Merry Christmas Everybody...

Love and light to you all
It has been a crazy year - thanks for being there for me and listening (or just reading) to me rant and rave. Hopefully I have made you laugh along the way and maybe you have learned something from me - I have certainly learned from all of you. Your compassion, love and caring have exceeded my expectations and I thank you for that.

Tonight we have our traditional Christmas eve gathering at my mom's house where she cooks veggie soup and dad reads the "Night Before Christmas" to everybody. Non-traditionally (at least for me) Mike and I are also going to a candlelight service at our church - well, across the street from my Church. Its so big that they have people outside in the parking lot! :) Its going to be nice - I hope it does not rain...

Two nights ago something poetic happened in my living room. I was trying to put up some more lights on my mantle because I did not really decorate that much this year. As I was doing this, a glass baby Jesus fell off the mantle and shattered. My lights got in the way of baby Jesus. Cat, if you are reading this, I owe you one glass baby Jesus. I am sorry :( Stupid lights...

Wanna know a secret?
I have always wondered if Mary was in labor pains while riding on a donkey...that had to suck if so. I mean, running from the government, riding on a donkey, about to give birth to the Son of Man...no pressure! But some people think that Jesus was born without pain to Mary. That would have been real nice of God to do that for her since she could have been stoned to death for getting pregnant by someone other than her husband - thank God for Joseph huh???



Merry Christmas Everybody!

Miss me?

I miss you! I have been a busy little bee and I have not had time to write much :(
Boo.

Between pet issues, holiday shopping, present wrapping and parties - its been the typical December but I have SO much to share with you!

All of this will be much better with pictures but I will give you the quick re-cap anyway.

Hailey's 30th b-day on the 12th...we had soooooo much fun! She had a "wig out" party and everyone wore wigs for the occasion. I must say my favorites were my dad's nasty, greasy mullet wig and Joey's big ol' fro. I had to put that one on - I looked like a 1969 hippy soul goddess - I want a fro now.

Colleen's Christmas play...SO cute! I have video of her singing and dancing her heart out in her little cowgirl outfit. The play was about the real meaning of Christmas and how toys were secondary. Do you think the kindergarten crowd got that???? By the way, Hailey woke Colleen up for school and at some point in the middle of the night she got up and put on her princess dress and her cowboy boots - so Hailey found her passed out on the bed dressed in that beautiful ensemble. Gotta love little girls!

Mike went to feed the homeless and pass out blankets this past Saturday. I missed out because I am fighting off the flu - but he had a blast and spread some REAL holiday cheer to people who really need it. He said that he was shocked to see "normal" looking people there, men who were clean, well spoken etc...he said he was very humbled by the experience. I wish I could have gone.

Blue is better, thank God. I just could not handle anymore drama, especially drama involving cancer and my baby girl. There is a spot on her lungs that we "need to keep an eye on" but we will just leave it at that. Right now she is frisky and feeling OK - and I am happy.

Christmas is almost here!!!! Can you believe it? I have about 1/2 of my wrapping finished and I will get the rest of it done tomorrow I guess...

I hope you guys are all well fed, keeping warm and get lots of hugs in the next few days.

I promise I will post pics soon :)

Love & Light,

Heather

Don't Worry...Be Happy...dooo do do do dododododoooooo

Ah ha! Proof!
Being happy does reduce pain, help you live longer etc...also happiness is contagious!

Vibes Please

Hi
I need vibes/prayers for my pooch Blue Girl
We thought she had bronchitis, but the meds are not helping, so its something else and we are low on funds for x-rays. So right now we are depending on prayer to get us through.

Thanks
Heather

EXACTLY!

LOL funny and hits the nail right on the head..

I told you I had pictures!

OK
First off...I have to say CONGRATS to my BFF Heather #1 because she is having a GIRL!
She has 2 boys and is preggers with her 3rd and I am so excited about this little girl! A sweet, cooing, bundle of kisses and love girl! I get to throw a shower and buy pink stuff! Yippee!!!

On to picture pages...Here is Hail's peach fuzz...its black & silver - and really pretty straight right now...so we will see how this all turns out. Its a mystery...

Smile for me Hailey! I know you are in a hurry...but this is important!


See...I have hair! Fuzzy wuzzzy hair!


She is rubbing her head because it feels gooooood. But, I am also getting that look, so she needs to go...

Happy Monday!

Hey guys!
Hope you had a fantastic weekend. It was freezing! Mike and I put up the tree and got it almost finished and hung out on the couch in front of the fireplace watching Harry Potter on Sunday night. It was good. I needed a break.

Saturday I worked at the Acupuncture center and I got a massage and "cupped". This is one of the great bonuses of working at a natural healing center. Cupping is an ancient bodywork technique that removes toxins from the body. It definitely wore me out because that night I was cooked and the next day I did not really do much. I think I need to do this more in order to get the toxins out of my body. Hailey has had this done several times throughout her treatment in order to get the toxins out of her body. The first time Shams did it to her, she had STEAM come out of her body. Apparently this is not a good sign. Thankfully though she has had cupping done on her since then, and no more steam, so she is getting better.

I also have new pics of Hailey. She looks SO cute - her hair is coming back in and she looks like a fuzzy baby chick. Only problem is that we are not sure what color her hair is going to be - unfortunately - it looks grey. Yeah, grey. More of a salt and pepper thing - because she still has dark spots, but a LOT of it looks grey. Oh well - she always liked to dye her hair...

As Heather has said, Hailey has had a tough week. Keep giving her positive vibes, she can get there with help. Bless all of you. Mom

Poor Hailey

What a week.
She tried going back to work, but she only made it through the first 2 days and by Wednesday she had a fever so she has been at home for the past 2 days laid up.

Send healing vibes her way please.

Thanks!

Dogs

Dogs are the best thing in the world. I love my dogs. One of them is in puppy heaven right now and unfortunately for one of my dearest friends, her doggie Guapo is there with him today too. Guapo was a spunky little chihuahua and he was killed by a car yesterday. My friend Jessica is broken hearted and I KNOW how much that hurts. Its like losing your best friend and for us childless people, having a pet is the closest we have to having a kid. I read somewhere that our relationship with our dog is the closest that we come, on earth, to having the same relationship as God has with us...not to say that we are his pets...but just think about that one for a bit. Obedience, rebellion, willing to please, child like, and not quite as smart and hindered in some way to communicate...
I am so sorry Jess.
RIP Guapo

Just this side of heaven is a place called Rainbow Bridge.

When an animal dies that has been especially close to someone here, that pet goes to Rainbow Bridge.
There are meadows and hills for all of our special friends so they can run and play together.
There is plenty of food, water and sunshine, and our friends are warm and comfortable.

All the animals who had been ill and old are restored to health and vigor; those who were hurt or maimed are made whole and strong again, just as we remember them in our dreams of days and times gone by.
The animals are happy and content, except for one small thing; they each miss someone very special to them, who had to be left behind.

They all run and play together, but the day comes when one suddenly stops and looks into the distance. His bright eyes are intent; His eager body quivers. Suddenly he begins to run from the group, flying over the green grass, his legs carrying him faster and faster.

You have been spotted, and when you and your special friend finally meet, you cling together in joyous reunion, never to be parted again. The happy kisses rain upon your face; your hands again caress the beloved head, and you look once more into the trusting eyes of your pet, so long gone from your life but never absent from your heart.

Then you cross Rainbow Bridge together....

Author unknown...

Monday, Monday...

