2011-08-11T15:03:00.002-05:00

Any bets on how long her helpfulness continues? At least I have evidence of her delightful enthusiasm while unloading the dishwasher to comfort me while I'm yelling at teenaged Miriam, "Unload the dishwasher or you are not borrowing the car!" Make that the flying car. She won't be driving for 15 more years, after all. Heck, while I'm thinking futuristicly, let's have dishwashers that empty themselves, too. :)

Hummus Bath

2011-07-17T20:27:00.002-05:00

Breaking news: Miriam can now express her opinion! And boy, does she ever. She sometimes says "yah" like in the video, but most often she waves her hand side to side to mean "no" and claps to mean "yes." Her clapping makes even the most mundane decision seem exciting and joyful. Would you like to go outside? Clap, clap, clap. Would you like some water? Applause. The downside is she now eats a little of what I prepare for her and then demands certain foods for the rest of her meal. Since she can't say which food she wants, it's a long, drawn-out guessing game. Do you want milk? No. Banana? No. Strawberries? No. Crackers? No. Bread? No. Broccoli? No. You get the idea. Nicholas had the good idea to make her a picture board so she can point to what she wants. If it works, I bet there would be a market for something like that.

Happy Feet

2011-07-04T15:22:00.001-05:00

Don't you wish you had happy feet?

Pantry Girl

2011-06-20T21:15:00.005-05:00

While cleaning the kitchen one evening, I couldn't find Miriam. She was there one second and gone the next. The baby gates were locked, so she had to be in one of three rooms. I looked between the refrigerator and the wall, behind the dining room curtains, even in the coat closet, though the door to it was closed and I didn't see how she could open it, go in, and then close it. Then I heard a little rustle from the pantry.

Miriam has been playing in the pantry for a while now, arranging the cans of tomato paste and stacking the cereal boxes. This was the first time she climbed IN the pantry, though. Nicholas swiftly put a baby latch on this door. I don't mind her playing in there, but I don't want her falling out of it.

On a somewhat related note, she can now go down stairs! This makes carrying laundry from upstairs to the laundry room SO MUCH EASIER. Video to come (of her going down stairs, not of me doing laundry).

Future Engineer?

2011-06-13T15:16:00.008-05:00

There are three key personality traits embodied by the engineers I know: intelligence, lack of fashion sense, and the need to "fix" or "improve" things that non-engineers don't find lacking. Recently, Miriam has displayed all three of these traits. Future engineer? Perhaps.

Exhibit A, Intelligence: She understands A LOT of what we say to her. She knows doll, balloon, bird, flower, shoes, socks, hat, bag, bubble, cap, diaper, car seat, and bottle. There are probably more words that she understands, but that's about all I've tested her on. She can also take trash to the trash can, close doors and the refrigerator, and put laundry in the basket. So helpful. "Sit down" seems to be the only thing she doesn't understand, or at least she pretends not to understand. And pretending not to understand might be an even greater sign of intelligence.

Exhibit B, Fashion Sense: Socks with sandals. Sigh. Nicholas did dress her, but according to him, she wanted to keep her socks on.

Exhibit C, Fixing/Improving: Miriam improved on walking with a popper by getting Grandma to push her while she pushed the popper. She got her popper, climbed on her car, and then demanded to be pushed. Hilarious, and possibly quite telling.

So will Miriam be an engineer? Who knows. The joke is that she'll be an artist or writer or some other non-mathy profession. As long as she celebrates Pi Day, that's fine with me.

One Year Old

2011-06-01T19:17:00.007-05:00

We celebrated Miriam's first birthday with Grandpa, Grandma, PaPa, and Aunt Celeste. There was no shortage of sugar with cupcakes, ice cream, and M&Ms.

She wasn't sure what all the fuss was about. She enjoyed her cupcake immensely. Feeding herself the cupcake was no big deal since she's been feeding herself for almost two months now. (She refuses to be fed pureed food.) So she went about her business and ate her cupcake. Kind of disappointing for me. I was looking forward to a messy cake face.

Looking adorable outside. I think her favorite place is outside. She gets excited when you say, "Would you like to go outside?" And the excitement continues when you put the key in the front door. She knows she has to wear shoes outside and will look for them when you say "outside." These pink ones are her current favorites.

Chilling in the puffer fish pool. I know drinking pool water isn't the best thing for her to be doing, but you try and stop her. Impossible.

Playing with the Fridge Phonics Nic and I gave her for her birthday. Huge hit. She dances along with the music and loves to take each and every letter off the fridge. (The spelling of Fridge Phonics, by the way, really amuses me. Wouldn't it be more appropriate to have "Fridge Fonics" or "Phridge Phonics"?)

BFFs

2011-05-11T13:50:00.003-05:00

Really, what's better than spending the morning with your best bud at the park? Not much.

You'll notice Miriam's awesome butterfly sandals. She LOVES these shoes. She gets excited when I pull them out of the drawer, and if they're lying around the house, she'll bring them to me, sit down, and kick her feet back and forth until I put them on her. I sense a large shoe wardrobe in her future.

Happy Easter!

2011-04-26T20:04:00.004-05:00

Obligatory shot of Miriam sitting in something to celebrate the holiday. (See Christmas and Halloween.) You have no idea how difficult this picture was to get. I have about 30 other shots of her crawling out of the basket, playing with the stuffed animals, licking the bow, etc.

Wearing a dress I made her months ago -- it still fits. Now the outfit is complete with frilly socks and pink dress shoes.

Family shot in front of the altar. I love Easter lilies. Hope everyone is having a wonderful Easter season!

Walking Means

2011-04-23T20:29:00.005-05:00

Walking means she can carry things. And move things. And drop things. Drop things in the bathtub. When it's full. Drop things in the toilet. When it's full. Walking means she can maneuver behind things. And under things. And between things. And get stuck there. Walking means she is growing up and leaving babyhood and starting her (very long) path to independence. Part of me is a little bit sad thinking that my itty bitty baby is getting older, but I'm mostly so proud that she is a happy, curious, funny little person, and I am looking so forward to knowing her as she grows. She turns 11 months next week, and a short month after that is the big 0-1. Everyone told me her first year would pass quickly, but I had no idea is would pass this quickly.

Then there are times like this, when she eats a handful of mud, that make me think growing up can't happen fast enough. :P

First Steps

2011-04-11T10:29:00.002-05:00

Miriam took her first steps last night! I was taking pictures of her in the romper I made her. She was standing by the coffee table when she decided that she just had to have the camera. Bam - she walked over to me! It was maybe four steps. She repeated her feat a few more times last night. This morning she was all about the walking again. She walked outside, uphill; across the living room; and in the kitchen with a cooling rack in her hands. I'm really surprised she walked this soon. She was doing a good job with standing, but she didn't seem too interested in moving her feet. Then yesterday afternoon she started kind of sliding one foot, and that progressed to kind of lifting and moving one foot, but she wasn't going anywhere. Then last night she was full on walking. Wow. She amazes me.

First Hair Cut

2011-03-28T15:06:00.003-05:00

Miriam had her first hair cut yesterday. As you can see, the poor girl really needed those bangs trimmed. I've tried bows and rubber bands to keep the hair out of her eyes, but Miriam prefers the natural look. (Meaning she pulls the bows and rubber bands right out, and loose hair ornaments are a definite choking hazard.) So here's the before shot.

And here's the after! Much better. She looks older, too, especially with her two top and two bottom teeth.

And here she is wedged between the refrigerator and the wall. She went in after a toy that rolled back there. Hilarious.

Also, she got herself to standing yesterday! She's been doing what I call distracted standing - pulling up on something and then standing unassisted for 10-15 seconds as long as she isn't aware she is standing, sitting when she realizes she's standing - for several days now. And then last night, in the middle of the living room, there she was - standing by herself! She did it three times, as if to prove the first time wasn't a fluke. She's also walking pretty well while holding just one finger of someone. She turns 10 months tomorrow. Both Nic and I walked at 10 months, so maybe she will, too.

Future's So Bright

2011-03-23T09:41:00.005-05:00

Learning to accessorize.

Watching Papa play Ultimate.

She's a climber!

Practicing walking.

Representative Sampling

2011-03-15T09:53:00.003-05:00

This is pretty much how Miriam spends much of her time: flicking objects behind her and eating dirt off the floor. At what age to little ones stop eating dirt?? I mop and vacuum and still she manages to find the tiniest bits of dirt to eat. I am not worried about her eyesight or grasping ability because she even picks up single strands of hair. It seems like a bad evolutionary trick to have babies develop the pincer grasp before they can discern what is safe to eat. At least she puts her eating abilities to good use at meal times. She LOVES to feed herself and gets frustrated if the pureed food portion of a meal goes on too long. She feeds herself little chunks of banana, mango, avocado, Cheerios, puffs, yogurt melts, cooked apples, ripe pears, green beans, black beans, cheese, and turkey loaf. The only food she doesn't like is peas. Don't blame her.

Waste of $20

2011-02-27T20:20:00.003-06:00

I feel like I spend half the day walking around with Miriam gripping my fingers. Nicholas thoughtfully bought her a cute little push toy so our aching backs could get a break. Turns out a weighted box would have accomplished much the same thing for a fraction of the cost. Well, at least the push toy turns into a riding toy. You can't really ride a box.

Conversation with an eight month old. As per usual, she was really going at it before I turned on the camera. But this is still cute.

Because She's So Darn Cute

2011-02-21T10:14:00.003-06:00

More pictures of Miriam! Here she is on the fireplace, her new favorite climbing spot. She wiggles up on it so quickly! No more quick trips to the kitchen when she's in the living room by herself. Give her five seconds, and she's on the fireplace. Getting up there is okay; it's the getting down I worry about.

And here she is in my new favorite outfit. We've had some days in the 60s lately, reminding everyone that this winter will eventually end. I look forward to short sleeves and shorts and bare feet this summer.

Little Booger

2011-02-02T11:48:00.003-06:00

Miriam likes to stand by the side of the stairs and pick at carpet fibers. Not a good idea since loose ones end up in her mouth. We put the TV trays next to the stairs to block her way, but the little booger (emphasis on little) still squeezed in there. Then we blocked her way with her musical table, but the little booger (emphasis on booger) crawled under the table. Eight-month-olds are amazingly resourceful and creative, usually to their enjoyment and their parents' exasperation.

Snack Time

2011-01-25T14:44:00.004-06:00

Bottle? No, thanks.

Sippy cup? I'll pass.

Straw? Yep, that'll work.

Miriam can finally drink from something besides me! After having limited success with the bottle and sippy cup, she took to a straw right away. The only no-spill straw cups I could find look huge when she holds them, but that's okay. She'll grow. :) She now enjoys snack time in the afternoons. She has some water from her cup, some puffs or rice cakes, and maybe some yogurt drops or fruit. If it were up to her, she'd eat puffs all day long. Seriously, Miriam loves puffs. I used to worry about her filling up on them until I realized each puff is 1/3 of a calorie. They're like crunchy flavored air.

We also started swimming. Gotta start 'em young, you know? She is adorable in her little suit. She likes to kick and splash and jump in and drink the pool water and lick pool toys. And as a bonus, swimming tires her out and she takes a nice nap after.

Stairs

2011-01-13T16:52:00.002-06:00

Last night Miriam decided she wanted to go upstairs. By herself. Previous to this, she had not climbed a single stair. She was content to pull up on the bottom one. Then...wham! She climbed one stair, then another, then another, and she didn't stop until she was at the top. She then crawled off to a bedroom like that was her intended purpose all along. She struggled a bit while we were taping (of course) but she managed most of them just fine. So now the other baby gate is up, though I intended to let her practice climbing when she shows interest.

Miriam Conquers Her Third Dimension

2011-01-10T10:27:00.003-06:00

The previous post detailed Miriam's conquest of mobility in the xy plane. She has now mastered pulling up and can now enter z axis as well. She pulls up on everything. Here's a partial list of what she has pulled up on: the bottom stair (a favorite), her toy box, her car seat, a rocking chair (impressive), the fireplace, the oven, the refrigerator, a box, a laundry basket, dressers, beds, her crib, her pack 'n play, doors, and walls. Basically, given a vertical surface or object with a flat vertical side, Miriam will attempt - and usually succeed - to pull herself up. Put this video on loop and you'll get a really good idea of a typical day for Miriam.

As frequently as Miriam pulls up on the stairs, she wouldn't do it when I had the camera out. The moment the camera turns on she becomes quite the ham, smiling and mugging and generally looking adorable. But she also stops whatever interesting thing she was doing that I wanted to get video of. So I had to entice her to pull up on the stairs with some toys. Just so you know, the baby gate brackets are installed and ready to go the moment she figures out how to get past the bottom stair. And the gate is already in use for the stairs leading down. The fireplace is covered in padding, every outlet is covered, and everything in the living room is out of her reach. Our house is definitely not ready for Southern Living, but safety first.

She's Mobile!

2010-12-30T20:14:00.002-06:00

I finally managed to get some good video of Miriam crawling. She loves shoelaces and will crawl all over the place to get to them. Also, this evening she crawled from the living room to the kitchen of her own volition. Her route included a pit stop under a side table for some licking.

My Amazing Baby

2010-12-28T17:26:00.006-06:00

So let me tell you about my amazing baby. I know I'm her mommy and proud by default, but this little lady really is something else. She turns seven months old today. Here's what she's been up to.

