Breast Cancer Awareness....Year

So the title was supposed to say BCA Month Year, but it wouldn't let me do the strike-through on the title. Oh, well.

Phew, this last month and a half have gone by so quickly. I have wanted to sit down and write something of all my One Year markers, and here I am about to say, "One year ago today was my 3rd treatment"!!!! Actually, looking at the calendar, I guess today is that day! half way down was one year ago. Well, now I am actually all done with treatment. One would call me a survivor at this point. But I remember visiting with Dr. Moline at the beginning and she said "Once you came through those doors the first time, you are considered a survivor". I liked that. I actually passed that on to a teacher at N's school who was just about ready to go through her last chemo session.

A couple weeks ago, I had my last chemo (Herceptin) and I just scheduled to have the port removed. They didn't have an opening until the end of November, so I have to go in once to have my port flushed (that has to happen every 6 weeks if it isn't used). I am feeling really good. Unfortunately today, I am home from church with a bad cough - in hopes it doesn't get worse than it is.

Last week I was in SLC with Tori who had a breast lump removed. Last year, she had a biopsy that showed it was benign, but it has grown quickly, so she had it removed. The path report was all good - it was benign and they got all clear margins. I went down there to help her, but mostly to play with baby G - who is now 8 months old! I had a fun time being Grandma - I hope to be able to do that lots and lots! He is so fun. He is doing the army crawl, and while I was there got up on his hands and knees and rocked back and forth, but then plumped on his tummy to crawl around. He is a really happy, laughing, smiley baby! I was also able to go to the Temple with Carter and we went out a couple times for lunch and dinner. It was really nice weather there and the only thing I wish we had taken the time to do was to go up in the canyons to see the fall colors. Both Carter and Tori suggested I go to a certain bakery - Les Madeleines - and get a Kouign amann (pronounced kween-ya-mahn). OH MY!!! I am hooked. It is really flakey, and probably too sweet, but it is just the right combination that makes it a heavenly treat. I am tempted to try to find a bakery around here that makes them, but I might just eat far too many of them if I do. I'll just have to make it a place to go when visiting the kiddos. (just googled it, and no, it doesn't look like they sell them around here..., but Trader Joe's has a frozen one that I'll have to try and some Seattle area bakeries make them!) - OK, I keep checking out new stuff on this yummy thing, and I may have found a recipe!! YIPEE.- can you say "obsessed"?

I got home Tuesday evening and Jeff's sister Valerie was here to visit. I forgot to mention that Jeff's mom has been here since the beginning of September. We have been having a nice visit, but I have been so busy in September that I feel I haven't been able to really get into a schedule and get things done. And I've been gone for hours almost every day. So much for setting a good home-schooling schedule. Once I got home last week, I see that I have a much lighter schedule. Valerie took Mom shopping on Wednesday - the same day that Amanda is at school - and I had the whole house to myself, which I haven't had since June! I got a lot of stuff done including some cleaning out of the garden. Thursday I woke up a little achy. I thought maybe it was from digging and pulling too much in the garden along with the bone strengthening medicine I take sometimes makes me achy one day out of the week. Well, I also had a sore throat on Friday, not so much the achy body, though. We stayed home and enjoyed visiting and watching the windy/stormy weather. Saturday was pretty much the same, but this morning, I have a cough that isn't too bad, but I hope it doesn't get worse. One thing that is very interesting, is that I have not had any kind of sickness through this whole last year. This is the first time that I have anything resembling an illness. That was definitely a blessing.

I am so looking forward to the holidays which, the anticipation starts now and builds until after the new year! We went to the pumpkin patch in SL - Tori scheduled that for that Saturday so I could go with G for the first time. He, of course, didn't get all excited, but it was especially fun being there with them. We never did get around to painting the pumpkins before I left.

Well, I don't have much more to write about my health. I do have a lot on my mind about other things, but that is for a more personal thing like a journal, I think. There are so many things out there on the internet that I have an opinion about, but I am not one to put myself out there to be criticized in that way. Maybe I should as all the negative things I hear about and read should be balanced with a more positive perspective. I am especially turned off with the upcoming presidential election. This campaign just makes me sick. All the posts about "this will make your jaw drop" "BOOM" "Bombshell" - goodness, enough already. We [should be] are intelligent human beings. But I wonder these days. Are people really swayed one way or another because of negative, harmful things being said about one person or another? I guess so or they wouldn't do it. I am not just speaking of political things here, now. And maybe my earlier sentence about us being intelligent isn't so true any more. If society relies on the media and one post or another to form their opinions and make decisions, then we are just a bunch of mindless robots being led hither and yon.
I am so grateful to know that there is truly a God, but more than that. That He is a Heavenly Father - a loving being who truly cares about us. That there is more than just this life that we live. That we can learn and grow and progress - from the life before, through this life on earth and in the Eternal life to come. I know there is opposition and heartache and pain here on earth. I know every single person struggles with temptation, illness, disappointment and/or difficulties. That is the whole purpose of life. We have someone to turn to who can and will help us navigate through all those. He loves us. His Son loves us. They want us to grow, stretch and progress. That is why all these things happen. It isn't because He doesn't care or doesn't love. It is because He loves perfectly. How else can we know without experiencing.

I was reading Ephesians 4:11-15 (and on to the end of the chapter) yesterday and that scripture had more meaning to me. "And He gave some apostles, and some prophets [etc.]......that we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive;"
Boy! isn't that true. It is so easy to be swept up in the emotions and moods of people. Especially since it is so easily obtainable at our fingertips. From all this hype with the election, to opinions people have on any topic under the sun, down to reviews for a product you wish to purchase. There are so many varying "winds of doctrine" who use "cunning craftiness" to get our attention and our 'following'.

 But we have a way to navigate this. I love that the true gospel isn't a big hype. The world is so noisy and doing everything loudly and seductively to get our attention. But there is one way -a perfect way - that Heavenly Father has set up that we can know!
"...that ye would ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not true; and if ye shall ask with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ, he will manifest the truth of it unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost. And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things." (Moroni 10:4-5)
It is between you and Heavenly Father, in the name of Christ with the manifesting of the Holy Ghost. No middle man - not relying on some person's opinion or human perspective. Just between you and the Godhead! How more perfect can you get?

Well, I'm glad I got that put on paper. I guess I did 'put that out there'. I can see how my cancer experience has helped focus my perspective in ways that otherwise wouldn't have happened. I wouldn't give up what I now understand better and what I have learned this past year. If this experience is what made it possible for me to know, feel and understand how and what I do now, it has all been worth it. I just hope I can keep going - Onward and Upward!