FINALLY an Update:)

Sorry for being a slacker-I've been a bit drugged, exhausted and sore (and slightly unmotivated LOL)... BUT I got my catheter and staples removed yesterday so today is a new SUNNNNNNNY day!!!

Overview of the week:

Surgery Day-Don't remember too much (thanking God for making our brains be protective of memories that aren't too beautiful). We got to the hospital super early and I was sent back to do all the final pre-op fun stuff (IV, lovely blood clot prevention hose-everyone should get a pair!!, and in my pretty surgery garb). They let my family come back and give me loves before they wheeled me off to LaLa land. The last thing I remember is the anesthesiologist telling me they were giving me something in my IV that would make me relax and then they'd give me the heavy duty stuff in the OR. Obviously relaxed me ALOT because I don't remember the rest:) Luckily I don't remember waking up because apparently it wasn't pretty-they had to heavily sedate me because I wasn't handling the pain very well (told ya I was a wuss!!).

Poor Ben and my mom were about to rip the walls down. My surgery lasted less than 3 hours and the doctor came out to give them a great report and said they would get to see me in about an hour. 4 hours later they finally moved me to back to Pre-Op so they could see me. I remember the nurse saying, "We're going to let your mom and husband in to see you because we can't hold them back anymore." and I thought, "Well I don't care if they see me in a hospital gown-they've seen me in worse." thinking that they were worried about privacy (good drugs).

Apparently I decided to be Miss Independent and refuse nurses' help and moved myself from the operating gurney to my hospital room bed LOL:) I slightly remember that-I wasn't in any pain and saw no reason for them to need to help me. Definitely not having any trouble with the pain at that point!!!

The rest of the hospital time is kind of fuzzy and all sort of runs together. I remember the nurses coming in after my mom and Ben had left for only a few minutes and they got me moved to the chair-I bawled because I got lightheaded and was scared because Ben wasn't there and the nurses just left the room. Gotta love the immediate menopause hormones!!!

My family was SOOOOOO awesome!! They fought off the mean nurses, rallied around the nice ones, kept my ice chip cups full, and always made sure my gown was closed in the back when we went for walks. I was on the floor with the geriatric patients so I had races with all the old men:) I was so blessed to never have a moment where I was left alone (other than a few tiny minutes when people needed food breaks)-my family was great. I was surrounded by Ben, my mom, Papa (and I KNOW Nana was in the room every single day!! Handing out gold stars to the good nurses), my dad, Ben's mom, my babies each day, and my bestest Aly who came up from Texas to be my awesome nurse (LOVE YOU forever my friend!!!), and awesome awesome awesome visitors and sweet phone calls (once they finally put a phone in my room). Thank you everybody that came to see me and my family, and kept our room alive:)

My doctor came to check on me each morning with his sweet nurse and came in on Wednesday with awesome news-my path reports all came back CLEAR!!!! No cancer in the lymph nodes:) He was worried because one of the lymph nodes was inflamed but was happy to report NADA!!!! He also felt my liver and other organs and said everything felt great!!!! PRAISE GOD!!! Thank you for the prayers felt from everyone-we did it!

Ben's aunts and dad have been here this week helping us keep the fort running (my mom and Ben's mom, and his other two aunts kept it running last week and did an awesome job-it was so peaceful knowing I didn't have to have a single worry while I was gone), and we've been so blessed that they will be here for the remainder of the month!! I'm still not able to pick up Mr. Chunky Pants (my boy grew while I was gone!! And seriously, 10x more handsome-as if that was even possible!!!) and my lil angel diva is too busy for this gimp so its wonderful to have all the extra hands and know I can take the time I need to heal. Thank you again to everyone that has been bringing meals-they have been soooo delicious and fill our tummies!!!

I have my post-op appointment with the radiation oncologist on the 12th to review any possible radiation gameplan (at this point it will most likely be sweet and short to just ensure we zap every single cancer cell that could possibly be hiding anywhere, and then prevention since the radiation will cut the recurrence rate by 50%-I'm game!!!). My post-op appt with the GYN oncologist (my surgeon) is the 28th. I was thankful to get rid of my "zipper" (staples) and "tubies 'n' bag" (my catheter) yesterday-moving around ALOT easier, and Bella even said today, "YAY no more bag for Mama!!!!" She is my little sunshine through it all and Mr. Man never stops smiling-the good Lord knew exactly what we needed when he blessed us with these babies!! Ms. Thang keeps us on our toes and doesn't allow any wallowing (everyone needs an anti-wallowing princess in their lives!!!) and Handsome Boy wakes up with a smile that takes up his whole face and doesn't stop til he decides there is a tiny speck of empty spot in his tummy that must be fed faster than pronto:) Its going to be a beautiful Mother's Day this year-thanking God for all the mama joy he has given me and my family.

Gonna go soak up some sun with my lil miss!