-- Crawling. She started sort of crawling two weeks ago and has improved drastically since then. She crawls really well with the proper motivation (a rattle, ribbon, food, etc.), and she's starting to realize that she can crawl just to crawl.
-- Sitting. This skill is mastered. She can even go from sitting to all fours and all fours to sitting. It took her a few days to figure out what to do with that front leg when going from sitting to all fours. It was so cool to watch her figure it out. And I'm greeted almost every morning by Miriam in her crib, sitting up, arms outstretched, ready to be picked up and cuddled. It makes waking up at 6:00 worth it.
-- Standing. Miriam LOVES to stand. When putting her on the ground, her little legs deploy and hit the ground first. You have to kind of force her to sit. She can stand holding on to a table or box or Bumbo or person with only one hand to balance! (Yes, I realize that in this picture the first stair is also helping her balance, but she can stand with only one hand on the coffee table, too. I just don't have a picture of it. ) She can also pull herself to standing given a low enough object. She got in this position all by herself.
-- "Walking." Now, I know this isn't true walking, but today Miriam pulled up on an overturned laundry basket and proceeded to push it around the room. She was moving one foot at a time, albeit very slowly. Now, I'm no baby expert, but it seems WAY TOO EARLY for this to be happening. I am NOT READY for this.
-- Eating. Miriam eats rice and oatmeal, carrots, sweet potatoes, butternut squash, and green beans. She is not a fan of peas. Neither am I, so I'm not going to force them on her. I introduced apples today, and while they weren't an instant success like sweet potatoes, they weren't outright rejected like peas. And she's still nursing really well.
-- Licking. She still licks everything.
-- Teething. There's a sharp little white spot in her bottom gums!
-- Sleeping. Miriam goes to sleep around 8:00 pm, wakes once between 1:00 and 4:00 am to nurse, and wakes for good between 6:00 and 7:00. She loves to sleep on her tummy with her rump in the air.
-- Playing. She enjoys playing with just about anything you put in front of her. As much as she likes her toys, she likes mundane objects more. The remote, a notebook, a box, chair legs, and shoelaces are way more entertaining than anything Fisher Price could manufacture.
-- Growing. Two weeks ago at the doctor's, Miriam was 15 lb 2 oz and 26 inches. I kind of doubt that 26 inches. I measure her closer to 25.

So that's my amazing little girl as she turns seven months. She is so much fun to have around. Nicholas and I are so blessed!

Merry Christmas!

2010-12-14T15:38:00.004-06:00

After the success we had putting Miriam in a pumpkin, I just had to put her in a present. She's quite the champ when it comes to sitting up, and since the box wasn't cold and yucky, this photo shoot was much easier than the pumpkin one. In fact, this little one loves the camera.

I wanted to capture her standing by the box, but she had other ideas. That shiny green bow was too much of a distraction.

Merry Christmas!

Couponing

2010-11-22T13:23:00.003-06:00

The coupon bug bit me about a month ago. I've been clipping coupons from the Sunday paper for a while, but after taking a couponing class from some pros, I decided to focus on getting the grocery bill down even more.

There are two big ideas behind couponing. 1: Buy more than one when you find a good deal to stock up your pantry. 2: Try to buy items when they are on sale and you have a manufacturer coupon AND a store coupon. I'm building my coupon stash, getting to know the store cycles, paying close attention to items I buy often, and following some blogs for help. I especially like Passionate Penny Pincher and I Heart Publix. Any other sites I should know about?

My first awesome couponing deal: 6 Ziploc containers for $1.25. Saved $4.73 or 79%. Publix had them 2 for $5, plus I had a BOGO coupon, plus a coupon for $1.25 on 2. I typically save around 20% on the week's groceries. My goal is to save 40-50% and not eat beans and rice every night. :)

Jumperoo

2010-11-15T16:53:00.003-06:00

Miriam recently figured out how to jump in her Jumperoo. Previous to this, she studied the toys on it or sat mournfully in the seat. But now...she jumps! She really gets into it. She jumps right out of her socks! (Notice the two little socks on the floor.) She uses her strengthened leg muscles to stand up with balance help. Also on the physical development front, she's scooting a bit and rotating a lot. She can get up on her hands and knees, and she rolls really well. She's a little roly poly!

Even More Miriam Pics

2010-11-10T13:04:00.003-06:00

Seriously, she is getting cuter by the day.
Here we have a typical Miriam activity: licking socks. That girl can get her socks off and in her mouth in mere seconds. I feel like I spend half of my day just putting socks back on the child. She really likes to lick fabric, and her socks are so convenient. She typically wears two pairs per day - one pair is on her feet while the other pair is drying of slobber. She also likes to lick noses and paper.
Could those arms BE any squishier?
She sits up very well. I enjoy sitting her on the couch. There's something hysterical about a tiny baby on a big couch. (Don't worry - she is fully supervised at all times when on the couch.)

Cereal!

2010-10-22T13:50:00.003-05:00

Miriam had rice cereal for the first time last night. I was nervous and expected her to be interested but not to eat much. Boy, did she ever surprise me. This little lady ate it up! I initially made a half serving (1/2 Tbsp cereal mixed with 2 Tbsp breastmilk), but she liked it so much I fed her another half serving. At first she just licked the cereal in the spoon, but soon we both figured out how to get more in her mouth. Almost all of the second serving went in. In between bites, she did her I'm-so-excited kicks and looked eagerly at the spoon. It could have been my imagination, but I think she looked disappointed when the cereal was gone. The video is on the long side. You'll get the idea of how it went after about 15 seconds.

Happy Halloween!

2010-10-09T21:19:00.007-05:00

Yes, I put my baby in a pumpkin. :) She lasted about 5 seconds before crying. Really, I couldn't blame her. The inside of a pumpkin is kind of yucky.

My Favorite LSU Fans

2010-10-02T20:39:00.002-05:00

Aren't they cute?

New Skill: Grabbing

2010-10-02T20:25:00.003-05:00

Miriam has begun to grab stuff - toys, burp cloths (as she loves to lick fabric), your shirt, your hair, your glasses, plates, bowls, etc. If it is within reach and of interest, you can bet that she'll get a hold of it. And if it is of interest and not within reach, she'll throw her body towards it to make it within reach. She's not always coordinated with her grabbing, though. She grabs air a lot. :) But she's getting better. She's also rolling over about once a day.

Her four month appointment was a few days ago. She didn't have fever with this round of immunizations like she did at two months. Her stats:
weight - 13 lb, 1 oz (35 percentile)
height - 24.5 inches (58 percentile)
head circumference - 15.5 inches (23 percentile)

She's so cuddly and squishy right now and starting to actually do stuff. I'm so in love with her and so lucky to be her mommy!

Who's That Baby in the Mirror?

2010-09-27T16:49:00.003-05:00

We've played "Who's that baby in the mirror?" for months now, but Miriam only recently took an interest in her reflection. She puts her little hands - and sometimes her head - against the mirror and occasionally will talk to her reflection. It's quite delightful.

Quick Onesie Dress

2010-09-22T09:50:00.003-05:00

I followed the tutorial at Prudent Baby to make this super cute onesie dress. http://www.prudentbaby.com/2010/03/10-minute-onesie-dress-easiest-dress.html
It was more like a 30 minute dress for me but still really easy. I added a little tie at the shoulder because Miriam loves to lick fabric. Bibs, shirts, blankets, burp cloths - it doesn't matter. Don't have a toy handy? Give the kid a piece of cloth and she's good.

In other news, Miriam rolled from her back to her stomach yesterday! Her expression was immediately surprise, followed quickly by the cry face, and then interest in her elephant mirror upon deciding that being on her stomach was okay. Since getting her harness off last week, she's been very busy. She found her toes, spends a lot of time rolling to her left side (making diaper changes more challenging), and is always kick kick kicking.

Yes, that's right, the harness is GONE! She wore it for 5.5 weeks in all. Her hips measure at 66 degrees, and 60 is the lower bound for adequate depth. Yay! She will get checkups at 6 and 12 months to make sure everything is still okay, but the doctor assured me that 98% of the time babies are fine and require no further intervention after wearing the harness.

Laughing

2010-09-09T07:51:00.003-05:00

Miriam started laughing about two weeks ago (at 12 weeks). It is the sweetest sound ever! Nicholas and I spend a lot of time trying to get her to laugh. Sometimes just laughing while looking at her is enough to get her going. Other laugh-inducing actions include blowing raspberries on her stomach and playing rocketship. So much fun!

Riverdance

2010-09-08T11:06:00.005-05:00

After three weeks of wearing the harness 24/7, Miriam was given permission to take it off for baths. I am so happy about this! I miss her little legs and toes. Bath time was always a fun time for Miriam and me, so it is really nice to have that back again. During bath time, Miriam kicks and squirms all over the place. With her arms straight down by her side, her head movements, and her energetic kicks, she looks like she is Riverdancing! She can really get going. Of course, she wouldn't do her dancing for very long when the camera was rolling. :( But you get the idea. Just imagine Lord of the Dance playing in the background. Her facial expression around :21 is priceless.
We recently took a trip to Louisiana to visit Nicholas's family. Here's a picture of four generations: Miriam, Nicholas, Miriam's grandpa, and Miriam's great-grandma. Awesome.

And here are Miriam, Aunt Celeste, and me rockin' our hot pink shirts.

Daddy's Girl

2010-08-27T08:47:00.006-05:00

The picture is of Nicholas and Miriam, each at two months. They certainly look alike, don't they? We couldn't find (or take) a picture of Miriam with Nicholas's expression, but she makes that same face all the time. The eyes, the nose, even the hair are the same. Miriam has nicer ears, thank goodness. (Sorry, Nicholas.)
Here's Miriam in a dress I made for her.And here she is getting ready to go for a walk. She keeps that same worried/angry expression during all our walks. I tell her to relax and enjoy being outside. My mom warns her that she'll need baby botox if she keeps scowling. That's my intense baby!

Harness Readjustment

2010-08-20T17:22:00.004-05:00

For the first three weeks, Miriam has to wear her harness 24/7. We can't take it off, even for baths. Once a week we go to the orthopedist for a good bath in the whale tub and a harness readjustment. (We sponge bathe her at home during the week.) This video is of the nurse taking off Miriam's harness. You can see her really stretch her legs. For the brief time she isn't in her harness, she is kicking and stretching those legs like you wouldn't believe! And sorry you have to tilt your head. One of these days I'll learn that you can't rotate video like you can photos.

11 Weeks Old and Playing With Toys

2010-08-14T14:55:00.007-05:00

All of Miriam's hand waving has produced a new skill: she now plays with toys. She especially likes this duck, a flower, and a butterfly. She grips and bats them and occasionally pulls them towards her mouth and licks them. That's my girl. While most babies like sucking on toys and fingers, Miriam licks everything. :) She often has a look of intense concentration while playing. Reminds me a bit of her dad. :)She's been in her Pavlik harness for a week. She'll wear it full time for two more weeks, and then we'll be allowed to take it off for baths. She gets another ultrasound on her hips in three weeks. Hopefully her hip sockets will have grown deep enough by then and we can be rid of the harness. I'd even settle for her wearing the harness only at night. While I know the harness is necessary and temporary, I'll be very glad when she's done with it. I miss bathing her in the whale tub. Changing diapers is a bit more complicated, as is nursing. And changing her clothes is a bit of a challenge. The nurse told me not to change her clothes, but really. What infant can keep an outfit clean for an entire week? We had to do three outfit changes this week, one each due to spitup, pee, and poop. Sigh.

She had her two month check-up this week. (Late, I know.) She's 11 lb 2 oz with harness, diaper, and clothes. (Usually babies are weighed naked.) She's ahead of the curve in her development. She got two shots and an oral liquid for her immunizations. Unfortunately, she ran a slight fever for the next 24 hours that made her sleepy and clingy. All better now!

Doing Laundry

2010-08-08T12:00:00.002-05:00

I used to be a software engineer, writing code and exercising requirements using formal methods. Now I entertain my daughter by throwing socks at her. And I love it!

Knit One, Pearl Two

2010-07-29T09:29:00.003-05:00

Miriam is two months old today! She is starting to interact, smile, and vocalize more. She has also started "knitting." She will wave her arms like this for minutes on end. She has a look of intense concentration as she stares at her hands. Maybe she's trying to get them to her mouth? Maybe she's fascinated by these two things right in front of her? Maybe she's knitting, or steering, or conducting an orchestra? I don't know, but it sure is cute!

Custom Clock

2010-07-27T11:49:00.003-05:00

We completed the Clock Project last week. The wall behind our couch is pretty big, so I knew it would take something pretty big to fill it and not look dinky. I got the inspiration for this clock from a picture I stumbled upon online. The clock hands are from Walmart.com. The pictures are from our many adventures plus three from my practically professional photographer cousin. Clockwise (ha) starting at 12, the pictures are the Duomo in Florence, a candle, a Haitian beach, parrots in Costa Rica, DC at night, view of Murano, Poas Volcano in Costa Rica, clock tower in Venice, view of St. Peter's Square from the roof of the Basilica, the Basilica in DC, a flower in Costa Rica, and the Cloud Gate (the bean) in Chicago. I like that the clock is functional and I can read it without my glasses on. Plus, we can change the pictures for a different look.

Yackity Yack

2010-07-19T18:55:00.003-05:00

When Miriam is in a good mood (fed, changed, and not tired), she loves to "talk." She grunts and makes the most endearing little sounds. If I remember correctly from my child development classes in college, she's learning the give and take of conversation.

Rolling Over

2010-07-12T08:36:00.003-05:00

I thought it was a fluke the first time Miriam rolled over last week, but I think I was wrong. Last night she got in the groove and rolled over several times. Like a good first time parent, I got a couple of the rolls on video. Note: I usually do NOT put her directly on the carpet. However, last night she rolled over while on her narrow playmat. I wanted her to have a little more room to roll, and I really wanted to capture the moment, so I moved her directly to the carpet and grabbed the camera without first putting down a blanket. I know, shameful.

