Mary had a little watch
She swallowed it one day
And so she took some castor oil to pass the time away
The castor oil it did not work, the time it would not pass
So if you want to know the time, just look up Mary's uncle, he's a jeweller!
Tuesday, September 08, 2009
Tiny Angel Yoghurt Doll
I dreamed one night last week that a tiny angel yoghurt doll was trying to guide me to sleep.
She was in our bed, white and yoghurty, and only 5 cm high.
I think Dougal thought I'd completely lost it. She comes back every night to guide me to sleep. It's good that I've worked out that that is her role, cos sometimes I have a hard time sleeping. It's a nice feeling that someone has been sent to help me sleep.
Even is she is only a 5cm tall doll!
She was in our bed, white and yoghurty, and only 5 cm high.
I think Dougal thought I'd completely lost it. She comes back every night to guide me to sleep. It's good that I've worked out that that is her role, cos sometimes I have a hard time sleeping. It's a nice feeling that someone has been sent to help me sleep.
Even is she is only a 5cm tall doll!
Tuesday, September 01, 2009
almost 5 months old
UPDATED 11.25pm 7 SeptI've never done the "you are x months old" posts - about time I started!
Baby G, you will be 5 months old in 2 days.
And you are such a happy, cruisy, contented little baby boy.
You found your hands a little while ago, and they are an endless source of fascination for you now. And just today you discovered your tongue, and have spent hours rolling it round in your mouth and poking it in and out.
You love lying in your bouncinette when we are preparing and eating breakfast and dinner. You love being part of the family. You watch whoever is speaking and smile at us all.
You like watching Daddy and your brother getting dressed in the mornings.
Sometimes you like your bath, sometimes you hate it. But you like having had your bath, being all clean and dry and massaged and in your sleep attire.
You will tolerate tummy time for a few minutes. Actually your nanny got you to have your longest, least grizzly tummy time ever one day last week - we even think you enjoyed it!
You prefer lying on your back on the activity and playing with the rings. You have rolled from tummy to back, but only a few times, and you looked very surprised when you'd done it.
You like being in your exersaucer, it's a good height for you to watch what's going on around you. You will grab the steering wheel and you will dribble on your bunny.
You like getting your nappy changed, whoever's doing it (and I'm sure you've had 15 different people on nappy duty!) gets lots of smiles.
You start out your night sleeping in your cot, you'll do a good long stretch there - you'll go down any time from 6.30pm-10pm, and not wake till you're hungry, which will be 1.30-6am if you've gone down at 6.30pm, otherwise 6am.
After we've given you your bottle, we lie you down between us in our (superking) bed.
You'll resist sleep - you'll growl, talk, push your cheek against mine, hold my hand, dribble on my wrist, pull my hand to your mouth, put my fingers in your mouth, put your fingers up my nose... but Daddy and I will generally fall asleep and you'll finally succumb...
We love you our darling little boy!
Friday, August 28, 2009
Toxic Booju
I hope I'm allowed to put this photo up - it's of me breastfeeding Baby G when he's 6 weeks old :)
I'm now on a drug to dry up my milk. I can't be feeding my baby my toxic booju! (boob juice). Full of toxic chemotherapy drugs. I don't know if there'll be a safe point in my 3-week breaks between chemotherapy sessions where I will be able to breastfeed.
The medical oncologies told me not to even use the breastpump - I can't be getting toxic milk in the pump! And to be careful to not let any of my milk even get on my skin!
Wednesday, August 26, 2009
Dacarbazine
Notes from my last medical oncology appointment:
Histology showed this wasmelanoma. Role of chemotherapy in melanoma is a veryunusual one.
A number of drugs have beentried, none specactular.
There are two families of drugs: Dacarbazine is the most potent, then of the Taxines, Paclitaxel is the most effective.
They have chosen Dacarbazine for my treatment because the Paclitaxel doesn't go into the brain very well because the brain protects itself from chemotherapy drugs. Might be a bit leaky.