Well...I'm sad. Its back to work...
I really enjoyed our time off and the long weekend. Saturday Hailey, Mike, James and I got together to watch that travesty of a football game. We had fun yelling at the TV. We really don't need to talk about that, so I will move on.
Unfortunately for Hailey - its also back to work time for her. I called her this morning, but I have not heard from her...so we will see how it goes. I hope she can keep her strength up for at least a 1/2 day.

Still Full as a Tick

And I am about to pop!
I had desert for breakfast this morning and it was so good.

we had a great family get together at the Swint's yesterday as always - I just love my in-laws! Plus the best part is that my parents and Mike's parents get along great so we always have a good time together.

Hailey was not there because she went to James' family gathering. She was hanging tough until 9:30 - she stayed out later than me! She was in some pain though because she did get her port "pokey" out on the day before thanksgiving. I told her that she can officially start calling herself a survivor now. Forget that "5 year" crud - start calling yourself a survivor NOW and believe it.

PS
Now I can start decorating for Christmas - starting with the blog - then I am getting down my tree! :) Yippee!

Thanks & Praise Giving

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!
The Gill's, Swint's and the Atwell's have a lot to celebrate on this day.

Thanks For:
A cancer free scan!!!!
a roof over my head
a big loving family
our "chosen" family - you know who you are!
My awesome husband
my dog & kitty
my BFF & her family
Panic friends
The Moss'
My parents
The Swints
My Chruch Family
My awesome neighbors
Food!
the ability to dance
the ability to give
the ability to sing
the ability to cook
the ability to praise
the ability to learn
the ability to be a yogini
My yoga family & teacher
Smiles

Praise:
For the Father, Son & Holy Spirit
Without the Father, none of this would be possible!

Madonna is a fem-bot

Well...I did my happy dance in STYLE last night. I FINALLY got to see Madonna! I have wanted to go since I was in the 4th grade!

But...
Remember those fem-bots from Austin Powers? The perfect girls that were really robots trying to take over the world and kill Austin? I think Madonna is one of them. There is NO way that a normal human can look like this at 50 years old. I am not saying anything against 50 year olds - but this is crazy.



My BFF and her mama took me to see the Queen herself last night at Philips Arena, and holy Toledo...what a show! I have never seen anything like it, really. 1st of all the stage was ginormous. 2nd, her dancers were unreal. 3rd, if I had danced 1/3 as hard as good ol' 50 year old Madonna had last night, you would of had to carry me off the stage on a stretcher. The stage had a long cat walk, with a big circle stage at the end of that where a piano came out of. Her dancers came up out of the stage too, there was a Rolls Royce on the stage, she dressed in a sparkly football uniform at one point, and towards the end she was rocking out so hard that I thought I was at a Metallica show. She also showed pictures of the poor, starving people in Africa etc...which was really sad to see. I think she gives a lot of money to Africa, and she is doing a documentary as well (at least she's not acting again!) She rules, but there is no way she is human! Look at her arms! Ha!

PS - as a side note - she does a LOT of Yoga! ;)

Here are some more pics I found on the web...






You go on with your bad self Madge.

Thanks Heather

I forgot to thank Heather for leaving me step by step instructions for posting my blog. THANK YOU HEATHER - it worked. Luv Mom

Woooooooo Hooooooo

I see that Heather has beat me to it, but Happy Day, NO CANCER. Happy dance indeed. Thanks to all of you who have been praying for Hailey, it seems to be working just now, lets keep it up. What a glorious Thanksgiving and Christmas. Mom

Happy Dance Time!!!!

OK, I want everyone to get up and do your best happy dance - do it! NOW!
Because Hailey has NO SIGNS OF CANCER!

Praise God!

Thank you Jesus!

NO SIGNS OF CANCER - that is the best text message I have ever gotten!

Whoooooooooooooooooo Hooooooooooooooooooo!!!!

Miracles

Hey everybody.
Happy Sunday morning to you! I love Sundays. Its my favorite day of the week. Normally I make a point of staying OFF the computer on Sundays but, today I wanted to remind you all to pray for a miracle for Hailey. Hopefully, tomorrow we will know the results of her 1st scan, and to be honest, I am scared to death! I woke up crying this morning - that stinks. Sometimes the fear creeps in and then I squeeze out tears for about 5 minutes - then I am off for my coffee and laptop. Ha. Cheaper than therapy, right!? :)

Well, I do believe in miracles. God can heal. Your body was designed to heal itself. We are spiritual beings having a human experience. I do believe in miracles.

This video is all about one woman's miracle and how she came out of the eye of the storm to share this humbling, powerful, horribly wonderful experience with the world. Please take the time to watch it. You can thank me later ;)



Love, Light & Miracles

H

100!!!!!!

OMGoodness!
This is my 100th post!

Cool!

I better come up with something special for silly nanny Friday then!

Well, it does not get much more special than this...my favorite animated pooch - Snoopy cooking up Thanksgiving dinner for everyone.


What's up with that toaster Charlie was using??? Oh yeah, it was the 70's - they had to make everything weird in the 70's. :)

Speaking of the 70's - if you were running out of ideas on what to cook for Thanksgiving dinner - here are a few suggestions from Weight Watchers circa 1972 to help you out...they are original! I promise, you will get attention, albeit not very good attention if you bring these delights to dinner.

OMG Frankfurter Spectacular!!!! Watch out Swints...I will make you eat it!








Gag...the eggs...dear Lord, the eggs


I think I am bringing this...its impressive! Fish Balls - A little bigger than you thought they would be??? Sorry, went out of PG land for that joke...hope you dont mind.

Please check out this woman's site - its awesome! There are so many funny and disturbing things on here! :) Enjoy!
http://www.candyboots.com/

Love, Light & Jello Molds

H

New Job, Choirs and Scans - Oh My!

Hey!
I feel like I have been ignoring you my loves! Trust me, I have not. I have just been dying to get back to some quiet time so I can update you on everything.

1. I started a new job! I am still working with David the Attorney part time, but now I am also working part time at The Athens Wellness Cooperative AKA Red Lotus Institute/Acupuncture Center. (it currently has an identity crisis, which I am going to fix hopefully) I am doing the general front office stuff for the center, answering phones, filing, setting appointments and billing. I also change sheets and do LOTS of laundry. I am just so happy to be in a place where I feel at home. I am sure I will be flapping my jaws about how awesome this place is to yall a lot.

2. Choirs!!! OMG! I am so excited. Hailey may finally bless the world with her beautiful singing voice with our church choir. Our awesome church rock band wants to have a back up choir a few times a month and I was put on recruiting duty so I voluntered Hailey for the job since she can sing like an angel. Sharon (the leader of the band)asked me to sing and I politely declined since we want to increase church membership, not send the people running for the hills with their hands over their ears.

3. At the bottom of the list because I am trying to minimize the importance of it...Hailey had her first PET Scan this week. She had it yesterday. They injected dye into her veins then took pictures to see if the cancer is gone. I wonder if I held a black light up to her if she would glow? The cancer is gone, I just know it. Will somebody tell the knot in my stomach that?

Mojo Monday

Well, I skipped silly nanny Friday - so we will have Mojo Monday today!

This video is pretty funny...something to make you giggle on Monday morning. Steve Carrell is the greatest and this scene is what rocketed him to mega star status. If this does not make you laugh - check your pulse!



