The "C" Word...preventing re-spawns

Well... the raid on my cancer for the most part was very successful. The tumor was removed & they only took out two lymph nodes. The first lymph node showed to have cancer but at first glance the second did not. This reassuring the doctor that the cancer had not spread to anywhere else. And in this perfect world I would just have radiation & then be done with it....

However in THIS world is turns out that after further testing of the second left sentinel lymph node  #2 positive for carcinoma.This means that the cancer could now be working in my lymph node system. Just a quick 411... The lymph nodes is what travels everything to the rest of your body. So YES this is serious. And to top it off the cancer that I have is called metaplastic carcinoma. Apparently this is a very aggressive form of cancer. They are even talking about MAYBE going back in to remove more tissue & ALL of my lymph nodes. This however is the worst case scenario.

What does this mean moving on from now... Looks like instead of "just" doing radiation, I will also have to undergo chemo. I will have to head back to the hospital to get what they call is a port. This will allow me to get blood drawn, & get my treatments will little to no pain. From what everything that I've talked with friends, family, doctors, nurses... everyone is affected differently. I have been told that chocolate chip mint ice cream is the best way to get back my taste buds after treatment.

After all the chemo treatments are done, then it's back to having radiation. Which I will be getting about 30 days of this.

On an up note... My awesome mommy is coming up to drive me to & from the hospital next week when I get my port. PLUS, that following week (which is my birthday) she is coming up to sit with me during my chemo.  Even though everything can be so overwhelming, I thank God that I have people that give support & are there when I need them. Though HIM and them, I can make it thew anything.

P.S. - Next week I will be making a big change. 💟

"C" word... Dungeon strat

Meet with the doctor to go over the plan of action to take down this boss named cancer. According to
the CT scan it seems to have only spawned in a very small area of my breast. So thankfully we are going use the lumpectomy strat.

According to Dr. Green, and his small team of five, he will put me under and proceed to remove the cancer. Then inject a blue dye that will help to see if any of the limp-nodes could have gotten infected. Kind of like what the CT scan did, but more. He will then be removing anywhere from one to four possible nodes in order to test them. Hopefully they will all come back cancer free and the battle on my tatas will be over. However... if they any one of them come back to be infected then they too will be removed.

Providing the dungeon area is cleared & everything is removed, I should then only have to do radiation treatment. This is to keep any from coming back & re-infecting me again.

My doctor is very optimistic & feels that everything should turn out great. I love the fact that he's very confident in knowing that we can go with a lumpectomy & radiation. Talking with people, I had heard so many stories of doctors just wanting to remove everything. To be honest I'm just a bit too vain to loose my breast. So to say the least, I was very happy that he was feeling good about just doing that lumpectomy. Mind you, I would be lying if I didn't say I was scarred to death, but I'm working really hard to keep my faith that in God's hands everything will be fine.

Once again I would like to thank all my friends who have reached out to. Your calls & messages have meant the world to me. Thank you to my family and sons. My youngest came up to see me & for the fist time in about 3 years I had all three of my boys under one roof. Special thanks to my Mom who drove 2.5 hours one way, just to sit with me to get the news on my surgery. Plus she will be here again this Wednesday to be with till I'm up and well again. God couldn't have given me a better Mom then the one I have <3 And of course, my handsome boyfriend Michael. Even with the crazy hours he has at work, he always found the time to support me. He's always there when I need him and he is the rock that I hold onto when I feel I'm about to fall.

Hope everyone has a blessed week and I will be back more updates. 

The "C" word... latest updates

Well... this has been what seems to be a no-stop week. However it kind of starts off with last week, and that is where I will start.

I've met my doctor that seems to be in charge of the future of my tatas. We sat down, went over the possibilities of what can happen. He explained that hopefully we will just do a lumpectomy & maybe some radiation,but of course we discussed the slim possibilities of a full mastectomy. Then we set me up with appoints & apparently I get a cancer buddy. She is someone that has already gone though this & she has gotten her masters in helping people with understand what is happening.

Now this brings us to this week. After calling my kids & letting them know what was happening, I decided to open up to social media. To say the least my kids are very supportive & my son even dropped everything just to come up to see me for a day that I was off. The out pour of friends & support from everyone was awesome. I couldn't ask for a better support team, & I love that people reaching out to me is very overwhelming (in a good way of course).

My awesome son Colby came up on Tuesday morning with his friends. I had to be at work that morning, but he came to my work to see me. It's such a blessing to know that he felt the need to come see me. I don't thing even he knows how much it really meant to me. Wednesday was my appoint for my CT Scan. I had to be at the hospital at 8:00 & I wasn't even able to have any food or (gulp) coffee before my test. Colby had gotten up & of course went with me for my test. They have you drink this nasty stuff, OMG - I can't even describe how it made me feel a bit ill. When we went into the room for the test, they put you on long table & inject iodine into your system. It gives you a warm feeling from your head all the way down. Plus you get the taste of metal in your mouth. They move you though a tube & the process is over before you even know it. Afterward the awesome nurse even made me a cup of coffee & brought it right to me.