Miriam Videos!

2010-07-09T16:20:00.004-05:00

So there should be at least one post between being 39 weeks and 6 days pregnant and videos of a five week old, but there's not. I've been busy, okay? :) Long story short, Miriam was born on May 29, and she is wonderful.

The first video is of me trying to wake Miriam. If she goes more than three to four hours between feedings during the day, she gets so hungry and frantic it can be hard to get her to nurse. Unfortunately, sometimes that means I have to wake her. As you can see, she's not a fan of being roused from a good sleep.

The second video is of Miriam playing with a toy bar for the first time. This week she has become interested in looking at and batting at toys, so I thought this toy bar would be perfect for her. She seems to enjoy it. There is a mat that goes with it, but it was in the wash when this video was taken. Put my baby on fabric straight from the store? I don't think so.

All Rooms Have Art

2010-05-26T09:15:00.006-05:00

Well, we've been in the house about eight months, and all the rooms finally have wall decoration. The upstairs bathrooms were last to be adorned.

These flower photos are in the guest bathroom. They are note cards I got at an art show in April, and the frames were 50% off at Hobby Lobby. Gotta love that. I think they really jazz up the wall.

These three are in the master bathroom. I made them based on art I saw at a craft show earlier this year. The basic idea is to tape strips of magazines behind a design cutout. It's very relaxing.

I had a fourth frame and so made one for my mom. I really like it though, so I might keep it. :)

Baby update: I'm 39 weeks 6 days pregnant. The baby's official due date is tomorrow, but there is no end in sight. Sigh.

Week 39 Update

2010-05-20T12:01:00.005-05:00

Nothing new to report. Still pregnant. So swollen my hands and feet actually hurt. Thankful I am not working and can rest when I need to.
I finished the organizer for the changing table. (Simplicity pattern 2632) I think it's the last thing I'll sew for a while because I need to finish the cross-stitch birth record.
Nicholas finished the DVR just in time for the Jeopardy! Tournament of Champions, and he's almost finished with the pantry. Nursery is ready. I'm ready. Now all we need is the baby!

Week 38 Update

2010-05-13T16:53:00.006-05:00

I'm thirty-eight weeks pregnant today, and I feel every week of it. I had an ultrasound yesterday to check on the baby's growth and my amount of amniotic fluid. The baby is right on target for growth and the fluid is fine. The tech estimated the baby's current weight at 7 lb 6 oz. So I'm basically carrying around a newborn at this point. What's more, I have two weeks until the official due date, and at this point babies can gain 1/2 to 1 pound a week! Yikes! It was really great to get some face time with the baby. He or she is head down and facing the floor, which I'm told is the perfect position for birth. S/he was also doing lots of practice breathing. Baby, if you're reading this, you seem plenty baked to me, so c'mon out!

Because I'm proud of my craftiness, here are some pictures of my recent projects. As you can see, the first three are for the baby's room. I love coordinating fabric!
Light switch plate covering. Tutorial here: http://www.makeit-loveit.com/2009/07/light-switch-cover.html

Fabric lining for basket. This was much harder than it looks. I'm pleased with the result, though. No pattern.

Changing table pad covering. Made two of these. No pattern.

Camera case. Already used it and love it. Tutorial here: http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=123044.0

Week 36 Update

2010-05-01T02:33:00.003-05:00

Physically: Blood pressure is good, if a bit higher than two weeks ago. That could be contributed to the nurse who told me I gained six pounds in the past two weeks. There was a mistake - I gained one. Even pregnant, six pounds in two weeks is enough to scare you and get your heart pumping. :) Baby's heart rate is in the 150s (indicating a girl?). I'm 1 cm dilated, 40% effaced, and the baby is head down! Plus, I've been getting several Braxton-Hicks contractions every hour. It's amazing to witness your body getting ready for birth without your conscious awareness of it. I've really slowed down. Yesterday it took me 21 minutes to walk one mile. I wish I could claim that steep hills or gale force winds impeded me, but I was on a flat indoor track and air conditioning currents don't count as wind resistance.

Mentally: Hmmm. What was I going to write about my mental state? I can't remember. Oh, that's right: I'm forgetful. It goes beyond "Why did I walk into this room?" to "What is my last name?" I don't remember talking to people on the phone, if I already printed something, or if I turned the oven off. I almost started a fire a few weeks ago because I turned on a burner, put a pan on the eye, and walked away. For 45 minutes. Let's just say Nicholas noticed the smoke when he got home.

Emotionally: I'm done with the whole being pregnant thing. I'm ready to sleep on my stomach, wear pants that button, and put on lace up shoes without first devising a strategy for reaching my feet. Also, I am SO READY to meet this kid. I want him or her in my arms. I want to snuggle and smooch and count fingers and toes and find out what color hair he or she has. (I'm more interested in the baby's hair color than his or her sex!)

Four weeks to go, maybe less, maybe more. Next Friday is my last day at work before becoming a full-time mommy. I have a list a mile long of things I'd like to accomplish before Baby Price's appearance, but if none of it gets done, that's okay. I don't think the baby will mind if I haven't scrubbed the baseboards or alphabetized my recipes. He or she has a place to sleep, clothes to wear, and diapers to fill, so we're set for at least the first few days. C'mon, Baby Price!

You Spin Me Right Round, Baby

2010-05-01T02:25:00.004-05:00

Last night Nicholas and I were discussing labor and how gravity can help position the baby for birth. Nicholas, ever the engineer, mentioned that given the proper centrifuge, you could "apply a gentle pressure to assist in delivering the baby." In other words, simply spin the baby out. Turns out someone back in 1965 already thought about this. In detail. With graphics. And got a patent.

http://www.thingamababy.com/baby/2007/01/baby_patent_his.html

So very wrong.

Two Peas in Two Pods

2010-04-18T17:21:00.002-05:00

My friend Jill and me at her baby shower. She's due about a week after me. It's been nice to have someone with whom to commiserate.

Nursery Curtains Complete!

2010-04-05T17:39:00.004-05:00

The nursery curtains are officially complete. I'm pretty proud of these - no pattern, the finished pieces were the sizes I wanted, and I love the colors. They are happy curtains.

Nicholas put the crib and changing table/dresser together. What a handy guy. :)

31 weeks

2010-03-26T18:11:00.002-05:00

Among the things you should NEVER say to a pregnant woman:
1. You sure it's not twins?
2. You sure you're not due earlier than what the doctor said?
3. You're getting pretty big to be walking that fast!
4. Wow, you look uncomfortable.

All these things have been said to me in the past week. I know people mean well, but it still hurts a little. Pretty much the only thing I want to hear is "Wow! You look fabulous!" I don't even care if you have to lie to say it. I'm sure other pregnant women will back me up on this. Something else I enjoyed hearing was "You're being such a good incubator for that baby." My OB told me this. Thanks, doc.

Things are still going well, and I'm so thankful for that. BP, weight, circumference, and baby's heartbeat (158) are all good. I've really slowed down when walking and tire a little more easily, but I feel pretty good. The baby is getting heavy, though. S/he is still quite the kicker. Some body part (foot? rump?) likes to stick out for minutes at a time, making a weird, hard mound in the upper right part of my stomach. Kinda cool.

The crib and changing table/dresser arrived. So did the wall stickers. The car seat and pack 'n play will be here within a week. Curtains are sketched and planned. The countdown is on!

Home Dec in a Sec, Er, Month

2010-03-20T16:17:00.004-05:00

More home decorating! I finished the curtains for the living room. What does almost $200 worth of fabric and three weekends of work get you? Exactly the curtains you want, plus enough fabric left over to make some pillow covers. (Still working on those.) I used a pattern for the striped cornice and roll up shade, but I made the panels myself based on the tab curtains I made earlier. Due to a measuring error, the roll up shade was too short, hence the extra fabric at the top. But I really like that part, and am glad it turned out the way it did. Next up: curtains for the nursery! Speaking of which, the crib and dresser/changing table arrived yesterday, and the car seat and playard are due to arrive in a few weeks. T minus 10 weeks to go!

Spelling Decision FAIL

2010-02-20T21:52:00.003-06:00

The Engle/Engel dilemma bothers me every time I go by this building. Pick a spelling already!

26 Weeks

2010-02-20T21:41:00.004-06:00

Here I am at 26 weeks. As you can see, the baby has gotten bigger, I've gotten bigger, and if it weren't for the hat, you'd see that my hair has gotten bigger, too. Okay, maybe not bigger, but it is longer. Interestingly, my rear end has gotten smaller. Can't figure that one out. Maybe it's Mother Nature's way of apologizing for everything going on in the front. :)

I'm about one week shy of six months, and I'm beginning to feel like there isn't enough time to get everything done before the baby comes. We have names (finally), and thanks to my aunt we have three pairs of socks and three burp cloths, but that's it. We haven't painted, curtains aren't finished, and the baby's room is woefully lacking in everything baby. I have done research on which baby gear to buy, and the birth record cross-stitching is coming along nicely, so that's something. I figure that as long as we have a car seat and some onesies we're good to go for a little while. It's not like baby is going to need everything on day one, right? Right??

Maternity Skirt

2010-01-23T07:43:00.006-06:00

For you pregnant seamstresses out there, here are two great links to tutorials of maternity skirts.
http://www.instructables.com/id/T-shirt-Skirt/
http://blvddesigns.wallypop.net/?p=135

I combined the tutorials, using mostly the first one, and made a skirt for myself. It's very comfy, and as you can imagine, waaay cheaper than buying one. I bought enough fabric for two skirts for about $6. It took me about 3 hours to complete, but now that I've done one, I imagine that the next one will take about 2 hours. I also made a matching headband.

Picture is of me at five months!

It's a...baby!

2010-01-22T15:06:00.003-06:00

We had the much anticipated 20 week ultrasound on January 6. It was 12 weeks since the last ultrasound, when our baby looked like a jelly bean. Now it looks like a real baby! We managed to remain ignorant of the baby's sex. The nurse said our baby was so squirmy that even if we wanted to know the sex it would have been difficult to find out! Everything looked good, though. The baby measured right on target and seemed content to hang out for another 20 weeks.

I can definitely attest to the squirminess factor. I think this kid is going for his black belt! I feel him or her after every meal and snack, when I first wake up, midmorning, midafternoon, a lot during the late evening, and before I go to bed. Not to mention that when I wake up several times during the night, he's sometimes moving even then. Nicholas can feel him move, too. And just last night, I watched him move. My tummy looked a little creepy, like it was infested with worms, but cool at the same time.

I must be obviously pregnant now, since people at work and church often ask when the baby's due. It's actually quite a relief to know that I'm out of that "is she pregnant or did she really enjoy the holidays" phase. My tummy has grown two inches in the past three weeks, and I'm now a full five pounds above my pre-pregnancy weight. I have not had any food cravings or aversions recently; my only food-related complaint is that I get full quickly and hungry quickly. There's really no inbetween.

So that's the report at week 22. Still no decisions on names, still no baby furniture, and still no living room curtains. Maybe all that will come at week 23. Or not. :)

Recent Projects

2010-01-02T18:12:00.008-06:00

I've been sewing almost non-stop since we moved into our house in October. Here's what I've completed so far.

Curtains for the kitchen. Yes, I know I still need to put ribbon on two of them. Did not use a pattern for these. (!)

Christmas tree skirt. The snowmen alternate with the blue to form a circle. Again, no pattern.

Tabbed curtains for the dining room. This one required a pattern.

Plastic grocery bag holder. We try to use the reusable bags but somehow manage to wind up with several plastic ones. They are convenient for many things, however. I followed a tutorial at http://makeitandloveit.blogspot.com/2009/01/grocery-bag-holder.html to make this. The woman who maintains that blog is pure awesomeness.

Next up are a valance and panels for the window in the living room and a roll-up shade for the door to the sunroom. Should be completed by 2011. :)

A Rose by Any Other Name

2009-12-29T18:26:00.002-06:00

No matter how ordinary or outrageous, kooky or classic, just about everybody in the world has a name. New parents pick names for their children every day. It can't be that hard, right?

Wrong. Leave it to Nicholas and me to make the baby naming process difficult, drawn out, and spreadsheet dependent.

First, here are our criteria for names. (Yes, names. We aren't peeking, so we need a boy name and a girl name.)
1. Name must not be trendy or popular. (Adios, Noah, #2 for 2009.)
2. Name must not be gender neutral. (Sorry, Jamie.)
3. Name must be easy to say and spell. (Too bad, Petra Jr.)
4. Name must not have alternate spellings. (No can do, Rebecca/Rebekah.)
5. Name must not leave child open to obvious ridicule. (Sianora, Fisher.)
6. Name must provide decent initials.
7. Name must have an acceptable meaning behind it.
8. Bonus if the name is Biblical or French in origin. Saint names are also good.

So that's the frame work we have to work within. Finding a name that fits all eight parameters AND that we both agree on is tough. Rule #1 is broken often because a lot of traditional names that we like are popular right now. Rule #3 sometimes fails because names we like, particularly French ones, are not obvious to say or spell. Also, having been a teacher, I downright refuse to name my precious baby the same name as some snot-nosed former student of mine. (There are just a few, but still. Certain names send chills down my spine.)

You might think we're making too much of this, but think about it. This decision will stay with our child every day for the rest of his or her life - or until he concludes that we were off our rockers when naming him and marches straight to the courthouse on his 21st birthday to change his name. This is the name we'll use when tucking him in at night, singing him happy birthday, or yelling at him for coloring on the walls. It's the name that will identify him to the world.

