9/30/1999 Entered the hospital for her 3 week stay.
9/31/1999 Started treatment. She will be out of it for a couple of days.
10/1/1999 Christy is doing well today. Although because of the nausea drugs she is pretty well in La La land. She always has a smile on her face when she talks, . Her room is filled with all kinds of pictures of family and friends and items from Nathan and Maria. However, there is always room for more. All of the photographs are transforming her room from a blah sterile environment to a warm and homey, sterile environment. Cathy Powell spent some time with her today.
10/2/1999 It's Saturday and George Prokos arrives from Texas to help out with at the Yenkel home front, as well as visit Christy. The chemo treatments are continuing and Christy seemed a little more with it today. Ya Baby! Later in the afternoon Mark took Nathan and Maria up to the hospital to see Mom. Everyone had a nice visit and the kids brought great smiles to Christy's face.
10/3/1999 Christy is still more alert today. She is looking forward to the end of chemo treatment tonight at 11:00 p.m. Then two days of rest and Wednesday is the actual stem cell transplant. Such a big sounding procedure for something that should only take 15-30 minutes. This will count as day 0. From there we count up as her blood cells start to reproduce. Mark took in a load of movies for her to watch when she starts feeling up to it. Maybe she'll review some for us. Being the weekend, more of her family was able to visit her yesterday and today. She may not remember dates and stuff for the time being but I look at it like being in a little suspended animation. I could use a bit of that during stress!
10/4/1999 Yucky and pukey still, is how Christy said she felt today. However she did get up a bit and sat upright in the chair for about an hour. Actually that's all anyone can really sit for in those chairs. Your butt gets numb. Mark was able to get a lap top computer to her and she tried out the on-line chat with Dave for a little testing. She was happy with what she saw. Her Mom and Dad came later in the evening to visit. Otherwise not too busy with visitors so that she was able to rest a bit more today. She really appreciates and loves all the thoughts and notes from everyone.
10/5/99 Christy continued her close attachment to the rub a dub brown tub today. But she had pink color in her cheeks while doing it. Joann and Mia came by to visit, then George stepped in the door and soon we had Christy smiling and laughing a bit at our stories of youth and stupidity. The girls then left George to tape up all the great cards where Christy can see them, and to take her on a three lap walk around the ward. She did some more resting, had a Popsicle and some ginger ale and was feeling as though it may stay down. Christy was also watching As Good As It Gets on video. Katina came by for a quick visit after her own doctors appointment that was at the Motts Hospital. She missed her Nouna and is going to bring her an Australian Tangerine when she is up to eating one. After all it is a "single serving, peeled fruit." Tomorrow is Transplant Day 0. Keep good thoughts and prayers.
10/6/99 Today Christy had the actual transplant. It took place between 3:30 and 4:00 with Mark and George at her side. Christy thinks the smell that is radiating from her is more garlicky, Mark thinks its stewed tomatoes and Cathy couldn't decide. I should explain that the blood cells that were frozen were coated with a natural oil like product that comes from fish. So when the cells get transplanted back into her body the oils and smell come out through her skin. This should only last a few days. Other than the procedure, Christy did three more laps around the ward again today, you have to love her stamina. She didn't throw up at all today and had something to eat. A little mashed potatoes, a Popsicle , and a little banana muffin in the morning. Christy also happened to be looking at all her messages and checking out the chat room with her friend Deanna and a package arrived for her at the exact moment. The package was from Deanna . Both were thrilled to be able to "share the moment". Christy reads all of the messages that have been sent to her and they are a really great distraction for her. She says that although she can't muster up the momentum to answer them all right now, she hopes to soon. Just please keep them coming, she says!
10/7/99 Sorry this update was delayed. Didn't actually get to talk to Christy until Friday. But this was a day that didn't start out too well but ended up better. There is still some nausea in the mornings and lack of motivation to do much. However our trooper still walked the halls and did four laps. Rested some more and Cathy Powell brought by some vanilla ice-cream later in the evening. I cannot impress upon you all enough how much Christy loves those e-mails. Keep the prayers coming.