The following day was my appointment with the rehabilitation part of everything. Apparently, the doctor will be removing 2-3 lymph nodes from under my arm. This is so that they can test them for cancer. Let's pray that doesn't happen, because that would be very bad. However with this procedure, there is a chance that I can get lymphedema later in life. Lymphedema is swelling of the arm, hand, fingers, chest, or back on the side where you had your surgery. It can be very uncomfortable. However I did get to meet my new friend Dolly. She cam in to say hi and sit and talk with me while they where getting thing together. She's a very sweet lady and brought me a care package.

 Between family, friends, the best boyfriend EVER,

 I have the strongest support group that anyone can have. 

I just want to thank everyone has reached out in support & love. 

With God and you, I know that there is nothing that can hold us down.

The "C" word

A couple weeks ago was a normal series of physicals. Doctor appointments, mammograms, & of course the yearly girly check up. For the most part everything was perfect, I'm in better shape then most women 1/2 my age. However there was a some anomalies with my mammogram.

As they sat and explained that I would need a biopsy and that 85% of time it turns out to be nothing more then fatty tissue. I needed the biopsy only because this was my first mammogram, & they needed to document anything unusual. This way next year they know not to worry unless anything changes.

So... last week I went in for my big day. As nervous I was, I still had all the love and support from my family & of course my awesome boyfriend, who took the whole day off just to be with me. The nurses & doctors where awesome and they expanded everything that was going to happen. The doctor preforming the procedure even took the time to pray & put my mine at ease.

Everything went very smoothly. I couldn't have asked for a better team. I was relaxed & for the most part didn't feel a thing. It all was done and over with before I even realized it was even happening. After it was over, they explained that my primary doctor would have the results by the up coming Wednesday. Then I left with my new tiny pillow & three very pretty roses, and had a relaxing day with Michael watching TV & hanging out with him. Over all a great day. Did I mention that he got me the cutest stuff kitty too.

Then the call came early, just this past Monday (not Wednesday). My doctor called and asked me to come in. I asked why & she informed me that it was indeed cancer. My minded is shocked... the dreaded "C" word.  I had just finished working out, so I got dressed and heading in for the fateful meeting with her. She explained that this is a very common form, but still had to get me an appointment with a surgeon ASAP. In just a matter of weeks, I've gone from just a routine of years check-up to OMG - I need a surgeon, collecting doctor's notes for work, talking about possible medical disability.  I NOW have a life threatening object in my body. My mind is in circles & racing out of control. My whole life I've always been for the most part in charge of my destiny, but now I'm not.

Today is going to be appointment with my surgeon. This is the day we will know our options and the course that we will take in order to get over this. I really do know that I'm in God's hands and that he is the one in control. I would be lying if I didn't say that every nerve in my body feels like still exploding with emotion, but I am for the most part trying to stay calm. I also still have the support and love of my family & of Michael. I couldn't ask for a better support team. I will post updates as I get them & as soon as I can.

It's been a bit of time since I've posted about how I came to be where I am.
So, lets play a game of "actual true facts about Kim".

Some people may think that I've been a southern girl my whole life. Honestly,  I've only lived in the south for less than 20 years give or take. I was actually born in Neptune, New Jersey. Yes folks I'm a born yankee,  and try not to hate me for it. To be honest,  with all the moving I have done in my life, I've never considered myself to any one region.

Age 2 to about 8.  Mom and I lived in Florida, she met Jim (Dad) and then we lived in Birmingham, Washington State. Right around 6th grade we all moved back to Florida,  where I lived for the most part in Fort Lauderdale, FL. I didn't leave Florida till I was about 34 years of age, to come live in Franklin,  North Carolina. A big chunk of my family was here so that was part of my reasoning for coming here. Between the time of then to now, I did live for about 4 years in Indiana, and I only lived in Birmingham Alabama for 3 years. As much as I would have loved to have seen my friend in Mobile AL, I never did get a chance to visit her town, like ever. Learned the hard way that you need to make time for family and friends when you can, cause you may miss the chance. Now I currently live in Valdese, NC where I love. It's close to stores, events, dancing, car shows and I'm still close enough to see my family in Franklin when I want.

I've gotten most of my schooling in Florida where I attended middle and high school (Go SHS Dragons). As a single mom, I worked, raised my son and still got an Associate in Science Degree in Communication Arts. All three of my children were born in Florida and raised in the warm Florida sunshine. The reasoning for my move to NC was to give my children a safer and cleaner life. Gangs, drugs, and violence were escalating every year. I gave up my career and the life I knew to make a better life for my children.