We give it on its own and we give it once every three weeks. Then I have three weeks' recovery.
We give it for nine weeks - 2 doses for it to work, ideally 3.
It takes half an hour to an hour to administer through an IV drip in the hand. That's the correct dose. How it works is it gets into the DNA and stops the cells dividing. If it's working and it is tolerable, we will plan to continue it as long as it's working. Can continue for two years, it's not a drug the body gets tired of.
First side effect is nausea on the day that it's given, 6-8 hours after it's taken. They said 6pm that night I might suddenly vomit and need district nurse to come and give me an injection (but this didn't happen, yay!)
Infection: it's the good cells that this drug is going to clamour. Watch out for a cold, sore throat, temperature - these are signs that I need to call the hospital.
I'm at more risk from bugs in my own system than from anyone else's bugs, but don't let anyone else with bugs visit.
I will need to do a blood test each Monday before each Tuesday chemotherapy session.
Histology showed this wasmelanoma. Role of chemotherapy in melanoma is a veryunusual one.
A number of drugs have beentried, none specactular.
There are two families of drugs: Dacarbazine is the most potent, then of the Taxines, Paclitaxel is the most effective.
They have chosen Dacarbazine for my treatment because the Paclitaxel doesn't go into the brain very well because the brain protects itself from chemotherapy drugs. Might be a bit leaky.
We give it on its own and we give it once every three weeks. Then I have three weeks' recovery.
We give it for nine weeks - 2 doses for it to work, ideally 3.
It takes half an hour to an hour to administer through an IV drip in the hand. That's the correct dose. How it works is it gets into the DNA and stops the cells dividing. If it's working and it is tolerable, we will plan to continue it as long as it's working. Can continue for two years, it's not a drug the body gets tired of.
First side effect is nausea on the day that it's given, 6-8 hours after it's taken. They said 6pm that night I might suddenly vomit and need district nurse to come and give me an injection (but this didn't happen, yay!)
Infection: it's the good cells that this drug is going to clamour. Watch out for a cold, sore throat, temperature - these are signs that I need to call the hospital.
I'm at more risk from bugs in my own system than from anyone else's bugs, but don't let anyone else with bugs visit.
I will need to do a blood test each Monday before each Tuesday chemotherapy session.
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
My first chemotherapy session
I had my first chemo session yesterday, which was fine, just loooong! We were supposed to meet with the oncologist at 9.30am yesterday, but didn't see her till 10.30am. The chemo was supposed to start after that and take 20 minutes. Well, all up we were there from 9.30am till 5pm!
They were really busy, I was just lying on a bed in the cancer day ward, reading or snoozing. George was there with me all day - he had thought he was going to get to work, but no.
They put a couple of bags of saline through my IV drip first to hydrate me, then the chemo drug - dacarbazine. It was fine, just liquid going through my vein in my hand.
They gave me a maxolon tablet before i left hospital to combat any nausea but said if I had nausea or vomiting to ring the district nurse who would come to give me an injection. But I was fine, so that's all good!
Just tired, but Baby G and therefore I did an 11 hour sleep.
My sister and 12 year old nephew have been up from Nelson since Monday, my nephew flew home at lunchtime and my sister flies home Friday 7pm. My sister from Tauranga and cousin from Auckland are flying down Friday to Sunday, yay!
They were really busy, I was just lying on a bed in the cancer day ward, reading or snoozing. George was there with me all day - he had thought he was going to get to work, but no.
They put a couple of bags of saline through my IV drip first to hydrate me, then the chemo drug - dacarbazine. It was fine, just liquid going through my vein in my hand.
They gave me a maxolon tablet before i left hospital to combat any nausea but said if I had nausea or vomiting to ring the district nurse who would come to give me an injection. But I was fine, so that's all good!
Just tired, but Baby G and therefore I did an 11 hour sleep.