10/8/99 Today Christy dealt with the nausea again in the morning. George came up to her room in the late morning and Christy showered as best she can, dressed, and walked five laps by noon. Whew! Then there was a little party gathering that occurred (George, Steve, Lyn, Gretchen, and Mia.), who all seemed to stop by at the lunch hour. A lot of laughs were had by all. Tired out, Christy was ready for a nap. Tula was going to be coming by later as well as her dad. It is now coming upon Christy's second weekend in the hospital. She is definitely still getting antsy about being in that same room for this long, and knowing there is still time ahead. The "Big Game" is on Saturday of which she is planning on watching. Christy talked to Nathan on the phone and continues to be the great mom she is even through the lines. It is really something, to see her face light up when she talks to her sweeties.
10/9/99 "The game" was on the T.V. today in Christy's room. Tula, and Cathy were there watching it with her, when Lyn and Mia dropped by to make it a party of sorts. We kept track of the score in between chats a giggles. Christy is doing well with the frozen treats these days but her doctor would like her to eat some real food. The problem is, nothing really sounds too tasty right now so she is trying to suck on some hard candy to get the taste buds back. It is hard to get excited about the hospital food as anyone who has spent time in one knows. If there is any wonder about the "Plaid Pants" connection to the web page you can now be enlightened. It's because Christy loves plaid so much, in fact she had on the cutes pair of plaid capri leggings on today. Topped by a beige top to match the beige plaid, her signature color. The only thing missing is the black! (Christy loves those two colors) Christy is still dealing bravely with her imprisonment, she gets depressed every now and then and finds it hard to focus on anything for too long. For those of you that have sent cards, know that they are in good view and in good company. The wall is filling up around the window and they make great decorations.
10/10/99 Well, it happened. Late last night Christy spiked a fever of 101.5. You never saw so many nurses and doc's whip in there so fast and start hooking up stuff and taking out stuff. (blood) Come to think of it, earlier she did have on two shirts and snuggling under an afghan in an 85 degree room. Hmm, what's wrong with that picture? Christy is on antibiotics now and her temperature has dropped to 99.5 as of 5:00 p.m. The chest x-rays that were taken earlier this morning have not come back to her as showing up anything serious. At least that's the theory of no news is good news. Mark and Nathan came by early in the evening to give kisses good night and love to mom. Now, there may be those of you out there thinking that I was kidding about the Plaid thing. But those of you who saw Christy today can attest to the fact that she had on red plaid pants and a black shirt. This is quickly becoming the fashion rage in the hospital. I quietly suspect we shall soon see light blue plaid scrubs. Maybe plaid walls, mmm, the possibilities are endless!
10/11/99 Today was a very busy day for Christy. She had many visitors, and says she was talked out. Not that she didn't love it, she did. She was just tired at the end of the day. She did have time however to walk 11 laps around the ward or maybe more, she was chatting a bit much and lost count. While in the room, Christy had a blood and platelet transfusion because her levels were below the normal range. So while she was hooked up to the blood she had visitors. Cathy B. and George were there in the morning, then Mark was able to come by early in the afternoon because Nathan was sick today so dad stayed home with him. Later Cathy P., then Christy's Aunt and Uncle from Jackson. Not soon after Tula and Jim came by and Lyn later joined in. Christy says she is getting her concentration back a bit. She was able to read a little and is feeling tired but a little more human. She is able to get around better and do many things for herself she couldn't last week. Thank you George for helping her get through that tough week. Christy was going to try to write some e-mails tomorrow. CORRECTION: The writer of these updates would like to apologize for last Thursday's mistake. It was not Cathy Powell who brought the vanilla ice-cream to Christy, it was her other dear sister Cerene, who so lovingly does a great many things for her. Visiting her at the end of her work day and on the weekends with Stacy, as well as her time spent at the Yenkel home. I sometimes don't get a chance to mention all those who come to see Christy, or who have contributed to her somehow that day. I am but a humble servant who doesn't write by profession. Please know however that Christy appreciates EVERYTHING everyone does. Be it food, card, e-mail, phone call, visit, prayer, or home care volunteering. Words will never express the love and gratitude she feels every day for all of you.