I've always worked hard, there were times that I've gone without eating so my kids could get a full meal. I saved every penny and continued to work as much as I could. The first few years in NC where hard, we lived in a small mobile home. I had just enough to pay for it out right, it wasn't pretty, but I knew we would always have a roof over our heads. I used part of my tax returns to up date it and make it pretty decent home. As kids moved out and/or went to school I tried to find my way in Alabama. I met some awesome people, but it really was not the place for me.

Here I am in Valdese,  NC and I'm happier than I've ever been. For a time I lived in a "very affordable" apartment. It wasn't the greatest, but it was nice and enabled me to live on my own. Also it enabled me to afford my first nice car, a PT Cruiser. I had mentioned to my boyfriend that I was looking for a car and he had found that one. I'm not fond of hand outs, so I don't personally accept them, so I make sure I pay for everything that I own. Plus my niece had been renting my house in Franklin, so that also helps out too. Currently I now own another house,  here in my home of Valdese. It's a fixer upper, but I like doing stuff like that. 

My niece and her husband's van had blown the engine and they had lost their only vehicle. Having two children, my great nephew & great niece, whom I love I wanted to make sure they had a reliable car. I remembered that my boyfriend was thinking of selling his Reatta, so asked how much he was interested in getting it for. It was a fair and affordable, so I sold my PT Cruiser to my niece. I paid in advance for the car and for all the parts to repair it. 

Write your story and leave a link, it's fun to get to know new people and how their live has come to be.

P.S. Michael Bassett for President

First Room Redecorating

More and more things keeps getting better.

I finally feel like I'm making real progress on my first room re-decoration. All the walls & ceilings had to be patched & joint compounded with 3 layers. I may have inhaled about 3 pounds of dust from everything. After all that, I primer everything with Killz oil base. Wasn't too sure about how old the paint was, so I'm not taking any chances with it being lead base.

Now most people would just have been happy with painting the walls, ceiling, trim and moved on with life. Well... I did paint the ceiling and trim white. I painted the walls a very pale blue, & then went over the baseboards and door trim with bright white enamel paint. This helps with keeping clean, plus it seems to give it fresher look.

On one wall that had a cut out I painted in a box and added shelves to hold my son's things. Plus there is plenty of room for his dog's kennel at the bottom. On another wall I decided to paint strips. Just because I thought that it would be an added point of interest. It's nothing too fancy, but just a step above boring.

Now that is left is the new windows, that should be coming in next week and finish adding in the pictures, new futon, floor rug and curtains Later down the road all the hardwood floors will have to be refurbished. But, that is a project for a later time.

As my first project is getting closer to being completed, I'm finding out how much I've missed being a home owner. For way too long I've been throwing away my money paying rent. When in the end there is nothing to show for it. No way to get any of your hard earned money back. It finally feels good to invest my time, money, and energy into something that will in the long run pay off. Even if for some reason I never sell, then the work I do here will be mine for as long as keep it.

I've had such a huge out pore of support from my friends, family and loved ones. They really have encouraged me to let me know how well my work was. There where times I would be discouraged, but someone was always there telling me how great I was doing. All of that meant so much and I love how no matter how far I am from my friends and family, they always seem to be right next to me.

Also... this is Leo. My awesome boyfriend saved him from the highway off ramp. I know you are suppose to just take him across the street, but the traffic was too much. Luckily I have a forest behind my house. Lets all wish Leo the best of luck on  his new ventures in the woods. I may never see him again, but I will remember him fondly. Especially that part where he peed on me in the car LMAO

You Teach Me - I'll Teach You...

It's been an interesting past few weeks. Been working on my new home. Today will be finishing up the primmer in my son's room. Hopefully going to start the ceiling and walls tomorrow. I've started the patch work in the guest room. Found out that I have to replace some of the dry wall due to water damage. I'm pretty sure it's from and old leak and from the window. Good thing the windows will be replaced hopefully soon.

My stress levels have also been an all time high. Between politics, starting a new game (Pokemon GO) and trying to keep up a friendship that seems to be one sided. I've been more then my fair share of feeling stressed.

Twice in the past week I've been blocked, which as far as I know is very strange for me. The first was a long time friend of the family. He apparently didn't like facts being presented to dispute his stand on politics. I was a bit shocked, but realized that if someone can handle the truth, then maybe they need to stay away from people who will always be truthful.

My second block was by my ex's girlfriend. Over the past year he and I have been trying very hard to work on getting back to our original friendship. Before the mistake of dating, yes dating a friend will almost always be a mistake, we where best of friends. He and I have done everything to try to make this transition easy for the new people in our lives. I've explained very early to my boyfriend that my friendship with my ex was important. To loose what we had before would be a crying shame. I'm very lucky to have an understanding love. Hasn't been so easy on the other side.