Here is a little something to get your Mojo going today.
This guy gets it.
"Be the change you wish to see in the world" - Gandhi said that and I think that if we lived by that credo that we would have a whole lot more hugs in our lives. What's better than a hug???



Love & Light
xoxoxox
Free Hugs - Anytime from Heather - just call!

PS - Yes, I changed the background again - this will be a weekly event ;)

Anxiety

I hate to admit it, but I have chronic anxiety. Maybe my feelings are just closer to the surface than other people, but I think a lot of people deal with this issue, we just don't talk about it. So, hopefully y'all don't think I'm weird.

Even with all the yoga, meditation, prayers, family time etc...I still suffer with this. I thank God everyday for healthy coping mechanisms for my anxiety like yoga, prayer and meditation - but still sometimes my insides feel like they are churning and turning into one of those big rubber band balls that nobody is going to be able to untangle.

It goes away for a while sometimes, but an event or an upcoming event will bring it on like a freight train. This week the freight train came roaring into my life when I realized Hailey will be having her first scans soon. For some reason, I thought she had already had them and that no news was good news.

On top of that, I am ready to start a non-profit yoga studio that caters to cancer patients, stay at home moms, care takers etc...that need yoga & wellness counseling. So, I pulled up the form to start a 501c3 so I can start asking for donations etc...and OMG...its a bear and I realized I have no idea what I am doing.

But to heck with that...I am going to do it anyway...starting in January I am going to start classes one way or another and hopefully be able to donate my time to people in need regardless of my status with the IRS.

Sometimes my anxiety comes out of left field for no apparent reason at all. Its the devil, I swear.

Just call me Debbie Downer today! blah.

I think its time for restorative yoga tonight. Its the best thing ever, ever, ever. I want to go on a retreat this spring to take a week long class with Judith Lassiter (the Queen of Restorative Yoga)in MA - but I doubt that is gonna happen.

I will share another restorative pose with you that you can do anytime to calm your nerves. Here you go...

We already talked about Legs Up the Wall and ask my mama, it works! 10 Minutes! Do it!

Here is my other favorite, my teacher calls it the yoga barcalounger ;) the following picture is courtsey of Yoga Journal. I don't recommend a bright sunny location, a nice calm low-light area with a fountain works well.

First - get your props out. Actually, no, first find a quiet room, no kids, no pets, no tv, no distractions...did you find a place??? If it has to be a walk in closet, just go there. Now...get out your props.

You will need 4 - 5 firm pillows (2-3 for your back, 2 for legs), a neck roll, an eye pillow if you have one, and a few towels rolled up in a log to place under your arms. In this picture, she does not have anything under her arms, but I recommend it. You want to be completley supported. Also, if you have a block (or a big sturdy book), place it under your 2 pillows to make a ramp for your back. Put a neck roll (a hand towel rolled up works great) under your neck, put a firm pillow under each of your legs.


Perform Baddha Konasana aka Bound Angel/Butterfly/Cobbler pose (in other words, sit straight up, and put the soles of your feet together to make butterfly wings with your legs) with the pillow "ramp" directly behind your hips.


Exhale and lower your back torso toward "ramp" and lay on the pillows/bolsters that are supported by the block/book. Get down there by leaning on your hands and make sure to support your neck on the way down with one hand if needed to avoid strain. Release your lower back and upper buttocks through your tailbone. Place the neck roll under your neck so you are completley supported.

Make sure your knees and upper thighs are supported by the two firm pillows on the floor. If you find this uncomfortable because your groin muscles are tight, add another pillow or just stick your legs out straight and add a bolster/pillow under your knees.

Place the eye pillow on your eyes, if you do not have an eye pillow, place a wash cloth over your eyes so you are forced to close your eyes and relax.

You can start by staying in this pose for one minute, but I recommend staying here for at least 10 minutes if you are comfortable.

Remember in restorative yoga - complete comfort is key! You can feel a stretch, but you must be comfortable.

10 minutes in the yoga barcalounger = 1 vodka tonic with out the side effects! :)
Take 10 and call me in the morning!

Love & Light
H

Touch Me, I'm Going To Scream

This is a new video from one of my favorite bands, My Morning Jacket.
The song is not my favorite, but this video is really neat-o. On the surface, the animation is cool and its a good song, but look deeper into the meaning of the video. The little guy is trying to hold on to something that is not supposed to be caged, trying to protect it, have it all to himself. All light is lost when you covet something that should not be held on to.

What are you holding on to? What are you chasing?

Michael J. Fox

Cool!
I was wondering how he was doing. I can not wait for his book to come out, it should be a good one. Its about Hope :)

CLICK HERE for the article

Plus I love Rescue Me - so this should make it even better.

3 posts in one day...geez...dont you think I have anything better to do than talk to you guys all day??? Nope! ha!

New Background

Oh Lawdy...
I found a cute background site for the blog...
It may change daily! Ha! I can decorate it for Christmas! Easter! Columbus Day! (not really)

Tell me what you think! I like it!!!! :)

Hair Growth and Shorter Naps

Question: What do shorter naps, tiny little sprouts of hair and no more TV trays have in common?
Hailey! And these are all signs that she is getting better.

Her hair - at least her eyelashes and eyebrows - are starting to sprout. It looks bizarre. Little fuzzy black hairs starting to form on her bottom eyelid - very strange indeed. Her head is very itchy, so I am guessing its going to start to sprout soon too. We are all taking bets that it will come back straight - but according to stuff I have read - your hair comes back thicker and CURLIER after chemo. Oh goodness...can you imagine? Hailey with curlier hair? Woah. She is scared she is going to look like a chia pet. Poor baby.

She went to church with us on Sunday, then we had a big Sunday lunch at our house afterwords and she went home and only took a ONE HOUR nap! That is huge! Only one hour! She normall sleeps all day and all night.



Also, on Friday night I went over to her house for some girlie time with Jill & Jess (wedding plans! - according to Jill we are all going to dress as mermaids!!!??? how much wine did she drink?) anyway...I digress...when I went to Hail's house - I noticed that her TV tray that held all of her important stuff (cell phone, water, remote, books) within arms reach was gone. She said that she does not need it anymore because she can get up and get stuff herself! Awesome!

Progress!



She is SO not going to look like a chia pet! She is going to be beautiful as always :)

BECAUSE THEY ARE NOT DRINKING ENOUGH WATER!

Question: Why are more children going to the hospital with kidney stones????? For the obvious answer - see above...
Now, I must admit, I was not a big fan of drinking water until I was older - however, a frozen dinner or overly processed foods hardly ever touched my lips because my mama cooked for us and made us our lunch every day with good ingredients. AND she made me drink water even though I would pitch a fit. I have had my share of kidney infections, and OUCH, I do not recommend that to anyone. My acupuncturist says I have a lot of heat in my kidneys...I dont know what that means, but it does not feel good. So to cool the heat down, I make sure I drink 64+oz of water a day. Bonus side effect - I lost about 20 lbs and keep it off by drinking lots of good ol' H2O.

Why the rant?
Read this article from the NY Times. Too much salt & too little water will cause even a 5 year old to get a kidney stone. Hey Braden! Lulu loves water! ;) If you are wondering who Braden is, he is my adorable 4 year old buddy, son of my friend Stacy Moss of the 3Mossketeers.

To the great surprise of parents, kidney stones, once considered a disorder of middle age, are now showing up in children as young as 5 or 6.

So, here you go...more info on this news. Shocking? Kind of, but not really, which is sad.

Below is an excerpt from the article for the whole thing, click here.