10/12/99 Talk, talk, talk, and more talk! That's what Mark said as he arrived home after visiting her in the late evening. Her day started with a visit from Cathy Bartson in the morning, walked 9 laps. Then Mark's mom Marilyn came by for a little while, then Tula. Christy then did 20 more laps around the ward for a total of a mile and a half for the day. Kathy Powell stopped by after work for a little bit then later in the evening Christy had a surprise visit from her friends Bill Long and his new wife Bridgett. They showed Christy some of their honeymoon pictures from Ireland on CD, and Christy showed them the Web page. When Mark showed up he had to wonder if this was his wife sitting in the bed taking only short breaks of breathing between sentences. He could tell it had been a really good day. Christy was up to the task of writing some e-mails and notes back to people, I think she got to doing ten today. But she had to squeeze it into before and after being in the chat room for two and a half hours! Yes she was chatting from 2:00 until 4:30. First with Sharron Michos, then Mark chatted because he couldn't get through to her phone, then a few others joined in. So, keep a look out throughout the day, you never know when she might pop on.
10//13/99 Today it was walk, walk, walk. Christy walked another 1-1/2 miles today, she is going to marathon it before we know it! She had another good day today. Nupagin(?) shot in the morning along with some more platelets is the prescription for today. They will help get her levels of antibodies up to where they need to be. Things look on track for her target date of next Wednesday being released, she is looking forward to it. Christy also had some time to check out her messages, and write back some more e-mails. She was also on chat line for a while today with Shelly Foley, Tim Sanford, Cathy Powell, Marge, and Mark. All at the same time, it was crazy, but fun! Sharon Michos brought by bagels from Zingermans and had a nice visit. Sharon has re-named Christy's bed. It is now the throne and confessional. People just seem to be really opening up to Christy and she has been having some pretty incredible conversations. Anything from deep, introspective, and philosophical to the crazy stories, regretful pasts, and confessions. She may start charging by the hour. Dr. Christy what do you think? "Forgive me Christy it's been 5 weeks since my last confession..." I don't mean to offend anyone, but this is just a phenomenon that is happening in room 103. She loves it and it is diversionary as well as therapeutic for Christy, so keep the confessions coming. Now go do a good deed for someone today and check back again.
10/14/99 I am so sorry to be late with this installment of "The Days of our Christy". I do have the dramatic details of the the days events however. The day started out with a visit from Christy's friend Gretchen. Main topics of conversation were coincidences and what a small world it is. It must have been Gretchen's turn in the confessional today. Then Christy started on her laps around the ward. She had to stop at 11 times around when visitors arrived. It was Tom Foley, who hadn't seen the Christy Web Site. They talked a bit and "chatted" a bit then he needed to leave. Christy says she took a few cat naps and was a weenie about not doing any more laps for the day. In the early evening Cathy and Tim Powell stopped by to visit for a while. They were about to leave when in walks Cerene and Lyn with Mark, Nathan and Maria. Eyes were bright all around the room. Maria was happy and playful on mom's bed where Christy was able to give her the bedtime bottle. It had been sooo long. She felt like a real mom again with her baby in her arms and angel's eyes looking up at her. Playing with mom's fingers and drinking in all the love. It was time for bed, even for Mom. I'm sure sweet dreams were had by all.