I'm not sure she understands that in no way I'm a threat and would just like to have my old friend back the way it was. She is younger, prettier, probably smarter, and seems to be a way better gamer. She makes him happier then he ever was with me. She has a great family and has given more then I ever could. I just wish that she didn't hate me, just because I happen to be an ex in his life. I would understand if I was a horrible person, but I'm not. If I have offended her, then I apologize, but it would be best to talk rather then just choose to not like someone, or shut the door on them without even giving a person a chance.

As for my new game, Pokemon GO, it's is awesome. I don't recommend it for young ones, unless as parents you are willing to supervise. It's given my son and I a chance to walk and talk and bond as we hang out catching pokemon LOL. As most of you know, lots of stupid people out getting themselves killed over it. It's a game, don't play and drive, don't walk into traffic and please for the love of God keep and eye open for you surroundings. Outside of the warning, it's a great way to meet fellow trainers, get some walking done, and pull yourselves out of the house. I can't wait till the update, when we can start trading, and battling one on one. Looking forward to meeting new people and have more fun with my son.

The round up - Life is way to busy, entertaining and too short to not get along with people. As part of the human race, it's important that we support each other and stand up for one another. No matter who wins the election, who dislikes you, or what you chose to occupy your time. Do it to best that you can be and do it with honor.

New in the future of big changes for me.

Driving a crossfire <woot>

Well, it's been a bit over a year since I've made the big jump to be on my own. So much has happened and so many changes in my life and how I feel about things.

When I first moved here, I was afraid that my life and my dreams where just going to disappear. That the important people that I loved would one day just walk away out of my life. I had to life with so many regrets and so many ups and downs from moving. I've had to make new friends and find new interest for my life. The only thing that I was sure of was that I knew I had to develop more as an individual.

Mommy visiting

Since in the time of a year, I've had my heart broken, lost some friends and lost a job that I enjoyed doing. I also have made new friends, got my heart mended, and found a better job that is more rewarding in funds and quality of management. During my times here, I've had one son stay with my for a few weeks, another come visit me, and one that needed a place to stay and still has not to leave yet. LOL I've had family come visit, sometimes for a day and sometimes for a few days. I've started taking up shag dancing, going to wine tastings, and trying to get back into painting again.

I've met an awesome man who never leaves me feeling lost or confused. He encourages me to be strong and independent, but he also never leaves me feeling lacking or unappreciated. He has shown me that I can count on him, but I don't need to. He's shown me that I can make myself happy and in turn I am a happier person to be with. I'm not dependent on being with him, but he is an extension of my happiness that I am so very glad to have in my life.

Now, after a year I've done some pretty hard looking at what I wanted in my life and what I didn't
want. I knew that I've always craved to make sure that I've had a permit fix on my life. For the longest time, I thought that meant that I had to be married in order to feel confident with my future. I've began to realized that wasn't the case at all. In fact it's completely the wrong reason to get married. I still need that feeling of having confidence in my future. So I'm thinking that it was time to make my own step to a permanent future.

New House <bites nails>

I've just made an offer on a 3 bedroom, 1 bath house in a quite little town. It's about the half way point between where I am now and where my awesome boyfriend is living. Which is also where my shag club meets for dancing LOL. The house is pretty dated and really needs a lot of upgrades in the looks department. I'm really hoping that this is what God has planed for me. The structure of the home is very sound and the roof looks to be in very good condition. I'm extremely exited of my new venture in my future. It's the first real step that I've taken in walking away from my past and stepping into the light of a new life. A life that is about me growing a person and as an independent.

Family, Friends, and Drinking...

Finally got to hit up the monthly wine tasting in town. Must say that it was pretty awesome. Being the new person, I didn't know anyone, so I did like any healthy person does, I clinged to the attendent serving the wine. It was his first time serving that venue, so we where both noobies. However I'm looking forward to next month, and maybe I might talk to someone else. LOL

After wine tasting, my son and I met up with my friends at the Cressent Moom Cafe. Found a bartender that took the time to make my a Lifesaver drink. If you like sweet drinks then you will love this. Every time I have one, it still takes me back to the day a bartender introducded me to it. That was an awesome night, and such a long time ago.

Anyways as it turns out the band that we came to see wasn't playing that night. So we took off the the Iron Thunder Saloon. It's a biker bar, as it's location is right next to the Harly Davidson Bike Dealership. The waitresses are dressed slutty, and the band was awesome, and my friends are even better. Have to say, I also enjoyed having my son hang out with us.

We didn't stay as long as we liked, having work and all that adulting stuff we have to do. But it was a great time by all.