Sunday December 7th

The Christmas spirit has arrived at our house this weekend! We have all of our decorations up, we have my parents staying with us, we are having a family dinner tonight and we went to the Festival of Trees yesterday. So far I've been blessed with mild symptoms from the chemotherapy that I had on Wednesday. I was able to take my medicine and go with my family up to Sandy to see the movie Bolt. It was really cute! Then we went to the Sandy Expo Center to see the Festival of Trees. The whole huge building was full with uniquely decorated and themed Christmas trees, as well as a gingerbread village, several aisles of wreaths and centerpieces and other donated items, like children's play cottages and a playset. Everything at the festival is donated and then people go to purchase the items with all of the funds going to Primary Children's Medical Center. On each end of the building they had live entertainment; on one side was also a kids' fun center and the other had a gift boutique. Fortunately the boys and David were able to push me in the wheelchair the whole time so I didn't get too worn out. As it was, after dinner I pretty much had to go up to my room and rest and go to sleep early.

I'm planning to attend Sacrament meeting today. I'm resting right now, then I'll get up right before church and put on my clothes, so I'll have enough energy to go. This morning my throat has been hurting and I have had some nausea and fatigue, but I am staying on top of my symptoms. My friend Rebecca asked me to tell about controlling the symptoms of chemo, since she has a friend who has to get treated. Each drug I have tried has different side effects, some right away, some more than others, etc. My last drug used to make me feel sick to my stomach the day I got it. A friend told me to bring ginger ale and saltines to munch on during the treatment. I use Sprite or soda at home when my stomach hurts, which is usually several days after my treatment. The Dr. prescribes an infusion of anti-nausea medicine on the day I get my treatment, so that helps me out at the beginning. Then, I try to take my anti-nausea medicines on a schedule, otherwise I can get feeling really sick while I wait for a pill to work. For my mouth sores and sore throat I got a prescription for "magic mouthwash" which has benedryl and mylanta and lidocaine in it. For cold sores, I use Neosporin lip treatment. For aches and pains, I have a prescription for pain medicine, but have also used Advil for muscle aches. I guess the worst side effects (other than hair loss) are just nausea and fatigue. When I don't feel like eating, a smoothie is my favorite drink, also yogurt or ice cream. I like mashed potatoes and other creamy soups that are easy to get down. Thank goodness the anti-nausea drugs make you sleepy, so then you can go to sleep and wake up feeling better.

So, since my blog is my gratitude journal, I will say that I am grateful that I am not terribly sick so far, even with an increase in my dosage of the chemo pill, Xeloda. I am grateful that my mom is staying to help take care of me and my family. It provides me with peace of mind to know that my only responsibility is to rest and get better. David is taking care of the financial needs of our family and is able to focus on his work instead of taking care of the children. I've been reading the book "When you can't do it alone, take the Savior's hand." I also enjoyed reading some of the conference talks from October. They help me build my faith and calm my fear.
Emilee