10/15/99 The days continue to be busy, but I think that is really keeping Christy going. The confinement is a little more tolerable when there are friends to share it with. Marilyn shared the first 1/2 mile walk with Christy in the morning then Christy continued on alone to finish up the mile after Marilyn had to leave. Kathy Bartson popped over with some food this morning then Tula came by for a visit also. The doctors stopped in with the good news that Christy has been responding well to the Chemo treatments and they are positive. That's about as positive as the doctors allow themselves to be. It must be a hard job they have. They are intrigued by our web site here. Word has been buzzing around the docs and staff about the patient in room #103 with the lap top and personal web site. Gee, she must be some important, special person! Later in the afternoon Jenny Kunick(?) stopped by. Then Ally came by for a couple of hours to visit. Hey, Christy maybe you can charge Ally for the confessional today instead of Dr. Ally charging you? Just kidding Ally. It's always great having a doctor for a friend. It was nice for Christy to see her friend from work, Mary. It was great to keep tabs on the ol' job front. In the early evening Cerene and Cathy P. stopped in for their daily dose of Christy and brought with them some food. A great homemade, hospital approved, single serving meal. Her taste buds are fighting her to come back. She has run out of her Jolly Rancher sugarless candy's. The preferred, hospital approved, Christy tested candy. They are hard to find so keep your eyes out and call if you find some. Later in the evening, while Jim and Tula were visiting Mark and Nathan and Maria came in for their dose of mommy. Along trailed in Dave, Mia, Louis, and Katina. And right on their tails were Maureen Hollaway and Brent Bartson. It was a room full, but we all observed the hand washing rule and the only one who gets to touch Christy is Maria. Nathan does too but he was busy eating a Popsicle and watching the helicopter take off and another land. Christy was able to feed Maria her bedtime bottle again and cuddle with her little girl. Next week cannot come soon enough.
10/17/99 The day started off with a blueberry muffin. Christy then got her tooshie out the door and walked her first mile of the day. She says she just can't do it all at once, it's just too boring walking down the same halls. But she needed to do it early before the day filled up with any doctor visits or friendly visits. Jim and Tula came over with Christy's nephew J.D. They fooled around on the computer and J.D. wrote his mom an e-mail with a little assistance. Christy had her chocolate Boost for lunch and then relaxed a bit. Later in the afternoon Christy did her other mile. Kathy Bartson came through the door for a visit bearing gifts. I thought that was just a Greek thing? She's been hanging around them and it's soaked in like osmosis. Kathy had the idea to give Christy a blanket. But not just any blanket, all of the little kids in Christy's life that Kathy was able to get a hold of put their hand prints on it. Sort of like all the little hands cuddling with her on her bed. Of course Christy loved it and soon there was water everywhere.(tears) Kathy had also made some Tulu, a Greek vegetable dish. Hey, Kathy are you sure your not Greek? Just a little? Anyway, Christy ate it all up along with a few bites of cantaloupe. It was turning into a quiet evening, no one was on the chat line and she was going to just do some e-mails when a mystery guest came to get the daily update in person. I really made her jump when Christy came out of the bathroom and I was sitting in the chair. Then Jim came by after the EMU football game. We left Christy tired and ready for bed.
10/18/99 Christy made it through her third weekend. It's hard to believe that many days in captivity have gone by. It was a pretty quiet Sunday in comparison to other days. Christy had to get more platelets in the morning and she had a reaction to them, which does happen occasionally to patients. They gave her Benadryl to take care of the rash, which didn't help, so they tried Hydrocortisone. It was half way in the i.v. line when they realized Christy is allergic to cortisone. They went ahead and took a gamble (now this is science folks!) that she wouldn't get a reaction from the hydrocortisone. Luckily she didn't. Mark came in with Nathan at about 11:30 to visit. Christy had started to get a little sleepy from the Benadryl, so Mark didn't stay long. She then took a little cat nap, when Cathy Powell came by with some food and for short chat. Three hours later (we know about those "short: confessionals) Cathy left. Later in the afternoon Christy took her mile walk to keep her mind and body off from the itchiness of the rash. Later in the evening the Hydrocortisone must have worked because the rash was slowly going away and the itch was getting better. Christy eased over this little event of a reaction by chalking it up to "bad platelets". She's a trooper, but we couldn't expect any less.
10/19/99 Christy is breaking out, flying the coop, jumping bail. She received her "get out of jail free" card and she's going home on Tuesday. Unfortunately the card wasn't exactly free, there are a lot of strings attached. First, I'll tell you about Christy's day today, which was busy but still had time to rest. This morning Christy had some more blood given to her, unfortunately they didn't give her the two bags at the same time like they need to so she was hooked up with blood later on in the day. Christy received the news about her discharge in the late morning so she spent a good deal of time taking down all of her cards and pictures and gathering up all her stuff to be taken home. Connie Savander came by for a couple of hours, chatted and did mile number one with Christy. At about 1:30 Ali came by and hung out until 4:00, Christy is really billing some serious hours these days. Then Jen Ryan came by and walked another mile, only this was free, no appendages attached to a four wheel beeping machine. Christy felt liberated not having to deal with the cumbersome lines and hanging on to a pole. Later at around 7:45 Mark came by and then Tula and Jim. It was a nice visit and close for a busy day.