“What we’ve really seen is an increase in the salt load in children’s diet,” said Dr. Bruce L. Slaughenhoupt, co-director of pediatric urology and of the pediatric kidney stone clinic at the University of Wisconsin. He and other experts mentioned not just salty chips and French fries, but also processed foods like sandwich meats; canned soups; packaged meals; and even sports drinks like Gatorade, which are so popular among schoolchildren they are now sold in child-friendly juice boxes. Children also tend not to drink enough water. “They don’t want to go to the bathroom at school; they don’t have time, so they drink less,” said Dr. Alicia Neu, medical director of pediatric nephrology and the pediatric stone clinic at Johns Hopkins Children’s Center in Baltimore. Instead, they are likely to drink only once they’re thirsty — but that may be too little, too late, especially for children who play sports or are just active. “Drinking more water is the most important step in the prevention of kidney stones,” Dr. Neu said.

Lost Generation...

Do we live in a time where we are watching a "lost" generation come of age? In a few years - the teens of today will be running companies and starting families. I hope for a world full of peace, love and harmony. I know that this does not come with out a price - I love and honor our troops keeping us safe from people crazed with jealousy and hatred. I hope, that we can stay hopeful and keep loving each other in the years to come. I think that more hope, love and real family values will come when people get out of their heads, and into their hearts on a daily/hourly/minuet by minute basis. Don't put God at the top of the heap, put HIM at the center of everything you do.

With the upcoming election, all I really want to say is to keep your head on straight and your heart steady. Tempers flare up when politics are brought up, so if it makes you angry, then just don't talk about it. Your opinions are your opinions, so please respect others opinions as you would like for them to respect your own. In the next few days, I am sure that tempers are going to flare on both sides of the fence - so try to take a few deep breaths and remember, its only 4 years - and if its a total disaster - we will make it through it because we are strong Americans living in the UNITED States of America.

Watch this video from the AARP - I thought it was really interesting. Reverse your thinking and it can change everything.
(sorry for the rambling...I have a lot on my mind today! so I apologize it its not coherent.)

Happy Halloween!!!

Oh, my favorite holiday. My very, very favorite. Nothing but fun and candy - oh and scaring the crap of of people! Mike and I got a head start and watched "Halloween" 2 nights ago. Classic. Michael Myers, scary, scary, scary. All I can think about is him behind Jamie Lee Curtis in the hallway. "He's not dead Jamie! He's not dead! Grab the knife you dummy!" *shiver*

This year we are celebrating with the regular ol' trick or treats and also a parade for the kids in a 'hood down the street from us. I can not wait to see Colleen dressed up as Dorothy. She is going to be so cute! She has already had a trial run with this costume and she already got to go trick or treating once. How you ask? How does a girl get so lucky? In my parents 'hood all the kids & grandkids of the residents jump into golf carts and drive around the neighborhood and bombard each house with about 60 kids at one time. Somebody always ends up crying, usually an adult that can not handle all of the noise any longer - questioning themselves "Didn't I move to this semi-retirement golf community for peace and quiet??" HA! Little did they know that a boat load of children would decend on them once a year all hopped up on pixie sticks and chocolate! *giggle*

So, since its Silly Nanny Friday...here are some great funny/cool/creepy Halloween pics.

Scariest Movie Ever - Well...maybe the Exorcits ties with it...
I really did give up meat for a while after I saw the Texas Chainsaw Massacre and I will never look at those cute little white houses in the country the same again.







Here's Johnny! (YIKES!)


Cool! Its the death star! (Somebody has entirely too much time on their hands!)




Here he is...*shiver* again


Grrrrrrrr...


Hope you have a very HAPPY (and safe!) HALLOWEEN!

Love, Light & BOO!

Yoga For Headaches

Some of you know that Hailey and I both have suffered from migranes most of our lives. My BFF Heather also suffers from them - and now that she is preggers (yippee) that little girl (only my guess at this point!) is causing her major headaches and she is very limited to the medicine that she can take. Chiropractic care, diet and Yoga have been my biggest allies in my personal battle with migranes. This quick article below from Yoga Journal is a good lesson in preventing those painful suckers before they start. Also, practicing the Legs-Up-The-Wall pose daily will help with this pain. Unfortunatley, you can not do that pose when you are pregnant - so we will find alternative solutions for my pregnant friend.


October 30, 2008
Stop Headaches Before They Happen

Often we express stress in our necks and jaws. Without even noticing, we tense in these areas, blocking our breath, decreasing our circulation, and sometimes provoking a headache.
Luckily, we can avoid these symptoms by taking a break to relax the neck.

Here's how:
While seated, interlace your fingers and place your hands on the back of your head. Allow your head and arms to relax forward and your chin to travel toward your chest. The weight of your head and arms, combined with gravity, will begin to release your neck and reduce or eliminate your headache.

Remember that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.

IN THIS ISSUE

Headache Fighters
http://www.yogajournal.com/health/1217?utm_source=DailyInsight&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_content=b&utm_campaign=DI_2008-10-30
Crick Fixes
http://www.yogajournal.com/practice/1969?utm_source=DailyInsight&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_content=b&utm_campaign=DI_2008-10-30

Cool Article on Long Life

I read this on Yahoo this morning. There is just more and more evidence to point to eating dark foods like berries, pomegranates etc...are really good for you - and who doesn't like a big hand full of fresh blueberries? Yum. Heather Ivey's kid Evan should live to be 110 - he loves his blueberries! AND IT SAYS TO DRINK MORE WINE - Whoo hoo! ;)

Unfortunately, by the time I actually have children - according to this article - my kids will live to be a ripe old age of 35.

4 Surprising signs you'll live a long time

by Liz Vaccariello, Editor-in-Chief, PREVENTION, on Fri Oct 17, 2008 11:57am PDT

We all know the obvious ways to add years to your life: Don't smoke, eat your veggies, wear a seat belt (even in the backseat). But there are other, lesser-known habits and attributes that can help you live to a ripe old age.

YOU SKIP SODA (EVEN DIET)I finally kicked my diet cola habit in my 20s, a good thing too, because scientists in Boston recently found that drinking one or more regular or diet sodas every day doubles your risk of metabolic syndrome-- combination of conditions that increase your chances of heart disease and diabetes. The exact culprit isn't completely understood, but it could be the caramel color added to colas and other dark sodas, which increased the risk for metabolic syndrome in animals. Experts also speculate that exposing your tastebuds to the sweet fizzy flavor of soda conditions you to crave sugary foods, which can lead to weight gain. Whatever the reason, it's an easy enough habit to quit. Club soda (sodium free, of course) with a splash of juice satisfies the fizz craving with just enough sweetness. For a good alternative, try Sassy Water.

YOUR LEGS ARE STRONG Lower-body strength means you also have good balance, flexibility, and endurance. While you probably care more about how your legs look in a mini and a pair of knee-high boots right now, as you get older those attributes reduce your risk of falls, injuries, and hip fractures, all of which are associated with declining health in older folks. So do some squats, lunges, and stair climbing to look good now-- and be strong and healthy later. It's win-win! Get up to 10 pounds lighter and take 10 years off your body with this workout.

YOUR MOM HAD YOU YOUNG If she was under age 25, you're twice as likely to live to age 100 as someone born to an older mom, according to University of Chicago scientists. The reason, they suspect, is that younger moms' best eggs go first to fertilization, which may mean healthier offspring.

