Manic Monday? Blue Monday? NOPE! It's STEROID Monday!

Well, Monday's treatment day and I'd heard some bad stories about treatment day, but for me, treatment day is da' bomb! I feel superhuman on treatment day. I can control young children and eat food enthusiastically on treatment day! I can threaten teenagers with bodily harm if they don't obey me and believe that I could actually carry out the threat! I CAN GROCERY SHOP ON TREATMENT DAY! AND LIKE IT!
Our home computer crashed yet again last night--side effects of having Parker playing computer games for unnatural amounts of time throughout Spring Break. She just couldn't take anymore so she froze up and died, and now until we get a new computer or get the old girl cleaned up my blogs may be a little more infrequent, but since today is MONDAY, I was able to get down to Greg's store to do my blogging. Hooray!
So there were a lot of side effects of cancer today that didn't have anything to do with my actual body. All my kids are falling apart physically, and I'm beginning to think it may be psychosomatic for all of them because to me, they just don't seem that sick. Rachel and Hunter both came home early from school today, both with stomach ailments of mysterious nature, and though Kate made it through school, she is now often complaining of eye spots, leg cramps, unidentified bruises, and other maladies. How did I become the nurse instead of the patient? So far Tadman seems to be okay, and Parker has always had mystery pains so they are nothing new to him, but I am hoping they adjust and recover so they don't all flunk out of school so late in the year.
Now back to my pain... It's always fun to talk about the adventures of going to MSTI each week. Today while I was waiting I was able to put a good 10 or 11 pieces into a puzzle in the waiting area. If I could have only stayed all day I could have finished that sucker, but alas I had to do labs so I couldn't. The good news with labs is that my surgeon did a beautiful job putting in my port so that it's almost invisible to the human eye (unless that eye is a nurse's eye), but the bad news is, all the nurses have trouble accessing it to do my blood draws because it is indeed so well concealed. So today, for the sake of saving me the inconvenience of having to take blood from the veins in my arms, they had to stick a needle into my chest SIX times before they found the golden spot and got access to that tiny little port! YOUCH! But they were so nice. Really they are nice.
Then all the computers were down so they couldn't properly analyze the blood samples, so I had to wait awhile on that, so they sent me in to see my Oncologist. Umm, my doctor is not a happy man when his computer is malfunctioning, so it was an interesting visit. I'd say "my chest felt kind of weird this week, like a lot of activity was going on in that region. Is that a normal side effect?" to which he would reply, "I just don't understand why the computer guys just can't boot it up before we get here and see if it will work when we have a full load of patients. Why can't they do that? What's so hard about a trial run? Do you get that?" Then he washed his hands twice, his stethoscope once, listened to my lungs, and gave me a prescription for heartburn. But this is a doctor that I really like when his computer is working.
Back to the lobby to put in a few more puzzle pieces (so frustrating, yet addicting) and then I was called back to the CHEMO ROOM (imagine ominous music in the background as you read this).
While I was receiving my steroids and feel good anti-nausea medication, a nice little gentleman fetched me a warm blanket and a bagel with cream cheese and some juice. Apparently I will have to take advantage of treatment days when people offer to fetch me things since my family is lanquishing at home. The volunteers at MSTI seem quite chipper and healthy. While I was eating my bagel and breathing through my mouth since I still have a stuffy nose, my great friend Sarah Nokleby called my cell phone and when I told her I was at chemo she rushed down to enjoy it with me. Then we went to lunch, because food sounds fun on Mondays! Of course I had to pick ill children up from school first, but I did enjoy lunch immensely, both the food and the conversation, and that I owe to steroids. So thank you steroids.
And thank you to Sarah who patiently waited for the ambulance run, thank you to the Stewarts for the ultimate comfort food Sunday dinner yesterday, and to my other sweet friends for the phone calls, to Karla for the signed (BY IAN JOHNSON, ULTIMATE LOCAL CELEB) BSU bag (you know what I like, Karla) and the other encouraging jokes, songs, and notes, to my Aunt Mary who is far more ill than I am but still sending me messages of hope and encouragement, and to mom and my dear sister, Heather for never taking "no" for an answer ever. Thank you all for your lovely meals. My kids are in heaven and often fight off their pains with extra portions of dessert (which actually may explain some of those bellyaches, huh?) And even though Parker told me only 2 people asked about me at church (I didn't enquire, he volunteered) I know the rest of you just talked to Greg, Rachel, or Kate. I am feeling the love, do not doubt that. And thank you Jamie for subbing for my Sunday school class not once, but twice! I really appreciate you calling and doing it so willingly. I have, I think, the greatest family and friends in all the world, and I don't think that's just the steroids talking! Now go enjoy the rest of your Monday!!