Now, I'm going to go over the "strings that are attached" or the conditions under which Christy is coming home. She still loves all the e-mail, and wants to keep the Web stuff up for a bit until things get back to something like normal. I will continue to update her status everyday still for a little while yet. Christy still wants the visitors, only she is going to be even more tired at home because of the extra activity she's going to be doing and shouldn't be. So most of the same rules of the hospital are still going to apply at home. You shouldn't come to visit if anyone in your family is fighting a cold or virus, or you yourself have had a fever within 48 hours, or have a cold, etc. Everyone needs to wash their hands while in the Yenkel home as often as possible. No one, except those little angels Maria and Nathan, (o.k. maybe Mark) can touch Christy. These are times when "air kisses" are acceptable. If you'd like to come over, call if you can. Christy is going to need some naps, or she may not even be home. (out walking those miles maybe) And last, she really wants to continue writing the e-mails and having you continue your prayers and love for her and the family. They have worked miracles, and will take her through to the next phase of her recovery, which is undetermined at this time. If you can continue to volunteer at the Yenkel home starting the week of Monday October 25 Christy would greatly appreciate it. She is feeling apprehensive about her capabilities to take care of kids and home and I think it would be great if we could continue to help and ease her into the everyday rat race. If you can come on a particular day or evening (she'll take what she can!) please call Christy directly and she will write you into the schedule. I love that Christy has become a little more comfortable with asking for help, it used to be like pulling teeth for her. But she has done it, and asked, that is reward enough for me! You can sign me up for.....
10/21/99 Yesterday was Christy's first full day at home, and it was a really good one. First, Mark stayed home from work to take the kids to Gretchen's House (school/daycare) and then take Christy to the hospital to check on her platelet counts. If they weren't high enough she would be given more, but as it turned out those little guys have finally decided to reproduce and so they took her line out. What a wonderful thing to walk about with nothing hanging off from you. Mark was then determined to find Nathan a comforter for his bed and grocery shop, so they did the store thing and then came home for a rest. To make a good day even better, dinner arrived from Ed's mother and it was Mark and Christy's all time favorite meal to ever have. Thanksgiving Dinner complete with pumpkin pie. Be assured Christy ate well, and is doing better eating since she has been home. Cerene in spending the day today at the Yenkel home helping out, and it's so beautiful out they plan to take a walk after lunch. Speaking of walking there is an exciting upcoming event that Christy's friend Marge Fulkener (spelling?) is organizing. It's a 10K walk for Breast Cancer at Hudson Mills . It will take place on November 6. The proceeds will go to research, and it will kind of be in Christy's honor. I just wanted to let you reserve the date, but more information will be coming up on this web page.
NOTE: When I wrote "the rules" for Christy's confinment at home while she recovers I forgot to mention the matter of fresh flowers and plants. There can't be any. Also, there can't be any fresh fruits or vegetables sitting out, (fruit baskets, etc.). The risk of bugs and fruit flies are too great at this point. Thanks to all for understanding these precautions. It won't be long before everyone will be pinching Christy's cheeks and hugging her.