YOU EAT AND DRINK PURPLE THINGS Red wine, concord grapes, blueberries (okay, not quite purple, but close enough) all get that deep rich color from polyphenols- compounds that reduce heart disease risk and may even protect against Alzheimer's disease, according to new research. So crack open a bottle of Pinot (don't overdo it), snack on some grapes, or make a blueberry pie and ponder all the years that lie ahead. Talk about happy and healthy!

Legs-Up-the-Wall Pose

I think most of you know that I am studying to be a yoga instructor and I am starting to form classes now. Hopefully I will be teaching the ladies in my neighborhood soon and possibly I will be parterning with my church to set up something really cool! Anyway - this pose - the Legs-Up-The-Wall Pose is my all time favorite and has saved me from running around like a banshee, crying and wailing about how miserable & stressed out I am. 10 minutes a day in this pose will really help you relax. So then you and me are not so miserable and stressed - and then the world, our little world, is a happier place ;)

Yoga Journal - Legs-Up-the-Wall Pose

Posted using ShareThis

Recovery

Hey y'all
Hailey is at home recovering from all the chemo and she is just really laying around like a slug most days. She had a low grade fever yesterday and felt horrible, but today she is feeling better. She is aggrivated that her hair has not started to grow back yet...she wants hair for her wedding!

I am so excited about this wedding!!!! Its going to be so much fun.

Here is today's silly nanny Friday video...classic.
I could totally see Hailey doing this...but James...it makes me laugh out loud just thinking of it - he would kill it, I am sure of it! :) much love to you guys!!!! xoxoxo - H

Is it too early

For silly nanny Friday?

I just have to share this one with ya...LOL

UK police find naked burglary suspect in chimney

By RAPHAEL G. SATTER, Associated Press Writer Raphael G. Satter, Associated Press Writer – Wed Oct 22, 11:26 am ET

LONDON – British police say they found a naked burglary suspect trapped in the chimney of a supermarket in the northern English town of Pemberton.
Greater Manchester Police say officers found the 22-year-old man at around 5:30 a.m. (0430 GMT) on Wednesday. The fire service was called to help extricate him.
A spokesman for the police says he "has no idea" how the man got into the chimney. He says that some of the man's clothes may have come off as he struggled to escape.
He spoke on condition of anonymity in line with force policy.
Police say the suspect was hospitalized as a precaution but has since been discharged and arrested.


Idiot - ha

Tough times call for extreme measures I guess...

High Fructose Corn Syrup...

I am sorry, I can not help it.
I have to say something about those darned commercials touting the benefits of high fructose corn syrup (HFCS). First of all, corn in its purest form is not very good for you - my mama taught me that. Its a grain, a starch, not a vegetable, not really. Broccoli, THAT is a vegetable, kale THAT is a vegetable, corn - not so much. Anyway - once refined into the gooey cheap sweetener HFCS it reeks havoc on your internal system spiking the glucose levels and causing issues with your blood sugar and insulin levels. It has even been shown to increase cholesterol. Also, the commercials state that HFCS is perfectly fine in moderation - but HFCS is in SO many products that you would not think its in that moderation is out the window even if you cut back on sweets. Did you know that a can of tomato soup has a ton of HFCS? Yuck. Again, you are asking yourselves - what does this have to do with Hailey? Well, I am trying to get her to eat better and eliminating HFCS is one of the steps. Glucose is linked to feeding cancer cells. Does this mean that she can never have a Popsicle again? No...but she (and WE) all need to be more aware of this yucky product in all of our food...

Its in cough syrup for goodness sake...dill pickles, pimento loaf (who eats that anyway? ha!), potato chips, ketchup, steak sauce, bread, chicken nuggets, SO many drinks like sodas, Poweraid and Gatorade, almost all cereals and so on and so forth...so you can see how difficult it can be to eat HFCS in moderation when its lurking in all kinds of foods you don't expect it to be in - like a pickle!

Read more by clicking here...
The Dangers of High Fructose Corn Syrup

Here is a list of foods that do not contain HFCS
I got this from http://highfructosehigh.com/no-hfcs/

BREAD
Amana Multi Grain Bread
Aunt Millie’s Old Fashioned Butter-Top Wheat
Brownberry’s Arnold Natural Health Nut Bread
Country Hearth 12-Grain Bread
Earth Grains 100% Natural 7-Grain Bread
Franz “McKenzie Farms” Old Fashioned Buttermilk Bread
Milton’s Bread (most, if not all)
Natures Own 100% Whole Wheat bread (note, other varieties do contain HFCS, but not this one)
Oroweat Mult-Grain Bread (but watch out for HFCS in their other varietes)
Martin’s Breads & Rolls (including hot dog buns/rolls and such)
Pepperidge Farms 100% Natural Breads
Pepperidge Farms Whole Grain Wheat Bread
Rudi’s Organic Bakery Buns
Vermont Bread Company breads
CEREAL
Cheerios
Giant brand Instant Oatmeal - most flavors
Kashi (most, if not all)
Kix
Life ceral (regular and cinnamon)
Nature’s Pride Organic (most, if not all, varieties)
Kellogg’s Reduced Sugar Froot Loops
Trader Joe’s Graham Bites Cereal
CONDIMENTS
Annie’s Naturals Organic Ketchup
Annie’s Naturals Organic Honey Mustard
Annie’s Naturals Smokey Maple BBQ Sauce
Cascadian Farms Sweet Pickle Relish
Frenchs Honey Dijon Mustard (I don’t think most regular mustard contains hfcs, but a lot of the “honey” mustard does, which is why I’m listing some honey mustards here that don’t.)
Frontera BBQ (Barbecue) Sauce
Gates BBQ Sauce (a barbecue sauce mainly found in the Kansas City area)
Heinz Organic Ketchup
Hellman’s Mayonaise
Meijer Organic Sweet Relish
Nature’s Best Organic Tomato Ketchup
Vlasic Sweet Gherkins
Woeber Sweet And Spicy Mustard
Consorzio Bbq Sauce Organic Original
Trader Joe’s Hot and Sweet Mustard
CRACKERS
Dare Vinta Crackers
Milton’s (most, if not all)
Pepperidge Farm Goldfish
MARINADES
Acadia Naturals Tuscan Grill Marinade
Consorzio Brand Marinades
PEANUT BUTTER
Jif Peanut Butter
Skippy Super Chunk Peanut Butter
Trader Joe’s brand Creamy, Unsalted Peanut Butter
SALAD DRESSINGS
Annie’s Naturals Goddess Dressing
Annie’s Roasted Red Pepper Vinaigrette
Blanchard & Blanchard (Country Italian & Caeser Parmesan)
Brianna’s Blush Vinaigrette Salad Dressing
Drew’s Salad Dressings
Olde Cape Cod Traditional Caeser Lite
ICE CREAM / FROZEN NOVELTIES
Ben & Jerry’s (most, if not all, varieties, but watch for the kinds that add bits of candy bars and cookies)
Breyer’s All Natural Ice Cream
Dreyers/Edys Strawberry Fruit Ice Cream Bars
Haagen Dazs Dark Chocolate Ice Cream Bars
Breyers Pure Fruit Strawberry Fruit Bars
Stoneyfield Farms
COOKIES
Archway’s Molasses Cookies
Destrooper Almond Thins Cookie
Destrooper Butter Crisp Cookies
Keebler Pecan Sandies Cookies
Keebler Simply Sandies Cookies
Lu Le Petit Beurre Cookies
Lu Scottish Recipe Shortbread
Mi-Del Snaps Ginger
Nature’s Best Chocolate Sandwich Creme Cookies
Newmans Wheat Free Fig Newton Cookies
Newmans Own Ginger Os Ginger N Creme Cookies
NewmanS Own Alphabet Cookies
Pepperidge Farms Butter Chessman Cookies
Pepperidge Farm 100% Natural Varieties
CHOCOLATE
Cadbury - Most Varieties
Hershey’s Symphony
Hershey’s 100 Calorie Wafer Bar
Hershey Skor Candy Bar
Hershey Special Dark Candy Bar
Dove - Most varieties
OTHER CANDYJELLIES, JAMS AND PRESERVES
Bonne Maman Preserves
Hero Jams & Jellies
Smuckers Organic Strawberry Preserves
St Dalfour Preserves
Trader Joe’s Reduced Sugar Organic Strawberry Preserves
MAPLE SYRUP
Trader Joe’s Organic Maple Syrup
Pretty much any actual maple syrup is devoid of hfcs - most “pancake syrup” does not even have any maple syrup in it and is pretty much all sweetener and water and “stuff”
PASTA SAUCES
Classico (Most varieties)
SODA POP
Archer Farms brand Natural Italian soda
Bawls Guarana Soda (most varieties)
Blue Sky Soft Drinks
Boylan’s Sodas
Cheerwine (the glass bottle varieties)
Jones Pure Cane Soda
Goose Island
Dublin Dr. Pepper (Dr. Pepper from a bottling plant in Dublin, Texas)
Nantucket Nectars
Virgil’s Sodas (the cream, cherry and root beer varieties)
SPORTS DRINKS
Accellerate
OTHER BEVERAGES
Bolthouse Farms C-Boost Smoothie
Bolthouse Farms Vegetable Juice
Capri Sun ALL NATURAL 100% Juice
Horizon Flavored Milks (chocolate, vanilla, and strawberry)
Ocean Spray Grapefruit Juice
Ovaltine (dry chocolate drink mix)
Simply Juice (orange, limeade, and lemonade)
Sweet Leaf Tea
YOGURT
Breyer’s
Brown Cow
Dannon All Natural Vanilla Yogurt
Dannon All Natural Coffee Yogurt
Dannon Lite & Fit Vanilla Yogurt
Great Value Light Nonfat Yogurt (most varieties, if not all)
Horizon Organic Fat Free Yogurt
Nancys Reduced Fat Plain
Nancy’s Whole Milk Honey Yogurt
Stoneyfield Farm Yogurt
Stoneyfield Farm Yobaby Yogurt
GRANOLA BARS
Kashi
Nature Valley Oats & Honey flavor granola bars
OTHER
Cool Whip Sugar Free

