Checking in!

Hi Family and Friends! I had to blog one more time before our next trip to CO soon! I've had lots on my mind the last couple of weeks - have been having problems w/a puffy lower left eye (see photo) and fighting that infection and keeping my pain under control! I think I mentioned in the last entry that I went to see my primary care physician, Dr. Boynton and he prescribed Cipro for the ear infection I thought I had. A few days passed and I still had the puffy eye, so I contacted Dr. Hepworth in Colorado and he prescribed Cleocin (antibiotic) and Prednisone (steroid). A few more days go by and I'm worried that the eye isn't looking any less puffy! My fear was getting up there and having the doctor say he couldn't do the debulking while I had an infection! So when I called up to Hepworths office w/my concerns, his Nurse Mary said she would speak to him and call me back - so then I was prescribed some Augmentin like 875mg! That is finally helping, and I have a couple days left of the steroids! I'm anxious to see Dr. Hepworth so he can "clean up" my ear some of all the dryness and scabing - gross! I am really scared of how I'll feel when I wake up in recovery - don't want to be hurting and suffering too much like I have been lately! Yikes!

I have found some more birthday photos that I want to include! First, I don't think I had told you what my friend Dorinda from Houston sent me! I have a new favorite show called The Little Couple - it's a reality show about two vertically challenged people (Bill and Jen) that are newlyweds! Bill has his own business and Jen is a Neonatologist (sp?) @ a hospital in Houston! Well, Dorinda has a friend whose daughter works on The Little Couple show, so she managed to send me a wonderful surprise for my birthday! Dorinda wrote a letter to Bill and Jen, along with a photo of me telling them what a fan I was and would they sign my birthday card that she enclosed! So they did and sent back an autographed photo too! Very cool - I loved it!

Here is a photo of me with my sister Celia and her husband Greg - they generously hosted my party @ their house! I wanted to add a photo that looks similar to one you've seen - but my nephew Mark looks so good, I had to post it! Here is a picture of my Mark making those "Mark-a-rita's" of his! I get after him for looking the other way when he adds the tequila!

Here are a couple more photos of my Hanzie just because he's so darned cute! We took him out to Cole Park the other day and it was sooo windy! (Hanz is sporting a new "Lion cut" that Mark did, so Hanz has a "mane" that would blow in the wind!) It was good just getting out of the house and letting Hanz enjoy the outdoors! Do you know what is in that tote bag I'm carrying? Anything that my baby might need while we're out! Doggie treats, his bowl, a bottle of water for each of us, some poop bags, and some wipes in case he gets anything on himself! He's high maintenance like his mommy! Hey, you can never be too prepared! I miss him already and we haven't even left! You should hear Hanz when Mark leaves to run an errand - Hanz howls such a mournful sound! After Hanz does that a few times, he'll lay down on the floor and stare @ the door until Mark gets home! I try to distract Hanz by tossing around a favorite toy for him to chase and it works sometimes! Lucky for us, his Uncle Jim and Aunt Shelley love him and take very good care of Hanz while we are in Colorado! His cousins Emme, Ripley, Katy and especially Bessie do a great job entertaining my Hanzie while he's visiting! I have to add that Jim and Shelley's friends Linda and Buddy live on the same property and Linda and Hanz adore each other, so that makes feel really good too! When we get to Jim's, we pass by Linda and Buddy's place first, and sometimes they are sittnig outside on lawn chairs, so we stop to say hello. Hanz practically jumps out the window to get to Linda, he's so excited to see her! Jim and Shelley live out in the country and have a huge fenced in back yard, so Hanz gets to run freely with the wind blowing in his hair as he chases a ball or one of his cousins! Jim tells us Hanz comes in exhausted @ the end of the day - walks into his large, wide cage that he sleeps in and just plops down for the count! We leave one of our t-shirts in his cage, so he can have our scent near him. Hanz is used to sleeping between our two head pillows in our bed! It does my heart good knowing my baby is being so well taken care of and Jim gives us updates or Shelley will text us a message saying Hanz is fine - but I miss him sooo much, waaaaah! Oh well, I just take it a day @ a time and know that it will all be over soon enough!

Thanks so much to all of you that are so generously thinking of us in prayer and making us feel like we are not alone in this! My debulking surgery will be @ Swedish Medical Center, and my Mom is coming with us this time, which is wonderful so that Mark will have some added support while I'm under! Of course it's an added treat for me too, having Mom w/us! I really dislike worrying her over all of this and sometimes I think it's worse being home and NOT knowing what's happening, than to actually be there in CO with us! We rented a suite, so we'll all be staying together! I hear I will be kept in the hospital 2 days, instead of the normal overnight that I do for an embolization. I think we'll be staying an extra day in town before leaving the following day for our trip home!
We'll be in touch!
Love,

Cyndi