10/28/99 It has been a week since I have last updated this page. At times Christy's stay at the hospital seems like a bad dream because life keeps rolling along and so does the laundry. But I'll give a quick run down on the latest and an update on the 10K walk for Breast Cancer. Last weekend was a hectic one at the Yenkel home. Christy's Godmother was in town, her Aunt Fran and Uncle John along with cousin Steve and his wife Liz. It was hectic with a baby shower on Sunday and family gatherings on Saturday and the normal cleaning of the house, taking care of kids and doing the laundry there wasn't a lot of time for napping. But Christy said all of the going's on made her feel normal, and she didn't have time to dwell on her health or status of her cancer. Christy was then able to spend the day just with Nathan (Maria was at day care) because he wasn't feeling well on Sunday evening. It was a wonderful one on one time that I think they both needed. They rearranged Nate's room and went to the park. Christy also went on line for the first time since being home from the hospital. She read her mail and was able to send a few messages. She still loves getting every one of them. On Monday it was also Christy and Marks 8th Wedding Anniversary. There were no loud gongs or clanging symbols, no confetti or champagne. Just the sweet satisfaction that they made it through a year of challenge and strain and had the love to come through the other side. Their bond now is stronger than the gold they placed on each others finger. Christy and Mark probably enjoyed the peaceful evening, however I am gonna feel like a PARTY when the cancer is gone. Christy was supposed to have her doctor's appointment to review but it was cancelled because the doctor was sick. It's hard to wait and take a low-key approach when your life for the last 7 months has been chaos. Hopefully the appointment will take place by Friday. In any case Christy is taking walks and eating healthy, she will be in better shape for the 10K than any of us.
The Christy Yenkel 10K Walk for the Cure for Breast Cancer is 1p.m. on Saturday November 6, at Hudson Mills Metropark. Critical information is: there are pledge sheets available through Christy, or just keep a running list of pledges on a piece of paper including the name, address, phone, amount pledged and funds collected. You can get to the park a little early and transfer your data if needed. All checks should be made out to the American Cancer Society. All donations are tax deductible, payment at time of pledge makes collecting the funds easier. Christy has special pink pins to give to donors. Please meet coordinators near the main parking lot beginning at 12:45. The registration table will be staffed until 2:00 p.m. to take pledge forms. You may begin walking at any time. 10K is twice around the path. The path is 2.7 miles once around and is paved. Family members, children, leashed pets, as well as bikes, strollers, in-line skates are all welcome. Please wear clothing appropriate for the weather. There will be granola bars and water for walkers at the start of the course. Bears will be raffled at 3:00. If you have any other questions you can contact the wonderful person who is putting this whole thing together, Marjory Falconer, at: mefalcon@umich.edu or (734)647-5756.
11/3/99 I will start off by saying that I will update this page every Sunday evening. That will save you from wondering when there is a new update. If that changes I will say so on the Sunday update. As for the Yenkel's and Christy it was a good week. Christy took some really nice walks on different days with Sharon Michos, Jen Ryan, and her Thea Eleni. She is prepping seriously for Saturday. Christy is going to for sure do once around and see how she feels after in order to continue on. I think there is going to be quite the turn out. Cathy Bartson has been busy soliciting free drinks from Vruit, an organic fruit juice locally made, and water and oranges from Bushes etc. The weather looks like it will warm to the 50's and clear. I for one will be biking some of it, this butt may not be up to a 10K walk. I am also excited to write about Christy's progress health wise. She had appointments with her doctors Friday and Monday. They were very pleased and encouraged with her response to the chemo/stem cell transplant. They now want to continue as quickly as they can with the treatment process. Christy's counts are still a little lower than what they would like, so they are waiting for them to get better. Meanwhile, on Friday she will get marked up for her radiation treatments. The treatments will last for 7-1/2 weeks, everyday but Saturday and Sunday. Luckily the treatments only take about 10 minutes, its just the exhaustion of getting there, getting undressed, zapped, then dressed again and out of there. Christy won't get nausea but she will be a little fatigued, wouldn't you be if you had to deal with hospital parking in the winter? Anyway, the doctors will now go to the insurance company (CareChoices) to petition for the 2nd stem cell transplant before they can do it. This procedure will hopefully take place by the end of January or the beginning of February. The next stem cell however will be on an outpatient basis that will take 2-1/2 weeks, more chemo, probably more puking (only she gets to do it at home) and losing the hair again. So, unfortunately the cancer saga must continue into the new millennium, but I will choose to look at it as a positive ending to this nightmare of breast cancer. That the 2nd stem cell transplant will be the end of treatments, pokes, blood draws, and counts and the beginning of the rest of Christy's life!