Going to the chapel...

AND SHE IS GETTING MARRIED!!!
Whooo hooooo!
Congratulations Hailey & James!

James proposed to Hailey yesterday and she has been crying tears of joy ever since. I got to see the beautiful ring at church before James popped the question. Its so pretty! Nice job James!!!!!

Now we have a celebration to plan!

Time to panic...

No, really, don't panic...nothing is wrong with Hailey - its just time for a concert! Widespread Panic is here for shows down at Lakewood. Poor Hailey wants to go so bad, but she just does not have the strength to go. I will dance extra hard for her and Peyton is coming too - I am sure she will boogie ooogie enough for both of us! Woop Woop!!!!!



Watching people roll by
Wonder where they're going
Hey, what's your job?
What're you knowing?


Driving to the grocery store
Pull my money out
Passing by the liquor store
Throw my money down


Ain't life grand
Ain't life grand


My wife's got the blues
Now I've got them
Gonna bring her a kiss
Make those blues run


Ain't life grand
Ain't life grand


The sun came out the other day
Through those dusty clouds
And in my mind I was a child
And it felt good!


Ain't life grand
Ain't life grand
Ain't life grand
Ain't life grand

Hailey Update

Hi All!
Just got a text from Hailey and she said that she has been feeling down the past few days BUT she had a good doctor appointment yesterday. Her counts are looking good and she is "on the path to recovery"
Yippee!
That is good news

Her first scan is coming up soon - so then we will know if all of this chemo was worth it. I am sure it has been. She is young, strong and has a lot to live for.

Love & Light

What about NOW?

I am on the verge of something...
Something that I pray will be huge. Something that may have never been conceived if my sister did not get cancer. Something that will change the world - my world, my community, my family's world, Colleen's world, maybe your world. In order to change the world, you dont have to change things in Africa, Europe, or Iraq - start in your back yard. We have a good idea and I am SO excited about it I am about to burst. I can not divulge all the details yet, but just pray for guidance and clarity on our vision for our future. Hailey and I need all the prayers we can get - for her to get healthy and for me to figure out how I am going to tackle my new project.

Watch this video...you may have heard this song before, but I'm normally not a fan of popular rock/pop music but this Daughtry video is great. I mean, it just really hits home. It made me cry. Please forgive me for continually putting up videos that are tear inducing...but, its good to cry sometimes! This one is a good cry...so please watch this video if you have 3 minutes to spare. It kind of sums up where I am at in my head right now.

As I am sitting here eating my FREE lunch from the Chinese place Mike delivers coffee too, I wonder why is it so easy (not that I am complaining) to give to someone like my husband who has food in the fridge at home, but its not so easy to give to some dirty, poor, homeless, addict on the street?
Fear? Yes.
Anger? Yes.
Animosity? Yes.
Get a job you bum!? Yes.
Will the world ever be perfect? No. Not until the end of time as we know it, anyway.
So there will always be poor people on the planet, no matter how hard we try. The test is how do we serve them? I do not advocate giving money to the poor, but passing out fruit is not a bad idea. If they get mad at you and ask you for a whiskey bottle or money instead - well, at least you tried to help. I have actually done this - passed out food to random homeless people in the street in Atlanta. After I saw a man digging through a trash can and finding a 1/2 eaten doughnut and then he ate it - I ran out, bought bagels and passed them out. Most of the people were delighted and surprised at the gift of a bagel - some were grumpy, some were so far gone mentally that they really did not understand. But I only did this once! Maybe I should do it again.

What can you do to help the poor - and not enable them? Any ideas? I welcome all discussion on this subject.

Blog Action Day

Neato Torpedo...

http://blogactionday.org/

I will participate! Any of my fellow bloggers out there, check it out!

Today on Post Secret...

I love Post Secret

It is one of the blogs on the side bar that I recommend you read...its funny, inspiring, really sad and sometimes creepy - but at least you know that you are not the only freak in the world after reading it

This is one of the post cards from the site today...

Like I said, I love post secret...this just makes me feel better. I wish I wrote it and sent it in.

This weekend went well, Mike and I kept Colleen for most of the weekend. We decorated for Halloween, went to church, Waffle House and fed her lots of good food including ice cream cake at the Borah's. Hailey is feeling OK. She is VERY tired and has slept most of the weekend. She is still in pain, but its getting better.

She is home

She is home, resting

A Quickie...

Cuz...I have Colleen & she wont leave me alone until I start decorating for Halloween with her! :)
Hailey's fever has come down and she is feeling better, somewhat...she is still in a lot of pain so keep sending vibes & love her way
Hopefully she will be home tomorrow

Thanks y'all

Love Love Love

H

I'm not having a good day today

I wish there was some sort of anxiety medicine that would not knock me out so I would not feel like exploding or crumbling or running or freaking out right now


she is supposed to be getting better damnit!

