I can't believe I have not written a blog post in over 6 months - I apologize. Frankly I was a little discouraged. Ten days after I wrote my last post I ended up in the hospital with an infection and had to have one of the implants removed. I thought "Are you kidding me?" I didn't get to go to the Komen Race for the Cure and I barely made it to one of my best friends son's wedding on April 27th. It was pretty scary actually - my fever was over 103 and my blood pressure dropped to 50 over 30 while in surgery. But I recovered quickly and begged the doctors to let me out of the hospital so I could get to that wedding. I hate to miss a good party! We took a much needed trip to Colorado less than one week post-surgery with Clint and Clair which was good for my mind, body and soul.
I had a good summer and got to play lots of golf. August 23rd I went back in to surgery to get either a new tissue expander or an implant. Unfortunately I received neither. When they got in there they found a strange substance which they thought was infection, even though I did not have any symptoms. So they cleaned me out and closed me up. They took 4 cultures and all of them came back negative. They believe the substance was due to a piece of mesh from a previous surgery being left in me. I cried. I'm cool with pretty much everything that has been thrown at me as long as I have some idea of what to expect - waking up to nothing being done, I was frustrated.
October brought a joyful wedding, a fun fashion show and another surgery. Our son Ben married the love of his life - Cally - on October 5th. It was one of the best nights of our lives. I thank God our sons have found such beautiful, loving, Christian women. I adore having daughters!
October 12th Dan and I had the pleasure of walking in the Stars of Pink Fashion Show. The event is hosted by the Pink Ribbon Connection, a not-for-profit organization that provides free support to breast cancer survivors of Indiana. This year they celebrated their 25th Anniversary with models representing 1 to 25 years of survivorship. I was the 1-year survivor. I had 40 people come to support me and this wonderful organization. It meant so much to me to see all their smiling faces. The picture below is from show.
I went back in for surgery on October 21st to get another tissue expander. I'm happy to report everything went fine. I am hoping and begging that I can have my final surgery before the end of the year. I've certainly met my insurance deductible for 2019!
As October and Breast Cancer Awareness month comes to an end I thank God for all the fabulous support there is for breast cancer survivors. It's astonishing how many people it has affected. Friends, check yourself every month! One of my best friends was diagnosed this year and she said she wouldn't have caught it if I hadn't told her about my experience and what to watch for. She said I saved her life… makes me cry every time I think about it.
My devotion today was "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength". Nothing in life is certain. We can't stop or control things that roll our way. We can however make the choice to let our souls rest in God. That is what I choose to do every day - trust in him and live every day to the fullest.
xo