11/14/99 Well, It's Sunday. O.K., I missed a week, I'm really sorry about that. But you might say Christy had a pretty normal, mommy do this, week. That is really kind of nice to hear actually. Nathan was sick with a virus and an ear infection. Maria is getting into everything and walking everywhere! So, with things a little calm right now Mark and Christy and the kids went to Illinois to stay the weekend with cousin Steve and Liz. But first I'll recap the Walk for the Cure 10K that was last weekend. There were about 40-50 people that came out and walked at Hudson Mills on a clear and mild temperature day, it was a bit windy but the trail is beautiful and grounds well maintained. Everyone made it around for the complete 10K. Barry's Bagels were delicious, water and fruit was from Bush's, and Vruit was a welcome refreshment. Please keep these company's in mind next time you shop, they graciously donated to our cause and we are so thankful. That day also brought many rewards. The main reward was being able to walk with our dear friend Christy and her family and share our common goal of a Cure. The other reward was the Money! And we raised a lot of it! In collected money alone the total was $8,100.00. There is still some pledges yet to be collected and when that happens, Marj believes the amount will raise to over $10,000.00. WOW! There are some great and incredibly generous people out there. I always come back to the thought of marathons put on by other people, years before ours. If it wasn't for those walkers and that money, Christy's treatment and cancer would be different today. We all walked and donated for the women of tomorrow, or next year, and as we all know it could be any of us. Thank you. On Friday, Christy had three doctor appointments. The first stop was a blood draw to check Christy's counts then meet with Dr. Chottiner, oncologist at St.Joe's. As it turns out, her counts are still too low to start radiation treatment. Christy has thelasemia (?) and she is a bit anemic anyway so it may take her a little longer for the counts to come back up. She will go back next Thursday and do another blood draw to check. Hopefully they will begin the radiation treatments in the next couple of weeks. On to the second appointment with Christy's surgeon who upon examining her was pleased to say everything looked smooth and negative. Her next appointment will be next April at her yearly mammogram. The third appointment was with radiation oncology where they did the last of the simulation process. Here they do the markings/measurements of where they will be radiating her neck and chest wall. She has a nice sharpie pen mark up the middle of her neck. Christy says she'll be wearing turtlenecks for awhile (thank goodness its winter). I say just draw a couple squiggle lines on both sides and maybe people will think its the latest tattoo fashion trend. Watch out Madonna. Christy is looking forward to attending "book club" with the girls on Tuesday night. I know the girls are looking forward to it. Christy is still working on the Thank you notes that she really wants to send out, it just takes a while to give each one the attention she really wants to give. She has been able to get out some e-mail responses and still loves getting the new ones. Have a nice week, and think good thoughts for another normal, mommy week.
12/15/99 Well, I'm back only to leave again for three weeks. I will update this status page after the new year and after I return from my vacation with my family. Speaking of family, Christy has been able to keep up with the many family outings in the last few weeks. Birthday parties, Maria turned 1, and it was a wonderful afternoon with family and a few friends. Christy has been able to do the annual Christmas shopping outing with her sisters for gifts for all of the children in her family. Decorate a Christmas tree, put up some decorations with the kids. Shop for presents for her own family and even have dinner with all her book club girl friends. Christy has been having the radiation treatments now for about three weeks. She is starting to have some skin irritations and uses special lotion twice a day. Christy says she doesn't know if she is getting tired from the treatments or just not getting as much rest as she probably should. Unfortunately when you are trying to heal yourself, body and soul, it is hard to have much left over for the kind of care children, husband, and house are used to. I know Christy would never ask, but I am, if any of you ever have any extra time during the day or evening, call her up and tell her your going to come over so she can sleep or take a walk, or just play with the kids for her. I will do this when I get back. Christy's radiation will go for about another 4 weeks I think, and her platelet counts are still lower than what the doctor would like to see.
To all of you, your gifts of prayer and help when called upon have been overwhelming. We are all blessed that we have each other. In this time of crises I know some of us had the chance to become closer with other friends they might not have known as well before. May this only continue and grow stronger. The larger the circle the more miracles happen. Have a blessed Christmas with your families and friends and a very Happy and Hopeful New Year. Bring it on year 2000!