My sister and 12 year old nephew have been up from Nelson since Monday, my nephew flew home at lunchtime and my sister flies home Friday 7pm. My sister from Tauranga and cousin from Auckland are flying down Friday to Sunday, yay!
Monday, August 24, 2009
Wellington on a Plate
I exhort you to go to a wellingtononaplate.org event!
We did Wellington on a Plate for lunch and are doing it again for dinner!
George and I went to Soi at Evans Bay Parade last night and it was O for Oarsome!
We walked with the buggy to Cafe Polo today - Larder was closed, I'm quite pleased, cos Polo was awesome!
For $25 each my sister and i got a plate of cauliflower, porcini and olive oil soup, followed by a choice of lamb on mash (me) or gnocchi with blue cheese and mushroom (my sister), then espresso creme brulee with a hazelnut biscotti. And I had a soy latte. YUM!
On the way home we went to Weta cave. It was a good walk for me - and hot! And a lovely lunch!
SOI Menu $29 each:
main: choice of crispy Asian pork: 5 spice free range pork belly complimented with Jasmine rice and Asian greens, fried shallots and chilli hoisin plum sauce
OR
forest mushroom risotto: trio of forest mushroom risotto with baby spinach, gremolata crumbs and shaved NZ parmesan.
OR panfried terakihi on truffle mash with shaved gremolata and capers.
George had the pork and I had the fish and both were utterly delicious.
Dessert: mini pavlova served with caramelised fruits, berry compote and freshly whipped cream.
They had no mini pavlova left, but we both had an apple and ginger crumble with a shot glass of pouring cream, also delicious.
And I had a Moscow Mule.
We did Wellington on a Plate for lunch and are doing it again for dinner!
George and I went to Soi at Evans Bay Parade last night and it was O for Oarsome!
We walked with the buggy to Cafe Polo today - Larder was closed, I'm quite pleased, cos Polo was awesome!
For $25 each my sister and i got a plate of cauliflower, porcini and olive oil soup, followed by a choice of lamb on mash (me) or gnocchi with blue cheese and mushroom (my sister), then espresso creme brulee with a hazelnut biscotti. And I had a soy latte. YUM!
On the way home we went to Weta cave. It was a good walk for me - and hot! And a lovely lunch!
SOI Menu $29 each:
main: choice of crispy Asian pork: 5 spice free range pork belly complimented with Jasmine rice and Asian greens, fried shallots and chilli hoisin plum sauce
OR
forest mushroom risotto: trio of forest mushroom risotto with baby spinach, gremolata crumbs and shaved NZ parmesan.
OR panfried terakihi on truffle mash with shaved gremolata and capers.
George had the pork and I had the fish and both were utterly delicious.
Dessert: mini pavlova served with caramelised fruits, berry compote and freshly whipped cream.
They had no mini pavlova left, but we both had an apple and ginger crumble with a shot glass of pouring cream, also delicious.
And I had a Moscow Mule.
Thursday, August 20, 2009
Gettin' wiggy wit' it
Wig photos:
Shelley and I got our hair shaved off yesterday!
We had a fun day. We started with getting our makeup done at the MAC counter at Kirks, then went to The Powder Room in Newtown to get our heads shaved. They made us hot chocolates and a friend brought chocolate muffins. A couple of other friends turned up for support too. We told them they had to have their heads shaved too but they piked! lol!
We had photographer Adrian Heke there to document the shave, he donated his time - on his birthday! He said we look beautiful in the photos - we felt beautiful!
Shelley and I had lunch at Kiallis in Newtown then she brought me and Hawea home in time for Leanne to take us out to my wigmaker in Petone for him to make a template of my head so my new copper wig will fit properly.
I bought the blonde wig while there - I get a $2200 government grant, which is enough to cover both the copper and the blonde wig, yay!
I heard from the blood and cancer centre today that I have an appointment at 9.30 on Tuesday morning with a medical oncologist and start my chemo straight after that.
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