We have a few names that are possible contenders at the moment, but I'm not going to share them because I'm sure that someone would shoot them down. That's what happened already with a few possibilities that I did share, and we just can't afford any more casualties from our already short list. I am open to suggestions, however. Just be sure your suggestion fits the aforementioned criteria if you want it to be taken seriously. :)

Say cheese!

2009-12-29T17:47:00.006-06:00

So I realized that not only have I not posted in a while, but I haven't posted the best news ever. As you probably gathered from the picture, I'm pregnant! Baby Bumper is due May 27, 2010, making me 18 weeks and 5 days today. Nicholas and I kept the news under wraps for the first 10 or 11 weeks, which was hard. I was running out of excuses as to why I was getting sick at work and taking naps in my car during lunch. Let's just say that people at work graciously acted surprised when I told them.

This picture was taken at 4 weeks. One line turns blue to indicate the test functioned properly and the second line turns blue when you're pregnant. You're supposed to wait two minutes to read the test. For me, that second line turned blue within seconds. I called Nicholas in while shrieking, "Look! Look!" I told him that the line turned really fast. He asked what that meant. I replied, "It means that I'm very pregnant." You know, as opposed to a little bit pregnant.

Here's a quick rundown of the past 18 weeks.
Week 3: My mom had knee replacement surgery. I felt bad and figured I was either pregnant, dying, or tired and stressed because of her surgery.
Week 4: Positive pregnancy test. Tired.
Week 5-12/13: Really tired. Nauseous all day. Occasional throwing up. Lost 5-6 pounds.
Week 6: Moved into new house.
Week 8: First ultrasound. Baby was about 0.8 inches from crown to rump. Super Sniffer activated. I could smell anything and everything.
Week 14: Started feeling better and staying up past 9:00pm.
Week 15: Started wearing maternity shirts. Still stubbornly wore my regular pants with a rubber band holding the waist together.
Week 16: Gained back the 5 pounds.
Week 17: Gave in and started wearing maternity pants. They are fantastic. Started feeling the baby move, especially after eating.

Looking forward to meeting the little bugger in only 5 more months!

Qck Pstng

2009-10-18T10:35:00.006-05:00

Seems I don't have time for anything lately, much less vowels. Super condensed update: We moved into our new house October 2nd. Love it, love it, love it. Can't wait until it has all the homey touches, like curtains and things on the wall. Right now we're still unpacking boxes.

Nicholas turned 30 this past week. I had a party in the works for him, but in early September I realized that moving + party planning = too hard. So instead I surprised him at work with brownies, cookies, banana bread, balloons, and a poster with pictures of Little Nic. He almost ruined the surprise by heading straight to his offsite customer location for the day, but luckily his quick-thinking boss called him to the office after lunch. Once the house is in order, I want to have a belated party for him. Is it weird to celebrate being 30.25?

Bibliophilia is a Good Thing

2009-09-12T18:48:00.009-05:00

So we're (probably) moving at the end of the month. I say "probably" because the house has yet to be inspected - that'll happen Monday - and until the inspection comes back clean, I can’t say for sure that we're moving. However, that little bit of uncertainty has not stopped me from going through stacks of papers, throwing out random items that I didn't even know I owned (when and where did I acquire a golf ball?), and packing up the individual items that collectively make up our “stuff.”

We started the packing process in the living room with books. Now, I'll be honest: I love a good library in a home. Few things are as comforting as shelves and shelves of books that have been read and loved. It's more than psychological comfort - it's almost physical. Seeing my books makes me feel secure and happy. When scanning titles I'm reminded not only of what the books are about, but also where I was in my life when I read them. My Baby-Sitters' Club collection brings back happy childhood memories of going to Waldenbooks to get the latest BSC installment as a reward for a good report card and then practically devouring the book in the car on the way home. One Diana Gabaldon book was a birthday present during my sophomore year in college that I impatiently waited to read until exams were finished. I remember laying on the uncomfortable couch in the common room, so excited the semester was over and I had a great big book to keep me company through the holiday break. Two Jen Lancaster books, though hilarious in their own right, remind me of that hellish month of interferon. My substantial collection of math books makes me think back to the incredible awe I had when learning about things like Phi, logarithms, and non-Euclidean geometry.

The books don’t even have to belong to me for me to experience emotions. I was hit with a big wave of nostalgia when I wandered into B&N's children's section today. I saw books about Corduroy, Amelia Bedelia, Dr. Suess, The Bernstein Bears, Busytown, and Mrs. Piggly-Wiggle. I was overcome with good memories of being read to, of cuddling with my mom and dad as they opened this wonderful world of literature to me. It was then I realized that I equate reading with love. No wonder it's painful for me to get rid of books. No wonder I feel safe when surrounded by my beloved pages. No wonder I get a little thrill when walking into a bookstore or a library. I'm a bibliophile, and there's nothing wrong with that.

However, I sure wish books weren't so heavy. At least when I'm moving. :)

My Busyness

2009-09-06T11:36:00.004-05:00

Whew! It's been quite a whirlwind of activity lately. Here's a quick rundown of my busyness.

1. I made a dress!

2. The fall semester started; I'm taking a class entitled "Computer Organization and Assembly Language Programming." First impression: I don't care how big a processor's bus is. I just want to write recursive algorithms.

3. I had checkups with both the derm and the onc. All is good. My right arm has been bothering me lately, though. Right after the first surgery, I had the same pain. I think it's related to nerves. The pain started after an arm-intensive weekend of rafting and playing frisbee a few weeks ago, so hopefully if I rest it then it'll be good again soon. Until then, I'll just have to get Nicholas to carry anything heavy. :)

4. Speaking of rafting, we rafted duckies on the French Broad. Pictures: http://picasaweb.google.com/petra.price/FrenchBroadRaftingAndCamping#

5. I saved the best for last. We're moving! To a house! Yeaaaaa! Pictures: http://picasaweb.google.com/petra.price/ProbableNewHouse#
It's an older house, but the inside is completely redone. New paint, carpet and flooring, appliances, counters, bathroom fixtures, etc. It has a sunroom! And I'll be within biking distance of a grocery store and a library. Couldn't ask for more. :) We close on the 29th. I'm super excited about decorating and have all sorts of ideas. The sewing machine is going to pay for itself as I make curtains for the bare windows. And pillows. And maybe a table runner.

Hope everyone had a great summer!

Link to Newsweek Article

2009-08-06T20:03:00.014-05:00

http://www.newsweek.com/id/209319/page/1

This article caught my eye because of its title: "A Malignant Melanoma Walks Into a Bar..." It's about how young people deal with cancer. Parts of the article really hit home. Like the author, I totally remember sitting in a stupid recliner in the infusion room thinking, "I shouldn't be here for at least twenty more years." From the article I learned that my blog has an incredibly boring name. (see paragraph 7)

Quick reminder: Project Runway starts in two weeks!

[edited 09/09/09]
The author of the Newsweek article and one of the people profiled in it were on Fresh Air this week. First of all, if you've never heard Fresh Air, you really should give it a try. Locally, it's on 89.3 FM at 6:00pm Monday-Thursday. Terry Gross is awesome. You can hear (or read) Terry's interview with Iva Skoch and Kairol Rosenthal here: http://www.npr.org/templates/rundowns/rundown.php?prgId=13&prgDate=9-8-2009.

The Escher Has Been Replaced

2009-07-26T06:47:00.008-05:00

This now hangs over our mantle. I think it's pretty neat, but I wonder...does anyone else get it?

Living La Dolce Vita

2009-07-08T18:41:00.006-05:00

For ten beautiful days in June, Nicholas and I toured Venice, Pisa, Florence, Rome, and Assisi in Italy. This trip marked my first excursion to Europe, and I hope it is the first of many such trips. Learning about the Italian culture, both ancient and modern, listening to the lyrical Italian language, and seeing sights I've only read about made this trip fantastic.

Here's the link to some of our pictures. http://picasaweb.google.com/petra.price/Italy#
These pictures don't capture the soaring cathedrals, sweeping pastoral vistas, and elaborate monuments that convey the essence of Italy. Nor do they capture the sense of history that practically drips from every church and piazza. Nicholas and I commented several times that the U.S. doesn't have old things like Europe has old things. Sure, we might visit Jamestown, but that settlement is "only" 500 years old. We saw door hinges that are four times that age. What really left an impression on me was the contrast, or perhaps lack of contrast, between old and new. People work in buildings erected in the 1500s; they pray in churches that date from medieval times; they walk on paths Caesar walked on. And yet modern life, with all its wires and gadgets, its plugs and switches, prevails.

Here's a bit of video of Pope Benedict speaking at his weekly Wednesday audience. He delivered his address in six languages: Italian, French, English, German, Spanish, and what we think was Russian.

Review of The Fashion Show

2009-05-23T13:15:00.004-05:00

I've been a big fan of the original fashion reality show, Project Runway, since its inception in 2004. I love watching the creativity and talent exhibited by the designers. These people make fabulous garments without patterns, from scratch, in a matter of hours. Absolutely amazing. The tension-induced drama is fun, too. "He's using my sewing machine!" "She stole by buttons!" And even when the clothes are hideous and totally unwearable, they're hideous and unwearable in a fantastic way. Heidi Klum hosts, and the incomparable Tim Gunn acts as mentor to the designers. Unfortunately, Project Runway was caught in some litigation between Bravo and Lifetime for about the past year. I don't know the details, but Bravo used to air it, and now they don't. I'm sure money is involved. Anyway, since Bravo doesn't have rights to it anymore, it now has The Fashion Show as a half-assed replacement. The Fashion Show doesn't even BEGIN to fill the strappy stilettos vacated by PR. Seriously. Even Nicholas commented that it wasn't as good as its predecessor. And that, my friends, speaks volumes. What's wrong with it? Well, for starters, the hosts are Isaac Mizrahi, a designer, and Kelly Rowland, formerly of Destiny's Child. I mean, really. I don't know about Issac's top brand, but his Target stuff is horrible - ill-fitting and the colors can be garish. And he calls the designers "kids." Ugh. And how does Kelly fit in? I find her fashion credibility suspect, and that's putting it nicely. And she exhibits NO personality on the show. "What did you think of so-and-so's design?" and "I think we know" are her two guaranteed lines per show. And the challenges, especially the mini-challenges, are a bit ridiculous. This past week's mini-challenge required the designers to do little repairs like fixing buttons and sewing a hem. BORING. Plus, tailoring is tenuously related to their design ability. Thus far, there's been way too much team work and not nearly enough over-the-top personalities. I like my designers eccentric and over-confident. Aside from Merlin and Reco, every one else is rather blah. So why is my DVR set to record this wanna-be? Because PR's new season doesn't start until August 20. Because I need something to watch while I iron. Because a crappy fashion reality show is better than no fashion reality show at all. Because I enjoy watching the designers assemble a garment from scratch. Because otherwise Nicholas will want to watch sports. So, until the first and best fashion reality show starts later this summer, I will continue to watch TFS. Just don't expect me not to groan when Issac utters the show's tag line: "I'm just not buying it." Ugh.

2009-05-13T17:30:00.005-05:00

I decided to make Nicholas some pajama shorts and a top. Why did I decide to spend $11 on a pattern, $10 on fabric, and hours upon hours of my time instead of simply BUYING him some $5 pajamas at Target? It's because I have this fantasy of making my future children matching Easter outfits and then forcing them to pose with a scary, bug-eyed, mutant rabbit at the mall. And then, when the children are grown, I can make matching floral shirts for Nicholas and me to wear on our cruises. I'm only kidding. We're more plaid people than floral people. :) Seriously, I feel that I should be able to follow a pattern and make simple clothes. It's one of those life skills, like being able to drive a stick or start a campfire, that you probably don't use often, but when you need it, not much else can substitute.

Before starting The Shorts, I had really, really basic sewing skills. I was limited to pillows, headbands, pocket squares, and other concave polygons. But I figured I'd start small with The Shorts and work my way up to skirts, dresses, curtains, tops, convex polygons, etc. The Shorts were a s-l-o-w process. I purposely chose a Kwik Sew pattern because they're supposed to be easy and have good directions. The time estimate for The Short's pattern was four hours. Well, it took me 4.5 hours just to cut the pattern out and sew three seams. The front fly was especially challenging, but I persevered and finished. The Shorts turned out pretty well. Nicholas wears them on his own volition, so I consider that success.

Next I undertook The Pants, which are pictured above. (Isn't Nichoals a teriffic model?) The Pants used the same pattern as The Shorts, and doing the same pattern a second time was sooo much easier and faster. They took about six hours. You might be wondering why one leg is blue and the other is Louisiana Tech fabric. See, I bought the LA Tech fabric while in Louisiana for Easter. Perfect fabric for some pj pants for a LA Tech alum, right? Well, it would be if the seamstress would buy enough fabric. Yeah, I didn't have enough, and seeing how driving a 1000 miles round trip for fabric is a bit ridiculous, I "made it work," to quote to incomprable Tim Gunn. After The Pants, I moved on to The Skirt for myself. The back waistband is pictured. Look at that zipper! Fantastic! I finished The Skirt and immediately started on The Skirt Part II, which is finished except for a hem. Next I hope to help my mom make some curtains. Then, who knows? With my mad sewing skilz and the Hobby Lobby down the street, the sky's the limit!