Yikes

She still has a 102 temp. It did break for a bit yesterday, but it keeps coming back. She said that she had a rough night last night. I am spending the night with her tonight - hopefully she will start feeling better soon.

Good Vibes, Prayers etc...send them her way

She is not feeling well right now at all. She has a 1o2 temperature and feels like hell. She said that she feels like the worst case of flu that you can imagine x 1million.

FEEL BETTER HAILEY!!!!!

WE LOVE YOU!!!!

STAY STRONG!

HEALTHY

HEALTHY

HEALTHY

Picture Pages...

Hi my loves -


I promised you pictures, and as dingy as I may have appeared yesterday, I can keep a promise :)


So...here you go!


Mmmmm...cuddling



Tech: Santiba = Pure Joy in Human Form, she rules
Mom's inspirational words "Think Rocky" Mom runs around singing the Rocky theme song to Hails when she feels down.
Plus, more of Colleen's art!



One of Hailey's awesome nurses, Kathy - an angel on earth




Thank you nurse Kathy - we love you...




EMPTY! Those suckers are gone ghandi! The 1/2 full one is just IV fluids - the other smaller ones are the chemo - empty I tell you, done! Finito!




YEAH! I am unhooked! I can roam free!




And for the grand finale of today's picture pages, I give you quite possibly the funniest picture that has ever been taken of Hailey & I...

Don't you mess with my girl sucka...it feels good to be a gangsta




Here is your video to go with today's picture pages...from the awesome hilarity of Office Space
*note that there are cuss words in this video, just don't want you to get in trouble at work...but its sooooo funny if you are an Office Space fan! :)





Love, Light & Gangsta

Phone Clarification & Disturbing Soy News...

Hi all...
She did get a new phone...its just not charged since she had to go to the hospital on short notice, she did not bring her charger, so no Heather, we do not need to take donations for a new phone. Eddie & Hannah from Barrow County helped her out with that :)
Thanks for asking though...that was sweet.

I talked to her early this morning and she sounded pretty rough. She said that she just wants to sleep, it hurts too much to be awake. Just makes your heart sink doesn't it? Poor thing. Hopefully she will be getting a blood transfusion today and that will make life much better for her.

Also, I wanted to share this with you - and Shams if you are out there, please help me out with this. Is soy is good or bad? I love my tofu and my neighbors baby is on soy formula because he can not tolerate the regular kind. Also, I have been putting soy protein powder in Hailey's smoothies...

Evidence against soy article...CLICK HERE

Dead Phone, Funny Pics and How I Keep Myself Laughing...

Laughing at myself that is. I have a great passion for wasting time. I am a huge procrastinator. I should be getting ready for work, but I am here on the computer. I think its my best talent. I can waste time like NO OTHER. If there were a competition for wasting time, I would win it. Well...its not that bad, but here is an example of what I am talking about. My friend sent us pics from her farm where they keep getting pictures of deer in her woods. So I take the time this morning to do this...just to entertain myself and hopefully make somebody laugh.





Did you laugh? Chuckle maybe? I hope so! I know its not that funny - but I amuse myself.
Here is another thing to make you laugh...I found my cord for my camera. It was hidden in the most inconspicuous of places...ATTACHED TO MY COMPUTER! I am rolling my eyes at myself right now. I swear, any future employers that may be reading this blog - I promise you - I am not that dumb but sometimes you just miss the obvious. Also, I always get the job done, no matter how much I procrastinate - I work better under pressure. :)

So now I can download more funny pictures from this past round of chemo and I will have them up here tomorrow.

On a more important note - Hailey's phone is dead. So if you need to talk to her, call her on the hospital phone. If you call Athens Regional's front desk they will get you to her. She is not real keen on answering that phone. Being hooked up to IVs, bed ridden and trying to reach the phone that is attached to the wall is not really feasible most of the time.

Off to work!

So soon!

Back to the hospital already! Yikes! Dr. Spichael is not taking any chances with her this time. She already has a fever and she could not muster up the energy to make Colleen's lunch this morning. She said that she ended up in the floor. I asked her if Colleen was scared, and she said no, unfortunately she is used to it. James made Colleen's lunch thankfully, he is a great cook! :)

Hailey is very grateful to be going back to the hospital. She knows that Colleen will be sad, but Hailey knows that she just needs to be taken care of right now. She just needs to be able to push a button and have a nurse bring her IV meds, or water, or ice, or a ginger ale - whatever.

Happy Monday to all of you and be peaceful knowing that Hailey is in good hands right now and will be all week.

Love & Light

H

Silly Nanny Saturday

What was one of the first thoughts that ran through my head this morning? I know you are dying to know...these are the things that keep you up at night, admit it! My first thought was "am I supposed to be going to work today?" then, "what day is it?" then, hey! its Saturday...OH NO I neglected Silly Nanny Friday!" How could I do that to ya? I know that you were all SO disappointed in my yesterday. You were all running around your desks cursing my name because I did not follow through with Silly Nanny Friday...well please forgive...I was more interested in putting a tear jerking song on here and making you cry like me. Seriously, I cried ALL day yesterday. I guess I just needed to get it out. Hailey felt sorry for me. I don't want her to waste her energy feeling bad for me. She is doing well (surprisingly so) and to cheer me up we watched the best of all silly nanny movies ever last night with Mike. Can you believe he has never seen this classic until yesterday?

My friends I give you an homage to The Holy Grail...THE GRAILLL

Tis but a scratch!



I fart in your general direction!



This song is from "Life of Brian" not "The Holy Grail" but its a good one! Widespread Panic played this last Halloween - Classic! I wish I could have found that video...

Anyway...I will try to find my cord for the camera and I will post the pics from this last round today (hopefully). Hailey is coming over to mi casa today to rest so I can do yard work and she can still be taken care of...

Love & Light & Monty Python...

Home Sweet Home

Hey!
We are home. I spent the night with her last night and got to take her home this morning. She is feeling yucky...but that is to be expected. I am tired too. I have some funny pictures from this last trip for chemo, but I can not find the cord in order to download the pics...so that will have to come later.

I know that this is not over, by a long shot, but I just want to say THANK YOU for all of the love, prayers, support, hugs, tears, laughs, emails, advice, listening to me rant, responses to this blog, scarves for Hailey, nursing, flowers, huge gift baskets, laundry, casseroles, soups, ginger ales, and LOVE LOVE LOVE that we have received from you. It really warms my heart. I know that I am much freer with my hugs to anybody since this has happened. You learn a lot about being human through facing death. All the BS really does not matter, its the heart that matters and love that matters, and God that matters, and Family that matters - people and love - that is all that matters...

Thank u

WHOOOOOOOOOOOOO HOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

OMG!!!!
This IS her last round of chemo!!!!!!!!!

It is, it is, it really, really is!

I know that I said that I wanted her to have one more round, but forget that - I am so happy right now and I can not jump up and down too much in an attorney's office!

YIPPPEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!

