Thanks for the Mammories....

One of my favorite television shows is Parenthood .   For those of you who might be unfamiliar with the show, it is a wonderful drama which revolves around the three generations of the Braverman family; Zeek and Camille Braverman and their four children and eight grandchildren.  I love how this show touches on so many different issues of being a parent as well as being a son or daughter, a sibling, or even an aunt or uncle.  I feel like most families can probably relate to something going on in the Braverman family. In last week's episode, without any previews' warning, they slipped in breast cancer.  In the last scene, as Christine is getting a mammogram, I knew immediately where they were going with this storyline.  They played Naked As We Came by Iron and Wine  as you watch Christine's reactions as her doctor gives her the bad news, and then as she tells her husband Adam.  I have to say that this was really quite emotional for me to watch. Because you could only

     The story of my Cancer Card begins several weeks ago at a high school football game that our local high school played down at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.  Because we were two small high schools, we had great seats down in the lowest section.  My friend Merilee was there as well, but sitting with the opposing team. Why she was sitting with the opposing team is a long story within itself...so we will skip that part.     Close to half time, Merilee called to see where I was sitting.  After a few minutes of confusing conversation and awkward and embarassing attempts to wave at each other across the stadium, we found that we were sitting directly across from each other on the 40 yard line.  I tell her I will walk over to see her during half time. I joke that I should get walking because it looks like it would take a good 20 minutes to walk over there as Lucas Oil is huge!  Merilee's reply, "There is no need to walk all the way around!  Just go down to the 40 yard

I lost my dear friend, Karen King, to cancer last night.      Karen was an amazing woman whom I truly admired.  We started with a working relationship that turned into a fun, adventurous friendship. The thing I loved about her was that she was always a bit mysterious. And the more I hung out with her, the more she would share with me.  Fascinating stories that were always humorous and fun.  My friend Abbie said it well for many of us..."Karen, you will live in infamy as the most badass woman I have ever know."  She touched many this way.  When Karen got an idea in her head, look out because she was doing it. She wasn't backing down. She believed that women could do anything and so empowered many of us!       Karen and I share a story together; one that started out very similar in the beginning, but unfortunately had a very different ending. When I went to get my mammogram, I was sitting in the waiting room of the Radiology area.  Next thing I know, here comes Karen.  Sh

    I titled this blog My Journey Beyond the Shock because once the true shock of this news hits you, you have to immediately start moving forward. There is no time to waste. After I found out I had cancer, I stumbled upon this wonderful, well-done video called Beyond the Shock . It is divided into chapters, but it doesn't take very long to watch. It begins by explaining basic breast anatomy, then breast cancer, diagnosis, types & stages, and treatments. If you are interested in learning more about breast cancer or know someone who may be about to face this battle, this is a great link!       What hospital do I go to?      I go to the Indiana University Melvin & Bren Simon Cancer Center  in Indianapolis where I have an outstanding medical team.  My Surgeon is Linda Han, M.D. , and my Oncologist is Kathy Miller, M.D.   These two doctors and their amazing staff have given me such personal attention that sometimes they make me feel like I am their only patient. That j

I have always loved roller coasters.  Ben and our five kids love them too. We are the family who can't wait to ride every roller coaster in every park that we visit! Ben and I started the kids on them as soon as they were tall enough. Many times, one of us had to console them as they cried if they weren't tall enough. Now, there is one roller coaster at Holiday World that I do not like. I believe it is called the Voyage. This wooden roller coaster seems like it is never going to end.  It shakes and rattles my head to the point I can hardly stand it. Suddenly, on July 30th, I found myself sitting on a roller coaster, much like the Voyage, only this one had a few added surprise loops and corkscrews.   I had read my radiology report from July 30th.  I knew that the only positive thing that I could find on the report was that my lymph nodes looked normal. On Friday, August 3rd, I went to get two biopsies. The first one was performed using an ultrasound to get a sample of the area