Moving On

2009-03-17T18:41:00.002-05:00

The other day as I was brushing my teeth before bed, I realized that I hadn’t thought about melanoma the entire day. (Of course, thinking that I hadn’t thought about melanoma is thinking about melanoma, but work with me here.) This was something new, because for the last year I’ve thought about melanoma at least once every day. For the first few months after diagnosis and treatment, I thought about it a lot. As the months went on, I thought about it less and less, but it never strayed far, kind of like that ugly neighborhood cat that no one will claim but somebody is feeding because otherwise it would just go away. Not that I have a problem with cats. Some days are what I call “good melanoma days,” in that I think fleetingly about it maybe once or twice during the day. Some days aren’t so good because I think about it often. Those are the days I scour the internet for papers and studies and statistics, searching in vain for answers even Google can’t provide: will my cancer come back? Am I going to die from this? But lately the good melanoma days have far outweighed the bad ones, and I really feel like I’m moving on. Unfortunately, scars and doctor’s appointments mean I can never completely forget. I was at Clearview for a checkup a few weeks ago. While walking by the treatment area, I heard the sucking sound of an infusion machine as it pulled the last bit of chemo from someone’s IV bag. I felt an odd mix of fear and panic, but mostly I felt like I had to get out of there immediately. I didn’t want to be reminded of those endless hours in the puke-green recliners, willing the time to pass as I read old People magazines and feigned interest in what Miley Cyrus wore to the Oscars. That was not fun. But like I said, I really feel like I’ve entered a new post-cancer stage, one in which cancer isn’t something I think about all that much. Also, I have a new peace, a new acceptance of my future, whatever it may be. I really feel like if I remain cancer-free, than bloody fantastic; if the cancer comes back, then I’ll deal with it. There just isn’t any use in funneling precious brainpower towards something I can’t control. And I know everyone says that, but now I really believe it. So here’s to health and happiness – mine and yours.

Anniversaries

2009-02-05T18:04:00.007-06:00

Nicholas and I celebrated our first wedding anniversary on January 26. Seeing as how it was a Monday and Nicholas had a work deadline the next day, our celebrating was modest.

We exchanged gifts in the morning and ate year-old cake in the evening. Nicholas got me two packs of gummi bears and I got him a mini flower pot and seeds. Now, before you get all, "I cannot believe all he got you was gummi bears!" let me explain. I was in favor of a no-anniversary gift policy, but Nicholas had the brilliant idea of spending $1 on our first anniversary, $2 on our second anniversary, etc. This a) is thrifty and b) forces us to be creative. Also, the longer I stick around, the better my gifts get. :)

The cake, which was SO YUMMY on January 26, 2008, was SO DISGUSTING on January 26, 2009. Immediately after the wedding, we put the cake in the freezer just like we had brought it home: on a Holiday Inn plate and covered in cling wrap. And in our infinite wisdom, we left it like that. For a year. While it was really pretty to look at every time I opened the freezer, the transparent covering did little to protect the cake from the ravages of freezer burn. Below is some video of me tasting a bite. Nicholas stopped recording right before I ran into the kitchen to spit it out. While Nicholas found the cake "not good," he did declare it "edible" and took - and swallowed - a few bites.

The other anniversary we recently celebrated is my first NED-iversary. NED is cancer jargon for no evidence of disease. It's a nice way of saying, "Hey, you're free of cancer! Well, you may not be, but we can't find any in you." On January 28th, 2008, the surgery that took a chunk of my upper arm and removed the one and only positive lymph node took place. Though we didn't know it at the time, this surgery removed all traces of melanoma. Some people count their NED-iversary from the date they find out for sure that they're NED, but I prefer to implement NED status retroactively. The longer, the better, I figure.

So there you go! Two awesome anniversaries just days apart. May we be celebrating both for years to come.

Blend FAIL

2009-01-24T19:48:00.003-06:00

I love my blender. I also love muffins. Thus I was quite excited to make orange date muffins, the recipe for which required that I blend up an entire orange. I cut the orange into chunks and proceeded to blend them. A few bits were not blending so well. In an effort to get those last few pieces to blend, I blended for a few seconds and then stirred the mixture. Blended, then stirred. Blended, then stirred. It wasn't working. So I decided to blend and stir. Brilliant, right? Wrong. Did you know that if you stick a metal spoon into a whirling blender, the contents of the blender fly upwards, adhering themselves to the underside of your cabinets, your counter, your floor, and whatever else happens to be nearby, like your face?

The muffins are really good, though. Also, look how long my hair is!

Fight FOCA

2009-01-14T18:51:00.009-06:00

Have you heard of FOCA, the Freedom of Choice Act? It's a revolting piece of pro-abortion legislation that Obama promises to sign when he takes office. From www.fightfoca.com:

FOCA would eliminate every restriction on abortion nationwide.
FOCA will do away with state laws on parental involvement, on partial-birth abortion, and on all other protections.
FOCA will compel taxpayer funding of abortions.
FOCA will force faith-based hospitals and healthcare facilities to perform abortions.
Barack Obama believes this legislation will “end the culture wars.” To him, “ending the culture wars” means eradicating every state and federal law on abortion—laws the majority of Americans support.

That's right: If FOCA becomes law, a minor can have an abortion without parental consent, and unlicensed physicians could perform abortions. Catholic bishops have promised to close Catholic-run hospitals rather than allow abortions to be performed in them. Note that Catholic hospitals account for 30% of all hospitals in the country.

Here's a letter Nicholas and I each sent to our senators and representative. Feel free to copy it and send it to your senators and representative. Their addresses can be found here: http://www.usa.gov/Contact/Elected.shtml. You can also sign a petition against FOCA at www.fightfoca.com. Please consider taking some sort of action against this revolting piece of legislation.

I am writing to express my opposition to the Freedom of Choice Act. While I am a pro-life supporter and voter, I believe that there are many obvious reasons for pro‑choice supporters to be against this legislation also. The majority of Americans support the Partial Birth Abortion Ban Act of 2003, the Hyde Amendment, and the Mexico City Policy. In addition, I believe most Americans support requirements that women be provided information about the risks of getting an abortion (as with any medical procedure) and that only licensed physicians be allowed to perform abortions.

I will continue to support pro-life legislation in the future, but I do not believe that this particular act should be considered a pro-life versus pro-choice issue. This is an issue about protecting women and health care providers as well as unborn children.

I respectfully ask you to stand firmly in opposition to this extreme legislation. But I also ask you to persuade your fellow congressmen who support this act to discern whether it truly would be in the best interests of all citizens, regardless their stance on abortion. I look forward to your response on this critical issue.

Because Inquiring Minds Want To Know

2008-12-10T19:05:00.003-06:00

My upcoming check-ups are as follows:
dermatologist: January 27 (But will have to be moved because I just realized I have class that day.)
surgeon: February 3 (Also will have to be moved because of class.)
oncologist: February 17 (No conflict.)
other surgeon: March 10 (Conflict again. Sheesh. Good thing I'm looking at all these dates.)

Assuming all these go well (no reason to think they won't), the frequency of appointments should decrease from every three months to every six months. I am all for that.

Happy birthday to me!

2008-12-02T17:30:00.002-06:00

I turn the big 2-7 today! And you know what I got? No, not a pony or jewelry or even a new CD. I got wrinkles. That’s right – wrinkles. I’m telling you, those suckers were NOT on my face yesterday. So thanks, Mother Nature! Really, you shouldn’t have.

I think the term “fine lines” must be a euphemism promoted by the beauty industry. “Fine lines” makes me think of something elegant and refined, much like “fine China” and “fine linen” conjures images of expensive tableware and sumptuous fabrics. But let me tell you, there is nothing “fine” about these lines. These ruts were carved under my eyes with less grace and delicacy than that displayed by a paintbrush wielding elephant doing its best Jackson Pollock impression.

So what’s a twentysomething girl to do? I could fight back with an arsenal of skin care products from the cosmetics counter. Perhaps I could use Dermal HA Hyaluronic Acid Face Serum or Idebenone Antioxident Skin Toner or Alpha Hydrox Oxygenated Moisturizer, but first I’d need a chemistry degree to figure out what I’m smearing on my face.

I could go the organic route and use all natural products like Almond Facial Oil, Clensing Milk Gel, Invigorating Lemon Scrub, or Green Apple Nutrient Eye Cream. As a bonus, I could scrape a chip across my cheek and enjoy a tasty snack.

The third option is to embrace aging, to revel in the outward signs of hard-earned experience. I could refer to my wrinkles as “wisdom indicators” or “life badges.” I could celebrate my wrinkles, er, “maturity markers,” welcome the inevitable sagging, or as I shall call it, “relenting to the forces of gravity,” and graciously greet the graying, now known as “acquiescing to the loss of follicular chromaticity.” Yeah, right. That attitude leads directly to pastel plaid tops, pants with elastic waistbands, and Velcro comfort shoes. No thanks.

For now, I’ll stick with my skin care routine of applying SPF in the morning and using a gentle cleanser and moisturizer at night and hope for the best. On the upside, as I age, my eyesight will continue to worsen, thus leading to a strongly inverse relationship between the number of wrinkles on my face and my ability to see them. There is a divine plan after all!

It's Been Busy!

2008-10-25T17:01:00.008-05:00

I realized that I haven't posted for over a month! For lack of a good topic upon which to write, here's a recap of the past month.
My mom and I drove to North Carolina to visit my college roommate (and maid of honor) Mary Helen. Here she is giving her weekly radio address regarding the all things horticulture in her county. If you want to hear her, tune in at 11:00 central on Fridays. Larry, the radio host, completely embarrassed my mom by asking her questions on air! I got to talk a little, too.

We went hiking on Monte Sano. Here's Nicholas throwing a water bottle to our friend.

We had a little get-together last weekend in honor of Nicholas's birthday. Here I am making white chicken chili for the party. I also made a yellow cake with chocolate frosting - from scratch. Yep. Even the frosting was homemade. Honestly, I don't think the effort was worth it.

Here's a shot of the other side of the kitchen while I was doing all this cooking. I think I'm quite justified in complaining about how small our kitchen is. :) Oh, I also made shrimp creole on Nicholas's actual birthday. It was quite tasty, if I do say so myself. I got the recipe from Mary Helen (thanks!) so it was an authentic Louisianan recipe.

Nicholas ran the Liz Hurley 5K last week. He did very well and managed to keep a good pace the entire race.

I'm also taking a computer science class at UAH. It's called Switching Theory, and it's about circuit design. We get to play with breadboards. :)

I saw my dermatologist this week for a check up. All looks good. I see the surgeon for a check up in a few weeks and the oncologist in a few months.

Next up is a trip to Ruston for Lousiana Tech's homecoming next weekend. Nicholas will get to show me around his alma mater, and I'll get to see my first "big" football game. Nicholas insists that this game won't be all that big, but considering my college didn't even have a football team while I was there, I think I'll be impressed.

Happy Autumn to all!

On Loss

2008-09-21T12:57:00.001-05:00

I recently had to put down a beloved pair of shorts. These shorts and I go way back to 1994. That’s right - I bought my pink Umbros fourteen years ago in a store that no longer exists in a mall that no longer exists. I loved my pink shorts like a dog loves its bone. To say that I “liked” them or wore them “a lot” is an understatement. Aside from my wedding dress, they were easily my favorite article of clothing EVER. Our relationship started when I needed shorts to wear for seventh grade P.E. They did their job so well that I wore them in P.E. every single day of seventh and eighth grades. After middle school, I found a plethora of uses for my shorts. They were perfect for sleeping, running, cooking, washing the car, shopping, going to school…basically everything but going to church, and my mother probably had to thwart an attempt or two at that. I remember wearing my pink shorts in Cotton Row Runs and marathon training runs. I wore them to high school cross country practices and pulled them over my swimsuit after swim team practices. I wore them to class in college and on the weekends once I started working. In the past year or so, I noticed that my shorts were getting old. They had a few tears and some little holes, but nothing too bad. Then the waistband lost all elasticity. I had to roll the top over a few time, and even that didn’t guarantee they would stay up. Also, they were badly faded. The once vibrant hot pink paled to a dusty, tired rose. Surprisingly, the inside didn’t fade that much, so while the outside was dull, the inside was still very bright. This remnant of their one-time glory was quite a reminder of how far they – and I – had come.

So why am I eulogizing a pair of old, stinky shorts? Did I love them that much? Well, yes I did. But putting these shorts to rest got me thinking about other losses incurred this year. I lost my single status, my last name, and my apartment. Granted, I gave up these things willingly, but they were a loss nonetheless. After my diagnosis of melanoma, I lost some skin, some lymph nodes, my unfounded belief that doctors know everything, and a lot of naiveté about life in general. Then there’s the most profound kind of loss: the loss of a loved one. Sadly, this summer Nicholas’s grandmother lost her husband of several decades. Obviously, I’m not trying to compare throwing away some old shorts to losing one’s life partner, because the two are vastly different. I can’t even imagine losing Nicholas, nor do I want to. But no matter what you loose, or give up, or throw away, or replace, whether it be something trivial or someone loved, you’re reminded that things on this earth, everything from shorts to human bodies, are indeed earthly, and that makes them mutable, destructible, and temporary. For something that lasts, you have to look to the heavens:

“Praise the LORD, who is so good; God's love endures forever.” –Psalms 136:1

And as much as loss can hurt and devastate in the here and now, knowing that God loves us today, tomorrow, and forever makes loss bearable.

For Your Amusement

2008-09-07T06:50:00.010-05:00

My hair is growing at the super-fast rate of half an inch a month! Here's what it looks like three months after The Cut.And here's what it looks like from the back. It has the beginnings of a mullet!
And for those of you in need of a good laugh, here's what it looks like first thing in the morning. The term "bedhead" does not begin to describe it. :)

Try-Athlons

2008-08-25T17:39:00.010-05:00

Picture it: The sky is gray. It’s raining. It’s been raining for hours. And according to the superstar local meteorologist, it’s not going to quit raining any time soon. Also, the wind is blowing with gusts up to 20 mph. The rain is getting colder, and it’s starting to sting a bit.