Broken Phone, Angels on Earth and a 90's History Lesson

NOW HEAR THIS! NOW HEAR THIS!
HAILEY'S PHONE IS BROKEN!
Yup, that's right, it finally bit the dust. 4000 texts and 3000 calls a day finally took its toll on the poor thing. She went to make a call to me and when she flipped it up, the top just fell completely off. James made some futile attempt to fix it, but that did not work. THEN the angel of mercy showed up, right on time as he always does (insert angelic singing from the Heavens) Eddie! So Eddie is going to help her with the phone situation so she does not have to worry about it. Eddie is apparently always right on time and he is Hailey's mentor. I need to devote an entire blog entry to Eddie - call me for an interview man! :) As he reads this, Eddie is hiding under his desk, because public accolades are NOT his style - which of course, makes him even more awesome.
<------- Eddie

Well, I took advantage of this beautiful weather and played in Athens yesterday (got my hair cut, went shopping, ate lunch at the Grit, took a yoga class...ahhhh) and of course that means a visit with Hailey while she is in Athens Regional. She was doing OK - she has a little fever, around 99.5, but the nurses did not seem too worried about it. She looks flushed and of course her eyes are weak, but that is to be expected. I swear, I think some of her eyebrow hair is falling out now, but don't tell her I said that. She has REALLY thin eyebrows anyway, so who knows...

We still don't know if this is the last round or not. I know, its easy for me to say, but I kinda hope that its not. I just want all the insurance we can get.

James took some awesome pictures yesterday, so when he emails them to me I will put them up here. We went for a walk and Hailey could see something other than her 4 walls - so that was good - short lived, but good. Then I curled up in bed with her and sang her songs like "everybody needs a bosom for a pillow" to keep her entertained.

I am going to spend the night with her tonight and relieve James from his overnight duties. He has rigged up the fold out chair with another chair at the end of it so his feet don't hang off...poor baby. My statuesque height of 5' 2" can compress itself into a tiny little ball, so this has never bothered me...poor James...

And for those of you who think I am weird for singing songs that involve bosoms to my sister...here is a 90's history lesson...

Chemo Brain

So, chemo brain, ever heard of that one? I had not until all of this. Apparently chemo turns your brain into scrambled eggs. Let me explain - Hailey knows what she wants to say, and she is talking, but the words don't match what she is thinking. I have a dear friend who's mom is going thru chemo, and her port (in her arm) started beeping and she thought it was the car alarm - she ran around trying to turn off the car alarm...but it was in her arm...that would suck, but its humorous at the same time. I already told you the story about the M&Ms - well apparently this round is really doing a number on her noggin because Mom called and told me some pretty funny stuff. I guess its funny, freaky and funny at the same time because we know that she will be back to her normal, smart as a whip, self in a week or so.

So here are some examples of chemo brain speak:
1. Colleen and Mom were visiting Hails in the hospital yesterday and Hailey told Colleen (who did not ask about playing or anything like that) that she could go outside and play on the back porch. This is a common question (like every 5 minutes) at her house - so Hailey just decided in her chemobrain-ness that Colleen could go out and play on the back porch, however they were on the 5th floor of the hospital. ha.

2. Hailey was trying to tell mom to buy her favorite nurse - Kathy - a coffee mug as a thank you gift. She could not get the words out right, so Hailey asked Mom to get her a Moppy Cub for Kathy. I dont think Kathy needs a Moppy Cub, but we will see if we can get one for her - whatever Hailey wants we will get right now! ;)

3. Cryptic text messages, here are some examples...

Gas Blow & I will takk 2 U in ba. Love

Translation: The gas crisis sucks and I will talk to you in a bit. Love

Y ur wiite cgo cad brgn. U r comn thur 2 sgend nit?

Translation: Why your ??? ??? ???. You are coming Thursday to spend the night?

I think she was asking me about yoga class - but I am not really sure.

So, as you can see, it takes some effort to understand what she is saying sometimes. Poor thing, that has to be frustrating. She was always the smart one - I guess I can have a leg up in the smarts department for a week at a time right now. Sibling rivalry lives! hahaha

Also, Hailey did specifically tell Mom to call me and tell me all of this so I could put it on the blog. She wants us to see the humor in all of this. Thanks Hails.

Catching up, part deux

So - first of all, an update on Hails and how the chemo is going this time around. This is round 4 and she is officially OVER IT. Poor thing, her anxiety is through the roof and she is heavily medicated right now for that and pain. Her text messages to me don't make much sense right now. I have become more fluent in chemo-brain speak than I ever thought I would. She is hanging in there though - her friends and family keep her going plus her sweet baby James. :) I think Colleen is her inspiration and the rest of us are her foundation. Sometimes I dont feel like a foundation though, I feel like I am standing in shifting sand during a catagory 5 hurricane, but somehow I keep it together for her. Its when I am not with her that I get more anxious and scared.

Anyway...enough of the my pity party, she is the one that is going through a living hell. This brings us to part 2 of our story...where did we leave off? Oh, somewhere around her cardiologist suggesting lots of tests and this is when all hell broke loose.

On the night of June 6th Hailey and I had an hour and 1/2 long conversation about how everything in the world sucked eggs. We were having a good ol gripe fest, sometimes you just need to get it out. Anyway, my point is that she did not say ANYTHING about being in pain at all. About 2 hours after she got off the phone with me she was putting Colleen to bed and then she felt it - a stabbing pain like none other in her belly. At first she thought that it was an ovarian cyst exploding since this has happened to her several times in the past - but she said that the pain she was feeling was different, and worse than exploding ovaries. Ouch.

She called James, who was at work and he rushed home, but he was 45 minutes away, so she called my parents. This started a chain reaction of hysterics, because my parents know how independent my sis is and how much pain this chick can tolerate. Anyway - my parents get to my sister just as the ambulance is arriving to get her. Unfortunately for that ambulance driver - he was 5 minutes behind my dad who promptly put Hailey in the car and took her to Athens Regional while Mom stayed behind to watch Colleen.

So they get her to the ER and they examane her and say "Ms. Gill, did you know that you had a mass or tumor in your abdomen?" Well, um, NO! Don't you think I would have mentioned that when I got here??? Anyway...this is the first news of any tumor in her life and it just gets worse from here on out...

Part 3 tomorrow. This story makes me anxious all over. Kinda like my heart will beat out from behind my breast plate anxious.

Catching everyone up...

During our visit with Ashley and Amy (Hailey's long lost buddies - see below) Ashley wanted to know the whole story of how Hailey was diagnosed and how the disease has progressed to this state. She said that she had heard rumors of a 10" tumor with eyes and tentacles...not really, but she did say that the rumor mill was swirling - so I am taking it upon myself to tell you all how this went down. It will be in parts - I don't have that much energy to do the whole diatribe in one fail swoop, and you probably do not have that much time on your hands!

So here we go...

In the months of April - June 2008 (or so, my dates may be off a hair) Hailey was having really bad, random symptoms that the doctors could not make add up to anything in particular. She was having bad fainting spells, her blood pressure was through the roof, her anxiety was out of control, irregular heart beat, racing heart beat, she was getting nauseous for no reason, feeling VERY weak all the time and having headaches. She saw several doctors to see what was going on. She was put on blood pressure meds and several other prescriptions, was told that she needed to work out to relieve stress. So, like a good little patient, she took her medication and joined a gym.

The heart issues got worse, so that is when she went to the cardiologist. The cardiologist that saw her really made her mad because he acted like she was probably pregnant and that was the reason for her fainting spells since her EKG was fairly normal. He kept pressing on her abdomen to see if she felt any pain, which she did not, and then she was sent home. The cardiologist wanted her to have a host of tests done at the medical center to rule anything out - most of them having to do with examining her abdomen (??? he must have thought she was preggers or he was psychic, one of the two) and having a CAT scan. She never made those appointments because about a week after that appointment - the proverbial poop hit the fan.

To be continued...