Based on that description, would you prefer to
a) stay inside and read a good book
b) stay inside and watch a good movie
c) stay inside and clean the oven
d) go outside and swim a half mile, bike 20.5 miles, and then run 4.6 miles?

If you chose a or b, congratulations! You’re normal.
If you chose c, what’s wrong with you? Did you even read the choices or did you pick “c” because that’s what you learned in that SAT prep class?
If you chose d, congratulations! You’re not normal, but we have a lot in common, because that’s exactly the choice I made during yesterday’s Rocketman Triathlon.

I finished interferon four months ago today, and after working all those months to get back into shape after my interferon-forced workout hiatus, I was not going to let a little rain stop me. Or a lot of rain stop me. Not wind, either. (Lightening, yes.)

For this triathlon, you start with a 0.5 mile swim in the Tennessee River. [Insert joke here about swimming with water moccasins, alligators, freakishly large catfish, dioxide, etc.] However, due to yesterday’s wind and rain, the race directors decided to cut the swim distance. The current was strong, and they didn’t want people getting in trouble. I’m a fairly strong swimmer, and even I was surprised by how much the current and waves affected my swim. I don’t know how far we swam so I don’t know if I met my time goal or not, but I felt really strong during and after, so the swim went well.

After the swim, I hopped on my bike for a little over 20 miles. This took place on the arsenal, so we didn’t have much traffic to deal with. I was pleased with my bike portion. During training, I could average 15 mph with traffic and stoplights and other impediments, like idiot drivers intent on mowing me down and idiot men shouting “encouragement” at me. During the race, with no distractions, I averaged 17.3 mph!

Finishing the bike at Rocketman.

The run portion was after the bike. I felt super going into the run. I quickly shook the weird feeling of going right from biking to running, and I settled nicely into my pace of about a 8:30 mile. A little before mile three, my left illiotibial band started to act up, as in OWWW. I’ve battled my ITBs for over three years now. I stretch and ice and massage them, and sometimes they still give me problems. The rest of the run was AWFUL because it HURT to run, despite the stretching and walk breaks I took. So I finished the 4.6 mile run averaging 9:59 per mile. Ugh.

Starting the run at Rocketman. Trying to pin your race number to your shirt while running should be avoided.

All together, I finished in 2 hours and 11 minutes. I was fourth overall in my age group, and I had the fastest swim in my age group. And no, there weren’t four people in my age group. There were five. :)

The week before was the Huntsville Sprint Triathlon. It’s a very family-friendly event, and one that attracts a lot of newbies. In fact, it was the first tri I did way back in 1998. Being a sprint triathlon, the distances are short: run 3 miles, bike 6 miles, and swim 400 yards (which is a quarter of a mile). The weather that Saturday was great: overcast and cool. Being August in Alabama, this race is usually hot and humid, but we got a break this year. I was faster than expected in the run and bike but slower than expected in the swim, and my overall finish time was thirty seconds slower than I wanted. However, the motto of the race is “To Finish Is To Win,” so I guess I won. :)

Even though my times weren’t what I wanted, I’m proud of myself for getting back in shape and just doing the events. And I’m thankful I could do the events. I still think of this year as bonus time because the typical interferon course runs a full year. If I had chosen to do the full course, I’d be sleeping, not doing triathlons. I just pray that the emerging data that one month is as effective as one year is right. But I don’t dwell on that. It’s pretty hard to remember feeling sick while I’m sporting my brand new finisher’s shirt!

Finishing at the sprint tri. My hair usually looks a lot better, okay?

The Gifts of the Ring

2008-08-19T18:16:00.004-05:00

Sorry, Tolkien fans, but this post isn't going to glorify a short guy who lost some jewelry. Rather, it's about my newly acquired skills - skills, I believe, that I received simultaneously with my wedding ring.

First, a bit about my ring. It is beautiful. After almost seven months of near-daily wearing, I still catch myself admiring it, shifting my hand back and forth so the diamonds sparkle and shine. My ring makes me feel pretty and, in a sense, complete. Also, it keeps the hordes of single guys at bay. :)

Now, about these new abilities that I promise you did not appear until my wedding ring was securely on my finger.

1. I can keep plants alive. B.R. (before ring) I couldn't even keep that ubiquitous green ivy from turning yellow and withering. Now, A.R. (after ring) I've kept a peace lily alive for months. And it's not just barely hanging on, either. It's thriving. In fact, I had to repot it in a bigger pot last weekend.

2. I have a sixth sense for when the oven timer is going to go off. B.R. I didn't even have an over timer and frequently forgot I was even baking something. A.R. I can set the timer, go do something else, and a few seconds before the timer is to go off, I arrive in the kitchen just in time to silence the timer after a single beep. To a lesser extent, the same goes for the washer and dryer. There's no satisfaction quite like that of entering the laundry room mere seconds before the washer stops spinning.

3. I can take disparate leftovers in the refrigerator and make a complete meal. B.R. I rarely cooked, and when I did, it was by following a structured recipe. Now, give me half an onion, a can of soup, some leftover chicken, a few stalks of celery, and thirty minutes, and you've got dinner.

4. My stain-fighting ability has greatly improved. B.R., a stain meant the thrift store was getting a donation. A.R., Petra + OxyClean = Awesome.

5. I can fold queen-sized fitted sheets by myself. B.R. I had simple twin sheets to deal with, which, let's be honest, are not difficult to fold. A.R., the task's difficulty has increased, but my lines are crisper, my corners sharper, and my edges flatter. Martha Stewart could take a lesson.

These gifts as bonuses, extras, like toy surprises inside cereal boxes: I wasn't expecting them, but I'll certainly take them. Or perhaps they were bestowed upon me to compensate for all the extra sports viewing I have to do. Either way, as much as I enjoy the ability to sense when the laundry's dry, I would gladly give up that skill and all the others as long as I could keep the best thing that came with the ring: my husband.

Nantahala Trip

2008-08-08T17:27:00.009-05:00

Last weekend, Nicholas, Mary Helen (aka my maid of honor), and I decisively conquered the mighty Nantahala River. Okay, maybe we didn't so much conquer as float, and maybe the Nantahala isn't so much mighty as a step above babbling. But still, having completed several guided rafting trips on the Ocoee and Nantahala, we felt up to the challenge of solely navigating class I and II whitewater in inflatable kayaks, also called duckies.

This picture is NOT us. It's from some random person's Picassa gallery. But you get the idea of what a ducky looks like.

We slithered into our rented wetsuits (ick), watched a video on the hazards of whitewater that was in turns hilarious and frightening, reluctantly selected what I'm sure was a mold-filled personal flotation device, boarded a bus (which I'm sure was equally mold-filled), and we were off.

We unloaded at the put-in, where we quickly learned that even though duckies are filled with air, which is light, duckies themselves are quite the opposite. I attribute 50% of my post-rafting soreness simply to hefting the duckies from the bus to the river.

The trip down the river was beautiful. There were patches of misty fog (foggy mist?) hovering just above the water, and going through those spots gave everything an ethereal, floaty feel. The ducky was fairly easy to steer, although that didn't stop me from getting stuck on a few rocks or from bumping into a few multi-person rafts. One group of rafters got peeved at me for tapping them, which is hilarious, because a ducky hitting a raft is like a Mini Cooper hitting a Hummer.

The rapids weren't scary at all - there were quite fun, actually. The only distinctly un-fun part of the trip was the frigid water. The Nantahala River flows from the bottom of Nantahala Lake, so it is about 50 degrees even in the middle of summer. Even with a wetsuit, I was really cold. My sandaled feet lost feeling, which made walking immediately after rafting a bit tricky.

The highlight of the trip for me was when I tried to pull over to one side to wait for my pokey friends. My ducky-parking skills are less than stellar, so instead of slowing to a gentle stop by the bank, I was violently sucked down a tributary. At first I tried to turn my ducky around and paddle upstream, but I quickly abandoned that effort as I realized that the current was pretty darn adamant about taking me downstream. I then surrendered to the river gods, praying only that the branch didn't deliver me deep into Appalachia, because I'm so not cool with a life a la Christy, churning butter and making soap. Plus, I really like wearing shoes. Anyway, just when I had convinced myself that a full set of teeth is overrated - swoosh! - I was spit out into the main branch.

For the record, Mary Helen and Nicholas expertly maneuvered the final rapid, a class III. I, however, wussed out and chose to bail immediately before this hazardous rapid. There's a take-out specifically for this purpose, so it's not like I'm the only pansy out there. :) Seriously, though, Mary Helen and Nicholas did a great job.

We finished rafting and headed back to our campsite at Tsali, which was pretty nice. There were a few women who obviously didn't understand the concept of waiting in line to use the single sink, but other than that, it was fine.

So we survived our big rafting adventure more or less unscathed. Nicholas tweaked his already tweaked ankle, and I have some bruises, but for two desk jockeys playing weekend warriors, I think we did pretty well! On to class IV!

Status Update

2008-07-15T17:37:00.001-05:00

I've been getting a lot of surprised responses when I tell people how well I'm doing, so I thought I'd post a general health update.

I'm doing really, really well! One week after finishing interferon, on April 25, I went back to work part-time, and one week after that I went full-time.

I'm finally getting back in shape. It was pretty frustrating to go from running 25 miles per week pre-INF to barely being able to walk one to two miles without resting during INF. It took about two months before I had any kind of endurance, and I'm just now getting my speed back. (And I use the term "speed" loosely. I didn't have much to begin with.) I'm signed up for two triathlons next month: the Huntsville Sprint Triathlon (run 3, bike 6, swim 0.25) and the Rocketman (swim 0.5, bike 20.5, run 4.6). Training is fun and is going well. On Saturday, for example, I ran 3 (27:07), biked 20 (1:33:00), and swam 0.5 (13:38).

My hair has completely stopped falling out. I was to the point of questioning myself; maybe I just thought my hair was falling out more than usual. Then the falling out slowed and recently stopped, and I knew I wasn't imagining things. In all, it fell out rapidly for seven to eight weeks. Thankfully, I started with more hair than I knew what to do with, so there's some left. :)

So things are really good here. Nicholas and I will celebrate our half-year anniversary next week. Work is fine. The condo is in good shape. All the windows have curtains!

In the next month and a half, I'll see my dermatologist, surgeon, and oncologist for checkups. That makes me a little nervous, but I know checkups are necessary and important.

Again, I can't thank everyone enough for his or her support.

2008-07-06T16:04:00.019-05:00

Last weekend Nicholas and I went to Roan Mountain with our friend Doug. Roan Mountain is on the Tennessee/North Carolina border near the Virginia line. It's a beautiful area known for its rhododendrons, which peaked about a week before we got there. Nevertheless, we saw a lot of pink rhododendron. A lot. We drove there on Friday, hiked most of Saturday, and drove home on Sunday. It was a much-needed weekend retreat from the weekly grind. We parked at Carvers Gap and hiked on the AT to the summit of Roan Mountain, the site of an old hotel, and the famous rhododendron gardens. After returning to our car, we hiked a bit in the other direction on the AT up to the top of Round Bald. The views were amazing. Here are a few of the best shots.

More pictures are here.

One of the many scenic vistas.

Nicholas and his handy-dandy GPS carrier. You can just make out the GPS hanging off the end of the stick.

It was a long day, okay?

My hair is falling out a lot less. Like, sometimes when I run my fingers through it, NOT A SINGLE HAIR falls out! It's growing quite nicely, though it's taking on a rather bushy shape. Oh, well. I'll take bushy over bald any day!

Sew Little Time, Sew Much to Do

2008-06-26T18:13:00.004-05:00

I must share these fabulous directions for sewing a headband: Hooray for Headbands by Heather Bailey. It's a simple pattern, and it takes a lot for me to say that. You know those so-called easy, one-hour patterns? For me, they're more like hours and hours of sticking myself with a needle, burning myself with an iron, and banging my head against a wall while I spew insults at my sewing machine and curse the day Mr. Singer was born. Needless to say, there's nothing easy about it. So I was understandably dubious when I found this pattern; however, I persevered, and after about an hour and a half I had a very cute headband! The only change I would make to the pattern is the amount of fabric. The pattern calls for 1/8 yard, and I can see how that would work IF the lady manning the fabric table at Hobby Lobby doesn't do a hack job of cutting your fabric. I would get a 1/4 yard just to be safe. I've made two headbands (the one pictured and a black and white one) and have fabric for three more. Excessive? Perhaps. But I think they're really cute, and I just love how the ties brush my neck and make me feel like I have long hair! By the way, my hair is growing nicely, though it's still falling out. Sigh.

This is Why Melanoma is So Scary

2008-06-17T18:57:00.004-05:00

Michelle Rigney died today. She had stage IV melanoma. She was 22.

I've been reading Michelle's blog (http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/michellerigney) since January. Her story is so sad because besides being young (19) when diagnosed, her initial diagnosis was stage I or II. (She doesn't specify.) She had a wide local excision, and her local lymph nodes were removed and tested; they came back clean. Then a little over a year later, she jumped to stage IV with lung metastases. Despite surgery and awful treatments, she just couldn't get ahead of the cancer, especially in the last few months. Her story is heartbreaking to read.

AND THEN I read that Linda is now stage IV. Will it ever end?

Aside from thinking about Linda and Michelle and what their family and friends are going through right now, I'm thinking about all the stage I-III people (including myself). I thought the SNB, not to mention lymph node testing, was supposed to prevent this kind of thing. If Michelle's cancer skipped to the lungs, then it could happen to any of us. How can melanoma cells just bypass the lymph nodes? What gives them that right? How dare they! And while I'm at it, why aren't there better tests to catch this beast early? Why aren't there sure-fire treatments? Or at least treatments that can boast over a 50% effective rate? Good grief, I just read an article about why sun screen causes melanoma. Yeah, that's right. You're damned if you do and damned if you don't. So let's all go outside without sun protection, drink from BPA-laden sports bottles, microwave plastic wrap over our food, and, just for kicks, live next to a nuclear power plant and play by a substation, because apparently trying to prevent cancer is impossible.

[added Wednesday, June 18 at 19:42]
I'm still sad about yesterday's news, but I'm not feeling so despondent today. I know there are basic precautions we can take to improve the quality and length of our lives, and I'm all for that. Sometimes I just wish there could be more certainty, as in "if you practice safe sun habits you will never get melanoma." Life just doesn't work that way, and I accept that, but it doesn't mean I have to like it.

Guys Have It Easy!

2008-06-08T17:06:00.003-05:00

Seriously! I haven't touched a brush, hair dryer, or hair accessory in a week! My hair dries meer minutes after washing it! I do miss my hair, though. But as long as it's short, I might as well enjoy being lower maintenance!

Jewelry, make-up, and a dress make me look like less of a boy. :)

My hair is still falling out just as much as before, but it's a lot easier to clean up now!

Hair Today, Gone Tomorrow

2008-06-02T21:02:00.004-05:00

Nicholas buzzed my hair last night. "I think I missed my calling," he joked as he snipped another lock. The hair loss that started about three weeks ago (yes, one month after my last dose of interferon) was becoming too great. Hair falls out when washing it, when brushing it, when running my fingers through it, when a strong breeze ruffles it, etc. Seeing (and cleaning) the amounts of hair at home, in my car, at work, and any other place I spend any amount of time is just too hard, plus the loss was becoming noticeable. I kid that I shouldn't commit any crimes in the near future because my DNA is everywhere. :)

So now my hair is one inch long. Instead of finding long red hairs everywhere, I find short red hairs everywhere. But at least my hair shouldn't clog the vacuum anymore.

My first thought upon seeing my new look was of Hilary Swank from the movie Boys Don't Cry. You know, the one in which she plays a girl playing a guy? I'm a little more used to it now, and with some make-up and earrings, I look okay. It's actually quite liberating. I can try all sorts of hair styles as it grows. I can wear cute hats and scarves. It's cooler. I'll save a ton on shampoo and ponytail holders.

While out and about, I feel like people are looking at my head a little more than I think is necessary, but that might be my imagination. On the plus side, I had two doors held open for me today by random men. And at Wal-Mart this morning, the cashier - who had only one leg - was super nice to me. She told me to have a great day and to "be careful." As she tettered on her leg, I contemplated telling her to be careful, but thought better of it.

You might be wondering what my hair looks like, and this would be a really great place for a picture, but you're out of luck. I'll post one when I have time to put on make-up and fem up as much as possible. :)

Remember those "Love Is..." cartoons? The ones with the naked boy and girl that depict a different ending to "love is..." every day? Well, here's mine: Love is... chopping your wife's hair off and then telling her she's beautiful. Thanks, Nicholas.

------------------------------------------

By popular demand, here's a picture of the completed shelf. Notice the extra shelving!

Two Years Ago Today

2008-05-28T06:31:00.004-05:00

Nicholas and I went on our first date exactly two years ago today. We sat next to each other at Sunday evening Mass, and then we met at the VBC to retrieve our Cotton Row Run packets. After that, we went to Ruby Tuesday's for dinner. The next day was Memorial Day and the run. We were supposed to meet before the run, but thanks to my lousy description of a landmark, we couldn't find each other. I never once thought he stood me up; after just one date, I knew he wasn't that kind of person. We finally saw each other as he passed me going down Bankhead. After the run, I remember being extremely embarrassed that I was sweating so much. (Really now, why was I so embarrassed? It was really humid that day and I had just run a 10K. Okay, and maybe some of it was because I was nervous being so close to such a cute guy. :) )

From then on, we talked to each other just about every day. Our relationship grew so naturally. Each step - holding hands, our first kiss, even getting engaged - seemed like the obvious thing to do.

Nicholas, I love you so much. You are an amazing man. Thank you for being my husband and best friend. My life is blessed because you are in it. Love, Petra

Creative Outlets

2008-05-18T06:57:00.009-05:00

A few weeks ago, I decided that I needed a creative outlet, so I pulled out all my beading stuff for the first time in EIGHT YEARS. Man, I own a lot of beads. I made my mom a triple-strand bracelet for Mother's Day, and now I'm working on a bracelet or necklace for my cousin. (The length of a project is definitely dictated by how much time I have before said project needs to be given.) I'm enjoying being crafty.

I also began the task dreaded by every newly married couple...going through wedding pictures. We have 300 proofs, so it's going to take a while. Overall, I'm pleased with how they came out. Of course, some are so wonderful I start to tear up a little when looking at them, while others make me wonder a few things, namely: 1. Why am I giving my flowers the evil eye in several individual shots? 2. Why is there a picture of Nicholas trying to escape the church while my dad attempts to hold him back? Nicholas said it was staged, but why in the world would a bride want a picture of that? 3. Why are my arms so stumpy? 4. How did I manage to snag such a hot guy? So far I've made 8x10s of us for our parents, we each have a picture of the other for our offices, and these are in our dining room. Don't you just love the frame? ($12.99 at Target!)

On the medical front: I feel GREAT! (Mmm, Frosted Flakes.) I don't have to see any kind of doctor until August!

What Just Happened Here?

2008-05-10T06:55:00.003-05:00

I think the significance of the past three months hit me this week after I learned that I can never be a bone marrow donor. Registering is one of those things I've been meaning to do and somehow manage to put off again and again. Now there's a child at our church who has leukemia and needs a transplant. His family has arranged several bone marrow drives in his honor, making registering convenient. But I looked online and those who have had anything more than in situ cancer are ineligible. I totally understand this, but reading it still shocked me. It's like I'm contaminated forever.

I continued to be sad and upset when I realized that cancer is something I will have on my mind for the rest of my life. My chance of recurrence is between 30 and 50+%, depending on which doctor or study you believe. That chance drops after five years, but it never goes to zero. There is no "cured." In a sense it was easier when I was having surgeries or chemo, because then I was actively doing something to eliminate the cancer. Now, it's "wait and see." (Or, more appropriately, "wait and feel.")

I think it might take some time before I'm completely comfortable with this dichotomy of living like I'm cancer-free but having constant vigilance against recurrences. That's a tricky line to walk. I read in one cancer handbook that after cancer you should forget about it. That's not so easy to do when you check your armpit for lumps nearly every day. And this might sound weird, but I don't want to forget about it. This experience changed me in ways I'm just discovering. Some changes are good (e.g., losing the idea that doctors know everything), while other changes are maybe not as good (e.g., increased impatience, especially with idiots). Either way, to forget about this experience would be to deny a part of myself, to refute the lessons I've learned. And that's not something I'm willing to do.

National Marrow Donor Program: http://www.marrow.org/
website of Bryson Merriweather: www.caringbridge.org/visit/brysonmerriweather

Just Like James Brown, I Feel Good

2008-05-03T13:33:00.004-05:00

Met with Waples on Monday the 28th. While he wasn't enthusiastic about my decision to stop interferon, he accepted it. He agreed that the level of toxicity was great and the benefit not impressive. I’m glad I did the one month of high dose, though.

Interestingly, he said he couldn't find any studies comparing one month of high dose to the regular regimen of that followed by 11 months low dose. He gave me some printouts describing interferon studies he got from a special doctor’s-only site. I say this is interesting because A) the doctor from UAB recommended it, and as I've been told, UAB is the “buckle of the melanoma belt.” I’m assuming a doctor at UAB is not going to recommend an untested treatment. B) NYU recommend one month for a person with stats similar to mine (this guy’s primary was even twice as thick as mine). C) I found reference to a one month versus twelve month study in the online version of the Journal Clinical Oncology (http://meeting.ascopubs.org/cgi/content/abstract/25/18_suppl/8505 ). The conclusion of this phase III study: “There are no significant differences in OS [overall survival] and DFS [disease-free survival] between the regimen of 1 month and 1 year treatment tested.” D) This one’s the kicker: I also found reference to that study in the information he gave me. Yeah. I don’t know if I should question his intelligence or mine. Questioning either one makes me nervous.

I haven’t made a decision about continuing to see Waples or switching to a different onc. I have a check-up with Waples in four months for blood work and such. I’ll see my derm in three months. In the meantime, you can bet that I’m doing a skin scan daily. I also frequently check my axillary lymph nodes and scar, as those are likely places for a recurrence.

I’m feeling really good. After working 4-6.5 hours a day for the past two weeks, I’m back to eight-hour days. I’m down to one 30 minute nap a day. I don’t get out of breath folding laundry. I don’t have to sit down during Mass. My runs consist of twice as much running as walking. I’m back to lifting weights. I’m eating normally. (It did not take long to find the weight I’d lost.) I’m also singing in the car again. I didn't realize I wasn't doing this until I started again. Same with tapping my foot or finger to music.

I really like fonts - I even used to design my own. So you can imagine my glee upon finding the Fontifier website (http://www.fontifier.com/index.html). YOU CAN MAKE A FONT OUT OF YOUR HANDWRITING. This is fantastic. Plus, it's only $9. I'm going to try it. How awesome would it be to type with your handwriting? (Answer: very.)

I Didn't Take A Nap Yesterday!

2008-04-27T18:31:00.004-05:00

That's right: for the first time in six weeks, I was awake the entire day. I quite enjoyed it.

Nicholas and I went to Atlanta for a quick trip yesterday. It was soooo nice to get out of town for a while. We walked around an incredibly crowded street fair, went to mass at the Georgia Tech Catholic Center, and ate at an Ethiopian restaurant. Then we put our navigation skills to the test by trying to locate something fun to do on a Saturday night in a big city. Should be easy, right? Not so much. We were moderately successful, though.

I read a ton of blogs by people with cancer, mostly melanoma. It's comforting to read about other people's struggles and to see that what I'm feeling isn't weird. I suppose I could join a support group and have face-to-face conversations with people, but it's the age of the internet. Plus, it's much more convenient to stay in my pajamas and leave comments. :) Anyway, here's a post to which I totally related. Warning: language. http://katie.typepad.com/wtfsanjo/2008/04/let-me-explain.html. Now, I don't agree with everything she says. There are more than two reasons to take care of yourself, and I'm still all in favor of running and hitting the gym. But she totally captures my emerging attitude of "so what?" For example, I ate at McDonald's yesterday, and not only did I survive, I immensely enjoyed my grilled chicken sandwich and vanilla cone. (Though I did wipe the glob of mayonnaise off with a fry.) I'm toying with the idea of trying alcohol. I purchased a bikini. I might not clean the bathroom this weekend. Crazy, right? Don't worry, I'm not going to develop a pack-a-day habit or stop showering or anything like that. I'm just going to be more in touch with the free spirit in me.

I sincerely thank each and every person who has supported me the last three months. The cards, emails, and deliveries were very much appreciated. I especially thank you for your prayers - God heard!

Getting Crafty

2008-04-20T16:44:00.005-05:00

I got all crafty this weekend and did the following:
wrapped a ribbon around a wreath and hung it on the door... (The wreath was on a church door for our wedding, so it is both meaningful and pretty.)
bought a new doormat at Target...

and bought flowers at Home Depot.

Considering I know NOTHING about plants and have killed every single one I've ever owned - including the "kill-proof" ivy I had during college - I am TERRIFIED of owning these flowers. However, I decided that it was time to do something with the porch. We have a cute little table and chairs, and once I do some major sweeping and hosing down, the porch will be just delightful for reading and dining. Because I know someone is going to ask, I think the hanging plant is a geranium or a gardenia (it's a flower that starts with a "g", okay?) and the ones in the box are either pansies or petunias (again, it's asking a bit too much for me to be sure of their names). I feel like I could do my own Mastercard commercial: wreath and ribbon: $7; flowers and flower box: $25; girlifying the condo: priceless.

I've done three of the low-dose shots. Doing the actual injection isn't bad at all. Honestly, I can't even feel the needle when I stick it in. Unfortunately, I still feel crappy. The crappy is a slightly less crappy crappy, however. STILL...I am deeply unhappy that I don't feel better. And seeing as how I've already lost a good month of my life, I've decided to stop the injections. I'm finished. There is no sense in continuing to feel bad when a) it's basically a crap shoot as to whether the melanoma will return, b) interferon is waaay toxic, c) new studies are indicating that the first month of high-dose gives you the most good for the least bad, d) the doctor in Birmingham recommended just the one month, e) I miss myself and want to feel normal again. All in all, I feel like I've done my time, and IF the melanoma recurs, I'll feel that the effort I put in was worth it. I don't know when I'll start to feel really good again - it's not going to happen overnight - but I know that it will happen, and I'm more than ready for it.

100% Is A Really Nice Percent

2008-04-12T19:52:00.003-05:00

So yesterday I had the 20th and final IV dose of interferon. And then...Nurse Kendra pulled the PICC! That's right, I'm rollin' sans PICC. Based on how much it hurt to get the stupid thing inserted, I was expecting its removal to be a smite painful. However, I was pleasantly surprised that the worst part was the boa-constrictor-like bandage after. I took a look at the PICC after it was no longer inside my vein, and I was disappointed at how narrow it was. Seriously, it was less than a millimeter in diameter. Going strictly on my memory of the doctor shoving something akin to a sewer pipe up my arm, I assumed the line was at least half a centimeter. I guess I really don't have a good sense of how big my veins are. (And I'm okay with that.) I was going to post a picture of my PICC-free arm, but then I realized that that would be a rather boring picture. We all know what arms look like. :)

On Monday I'll learn how to give myself shots so I don't have to go to Clearview three times a week. I'm looking forward to this (the avoiding Clearview part, not the sticking myself with a needle part). I'm really hoping to feel better on the shots.

On a more pleasant note, one of my favorite authors has a new book coming out early next month, and with incredibly fortuitous timing, I got a gift card to Barnes and Noble. (Thanks, Aunt Ellen, Uncle Jim, and Uncle Frank!) Now I need to decide if I want to pre-order the book online or actually go to B&N on May 6th. If I go to the store, I could have my own little book release party a la Harry Potter. I could wear pearls and a pink and green polo and camp outside the night before. Oh, Jen Lancaster, how I wish we were friends! Also, I discovered she has a blog, so now I can get a dose of her humor weekly instead of annually! (Warning: she likes her profanity, but she's soooo funny.)

Another funny author is Laurie Notaro. Some of her stuff had me laughing so hard the bed shook.

75% Complete!

2008-04-05T09:55:00.011-05:00

It's been an uneventful week here in Interferonville. I've been more tired and achy than in previous weeks, but my appetite is a little better, so on average I guess I'm the same.

I've gotten a ton of cards in the mail this week, and I'd like to say a big THANK YOU to all who sent one. I just love getting mail. My habit is to check the mail right before heading to Clearview so I have something to open while I'm waiting.

I also got two bouquets this week - peace lilies (?) from my Aunt Joan and a cookie bouquet from work people. Both are just lovely. And if Nicholas is nice to me, I might let him have a cookie. :)

I'm starting let myself think about what it'll be like to feel good again. (Yes, I realize this is risky because I might feel worse on the shots.) You know how sometimes when you're sick you forget what it's like to feel good? And then when you're well again, you're like, "Hey, I forgot that I could feel like this?" I'm pretty sure that's what it'll be like for me. Here's what's on my list of things to do when I feel better:

1. run

2. lift weights

3. run

4. run

5. bike

6. swim

7. eat at Olive Garden (I don't know why, but their commercials make their food look incredible. I don't even eat steak and those commercials have me wanting a big hunk of cow. Plus, I've been thinking about their salad dressing for weeks now.)

8. shower without Glad Press & Seal wrapped around my arm (That stuff works much better than regular Saran Wrap to keep the water off the PICC.)

9. cook something besides frozen waffles (which I've been subsisting on lately)

10. go an entire day without taking a nap (Right now I'm sleeping about 11 hours at night and another 2-3 hours during the day, plus other rest times. I'm tired of being tired!)

11. Get out of Huntsville for a while. Those of you who live here know what I mean. :)

That's it for now. I see Waples on Monday, so I'll probably post again then.

Thankful

2008-03-30T08:05:00.003-05:00

I have been inundated with kindness and love the past few days, and I want to give a big "thank you" to everyone. I've gotten the nicest emails and cards and phone calls. One friend dropped off two homemade pizzas, yummy cookies, and the first season of Psych, which I'd never heard of previously but is really funny. That was just so nice of her.

Here's Nicholas showing off his incredible strength on the new storage platform he built this weekend.

It'll be really nice to finally get some things out of the dining room and onto the platform. Plus, it doubles as an extra bed for visitors. :)

40% Done

2008-03-27T08:36:00.002-05:00

I've avoided posting for a week because I didn't want to be depressing, yet I couldn't think of anything non-depressing to post. I told Nicholas this, and he said to post whatever I feel. So here goes. You've been warned. :)

My side effects have become predictable: tired, tired, tired (like have to rest while folding laundry kind of tired), achy all over, sometimes fever during the night, nauseous, and a general crappy feeling. This week is worse than last week as far as the nausea and achiness and tiredness goes. I really miss eating. I never realized what I big part of my life it was: food selection, preparation, eating with others, even clean-up. I miss looking forward to a good meal, enjoying a meal with Nicholas, and cooking. No food sounds good, and when I do manage to choke something down, I feel even worse after.

I also miss work. I went in for an hour and a half on Monday and spent about 20 minutes of that laying on the floor. Being at work took a lot out of me. I came home and slept for two hours. So I don't think I'll be going back until the IV phase is over. I feel like my limited energy is better spent elsewhere.

So what do I do all day? Here's a typical day: wake about 8:00, do stuff on the computer, rest, walk outside or ride a bike at the gym for 20-30 minutes, nap, shower, rest, go get interferon, come home, try to eat something, do a couple little chores, watch TV, go to bed. Exciting, isn't it?

The nurses say I'll feel like a different person (in a good way) when the shot phase starts, and I'd better, because I can't do this much longer. And if for some reason I don't feel TONS better on the shots, I'm going to quit, because feeling this crappy all the time isn't worth it. The oncologist in Birmingham recommended just the one month of high dose, and I've read a few articles saying there is virtually no difference in survival and relapse rates between the one month and the full course.

Okay, enough complaining. I've been up for an hour - it's time for a rest. :)

Fluids Are My New Best Friend

2008-03-20T08:32:00.007-05:00

So I posted all about day one and the awful headache that made me want to detach my head and neck from my body. Dr. Waples and the nurses were very adamant that I tell them about any unpleasant side effects because they can usually do something to alleviate the unpleasantness. So on Tuesday (day two), I told my nurse about the headache and fever. She suggested a shot of Demerol immediately after the interferon to head off a headache (punny!). So on Tuesday I got two extra strength Tylenol and 25 mg Benadryl before the interferon, the interferon, half a dose of Demerol, and some phenergan (some strong anti-nausea stuff). No kidding, as she injected the phenergan, by vision began to blur and I got a lovely floaty feeling. I just really, really, REALLY wanted to sleep. There was no way I could walk out of there, so they plopped me in a wheelchair. (Honestly, I hate those things. Riding in one either a) makes me feel sick or b) reminds me that I am sick.) In this situation, I really didn’t care if they loaded me in a wheelbarrow or strapped me to a hand truck– there was no way I could have walked. Now, I don’t remember a whole lot after this point, so I’m going by what others told me. As the nurse wheeled me to the car, I got really pale and my lips turned blue. She immediately turned around and within seconds I was back in the recliner, reclined waaaay back with another nurse holding up the foot of the chair so I was reclined even further. Seriously, I could have slid off the chair and bumped my head I was tilted so much. :) This was because my blood pressure needed to come up. I just wanted to sleep, but the silly nurses kept saying, “Talk to us. Talk to us.” All I could think is, “About what? At least give me a topic.” They were so annoying! :) So I guess it took about an hour for me to get some color back and to feel somewhat normal. This all ended around 5:00 pm, and I was seriously out of it until 11:00 pm. I was so groggy and would fall asleep two seconds after waking but could still hear what was going on. Oh, and I still got a bad headache, but it lasted only three hours (compared with six hours the night before). The fever got up to 104.0, which as you know makes you feel very yucky.

All day Wednesday I slept and rested. I had no energy and no desire to do anything. I went to check the mail and had to lie down to recover. Pathetic!

I told the nurses that Tuesday’s routine was not helpful and we needed to try something else. So on Wednesday they started me off with a half-hour drip of extra fluids, a bit of some steroid, and a bit of some anti-nausea thing. I still took the two extra strength Tylenol and 25 mg Benadryl. The nurse instructed me to take another two Tylenol and another Benadryl four hours after receiving the first. Plus, they gave me a prescription for a pain med in case all of the above didn't do the trick. Thanks to all that, I had quite a pleasant night last night. I had very little fever – I don’t think it ever cracked 100.0 – and the tiniest baby of a headache that didn't warrant taking anything. I did have three sweating episodes, which are new. Needless to say, I went through a lot of PJs last night. :) I’m very excited about this new cocktail. I feel a lot better today, and if I weren't so tired, I’d feel almost normal! I feel like moving today, so I think I’ll head to the gym and walk on the treadmill. I would go outside, but it’s rather chilly. Plus, I don’t want to be a mile from home and get tired. Or maybe I'll do a yoga class. Stretching sounds heavenly.

Nicholas is so awesome. He ordered the complete first two seasons of Saved By the Bell on DVD for me! That’s 750 minutes of crazy high school hijinks from Zack, Kelly, and the rest of the gang! Eat your heart out, Sara! :)

Day One in the Can

2008-03-18T10:00:00.005-05:00

For the squeamish among you, here's a sanitized recap of yesterday: went to hospital, got PICC line, went to Clearview, was versed (again) on interferon side effects, got interferon, came home, received beautiful fruit bouquet from D & K (thanks, guys!), slept, watched/listened to TV, had massive headache and fever, went to bed.

For those of you who want the gory details, here they are. Gory pictures are here. Getting the PICC line was not horrendous, but not something I want to do again any time soon. The nurse came to get me, and Nicholas stood up to come, too, and the nurse said, "Oh, you can wait here. We'll be about twenty minutes." I've never seen such a look of relief in my life! Nicholas is not overly fond of needles. That being said, he is quite good at taking care of me. Let me know of any Husband of the Year contests, because after only seven weeks, he'd be a shoo-in for first place. Dr. Dude inserted it with the help of ultrasound and made sure it was in the right place with a quick x-ray. The line consists of a tube inserted into a vein on the inside of my upper left arm. Two access ports are attached to the end of the tube so it's painless to get blood out and put drugs in. (Yea!) It was downright painful yesterday, and still sore today, but I'll take that over getting 20 IVs and 4 blood sticks over the next month. The tube goes all the way to my vena cava (at least I think that's what the nurse said - it goes into some big vein near my heart). It's sutured into place with two stitches. Some of you might remember my extreme delight and subsequent haiku upon getting the drain out. "No more tubes for me!" turned out to be a big, fat lie because now I have a tube, two dangly attachments, and a huge sterile bandage for the next month.

After getting the PICC, we headed over to Clearview. I promptly got to use my brand-spanking new PICC for a painless blood draw, then we talked with Dr. Waples and a med student about interferon, and finally we went into the treatment room. There were dozens of vinyl-covered recliners that heated and vibrated! Nice. A nurse came over with a list of interferon side effects and proceeded to give a detailed description of each one, along with her personal philosophy of why the side effect occurred. I wanted to say, "Yeah, you know what? You're reading to me from a website printout and I'VE BEEN TO THIS WEBSITE AND READ THIS SAME INFORMATION ALREADY so if you don't mind could you please start the drip?" But I was polite and held my tongue. Also, it was a little weird because I went to high school and worked at Winn-Dixie with this girl and now she was delivering a toxic drug directly into my bloodstream. I had to remind myself that eight years is plenty long for people to mature. :) Before starting the interferon, I was given two Tylenol and and 50 milligrams of Benadryl. FIFTY. Needless to say, I fell asleep for the hour and twenty minutes of IV time. I hate that floaty feeling.

Then Nicholas drove me home, where I proceeded to sleep some more on the couch. I awoke around 3:30 pm with a bad headache which proceeded to get worse for the next six hours. Tylenol didn't even touch it. It got so bad I took a Loritab left over from one of the surgeries. I didn't know if that was okay to do, but I figured that a headache that makes a person cry is worthy of more than Tylenol. I also developed a pretty good fever. My temp was 99.something when I left Clearview, and it continued to climb until about 9:30, when it got up to 102.7. It was still 101.1 at 10:30 pm, at which point I fell asleep.

Today I'm tired, tired, tired. I had a slight fever (99.8) around 9:00, but other than that, I feel okay.

So all in all, Day One of interferon wasn't too horribly bad. It could have been a lot worse. I'll be pleased if a bad headache and fever are all the side effects I experience. I promise I won't blog every single side effect every single day. Thanks to everyone who called or emailed. You guys are great!

Getting the Show On the Road (Finally)

2008-03-16T20:49:00.002-05:00

Tomorrow is Day One of twenty days of high-dose IV interferon. Five days a week for the next four weeks I'll go to Clearview and get pumped full of interferon. Though I'm apprehensive about the side effects, it feels really good to be doing something besides reading articles and searching journals and visiting doctors. I know that the surgeries did a lot to get rid of it, but I wasn't conscious for those. Doing the interferon makes me feel like I have a wee little bit of control. (Moi? A control freak? Nah. :) ) I'm not going to lie - I really fear a recurrence. And I know the picture: not everyone responds to interferon, it lowers your risk of recurrence only a little, and it doesn't prolong overall survival. (Though I recently read an article that explains why that last finding, which is commonly accepted in the melanoma community, is suspicious.) But for my own sanity, I'm going to assume that the interferon will do its job, that it will kill any remaining traces of melanoma (if there are any), and that after treatment there won't be a single cell of cancer anywhere in my body. Will I be vigilant in checking my skin? Yes. Will I see my dermatologist twice a year? Yes. Will I freak out at every headache and cough? Probably, at least for a while. But I'm not going to relapse. I'm going to take care of this right here, right now, and never deal with it again. So there. :P

Ladies, you'll appreciate this. Men, probably not so much - you can stop reading here. :) The last surgery necessitated an incision just below my armpit, and the surgeon cut two nerves (he admitted this!), so I haven't had full motion of my arm. Well, today I'm super-duper happy because I was able to maneuver my arm so that I could shave my armpit! It was wonderful.